Fast Food Calorie Counter

The Washington Post has a nifty fast food calorie counter that's definitely worth checking out. Their list of fast food chains is a little limited, but it does include the really big names. Being that we're on the West Coast, we were a little disappointed that In-N-Out wasn't included on their list. But then again, who counts calories when they're ordering a double-double! Users pick a menu and then add items from that menu and watch the calorie counter add up like the nation's deficit. The only problem is that when you switch restaurant menus, the counter resets. Happy counting.

Small Charges

It's not uncommon to whip out the plastic and charge a $3 cup of coffee. Nor is it out of the ordinary to pay for movie tickets with a credit card. Because of this new trend of small purchases made with credit cards, more card companies are no longer requiring consumers to sign for items less than $25. Their reason? To increase the speed and convenience for consumers to make purchases with their plastic. Some experts are concerned, however, that many consumers will wind up paying more or find themselves in deeper debt by virtue of charging more. If you don't immediately pay off that $3 coffee, the interest could wind up charging you a whole bag of beans. Click here for more details.

Married Women Not Happy With GOP

It seems that the Grand Ole Party is loosing its hold on married female voters according to an Associated Press-Ipsos poll conducted this month. The poll found that support for a Republican candidate is now evenly divided between the two parties among married women with children in the house. The news is something GOP leaders will need to consider during a nearing election year as married women constituted 18 percentage points in 2002 and 14 percentage points in 2004 in favor of the Republican party. Married moms have become a volatile swing group just as Democrats need to gain 15 GOP-held House seats and six in the Senate to win control of Capitol Hill. With other GOP scandals blanketing the Washington-based party, 2008 should shape up to be one unpredictable year. Click here to read the article.

Couples' Halloween Photo Contest

On Monday, we're going to launch our first annual couples Halloween photo contest. All you'll need to do is submit a picture of you and your spouse decked out in your best/favorite Halloween costumes. Once all the entries have been received, we'll post the eligible pictures for visitors to vote on. The winners will be decided by popular vote at the end of the month and will receive a really cool gift, plus an opportunity to be our featured couple in the "10 Thing I've Learned From Marriage" column. Full details will be revealed on Monday. In the meantime, dig through your old pictures over the weekend or create new ones with fresh new costumes. Happy Friday and have a great weekend!

Pirates Are Popular

If you wanna stand out this Halloween season, don't be a pirate. Apparently, pirate costumes are flying off the shelves for kids and adults. Maybe this article from USA Today has skewed stats because they didn't take into account Talk Like a Pirate Day. Who knows, but to be safe stay away from the Jack Sparrow look-a-like this year.

Also, we wanted to give you a heads up on our Couples Halloween Costume Contest coming up. More details will follow soon, so check back and start digging through your pictures to submit a winner. We're even offering treasure!

Mullets and Frozen Pucks

It can only be one thing--hockey season drops the puck tonight! Granted, most major sports media are talking about the baseball playoffs and how great the Manning brothers are, but just because the NHL no longer gets the primetime treatment doesn't mean it should be forgotten. Want to hear a little secret? Hockey games are a cheap date! And they're about as exciting as any live sporting event gets. You can even get tickets for under $20. Just as we warned wives when the soccer World Cup neared, this is your warning. The sports world is picking up steam with basketball just around the corner. Men, keep this in mind as your days fill with sports-related commitments and your mullets grow--remember that while your team needs your support, your wife needs you too. Well, maybe after the shoot-out. Click here for the NHL homepage.

Take a Trip to Africa

Wanna take a trip to Africa to see all the wild life, but can't afford it? No problem. The National Geographic website has a live streaming webcam pumping in images from Botswana. The camera zooms and pans to give you a variety of looks. You might find yourself reaching for some bug spray however, after seeing all the critters zipping around at night. Gotta love all the noises too. Click here to check it out.

Onion Goggles

It's Monday and you're probably preparing for a week's worth of dinners. You see several items with onions on the menu and your eyes begin to water, even before your knife ever cracks one open. Well, worry not. With these Onion Goggles you can get ready to prep your onion soup without feeling the burn. We don't usually blog about products, but we thought this one was too out-there to pass up. Do you have onion-cutting secrets. Let us know. Oh, click here to order your own Onion Goggles.

GeoGaming?

April Pennington wrote about GeoCaching a few weeks back as a date idea (http://www.hitchedmag.com/article.php?id=56) and now we've come across this GeoGame. It's called Crossroads (click here) where players play in city streets and try to capture intersections. The website has a gameplay grid set up in NYC, again see the website for the details. The game lasts 30 minutes. If anyone tries this, let us know how it goes.

Wine & Hamburger Helper

Why wait until the weekend for you and your honey to pop the cork on a bottle of vino? Oh, you don't have time to make an appropriate meal? Forget that...the OC Register has an article that offers some helpful parings. They tell you what wine to share with tuna casserole, hamburger helper, meatloaf, a Hungry Man turkey dinner, pot pies and other quick dishes. Click here to check it out.