6 Ways to Date for Next to Nothing
Dating can be expensive, especially if you’re running out of ways to impress the ladies. However, it doesn’t have to be that way. Dating need not always involve expensive trips to the movies, restaurants or clubs. Online dating site MrRight.com.au shares 6 cheap and inexpensive date ideas that won’t stretch your budget.
Idea #1: Go for a walk in the park
It’s fun, entertaining and relaxing - let the beautiful surrounding wow your date. You’ll also burn calories and tone your legs. And if you’re feeling adventurous, you could spend the day hiking in the wilderness.
Idea #2: Go star gazing
Take your date out on a warm summer night to stare up at the stars. You could guess the names of far flung constellations, banter about star signs or simply take in the beauty of a moon-lit sky. Admittedly, this date ideas is one for true romantics.
Idea #3: Chill at your favourite coffee shop
Find a cosy coffee shop, order your favourite hot drink and talk for hours on end. The barista is unlikely to press you for another drink even if you just have one order. And if you’re sat in a busy street, you could also engage in a bit of ‘people watching’ – it’s fun, entertaining and couldn’t be cheaper.
Idea #4: Surprise trip
Surprise your date with a day at the beach. If you leave far from the sea, you could still get lucky with a cheap flight or discounted train ticket. It’s a good idea to check daily deal websites and airlines on a regular basis for last minute offers. You could also get offers send straight to your email inbox. Surprise her, and she’ll remember you for weeks, if not years.
Idea #5: Spend time at the mall
Large malls usually have a lot happening with performers and shows to entertain you and your date for next to nothing. However, you could be in for a surprise if your date loves shopping and reaches for the credit card!
Idea #6: Go for a drive
Go for a drive in the countryside. This doesn’t cost much except for gas and mileage. This date idea works best if the two of you are into cars or motors. Don’t let expensive date ideas put you off dating altogether.
Dating is, first and foremost, about two people coming together, getting to know one another’s likes, dislikes and aspirations. The venue, food and drinks should all play second fiddle.
This article was written by Matt Hunt from MrRight.com.au, the only Australian dating site where women choose who can contact them and men compete for their attention. MrRight is popular with single parents, seniors and young professionals alike. Visit MrRight for fun, friendship or a committed relationship.
The Exorcist Revisited
The year 1973 was filled with several important historical events. The Endangered Species Act was passed. UPC barcodes were first seen on grocery store shelves across America. OPEC doubled the price of oil, causing a nationwide gas crisis. But, these all pale in comparison to an occurrence that rocked the country and changed the lives of millions forever: The Exorcist was released. Okay, so maybe that was a little dramatic, but this movie had a huge impact on the world of horror cinema, and on me.
I will never forget the first time I saw this movie. I was eleven, and I had to watch it secretly. So there I sat in my little pajamas, watching what is arguably the most terrifying film ever created, and I loved every second. From Reagan’s head spinning and spewing green vomit, to the eternal battle for a child’s soul. The experience changed me forever. I am a horror movie nut, and I really believe The Exorcist started my obsession.
So why is it I can’t help feeling that every copy of the movie should be destroyed immediately? I know that I would miss The Exorcist just as much as I would miss any dear friend. The problem that I have now is that the true spirit of the movie is lost on our modern society. When The Exorcist premiered, people were leaving the theater in tears or sick to their stomach, but that was 1973. In 2009, most of us see footage far more shocking on the evening news every night.
Don’t get me wrong, the movie deserves all the accolades it has ever received, including 10 Oscar nominations. I just don’t think that the film would have as profound an effect on any other eleven year old little boy or girl, if they watched it for the first time today. So that is why I am pleading with every film maker in Hollywood: Please, do not remake this movie. It belongs in 1973, when America was a country far less desensitized by the constant bombardment of media violence.
There will never be another Linda Blair. Her performance was mind blowing, and I cannot even think of any other young actress working today who could play Reagan with such demonic naiveté. The planets aligned when this movie was made, and I don’t want to see its legacy tarnished by a cheesy Hollywood “retelling”.
Halloween is approaching, and that means an entire month filled with some of the best horror movies ever produced, and no lineup would be complete without The Exorcist. But this year, I am going to try to reconnect with that scared little girl who first saw the movie in her mom’s front room. She will be far more frightened and moved by the experience than this 31 year old wife and mother. Hopefully, all of you out there will try to do the same. Maybe this will keep the true essence of the film alive long enough for my daughter to be scared out of her mind when she turns eleven!
Survival Guide
The Official Emergency Guide is an informative 5-part survival guide series about emergency preparedness that combines official government and non-profit organization resources as well as information that will help you plan for known threats to your local area and for unexpected emergencies.
Paranormal Activity Movie Review
I live in the middle of nowhere, and while it is a great place to raise kids, we don’t exactly have too many choices when it comes to entertainment options. I feel this most acutely when a new movie comes out in limited release, which means that I will have to wait until it is released on video. “Paranormal Activity” is one of those films. I have been doing a lot of research on this movie, and am fascinated by its plot, simplicity, and the explosion of viral marketing that has made this the biggest online sensation since “The Blair Witch Project“. The two films have a lot in common, but are vastly different in one important way: “The Blair Witch Project” was not scary. “Paranormal Activity” looks like it might actually be quasi-terrifying. I for one can’t wait to find out if it is as frightening as the trailer seems.
The film tells the story of a young couple, Katie and Micah, who are plagued by a supernatural presence in their home. A psychic tells the twosome that they are not the victims of a ghostly haunting. Their tormenter is instead a demon that is attracted to negative energy. In an attempt to document this phenomenon, Micah sets up a video camera in the couple’s bedroom. Of course strange things begin to happen, and this slight disturbance escalates into a full blown terror attack in no time flat.
I won’t give anymore of the plot away, but suffice it to say, it sounds pretty creepy. The film was originally slated for release in 2008, but was held in limbo due to disputes between the production company and the films’ distributor, Paramount Pictures. This rift was soon healed after the movie was screened in front of an audience of mostly teenagers. They were terrified, word spread of the film’s macabre plot, and the rest is cinematic history.
As excited as I am to view this film, part of me cannot help but feel a little bit apprehensive. I cannot remember the last time a movie was authentically “scary”. Most modern horror films are all about the gore and blood, and that is not frightening as much as it is disgusting. It is much easier to nauseate a person than to truly terrify them. Let’s face it. The Alfred Hitchcocks, Wes Cravens, and John Carpenters of the world are a dying breed. We are left with directors who cannot evoke real emotion that isn’t tied to a person’s gag reflex.
So if you are one of the lucky few who can view “Paranormal Activity” with a crowd of fellow moviegoers, consider yourself very lucky. I will be waiting in the wings this Halloween season rewatching everything from “Psycho” to “The Devil’s Rejects”, anticipating my turn to experience what could be one of the most frightening films of the last 10 years. At least, I hope it will be!
Friday Night is Movie Night
It’s Friday night, movie night, and you just come home from a long work week. You are checking through your TV Guide or browsing the guide on your satellite service for something to watch so you can kick back on the couch for some relaxation. As usual, it feels like impossible to find something on television that you haven’t already watched … some shows it would even seem like the millionth time watching it. Don’t shut off your television and give up just yet!
You have options, whether you want to stay home and watch a movie or go to the theaters for a nice flick. Here are some options for movie night that we suggest:
- Pay Per View: If you use satellite service, like Direct TV or Dish Network, you can order PPVs from your big, comfy couch to watch new releases of those movies you have been waiting to see. You can order the movie with your remote (phone line required), online, or by telephone.
- DVD Rental Website: Blockbuster, Netflix, and many other providers of online movie rental are available for you to rent/purchase online movies. Basically, how it works is that you sign up with the company, and you have the option to rent or buy the download of the movie for a set price for movie night. For example, on Blockbuster Online you can rent a new release for $3.99 or can buy it for $17.99. The buying price seems to differ between movie titles, but you are paying the price that you would spend on going to Wal-mart or K-mart to buy the DVD.
- Theatre: Pack up the family and head out to your nearest local theatre for a family movie night filled with pop corn, soft drinks, and candy. You can even use movie ticket services like Fandango to buy movie tickets online and avoid lines at the theater.
Do you Own a Mirror?
Sweatpants and cowboy boots! Have you ever heard of such a combo? I had the “pleasure” of sitting next to man on the bus who smelled like salt and pepper, wearing red sweatpants, black cowboy boots, the matching cowboy hat and of course, a blue, bandanna printed satchel! As if the sight and smell of him weren’t enough, he proceeded to make random outbursts, letting everyone know it was his birthday and that he does not support Obama! Needless to say I had to move my seat. Never a dull moment on public transportation!
Funny or Sad?
I don’t know whether to blame the parents or the teenagers in this case! 3 cocaine addicted teenagers robbed a residential home this week. Their “prize find” or so they thought, was a gold canister filled with what they thought was cocaine. After successfully fleeing the scene of the crime with jewelry, the gold canister and some petty cash, they spent the first night sniffing the hours away. To their surprise, the family they had robbed was on the local news the very next day begging for the robbers to return the urn they had stolen from the house containing the remains of their aunt and 2 beloved pet dogs!!! I wonder how it felt to know that you substituted cremated ashes for cocaine?!?!? Sad, sad dodos!!!
What Happens in Vegas … Could only happen in Vegas
How does a nomad posing as a New Age priest in Las Vegas, manage to murder his girlfriend, chop her body into pieces and then proceed to stuff her body parts in a garbage can with bleach and cement? Oh, did I mention he then left her in her own garage for weeks? As if his crime wasn’t bad enough, this dodo got caught by using the victim’s credit card at Home Depot before and after the murder, purchasing the supplies for the deed! Las Vegas Homicide Detectives traced the man from the surveillance tapes!!! Can we say … dodo?
DWI on Animals?
Not that there is anything funny about any DWI case, but to get arrested for a DWI while riding a horse and a donkey is just insane! Yes, two men in Texas were “pulled over” and arrested, charged with DWI, while riding on the animals on a main road. It is not clear why these men chose their mode of transportation, but their level of intoxication was evident after not being able to finish the sobriety tests given to them by officers on the scene! I’ve heard of and witnessed people attempt very strange things while drunk but horseback riding, not to mention donkey-back riding, tops the cake! How fast did he think he could go on a donkey anyway?!?! Dodo!!
Holy Cow!!
I’ve seen some funny things on the side of the road, but never would I imagine driving down a highway and witnessing a cow tied to the guard rail! Yes, ladies and gentlemen, we have a certified dodo who decided to tie the cow to the guard rail after the cow tore apart the inside of the trailer! Apparently this man was delivering the cow from one farm to the next when the cow no longer felt like being contained. So this powerful cow caved in the walls to the trailer! Unsure of how to handle the situation, the genius driver then pulled over on the busy highway, tied the cow to the rail and inspected the damages! Wow… luckily the unexpected sight did not cause an accident! What a dodo!!!
