I'll Be Darned...

Pin It I went to a general store but they wouldn't let me buy anything specific. 
~Steven Wright

There’s a lot of things in the wide world of consumerism in America that just aren’t worth the money. That $40 jar of magical face cream that supposedly erases years of wrinkles might not actually do anything more than a $3 jar of Noxima and a good nights sleep (do they still make Noxima?). But once in awhile you come across something that – I’ll be darned - does exactly what it says it does.

Here's a few that I've found.


For example, a few months back I switched the mascara I was using. I have to get to work pretty early in the morning which means that I’m getting ready for work when I’m not really all that awake. I do my hair and put make-up on and all that, but for some reason, possibly because I’m not really awake yet, my eyes just really water a lot. So I was looking for a waterproof mascara that actually stayed on, but wasn’t so hard on my eyelashes (waterproof mascara can sometimes be kind of like putting varnish directly on your eyes – kind of harsh). So I picked up some Almay Nourishing One Coat Waterproof Mascara which supposedly is long wearing but also helps repair lashes - and I’ll be darned if it didn’t do the job. It stays on my weepy eyes pretty well plus my eyelashes have really thickend up since I started to use it.

Since Superdude got married, Ebay has a bathroom to himself (what a luxury) and while he likes it to be clean, he doesn’t much care for actually cleaning it - and heck if I’m going to do it for him. So he invested in the Scrubbing Bubbles Automatic Shower Cleaner and I’ll be darned if it doesn't actually really keeps the shower clean. You just press the button after the shower and the Scrubbing Bubble foam sprays all over the shower disolving everything away – whadda-ya-know?

Another product that has worked for Ebay is Proactiv. I know, I know, you can’t swing a dead cat without hitting an ad for this magical anti-acne triple combination - and that always kind of makes me suspicious. Ebay’s skin was never terrible, but it was bad enough to make him feel uncomfortable. We tried several things over his teenage years and eventually decided succumb to the advertising pressure and try the Proactiv. And I’ll be darned if it didn’t do the trick for Ebay. His skin got worse before it got better just like the literature said it would, but since then, his skin has really cleared up so that he’s just about too handsome to live with.

A few blogs back I wrote about buying a whole bunch of totes to help organize stuff. As part of that purchase I bought some Space Bags. You know those bags you put stuff in then suck the air out of so the stuff takes up less space? Well, I’ll be darned if those things aren’t just awesome! Because of all of the years of youth theater I’ve done, I have some really random items to store (styrofoam rocks and the like) and with these bags you can take what goes into 4 or 5 boxes (depending on the size bag you’re using) and put them into just one bag that just takes about two inches of space in the closet (horizontal space that is). Ebay used them too for packing on a trip he took recently – Genius…really.

And finally, I have a pillow top mattress which means that the fitted sheets have a hard time staying on. That is they did until I bought these little tubie looking things called The Sheet Holders (from Target if I remember correctly). You just pull the sheet down so it is even with that little piping edge that all mattresses have. Then you slip the Sheet Holder over the sheet and the mattress edge and I’ll be darned if it doesn’t just keep the sheet right in place. And the best part is they’re only about $5 for a set of 4.

So there’s just a few unexpected items that worked as advertised for me. I’m still in the market for some kind of face cream that moisturizes and improves the texture of my skin without making me feel like I’m wearing Crisco…and hopefully doesn’t cost $40 a jar. In the mean time I think I’ll try a good nights sleep.