I just recently started making my own popcorn. It was a bit of a revelation for me - making microwave popcorn all my life, and hating air-popped corn. Just 1 tbsp olive oil in a 2 - 3 qt sauce pan. drop three kernals in and a bit of salt. Wait, covered, until they pop. take off heat, add 1/3 cup kernals, 1 pat butter, and 1/2-1 tbsp sugar. Wait 20 seconds, turn heat back on, shake. Let pop until 1-2 seconds between pops. take off heat, shake, pour into bowl, let sit for a minute. Boom - 1000% better than microwaved, and about that much cheaper too.

Been saying that about "organic" for years. Just an excuse. Plays on your guilt.....you wanna be healthy and buy "green" don't you?

@Jeffrey Rouch: Cue yuppie organic defenders in 3...2...1...

@Jeffrey Rouch:

There are health benefits of eating organic foods, you can't really deny that. It sucks that they are more expensive but it is just business.

@bilups:

WWWOOOORRRDD!!!! I thought I was the only person adding a tablespoon of sugar to homemade popcorn.

Also good is a little bit of molasses or brown sugar.

@Jeffrey Rouch: Until they can tell me that "organic" means X and only X, instead of "whatever we feel like today," I'm just not going to bother unless there's a big taste difference or something.

I was at a charity auction and saw three bottles of wine as one of the items, valued at about $90. One of them costs at least $50 at the restaurant I work at.

Also, buying organic is worse for the environment. More effort/energy for less yield.

I dunno. You might as well also say don't go to restaurants at all because the food costs more than if you made it home.

I understand corking fees when bringing a bottle to a restaurant that has a license to serve liquor, but I can't understand why restaurants without said license would try to charge a corking fee. Can anyone give me a legitimate reason why?

@kaldurak: Instead of popping it with the corn, you can toss the popcorn when it's done with some powdered sugar and salt. It is delicious.

@Dragonis: Organic is bad if you like pesticide runoff in the water supply!

I ordered the cake for my upcoming wedding at Wal-Mart. The decorator is quite good, and showed us a few photo books of her work, as well as one she was working on that moment. Her work is quite good, and the cake is pretty tasty. Three tiers, beautiful piping, and good flavor for 80 people, for 130 bucks.

I buy my produce "uncut". It takes all of a few minutes to cut things up for what I eat so I'm not paying more for a few minutes of my life. Now if only the farmers market would hurry up and start....

The price of jeans really horrifies me sometimes. I always get mine at Charlotte Russe, they're always doing some sale that makes them about $19.99 and they fit me perfectly. I cannot imagine paying more than that. My sister wanted a pair of designer jeans once, along the lines of $400, and my parents got them for her. Ridiculous.

I do believe there are some defined standards for what kind of produce can be called organic. Whether it's worth the added expense depends on the consumer, but I think it is more than just a label that "seems to mainly be a euphemism for 'we're gonna charge you more.'"

I work in the optical industry and can tell you that glasses are the second highest markup in the US next to diamonds. Big chain vision centers are often seen as an inferior product but all places buy their frames and lenses from the same vendors. Usually the only thing that is different is that name on the frame is changed. Plastic lenses are cheaper than the polycarbonate ones but are more prone to scratching and chipping. Transition lenses are mostly plastic. One final thing when it comes to AR coating dont let them push it on you. It does cut down on glare but it can get messed up by not using lens clothes and lens cleaner on it.

@bilups: now try it with something spicy - i like popcorn with chipotle tabasco, montreal steak seasoning or cajun seasoning [not all together though]

The one issue with eyeglasses is that, at least in states that require a license for opticians, you know someone qualified is checking your glasses to make sure the prescription is correct and also fitting them to your face without mangling them.

I totally agree with bringing your own wine and paying the corking fee. Wine markups at restaurants are at least 300%. I would just tip a bit more.

When you buy your glasses from your optometrist, you're measured and consulted and there are quality checks - but also there is usually a WARRANTY. I work for an eye doctor and we honor all manufacturer's warranties, which means that you're covered for at LEAST a year, often for two or more.

@bilups: You made that way more complicated than it needs to be.

Put about 1/3 a cup of kernels in a brown lunch bag, throw it in the microwave and hit your "popcorn" button. 1/3 cup of kernels is approx 3-3.5ozs which is the size of a normal bag.

When you're done, toss the popcorn in a bowl, add a little olive oil and salt (and pepper and garlic powder if you like) and you're good to go.

@rpm773: Maybe it is assumed you will be there longer taking up table space?

@Kelly Quirino: And Lenscrafters tends to warrant their glasses for as long as they are repairable (ie they have the parts). Also the basic frames at Lenscrafters can often be gotten for under $40

@ngoandy: because they can.

@rpm773: Because they are providing you with glassware/service to pour the bottle? That isn't free for them (although the service would be there regardless).
Also, because they can make money off it and lots of people are willing to pay -- is that not a legitimate reason for a profit-seeking business to charge people?

@Peter Gibbons: I'm willing to drink from the bottle.

I'm not so sure about the markup on jeans. I mean, I guess if you are buying some kind of exotic designer label not on sale....yeah. But that's true about ANY product. I never have any problem getting a pair of brand name jeans for $20 and they last me for years. Of all the consumer goods I buy, I'd guess jeans would be at the top of the list of cheapest price per times used.

There is this bar / restaurant near me that has free Popcorn and good food and bear prices.

@Dragonis:
I think the people who might have donated the wine might have "accidently" overvalued the wine so they could have a bigger tax write off.

@backbroken: Heh, and as for the service...I can break it open outside before I come in.

@pezstar:
I worked in a high end bakery and most of the decorators worked at Cost Co and Wal-Mart before they began. Their only complaint was that the decorators don't spend as much time as more expensive cakes but they liked to eat them.

@bilups:

I use one of the high-heat pots with the cover and crank in the handle to turn the corn!

I rock AND roll!

@Joeb5:

I more a lion kinda guy

@Joeb5: What kind of bears?

There's a campus bar in Madison, WI that has free bacon on Tuesdays. Yes, bacon.

I have a hard time finding jeans that fit me well, so I'll pay more for some that fit. I usually spend about $60-$80 on a pair of jeans, and it's well worth it. I haven't had much luck buying cheap jeans for $20 or $30 bucks and having them fit well or last very long.

[s126613707.onlinehome.us]

Bottled water is the biggest rip off of our generation. I should have thought of it first. Most bottled water is taken from public sources anyway with just a few things added like Dasani. If you go bottled, you should go with mineral water because that is healthy and it is not something you can just get from the tap

@Jeffrey Rouch: A few organic products are considered to actually have some benefit due to lack of pesticides and chemicals. But the proliferation of organic everything is a joke. I am more interested in getting something local that has been produced with minimal or no chemicals, additives and drugs. Non organic local milk produced without hormones & antibiotics is far better than Horizon organic milk is. The organic veggies out of our garden beat out grocery store organic veggies any day.

@bilups:

I love making popcorn this way, too, except I would never use olive oil. But obviously it's working for you! I always use canola oil -- light, flavorless, lacking the slight bitterness of olive oil.

@ajlei:

My absolute favorite reliable jeans are Gloria Vanderbilt from Kohl's, usually on sale for around $25. I buy two pair every few years and I'm good. They have a little stretch but otherwise look like good ol' traditional jeans.

@backbroken:

This is a great point, since most of us wear our jeans any time we're not working in an office environment or courthouse.

Those old cowboys way back when knew what they were doing.

@bilups:

We stopped doing the pre-pop - it comes out just as good. We just put in the oil, the kernels, turn up the flame, cover and let it go.

Garlic powder and sesame oil are good for some savory goodness, or brown butter (soy margarine, actually) with rosemary for something a little more involved.

But always, ALWAYS: nutritional yeast.

@ajlei: I picked up a pair of almost new Seven jeans on Ebay for $25.00. They supposedly had been worn a few times but didn't look like it. I looked up the style online after I bought them and Nordstrom was selling them for $225.00. Nice jeans but I can't fathom paying $225.00 for a pair of jeans. My current favorite jeans came from Hot Topic of all places. $25.00 stretch skinny jeans and they actually fit.

I use a hot air popper, which makes it fat free and very tasty and bulk popcorn is under .50/pound. I bought a bag several months ago and still haven't reached the end of it. It's not stale, either.

I am finding a major surplus of clearance jeans in my area. I think because of the economy no one is buying any clothes, not even at rock bottom prices. These jeans were originally priced at $40-60 a pair but are now down to as low as 6$. I have run into multiple racks of 6$ jeans at multiple stores, so its not just one store doing the clearancing. I am finding so many 6$ jeans that there is honestly more out there than I can use and I had to stop buying jeans because I have amassed many pairs. This is coming from a person who is used to living off 2 pairs of jeans. I have also found capri's for $4-6 a pair. I probably won't have to buy jeans or capri's for another 3 years.

There doesn't seem to be any quality issues with them either. There was a time when I could not find jeans for under $20 but now $10 and $6 jeans are common. I usually get at least 2-3 years out of a pair of jeans before they actually get holes and have to go into the trash and I wear them a lot.

@veg-o-matic: I tried nutritional yeast a while back, and I can't for the life of me figure out how people eat it on anything. It just doesn't taste edible to me... and I've eaten dirt (ok, clay)!

@Peter Gibbons: Well, think about the legal theory behind a liquor license. Why does the state issue them, and why do restaurants pay for them? It's so that they can reap profits from the serving of alcoholic beverages, and because state legislation dictates that this is regulated and indirectly taxed.

Now think about a corking fee - it is profiting from the serving of alcoholic beverages, a right that they have not yet secured. Is that not a legitimate reason for an above-board business without a liquor license NOT to charge a corking fee? That's the point that you seem to be missing.

@pezstar: Too bad that your decorator is stuck at Walmart, but at least you get a wedding cake at a REALLY reasonable price.

@Jonbo298: I once took a quick look at the markups for cut/peeled vege at the local grocery store. For carrots (which a 5 year old can peel and slice), the markup was around 500%.