I didn’t get tagged for this, but I’m doing it anyway; five, non-blog sites I visit daily:

1. At first I didn’t get it, but I’ve become obsessed (or is it possessed?) with LOL Cats. Sure, some of them just aren’t funny, and it’s absolute murder to read the comments, but the funny ones? Ohmigosh are they funny!

see more crazy cat pics

2. Postcrossing helps feed my urge to see the world, without having to go any farther than my mailbox. I’m up 109 110 postcards from around the world. It’s also a relatively cheap hobby.

3. I know, I know, who needs to register for yet another social networking site? But Livemocha is a little different. It’s entirely geared towards language instruction. You can take courses that are similar to Rosetta Stone, and converse with native speakers of the language you’re learning. I’m still hoping that they add Irish language instruction to their list of available languages, though.

4. I like to cook, right? Actually, it’s more accurate to say that I like good food. Sometimes I just throw stuff together, and sometimes I try what others have just thrown together. That’s why I spend way too much time on All Recipes. I also found the BEST Colcannon recipe on All Recipes. Wanna try it?

Colcannon
INGREDIENTS
  * 2 1/2 pounds potatoes, peeled and cubed
  * 4 slices bacon (I like to add a bit more)
  * 1/2 small head cabbage, chopped
  * 1 large onion, chopped
  * 1/2 cup milk
  * salt and pepper to taste
  * 1/4 cup butter, melted

DIRECTIONS
*Place potatoes in a saucepan with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, until tender.
*Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, reserving drippings, crumble and set aside. In the reserved drippings, sauté the cabbage and onion until soft and translucent. Putting a lid on the pan helps the vegetables cook faster.
*Drain the cooked potatoes, mash with milk and season with salt and pepper. Fold in the bacon, cabbage, and onions, then transfer the mixture to a large serving bowl. Make a well in the center, and pour in the melted butter. Serve immediately.

5. Even though I haven’t updated my reading list in a long while, I do still read, and I’m cheap, so I peruse the listed books on Paperback Swap. I really wish I hadn’t wasted a credit on Flowers for Algernon, but hey, I can re-list it, and send it to someone else!

So there it is. Five places where I enjoy wasting time. No, I’m not going to tag anyone, but I’d love to know what five, non-blog sites you visit frequently.

This weekend is the AAUW Used Book Sale at the Kalispell Center Mall. The pricing structure is simple, a dollar an inch, and on Sunday it will be a dollar a bag (I’m fairly certain it’s a dollar, but it may be five). In many cases a perfectly good book is less than a dollar. This particular pile of books is roughly 26 inches tall. That’s right, 26 bucks. Galileo’s Daughter originally retailed for 27 dollars, and the retail of the entire stack is 180.09. Not a bad haul, I say.

Speaking of saving money on books, I’ve never properly pimped PaperBackSwap.com. It’s pricing structure is simple as well. You send someone a book that you no longer want and they do want, and then you can request a book that you would like to have from someone else. All you pay is shipping which is usually around $1.57. So, rather than taking all of your old paperbacks to the used bookstore while hoping you get something for them, you can just list them on PaperBackSwap.

There are disadvantages, though. If you’re getting rid of your books to get them out of the way, this site probably isn’t for you. You must keep them around. There are also some books that people just don’t want, but you can always remove them from your list of offered books and get rid of them the old fashioned way.

You’re also not limited to paperbacks. You can list hardbacks and audiobooks as well, but you should keep shipping costs in mind. We’ve requested books only to find when we received them that they’re the more expensive hardbacks. We’ve also sent off a few hardback books. You can also often find books that you haven’t found anywhere else. I didn’t want to order Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and couldn’t find it in any stores, but it was on PaperBackSwap.

Oy, that sounded like one of those horrid pay per post thingys. I’d rather think of this as a recommendation to check out the site, not an advertisement.