I just bought a very cute dress to wear to a wedding this weekend (and likely another wedding in July). The dress is sleeveless but not spaghetti strap. My question: The top of the dress is slightly too big. The wedding is Saturday so I likely won’t have time to get it tailored. Because of that extra length in the straps, though, the very top of my bra peeks out around the neckline. And when I bend over, the top of the dress gets a bit loose for my demure ladylike demeanor. Does anyone have ANY thoughts on how to fix this without sewing? I’m thinking double sided tape or something.

Hey guys. I received an interesting email last night. I don’t have time this week to do a whole “Ask Freakgirl,” so I thought I’d open up this letter to comments.

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I think it’s safe to assume that Tuesdays are going to be the absolute worst. That was the case last week, and it held true today. In related news, I am getting better at jumping rope. Also, my shins feel shredded. Any advice, fitness experts?

What is everyone up to this weekend? The weather is kind of assy, but we have a busy few days ahead of us. Tonight I’m babysitting for my friends’ two kids — the little girl has already requested I bring over some popsicle sticks so we can make puppets together. She doesn’t know, but I also bought her a bag of adhesive googly eyes. EXCITEMENT! We’ll probably all eat pizza, color and watch SpongeBob until I want to stick a fork in my ear.

Tomorrow evening we’re heading into the city to meet up with some of the Geekboy’s friends for dinner. I plan to sit in the corner making snotty witty remarks for most of the night. I assume Susie will sit next to me. Then, on Sunday, I’ll be baking some cupcakes and heading over to Shannon & Matt’s to celebrate a few birthdays and see some more friends. At some point the Geekboy and I also need to go shopping — I need to pick up some dumbbells for boot camp and he needs a nice jacket for work. ADVICE NEEDED. I’m so out of touch — what’s a good style of jacket? He’d be wearing it with a button down shirt, nice pants (not suit pants) and perhaps a tie. I want something classic that goes with everything. Where mah gays at?

Lisa is looking for travel advice! Help her out in the comments.

I’ve decided that I want to take a spa vacation. I want to go to a destination kind of place where I can relax, get some treatments, eat healthfully, take some classes, etc. I’d like to keep it within driving distance, so I’m thinking PA, NY, New England, etc. Would you ask the freaknation for suggestions, please & thank you?

Yep, I did it. Couldn’t resist the cheap price of a refurbish, and we got me an 8GB iPhone over the weekend. Loving it so far. I do have a few complaints — no MMS support? Makes me sad, as my sister and friends message me a lot of pics of their kids. I know there’s an email workaround, but it’s a little bit of  PITA. Also, as I suspected, the 3G network in our neighborhood is pretty much non-existent. I have to turn it off and use the EDGE network instead if I don’t have access to WiFi (like when we’re out on a walk or something). And the phone appears to be interfering with my mouse at times here at my desk, which is odd.

So, my iPhone friends, tell me your favorite apps! I’ve downloaded a few so far (Urban Spoon, TwitterFon, Facebook, WeatherBug, Flixster, Yelp, Pandora). I’m looking for a good Flickr uploader (using FlickIt right now, but don’t like that I can’t rotate the photo) and a good photo retouching program. And whatever else might be super-fun. Also, FREE. I’ll pay for an app if it’s really good, though.

The geekboy and I are contemplating a weekend trip to New Orleans (something like Thursday to Monday, probably near the end of April). Neither of us have ever been there, so we have no idea where to start. I know a lot of you have visited and loved it. I’m looking for a safe, conveniently-located hotel. We don’t care much if it’s fancy, but we like clean. We’d like to be able to walk to most of our destinations, as I’d rather not spend $$$ on renting a car. If you have any advice on lodging, please post in the comments.

We had a severe windstorm here a few weeks ago. It happened to be a recycling day in our town, so recycling buckets and whatnot were strewn all over our neighborhood. A day or two after the storm, everyone seemed to have collected their belongings from wherever they ended up. However, there have been two blue recycling buckets sitting in the grass median of our parking lot for about two weeks now. I want one of them. I mean, it’s just been sitting there. But I feel weird just walking up and taking it. I have this illogical fear of a neighbor looking out the window and thinking, “Why is she taking something that isn’t hers?” But nobody is coming to claim it, so why can’t I have it? It’s funny that the geekboy and I had no problem picking things out of the dumpster at our old place (it’s how we scored new shower doors to replace a broken one), but for some reason this bothers me.

I woke up late Saturday night from some intense soreness in my lower legs. When I got out of bed yesterday morning, I almost fell because my muscles hurt so badly. Crazy. Walking up and down the stairs is incredibly painful — it feels like someone shortened my calf muscles overnight. What the hell, you guys? Friday night when we were out, I wore boots with a high stacked heel. I’ve worn these boots before, although not much. Is this strain just from the high heel? I was hardly even on my feet all night! Read the rest of this entry »

I’m having some family over on Saturday and want to make a simple dessert. I have puff pastry sheets in the freezer — anyone have any good recipes they’d like to share? Thanks.

The geekboy and I are thinking of a weekend trip to Dublin, Ireland around the end of April. We’d leave on a Wednesday night, arrive in Dublin on Thursday morning, and fly home on Sunday. Anyone have recommendations for package deals or advice on finding the best prices? We want to stay in the Temple Bar area.

Reader Ken has a request! See how you can help after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

My running shoes are several years old and it’s time to find a new pair before I get injured. I’d like some recommendations for decently-priced sneakers with good support. I’m not a runner; I mostly do a jog/walk/sometimes-sprint combo when I exercise. Right now I’m wearing Sauconys, which I like because they’re American (read: non-sweatshop) made. But I’m open to all suggestions.

My friend Jon just called me as he was driving down the highway in LA. He reached into his glove compartment, where he keeps energy bars, and was greeted with a bunch of half-eaten bars and tiny little turds. So…do we think the mouse is visiting at night or do we think the mouse is living somewhere in his dash? My guess is the latter. I completely freaked him out with that info (which was completely entertaining), so now I turn to you to give him some advice.

Just downloaded the new iTunes — pretty! I have a question for any of you experts out there. Is it possible for me to run iTunes on two computers, with a shared music library? One a PC and one a MacBook, off a shared network drive? I’m assuming I can do it; I just want to find out if there’s anything I need to know first.

The geekboy has a half-day today so we’re going to catch a movie matinee. Our Sophie’s Choice — Tropic Thunder or Pineapple Express?

Check out this week’s bounty from the farm. Amazing! We’re taking recipe ideas…please share yours in the comments. More photos after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday afternoon, when I came home from the doctor, I entered the house and my nose immediately detected the unmistakable smell of cat pee. It is nearly 24 hours later and we still haven’t located the source. We’re pretty sure it’s either in the dining room or in the kitchen, but we CAN’T FIND IT AND IT’S MAKING ME CRAZY.

Oh, I found it. Read the rest of this entry »

I’m sitting here at the Toyota dealership, getting my car serviced in preparation for our trip to Canada next week. WOOT! I’ve got my cheap Sony earbuds in, listening to Stern, and I am realizing that they are SO EFFING UNCOMFORTABLE. Consider this a call for recommendations. I’d like a nice, small, comfortable and relatively cheap set of earbuds. Buds I can wear for a long time (like an airline flight) that won’t make my ears start to ACHE fifteen minutes in.

Hey Toronto peeps! Reader Nora needs your help:

I’m getting married in Toronto in August and am looking for a restaurant at which to have an after-ceremony dinner. We’re looking for something that will be fancy enough for a big day, but also someplace that will welcome kids (5 under six years old). We’d love someplace that has a private room/alcove for our group of about 15 people total. Near downtown would be nice, but not a requirement.

List your suggestions in the comments - with links to websites if possible. Thanks!

Does anyone know if there’s a brand of tonic that doesn’t contain High Fructose Corn Syrup? It’s something I’m trying to avoid. I know they make diet tonic, but I’m trying to find something that isn’t all chemical. Or just a tonic alternative? I love my G&Ts in the summer, but after a while, the thought of all that HFCS gives me the willies.

As the weather gets warmer, I’d love to be able to line-dry our sheets, towels and clothes whenever possible. Makes ‘em smell good AND saves energy. However, I’m having trouble finding a portable or temporary clothesline. We live in a townhouse and have a back patio, but we’re limited as we’re not supposed to attach things to the side of the building. Although we might be able to sneak something in…Anyway, does anyone have any suggestions on a clothesline solution that would be easy to hide/store when not in use?

We’ve found a couple of these bugs (a beetle, I think) in our bedroom over the past few weeks. Does anyone know what it is? Photo after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

So, New Jersey recently instituted a cellphone ban while driving - it’s now cause to be pulled over, so we all need to be hands-free. I do have a hands-free device, but it’s a pain in my ass; it’s wired and gets all tangled up and stuff. What do you use? Bluetooth? Something else? Tell me all about it - tips and tricks, best brands, best prices, etc. I’m not on my phone all that often in the car, anyway, so I don’t need anything super-fancy.

I have one of those horrible pimples right on my face, the kind that is more cyst than zit. It hurts, it’s red, it’s a big lump and I don’t know how to make it go away. I can cover it up but it doesn’t hide the fact that THERE IS A GROWTH ON MY FACE. I’m afraid it’s never going to leave. I don’t want to leave the house. Help.