American Samoa – Jeff/February 2010 ( * in process * from paradisegypsy.com
Feb 5th Jeff - My box from Am. Samoa arrived today. I LOVE, it came with a handwoven tray, a coconut cup and holder, hand carved. And a plastic bag, stating it is organically grown and hand ground. the package also came with a cloth bag used to seep and strain the Kava. I followed a recipe that I found on Youtube for making Traditional Kava, and added ground Cloves and a little cinnamon. I used Hot tap water, The video said to make itr about 140 degrees, but not hotter than 190. Mine started at 150 degrees. Per the video I squeezed and massaged the bag with the Kava and cloves for 15 minutes. The video said to use between 1 and 3 tablespoons per cup of water. I decided for my first attempt to go with 1 tablespoon per cup, I have read online that anti-depressants can exasperate the effects of the kava. So I played it safe. The video said to let it seep for up to 30 minutes I decided to go with 15 minutes.
Upon drinking it the first thing I noticed was that my mouth went numb, and the Kava had and interesting flavor, enhanced by the Cloves. Not all together unpleasant. I drank the kava on an empty stomach, which was recommend, but then after about 15 minutes i ate a light meal. About 10 minutes after drinking the Kava I felt a light tingling sensation on the top of my head, I did sort of have a nice, calm feeling come over me. About 30 minutes after drinking the Kava I found that I felt just REALLY GOOD. The stress of the day just dripped away, and I was visiting with a friend and found that I felt really present, engaged and calm, and the total opposite of anxiety, but a word my vocabulary lacks!
I found the entire experience to be quite enjoyable, and am really impressed with the quality of our gift basic, and will definitely recommend this site to others!
Latest Update (12/31): emailed the site AND THEY SAID THE BOXES SHOULD ARRIVE BY THE 5TH! Seems mail is a little slow from down under!
Please note. This site did not have a online ordering mechanism, and requested I send an email to them with the ordering and shipping information. As I was uncomfortable putting my Visa number in an Email, I went to walgreens and brought a Gift Card Visa, and used that to place the order. Even though I took that precaution, I also wrote out the number in the format -four-zero-zero-seven -space- ...this was done to ensure that the number was not easily parsables in plain text, since emails are sent unencrypted. This format, though difficult to parse by a computer is very understandable to a human reader.
Jeff - I will likely be ordering from http://www.paradisegypsy.com/ pending information from the chamber of commerce
[SIDE NOTES]
Here's a cool site with lots of Samoa links
http://www.samoa.co.uk/lucys-links.html
OK - here's a great video regarding what 60 minutes missed! Watch this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LaPGIIAyk4
Did you know that 50% of the Tuna sold in America was canned in American Samoa.
Here's some good discussion ABOUT his comments.
http://www.reddit.com/r/Economics/comments/ar5qs/?sort=controversial
Here's tourist information I found advising tourists what to buy:
http://www.americansamoa.southpacific.org/islands/shopping.html
Sent an Email to the President of the Chamber of Commerce, here's a copy:
Dear Sir:
My name is Jeff Herwatt and I am a disabled American Veteran living in San Francisco CA. My best friend,, Anne Schnedl and I are taking a virtual tour/launching a virtual campaign to help get America back to work, we are titling this campaign MADE IN THE USA! Since goods made in American Samoa legal get to display this mark we have decided to include it in our tour/campaign.
We are traveling every month to a different state in the Union and buying goods that represent that state. We are hoping to spend at least 80% of our money on perishables/goodies that represent the state, or compelling handicrafts.
Herein lies the problem, I am having a real difficult time locating business from American Samoa that have Websites to purchase products from. We would like to help get American Samoa back to work by buying your products, but can't find them. Could you please point websites or businesses that sell crafts/products/goods that represent American Samoa.
Thanks in advance for any assistance you might be able to lend!
Sincerely,
Jeffrey Herwatt
Anne - check out this link http://amsamoachamber.com/classification/classification/gifts-curios
Anne (2.2.2010) - just got the box from Samoa ... tried my first Kava drink - this is a unique gift/product though I found the drink to taste like bland dirty water. Given what little I know about Kava, I think I'll not make this a habit, though it could be useful if I'm having trouble sleeping!
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Alaska – Jeff/January 2010
Alaska – Jeff/January 2010 (Arrived 1/26/10 from http://alaskawildberryproducts.com )
Jeff - The box arrived last night. It contained Reindeer Meat sticks, (sorta a pepperoni spiced stick) Sourdough Sauce, mustard, honey, cheese, smoked salmon. This was a great taste of Alaska, I will admit that I purchased this gift box due to the inclusion of the Reindeer Meat Sticks, which ended up being a little disappointing. They taste like a spicy pepperoni, so spiced up you can't taste the meat, so I can honestly say I still don't know what Reindeer tastes like! I enjoyed the Mustard on some ham for lunch. It was a nice spicy mustard I really enjoyed. The smoked Cheddar cheese was really nothing special, Anne even raised doubts that the Cheese was made in Alaska, I am pretty sure they probably do have a Cheese manufacturing plant in Alaska, and can say there is nothing that really sets this apart from the cheese we get in California. Unlike Wisconsin Cheese which has a very different, and more Earthy flavor than California Cheese.
Now, the REAL WINNER in this box, and a surprise was the HONEY!. The jar Reads Fireweed Honey, and I would order this again. It has what can best be described as a spice sweet flavor. Not being a foodie I like the words to describe the flavors, but I can tell you that this Honey danced across my tongue and spun my palette out! It was an entire new and I will say remarkably enjoyable experience!
Anne - Reindeer Meat sticks were okay ... reminded me of beef jerky, salty, kind of chewy in a tough sort of way - but it is protein, not too gamy either. The sourdough
sauce was quite good ... berry based, and I used this as a marinade for chicken breasts. I haven't tried the cheese yet, and won't say anything about it unless it's
perfectly awful, as I think it was used to increase perceived value for price - I don't think it was Alaska made! I tasted the honey, and didn't have quite the "over the top"
response as Jeff did - it was perfectly acceptable, but didn't especially stand out for me. I haven't used the honey mustard yet ... but once again, I wonder if this was
"filler" to add value, rather than being a product made in Alaska of ingredients unique to, or reflecting Alaska. I'm not especially fond of smoked salmon, so the can of
smoked salmon will be re-gifted to someone else.
Someone really needs to come up with a "Palin Pie" ... and Mrs. Palin herself could volunteer to have one thrown at her as a fund-raiser!
Ah: http://www.zazzle.co.uk/funny_palin_moose_berry_pie_poster-228047772350160519
Jeff - The box arrived last night. It contained Reindeer Meat sticks, (sorta a pepperoni spiced stick) Sourdough Sauce, mustard, honey, cheese, smoked salmon. This was a great taste of Alaska, I will admit that I purchased this gift box due to the inclusion of the Reindeer Meat Sticks, which ended up being a little disappointing. They taste like a spicy pepperoni, so spiced up you can't taste the meat, so I can honestly say I still don't know what Reindeer tastes like! I enjoyed the Mustard on some ham for lunch. It was a nice spicy mustard I really enjoyed. The smoked Cheddar cheese was really nothing special, Anne even raised doubts that the Cheese was made in Alaska, I am pretty sure they probably do have a Cheese manufacturing plant in Alaska, and can say there is nothing that really sets this apart from the cheese we get in California. Unlike Wisconsin Cheese which has a very different, and more Earthy flavor than California Cheese.
Now, the REAL WINNER in this box, and a surprise was the HONEY!. The jar Reads Fireweed Honey, and I would order this again. It has what can best be described as a spice sweet flavor. Not being a foodie I like the words to describe the flavors, but I can tell you that this Honey danced across my tongue and spun my palette out! It was an entire new and I will say remarkably enjoyable experience!
Anne - Reindeer Meat sticks were okay ... reminded me of beef jerky, salty, kind of chewy in a tough sort of way - but it is protein, not too gamy either. The sourdough
sauce was quite good ... berry based, and I used this as a marinade for chicken breasts. I haven't tried the cheese yet, and won't say anything about it unless it's
perfectly awful, as I think it was used to increase perceived value for price - I don't think it was Alaska made! I tasted the honey, and didn't have quite the "over the top"
response as Jeff did - it was perfectly acceptable, but didn't especially stand out for me. I haven't used the honey mustard yet ... but once again, I wonder if this was
"filler" to add value, rather than being a product made in Alaska of ingredients unique to, or reflecting Alaska. I'm not especially fond of smoked salmon, so the can of
smoked salmon will be re-gifted to someone else.
Someone really needs to come up with a "Palin Pie" ... and Mrs. Palin herself could volunteer to have one thrown at her as a fund-raiser!
Ah: http://www.zazzle.co.uk/funny_palin_moose_berry_pie_poster-228047772350160519
Alabama – Anne/February 2010
Alabama – Anne/February 2010
Anne - I'll likely be ordering from here - http://www.alabamagoods.com/ (ordered 2.2.2010) S&H on this project is going to be hefty - this month I'm having all the product shipped to me, then I'll have to ship Jeff's to him. My first impression of this site is what's offered is WAY over-priced!!
Jeff (2/5) - I am left wondering why you ordered from this site if you feel that their products are over priced. I was going to do Alabama and found several sites that had compelling products that I was interested in. I am surprised that with the number of sites available with Alabama goods you would order from one the was over priced. One thing I have been doing is shopping around till I find something that interests me, and then going to MySimon.com -or- Pricegrabber.com to find the best price. I think getting the best possible price on the goods is part of the challenge!
Jeff (2/17 - Opened the Box) So Anne's box from Alabama arrived and I was immiately taken with the high quality of the box, and the very styllish green and brown po-ca-dot ribbom! Upon opening the box I was greeted with a Green bag of chip, and I then noticed they were CINNAMON AND SUGAR CHIPS! Ha! Beneath the chips I found a bottle of Honey. I tried the Honey on a bagel and cream cheese, and the thing that stands out about the honey the most is a hint of vanilla and a long, pleasant after taste! I am afraid to try the chips!
Anne (2.17.2010) - Okay, so Jeff and I just opened the box and the best thing about it was ... the box! My first impression was exactly right - way, way overpriced, although the packaging was nice. I would not buy from this website again, though. I bought a bag of sopapilla's (cinnamon chips) and a jar of honey. Would still be overpriced if shipping had been included, which it wasn't. This will no doubt be added to the list of "Anne-ism's" that Jeff gloats over!
Anne (2.18.2010) - so I've tasted the sopapilla's and I really enjoyed them ... right up my alley - flour, fat, sugar and cinnamon - I loved them! Still way over priced, but I'm glad they are not locally available, otherwise I might indulge far more often then I should. If I ever travel to AL I'll look for them. Jeff mocked them, but as much as he loves junk food I'm surprised he didn't want to try them.
Anne - I'll likely be ordering from here - http://www.alabamagoods.com/ (ordered 2.2.2010) S&H on this project is going to be hefty - this month I'm having all the product shipped to me, then I'll have to ship Jeff's to him. My first impression of this site is what's offered is WAY over-priced!!
Jeff (2/5) - I am left wondering why you ordered from this site if you feel that their products are over priced. I was going to do Alabama and found several sites that had compelling products that I was interested in. I am surprised that with the number of sites available with Alabama goods you would order from one the was over priced. One thing I have been doing is shopping around till I find something that interests me, and then going to MySimon.com -or- Pricegrabber.com to find the best price. I think getting the best possible price on the goods is part of the challenge!
Jeff (2/17 - Opened the Box) So Anne's box from Alabama arrived and I was immiately taken with the high quality of the box, and the very styllish green and brown po-ca-dot ribbom! Upon opening the box I was greeted with a Green bag of chip, and I then noticed they were CINNAMON AND SUGAR CHIPS! Ha! Beneath the chips I found a bottle of Honey. I tried the Honey on a bagel and cream cheese, and the thing that stands out about the honey the most is a hint of vanilla and a long, pleasant after taste! I am afraid to try the chips!
Anne (2.17.2010) - Okay, so Jeff and I just opened the box and the best thing about it was ... the box! My first impression was exactly right - way, way overpriced, although the packaging was nice. I would not buy from this website again, though. I bought a bag of sopapilla's (cinnamon chips) and a jar of honey. Would still be overpriced if shipping had been included, which it wasn't. This will no doubt be added to the list of "Anne-ism's" that Jeff gloats over!
Anne (2.18.2010) - so I've tasted the sopapilla's and I really enjoyed them ... right up my alley - flour, fat, sugar and cinnamon - I loved them! Still way over priced, but I'm glad they are not locally available, otherwise I might indulge far more often then I should. If I ever travel to AL I'll look for them. Jeff mocked them, but as much as he loves junk food I'm surprised he didn't want to try them.
MONTH - MARCH Jeff - Arkansas / Anne - Arizona
Arizona – Anne/March 2010
Anne (3.3.2010) - so I'm hoping I'll have better luck this month. I googled "made in Arizona products" - lots of web sites came up, but the two that yielded the best options were a blog http://buyusastuff.blogspot.com/ and following some links on this blog. I suspect I'll be returning to this blog as a starting place or a resource nearly every month! Why re-invent the wheel!
Ultimately, I bought pecans from Green Valley Pecans (perhaps we can do a head to head comparison with GA grown pecans!). Their store is at: http://www.pecanstore.com/
3.23.2010 - Okay, got the pecans last week, and devoured them within a few days. Very yummy, though I think the plain pecans were flavored/sweetened by their close proximity to the other sections of candied pecans (cinnamon sugar, toffee pecans, and another sweetened variety I don't remember).
The Flavors of Arizona website had a nice collection of food based businesses with Arizona-made/grown products: http://www.flavorsofarizona.org/companies.html I don't remember if I actually bought anything from this site, but I may very well have found Green Valley Pecans and Anthony Spices via this website.
I also plan to buy some dried chilis/spices. These will come from http://anthonyspices.com/ - their website didn't let me drop ship to two different addresses, so
I'll call them.
3.21.2010 - ordered product ... sounds versatile, looking forward to using it in a variety of applications. I'm hoping it will get here while Jeff is still in town so I
can just give it to him and don't have to ship it.
The other problem with this project is that we'll be on the receiving end of lots of catalogs and junk mail - we'll be adding a business each month!
Arkansas – Jeff/March 2010
I ordered Fruit wines the week before I left to see Anne in Atlanta, just to arrive on Monday and get an email saying they could not ship it due to changes ijn the law. After much discussion we found a way, and as a special gift the woman sent us some nice Grape Jelly.
Anne (3.3.2010) - so I'm hoping I'll have better luck this month. I googled "made in Arizona products" - lots of web sites came up, but the two that yielded the best options were a blog http://buyusastuff.blogspot.com/ and following some links on this blog. I suspect I'll be returning to this blog as a starting place or a resource nearly every month! Why re-invent the wheel!
Ultimately, I bought pecans from Green Valley Pecans (perhaps we can do a head to head comparison with GA grown pecans!). Their store is at: http://www.pecanstore.com/
3.23.2010 - Okay, got the pecans last week, and devoured them within a few days. Very yummy, though I think the plain pecans were flavored/sweetened by their close proximity to the other sections of candied pecans (cinnamon sugar, toffee pecans, and another sweetened variety I don't remember).
The Flavors of Arizona website had a nice collection of food based businesses with Arizona-made/grown products: http://www.flavorsofarizona.org/companies.html I don't remember if I actually bought anything from this site, but I may very well have found Green Valley Pecans and Anthony Spices via this website.
I also plan to buy some dried chilis/spices. These will come from http://anthonyspices.com/ - their website didn't let me drop ship to two different addresses, so
I'll call them.
3.21.2010 - ordered product ... sounds versatile, looking forward to using it in a variety of applications. I'm hoping it will get here while Jeff is still in town so I
can just give it to him and don't have to ship it.
The other problem with this project is that we'll be on the receiving end of lots of catalogs and junk mail - we'll be adding a business each month!
Arkansas – Jeff/March 2010
I ordered Fruit wines the week before I left to see Anne in Atlanta, just to arrive on Monday and get an email saying they could not ship it due to changes ijn the law. After much discussion we found a way, and as a special gift the woman sent us some nice Grape Jelly.
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