Friday Five # 5

Time flies so fast we are now on the 5th edition of our Friday Five. Welcome everyone! As the holidays are almost here, the links below include some tips to make your gift-giving and partymaking more colorful.

1. FOOD HACKS - have you already figured out how to avoid crying when slicing onions? Can you make your margaritas and marshmallows? Do you know what is a Thorax Cake? Know the answers on this useful website.



2. HOLIDAY GIFTS - one of the most difficult challenges of the holiday season is finding out what kind of gift to buy friends and dear relatives. What will you give this year? Fruitcake again? Use this website to fire up your imagination.



3. JAPANESE GIFT-WRAPPING STYLE - I have always wondered why we should spend a lot of time beautifying the way gifts are wrapped when the one who will receive it will shred and destroy what probably took you money and time to fix. The Japanese have a better way of gift-wrapping. It is called Furoshiki. You will never feel frustrated with gift-wrapping again!



4. AVOIDING CHRISTMAS PARTIES - this week and the following week are the time of Christmas parties, whether it's office, school, or family-related. Not everyone enjoys attending parties for a variety of reasons. Mine is "I'm tired and sleepy." But saying so can be rude especially if the party host is very dear to you. Be creative. This website will give you ideas (read: excuses) on how to beat around the bush.



5. WASTING YOUR TIME - finally, if you do manage to get away from the parties, and end up alone in your house with nothing to do, you can try these 15 places on the internet where you can while away your precious time. If unsatisfied, go back and see if you can still join the party you avoided.