By Katie Haines-Stiles

As a middle child in a family of four, competition has been a constant motivator throughout my life. My brothers and I are two years apart in either direction, and my sister is the eldest, with a four-year age difference between us. As kids, it was awesome because even when we weren’t allowed to go on play dates, we had at least one willing participant in whatever we wanted to do right there in the house. There were, of course, predictable patterns that emerged -- whatever the activity was usually ended in tears (from me), a breaking of some aspect of the game (from my older brother Nick), the hiding (or swallowing) of some important piece of the game (my younger brother Max), or the proclamation that the game was juvenile and there were better things to do (my older sister Sasha). There were very few games that got us all involved for lengthy periods of time and that we all had fun doing, with the exception of two: manhunt in the basement of my parents’ house and refrigerator wars.

My parents put a ban on manhunt very quickly when my brother “accidentally” pushed my head into a cement pole during a super-serious, high-stakes game. The resulting mass that appeared and stayed on my forehead for two weeks and drew laughs from not only the other kids at school but passing adults was enough for me to agree.

It left us with one option. It started innocently enough. We were going on vacation and the Costco sized jug of milk in the fridge wasn’t going to drink itself. Rather than letting it go to waste, my parents insisted we finish it. It was my brother Nick who put out the first of what would be many challenges: Whoever drinks the most shots of milk gets to ride in the middle seat of the minivan my parents had by themselves while the other three had to cram into the backseat. It was on. Nick inevitably won, but victory really belonged to the other three in the back seat, because all that milk, and all the freedom that comes from being the only person in the middle seat of a moving car leads to..Well, it’s not pretty.

Food is an easy entertainer, and Nick bounced back from the milk challenge to come up with the blender challenge. It basically requires you to come up with the grossest combination of things in a blender and the others drink it until someone can’t drink anymore. The winning beverage: orange juice, chocolate milk powder, parmesan cheese, ham and toothpaste.

The food competitions have carried over into our adult lives, but have lost the grossness…for the most part. Most recently, while home over the holidays, my brothers and I used the SAVEUR 100 issue as the basis of our challenge. Armed with the full force of my mother’s overly stocked kitchen, we set out to see who could make the best dish with SAVEUR’s everyday hero: chicken breast. While I’ll spare you all the gruesome details of what went down, the issue provided some amazing ammunition for the challenge. I think my siblings and I would all classify ourselves as home cooks, and the issue pays homage to people just like us. It’s a great read, I recommend picking one up! (For the recipe we used and more, check out http://www.saveur.com/)

WHAT I’M:

Reading: Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

Listening to: Common

Watching: Inauguration coverage!!

Eating: What am I NOT eating??

FlatRate Moving & Storage Quotes an All-Inclusive Flat Rate of $13,582

New York, January 14, 2009 – With the inauguration only days away, the President-elect has a major responsibility on his shoulders.  As reported today on Slate.com, the incoming President is responsible for funding and coordinating the transportation of his family’s belongings to an undisclosed warehouse in Maryland.  From there – it’s all in the hands of the Secret Service and under the budget of the federal government.  But until it reaches Maryland – the expense is on the Obamas.  But how much would that cost?

FlatRate Moving & Storage specializes in long-distance and cross-country moves, in addition to its unique expertise within New York City and the six other cities that it serves.  And - when asked what a move of this magnitude would cost the Obama family, FlatRate, the innovator of the single price, all inclusive move, responded -- $13,582.

And what would that investment come with?  According to Mike Kessler, vice president of sales for FlatRate, the move would include everything the family would need to ensure a worry-free experience, including: a dedicated tractor trailer, eight person team, on-site carpenter, full packing services, packing materials, photographed inventory, furniture disassembly, cataloguing of books, furniture wrapping, specialty packing for electronics, art and other valuables and delivery in Maryland within 24 hours of leaving Chicago.

“An interstate move is one of the most stressful events a family can go through,” said Kessler. “We’re so pleased to offer worry-free services at a FlatRate so that families, like the Obamas, can get down to what matters most – enjoying their new home and adjusting to a new city.”

To learn more about FlatRate Moving & Storage or to obtain a quote, please visit www.flatrate.com or call 1-800-386-4528.

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by Gabriella Garcia

The New Year always brings the desire to rid oneself of bad habits. The guilt of poor eating, not enough exercise, too many vices overall start to catch up with you and the onset of another year puts people into a panic.  All of the sudden we are overcome by a motivation to become the better person that we know exists deep down somewhere.

Well, this frenzied energy was not lost on me this year.  As I walked into work the morning of January 5, I was determined to lose the holiday weight that had packed on a “bit” more than I was used to.  My first priority was to discontinue my daily trips to the famed Farmers Market on Third Street and Fairfax.  Now this may sound absurd considering you can get some of the best produce at a farmers market let alone a farmers market in southern California, but isn’t the first step to being a better person admitting your faults. 

I have no self discipline to say no to good food.  What’s more, I have a tendency to equate good food with a higher intake of carbs and calories.  It is virtually impossible to pass by the Chinese vendor who I know will always search for the most perfect cookie and wish me good fortune at check out.  The French deli with creamy bries, spicy salamis, and crusty baguettes will inevitably push me to convince myself that somehow its not THAT bad for you, because French people are so skinny.  The Brazilian barbecue offers skewered steaks and thick sausages on swords, buttered pastas, and seasoned rice. A fruit salad starts looking pretty bleak next to chocolate-covered toffee bars. 

To my utter chagrin, the only real option that came to me was Subway.  It's basic, there’s a sandwich that I love, and most importantly it's not next to a more tempting store front offering French fries or pizza.  The only comfort that comes from this lifestyle change attempt is that I can go for days eating the same thing.  However, I’m not quite sure at what point I will find myself again in the familiar aisles of Third Street and Fairfax caught in the tasty torrent getting “one of everything.”

What I’m:

Eating:  Subway of course

Watching:  The City

Reading:  Twilight

Listening to: Rihanna