No matter which SPF you choose, wearing sunscreen should protect you from UVA and UVB exposure, but no sunscreen can provide 100 percent protection.

So leave it to one of my Bingo Babe buddies to solve the problem.

She told me to mist the blades with cooking spray…Yes Babes…regular cooking spray like Pam.

The oil in the spray acts as a non stick coating, which helps prevent grass buildup by allowing the grass to slide right off.

On April 4^th, the owners of the Bingo Palace asked all their fabulous Bingo Babes to participate in an Easter Bonnet Contest with three categories:

The Prettiest

The Funniest

The Most Original

The Bingo Hall was decorated to the nines with adorable bunnies and everyone was treated to a Bingo Easter Egg Hunt.  Eggs filled with all kinds of bingo related prizes were hidden around the hall adding to the excitement of the evening.

Barbara and Sonya prepared a fabulous Easter feast of fresh baked ham, Sonya’s unbelievably delicious home-made potato salad, green beans, corn and a dinner roll.

With so many wonderful and creative entries, the judges had difficult choices. Here are just a few

Congratulations to “kimmel1″ and “tgfamilyof4″ who both won the Blowout Hall Progressive Bingo Jackpot on Tuesday, January 26th.

First it was “kimmel1″ who scooped the Progressive Jackpot for $1,152.45 and then “tgfamilyof4″ hit the Progressive Jackpot on the same day for $507.80.

If you want to become our next Jackpot winner then visit any of our four bingo halls to win one of the following progressive jackpots:

Classic Hall Progressive Jackpot – $4,204.64

Party Hall Progressive Jackpot – $1,410.50

90 Ball Hall Progressive Jackpot – $881.14

Blowout Hall Progressive Jackpot – $504.56

Good luck.
Glamour Bingo Management.

1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 lb medium sweet potatoes
3 tablespoons olive oil

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Coarsely grind coriander, fennel, oregano, and red pepper flakes in an electric coffee/spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle. Stir together spices and salt.
3. Cut potatoes lengthwise into 1-inch wedges.
4. Toss wedges with oil and spices in a large roasting pan and roast in middle of oven 20 minutes. Turn wedges over with a spatula and roast until tender and slightly golden, 15 to 20 minutes more.

You couldn’t help but have good luck at bingo tonight after serving such a winning side dish.

* This winning receipt was contributed by Bingo Babe Ann B. in Oakland, CA. Thanks Ann!

I have tried this helpful hint and was surprised at how well it works. I use 2 tablespoons lemon juice when frying salmon patties and the smell is gone as soon as I am done frying. I just mix it in with my oil in the skillet.

Ingredients

Olive oil
1 Large yellow onion, very thinly sliced
Mushrooms, thinly sliced
1/2 Head Chopped Garlic

1/2 cup Red Wine *
1 pkg. Chicken Strips
1/2 cup flour
salt & pepper to taste

1 Box Linguine

A few sprigs of Parsley
Lemon juice to taste
Grated Pecorino Romano

Directions

Heat olive oil in a frying pan.

Add sliced onions and a handful of sliced mushrooms.

As the mushrooms brown, continue adding mushrooms a little bit at a time (brown the mushrooms, don’t just cook them).

Add garlic and a tbsp of balsamic vinegar and reduce.

When the onions are caramelized, remove from pan, set aside.

Add 1/2 cup red wine (well maybe a splash more) and 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar to the same pan. Reduce to syrup.   Turn on a stove-top fan, if you have one… vinegar smells bad.

Start boiling the water for the pasta and pour yourself a glass of the wine you are cooking with. Remember…reducing wine intensifies its flavor.  Always cook with a wine you enjoy drinking.

Add salt and pepper to flour to taste and dredge chicken in flour mixture.

In wine-vinegar syrup, add the chicken strips to the pan over low heat. Add more garlic and cook about 4 minutes on each side.

Remove chicken strips.

Reheat the vegetables and add some fresh garlic and parsley.

Cook the pasta.

Mix all of it together and squeeze lemon on top, add cheese!

*Recommendation

As you know from reading my previous recipe, this Bingo Babe only recommends the best!  And in this case I recommend using Ringtail Vineyards’ Petite Sirah.

It seems both men and women young and old are discovering that technology now allows them to play bingo as well as other games at home.   This is only one report of many to note the continuing rise of internet-based games such as online bingo.

Thomas Roche, global gaming leader at Ernst & Young, commented: “Online games provide a form of escapism for people during the difficult times and the potential audience is huge for anyone with an internet connection. The past year has already seen accelerated growth in this area as online games become a fun, cost-effective alternative to other leisure activities during an economic downturn.”

So let’s look at a few safe, secure games listed on this website. This Bingo Babe has done her research in hopes of finding something for everyone. I will give you a little informational tidbit about 5 games.  All you need to do is touch the games name and you will be whisked right off to the game site.  There you can read all about what each game offers and what you have to do to play.

Online Bingo is a game that produces a full spectrum of emotions.  There’s the rush you feel when the jackpot is enormous on Bingo Moolah and you are down to one number.  Each number that is called makes your heart beat faster with the hope and anticipation that the next number called will be the one you need to win a huge jackpot. Especially when you might win it on the $20 they gave you to try the game for free!

Online bingo has taught me to have faith. I have faith that someday the bingo gods of Paramount Bingo will be good to me, and I will be lucky enough to win one of their guarantied $500 jackpots.

Along with faith comes sheer determination. I just know that my day will come and I can call all my Desperate Housewife friends and bask in the glory as a Big Jackpot Winner.

On days when it’s raining and I feel a little depressed, I truly believe nothing can cure a case of the blues faster than playing Bingo Gala. My goodness, just the thought that I could win their $2500 progressive jackpot brings out the sunshine! I don’t have to get dressed.  I don’t have to talk to anyone if I don’t want to, and if I do want to talk to someone there are lots of happy people waiting to talk to me in the secure on line bingo chat rooms.

When you are engrossed in a game of bingo, you can’t think about your problems, the problems with the economy, or anything else for that matter.  All you can think about are the cards in front of you and the numbers you need to bingo or maybe about going to Bingo Tropics, a bingo hall that has so much more than just your everyday bingo. It really is very therapeutic.  A combination of all these emotions often produces a kind of euphoria. So who needs Prozac when you can play online Bingo?

So let’s start the New Year off with an adrenalin rush of adventure and the hope of all wonderful things to come.  Take a look around at some of the many safe – secure online games we offer.  Try them out and meet some new friends.

As most of you already know, this Bingo Babe loves to cook.  I especially like to cook with a good wine or liquor as my cousins, Donna & Rob in California, are the proud and caring owners of Ringtail Vineyards & Winery.  I have been spoiled by some of the best and most delightful wines in the world at their vineyard.

Well, my friend Sophie (not her real name) was looking for a treat that she could take to a Christmas party at her local bingo hall. I won’t even tell you which bingo hall to protect the innocent. She found a recipe for Bourbon Balls in my Gotta Get to Bingo Cookbook.  Now, y’all must understand, the purpose of this cookbook is to have a collection of quick and easy recipes at hand to please your family, so you can get out the door to bingo … fast and guilt-free.  My husband, Harry, is thrilled to sit at home and watch the game with a little bowl of these “bourbon balls” at his side.

So Sophie whips up a delightful tray of these wonderful chocolate confections using my recipe … on page 38.  They looked harmless enough with a little sprinkle of confectioners sugar over the top, and candy canes arranged neatly around the edges of the tray.  Sophie proudly set her tray down in the center of the table along with the treats the other ladies had brought.  She giggled like she was “cheating the devil” as she whispered to her friends that they were Bourbon Balls.  (I must give you fair warning:  you should know you are NOT ALLOWED to bring alcohol into a bingo hall.)

Back to the Bourbon Balls … “don’t worry,” one of the ladies said, “alcohol evaporates when you cook it,” as she popped the first bourbon ball into her mouth and rolled her eyes in sheer delight!

Well, here’s the deal Babes… the bourbon is injected into the balls AFTER they are made so the alcohol does not cook off!  Sophie admitted the next day, fostering one heck of a hangover, she must have been a little overzealous when she injected each ball with the bourbon, as she had used up over half a bottle of it.

By the first quarter break these usually quiet, well mannered ladies had become increasingly louder and more rambunctious.  By the half-time break, daubers were abangin’ and laughter was abounding.  It was clear that these lovely southern bells … were simply snockered!

I was sitting two tables away and didn’t want to give their secret away, but the more I asked them to quiet down, the louder they got.  They became a bunch of loud, uncontrollable wild women.  I could just imagine one of them jumping up on the table to dance for the crowd, who by now, knew something was very amiss.

I was also worried that at the end of the evening they would all get into their cars and try to drive home.  I could not let that happen.  As much as I didn’t want to ruin their party,  I notified one of the floor runners and within moments, the very few remaining bourbon balls on the tray were whisked away and each lady was offered a very strong cup of coffee and some real food.  By the end of the evening we made sure they had completely sobered up.  Sophie even won a jackpot!  Surely this will be one of those stories that Sophie will be hearing about for years to come!

Hey there all you Fabulous Bingo Babes,  Bodacious Bingo Babe here and I have something really important I want to talk to you about…Good Sportsmanship… That’s right, being a good sport and having a good attitude when you play bingo is very much a part of what the bingo experience is all about.

Now think about it.  Why do you go to play bingo?  Yes, yes, I know you want to win a few bucks, but what’s the real reason you drag yourself out in the rain or snow to go sit in a crowded room and listen to someone yell out a bunch of numbers.  I’ll tell you why… It’s the thrill you get when you win.  It’s to be with friends, talk about your life (and everyone else’s) and in general have a good time. It’s about coming home at the end of the evening and being able to relive in your dreams what it was like to hit the big win.

There are days you win and are so glad you have all your friends around you to cheer you on when you are set for one more number, and then give you that high five when you actually do win.  Look, winning is always fun, even when you are alone, but winning when you are with people that are happy for you makes it so much sweeter… and that, my dear friends, is the best part of the thrill.

So what’s the deal with those crabby players who always look so unhappy?  When they win they let out a little unsatisfied and barely audible bingo. Pathetic… just pathetic… What’s the fun in that?  If you can’t be excited for yourself, and at least do a little “Bingo Happy Chair Dance Wiggle” no one else will be excited for you either.

When someone else wins, you should be just as thrilled for them as they should be for you.  I know that’s easier said than done, but it is “good sportsmanship”.  I have played bingo with players that have sucked all the fun out of my wins.  I went home with lots of cash, but with a sad feeling in the pit of my stomach because there was no one there to be happy for me. It’s kinda like seeing the most beautiful sunset you have ever seen and having no one else with you to see it too and share the feeling.

At most bingo halls you share a table with other people.  You are NOT there alone.  Good attitude is contagious.  If you arrive smiling and wish everyone else “Good Luck” the Bingo Gods will smile upon you… and so will everyone else.
If you are happy for others when they win and show them a big smile (even if you don’t really mean it) when it is your turn to win, you just might be surprised to get a big smile of congratulations back.  Then of course when you do your Happy Chair Dance Wiggle it will let everyone else enjoy your win too.

So speaking of my famous “Happy Chair Dance Wiggle” It goes something like this… you have your hand in the air and have already begun to get the wiggle going. Then when the winning number is called you “YELL BINGO!” None of that wimpy grumpy stuff. Let everyone really hear it.  That my friends, is why you are there!

Rock your shoulders and wiggle your butt like you are doing the samba sitting in the chair. Be enthusiastic about your win.  Nothing wrong with a little ‘whoop and hollerin’.

Like I said, fun and laughter are contagious.  Pretty soon the entire bingo hall will be a whoopin’ and a hollerin’ too….Now doesn’t that sound like more fun?