Abetrujillo

Following in the footsteps of companies like Blockbuster, Borders, and other retailers that sold or rented books, movies, and video games, Hastings Entertainment is bowing to years of faltering sales, filing for bankruptcy on Monday. 

Hastings — along with its parent company Draw Another Circle and sister brands, Movie Stop and SPImages — filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Monday, outlining plans to sell its 126 locations or close up shop.

The Texas-based entertainment company says in a statement posted on its website that the filing was initiated as a way to prepare the business for the intended sale while also providing additional protection and financing to allow business move on as usual.

“Please be assured that Hastings stores and e-commerce business remain open and continue to bring you the superior selection of multimedia and entertainment products you have come to expect from us,” Jim Litwak, President and COO for Hastings, said in a statement.

Hastings, which typically operates in college towns in the Midwest and South Central U.S., hopes to find a buyer for its 126 stores within 30 days. However, if a buyer can’t be found, the company says it will liquidate its assets — a process its 39 related Movie Stop stores have already begun, according to Publishers Weekly.

According to filings submitted to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Hastings has contacted 22 potential buyers and received expressions of interest from 10 of those, but no deals have been reached, Publishers Weekly reports.

As the company continued looking for a buyer, it has made several changes to its in-store programs, including no longer accepting or honoring customer deposits for future movie purchases. Instead, existing deposits may be applied towards additional purchases in the store.

Additionally, game rentals will no longer be offered and the stores’ buyback program has been suspended. The company says gift cards will expire 30 days from the bankruptcy filing on July 30.

“We apologize for any inconvenience this news may cause,” Litwak said in a statement.

Publishers Weekly reports that Hastings downfall likely began in 2014 when the chain was sold and became part of Draw Another Circle Inc.

Since then the company has suffered millions in sale losses, including $16.6 million in losses in 2015.

I don't know about you, but for me, the question, "What's for dinner?" is a daily tussle between good intentions and lack of time; between a desire to eat wholesome foods, and the temptation of take-out. I crave vegetables but need easy ways to eat more of them. Enter my latest strategy for eating better without spending too much time in the kitchen: Flip the bowl!

Why start with meat or pasta, when you can start with veggies? I have been discovering ways to stuff dinner bowls with quick vegetables — raw or roasted — and then top them with meat from the freezer or the grocery hot bar for flavor. Here's the first in a series of meal favorites, but flipped upside down so the vegetables come first.

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So many veggies, but how many of them really want to be noodles? From beets, broccoli stems, and butternut squash to cabbages, carrots, and cucumbers, not to mention parsnips, plantains, potatoes, pears, and of course, zucchini, the answer is nearly everything — as long as you've got the skills. Here's what you need to know to make your vegetable drawer go spiral.

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By far the biggest complaint we have (and hear) about the spiralizer — whichever one you may have — is that it's a pain to clean. Here are a few tips to make the process a little bit easier.

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Sometimes cucumbers bore me to tears. No offense, cucumber, but your chill flavor can be a little underwhelming at times! It wasn't until I began spiralizing cucumber into long, elegant strands that my affection for this vegetable really began to change.

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If you’ve ever tried to get an entire family with children organized and ready to go somewhere, you need to plan on it taking at least three times as long as it should. If you have more than two children, you’ll have to add more time per child. But here’s the secret: when they get to a certain age, you can just drive off without the one kid who refuses to cooperate. If you’re lucky, the incident will be noticed by the other children. That age (and you’ll know when it happens) could coincide with the age they don’t want to go out with their family anyway, so it works out. This is the latest from Lunarbaboon.

Owls are amazing creatures both in reality and in myth. They're even a symbol of wisdom. If you're among the many people in the world who are obsessed with owls, you won't want to miss these awesome Etsy finds.

Barn Owl Ring

By ElinaGleizer

Nesting Owl Dolls

By craftsec

Curious Owl Painting

By MirzoevaArtBoutique

Barn Owl Mask

By ThumbelinaWorkshop

Laser Cut Candle Holder With an Owl in a Tree

By EliseKoncsek

Watercolor Owl Painting

By courtneyoquist

Owl Bottle Necklace

By CosmicFirefly

Felted Barn Owl

By boridolls

Kids' Owl Costume

By TreeAndVine

Silver Owl Bracelet

By CatsAndSheep

Meet Okitsugu Kado. For the past ten years, this sushi chef has been honing skills as the best Star Wars vegetable carver around.

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Hovertext: People on the left and right have never been so CUT.

New comic!
Today's News:

Today, I'm so tired from constantly soothing my crying 2-month-old baby that I've started trying to soothe inanimate objects with baby talk when they make a noise. My fridge stated beeping and I began an involuntary chorus of, 'It's OK darling, shhhhhh, it's alright.' FML

There's such a thing as a TomTato, which is a hybrid of a tomato and potato plant. It grows tomatoes above ground, and potatoes below. It was developed by horticulturists Thompson and Morgan. From their website:


I told my wife about this and she still refuses to believe that it's real. But it is.... I think.

More info: Greenock Telegraph

(Chris Hallbeck/Maximumble)

One is your wife. The other is her evil twin sister, now escaped from an asylum for the criminally insane. They look alike, but only one has learned how to tolerate you for long periods of time. Which one is the right one!?

Jeff Wysaski of Obvious Plant (previously) has left a series of innovative motivational posters at a local home goods store.





More - after the jump




Obvious Plant

From price-matching local and online competitor prices to its own “Savings Catcher” program, Walmart offers customers a variety of ways to save a few buck on their bill. But shoppers at some stores will soon have one fewer option for saving money, as the big box retailer is ditching in-store price matching at 500 locations, though the company currently refuses to say which stores are on that list.

Under the outgoing policy, Walmart allowed customers to bring in local competitors’ ads and if the prices were lower for a product, they would be able to purchase that item at the cheaper price.

Starting June 9, a rep for Walmart tells Consumerist that 500 stores will ditch that policy as a way to streamline and make saving easier for customers.

Since Walmart isn’t saying which stores — or even which regions — are affected by this policy change, the only way for customers to know if they can’t price-match is when they get to the store. The changes will be announced in-store with blue signs at registers, and managers will be on hand to assist customers.

In lieu of the Ad Match program, the 500 stores will offer new “significant, long-term” rollbacks on thousands of items that were commonly price-matched, including consumables, groceries, paper products, and other products.

Walmart says it sees the change as a way to make saving easier by getting everyday prices down.

The retailer says it will still allow customers to price-match if they see a product selling lower on Walmart.com. Additionally, they can continue using Walmart’s Savings Catcher program.

For now, Walmart doesn’t anticipate expanding the no-price-matching policy to stores outside of the undisclosed 500 locations.

[via CouponsInTheNews]

When I was a child, I was always a little difficult when it came time to eat my vegetables. But man, if my veggies looked like these rainbow rolls, I might've been more receptive to the whole idea.

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“This is what my buddy does to his kids so they don’t ruin Christmas: booby traps.”

(via source) 

“This is what my buddy does to his kids so they don’t ruin Christmas: booby traps.”

(via source) 

The post Christmas Booby Traps appeared first on AwkwardFamilyPhotos.com.

SMBC

A new hashtag on Twitter has people hilariously changing book titles by removing one letter.

The Girl With The Drago Tattoo#RemoveALetterSpoilABook pic.twitter.com/aW8NdF4ThQ

— Gray (@gray) May 12, 2016

"The Silence of the Labs" #RemoveALetterSpoilABook pic.twitter.com/TYkzqLezYP

— Justice Don Willett (@JusticeWillett) May 11, 2016

Of Ice and Men #RemoveALetterSpoilABook pic.twitter.com/p9kd3bQusT

— Jessica Piazza (@JessWins) May 11, 2016

More - after the jump

#RemoveALetterSpoilABook Now White and the 7 Dwarfs pic.twitter.com/71Rijc8bHm

— Alan Lambo Lambert (@alanlambodublin) May 12, 2016

Jurassic Ark #RemoveALetterSpoilABook pic.twitter.com/RwmpgcsgIC

— David Purse (@davidpurse) May 11, 2016

The Princess Brie#RemoveALetterSpoilABook pic.twitter.com/odgZkHVoHr

— Radani (Octy!) (@Octy_in_Boots) May 12, 2016

Fight Cub #RemoveALetterSpoilABook pic.twitter.com/my2bUEyLds

— David Purse (@davidpurse) May 11, 2016

SpiderMa #RemoveALetterSpoilABook pic.twitter.com/hl4I5PjBBG

— Celebrity Usernames (@CelebrityUsers) May 11, 2016

#RemoveALetterSpoilABook

via

A group of chess enthusiasts checked into a hotel and were standing in the lobby discussing their recent tournament victories.

After about an hour, the manager came out of the office and asked them to disperse.

”But why?” they asked, as they moved off.

”Because,” he said ”I can’t stand chess nuts boasting in an open foyer.”

The massive frozen vegetable recall linked to a listeria outbreak that has so far resulted in two deaths and eight illnesses, has once again expanded. According to notices posted with the Food & Drug Administration, NORPAC Foods recalled Natural Directions Organics Mixed Vegetables and Natural Directions Organic Green Peas, while Picsweet issued a recall of 14 varieties of frozen vegetables that contain green beans or green peas from supplier CRF Frozen Foods. The vast vegetable recall kicked off two weeks ago when CRF announced the voluntary call back of frozen organic and traditional fruit and vegetable products manufactured or processed at its Washington facility since May 1, 2014 after finding traces of listeria in the food. [Food & Drug Administration]

These cats are playing out a scene happening all over. Children need fresh air and room to stretch their imaginations. But more importantly, parents need them out of their hair. Being your own bad example requires privacy. This comic is the latest from The GaMERCat. -via Geeks Are Sexy

I grew up with a mother that was very ahead of her time. In the early '80s she had turned half of our back yard into an organic vegetable garden that almost completely sustained us during the warm months of the year. With four children running around, she had lot of help harvesting. I think that my love of gardening (and vegetables) stemmed from that childhood garden. In particular I remember the snap peas, strawberries, and zucchini. The sweet, crunchy peas and juicy strawberries are fairly self explanatory, but the zucchini? Well to me it meant zucchini bread and chocolate zucchini cake, so I was a big fan.

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When you think about salsa, it's easy to jump to the classic tomato-based version. But with warmer weather (and a new selection of fresh produce) on the horizon, why not expand your options with a few brighter, bolder, sweeter flavors? Just don't forget the chips.

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We all have those nights when the lure of the takeout menu or delivery app is almost magnetic, but if you're committed to making something at home, you should try one of these easy meals that replicates your favorite restaurant dishes. Some require a little planning (as in prepping the ingredients to toss in the slow cooker), but there are quite a few options that you can make in 30 minutes or less.

If you're still not convinced, open a bottle of wine, put on a great playlist, and make cooking the evening's entertainment. You'll feel pretty good when you sit down to the dinner you made yourself.

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If you look quickly, you might think this is a bowl of scrambled eggs, but — surprise! — it's actually chickpeas. When sautéed with turmeric, onions, and garlic, it makes the perfect savory breakfast.

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Almost any cooking technique you apply to salmon shows off its impressive versatility. After all, this rich and fatty fish is called "the king of fish" for a reason. Poaching takes advantage of salmon's high fat content, slow transforming the flesh into a seasoned, buttery-tasting dish you can actually make on a weeknight in under an hour with 10 ingredients or less — and that's including the salt and pepper!

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In 2005 Asha Dornfest, a new parent, launched the blog Parent Hacks as a way for parents to share tips that make raising young children less nerve-racking. This book has the 134 best tips from the blog. Here are a few examples from the On the Go section:

• #116 Write your phone number on your kid’s belly.
• #113 Strap ankle weights to a lightweight stroller to keep it from tipping.
• #110 Line your car’s cup holders with cupcake liners.
• #118 Use adhesive bandages to baby-proof hotel room outlets.

Other tip themes include pregnancy and postpartum, sleep, food and mealtime, organizing time and space, and getting dressed. Craighton Berman’s clear illustrations make it easy to understand most tips at a glance. If you or someone you know is pregnant, this book is essential reading.

-- Mark Frauenfelder

Parent Hacks: 134 Genius Shortcuts for Life with Kids ($8)

By Asha Dornfest

2016, 272 pages

International Amazon link

Available from Amazon

Sample Excerpts:

Passover starts today, and with it comes matzo ball soup. But this isn't any ol' matzo ball soup — this one is completely gluten-free, thanks to chickpea flour.

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