Posts about 520 Park Apartments in Mount Vernon

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5 Ways to Lower Your Electric Bill

Noticing your electric bill creeping up in recent months? There are easy (and even free!) ways to help keep you cool in your apartment without donating arms and legs to the electric company. Take a look at these 5 tips we came up with to help you save on your electric bill this month: Close the blinds or curtains, or both. Natural light is important to people, especially when their living quarters sway on the small side, but shutting out the sun can help reduce the heat in your apartment by 35%. Take it a step further and purchase , they’re not too expensive and have decent styles. Program your thermostat at a higher temperature while you’re away. If no one’s in the apartment from 8:00am-5:00pm, why bother cooling the space? Have it programmed to drop again about half an hour before you typically arrive home and you’ll be chilling again before dinner. Leave the temp a little higher, and buy a couple of fans. But they don’t have to be those obnoxious, ugly box fans. Dyson makes that blow a good breeze, but if you’re not willing to shell out the dough, make products that are just a sleek and still cool you off. Leave the temp a little higher, and wear less or lighter clothing It’s a no-brainer to simply wear less and shorter layers in the summer months, but also consider the fabric of choice. Cotton is more breathable than polyester or nylon, so ditch the yoga pants while binging Netflix on the couch. Or go naked. We won’t judge. Take advantage of cool nights Keep an eye on the weather and if you see it’s supposed to drop under 70 at night, open up the windows and turn off the A/C. The fresh air will do you some good, too.

How to Get the Most out of Your Smart Assistant

Keep you up to date With a smart assistant, you not only can stop reading the news every morning, you can stop reading your own emails and texts! Once you have a smart assistant, especially if you’ve upgraded to have one in multiple rooms of your home, you can ask it to read the news, the weather, or anything else that you need to know for the rest of your day. Set important reminders and alarms anywhere If your smart assistant can hear you from where you are in the house, you can set a reminder or alarm whenever you need one. On the phone and making plans? Forget about awkwardly fumbling with speakerphone; just tell your smart assistant to make an appointment on your calendar. Forgot to set an alarm to wake up, but you can’t find your phone? Tell your smart assistant when to wake you up. Smart assistants make it easy to keep your life in checkboxes in the best way. Control your entertainment life For those who are willing to go an extra step and incorporate their smart assistant into their televisions and radios, your entire entertainment web is at your fingertips. Setting up smart assistants like Alexa and Google Home in different rooms of your house means you can stream radio and music playlists from anywhere, and even rent movies and stream shows directly onto your television. All it takes is a voice command; you don’t even have to use your remote! Keep your house safe One of the greatest things about smart assistants is that they let you keep an eye on things, no matter how far away they are. Lots of home security systems are extremely high-tech nowadays, with features such as facial recognition technology and artificial intelligence that make sure your place stays secure, even when you’re not in it. Most of the time, these security systems let you connect your smart assistant, so you can check in at any point, and they can send you an alert if there’s any suspicious activity. With the combination of smart power and your ability to look things over with a human eye, your security system can be nearly foolproof. It adds an extra layer to your home security, which is great if you frequently have to leave your home standing empty. Connect you in any room Of course, the main draw of having an apartment that’s completely connected to a smart assistant is your ability to stay connected, no matter where you are. Most smart assistants connect to your phone in one way or another, which may mean the ability to answer your phone even if it’s in the next room, have music playing through your whole home, or create important reminders while you’re making dinner that your phone can bring up at a later date. Smart assistants are an amazing advancement in technology, and they’re a great way to improve your life a little bit. No matter what you’re trying to do, it’s likely that a smart assistant can walk you through it, from making your house a little safer to just enhancing your everyday living experience.

Pool Etiquette

We’ve all read the typical rules posted along the pool fence (no running, no food or drink, no diving) but there are unspoken, common-curtesy rules that many people seem to vastly ignore. Whether you frequent our community pool or go to a public pool in town, take a look at these etiquette points to avoid being that person : Noise level, language, and profanity Nobody likes a loud mouth, and I can’t think of one parent who is okay with curse words bouncing around like a beach ball. Remember you’re in a public, shared community pool full of people who come from all walks of life and might find your language offensive. While you’re certainly entitled to private conversations with friends, family or neighbors, be mindful of your noise level, the language you use, and refrain from profanity if at all possible. Rafts In some public or community pools, rafts are banned, and for good reason. If this isn’t already a rule set in place, don’t lug in that giant donut floaty you found at Costco. Remember you are one of many who want to use and enjoy the watering hole, and there’s only so much space to do so. Not only will you take up precious pool real estate, you’ll find yourself extremely annoyed with getting splashed while you’re just trying to float in peace. Do everyone a favor and leave the raft at home. Trash This is usually an actual posted rule, but it’s one that needs to be driven home. It’s never a problem to snack on some munchies while poolside, but no one wants to clean up your cans, plastic, wrappers, or worse, broken glass bottles (this one in particular is not only a nuisance, but a danger—just don’t). Put your trash back in the bag or cooler in which you brought it, so you can throw it away when you get home. Spills When’s the last time you stepped in a puddle of sticky liquid at the pool, and loved it? You didn’t. Understand spills happen, but make the effort, take the time, and find a way to clean it up. Not only does it cause annoyance to the other pool-goers, it attracts pests like ants, bees and wasps. Simply washing the spill away with some water will take care of the problem pretty quick. Behavior Pushing, drowning, stealing toys. These behaviors have been seen by young and old alike, believe it or not. It’s important to treat others with respect, no matter the situation, even if you’re just playing. A game of Chicken is fun and innocent enough in the privacy of someone’s personal pool, but any kind of extreme rowdiness in a community pool will disturb others. Attire So you went to Europe and EVERYONE was donning itsy-bitsy, teeny-wheeny swimwear. Cool. But not everyone is a fan of flaunting flesh in a public or community pool. Know your surroundings, audience, and situation. While a speedo might be perfectly fine at a Las Vegas hotel pool party, it’s possible someone could find it to be a bit too much for an afternoon dip in a shared community pool. Claiming multiple chairs Don’t do this. It’s great you arrived the second the pool opened and want to save chairs for your friends, but it’s a little rude when you claim more than half the loungers for yourself. Be a good neighbor and only claim one extra chair, two at the most. Also, don’t do anything on the chairs other than sit or lay. Standing, flipping or using them in any fashion that will bend, break, warp or damage the chair is just plain disrespectful. The same goes for any umbrellas, tables, or equipment in or around the pool. Respect the community pool and all of the property in it.

Clean Eating At Restaurants

We all know Baltimoreans love their food. And it’s likely you eat out at least 5 meals a week. Come on….admit it! With so many amazing restaurants in this city, it’s easy to say t’hell with your diet. But eating clean is important, and there are ways to keep the calorie count down while still enjoying all Baltimore has to offer. Take a look at these tips we put together for when dining out: Plan ahead, and know the ingredients—check the restaurant’s website beforehand for their nutrition section, and shoot for a meal with as little processed ingredients as possible. Look for buzzwords. “Organic,” “locally sourced,” “grass-fed,” “antibiotic- and hormone-free,” “sustainably raised” are, yes, a bit trendy, but they can also serve as indicators that the restaurant is concerned and conscientious about its sources. When ordering a salad, pay attention to what they put in it and ask yourself, honestly, if it’s healthy. Many chain restaurants make an effort with “under 500 calories” or “fit” dishes, but still load it with flavor-enhancers. Be mindful of all components and remember its okay to substitute or take away certain ingredients. Avoid creamy dressings, and always ask for it on the side. If you order a burger, check if they have wheat buns, and stick with veggie toppings instead of bacon, cheese or other fatty garnishes. While a deli turkey sandwich is always better than a greasy burger, you should still be aware that most thinly-slice deli meats contain a lot of sodium and preservatives. If the restaurant offers freshly carved turkey or chicken, order that instead. Try to choose lean meat like chicken or turkey over red meat like ham or beef. And when considering the sandwich, also be aware of the toppings and dressings/condiments. Remember, creamy=fatty. When eating Mexican, choose corn tortillas over flour tortillas. Flour tortillas (even the whole wheat varieties) are higher in calories, fat and sodium. Or nix the tortilla altogether and ask for a lettuce wrap. You’d be surprised how you don’t miss the taste of a tortilla. Choose a dish that is mostly veggies, and opt for avocado or guacamole instead of sour cream. Ask if they make their own salsa. Fresh salsa won’t have as many preservatives or sodium, but store-bought salsa is still better than sour cream. At Chinese restaurants, very little of their food is clean. Ask for simple steamed vegetables and brown rice (not fried). A little bit of soy sauce is okay, but one tiny packet holds 520mg of sodium—one quarter of your DAILY intake—so tread lightly. Remember that you’re human, and you can’t restrict yourself forever. For your mental health, splurge!….But only every once in a while. You can combat over-eating by drinking lots of water in between bites. It takes 15 minutes for your brain to recognize that you’re full, so chewing slower will reduce the chance of over-eating/ingesting unnecessary calories. Drinking all that water will also help you fill up faster. This can be applied to any meal, clean or not. Side note: talking more means less food is going in your mouth; consider dining with a chatty Kathy! And for those times you just have to splurge… Dab your pizza with a napkin (or two) before eating. That grease you see on top is actually fat that melted away from the cheese when it was heated. Blotting your pie can save about 40 calories and 4 grams of fat per slice. Steak is not the worst thing in the world, but your sides can be. Choose steamed vegetables or a side salad instead of fries or loaded baked potato. If you still want to carb it up, choose a simple baked potato and use a small amount of butter. It’s best to stay away from soda. But if you must, ask for lots of ice, and order a water with it as well. The more ice in your cup, the less soda you’ll consume (while still satisfying the craving). And when you run out of soda, you’ll drink the water while waiting for the server to refill your soda. Lattes are amazing, but they are also jam-packed with sugars and sweeteners. Decide what you absolutely must have in order for it to taste right, and stick with those few ingredients. Telling them what to put in it gives you control over your calorie and sugar intake. We here at 101 Ellwood utilize these tips regularly, and encourage everyone to eat clean both at home and on the go. Exercise weekly, if not daily. Remember to take your health seriously--be mindful of your food choices and practice fitness activities that you find fun!

Is Brandless Worth It?

You may have heard of the new online grocery store, Brandless. Their slogan “Better everything, for everyone” has people excited to replace their food and home products with a simple, unbiased brand. Brandless was brought to life on July 11, 2017 with the intention of making better stuff accessible and affordable for more people. Their mission is deeply rooted in quality, transparency, and community-driven values. It’s the idea that big-brand names are charging too much for their product, simply because of the brand name. Here, you can purchase the same product at a much lower cost. After seeing this new hit store several times across social media, I decided to check it out. My instant reaction was to completely replace my weekly trip to the grocery store with this easier online shopping experience. But it got me thinking: does it really save me that much money? Is there really much of a difference in their stuff? I thought I’d embark on a comparison journey to get to the bottom of my skepticism. Step 1: make a list Before I even visited the Brandless site I made a list of groceries I typically pick up. Not realizing Brandless is void of any fresh produce, meat, or dairy, I was immediately deterred from using them as I slowly discovered these weren’t even options. (All things considered, it makes sense why they don’t do fresh food, but, I have to say I was disappointed I could only use them for select items.) I decided to proceed with my ‘versus’ mission anyway. My grocery list consisted of 20 fresh food and snack items, and 10 household items. Of these 30 products, I found only half of them on the Brandless website. I then had to decide which grocery competitor would be best compared to Brandless, and ended up choose Walmart since their slogan is, in fact, “Always low prices.” At Brandless, each item costs only $3 so you’d think you’re getting some bang for your buck, right? I thought the same, until I saw their $3 bag of almonds weighed in at a mere 5.5 oz. Not much compared to Walmart’s 14 oz. for only $2 more. For this reason I made sure to list the size, weight or count on the list to get a proper comparison. Step 2: compare As mentioned, Brandless boasts a low $3 price tag for all their products. I wanted to find the cheapest options available on Walmart’s website to get a good comparison, so I tried to use their Great Value brand whenever possible, but if I couldn’t get GV, I went with the cheapest option for that product. The final price for my Brandless cart—note HALF the items weren’t in there—rounded out to an even $45. Walmart’s online shopping cart came to $76.92, and I was able to get every item on my list. Even if Brandless did have all the items on my list, the cart total would come to $90. Right off the bat, Walmart wins with a $16 savings. Step 3: shipping There is more to consider than price alone, however. What’s the delivery charge? How long does it take to get to you? Will you be happy with the taste of your food? Let’s take a look: Brandless Walmart Delivery price $5 for free over $40 $8 or free over $30 Delivery time 3-5 days 2-4 days Walmart wins again. Not only is shipping cheaper, but your stuff arrives quicker. Step 4: quality It’s now, though, that we have to ask ourselves the most pivotal question—does price outweigh quality? Depends on your taste. For me, Great Value paper towels still absorb liquids, no matter the maker, and candy is just as sweet no matter the manufacturer. For some people, though, quality is everything. Brandless offers certified organic, gluten free, non-GMO, vegan, and cruelty & tree-free products. Walmart also offers (some of) those things, but many people are skeptical of big-brand, corporate company’s so-called “clean” products. Brandless puts time and care into their products, as opposed to mass producing them. In addition, Brandless works with local communities and donates a lot of their products and time to fight hunger and help those in need. If that’s not worth your dollars, I don’t know what is. Step 5: The verdict If you’re hoping to make a full switch to Brandless for your grocery needs, I wouldn’t hold your breath. But, if you want to replace a few of your panty items with organic and healthy alternatives to Great Value then you’re in the right place. Just don’t expect to save that much money. Their marketing strategy with “everything only $3” is quite brilliant, because $3 sounds so cheap. But once you consider the amount you’re getting for $3, it balances out with your everyday shelf item, and actually costs a little more than what’s in your local grocery store. Is that totally worth receiving the best quality products? You be the judge.