Monday on Today 8/6

Happy Monday, hope you all had a great weekend. Today's Money was today's first feature in the third hour with Dr. Gail Salz and somebody else--probably a money expert--sorry I didn't catch her name. Anyway the topic was, Kids And Debit Cards. I can sum it all up in two words: bad idea. Instead, teach kids financial responsibility. And again from today's page of the book of the obvious: be a good role model. Whenever there is a segment dealing with kids, it always comes back to that. Kids are going to do what they see, not what they're told. Require them to earn their own money and talk to them about responsibility. Open a savings account for them and match their savings (optional). Just get smart and they will too.

Today's Woman had The Ultimate Spa Guide with a list of some of the best spas in America by Lisa Drayer--didn't catch her title, but at least I got her name. One of the best spas is Miraval Spa in Tuscon, AZ where you can learn about medicinal plants, ageless radiance--how to age gracefully and learn how to communicate with horses. Did you know horses can read our body energy? I didn't but it doesn't surprise me. My dogs can too. Anyway, that sounds like a great place. If I had more money and time I'd book a spot right now. Maybe after I win Publisher's Clearinghouse. What? I could be a winner. Lake Austin in Austin TX is described as the perfect girlfriend getaway with mother/daughter weeks and urban cowgirl weekends. Sounds like fun. Red Mountain Spa in Utah has 30 hiking trails and a cooking school. Kohler Spa in WI is called the ultimate in pampering with delicious foods and in-room spa services among other perks. And of course Hilton Head, SC is on the list. They help guests lose weight successfully by not focusing on short term fixes but long lasting changes.

Rosario Dawson stopped by for a visit to talk about her new revenge thriller about a woman who gets raped and doesn't tell anybody. As long as she gets revenge, it sounds like a good movie to me. And what would a visit on The Today Show be without their clever subtitles to go with your name? Hers was Dawson's "Descent": Rosario's Revenge. Descent is the name of the movie. It should be hitting theatres near you soon.

Today's Home with Eric Villency was all about Transforming Bath to Spa, for those of us who can't make it to Miraval. He suggested adding stone to add an earthy feel to the bathroom--I never considered "earthy" to be a bathroom requirement. Also adding things like wooden toilet seats and tables made out of bamboo and teaks--renewable resources. It's all about creating warmth and texture with stone tiles and rock formations, which are not easy to clean. But if you're adding these to your bathroom, you're probably not doing your own cleaning. He also talked about adding free standing tables, hydrotherapy using air jets and a $3100 tank-less toilet that uses an electric motor. What happened to using renewable resources? And talk about impractical; a three thousand dollar toilet? You can add color with shower curtains, toilet seats, benches, stools and candles. My advice: save your money for the real spas. How much time are you really going to spend in the bathroom anyway?

They usually do the weekend box office at the top of the hour but today it was toward the end. Maybe because "The Bourne Ultimatum" set a new August record, taking in over $70 million. And it didn't even have to open on a Wednesday to accomplish it. That pushed last week's number 1,"The Simpsons" back to the number 2 spot with "Under Dog," which was filmed here in RI, coming in at number 3.

Today's Kitchen was Smokin' On The Plaza, featuring an industrial smoker to smoke baby back ribs and sweet potatoes with a side order of cole slaw. You can also get a Weber Mountain Smoker for about $200. I didn't catch the chef's name either because my Boston Terrier was in the middle of a trifecta--grabbing a teddy-bear off the couch, running over my foot with his sharp little claws and knocking my toddler off her feet. Yes, the same adorable Boston Terrier who's pictured at the top of this blog. He's almost 9 years-old and shows no signs of slowing. I guess that's good and bad. For more pictures of him and my bulldog visit http://cafepress.com/karmicbulldog.

Till tomorrow.