Watch the Opening Games with Authentic British Flair

 Most people can not go to London for the Olympics, but that does not mean you can't celebrate like you are there.  Chula Vista is home to the famous Olympic Training Center, and they are sponsoring an event to watch opening ceremonies with the USS Midway.  This will happen at 630pm on Friday at the USS Midway Museum.  It is free and open to everyone with food and beverages for sale.

 The Olympic Opening ceremonies is such a grand spectacle that watching them from the living room couch doesn’t seem appropriate. Luckily, the Chula Vista Olympic Training Center and the USS Midway will screen the event live on two giant TV screens aboard the aircraft carrier’s flight deck.

Along with watching the glamorous Parade of Nations and performances happening from London’s 

Olympic Stadium, attendees will also be treated to activities on the ship. There will be archery demonstrations with Olympic Training Center resident athletes, photos with a real Olympic torch, juggling demonstrations by the Paralympic soccer team and interactive sports displays.

There will also be authentic British food and beverages for sale to feel like you’re in the center of it all. The gates open at 6:30 p.m. and the broadcast begins at 7:30 p.m. Light lawn chairs will be permitted.

Details: Opening Ceremonies Viewing Party. 6:30 p.m. Friday. USS Midway Museum, 910 North Harbor Drive, Embarcadero. Free

For more information see the UT San Diego News.

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Great Energy Saving Tips for Apartment Living

During this hot summer, energy bills can be through the roof.  Saving money is a priority this summer, and there are ways to start doing that throughout your apartment.  Here are some great tips on how to stay comfortable, but also cut down costs on your energy bills.

Are you living in an apartment and eating super cheap foods to survive the recession? Maybe you can save money on your power bills? Sometimes it can be tough to lower your power bill while living in an apartment. You can't do much about low quality construction, inadequate insulation, or old appliances. But, there are several ways to cut your electric bill in an apartment with little cost.
 
1. High Efficiency Light Bulbs. Perhaps the biggest change you can make in an apartment is to use lamps with high efficiency bulbs and minimize the use of old technology track lighting and ceiling lights. High efficiency light bulbs use a fraction of the energy used by old fashioned incandescent light bulbs. For example, a high efficiency compact fluorescent light bulb that is equivalent of a 40 watt incandescent light bulb uses only 9 watts of power. With high efficiency compact fluorescent bulbs, you can easily reduce your electricity usage for lighting to 1/4 of your costs under incandescent bulbs.
 
2. Turn Off Unnecessary Lights. Being a highly efficient person can lower your lighting costs even more. If you aren't in a room, turn the light off. A turned off light uses no power at all.
 
3. Keep Your Thermostat Set at 78-degrees in the Summer and 68-degrees in the Winter. If you can minimize the use of energy for heating and cooling, you will most certainly cut your power bill. If you wrap yourself in a snuggy or quilt during the winter and set your thermostat a little lower, you will save money. Conversely, in the summer time, you can save money by setting the thermostat a little higher and wearing less clothing.
 
4. Use Fans to Stay Comfortable. While you are letting it all hang out during the summer, you might as well enjoy a breeze. Fans will circulate the air, evaporate sweat, and allow you to feel cooler. With a ceiling fan going, you may even be able to bump your thermostat up to 80-degrees. Remember to turn off fans in unused rooms because they simply allow you to feel cool by helping evaporate sweat quickly.
 
5. Hang Insulating Curtains or Drapes. Insulating curtains or drapes will help keep your apartment home comfortable while saving you money. In mild, temperate, climates you can open the curtains to let the sun's warmth in, and close them to keep the warmth in. Or, if it's bitterly cold outside, you can close the energy-efficient insulating curtains to keep every bit of warmth in that you can. If it's super hot, you can close the insulating curtains to keep that heat at bay. For less than $15 per panel, Walmart.com has Eclipse Dobby Energy-Efficient Curtain Panels that keep out 99% of outside light, reduce outside noise by up to 44%, and save $15 per year in energy costs.
 
6. Plug Drafts. It's hard enough to heat an apartment without having extra cold air seeping in. You need to plug drafts to stop losing cool air in the summer and warmth in the winter. If you have a hand-held hairdryer, the Thermwell Products Indoor Shrink Window Insulation Kit for Standard Windows can save the day. The kit consists of plastic sheets of "shrink film" and "double faced tape" that can essentially shrink wrap a drafty window. While several kits are available, a standard three window kit sells for less than $5 online at HomeDepot.com. For a similar low price at HomeDepot.com, Thermwell has a "Double Draft Stop" that fits under drafty doorways to stop cold air at the front door.

With just a few simple steps, you can save energy, cut electric bills, and live in a more comfortable apartment.

For more tips to save money this summer go to yahoo.com.

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Congratulations to all the Chula Vista Olympic Training Center Athletes

90s Olympic Athletes that were training in Chula Vista will be making their way to London for the 2012 Olympic Games.  Tennis, Soccer, BMX, and other various athletes train in the area year around thanks to the perfect weather all year.

About 90 of the athletes headed to London for the summer Olympics got their training in San Diego. The Olympic Training Center opened 17 years ago in San Diego's second largest city: Chula Vista. 

It's located one-mile north of the Mexican border and a 20 minute drive south from downtown.
Golf carts are the main mode of transportation at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista. It's actually the size of a typical golf course -- about 155 acres.

Thousands of Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls have trained here since it opened in the summer of 1995.

"The training I've been getting here is the best in the world, so having the best training in the world will make me the best in the world," Blake Leaper said. He's from Kingsport,Tennessee. At age 22 he's been overcoming the odds most of his life. Born with a congenital birth defect his lower limbs never developed below the knees. His motto for life is to "find the ability in your disability," said Leaper. "The doctor told my father I would never walk, I would never run, I would never play sports, I would be in a wheel chair all my life." Leaper never took no for an answer growing up and as a double leg amputee, he already holds the U.S. Paralympic records in the 100 and 200 meter sprints.

"The energy return on the legs are amazing, I gain energy as I run and as my race prolongs. So there's some good and some bad to the situation, but the fact that I'm out here just running is a blessing for me," he said with a big smile.

San Diego's warm weather makes this yearround training site perfect for almost any Olympic sport. 

Kayakers and rowers train on Otay Lake Reservoir right next to the facility, and participants in the newest Olympic event BMX dirt bike racing train exclusively here for the London games.

"It's kind of like the BMX mecca of the U.S.," said 21-year old Amanda Carr. She's from Punta Gorda, Florida and started racing at age 5. "When it comes to the race there's eight in the gate at once and there's no lanes. So it's whose going to get from the gate to the finish line first," Carr said.
BMX initially got its start in California in the 1970s when teenagers would imitate their motor cross heroes doing tricks and stunts on their dirt bikes. Is this more of a mental or a physical game? "I would say, obviously the physical component needs to be there, but at this level all of us are physically fit to win a race, I believe it comes down to mental," Carr said.

"The athletes that train here are not the big professionals you see. That's why they need a training center. They're not making huge salaries, they're not the professional basketball players. These guys do it because they have a passion for sport," said Tracy Lamb, director of the Olympic Training Center. It's run on public and private donations of about $7 million a year.

Lamb said despite the sluggish economy business is good. "We're the only country in the world that funds its Olympic program through private donations of the American people. It's a tough way to do business, but I think it's a great way to do business," Lamb said.

This sprawling complex hosts sports ranging from tennis and soccer to archery and women's field hockey. But take a tour and you'll notice only 50 percent of the facility is being used. Lamb says it's by design. "So we don't know what sports are going to be in the future, so we have some potential for growth. The athletes are here to reach their full potential and we're still striving as a training center in Chula Vista to still have growth.

The archery, soccer and women's field hockey teams have qualified for London. Along with 19 members from track and field including Paralympic sprinter Blake Leaper. "So right now I'm the top dog in the U.S. but I'm ranked second in the world in my events and there's this one particular guy he's really good," Leaper said.

That would be Oscar Pistorius from South Africa. The first double leg amputee to qualify for both the Olympic and Paralympic Games. "He'll have some hype going it to it. I've raced him a couple of times, he's beaten me yes, but I know that the training I've been getting here is the best in the world and come the Paralympic games, I'll be ready for him, so he better be ready for me," Leaper said with a broad grin.

Unfortunately BMX racer Amanda Carr didn't qualify during the Olympic trials. The Summer Games start July 27th in London. And the Paralympics begin two weeks after the close of the Olympics.

For more information on the Chula Vista Training Center go to KPBS.

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Decorating on a Budget

Decorating on a budget can be hard.  Decorating the kids rooms on a budget can be even trickier, especially when they want the latest thing that their teen idol has.  However here are five great ideas for lamp shades that your child will love, and they will also not break the bank.

If you've got an old lamp that needs some sprucing up, changing the lamp shade can often do the trick. We found five fantastic do it yourself ideas that you can do easily to make your own, custom lamp shade for a child's room. Check out our inspiration!

• Handwritten Shade from A Little Glass Box: We love this idea that can be executed in so many ways. Courtney decided to write a letter to her son and attach it to this lamp shade. You could do the same, or write favorite quotes, the lyrics to a special song, or nursery rhymes.

• Pottery Barn-inspired Flower Shade from Sweet C's Designs: With some inspiration from a Pottery Barn Kids lamp, Courtney from Sweet C's Designs came up with this peony-covered shade.

• Custom Silhouette Shade from Chica and Jo: Another great use of typography, this shade is at its most striking when it's lit.

• DIY Ribbon Shade featured at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam: More ideas from Pottery Barn Kids led Jen at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam to feature this ribbon-covered shade that her friend made.

• Kids' Art Lamp Shade at Kid Crave: Have your kids design their own lamp with this kit featured at Kid Crave, or just let them go crazy with some permanent markers and a fabric shade.

For more information on this do it yourself project check out apartment therapy.

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