Ladies, lets face it. Most of us do not know a lick about cars. If you’re like me, you let your husband deal with the car troubles. But what if something happens to our husbands? What if they are not around when we have a flat tire or when we suddenly hear a rattling noise in the engine? Do you try to flag a stranger on the highway to help a damsel in distress? Do you raise the radio volume to block out the ominous noises? I know I do! When my husband and I were on the verge of divorce, I wondered who would take care of my car. Should I put my trust in a mechanic who is essentially a stranger to me? I don’t have any car-enthusiast friends. Many reading this probably do not have one either.

I realized that whether or not I have someone to rely on for car issues, it is still important for me to know the basics. For all I know, I could be unknowingly damaging my car every day because of my ignorance or my denial. So, I did what many people do today. I looked for a self-help book at Amazon, Borders, and my local library. Most of what I found was too technical. Other books required previous knowledge on the basics. They were no use to me because that’s what I wanted to know: the basics!

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When I was a kid, I went to the local grocery store to buy lettuce for sandwiches. I looked around the produce section and finally found the leafy-greens section. When I looked at the labels, I was overwhelmed with the many different types of lettuce to choose. I mean, what on earth is Romaine lettuce? All I knew is that I needed something green to fill sandwiches for later. Which one to choose?

It’s such a stressful situation like that instance when you’re at the grocery store and you have too many choices. Lettuce is no exception. “But, can’t I just interchange them? Isn’t iceberg lettuce in tacos just as good as iceberg lettuce in salads?” you ask. No! Please, don’t use green leaf lettuce in salad, romaine lettuce in tacos, and, most importantly, DO NOT use iceberg lettuce in your sandwich. That particular atrocity is one of my pet-peeves. So, what is the proper way to use each type?

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“Bree [Van De Kamp] was known for her cooking, and for making her own clothes, and for doing her own gardening, and for re-upholstering her own furniture. Yes, Bree’s many talents were known throughout the neighborhood. And everyone on Wisteria Lane thought of Bree as the perfect wife and mother. Everyone, that is, except her own family.”

–Desperate Housewives – Episode 01.01 – Pilot

Bree, a main chracter on the ABC network hit series Desperate Housewives, has often been dubbed the Martha Stewart on steroids! She seems to be the perfect housewife. She is resourceful, hardworking, and loving … yet under-appreciated. Often homemakers in the real world (mothers and fathers alike) long to become even remotely as skilled as Bree. They are “desperate homemakers.” This web site is a hybrid between a blog and a fansite dedicated to the perfect housewife played by Marcia Cross. The mission is to give helpful advice to clueless homemakers as they strive to “Be a Bree” (or a Martha Stewart).

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