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🧈 Salted or Unsalted? The butter decision you didn’t know you were getting wrong…

Butter might seem simple, but that little detail (salted or unsalted) can make a big difference in your cooking and baking. Salted butter has, as the name suggests, added salt, usually about 1.5–2% of its weight. This extra seasoning enhances flavor and helps preserve the butter, giving it a longer shelf life. It’s great for everyday use, like spreading on toast, melting over veggies, or finishing a steak. The salt adds that instant pop of flavor and makes anything it touches just a little more addictive.

Unsalted butter, on the other hand, is pure cream with nothing added. It gives you full control over the flavor of your food, which is crucial in baking where precision matters. Recipes that call for unsalted butter are formulated with specific salt measurements in mind, and using salted butter instead can throw off the balance. It’s also your best bet when you want to highlight subtle flavors, like in homemade pastries, delicate sauces, or browning butter for savory dishes.

👆 Here’s an easy rule of thumb: use salted butter for spreading and finishing, and unsalted butter for cooking and baking. If you only have one on hand, you can make quick adjustments. Just reduce or skip added salt if you’re using salted butter in a recipe. Either way, quality butter makes all the difference in your kitchen.

This time of year, it’s so easy for your daily routine to be thrown off.

When it starts getting dark before you’re home from work and the Halloween candy is taunting you, it’s important to find something that’s easy to do daily for your body.

That’s where AG1 Next Gen comes in.

With just one quick scoop every morning, you’ll get over 75 ingredients that help support your immune health, gut health, energy and help to close nutrient gaps in your diet.

Click here and you’ll get a free AG1 welcome kit with your first subscription including a:

✔️ FREE Flavor Sample Pack
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✔️ FREE Canister + Shaker

It’s one of the easiest things you can do for your body every day.

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_{*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.}

A knife sharpener is one of those tools you don’t realize you need, until you try it. Here’s the deal: dull knives aren’t just annoying, they’re dangerous. You end up pressing harder, sawing at your food, and wondering why dinner feels like a workout. This sharpener fixes all that. Its magnetic base locks your knife at the perfect 15° or 20° angle, while the diamond-coated roller brings your blade back to life in seconds. No whetstones, no guesswork, just buttery-smooth cuts every time. Keep your knives sharp, your fingers safe, and your prep work fast. Your tomatoes (and your crew) will thank you.

This one is my favorite from from Amazon👇

The holiday rush is here—don’t just survive it, glow through it. Start every day with Pique’s Sun Goddess Matcha, the ultimate ritual for calm focus, sustained energy, and radiant skin. Unlike coffee, which spikes and crashes your energy, this matcha keeps you steady, alert, and glowing from within. Crafted by Japanese tea masters in Kagoshima, it’s ceremonial-grade, organic, and shaded longer for higher L-theanine and chlorophyll—meaning more calm, more clarity, and a daily dose of antioxidants that support skin, detox, and immunity.

This isn’t just a drink—it’s your secret to thriving through the season. And now’s the perfect time to stock up or gift it. For a limited time, get up to 20% off for life + free gifts.

✨ Elevate your ritual. Energize your glow.

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🔥 Meal prep isn’t just about saving time, it’s for starting your day on offense. Skip the drive-thru and crush the week with this Sweet Potato Breakfast Hash: 55g protein, hearty carbs, big flavor from seared ham, lean beef, and tender veggies. Follow along with my recipe video that walks you through every step, so you’ll see just how easy it is to make. One pan, simple ingredients, and about 30 minutes later, you’ve got a week’s worth of protein-packed breakfasts ready to go.

Once upon a time, in many firehouses, you had the “senior man”. The seasoned firefighter (10+ years) everyone looked up to, relied on, and learned from. It was their job to bridge the officer and the rest of the crew, drive training, mentor rookies, and just be there. The article by John Velez points out that thanks to retirements, turnover, and growth in many departments, the tenure gap is narrowing, so the old model doesn’t hold like it used to. The message? That role still matters — it’s just time to redefine who can fill it.

You don’t need 20 years on the job to become that go-to person. With 2–10 years of service, a firefighter can become the informal “senior man”. That means you can start building influence, guiding your peers and newbies, and shaping culture, even if you’re not the oldest veteran. It’s about earned respect, not simply age or calendar time.

Start by being real. Building genuine connections (checking in, remembering what someone said, asking about their life) is foundational. By adding value to others’ lives, you earn their trust and influence.

Showing up matters. You can’t just talk about being capable, you must do the work. When you’re newer, people want to see your actions more than hear your words. Demonstrate you know your craft and live it.

A “senior man” (even the informal kind) must know the job, the routines, the fireground, the department’s specifics. You need to love the job from day one, commit to learning, attend classes and conferences, and share that knowledge with others when you’re ready.

If you’re not going to step up, who will? The role of the “senior man” in the fire service is still essential. Someone to foster culture, train, mentor, lead day-in and day-out. The times have changed. The person filling the role might be younger, less tenured, but ready. Is that you?

Read the full article here by John Velez at FireFighter Nation.

Every product below is one I personally use, trust, and stand behind. They’ve earned a permanent spot in my kitchen 👇

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