I've never really fancied dressing up like a cow and going out in public. But if that's something you would do, on July 11, you can get something in return. That's the annual Cow Appreciation Day at Chick-fil-A stores nationwide. Patrons who dress up like cows get a free sandwich or meal (full cow costume gets you a meal, partial cow gear earns you a sandwich).

Also, local Chick-fil-A restaurants are participating in customer appreciation events this summer. Each participating store will offer a week's worth of events, giveaways and specials. Unfortunately, there's no set schedule. Each store picks the week in which it wants to participate. So the best advice is to keep your ears and eyes open at your local store for moos ... er, I mean news.

Mark your calendar for sales-tax holiday

Just a reminder: This year's state sales tax holiday, when there is no sales tax charged for clothes, school supplies and related items, runs 12:01 a.m. Aug. 1 through 11:59 p.m. Aug. 3. The list of tax-exempt items is on the Department of Revenue Web site (dor.state.nc.us/taxes/sales/salestax_holiday.html).

Free coffee samples at Mickey D's

Local McDonald's stores continue to promote their new coffee offerings. On Wednesday, most area stores will offer free gourmet coffee samples from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. At any rate, free coffee is a good thing.

Beware the e.l.f.

They say that if something seems too good to be true, it probably is. You can apply that to online shopping, too.

Here's my cautionary tale: I got an e-mail message this week from a friend who was excited because she had found out about a big makeup clearance sale online. The e-mail she received said in part: "Nordstrom is changing the logo on their makeup, so they're selling everything that says 'e.l.f.' for $1!!! (you still have to pay shipping, but it's SO worth it!!)" The e-mail goes on to say that e.l.f. stands for "eyes, lips, face" and that the writer, "Just thought I'd pass along the good deal."

I thought that would make a good blog item, but the further I looked, the more fishy it seemed. Finally, I turned to Nordstrom's corporate office, which informed me that this e-mail has been circulating for months and that Nordstrom has no affiliation with e.l.f. Nordstrom does not sell e.l.f. products and does not plan to. So if you receive this e-mail from someone, don't take the bait. It's a hoax and a good reminder to be careful about believing everything in your inbox. (Find out more about Internet hoaxes at snopes.com.)

Fresh Apples for back to school

I know; it seems that school just finished for the year. But especially for those of you with college-age children, this is a good time to think about a new Apple computer.

Apple is already running back-to-school deals, and college students, faculty and staff can purchase a new Mac with an education discount and receive a free iPod touch or iPod nano with mail-in rebate. The promotion ends Sept. 15. You can check out all the details at apple.com/backtoschool/.

Free airport parking

Fast Park, the new parking company near Raleigh-Durham International Airport, is offering free parking through Aug. 9, with a coupon that has been running in The N&O. If you're planning a summer vacation, that could be a tremendous way to save. Regular parking rates at Fast Park are $6 a night for members and $7 for nonmembers. The company's Web site offers the same deal (fastparkandrelax.com/FrequentTraveler.aspx) through Aug. 12.

Lowe's offers military discount

Lowe's Home Improvement stores are offering all active, reserve, honorably discharged and retired military personnel and their immediate family members a 10 percent discount on in-store purchases made through July 7 and is good on purchases up to $5,000. A 10 percent discount on a $5,000 purchase is equivalent to $500, so if you have a big purchase to make and are military, you might consider this deal. To qualify, individuals must present a valid military ID or other proof of service.

Sing it: 'Two all-beef patties...'

Who over the age of -- say -- 25 could forget the lyrics to the McDonald's Big Mac song?

Two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun!

OK, to be honest, I did... I had to look them up.

But if the Big Mac song is something you can recite by heart, you could participate in the jingle contest that McDonald's is running to celebrate the Big Mac's 40th anniversary. The company is inviting people to submit their own remixes of the famous song at MySpace.com/BigMacChant. (It's fun to go to the site and listen to the entries, too.) The winning submission will be featured in a TV ad that will air at the end of July. McDonald's judges will pick the finalists, but the winner will be chosen by an online vote.

Quaker Oats hoax

Apparently, there is a scam where unsuspecting consumers receive a mailing that looks like it is from Quaker Oats Co. They are promised thousands of dollars in exchange for some personal information. Of course, any mailing that promises you thousands of dollars should be deemed highly suspicious. But Quaker has gone as far as posting a consumer alert about this scam on its Web site. Quaker is asking you to forward such items to its consumer affairs department at Consumer Affairs, P.O. Box 049003, Chicago, IL 60604-9003.

Hints of a grand IKEA

The grand-opening celebration for a new IKEA in Brooklyn was a giveaway bonanza. The first 35 adults through the doors received free couches. The next 100 got Poang armchairs. There were random prize envelopes given, with gift cards ranging from $10 to $250, or vouchers for free food for the first 2,500 adults to visit the store. There were more giveaways, but you get the idea.

IKEA is opening its first North Carolina store in Charlotte next year. No word on whether that grand opening will be anything like this. But we can hope...

See video-game ratings

Andy Ellen, general counsel for the N.C. Retail Merchants Association, wants to spread the word about the Entertainment Software Ratings Board's free widget, which parents can download and install on their computers (esrb.org/about/widget/widget-consumer.jsp). The widget is available in English, Spanish and French, and it provides information about a game's rating category, content descriptions, publisher and platform. That way, parents have an easy way of investigating the games their children want to buy.

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