Winter Home Emergency Kit

Put Together a Winter Home Emergency Kit:
"Creating a home emergency kit can be a simple to enormous undertaking depending on the level of energy and preparation you want to invest into it. Most people are on the 'Stay warm and fed until the power comes back on' camp, not the 'Prepared for zombie apocalypse' camp, and though it never hurts to prepare for the worst we'll be focusing more on the former than the latter."

For those Northern procrastinators like me, winters coming  and it's time to start thinking about Old Man Winter. LifeHacker had this great article on how to prepare for a rough winter, Global Warming or not.

Are Blind Spots a Myth?

Blind Spots - Wheels Blog - NYTimes.com:
"In an effort to reduce lane-change accidents, some automakers are trying radar to eliminate blind spots that could conceal an adjacent vehicle."

Every time I go to the car wash they move the settings on my drivers seat, and futz around with the rear and side view mirrors. They do this because they have to drive the car 15 feet into the car wash, and 20 feet from the car wash. I've found a way to easily adjust the drivers seat, but the mirrors took me a few days to get back in sync. I finally ran across this great article from the NYTimes of all places, and thought I'd share it with you. It may be a life saver for someone.

Walmart to offer In-Home Install Crew

Walmart to rival Geek Squad: "Starting sometime before the holiday season, Wally World will be partnering with N.E.W. Customer Service Companies in order to offer in-home installation to customers buying anything from a wireless router to a HTIB. The service plans will be sold on prepaid cards ranging from $99 to $399 in value."

Full disclosure: I shop at Walmart, I dispise the underhanded tactics the Unions are using to organize their employees, I dislike Walmart bashing, I like Walmart better than Target or K-Mart.
That being said, this article made my eyes pop out of my head. First of all, who would let someone from Walmart touch anything electrical, much less a computer or router? Second with the price of computers dropping to zilch point shit, and Home Theaters (HTIB) starting around $300, who would pay $99 to $399 to have one set up for them? Sometimes I thing I'm in the wrong business, or at least on the wrong planet.

Wallpaper Roundup: All Hallow's Eve and Spooky Scenes

Wallpaper Roundup: All Hallow's Eve and Spooky Scenes: "The great festival of candy binging and spooky stories will be upon us soon. Take a moment to browse these Halloween-themed wallpapers to dress your desktop for the occasion."

Another installment of "For those of you who like wallpaper for your computers, this one's for you." This time the wallpaper theme is Halloween, a time that brings out the children in all of us.

Friday freebies

Sue Stock's Friday freebies:
"It's Friday, so let's do freebies!"

Click on the link for Sue Stock's Friday Freebies. This week is not one of her best, but give her a break she tries real hard. Sue is one of our local legends. She started her Shopping/Savings Blog as part of her job as a junior Consumer Affairs reporter for The News & Observer and it caught on like wild fire. She has a tremendous following in the Triangle area and has branched out to include giving courses on coupon clipping and consumer savings tips. It's been amazing watching her mature from "cub reporter" to a "cult leader".
Hat Tip to Sue!

MakeUseOf Web Site Directory

MakeUseOf Directory - powered by FeedBurner

Check out some of the latest MakeUseOf discoveries. All listed websites are FREE (or come with a decent free account option). No trials or buy-to-use craplets. For more cool websites and web app reviews subscribe to MakeUseOf Directory.

I haven't posted anything technical in quite a while so when I ran across this MakeUseOfDirectory sight I decided to Boomer it. As a matter of fact it has so many great web entries I bookmarked the site for my own use. You'll need some quiet time to browse through the whole directory, but it will be worth it.

I still have to do more research on how to encorporate the FeedBurner feature into this blog, but hey, it'll keep me out of trouble and it looks like fun.

Honda Cub Electric

Greatest Motorcycle In History Goes Electric :
"The world’s greatest motorcycle isn’t a work of art, nor is it a speed demon of any sort. But the 50cc kick-star Honda Super Cub — with just four horsepower and a top speed of 50 mph — is the single most successful vehicle in the history of internal combustion. Honda’s sold more than 60 million of them, and after all that time the Cub is going electric."

Tired of driving that stodgy old golf cart around your Gated Active Adult Community? Well here's the next best thing to buying a Harley Hog and joining Marlon Brando's motorcycle pack, the Honda Cub ;-)

Soaking Cleans Overnight The Easy Way

Dishwasher Detergent Soak Cleans Dishes Overnight - Cleaning - Lifehacker:
"Hell hath no fury like the staying power of baked on food on your pots and pans. Sometimes a soak overnight is required, but to guarantee things will come clean by morning, try turning to your dishwasher detergent instead."

Another great hint from LifeHacker. With only one mouth to feed doing dishes in a dishwasher isn't always the best solution, this tip comes in handy.

Freezer Tricks to Save You Time and Money

10 Simple Freezer Tricks to Save You Time and Money - Winter - Lifehacker: 
"It's that time of year again, when our freezers are filled with the summer's bounty in preparation for the long winter months ahead. Get the most out of your freezer, and learn a few of its other uses, with these great tricks."

Some great tips from one of my favorite sites, LifeHacker. This one is especially good for us singles.

Is saving really for suckers?

The Mess That Greenspan Made:
"It's hard to disagree with the basic premise of Jon Markman's commentary today over at MSN Money, one that casts a rather dim view on those who are content to settle for paltry returns on their savings accounts while enriching the banking sector in the process."
Naturally, the proposed solution to no longer being a sucker is to buy a stock fund, preferably one that has low expenses.
That strategy would have worked quite well this year. Last year - not so much.

My take is, Next year - "Forgedaboudit".