Archive for the ‘Gear’ Category

Powering the Modern Family

Sunday, June 1st, 2014
5-Port Family-Sized Wall Charger

My 5-port USB Charger

Amongst the five of us, we have three mobile phones, two tablets, a Kindle, five iPods, a couple of cordless Bluetooth headsets, and miscellaneous other bits of electronics that are charged via a USB connection.  Sure, most of them came with a charger and, of course, they can be plugged into a computer to charge them, but in practice, we usually end up playing musical chargers with the two we leave plugged in in the hall.  Until now, that is.

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Designing With Kids In Mind

Monday, May 16th, 2011

Many couples, when looking at new digs, do so with the needs of children in mind, even if they don’t have any as yet.  It’s also very common for parents to trade up to a larger house as more kids arrive on the scene.  That’s what my parents did, the summer before my youngest sister — their fifth kid — was born.  I remember helping to repaint the attic before moving in so that we could use it as a bedroom for the younger kids.

What about taking it a step further?  It’s pretty standard, if the magazines, television shows, and designers are to be believed, to redecorate a room as a nursery when a baby is on the way.  And a playroom or den wouldn’t raise any eyebrows.  Designing spaces for homework, TV watching, and playing games into the overall floorplan makes sense if you can do it.  After all, kids are more important than a wine cellar, sewing room or man-cave, right?  But just how far would you go to make your home child-friendly?

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The Amazing Gyro Bowl

Thursday, December 30th, 2010

Most of the time, when you see something advertised on television as being amazing, incredible, or some other superlative, chances are it’s cheaply made and doesn’t work anywhere near as well as they’d have you believe, if it even works at all.  Every once in a great while, however, a product comes along that you just know is every bit as clever as they make it seem on telly.  I suspect the Gyro Bowl is one of those rare creatures.

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