By brwood(view all posts by brwood)
at 9:56AM,
5 months ago
under
Shop Smarter
Hurricane Irene struck a few days ago and some people in the Northeast are still without power and other basic services. This got me thinking about some basic emergency preparedness and how sometime the old solutions are still the best. You may get all your news on your
iPhone via The HuffPo, or eat only microwave organic food normally--but most likely that's not gonna cut it after an earthquake, hurricane or other natural disaster.
Here are ten items you are going to want stashed away somewhere in case of emergency.
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By brwood(view all posts by brwood)
at 11:55AM,
8 months ago
under
Money Saving Tips
They say good fences make good neighbors, and I guess it's true. Personally if I have a problem with my neighbor, I'm the type who would actually knock on their door and discuss it with them. But, in my suburban Van Nuys ranch home one neighboring house is actually a rental, so there is a bit of turnover there. Unfortunately that is also the house that is adjacent to our bedroom and bathroom windows.
So it was decided between me and the wife to put up a privacy fence. Actually our entire subdivision is subdivided by 5' tall concrete block walls that have been up since the 1950s, so all we had to do was add a few feet to the top.
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By annika.barrantiGuest Blogger(view all posts by annika.barranti)
at 7:52AM,
8 months ago
under
Odds and Ends
Image by castle79 via FlickrTurn off the oven! It's officially summer and (
at least here in Los Angeles) it's HOT.
After a rather unpleasant experience last week when I foolishly roasted some bell peppers for our dinner and thereby raised the temperature of the whole apartment, I started thinking about cooler ways to cook.
Here are a few ideas I came up with.
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By Rick.BroidaGuest Blogger(view all posts by Rick.Broida)
at 11:56AM,
8 months ago
under
Shop Smarter
For the past couple weeks I've been reviewing
Open Air Cinema's OAC True HD CineBox Home, which provides everything you need for a killer backyard theater: a Blu-ray player, a high-definition projector, a big, inflatable screen, and powerful speakers.
It's an awesome setup--but also mighty expensive: the kit costs a staggering $5,499. Fortunately, it's possible to cobble together your own outdoor theater for considerably less.
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