Coffee Klatch

Here’s the latest cool new thing that Google has come out with. It’s called Google Reader. Overall, it has a VERY nice look. It’s easy to read and pleasant to look at. And of course Google has put lots of functionality into it. The only thing it doesn’t do (yet) that Bloglines does for me is handle email subscriptions. If Google Reader adds that capability, I’m dumping Bloglines like a month-old potato and going Google.

Here are some of the features, if you’re curious.

You can add folders and put the feeds in the folders. You can rename the feeds, so you’re not stuck with the name they have if you don’t want it. You can sort newest or oldest and show all the items or only new ones. You can even add a star to a particular post, just like you do to certain emails in Gmail. Oh, and you can add tags to individual posts also.

There’s also a “Subscribe” button that you can drag onto your web browser’s toolbar, so when you’re on a page that has a feed, one click will show the feed in your Google Reader. If you like it, you click the “+Subscribe” button at the top and you’ve got it.

If you want to add subscriptions to the blogs of friends, using any of the popular bloglike software (e.g., MySpace, LiveJournal, Xanga, Flickr), you can easily add their feed by entering their username and selecting which service they use.

Do you use another feed reader? You can easily import your subscriptions from that reader to Google reader. You just have to export your subscription in OPML (XML) format so it can be imported. Here’s a link to export instructions for a variety of other feed aggregators. If you have organized your feeds into folders, those folders will import also.

If you like, you can even add the Google Reader to your Personalized Google Home Page.

Current music: Impressions of the Season, by the Raleigh Ringers

[tags]google, google reader, rss, feeds, aggregators, technology, Internet[/tags]

If you’re interested in saving a little money around the house without really doing anything, here’s a practical little tip. Find out which costs more, your garbage pickup or your sewer, and use that method of disposal for tissues. During the winter, many people go through lots of tissues. If your garbage pickup is free, make sure you throw them all in the trash rather than flushing them, since sewer charges are usually by volume. If you have cheap sewer rates but have to pay for garbage, you might be better off dropping that tissue in the toilet. Of course, don’t flush things that SHOULDN’T be flushed or you’ll pay for it later. But tissues are usually fine, and if you, like me, use toilet paper for blowing your nose when you’re in the bathroom, then it’s specifically designed for flushing and there are no worries. Here in Indianapolis, though, sewer rates are pretty high while garbage pickup is free, so I make it a point to drop those wads of toilet paper in the garbage instead of the toilet.

Not gonna make you a millionaire overnight or anything, but the pennies add up.

[tags]conservation, waste disposal, saving money[/tags]

While I haven’t been able to document it from any reliable sources yet, here’s a tip I’ve often heard about rubbing your eyes. Don’t do it. But sometimes you just have to, and if that’s the case, you should always rub in an outward direction from the nose to the side of the face, not inward toward the nose. If you rub your eyes inward too much, you’ll develop bags under your eyes more easily.

If you don’t want baggy eyes, don’t rub your eyes much. Especially inwardly.

There you go.

Here’s a tip that I’ve learned the hard way. If you’re going to buy a socket set, make sure that many or most have a WIDE drive. Most socket sets have a 1/4-inch drive and a 3/8-inch drive. The drive is the part of the socket wrench that goes into the sockets. Some kits only have a 1/4-inch drive, while others have both sizes plus a 1/2-inch drive for the really big sockets.

Lately I’ve been doing a lot of work at the library assembling and disassembling metal shelving units. Most of the time I was using a socket wrench that somebody got for the library last year. The problem with this socket set is that all the sockets take the small 1/4-inch drive. But the wrench itself has a 3/8-inch drive. So the adapter that comes with it ALWAYS has to be used!

If that was all, it wouldn’t be a big deal, but when you have to add an adapter between the wrench and the socket, that moves the point of force farther out from the wrench that you’re holding. The consequence is that you constantly have the socket wrench slipping off the nut you’re trying to loosen. That makes for stripped nuts, bruised knuckles, and high frustration levels. You have to use one hand to hold the end of the wrench on the nut, while using the other hand to crank it. And if you have to HOLD something while you’re doing that (not that I’VE had to!), then you end up trying to turn the wrench with the same hand that’s holding it on the nut, ignoring the handle completely.

Yes, it’s a point of frustration, but a word to the wise: when buying a socket wrench set, make sure that most of the sockets DON’T require an adapter.

[tags]socket wrenches, tools[/tags]

For almost two months now, I’ve been living with a shaved head. I must say that I’ve gotten to like it. Car windows don’t affect me any more, I never have bed-head when I wake up. It’s also nice to have it smooth; just like after shaving your face, it’s nice to feel it smooth. Since I have a beard still, that’s the only way I can get that feeling.

Here are some tips for anyone contemplating shaving their head. These are based on my personal experiences, so your mileage may vary. And maybe you’ll find something helpful, since I didn’t have much to go on when I made the jump, apart from a couple of thoughts from a friend who’d been shaven for years.

• You should probably try using clippers and a #1 edge-guard-thing on it. That’s 1/4-inch and will give you a basic idea of how you’ll look if it’s all gone.
• I actually progressed from a #4 down to a #1 over the course of several months, so it was a gradual change that was easier to make.
• When I first did it, I started with clippers with no edge guards, so it was just the clipper part, which got it down to 1/8-inch or so. Then I used my regular 3-head rotary razor to shave everything. It worked pretty well, but couldn’t get totally smooth. Just like shaving your face. Rotary doesn’t quite shave as close as a regular razor.
• After several weeks of just using the electric razor for keeping my head clean, I decided to make the jump and get a razor. I recommend something with several blades and a pivoting head. The pivoting function is more important for shaving your head than it even is for your face. You can’t see your head. And you may not always be holding the razor at the best angle for each part of the curves on your head. The pivoting function of the razor overcomes that.
• You can use a shaving cream or even shampoo to be the lubricant.
• The shower seems to be the best place for shaving your head. It helps if you have a shower head that is adjustable, so you can turn the flow down to a minimum while shaving.
• I’ve found that long strokes shave cleaner than short ones. Short ones are safer, but once you get the knack, longer strokes seem to be more efficient and effective. I typically use short-to-medium strokes for the first pass, then, as I’m feeling around for parts that weren’t totally removed, I use longer strokes, going around the curves of the head.
• Most of the time, you’ll probably shave toward the top back part of your head, so front-to-back and bottom-to-top, in the opposite direction that the hair grows. You may need to go at angles to get everything feeling smooth.
• If your skin gets irritated, you can shave with the hair, in the direction it grows, but it won’t get as close.
• After shaving, you can spread the remaining shaving cream around while you’re feeling for any parts that aren’t totally smooth. That’s when you’ll want to shave sideways or use angles more, since your hair doesn’t usually all grow in the exact same direction.
• Oh, and you’ll need to make sure you wear a hat. Especially in the winter, but also when you’ll be out in the sun for a while. Without even short hair to protect your scalp, it’s easier to get burned, get headaches, or even develop skin cancer.

There. I hope that helps any of you thinking about shaving your head. WikiHow has some more tips, especially about just cutting the hair really short. And they make a good point that some guys just don’t have a head shape that looks good shaven. And if you’re starting to go bald, it’s better to just shave it all. Saves money on haircuts, too. And, of course, since it’s a wiki, you can add your own thoughts and comments to the list.

I‘ve noticed that when I’m driving on the highways, or even on the busier city streets, that a frequent problem is cars switching lanes into another car’s blind spot (behind and to the side, where the rear view mirror doesn’t cover it). If a car is switching into the lane to the right, and the farther lane has another car in it, it can be really dangerous to make that lane change when it’s into that car’s blind spot. Better to accelerate a bit until the other car can see you, and THEN change lanes.

A similar situation is when you’ve got a car ahead of you in an adjacent lane and you’re in their blind spot. I always get uncomfortable when I’ve got a car ahead of me like that.

I’m not trying to be pedantic or anything, but just bringing up a practical tip to make driving safer.

[tags]driving, safety, blind-spot[/tags]

Apopular “frozen food” among children is “tater tots.” Up there with hot dogs and macaroni and cheese, it’s one of those foods that parents can add to dinner without any fuss (from MOST kids). And with store brand versions (Potato Gems, Tater Nuggets, etc.), they’re cheaper than they used to be and so become a good choice for a side dish at dinner.

The only thing is… they can get boring. They’re just potatoes that are shredded, put back together and baked or fried. Now, a BIG exception to that is my one of my favorite fast foods. From Taco John’s. They’re called Potato Ole’s and they’re like tater tots but more flat like discs instead of cylindrical. (Although, YES, technically they’re still cylindrical.) Anyway, what’s great about them is that they’re seasoned with a not that spicy, sort of sweet concoction that makes them irresistible! At least to me.

So when we’ve had tater tots (in whatever form) at home, I’ve tried adding a little seasoning to them. And you know what? They’re not as boring any more! You can add all kinds of spices or seasoning mixes to them, along with some salt, and you’ve got all kinds of variety! My favorite is a light dose of cumin. When you add cumin and salt to tater tots, they’re almost (but not quite) like the Potato Ole’s from Taco John’s. But you can add Lawry’s salt, paprika, pepper, onion powder, even oregano (ground). With oregano, they’re almost pizza-ish when dipped in ketchup.
Pretty much any ground or powdered spice or herb can work. If it’s good with potatoes, it’s even better with tater tots!

Current music: Kommt Zusammen, by 2raumwohnung

For many years most of us have labored (or driven) under the presumption that automobile air conditioning makes the vehicle use more fuel, thus reducing the miles per gallon. I’ve learned recently that that presumption is not entirely correct.

It’s true that if you driving around town, you’ll get better gas mileage if you put your windows down instead of using air conditioning, but that’s not true on the highways. If you’re driving at highway speeds, having the windows down creates quite a drag on the vehicle, thus lowering your gas mileage even more than if you’d just run the air conditioning.

Summary for the best gas mileage:

• On city streets, keep your windows down and your air conditioning off.
• On the highway, keep your windows up and your air conditioning on.

There you go.

When cooking rice, it’s usually a good idea to rinse the rice. That gets the dirt, pollution, etc., off of the rice. I suggest putting the rice in the pan and then running water over it. Cover the rice by a bit and then use your fingers to swish it around a bit. Then drain the rice and repeat once or twice, until the water no longer turns white and cloudy. Then it’s ready for cooking.

I’ve heard that it’s possible to be non-specific when measuring the rice and water, just making sure you’ve got a finger’s width of water above the level of the rice. I’ve tried that and have not found it to be too successful. Instead, it’s usually a good idea to to add twice as much water as rice (e.g., 1 cup of rice with 2 cups of water or 2 to 4). Some types of rice, like basmati, should have less water, like 1.5 cups to 1 cup of rice.

15 minutes is usually an appropriate simmering time after bringing it to a boil. Don’t peek and make sure it’s tightly sealed. After that time is up, fluff the rice with a fork to allow it to expand and finish cooking. Let if “fluff” for 5-10 minutes and you’re good to go.

Some people suggest pre-soaking the rice, but I don’t go that far. If you do, make sure you draing it very well after or else count that water towards the amount you need.

This post is the beginning of a new category for Pfitz’s Miscellany. “Practical Tips” are mostly going to be brief tips to make life a little easier, that I’ve either experienced or read about somewhere. For starters, here’s a tip on opening bundled packages.

Plastic strips get used for bundling newspapers (if you’re a delivery person), for holding U-Haul boxes together, and for shipping boxes of paper reams. Many people think you have to get box cutters or scissors to get those off, but I discovered an easy way when I was delivering newspapers in high school.

Somewhere on the strip the ends had to be fused or glued together. That spot is usually on the bottom of the package. If you try to pull the end that’s on the outside, it doesn’t often work. Instead, twist that part around so you can grab the end that’s on the inside of the strap. THAT end usually comes up much more easily. No sharp utensils required.