christmas cards for people that like to show off
As I've said before, I am a card guy. Most people don't give much thought to cards, but I do because it takes actual effort to buy one, sign it and send or give it to the recipient in person.
Two types of cards rule above all others for showing off.
First, there's the 3D Christmas card. This is the one most people know as a pop-up. Some contain dopey things like lights and sound, but the better ones are fold-out where it creates a scene upon opening. These things are cool.
The second type is actually the one I like better, the paper art card. Almost all of these cards are, simply put, gorgeous. They are amazing in appearance and have a more traditional appearance compared to the "louder" 3D cards. None of these have lights or sound, nor are they meant to, because the art comes first.
Either of these cards can be used for actual Christmas decoration because they're that good.
Cost per card? Starts at around 6 bucks and tops out around $15.
Yeah, that is a bit to spend, but it pretty much guarantees you'll be giving out the best cards.
And when you think about it that way, $6 to $15 can go a long way.
casio watches i totally don't need but want anyway
The Casio that gets the lion's share of wear on my wrist these days is the W735 model. It's chunky but not ginormous, very legible, unbelievably good night light and can handle life (meaning it can take a knock).
There are, however, a few models I want but totally don't need whatsoever. Even though I get along very well with the W735H, there are a few Casios I want for no other reason than just to have them.
Casio A168WG-9 - This is a "go-to gold watch". I already own two other gold Casios, but this is the one I've never had, even though I already own the A168 in silver-camo. There's just something about this particular gold Casio that gets it just right.
Casio G-SHOCK GWM5610 - The only reason I've not bought this is price, but it keeps getting ever-so slightly cheaper every year. It used to be over $100, but now it's not. While the A168WG-9 is the go-to for gold, this is the go-to "classic square" shape G-SHOCK with all the toys, so to speak. And by that I mean it is a solar atomic.
Casio WS1700H - Newer model, big, chunky and square-ish. Comes in tan, blue (more like a "smoked" blue) and black. They all look good. And cheap. This is the first Casio I've seen where the tan/sand version actually looks pretty nice. It's that sand look that has a utility appearance without being "loud". I like that.
Casio W736H - Almost identical to the W735H I wear now, with the only real difference being the dial. 100% uncluttered, whereas the W735H has slight clutter going on. This might be the one I buy fairly soon just to get that no-clutter digital dial, even though feature-wise it's the same as the W735H.
Honorable mention: Casio AE1500WH. I owned this before just for one day and returned it, but want it again. Yeah, it's huge, but the legibility is top tier.
saving a thrift store acoustic guitar with just strings
It is sometimes amazing that all it takes to save some guitars is just a new set of strings and nothing else.
I was lent a $7 miniature First Act acoustic guitar bought at a thrift store. Yes, it was really just 7 bucks. The guitar had these awful strings on it and the high-E string was missing.
I am pretty sure this guitar would not be able to handle regular acoustic guitar strings (which usually means the phosphor bronze flavor). But I was certain it would take the silk-and-steel type...
...and I was right.
The strings I installed on this little guy was D'Addario Silk & Steel EJ40. Typically, there's only one set size for this, which is 11-47.
You would think there would be no way a little acoustic could handle 11's, never mind the standard 12's. However, silk & steel is a different type of string. Very soft on the fingers, and the tension is different compared to the phosphor bronze stuff.
The end result is that yes, it worked. I was able to string up that little acoustic (it's basically a 6 string ukulele), and even though it has no truss rod, it does hold tune in standard E and neither the neck nor tuners were overly stressed.
Nothing else was needed on the guitar. It had barely been played and just needed a cleaning.
True, silk & steel doesn't project well and has a decidedly mellow tone to them, but on a little acoustic like this, it's a perfect fit.
What's funny is that the pack of strings cost more than the guitar itself.
why are small bandages so difficult to find?
It used to be that if you wanted a package of small bandages that were about the size of an adult index finger, you could find it at any pharmacy. No problem. Yeah, good luck finding that now. If you don't very specifically know the dimensions and the name of what this bandage type is, you'll never find it.
But I know what the name and dimensions are. And now you will, too.
These bandages are the adhesive strip style, and they're small.
There are two ways to find these things.
First, by dimension: 3/8" x 1-1/2" bandage
That's the size. It wasn't easy finding that info, but that's what it is.
Second, by name: Junior bandage or junior size bandage
The only reason I know this is because while researching, I would see that name used instead of outright stating the size, even though they are 3/8" x 1.5". And no, they are not listed as 3/8" x 1.5". They are specifically listed as 3/8" x 1-1/2".
You also may see the name "nose bandage", but a search for those will have the strips mixed with other nose-style bandage shapes, so it's not a reliable way to find them. You're better off searching for junior.
What's the big deal with these?
The big deal is that it's the perfect size bandage for small wounds and cuts.
A few examples of this are placing it over a bug bite, or maybe covering up a scratch the cat made on your hand while playing with him (it happens).
Junior size is also perfect for wrapping around the finger. You absolutely don't need anything larger than a junior size to cover up a small finger cut.
These things are also great for the face if you get a small cut there for whatever reason.
Again, I remember when it used to be really easy to find these in a pharmacy. Walgreen's, CVS, hello? Why do you not carry these?
At least you can still get them online. That's how I buy mine because I have no other choice.
$1.99 well spent
I was in a Walgreen's recently and bought something that was too good to pass up.
This is a computer thing, and it's honestly something I didn't think I'd be buying again, but there it was...
...a Verbatim 25-pack of DVD+R discs on the clearance shelf. I knew that these things are already cheap, but there was no price tag on it. I brought it to the front for a price check, because I wanted to know how cheap we're talking about here.
The price was $1.99. It was a very steep discount because that store just wanted to be rid of these things.
I bought it.
Why?
Indeed, why.
I just talked about USB sticks recently, and I did mention DVDs there as a means of cheap long term data storage.
$1.99 (which after tax is just a little over 8 cents per disc) is as cheap as it gets. If it were any cheaper it would be free.
DVD is good for backing up everything - except video
Video files are huge and that's just the way it is. A 10-minute 1920x1080 video recorded from a smartphone is usually (if not always) over 1GB in size. Given a DVD can hold just 4.7GB, you're not going to be able to store too much video there.
But for just about everything else such as documents, photos and most audio, yeah, DVD is a-okay for that. Most phones take photos that have a file size between 2MB and 5MB. Documents in DOCX, ODT, PDF or whatever don't take up that much space. Audio is only huge if it's FLAC or uncompressed WAV but much smaller as high-quality MP3.
As long as what's backed up isn't video, sure, a ton of stuff can be put to DVD, and moreover...
DVD will outlast a USB stick
There are two longevity problems where USB pendrives are concerned. The memory can lose its 'charge', and the USB connection point can develop tarnishing and/or corrosion. Either of these can spell out disaster later in the future where the stick can't be written to nor have its data read.
Then there's the bog standard DVD. It uses no electricity. The drive it is put in needs electricity to read the disc, but the disc itself won't lose any 'charge' sitting in storage. There is also nothing to corrode or tarnish on a DVD since the whole thing is encased in plastic.
The worst that can happen to a DVD over time is bubbles forming under the plastic. It takes a long time for that to happen even with standard discs.
I mean, sure, there are archival grade and M-DISC DVDs, but regular consumer grade still takes years before the bubbling starts - if it even happens at all.
Where USB sticks are concerned, some may believe that if you take a stick, write data to it, then put it away in safe storage, it'll still work fine 5 or 10 years later.
I seriously doubt that.
What you're supposed to do is plug in a USB stick once every 6 months or so and let it idle for a while just to give it some 'charge' (and to make sure it still works)...
...and nobody does this.
If long term storage is the goal where you can just write data, put it away and not worry about it, DVD is the better choice.
Yes, you could just get a CMR 3.5" hard drive (Seagate Barracuda Pro is the easiest go-to for that) along with a toaster to put it in, but the DVDs are easier to store away.
I was happy to find a 25-pack of Verbatim discs for 2 bucks. Decent brand, good discs for long term storage, and I found them for a dirt cheap price. It doesn't get much better than that.