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PSA Alert: Anker is recalling Anker PowerCore 10000 charger. U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has determined that it may not meet current mandatory or voluntary safety standards.
This sucks. We have two of these and many other Anker products. More info

Oct 16, 2013

10 Travel Gadgets Hacks

10 Travel Gadgets Hacks

1. Hack a Shower Cap to Pack Your Shoes: Keep your clothes clean in your luggage by wrapping your shoes inside shower caps. These are available in a few hotels for free or can be purchased cheaply in bulk Shower Caps Clear (30 count)



2. Hack a Flat Iron to De-Wrinkle Your Clothes: Before you walk out the door give your cuffs and collars a touch up with your straightening iron for a crisp look. No need to drag around an iron or hoping there is one in the room. You get 2 uses for the price of one gadget.
3. Power strip. Split up one socket into multiple with ease with this travel gadget. This way you will have space to plug in more than one gadget at a time at locations and rooms that do not have many plugs. This is also helpful in crowded areas where there only a couple of plugs for many more people. By plugging in one of these power strips, you can share the charge with others, even if they were there first.



4. Dryer sheets. Pop these into your suitcase, your overnight bag, or any other luggage, to keep your clothes smelling good throughout the trip


5. Hack a Bowl to Blast Your Music
Playing music out loud on your smartphone usually does not result in very powerful sound.
To help amplify the sound, simply place the speaker end of the phone in a bowl and press play.



6. Hack a Staple Remover to Add a Key: Save your fingers and nails from getting pinched or pocked trying to get a new key on a key chain by using a staple remover to pry open your key ring.



7. Doorstop as Security Device
Little rubber doorstops are there so you can prop open the door to your room if need be. Additionally, they can be quite effective at keeping doors shut. So if you want an added level of security when you turn in for the night, wedge the doorstop under the door, and you just added an additional lock.


8. Socks as Scratch Protectors
You bring a bunch of pairs on your trip. Give them new purpose by keeping a pair on hand to protect items from getting chipped or scratched in transit. This would provide extra protection to your devices, jewelry, and souvenirs. They are great for padding inside your luggage as well.

9. Baggage Tag as Lint Remover
Didn't bring a lint roller? No problem, you're still likely traveling with an item that can do double duty and help you get the lint and such off of your garments. Just carefully remove the long baggage-tracking sticker from your suitcase handle that was placed on their at the airport. It is a good idea to take these off anyhow to make sure your luggage gets to the correct destination on the way back. Then wrap it around a brush, remote control or similar with the sticky side facing out, and blot at any area of clothing that needs cleaning. Voila!. Your cloth are looking great and fuzz free.


10. Conditioner as Shaving Cream
Man or woman, you're likely going to need to shave at some point on any trip, so finding yourself without shaving cream can be problematic. However, this little items is one of the most forgotten toiletry during travel. I know I have left it behind on more than one occasion.Worse, most hotels don't offer shaving cream in their collection of complimentary items. But hair conditioner, which comes standard with nearly all hotel rooms, makes a perfectly acceptable substitute. And it has the added benefit of being moisturizing, so you can be smooth and supple in one easy step.

One more great hack:
Amazon prime
If you forget to pack something small yet important on a prolonged trip, it's often relatively cheap to have it shipped priority one-day through Amazon Prime to your hotel. And while at your hotel waiting for it, you can enjoy movies and shows using the service as well.

Sound-off: What do you think? Let us know below

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Oct 2, 2013

Our Last Hoorah... For Now

Celebratory Road Trip down to Delaware

Last weekend plus 3 more days, we went on road trip down to Delaware. When my wife first brought up the idea for this trip, my first reaction, as well as likely most of you, was "What's in Delaware?" Turns out, quite a bit of things we like to do. The magic words that got me interested were beer, Oktoberfest, and fun drives.
The trip started off on a great note with a lunch stop at Iron Hill Brewery in Wilmington, DE. They have a brewery downstairs and rooftop sitting. I ordered a flight of their beers which comes in glasses a bit larger than regular shot glass. My favorite was Vienna Red Lager. This was paired nicely with guacamole and tortilla chips followed by grilled chicken sandwich. The weather was great and the view overlooked the riverfront.
Next stop was the Nemours Mansion by duPont. We got a tour of the gardens as well as the tour of the house. It was interesting to find out about that some of his story seems to be out of the book "The Great Gatsby," where a guy builds a huge mansion with whole lot of expansive decor to make a woman fall in love with him. And just like in the book, it does not really work out.


After we checked into the hotel, our next stop for the first day was the Delaware Saengerbund Oktoberfest. While this was a fun event, unfortunately, it was raining quite a bit that evening. All the folks were crowded into the tent with all the food and booze. It was quite a spectacle with people soaked from rain or spilled beer, beer cup stacking contest, all kind of costumes and entertainment.


The following day we hit the farmers' market to gather up ingredients for our scenic valley picnic. We took a ride on the doodlebug train via the Wilmington & Western railroad. It was a fun, relaxing, and scenic ride along the river and some very nice properties.


To wash down our lunch, we stopped in at Pizzadili Winery. Nope, they don't serve pizza there. Though they did have vineyards and good wines to sample.


After the winery, we headed to our final destination of the road trip, Rehoboth Beach. There we stopped in at restaurant "Salt Air" for dinner. They have a great menu of seafood and other local ingredients. We had Corn and Crab Chowder, which was delicious, followed by Bacon Wrapped Baby Potatoes, mmm bacon. And for entree we had Eastern Shore Crab Cakes.
And to finish off a day of great tasting, we stopped in at The Ice Cream Store, a place with hundreds of different ice cream flavors. If you are ever in the Rehoboth, come by this place and try some of their flavors. If nothing else, they have some interesting combinations and names. That evening we also got in a few games of skeeball, points donated to a couple of kids that need to get them over 4,000.


And what trip to Rehoboth be complete without visiting the staples. The following day we had dinner at DogFish Head Restaurant and Brewery, food was good and so was the brew. My favorite is the Midas Touch. For lunch next day we had fries from famous Thrashers, which got shared with some quick grabbing seagulls.


The same day we headed out to Nassau Winery and finished the day with dinner at Oyster House to celebrate our 3rd year anniversary. 
To break up the trip, we also made some interesting and scenic stops. First was in a very tiny town of Odessa, population 364. Then Heritage Winery for some more sampling of wine and grapes, and a walk through campus of the university and dessert at a local Turkish restaurant in Princeton.


This trip was our vacation/celebration/baby moon. That's right! We are expecting. So don't be surprised when some of the travel gadgets start to more and more lean towards kids travel gadgets :)

Sound-off: Do you have a trip planned this fall? Let us know below

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Sep 18, 2013

Baby Boomer Travel Tips and Gadgets


Travel Tips and Gadgets for Baby Boomers

Getaways such as international cruises, golfing vacations in the summer, skiing in the winter and leisure trips to Hawaii are awesome. However, they come with some dangers, especially air travel to destinations such as Hawaii. Flight to Hawaii is about 10 hour long. Deep vein thrombosis is caused by seating in the same spot for extended period of time, this is a condition in which a blood clot forms in a vein deep beneath the skin, typically in the leg or pelvic area.

Travel Boom Sparks Blood Clot Warning
http://au.news.yahoo.com/a/-/world/18831322/travel-boom-sparks-blood-clot-warning/

Risk factors for deep vein thrombosis include:
Sitting for longer than 6 to 8 hours, such as during a trip in a car or plane.
Having limited mobility due to a medical issue, surgery, or paralysis.
Having an injured vein from a bone fracture, severe muscle injury, trauma, or major surgery (especially involving the abdomen, pelvis, hip, or legs).
Having a tube placed in a vein for medication or other treatment, such as a central venous catheter.
Having heart failure or cancer in the abdomen.
Being pregnant, taking birth-control pills, or taking prescription hormones for menopause symptoms.
Having a family history of clots.
Being overweight or obese, having high blood pressure, or being a smoker.
Having certain genetic or inherited blood-clotting disorders, such as Factor V Leiden.

Arrive feeling better with these Jet-Lag Prevention products from Magellans.com!

Best way to protect yourself is to try to prevent DVT by following a healthy lifestyle, including exercising regularly, losing excess weight, and not smoking. Drinking plenty of water on the plane is important to make sure you have good circulation. You can get water from the beverage cup and you should do that at frequent intervals. Moving around, whenever it is safe to do so, is also important on a long trip. If you're trapped in a window seat and can't get the snoring person beside you to move, stretch in your seat. Pedal your feet up and down to stretch your calves, and raise your hands above your head. Keeping the blood flowing will make you feel less stiff later on, and can also help prevent deep vein thrombosis.

What tips do you have for prolonged trips? Let us know below

Circulator Compression Socks
This wearable travel accessory enhance circulation in your legs when sitting for extended period of time. They're tight in the right places to increase blood flow, reducing your risk
travelsox.com




A new device, Geko by UK based Sky Medical, 
is a wristwatch sized product that stimulates the peroneal nerve via electrical signals leading to muscle activation of the lower limb, that has shown evidence of increased blood-flow in the femoral vein. Preventing venous stasis can potentially lead to less clot formation.
http://www.medgadget.com/2011/12/a-new-device-to-prevent-those-deep-vein-clots.html

Sound-off: What gadgets do you bring along for a long flight? Let us know below

TravelGadgets

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Sep 11, 2013

Sep 4, 2013

Smartie Watches - Wrist Watch Reincarnation

Smartie Watches

As predicted in the post I wrote awhile back, New Cool Gadget Find of Today: Wrist watches making a comeback?, watches are back on the scene and soon back on our wrists. These re-imagined watches tell time, but this functionality is no longer the main feature. Smart watches give you faster and sometimes more convenient access to data, updates, email, and social media.

Samsung’s “Galaxy Gear” Smartwatch
- will debut on September 4th


Apple iWatch


LG Watch Phone
http://www.lg.com/uk/mobile-phones/lg-GD910-watch-phone

Kreyos Meteor
http://kreyos.com/

Movies Of The Past That Correctly Predicted The Technology We Have Today


Sound-off: Are you going to get one of these watches? Why or Why not? Let us know below

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