I was walking along the street the other day and saw an old vcr. My girlfriend is looking for one. So, I stopped to investigate. On closer inspection I noticed that the person who threw it out had cut the power cord off, rendering it all but unusable! Why on earth do people do this? I've never understood this. I can also recall seeing an iMac on the street one day. It looked in perfect condition, but someone had cut the power cable from the machine, again rendering it all but useless. What a shame. What are people thinking exactly? Is this malice? Or are they worried someone will hurt themselves? It seems completely senseless and wasteful. Please spread the word.
Another thing I've noticed is that whenever people throw away appliances, like fridges and stoves they ruin the machine by prying the door off of it. Now, if you're old enough, you might recall the advertisements on the TV about not disposing of a fridge with a door in tact. But this was because those old fridges had a latch that locked and couldn't be opened from the inside. So, if a child climbed in and closed the door behind them they might die inside. Indeed, this happened a few times and got the media into a frenzy. But we don't have fridges like that any more. And stoves never were air tight nor do their doors lock shut, unless they are some sort of industrial stove. So, please don't pry the door off of your appliances. You see this even with driers and washing machines. This means nobody can re-use them and they will end up in land fill, which is wasteful and is frankly quite irresponsible. Even if we're not careful about our own consumption, at least we can not ruin our electronics preventing someone else from making use of it once we're finished with it.
My next post is going to be on disposable highlighter (hiliter) pens. I can't believe we throw these away. There are alternatives.
I love the new Magic Mouse. Some people say that the clicking is a bit stiff, and so it is. But I can live with it. I like the way it feels. Coming from a PC, I like a fast mouse. But even with the Magic Mouse cranked to full speed I find it a bit slow for my liking. Enter MouseZoom. It hasn't been updated in a while, but it works great under Snow Leopard. It gives you the ability to get some more speed from the Magic Mouse. Sweet. Download the utility here.
Losing your bike to a low-life thief sucks; losing your bike parts comes pretty close. Personally, I recommend the New York U lock by Kryptonite, if you harbour any thoughts of hanging on to your bike in the big city. Lock it to something that can't be cut or easily broken; remove the front wheel and lock it to the back wheel and frame; old school. If you don't want to remove your front wheel, then use secure stays, like Pinheads, or get used to living without your front wheel. Use the smallest lock possible. The New York Standard (SD) is a good side, unless you're a messenger. Avoid cables or chains; even the best of them can be easily cut with the right bolt cutters; they're generally a waste of time and money. Carry an extra quick release stay in case someone takes the one from your front wheel. Replace quick release back stays with something less removable.
