I've owned these sneakers for about 5 months, and during that time, I've worn them nearly everytime I stepped outside of the house.  I would estimate that I've walked about 400 miles in these sneakers since the day I bought them, including all of the walking I do throughout the course of a normal day, plus my nightly 2+ mile walk with our dogs. Even with all of that wear and t...

Several years ago I owned a set of Bose home theater speakers, and I thought they were pretty decent at the time.  I was still pretty new to home audio back then, and I admit that I was taken in by Bose's excellent marketing.  I really didn't have an idea of how a "good" set of speakers should sound, though, until I paid a visit to the local high-end home audio deale...

I received this drill a couple of years ago as a birthday gift.  It was actually included as part of a set, which also included a circular trim saw, a fluorescent work light, a reciprocating saw, a battery charger, and a couple of 19.2 volt batteries.  Prior to receiving this drill, I had been using a Black & Decker 12 volt cordless drill/driver which served me well for several ye...

Since I was about 18, I've been getting migraine headaches about once every couple of months.  I always know when one is coming on because it starts with a few problem-spots in my vision, and then about 30 minutes after that, it progresses into the actual headache.  That pain that I get with them can last anywhere between one and two days.  From some of the stories I've r...

Normally I'm very skeptical of any "as seen on TV" items that are sold through those 30 minute "infomercials" late at night.  However, on rare occasions I'll see one offering something that looks like a good idea, and it turns out to be something that I could actually use.  Such was the case with the FoodSaver Vac 750 vacuum sealer that I purchased a few ye...

I've owned a lot of cheap sunglasses over the years, because I used to think that aside from the frame and style, they were all pretty much the same.  I used to believe that, that is, until I tried out a pair of polarized sunglasses made by Bollé.  Looking through them, everything was so clear and any glare in the surrounding environment was completely eliminated.  I w...

I've owned a multi-tool for several years, but I've always kept it in my car in case of emergencies while I'm on the road.  I've always liked the convenience of an all-in-one tool, and recently decided that I wanted purchase one for my use around the house.  After comparing many different models from several different companies, I settled on the Victorinox SwissTool Sp...

Everytime one of our old incandescent light bulbs burns out, I try to replace it with one of the new, more energy-efficient, compact fluorescent (CFL) bulbs.  When the bulb at the base of our basement stairs burned out earlier this week, I figured I would upgrade that one to CFL as well.Since the bulb I needed was not one of the standard sizes typically carried by the local supermarket, I ...

With everything I had heard about the threat of identity theft, I was convinced that I should invest in a personal paper shredder to destroy any of my sensitive documents before I threw them away.  I originally decided on an inexpensive shredder, but that one failed within a year when it overheated, and then shortly afterward the gears inside the shredder mechanism stripped.  When I p...

When I started to become interested in cooking a few years ago, I found that I had outgrown the cheap set of dull knives that I owned, and decided that it was time for an upgrade.  I read some information online, then shopped around a little bit and found a very nice set of knives at a local department store, so I decided to give them a try.The knives that I selected were a six piece set o...

I'm usually really good about doing research and educating myself before I make a big purchase.  However, in a few situations I've become desperate enough to try even a gimmicky product, if I thought it might help.  This was one of those purchases. For most of my life I've had to deal with allergies every spring and summer.  They would always be at their worst when I ...

This drive turned out to be one of the better deals that I've been fortunate to come across.  A couple of years ago, one of the local computer stores was closing down, and they were liquidating their remaining inventory.  I made several visits to the store during their clearance, and picked up various items that I had been wanting.  On the last visit that I made, I saw that t...

I enjoy driving.  Like most drivers, I've sometimes found myself going a little bit faster than the posted speed limit.  And, on more than one of those occasions I've actually been pulled over and ticketed.  Now, I'm not going to pretend that I'm innocent and say that I've never exceeded the limit intentionally, but by far, the majority of the times that I'...

All through my years in school, I hated using those old yellow pencils that needed to be sharpened all the time.  It seemed like the tip of my pencil would always be too dull for my liking, or would always break off whenever I needed it the most.  When I discovered the joy of using a mechanical pencil, though, those problems became a thing of my past.  By far, the mechanical penc...

For the past 5 years my daily driver has been a Subaru Impreza WRX sedan, and I could not be happier.  This car is an ideal combination of utility and performance, which works just as well as a daily driver to and from the grocery store, as it does on the open highway.  If you ever want to have just a little more fun, all you need to do is press slightly harder on the gas pedal. The ...

For several years, this was just about the only PC I used at home.  Even though I had a couple of others available to me, I used this one on a daily basis to perform almost every computer-related task I needed. In fairness, I have to mention that this is the only laptop that I've ever owned, so I may not have a wide frame of reference for my observations and comparisons.  I do hav...

"Getting hypothermia has never been so much fun!"There's something awesome about sitting high up in the stands during the dead of winter, along with 75,000+ of your closest friends, watching a football game.  Old-time stadiums are becoming more and more rare these days, being replaced with newer, modern facilities that are built around comfort.  One of the few remaining ...

I've had this calculator banging around inside my desk drawer for a couple of years now, and it still works just as good as it did the day I bought it.  It almost looks as good too, thanks to the built-in hard plastic cover.   My decision to buy this calculator originally came about because I was looking for something a little more advanced than a "basic-math-only" ...

Within the past few years, a law was passed in my state that makes it illegal to hold a cell phone to your ear and talk while you're driving.  Now, in order to legally use a cell phone in the car, we're required to use a headset or some other hands-free device.  Since I use my cell phone almost exclusively in my car, it was very important for me to find a headset that I could ...

From the ability to remove the lid from a tight jar, to delivering a firm handshake after a business meeting, having a strong grip can be very helpful in a person's everyday life.   If you are interested in developing your grip strength, I highly recommend that you consider the "Captains of Crush" series of hand grippers from Iron Mind.  Their all-metal construction feel...