I had a relative that recently tried debt consolidation. He wasn't too far into debt where he couldn't pay his bills, but he was getting nowhere fast trying to pay down credit cards. He tried debt counseling/consolidation with a company called Money Management International or MMI.He told me that after calling MMI, they claimed they could reduce the interest rate on a lot of his cards b...

Wolfgang Puck, just cut and cook, man. Please don't endorse another knife.We bought the Wolfgang Puck kitchen knife set because this guy looks like a good cook and why would he endorse cheap knives? I have no idea why, but he did.These knives barely had water on them and they rusted real quick. We didn't even put them in the dishwasher because it says not to, yet they rusted just after ...

I received the Casio LK90 as a Christmas gift from my wife. She knew I was big into music and wanted to pursue learning to accompany my singing with a keyboard. I have since then given up learning the keyboard because of time constraints, but the Casio LK90 has turned into a major force of entertainment in my house because of the many features and fun my kids have with it.First off, there are m...

When we moved cross country two years ago, I forgot to buy more contact lenses and I lost my glasses somewhere in Texas. I had to wear my contact lenses for an extended period of time because California won't let you buy a new pair without a prescription, like there's someone really violating laws by memorizing what size lenses they need.Anyway, I had to shop for more contact lens fluid...

I hate, more than most anything. buying lawn equipment. Maybe I'm missing a little bit of testosterone, but I get no joy out of buying anything to keep my yard straight. I don't mind doing the work, but I just hate spending the money on something I"ll use for 5 minutes twice a year. I used to buy cheap electric trimmers for that very reason. I'd by the smallest electric we...

As I mentioned in another review, I am not a fan of paying lots of money for lawn equipment. The work itself I don't mind, but paying for it...echh! But my old lawn mower lasted us a good eight years and I wasn't planning on pulling out the grass blade by blade.Since we bought a Poulan brand gas trimmer, we figured to give it another shot by purchasing a Poulan Lawn Mower. After figurin...

I was always suspect of buying something from the Home Shopping Network or QVC. Especially if it was electronic, because I used to see a lot of electronic brands I had never heard of on those networks and for prices that I felt were way, way too expensive. However, this digital camera is the best electronic purchase I've made in years and it came from HSN.The Fuji Finepix S800 is an 8.0 cam...

  If there were a more useful scanner than the XP 450 Scanner, I don't know what it is. This machine is a testament to technology and even eco-friendliness.The XP 450 ain't your momma's scanner. It's not for your house to scan pictures of your poodle Mr. Bubbles' newest Christmas sweater. To put just one document in it for scanning is like only taking your Ferrari to 35...

For anyone who owns retainers, it can be quite a hassle keeping them clean. You are supposed to remove them for every meal, put them back in, rinse them, etc. My wife just got a set after having her braces removed and it was a pain to keep those suckers clean and not smelling like every meal you've ever eaten.However, she found out about a product online called Retainer Brite. And it is lik...

My 'puter died right on time: when we were supposed to make those nifty Christmas cards with your family photo and some sort of update on how everyone is doing. That was a bummer. What can you when your four year-old motherboard gives out? Not much other than buy a new computer.So that we did and turned it into a Christmas present for the family. We went to Best Buy, looked around, and saw ...

I am no stranger to back pain. Several years in the mliitary repairing jet engines while hanging in positions that would make a contortionist cringe has caused considerable amount of strain and stress on my body, namely my lower back. I'm a stretcher, a former basketball junkie, a kid tosser, you name it. I stay in shape. But my goodness, my back has been killing me!It was so bad my bo...

Let me tell you, it is a long drive to Yosemite National Park. I don't care which direction you come from; you are going to drive quite a way. But once you hit the major landmarks, you will find that every winding road was worth it.Last year my family and I went to Yosemite National Park during spring break. We were in total awe with everything we saw. From the cold waterfalls to the breath...

When the summer comes and you have kids between toddler and 12, you absolutely HAVE to get this toy! We bought the Tiki Soki water volcano for our kids and they could not leave it alone for at least an hour straight.The design is pretty simple yet intriguing. You hook up a garden hose to the Tiki Soki volcano. The volcano has eyes that are mostly closed. But slowly they open and when they do, B...

Hyper Dash is probably one of the best new toys made this decade. It's the perfect blend of skill, fun and exercise for about 15 times less than the price of a Wii or Dance Dance Revolution. If you want a family game, that isn't a board game, this is the way to go!Hyperdash is a little bit of a cross between Simon Says and Memory. The goal in Hyper Dash is to take a hand-held plunging t...

Tobey Maguire reprised his role as Spiderman, this time dealing with villains familiar with the comic-book fans: The Sandman, Carnage, and Green Goblin Jr. Apparently another villain of this movie was plot movement. Everything went either too slow, too fast, or too confusing. Why the big show-and-dance routine at Mary Jane's club gig? It reminded me of watching "The Mask", except ...

Renting DVDs of movies that came out during your childhood usually go one of two ways: either just as joyful to watch or extremely painful, resulting in the "why did I think this was good?" moment. Watching Star Trek 2: Wrath of Kahn falls right into the former category. This movie was  just as good 20 years later.The story involves the Star Trek crew a little bit older and ...

For you southerners that spent your childhood from the mid-80s on out, there was a staple of the home that should never be overlooked when remeniscing about the good ol' days: wrasslin'. There was something alluring about watching grown men on TV almost pummel themselves while wearing tights, boots, and occaisionally make up. Yet we could get involved with the half-believeable plots and...

I will admit: I have a bias toward anything related to Neil Gaiman. I believe he is one of the greatest modern storytellers today and will be valued long after his passing. That being said, I was very excited when "Stardust" came to DVD. I wish It was the first Neil Gaiman book I had ever read ( I owned about half of the graphic novels he penned) and I thought, like many of his fans, ...

These headphones were an impressive product to me because of the price paid. Every once in awhile it can be easy to go with the "sure brand" to get a quality product. We may drift to Sony or another major brand thinking we must spend $40 more on something to get quality.In the case of these headphones, it simply isn't true. I purchased them for less than $20 and I have to say they...

A big disappointment. That is my opinion of this product. I expected much more from Black and Decker, once known for making quality electronic products for home use. But this SmartGrind Coffee grinder is making me think otherwise. It is simply an appliance with barely glued-on pieces that break easily. I received this as a gift a few months ago, and I wish I could return it.If you look at the p...