Yardwork with Sinatra, Springsteen, and Willie!
By: Broc Sears I could be your neighbor. Luckily not the one with the window-shaking stereo, but maybe the one whose playlist lightly wafts by your porch on a summer day. I love to play music when I work in the yard, and prefer not to use headphones, earbuds, or air pods. I simply raise
Lifehacks, Tips, and Helpful Hints
By Broc Sears ~ At least once a semester, my classroom discussions branch off into conversations about lifehacks. Lifehacks are strategies to make life easier — from how to get fingerprints off the fridge to closet organization. My mom had a folder stuffed with mimeographed sheets and handwritten notes about using baking soda, ingredient substitutes,
Gardening Gadgets Help You Get Your Green On
By Broc Sears~ Years ago, I spent my winter evenings searching through gardening magazines and catalogs for heirloom seeds and crafted tilling tools. I am no longer a passionate garden guy, but I still visit websites featuring seeds, tools, and landscaping tips. Through them, I’ve found some neat stuff for the growing and mowing season.
Well, Why Don’t You Just Use Your Phone?
By Broc Sears~ There’s an infinite number of devices and apps that do all kinds of whiz-bang things, but sometimes I just want a fast and simple way to get something done. In my quest for efficiency, I often forget that technology usually has all the answers. I first used my smartphone for calling and
Ho, Ho, Hi-Tech
LED Kinaras and a Digital Dreidel, Too! By Broc Sears~ From outdoor decorations to resource apps, the holidays never suffer from a lack of creative and unique tech treasures. To start, there are dozens of smartphone-controlled indoor and outdoor light strings and strips to choose from. Lumenplay has a starter set with actual bulbs and
Change is Good
Some people never get enough of it By Broc Sears ~ One of the perks of weekends with my grandparents — besides homemade cookies and milkshakes — was a fistful of change from my grandfather’s pockets. Returning home, I dumped my treasure in an aging cigar box. My father faithfully dropped pocket change into two
Make Online Streaming Smoother and More Enjoyable
By Brad Smith | Photo by Kelly Sikkema ~ With more than 270 services in the United States, it’s safe to say that we are in the era of online streaming. Online streaming is generally a better deal than cable for watching your favorite movies and TV shows. Part of the appeal only paying for the
Are You Fit for a Bit of Wearable Tech?
By Broc Sears ~ I used to be fit. Kind of. I used to run daily and log my distance, heart rate and calorie intake. Then came love, marriage, and the baby carriage — life, interrupted. Forty years later, three of my four doctors have told me I need to be more active. Two suggested
Honey, Where Are My Keys?
By Broc Sears ~ I recently noticed several pairs of reading glasses hanging from ornate hooks in every room of my friend’s home. She explained she often loses her “cheaters.” Her solution was to buy a case of glasses with which to populate each room. I said I wished I could afford to do
I’ll Take My Power Sunny Side Up Please
By Broc Sears ~ When I first saw a home that had a front walkway bordered by little mushroom lights, I immediately admired its charm and warmth. This was back in the day when that lighting feature would have taken hours of digging and stringing underground cabling to each light. Today, one buys a
