Road Trip Tips

If you've got a long car trip ahead of you and need some distraction, you may want to check out Audible.  Audible specializes in the latest and greatest fiction and non-fiction audiobooks, downloadable from their website.  Instead of having to buy a set of five CDs to listen to one book, you can simply download one audio file into your MP3 player and listen to it in the car.

Or, if you're tired of being read to and your music selection is feeling a bit played, you can always resort to License Plate Blackjack. You need at least two people to play. Each person has to pick a car which is a little bit in the distance, e.g. Beige Accord. Then when you get close enough to the car to read the license plate, you see your hand, numbers are numbers and A, K, Q, J are facecards. Then the next person picks their car, and whoever has the better hand wins. It's not going to get you into any high roller suites, but its amazingly distracting.

Technorati tags: road trip, Audible, audiobook, car

MS Word Shortcuts

Lifehacker posted a cool tip about how to assign a keyboard shortcut to an MS Word Menu item. If you're looking for more MS Word shortcuts, here's a trick to make it easier to insert symbols.

Below are the instructions for Mac OS X (instructions may vary slightly for different versions of Word):

1. In MS Word, go to Insert > Symbol.
2. Click on the symbol you need.
3. Click on the "Shortcut Key" button.

4. Where it says "Press new shortcut key", enter the shortcut you would like to use.  For example, I used Ctrl + Apple + C for the copyright symbol.
5. Click on "Assign".
6. Click on "OK".

Now you have a convenient, customized shortcut for whichever symbol you need.  Be careful that you don't assign a shortcut that is already assigned to something else that you need, like "Copy" or "Paste".

Have another great shortcut? Let us know!

Technorati tags: Microsoft Word, Microsoft Office, symbol, shortcut

Plug in Your Books

The most organized thing to happen to your books since shelving: Library Thing. Easily catalog the books in your library online and if you like, make your library public so others can check out your literary tastes. Now in Beta you can log up to 200 books for free, or get a lifetime membership for $10. Incredibly easy to use, fun features, great search engine and an easy way to jog your memory the next time someone asks you to recommend a great book.

Technorati tags: Library Thing, book catalog, book search engine

Boots Made For Walking

Hiking is a great way to get out and see the Fall foliage but how do you know where and when to go? Check out The Foliage Network to find out the best places to take in the autumn hues. If you are new to hiking and are looking to buy your first pair of hiking boots, avoid breaking them in for the first time on a long hike where you may end up with blisters and a long uncomfortable journey home. For great tips on how to buy and test out hiking boots check out slackpacker which also provides quick access to informative, trail-specific hiking websites by state.

photo credit: Lynne Lancaster

Technorati tags: hiking, slackpacker, Foliage Network

Pet Emergency Kit

In light of Hurricane Katrina, there has been a great deal of valuable information disseminated about how you can prepare your home and family for an emergency. For a lot of us, our family includes our pets. The ASPCA offers some great advice on how to care for pets in an emergency. Great tips include having a photo available in case you need to make lost posters and stocking up on a few aluminum roasting pans for use as emergency litter boxes. ASPCA also provides a link for a rescue alert sticker to let people know that pets are inside your home.

Technorati tags: ASPCA, pet emergency, pet tips

To Do or Not to Do?

The first step towards getting things done is often as basic as writing down what you need to do. I was trained on the Franklin Covey time management system which uses a system of prioritized task lists to help sort out what you need to do today and what can be put off until tomorrow, or the next day or the next day.... For those looking for an easy to use, web based organization system, check out voo2do which lets you organize tasks and projects and easily track and estimate how much time is needed per project.

photo credit: Nick Benjaminsz

Technorati tags: Franklin Covey, voo2do, manage time

simplehuman gives

All of us here at simplehuman are touched by the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina on our country.  We believe it’s as important as ever now to contribute to those in need—those who lost their homes, their jobs, their family members, and more.

simplehuman has pledged to double match donations from employees to the Red Cross in support of the victims of Hurricane Katrina.  Our entire office is pooling donations and trying to do our part in making the lives of the displaced citizens return to normal again.

For information on the Red Cross or to make a donation, visit www.redcross.org.

Technorati tags: Red Cross, Hurricane Katrina, donation

Announcing the Winners...

Congratulations to the two winners of our first-ever simplehuman OrganizeThis! contest!

Participants Daniel Foster and Molly Dolan will each be receiving a simplehuman stainless steel trash can for their creative contest entries.

Stay tuned for future simplehuman contests!

Pay Less at the Pump

With gas prices rising dramatically these past few weeks, that 60 mile-per-gallon Honda Insight is probably looking pretty darn good right now.  But since buying a new car isn't always an option, we found 2 alternatives:

Find the lowest gas prices in your area by visiting GasPriceWatch.Com.  You can search by street, intersection, zip code, and more.

Also, check out 30 gas-saving tips on HowtoAdvice.Com--here's a few:

1. Buy gasoline during coolest time of day - early morning or late evening is best. During these times gasoline is densest. Keep in mind - gas pumps charge you according to volumes of gasoline, not densities of fuel concentration.

2. Stoplights are usually timed for your motoring advantage. By traveling steadily at the legal speed limit, you boost your chances of having the "green light" all the way.

3. Inflate all tires to maximum limit. When shopping for new tires, get large diameter tires for rear wheels. Radial designs are the recognized fuel-savers.

Technorati tags: gas prices, save gas, save money, hybrid car, gaspricewatch.com