Whenever I'm performing simple repetitive physical tasks, such as shoveling snow off my driveway or mowing nice even lines into my lawn, I think about how much time I could be saving if, instead of making ten passes with a 21-inch wide lawn mower, I could make a single pass with one giant 210-inch (17.5-foot) lawnmower.  A 17.5-foot lawnmower would obviously be a bit too heavy (and expensive) for my purposes, but a 10-foot wide snow shovel is easily within reach, and would be especially useful for those little two-inch dustings that seem to have been happening recently. #products

People who subscribe to the idea of organic products usually come from one of two camps:  (1) It's better for the environment, or (2) it's better for the end-user.  The question is, what's more important, the earth or its inhabitants?  Lots of organic products come in non-recyclable packaging, which, when viewed from the environmentalist's perspective, sort of negates the fact that they're organic.  Sure, you're not dumping chemicals into the ground to fertilize those carrots, but the plastic bag they're packaged in will still end up in a landfill, where it'll stay for billions and billions of years.  It's the same with milk.  For whatever reason, milk comes in either a plastic or cardboard container.  But this time, the plastic is recyclable; the cardboard isn't.  I'd actually be willing to pay more money for a plastic container of organic milk whose packaging can be reused, rather than a cardboard container that'll just take up space in a dump.  Hooray for us humans who've reduced the amount of harmful chemicals we introduce into our bodies through our food, but shame on us for not doing anything about the amount of packaging waste we produce. #products

I use my plastic and metal coffee cup about 6 or 7 times (i.e. pretty much every day of the week) between washings.  My rationale is that I'm putting the exact same thing in it day after day, so the very thing that qualifies as making it dirty is just an old version of what I'll be putting in it again.  The only reason I end up washing it is because I'm afraid of bacteria and mold-grown super monsters that will likely eat my brains when I'm sleeping.  Unlike some people in my household, I don't feel the need to wash it after a single use. #products

The XLerator is a hand dryer found in [usually] upscale bathrooms.  It claims to dry hands in 10-15 seconds and use 80% less energy (than conventional hand-dryers, I'm assuming).  For people that live near me, it's that thing in the new Rockaway movie theaters that feels like a jet engine mounted on the bathroom wall.  I almost don't mind paying $10 to see a movie, provided that I get to play with one of these machines.  I can't not laugh when the air passes through my fingers and makes funny noises.  That will absolutely never get old. #products

This apparently isn't new news, but Nexcare makes duct tape bandages. 
Never has being maimed looked so cool.  (via Boing Boing) #products

Perhaps one of the most useful tools ever created is this thing called a slate rod, purchased at my local Home Depot.  It's just a simple metal rod, about 4 or 5 feet long, weighing about 15 or 20 pounds.  One end is pointed; the other used to have a flat part with a hook, but it broke after about 30 seconds.  My dad always used to carry a metal rod around the yard while doing odd jobs, and after buying a house a few years ago, one of my happiest purchases was this same metal rod.  Seeing it in a store, I'd have no clue what to use it for.  But once you use it for a few things, you realize you could never live without it.  I just used it this weekend to dig up rocks from my backyard that I kept hitting with the lawnmower.  If I used a shovel, I'd have to dig and dig to try to figure out how big the rock is, then hope to somehow pry it out, likely snapping the shovel in the process.  With the slate rod, I just poke around for a few seconds, then use it like a crowbar to dig the rock out.  Since it's a solid piece of metal, it pretty much can't break.  I can easily put all my weight on it and use all my strength to try to bend it, but it won't budge.  Other uses include moving large heavy things like trees and railroad ties, digging and prying out stumps, and destroying things like bricks and cement. #products

If I was stranded on a deserted island, the three objects I would want in my possession are: 

1. Leatherman
2. Duct tape
3. Rubber grip jar opener

Rubber grip jar openers are usually used by old people and weaklings.  But like duct tape, it's easy to find more and more ways to use them.  I just loosened the head on my cordless drill so I could remove the bit.  I couldn't do it in my own strength.  Only with the help of rubber. #products

I just saw a motorized golf pull cart (like this one) in use on the golf course at work.  A lady hit her ball and started walking towards her bag to put her club away when her bag started moving away from her.  She had a little remote in her hand that made the bag move.  This has to be the laziest product in the history of the universe.  Thankfully it's available for the low-low price of $800, which is practically a steal in my book. 

For people who don't golf, here's a brief history of golf club carrying devices:  First there was the golf bag, which slung over your shoulder and apparently affected your swing after about 14 holes; then there was the pull cart (or push cart, depending on how you use it), which took the weight off your shoulder and had a tendency to roll away when you weren't looking; lastly we have the motorized pull cart, which simultaneously solves a nonexistent problem while also using up extra money that many golfers seem to have weighing them down. #products

The Consumerist has a post on those California cancer chemicals warning labels.  Generally speaking, the warning labels encourage a certain level of public safety, but in actuality, their purpose is mostly litigious.  One negative side effect of the abundance of these warning labels is a general disregard for them. 

Warning labels that warn against any infinitesimal risk are essentially useless. The outbreak of warning labels spawned by Proposition 65 is so widespread that consumers are being conditioned to ignore them. Even if some of these labels are trying to warn us against a legitimate risk, we are likely to ignore them since these labels "cry wolf" more than they protect us.

It seems that there's a danger in overwarning.  Too many warnings with too few observable effects (i.e. getting cancer from one of these products) is a bad thing. #products

I saw this interesting product in a sporting goods store the other day: 
It's a Parent/Child Boxing Glove Set, which consists of a pair of 14-oz boxing gloves for adults along with a pair of teeny tiny 6-oz boxing gloves for children.  I'm no marketing genius, but the following sales pitches immediately came to mind: 

1. "It's not child abuse if you give them gloves too."
2. "Now parents and children can fight nicely."
3. "Won't leave embarrassing bruises!"
4. "Time to fight back!"
5. "Teach a skill while teaching a lesson."

I understand the idea behind it:  Create a little quality time, albeit with a somewhat violent pastime.  And even though it's not explicitly stated, the punching isn't intended to be directed at one another, but instead at a punching bag.  Of course.  But the entire thing just shouts child abuse and dysfunction.  I love it.  Someday, I hope to punch my child with these gloves, all the while getting punched by his/her tiny hands in return. #products