Heather, On Tech

Feel the Burn with Daily Burn

I have a confession to make: I'm over 40.  Yes, it's true, although I don't often like to admit it.  I'm over 40 and turning gray and wrinkly.  But, I've decided that I'm NOT going to get fat!

Back in December I started getting back into shape.  I have never been "fat" by anyone's standards (except perhaps my own) - I'm 5'8" and with the exception of being pregnant, the most I've weighed is 135.  That's not "skinny", but it's far from "fat."  Anyway, I decided I wanted to rock a bikini this year when taking the boys to the pool, so I started getting back into shape.

I had heard of Daily Burn (aka Gyminee) via Techstars, and so that was the first place I looked to find a good workout.  I didn't need to join Weight Watchers or any other diet community; I'm not so much "dieting" as "getting fit," after all.  I got on the site and found the perfect workout: the bikini workout!  So I made a note of it, but had to join the site (which was free) in order to keep up with the exercises I needed to do.

Then, after a few weeks of exercising, I started entering the food that I eat, because I was curious as to whether I ate as poorly as I thought I did (meaning "unhealthy").  As it turns out, I'm actually a relatively healthy eater, but like most people I'm a bit heavy on the carbs most of the time.  I'm one of those people who never seems to eat enough fat (even the good kind) - but that's partially because my body does NOT process fat and if I eat anything with a lot of fat in it, I'm running to find a bathroom in very short order.  I can't decide whether this is good or bad, since I can pretty much eat whatever I want to and not gain weight - I just have to suffer the consequences of a nasty public restroom to allow for all the food to - ahem - pass through me.  Quickly, and without warning.

Anyway, now I'm completely addicted to this whole Daily Burn thing.  I enter my workouts and runs.  I enter every bite of food I eat.  I update my weight daily.  The last part is the most frustrating because it's not coming down as much as I'd like, but you know, when you're only trying to lose five pounds, you really can't complain. :)  I. Love. Daily Burn!

So, if you're looking for a workout routine, need some diet advice, or wonder whether you just eat garbage, check out Daily Burn. They have free accounts or Pro level accounts (which add many other awesome features), and it really just takes a few minutes a day.  You can sign up with a friend and motivate each other as well - which is always a nice way to challenge yourself and them.

iHat MP3 Beanie

So, now it's cold.  I live in Florida, and the high today is supposed to be 46 degrees F.  That may not be so cold to people "up north", but that is usually the low this time of year, not the high.

On days like today, when you want to listen to your mp3 player, but you know, you don't want your ears to get cold, you could try the iHat MP3 Headphone Hat.  It's essentially a beanie with built-in speakers!  Just plug it into your mp3 player and go.

The hat costs about as much as a regular set of headphones, at $25 and can be bought at Gadget4all.com.  Too bad it doesn't have bluetooth/phone capabilities, then it would be perfect!

Hat tip: GeekAlerts

One Remote all Daddies Should Have

OK, well, Mommies too.  It's a "Control Your Kid" remote.  And, as you might have guessed, it doesn't work.  Doesn't even require batteries.  But the buttons are good for a laugh!  They include (but are not limited to):

• grow up
• say please
• eat greens
• say thank you

You get the idea.  The "say please" and "say thank you" buttons would be worn out at our house! 

Yeah, this is a dumb toy, especially since it's $6.99.  But that might be worth it on those really "bad" days that you can't take any more of your children's shenanigans!

Available from Think Geek.

Oooogly Shoes

I have this thing for ugly shoes.  I have no idea why, but I pretty much always have.  Maybe it's because I'm a woman and I really just don't want anyone else to have the same shoes as me, but I have found that if the shoe is ugly, it's likely to be comfortable, and not make your toes shaped all funny and pointy.  Yeah, the hot chicks in stilettos all have ugly feet, trust me.

Anyway, this year is no exception and while on vacation in Boulder, Colorado I bought some shoes that are, shall we say, horrid.  They are Vibram FiveFingers shoes (which is really funny, because who has fingers on their feet?), and they look incredibly strange and uncomfortable, but they truly are not.

I expected the toes of these to drive me batty, but actually they kinda give my toesies a massage every time I move my feet, which is nice.  The only down side is that there is absolutely no padding in the bottom, so it takes some getting used to.  But then again, that's the whole point; to feel barefoot without worrying about stepping on glass.

They do come in a full-shoe version and many different colours.  Unfortunately pink was the only colour they had in my size, and since pink is ugly, I had to get them (my first choice was black).

So, if you like going barefoot in public, but don't really want to get your feet all cut up, give these a try.  They are really comfortable, and if nothing else, they are bound to get a conversation going.

El Camino!

No, not the hotel (you might catch something at our local one!), the car-truck thingy.

My parents had one back in the day; they bought some property (where we eventually moved to) and used it to haul stuff back and forth.  My brother and I used to love riding in the back of it on the way out, with the dirt and leaves blowing around us as we cruised down Interstate 10 (this was circa 1978).

How many El Caminos do you see on the road today?  Not many, and those you do are either completely trashed or completely restored.  Like this one.

This dude in Wisconsin converted a 1981 Chevrolet El Camino into an electric vehicle.  You may ask why, but frankly, I think it's a great idea.  I want leg room, people, not some peppy little piece of shit to drive around in.  I want a tank.  If I'm going to be an a wreck, I want 6000 pounds of steel surrounding me and my kids (air bags are OK, but you know, let's be honest, you feel a hell of a lot safer in the steel).

You think your Toyota Prius is green?  Think again.  This El Camino is charged via windmill, so it's 100% green, zero emissions.  The only thing missing is the engine noise.

Put that in your tailpipe and smoke it!

Hat tip: Wired/Autopia

Maybe I *Do* Give a Flying F*ck!

Think Geek has the most interesting toys!

This is the latest weird one - one which I should certainly get for my cube at work, if only to show them that I really DON'T give a flying fuck.  Of course, given that fact that at least one person would complain ("Oh my God!  I feel faint!  I saw a bad word flying through the air!"), I guess I should refrain.

This is a remote controlled word, "FUCK", which flies through the air like a helicopter.  It only flies for seven minutes, and charges for 10, but seven minutes is more than enough to piss someone off. :)

You can buy yours from Think Geek for $19.99.

Not a Gadget, but Daddy will Like

Well, Daddy will like if he's over 35, anyway.  It's a poster of Princess Leia - you know, from the first three Star Wars movies (don't correct me; I don't care about chapters, I care about when they came out).  Yeah, she was hot back then.  And now Daddy can enjoy those days again with the Slave Leia Poster from Think Geek.  It shows Leia in her bikini when she was Jabba the Hutt's slave.

Yeah, I used to look like that too...and I daresay that now I look better than she does...but I'm pretty sure my life has been so much easier!

OK, I digress...you can pick up the poster for your man (or yourself, whichever) for just $9.99.

Luke Arm Makes Progress

I wrote about the Luke Arm some time ago - you remember, the robotic arm that's amazingly like the one Luke Skywalker got in The Empire Strikes Back?  Anyway, according to Engadget the guy who created it, Dean Kamen, has made some serious progress with it.

Now it has neural interface.  That means the user can move the Luke Arm just like their own.  By just thinking "I want to pick that up".  That is just bitchin'.  They've also made progress with making the arm able to pick up heavier objects by using inflatable bladders in the chassis.

Robotics has come a long way.  Before long they'll be looking just like Luke's hand in the movie - and nobody will even notice that a person is "missing" a limb.  I hope the Luke Arm is able to deliver when it's widely available!

Beam Me Up, Scotty...

I admit it, I'm a Trekkie.  But only for the original series.  I had the biggest crush on Captain Kirk (who didn't?).  Watching it now makes me cringe, but I can always be persuaded to watch the Tribbles!

So, ThinkGeek has come out with the real Star Trek comunicator.  It looks and sounds like the real thing, with recordings from the show.  You can get one for just $29.99.  I want one really badly but I can't figure out what on Earth I would use it for.

Now, if they made one that was a working cell phone (which was spawned from the Communicator, you know), that would be cool.  And it would have to be a transformer so I had my QWERTY keyboard...hmmm...Maybe by the time Little E needs a phone...

Bose In Ear Headphones Revisited

I've talked about my Bose headphones that I got for Christmas before, but I wanted to give you an update.  Just for the record, I absolutely LOVE these things!

In addition to all the stuff I said before about them, I wanted to let you know that the lanyard provided with them really does come in handy.  When I first got them, I wondered why anyone would need the lanyard, but now I know.

After wearing them for several weeks, I kept getting frustrated because the wire is coated in some rubbery material, as opposed to slick plastic.  This may not sound like a big deal, but when you wear your cord inside your shirt, it is.  The rubber "catches" on your t-shirt and pulls down on the cord, causing the phones to become uncomfortable or eventually fall out of your ears altogether.  Obviously Bose does their market research.  The lanyard manages to prevent this from happening.

Here's how it works.  When you see the lanyard (neckstrap), it looks a lot like the straps you put on your sunglasses so you can hang them around your neck when you take them off.  Simple enough.  However, the directions provided with the headphone describe putting them on upside-down to what you would think is the logical way for them to attach.  Picture this: when you are wearing your sunglasses, the lanyard is up around your ears/temples somewhere, right?  Not so with the headphones.  When you wear the headphones, you want the neck strap to be down, around your neck, flat on your chest/shirt area.  This keeps the cord form pulling down, because the pulling is negated by the neck strap. 

I'm sure that doesn't make any sense if you're reading this.  Just trust me in following the directions provided.  It made a world of difference in my comfort level with these awesome headphones.  If I can manage it, I'll upload a picture of it around my neck so you can get the idea.

Happy running!