A Good Alarm Clock

A good alarm clock is a great investment. Just think: it could pay for itself if it saved you from missing one job interview. Depending on how you look at it, it could also pay for itself by helping you not miss a test. Or, if it got you up and at 'em 5 minutes earlier every day...

If you're going to get an alarm clock, why the F*** would you ever want a plug-in one? You know, the kind that flash 12:00 when the power goes out... Get battery power. The batteries last so long that it's not a hassle to replace them and you get the benefit of never losing the time when you lose power.

Pick #108

Sara Bareilles - "Bottle it Up"

Coughing Home Remedy

I've had a cough for a little over a week now. When I got home for my dad's birthday/Christmas, my mom told me about a way to quell my cough when I was about to go to bed (seems like my symptoms get worse around bedtime). You rub Vick's VapoRub on your feet, then put on socks to keep that stuff from getting everywhere and wearing off. Sounds like a crazy idea, but I was in the middle of a fit and ready to try anything. Miraculously my coughing was attenuated. I didn't completely quit, but they were less harsh and longer in between. I'd recommend giving this a try.

Tiger Direct

If you didn't know, I'm going to build my own computer. I was kind of doing it as a project. Now I realize that picking your own components gives you lots of control over what you're putting in your computer. However, there's a lot of crap that has to match up. The motherboard needs to match up with the case dimensions and have the capabilities of hooking up your drives. The processor has to fit the board. If you get a processor fan, that has to fit...other fans have to fit the holes in the case. Memory has to be the same as what the motherboard supports. The power supply has to be powerful enough to run everything. Anyway, TigerDirect makes this whole process rather simple. I'd never heard of them before. They sell all kinds of electronics stuff and you should definitely check them out if you're in the market for anything electronic.

Pick #107

Regina Spektor - "Fidelity"

Scary Spider

That White Dog Poop from the '70s

An episode of the Sarah Silverman program showed Sarah asking "whatever happened to that white dog poop from the '70s?" I was all like "yeah!?" Nick reminded me that I wasn't alive during the '70s. I agreed, but remembered that I had seen white dog poop in my earlier years. What's different these days that crap doesn't change colors like that? I think it's something different in the food. Otherwise, I can't explain it. I don't think that dog physiology or ambient conditions have changed enough to make all dog poop stop turning white. What kind of regulations were passed to keep whiteners out of dog food? Is it because all the whitening agents are now being diverted to toothpaste manufacturers?