Some Like it Loud

With the wealth of information available on the internet, specs have become even more important when doing shopping research. Which has the most of x at the lowest y and the fastest z is often how decisions are made. This is especially true when it comes to electronics of any description. Speakers, however, remain an art form.

You can read all the specs but the truth is, sometimes it sounds right, and sometimes not. When you are shopping for your own speakers, you have to go to a showroom that is set up like a room in your house might be and you have to give them a listen. Depending on how the box is built and how the sound projects in a certain room can have a huge impact.

That being said there are certain companies which continue to manufacture very good speakers. Paradigm is one of those companies and they sell speakers for a huge range of budgets. For the money, I think a great value (if you like their sound) is the Paradigm Monitor 7s. You should be able to pick them up for around $750/800 and they'll last you for your next three life phases. That is until you have to give them up because of the dog/baby/wife.

Pitch a Tent

If you have never been on a canoe trip, it really is something that you should try. At no other time or place in life will you match the tranquillity of canoeing down a flat lake or sipping dirty coffee while looking over the water.

In order to make that happen, you need some equipment. Two of the most important pieces are your sleeping bag and your tent. If you make sacrifices with either piece of equipment, your sleep will suffer and you will hate everyone around you.

A company that was launched in 2001 called Big Agnes makes some of the best camping gear available. If I were sure that I was only going to be taking the tent on canoe trips where weight is not a huge concern, then I would grab the Big Agnes Big House 4. If weight were more of an issue and I wanted to be able to take it on a hike, then I would grab the Emerald Mountain SL 3. Either tent is a good choice.

Head down to MEC and have a look at them laid out on the floor. The Big House 4 sells for $309. Happy trails.

Banana Protection

When I find a brand I like I stick with it. Especially when it comes to something that I need multiple of. For example, boxers.

Going on about 12 years now I've had only one brand of boxers. I really like the look, feel and fit of Banana Republic boxers. I've got about 2 dozen pairs in my underwear drawer. Next time you're at the mall, slip into a Banana and have a look to see if there are any patterns that you like. I assure you there will be.

They're not inexpensive, but come one, don't cheap out on the stuff that's touching your favourite part of your body. This stuff is important, man.

Flush it Down

I apologize for my conspicuous absence over the past couple of scheduled posting days. I've been reasonably busy but I would have made this a priority were I confident anyone other than my sister is reading. The truth is, I'm not at all sure that is the case. That aside...

I just came home with two new toilets. Both are Toto Ultimate one piece toilet. One is elongated and one is a round bowl. The only difference between the two is the shape of the bowl. The elongated is obviously larger and gives you a little more room, which is important when you're hung like a donkey. The round bowl is good for smaller rooms, like our powder room.

The choice came down to the Ultimate or the UltraMax. The UltraMax has a more heavy duty flushing mechanism (called the G-Max) but the truth is, for residential purposes there is not any need to go heavy. I may live to regret this decision once my sister moves home, but I think we'll be okay. It also replaces an old toilet that has a 3.8 gallon flush with 1.6 gallon flush, which is great. If you have an old high water consumption toilet, you should consider replacing it with a newer model.

I picked up the round bowl for $379 CDN and the elongated bowl for $399, which are both very good prices. I bought them from Tapworks in Scarborough and I recommend them if you need any bathroom hardware.

Wake Up!

Do you have trouble getting your smelly self out of bed in the morning? I think it may be genetic but my family is certainly afflicted by unusually high incidence of snooze-itis. Waking up early is easy, once you're out of bed. It's the crawling out from under the warm duvet that is so problematic.

You may want to invest in this Wi-fi enabled alarm clock. It's called the SnūzNLūz and it will set you back $40 USD. This alarm clock sets itself apart due to the consequences of hitting y ol' snooze button. Using a webpage interface, you set up the alarm clock to send a donation to your most hated charity everytime you say to yourself "five more minutes."

So feel free to be a bit late for work, but you'll only be funding terrorism.