Skip Produce and Fresh Goods at Bulk Stores like Costco [Saving Money]

 

 

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Skip Produce and Fresh Goods at Bulk Stores like Costco [Saving Money]

via Lifehacker by Whitson Gordon on 4/21/11

Bulk Stores like Costco or Sam's Club can be great for getting bulk foods for less, but there are some things you'll almost always pay more for. One of the things you'll want to skip? Fresh foods.

Personal finance weblog Squakfox took a deeper look at whether bulk stores were worth the membership fees, driving distances, and long lines. In their price checking, they found that fresh foods tended to be more expensive at the bulk stores:

Costco's fresh produce tends to be more expensive than Superstore, based on unit price. For example, Costco's gala apples sell for $2.13/kg while Superstore offers the deal at $1.28/kg. I also found Costco to be more pricey for fresh vegetables, chicken breasts, milk, cheese, and coffee.

Bottom Line: Your local grocery store may sell fresh fruits, vegetables, dairy, and meat for far less.

Frozen foods, on the other hand, are something you'll almost certainly want to pick up at Costco rather than your local store. Not only are they cheaper, but they're also higher quality. In fact, the more "packaged" a product, the better the deal at bulk stores—so keep that in mind when you're shopping and you'll be sure to save the most money possible. Hit up the article for more Costco-shopping tips. Thanks, Kerry! Photo by Emilee Rader.

Price Check Experiment: Is Costco really worth it? | Squakfox

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You can contact Whitson Gordon, the author of this post, at whitson@lifehacker.com. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and lurking around our #tips page.
 

 

 

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Awesome Polaroid Prank

 

 

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Awesome Polaroid Prank

via Photography Bay by Eric Reagan on 4/20/11

This prank in the above video is just plain fun. Made possible with the help of a Polaroid instant camera.

[via PetaPixel]

 

 

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Make A Grilled Cheese Sandwich In A Toaster

gotta try this in the toaster oven.

 

 

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Make A Grilled Cheese Sandwich In A Toaster

via The Consumerist by Ben Popken on 4/14/11

It is possible to make a grilled cheese sandwich using just a toaster and not fill it with cheese goo. All you have to do, says the kitchn, is just put the toaster on its side. Place the cheese on top of the bread, slide it in, and the force of gravity keeps it on the bread. Paradigm shift!

Now, you'll need the right kind of toaster. If it's the kind that has a wire cage that folds in, that's no good.

In that case, what you could try is making a quick pouch for the bread and cheese out of parchment paper or foil. Another thing you can do is use a sharp knife, cut a slice in the bread itself, slip the cheese in, and then toast that bad boy.

Lunch Tip from Jamie Oliver: Toaster Cheese Sandwiches [the kitchn]

 

 

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Permethrin

thought you might be interested in this...

 

 

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Permethrin

via Cool Tools on 4/7/11

Permethrin is a man-made version of an insect repellent found in chrysanthemum plants. The molecule repels a variety of biting insects including flies, ants, chiggers, mosquitoes, ticks, etc. The company Insect Shield partners with manufacturers of work and recreational outdoor clothing to produce bug repellant gear: LL Bean, Buff, Carolina Manufacturing (bandanas), Eagle's Nest Outfitters, ExOfficio, Outdoor Research, and REI.

Since deer populations have been exploding in many parts of the country, we have seen a corresponding explosion in the tick population. Some diseases carried by ticks can send you to bed for at least a week and may even have permanent effects (Lyme disease for example). Permethrin seems to be the best alternative for dealing with these pests and is a vastly superior alternative to DEET.

We were clued into this permethrin clothing treatment last year by Rob, a local farmer. He was finding about a dozen ticks a day after working in the fields. Rob started wearing permethrin treated socks, long pants secured at the ankle, long-sleeved shirts and a bandana; he stopped picking up ticks. I have shorts, an ExOfficio Bugsaway t-shirt, and several pairs of treated socks, and that seems to do the trick for me. There are also sprays for applying permethrin to your own clothing and camping gear (please read the warning labels carefully before using them) though I personally prefer pretreated clothing.

My favorite non-clothing use of permethrin is the Perky-Pet Ant Guard. It's a small canister with hooks at both ends for hanging a hummingbird feeder. The canister separates into two parts held together with a central line; that central line is the only thing that's treated with permethrin. Ants must crawl on the line to get to the feeder, thus minimizing any bird feeders over run by insects. Besides minimizing exposure to the environment, the treatment is protected from both sun and rain by the canister.

One thing to consider before using permethrin is that, as the Wikipedia article notes, permethrin is toxic to fish and aquatic life in general. This is why I dislike the use of permethrin backyard sprays as they seem like overkill, while any runoff can inadvertently damage local water life.

-- Phil Earnhardt

Permethrin Products

Insect Shield Clothing
Available from Amazon
Manufactured by Insect Shield

ExOfficio Men's Bugsaway Chas'R Tee Shirt
$30
Available from Amazon
Manufactured by ExOfficio

Permethrin Clothing Repellent
24-ounce spray bottle
$13
Available from Amazon
Manufactured by Sawyer

Perky Pet Ant Guard for Bird Feeders
$7
Available from Amazon
Manufactured by Perky Pet

 

 

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