bookofjoe

Helpful Hints from joeeze: Joy is the new Drano

From longtime reader Tatiana comes the following comment in response to my über-Drano post of October 20, 2009.

Not one word has been omitted.

"Another way that still requires patience but doesn't eat away your pipes is to use a bottle of dish soap. Squeeze it all in, and LEAVE IT ALONE for at least an hour (more time is better). The stuff will sink to the clog and both 'grease' it through and break up anything greasy that was clogging it up in the first place. Especially good to know for toilets, which tend to be extra dangerous for Drano use."

Bonus: If Tatania's hack doesn't work, you can have one of those sudsy raves right in your kitchen or bathroom.

Everybody in!

The caption for the photo up top:

"When that annoying guy starts showing off pictures of his kids, tell him you'd like to show him a picture of your 'Pride and Joy' and whip this out!"

$1.49.

Heh.

Easy Balance Stilts

That looks like fun.

From the website:

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Easy Balance Stilts

These stilts build childrens' confidence and motor skills at a much safer height and at a faster rate than traditional stilts.

Built with 18-gauge steel poles with non-slip footrests only 11" from the ground, the stilts have cleverly curved armrests that secure beneath the arm all the way around the the back of the shoulder for superior stability; the armrests extend from 4'6" to 6'6".

The handholds provide a confident grip while lifting the hand and foot at the same time.

The stilts' rubber feet will not mar interior floors and  allow them to be used outdoors on any stable surface.

The stilts support up to 220 lbs.

Fully extended: 78" H.

Ages 6 and up.

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"6 and up?"

Everybody in.

$49.95.

'Crudely, there are three ways to make money as a hedge fund manager'

The headline above features the words of an anonymous multibillion dollar asset manager quoted by Financial Times hedge fund correspondent Sam Jones in his October 19, 2009 story about the Galleon Group insider trading scandal.

The three ways:

1) "You can take advantage of trading technology, but few do."

2) "You can be more intelligent than others, but few are."

3) "You can have some specialized source of sustainable information. Unless that information is from fundamental analysis — and in Galleon's case, it did not all seem to be — then that's a red flag for us."

Alex Berenson's October 20, 2009 New York Times story on Galleon carried the headline, "A thin line separates insider trading and legal research."

I am reminded of Aristotle Onassis's remark, to wit: "The secret of success in business is to know something no one else knows."

How do you spell insider trading?

Red Light Camera Detector

Why?

How could this device possibly make driving safer?

Just the opposite, seems to me.

From websites:

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Red Light Camera Detector

This device that notifies you when you are approaching an intersection being monitored by a red light camera.

The detector's GPS compares your automobile's bearings with an internal database of 6,000 red light and speed camera locations in the U.S. and Canada.

The system's 1.6" color OLED screen displays your current position on a digital street map, alerts you to the presence of red light cameras with visual and audible cues, and shows how far away you are from the red light camera.

The red light camera database is updated monthly using information from chambers of commerce and state contracts.

Simply connect the device to a PC running Windows XP/Vista7 and download the latest red light camera locations from the manufacturer's website.

Includes one year of free updates; $19.95 annually thereafter.

The device mounts to a dashboard and plugs into the DC outlet.

3-3/4"L x 2-1/2"W x 1-3/4"H.

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$131.99.

Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture Reconstructed: '1000 cellphones syncing 53 ringtone alerts from 2000 sent messages'

True.

Back story 

above.

[via Thomas Ricker writing in engadget and Milena]

Nice light switch

Nice website, too.

[via Mike Beversluis]

Idan Beck's new iPhone App: Tweet Your Poop

Catchy, what?

Yesterday I got the following email (not one word has been omitted):

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Hey Book of Joe,

I would have said Joe but I don't want to assume. I've been a long time reader of bookofjoe.com and while I was drudging away at my job it used to get me through the day. I have since quit my job and started my own start-up. As a way to learn the iPhone SDK I came up with a silly application called Tweet Your Poop, which allows you to Tweet Your Poop... half way through I realized this is silly enough to work! At that point I invested the time to bring it to the point of a real iPhone app as well as making a free web version.

The iPhone application costs $1 and here is the itunes link to it: http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=335625441&mt=8

There is also a free web-version but it is not too friendly with Internet Explorer quite yet (it works fine, just formatting problems): http://www.tweetyourpoop.com

Thanks!
Idan

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SDK... does that stand for Still Doing Knothing?

Just asking, as a card-carrying TechnoDolt™.

And another thing: why is it that Idan chose me to drop — as it were — his App on the world?

I mean, it's not as if I'm prone to bathroom-themed posts.

Below, the

Bonus: recommended for ages 9 and up which means over 75% of my readers qualify.

"It can also help young children with a way to deal with what is at first a very scary idea!"

Excellent point: if Freud were alive he would SO recommend Tweet Your Poop to the children he was treating.

Maybe all his patients, seeing as retention issues seem to float to the surface quite often during therapy.

But I digress.

I mean, what could make going more fun than sending a picture of your business to mom so she could ooh and aah?

"Poop tracking to aid with medical issues": once again, an excellent idea; sure beats having to provide a sample for the gastroenterologist....

What's that old saying?..."A picture is worth a thousand turds?"

No?

Not it?

Pretty close, though, huh?

The only thing Idan and I have in common is that bookofjoe gets us through the day.

From my third year med school GI rotation:

Q. What did the gastroenterologist say to the patient as he entered the examining suite?

A. "Pull up a loose stool."

That will suffice.

It's time to go.

Spachello — Half knife, half spatula

From websites:

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Spachello — Spread with one side, slice with the other

This unique knife has a nonstick silicone "blade" for spreading mayo, peanut butter, jam, cream cheese and more.

The serrated stainless steel edge slices tomatoes, cheese, bagels, baguettes and finished sandwiches.

10.5"-long to reach the bottom of jars.

Holes in the blade prevent sticking.

Nonslip silicone grip.

Dishwasher safe.

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Orange, Green or Black.

$14.40–$25, depending on color.