If Shakespeare had been a polymer chemist, he might have said, "The glue is the thing that will stick to the conscience of the king." … or perhaps not. In either case, there are some amazing glues out there and a couple I ALWAYS keep in the shop.

The first is Titebond III I use this as my primary wood glue. While it’s a bit overkill for some things, when I need something that will survive moisture (like glue-ups that will end up in kitchens), this is the stuff. In bulk, it’s not a significant difference in price to non-waterproof glues and I’d rather have one bulk container in my shop that two or three. In the standard household bottle we’re talking $4.99 vs $3.99 which might seem like overkill if you are headed to the hardware store for a bottle of basic glue but given that bottle will get used for projects down the road, the extra versatility is a bargain.

The other glue is not as obvious but even more versatile – JB Weld or JB Kwik. The primary difference in the two JB products is the setup time.

The JB Weld / Kwik glues are actually a resin / hardener combination. There is a tube of each. One reason I like it is that it works – duh. The other is that it can sit in a drawer for years and still be ready when you need it. They advertise this stuff as "liquid steel". I treat it like a "composite welder in a tube". I’ve never used it in some of the examples from the manufacturer – hot/cold pipes, engine blocks, and the like. However I have used in in some high stress and high heat areas like an engine fitting on my lawnmower or to hold a wire in place of a stress relief. I’ve also used it for plastic-to-plastic (as in the plastic housings on appliances, tools, etc). Perhaps the most interesting case for me was bonding a broken cast iron part. When I finished bonding, letting it harden, and then lightly grinding, the part was whole again – more important, it worked and the machine is still running. In all cases, once this stuff hardens, I can work it like it is metal. IF I catching it before it has cured 100%, I can work it likes its plastic. The trick it to let it harden fully before putting the repair into service. If you are less patient, that’ where Kwik comes in <grin>.

I’m sure there are lots of other important glues – like contact cement and PVC pipe compound – but I like multi-taskers so these two glues get me through 99% of my projects and repairs.

The craziness of this is eclipsed by the fact it works !

Put a baking sheet on the bottom of the oven then place all the eggs you need cooked directly on the oven rack, the baking sheet will catch any broken eggs for easy cleanup. I’ve never had an egg break yet but this is just in case.

Bake the eggs at 325°F. for half an hour (do not preheat).

Take the eggs out of the oven then put them directly into a big bowl of very cold water (with ice added). This will stop the eggs from cooking and make them easier to peel too.

Source: Tipnut

I just tried this for myself. The "event" looks as strange as you would imagine

The results are great !

If you’re a serious Espresso, Americano, Latte, or Mocha drinker then you probably have an Espresso maker (and if you are headed down that dark path there are some suggestions at the end of this post). But what if you just want that little something special to relax with while you lounge with your Sunday paper? If you have a single serving French Press you can have your cake and eat it too!

You’ll need some Espresso (Pilon is easy and cheap), some chocolate syrup (I’ve tried some expensive stuff but Smuckers Chocolate or Caramel syrup from the ice cream section works great – just don’t get the ‘sugar free’ stuff as it congeals – yuck), some whole or canned milk, and your usual ground coffee.

Place half as much ground coffee as you typically use for a single serving into the French Press. Add double that amount of espresso grind. For a Mocha or Latte add half the usual amount of boiling water (for an Americano, use the full amount of water). Let it steep for about a minute then slowly press.

The science is that the regular coffee grounds float to the top in the press and act as an ultra fine filter which traps the Espresso grinds from passing through the press’s mesh filter.

You’re Americano is ready to enjoy. You’re Latte or Mocha needs a little more work. For the Mocha, now is the time to add the syrup.

The final step is the frothed milk. And here again you’ll use the French Press. Clean out the French Press and pour in about 3 ounces of milk. Pump the handle quickly for about 15-20 seconds. You’ll know to stop when the milk stops splashing inside the Press. (The sound will change too.). For a Latte just spoon off the top. For a Mocha, you may need to microwave it for a few seconds. (My little French Press is glass and plastic so I just remove the plunger and pop it in for 10-15 seconds.)

It may sound like too much work but it all takes less than 5 minutes. If you have the large French Press, you can do Lattes and Mochas for a brunch!

As for recommendations on Espresso makers, a few have been mentioned in the past. Here are those from me and from commenters …

• a moka pot – the Bialetti is commonly available
• an espresso press – these are gaining in popularity with the introduction of the AeroPress (which I broke down and ordered and will let you know how I like it)
• a semi automatic Espresso machine – I have an old Starbucks Barista that has served me well and the DeLonghi is popular and less expensive
• a high end manual espresso machine – I was lucky enough to receive a La Pavoni Europiccola which, while a bit more labor, makes a stunning and very authentic Espresso (when I want an Espresso and nothing else, this is my choice)
• a fully automatic espresso machine – I don’t have one but one of the small local coffee shop uses something similar to a Bosch Benventuto.

This is a quick tip for anyone using a 1080p TV/monitor for their computer display. Odds are good you don’t like the look of the fonts. The problem is that a 32” (or 42” or 52”) screen was not meant to be seen from 18” away. Add to that that 1920 pixels across a 32” screen is only about 72 dpi which is much lower than most modern computer screens.

You could try to tweak the ClearText settings but you won’t get what you want.

Simply lower the TV “sharpness” setting ! Yes, rather than try to make the computer accommodate the display, let the display just blur things a little. I turned the setting down to “10” and things look much better.

I was surprised to read the teaser for the March 2010 Car and Driver article on removing blind spots. Surprised because I was taught this by my driver education teach in 1980 ! Perhaps 30 years is not too long for a good safety tip to move mainstream. (fig 1 & 4 show the recommended views while fig 2 & 5 show what most drivers actually use).

 
photo credit and full article: Car and Driver