Timely nuggets of information and ideas we want to share with you. I recently read an article about items never to buy from a dollar store. The only time I go to dollar stores is in the summer, where we... The post The Friday Bulletin. January 17, 2025 appeared first on Sharp Eye.
Timely nuggets of information and ideas we want to share with you.
I recently read an article about items never to buy from a dollar store. The only time I go to dollar stores is in the summer, where we have not one but two dollar stores near our very small town. I love getting business envelopes for $1.00 and other steals. The warnings about low value make sense and here are some of the items that are probably not worth the dollar or two that you’d pay:
Batteries sold at dollar stores are made for “low drain” devices, which means that they give less power and have shorter lifespans than the more expensive but better quality battery brands. The dollar store batteries are also made from inferior materials, so the batteries have the potential to leak and damage your electronics.
Tools are not worth whatever price the store is charging for them. You will end up needing tools to fix the tools from the dollar store, they are that cheap. Hammer heads fly off, screw drivers snap in two and worse, which can damage your DIY project and send you back out to find a better tool kit.
Plastic Food Containers sold at dollar stores are not up to Rubbermaid or Tupperware standards. Those brands’ products are dishwasher and microwave approved, and they are BPA-safe. At dollar stores the plastic containers are flimsy and thin and could compromise the safety of your food. They can melt in the dishwasher or release harmful chemicals if microwaved.
Toilet paper, tissues and paper towels are not worth stocking up on from a dollar store. Your family will mutiny, and you won’t be able to use them very long. They are always one-ply and quite rough to the touch. They will chafe your skin at both ends of your body.
NPR has posted its Best of 2024 and it includes the best movies, TV, books, music, and games. Talk about going down a rabbit hole! I could spend every minute of an entire weekend browsing all the lists of possible entertainment sources. If you click through to the books section, you immediately have twelve years to choose from. Once you have your year, you are offered over 30 subject categories. Every entertainment section is a deep dive, but I would say that Books We Love has the highest probability of overwhelming you. To get started, click here.
This free website will generate mazes for you in various shapes, sizes and complexity. Choose the number of ‘cells’ you want for width and height. The higher the number the more complex the maze. The left one above is a 20-cell square. To its right is a 10 x 20 cell rectangle, which is simpler and has fewer cells. To me, mazes are like doing Wordle or a crossword puzzle. They are relaxing, focusing and challenging. To be able to create an endless supply is a gift.
I have had several non-scientist friends tell me that they subscribe to a newsletter called the Science Daily. It covers the latest breaking news about discoveries in science, health, the environment, technology, and more. The research is sourced from universities, scientific journals, and research organizations. There are over 500 individual topics, grouped into 12 main sections, that cover the medical sciences and health, physical sciences and technology, biological sciences and the environment, and social sciences, business, and education.
There is a free daily newsletter, or you can subscribe through Substack which will allow you to choose a once-a-week digest tailored to your specific topic interests instead of top featured news in the regular daily newsletter.
The post The Friday Bulletin. January 17, 2025 appeared first on Sharp Eye.
