TROY-BILT WEED EATER

This trimmer provides you with consistent cutting from season to season. It has an overall dimension of 12.4 x 11.25 x 41.8 inches and weighs at just 13 pounds for easy maneuvering. This trimmer can best be described as a whole package of tools. You might be wondering why? Well, it is designed to be compatible with 10 different attachments. This renders it a multi-functional machine that can accommodate virtually any task around the home. The trimmer is powered by a 29cc engine that eliminates the need for mixing any gas or oil. Therefore, you don’t have to worry about your clothes getting messed up. With TROY-BILT WEED EATER TB575, cord pulling is a thing of the past. It provides the convenience of the world’s renown JumpStart Technology. Loading the line has been made much faster and easier. The SpeedSpool 2 bump head equipped in this trimmer can accommodate up to 20 feet of line. It feeds the line automatically so you don’t have to make frequent stops in the middle of your trimming task. It has a 0.095-inch line and a cutting swatch of 17 inches. The trimmer has a straight shaft that enables it to reach beneath shrubs and bushes. It is definitely a real workhorse that provides a good combination of power and great flexibility. Amazon provides reliable reviews for this trimmer. It had been reviewed by 160 customers at the time of writing. It gets an average score of 3.3 stars out of 5. The trimmer is backed by a 2-year limited warranty.




FEATURES:

29cc gas-powered engine

JumpStart Technology for hassle-free starting

Automatic SpeedSpool that loads up to 20 feet of line

10 different tool attachments

Straight shaft for extended reach

RAVPower 20100mAh External Battery review

RAVPower’s 20100mAh External Battery ($60 on Amazon) is a revised version of a RAVPOWER POWER BANK we tested a few months ago. The new version has some slight advantages compared to its predecessor, one of which is a lower street price.

Nonetheless, the RAVPower RAVPower 20100mAh remains underwhelming compared to every alternative in its class. It has a similar set of six internal cells, just like our top-ranked Anker PowerCore+ 20100, even down to the identical reported capacity, but seemed to be an entirely different beast in testing.

The RAVPower is a nearly 75Wh battery, but I was able to charge my MacBook while it slept by only about 25Wh (about 70 percent) before the pack was out of juice. The comparable Anker managed about twice the effective charge, delivering 40W to the MacBook with a comfortable margin of about 10W remaining, while a 56Wh Kanex was about as efficient, delivering about 35W total. Different cell suppliers and different circuitry designed to protect those cells certainly have an impact, but this seems much worse. Testing of other RAVPower units by other sites showed a poorly-rated capacity to available power ratio for similarly high mAh models.

The revised version of the battery includes two flavors of the Qualcomm-designed Quick Charge standard, 2.0 and 3.0. The newer 3.0 version has the same maximum wattage but provides a wider range of combinations of voltage and amperage for the needs of disparate phones and other devices that support it, allowing a much faster recharge than with standard USB. It can also recharge itself via either QC 2.0/3.0 (at up to about 24W) and USB-C (up to 15W).

RAVpower

Using a RAVPower QC 2.0/3.0 adapter, it took about 4.5 hours to refill, or a couple hours faster than the Anker PowerCore+. That would be a bonus, except for the marked difference in output capacity between the competing packs.

The RAVPower includes four ports, some of them combination ones: Micro-USB for recharging only via USB (10W) and QC 2.0/3.0; USB-C at up to 3A (15W) for both charging and recharging; Type-A for 2.4A output; and Type-A with QC 2.0/3.0 output, up to a maximum of 14.5W. RAVPower doesn’t provide a total combined output amperage total, unfortunately, but it’s likely 5A to 6A. (The ports are crisply labeled in white silkscreened type on a black background, unlike the gray on black of some other makers.)

The battery includes a mesh carrying bag, Micro-USB to Type-A cable; and an 18-month warranty from date of purchase, plus additional 12 months with product registration.
Bottom line

Its capacity, speed, weight, and price make it a poor option for a MacBook owner and too expensive even for the discerning smartphone owner whose device supports QC 2.0/3.0.

MOULTRIE PANORAMIC 180I

Are you looking for an infra-red scouting camera that delivers crisp wide screen and panoramic pictures, quick response time and an easy way to bring the trail home?

180° PANORAMIC VIEW

The MOULTRIE PANORAMIC 180I covert no glow comes with 3 infra-red motion sensors that cover a super-wide 180 degree detection area. Compare that to your current scouting camera. When movement is detected, the cameras take photos or videos. With 0.5-sec trigger speed. Runs on AA batteries, the P-180i has plenty of juice to capture photos or video of your next trophy. Pictures come in two forms: 16:9 wide-screen or 48:9 panoramic. This infra-red camera is the perfect choice for all of your trail camera needs.

The Moultrie Panoramic 180i boasts a field of view that is 3X greater than standard trail camera. The sample size you can collect on every picture is simply phenomenal. When set to panoramic mode, every time the game camera is triggered, it will take 3 photos (from one side to the other) that are then stitched together to form the panoramic photo. Convenient settings that enable users to shorten the time frame that the three panoramic.

FEATURES

Resolution: 14.0 MP
Trigger speed: less than 0.5 seconds
Moultrie Mobile compatiable
Flash technology: iNVISIBLE infrared (940 nm)
Full HD video: 1080px
Operates on 12 AA alkaline or lithium batteries
SD Card: 32GB Max

FEATURES

15,000 images on one set of batteries
Fixed lenses - no moving parts
Excellent daytime videos
Outstanding picture quality
Poor flash range on night videos
Dimensions: 7" x 5.5" x 4.5"

 

The Gay King of the Buganda

Pope Francis’ visit to Uganda at the end of November is likely to reignite a celebration of the Ugandan martyrs. But just how much of what we know about their story is true?

In the early 1870s, Henry Morton Stanley published a letter in London. The letter, purported to be from the King of the Buganda, Muteesa I, was an open invitation for missionaries of all Christian denominations to his kingdom. Its authenticity is disputed but it did not stop several missions from sending representatives to the Ugandan monarchy. The most famous of this men was Alexander Mackay, a Scot who settled among the Buganda, died and was buried in what is now Uganda.

Muteesa I was a political genius. Acknowledging the religious pressures emerging in his kingdom, he chose to play the sides instead of siding with any of them. He was more personally inclined towards Islam but allowed Catholics, Protestants, and traditional religions to thrive, but only so much as to limit each others growth. The threat of colonial domination was in the horizon but would not be as real as it would be for his successor.

On October 9th, 1884, Kabaka Muteesa I died and was succeeded by his sixteen year-old son, Mwanga II. Buganda tradition has no concept similar to the Crown Prince, where a monarchs successor is known before the reigning one dies. Instead, the Kabaka selects a successor from among his sons, and never the firstborn son, who then reveals himself after his father dies. This is a how a sixteen year-old man called Mwanga II became the Kabaka of the Buganda.



His fathers strategy of playing the sides had duped all three sides to believe he preferred them over each other. The letters of the missionaries back home praised the Kabaka and his wisdom, and influenced Britains early foreign policy with the Buganda. Mwanga II faced a different set of problems.

Kabaka Mwanga IIs tumultuous rule is most remembered for the murders of tens of Christian Buganda men and that of Bishop James Hannington of the Church Missionary Society. The generally accepted reason for the brutal killings, often including some form of slow torture with fire, is that the 45 young men were killed because they refused to sleep with the king. They refused because of their new faith and the encouragement of the missionaries. In 1964, the 22 of the men were canonized and are now regarded as saints. History exalted them and vilified the serial rapist and homosexual that Mwanga became, at least in the records.

'Blanketeers' continue to wrap kids in need

What kid doesn’t like a blanket?

My two young daughters cherish theirs. So much that my oldest insists on keeping her big comforter on even on warm nights and my youngest refuses to let go of any of the three, four or five blankets she has on her bed. They sure make nice hideaways for the myriad stuffed animals.

For nearly 20 years, dozens of volunteers armed with sewing machines, knitting needles, crochet hooks and countless yards of fabric have been giving local kids an opportunity for similar comforting experiences.

The Green Bay chapter of Project Linus each month delivers handmade blankets and quilts to hospitals, hospice providers, child-advocacy centers and other social services programs in northeastern Wisconsin. Group members packed about 800 Disney-themed blankets to comfort frightened students after a school-day hostage standoff at Marinette High School in November 2010.

And, a few times each year, the colorful creations help causes outside Wisconsin, including the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors that supports kids and others who are grieving the loss of a loved one who died while serving in the military.

The purpose of Project Linus, a national nonprofit organization, is to give a security blanket to children in crisis — those who are sick or abused and neglected.

“It’s not something you just whip up,” said Jill Draves, longtime coordinator of the Green Bay chapter, about the blankets. “You do have fun, and you know you’re making it for a kid.”

For their latest feat, Draves and 10 fellow “blanketeers,” as she likes to call them, turned what was supposed to be Project Linus’ Make a Blanket Day on Feb. 18 into a monthlong contest.

With simple marching orders of “Now, get creative!” from their chapter leader, the local Project Linus volunteers designed 12 baby quilts for sale.

Before they are sent to the boys and girls who need them, the quilts will be on display through next month at the Northeast Wisconsin Technical College Artisan and Business Center in Green Bay’s Olde Main Street District. NWTC allows Project Linus to hold its gatherings one Saturday a month in a textiles studio at the college's off-campus center on the city’s east side.

The blanketeers worked off “Calendar Babies” book panels to design the quilts. Draves said bolts of the panels, featuring a different infant theme and saying for each of the 12 months of the year, were donated by the book manufacturer for use by Project Linus chapters across the country after the panels were printed out of order.

Draves and the other participants completed their quilts on their own or at a recent chapter meeting, utilizing the long-arm quilting machines at the NWTC workshop. Lynn Konitzer, a quilting instructor at the college, made two baby quilts in a day.

“I’m a speeder; I’m a speed quilter,” she quipped.

Though there’s no record of a citation ever given for operating a sewing machine at excessive speeds, a jury of the public will decide who made the best blanket in the baby quilt challenge. A voting fundraiser is being conducted through March 11. The designer of the quilt with the most votes will receive a whole lot of fabric. Proceeds from the ticket sales for the voting will stay with the local chapter to fund more blanket-making projects.

“It’s a good social (activity),” said Draves, a full-time worker who's the youngest of the blanketeers.

The Politics of the Miniskirt (and hippies) in Africa

The recent #MyDressMyChoice protests in Kenya have rekindled a debate that has plagued Africa since independence in the 1960s. Most African countries gained independence at about the same time two trends were catching on in the West. The patterns, miniskirts and trousers for women, tight pants and long hair for men, arrived on the continent to find a cultural void. One of the pillars of colonialism was civilisation, essentially to erode pre-existing cultures and instil a new culture that was conducive to capitalism.

Since dress is the most visible cultural statement, colonial governments banned nudity and encouraged the adoption of fashion that instilled Western cultural concepts of decency. At independence, the colonial apparatus abandoned its institutionalized cultural project, leaving African societies grappling for national cultures. There was a common dislike for Western cultural influences because of their colonial and foreign background. Ironically, the nascent governments could not simply abandon suits and dresses and return to pre-colonial dress codes. What followed was a series of national discussions in many African countries on these ‘foreign influences’ and their impact on the youth.

Zen for Non-Hippies: How I Optimize for Happiness at Work

Fantasies. Unfounded expectations. Unrealistic goals. We know the negative effect they can have in our personal lives, but we seem to forget once we get to work.
We optimize for happiness at home and misery at work.

We strive to create a perfect living environment, and then neglect our working environment (where we spend most of our conscious time).

We know what’s reasonable and what’s healthy in our homes. We set reasonable goals and we attempt to pursue healthy lifestyles. But once we get to work, we set unachievable goals, cling to unrealistic expectations, and make unhealthy choices. This all leads to a toxic state of negativity and disappointment.
Where’s the logic in having two sets of rules for how we live our lives vs. how we run our businesses?

Especially for us entrepreneurs — who know that in many ways our businesses are our lives. Trying to live by separate principles and practices is no different than removing all of the sugary snacks from your home, and then going into the office break room for a donut (or three) and not even questioning it.