The Wrist movement

It seems to be that the last trend in fitness is the merging of fitness and technology. Pedometers got us started a while back but as the smartphones came into our lives the pedometer had to go high tech as well. With in a few years a plethora of options were on the market. I dip my toe into two different devices and spoke to friends who had other devices. Here's what our opinions on a few of the options out there.

Jawbone Up24

I turned to Groupon hoping for a good deal on something nice and affordable. Several options laid before from the cheap Fitbit wannabe's to higher end devices. The Jawbone Up24 caught my eye. A refurbished model that would track steps and sleep as well as various food and drink I consume throughout the day. At $30 it seemed like a nice entry level option.

A week after purchasing it arrived in the mail. Setup was quick and easy. It came with its own USB changing adapter that I can plug into my computer or phone wall charging port. Once charged, I downloaded the free app and connected the wristband to my phone via bluetooth. After that it was time to set some goals, 3 goals to be exact. Move, sleep and weight. While many people are being told that they should get 10,000 steps in a day I decided not jump on that band wagon and settled in a a lesser 8,000 steps a day. Sleep however I thought 8hrs still sounded good and well a lady never discuss her weight.

As directed I wear the band on my non dominate wrist and I wear continually with the exception of being in water. The band is not recommended for full submersion into water. Wash your hands and get splashed but do not bath or swim with it. The band is semi flexible so putting it on doesn't take a lot of effort and took only maybe a day or two to get used to having on my wrist. While it tracks my steps through the day I don't remove it at night as it will track my sleep as well. This is interesting to me as I'm not 100% sure what type of Harry Potter magic is involved but every morning I get a sleep log review that shows a variety of sleep facts. I took me 29 minutes to fall asleep last night. Of the 6hrs and 56 minutes I was in bed, 3:17 minutes were a sound sleep while the rest was light sleep. After 7 days I can see a trend of what my sleep patterns are like.
Of course the idea for me having this partly was to be moving more. The built in health coach chimes in facts and tidbits and reminds me that I just need 347 more steps to beat my daily average for the last 7 days. The band provides a gentle buzz after I've been sedentary for 90 minutes. The battery life was one of the things I like the most on average a full charge would last anywhere from 12-14 days. For a device that is on me collecting data nearly 24/7 I think that is outstanding.

Now the particular mode I bought has been discontinued but the link in the article shows you the current Jawbone line up.  I was fairly happy with it overall.

FitBit - Fitbit has been around for several years now and continues to be one of the leaders in activity tracking. Two friends of mine wear their Fitbits daily. Courtney who recent upgrade from the Fitbit Flex to the Fitbit Alta is very happy with the features even though it lacks a heart rate monitor. While it is heavier than her old Flex it was easy to adjust too and find that the step tracking is very accurate. Her Alta will giver her a gentle reminder to move when she's moved less than 250 steps in a hour. The battery life is about a week and charges over night, just like you. ;)
While Courtney is looking at being overall healthy and losing a tiny tiny amount of weight, my friend Nathan was hoping that his FitBit Surge in hopes to gain better movement tracking and sleep. A auto sensing sleep feature comes with most models. The Surge is one the the top end model from Fitbit that also allow not just heart rate monitoring but also receive notifications from your phone such as phone calls and texts and will also play music.
A weekly summary is mailed to Fitbit owners so they may review their activity and make adjustments as they see fit.

Leaf Nature - One thing that seems to be a trend is that the majority or tracking devices have to be worn on your wrist and they are not that stylish. Enter Bellabeat and their fashion versatile Leaf. This device worn by my friend Amy can easily be worn on your wrist like many others on the market. However if you want to free the wrist you can wear it as a necklace or even make it a nice belt accessory. The companion app gives you many of the same useless data recordings. While it does lack heart monitoring it makes up for that on its battery. No charge needed. Leaf runs on an actual battery. Amy likes her leaf and recommends it highly especially if you're looking "for something pretty".


Apple Watch - My watch was a surprise Christmas gift so I'm still getting used to it. In order to use an apple watch an iPhone is required. Setting the watch was surprising simple. Take your iPhone open the watch app and it will use the camera in your phone. Align the watch in the designated area on the phone's screen and poof the two devices sync up to each other. The watch comes with 2 bands to fit a variety of wrist and are available in multiple styles and colors. Now I highly recommend trying the bands out before buying. My normally thought of small wrist end up more on the medium wrist scale for the watch. The watch comes with many installed apps including a remote camera app, heart monitor and Activity. Activity is a monitoring system that comes setup with a basic guideline. Your goal is to get all 3 Activities to complete a ring. Your rings complete when the watch tracks 280 calorie Moves, 30 minuets of Exercise and 1 Stand up per hour for a total of 12 hours. I do enjoy the freedom from the phone that the watch provides. I can receive & send text messages, phone calls and email. I can add apps as well like a sleep tracking app, Night sky apps to enhance your night sky viewing options and yes Pokemon Go is also available. The watch comes with a hand full of faces including the fun Mickie or Minnie Mouse classic face. While it was temping I choose to make a custom watch face and a quick search on the internet opened my options. Since I haven't had the the watch that long I hvaen't t really tested out all the features for fitness. I have found some neat insight's on my heartrate. Appearently Benedict Cumberbatch does not be still my heart but slightly increases it. Now the one truly downside I find is that battery life is no where near that of my Jawbone. In fact I'm averaging about 18-24 hours per charge. Usually I charge it a few hours before I go to bed so I can wear it to track my sleep.

Now hopefully you have a little more insight into what device might work best for you and your lifestyle. Just maybe a little wrist movement will help you to get moving forward this new year.

Disconnect to reconnect

Have you ever stopped to think about how plugged "in" we are that you don't realize that life is actually happening right in front of you. I've passed countless people looking at there phones instead of paying attention to their surroundings. I've seen the videos of people to involved in their phone that they walk into traffic or a pool or something that should have been completely obvious if their eyes were watching life instead of watching the phone. Same is true for drivers, I've can't count the amount of times I honked my horn because the car in front of me doesn't notice the green light or is so busy sending a text message that they start drifting into my lane. I've even overheard a Father say to his teenage son while sitting at a restaurant that if he continued to stare at his phone instead of be part of the dinner he can be left at home. My 5 year old nice recently saw a telephone for the first time and wanted to know what it was. She lives in a world where there are only cellphones.

Technology is a great tool but often with great things it can be misused or abused. Facebook is a great way to stay in touch with friends and family but it can also be a time suck. On average most people send about 50 minutes on Facebook alone daily. Add in other social media outlets and that number quickly gets over 2 to 3 hours depending on age.
  .

This video has over 49 million views on YouTube. I think it shows a perfect example of what we see a lot when we look up from our mobile devices. The simple act of enjoying life has been pushed aside with distractions of the virtual world. So what are we to do?? Well we organize burn parties and destroy all the technology. Okay, maybe that is a bit extreme and bad for the environment but we can minor changes in our days. There are many articles out there that discuss just this idea. Below are some of my favorites.

1.) Digital Diet: Specifically a social media diet. FOMO: The Fear Of Missing Out, and thanks to social media it's real. Turn off alerts on our phone to help limit the amount your online or delete the App completely. While I have Facebook I didn't install it's companion FaceBook Messenger on my phone. Also try limiting the amount you post to every other day or so. Facebook was a way to stay in contact with friends and family not a digital diary to spew your inner most thoughts, well at least in my opinion it isn't.

2.) Chose a day: Tech free Sunday? Mellow Monday? Chose a day where you limit technology. I've done this in the past and found Sunday is best for me. Enjoy morning coffee while reading the newspaper ( yes the actual physical one). Family games in the afternoon or maybe a hike at a local park. Chose a day that works best for you even if you can set aside only part of the day. When I've done this I've been amazed at how productive I am that day.

3.) Device hub: New house rule. No Phone in the bedroom. It sounds harsh doesn't it. Try it and you might just thank me. It's been said many times in recent years. Technology right up to and in bed is bad. You get better sleep when you slow back away from the tech world. Try and give the digital world up at least 30 minutes before bed. It's a great way to reconnect with a love one at the end of the day. I've tried it myself with my husband and we found it enjoyable. We both clearly have each other's attention and focus. What a great way to end the day with a love one by giving them your attention instead of a phone.

4.) Eat without Electronics: That's right you can do it! I know you can! It's simple but sounds hard. Eat a meal without technology. That's right a single meal without a phone check. No email, no social media, no taking a picture of your meal and posting it online. Just eating and being mindful of what your eating. Same goes when you with friends. Come on you know someone in your friend group. You know that one person that can't make it 10 minutes without looking at their phone for some reason. I have a friend that is really good about being in the moment. If we are out getting coffee or getting a meal she often shuts her phone off. OFF! It was shocking the first time I saw her do it but quickly realized that she is completely giving me her attention. Wow, when's the last time you had that with someone.

5.) Make this simple. So you can't make it through a stop light without checking the phone? Make it more difficult to reach the phone. For me, my phone goes in my purse which goes in the backseat of the car. Gentlemen, you probably don't have a purse but if you travel with with briefcase it the same idea or try putting it in the center console of the car. Out of reach out of mind. With the phone not in easy reach I'm more mindful of my surroundings, like the soccer mom in the van coming crossing into my lane of traffic cause she is busy texting and driving.

6.) Inform others: Let other in your life know you are cutting back. Don't send me a message on Facebook if you need my immediate attention, call or text me. If you don't have my number I guess maybe we should work on a few things then. Planning on not answering your phone during certain hours, make it know. I do this and my best friend that loves the idea. When she is working 3rd shift she can get me did bits about her day and know that I'm not being disturbed by alerts. I have the  Do Not Disturb feature turned on my phone from 11pm to 9am daily.


Just trying a few of these ways even if just for a few days or a week to test the idea out and see how it goes. Maybe it's easy for you but maybe you discover how much you're plugged in without realizing it. Disconnecting will give you something real back in you life. You may also know that you feel a little less stressed or that your able to concentrate better at the task at hand. Whatever you find I hope you find a little bit of the real you that may have been missing in the digital world.

Smooth moving on the Grand River

Nothing says Summer in Michigan than enjoying an afternoon on the water. The sun brightly shinning, Birds gliding through a gentle breeze over head and myself and 5 friends making our way down the Grand River via kayaks. A few months leading up to this day my husband and I had been talk about things we would like to try that would get us outside and enjoying with grand local of ours. Kayaking came up. My husband had a friends that enjoyed it, his son included. So my research of local options started. What I found was my options were drive to a river and rent a kayak and be sent down the river. While driving to float down a river isn't something new to me and it wasn't very exciting either. My options were places I often see or have floated down on tubes with friends before. Luckily I came across GRPaddling.com. My options increased greatly. Did I want a lake or a river? How about a Moonlight trip? Dinner or a Picnic? Just these few options left me spinning with glee!

While this was to be our first trip I thought I would take it easy and keep it simple. Simple and close to home. After reviewing many of my options I found an a launch site not far from my own home. Perfect! What could be better than finding something so close to home? How about being driven to the site of the launch by this company. GR Paddling picks you up at a location you chose. Home work or where ever works best for you. So after looking at what they offer I gathered a few friends and book our day on the Grand River.

I booked a trip for myself and 5 other friends. I was able to contact GR Paddling before hand and explained that this would be the first kayaking trip for all of us and in our group was a non swimmer. Jeff responded to my email quickly and professionally assuring me that the selections of kayaks " are quite stable and very unlikely to tip over on the Grand." Life jackets are also provided. 

The day of our trip Jeff arrived with a Van for all of us to fit in and behind it all 6 of the kayaks that we would use that day. While we finished gathering our belongings Jeff setup the Van for us. On the step into the Van a sign greeted up which I thought was a nice touch. Once we were all loaded up we were off to our launch point that I had chosen which was in Eastmanville. 

Once we arrived we were given the obligatory legal forms to fill out and sign and while we took care of this Jeff unloaded the kayaks and brought out drink options that we could bring on the river with us. We were also given the option of a waterproof case for our phones for anyone that wanted to bring their device along. Jeff explained our options in choosing the kayaks. The color of the kayak dictated style. Blue the latest and most stable also meant it would be the slowest. Yellow, our second choice was stable but a little quicker in the water. Our final choice was red, a sleek nimble little number built for gliding quickly through the water. Once we figured out who was what color we were given some instructions and review a map of the route.

After this it was time to get into launch mode. We formed a train to carried the kayaks down to the launch point. This particular launch site had a specialty built assisted launch for canoes and kayaks which made is simpler and safer to launch into the water. Jeff gave a few last instructions on how to use the paddles and then one at a time we glided into the Grand River. 

Once we entered the water we had a chance to get use to the balance and maneuvering to get our momentum which didn't take long and we were off on your 7 mile trip down river. 

It was a beautiful day. Sunny blue clouds lightly dotted with puffy white clouds and just enough of a head wind to slow us down. As we made our way down river, we could not only enjoy the nature around us but each other as well. For 2 hours and 45minutes no one sent a text message, checked Facebook, answered an email. No, we just enjoyed being humans in nature. Spotting multiple turtles taking advantage of the sun, a blue herron come in for a landing and even the majestic bald eagle soaring above us. 


When we reached our half way point, aka opt out point, Jeff was there with his camera snapping shots and making a point to ask each person in the party how we were doing and feeling so far. Our group all agreed to paddle on. Jeff gave us an update on how far we had to go yet and said he would meet us there. The last couple of miles were calmer. The wind was no longer slowing us down and we were feeling more confident in our ability. Once we arrived at our end point Jeff once again met us and as well drift into shore he grab the front of the kayak to make sure we came fully a shore.

Once on land again, drinks and snacks awaited us. Which was incredibly nice because after the trip I could use a boost in calories. Kayaking is a calorie killer! After the kayaks were packed up and we were loaded back into the van everyone discussed what area of their body hurt the most. Shoulders, arms, backs, you name it someone was hurting there.

While we all had our aches and pains everyone of us wanted to go again. One member of the party said that this trip convinced her to purchase her own kayak. The trip was enjoyable so much that we want to turn this into a annual event. GR Paddling gives me plenty of options to try different areas of the Grand River and other rivers and lakes as well.

iPad Pro Review

Apple debuted the iPad Pro last September. A very full size table of 12.9-inch screen size made it nearly the size of the laptop that I use on a daily basis.  Only the iPad Pro came with a more beautiful Retina display for a crisper and cleaner viewing experience. 

After it was introduced, my business partner - and husband - and I took the time to look into the tech specs and read hands-on reviews from other tech experts. When we completed our research, we looked at each other and thought: Is this the iPad we've been waiting for? The iPad Pro seemed powerful enough, and the drawing features kicked it up a notch from finger painting to a much more detail oriented Apple Pencil.

You see, it isn't that we haven't had an iPad before. We had bought the original iPad the year it was released, and we (me) liked it, but a full sized laptop was still a better option to suit our needs. Fast forward to 2016, and we are again talking again about an iPad. While the both of us are heavy computer users, we started to find it almost necessary to have something just as powerful but more compact. We have our phones, but even on the largest phone screen it can be frustrating at time for our needs. 

Enter the iPad Pro… but smaller?

A few months ago, Apple CEO Tim Cook introduced the iPad Pro....again...this time with a smaller, more manageable, 9.7 screen. The size was certainly attractive, but Apple doesn’t just take the same product and shrink it down. Along with a smaller size, the smaller iPad Pro also added better features including a 12-megapixle camera in the back and a 5-megapixle camera on the front. With the better cameras came the ability to shoot 4K video and still work with the Apple Pencil.

So, we caved and bought a space grey 9.7 inch 128GB iPad Pro from $750, and it fits right in with our Apple family. Setup was easy and it seamlessly  integrated into our daily lives. Now I don't have to pack up my laptop when going to clients. My purse is big enough for it to slide in and carry around. 

After purchasing our new work tool, the next logical step involved purchasing the Apple Pencil to take advantage of one of our favorite features - writing and drawing on the tablet. The pencil, costing $99, has some girth and feels like holding a nice, heavy pen. The touch sensitivity allows me to quickly change the pressure with how I write. I can change from a nice fine tip ball point pen with just a light touch to the screen to a much thicker line much like a sharpie when I press harder. Both the pencil and the iPad share by a lightening cable and charge quite quickly. The pencil requires bluetooth to function properly but I find that it lasts several days between charges. 

 

Of course, once we purchased and had the device in our hands, it was natural to set out to find apps that were designed specifically for the iPad Pro. Drawing/Design and writing apps dominated the types of apps we searched for. When looking for a drawing/design app, we went to Adobe for our first choice. 

Adobe Photoshop Sketch creates expressive drawing and painting without opening sketchbook. The artwork can be sent to Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator via the Creative Cloud.  So, if you are already a member of the Creative Cloud family, it's a pretty handy app to have. 

Adult Coloring books have become a recent trend and of course there's an app for that. My favorite is Pigment, this free app comes with several coloring "books.” Each book allows 3 free coloring pages and additional pages can be purchased with either a monthly or yearly membership. I'm currently making my way through the 135 free coloring pages. 

When it comes to writing, searching for a note taking app wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be. Several of the free apps felt clunky and unrealistic to writing on a sheet of paper. While part of the challenge comes from writing on a smooth piece of glass, the other difficulty is finding an app with the right type of features. A few of the apps gave me the option of just writing on a piece of plain white boring scratch paper. It took me about four different apps before I settled on one designed by Evernote called Penultimate. 

Penultimate states that it “combines distraction-free, natural handwriting and sketching with the power of Evernote's sync and search.” While an Evernote account is needed to utilize their ‘sync and search’ feature, you don’t need to have an account to use the basic program. Penultimates gives many options for writing like note taking, daily planners, graphing paper, music scoring, and even classic games like tic-tac-toe and hangman.

In the weeks since we brought the iPad Pro home, it has become integrated into our daily lives. By day, the iPad Pro is a tool of the trade for an executive assistant (me) to help clients near and far. When the sun sets, it’s becomes a release for my creative side!

Earth Day Tech

Earth Day is a day we are supposed to take time to take care of this planet we call home. We live here, and just like no one likes a messy house, a messy earth isn't something fun to be in. I always try to do my part… I recycle, a lot. My recycling bin is nearly always filled to the brim by the time collection day comes. I donate clothes that are still in good condition but no longer fit my current styles. I even recycle my egg cartons to a neighbor that has several laying hens! 

However, even I can get lazy with recycling, especially when it comes to technology. Technology feels like a little more effort needs to be put forth. Most of our technology goods can be recycled… but where? How? Ugh, I'll just deal with it later.

Well my friends, later is now! This year is the year that we clean up our technology that we have cast aside. We start with Comprenew. This company headquartered in Grand Rapids has over 20 recycle drop-off locations throughout Michigan, including four refurbished electronic retail stores. The revenue generated goes directly back into the community by funding Comprenew’s educational and workforce development programs. 

On Earth Day, Friday, April 22, Comprenew will be in downtown Grand Rapids along Monroe Center in front of Rosa Parks Circle collecting CRT’s, for certified recycling. Residents can drop off unwanted CRTs, for a small fee, from 8am to 2pm.

Best Buy, has a a large recycling program with a goal of recycling 2 billion pounds of electronics - from batteries, cameras, appliances, and even your phone - by 2020. 

Looking to upgrade your phone? Best Buy and certain cellular providers offer trade-in value for you phone.

Have an iPhone that is past its prime? Check out what Apple is doing with old phones they are getting back. Liam was recently introduced to the world and this is a pretty cool recovery robot. Speaking of Apple, through April 24 Apple is donating 100% of the proceeds from participating apps and in-app purchases to help support WWF.

Lastly, if you really want to see the tech behind recycling, make sure to schedule a trip to our own Recycling Facility. Kent County allows scheduled tours of their three facilities to help educate kids on what happens after the recycling truck stops by.

With all this great, new technology coming at us faster each and every year, it’s important to recycle the old once we’ve moved on to the new. Recycle today for a longer tomorrow.

Technology and National Reading Month.

I've had a library card since I was in kindergarten. I have fond memories of visiting my local library with my Dad and checking out books. I would select a few different books for my Dad to read to me at bedtime. I still enjoy reading at night before I fall asleep. There have been more than a few times where my husband has come to bed only to find me asleep with a book in my lap or on his pillow. 

Over time, my choice in books has changed as well as how I choose to read those books. For a while I strayed away from the library and opted to purchase books directly from retailers and Amazon back when books were pretty much the only thing they offered. Then in 2007 Amazon launched a digital reading device called the Kindle. 

The idea of digital books wasn't something exactly new, a patent from 1949 shows the idea for a Mechanical Encyclopedia. By the time of the Kindle, books on Tape/CD had been around for years. However, the Kindle was a game changer. It was the idea of holding something tangible in your hand and reading for enjoyment and knowledge. 

The first Kindle cost $399.99 and sold out in less than 6 hours. It remained out of stock for five months. While I would have loved a Kindle, the digital experience of reading books didn’t seem worth the $400 price tag. 

With that, I rediscovered the library, and soon the library discovered technology. My local library had already placed computers into their realm, but now it really looks like the libraries are catching up with the technological curve. Certain libraries can checkout Kindle or iPads just as easy has checking out the latest James Patterson novel. 

Libraries offer other options through technology as well. There are a handful that I highly enjoy.

The first is called Overdrive, it’s an application which you can download on to your computer or mobile device and "checkout" books from the library. You can even request a book just the same as you would before. If you prefer picking up an album or movie at the library, you should try Hoopla. Hoopla offers movies, TV shows, music, audiobooks, and comics. Like browsing magazines? Take a look at the application Zinio.

I love all three of these applications because they’re so easy. I don't have to worry about returning the item because many of these applications have auto-return. The item simply returns itself after the allowed checkout time. The one downside to auto-return happens when you’re midway through a book and the time is up. You end up having to go through the process of downloading or requesting it again the book again. However, that's something I'm okay with because I no longer have late fees! 

Of course, if you’re an avid reader it can be easy to lose track of what you have read or what you want to read. For this, I like to use the website called GoodReads. I was introduced to GoodReads several years back, and it's something I like to keep in my back pocket to find books from authors I like. 

On top of finding books from authors, GoodReads also offers the ability to check the order of your favorite book series, give notice when a favorite author is releasing a new book, and suggest other authors or books based on your reading history. 

Sometimes when I’m wandering Schuler's Book Store, I pull out the app and scan a book so I can remember the book when I'm at the library next. I also use it to check reviews from what others who have already read the book had to say about it. My reading list currently sits at 41 books and includes everything from classics like The Maltese Falcon and Gone with the Wind, to "beach reads" which will remain nameless. 

I can't write this without making note of a show way back in the day called Reading Rainbow. I watched this show growing up and would often go to my local library to find the book featured on the show. For over 23 years this show aired on PBS and featured specific books or a centered theme which  was explored throughout the show. 

After the show stopped airing in 2014, a Kickstarter campaign was launched to help fund an App. Within 24 hours the campaign reached $5 Million with over 100,000 thousand donators. The campaign set an all-time record for the most backed kickstarter since its inception. It seems that a lot of people still wanted to take a look in a book and see the butterflies in the sky. 

If you don't have the iconic Reading Rainbow theme song in your head by now, you should so here. 

Kathy, my local librarian & Myself,
March, 2016

As for me, I don't think I will ever stop reading. While technology continues to evolve so will my relationship with my local library. I will still pick up an actual book and read it because there is still something real about holding it in my hands. It’s an added benefit that reading an actual book is easier on the eyes than reading a digital screen. Trust me, your eyes need a break from the screen! 

While all this technology is nice, I still take the time to visit my local branch to see the same librarians that have helped me find books all my life. Their help and suggestions helped enrich my life then and continues to do so today. Now, instead of just asking for books, I take time to talk to the librarians that mean so much to a community. They are more important than the books they recommend. 

With March being National Reading Month, take a look and rediscover your local library.

Technology and POTUS

President’s Day, a federal holiday originally meant as a day to remember our first President, George Washington, now is a day in which we remember all presidents that have served the office. In the over 200 years that our country has had a Pre

sident, technology has evolved. In the interest of this holiday and technology, and with 2016 being a presidential election year, here are a few factoids about technology and the leader of the free world.

President Andrew Jackson, the 7th man to hold the position, was the first president to travel by train in June of 1833. President Jackson traveled a few miles down the road, 12 to be exact, from Relay to Mt. Claire Depot, Maryland.

While many of us are familiar with President Abraham Lincoln, the 16th to serve our country, did you know he is the only one to hold a patent? Patent #6469, “A device for buoying vessels over shoals” was revised by Honest Abe May of 1849. A couple of trips on waterways, including the Great Lakes, led him to his invention. You can see the patent details here.

Interesting enough it wasn’t until 1891 that the White House was wired for electricity. We owe our 23rd President, Benjamin Harrison, for pushing ahead with this form of technology. According to The White House Historical Association, while President Harrison may have installed the electricity, it didn’t mean he trusted the fairly new invention. The President and First Lady had the domestic staff operate the switches over the fear they might get shocked.

With social media and cell phones being such an integral part to election campaigns in 2016, I found it interesting that President William McKinley, our 25th president, was the first president to campaign using the telephone.

We blast into the twentieth century with number 26, President Theodore Roosevelt. This Rough Rider seemed to embrace new technologies. The first president to been seen in a car, the first to ride in an airplane and the first president to be filmed on the job.

It wasn’t until June in 1922 that the voice of the President, in this case 29th president Warren G Harding, was transmitted and heard on the radio. Those who listened heard the President dedicating a memorial for Francis Scott Key, the man who gave us our National Anthem.

It was nearly 20 years later that we were able to see the president on a television. In April of 1939, in beautiful black and white, we were able to watch President Franklin D. Roosevelt open the World’s Fair. We would have to wait until 1955 to see the President in “living color.”

In 1979, President Jimmy Carter was responsible for being forward thinking and installed solar-panels on the White House roof. Way to be green, number 39!

Do you wear contact lenses? So did your 40th President Ronald Regan, the first president to do so.

Finally, President Bill Clinton and the internet. He was the first president to have a White House website, to send an e-mail via the internet, and hold an online chat. Interestingly enough, his relationship with a White House intern broke online. You could read the article online before you could see it in print.

Happy President’s Day!

My Top 5 techie gifts

It never seems to fail. Whenever the gift giving season comes around I'm at a loss on what to ask for and what to give. Sure I can ask/give the mundane gift card to a various store, restaurant or iTunes I mean that easy... right.  Do gift cards really say Happy Holidays? Ok, maybe they do but only because it is already literally written on the plastic card.  ;)

So without further to do a quick and simple top 5 gifts of technology, in no particular order.

#1.  A Streaming Media Player.
    Whether you Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime if you're still watching that on your computer or table it's time to upgrade to a media player. Several options are available in a variety of price ranges. As I'm partial to Apple products I can't help but speak to my love affair with Apple TV ™. With the release of the 4th version just in time for the holiday season it worth the while to wonder yourself up to a local retailer for a looky look. I current have 3 Apple TV's in my home and have been using them for several years now. I love the ability to access TV, Movies, Stream music directly from Apple as well as watch Netflix,  Hulu and sample other channels. An entry level device starts at just $69 while the new models start at $149. However if you're dead set against anything Apple a look at either Roku or Chromcast easily give some similar options.


#2 SmartWatch
          Now before you start telling me there is now what your going to buy an Apple Watch. Just take a deep breath. I don't blame you. I don't have one most likely for the same reason you don't. I'm not about to spend $350 for a watch. ( Disclaimer, if you do have an Apple Watch let me know, I'd love to talk to you. ) Any who... there are plenty of other options out there for you. Fitbit and Pebble both have reasonable options for SmartWatches. Want something to help track you in the health and fitness area, Fitbit Charge or Charge HR are great options that connect to your smartphone. Interest in just the smarter part of the smartwatch take a look a Pebble where you can still get you technology notifications and music right on our wrist and at a much more reasonable cost.

#3 Say Cheese!
     Now that most smartphone have camera that can rival most point and shoot camera's. There are a slew of accessories for your smartphone camera . Olloclip has a nice 4-1 lens kit that can slip right over you phone and hug the camera giving the option of Fisheye, 2 Macro's and a wide angle shot. Brilliant!! If your look for the adventure type a quick look over at Optrix gives you not just lenses but cases and mounts for the phone.

#4 Play the funky music caucasian youthful male.

      Remember the BoomBoxes of the 1980's They were HUGE, literally. While those large musical boxes have disappeared from the shoulders it can now be replaced with something that can easily fit in a backpack or purse. Portable Speakers come in all sorts of shapes, colors and size. In fact you can even find some that are waterproof in case you want to bring the beat into the shower.


#5 Super Sleek Storage

    It is probably one thing that is over looked because it is more particle than fun. Extra storage for you digital device. Maybe it's a new larger hybrid hard drive for your son or daughter. It could be an external hard drive case for your sister who has been working on a genealogy of your family. Maybe it's just something as simple as a USB 3.0 32GB Flash Drive for the kids school projects. It doesn't matter the reason or for who. Sometimes the gift has to be about need instead of want.


I could easily list many other gift options but if you didn't know where to start hopefully I've provided a little more clear path to set you out on your shopping journey.

Technology and the Holiday Shops

No sooner than did the ghost and goblins of Halloween get back to their homes to feast on their newly acquired sugar collection that Sleigh Bells start ringing. That's right the big push of the last holidays are upon us and wow has technology changed the ways we celebrate these times.

The holiday's seem to require 3 important ingredients. Shopping, Food, and Family. First let me start off by saying that I have never, ever participated in the Black Friday Madness. I have witnessed it but I haven't gotten up at 3am to make it to a store that was opening 5am so I could buy a $50 Blue-ray player for $15. I will admit to looking through the the black Friday ad's and even looking them up online ahead of schedule. In fact there is a website you can visit that is fully dedicated to Black Friday Ads. https://blackfriday.com post not just the ads for Friday's event but also the Toy books that retailers put out and other deal specific items, extra Kohls cash anyone?

While a lot of people still trek out on that Friday more people are opting out and staying in. They are staying in for Cyber Monday. The first Monday after Thanksgiving is now dedicated to online shopping bonanza of epic proportions. Many of your favorite retail store put on extra sales this day but the online retail giants make there play for your holiday cash. Amazon being one of the biggest names in online shopping makes Cyber Monday a big big BIG event. Certain deals highlighted and change hour after hour. It's enough to make even the most seasoned shopper spin around with glee.

Smack in the middle of Black Friday and Cyber Monday now known as Small Business Saturday. A day in the weekend where your local small business owners hope to attract and entice you. This can be done in  a physical location or through a website as well. Just a quick search using the “shop local” option on Etsy.com allows me to see what some of our own neighbors have brilliantly made themselves. 

When all your shopping is done, the focus goes back on the two most important parts of the holidays, food and family! It seems like a no brainer that your going to need food. Food that you can make while you host the holiday at your home, or something a little easier to transport as you go through the woods to Grandmother's house. If you missed my article on technology in the kitchen you can find it here.

Then there’s family. It suppose to be the most important ingredient in the holiday recipe. While technology can help it can also hinder. Sure, through the power of Skype or FaceTime you can video chat with your niece or nephew who is serving overseas. However, is will also keep your 14 year old niece or daughter from looking up the entire time you're at Aunt Kathy's. 

So, a holiday challenge for you. Can you and yours set aside technology for the holiday gathering? Little to no smartphone or tablets while you are surrounded with extended family. No Facebooking, no tweets to be sent, and no text to be read. Some may find this hardly a challenge at all while others will struggle not to pick up their phone when there is lag in a conversation. Putting the technology aside might be tough at first, but the end result will be lifetime memories with family and friends!

Technology Fit

My sister in law confuses me. She likes to run...without music. I do not understand how she is able to do it. I have to have music in my ear when I'm attempting to run, jog, exercise. I have used several different apps in the past to help get myself in better fitter shape. Just as I've used different apps I've also had different products too.

Before I had a piece of technology to help it was the classic pencil and paper. Log your food and log for work out. Then I got an iPod Touch. My world changed. All of a sudden I had apps that would help me. Log your food in this app. Watch how to do weights on this app. Track your bike ride on this app. Apps..glorious apps everywhere. Then I realized as I was losing the pounds on myself my iPod was starting to become bloated. 

I see a lot of mobile devices in my line of work. What I see a lot when I talking to people about their device is that after a while it feels slow. Sometimes it is due to age but 8 out of 10 times their devices is bloated with data. For example if you have an iPhone 6 that has 16GB of data storage a few of those gigabytes are set aside right away for the software to run your phone. So now that brings us down to about 12GB of space. That is still a lot if you maintain the space. Devices work best when they have breathing room. I usually recommend a minimum of 2GB of free space. Photo's and video take up a lot of room. A LOT OF ROOM. It is probably one of the things I see the must. 600 photo's or more taking up space. and of the 600 photo's you probably only want 120 of them. Cleaning up your photos gives back precious space. Delete them from the phone or what I like to do is download them into my computer and delete them there, I find it to be faster that way. 

How about Songs. When is the last time you took a look through your play list. This is another thing I try and keep up on. I actively keep 3 playlist on my phone. 1 for the gym and 2 for the car. With the addition of iTunes radio and other music streaming services you may not realize that you are not using your playlist anymore. If your not using them get them off the device. 

Then there are apps. As I write to you today I have 50 apps on my phone. I like to review the apps on my phone every couple of months. There are apps I'm more likely to use in the summer than the winter. If I'm going on vacation I have more travel apps on my phone than when I'm just doing my usual business. Sure there are a lot of app that you use frequently and I'm not saying you have to take things down to a bare minimum but I'm suggesting that maybe you don't need to have every app on there. I use a guideline I made up myself. If I haven't used the app in about 1 month then I don't need it on my phone.

Also a reminder all this is true not just for our mobile devices but for our actual computers too. Your laptop or desktop machine store massive amounts of data. Quick! When was the last time you when through and deleted email? Not just the spam or the junk but emails. Imagine if all those emails were printed out and laying around the house. Can you see that in your house? The nice thing is that usually with your computer you have the option of upgrading your hard drive to add more space. Your computer likes some breathing room just like you. 

Our phones( and our computers) are a machine, just like our body, and it needs to be taken care of to run at its peak. Sure, on vacation we like to let ourselves go a little bit and enjoy the trip - taking pictures and downloading new apps - but we don’t live everyday life that way. Watch what you put into your phone and make sure to trim the fat when its needed!

Technically.... in the Kitchen

One to my favorite places to to use technology is in the kitchen.  I've brought my laptop,  an iPad and  my phone in the kitchen to use as a reference while cooking. Just recently we delegated a first generation iPad to the kitchen. While the iPad itself is considered out of date, it doesn't run the current iOS. However some Apps still function on this old piece of technology.

So what still works? Well first the web browser still functions with no problem so I can pull up an cooking website or blog I want. I was also able to download older versions of apps like Pinterest, How to Cook Everything and Allrecipes' Dinner Spinner to name a few.  I was very pleased to be able to access Pinterest so I can access all the great recipe links that people share there. I also have my Kindle App from which I can bring up cookbooks that I have purchased from Amazon's website. The the ones I've downloaded I was able to get as a free download. 

Of course before I even get to the kitchen I try and have my meal plan already in my calendar with links to the recipe I'll be making. I try and list the main dish with 1 or 2 side dishes that I would like to make with it. Sometimes the recipe link is the main dish sometimes a link for the side dish.

While the iPad is a great technology to have in the kitchen it isn't the only one. I also subscribe to a grocery home delivery service. Doorganics is a local company at delivery fresh local and organic food to your home. I took the option to get deliveries every 2 week. The Thursday before my delivery I get an email with a list showing what is planned for my delivery. I can login to their website and change the order or add too it.
I also rely on my digital scale. Everything from measuring the correct amount of flour from Great Grandma's recipe to the correct portioned size piece of steak to have for dinner. 3 ounces isn't as big as you think it is! 

Of course some of the basic apps on your phone can be helpful too. The clock app has a built in timer and when I cooking a lot of items for let say Thanksgiving, I've even used the Alarm setting in the app to keep watch on multiple items. Lastly is the camera that is built into my Phone. Yep I'm one of those people that shares their food. I usually post it on my Facebook page with a link of the recipe. Occasional the picture might be shared on Instagram but I promise it is few and far between. 

*Price changes frequently

Technically...getting Groceries

A few years ago I would have to get the Sunday Press in order to start the process of building my grocery list. What foods were on sale this week and what dinners will we eat because of what was on sale. While my questions haven't changed the process did change slightly.

When I got my first iPod Touch back in 2008 on of the very first app's I downloaded was Grocery IQ. The app allowed me to build my shopping list and have several lists according to which stores I wanted to shop at. It continues to be one of my favorite apps. I can save certain items as favorites. When I search for an item it has auto-suggest. So if I'm looking for a yogurt it will suggest very cherry or vanilla. I can also search for coupons and then email them  to myself so I can print them out. If I'm sending the hubby to do the grocery shopping I can email the list to him. You can also build the list online with their website and it will auto-sync with your mobile device. 

I mainly shop at Meijer. I like my one stop shopping and being a Michigan based company I have no problem rooting for the Home team. If you follow Meijer on Facebook you can get a preview of the upcoming ad every Friday. It helps me get a start on my meal planning and sometimes I will wait to buy something when I know it will be on sale in just a couple of days. Family Fare also does this but releases it on Saturdays. Meijer also has their own app. Use it with your Perks number and you have digital coupons at the touch of a finger. My house loves a good Mperks weekend when you can save 5, 10 and even 15%. It a little Dutch girl's dream. Don't forget to jump on to Meijer's free WiFi when you are in the store to use either of these apps. The Mperks app was just recently updated to be added to Passbook for you Apple lovers, like me.

After I've made my trip through the market I may or may not have had the thought about picking up a bottle of wine to help me relax after all that stressful shopping. Vivino is an app that my BFF told me about while she was stationed overseas in Germany. Use the app to snap the picture of the wine bottles' label and the app pulls up information and gives you a rating. The more you tell it about what type of wines you prefer the more helpful it is. I've also used this to snap a picture of a wine list in restaurants. The app will give the ratings of the wine on the list.