Watch that TV (price)

Photo by fedek6 @ SXC

Are the good old times of deep store discounts on electronics gone forever?  Not yet.  With national electronic store chains gone (Circuit City) or soon to be reduced in size and impact (Best Buy), the discounters (Walmart, Target) and the regional stores (Hhgregg, Fry's Electronics) are taking over the business.  Welcome to the Internet shopping age that changed how we shop, and more importantly, how we save our hard earned cash. 


As in any healthy, competitive economy, fluid markets will certainly help set lower prices for any product, especially for hot electronic gadgetry.  And then there is Samsung and Sony.


The Christian Science Monitor comments on the Wall Street Journal article:

Samsung and Sony, two of the biggest television manufacturers in the world, have begun to set price minimums on their television sets, according to the Wall Street Journal. The companies began the practice last month in an effort to curb falling prices and protect their profit margins.
The new policy would prevent retailers from advertising or selling the products for lower than the price requested by the manufacturers. The Sony policy also includes camcorders, audio equipment, and some computers.

Whatever happened to pure competition?  Is the quality of Samsung and Sony products so superior that consumers will reinforce their loyalty by paying higher prices?  The future will show.  For now, the Internet provides a great alternative to buy electronics.  Consumers can still enjoy discounts and savings regardless of price fixing by Samsung and Sony.

Freedom of choice is a key to happiness.  

Awesomeness: Men In Black 3

Yes, Men In Black 3 is that good - total Awesomeness!  We went to see the third part of the popular flick with mixed expectations fueled by many other mediocre sequels and prequels.  To our amazement, the MIB3 was funny, witty, and above all, it had a surprising finale.  The director, Barry Sonnenfeld, created a solid entertainment piece. 

Will Smith was hilarious as Agent J, who travels back to 1960s to stop a nasty alien from killing his partner Agent K, played by Tommy Lee Jones.  Josh Brolin played the young Agent K, and he was right on the money impersonating facial expressions and a voice of Tommy Lee Jones.

Not to give up too much: there is a lunar prison base, cool blasters, new alien forms, one-wheeler motorcycles, time travel, and, oh yes, the jokes!

The right amount of special effects and a very crafty story line, made MIB3 a fantastic choice for a whole family enjoyment.  The movie is rated PG-13 but younger kids should be just fine.  If you haven't seen it yet - I strongly recommend it.

   
 Video: MIB3 official website

Ants be gone!

Spring time invites some uninvited guests - ants.  Plenty of websites provide some solid advise on dealing with the ants.  The sugar ants are pretty easy to eradicate, just use the Terro stations close to their paths.  After 2 days, ants will be gone.  

Recently, I've been noticing larger, black ants entering my house.  After sealing visible cracks or entry points, I found the colony.  It was under the retaining wall steps, right next to the house.  The ants refused to enjoy the plain and tasty Terro.  So, I came up with a protein based meal for my customers.

What do you need?

• Small plastic container with a lid
• Some peanut butter
• Liquid Terro ant killer
• Scissors and a metal spike

Make 3 pinholes on the bottom of the container.  

Also make a hole for the metal spike. 

Next, mix one teaspoon of peanut butter with 2 teaspoons of liquid Terro ant killer.  Ironically, I've used the natural organic peanut butter to prepare the ant meal.

Then, place the container next to the colony or the ant path.  Use the spike to secure the container against the critters.  Wait for the customers to arrive.

For my guests, it took about 2 hours to fill out the container.

For the next couple of days, I will monitor the colony activity to check on the effects of my mixture.

Update: After 3 days of feasting, the ant population reduced in size dramatically.  The tunnels under the concrete steps are empty and the main activity moved to the grassy side.  

I will post a new mixture idea shortly.

Mother's Day with a twist

While shopping for Mother's Day card, I couldn't help to notice some peculiar selection of the cards. Yes, the animal section.  Let me mention only a few:

From the Cat, Mom of a Dog, From the Dog, From the Cat

I wonder how the cat or the dog will pay for the card? Debit or credit? Cash maybe.  Personally, I find some of those cards quite offensive to the animal kingdom. Hidden messages are startling. What do you call "Mom of a Dog"? Yes, you've guessed it - a bitch. However, pregnant mom-to-be cat is called - a queen. Someone obviously is putting down man's best friend - the dog. Incidentally, father male dog is called - a sire. Would a sire care for a bitch? Not sure. One thing for certain, pregnant bitch is called - a dam. 

So, if the sire breeds with a bitch, she becomes a dam and they both enjoy the litter. The pedigree is astonishing.

For next Mother's Day, I'm waiting for some cards from calfs, kits, cubs, chicks, fawns, eaglets, ducklings, foals, joeys, and quite possibly piglets. Happy Mother's Day - Hee-Haw!