Rants, raves and other off topic nonsense.

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Apparently, owning a lot of gadgets is as bad for your bank account as it is for the environment. According to an article in the Telegraph, the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts our penchant for cell phones, iPods, large screen televisions and other gadgets is putting the world on track for 200 new nuclear power plants by 2030.

The article states that in 2030 our gizmos will require about 1,700 terawatt hours of power to run, or three times today’s amount and equal to the current combined domestic energy consumption of the United States and Japan!

There are better, more eco-conscious ways to power your gadgets using solar power, hydro power, Pull-Cord Generator and even dog power!

Do your part to help the planet; Recylce old gadgets, look for alternative energy solutions, buy energy efficient appliances and use the energy saving features that come with your home computers and laptops.

Posted by: Lawrence

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I read Cormac McCarthy‘s The Road last summer and walked around in a stupor for about a week. The book was so vivid, so real and the writing so disturbingly poetic about a subject that makes the hairs stand-up on the necks of all of us.

With talk of Armageddon, swine flu, Heidi and Spencer’s marriage and the frightening possibility that they may procreate, I’m thinking it’s a good time to ditch – or at least make plans to.

When all hell breaks loose I hope to be safely tucked-away in my underground lair – Lex Luther style. Pool, theater, chef’s kitchen, garden (Pineapple Express?), air / water filtration and Scarlett Johansson (what are her options? I’m feeling lucky).

Decommissioned missile base properties, specifically Atlas-E, Atlas-F, Titan I, and Communications Bunkers are for sale around the country. Priced from $165,000USD to over $1million USD, sites are tested or treated (e.g. asbestos) to ensure a safe living environment. Most have wells, power generators (even blast doors and sometimes decontamination showers) and the bones to build your own dream, albeit apocalyptic, refuge.

Stock-up on canned foods, seeds, grow lights and powdered drink mix. Put that order in for a treadmill, tanning bed, hand crank flashlights and radios. Get the dog a new bed, tons of chew toys and enough food. Don’t neglect music, movies, Wii games and books to last a while. Maybe you’ll never want to come back up? Or at least not until they take The Hills off the air.

Posted by: Frank

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Please follow Bitness on Twitter. Our Twitter name is “TheFitGeek” – someone got Bitness before we did. Sadly we were early Twitter adopters for personal use but late in the game to promote our blog.

Anyway, pass the word along and start following “TheFitGeek” on twitter!

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For the past week or so I’ve been hosting back-to-back canine cabin crashers. First I watched my parent’s Wheaten Terrier and now I have my sister-in-law’s black lab (side note – the gassiest dog in the universe). Being a dog lover and not having a dog since my yellow lab Magic passed on St. Pats a few years back, I missed the walks. Even with the extremely cold weather (and now heavy snows), it’s great to have a companion to go outside with, hike and get some exercise.

After a dark walk in the woods this evening I started thinking some people may not fancy what I find as a fun and relaxing thing. I don’t mind the weather and I would always rather be outside than in when it comes to exercise. My dislike for treadmills has been well documented, but I know some demented people are twisted or lazy enough to think this a good idea for dogs as well (especially in 1° F temps which feels like -20° F).

Feets don't fail me now
My hunt lead me to one very disturbing company in Japan. Just what exactly happens when this dog loses it’s footing or simply can’t go on? I imagine Mr. Yakumora coming home to a little rump roast attached to a leash and thinking the small treadmill a curious place for his wife to leave supper.

Then there is the Pawwws Pet Treadmill who, on their product information page, answer a series of questions with some disturbing logic, such as…

Q: Is this product difficult to use?
A. Absolutely not! In fact, many of our customers say it actually saves them time by not having to take their pet out of doors, braving inclement weather, and allowing them to focus on more of their day-to-day activities.

Why would someone have a dog if they didn’t have time for it? Dogs need time to be outside, smell stuff, pee on stuff, roll around on stuff – it’s called being a dog. Can’t people put on a coat and put their “day-to-day activities” on hold for 30 minutes? Who wants to diaper a dog and shut themselves in for only the most agreeable conditions?

Price: Your dignity, your dogs dignity, self respect and dirty diapers.

Posted by: Lawrence

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We had a beautiful weekend here in New England. On Saturday a friend and I headed to the beach with our families with no expectation other than to paddle and keep fit for an anticipated swell later this week. We headed directly out to a point several hundred yards offshore and watched the blues feed, while on the beach our kids ran buckets of water back to their sand castle.

We paddled parallel to the beach about 1/3 mile and started to notice some small but rideable waves. After a dozen rides we paddled back to surf closer to our families. We met a guy from upstate NY who drove 5 1/2 hours to be there – a beach 15 minutes from our homes! He knew it would be a pretty poor day, but said it was still worth it.

Spending time with the family, being on the water and appreciating where we live made for a memorable session. Despite the crappy economy, the second highest unemployment rate in the country and tolerating seemingly endless political rants – life is good! If you still don’t think so, get a board and see for yourself.

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Bitness went on hiatus this Summer, but only we sort of didn’t intend it to last the entire Summer. Bitness was hacked by some crackers who had nothing better to do than waste our time and piss us off. After tediously extracting all the evil scripts that littered the majority of posts, deleting rouge directories created on our server, changing all passwords (the new universal password is f!tgeek3) we’re back.

For those of you who haven’t completely given up on the Fit Geek, the Summer was a relaxing time filled with sunshine and gadgetry. In the coming days we’ll be writing about a new swim training device, a new surfboard purchased by one of the fit geeks, as well as some golf clubs – yes there is technology at work in surfing and golf worth exploring.

Bitness is back in business, thanks for tuning in…

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Life takes hold and just zips by. I turned 40 on the 11th and realize I’m starting to slip. Can someone please tell me what the hell The Hills is and who these plastic people are? I don’t know anything on regular radio anymore – it’s all classic rock for this old man.

Work is busy, always is, but I’ve also been running, Spring yard work, playing with the kids and a new guitar I got from the family for making it to 40 in one piece. I even started taking lessons – finally after 20 years of teaching myself everything the wrong way.

Following my neighbor’s sage advice – do everything to get the house ready for Memorial Day and then no more projects until after Labor Day should leave me some time to write a bit more regularly in the coming months.

Expect to learn more about a new lifestyle clothing company for fit geeks like me, gadget reviews and general musings about all things geeky and fitness related.

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Yeah, we missed the whole damn month. But to be fair it was only 30 days long so…

We appreciate the patience (and encouragement), so stay tuned!

Posted by: The Slackers

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A few of us at Bitness HQ have been told that someone learned of a product on Bitness and bought it as a result of our recommendation. So here we are in phase 3 of operation money grab (or didn’t you notice the Gadget Funds Generator?) to announce the arrival of the Bitness Gear Barn, a collection of Bitness-minded items for sale through Amazon. Note the somewhat obnoxious box on top of the right-side navigation, click it often!

The way it works is you search for a product through the Bitness Gear Barn – buy lots of stuff and we get paid a little. So next time you’re thinking of picking up new gear for yourself, the wife, a friend, your dog or you know of someone else in the market for new gear then by all means send them through the Gear Barn!

If there is a product you can not locate in the Barn please let us know and we will make it available quickly. Happy Shopping!

Posted by: Lawrence

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OK gadgeteers, here is one geeks top 10 wish list for Xmas ’07. Post your own in the comments.

Freeboard1. Freebord – ride a skateboard like a snowboard? A center wheel (like the one found on a ) allows you to ease off the traditional skateboard wheels – much like easing off an edge. Want to ride switch? Lean back brah. $210-285 (depending on config).

2. Bike Keg – Some clever bastard with spare RST forks built a keg trailer for his bike. Mmmmmm beer.

3. Rockpods – Polyurethane and steel Centerpod holds for my home wall. Santa please?

4. SOG Seal Pup M37 – Fixed blade survivalist knife. Good enough for Bear = good enough for me. ~$70

5. Grain Surfboard – The most beautiful surfboards I have seen made from sustainable cedar wood. I’ll take the 9 footer and better glass the tail. $2,000

Cluster Balloon6. Nintendo Wii – This may actually be the one thing on this list I actually receive… if I’ve been a good boy.

7. Cluster Balloon Flight – OK, this isn’t exactly a gadget, but how f’n cool would it be to fly around by a bunch of balloons like Curious George at the zoo?!

8. Two tickets to paradise – Just me and the wife living life Tonga-style with Paul and Karen from Dive Vava’u for a few weeks. Whale diving, hiking Mt Talau, beers at night – ahhhhhh…

9. SteepandCheap.com Gift Certificate – Call it an addiction or call it retail therapy, but I just can’t stop buying from these guys. A good deal on gear is too hard to pass up. $500 ought to do it 🙂

10. D30 Gear – Head to toe, I want it all and I could use the protection, but I’d settle for a beanie. Is anyone going to start selling gear using ?!

Source: Lawrence

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Bitness has spent the last year covering (mostly) fitness related gadgets. Watches, gym equipment, MP3 players and cameras as well as gear focused on core sports like snowboarding, surfing, climbing and even something for the survivalists out there.

If there are topics you enjoy more than others, or types of products you want to learn more about, please just let us know (email or comments). Or do you feel there is a dearth of new products and we’re just rehashing the same old, same old? How many watches, MP3 players or cameras do you want to read about? Is this the best MSNBC could do on a shopping list for fitness gadgets this holiday?

What would be your choice for the ideal fitness gadget for 2008?

Posted by: Lawrence

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October is International Walk to School Month. Taking-on childhood obesity is a noble and worthwhile effort. If your kids struggle with weight they need to be encouraged to exercise. Visit the International Walk to School Month Web site and organize walks in your neck of the woods.

iWalk Logo

John F. Kennedy famously said We are under exercised as a nation. We look instead of play. We ride instead of walk. Our existence deprives us of the minimum of physical activity essential for healthy living.

Kids who live far from school and take the bus can organize walks to other bus stops or walking once they arrive on school grounds.

Encouraging exercise and good eating habits should be a no-brainer, but childhood obesity, diabetes and other health issues are on the rise.

Posted by: Dean

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I have vague memories of an after school special called Stoned. Scott Baio played Jack Melon, a good doobie who dabbled in doobies and quickly saw his life take a dubious downturn. In one scene he’s rowing in a drug-induced haze while his brother swims nearby. After cracking him on the head with the oar his brother nearly drowns – lesson learned: rowing and drugs don’t mix.

Stoned This movie made getting stoned look really silly and fun, especially with all the giggling and the munchies. The downside of using drugs and booze was so overplayed that it came off almost cartoon-like. I imagine if you were stoned or drunk watching this movie you would get a kick out of it.

Jack had this cool little box on the bottom of his skateboard that he used to store his weed. I thought for a pothead it was pretty inventive. I expected a line of skateboard ‘trunks’ to result from Stoned, but they never caught on. I did a lot of skateboarding in those days and grinding or rail sliding hadn’t caught on yet. The style then was more old school, a laid-back carving style to which smoking weed is conducive and a skateboard trunk doesn’t get in the way.

I found this movie for sale in only one place, Google the words “STONED DVD 1980 TV movie Scott Baio.” A little off-topic yes, but I can’t pass up the opportunity to share a memory of an after school special, especially one as classic as Stoned.

Posted by: Dean

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For most of my 39 years I’ve had an interest in survival techniques. Some of these were as basic as avoiding a beating from one of my two sadistic older brothers, let’s call this family survival. Wilderness survival such as tracking, animal behavior, shelter and fire-making, setting snares, edible plants, etc has also been an interest, probably so I could run away into the woods and escape the relentless beatings.

I’ve never had a reason to put to use any of the information I’ve gleaned from Tom Brown, Larry Dean Olsen and other revered experts to use. Mostly this is by choice, because no one wants to find themselves in a real-life survival situation. Other than terrorizing rabbits in my youth with my best bud Jason and a stint at a summer wilderness camp called Keewaydin, I’ve warmed, sheltered and fed myself with the almighty dollar.

Bear GryllsThe success of shows like Man vs Wild, and Survivorman are based around the escapism that survivalism affords. It’s great to fantasize about starting a fire with toe lint and nose grease, but if you were actually faced with a setting sun and freezing temperatures with nothing to protect you from the elements wouldn’t you have to ask yourself ‘self, why the hell did I ever think this would be fun?’

The old adage ‘always be prepared’ should keep most people out of a life and death survival situation, but if you happen to find yourself in one remember to stay calm, attend to any injuries as soon as possible, find a reliable source of water, make a shelter, a fire and make yourself visible from the air. Also, always be sure to let your friends and loved ones know where you’re headed BEFORE you head out.

In future Bitness postings I’ll talk more about survival, so consider the above a disclaimer of sorts. There is a ton of cool equipment (knives, clothing, navigation, etc) and techniques which open up a whole new category to Bitness (so I did). If anyone would like to see a particular product reviewed let me know in the comments.

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When I tell folks that my grandfather Murray passed away when he was 99 years, 11 months and 1 week I often hear “oh, too bad he missed 100 by 3 weeks.” But holy crap, he lived 99 years, 11 months and 1 week!

He lived a little, not much, just a little.The secret to his long life was a combination of good genes and ‘everything in moderation’ as he used to say. Not smoking and not over-drinking kept him on this earth longer than his 4 younger brothers; who either drank too much, smoked too much, gambled too much, fought too much or all of the above. Some even made a living of combining several of these vices.

Does living in moderation cheat a person from living life to the fullest? I guess it depends upon what your definition of a full life is. Personally, a multi-day climb, backcountry powder experience or even something as simple as spending time with my wife and daughters (queue audience ‘awwwwwwwws’) is a full life. I don’t get to do all the things I like to do as often as I want, but I’m hoping I have some of Murray’s genes and will have the time.

Live life…