Issue #1181

The first thing you need to know as a brand-new subscriber is this. It's never a bad idea to bring a pint or two of mocha-chip ice cream with you each Sunday morning when you and I get together.

It's also permissible to eat birthday cake in bed for breakfast. In fact, it's encouraged!

But you, you might have subscribed back in the days of yore when Trollocs roamed the land. By chance do you remember this column that will help save you money when painting interior surfaces?

My Past Week

First and foremost, are you a mom? It's your day today! Happy Mother's Day. Here's my mom at the tender age of 22 with her soulmate, my dad. How bright red do you think that lipstick was? WOWZA!

I'd be taking her out to brunch or dinner if she wasn't busy up in Heaven eating fried chicken and corn on the cob and then playing poker with her sister-in-laws, my dad, and the rest of the gang.

Once again, last week went by as fast as I did down the straightaway at Kentucky Speedway driving a 600 hp NASCAR car over 130 mph years ago.

What a rush that was!

I'm not a big fan of shredding sensitive business records. I'd rather be sure no one can ever see what was on the paper. I'm in the process of decluttering and had boxes of paper records and receipts that had to go.

I burned them in a failed outdoor kiln experiment my daughter and I built two years ago. This is a photo of the fire in the early stages of the process. No paper has been put in just yet. That happened a few minutes later in the upper chamber that has air slots to the fire below.

Using a hand-held leaf blower aimed at the openings in the kiln, I was able to burn thousands of pieces of paper in hours. I showered my yard, my deck, and myself with tiny ashes as the high-velocity air from the blower caused them to eject from the chimney like billowing ash from an erupting volcano.

Fortunately, the rain the following day dissolved the ash particles transporting the nutrients into the ground.

I also played my first golf league game on Thursday. As usual, I had some spectacular shots and putts. My issue is I don't have enough of them throughout the nines holes.

Pros string amazing shots together one after another. Hackers like me have a great drive followed by a second shot that goes 30 feet. Hackers like me that are 30 yards from the hole hit the ball perfectly so drops onto the green and proceeds to roll 2 inches past the hole but stops 50 feet away on the other side of the green.

But did I have fun? Yes!!! Will my game get better? Let's hope so if I just focus each shot.

As my teaching pro Joel Suggs taught me years ago, "Tim, it's mostly about distance, not aim. By default, the ball is almost always going towards the hole. Your goal is to have the ball stop within 2 feet of the hole if it doesn't go in."

I actually think the inventor of golf was a genius. She or he was a master at reciprocity. The few great shots a hacker like me makes each game are as sweet as a siren's soothing song.

Those tender notes lure you back to the vibrant green-carpeted course. You board your miniature ship at the golf course only to wreck once more upon the rocks. No wonder Groundhog Day is such a significant movie! Go here to watch the short Groundhog Day trailers and the remarkable ending.

My new logo golf balls arrived three hours before I had to leave. I left two of them as gifts to other golfers or scuba divers who might be on the course.

They look magnificent. The next batch may have a different message on them. See below in my digital sack.

Corded vs Cordless Power Tools

Speaking of siren songs, have you been lured into the sea of cordless tools? I've decided to do the usual wait-just-a-dag-burned-minute deep dive into this phenomenon.

I'll have that column and my thoughts next week. If you've been following me for years, I think you know where this is going to end up.

My new column will save you huge money if you're about to purchase new power tools.

Stamped Concrete Restoration
or
Cleaning Colored Concrete Pavers

Look at this photo:

You may like that look with the different colors. The homeowner was aghast after she had ruined her stamped concrete.

How did she ruin it? You'll discover the answer and so much more by reading this new column about what NOT TO DO with stamped concrete or traditional colored concrete paving brick and patio pavers.

From Tim's Digital Sack

I didn't get taken to the woodshed by any of the PhD economists that subscribe to the newsletter about my take on the upcoming harsh recession. That's a good thing!

Jack shared this:

I am not a golfer, but would be interested in an autographed golf ball. My father-in-law had a large metal trash can with balls he would find! I believe you are on to something!

Well, Jack, as Kenny Chesney says in his hit song, "Only time will tell, but it ain't talkin."

- - -

Michael is contemplating making the Root Beer Chocolate cake I made for Kathy's birthday:

I am not sure if you are familiar with the brand, but might I suggest Foxon Park Root Beer, made in East Haven, CT. They use real cane sugar. Their White Birch is one of their most famous flavors, and they ship nationwide.

I will absolutely consider that root beer. I went shopping for materials two days ago and found two craft root beers with cane sugar. I'll test both and circle back with you.

- - -

Barbara had a great idea if the golf ball sales soar:

How about a golf ball that says: "Do it Right, Not Over!" ... the saying applies to golf as well as construction!

How could I overlook that???? Jeeesh!! Great idea, Barbara! Perhaps:

Do (Hit) it Right, Not Over!

This suggestion from Barbara makes total sense because the person finding my ball is obviously didn't hit their ball correctly! She/he is in the woods looking for their ball and then stumble across my lost ball.

BTW, I had two do-overs this past Thursday. Two tee shots disappeared off the tee. Both were out of bounds. When that happens, it means a STROKE + DISTANCE!

If you're a non-golfer, that means you tee up a new ball again and wherever your second ball lands in play, you're lying THREE. YEOUCH!

That's enough for a Sunday.

Tim Carter
Founder - www.AsktheBuilder.com
HILTON HOTELS Uses - www.StainSolver.com
POTA Activator - www.W3ATB.com

Do It Right, Not Over!

P.S. Do you like to fly kites? I'll bet you never did what my best friend Richard did with his youngest son one day. Let me know if you have an amazing kite story.

Issue #1180

Hold it right there. Is this your first issue? It's great that you're here. Thanks for your trust. Did you by chance happen to bring any dark-chocolate pecandes?

This is a pretty long issue, but I feel you'll really like it.

But you, you might have subscribed about seventy-eight new moons ago. If so, you might remember this series of three videos. Earlier this past week, I asked Peter to watch them.

He reached out to me about an interesting radiant-heating floor project at his retirement community home.

Are you remodeling a bathroom soon? You may want to do what Peter's doing. I urge you to go here and watch the THREE SHORT videos down on the page.

My Past Week

Last week went by faster than the two juvenile squirrels who chase one another up and down the trees just outside my man-cave window.

Several new friends of mine on my LIVE video streams have been pounding on me. "Tim, when will you have some Ask the Builder merch? TAKE MY MONEY - I want ATB merch!!!"

One of these friends suggested I join a golf league this year so I can try to improve my game. I'm one of those golfers that requires a special scorecard that has bigger boxes on it to record my score for each hole. He sent me an email one morning:

"Why don't you get some cool Ask the Builder logo balls inscribed with your one favorite saying that you spew at least three times during each LIVE stream? That saying would make any future golfer chuckle when he finds your ball in the woods!"

Hmmmmm... That's a good idea! I love introducing happiness into your life and that of others. I never get angry when I hit a ball into the woods.

Why? If you've ever found a golf ball in good condition while searching for yours, it's like Christmas morning!

I've often said after watching my ball soar and slice into a forest, "Well, I just paid it forward and made someone really happy."

I ordered some custom golf balls a few days ago. Look at the design just below.

You don't even have to be a golfer to enjoy these:

Do you have ANY interest in owning one of these golf balls if I autographed it for you? Or maybe you want one sans autograph.

Please RESPOND to me if you might like an impish autographed golf ball so I can gauge how many I might need to order in the future. You can also order a sleeve of three.

 

I promised my new friends that t-shirts and hats are in the works. I need help from my good friend Amy who lives in Canada with this effort.

Just a few days ago, when I came down early in the morning from my man cave to answer Mother Nature's call, she had a surprise visitor sleeping on my front porch!

Kathy made it crystal clear to forget about shooshing this yearling away. "Call the Fish & Game people RIGHT NOW. Don't you dare open the front door. I don't want you to startle it and have it charge indoors responding to its fight response."

I made the call and they were here within 90 minutes. In fact, the Moose Project Leader for the entire state of New Hampshire was part of the three-person team that showed up.

The poor creature was on death's door suffering from an infestation of blood-sucking winter ticks. Once the team arrived, I brought them inside through the garage as the sidewalk leading to the front door is a box canyon. The last thing you want to do is pin a 300 to 400-pound moose in a confined space.

Just as Henry Jones, the NH wildlife biologist, reached for the front door handle to slowly go out and check on her/him, the moose got up and sauntered down the sidewalk.

It left behind lots of blood-engorged ticks on the porch that Henry subsequently collected for study.

"In a week, this moose will either be dead or it will make it. The ticks are indirectly consuming the fat and muscle the moose had stored last summer and fall. In the next few days, it desperately needs lots of new green leaves full of nitrogen." Henry proclaimed.

Once on the driveway apron, the yearling started to munch on some tender small green lilac-bush leaves. Let's hope this young moose makes it.

Never a dull moment at the Carter house. Maybe next week, I'll share the story about the bobcat that pounced on a tasty gray squirrel lunch on our rear patio about ten days ago. The circle of life...

Staining Your Deck, Fence, or Cabin?

If you're getting ready to clean and seal any outdoor wood, you may want to know what product I'm using that has done really well the past two years and counting. It's possible I'm going to get FOUR YEARS of service out of the penetrating wood sealer I've been testing.

Replacement Window Cost SIT DOWN!

Are you thinking about getting new replacement windows? I BEG YOU to read this BRAND NEW column.

What would you say if I told you I might be able to save you $10,000 or even $25,000?

Would that put your head on a swivel? Go here, read, and tell me what you think.

Inflation & the R Word

I try to stay tuned to economic news because it directly affects you and me. I do my best to try to share what I know in an effort to save you money.

If you're like most, you might want to improve your home. Perhaps you want to build a room addition, remodel your kitchen, or just put a new roof on your home. You need sweet moola to do that.

Each day the money you store under your rug, in a mattress, or in a savings account is eroding in value like the Vishnu Schist succumbs to the flowing waters of the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. Lately, the erosion rate of the value of your money is out of control

People that know me, especially Kathy and other close dear friends, know I'm the eternal optimist. I'm a the-glass-is-overflowing-and-flooding-the-kitchen-floor person, not a half-empty-glass guy.

That said, I'm deeply concerned about the future. Just a few days ago, I got my propane tank topped off for the rest of the year. I negotiated a great price last June of $1.99 per gallon for a total of 2,500 gallons.

I wanted to fulfill my contract and get the final 159 contract gallons put in the tank. However, it took 190 gallons to top it off.

The current market price for the overage propane I purchased was $4.34 a gallon. GULP!

It seems the price of everything is going up faster than a jack-in-the-box pops out of his dark creepy lair.

The single-digit inflation rate being reported in the news is a half-truth. Remember what I said last week about STOP TRUSTING what you hear from people/leaders/authority figures? That number is baked more than Kathy's root-beer chocolate cake last week.

The actual inflation rate is much worse for goodness sake. I peg the actual year-to-year number this past March to be kissing 17%. Heck, it could be as high as 20%. You know this to be true as you look at the double-digit price increases you're seeing in the things you buy.

Just a few days ago, I went to get materials at the grocery store. The price of North Country smoked turkey breast is only up 40% in the past nine months. Nothing to be concerned about, right? WRONG!

Do you follow stock-market news at all? Did you see the news about Amazon? Their shares dropped 9% a few days ago when they reported much lower earnings due to high fuel costs and increased costs to operate their distribution centers.

Did you see the news about the drubbing the one stock-market index suffered in the past few days? If you're not skimming stories like this each week, I recommend you consider doing it.

With energy and food prices taking more of our disposable income, we have less to spend on other things. As the sales of all those millions of products drop, the economy contracts or recedes. That's the R word - Recession.

I'm convinced we're going to experience a severe recession beginning in the next few months. This means you shouldn't overextend yourself. It means you need to be prepared to hunker down for months and months.

Another news story confirmed what I suspected. It contained the sobering news no one wants to hear. If you're to believe the report, the US economy contracted an annualized 1.4% rate in the first quarter of 2022.

Now is the time to stockpile dry foods and have three or four months of actual cash on hand. If you do all your finances electronically, there could be disruption in that system. If that happens, how will you buy anything?

The forces that are about to shake your personal economic snow globe are strong. Don't underestimate the severity nor the length of this looming financial event. You MIGHT be doing home repairs yourself because you can't afford to hire it out. If that happens, never forget I can help you save thousands of dollars.

I just bailed out Angel a few days ago as she got deeper into her attic-dormer project. Several days ago, I helped Mark save thousands of dollars coaching him over the phone with his DIY septic tank installation project.

Mark opted for my transcribed coaching call. Within an hour of the call, I sent him a recording of the actual call plus a transcription he can print out to read.

GO HERE if you want to see a FREE SAMPLE of a typical transcript. This sample is just the first few minutes of a call.

A transcribed call is the only way to go. Mark was so happy with the result, he scheduled a second transcribed call about building an underground shelter I mentioned in last week's newsletter.

Using my transcribed-call service, you don't have to take notes wondering if you forgot something I said during the call.

What About Gutter Guard Cost?

I've been seeing more smarmy TV commercials preying upon folks like you. I'm talking about a national company that sells gutter guards.

Did you know I did a survey on what they cost in different cities across the fruited plain?

Go here and be sure you don't get taken to the cleaners.

Do You Pay For Offsite Storage?

Do you rent one of those offsite storage rooms or spaces? What are you paying each month? $125, $150, $195?

How would you like to STOP paying those bills?

How would you like a material list to build your own shed? If you price out the materials today, you may be STUNNED to discover you can pay for the shed in less than two years based on what you're paying the storage-locker owner.

Go here and see if I can save you a shedful of cash.

Men and Their Tools

(Ladies too!)

Less than two years, after transforming from a full-time builder to a work-16-hours-a-day-to-stay-alive writer, my editor, Ms. Ann Haas, at the Cincinnati Enquirer called me up. Ann had a delightful light southern drawl and I loved hearing her voice.

"Tim, I've got a special assignment for you. Write a story about the love affair men have with their tools. It's going to be on the FRONT PAGE of the Tempo section. I need it in two weeks. Good luck." CLICK (phone hanging-up noise)

Ann was the Cincinnati chapter president of the Less-Said-is-Better Society. Her phone number was 513-222-2879 (BUSY) I believe. I may have that wrong as it could have been a past school teacher's number. But I digress.

Gulp! Front Page of the Tempo section! Yikes! This means I need to interview people! Who do I ask? What should I ask? The pressure was on.

I recently transferred this first-ever special-assignment story to my website. As I re-typed each word once more, I was stunned to see how my writing style has changed over the years. Oh my, I used to suck at writing - hells bells, maybe I still do and have gotten worse!

There's no doubt you're going to love the surprise ending to the story. I was unprepared for what the college professor told me as I feverishly copied his quotes word-for-word in my fancy official reporter's note book that day sitting in his office.

I feel the story I wrote is a great example of what journalism should be: gather all the facts, present all of them, and let the readers decide what they want to take out of the missive.

Let me know what you think of the story. Here's one of my reporter's note books. I still have a few from all those years ago with their special double-spaced lines on the pages. You may like one.

From Tim's Digital Sack

I thought I'd get more input from last Sunday's newsletter - especially the part about the first-ever cake I made. It's a good thing I didn't bet a box of dark-chocolate Aglamesis pecandes on my hunch!

At least I avoided being inundated with brickbat.

Kate found favor with my cake story and shared:

"Love the cake story! Most of my cakes turn out like that. A little short on the looks, but great on the taste."

I'm glad you liked my baking story, Kate. I'll bet your cakes look swell. Tell any brickbatters they can go buy a pack of Twinkies and stuff those wretched tubes of preservatives in their pie holes.

Beth, a very good friend of mine from California, offered me her protection the next time I reach for the Crisco shortening:

"Tim----Happy belated BD to Kathy! Next time you have a baking adventure, please feel free to call me. I've been baking and cooking all my life. People have said my food is good---but I don't like my own food."

Beth, are you sure you want me to call you at 4:30 AM? :-O If you don't like your own food, you may like a few cheese coneys I'd make for you! Or, we can meet in Cincinnati and go to Mr. Gene's Doghouse for the spicy cheese coneys. Yum!!!

OFFICIAL Root-Beer Chocolate Cake TASTE REPORT:

Kathy and I ate small pieces of the cake last Saturday night, hours before I had put the newsletter to bed and queued it up for sending. That's why last week I couldn't tell you how it tasted.

"The cake tastes great! It's moist and I really appreciate you making it." Kathy said.

SCORE! I did it - I made a cake from scratch - and didn't poison her!

The cake was moist, it was a little dense, and the star anise overpowered any root-beer flavor. The ganache icing was excellent. The cake looked horrible though. Go here to see a few photos and to get the recipe I used.

We're going to make the cake again for my birthday. I'm going to cut back on the sugar by 1/3rd and the star anise by 1/2. We're also going to try to locate a great craft root beer that contains no high-fructose corn syrup.

Try making the cake yourself and see what you think.

That's enough for a Sunday.

Tim Carter
Founder - www.AsktheBuilder.com
HILTON HOTELS Uses - www.StainSolver.com
POTA Activator - www.W3ATB.com

Do It Right, Not Over!

P.S. Do you think your deck might collapse? I mean detach from the wall at the house? I know someone who broke her neck and ruptured her spleen because this happened. Are you building a NEW deck? Do you know the RIGHT WAY to flash the ledger board to prevent it from rotting and to prevent leaks in your home? I'm sure you don't - no offense intended. Go here and become enlightened about all things deck ledger.

Issue #1179 - Shelters, Ledge-Talker, Rusty & More

Are you kidding me? Well I'll be, this is your first issue, isn't it? You picked a great week to start, I can assure you of that.

This newsletter is quite long, but it's packed with some sound advice. I've even got a new feature!

Wait until you see what Yolanda sent me.

You, on the other hand, might have been here long enough to remember this image. I know it's fuzzy but what do you think the arrow is pointing to?

It's that time of year again here in the USA.

Wretched twisters and tornadoes are roaming the landscape looking for food. They have an insatiable appetite for 2x4s, roof sheathing, cows, cars, trucks, train boxcars, and semi-tractor trailers to name but a few things they munch on.

Have you wondered what I think about having an above-ground tornado shelter? How about an underground tornado shelter? These both work for hurricanes too.

It would be worth a few minutes of your time to read this revised past column of mine about Above-Ground Tornado Shelters - and underground ones too!

Tim Bakes a Cake From Scratch

My grandfather and grandmother operated a neighborhood bakery in the early 1900s in Clifton Heights in Cincinnati, OH. Surely I've got some of their genes, right?

That's the bakery in the photo below. My grandmother is on the left with her hand on her left hip and the young woman on her right is her oldest daughter, my Aunt Clara.

I decided to do something two days ago I've never done before - bake a cake from scratch. Kathy's birthday was just hours away and I had to do something. Store-bought cakes are out of the question.

She had printed out a recipe for a Root Beer Chocolate cake weeks ago. I guess she intended to make it, but the paper was collecting dust.

In the past, she's always dissuaded me from cooking or baking because when she was back home from the hospital with our firstborn, I made spaghetti one night and didn't fully drain the noodles. She's never let me forget the tiny puddle of water on the plate.

She's always told me she doesn't want to be poisoned by my culinary experiments. Well, those days are over.

I had to pull this mission off in secrecy as best as possible. Days ahead, I made sure I had all the ingredients. I scanned the steps in the recipe. It really didn't look that hard to do.

Since I'm up in the morning hours before Kathy, I knew that was the time to make the cake. The best part is there was no need to use an electric mixer. Everything was done by hand. I could do this being very quiet

Once I was deep into blending the ingredients, I panicked. It said to fold in the eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla. What the heck is FOLDING?

I immediately texted a very good friend of mine who's an expert baker. It took her a few minutes to respond and I was impatient. While waiting for her response, I used the whisk in this photo to slowly blend the ingredients.

I knew from a past family baking disaster that too much air in batter can cause dryness. So I was really careful.

My dear friend got back, but a moment too late. "Use a spatula and lift and fold over the batter."

Oh well, now I know!

Forty-five minutes later, the cake was out of the oven. I had chickened out and didn't use the Bundt pan because the recipe warned rookies like me that using the wrong one could result in the cake sticking in the pan.

I could not afford a mistake and went with two 9-inch round pans. That turned out to be a mistake because I didn't know about ganache icing!

In the past, I slathered on thick icing to make nice smooth sides to layer cakes.

Looking at this photo, you can see why it pays to use a Bundt pan. I'll have the courage next time, grandfather - I promise!

I know, I know ... You want to know how it tasted. I can tell you the small morsels from the pan were dreamy delicious. I'll share a taste report next week as the cake has not yet been eaten as I type and upload this newsletter.

NOTE: Wow, star anise - what an interesting spice and STRONG!

Preventing SHOCK!

Watch This Video!

Did you know you can get ELECTROCUTED screwing in a simple light bulb? Pay CLOSE attention at 1:15 in the video! Click on the image below to watch the video. This is a mocha-chip moment if there ever was one!

Yolanda's Conundrum

NOTE: The following two back-to-back stories are a valuable teaching moment. Keep that in mind as you continue to read.

The only reason I devoted so much space to this topic is to save you enormous amounts of money, frustration, and a possible lawsuit you may or may not win.

Yolanda, who hails from the great state of Indiana, sent me the following photo.

That's a stunning and expensive waterfall countertop she just had installed. But she was stunned by a comment the granite installer said as he was walking out the door:

"You're going to have to install a center support under the top to prevent it cracking and falling to the ground. Be really careful what you place on the top."

It's no wonder he said it while crossing the threshold!

My guess is Yolanda's face looked something like this:

Yolanda lamented, "...I am really upset because if he had told me that ahead of time, I've would have never done it. What can be done now?"

I responded to her letting her know I had a viable solution that would strengthen the top. It required one of my simple consult calls because there was far too much to type.

It's now days later and regrettably she's not taken me up on the offer even though I offered to record the call, and even transcribe it to a text document she could share with the contractor should she want.

What do you think Yolanda's stone top cost? Can you imagine your heartbreak had you been in Yolanda's shoes, flip flops, or Crocs?

Most importantly, what simple things could have been done ahead of time to ensure Yolanda got the waterfall top she dreamed of having?

After years of performing autopsies on similar situations, I know exactly where Yolanda went off the rails.

Had Yolanda talked to me early in the process showing me a photo of what she wanted, I could have shared with her how to get the exact top she dreamed of having.

It would be so strong a spry young dancer could perform on it without it splitting in two during a the-parents-are-away-for-the-weekend party.

You need to know that I offer you my protection no matter what you're planning to do. Just schedule a call.

I'm happy to record our call AND transcribe it into a text document you can read after the fact, hand to your contractor, or send to your attorney. If you want to save money, you can transcribe it yourself in minutes.

BTW, have you thought about Yolanda's FIRST MISTAKE?

She failed to jump on a call with me in the PLANNING STAGE. It often costs 5X or 10X MORE to retrofit a mistake after the fact. Most homeowners reach out to me screeching for me to throw them a life preserver as they flail about in the icy-cold deep I-trusted-the-contractor waters.

Don't be Yolanda. Be like Greg.

Who is Greg? He's a fellow Granite-Stater I met about six years ago. He had the exact same wretched IKO asphalt shingles on his roof that I had on mine before I wrote my Roofing Ripoff expose' book.

This is the short book where I shared, in my opinion, HOW you and millions of others were/are being RIPPED OFF by most of the asphalt shingle manufacturers. You can read the first few chapters for FREE.

It appears everything I said in the book was right because I've NEVER heard a peep from the attorneys who work for the unethical manufacturers!

Now, back to Greg.

Several days ago, Greg jumped on a call with me. He was on the brink of both financial and psychological suicide. He was seriously contemplating suing the roofer that put on his new metal-shingle roof.

He emailed me after the call sharing, "Thank you so much for talking me off the ledge today. You’re absolutely right that my emotions were more centered around retribution than a solution."

I saved Greg probably $25,000 and many months of untold psychological pain. You tell me what that's worth...

Yes, be like Greg. Consider talking to me before you make a grave financial error.

Very Tasty Bait

Tell the truth. Would you click this ad?

You wonder, how could a chain saw SO SMALL Save Hours of Work? That miniature saw and your curiosity seduce you. With the evil hex cast, your defenses drop like leaves falling from autumn trees. In a haze, you CLICK the ad.

Over the past week, I've seen several different versions of this ad. The text to the right of the photo says, "This mini chainsaw is just as powerful as a normal-sized one but makes cutting 2X easier."

WHAT?????

As powerful as my NORMAL gas-powered STIHL 18-inch saw?

Put your crack pipe DOWN!

I decided to go to the website. I should have clicked the ad to inflict some pain on the lying and dishonest seller.

Once there, the saw that's for sale is not what's in the ad photo but a probable knockoff of a small chainsaw STIHL sells.

I tested the small STIHL battery-powered saw three years ago. That tiny black blob with the orange tab at the end of the handle in the photo below is the sum total of the power.

Here is what this wonder saw looks like. The one that claims it's as powerful as a normal one:

Trust me, a small saw like this, while convenient, is NOT as powerful as a normal chain saw.

Not by a long shot. Not on its best day. Not Ever.

Note: Barnum was a soothsayer. There are millions and millions of suckers out there, indeed!

STOP TRUSTING everything people tell you for God's sake. Stop being played by people and hucksters.

Note: Tell me how far you can see with your own eyes when you're not blocked by trees or a hill. Did you answer 5, 10, or 15 miles? Good, that's about right.

Now look at this ad aimed at those who succumb to sensational ad copy:

If you're not honing your critical-thinking skills each day, it might be a good investment of time.

From Tim's Digital Sack

I've decided to introduce a new feature. Think of it as Ask the Builder Letters to the Editor. From now on, I'm going to try to include at least one email reply I get from something you want to bloviate about.

Maybe I made you happy saving you money. Maybe I poked you in the eye with a sharp stick. Maybe I blew the dust off a fond memory that was stored away in your tiny gray cells. Don't be bashful.

It's your chance to shine like a star.

I'll share both brickbat and plaudits. Rusty's reply last week provided the inspiration.

I am a 90-yr-old woman who learns for the sake of learning, and you have plenty to offer the world! So I do enjoy your ideas on HOW TO! Have considered your thoughts on many things as common sense... and COOL!

Thanks, and Happy Easter Tim!

Rusty

<blush>Thanks, Rusty!</blush>

BTW, kudos to Rusty for remembering her grammar hyphenation rules. I didn't put those hyphens in for her! Some of us should have been like Rusty and paid more attention in our freshman Algebra and Latin classes!

That's quite enough for a Sunday.

Tim Carter
Founder - www.AsktheBuilder.com
Hilton Hotels Use - www.StainSolver.com
Field Day Soon! - www.W3ATB.com

Do It Right, Not Over!

P.S. What can you do if you clog a toilet and don't have a plunger handy? You should have paid attention in your high school physics class! Go here, scroll down, and watch a video that will save you in your time of need.