We are lucky to live in an area that provides recycling cans for paper and plastics. However, for everything else we have to find a place that can take it or just store it until we can figure out the best way to deal with getting it recycled. For the most part, we have been able to find places to recycle all types of glass as well as electronics. However, there are some other types of things we have had some issues with like paint and rechargeable batteries and the Earth911.com website has been a help in us finding what we need to do.

Another tough item we had to look far and wide to recycle was glue. We finally found the Elmers Glue recycling program that lets visitors know how to recycle old glue bottles and sticks. You can also find out how to win school supplies like backpacks and binders. This is a great way to help the environment and get your kids together for next year’s school year. It does take some time and effort to not only recycle but to find out how you can recycle some everyday items and keep this stiff out of the landfills.

I have heard some people who are training to be good basketball players neglecting to practice their free throws. I have heard talk that free throws are just not that important. Some people think they are useless because they are only worth one point each. Well I consider myself a fan of basketball and I think that that is absolutely ridiculous. Free throws are incredibly important.

In fact, free throws are more often than not the reason teams win games. Have you ever seen a game that ended with the winning team winning by less than ten points? Those teams usually win because they made those ten free throws. And when one team loses a game by one point it’s not because they messed up one or two plays at the end of the game. The reason they lost is usually that they missed one or two free throws.

So free throws are a major factor in winning a game. Not only that but they can also be critical turning points in a game. If one team ends up fouling a lot and the other team makes all those free throws then they will end up winning by a lot. This could also happen if the other team is trying to stop the clock. If they make all of the free throws then they are sure win the game. But that is how it is in most cases. Sound a little bit like life; doesn’t it?

One of the things we don’t talk about much in our society is storing too much because we live in a very consumer driven economy. We tend to do a lot of thing in excess without ever really thinking about the consequences of our actions and thinking down the road. The fact that so many of us have been eating ourselves into a coma for many years without really considering what that is doing to our bodies follows the same principles of spending and borrowing money to purchase everything we think we need without considering what is going to happen down the line.

We store fat around our middles and wear it like a trophy, clothes are stored in air-conditioned warehouses for off season when we know that the next season these same clothes will be “out” and you will be enticed to purchase the latest and greatest fashions and we store away items that never see the light of day in our store rooms and sheds so either someone else will go through once we die or we finally decide that we can part with it as “it really wasn’t that important”. Most of us horde in some form or fashion and the goal is to stop. The only way I have found to make this happen is to think about others over ourselves. When we are able to do this, things tend to fall in line as they should.

It seems that the beginning of the New Year is a great time to make an adjustment or two to our site.  We have had several people suggest that we expand our information beyond the storage and do-it-yourself and do some product reviews as well as more yard and gardening information.

After much thought we have decided to add more and more to the site throughout the 2009 year and hope to make this site a great place for you to find information in regard to many fun and interesting things.  We hope you like it and look forward to hearing more from you throughout the year.

Have a very safe and wonderful New Year’s Eve and join us for a great 2009!

One of the easiest, cheapest and fun things to do to change any room in your home or office is to paint it; and you can do it in a day!  By using some new paint techniques that include a product called Frog Tape you can create straight lines without the bleeding that you get with your typical masking and blue painter tape.

A great way to see what you can do is to take a trip to your local hardware or paint shop and look at all the different kinds of rollers and texture tools that are available for today’s one day designer.  You can easily design and create unusual patterns that are fun and striking.  The only limitation you have is your imagination.  So plan a weekend to get painting and change that room that’s been bugging you for awhile now.  You can do it for under $100.00 in most situations; a couple of cans of paint, a brush and a roller.

If you are a person who enjoys gardening and would like to garden year-round, it is possible to continue your hobby throughout the cold winter months.  It simply takes a bit of advance preparation and a dose of dedication to ensure success.

You will want to plant your winter crops around September because this is the best time for a winter crop.  Try setting your plot in a southern direction and under a tree.  The southern direction guarantees the most sunlight, while the tree will shield your precious plants from a lot of the winter weather.  Of course you can always invest in a small or medium greenhouse or cold frame as well to help your growing plants.

Some of the positive elements of gardening in December through March include a lack of a blistering heat, an absence of weeds, and a disappearance of damaging bugs.  Plus your winter wonderland’s colors and smells will make you smile on an otherwise dreary day.  All things to actually look forward too!

Sheds are sometimes known for their diminutive size. However, less floor space may be overcome by building up top. To this end, you may want to add a loft to your shed. Attached correctly to the ceiling and wall rafters, most lofts will be able to support a substantial amount of weight. They are especially handy for storing items you may not use very often, such as boxes of dishes, luggage, or Christmas decorations.

Most lofts in sheds will be built into one end of the shed and can be the same width as the building. The depth will depend on whether or not you are willing to sift through items at the edge of your loft to get to those in the areas farther back. If you’re not willing to do this, your loft can be fairly narrow. Of course, you’ll still need a ladder to access your stored items, but on the other hand, things are not readily available to small children or others you may not want using your tools.

The easiest way to add a loft is by measuring the space you would like up top and cut a piece of three quarter inch plywood and slip it on top of the rafters.  Attach the plywood with one inch wood screws along the edges and you are done!  The entire process is easy, efficient, effective and inexpensive. 

Why not turn your garage into more than just a storage space for vehicles or tools? Just add a work bench in a corner or along one wall and you’ve created an area where you can repair items or build any number of projects. First determine the size your work bench needs to be by thinking about what types of projects you’ll be working on.

With a length of five feet and a depth of two feet, you should have ample work space for smaller projects. However, if your plans include bigger projects using lots of parts and tools, you may want a larger work area.  Taking an entire corner or even half a double garage might work better for someone who really wants to get their hands dirty.

Of course, every work bench needs tools readily available. A good way to keep small tools handy is to hang a sheet of peg board on the wall behind your bench and suspend smaller tools using hooks made especially for use in peg board. A shelf attached to the underside of your work bench can hold larger tools and a drawer in the work bench is great for handling small items.

Your very first project just may be building out your work space.  If you don’t have a garage, you can always build out space in a shed or barn.

One of the hardest things to do sometimes is to like, not love, where you live.  Though there are some things you can’t control, i.e. your neighbors, there are other things that can help you like and even love your space.

The first is the clutter.  If you are living in clutter, you need to break out from under those piles and free yourself from the ties that clutter brings.  You don’t realize it but that mess is a reflection of your life, your world and where you are going.  Get up and get rid of it as soon as possible.

Sort though your things.  Here is another tell tale into your soul.  If you can’t sort through your stuff you will never be able to sort through your life.  You may be laughing at these words but you know it’s true!  Until you can determine what to keep and what to throw away in your living space, you will never do it in your life.  If you can’t do it in your life, you won’t get very far.

Look at the colors around you.  They reflect your mood.  I recently went from a dark green (I hated my job when I painted it) in my home office to a bright jalapeno orange and light yellow.  It totally changes the way I feel when I walk into the room. Oh yeah, I am really liking what I do these days.

Your surroundings tell others a whole lot about you.  Look around and ask yourself if you like what others are seeing?

Many shed owners build their storage space and then forget about the outward appearance of their pride and joy. Many times, this is directly a result of the owner not caring about the appearance or spending too much time inside of the shed. However, one of the best ways to ensure your shed will withstand severe weathering and stay upright for a long period of time, aside from solid construction, is proper weather treating.

To this end, one of the best ways to weather treat your wooden shed is to use an external wood treatment that can be purchased from your local hardware store along with a finish that is also formulated to be weatherproof. Using these two products in concert can help reinforce the natural wood grain, allowing your wood to be able to stand up to rains and winds without compromising the integrity of your shed. As an added bonus, the treatment process takes only an afternoon in most cases, and can provide structural support and keep your shed in great exterior shape for up to a year without any other external wood treatments.