So, we got another unsolicited catalog in the mail today. I called to cancel (how many trees to we consume this way?). While I was listening to Kenny G. on hold, I thumbed through the catalog and was really impressed that many of their items are Made in the USA.
If you want to buy cool plastic stuff for your kids, little Tikes is the place for you.
www.littletikes.com
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Wake up Maggie
with a Maglite flashlight to light your way.
It's another thing I got for my birthday. Made in Ontario, California...not far from San Pedro.
---I got this one...a 2-cell LED
It's a Fluke
Or a Flea...
Not only is it made in the USA, it's made 60 miles from my house!
Not only is it made in the USA, it's made 60 miles from my house!
The Fluke is a tenor uke. The flea is a soprano (don' mess wit da family)
It's what I'm getting for my birthday this year. Number 12 in my collection of stringed instruments. And I can't play any of them.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Whoa Nellie
Okay, I gotta get back to work. But if you're ever searching for that high quality polypropylene sheep halter, for that hard-t0-control sheep, you can get one at NASCO.
Some like it Hot
Check out these hot pads, also sold by NASCO ( http://www.enasco.com/) at a very reasonable price.
And reasonably made in the USA
Paint it Black
Or paint it whatever you want. It's a student quality canvas painting board, sold by NASCO, and can be found at this link: http://www.enasco.com/product/9700707(X)
62 cents each...and made in USA.
62 cents each...and made in USA.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Sister Golden Toe
With apologies to the band America for the title of this entry...
I shopped at Kohl's recently, name-brand discount store that usually has something I like, and usually at a very good price.
This time I was looking for dress socks, not running socks.
I found moisture wicking Gold Toe brand "mens hosiery" made in America. Have to be careful to read labels, however. On the same rack were the same socks made either in Korea or the Dominican Republic.
I shopped at Kohl's recently, name-brand discount store that usually has something I like, and usually at a very good price.
This time I was looking for dress socks, not running socks.
I found moisture wicking Gold Toe brand "mens hosiery" made in America. Have to be careful to read labels, however. On the same rack were the same socks made either in Korea or the Dominican Republic.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Socket to me
Had car trouble while on Christmas vacation.
Stopped by Sears and picked up a set of metric sockets and a socket wrench. Made in America by Craftsman, and all with a lifetime warranty.
Drove 800 miles home trouble-free after that!
Craftsman is great!
Stopped by Sears and picked up a set of metric sockets and a socket wrench. Made in America by Craftsman, and all with a lifetime warranty.
Drove 800 miles home trouble-free after that!
Craftsman is great!
Sock it to me, part two
I got a pair of running socks for Christmas this year. Last year I reported on Teco socks, which I wore in the NYC Marathon in November.
Hard to imagine better socks than the Teco, but Asics has a line of bamboo socks that feel REALLY comfortable. I'll let you know after 13.1 in them.
Bamboo fiber turns into rayon, apparently. And they're made in the USA.
Run on.
Hard to imagine better socks than the Teco, but Asics has a line of bamboo socks that feel REALLY comfortable. I'll let you know after 13.1 in them.
Bamboo fiber turns into rayon, apparently. And they're made in the USA.
Run on.
Keep on your Toes!
My wife quit dancing when she was 18.
Now that the little placid ones are taking ballet, she's decided to resurrect her dancing career and has bought her first pair of point shoes in a while.
We were pleased to learn that these shoes are made in America...as are her tap shoes and her Danskin brand dance clothing.
Keep on dancin'
Now that the little placid ones are taking ballet, she's decided to resurrect her dancing career and has bought her first pair of point shoes in a while.
We were pleased to learn that these shoes are made in America...as are her tap shoes and her Danskin brand dance clothing.
Keep on dancin'
Monday, January 4, 2010
Marcus
That's famous chef Marcus Samuelsson...designer of Marcus cookware...a collection of 3-layer (two stainless sandwiching aluminum) stainless steel cookware, designed to be safe in the oven (up to 500 degrees.)
Now, these things aren't cheap, but you can find reasonable prices on sale. Google Marcus Cookware and you can find a good selection.
I first saw this product at Zabar's in NYC. The thing that appeals to me (I currently own a made-in-Korea Cuisinart set...good quality, but polished exterior) is the brushed exterior. Sometimes I overcook things and cook food onto the outside of the pans. The brushed exterior is much more forgiving with an agressive scrubber than the polished surface.
Save me some of what you're cooking out there. It smells great!
Now, these things aren't cheap, but you can find reasonable prices on sale. Google Marcus Cookware and you can find a good selection.
I first saw this product at Zabar's in NYC. The thing that appeals to me (I currently own a made-in-Korea Cuisinart set...good quality, but polished exterior) is the brushed exterior. Sometimes I overcook things and cook food onto the outside of the pans. The brushed exterior is much more forgiving with an agressive scrubber than the polished surface.
Save me some of what you're cooking out there. It smells great!
Give 'em the boot
Now, I could be writing about Alex Henery who scored more points in Nebraska's game against Arizona than the rest of BOTH teams combined...with his awesome field goal kicking...
But I'm here to tell you that I found two more boots (brands of boots...not just two more boots) that are made in the USA.
I had previously reported on Red Wing shoes, some of which are still made in the USA. I can now report that Chippewa and Wolverine both make good quality (Chippewa better than Wolverine in quality...Wolverine better in the under-$100 category) boots to keep your tootsies warm this winter...and to get you through the muck, snow and water that can accompany hard work at times.
Lace up and get out there. Work hard, brother. Love alone won't pay the bills.
But I'm here to tell you that I found two more boots (brands of boots...not just two more boots) that are made in the USA.
I had previously reported on Red Wing shoes, some of which are still made in the USA. I can now report that Chippewa and Wolverine both make good quality (Chippewa better than Wolverine in quality...Wolverine better in the under-$100 category) boots to keep your tootsies warm this winter...and to get you through the muck, snow and water that can accompany hard work at times.
Lace up and get out there. Work hard, brother. Love alone won't pay the bills.
Monday, December 14, 2009
Keep it Simple
I was setting up for our church's Christmas pageant on Saturday, and I noted to one of my fellow camels that the ladder we were using was made in America. It was a Werner brand, though there are others made in the USA...Little Giant, for example. Good products.
The camel's comment back to me was that the ladder must be really old...because *nothing* is made in America any more.
And I get his sentiment, but it was nice to have an opportunity to tell him otherwise.
There's a LOT of good stuff made here...from shoes and boots to kitchen appliances to toothbrushes to lawn implements (Toro).
So I think I'll give you an over-generalization: We can still buy things we *need* made in the USA. But the things we *want* are made somewhere else. What do we need?
Towels, linens, clothing, shoes, real tools (hammers, screw drivers, wrenches, tape measures, leatherman, mag-lites), kitchen utensils, appliances, food, carpet, paint, 2x4's, books and cars...all made in America and all (with the possible exception of the cars) made with really good quality.
Things we want? iphones, xboxes, Wii consoles, iPods (do you see a pattern here?), flat-screen TV's and American Girl Dolls (believe it or not) are all made somewhere else.
So why don't we keep it simple and just get the stuff we need? Why complicate things with the things we don't need?
The mantra "keep it simple" helps you keep it local.
The camel's comment back to me was that the ladder must be really old...because *nothing* is made in America any more.
And I get his sentiment, but it was nice to have an opportunity to tell him otherwise.
There's a LOT of good stuff made here...from shoes and boots to kitchen appliances to toothbrushes to lawn implements (Toro).
So I think I'll give you an over-generalization: We can still buy things we *need* made in the USA. But the things we *want* are made somewhere else. What do we need?
Towels, linens, clothing, shoes, real tools (hammers, screw drivers, wrenches, tape measures, leatherman, mag-lites), kitchen utensils, appliances, food, carpet, paint, 2x4's, books and cars...all made in America and all (with the possible exception of the cars) made with really good quality.
Things we want? iphones, xboxes, Wii consoles, iPods (do you see a pattern here?), flat-screen TV's and American Girl Dolls (believe it or not) are all made somewhere else.
So why don't we keep it simple and just get the stuff we need? Why complicate things with the things we don't need?
The mantra "keep it simple" helps you keep it local.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Food and Music
So, 7 years in the Navy, traveling to 34 different countries, I noted something.
The two things I used to seek out in every country...food and music.
There are a number of things that are a good measure of a nation's culture: clothing, religion, architecture. But the two immediate things that always stood out for me were food and music.
I always tried to sample the local food and music.
A couple of things you can find locally on a pretty regular basis are food and music. We do a pretty good job at that.
But be careful. If other people measure our culture by food and music, we should make sure they're not judging us by McDonald's and Hanna Montana.
But then who would it be? What is more quintissentially American than cheeseburgers and Rock and Roll?
How about some good local grass-fed steak, and a night of listening to some great local live music?
What's better than a summer picnic with sweet corn, watermelon and John Phillips Sousa!
The two things I used to seek out in every country...food and music.
There are a number of things that are a good measure of a nation's culture: clothing, religion, architecture. But the two immediate things that always stood out for me were food and music.
I always tried to sample the local food and music.
A couple of things you can find locally on a pretty regular basis are food and music. We do a pretty good job at that.
But be careful. If other people measure our culture by food and music, we should make sure they're not judging us by McDonald's and Hanna Montana.
But then who would it be? What is more quintissentially American than cheeseburgers and Rock and Roll?
How about some good local grass-fed steak, and a night of listening to some great local live music?
What's better than a summer picnic with sweet corn, watermelon and John Phillips Sousa!
Sleep well, Lucky dog.
Went shopping at PETCO the other day, for an algae eater for my wife's preschool's aquarium.
Don't know where the fish was made. My guess is here in the USA.
But here's the cool thing. 40 kinds of dog beds in the store. I found, and purchased, 1 of 4 in the store made in the USA. It's a PETCO brand, so I can't tell you who made it, but it looks to be pretty sturdy. Lucky dog hasn't chewed it up yet.
Don't know where the fish was made. My guess is here in the USA.
But here's the cool thing. 40 kinds of dog beds in the store. I found, and purchased, 1 of 4 in the store made in the USA. It's a PETCO brand, so I can't tell you who made it, but it looks to be pretty sturdy. Lucky dog hasn't chewed it up yet.
Oliver Hardy and Mr. Laurel
That would be Stanley, as in Stanley tools.
I recently bought a set of screwdrivers made by Stanley, and made in the USA.
Now...I *think* the electric tools are made in China, but the good ol' gotta-have-a-strong-grip tools are still made here.
I recently bought a set of screwdrivers made by Stanley, and made in the USA.
Now...I *think* the electric tools are made in China, but the good ol' gotta-have-a-strong-grip tools are still made here.
4 Sticks
Cleaning up a little the other day, I found my Vic Firth drum sticks. Made in America.
Pound 'em, Bonzo.
Pound 'em, Bonzo.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
In a world of Bikes gone bad...
Most bikes you find out there are made in China. Even American companies (Trek, Giant, Diamondback) are making bikes overseas.
There are some high end bicycles made in the US, though I can't swear as to the origin of their components.
I'm encouraged to find a number of biking accessories, such as the Lone Peak Pannier series that are made in the USA.
See www.lonepeakpacks.com
I'll continue to look for more, but I can tell you that Campmor (www.campmor.com) sells a children's reflective vest that's good for biking, running or hiking...made in the USA
Happy Riding!
There are some high end bicycles made in the US, though I can't swear as to the origin of their components.
I'm encouraged to find a number of biking accessories, such as the Lone Peak Pannier series that are made in the USA.
See www.lonepeakpacks.com
I'll continue to look for more, but I can tell you that Campmor (www.campmor.com) sells a children's reflective vest that's good for biking, running or hiking...made in the USA
Happy Riding!
Thursday, March 26, 2009
For Preserving...
How's this for Made in America? I'm sitting in my office with 4 cases (48 total) of Ball Mason Jars.
All made in the USA.
And all usually filled with things made in the USA, often things made in our own back yard.
At home I have more cases of these things, filled with honey, maple syrup, apple sauce, apple jelly, strawberry jelly, pasta sauce, salsa, pickled peppers.
The label on the case says, "Mason Jars for Preserving."
I think that speaks volumes. For preserving home-grown foods. For preserving a way of life. For preserving a little bit of Americana.
Thanks, Ball, for making these jars in the USA!
All made in the USA.
And all usually filled with things made in the USA, often things made in our own back yard.
At home I have more cases of these things, filled with honey, maple syrup, apple sauce, apple jelly, strawberry jelly, pasta sauce, salsa, pickled peppers.
The label on the case says, "Mason Jars for Preserving."
I think that speaks volumes. For preserving home-grown foods. For preserving a way of life. For preserving a little bit of Americana.
Thanks, Ball, for making these jars in the USA!
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