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Brian Guy

Web Developer, Writer, Dad, Aspiring Adventurer

Life

More Tupperware

March 22, 2019 by Brian Nelson Leave a Comment

“The answer isn’t always more tupperware.” – My wife.

OK, technically that is correct, but only because the plastic storage bins we are talking about here, aren’t actually tupperware. Otherwise, it’s wrong, wrong, wrong.

The problem with organization in storage in our basement comes down to the fact that a great deal of the items we store down there are onesie-twosie type things. You can put away a box of stationary, or photo frames, or college yearbooks, or whatever.

But, what if you have one baseball glove, one basketball (OK three…), one soccer goal, and, well, you get the idea. Placing those items on a shelf takes up a ton of room and makes the shelf inaccessible for other items.

Check out the review of Credit Karma I wrote.

The issue in my basement is that I have not purchased the storage bins with the shelving in mind. Thus, many of the bins are too tall. The others are too long so that they only fit sideways. Others are so big, that filling them up makes them too heavy to lift up onto, and take down from, the shelves.

The solution?

More tupperware.

This time, I got storage bins that were smaller. Sure, they don’t hold as much each as the older ones, but they fit on the shelves, the narrow way.

The result?

Maybe not so much “more” tupperware, as the right tupperware.

An organized storage room where a bin full of sporting goods sits next to a bin full of the kiddo’s robotics and TSA supplies, next to a bin of craft stuff, next to a bin of computer and electronics cables.

I bought the bins on sale, and used Ebates while they were having some sort of higher than usual bonus cash back, so they came pretty cheap. — Check out my review of Ebates that talks about how bonus cash back is the way to go.

In a dose of double brilliance, I got see-through bins. Now, I don’t have to label them to know what is in them, which is great for a couple reasons. One, I don’t have to find the labeler every time I put up a bin. Two, I don’t have to relabel if I switch up the contents, and most importantly, I don’t have to guess if the external hard drive is in the bin labeled “Computer Stuff” or “Electronics Stuff” or “Office Stuff.”

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: basement, organization, storage, storage bins

Roadside Emissions Testing Colorado

February 20, 2019 by Brian Nelson Leave a Comment

In Colorado, most vehicles have to pass an emissions inspection prior to being able to renew license plates. Going to the actual emissions inspection stations is a pain and can be time consuming, especially, if you can’t plan around weekends, lunch breaks, and standard work hours.

Fortunately, there is a way to skip emissions testing in Colorado at the emissions testing locations.

Check out my review of Credit Sesame.

Rapid Screen

There is a way to test your emissions without going to the emissions testing place. Simply drive past a Rapid Screen station twice in the year before your license plates are due and get a passing score.

roadside emissions test van rapidscreen
An example of a Rapid Screen roadside emissions test van.

There are two catches. First, you have to have both passing scores at least 60 days before your license plates are due. That means you have to be thinking about emissions BEFORE the notice for license plate renewal shows up in the mail. The second catch is that you have to actually drive past one of the Rapid Screen locations to get tested. Depending upon where you live and drive, this might happen for you automatically. For others, you may never drive past a remote, roadside emissions testing van without deliberately doing so.

Fortunately, the location of the Rapid Screen test locations is not a secret. You can look them up on the RapidScreen section of the Air Care Colorado website. It tells you not only where the stations will be this week, but the following week as well. If it’s still 60 days or more until your license plates expire, you should look up where the stations are and plan to drive past one or more a few times.

Remember, you need two passing scores, and sometimes things can interfere with your scores, such as wind, other cars, or other factors beyond your control. So, make sure to drive by one more than just two times to take into account any problematic tests.

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: colorado, emissions, license plates

Skiing at 40

January 7, 2019 by Brian Nelson Leave a Comment

I used to ski a lot. We’d get 50 day seasons easy back in college. We always talked about taking a year off and getting a 100 day season, but I never did.

Of course, this was back when it really snowed in Colorado. I mean, REALLY snowed. Bases at Wolf Creek well over 100″. A solid 50+ inches in Summit County by January. Man, those were the days. Whether it’s global warming, or just a drought (it’s both), we don’t really get ski seasons like that any more.

ski loveland luv sticker

Anyway, I haven’t skied much in the last 10 years. No particular reason, just adult life comes with a lot more opportunities, and without the student discount, the season pass really costs A LOT of money, like trip to Vegas money for the me and my wife.

Fast forward, and I have kids, and they want to ski. So, we grab some rentals and take some lessons. The older one is down and picks it up pretty well. The younger? Not so much.

So, here we are again, a few more years later and a snowboard lesson, and it looks like the kids are in, which means we’re in. No need to worry about season passes though. With school and activities, and sports, and… and… and… there’s no way we’ll get up to the mountains more than once or twice a month. At that price, we’re better off grabbing other discounts like the 4-Pack at Loveland Ski Area.

The 4-Pack from Loveland is one of the best ski deals in Colorado because it’s just four discounted lift tickets. Use them any way you want, any time you want, including mixing and matching who uses them. So, if it turns out it’s just me and one of the kids, or all four of us, or whatever, we just keep using these until we run out.

At a lot of other areas, the four packs are person specific, as in I have to use my four tickets, and each of them has to use their four tickets, and so on. That’s a lot of being pretty sure about how often, and where you want to ski.

Anyway, I’m sore today, which has never been a problem in the past. Part of it is being older, but a lot of it is being out of shape, which is something I should be working on anyway. One more motivation, eh?

If I can swing it, we’ll ride the Ski Train up to Winter Park this year. That’s always a fun deal when you get the chance. I’ll have to see if it fits into the schedule and isn’t already sold out, and won’t cost as much as going to DisneyWorld….

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: colorado, ski, skiing

The Squishy Pillow

December 28, 2018 by Brian Nelson Leave a Comment

We have one, what we call, “squishy pillow.” It’s older than our kids. The purpose of the squishy pillow is to put it over your face because you were a dumbass and didn’t hang the curtains right away when you moved in and now your wife has decided she likes the light in the bedroom. The squishy pillow molds to your face such that you can get it over your eyes while leaving your nose and mouth out for breathing.


Unfortunately, the wife loves the squishy pillow and I can’t have it until she leaves in the morning. This requires me waking up and fumbling for said pillow instead of rolling over and staying asleep.


In this day of gel filled, super carbon fiber, teflon antimonium pillow, I’m not sure how or where to buy a squishy pillow, which as near as I can tell is filled with chopped up, cheapo foam. I’ve checked Macy’s and Target, and even K-mart, when they were still around.


This is my Twinkie.

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: pillows, sleep

My Library Closing

November 30, 2018 by Brian Nelson Leave a Comment

OK, the headline is overly dramatic. For starters it isn’t MY library, it’s the library I go to in order to work while my kiddo is still at school. And it isn’t closing so much as temporarily shutting so that it can be remodeled.

It’s odd too, because it is a very nice, very modern, seemingly up to date library. The “after” artist drawings don’t seem like an enormous improvement. Maybe a bunch of behind the scenes stuff is out of date, or whatever.

Check out my Acorns reviews.

Anyway, that sets me up for finding a new work locale after the Christmas break. There are numerous coffee shops, but I prefer libraries and I don’t have to feel guilty for taking up a table for 3 hours while ordering a single coffee. (However, papa does need a gingerbread latte every now and then.) Turns out there are two libraries pretty close. Ironically, the closest one is apparently in a different city of the Denver metro area because it is not part of the same library system.

library
Easiest Clip Art ever. Just turned and took a picture 🙂

Colorado libraries (at least the ones in the Denver area) are pretty chill about giving library cards to people from another city, but it still means getting another library card if I want to check out books or reserve a room, or whatever. I mean, I just got around to getting a library card for this library after two months of coming here pretty much every weekday.

There is another library from this library district in the area. It’s ten minutes away instead of my current three minutes, and the other library’s six or seven minutes, so hardly a big deal. I’ll probably try both of them out and see which one I end up liking better.

Can you really earn money with Ebates?

Still finding and getting comfortable in new digs always takes a while. I turns out that a seemingly great spot can have too much sunlight on one side, or it’s so close to the elevators you constantly hear the machinery turning inside. Eventually, you find “your spot.” Then you find a backup spot in case someone is in your spot, or in case that turns out to be the area some chucklehead uses while on the phone. (Seriously, it’s a library. How hard is it to figure out that you can’t just jabber on your phone?)

On the upside, I really am not a fan of the hardwood chairs without cushions that are placed at all the tables at my current library. There are padded chairs, but then no desk or table to use. Maybe one of these other libraries has the ability to offer comfy seating, while still using a table or desk.

Check out my article on freelancer taxes.

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: brian nelson, freelance, freelance writer, library, self employed, working

The Kitchen Project of Infinite Completion

October 22, 2018 by Brian Nelson Leave a Comment

One of the major difficulties in my life recently has been a kitchen cabinet updating project. It’s almost done, and it is going to be worth it, but it wasted so many hours of so many days when we could have been doing cooler, funner, better things.

These cabinets were once that light brown oak color that was all the rage in the early 90s. They made the kitchen look small and dated. Now it looks open, bright, and bigger. Most of all, it looks clean and contemporary.

kitchen cabinet painting

Now, hopefully, my life can get back to some sort of normal.

Check out my Marcus savings account review at Finance Gourmet.

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: brian nelson, home, home improvement, house, kitchen, live and flip

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