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Men are Way Beyond the Barbeque Grill

April 30, 2009

If you’re a man who cooks, or you’re thinking about improving your cooking skills, you’re not alone. Check out these stats:

  • 65% of men prepare at least one meal a week for others in the household (Harris Interactive study commissioned by publisher Rodale, quoted in AdWeek, Aug. 11, 2008)
  • 53% of men cook with separate ingredients nearly every day, according to new study commissioned by food company PurAsia.
  • 52% of men report that cooking is a hobby, not a chore “and the amount of time men have spent at the stove has risen fivefold since 1961.” (reported in BrandWeek.com, Sept. 15, 2008).
  • 40% of the primetime viewers of the Food Network are men (AdWeek, Aug. 11, 2008)
  • The editor-in-chief of Men’s Health magazine says “recipes are the most-read stories in our magazine.” (reported on homefamily.net, April 27, 2008)

It’s just a stereotype that men won’t cook unless it’s outdoors on the grill, anything but a slab of meat. Complex sauces, healthy wok dishes, baked pasta combos, terrific concoctions.  Oh yeah!

Wireless iTunes Through Your Speakers, No Problem

April 2, 2009

After all the money and time you’ve spent building that awesome music library - you really need to hook your stereo up so you can crank your iTunes….loud, and often…or soft and for hours at a time…you know - launching more than just a CD’s worth of play time. Let’s face it, you should have more important things to do than juggle CDs, right?

Yeah, I know – you’ve got a 500 CD jukebox (so last century) - or a receiver you can plug your iPod right into. Sorry, been there, done that, still not your best solution. I’m talking about wireless between your laptop and the big, nasty, honking towers you’ve got parked on either side of that gi-normous HD screen in your living room.

Now, if you’ve got a Mac, listen up. All it takes is Airport Express and a wire and you’re as good as your best playlist. I realize $99 is a lot for some, but hey, this is the answer. The wire is simple: male mini-plug on one end that goes into the Airport, with enough length to make it to the back of your receiver. The other end of the wire must have two RCA male plugs (red & white) that go straight into the audio inputs for a CD player…a $10 item at Radio Shack.

You then use Airport Utility to welcome the new Airport Express to your Mac and your home network…give it a good, descriptive name like “Stereo Speakers”. There’s a little toggle button on the lower right side of iTunes so you can select your output.

Then, when it comes time to entertain, just click on that killer playlist, and once again, you are the man…for an added thrill, download the REMOTE app and control your tunes from your iPhone.  How’s that for portable?

(Post your own ideas for wireless tunes, remotes..etc… here)