new year's

Organize kitchen utensils with customizable drawer trays

I am jealous of people who have a kitchen space where every last thing is organized. It's not as easy to accomplish as it seems. I'm not talking about the obvious things, like where to store the food processor when not using it. Rather, I am thinking of a small, seemingly minor thing that can lead to clean, efficient kitchens: the flatware drawer.

My flatware drawer houses my forks, knives and spoons, but in a haphazard manner. Yes, I have a utensil separator, but really it's more bother than it is worth. Besides the fact that it … Read more

Sites to make New Year's resolutions stick

My New Year's resolutions for 2007 were largely a flop, although I did frame and hang some vintage 1930s cruise ship menus as promised.

But if you're dead set on changing your life in 2008, many Web sites can assist with tallying and tracking resolutions. Some will continue to ping you with reminders, or even enlist other folks to pester you over the next 12 months. Facebook users can pick from various third-party widgets for setting and sharing goals, but other sites offer more customization.

Sweet and simple, Joe's Goals help you log progress on to-do items … Read more

New Year's tech resolutions

The New Year's resolution might be way up there on the great list of journalism clichés, but that's no reason not to go back to the well and see what our pals in the tech industry are pledging to do in 2008, at least as far as their gear and gadgets are concerned.

"Make spam a priority, and eliminate clutter." --Don Sears, eWeek.com

"Hack and/or overclock what I have more, so that I don't have to always race out to get the latest and greatest. And buy an iPhone if … Read more

Year of the Boar, in a flash

We had no idea that the lunar calendar would be such a popular theme in gadgets, but it's as good an excuse as any to release a "limited edition" based on what we've seen in the past. After 24k phone charms and gold and silver USB keys, we now have PQI's "Fortune Pig" flash memory card to celebrate the Year of the Boar, done in a tasteful red and gold. Gadget Lab says the case bears different boar designs on the 1GB and the 2GB versions, but we can definitely say that both … Read more

JoesGoals: A really nice goal tracker. Or is it a to-do list manager?

JoesGoals is a simple online application that's great for tracking your daily goals. You can assign positive or negative points for things you want (or don't want) to do, and just click on the goal to add or subtract from your tally. For example, I'd like to quit eating M&M's every afternoon. I set that up as a negative goal; when I give in to it, I click on it and get a point subtracted from my goals score for the day. On the positive side, I should walk the big hill home instead … Read more

This year, I swear...

Each December 31, my childhood friends and I used to jot down New Year's resolutions and then hide them until the next New Year's party. What better way to forget about our life-changing goals for 364 days! It should be harder to escape your resolutions if you track them online. Here are some free places to start:

31 Left invites you to commit to one resolution at a time--and donate to a nonprofit of your choice if you fail. You can post publicly if you dare. When February strikes, 31 Left will send an e-mail either to congratulate … Read more