I’ll keep you posted on this story. As far as I know, insurance carriers don’t check back in time more than 5 years, so that’s maximum you need to wait anyway.

Now I can sleep better, knowing that I’ve made the best choices. Or did I? I’m asking all of you this: which is the best iPad screen protector available in the US these days? Is is the Invisible Shield from Zagg, or do you think there are others which are better?

First of all, you should know that I only had cheap steam cleaners: two of them were the handheld type and the third one was for cleaning floors. The handheld steamers are lame. Not only they don’t disintegrate dirt and grime as they are advertised to do, but they also get damaged very quickly, after only a few times of using them. They start to leak, then you have to wipe the water from all over the place, plus the dirty water that results from steaming a dirty surface. Even when new, they need refilling very often, so it’s out of the question to be able to clean the whole stove before needing to add water again.

The floor steamer seemed to be a bit better. I’ve used it more than 5 times and it still works and doesn’t leak water. Its tank is a bit bigger, so I can do a room without stop. This is acceptable unless you’re living in a castle (case in which your housekeeper would do such stuff for you). What I didn’t like though, was that it doesn’t clean the grout and the shoe polish spots on the tiles. Rubbing is still king when it comes to such jobs.

So, I haven’t see much advantage to chemical free cleaning so far. I’d rather use some detergent and finish the chores in less than half the time. What do you think? Is cleaning with only water working well for you?

When it comes to keeping old stuff, I’m one of the best. I’ll show you only one example: my first ever guitar. It was probably more than 10 years ago when I decided I wanted to take guitar lessons, but that lasted very little. I never managed to find time to show up at those lessons, nor at the practice sessions with my band, so soon I had to give up my dream and put the guitar back in its box, where it lies also today. Would you like to see it? Well, I’m going to show it to you even if you don’t:

How cool is that? I still kept the amplifier that I got as birthday present that year. The equipment is in excellent shape, because I take care not to skip the regular maintenance. Besides, the guitar has its place in the box, away from light. If you didn’t know that, find out that the exposure to light is daunting to guitars because it makes the finish fade. Here’s my guitar in the box:

I’ve just decided today I’m going to sell it. If you are interested, just let me know by commenting here and I’ll send you all details by email.

Sorry, but I have to tell you the story, maybe I can make you understand why such expensive gadgets are better be protected. Yesterday afternoon I was sanding some glass. Yes, I haven’t told you about my new hobby yet, I’m into the stained glass art and I truly believe I’m an innate artist. So, I was sanding a big sheet of glass because I needed it for my current project which is going to successfully replace my sliding glass door window treatments which I no longer like. The iPad was on a coffee table in the workshop, but I thought it was safe because I had a very good control of all tools. I did have good control. At a point, I felt an itch on my left leg. I looked down to see what it was, thinking that could have been a drop of sweat going down my leg, finding its way through the curly hairs I’ve been gifted with. Well, the sweat drop proved to be a two-inch diameter spider with thick, hairy legs and shiny black eyes. I’m fearless, however seeing that cutie crawling down my leg had an unexpected effect on my muscles: I had an involuntary move that made the sand jet land right on my iPad.

The good part is that I’m fine and the iPad is still working. The bad part is that it’s now far from being the cool gadget it was yesterday morning and I’m afraid it will never be like that again. When I think of those military grade screen protectors like Zagg InvisibleShield I can’t tell you how sorry I am for not getting one from day one. I suppose now it’s too late. Or maybe can some of you teach me how to polish the iPad to get rid of those sanding marks?

This is one of my best recipes ever. My kids were absolutely crazy about it, so I remember I had to cook it two-three times in a row sometimes.