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I carry a roll of the Velcro Plant Ties (see right) in my tool bag, but also keep One-Wrap Velcro strips in the shop. While they’re much more expensive, I’ve found the larger kind to be substantially bulkier and stronger. Here in Toronto, we have alternating weekly garbage, recycling, and green waste pickup. We also have rapacious raccoons. I found if I add a simple loop of One-Wrap, screw it into the side of the green bin and loop it over the locking bail of the bin, the raccoons cannot open it. I first tried Plant Ties. They just wouldn’t hold. For my purposes, a One-Wrap is good for about a year, after which it is easily replaced. It’s available in various colors and sizes. The lower-end of the One-Wrap line is a similar size to the Plant Ties, which are 13 mm wide; however, the One-Wrap also come as large as 22mm. It has deeper loop Velcro (thicker and fuzzier), and as the width of the tape increases, the size of the loops and their grip strength increases. Plant Ties really are great for handling all kinds of tasks, but One-Wrap is strong enough to bundle thicker rope, heavier hoses, and most importantly for me, they keep raccoons out of the recycling. – David Keldsen
To me, as a commuter, one of the most impressive parts of the EZ Pass toll-paying system is the hardcore industrial “velcro” tape they give you to attach your transponder to your windshield. It’s not really velcro, though – instead of hooks and loops, both surfaces have these tiny hard plastic mushroom-shaped things that grab each other by the hundreds and don’t let go. Both sides are the same, so there is only one tape (called selfmating). And unlike the loosy-fabricky velcro connection, the Dual Lock surfaces don’t join until you’ve positioned them exactly, and then pressed them together with a satisfying “chunk.” They’re primarily used in industrial applications as a replacement for mechanical fasteners, but I use mine to attach my iPod to my dashboard, and tools to the wall in my workshop. – S.S. Flanders
Parachute cord isn’t only light and strong (550lb. rating) for its size (5/32” diameter), it’s also more versatile than other types of rope because it can be dissected and parted out, cut and used for its braided nylon sleeve and/or seven separate core strands.
You can get an enhanced grip and a little added padding by using paracord to wrap tool handles. It’s also used for making lanyards. I recently inserted a length of ball chain into a parachute cord sleeve to make a hands-free flashlight for late-night dog walks. The nylon is a lot more comfortable around my neck than a ball chain, and the fit is perfect. – Spencer Starr
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A cool tool can be any book, gadget, software, video, map, hardware, material, or website that is tried and true. All reviews on this site are written by readers who have actually used the tool and others like it. Items can be either old or new as long as they are wonderful. We post things we like and ignore the rest. Suggestions for tools much better than what is recommended here are always wanted.
The Grand Encyclopedia of Eponymous Laws is a collection of 200 playful observations about human nature. Many of them are new to me. A few samples:
Time Cube Law: “As the length of a webpage grows linearly, the likelihood of the author being a lunatic increases exponentially.”
Wadsworth Constant: “The first 30% of any video can be skipped because it contains no worthwhile or interesting information.”
Akin’s 10th Law: “When in doubt, estimate. In an emergency, guess. But be sure to go back and clean up the mess when the real numbers come along.”
— MF
Pirate Radio Map
This sound map of Brooklyn’s pirate radio stations is an audio archival project that lets you tune into the underground and countercultural broadcasts of past eras. When I was a child, my dad was a long-haul truck driver, so I would listen to Coast to Coast AM to feel close to him. I’ve always been fascinated by all things radio-CB radios, ham radios, pirate radios. The little girl in me still loves the lo-fi quality and fringeness of it all. — CD
Sprinkler key hide
If you still use keys for your front door lock, this small $4 hard plastic holder is the most perfect one I’ve found to hide a spare key. It is disguised exactly as the black top of a sprinkler in your garden or lawn. — KK
Park poetry service
Oliva Dodd goes to public parks with a folding table and a manual typewriter. She invites strangers to open up and tell her something personal about their lives. After a moment’s reflection, Dodd types a poem on a card, which she reads out loud to the person. As you can see on her Instagram, the recipients are sometimes moved to tears by the poignancy of the poems. — MF
5 Habits of Super Calm People
This article explores the perspectives necessary to cultivate calmness, but I think the key takeaway is that super calm people are not free from chaos. Instead, they have developed the ability to respond to chaos with acceptance, self-responsibility, flexible thinking, presence, and a natural alignment with the cycles of life. — CD
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