Setting Up Your Home Office

One of the things a Dutch oven does best is sear and cook "low and slow." Sauces reduce, sugars caramelize, and meats brown with great success in these pots, but your food won’t be the only thing left with a brown crust. The creamy white interior of enameled Dutch ovens can get pretty gunky. Here are some ways to clean stubborn crud, and prevent more from building up. 1. Boiling is your best friend If you try to clean burnt sauce and stuck meat residue right off of the stove, you’ll likely ruin your sponge on the first pass. Don’t attempt to scratch it off with steel wool or your fingernails (you want to keep those). Your first line of attack is loosening any burnt-on cr…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. When my wife and I bought our house two decades ago, one of the most exciting things about the process was finally having in-house laundry after spending our whole lives (almost literally) sitting in laundromats. The laundry center in the house wasn’t fancy—and it was small—but it represented freedom and we were excited. Of course, upon moving in, the laundry machine was instantly non-functional, so we had to scrape out the bottom of our bank account and buy a new one. And that machine has been humming along for 20 years, and might still be running when the sun swells into a red giant and destroys the planet. Considering t…

If you want to become a faster runner, you’ll probably end up doing a lot of speedwork on a track. Or if you live in a hilly place, you might wish you had a nice flat track to run on. But how do you find one that’s open to the public? Turns out it’s easier than you might think. Many public high school tracks are available for the community to use. Call local schoolsWord of mouth is your best option for finding the best local tracks; guaranteed there are tons of people in your community who know which schools have an open track. You can ask runners, ask parents (they'll know the schools pretty well), or cut out the middleman and call the school. I run on a local school tr…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. The kitchen tends to be the heart of the home—it’s where we gather to share meals, nibble on snacks, and talk about our day. It’s also a pretty dangerous place. Aside from open flames, slippery floors, and flammable gas that is literally pumped into our homes, the innocuous little appliances that crowd our countertops can also represent real dangers. More than 150,000 people head to their local emergency room every year after an accident involving a household appliance of some sort. Small appliances might seem safe enough sitting on your kitchen counters, but they can be extremely dangerous if defective, misused, or placed…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. The hardest part of sticking to a workout routine may be starting, but the second-hardest part is figuring out what to do when it's time for another workout but you're still sore from the first one. Below, I'll share some tips for relieving that soreness—but, even more importantly, I'll tell you what not to do. Perhaps the most surprising thing: you probably shouldn't skip your next workout. Know what normal soreness feels likeBefore we discuss what to do, let's take a minute to understand how you're feeling right now, and why. It's not lactic acid (that's a myth), but rather a phenomenon known as DOMS, for "delayed onset…

It happens every year: The weather warms up, the plants start sprouting, and suddenly it’s spring—and time to clean up after a few months of hibernation. The concept of spring cleaning is pretty popular, and for good reason: Scrubbing and decluttering offer a range of benefits, from lowering stress and boosting your mood to simple physical exercise. Plus, the chances are good that your home needs it. For most people, the phrase “spring cleaning” brings to mind dusting and vacuuming the interior of the house. That’s a big part of it, of course, but you shouldn’t neglect the exterior of your house (or your car!), which has taken a beating during these cold, snowy months. N…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. The Blink Mini 2 is currently $19.99 (down from $39.99)—the lowest price it’s ever hit, according to price tracking tools. Blink Mini 2 $19.99 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $39.99 Save $20.00 …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Amazon dropped the Kindle Colorsoft, its first e-reader with a color screen, last fall, and you'd be forgiven for thinking that they were the first company to crack the concept: a device with a screen that offers all the benefits of e-ink—no harsh backlight, easy readability in any light—that wasn't just in muddy-looking greyscale. But while Amazon controls the vast majority of the e-reader market, lots of other companies are more innovative in their device designs, and others have been iterating on color e-ink for half a decade. One of the companies is Onyx International, a Chinese tech company that has been producing e-i…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Chances are good that if you've ever owned an e-reader, it was one of the many varieties of the Amazon Kindle. But though the Kindle is the most ubiquitous e-reader, that doesn't mean it's the best—nor does it mean that other companies haven't bettered Amazon at the game it more or less invented. One of the most interesting competitors in the space is Onyx International, a Chinese company that has been producing innovative e-readers for more than a decade under the brand name Boox, often including new features (like color e-ink displays) years before Amazon brought them to the Kindle. Though Boox makes my own favorite e-b…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Bose is a recognized name in audio tech and has been making capable active noise-canceling (ANC) headphones since 2016, when the company launched the QuietComfort line of devices. Right now, you can pick up the Bose's QuietComfort headphones for $179, $170 off the original price of $349. This is the lowest price they've reached, according to price-tracking tools, making them a good bet if you're looking to get a high-performance pair of ANC headphones without spending a fortune. You can get them "unopened" (which is exactly what it sounds like) from…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Open-ear design earbuds have been getting popular, likely because active noise-canceling tech has gotten so good that people have forgotten what nature sounds like. The Ultra Open Earbuds are Bose's attempt at the trending tech, and they're decent. But at their current price of $179.99 (originally $299.99) from Woot, they are a steal. These earbuds have never been below the $200 mark on Amazon, but you can get them "unopened" (which is exactly what it sounds like) from Woot for the lowest price they've ever been, according to price tracking tools. …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Before this review, I had never heard of Brane, but now, it's all I want to hear when I play my music. The Brane X is many things, but cheap isn't one of them. But for $499, you get a multi-use premium speaker that can handle itself underwater, has Alexa voice assistant, connects through wifi for better audio, has the best bass of any wifi speaker, and can be used as a soundbar and subwoofer combo. The Brane X is a great wifi speaker for someone who values bass, would like to take their speaker outdoors, and needs a soundbar and subwoofer combo for their home theater. However, it isn't perfect and at its price, it competes…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. This will be an extremely pedantic post, and one that I am terribly sorry to have to write. I’ve been into weight lifting (two words) for a long time, but about six years ago I got into weightlifting (all one word). It turns out these are two very different things. Weightlifting, all one word, is the sport that is contested in the Olympics in which people—wearing what look like old-timey swimsuits—pick up barbells loaded with brightly colored weights. In one of the events, the snatch, the bar is lifted from the ground to overhead in one swift movement. In the other, the clean and jerk, the bar is lifted to the shoulders a…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. There was a time when I would confuse the terms “Dutch oven” and “slow cooker.” I couldn’t tell you why, but it was probably because I had never really operated either of them before and these vague, old-timey titles fused together in my mind. (I envisioned a cauldron over a fire.) Well, let the record show that they’re not the same. Not only are they completely dissimilar in appearances, but they specialize in somewhat different cooking tasks. H Both cookers are known for their slow and steady cooking properties, and due to their deep shape, the Dutch oven and slow cooker are both good candidates for high-moisture foods. …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Amazon's Big Spring Sale is back, running from March 25 through March 31. It’s basically Prime Day’s laid-back cousin—longer, with slightly less fanfare, but still a decent time to pick up things you've been eyeing for months. And no, you don’t have to be a Prime member, but the better deals go to those who are. Luckily, Amazon still hands out 30-day Prime trials like candy, so you can sign up now, grab the deals, and bail before paying a dime. If you’ve been waiting to upgrade your action cam setup, the DJI Osmo Action 5 Pro just dropped to its low…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. GoPro has such a hold over the action camera world, casual users might assume its brand name is synonymous with action cameras as a whole. But simply assuming GoPro is the be-all and end-all of small, dedicated cameras would do a disservice to popular competitors like DJI. It won’t take long when watching any tech YouTuber’s behind the scenes videos to start seeing DJI's products pop up—one creator has even famously gotten in trouble for stress testing a DJI camera by speeding—and that’s for good reason. DJI’s gear tends to punch in the same weight class as GoPro’s while costing a little less, and arguably having slightly …

There are a few tricks with home bread baking that make the difference between a lackluster loaf and a spectacular one. One of them is having a heavy duty baking surface to get a nice bottom crust, and another is creating a steamy environment for a lofty loaf. Managing these requirements might sound like a challenge, or like expensive equipment might be involved, but you can actually solve both needs with a common piece of cookware: the Dutch oven. Why you should bake bread in a Dutch ovenA heavy duty baking surface, like a baking stone, is easy enough to come by, but a steam injected oven like the bakeries have is not as common at home. Steam is essential for a fully ri…

If your Mac's close to running out of space, don't ignore the problem. These machines can run into issues when their storage is 100% full: Updates may struggle to install; the machine may slow down; apps might not work well; and you may notice that some stop backing up their data to the cloud, too. To avoid all of these issues, free up space. It's not as daunting as it seems. Use built-in tools to free up space on your Mac Credit: Pranay Parab Apple gives you plenty of easy tools to start clearing unwanted files from your compu…

I've recently rented a car in two different states. Both times I was asked if I wanted to pay an extra fee per day to avoid worrying about paying tolls—a crucial issue in some states, like Florida, that no longer accept cash on the road and sometimes won't even allow you to pay online. Both times I declined, and set my Google Maps to "avoid tolls." I was reasonably confident Google would keep me safe from an unpaid toll ticket, but my heart still skipped a beat when, a few weeks ago, I got a text message letting me know I had unpaid I-Pass tolls from Illinois. But then I took a closer look at the text. Missed toll texts are the latest scamIt turns out that texts purport…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. There are many options these days for smart products to keep our lives organized, like the Skylight Calendar and the Hearth Display, but they often come at a high price and with subscription fees. If you're looking for a cheaper smart display option that is subscription-free, consider the 2021 Amazon Echo Show 15, which is $179.99 (originally $279.99) on Woot, its lowest price yet, according to price-tracking tools. The device itself is new but it comes without a remote—but it's not completely necessary, since it's a touchscreen. (Remember, Woot on…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. While there is something special about a physical book, e-books are a great alternative for reading on the go (and building a library that doesn't take up any space). If you want to read on your phone, tablet, or e-reader, there are a number of options for finding millions of titles to borrow or buy. Your e-reader choice doesn't necessarily limit where you can get e-books, as some of the best e-readers (Kindle and non-Kindle) support a wide range of document formats, which you can convert back and forth using a service like Calibre and Adobe Acrobat, with some limitations. (If you're in need of an e-reader, we've broken d…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Whether you’re after long-term support, phenomenal cameras, or just an all-around great phone, the Google Pixel 9 lineup has a lot to offer. And with the Amazon Spring Sale on, you can snag any of the three phones in that lineup at a considerable discount. Whether it’s the top-of-the-line Pixel 9 Pro XL or the more modest Pixel 9, you’ll get well over $100 off. Here are the three devices you can choose from: Google Pixel 9: $640 (was $799) at Amazon Google Pixel 9 Pro: $799 (was $999) at Amazon Google Pixel 9 Pro XL: $899 (was $1099) at Amazon The …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. If you've got an Android phone, there's a good chance it's either one of Google's Pixels or Samsung's Galaxies. Luckily, both the entire Pixel 9 lineup and every Samsung Galaxy S25 are discounted for Amazon's Big Spring Sale event. While Pixels are most well known for their exclusive software features and a unique camera bar, Samsung is instead a great choice for anyone prioritizing camera fidelity or raw performance. …

Marriage: The sacred union of two hearts, two souls, and, less romantically, two tax returns. While poets and romantics wax lyrical about eternal love, accountants and financial advisors see matrimony through a different lens. After all, marriage is a significant economic transaction with its own balance sheet. Let's take a cold, calculating look at the institution that promises "for richer or poorer"—and find out which one you're more likely to experience. The financial pros of marriageFor the most part, there are plenty of ways in which "I do" means "we save." Tax benefits (sometimes)For some couples, marriage delivers an immediate return on investment through the "ma…