Category: Worldwide

The Charlotte Hornets and the Detroit Pistons squared off on Thursday night in a battle of two up-and-coming teams that hope to take a step forward in the Eastern Conference this season. While neither of them are expected to compete for a championship or anything, both are built around promising young players and hope that better days are on the horizon.

One of the brightest young stars in Thursday’s game was Brandon Miller, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft who flashed as a rookie and has built on that in a big way during his second year in the league. Unfortunately for the Pistons, that meant finding out that Miller is a freak of nature, as evidenced by him making one of the best defensive plays you will ever see when he single-handedly blew up an attempted alley-oop by picking a Wendell Moore lob out of mid-air.

If Miller became horizontal during this, it’d look an awful lot like Odell Beckham Jr.’s famous one-handed catch from when he played for the Giants. Anyway, the Hornets won in overtime, 123-121, with Miller leading the way, as the former Alabama standout went for 38 points, seven rebounds, four assists, four steals, and a block in 42 minutes of work.

The Minnesota Timberwolves were one of the best teams and stories of the 2023-24 season, as Anthony Edwards made the leap into superstardom, Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert figured out how to play off of each other around him, and they made a run to the Western Conference Finals.

The vibes in Minnesota were, as they say, immaculate, but then a week before training camp they traded Towns to New York for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo in a trade that has seen both the Knicks and Wolves struggling to build chemistry early in the season. Both teams are still hovering around .500, but the Knicks can get away with that in the East and still have a good look at a top-4 seed. In the West things are very different, as the Wolves came into Thursday’s game in Toronto with a tenuous hold on sixth at 8-6, needing a win to avoid dropping to a tie for 10th early this season.

In theory, the 3-12 Raptors should’ve been a good spot to get a win for the Wolves, but Minnesota found themselves in a dogfight with Toronto (on their incredible alternate court) late in the fourth quarter. With the game tied at 95-95 and five minutes to play, the Wolves chemistry issues became apparent when Randle waved off Gobert who had deep post position under the hoop, and the 4-time DPOY responded by walking to the other side of the lane to get a 3-second violation.

While Gobert’s frustration is understandable, as he had two feet in the restricted area with a seal on a smaller defender and didn’t get the ball, you also can’t purposefully get a turnover in a tie game in the fourth quarter. That was what Anthony Edwards was thinking, as he got on Gobert as they came down the floor, letting him know that’s not an acceptable reaction to not getting the ball. That turnover proved to be important as the Wolves saw the Raptors pull away late for a 110-105 win, dropping Minnesota to 8-7 and a tie for 10th in the West with Dallas and Sacramento.

Photo by Ekaterina Belinskaya

The microwave may be one of the greatest inventions, at least in the kitchen. It ensures you can make quick and easy meals without being a world-class chef. With so many new models on the market, it’s important to know that you’re getting the full potential out of these machines.

All sorts of features and functions are offered. Here’s one that I hadn’t been fully taking advantage of: the power-level button.

Some people call it the popcorn button. After all, it’s the button that you use to ensure you don’t burn your popcorn. It’s so much more than that.

Image by Frank Wittkowski from Pixabay

Why use the power-level button? There’s no need to blast everything you cook at full power. Some foods are delicate, and they’ll burn and change texture if they’re cooked at full power. Sure, you’d still eat it, but don’t you deserve better than that?

Think of it as a dimmer switch.

You may only need 50% power so that the food is cooked a bit more gently.

If you’ve cooked pizza at 100% before, you know it’s a soggy, gooey mess. Cooking it on 50% or “5,” depending on the microwave, may be a bit better.

When you cook leftovers or fish, a lower power is better, too.

I play around with the power-level button all the time now. 10-30% is great when I’m melting things, and 40-60% is great for reheating foods and soups. 70-100% is only used if I’m boiling water or cooking something from frozen.

Image by Rebecca Varney from Pixabay

The never-ending pile of laundry can be a problem, especially if you need it when you’re trying to rush out of the house for a meeting or you need to pack for a trip. It seems like most of your time may be spent waiting for the clothes to finish drying in the dryer.

What if you could speed up the process? Wouldn’t that make your laundry routine more efficient?

Good news! There are a few tips to help you. It can speed up the drying cycle and improve your laundry experience.

#1: Sort the Laundry

By spending a few minutes sorting your laundry based on thickness, color, and fabric type, you can be sure that everything dries properly. If you throw everything in together, it overloads the dryer, slowing down the drying process.

#2: Clean Your Lint Filter

A clogged lint filter can be a huge problem for your dryer. By cleaning the lint filter after every load, your dryer becomes more efficient. Plus, you’ll prevent a fire hazard.

Photo by Ekaterina Belinskaya

#3: Choose Dryer Balls

Sure, you may use dryer sheets…but dryer balls are a great way to reduce the drying time. They are spiky balls that help to keep wet clothes from clumping together. Essentially, it improves the airflow so that your laundry dries evenly.

#4: Be Smart About Loading Your Dryer

Don’t overload your dryer as it will take longer for everything to dry. Additionally, dry similar items together – like sheets, towels, etc.

#5: Choose the Right Settings

Your dryer probably has a few different settings for heat, time, and such. Choosing the right setting will ensure that you’re getting everything dry without damaging your fabrics in the process.

Image by Aritha from Pixabay

By the time laundry day rolls around, you may have mountains of dirty laundry to deal with. It’s time-consuming when you think about having to sort through it all, separating out colors, reading labels, and determining what should get placed into what pile.

There’s a growing debate about whether it’s even necessary to sort laundry still. After all, with all of the modern features on washing machines, is it necessary? Some say sorting is a thing of the past.

We’ve got a few things to look at…

Laundry is Evolving

Sorting laundry used to be mandatory. If you didn’t want colors to bleed or fabric to get damaged, you had to sort. Delicate items might need special care, like hand washing.

Most machines today have advanced technology that will sense loads. You can choose various cycles and temperatures. Plus, laundry detergents have evolved, claiming that they won’t allow colors to bleed.

Image by PDPics from Pixabay

To Sort or Not to Sort

Not sorting has its benefits:

• It will save time
• Detergents prevent colors from bleeding
• Washing machines will make it easier to handle mixed loads
• Larger loads are more economical

Sorting has its benefits, too:

• Fabrics will last longer
• You can focus on treating stains more effectively
• Colors can stay more vibrant
• You won’t damage specialty items like silk, wool, or lingerie

Ultimately, you have to find a middle ground for what works based on the machines you have, the detergents you use, and the kinds of things you wash on a regular basis.

Image by Thomas from Pixabay

Burns can happen when you least expect them, whether you’re cooking in the kitchen or even participating in various outdoor activities. They are quite common, and you’ll find plenty of home remedies that people swear by. One of the craziest home remedies is to use mustard.

Does it work? Let’s take a look.

For generations, many believe that mustard is effective when treating minor burns. It is believed that it has soothing and anti-inflammatory properties because of the ingredients.

Mustard seeds contain bioactive compounds that offer a variety of therapeutic effects. All of this is thanks to the various enzymes and glucosinolates.

Here are some of the main benefits of using mustard on a burn:

• It offers a cooling effect
• It can reduce swelling and inflammation
• It offers antimicrobial perks that can protect against infection

Photo by Elevate on Unsplash

So, how do you apply mustard to a burn?

You only want to apply it to a burn if the skin has not broken open or blistered. Cool the burn off by running it under water first. Then, apply a thin layer of mustard across the burn. Don’t rub or scrub it into the skin. Then, cover the burn with a bandage or clean cloth.

If the burn worsens, seek medical advice.

Mustard might not be your go-to solution to address a minor burn, but if it’s what you have available, it can do the trick.

Image by Couleur from Pixabay

Rotating crops is a concept that has been around for centuries. However, don’t assume that it can only be used for large gardens and farms.

If you have a small home garden, crop rotation can offer an array of benefits. This includes everything from balancing soil nutrients to reducing the occurrence of pests and diseases.

Why Rotate Your Crops?

Barbara Pleasant, the contributing editor over at Mother Earth News, shared that field trials in the US and Europe show that potatoes that aren’t properly rotated with other crops can see a 40% drop in production. Most of it has to do with disease.

Diseases and pests will favor certain plants. By changing up where the crops grow, you don’t have to worry as much about those diseases and pests.

So, you move the potatoes to where the tomatoes are, the tomatoes to where the potatoes are, and so on. Though, you rotate whatever crops you have, regardless of how large or small your garden is.

You’ll find that your nutrients stay balanced, the nitrogen remains balanced, and the soil stays healthy.

Photo by Sigmund on Unsplash

How to Rotate Your Crops

Introduce a different crop each year or two. You won’t want to place the same crop into an area until at least two years have gone by.

In one area of your garden, it may look like this:

Year 1: Tomatoes

Year 2: Beans

Year 3: Cucumbers

Year 4: Tomatoes again

If you only grow a few crops and they’re all in the same family, crop rotation won’t be quite as important. However, even moving them to different beds could offer a few noticeable benefits.

Photo by Zugr on Unsplash

The average family has a container of Vicks VapoRub in their medicine cabinet because it’s such an important over-the-counter product. It relieves congestion quickly thanks to the blend of eucalyptus, menthol, and camphor. The vapors are strong, making it easy to relieve a stuffy nose, a cough, and various other breathing issues.

It has a few other uses that you may not know about…

1. Ditch headaches: Apply some of the Vicks to your temples. If it’s a sinus headache, apply it directly under your nose.
2. Relieve dandruff: There are antifungal properties for Vicks, and you can apply it to your scalp to stop the flaking.
3. Get rid of toenail fungus: Apply the ointment to your toenails and the fungus can be gone within days.
4. Soothe cracked heels: If the skin on your heels is dry, hard, and cracked, you can apply a layer of ointment and then cover your feet with socks. By the next morning, your skin will be noticeably softer.
5. Reduce stretch marks: Apply the ointment onto your skin and then wrap plastic wrap around your thighs, hips, or midsection. Between the moisturizing and anti-inflammatory properties, the stretch marks won’t be as noticeable.
6. Relieve hemorrhoids: If you have pain and itching from hemorrhoids, apply some of the VapoRub to the affected area. The cooling sensation will help dramatically. Just be sure to use it externally only.
7. Repel bugs: If you don’t want insects bothering you, just use some VapoRub, as the smell will deter them. Similarly, if there’s a place in your house or yard where you don’t want a dog or cat to spend time, leave an open jar of Vicks there.

Photo by cottonbro studio

Cleaning a shower door can ensure your entire bathroom sparkles. Unfortunately, it can be a time-consuming project when you have to deal with water spots, soap scum, and all sorts of other grime.

There’s good news, though. We have a few cleaning tips that will help you clean your shower door quickly so that it practically sparkles.

First, you’ll need a few supplies:

• Rubber gloves
• Spray bottle
• Old toothbrush
• Squeegee
• Microfiber cloths
• Baking soda
• White vinegar
• Mild bathroom cleaner

Photo By: Kaboompics.com

Soap scum can easily be removed with a vinegar solution of equal parts white vinegar and water. Mix it up in a spray bottle, spray onto the glass, and let it sit for about 10 minutes. Then, use a microfiber cloth to wipe away the soap and mineral deposits.

For harder-to-clean soap scum and other dirt, make a baking soda paste with baking soda and water. Let it sit on the areas and then use an old toothbrush or cloth to scrub away it.

As you clean, take care of all the issues, including the frame, hardware, and shower head. Use the bathroom cleaner for most things. When you can’t get it clean, that’s what you have the other two mixtures for.

Once you get your shower looking great, it’s also a good idea to get in the habit of preventing issues. Squeegee excess water away after every shower. You can also spray the shower down periodically with the vinegar mixture in the spray bottle.

Fast food is having a rough year. Due to high costs (though we’d like to argue it’s more a food quality issue than a cost one), a lot of people have turned away from the drive-thru, and the big brands have tried to win us back by offering updated value meals and budget-minded deals.

But here is the thing with these value meals: they almost always consist of tried and true classics from the menu. And it makes sense; these brands are collecting their best-selling (and cheapest) items because it’s safe, and that’s great if all you’re looking for is a cheap cheeseburger and some fries to get through the day. But as a result, innovation has suffered.

We’ve seen a lot of value meals and revived classics this year, but not a lot of new menu items. Which is why we’re so hyped for Wendy’s new Mushroom Bacon Cheeseburger.

A mushroom-topped burger with muenster cheese sounds more like something we’d get from Shake Shack than Wendy’s. But is it any good? Here is our full review.

Mushroom Bacon Cheeseburger

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

I’m just going to come out and say it at the start — this burger is f*cking incredible! At first, I thought this might’ve been a result of the overall blandness of fast food in 2024, but by the time I was finished with this burger, my opinion was solidified.

The Mushroom Bacon Cheeseburger is available in single, double, and triple form, but truthfully, the single is all you need if what you’re after is a decadent and indulgent burger. The patty is thick, salty, and beefy, topped with a layer of soft roasted mushrooms, crispy, perfectly cooked bacon, melted muenster cheese, and an herbaceous and pungent creamy garlic spread.

A single bite of this burger will inundate your tastebuds with an absolute umami bomb of savory, and rich flavors. It’s not quite as mushroom-forward as the name would expect, it doesn’t have that sometimes off-putting mushroom funk, instead, the mushrooms work in harmony with the garlic sauce and the sharp and tangy qualities of muenster cheese to create something that is incredibly earthy, smokey, and above all else, savory. The beef and bacon combo alone is a bouquet of meaty, smokey, sweet, and salty flavors.

The real strength of the burger is the way the mushrooms elevate it, rather than distract. Mushroom burgers can often treat the ingredient like it’s the star of the show, but it’s not, this is a burger after all, it’s all about the beef! And every ingredient here works to elevate that beefy flavor.

The Bottom Line:

We’re just going to say it. The Mushroom Bacon Cheeseburger is the best new cheeseburger we’ve had all year. It’s savory, umami-rich, and decadent in the best way. Get is ASAP.