Everyday Skills - Polishing Shoes

 

I think it's easy to get lost in all the high speed low drag things that are out there and forget that some of the simplest skills can make our lives much better.

How does polishing boots make your life better? Well your boots last longer, thus prolonging the time those two Benjamins you'll have to spend on a new pair of boots can stay in your wallet. You don't look like a homeless guy when you're wearing well polished boots. Your wife will appreciate you not being mistaken for the homeless when you're in public, that's another plus.

Don't be intimidated if you didn't have an angry Marine teach you how to properly polish boots (or dress shoes for that matter). You'll need some polish that's close to the color of your shoes, it doesn't have to be perfect, believe it or not it'll work itself out just fine. Get yourself a horsehair polish applicator brush, run in a circle clockwise and counter clockwise in your polish. Apply that polish to your shoes lightly, evenly in circles if you desire. Take your horsehair shine brush and brush it back and forth, up and down until it's shiny. Repeat polish application if all your leather isn't covered.

You can keep any pair of shoes looking respectable for decades.

Homestead Tools - Kitchen Aid Food Processor

I'm over 40, so in my mind I'm officially old. If I've learned anything during my short time on this planet it's that quality is worth paying for. I would never tell you to buy the most expensive version of anything. Rather do your research and try to make a lifetime purchase, especially if it's going to be something that makes your life easier and allows you to get more done.

I'd never owned a food processor prior to buying the behemoth pictured above. Heck, to be honest, I didn't even know what they did. I was dating a girl who cooked, and taught me to enjoy cooking in the process. She walked me through all the things this Kitchen Aid could do and after buying it I couldn't go back.

I make a paleo meatloaf that consists of 6 eggs, 1 pound of ground beef, one pound of spicy italian sausage, a cup of parmesan cheese, a little minced garlic, a minced jalapeno, salt, pepper, and seasoned salt. All of that goes into the food processor at one time and it turns the ingredients into a really smooth, evenly mixed loaf in no time.

I use it to grind up eggshells into a fine consistency, make our laundry detergent for pennies on the dollar, make butter, grind up graham crackers for pie crusts (or Oreos), make butter, peanut butter, almond butter, humus, pesto, mayo, the list goes on and on.