Miscellaneous Opinions

This page lists very short newsworthy opinions I have on general products or services. Eventually, as I have enough comments about a given subject, I will move them to a separate page.

URBAN STAR JEANS: A year or two ago I bought a pair of Urban Star brand blue jeans at Costco Canada that I really liked because they are stretchy. This model (CA07290) contains a blend of 96% cotton & 4% lycra and is made in Pakistan. More recently I bought another pair of Urban Star jeans at Costco, signature series model (13692Co), style (02513692CO0) with 98% cotton & 2% spandex. Stretchable jeans are a great idea for older men so they don't have to wear baggy jeans & can still be comfortable.

B.U.M. EQUIPMENT SANDALS: In May of 2003 I bought the most expensive pair of sandals (product # 4026925 from B.U.M Equipment) that Wal-Mart had for $39.95 CDN. They seemed ok for the brief period I wore them in the store, but within a day of wearing them in regular use, I developed huge blisters on my heels. Upon further examination of the design, I discovered that the sandals were poorly designed. Unlike most other sandals, the edge of the sandal heel had a ridged wall which rubbed on the heel causing blisters, but the rest of the sandal heel was soft. The strap around the back of the heel allowed the heel to rest on the hard ridged wall, instead of the soft cushion, with no adjustment in the strap. This manufacturer should have either designed the strap so the foot can't rest on the hard edge of the wall, or made the heel strap adjustable, or made the sandal like most other brands without a hard ridge wall on the heel. In any case, it is clear that nobody from B.U.M. Equipment ever bothered to spend any amount of time wearing this model of sandal that they designed, or they would clearly have seen the serious fault in it's design.

PRINT YOUR OWN PHOTO BUSINESS CARDS: Kodak makes a really nice inkjet photo paper that is on standard 8.5"X11" glossy photo 117 lb. paper, kiss die cut (micro-perforated) for 10 business cards per page (Cat 877 8151). They come 20 sheets in a pack (200 business cards) for $9.97 CDN when on sale at Staples stationary store. There is a standard business card template built in Microsoft Word that fits perfectly. Even if you don't print a photo on this card using an ink jet printer, it reproduces coloured graphics very sharply & brilliantly because of the glossy surface. I've tried matte finish business cards but they look dull, but I really like this glossy finish business card.

UPS COURIER: While UPS may offer reasonable prices for domestic ground shipment, sending a package into Canada from another country by ground UPS may cost the recipient a lot more than you thought because ground UPS doesn't include the "Brokerage" fee for customs paperwork. UPS will charge a brokerage fee for any item valued over $20 Canadian. A $40. US book will end up costing you $23.81 Canadian just for the fee to broker it, plus of course your shipping, duty if any (usually isn't any on most items) & GST. UPS air shipment across boarders includes brokerage & will not only get the parcel to you faster, but may actually cost you less in the long run than UPS ground. Most other couriers like Federal Express, include brokerage fees in their shipping cost. If you're not in a hurry to get your parcel, ordinary Post Office is usually your least expensive method & they only charge $5. for brokerage or sometimes nothing at all & there is no hassle getting your parcel from the Post Office. May 11/2001

By Doug Hembruff.