I Love My GPS

I have a GPS tool in my smartphone, but using it on the 10 hour drive slurped the battery power from my phone like you wouldn’t believe. When my brother took us to Virginia Beach in his van, I got to see his GPS and see how it worked, for the first time. I have to say, I was thoroughly smitten. So I purchased a portable GPS unit while in Virginia, and used it for the trip back to New York State. The GPS is SO COOL! I loved using it! The nice thing especially is that it will redirect you back onto your route if you deviate from it, for example, when you veer off at an exit to go to a gas station. The GPS I bought shows POIs,or Points of Interest. These included gas stations, banks, ATMs, museums, and more. I just loved it! Of course, I am a gadget fiend, so I enjoy toodling with a new device.

My husband was immediately smitten, too. He didn’t get a GPS (they are rather pricey, at least $130 for the good ones). I was able to get one and claim it for the business (and as a tax deduction since I use it for my travels). I have to say, I am very surprised that he likes the GPS. He is definitely not a gadget guy. But he tinkered with the GPS and has been gushing about it ever since. I am thinking of getting Mr. Mecomber his own GPS for Father’s Day or his birthday. What a great gift! Spending another $150, however, is a bit much especially since I won’t be able to claim this expense for the business.

However, another solution is at hand– Savings.com! This is a new coupon site I have recently discovered. It’s my favorite place to get coupons and promo codes. The site is extremely well-organized and features a ton of shopping sites, especially sites that husbands and dads love. If you’re looking for a great deal on products at stores, I highly recommend Savings.com.

Do you have a GPS? Isn’t it the coolest gadget ever??

Travel Safety Tip: Update the GPS System!

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of NAVTEQ. All opinions are 100% mine.

Before you go out on your next travel excursion, BE SURE to update your GPS unit, both the handheld unit and the car unit. It is very important. Summer is a high travel time, but it is also a busy time for construction– routes may have altered and/or may be closed. You just don’t want to get lost. Unfortunately, printed paper maps are no longer the best tool when traveling. I have a slew of very old maps, and a few that I believed were newer (within the last five years). I was once a very loyal fan of paper map books, but after experiencing a horribly lost-in-an-out-of-state-big-city, I lost my faith in paper maps. The map didn’t show that half the highway was no longer there, due to construction and a diversion of the area. It’s a freaky experience, being in a strange city and not knowing where you are. I now have a GPS map system for our travels, and I love it! But a GPS map is no good if it doesn’t contain updated and relevant information!

Updating your GPS unit is not difficult. The folks at NAVTEQ have made it extremely easy: go to www.updateyourmap.com and click on your GPS manufacturer, retailer, or vehicle manufacturer, and follow the directions. NAVTEQ is owned by Nokia but is an independent operation; NAVTEQ is the global leader for providing maps and traffic data; they provide GPS information for most GPS units, so yours is most likely covered in their large list of updates. NAVTEQ provides GPS information for Garmin, Magellan, Lowrance devices, as well as online providers such as Yahoo maps, Bing maps, and MapQuest.

Tip: Update your GPS unit in the spring every year before the hectic travel season begins, just in case there are important changes. And with NAVTEQ, you have peace of mind that their maps are accurate and very up to date. This will also help save money on gas and time, by avoiding snafus in traffic and missing refueling stations. It will also reduce a lot of anxiety, trying to locate a rest stop!

Moreover, besides updating information such as traffic and highway alterations and additions, NAVTEQ will include new ATMs, gas stations, restaurants, and other important travel locations and needs. So please exercise good safety when traveling– use the most updated maps, and drive safely!

See the website here to update your GPS units: www.updateyourmap.com.

The Art of Geocaching

I have never been geocaching, but I have a dear blogger friend, Carole, who does. She runs a terrific blog called So You Wanna Go Geocaching, and I enjoy reading her articles. She has so far maintained a “temperate” mode– that is, she’s described and journalized the art of geocaching in temperate New York and New England weather (no winter), but her latest post promises: “Snow doesn’t stop serious geocachers!” Oooo how titillating!

In case you don’t know (and I didn’t know until Carole informed me), geocaching is:

…an outdoor treasure-hunting game in which the participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers (called “geocaches” or “caches”) anywhere in the world. A typical cache is a small waterproof container containing a logbook and “treasure,” usually toys or trinkets of little value. Today, well over 800,000 geocaches are registered on various websites devoted to the pastime. Geocaches are currently placed in over 100 countries around the world and on all seven continents, including Antarctica. source: Wikipedia.

New York State and New England experiences about five months of what we classify as “winter”: temperatures below 30-40 degrees (sometimes subzero) and the possibility of snow for the months of November to March. Places in the southernmost areas of New York are more temperate; when I lived in the Southern Tier, spring and planting season usually came a good 2-3 weeks earlier than the Great Lakes area of New York State. So we New Yorkers have learned to adapt to winter (thank God for berghaus fleeces, though!); and we organize our work and leisure in tandem with it. I did wonder if geocachers took winter off (that would mean half the year!) so I was pleased to see Carole’s mysterious inference that devoted geocachers brave the winter elements in pursuit of their quest.

Geocachers use a portable GPS device to locate the caches. It’s like modern-day treasure hunting, with the GPS as the map. I hope to try my hand at geocaching someday– I know the kids would love it. I recommend checking out Carole’s blog for more information, great tips, and entertaining stories about her geocaching exploits.

The Wonder of Geocaching

I’ve heard of geocaching here and there, but didn’t give it much attention before. I’d always heard about in the context of wealthy Californians in the Redwoods forest, loaded with heavy-duty equipment and who have loads of time for frivolities (kind of like global travel or mountain-climbing or kayaking the river rapids). I never thought about it being a short-term weekend scavenger hunt for the Average Joe. A friend of mine, Carole, is an experienced geocacher and she sent me a link to check out the hobby.

WOW!

At the Geocaching website, I punched in my zip code, and was surprised to find geocaching goodies in my area! This looks like a ton of fun! Only problem is that, in order to participate, I need a GPS. I don’t have a GPS. And I doubt I’ll be getting a GPS anytime soon, because right now I really need a vacuum cleaner and a new kitchen, before the ceiling caves in. But I’ll keep geocaching in mind for some future time.

P.S. Geocaching is enjoyed on all the continents of the world– even Antarctica!

Photo from Wikipedia.

Frugal Hacks Alert

This is for all you Frugal Hacks out there– if you haven’t heard of Buy.com yet, you have got to check out their deals. I’m in the habit of perusing their weekly specials now. The prices are incredible! A few weeks ago I blogged about how my poor little laptop mouses (or mice or whatever they are called, I’m still not sure!) constantly die on me. They, uh, have this habit of falling to the floor. heh heh. I go through about two or three mouses a year. So I am ALWAYS looking for a good deal. I’m not very keen on paying $25 to $30 a pop for a new mouse. However, I don’t have to! Buy.com has a fabulous deal on a Targus notebook optical mouse for $10! Yes, you read that right! The Buy.com price is 74% off retail pricing. And the shipping is free! I’m going to get a couple of them, and hopefully it will last me, oh, through the summer.

Buy.com also has great specials going on for external hard drives and other computer gadgets, plus stuff like mp3 players, printers, and excellent prices on GPS systems. Check out their weekly specials page here and bookmark it.