What are electric bikes? A lot of people may be surprised at the mere fact that electric bikes even exist, but their history goes back even to the late 1890s. Different U.S. patents dating back to the 1890s actually mention the existence of said bikes! Sometimes also referred to as e-bikes, this special bicycle is actually a bicycle that features an electric motor that is normally utilized to power up an ordinary vehicle. These kinds of bicycles actually rely on a rechargeable battery and can even attain speeds as high as 15 miles per hour or 20 miles per hour. Of course, this all depends upon the specific laws of the country in which these kinds of bicycles are sold!

The good thing about these electric bikes is that they can be utilized as an alternative form of transportation to cars and even normal bikes! Believe it or not, these kinds of bicycles are actually quite good for people who are suffering from heart problems, but still are told to get more exercise into their lives. According to an entry on Wikipedia, these types of bicycles require a lot less cardiac exertion, which is good news to people who already have established heart problems.

When it comes to the cost issues of an electric bike versus the costs behind cars, you can bet your bottom dollar that choosing these types of bikes is more cost-effective than buying or maintaining a car. Let’s look at just one aspect of this consideration, which is in regard to the price of gas to operate either kind of vehicle. With electric bikes being limited to just 20 miles per hour according to American law, you do not even need to pay for a special registration, insurance or license, unlike a car! Further, according to the website called Eco Wheelz, it takes just about 10 cents to charge a battery for this bicycle! With gas prices in the U.S. hovering near $4 already, and with most cars getting just 25 miles on the gallon, it is obviously a lot more expensive to buy, own and maintain your car.

On the issue of safety, electric bikes have a little bit farther to go before they can be considered totally safe. Take for instance China, which is the world’s biggest market for these kinds of bicycles. There is road traffic safety concern in general over these kinds of bikes because they oftentimes use the same lanes as slower-moving normal bicycles and even pedestrians.

As you can see, electric bikes are an alternative to cars and regular bicycles. They are allowed in the U.S. and are more cost-effective than cars, although there may well be some safety concerns attached to this type of bicycle.

‘Tis the season to be jolly with thousands of colorful lights glowing from your trees, gutters, front door wreath, and bushes. Billions of lights will be used to dress up homes and businesses throughout the country during the final months of the year. As festive as the light-up Santa and Rudolph may look on top of your roof, you have to make electrical safety the focus of your holiday lighting festivities.

Following are five tips to help you avoid common holiday lighting problems others will experience this year. Commit them to memory so electrical safety does not pull the plug on your merry-making décor this year:

1. If you are putting up a live Christmas tree, make sure it is well-watered and use LED bulbs for all decorations placed on the tree. Dry trees and heat from non-LED bulbs create home fires every holiday season. Do not place candles where they may be knocked over on a live tree. LED bulbs should be used when decorating trees in your outdoor landscape as well.

2. Thoroughly inspect every string of lights and plug-in points before using them indoors or outdoors. If you notice any of the following at even one point on the string, toss it out or repair the damage before use to ensure electrical safety for your home:

3. Power cords should be used to connect strings of lights, but pay attention to how many strings you are connecting per cord. In general, more than three strings of lights could be too much.

4. Avoid hanging your lights with tacks, screws, or nails. You do not want to crack, tear, or otherwise damage the electric cord. You can use insulated hooks instead.

5. Make sure you are plugging outdoor lighting features into ground fault circuit interrupter outlets. These outlets reduce the risk of electrical shorts or dangerous shocks if water, wet leaves, and other outdoor elements get into the sockets.

6. Do not use indoor-only holiday lights outdoors. There are clear differences in how these types of lights are made, even if they look the same. For instance, outdoor lights are created with more insulation so they are not as easily affected by rain and snow.

Do not allow electrical safety to cut the cord on your holiday lighting festivities. Light up the house and allow the big snowman to wave at the neighbors from your front lawn. Just make sure your snow globes, trains, and twinkling tree lights present no danger to your home, your family, and your neighborhood.

Do you have a specific way you place food in your refrigerator or do you just put food wherever you can find an empty spot? If you use the latter method, you probably see more food spoilage. In fact, you may have to occasionally go hunting through the fridge to find that rotten smell we have all been familiar with.

Decluttering your refrigerator is probably one of the easiest ways to prevent food from spoiling quickly. It’s an easy process once you develop a system for it. The main goal is to keep your food easily accessible and highlight the foods that need to be eaten as soon as possible (like strawberries).

The best way to start this process is to clear out all of the expired food in your refrigerator. This includes bags of leftovers you promised yourself you were going to eat and it also includes all of those jars you’ve had on the side of your door for the past few years.

Once you have only edible food left in your refrigerator, think about how you want to use it:

Dedicate space for frequent meal preparation. If you have a certain breakfast, lunch or dinner meal prep routine, dedicate a shelf or two for just those ingredients so you can easily grab them first thing.

Showcase the foods that will spoil soon. Have foods that are likely going to expire sooner than the rest displayed front and center. This will encourage you to use them in meal preparation. Clear containers also make it easy to see what’s inside.

Control the environment. Check the temperature to make sure foods are properly stored. Putting liners in the bins also helps absorb any moisture that could make your fruits or vegetables too cold.

Develop a rotation system. When you buy new food, make sure you put it behind your older food.  This keeps your food waste low and your budget on track.

Don’t forget the freezer. If it is older than 6 months, it is probably freezer burned by now and can be tossed.  Store your foods in airtight containers or bags and label them (include the date).  No more “mystery meat” for dinner, and no more wasted food.

The freezer is often underutilized. Bread, scrambled egg mix, leftover coffee, tea, and broths can all be frozen for later use. Your homemade soup, cooked rice and other dinner entrees can also be frozen if you don’t have a chance to eat the leftovers in time.

Try using an ice cube try to store single serving pieces of purees, sauces and beverages. Freeze leftover coffee for an iced coffee drink, or a cube of frozen veggie broth to whip up some gravy later in the week. Make smoothies down the road by freezing mashed or chopped fruit. Almost anything can be frozen except for canned foods in the can (although they can usually be removed and frozen) and eggs in the shell.

To keep your refrigerator decluttered, go through it once a week to identify foods that need to be eaten soon and toss what is no longer edible. Once your refrigerator is decluttered, you’ll save money by having less food spoilage and eat better because all of your food is easy to find.

Keep Your Refrigerator Running at its Best Quality

Making sure your refrigerator is well maintained can also prolong the life of the food inside. If your refrigerator isn’t working correctly, food is more likely to spoil. Consider these tips for proper maintenance of your refrigerator:

MOM.  Can you even think of another word that has the power to invoke more emotion, passion, respect and admiration?  Moms seem to have a special power – a superwoman power of sort.  Who else can do the job of a CEO, housekeeper, cook, psychologist, janitor and taxi driver all in one day? Maya Angelou said in her 1969 memoir, “To describe my mother would be to write about a hurricane in its perfect power.” A hurricane.  Now that’s some power.  Forbes.com ( compiled a list of the powerful moms from around the globe. It’s an interesting read, but if you think about it there are also a few moms from pop culture that have helped blaze the trail to empower women as well.

There you have it - 5 TV moms with their own style of superwoman powers.  Admittedly, some may be a bit unconventional.  Nonetheless, these moms get the job done and they have empowered our tomorrows.