I've been doing a lot of research on ergonomic and safe ways to move. Move as in getting a new house or apartment, not flexing muscles. I came across a great mantra that can be applied to most things - "Lift Twice".

The idea is that you think things through before you actually take action. That way you are less likely to injure yourself. If you apply it to more than just lifting boxes it can be a great boon. It also brings in visualization (running a perfect simulation of the motion in your brain ahead of time) which has been shown to improve performance and accuracy.

So think before you do.

The Penagain ink pen is a great ergonomic tool for writing. But I didn't know if it worked in the left hand as well as it does in the right hand. Well, a reader emailed me the other day to let me know that it does work just as well for the left-handed user. His thoughts:

"I purchased a Penagain pen today, and I'm left handed. I use a pen all day every day at work, I have a lot of paperwork to complete throughout the day. I stopped to purchase replacement pens around lunch time and found the Penagain pen. I used it the rest of the day. When I came home I went to the web site and found your article from there. My First impressions of the design of the pen were optimistic, but by the time I got off work I stopped to buy a second one. I want to use the pen for a while but I really think that this will be the pen that I will continue to use and buy either the pen or the refills if I can find them. I really like the design, I think it has improved my handwriting, time will tell. I will still have to carry a stick pen for my customers, I doubt any of them would know how to use the PenAgain much less ever have seen one before. So far I like it."

Fiskars, maker of fine orange handled gardening tools, has won five Good Design awards (awarded by the Chicago Athenaeum: Museum for Architecture and Design). “The GOOD DESIGN Award recognizes superiority in innovation, construction, function and utility. We are honored that the Chicago Athenaeum has recognized our sewing and garden tool designs as some of the best in the world,” said Paul Tonnesen, President of Fiskars Americas.

So, if you eed a few new tools come this spring, check out the winners:

• Gingher Rotary Cutter
• Fiskars Garden Multi-Snip
• Fiskars Rear Pivot Bypass Pruner
• Fiskars Carabiner Bypass Pruner
• Fiskars Rear Pivot Grass Shears

I ran into a little human factors issues when I was installing a new automatic garage door opener. This is a picture of the circuit board for the wired button (the one you mount nest to the door to the house). You need to attach a red and a white wire to it. The circuit board has white (left) and red (right) printed on it so you know exactly where to stick the wires. Why then is there a red dot on the spot for the white wire?