We Found A Fix!

1. Cleaning- Cast a Sparkling Shower Spell: Keep a dishwashing wand filled with dish soap in your shower and give the tiles a quick scrub while you wait for your conditioner to set. A 30-second once-daily buff will keep soap scum from building up—and keep you from having to do a full overhaul on cleaning day. You’ll step away from a cleaning session smelling fabulous rather than smelling like Fabuloso. Source: Consumer Reports
2. Tech- Find Out Who’s Selling Your Personal Info: Let companies tell on themselves by putting the company name as your middle name when you purchase or sign up for something online. When you receive a message addressed to Wile ‘Acme Corp.’ Coyote, you’ll know who sold your information to other companies that are now spamming your inbox. Then use your discretion when dealing with them again. Source: Lifehacker
3. Home- A Sure Tip for a Smooth Paint Job: Before busting out the brushes and ­rollers and applying a new coat of ­Agreeable Grey paint to your foyer, ­apply a coat of lotion to your arms, hands, face and any other exposed skin. An oily barrier atop your skin will save you (and your arm hair) from wayward paint splatters, which will wash away with ease. Source: Family Handyman
4. Knowledge- The Student Becomes the Teacher: Rather than quizzing your kids for their big chemistry exam, have them give you a lesson. The Feynman Technique, a study method named for Nobel Prize winner Richard Feynman, hypothesizes that you fully grasp a topic once you can successfully teach it. So after your freshman attempts to put the test material into sophomoric terms, any lingering questions will reveal which chapters they need to go back to and study more. If you totally understand everything, then so do they. Source: Computer Systems Institute
5. Travel- Don’t Lose Your Luggage (or Your Mind):

   Photo Credit: Shutterstock

   Downloading an airline’s app can spare you the anxiety of wondering where your luggage is. As personnel scan its barcode, many airlines will update the status of your checked bag: loaded, unloaded, ready at baggage claim. If you have a connection, the app will even confirm that your suitcase made the flight with you. Plus, it will deliver the quickest and most up-to-date information about boarding and gate changes. Source: Nerdwallet
6. Green- A DIY Moisture Meter:

   Photo Credit: Emiko Franzen

   Letting the sprinkler spray for hours over a brown patch won’t necessarily bring back your lush green lawn this summer, nor does a brown patch mean that the grass is totally dead. Determine if your yard actually needs a drink by sticking a screwdriver into the soil. Only water if the ground is so hard that you can’t push the metal part farther than three inches into the ground. Source: California Water News Daily
7. Tech- The Librarian in Your Pocket:

   Phot Credit: Emiko Franzen

   Your iPhone can help find the book that Dewey Decimal insists is on this crowded shelf. Take a photo of the bookshelf you’re searching, then start typing the title into your camera roll’s search function. Optical character recognition technology will highlight where the book’s name appears in the photo (e.g., top row, eighth book from the left). This hack is especially handy for your home library and checking cluttered secondhand store bookshelves for a certain title you’ve been hunting. Source: Lifehacker
8. Green/Holiday- Don’t Call It a Grift Tag: You’ve been inundated with cards around the holidays and your birthday—we get it, you’re popular! Rather than stuffing them in a drawer to collect dust (or worse, trashing them, as glitter, foil and lamination aren’t recyclable), separate the cover from the note to make gift tags. Cut the already festively decorated card stock into squares, then use a hole punch and ribbon to attach your one- of-a-kind tags to wrapped presents. Source: Lathe & Quill
9. Cleaning- The Sun Is on Your Side: You store red sauce in a plastic container one time, and the container never lets you forget it. Remove that ­orange tint by leaving the container in front of a sunny window for a few hours (or even a few days) after you wash and dry it. The sun’s rays will work as a natural bleach and help lighten the stains. Source: Real Simple
10. Work- The 3-3-3 Method Ups Productivity: Try planning each workday around the 3-3-3 model, starting with spending the first three hours to deep thinking on your most important project. Next, complete three other urgent tasks that don’t need deep thinking, before moving on and completing three ‘maintenance’ tasks, like replying to emails or scheduling other work. Designed by time-management expert Oliver Burkeman, starting the day with a clear, focused head ready for a three-hour block of deep thinking sets the tone for the rest of your day, while increasing your productivity. The idea is to avoid burnout by alternating between intense focus on a critical task and completing smaller, potentially more varied tasks. Source: Lifehacker
11. Money- Buy in Bulk to Spend Less: There are lots of ways to trick yourself into spending less, like deleting credit card information from your online accounts for an added obstacle while impulse shopping, or paying in cash so you physically see money leaving your wallet. Scott Rick, a professor at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business, suggests designating one day of the week to make all your ‘want’ purchases. Having to buy several in one sitting might just prompt you to reconsider some as not so wanted after all. Source: Wall Street Journal
12. Home- A Lock Combination You Can’t Forget:

    Photo Credit: Emiko Franzen

    You thought you knew the combination of your bike lock, lockbox or locker...but have since discovered that your memory isn’t quite as secure as your belongings. Here’s a trick to keep you from forgetting: Pick a number, then write the combination on the lock’s underside in permanent marker minus that number. (E.g., if a combination lock’s code is 06-14-24, and your lucky number is 4, you’ll write 02-10-20.) One number is easier to remember than three. Math challenged? Pick an easy number, like 1, 2 or 10. Source: Family Handyman
13. Outdoor- A Mosquito Deterrent That’ll Blow You Away:

    Photo Credit: Emiko Franzen

    A strategically placed outdoor fan on your deck or patio will keep away mosquitoes, which generally aren’t very strong fliers. Turns out the ­hidden weakness of the summer’s greatest and most ­notorious pest is not citronella candles, tiki torches or bug spray, but a stiff breeze. Source: American Mosquito Control Association
14. Cooking- Be Kind, Re-Wine: Pour leftover wine (we know, we know) into a sturdy resealable plastic bag so it’ll keep and you won’t have to break out the corkscrew next time you need a splash for cooking. Store it in the freezer, and don’t hesitate to marry remnants of reds, whites and pinks as you taste-test over time. Defrost and deglaze to flavour stews and braises. Source: Alison Roman
15. Health- Buy Time in an Emergency: Keep essential health information (name, birthdate, medical history, medications and dosages, allergies, blood type, pre-existing conditions, emergency contacts) on a sheet of paper found easily in an emergency (laminated in your wallet or stuck to the fridge). Your list can also be stored in an ­iPhone or Android’s Medical ID feature accessible from your device’s lockscreen. Having these details might save first-responders crucial minutes of pillaging your ­bathroom cabinets instead of saving you. Source: New York Fire Department
16. Travel- Tilt the Turbulence Balance:

    Photo Credit: Emiko Franzen

    Turbulence isn’t any real danger to your aircraft—only to your ­now-blurry in-flight entertainment experience. Choose a seat near the wing if it really upsets you: Proximity to the plane’s center of gravity reduces jostling. “Think of it like a seesaw. If you’re right in the middle, you won’t feel much movement,” says travel writer Bailey Berg. “If you are on one of the seesaw ends—whee!” Source: Afar
17. Food- Get More Juice From a Lemon:

    Photo Credit: Shutterstock

    Pop any citrus fruit in the microwave and you’ll not only make it easier to squeeze, but you’ll also get more juice overall. Microwave for 10 to 30 seconds, depending on the fruit’s size— a large grapefruit will need longer than a lemon—and be sure to let the fruit cool before handling it.
18. Cleaning- The Fastest Way to Fold? Don’t:

    Photo Credit: Shutterstock

    Laundry is an endless prison sentence, but folding is one of our own creation. KC Davis, author of How to Keep House While Drowning, realized the chore was a time sink and gave it up. “We don’t fold clothes but rather hang shirts and then toss everything else into organized baskets,” she told Real Simple. For things like underwear and pajamas, wrinkles don’t matter. And other things don’t wrinkle as much as you’d think, especially if you lay them flat and don’t overcrowd the bins. Source: Federal Trade Commission
19. Health- Inhale to De-stress: If you’re feeling overwhelmed, step outside—or open a window. Researchers say getting more oxygen to the brain is a quick and effective stress reliever. “Taking in a deep breath of fresh air can immediately shift your neurochemistry,” says Deborah Serani, a psychology professor at Adelphi University in Garden City, New York, and the author of Living with Depression.
20. Green- Pad Your Bags: If you need to pack or ship an item and are fresh out of Bubble Wrap and packing peanuts, look no further than the plastic shopping bags spilling out of your kitchen cabinet (produce bags work too). Fill them with air, tie them off at the top and let them buffer your shopping returns or dormitory-­bound snacks from the tumult of a delivery truck. Source: Lifehacker
21. Cooking- Egg in Your Salad, Not on Your Face:

    Photo Credit: Emiko Franzen

    Your hand-held pastry blender isn’t just for mixing dough. Whip yours out to quickly chop hard-boiled eggs to top a salad or for egg salad. It takes seconds, can be done right in the bowl you’re already using to mix, and eliminates messy cutting. As if your egg salad could get any better. Source: Martha Stewart
22. Tech- The Kindle Swindler: E-book readers store much more than your A Song of Ice and Fire fantasy series—like the billing information used for your e-book purchase. Hackers know that Kindles and Nooks are off your ­cybersecurity radar and may try to get you to download malicious e-book files. ­Marijus Briedis, chief technology officer at NordVPN, advises only downloading books from verified sellers and library apps, and regularly updating device software to repair security vulnerabilities. Source: NordVPN
23. Mixology/Camping- A Digestif After a Long Day of Roughing It: While slugging whiskey from a flask by the campfire is the cowboy way, it is certainly not the only way. Premix a spirit-­based cocktail that can be enjoyed as is or thinned with cold water at the end of your hike. Batch out one ounce of vermouth, two ounces of whiskey and a few dashes of bitters into plastic bags and store them in a bottle to enjoy a Manhattan under the stars. Negronis and old-fashioneds are good options too. Source: Outside; Bon Appétit
24. Tech- Preserve Your Device’s Battery:

    Photo Credit: Shutterstock

    It sounds counterintuitive, but unplugging your laptop, smartphone or tablet can help save its battery. The capacity of the lithium-ion batteries most of these devices use diminishes slightly with each charging cycle, so keeping them plugged in when you don’t need to degrades the battery capacity more quickly. Aim to keep the charge between 50 and 80 per cent. A good strategy? Plug your device in first thing in the morning, recommends Tim Katsch, former vice president of a tech repair company. Once it’s charged, unplug it for the rest of the day.Source: Amazon; Best Buy
25. Pets- Test Your Dog’s Hydration:

    Photo Credit: Shutterstock

    To quickly check whether your dog is drinking enough water in hot weather, gently pinch the skin around his or her neck. “It should snap back down,” says Nicole Ellis, a pet-lifestyle expert at rover.com. “But if the dog is dehydrated, it’ll go down very slowly.” Do it once on a temperate day so you have a healthy reference point.

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