I’m not a prepper. I did zero prep for Y2K; didn’t even fill my gas tank. A lot of prepper talk is sheer nuts, and even damaging. However in an emergency I aim to be a help not a burden, so some degree of being prepared is needed. The least insane prepper site is The Prepared, which dials back a lot of the paranoia and nuttiness, and is more Wirecutter style reviews of gear. Their intensity is two notches above mine, but at least their advice is sane. I got some good tips about being responsibly prepared. — KK
One thing that has been making my workday easy and versatile is this very comfortable, useful lap desk by LapGear ($35). On it, I can fit my 15" Macbook, my mouse, and my phone. Which means I can easily switch up my workspace by moving it to my comfy chair or couch and still be productive. I am loving it and should have bought one sooner. — CD
I’ve tried a lot of vegetable peelers, and the OXO Good Grips Pro Y-Peeler is now my favorite. It feels solid in my hand, and it has a long blade to speed up peeling. It’s great for peeling sweet potatoes. — MF
I reuse jars from the kitchen, for storage and for display items. Getting the jar labels off was a chore until I started using Goo Gone (which we’ve mentioned before but never explicitly recommended). It’s an odorless penetrating oil that unsticks adhesives from anywhere people stick stuff. Spray on, let soak and peel off. Leaves a temporary oil film that evaporates. — KK
If you’re a member of Amazon Prime, you get guaranteed delivery dates for your Prime purchases. I recently learned you can get a $5 credit if a delivery is late. Just go to Amazon’s Live Chat and tell the representative that you have a late delivery and want a credit. It’s worked for me all four times I’ve tried it. — MF
A delightful Instagram account I enjoy: Accidental Wes Anderson. It’s a curated collection of still images in the style of a Wes Anderson movie. Same symmetry, colors, and tone. The way Wes Anderson would view this Instagram is not in a stream but in grid view. — KK
Whenever there is a swarm of firetrucks in our neighborhood, I check my Nextdoor app in case anyone has posted any info, and it was there that one kind neighbor pointed me to the PulsePoint Respond app, which informs you of real-time medical and fire emergencies near you. If you’re CPR-certified, you can also sign up to receive “CPR-needed” notifications if someone nearby is having a cardiac emergency. Unfortunately, it’s not available in all areas yet, but definitely worth checking out. — CD
Artist Olivia De Recat made a cartoon with lines to illustrate different kinds of relationships and how they change over time . The last one might make you a bit misty-eyed. — MF
We have a chocolate lab and a long-haired cat and their dark hairs can be found on every surface of our house. This $25 reusable roller (ChomChom Roller) is the fastest and easiest way to clean our couch and comforter. You just roll back and forth over flat surfaces and the roller catches all the hair in a dust receptacle that you empty out. Much more efficient than sticky lint rollers. — CD
Plywood is an underrated material. But the really good stuff can be hard to find. Baltic Birch plywood is a super-duper version of plywood with many thin layers without voids that is as sturdy as metal, but lighter and much easier to use. You can fabricate things from it that you otherwise might use metal or plastic. But real Baltic plywood is hard to find. Big box stores like HomeDepot and Lowes often carry Birch plywood that is hard wood only on the outside layers; inside is softwood, which is okay but not great. I found I could get real, dense, all hardwood Baltic Birch plywood online in smaller sheets. For the kind of projects you’d want to use super plywood for (jigs, boxes, toys, prototypes), you don’t need, or want, large sheets. These 20x30 inch ¾ inch thick sheets ($16) from Woodworker Source are perfect for me. — KK
“Basic economy” is the cheapest way to fly on United. You don’t get to select your seat and you can’t check any bags or even bring a standard carry-on bag without paying extra. You are allowed one personal item, measuring 17x10x9” or less. That’s smaller than most backpacks and is an unusual size. Fortunately, Aerolite makes a bag measuring 16x10x8” (called the 16 Inch Aerolite Carry On Hand Luggage Flight Duffle Bag) and it’s big enough for a couple of changes of clothes, toiletries, electronics, and a laptop. — MF
Anne-Laure of Ness Labs has a great post on the exercise of writing your own eulogy as a blueprint for your future. The process of writing down the exact values and accomplishments you want to be remembered for can provide clarity as to the small steps you can take today to create that narrative. Her post provides example questions to help you draft a eulogy and it’s up to you to work backwards to take action. I also spent about 25 minutes using this free step-by-step guide to writing my own obituary (angstrom.life/goals) and when I was done I was given a mission statement to create the imaginary legacy I want to leave behind. My life goals are very simple: write more poetry, which is something I yell at myself everyday, and to perfect my poor drawing skills so that I can create the stories that won’t stop gnawing at me. — CD
BriefingDay is a free daily half-page email that lists 5 very interesting articles around the web. I usually click and read at least one of them, with pleasure. It’s curated by Thomas Marban who created Hvper, the internet on one page. — KK
We live in an old house and the sewer pipes get clogged a lot. I got tired of paying a plumber $150 to clear the pipe every time it clogged, so I bought this $22 hose attachment, called a Drain King. It’s a rubber bladder that you insert into the sewer line opening. When you turn the hose on, the bladder expands, forcing the water to push the clog out. It has never failed me. Read the glowing testimonials on Amazon for this thing. — MF
I’ve been a long-time user of Google Alerts to help me track internet mentions of anything work-related like “Recomendo”. Google Alerts are free and easy to set up, and every week I get an email digest of new results. And if you’re a paying customer of Feedly Pro like me, you can fine-tune your keyword searches to get real-time alerts and create your own custom newsroom. These Feedly tips will help you refine your keyword searches, discover more results and weed out whatever is irrelevant. — CD
Don’t toss a can of spray paint out — or any spray can — because it’s clogged. I keep a bunch of inexpensive replacement caps (mostly sold to graffiti artists) on hand to fix this problem. Swap a new cap in and the can is like new. I’ve mentioned this hack before but this sample bag from The Yard Art Supply ($14) has a better variety of 50 male and female caps to fit any can. — KK
Finally, a definitive “How-to” on how to load the dishwasher. Consumer Reports shared an interactive graphic and a video on the best method for most machines. I was surprised to find that dishes and pots with baked on food CAN be placed faced down toward the spray arm. I was always told to not block it. — CD
“If you’re the smartest person in the room you’re in the wrong room.”
“Never miss a good chance to shut up.”
“Don’t argue with a stranger unless you’re prepared for them to pull out a gun and shoot you.”
“Before buying anything expensive online, keep it in your shopping cart for 24 hours. You may end up changing your mind.”
“What got you here won’t get you there.”
— MF
You can access federal tax filing software for free from the IRS. The IRS Free File webpage is hard to find because paid tax software vendors like Intuit’s TurboTax overwhelm Google with ads for pseudo-free software. Intuit successfully lobbied the US government to prevent the feds from making free tax software widely available, and in a compromise, Intuit offers IRS Free File by Turbotax, free tax prep software for anyone earning less than $36,000 per year. — KK
After reading Barbara Dace’s recommendation for Amoji Foam Clogs ($20) I ordered a pair on Amazon. They are indeed as comfortable as she said, and they are easy to slip on and off. Even without a heel they stay secure on my feet as I walk around the house. They come in a variety of colors. I bought red, the most obnoxious color available. — MF