Like almost everyone else, I now need to interact with others working in different time zones. Determining their current time is the chore of this neat menu applet for the Mac called There. Unlike a world clock, the There applet tracks the time per person. I can instantly look up a friend/colleague and it gives me their current time; if they do travel and are a There user as well, I see their time at their new location. Ditto if I travel. You can import a whole Slack team and get their local times. It is currently free and will soon be available on Windows and phones. — KK

I  am a very happy user of You Need a Budget (YNAB), a personal finances subscription service (get a free month when you sign up with this link). They also have a good YouTube channel and I particularly enjoyed this episode where the host recommended five books that changed her life. Those books are: The 5 Second Rule, You Need a Budget, Daring Greatly, How to Manage Your Home Without Losing Your Mind, and Getting Things Done.  — MF

Lately, I’ve been marking each task on my to-do list as a high attention task or a low attention task, and through out the day, I will alternate and work only on the things that match my energy level. I’ve noticed that these “energy audits” have enabled me to power through bunches of tasks that I tend to avoid because they seem tedious or time-consuming. (Source: 6 tools that are more powerful than to-do lists for productivity). — CD

The Beginning Japanese Kanji Language Practice Pad looks like a daily calendar. On each tear-off page is a different Japanese kanji character, along with its definition, pronunciation, sample use, stroke order, and space to practice writing it. — MF

Every week Mark and I interview a maker on our Cool Tools podcast. We ask them to rave about four of their favorite tools for 25 minutes. The range of tools they recommend is surprising and refreshing; we are always expanding our possibilities. You can subscribe to the Cool Tools Podcast from the usual platforms. (We have 220 episodes!)  If you know of a remarkable person who is into tools, send us an introduction, and we’ll try to have them as a guest. — KK

Every once in awhile I will be scrolling through Reddit and come across a short reminder or tip post that simply says: Relax your jaw. I’m not sure at what moment it became second nature to me, but I noticed in the last week I’ve started relaxing my jaw at the first sign of anxiety or discomfort, which is great, because I then check-in with my entire body and relax my shoulders, and just that in itself is an instant mood booster. So I would like to pay it forward with a reminder to relax your jaw. — CD

One of the benefits of working from home is that you potentially have more autonomy in your work. As Dan Pink explains in this brief, but densely animated talk entitled: “Drive: The surprising truth about what motivates us,” autonomy is one of the three main drivers of getting stuff done (money is not). Use this reset time to optimize these three factors in what you do. — KK

Radio Garden is a website that presents you with a spinnable globe of the Earth. The green dots represent radio stations. Rotate the globe, click a dot and you are suddenly listening to live radio in that part of the world. Right now I’m listening to Radio Seaside Wave in Nakhodka, Russia. — MF

This episode of the Tim Ferris podcast with Psychotherapist Esther Perel was very timely and enlightening. Perel shares templates for navigating the tactically challenging situations that relationships might be facing at this moment in time, as well as phrases for deepening the conversation with loved ones. For example, with those who are prone to answering “great” when you ask how they are doing, a good follow up question would be “how are you sleeping?” This is a wake-up call for me because I am one of those people who feels like I am not allowed to complain when there is a lot to be grateful for, but in her words, “You can feel humble, you can feel thankful to things, but you can’t feel great in this moment because if you’re feeling great in this moment, you’re detached. You’re disconnected.” And that warrants a moment of acknowledgement. Another tip I pulled from this that was inspired by a past episode with Brené Brown was to each morning give your partner a heads up of where your emotional/energy level is at with a percentage of how full your tank is. So if I don’t sleep well or am feeling cranky, I will let my husband know I’m at 20%, so please tread lightly. — CD

One of our cats is getting too old to comfortably hop into our Clevercat litter box, so I needed to get a litterbox with a low profile so she could easily get in and out of. I ended up buying this one (Pet Mate 42036 Arm & Hammer Large Sifting Litter Pan) that has a plastic screen so you can clean the litter without a scoop. It works surprisingly well! – MF

I’ve had this book (Comfortable with Uncertainty by Pema Chödrön) for years but find myself pulling it off the shelf more in the last month than ever before. You don’t need to be a meditation expert or Buddhist to appreciate the message. Each chapter is a short lesson in self-compassion and awareness, designed to make you comfortable with uncertainty. It is one of those books you can open to any page and find wisdom. There is a Kindle version, but I think it belongs in everyone’s library. — CD

We are all Zooming, Skyping, Webexing, Google hanging. Nothing will increase the quality of a video conference better than having a good mic pointed at everyone’s mouth. The least expensive way to get a good mic is with a headset. Lightweight ones don’t have to look dorky. It’s what I use. Which headset should you get today? Matt Mullenweg, founder of Wordpress, whose entire 900-person company has worked remotely for a decade, outdid Wirecutter in trying out and testing all USB headsets. He posted his work and recommendations here on his blog post, Don’t Mute. — KK

I work best if my office room temperature is at least 74 degrees Fahrenheit or more (and I can’t be the only one, read: “Women want the office to be warmer. Science now backs them up”). The days of arguing with my husband over the thermostat are over, because I bought myself this AmazonBasics mini heater ($20), and now this perfect-sized, 500-watt heater sits on top of my desk and keeps me warm while I work, and this is my favorite thing right now. — CD

Some folks such as journalists, activists, tech executives, crypto fans, and politicians may need more online security beyond the already strong 2-factor authentication they should be using. Google offers an Advance Protection Program for the legitimately paranoid. — KK

There’s a lot of back-and-forth about the effectiveness of facemasks to prevent the spread of Covid-19. The ragmask is one you can make on your own by following the PDF instructions. It looks more comfortable than wrapping a bandana around your face. — MF

These are just a few words of advice that I had saved, which have become much more meaningful to me lately:

• “If all you did was just looked for things to appreciate, you would live a joyously spectacular life.” ― Esther Abraham Hicks

• “Let go or be dragged.” — Zen Proverb

• “Be messy and complicated and afraid and show up anyways.” — Glennon Doyle Melton

• “"No.” is a complete sentence.“ — Unknown

This blog post served as a nudge to remind me that my computer is a tool, not a distraction device, and had some good strategies for making the most of my screen time. Like, “Full Screen is your Friend,” and you don’t need time tracking software to help you focus on a task, just use a sticky note. Write down what you need to focus on and put it on your monitor where you can see it, and only use your computer with that specific purpose in mind. It’s fool-proof. — CD

Now that we are stuck at home, we have a lot more time to relax at home. My family of four is using the living room together in the evenings. My wife does a crossword puzzle and my two daughters and I sketch. At the same time, we listen to a terrific old radio drama series called Suspense. Archive.org has 911 episodes, which may or may not last until the stay-at-home order is lifted, depending on how many episodes we listen to each night. — MF

SketchUp is a general-purpose 3D design software for makers that is free in its basic version, and is very popular. There are dozens of other programs for precision parts, or organic shapes, but SketchUp scales nicely between 3D printing to woodworking to architecture, and is super easy to learn. By far the best tutorial on how to learn SketchUp (a skill transferable to most other 3D apps) is this free YouTube series, SketchUp Tutorial by April Wilkerson. She is an ace teacher, with the kind of practical hints I needed.  — KK

I recommend this long movie for a stay-at-home visit to India. This 2009 Bollywood hit is called 3 Idiots (a better title would be 3 Renegades) and was the all-time bestselling movie in India in its time. Besides being fun and campy, almost a parody of a bollywood hit, it is a brilliant depiction of the ongoing tension between tradition and innovation in this most populous country on the planet. Here’s what a billion young Indians are contending with. Although it is almost 3 hours long, I’ve seen it three times. This version on Amazon Prime is in Hindi. You need to turn CC on for subtitles. — KK