On social media, what was once conventional beauty wisdom can easily start to trend after a quick rebranding to make it seem like a brand-new, cutting-edge tip. Just as easily, it can be replaced with another hot new trend, which could contradict the first one. Remember how beauty gurus used to insist you should put a…
I’m not saying that cryptocurrency, “meme stocks,” and NFT are gigantic scams. They’re neither multi-level marketing schemes for computer nerds, nor fancy pyramids that are likely to end in heartbreak for anyone who puts money into them. Other people are saying these kinds of things. But I’m not.
One time passwords, otherwise known as OTPs, are great for keeping your accounts safe. They force anyone looking to sign into an app or site to not only know the username and password, but also provide a one-time code from a trusted device. Bu if you’ve ever received your OTPs via text, you know they can start to add…
A weekend away or even an extended work trip can be a fun break from your day-to-day life, but the unfortunate fact is that while you’re gone, your responsibilities are still waiting for you at home. If one of those responsibilities includes a dog, you have to plan ways in advance to keep your pet happy, healthy,…
No matter our age, we should never stop learning, growing, and expanding our understanding of the world around us. While this fact can lead to beautiful epiphanies, it can also lead to utter humiliation. As I write this, someone somewhere just had their pronunciation of “Tupperware” corrected—much to the joy of the…
Laptops have sure come a long way. The first computer that can be considered a true laptop was the Osborne 1, released in 1981. It weighed a spritely 25 pounds, had a 5-inch screen, and cost $1,800—about $5,567.29 in today’s money. It was an instant hit, but its sales collapsed as competitors entered the market. Just…
Unless your job involves working with building codes, they’re probably not something you encounter or think about on a regular basis. Though we may refer to a questionable electrical setup in an apartment, or a building where several doors are blocked or inaccessible as looking like they’re “not up to code,” most of…
When we think of food poisoning, it’s usually in the context of the frequent food recalls on everything from salads, to onions, to dried spices.
Let’s get real: Sometimes accent walls can look more like accident walls—where someone ran out of paint, and never finished the job. Maybe it was their choice of color, or the wall they selected, but whatever it was, it’s not working. And yet, Instagram is plastered with posts from design accounts showing perfectly…
Do you remember what it feels like to genuinely be bored? Not like being bored at work and trying to get the hours to pass faster. But the kind of boredom you experienced as a child in the waiting room of the dentist’s office—where there were no toys, you had already read the only issue of Highlights magazine…
When you sleep, you’re unconscious by definition, but that doesn’t mean your bed should be anything less than luxurious. You deserve to cuddle up surrounded by the finest things—and a few cheap swaps and additions are all you need to be dreaming like royalty in a fancy oasis of your own creation.
Evernote is a proper riches to rags story. Once the default note-taking app for anyone and everyone, it is now incredibly hard to love. And it’s not so much to do with the app itself (which has tried its best to update itself with the times), but with the company: With every new update, the Evernote free plan becomes…
It’s a strange day to be writing about pop culture, but much like the TikTokers below who are taking stupid walks for their “stupid” mental health, I will trudge on to tell you about a new take on an older meme, what “goblin mode” means, and why everywhere is starting to look like everywhere else. I guess I’m just a…
Buying avocados is always a bit of a crapshoot: They tend to ripen at unpredictable intervals, with that fleeting moment of ripeness coming and going before you have a chance to eat them. Sure, you can freeze them, but that does mean a change in texture, which might not always work for what you want.
Twitch streaming integration has returned to Xbox consoles. Microsoft dropped Twitch integration back in 2017 in favor of its own streaming platform called Mixer, which is now defunct, but Xbox players can once again watch and broadcast on Twitch directly from their Xbox One or Xbox Series X/S dashboard without the…
Possums look like scraggly, ratty creatures—or at least that’s what I used to think. You see them trundling across roads at nighttime, sharp-toothed bundles of fur with a long naked tail trailing behind. But one day, I visited a museum that had pelts of dozens of different animals in a hands-on display. Some were…
Given the proliferation of weird and dangerous internet “challenges” like the Tide Pod challenge, the blackout game, and the milk crate challenge, it’s easy to get all high and mighty about how dumb and ridiculous kids are. But you were dumb once, too. Your parents were dumb. Their parents were dumb. London hipsters…
When we refer to someone who is “extremely online,” it’s pretty literal. This is someone who knows—and references—all the latest memes and never the outdated ones that peaked three weeks ago. They are always on Twitter and, if not participating in the daily discourse, at least observing it. They know all the news of…
When Rome fell to the barbarians, it didn’t happen overnight. The same thing can be said for neighborhoods that get ruined by short-term rentals like Airbnbs. When you bought your home or signed the lease on your apartment you probably thought you were buying a refuge, a place where you could relax, recharge, and live…
If you’re still hanging on to a years-old iPhone and resisting the pressure to buy the latest, shiniest version, props to you. You’re probably experiencing slower performance and outdated features, among other things, but Apple is said to support iPhones with iOS upgrades for around seven years—long beyond a 1–2 year…
You’ve probably heard this before: When you’re anxious or stressed, there are breathing exercises that can help. And even though you’ve heard it before, you probably ignored the idea, because something as natural as breathing doesn’t seem like it needs much practice. But there are exercises that you definitely should…
After a breakup, there are a few things you can do to get through the emotional upheaval, sometimes in conjunction with each other. You can mope and spend a few days in bed. You can undertake a forced glow-up and hit the gym. You can surround yourself with friends and have a distracting blast. Or, you can throw…
Last week, I wrote about a friend of mine who admitted they had so much trouble getting their family out the door on time that they made their kids sleep in their school clothes for the next day. It occurred to me that this sort of slightly-sketchy-but-totally-effective parenting maneuver was probably more the rule…
Potatoes are easily manipulated. Slice, dice, mash, fry, boil, bake—they will all create a completely different dish, and you can achieve a wide variety of flavors and textures without too much work on your part. Take the tater tot and french fry, for example: Both are fried, but it’s the stuff that happens before the…
Anyone who has ever had to face the sticker-shock associated with replacing a vehicle’s tire (or, worse, all of them) has probably wondered whether they could just opt for a used tired instead. Well, you can—but you probably shouldn’t. As Consumer Reports put it: “We say, ‘Nay, nay.’ Don’t buy used tires: You don’t…
Most of us, myself included, spend a significant portion of our day sitting—usually on chairs or couches. Sitting all day long isn’t great for our health, but if possible, switching to sitting on the floor (even just for short periods of time) actually can help improve our overall health. That’s because the movements…
Between labor shortages, ongoing supply chain issues, disruptive winter weather, and various recalls, you may have found that some of your go-to products are noticeably absent from the shelves of retailers in your area. And perhaps you’ve already tried all the usual ways of dealing with shortages like these, including…
Even the healthiest, fittest, happiest, and most optimistic people feel physically and/or mentally rundown from time to time. For the rest of us, it’s more of a daily occurrence. Either way, when you’re feeling a bit off, the sooner you can pinpoint the root cause(s), the sooner you can attempt to address them.
As spring approaches and you begin to think about what you’re going to plant in your garden and/or yard for the upcoming growing season, there’s a lot to consider: From what kinds of foods you want to grow, to your favorite types of flowers and shrubs, to which plants are the easiest to grow.
In addition to the usual pet videos and pop culture memes, cleaning tips and demonstrations have become a constant presence in our social media feeds. Dramatic before-and-after photos of objects, once tarnished beyond recognition, now shiny and new, thanks to a specific technique or product the poster swears by.
Most people who have to regularly drive in the snow have some kind of tip or trick for making the trip safer or easier—things like checking your windshield wiper fluid more often, and keeping blankets and emergency supplies in your car. You also may have heard a piece of advice about tires: Specifically, that you’ll…
For those who drink enough seltzer to justify the cost (and counter space), soda makers (like SodaStream, and those that followed) are a convenient way of getting your fix of fizzy water without having to schlep cases of it from the store. And while it’s definitely a low-maintenance appliance, you do have to clean…
In case you blinked and missed the TikTok #barkatyourdogchallenge, it’s exactly what it sounds like: A person barking at their dog. More specifically, the goal of the challenge is to take a video of your dog reacting to you barking at them, in their face.
At least four infants have been hospitalized with bacterial infections linked to Similac, Alimentum and EleCare powdered baby formulas, prompting a voluntary recall, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reports. One death has also been reported, but has not been confirmed to be solely attributable to bacterial…
People who live in areas that experience all four seasons tend to have certain expectations for each one—usually corresponding with a weather worksheet they completed in elementary school. (Summer = sun, fall = changing leaf, winter = snowflake, and spring = either an umbrella or raincloud.)
The history of video games is built on pixel art classics like Super Mario Bros., Super Metroid, and Final Fantasy VI, but the graphical medium has made its way back to the forefront of gaming thanks to a booming interest from indie game creators.
Building out of the success of game sensations like Cave Story and Fez,…
When the first iPhone hit the market, I was deeply suspicious and mocked the very idea of a smartphone. When my friend showed off their shiny new phone, I wondered out loud why, exactly, I needed to be able to simulate drinking a beer on a (remarkably tiny) iPhone screen. Like everyone else, I long ago admitted how…
This week we mourn the passing of Pot Roast, a beloved cat who millions of TikTok users were lucky enough to have grace their algorithms in recent years. While we collectively grieve the loss of this furry icon across social media, we can cheer ourselves up by turning to the many other online animals making our lives…
