I can’t tell you how to divide fractions, but I can tell you the easiest way to clean an intake vent or how to cure a hangover really quickly.
I have more tips than you could ever imagine written down or stored in my mind, but I’ve only listed ten in this article. Too much information all at once can overwhelm instead of educate. At least that’s what I tell myself.
If you break a dish and are not sure that you got it all swept up, lay a flashlight (turned on, obviously) on the floor and it will cast a shadow on any shards left behind.
Wearing green on camera (both still photos and videos) will make you appear smaller. Your family pictures will thank me.
If you come across a screw or bolt that won’t budge, pour some coke (the drink) over it and watch it loosen on up.
Make rust disappear on hard surfaces by rubbing it with aluminum foil that has been soaked in vinegar.
This is more of a warning than a tip, but at many bars the drink garnishments sit out for days and sometimes more. I would ask for no garnishments if I were you.
Drinking two glasses of Gatorade has the same pain relieving effect as taking over the counter traditional pain relievers.
Pound for pound, the tongue is the strongest muscle in the human body. I told my husband that my tongue game was strong AF!
If you use your phone while it is charging, it will damage your phone battery. Before you know it, you will have to invest in a new battery for your smart phone.
If you are having a coughing fit and can’t stop coughing, raise your arms above your head and it will cease! If you are anything like me, these fits will always happen in a quiet but crowded room.
When making tacos put the cheese on before the meat. The cheese will melt and prevent the shell from breaking apart.But have a soft tortilla laying under it just in case. If anything falls out he will have a soft taco immediately.
I hope some, if not all, of these tips and tricks will be of value to you.
I hope you all read my next article which will cover my job as a rocket scientist. more of how I just pretend to be one actually.
Please stop sending prayers for healing and peace over Facebook when you read about a death or some other devastating event.
We hear it over and over again when we are at our lowest possible point in our lives. The trauma of a death, job loss, or divorce has already knocked us down.
If lucky, we might have a few friends that show up and do things to actually help us get through these ordeals.
The people that really want to help will perform actionable items such as offering you suggestions on where to find a job, a place to vent your emotions, company, or food. Sometimes a casserole is enough to make a difference. Doing anything is better than just saying that you will pray for them.
Our society has gotten away with thinking prayer replaces human kindness. I am sure that every downtrodden person appreciates the prayers. However, what they need is human help in addition to any godly request you might offer up in their name. Case in point, sharing something on Facebook will not save someone’s life but donating blood will.
In no way shape or form am I saying that praying is not a good thing. I am stating that it needs to be done in addition to not instead of actually helping. Prayers are not going to feed the hungry. Prayers aren’t going to help the lonely or the grief stricken. At least not right away.
Especially now, when this virus is making us all further apart from each other, we need to come together as humans in a community practicing kindness and empathy.
When you know someone is having a bad time or is at a low point in their life, show up for them. Make your face seen, your voice heard, and make your concern known. The world needs more of that.
We have all heard the saying that God helps those who help themselves. I also believe that God helps those that helps others.
The older I’ve gotten the more I’ve seen the absolute worst character traits in the people surrounding me. Ignoring anything bad around them is the way that used to live their life. Then they’ll show up at church on Sunday and perform some quick prayers and think that fixes everything. They think that washes away the sin of them turning their back on the downtrodden and the lonely.
They are quick to be around a fun person who is on top of the world. They are also the first to leave when ships sink. It would be nice during this time when many lose the friends they thought for others to step up to take their place.
In full disclosure, I am not religious but I am spiritual.
The time has come for us to worry less about proving that we are good Christians or religious. It’s time to start showing it. Whatever religion or non-religion you may practice, being a good person is what it’s all about at the end of the day.
Photo provided by Unsplash
Here are some actionable items that you can do for someone who is going through a hard time. Please don’t think that you get to decide what is considered a hard time.
Whether it’s a trauma, financial downfall, or a mental illness, we are not put on earth to judge what is hard or not hard for others.
Listen
After the death of my sister, the only thing I wanted was to talk to someone about my memories of her and how I felt. But no one really wanted to talk about it and nobody showed up to hear about it. When they did, I could tell it made them uncomfortable so I quickly stopped.
Many people just want to talk and be heard. Being a shoulder to lean on counts for a lot more than you think it does.
Friend
Offer to do things with the person going through a hard time. More people than you know are lonely and just want company. Sometimes just being available to someone is the difference between life and death for them.
If someone reaches out to you, reach back. Don’t turn your back.
Advice
If someone has lost their job or home, sit down with them and help find the resources available to get them back on their feet.
Every single one of us on this planet has something that we are good at. Sometimes they just have to be reminded of that.
When someone is depressed, they often aren’t up to doing the work that needs to be done. Help them do it.
Babysit
Anyone with kids knows that parenting does not stop just because you are suffering. It is extremely difficult to be a good parent while you are recovering from trauma, worried about finances, or housing.
Offer to watch the kids. Offer to spend the day or even the weekend with the kids so they can get things done. Maybe they need to grieve in private. Don’t wait for them to ask. Offer your help.
Food
This sounds silly, but I firmly believe that food brings people together and unites them. It brings families together when they sit at the dinner table every night. It brings friends together when they meet for dinner once a month or have cookouts.
Do not underestimate the value of feeding someone going through a crisis. Drop off a meal, host them at your house, or take them out somewhere to get them away from the house.
Call
The simplest way to help someone it’s just to call and ask them if they’re OK and if they need anything. Too many times we know that someone is going through something and we feel like we should leave him alone. That is the last thing we should do.
Call them and call them often. then call them some more. If they want me to pray with them for their healing or anything else, this is the time to do it.
Maybe whoever is in charge of this place will listen to our prayers if we start showing that we mean what we say. That we are going to step up and help, too. Keep praying, but start helping.
Listen ladies, it’s time to stop being gold diggers. Now it’s time to start digging for your own gold (that means for you to start making your own money). I have never regretted earning a dollar, but I have regretted most of my decisions pertaining to my love life. Everyone, at all times, should have the financial ability to leave should it become necessary and be able to survive.
Financial independence is of the utmost importance for anyone in today’s world. Being dependent on another person for anything you need, other than love or moral support, is a dangerous situation for anyone to be in. I know because I’ve been there. Feeling stuck is a horrible feeling to have and, once I got rid of that feeling, I knew I’d never let myself feel like that again.
Photo by Alexander Mils via Unsplash
We have all seen those pictures of miserable women in the early 1900’s with their hair in a severe knot to match their severe personalities. Beside them stood the equally as miserable looking husband. We aren’t sure who is beating who but we know something miserable is going down in that househol
We have also all seen beautiful and voluptuous young ladies draped on the arms of rich men up to four times their age. They are destined for a lifetime of his wrinkled paws all over her. She will spend a minimum of years having to swallow her own vomit in exchange for financial dependence. She does this instead of learning how to survive on her own. It’s absolutely heartbreaking.
I don’t want any of my children to be stuck with a jacka$$ for any extended period of time because they didn’t want to have to work. There is a satisfaction that comes with being self sufficient and I hope they take that feeling and use it to get ahead and stay there.
I think all of us, as parents, wish our kids would learn from our mistakes and failures, but it seems as if they are all doomed to learn the same lessons in the same hard way as we did. And it sucks, especially for us, because we see it coming and try to warn them. However, no matter what we say or how valid our point may be, it is a fruitless effort. I can almost smell the bad intentions of the young women and men my kids bring around the house for me to meet.
Even if you don’t make much money, put whatever you can aside in savings to be used in emergencies only. Hide it if you must. We all need an emergency account. The only thing sure in this life is that nothing is for certain. Be prepared for anything to happen, even the impossible.
Photo By Ava Sol via Unsplash
I want my kids to figure out that they must never stop learning and growing as a person. It’s the only way to keep up with circumstances and technology that is rapidly changing around us. I hope they are able to find a way to take any situation and turn it to work to their advantage. I want this for everyone.
I hope at least one young woman will read this and I hope she will think back on it the next time she envies that rich, young girl with her eighty year old sugar daddy. I would like to imagine that she will show empathy instead of jealousy or hate. As women, we should all want more for each other than a life like that.
I spend most of my work week either selling homes, listing homes or helping people repair their credit in order get them into a position to buy a house. I also do financial consulting on the side. So if you follow me on Medium, you will notice I am usually joking around and writing humorous articles. But this time I thought I would actually lay out some helpful advice.
I learned about credit the hard way as many of us did that came from my generation. In school, they taught us how to make a good apple turnover, but not how to balance a checkbook. I turned eighteen, ran up a bunch of credit, and didn’t pay it off. What was the worst that could happen? Throw in a couple of bad marriages and I was prime bad credit candidate number one.
Luckily for me, and my children, I got my act together and figured out some tricks to make repairing credit easier than we think it is. Like anything else, there is a method to it. It is still a lot easier to ruin credit than it is to fix it, though.
Seven Years
There is a rumor that all debt falls off your credit after seven years and while some debts do fall off (and some don’t), one debt in particular never goes away. So please make sure your children know this before they get way more student loans than they need. Student loans do not ever fall off of your credit. It is extremely rare to have them forgiven. They are a government backed loan and as we all know the government is going to get theirs. Nonpayment of student loans will keep you from buying a house, even if your student loan is 35 years old. So first and foremost, pay your taxes and your student loans.
Credit cards
Reduce your debt to income ratio by only having one or two credit cards. Make the minimum monthly payment on all of these credit cards except for the one you owe the least amount of money on. Pay as much as you can on that one alone, the minimum only on all of the others, until it is paid off and then do the same for the next smallest one. This is called the snowball method.
You can pay them off according to the smallest amount or the highest interest rate. The highest interest-rate would be preferable, but if you don’t have access to that information or don’t want to spend the time to find it then just pay off the smallest amount first.
Secured credit
If you don’t have any open credit cards and still have a bad or low credit score, take $300 and go open a secured credit card with your bank. Do not open a secured credit card with a lender that is offering you a 47% interest rate!
Once you have opened your secured credit card, go make a purchase of $100 or so and then wait for the bill to come in. Once the bill comes in pay above what is due but do not pay it off. You want to make at least three monthly payments so it can reflect well on your credit score. You want to pay above the minimum payment to knock off some of the interest.
Do this every month until it is paid off. Please be aware that at the beginning, right after opening this new account, your credit score may dip before rising. This is normal. After that, you will see a steady rise as long as you make your payments on time.
Time
Think of the due date as the date you will lose points on your credit rating. Make sure that your payment gets there way before then. Allow for the mailman to be late or the post to get stuck in a pile on someone’s desk. In a perfect world, you would pay the bill online immediately upon receipt, but we all know that just is not feasible with debts and children and other bills. So just make sure you pay it before the due date.
Collections
I could write ten more articles on how to pay off collections, how to dispute collections, etc. I will keep this brief and just say use the snowball method mentioned above and pay off the most recent debt first and then refine that group to pay off the smallest balance.
Paying off old debt is not fun, but seeing that credit score rise is. And in today’s world, good credit will get you a lot further than just a nicer pair of shoes. Be diligent and you will reap the rewards sooner than you think.
This article is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered Financial or Legal Advice. Not all information will be accurate. Consult a financial professional before making any major financial decision
Very few people know this about me, but not only do I love lists of any kind, I also love obscure but helpful tips and random facts that will never do me any good. I’ve been known to shout them out during conversations when I’m nervous. My loved ones seem to think this is funny. My doctor doesn’t.
There is literally nothing I can’t and won’t make a list about. This list is a collection of some of my favorite tips. I am an abyss of tips, facts, tidbits and home remedies but please don’t ever ask me to do math or public speaking. I can’t be perfect at everything.
Please remember to send your thanks in the form of likes, shares and follows.
Diet Coke
Using Diet Coke as a mixer will get you more intoxicated (aka drunk) than it’s regular or sugar free twin. I will not elaborate on when or why I have had intoxication as a final goal (sometimes only) for my evening. I will reinforce that I have a total of six kids with my husband. And two dogs, two birds and a turtle. And a full time job. And a husband. Life is not always easy, am I right?
If you love Nature Valley’s granola bars but hate looking like a crumb bomb went off on you and caused 19 casualties, microwave it for 30 seconds first. I don’t snack a lot. I’d rather just eat a full meal with meat and vegetables or a huge plate of nachos. But I do get a craving for these bars every now and then, especially the peanut butter ones. I have regretted eating them every single time I did it before learning this trick. This granola bar would definitely win the vote for most destructive snack bar.
This one I’ve only heard about but I’m dying to try it. It’s so James Bondish and I’ve always thought of myself a spy. Seems like I’m a bad one that doesn’t work for anyone but that’s o.k. We all start somewhere. I’ve made many code words with people over the years but the only one that has stuck is the “get this creep away from me” signal from the bar to my girlfriends. Anyway, if you see a pickle stand at Disneyland, and you ask them (the workers of the stand) how their day was, they have to give you a free pickle! I don’t know what happens to them if they refuse or who you contact to get them fired. I’m not even sure what a pickle stand looks like.
This tidbit might not be so surprising. Mountain Dew was originally made to go with whiskey which seems fitting to me. When I think of this, I imagine a bunch of coal miners in the hills of Appalachia drinking whiskey with a mountain dew mixer. They probably threw in an ounce of their local cocaine just to make it kick a little harder. They have a group picture of the whole crew in their matching overalls standing around on their five minute lunch break surrounded by pissed off donkeys and women that look like they’re being treated worse than the donkeys. This concoction is all of their’s favorite. Even the donkeys.
I’ve seen this trick but never tried it. My friend used toothpaste to clean his headlights and they were impression-ably shiny. This is coming from someone who never, ever notices vehicles and treats hers like a dumpster. Before fixing your headlights, I urge you to please use it on your teeth. So many men have gotten the importance of teeth over car backwards.
If you put your batteries in the freezer, it can double their life span. My sister told me this. I can only guess how she knows.
Mix Nutella and milk, then microwave. Best hot chocolate EVER. Not that I’m an expert but in my experience it is. Feel free to send me samples of better ones if you want to argue about it.
Adding vodka to your shampoo can strengthen split-ins and stop dandruff. Drinking vodka can make you shave your hair, and by default your dandruff, off. Trimming your hair can help split ends and using Head N Shoulders can also reduce dandruff.
I hope you put these tips to use immediately as I did. You can mix and match them or just check them off one at a time!
Disclaimer: I am not liable if someone tries any of these and gets hurt. People can make the simplest tasks into murderous death traps because they are generally dumb. So do these at your own risk!
Kylie’s Rants 