Lifehacker

When your cat starts peeing outside the box, your first instinct might be to call the vet: Could it be a UTI? Kidney stones? Diabetes? Cancer? While it’s true that pee problems can be a sign of any of these health issues, in many cases, cats are simply lodging a complaint with the box itself. If your cat is otherwise…Read more...

Coffered ceilings are a great way to add character, pattern, and depth to your ceiling. If you have high ceilings, they also can make your room look cozier—but the price to have them custom-built is also steep. Luckily, the basic square pattern of a coffered ceiling isn’t too hard to make yourself, and it only…Read more...

Standards of personal hygiene are not universal. Personal, cultural, and religious difference, socioeconomic factors, and a ton of other variants determine how, and how often, we wash and groom ourselves. They also determine how groomed we expect others to be.

Over the past few years, coconut oil has become a go-to personal care product, with uses ranging from ridding your hands of garlic stink, to deep-conditioning your hair, to softening dry, cracked heels. But did you know that your plants may benefit from it too?Read more...

Freak accidents may be out of your control, but the vast majority of “stranded on the side of the highway with no cell service” scenarios can be prevented with a simple, thorough home inspection. Here’s what to look for before hitting the road.

It’s important to listen to your body. In general, you should know what you’re feeling, and you should be able to relate those feelings to past experiences: This is what it feels like when I’m lifting more than usual and about to set a personal record; that is what it feels like when my old shoulder injury starts…Read more...

A nosy houseguest can put you off hosting for good. Everyone was having a nice time until someone comes back from the bathroom and asks what you’re taking that lithium for. Nobody should make you feel judged in your own house, but some people leave you no choice but to head potential conflicts off before they can…Read more...

Having smoke detectors with working batteries placed throughout your home is an important component of fire safety, but in order for them to be most effective, it also makes a difference where they’re placed.Read more...

“Soaking the dishes” has become shorthand for “not actually doing the dishes,” and for the most part, that’s accurate. Lots of people assume soap works like a solvent, so if you just fill a crusty pot with soapy water, it’ll magically dissolve—and the longer you let it sit, the better. Plot twist: The solvent in a…Read more...

Lube is one of those amazing sex hacks you’re probably not using enough. Want better orgasms? Use lube. Want less pain and friction? Use lube. Want better sex all around? Use lube.Read more...

Is Japan one of your bucket-list destinations? Did you have to cancel your plans to attend the Tokyo Summer Olympics, and now want to try to again, except this time without the sports?Read more...

Although kitchens come in a variety of different sizes, the amount of storage space in the room doesn’t always reflect the square footage.Read more...

Over the past few years, rising housing costs have kept homeownership out of reach for so many. As a result, a lot of people have been forced to rethink their plans and reassess their priorities in terms of both how and where they want to live.Read more...

Nobody wakes up in the morning hoping to speak with a customer service rep. In fact, companies don’t want that to happen either, and would prefer that you get any information you need from their website or automated phone system.Read more...

Stellantis, Fiat-Chrysler’s parent company, is voluntarily recalling more than 300,000 diesel Ram pickup trucks to replace an electrical connector after reports of six fires. The company recommends you park these trucks outside to prevent the potential spread of fire, at least until the repairs are made.

Paint is among the easiest and most affordable renovations you can do to a room. But while it has the power to transform an aging bathroom, they are humid, damp places where water splashes and steam soaks into every surface. Even if you have a hefty exhaust fan that keeps the room moderately dry, there’s a pretty good…Read more...

Hackers and bad actors are always looking for new methods of attack. One of those attacks is known as “zero-click,” which can infect your phone without you having to do anything at all. Samsung wants to be the face of the solution to this emerging problem, implementing a new security tool for its latest devices known…Read more...

If you have a tax question, this weekend is the absolute worst time to try to get someone from the IRS on the phone. According to a press release from Feb. 16, Presidents Day weekend is historically the busiest time of year for the IRS phone system. Luckily, there are ways to take care of most things without spending…Read more...

Who doesn’t love new emojis? With Apple’s upcoming iOS 16.4, there are 21 new emojis to try out, including a new smiley, a pink heart, and a jellyfish. But you don’t need to wait until Apple releases iOS 16.4 to the public—you can try them out right now.Read more...

It’s a hodgepodge of young-people trendlets this week. I’m looking at the surprising reemergence of a slightly mysteriously 90s singer-songwriter, an innovative use for “deep-fake” voices, and the popular “de-influencing” trend, in which online viewers are urged to not buy things.

Tesla is voluntarily recalling 363,000 of their vehicles in the U.S. due to safety risks stemming from its latest ‘Full Self-driving’ (FSD) Beta software update. FSD can be used to drive the Teslas on local roads, accelerating and braking accordingly based on what it detects with its cameras. However, the system is …Read more...

Chicken can dry out in a snap. A few methods, like brining, marinating, and cooking over low heat can help, but there’s another technique that you should take advantage of. For a juicy, tender slice of chicken, bring on the velvet.

I write a lot about updates, because they’re important—and fun. Between new features, bug fixes, and security patches, each update is an invitation to dive in and see what’s new. That isn’t really the case with Apple’s latest update, though: The company issued a new update for your MacBook’s MagSafe cable.

Fruit compote is one of the simplest ways to add a bright and sophisticated component to anything from ice cream to oatmeal, or even roasted meats. While you might normally make a big batch of berry compote in a pot on the stove, this would be overkill for a smaller endeavor, like French toast for two. For light work…Read more...

Plenty of updates have come and gone in Minecraft’s nearly 15-year history, but players have never had cherry blossoms. Minecraft is about to get pink, and you can try it right now.Read more...

Like most people, I love a good parm, be it eggplant or chicken. (I’m sure veal parm also tastes good, but I’ve never had it.) But making a parm can be a bit of an ordeal, particularly eggplant perm. Even though I make mine without any breading, it still requires salting and baking in an overly generous amount of oil.…Read more...

Black History Month is a great time to shout out some of the brilliant podcasts out there celebrating Black history and culture. (Which isn’t to say it’s the only month we should be talking about them—far from it.)

Have you ever seen those college career center posters that suggest you “Find meaning at work!”? Some showed happy people sitting at nondescript desks; others may feature a single professional in a stance of triumph, having apparently achieved something great. These posters were conveying a message that “meaning” was…Read more...

This week in puzzling online discourse, a subset of Gen Z is looking wistfully back on the era of the Motion Picture Production Code, also known as the Hays Code, a voluntary (well, technically) set of censorship standards Hollywood rigorously adhered to from 1934 through the late 1960s.

Adidas is currently having a big sale of over 7,500 items that will go until Feb. 21, and you can combine it with gift card deals and a limited-time discount code. We tried it, and if everything works out the same as it did for us, you can shop with some steep discounts—including already discounted items.

AI angst has arguably never been higher. Some experts predict the AI singularity could happen within the next decade, and recent screenshots of Microsoft’s new Bing search AI expressing seemingly human fears and desires have some wondering if it’s already here.

When you are self-employed or freelance outside of your day job, there are additional taxes you need to navigate. While this sounds like (and often is) a killer headache, you also have the opportunity for unique tax breaks. There are plenty of significant deductions you don’t want to miss out on as a freelancer filing…Read more...

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For those who don’t have an air fryer yet, President’s Day has some great deals for you to grab one. Here are our favorite ones.Read more...

Empanadas are absolute works of art. It’s true that I feel this way about all filled carb pockets, but that doesn’t diminish the savory perfection of the empanada. Even better, I’m happy to report that all of the empanada’s mouthwateringly meaty, salty, and crunchy characteristics convert seamlessly into chip and dip…Read more...

Laundry piling up? Dishes in the sink? You might feel like you have too much cleaning to do to relax, but why don’t you turn on the TV for a while? Hear us out: Maybe the key to your tidying motivation is streaming some straight-up organizational content. Just like with home renovations, there are loads of great shows…Read more...

Putting your iPhone’s Messages app on your Mac and/or iPad was a great move on Apple’s part. If you’re working on your Macor watching Netflix on your iPad, it’s a much more convenient to keep up with conversations on the same device than to constantly pick up your iPhone. But while iMessages tend to find their way…Read more...

Part of aging is watching the younger generation “discover” things you’ve known about for years. It’s most common with music, movies, and fashion—I will never forget how excited I was to tell my parents about this obscure group I had discovered called “The Band”—but now it’s happening to me with food hacks.Read more...

When we think of President’s Day deals, TVs, mattresses, and furniture probably come to mind first—but if you’re in the market for some new pots and pans, this is also the weekend for you to start shopping around. Here are some of the best deals on pots and pans if you have been waiting for the right moment to strike.

I’ve done fasted morning cardio, and I understand why it’s a thing. It feels like such a virtuous act: You’re making yourself suffer, and it’s hard, but it’s also not impossible. You finish your morning jog with an empty stomach, then reward yourself with, hopefully, a nice breakfast. But is there a point to the…Read more...

I had mixed feelings after perusing different pictures and recipes for cloud bread, a food that has become quite popular on TikTok. One of them was confusion. I came across two very different looking versions—one that looked like colorful cotton candy and another that resembled brown cobblestone-looking pancakes. …Read more...

You have your basic checking and savings accounts—beyond that, how can different types of accounts serve your savings goals? What’s the smartest way to stash your hard-earned funds? We’ve recommended before that dividing your money into multiple accounts helps you see all your saving goals separately, so they’ll be…Read more...

It’s official: Internet Explorer is dead. Microsoft confirmed as much on Tuesday with an update to the Internet Explorer desktop app support page: “The retired, out-of-support Internet Explorer 11 desktop application has been permanently disabled through a Microsoft Edge update on certain versions of Windows 10.” Ouch.

Aging parents are hard. Whether it’s the nonstop requests for IT support, the invasive questions about your love life, or the unasked-for speculations about your health, the relationship between an adult child and their parent can fraught. This is especially true if you have a relationship that is reversed, with the…Read more...

We all likely still remember the (bad) news from this past December: A Consumer Reports investigation found 23 of the 28 dark chocolates from different brands they tested contained harmful levels of lead and cadmium. The results of the investigation made the rounds over mainstream media and is still very much in the…Read more...

Admit it: you don’t pay that much attention to the labels on the food you’re buying. If the package says “natural” and it’s mostly brown, that probably means it’s healthier than the colorful item next to it, right? Into the cart it goes.Read more...

I’m sure the estate of Winnie the Pooh creator A.A. Milne is not happy about it, but this weekend, Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey will open at that proverbial theater near you. A product of some aspects of the Pooh-verse becoming public domain, the horror movie reimagines the snuggable, honey-lovin’ kid-lit icon as…Read more...

You hear your child cough on the way downstairs for breakfast, and the mental calculations start: Was that a one-off cough or a legit symptom? Should I take her temperature? Should she go to school or stay home, just in case? Meanwhile your kid doesn’t seem at all like she’s in a medical emergency; she just wants her…Read more...

“I was going to make a smart-ass joke about putting the cheese on the graham crackers,” the young cashier said as she handed me my bag of cheese and graham crackers. “Oh. That’s exactly what I’m doing,” I replied. “Well, I hope you like it.” I do like it, young cashier. I like it so much I have half a mind to drive…Read more...

French fries, tater tots, and even the humble baked potato all like to get dressed up with a special dip to match the occasion. Ketchup, mayo, or sour cream are common condiments, but they can get a little humdrum. Instead of playing it safe, get a little daring to your spud. Transform bacon into a smoky, spiced dip…Read more...