Lifehacker

I recently saw a TikTok featuring a young woman who didn’t know how to use a toaster oven, claiming something to the effect of, “My parents just always made my toast and I didn’t know there were different settings. Mine came out cold—and untoasted.” Needless to say, I was shook.

If you have leftover boards from a previous home-improvement project—or you’re just looking for a simple carpentry project to tackle—there are several things you can make that will add budget-friendly storage and function to your home. Try these DIY projects, each of which only requires three or four tools and…Read more...

Google Assistant is great, but sometimes it’s annoying...like when you want to know something quick, but the assistant insists on elaborating. Other times, something can set off your Google Assistant by mistake, forcing a response you never asked for in the first place. No matter the circumstance, you don’t want to…Read more...

Even the most devoted animal lover will tell you that every pet adoption comes with unexpected challenges and lessons. For instance, my roommate shares custody of a hamster with her boyfriend; I wish she had known more about just how much hamsters like to work themselves into a tizzy on their wheels all throughout the…Read more...

You’re probably all-too-familiar with Screen Time feature on the iPhone, iPad, and Mac, if only because it is constantly pinging you with anxiety-inducing stats about how much time you spend staring at screens.

You probably know the feeling: The night before you have to go back to work or school after being off for a couple of days (or longer), you start to feel anxious. You can’t focus, can’t sleep, and find yourself imagining all the stressful or annoying things that await you at work in the coming week. Welcome to the “…Read more...

Read more...

A home appraisal is a standard step in the mortgage approval process. If you’re buying a home or refinancing your current one, your lender likely will require a professional appraisal to ensure your loan amount and the home value are aligned and that you’re not paying way too much for what you’re getting. Typically,…Read more...

Lunar New Year, known as “Spring Festival” in China and sometimes called “Chinese New Year” in the U.S., is among the most widely celebrated holidays on earth. The beginning of a new year on the Chinese lunar calendar is marked by family reunions, gift-giving, and delicious food.

The child tax credit—a benefit designed to help taxpayers support their families—was greatly expanded for the 2021 tax year by the American Rescue Plan Act. The credit grew from a maximum $2,000 per qualifying dependent to a maximum of $3,600 in 2021. And for the first time, many taxpayers received half of the credit…Read more...

According to Twitter, my decrepit Facebook feed, and a daily trash-talking text thread shared among my husband, brother-in-law, and sister-in-law, if you love Wordle, you really love Wordle. Like, play it as soon as you wake up, or get the kids off to school, and promptly advertise your results to whomever will…Read more...

Today’s tech lasts a long time. Gone are the days of needing to upgrade your smartphone every other year; now, an iPhone from 2015 might be serving you just fine, save for maybe your battery. Luckily, replacing it is much cheaper than buying a new iPhone. And while you should absolutely replace an old battery rather…Read more...

If you eat chicken eggs, you probably have a shell color preference for reasons you can’t explain. Some people only buy brown eggs because they believe they’re “healthier” or more “natural” than white—but is that based on anything more than marketing? What makes an egg white, brown, green, blue, or pink, and does it…Read more...

We’re still in the busy time of year for gyms. A good chunk of the people who started with new year’s goals are still there, and the regulars who may have stuck to the less-busy times at the beginning of the year are getting back to their normal routines. So how do you navigate a crowded gym without getting in…Read more...

There’s a reason VH1 was able to produce so many episodes of Behind the Music back in the day. There nearly always drama to be found in the stories of successful musicians—moments of tragedy and triumph that any successful artist seems to have experienced in abundance. We love them for it, even when their stories feel…Read more...

If you use an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, you should update your Safari browser ASAP. Today, Apple released the latest software versions for all three of its latest systems—iOS 15.3, iPadOS 15.3, and macOS Monterey 12.2—and if you normally take your time installing new updates, you might want to make this one a priority…Read more...

So you’re a Wordle master. You know all the strategies: which words to guess first, which letters are a waste of space. All of your devoted Twitter followers are well-acquainted with your perfect green squares. However, everyone’s main gripe with Wordle is that there’s only one puzzle per day. After you’ve gotten your…Read more...

If you’re in the job market (or you might be soon) it’s worth taking a fine-tooth comb to the verb choices on your resume. And while humility is a valuable soft skill that conveys emotional intelligence in the workplace, it has no place on a document highlighting your career accomplishments. Your resume is your one…Read more...

In more news from the niche corners of the modern streaming marketplace comes The Legend of Vox Machina, a hyper-violent animated fantasy series that’s half-Dungeons & Dragons parody and half genuine Dungeons & Dragons adventure, and fully based on a YouTube series that’s basically just footage of a bunch of…Read more...

I don’t want to alarm you, but everyone is going to die. Even you. Even if you try really hard to not think about it. Below are the top ten ways it’s most likely to happen, presented from least to most likely.

Ice dams are the result of a freeze-and-thaw cycle when there’s snow on your roof, and they suck. They can cause damage to your roof and gutters, and in the worst scenarios they can even damage your home’s structure. But there are things you can (and should) do to prevent and mitigate ice dams.

When you use someone’s correct pronouns, you’re showing them a basic level of respect. Still, many well-meaning people find themselves confused or even intimidated by the terrain of different gender identities—especially when speaking to someone you’re not particularly close with, like an employee, or your kid’s…Read more...

Movie snacks are a rare source of conflict in my household. My boyfriend is motivated by an insatiable sweet tooth, while I’m a bottomless pit for what I call “salty crunchies,” and in the context of movie-watching, that always means popcorn. Kettle corn is the perfect compromise: It’s sweet, it’s salty, and it’s…Read more...

Based on an unscientific survey of my husband, largest WhatsApp chat, and everyone I work with, 100% of respondents use mouthwash after brushing. But common wisdom might have many people using mouthwash at the wrong time. And it’s a lot of people: According to Statista, nearly 200 million Americans used mouthwash in…Read more...

Volunteering is good. It’s good for the communities and individuals who benefit from it directly, it’s good for the people who do the work, and it’s good for society in general. It can also be good for your career.

You may have heard people describe themselves as an “empath” to indicate they’re sensitive, intuitive people deeply aware of the emotions and energy of those around them. These self-proclaimed highly feeling souls are emotional sponges, immediately sensing peoples’ moods, making them natural helpers and healers. But,…Read more...

If you’re traveling again and have any amount of anxiety over climate change, you might have considered whether to buy carbon offset credits to minimize the environmental impact of your flight. One study found that 8% of carbon emissions across the globe are generated by tourism—and approximately half of that comes…Read more...

We all know the iPhone’s alarm is anything but a gentle wake-up. “Radar,” as the alert tone is called, is abrasive, startling, and unforgiving. In contrast with the competition, Samsung in particular, it seems Apple designed its default alarm to punish all of us heavy sleepers. We don’t have to live this way, though—…Read more...

If you’re a parent, I’m sure you’re trying to teach your child to save their money—but if you want to set your child up for a deeper level of financial success, you have to teach them the difference between saving and investing. This early lesson in financial literacy could be the difference between a comfortable nest…Read more...

When I signed up for that spring marathon, I envisioned myself at the end of a breezy race day: exhausted, victorious, and comfortable in weather-appropriate leggings and a tee shirt. What I failed to consider then, and what I am reckoning with now, is the reality of marathon training in freezing temperatures.

If you aren’t the first owner of your home, you are likely to encounter out-of-date and worn carpeting. But sometimes, if you’re lucky, there are beautiful hardwood floors under the old carpet that are just crying out for their chance to shine once more. The tricky part, though, is removing the old carpet padding…Read more...

Many signs can tip you off to the fact that you are becoming an old person. Your neighbors suddenly seeming loud and obnoxious instead of like the hosts of terrific parties, for example. You develop a sudden preference for footwear that is “comfortable.” You realize you have no idea who some of the highest-paid…Read more...

Every once in a while, a hack comes along that fills you with a mix of awe and judgment for being so basic, so obvious, that you can’t believe you didn’t think of it yourself. But while you mutter “duh” under your breath, you must reluctantly admit, it was news to you.

You’ve reached the end of a job interview, or maybe you’ve just been offered a new role. You’re feeling confident. Then, your potential future manager asks if you have any questions for them. How can you tactfully secure critical information about your future boss, directly from your future boss?

Last week, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists announced that the “Doomsday Clock” will remain set at 100 seconds to midnight, the closest humanity has been to complete annihilation since the clock was created. We haven’t moved the needle since 2020, when it sunk to its current, dismal, less-than-two-minutes-left…Read more...

On one hand, using a cheap Bluetooth mouse with your Mac is better than moving the cursor with your finger. On the other hand, though, you miss out on some of macOS’ trackpad gestures—including the three-finger drag to switch to different workspaces. But there’s a free app called Mac Mouse Fix that adds trackpad…Read more...

If you don’t want to be overwhelmed by the pressure of replying to every message the second you see it, it’s best to just hide or disable your online status so people won’t see you or know when you were last online. You can appear offline in most popular social media and messaging apps, including WhatsApp, Facebook,…Read more...

Like many social media apps designed to suck you in, Google uses what it knows about you—including your YouTube watch history—to serve you an endless stream of content that it thinks will hold your interest. If you have hours to go down a rabbit hole of comedy or cute animals, that might be fine.

Here’s a fun thought experiment; picture the amount of personal data you think tech companies keep on you. Now, realize it’s actually way more than that (hmm, maybe this isn’t that fun). Even as privacy and security become more talked about in consumer tech, the companies behind our favorite products are collecting…Read more...

After brushing and flossing, mouthwash completes the trifecta of daily dental care. But do we really need all three steps? Dentists wouldn’t dare tell you to skip flossing or brushing, but it turns out they’re a lot more equivocal about mouthwash.

Exhibiting emotional intelligence is more important than ever in the workplace. We are in the midst of the Great Resignation, and people are increasingly less likely to stick with jobs where they do not feel seen, heard, or valued. Employees want to work with and for people who exhibit high degrees of emotional…Read more...

Before we fully throw 2021 into the “let us never speak of it again” file and slam the drawer shut, why not let’s take a look back at the year in online porn? After all, every year, porn video sharing network Pornhub releases a deep dive into that year’s traffic, providing a look at the world’s secret desires. What…Read more...

Employee monitoring software—which you can safely expect to be installed on your work-issued computer—allows your workplace to view every site you visit, every email you’ve sent, and even all the personal passwords you save. Maybe you’ve already come to terms with the fact that expectations for privacy have been…Read more...

Some mornings, it feels impossible to get your kids out the door without hovering, asking four times if they have their snack, and repeatedly saying “Come on, let’s keep going!” in a tone you know sounds more agitated than you want it to. But you can’t help it. Jackets and backpacks are strewn everywhere, the bus is…Read more...

Buying a house is a complicated, expensive process, especially for buyers who can’t swing a “traditional” 20% down payment. You’re basically convincing a bank to lend you upwards of half a million dollars in many markets; if they don’t believe they can trust you to pay back that much money (plus interest), it’ll cost…Read more...

Making dinner can be exhausting, especially when you have to do it every single night. It can be especially challenging if you’re trying to cut down on food waste and want to avoid buying specialty ingredients that you’ll only use once.

Without question, we live in an era of media over-saturation. Even post-COVID (lol), the industry is still pumping out new movies and new streaming services to host them on at an alarming rate—and those same services mean we also have easy access to thousands of films from the last century. I never need to rewatch a…Read more...

There’s no shortage of apps on the market to help you move and manage money, but simply using certain apps in particular doesn’t net you any funds. Usually.

The “clingy phase” is a common one among little kids. They may feel the separation anxiety hit when it’s time to go to daycare or school—or they may not want to let you out of their sight even in your own home. It can be a frustrating time for parent and child alike—but it’s also a normal part of child development.Read more...

Ever since it was first domesticated in the South American Andes roughly 8,000 years ago, the modern potato has changed the world. And while there’s plenty to say about the potato as a food that has made its way into cuisines across the globe, the tasty tuber can also perform a number of functions outside the kitchen.…Read more...