Lifehacker

Eating healthier is a worthy goal in its own right, rather than just a means to an end for weight loss. But if you’ve ever tried to change your eating habits, you likely know the mess of misinformation that is online diet culture.

The scene is familiar: A parent says, “OK, kids...” and before they can follow up with, “...time to get ready for bed,” boom: As reliably as death and taxes, the stall tactics kick into high gear.

When I was a odd little kid, I’d pull up the covers and listen to episodes of creepy old time radio shows before bed. (Listening alone to decades-old radio dramas was a very cool thing for children to do back then; I had tons of friends and was in no way considered a weirdo.) Popular storytelling wisdom is that you…Read more...

In recent years, the iPhone has developed a reputation for having solid battery life. In fact, critics recently singled out the batteries on the entire iPhone 13 lineup as among those devices’ best new features. You would be forgiven for thinking the opposite, however, if you’re a heavy Spotify user, as it appears the…Read more...

One of the toughest parts about being an adult is dealing with the constant exhaustion. There are the obvious reasons we’re perpetually tired—for starters, we’re all stressed and sleep-deprived—but in addition to some of the more obvious reasons, some of our more mindless habits may also be adding to our exhaustion in…Read more...

Pssst—hey, kid. Do you want to save fifty cents every time you mail something from the post office? You do? Then gather ‘round and listen closely.

If your concept of Eric Wareheim was formed purely through viewings of Awesome Show and Tom Goes to the Mayor, you might think the man hates food, or wants you to hate food, but that could not be further from the truth. Eric Wareheim loves food, respects food, and cherishes food, and he wants you to do the same. His…Read more...

If you’ve clothed a child for any length of time, you’ve no doubt realized that their age doesn’t always correspond to the size of clothes they “should” be wearing (e.g. being three years old but not fitting into size 3T), and there’s a lot of variation among clothing brands. Your child may be a size 7/8 shirt at…Read more...

There are a lot of great mental health apps out there, but some of the best require a subscription. If you just want some basic tools to help you manage your mental health, the US Departments of Veterans Affairs has a ton that they’ve developed for veterans but released for everyone to use.

You don’t need to have the preternatural gifts of an empath to support your friend going through a breakup. Whether you’re blindsided or doing a private victory dance at the end of your friend’s relationship, your friend is going through a loss. Sure, you can clearly see all the ways the breakup is for the best, but…Read more...

The Apple Watch isn’t exactly a must-own device for iPhone users in 2021, but with every redesign and OS upgrade, it’s getting harder and harder to pass up. But once you do get one, you’ll want to make sure you know how to make the most of it.

Since people in their 20s and 30s tend to make less than they do later in life, they’re ideally suited for a special kind of investment: Roth IRAs and Roth 401(k)s. Roth investments are unique in that contributions are taxed upfront, with the advantage that what’s left grows exponentially with compound interest over…Read more...

Have an interesting take on the latest Marvel film? Are you itching to have someone hear your unique view on Nine Perfect Strangers? This week we’re learning how to become sophisticated, compelling culture critics will help from Black Nerd Problems cofounders William Evans and Omar Holmon. Listen to hear William and…Read more...

Salt is an incredibly common ingredient that most of us take for granted. It’s a simple, inorganic (meaning “not carbon based”) molecule comprised of two tiny ions, sodium and chloride, but its ability to flavor and preserve is what makes it valuable—so valuable that it made its way into the word “salary.”Read more...

Amazing news: You’re probably running too fast. We’ve previously covered why you need to run slower (we know it sounds counterintuitive), but the gist is that you get faster by running more, and you run more by running slower.Read more...

In a past life, I worked at a pet store, and one of the most heartbreaking things I saw on a daily basis was people who came in, little kid in tow, asking for a goldfish to put in a bowl. Goldfish are big, messy fish, and they grow to be 8-12 inches long. Depending on how persuasive I was, these folks went home with…Read more...

We’ve all been around the social media block long enough to know what the terms extra, basic, lit, and flex mean. (Right? Right?) Still, there are a host of slang words popularized by Gen Z—people born between 1997 and 2012—that, unless you have a teenager in your life, are addicted to TikTok, or are just a hip…Read more...

Although I will never say a permanent goodbye to cow’s milk, I find myself consuming a variety of alt-milks depending on the texture and flavor I want. And this fall, in addition to almond, soy, oat, and pea milk, pumpkin seed milk is another one I’m adding to my arsenal of alt-milks. Not only is it timely (we’re all…Read more...

Over the weekend, Netflix gave the world a sneak peek at a bunch of buzzy upcoming series, including the live-action adaptation of Cowboy Bebop coming in November. Amazon Prime Video has some great stuff planned for the rest of 2021, too, including a potential “next Game of Thrones,” in The Wheel of Time, based on the…Read more...

Glass naturally seems to be constantly covered in fingerprints, dust, smudges, and scratches. You can be like the dad in My Big Fat Greek Wedding and spray Windex on everything, or you can use these glass-cleaning tricks to keep your windows, showers, and tables crystal clear.Read more...

Safari has hardly changed over the past few years, as the basic design language has stayed the same since the days of iOS 7. But in iOS 15 and iPadOS 15, Safari gets a big banner redesign with new gestures, bottom tabs bar, tab groups, and extension support. So if you just updated to iOS 15 or iPadOS 15, you should…Read more...

You can take a Live Photo and give it a boomerang effect using the Photos app. But if you wanted to take a real Boomerang, you always had to use the Instagram app. You don’t have to do that anymore though now that Instagram has native support for Live Photos—now it can take that three-second video from a Live Photo…Read more...

You could pay for your coffee this Wednesday—but it’s National Coffee Day, so why would you? Loads of retail food chains are giving away freebies, and while some deals require an additional food purchase, most offer free coffee—especially if you order through their rewards apps. Here’s a look at how to quench that…Read more...

There’s a lot to think about when your house is on the market, including how to stage it. Maybe your home is already perfectly organized, decorated in neutrals, and devoid of any personal photos. But for everyone else, staging your home is work.Read more...

According to every dog food commercial, people want what’s best for their pets—after all, they’re a part of the family. This includes making sure they get the medical care they need. But what about their teeth?Read more...

If you live somewhere with all four seasons (though at this point, what’s a season?), you may take advantage of the warm weather in the spring and summer months and get outdoor plants that you know they won’t make it through the winter. These are known as “cold-tender plants,” and unlike their “hearty” counterparts,…Read more...

Anyone fortunate enough to live somewhere with outdoor space—whether it’s a compact patio, sprawling deck, or tiny balcony—has had a distinct advantage throughout the pandemic: Having a place to sit that’s not the inside of their home. Even those who hadn’t taken advantage of these areas before have been purchasing…Read more...

Over the past few weeks, Broadway shows have slowly been returning to the stage, after theaters have sat dark since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. Along with the plays and musicals, the 2020 Tony Awards were also canceled (multiple times).Read more...

When we think about air pollution, it’s usually in terms of it being an outdoor problem and something we can escape once we’re indoors—especially inside our own homes. But that’s not how it works. Some sources of air pollution, like pet dander and dust mites, come from within our own homes. Fortunately, there are ways…Read more...

Most of us know the basic things that should be included on our home and garden fall cleaning checklists (whether we do them or not is another story). Things like: Deep cleaning the house, replacing HVAC filters, installing storm windows, clearing out gutters, and storing outdoor furniture. But there are some areas we…Read more...

Opening a can of pumpkin for a recipe that only needs a little usually means putting the remaining amount in the fridge, where it sits until it eventually gets thrown out, spoiled and unused. After all, there are only so many ways you can use pumpkin puree, right? Or so we thought.

When I was a kid, my dad owned a sports bar that opened every day at 6 a.m. I have no idea how he came to own this bar, it just was. When I asked him, some years later, about the obscenely early hours, he said matter-of-factly, “It’s when a lot of truckers finish their shift.” Oh, right.

At this moment, it’s hard not to feel overwhelmed by the state of the world. We are facing an unprecedented climate disaster, the impact of which is already causing droughts, famine, flooding, wildfires, and mass extinction events. The political situation on the national and global level feels perpetually tenuous. And…Read more...

As our colleagues over at The Takeout point out, there’s a weird peanut butter sandwich in all of us. For my mother, that meant packing a peanut butter and pickle sandwich for lunch every single day of her twenty-year career as a public- school teacher. And as she often pointed out, she never had to worry about…Read more...

The Nintendo Switch’s versatility as as handheld or TV-based console that supports both physical carts and digital downloads makes it easy to jump into any game in your library just seconds after picking it up.

Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of the legendary science fantasy epic Dune is finally coming to HBO Max this month, whether he likes it or not (he does not).Read more...

Back when the White House announced that booster doses would be available in late September, there was a huge asterisk on that plan—the FDA and CDC would have to go through their usual process examining the data and making recommendations. That process has finished, and boosters are now available for some people who…Read more...

It’s never been harder to keep a lawn alive, and unless radical climate interventions happen like, tomorrow, this is the easiest it’ll be for the rest of your life. Not to be too dramatic, but: Have you ever considered giving up?Read more...

When I started this archery-focused strength training program, I had one goal: Increase my draw strength to at least 40 pounds so I could kill an elk if I happened to see one while hunting in Eastern Oregon with my dad. As I’ve mentioned previously, focusing on “losing weight” has never worked for me, nor has working…Read more...

This week’s trip into the kid’s cultural cafeteria features soon-to-be-diva Chloe Bailey, a murder-mystery, and Star Wars in anime form. It’s an all-you-can-eat buffet, and no one will shame you for your choices.

Most people know how credit cards work, and they might be familiar with personal loans, too—but what about a personal line of credit? All these options are similar, but they have subtle differences that can affect which one you might choose when you need to borrow money. Here’s a look at when you’d use a line of…Read more...

The frustration and despair of losing your camera (or, god forbid, having one stolen) is legendary, even in era of the smartphone camera. Just think: losing both a piece of expensive gear and the priceless digital mementos of your trip to Yonkers. But after you’ve shaken your fist at the heavens and re…Read more...

There are several words and phrases we’ve all used that can inadvertently diminish our authority and make us sound less than confident. When we say these with any kind of regularity, they water down our message—and, with it, people’s ability to take us seriously. Keep your ear out for these apprehensive phrases and…Read more...

Spooky season is fast-approaching, and for many thrill-seekers, that means it’s time to pay other people to scare the crap out of you at a haunted house.

I’d say October is going to be a rough month for the people behind the big pharma companies largely responsible for the United States’ opioid crisis, given that Hulu is debuting a hard-hitting documentary series exploring the harm that horrific business has done in the world, but, oh, they’re billionaires with…Read more...

My husband and I have a routine of switching off between watching our toddler so that we can go and play our grown-up sports of volleyball, tennis, and boxing.Read more...

Even if you only travel a few times a year, a hotel credit card with no annual fee can be worthwhile just for the perks alone. Many of these entry-level cards include free nights on rooms, insurance coverage, priority reservations, and no foreign transactions fees. Here’s a closer look at some of the best deals.

iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 are solid updates to the iPhone and iPad. Yes, there’s not a whole lot going on this year, and we’re still waiting on features like SharePlay and Universal Control, but this is the year of small, stable updates. That said, every year Apple tends to add some features that are less than ideal, and…Read more...

A garage is a wonderful thing to have: It protects your car from the elements and can absorb a shocking amount of random clutter. But if you’re not careful, all that random clutter will turn even the most spacious garage into a pit of despair. If yours has taken a dark turn, here’s how to pull it back from the edge.

One of the best new features of Safari in iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 is its support for extensions. They’re cool new ways to add some excellent features to your web browsing experience, but unfortunately, the App Store doesn’t make it easy to find the best ones on iOS 15. We’re here to fill the gap though—by the time you’re…Read more...