Good Advice
 

Any great advice you've been given by someone else? Could be life changing or just helpful hints.

In high school my friend Keri's older sister told us to take a bath or do the dishes after doing your nails. Then you can easily scrape off any extra polish that's gotten on the sides of your fingers.

Psych 101 - you can't change anyone else you can only change how you react to them.

Don't give a kid an option you don't want them to take.

When needed, don't offer punishment you're not willing to carry out.

As your kids grow, always let them know were you are, when you will be back and be sure to let them know if you'll be late, don't just tell the sitter/relative. Making this the norm comes in very handy when they become teens.

Personal responsibility, learn it. Live it. Thanks mom.

Boiling vinegar and salt and dropping pennies in the liquid makes them really shiny quick!

Make folders in your computer and use them. Give files descriptive names that allow you to search for them. Back up your data. It's not a question of if your hard drive will fail but when.

Tell those you love that you do. Sometimes this is hard to choke out. But do it anyway.

Make sure your kids know the difference between laundry soap and bleach - especially when you ask them to throw a load of your laundry in to be washed.

I pretty much gave up on all that when I got Google Desktop.

Don't let anyone take up space in your head unless they are paying you rent.

See - using google desktop is what allows me to find things using my descriptive file names. Putting things in folders though is what allows everyone else, that refuses to use google desktop, to find things.

Always use the strap on your camera. You will not mean to drop it.

Take your cell phone off your body before using the bathroom. I can't tell you how many of our employees have accidently dropped theirs into the toilet!

When camping, if you sleep without pants on you'll be able to move around in your sleeping bag a whole lot easier.

1) Don't piss off your IT person.

2) Abide by the company policies and realize that circumventing them, because you think they are stupid will result in breaking suggestion number 1.

3) Just because it's a fire to you doesn't make it a fire to them. Act accordingly.

life is too short not to at least try. at least then you wont look back wishing you had

If you have wills or accounts with beneficiaries keep them updated. It's a pain in the butt to fix when people named are also deceased.

Always wash your face before going to bed.

Don't let your mom brush your hair if she's just been in a fight with dad.

Don't listen to Kevy.

Want less than you can afford and you'll find physical contentment easy to maintain.

Most of the stuff you care about you probably care too much about. Scale it back and life will get simpler.

Toothpaste is not a good sexual lubricant.

When you have money spend it. When you don't have money stop spending it.

Humanity gets nothing right the first time. So keep that in mind when someone is trying to sell you something based on the fact that it is a really old idea.

Inculcate a mild personal taste for masochism and life is easier to take.

Butterflies don't taste good. Oddly, beetles do.

Love does not conquer all, love is not a good excuse for bad behavior, and it is pointless to say this because nobody ever believes it while in love.

Spandex is a privilege, not a right.

Take away others' vote on your self-esteem.

For any of our younger readers - participate in all the things you can in high school. You are NOT too cool and/or you ARE cool enough to try all out all kinds of things. Find out what you like and what you don't. This is one of the only time in your life you will have the chance to try many of them (due to time, money, availability, whatever)

All the clubs they have. sports, dances, electives - try every one that you can.

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Freshly ground pepper is so much better than the stuff that comes in a little can.

Toilet paper's like air, it's not all that big of a deal until you don't have any. So always have an extra roll out where people can find it. And hang it under if you have cats. That way when they play with it, it will just spin instead of unravel which might happen if you hang it over.

Bags from the Apple Store make good trash bags in your car. They're small, durable and can be rinsed out. I hang mine from my shift thingie.

Always know where your towel is.

When going to hide, know how to get there.
And how to get back.
And eat first.

.

And on the flip side no one will care who you were, or weren't in high school once you go to college.

never get involved in a land war in Asia

Never wear mauve to a ball.

or pink

Or open your mouth.

Don't underestimate what consistent loss of sleep does to your judgment and temperament. Same goes for consistent skipping of meals and showers. You can't be of use to anyone (including yourself) if your basic needs haven't been met.

If you can't manage your conditions, manage your expectations.

Many of us have a voice inside our heads yelling at us all day long, telling us what we should and shouldn't do. You may think this voice comes from others, from pressures outside of yourself. You are wrong. It is a manifestation of perceived pressures, of a constructed reality, and it has nothing to do with anyone else. You have no need to follow its dictates. Once you recognize this you'll be able to fight it.

When you're not sure how formal you should dress, always err on the nicer side. Being the best dressed person there is better than the alternative.

Don't forget to treat yourself from time to time. This doesn't necessarily mean a blow-out, insane, impulsive purchase, but do recognize your need for happiness and sometimes a new shiny is just the thing to pull you out of your rut.

And if you've made a blow-out, insane impulsive purchase, stop beating yourself up for it. If you can't return it, then there's really no point in looking back, is there?

And sometimes treating yourself is allowing yourself a little peace and quiet, and not worrying about the dishes in the sink.

And it's OK to spend $3 on a bottle of Voss sparkling. Really, it is. Try it.

If you've tried to work it out the rational way, and it's not working, don't let yourself become irrational in the process. Take care of yourself and get your things in order. Crazymakers aren't worth your time, and don't become a Crazymaker.

Here Here!

Stand on principle, but not to the point where it becomes a pyrrhic victory. You may be right, but if you're the one who ends up being punished because you couldn't just let something go, then it doesn't matter.

Truth.

Can't agree with this one. Putting water into single serving containers and then shipping it halfway around the world is among the stupider things we do.

Flush $3 down the toilet and then drink tap water. That too is ok.

If flushing $3 pleases someone, then it really might be OK.

I always liked this one:

Desiderata, by Max Ehrmann

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons,
they are vexatious to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs;
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.

So that's what Deteriorata was inspired by! I never knew that, thank you. (seriously)

More imporantly, even if you puruse it to the point of being a Pyrrhic victory, don't actually call it that to anybody you know because they'll probably make fun of you. And three years later your boss will probably still be joking about how "I don't use big words like..."

Not that I'd know or anything.

(and if you do that, then definitely don't the next day use bacchanalia in conversation.)

I would however recommend having a reason to use bacchanalia in conversation often in life.

No? I think I'd have to disagree. I think life should be one long bacchanalia. :cool:

I remember having to look that word up when I saw A Christmas Story for the first time.

Fresh, hot-from-the-oven pizza is awesome. Fresh, hot-from-the-oven pizza sucks when the molten lava cheese wrecks your mouth.

So, it's generally best to wait and savor than to hurry up and not be able to taste all the deliciousness.

I remember having to look that word up....just now, and being quite pleased with its meaning. :D I especially like how 'orgiastic' was used in the definition I found. :snap: :snap:

I think its one I may use often from now on. Much like how 'hedonist' and 'swank' were added to my vocabulary

Speaking of pizza, a pizza stone is your oven helps to retain the oven temp even when you aren't cooking pizza - so just leave it in there.

Just make sure you know how to pronounce. Back in college there was a toga party (how cliche!) and the invite used the word bacchanal. I thought another person on the floor was being funny when she kept pronouncing it "batch-anal." Which made it an entirely different party and her the butt (heh heh) of many jokes for the rest of the year (could have been worse, in 9th grade there was a girl who though an orgy was a big scary monster; she had four years of living that one down).

The only thing worse than using bigger words than people are comfortable with is pronouncing them incorrectly.

Consider therapy, even if you think it wouldn't be useful.

Make a list of "lowest common denominator" tasks for yourself each day - without which, your day will not flow well or feel right. Do you best to do them every day. My personal list includes:
- showering before doing anything else, after waking up
- morning journaling
- making healthy food for the day, and eating small meals regularly
- taking a moment to myself at the beginning of the workday, pouring water and putting fruit in my water pitcher
- taking meds regularly
- swimming

When working with a client, and you have bad news to tell them, come armed with solutions, not just problems.

Call or write to follow up on a job application or interview.

What kind of fruit?

Guess I better brush up on my International Phonetic Alphabet. (I had to learn it as a vocal performance major, so I could perform foreign language songs correctly.) I got really good at it, even the symbols for phonemes we don't use in English, but I find today that every bit of that knowledge is gone. (And mispronouncing a word makes me very embarrassed indeed!) Time to re-study.

You can hear it pronounced here. Just click the little speaker icon next to Bac·cha·na·li·a

I said "would recommend". Would.



On a related note to all of this, whether you choose to show it off or not, my advice is to cultivate a good working knowledge of language and vocabulary. More than just the utilitarian need for clear communication, there's a fair amount of research that indicates that the better you are at being able to express ideas, the better you are at thinking. If you don't have a word for something, odds are you don't understand it.

Yes, I'm already good with that word, thanks. (Been a while since I got to go to one, though.)

Advice to self: Improve your reading comprehension. :blush:

I was just thinking about the importance of having a decent vocabulary as well as using proper English. I was listening to a Mom and her young son converse. She was using improper sentences and he responded using the same improper wording. Unless the boy learns to speak well, he will have some major limitations in life.

That, of course, led me to considering if the kid really has any expectations of a successful life.

My co-worker, who is from Ohio constantly says "I seen". I think it's regional but it drives me bonkers (and my grammar is atrocious).

If you look for bad stuff in the news, you'll find it.

You will have to rub elbows with people who rub you the wrong way. Sometimes, you may have to deal with them for months or years due to social circles, work requirements, physical proximity, etc. Getting over the fact that these people suck would be extremely helpful in dealing with them. Concentrate on whatever slim commonality you have between you instead of on how stupid/annoying/rude they are.

If you look for bad stuff anywhere, you'll find it. Conversely, if you look for good stuff, that's usually there too.

Oh, you know, I shake it up. Sometimes it's lime and mint. Sometimes it's strawberries. Sometimes lemons and blueberries. This week it's frozen raspberries as ice cubes, which break down as they melt, and bleed into the water making it taste completely divine.

Family advice - from my paternal grandfather: don't do anything I wouldn't do on a bicycle. From my mother: it's not going to look any better coming out than it did going in. From me: Actions have consequences. Try to think beyond yourself and your immediate desires.

From my great aunt: Only boring people get bored.

Some advice given to me that I actually followed and was happy I did:

"So you're good at math, what else can you do?" from my college advisor

"You have to put yourself first, because no one else will" Old friend, now deceased who I still miss from time to time.

Always have an alibi.

Quoted.

Some great advice: stop posting video links of spiders on facebook with the image. the nsfbtd warning is useless with that image. kthx.

HAHAHA... Sorry for laughing, BTD.

Make Jason fix it. Now that's at the top :(

Dont pee on the hotwire

Or the expedia.

From a distant cousin/uncle (I don't know, that side of the tree is skewed) at a family reunion when discussing something that sounds too good to be true and/or the concept of a "free lunch":

Nobody nowhere gets something for nothing unless somebody somewhere gets nothing for something.

From my best friends father "If you're going to lie, lie truthfully"

Advice from my Dad that I have tried to live my life by: whatever you do, be the best at it. If you are ditch digger, be the best ditch digger you can be.

Slightly pithy quote that heads good advice: If you don't change your direction, you will end up where you are headed.

Taco Bell hot sauce works well too.

HEY!

Do not point a bright flashlight at your eyes while turning it on.

Don't cross the streams.

aww c'mon! the thumbnail for that vid was little more than a brownish blob!

and I did TRY to warn you. that should count for something...shouldnt it?

It was enough that I knew what it was. You did warn me which meant I didn't click on the link. Thank you :D And I'm sure all your non LoT friends are wondering wtf nsfbtd means. Of course, then Erica's brat husband posted it and it was at the top again.

That's ok, I got my revenge. :evil:

Never call out sick the day after a drinking holiday.

Don't come to work in a suit and tie, in a very casual work environment, and say you had a Dr. appointment.

Bunnies and baseboard don't mix.

[Lito]Sez u![/Lito]

I need to get a photo of our ruined baseboard with Lito in the shot and make a lolbun. Perhaps the old favorite UR HOWSE IZ MY FUD.

Best advice my late mother gave me: "Always close the door quietly behind you" Kind of the same as "Don't burn your bridges"

SO TRUE! As much as you want to torch them with a flamethrower and slad that door, the world is smaller than you think.

And sometime, after you have shut certain doors; lock them, throw the deadbolts, nail them shut, and throw on a few padlocks for good measure.

I got my current job because of a previous job - specifically a glowing recommendation from my old boss. A bridge I would have been oh so very very happy to torch with a flamethrower at the time.

If you don't remember you own it, you don't own it anymore.
-my sister, cleaning out a garage

Children thrive on the routine of regular mealtimes and bedtimes.
-me and Mary Poppins

That could be a problem if you have a really bad memory.

Corollary: If I throw it away and you don't notice for six months then I was right to throw it away.

Don't tug on Superman's cape
Don't spit in the wind
Don't pull the mask off the Lone Ranger
Don't mess around with Jim

Yeah... You won't get any cheese if you do.

Slotted spoons won't hold much soup

A few rules from our Magic Mountain days (we had a list of over 200):

Always remember where you parked (especially when you own a gray Hyundai Excel).

Sometimes you just gotta bail and get your hand stamped (and go make out in the car).

Make friends with the employees and you'll get deals on stuff. (Note: this does not work at Disneyland.)

Eh, probably doesn't work at Magic Mountain anymore either. Definitely not to the degree it worked back then.

But it can catch the potato.

If you save something on your computer don't just hit ctrl S - look and see where it's saving it to. Maddie claims she did this multiple times on a powerpoint she was working on for homework but it's gone. I've done every kind of search I can think of and it's not on her drive.

Poor kiddos doing it all over again.

What version of PowerPoint? If it's recent, with the ribbon, click on the office logo in the top left. There should be a list of recent documents on the right side of the menu that drops down. If it's an older version, with the standard menu bar, in file there should be an "open recent" option that should list any recent documents.

That was the first thing I did - and it's not listed. No idea what happened. She'd tried to print and it was giving her some errors, I could print from my laptop fine so I had her save and re-start. And then it was gone.

search for *.ppt

If making the commitment to commute by bicycle over any appreciable distance, take the time to practice changing an innertube. And by practice I mean completely deflate the tube, completely remove it from the rim, and completely put it back on. Don't just kinda take it part way off and put it all right back together again just to get the gist of it. Because at Dark:30 at night, under a sodium lamp on the side of a building on the outskirts of downtown Sketchville, that "gist" will be as useless as the screw you just picked up in your previously inflated tire.

Do not open a bottle of cajun spices near your face and inhale deeply.

Do not put on a fresh coat of Chap Stick just as you are sitting down for a haircut.

Related: Do not wipe your eyes during the Red Pepper Garlic Cheddar portion of the ThinKrisp production run.

Dude! I that yesterday evening. (seriously)

Why didn't you call me to warn me?

Fixed that for you. Putting crap on your lips, a truly disgusting habit.

Alex, did your parents used to beat you with little tubes of Chap Stick?

No, I just realized that the blissful pain of bleeding lips is a far more pleasant experience than walking around with gunk covering my lips.

And I don't particularly care for kissing lipstick (or lip balm) covered lips.

Well damn, I guess I can't count on a kiss then next time I see you.

What if I bribed you with Love Brownies?

A) I don't know what those are and B) Probably not.

You used to. Lani told me you liked them. They're cupcake-style brownies I make which have Reese's Peanut Butter Cups baked inside. You've had them at pre-Mouse Adventure potlucks back when I competed. It's been a while, my feelings aren't hurt you don't remember.

Oh, I don't think I knew (or have so solidly forgotten that I don't remember ever knowing) what they were called or that they were from you. Yes, they were good.

But no. In fact now I'm thinking about eating with gunk on my lips and it's making me throw up a little.

Do you have similar issues with skin lotion, hair products, etc? Or is it just a mouth thing?

I don't like my hands feeling dirty (I'm ok with getting them dirty but as soon as the need passes I want them to be clean) so I don't like that excessively moist period after putting lotion on my hands (makes me want to go wash my hands) but it isn't the same thing as with putting a layer of gunk on my lips and expecting it to just stay there and then reapplying it when it fade.

Don't use body lotion or any hair products but I don't have a problem with them.

But I could understand wearing chapstick if one actually had chapped lips trying to heal (I still wouldn't do it, but I'd understand it) but most people I know just put it on all the time and yet putting on makeup while having a conversation at a bar would be gauche.

This was a tip my dad had learned from a professional car detailer:

Bon Ami cleaning powder is excellent for buffing car windows and also to remove tar and other sticky substances from car surfaces, including painted areas. However, don't use other "scouring powders" - Bon Ami is the only one that won't scratch a surface even with hard scrubbing.

I've used it many times, and it gives wonderful results.

I wonder if this will work on the hard-water stains on Susan's windows. I might give this a try.

I've gotten it to work on our shower doors, so it should! :)

A scanner is only as good as the software you use with it. If it's too complex or annoying then you will never scan anything. If it's easy and quick you'll actually use it.

USB cables make excellent tripwires.