map tips

when you print out door to door directions, it's helpful to note the mileage from one road to the next turn because sometimes roads don't have clear signage on corners.

steering wheel tip

whoever thought of having the radio controls on the steering wheel is a genius!  i've only seen a couple of cars that have it, but the drivers always love it. 

skymall tips

the skymall magazine in the southwest planes is pretty fun to look at.  i saw this cool bluetooth for your phone that you attach to your steering wheel.  it cost around 100 bucks.  there was also this carrier for laptops that would allow users to walk around and use a laptop at the same time.  also i saw a device that ages wine.  very inventive stuff, the skymall magazine.

inspired? tip

i've been tinkering around with the idea of getting up earlier and biking around for like half an hour in the morning.  i could take along a portable radio and listen to sarah and vinnie.  let's see how i do with that.  i'm making myself semi-accountable here.  now that i've said i'll try to bike more, i will (hopefully)!  it's starting to get dark earlier and the morning is a better time to bike around.  i suspect it'll be cold so i'll be sporting a fashionable beanie, gloves and maybe a scarf, although i'd be afraid the scarf would get tangled up in the bike spokes. 

value tip

just because something costs a lot doesn't necessarily make it good.  i recently paid $2.75 for a cupcake that didn't taste any good.  it's a good lesson to keep in mind.

another soap tip

this is what i do when my piece of soap becomes too small to use.  i take a new bar of soap, wet the old scrap soap and grind it into the new bar.  eventually it'll stick and become one piece of soap. 

neighborhood farmer's market

wouldn't this be a great idea?  make friends with your neighbors and each house plant a couple of different fruits and vegetables.  then you can share with each other and save on the grocery bill!

yet another book tip

i'm not an ipod person so i always have a lightweight book in my backpack. i read on bart and when i'm waiting in line, it's better than doing nothing. plus, most of the time at least, reading is fun. now go find a book for yourself.

after spin class tip

ever see run fat boy run?  it's hysterical!  simon pegg is tops.  he's such an endearing, hilarious, average looking english bloke.  anyway, there's this scene in the  movie where he's in a grueling spin class (bicycling in case you're like me and didn't know what the eff spin class was) and afterwards he's got to take some stairs.  well this poor bastard is out of shape and at that first step, his legs are too rubbery and he goes tumbling down! 

be careful after spin class/hiking/running.  your legs might be weaker than usual.

cheap grub tip

those entertainment books are a pretty sweet deal.  most of the restaurant coupons are buy one entree and get the 2nd one 1/2 off.  the only thing is sometimes the restaurants change owners and the new owners don't honor the coupon.  i'd call beforehand to make sure they take the coupons before you go.  the books cost $30 and the prices drop if you buy them later in the year.  i've seen them for $15. 

free stuff tip

i was in berkeley yesterday and as i was walking past a house, saw some lovely wooden hangers left outside with a "free" sign.  free hangers?!  cha-ching!  this reminded me of summer in davis when kids were cleaning out their apartments and getting ready to move.  you could find tons of free stuff on those bright, sunny days.  now all i have to do is clean the hangers and tada--i have fancy wooden hangers for my nonfancy, nonwooden clothes :o)

another name tip

if you have a freak name like i do, use a "normal" name when making reservations.  that way you don't have to deal with, "huh?" or "how do you spell that?"  i'm donna.  it's simple and no one ever asks how it's spelt.

voting tips

i don't understand why they have to make the language on the ballot so complex.  they're purposefully trying to confuse voters.  read carefully . . .

language tip

wanna learn a new language?  go to that country.  face it, you're never going to learn as good spanish here as you would if you lived in mexico.  bonus is if you can live with a family with a very young child, that way you can learn together. 

niceness karma

read about this in esquire (another great mag) today.  apparently, when you tell your friend sally great things about your friend bob, sally will associate those great things with YOU, even though you were totally talking about someone else. 

 

the opposite is true too:  if you talk hella smack about bob to sally, sally will associate all those awful things with you.

 

ergo, say only nice things about others :o)

old people tip

there's this new picture in magazine ads of a supposedly md/phd.  he's an older white man with white hair and partially bald.  the jarring thing about his picture is that he is really buff.  it's super weird to see an overly muscular old dude.

 

please, when you grow older, feel free to atrophy gracefully.  our eyeballs will thank you.

cool magazine tip

here's a great magazine to paw through whenever you have some free time at a big box bookstore:  Ready Made.  It has all sorts of fabulous ideas about designs and how to make cool stuff.  The last issue I looked at had a chandelier made of plastic clothes hangers.  These people are clever, clever, clever!

baldness tip

for people who volunteer to be bald, it's actually a hassle because you have to shave it every day.  yes, that's right.  every . . . day.

winter coat tip

when you consider buying a winter coat for the winter months, make sure the hood has drawstrings.  i once bought a coat from old navy that had only a velcro strap for the hood.  in windy weather the hood would just fly off my head.  piece of crap. 

bread crust tip

don't cut the crust off your kids' sandwiches.  that's spoiling them.  they should take the bad with the good. 

worry tip

too much effort is spent on worrying about things that will never come to pass.  why do we do this to ourselves?  it's almost like we're afraid to be happy.

kid tip

in private, parents ought to teach kids how to behave in public.  imagine if you will, a mom, a child and another adult.    child to other adult:  are you pregnant? mom:  junior, you shouldn't ask that question. other adult [obviously embarrassed]:  um, no . . .   now see, if, in the privacy of their own home, the mom had instructed the child not to ask that question, the other adult would have been spared the mortification.    surely not all of these situations can be avoided, but they will be less frequent with some preplanning and guidance.

mood tip

it's better to make someone laugh than to make someone cry.  but sometimes, unfortunately, you will make someone cry.

potty mouth tip

i'm being a hypocrite with this one.  when meeting someone new, or talking to someone you're not very familiar with, refrain from using curse words.  you may be unwittingly offending the other party.    and now a note about myself:  i kind of like it when people swear a little around me.  it shows that they're comfortable.    but the thing is, you never want to just assume comfort.  some people are more formal than you are.

judgement tip

i've often found that the people who are the most judgemental are typically the worst offenders.

multiple copies tip

no doubt, retaining multiple copies of something may indeed save time and hassle.  however, the trouble with having multiple copies of something is that when you make an update, you have to update ALL those copies . . .

kid tip

don't rush a kid at a museum.  let him explore and learn something interesting.

mailbox tip

when dropping off a letter in the mailbox or depositing books in the bookdrop, open the door once again to make sure it went in.  you wouldn't want your postcard to be sitting on the door ledge.

fun tip

at least once in your life, purchase a caricature of yourself from a street artist.  and at least once in your life, draw a caricature of someone else.

highlighter tip

of all the possible colors for a highlighter, yellow is the worst choice because over time the brightness fades and it becomes difficult to distinguish the highlighted portions of text from the unhighlighted portions.   i use green.

licence plate frames

i just read somewhere that speeding drivers who have the chp license plate frames are less likely to get a speeding ticket.  one guys said he's been pulled over a few times, but they officers just let him off with a warning.

higher circ tip

did you know that hayward's director tossed 25% of their books so they'd have more display area?  and then, do you know what happened?  their circ stats went up!  it's all about displaying books.  it's hard to market books that are spine out on the shelves.  but books that are displayed with the front cover facing out tend to circ a lot more. 

reese witherspoon's smile tip

read this in a mag somewhere.  when you smile, instead of saying "cheese," push your tongue behind your top teeth.  apparently reese witherspoon's stylist told her to do that.

diet tip

ok, i've just thought of the perfect thing for dieters.  whenever you feel hungry, just open up this jar that smells like foul poop.  one whiff of that and bye bye appetite.

biking tip

some bikers might wear a reflector strip on the bottom of their right pantleg so it doesn't get caught in the gear.  i'm not that fancy so i just use an old shoelace to tie up my pantleg.

fashion faux pax

if you're wearing jeans, don't also wear a denim jacket.  all together now, "no denim on denim."

kidney stones

in general, drink lots of water if only to avoid kidney stones.  i hear passing stones is akin to giving birth.  ouch.

hiking tip

don't drink too much water when you go hiking because there might not be a bathroom.  at the same time, don't get all dehydrated.

fight tip

not that i've ever been in a fight or anything . . . i've heard that when you hit someone, you shouldn't use a balled up fist because you might injure your knuckles.  instead, use the bottom of the palm of your hand.

college tip

i was constantly amazed by how little college students know about their college town.  for pete's sakes, you're there for 4 years.  go explore a little!  walk around, take a bike ride!

convo starter

OK, I really should collect these.  Here is a good conversation starter with a group that has fallen into a lull:  Is anyone going on vacation anytime soon?  Typically in a group, at least one person will be going on vaca, or will have come back from vaca fairly recently.  Pow, instant conversation!  You're welcome.