In the great minimalist vs cushioned shoe debate, I believe there should exist a middle ground. I like being close to the ground (close to minimalist), but the barefoot runners of yesteryear weren't running concrete either - they were running on dirt and grass. A small amount of cushion is ideal, whether you get it…

Another several tips, all regarding shoes:

If you need to prepare something that can ignite when wet, a match is about the worst solution possible, even when "waterproofed". Look into ferrocerium rods and an artificial accelerant such as Mini- or Micro-Inferno.

That's what practice is for. If you take one single change at a time, and practice until it becomes second nature, then there isn't any thinking that has to go on. It's the same logic that explains why new year's resolutions fail. Too much change requires too much effort. Simply make one change and practice it until…

Hard plastic earbuds certainly are painful. For casual listening, I have a pair of soft, ear-canal earbuds. For listening while running, I have some that have a piece of soft plastic that wraps around the ear in the exact same manner as the article suggests you place the cord.

Personally, I'd like to see a phone with a slightly smaller screen. My HTC Incredible (1) has a 3.7" screen, and I think that's about the perfect size. Any bigger, and there's no way I'd want that in my pocket all day. A 4.6" screen just seems absolutely massive to me. Eh, personal tastes...

I'm going to have to disagree. During the summer, the best-sealed room in my house is the hottest. I put a lot of effort into sealing it - much more than any other room. Why is it the hottest? Three of its four walls have "outside" on the other side of them. It's conduction, not airflow. Don't get me wrong, sealing it…

Maybe they have it backwards... more activity on Facebook doesn't turn you into a narcissist, but narcissism tends to cause more activity on Facebook. It's only a symptom, not the cause. I also suspect the same thing is true of twitter.

I was only trying to help re-seed your lawn... I swear... And the area around the tree looked pretty dead too...

I can summarize in one word: Liability.

Sigh... Myth 11: sweat = weight loss

Another important tip to add:

It's a risk mitigation thing, which non-business-types tend not to understand. The hotel weighs the chances of the room getting filled with the loss of having a short-notice cancellation, and generally places the fee somewhere in the vicinity of "average loss per short-notice cancellation". The alternative would be to…

DIY has different motivators for different people. Personally, mine is money and knowledge. The first time something breaks, the cost will probably be the same as calling a repairman, taking into consideration the fact that I must buy tools, educate myself (google etc.), and take longer than a "professional". The…

Workout plans. What I do changes on a workout-by-workout basis, so there's no way I'm going to memorize it all. I CAN save it to a PDF and put it on my phone, but it's much easier to have a piece of paper that I can put check marks on and write "increase weight next time" and stuff on.

It's an even better idea to use something more reliable than matches. Matches are certainly better than nothing, but just about any other preparation will be better. You want reliable ignition, which matches are not. The method in the article, plus a ferrocerium rod+striker will give you much more reliable fire than…

Another excellent way to start fire is with duct tape (if you have it, of course). Lots of people carry a small roll in their survival kit, a foot or 2 of duct tape, mushed into a ball, will light rather easily and burn for plenty long enough to start a fire even with wet materials.

VOTE: MY PHONE

You're thinking of toilet paper. It's designed to just about dissolve when wet. The dissolvability of paper towels can range anywhere from toilet-paper-level to cotton-t-shirt-level, depending on the quality you buy.

Something that's consuming tons of space for me are documents. I've toyed with the idea of scanning them to PDF, and that would be completely acceptable if I could find the one I wanted when I needed to retrieve it. Does there exist a cheap (preferably free or even open-source) personal document management system that…