Totally agree on the fact that most fearmongering about pickpockets, etc. is over the top, but keep in mind that in the U.S., you probably don’t stand out the way you might in other countries. Even as an experienced traveller who has made significant efforts to be unobtrusive in places like Jakarta and Istanbul (for…

As a San Franciscan, this made me laugh and then cry.

“idealistically”? Did you mean “ideally”?

My dog is chill and not a “puller,” so I just use a carabiner to attach his leash to my belt as I walk hands-free. You can always reach out and grab the leash itself if you want to pull him closer (for example, if a mean-looking dog approaches).

You don’t even have to blame it on greediness. In many areas, including here in San Francisco, you need to pay a certain (huge) amount just to get even a 1-bedroom condo in a crummy neighborhood. I can’t imagine you could buy such a place for less than $500K, which would represent a lot more than 25% of an average,…

Yep. We literally *this morning* locked in a rate of 3.75% for our mortgage.

But does this only apply to people with small children at home? I noticed if you click through to the article, that 25% is based on limiting your “foundation expenses” to 45%, which includes “housing, transportation, medical care, and child care.” 20% for that non-housing “other stuff” is a lot, even if you have a…

On the point about renting vs. buying, that doesn’t work everywhere. Here in San Francisco, where the housing market is insane, renting means constantly being in danger of eviction. If you have furry friends in your life (IMHO, a life without a dog or cat isn’t a life at all), it gets even more precarious. We bought a…

Again, my point is not that it’s impossible to provide an off-the-rack will that is legally enforceable, but that it’s impossible for your “best trust and estates attorneys” to personally evaluate the individual situations of each person who might be using these documents and spot potential issues that could blow up…

As another lawyer... the saddest thing most of my friends who do estates & trusts work see are families torn apart because they are fighting over the meaning of a loved one’s poorly-drafted will. Lawyers’ value in this area comes not in drafting the will itself, but in seeing real-life issues in each individual’s…

Thank you, I continually work on this myself (especially the “adding useless factoids that no one else cares about” part), but you added a lot of useful tips to better identify when I’m about to do it. Thank you!

Ok, I did some digging to confirm my previous comment — this is actually only for Android. Not your fault, as Pushbullet has been intentionally deceptive in their marketing. If you look at the comments, there are a whole string of people complaining that Pushbullet doesn't tell you this before you install: https://help…

Are you sure about that? https://help.pushbullet.com/articles/why-c…

I'm pretty sure this is only for Android. There is an iOS app, but it doesn't do this. I hope I'm wrong, I've been waiting for a desktop SMS app for ages.

I agree that you did a good job of being balanced. When I was with my ex, I went through at least a year of very serious depression. We were in our early 20s and I didn’t identify it as such, and he didn’t either. I blamed him for my being unhappy, and he resented me for blaming him and for being sad and anxious all…

Also, take pictures of the non-damaged areas too, in case the landlord claims they were damaged. We had to take our former landlord to small claims court and she showed up with photos of alleged “damage,” including what looked, from her angle, like large stains on the carpet, but our photos of the entire room, with…

“donate your items to charity or sell them at a car boot”

If the cost is not large (I just paid $9/day for a 4-day rental), I think it may be worth the piece of mind to just get the rental car place’s insurance. You’re usually dropping the car off on the way to the airport, and if you have the company’s insurance you can just leave it and say “I put some dents in it, sorry,…

Thank you for the admonition not to be “Susie Sunshine.” I went through a trauma where I basically had to rebuild every facet of my life from scratch. Just forcing myself to get through each day at work took all my willpower, and these comments were worse than not saying anything at all. “I’m sorry for your loss,”…

I’m not a “yoga person,” but started taking a class with a good friend a few years ago b/c it was a good chance to see each other and catch up once a week. I’m a distance runner, and I was surprised to find that the yoga makes a big difference in hip and knee issues I’ve had with running. Now if I take a few weeks off…