I typically envision these next to a bed, where you could empty your wallet and keys from your pockets and leave your watch over night.

I can say very strongly that things like seating at the table and usual chores go a long way in encouraging your family to treat you just like they always did. When I was a kid, my sister would spend all morning in her PJ's and never pitch in on Thanksgiving, and I was always busy with Mom in the kitchen. I didn't…

6. Internet Access

Again, you're talking about making a necessity a reward. If I'm going to buy it in order to do the task at all, it's not a reward. To put it in a baking analogy, you're not talking about trading your spoons for a stand-mixer. When you replace running shoes, you're replacing your spoon with another identical spoon. …

I think the problem with this suggestion is that most people don't have good ideas for rewards. For example, if I need new shoes to run in because my current ones are hurting my feet, I'm not going to run in 'reward' myself with new shoes after I painfully run three times a week for a month. I'm just going to get…

I'm going on a family cruise this holiday. I'm hoping the boat is big enough for the 8 of us.

I just heard a story on NPR about people who split their sleep, and that this is actually very common and normal through history 'pre-electricity'. Essentially, it said you should sleep a few hours, wake for a few hours and do something quiet like reading or reflection, and then go back for a few more hours.

I like to think of a category and then items that belong in that category. For example, I'll think of a toolbox, and then start thinking of all of the tools that could go into it. It gets my brain off my real problem, and works on one it can solve. Before I know it, I'm able to sleep.

My strategy is to tell the big things to people I can whine to. For my half marathon, I told my husband, but I told him not to spread the word. I didn't want people to know I was training until I knew I was going to be able to do it. In the first couple months, when I had serious doubts, I could talk to him about…

Any recommendations for inspecting a finished basement for insulation? Our basement is a walk-out, and the rooms along the exposed wall are freezing in the winter. Our neighbors gutted their basement and found no insulation. Our home was built at a similar time, and while we had new windows and some updates they…

I think that the worst case scenario is usually something that can be dealt with, though. This is teaching you that the worst thing can happen and you can live to see another day. If you've ever done a voluntary fast, you find out that drinking water is by far more important to you than eating food, even while you…

I am extremely grateful for having multiple routes available to me. The season makes as much of a difference as the weather, with summer traffic being lighter and fall traffic getting very heavy. When it rains here, it's like everyone forgot how to drive, and the traffic slows to a crawl, even without any accidents,…

Exactly! People need to stick up for themselves! I have no qualms working a little late when thee is a major issue that comes up at the end of the day.. but then I take off early later in the week. My employer will take the work if I give it to them, but they also do not EXPECT people to put in extra hours every…

American here. IT industry. This is never the expectation that my managers have had, and if your manager knows what time you get to work and what time you leave every day, they either don't have enough work for themselves, or don't trust you.

We have had 3 modems fried by indirect lightening strikes. It's tempting to buy our own and ditch the rental fees, but when the rentals stop working, we just drop it off and get another.

We have had 3 modems fried by indirect lightening strikes. It's tempting to buy our own and ditch the rental fees,…

While there are a lot of practical thoughts here, if you plan to give your child $8000 the minute they turn 18, there are a number of ways you can do that. Lotto, casino, jars in the back yard, savings accounts, bonds, stocks, etc.

I did the same thing as a teenager. When you first switch from liquids to pills, there isn't really any instruction that parents can give that makes a lot of sense. Being able to practice with something that is non-threatening like M&Ms or Skittles is perfect. Once you can do it repeatably without choking, chewing,…

I usually take both. I pack my clothes into a suitcase, and incidentals (including car or plane entertainment) in the other. Depending on the length of the trip, the suitcase size changes. What threw a wrench in this is my desire to carry my hydration pack. Even on our classy trip to Germany, we did some hiking and…

I learned to type on a computer playing Mavis Beacon in 5th grade. That would have been in the late 90's. I've always used two spaces after a period, and probably always will. At this point, it is so ingrained into how I type, you may as well change my keyboard to DVORAK as well! Further, MS Word typically…

Maybe they are better than they used to be, but many whole-house units used to be even more prone to bacteria and mold than the tiny ones that are easily cleanable. I've considered looking into them, but when purchasing my house, the 'perk' of a whole-house humidifier could easily be a curse.