Posts Tagged ‘tips’

The best thing that can happen to lesser candidates during an election is for the head of the ticket to have long coattails. When presidents take office by decisive numbers, senators and congressional representatives, state governors and legislators, even local officeholders from the same party can ride those coattails straight into office.

But for those of us just going about our daily routines, hangers-on can be a drag. We think we’ve tossed off the negatives in our lives, but they didn’t fall as far as we’d hoped. They’re right behind us, clinging desperately, and weighing us down as we try to achieve our goals of success, peace, and happiness.

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“You look exhausted,” the grocery cashier commented.

“Yes,” I confided, “and I still have to work tonight.”

“At least you work at home,” she smiled, “so you can shower and change into something comfortable.”

It seemed a little odd that she mentioned showering at 9:30 p.m., but after she mentioned it three more times, it was obvious she thought I need a good scrubbing. Must have been the sweat-soaked hair framing my face and the streams free-flowing down my cheeks and neck. Another hot, humid Florida night in what has seemed to be an endless series of heat waves.

Dorothy Gale would have nothing to fear living here. The Wicked Witch of the West would melt on arrival.

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Oscar Fulgham thought he was prepared the day a massive tornado leveled much of Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The 69-year-old former Army staff sergeant told the Los Angeles Times he’d been watching weather reports and planned to take refuge in his bathroom if the twister moved toward his one-story duplex. But no matter how much you think you’ve prepared for the unexpected, it can still catch you off-guard.

“You can’t believe how fast that thing was moving,” Fulgham said. “The sky turned black, and then it was on us before we had time to think.”

Fulgham made it to the bathroom just as violent winds clawed off the roof, exploded the windows, and blew out the walls. Six seconds. Fulgham survived, but in just six seconds, his home was gone.

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People often make weight loss more difficult than it has to be. All you have to do is take in fewer calories than you burn. Uh-huh … easier said than done.

If you’re finding it difficult to get control over your food consumption, maybe all you really need is to learn how to show the food who’s boss. Just take the same approach as when your kids are misbehaving, your coworkers are getting on your nerves, your dog is chewing your slippers, and the customer-service rep is trying to deny your refund: Give that food an icy stare.

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You’ve been trying for years to perfect your recipe for old-fashioned boiled fudge. A little pinch of this, a little drop of that … Eureka! This year you’ve finally managed it! Fudge just like great-grandma used to make. So of course, you’ll trust yourself to remember the recipe, right?

Of course, not. You’ll record the recipe and keep it in your recipe file. But why don’t we have the good sense to use the same approach with the other processes and formulas we perfect?

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Oooh, I just lost my temper. Some days that’s easy to do. I’ve been struggling with a pounding migraine, plus the accompanying nausea and sensitivity to light and sound, so my tolerance tank is running low.

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It’s New Year’s Eve. You’re out with your spouse or sweetheart. What a perfect night for … an argument.

Hey, it happens. But if you get into a row because one of you seemed too flirtatious with another party-goer or someone gave the wrong answer to the all-important “Do I look fat in this?” resolve it before you get into the car. A survey by the British auto insurer MORE TH>N, blames “romantic road rage” for more than 2.5 million traffic accidents in Britain.

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Baby, it’s cold outside, and you need to save money on your heating bill. But hang on before you lower that thermostat too much.

A few years ago, researchers at Cornell University found that when employers lowered office temps from a toasty 77 degrees to a chilly 68 degrees, they also lowered worker productivity.

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‘Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring … except the parents trying to figure out where they’d store the new batch of toys Santa, the grandparents, and the rest of the relatives would be delivering for the children all snug in their beds.

Here’s one way to solve the dilemma and spread the Christmas spirit at the same time …

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‘Tis the season for spending time with family and friends, for renewing acquaintances, for cookies and cocoa and Christmas stockings.

But for many people it’s a season to be reminded that you’ve lost loved ones with whom you once shared the holidays, another year has passed and your life isn’t where you’d hoped it would be, you’re unemployed or in debt and unable to shop with the abandon you’d like, or maybe you’re just lonely and depressed.

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