Here are this week’s Life Pro Tips.
1. Do not request one-hour dry cleaning if you can help it.
It takes an average of 1 1/2 hours for a proper dry cleaning cycle to complete: a double bath (rinse and cleaning with detergent) and a drying cycle. If a dry cleaner is offering an hour service, something was skipped. It takes an average of 110 seconds to press a pair of pants, so take that into consideration too. That is if all the stains came out on the first try. Most likely, they need to be spot treated on the spotting board by a professional spotter to remove some stubborn stains. And that may or may not need to be cleaned again with pre-spot spray treatments to get that last stain out. Usually, a dry cleaner who offers an hour service has to shorten the washing cycle and skip pressing the clothes and just steam them while on a hanger to get them out on time. They have to also make time for tagging, bagging and racking and inputting the order into a computer or some system for pickups. In summary, dry cleaning itself needs to be done in 45 minutes (2-3 min rinse and 35 mins for drying and the rest for extraction spinning and cool down) and the rest for processing if the staff is on top of things. Before, it was possible cause Perc was a strong enough chemical to wash like water, but most dry cleaners have switched over to alternative dry cleaning solvents away from Perc by now, especially in California. So if you want your money’s worth, do not ask for an hour of dry cleaning.
2. Not 100% certain you’re ready for the responsibility of adopting a pet? Try fostering first. It costs you nothing and enriches the pets’ lives even if you don’t ultimately adopt.
Many shelters have programs where individuals can foster a pet free of charge. The shelters will pay for the pets’ vet bills and food, and in exchange (a) the pet lives with you, and (b) you agree to bring the pet to adoption events so that others can consider providing the pet a forever home.
This allows you a “test run” to see if you’re ready to adjust your lifestyle to the needs of pet ownership, without the worry associated with (a) the cost of pet ownership, or (b) the potentiality that you decide you’re not ready for pet ownership.
Plus, regardless of whether you do choose to adopt, in the meantime, you’ve provided a pet with a loving home while it awaits its forever home. Everyone wins.
3. When trying to focus on something (writing, revising, reading) listen to music with no words. This allows you to block out unwanted sound and having no lyrics can stop you from being distracted.
4. Looking for some Christmas Magic? The International Space Station orbits the earth 15 times a day and can easily be confused with Santa’s Sleigh by excited children in December.
This does require preparation. That tiny station is rarely streaking directly overhead at an ideal time, so you might need to be flexible or wait for a better opportunity in the future.
First, you will want to find some dark skies near you with a website like http://darksitefinder.com/maps/world.
Next, Check this: https://spotthestation.nasa.gov/sightings/ and put in your chosen location to see when the ISS passes overhead.
And then, a few days before, You will want to check the night sky forecast at http://www.cleardarksky.com/csk/ to check on cloud cover.
It’s rare but some people will get that perfect Santa flying overhead on Chrismas Eve but for others, you can say something along the lines of “I got a hot tip that Santa is doing his famous practice run to stretch the reindeer’s legs before the big night…”
Credit to this article for inspiring this post.
5. When sitting down while talking to someone, cross your legs. If you need to leave or want to get out of the conversation, uncross them and lean forward slightly. The person you’re talking to will likely start to wrap up what they’re saying.
This probably works because of the sudden loss of a casual demeanor. The person will see it as a signal that you’re about to leave, and will likely end the conversation for you, usually within mere moments.
