useful things

~ Brin ~ Leave a comment

rustingbridges:

fnord888:

for work work I just use the company provisioned MacBook, the Surface comes out when I actually need Windows for something work related

This is rather tangential to your main point, but an FYI: you can get free Windows VMs from the Microsoft developer site. The license is short-term, so they’re not good if you need an environment that takes a while to set up. But if you just have to occasionally test a website in IE or something (as I occasionally do for my work), you can do that on your company MacBook with those.

Yeah these are pretty useful

although I guess they’re trending towards reduced relevance now that chromium edge is a thing?

Tags:

#oooooh #useful things #the more you know #Windows

~ Brin ~ 3 Comments

{{previous post in sequence}}

Since I keep wanting to be able to link to it, and also to help me keep track of what all I’ve got in this, here is an updated Utility Belt Inventory, September 2018 edition:

Main bag:
    Main compartment:
        Wallet (notable non-obvious content: glasses prescription)
        Notebook
        2 pencils (mostly for taking exams)
        4 napkins
        Canadian passport (acting as primary government ID)
        Small scrunchie (I often bring my big scrunchie with me too, but I use it around the house often enough not to keep it in the bag)
        Small dim flashlight, good only for reading by
        AAA replacement battery for above flashlight (expired 2015; mind you, flashlight has same batch and works fine)
        Packet of Kleenex
        Book-shaped keychain, with broken attachment
        Twisty tie
        Honey-coloured rock, souvenir of a Rock and Mineral Fair a few years back
        Eurocent coin (found on a store floor in *this* continent)
        100 yen coin (ditto)
        Penny squished into New England Aquarium souvenir
        Shopping bag, folded into its attached pouch
        Disposable plastic bag (the kind bulk foods are sold in)
    Front compartment:
        Clip-on sunglasses
        Nature Valley peanut butter granola bar (expires January 2019)
        Nutri-Grain mixed berry granola bar (expires April 2019)
        Pen (the kind with a button you click, rather than a separate cap that could get lost)
        Plastic tortoise
        Rubber lizard
        Stretchy string (originally a Chuck E Cheese prize bracelet, which I immediately untied into string), which past!me says is 16in long so I didn’t bother to measure it now
        3 moist towelettes
        Short string with keychain loops at each end
        Chunk of amethyst, with broken keychain attachment
        Magnifying glass
        Penknife, with scissors and tweezers
        Slice of blue agate
        Mini crayon set (six to cover the rainbow, plus brown and pink), in a Ziploc so that it won’t spill and/or melt over anything if its case breaks
        Small blue Sharpie
        Mini sewing kit (I let past!me catalogue its contents: “a needle, six different colours of thread wrapped around some cardboard, a safety pin, and a button”)
        1-metre tape measure
    Back compartment:
        Quart/medium Ziploc bag (huh, that’s it for empty Ziplocs?; *adds another quart, plus 2 sandwich, 1 snack/small, and 1 gallon/large, then moves to main compartment for better fit*)
        2 tampons: 1 light, 1 medium
        2 menstrual pads
        Some dried-out baby wipes (water to reactivate them stored separately)
        Silver Star of David, necklace attachment *not* broken but also not in use
        Loop with…what is this kind of closure called? *searches* looks like it’s called a “side-release buckle”; about 9in long in total
        Wire saw
        8×11 paper with knot instructions printed on it, given to me by my Girl Guide leader
        An overlapping set of knot instructions, this time on a set of professionally laminated cards
        Purple geode
        Foil blanket
        …what the fuck, where is my poncho, could have sworn I had one in here
        (Well, at least I have a blanket and a hat (hat to be described later), that might suffice)
Hand sanitizer (directly attached to belt)
Phone pouch:
    Back compartment:
        Earbuds
        Lightweight gloves with capacitive fingertips
        The lanyard that came with the pouch
        Strap about 2ft in length, with clips on each end (visible in the third picture of the link)
        Carabiner
        (Coming soon: solar-powered external phone battery (+ bonus flashlight function), ETA November)
    Middle compartment:
        Phone (+ myriad contents)
    Front compartment:
        USB to microUSB adapter
        microSD to SD adapter
        String with adjuster (also visible in the third picture of the phone-pouch link)
        Snack size Ziploc containing the European!AC to USB adapter my most recent smartphone came with, the pin for popping the SIM card tray out, and something that might be a stand
        North-American!AC to USB adapter
        …huh, apparently I have *two* microSD to SD adapters in here, that seems excessive; *puts second one on coffee table until I decide where to keep it*
        Spare pair of earbud covers
        Screen cleaning cloth
        Edit Sep/15/2018: Found out Dad had the kind of adapter that lets you plug USB peripherals into a smartphone lying around unused, so I stuck it into my phone pouch in case it comes in handy. I’ll give it back if he needs it, plus I recently gave him my spare microSD card (32 GB), so even if you insist on viewing it transactionally he’s getting the better end of the deal.
Keyring (on retractable string)
    House key
    Loblaws (grocery store) loyalty card
    Canadian Tire (department store) loyalty card
Other keyring
    Bike key
    P.O. box key
    Samoa keychain
Penknife pouch
    Penknife, with fork, spoon, and corkscrew
Medkit (and other things that needed the space)
    Side compartment:
        3 medium-small Band-Aids
        3 medium Band-Aids
        3 knee Band-Aids
        Moleskin bandage
        String with adjuster and clips at each end, like a hybrid of the things from the third phone-pouch picture
        Emery board
        2 dimenhydrinate pills (expires January 2020)
        2 pseudoephedrine pils (expires June 2019)
        2 acetominophen+dextromethorphan+phenylephrine pills (expires October 2018; I would have preferred pure dextromethorphan pills, but the combo was all they had in pill form (cough syrup is fine for home, but hard to store in a medkit))
        1 loperamide pill (expires May 2020)
    Main compartment:
        Snack Ziploc:
            4 restaurant packets of salt
            2 restaurant packets of pepper
            1 single-serving bag of M&Ms (expires November 2018)
        Bug repellent
        Sample-sized tube, originally some skincare product, washed out and refilled: masking-tape label indicates it is antibiotic ointment and expires November 2018
        Another sample-sized tube with the same treatment done to it, this one indicating it is diphenhydramine anti-itch ointment and expires March 2019
        2 pairs of disposable nitrile gloves
        Fairly large roll of something that might be gauze
        Smaller roll of something that is definitely gauze, as it is labelled (past!me only mentions one roll of anything even resembling gauze, so I can’t ask her for help)
        Travel-sized bottle of ibuprofen, emptied out and refilled with a newer batch (masking-tape label indicates it expired June 2018; *fetches January 2021 batch from cupboard, dumps out 6 old pills, replaces with 8 new pills, relabels*)
        Surgical mask, for keeping pollen out of throat
        Blister prevention ointment (looks like a deodorant stick, but you rub it on your feet)
        Whistle/compass/mirror combo
        Collapsible metal ~shot-sized cup, with keychain loop
        Mini hairbrush
        Lighter
        Instructional paper (past!me lists it as “heat exhaustion, blisters, insect stings, and sprains”)
        Dental floss
        (Coming soon: water-filtration straw, ETA December)
Paracord bracelet (directly attached to belt)
Hat with brim and chinstrap, tied up in chinstrap and strung through belt

Honourary member: one-quart water bottle, in shoulder-strap pouch

(for comparison)

Tags:

#oh look an original post #Useful Things #101 Uses for Infrastructureless Computers #food mention

~ Brin ~ 1 Comment

rangi42:

So, being able to accentuate gender with clothing is nice, but guys are missing out by not having a version of tights. (They don’t, right? Not since the medieval tunic+leggings?)

 

argumate:

tumblr_inline_oee87jr46a1t9eqi1_540

 

rangi42:

I stand corrected.

Now take the logos off, they’re not improving the look.

 

akaltynarchitectonica:

Male skinny jeans serve basically the same prupose but with the added utility of pockets

 

shacklesburst:

If you can use the pockets on skinny jeans, you didn’t buy tight enough skinny jeans.

 

rangi42:

Pockets are overrated anyway. A purse carries everything I need, and I don’t compulsively pat my pockets to make sure I still have my stuff.

 

shacklesburst:

If you have breast-height pockets on both sides you could legitimately do the King Kong/Tarzan? thing tho

 

finestoftheflavors:

I just had a conversation about this issue the other day. A friend and I were looking at a pair of women’s jeans.

“And this one has roomier pockets than the other one.”

“This is the one with bigger pockets!? Wow, women’s pockets are as bad as everyone says they are.”

“Yeah but women normally carry purses so they don’t really need pockets, do they? Some men are so worried about their gender roles that they can’t conceive of any bag that isn’t a women’s purse. They have to carry everything in their cargo pants all the time. So who’s really at a disadvantage here?”

 

cromulentenough:

do women use purses because their pockets are too small or they they have small pockets because they use purses? which came first?

 

shedoesnotcomprehend:

I don’t know about historically, but in the case of a number of particular girls and women I know (including myself and my younger sister), the chain of causation was in fact [needing to carry pads/tampons] –> [carrying a purse]. (And pads/tampons don’t tend to fit well even into quite large pockets, due to bulk & length respectively.)

 

tchtchtchtchtch:

I always carry either a purse or a backpack when I’m actually going somewhere, so no pockets are gonna be enough to replace everything for me, but I really like having pockets for things that I am likely to want while in transit (phone, transit pass, credit card, headphones, maybe fidget spinner) or when I’m just going a couple blocks away to buy something. When I carry a purse it’s because I don’t have enough stuff for a backpack to be necessary & I have more stuff than will fit in my pockets right now (which can be because I’m actually going somewhere, or because I don’t have any pockets).

I would much prefer it if more of my clothes had pockets, but I pretty much never decide not to buy something because of lack of pockets, so I guess I’m not really helping.

 

shedoesnotcomprehend:

I prefer not having to carry a purse/backpack, and would go without more often if I had pants with pockets deep enough that my wallet/phone didn’t fall out of them pretty regularly. >.> (Phone/wallet/keys is enough for most non-school going-places I do, which isn’t a quantity of things that really should require a purse.)

Like you, though, I rarely pass up clothing just because of lack of pockets. My clothes shopping is almost entirely second-hand anyway, so it’s hard enough to find something that fits and is in decent condition and non-hideous and has tolerable fabric; adding a pocket criterion to that would just make it impossible to find anything.

I swear by belly bags (and have since before menarche). They solve the problems I have with other ways of carrying stuff around: easier to access than a backpack, easier to carry than a purse, larger and more detachable than pockets. (This list is outdated, but gives you an idea of the amount of gear I like to have with me. Not only is there no way I would fit all of that into even large pockets, I would have to move *all* of it *every* time I changed pants. Like hell am I doing that.) Also, they give you a supporting platform when you’re carrying bulky objects in your arms! I love belly bags so much. I usually wear mine even if I’m not going very far and don’t technically need any objects, because I feel naked leaving the house without it.

I have heard some rumours that belly bags ““look”” ““stupid””, but whatever. I like how I look, and anyway it’s not nearly a good enough reason to pass up something that’s been this useful to me. (And…like, I did not *deliberately* select my customary accessories to make me easily recognisable even by faceblind people, but I think I’ve ended up that way, and that’s kind of nice in a Golden Rule sort of way.)

Tags:

#reply via reblog #gender #clothing #I love my Useful Thing collection #even the foil blanket I have carried around for over a decade and literally never used #having it there Just In Case still comforts me #(and of course a lot of the stuff *has* come in handy)

{{next post in sequence}}

INVENTORY

~ Brin ~ Leave a comment

somnilogical:

CONTAINERS

room (container)
bathroom (container)
backpack (container) (me)

drug bag (container) (backpack)
misc bag (container) (backpack)
liquids bag (container) (backpack)
sleeve for papers (container) (backpack)
wallet (container) (backpack)

plastic bags, small (finite) (container) (misc bag) (backpack)
daily pillbox (container) (drug bag) (backpack)

hamper (container) (room)
simple bag (container) (room) (NIX)
green suitcase (container) (room)
red suitcase (container) (room)
trashcan (container) (room) (NIX)
document organizer (container) (room)
passport+birth certificate binder (container) (room)
lego bag (container) (room) (NIX)

ME

watch (me)
phone (me)
earphones (me)
credit card (me)
clipper card (me)

CLOTHES

hiking shoes (attire) (room)
sandals (attire) (room)

socks (attire) (x?) (room) (red suitcase)
underwear (attire) (x6) (room) (red suitcase) (red suitcase)
bra (attire) (girl) (room) (red suitcase)
black dress, polish (attire) (girl) (room) (red suitcase)
black dress, business (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
black shirt, polyester (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl) (conifer) (upskuttle)
brown pants, cotton (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
boxers (x2) (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (upskuttle) (NIX)
skirt, koi gift (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
sports bra (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
blue dress, patterned (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
black warm thing with long sleeves (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
pajama pants (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
skirt, blue (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
shirt, math (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (conifer) (upskuttle)
shirt, “HIRED” (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (upskuttle) (NIX)
trenchcoat-ish, cotton (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
fidget toy (room) (red suitcase)
lipstick, pink (room) (red suitcase) (girl)
leggings, blue (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl) (upskuttle) (NIX)
longsleeve shirt, purple (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
longsleeve shirt, grey, buttons (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (conifer) (upskuttle) (NIX)
hoodie, grey (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (lol trans)
skirt, purple (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
gloves, black (x2) (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (NIX) (REPLACE W/ GLOVES THAT WORK ON TOUCHSCREEN)
trenchcoat string, polyester? (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
inserts (x2) (room) (red suitcase) (girl) (attire)
not-a-kimono (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
grey pants, nylon (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
grey pants, cotton (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
girl swimsuit (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)

vest, blue (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
blue dress, cotton (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
shirt, grey (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
shirt, green (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
longsleeve shirt, grey (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
cool fucking patterned shirt thing (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (lol trans)
skirt, black, long (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
longsleeve shirt, cyan (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
pants, sparkly (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (lol trans)
trenchcoat, the rainproof one (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
shirt, striped (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (conifer) (upskuttle) (NIX)
leggings, red (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
skirt, red (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
skirt, black, short (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
skirt, blue, patterned (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
leggings, black, patterned (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
short shorts, pink (room) (red suitcase) (attire) (girl)
jeans (room) (red suitcase) (attire)
shirt, dark blue (room) (red suitcase) (attire)

black boyshorts (room) (red suitcase) (attire)

DRUGS

modafinil (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (backpack)
gabapentin (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (backpack)
propranolol (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (backpack)
melatonin (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (backpack)
estradiol (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (girl) (backpack) (pillbox)
progesterone (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (girl) (backpack) (pillbox)
spironolactone (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (girl) (backpack) (pillbox)
ibuprofen (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (backpack)
focalin xr (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (backpack)
testosterone (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (backpack)
phenibut (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (backpack)
dhea (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (backpack) (room)
nicotine (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (backpack)
caffeine (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (backpack)
escitalopram (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (backpack) (room)
l-theanine powder (drug) (finite) (backpack)
grapefruit juice (drug) (finite) (room) (NIX)
acetaminophen+aspirin+caffeine (drug) (finite) (drug bag) (backpack)

MISC BAG

sticky notes (finite) (misc bag) (backpack)
hair ties (finite) (x?) (misc bag) (backpack) (room)
razor heads (finite) (subscribed) (misc bag) (backpack)

external battery, small (misc bag) (backpack)
earplugs (x?) (misc bag) (backpack)
pens (x3) (misc bag) (backpack)
tampon (misc bag) (backpack) (girl)
pad (misc bag) (backpack) (girl)
nail polish, sparkly (misc bag) (backpack)
key lanyard (misc bag) (backpack)
condoms (x?) (misc bag) (backpack)
lighter (misc bag) (backpack)
metal razor handle (misc bag) (backpack)
usb thumb drives (x2) (misc bag) (backpack)
micro sd to sd converter (misc bag) (backpack)
d20 die (misc bag) (backpack)

LIQUIDS BAG

deodorant (finite) (liquids bag) (backpack)
shaving cream (finite) (liquids bag) (backpack)
toothpaste (finite) (liquids bag) (backpack)
sunscreen (finite) (liquids bag) (backpack)
lip balm (finite) (liquids bag) (backpack)
lip gloss, clear (finite) (liquids bag) (backpack) (girl)
lip gloss, brown (finite) (liquids bag) (backpack) (girl)
lipstick, purple (finite) (liquids bag) (backpack) (girl)
foundation (finite) (liquids bag) (backpack) (girl)

BACKPACK

laptop (backpack) (room)
laptop fan (backpack) (room)
laptop charger (backpack) (room)
kindle (backpack) (room)
kindle case (backpack) (room)
soylent (finite) (subscribed) (room) (backpack)

external battery, large (backpack)
usb-to-wall (x2) (backpack)
micro usb to usb (x2) (backpack)

ROOM

all-purpose cleaner (finite) (room) (upskuttle)
hand sanitizer (finite) (room) (upskuttle)
detergent (finite) (room) (upskuttle) (conifer)

the dragons of eden, carl sagan (room) (book) (NIX) (UNNIX, library book)
childhood’s end, arthur c. clarke (room) (book) (NIX) (UNNIX, library book)
early works, winsor mccay (room) (book) (NIX)
salvaged pages young writers’ diaries of the holocaust, alexandra zapruder (room) (book) (NIX)
the value of science essential writings of henri poincare, henri poincare (room) (book) (NIX)
japan from prehistory to modern times, john whitney hall (room) (book) (NIX)
improving nature? the science and ethics of genetic engineering, michael j reiss (room) (book) (NIX)

power strip (room)
timer (room) (conifer)
vibrator (red suitcase) (room)
x-files cd (room) (NIX)
ramen maker (room) (upskuttle) (conifer)
sleep mask (room)
umbrella (room) (upskuttle)
20q game (room) (upskuttle)
hangers (x5) (room) (upskuttle) (conifer) (NIX)
towel (x2) (room) (red suitcase) (red suitcase) (nix one)
hand towel (room) (red suitcase) (NIX)
broom (room) (upskuttle) (conifer)
dustpan (room) (conifer)
blanket (room)
bedsheets (x?) (room)
sleeping bag (room) (NIX) (conifer don’t nix)
passport (room) (passport+birth certificate binder)
birth certificate (room) (passport+birth certificate binder)
pill bottles, empty (room) (NIX)
legos, misc (lego bag) (room) (NIX)
lego millennium falcon (room) (jade’s)

BATHROOM

toilet paper (finite) (bathroom) (NEED TO GET) (NIX)
soap (finite) (bathroom) (NIX)
shampoo (finite) (bathroom) (NIX)
conditioner (finite) (bathroom) (NIX)

 

somnilogical:

does anyone know of a program that would give a nice gui to my .txt files like this which are basically just lists with tags?

i am making this inventory because i am moving (i am not sure where to but the landlord is predictably kicking everyone out of the drugs sex and violence house by the end of this month) and want to be able to:

(1) keep track of things when i move

(2) be able to notice patterns without laying all my clothes out

(3) be able to push symbols around and mark things that need to be updated or refactored into different containers

(4) reify useful categories like “containers” and “misc bag” which organize my thinking

(5) this is under (2) but more specifically I’d like to be able to not rely on my brains inconsistent association network/memory. why actually search my memory or my actual bag for what’s in my “misc bag” when i can pull out my phone and hit the “misc bag” tag? why query my brain for a list of “containers” when it will often leave out the object “wallet” because it is a non-central example? the first rule of human memory is you don’t store anything you actually care about in human memory.

(6) share the data structure with other people. i shared this file with ~5 people i know and they were able to help me locate inefficiencies. (i shared it with them in parallel of course, if i shared it with a group of 5 people at once, the answers would be bent and warped by human background monkey politics) i like being able to have several people look over my stuff and make arguments for what is needed and what isn’t, they are p much inoculated from the status quo bias. it is less “i live like this” and more “you… live like this?”.

ive started transcribing things to google keep which has some of this functionality but

* it doesn’t seem to have import/export to .txt and .csv files which i would like

* i have to make a new account to separate it from my network of alarms and checklists

* it would be nice to be able to type everything up on a full sized keyboard

* i don’t want google knowing about certain objects “”“in case they get hacked by someone who is actually evil”“”

suggestions for [a program that organizes the above list with a good gui and satisfies the listed criteria] or [how to streamline my possessions halp] would both be q grand

 

somnilogical:

@transientpetersen i… could do a cloud excel spreadsheet thing. though google keep has a better interface than this still.

i am interested in the things you find indispensable but are not on my list! (as consistent with point (6)!) i might be missing things that i expect to increase my subjective well being.

 

transientpetersen:

Don’t know if they’ll improve your well being but I’ll mention a few items I own that surprised me to see you don’t.

No basic maintenance tools. Expected at least an adjustable wrench, a screwdriver, and maybe a flashlight (in case of power loss if for no other reason).

No mention of transport options or maintenance, only a Clipper card. Bike and chain lube make my list and I would prune a lot of other things before I considered letting them go. (Your hiking shoes get my +1.)

Food prep or transport didn’t seem to make the list. No containers or coolers or lunch box. I only see a ramen maker. No knife (either cooking or multipurpose). No mug/bowl/comfortable serving option.

Nothing too sentimental. I have one or two items that remind me where I’ve been, help me focus on where I’m going. Nothing you made yourself (as far as I can tell).

Hair ties so you’re used to dealing with length but only hair ties, nothing else to secure your hair. I need a head band at least to do anything active, bandanna will do in a pinch.

Jealous that your vision is better than mine. :)

No library card? That’s just wrong.

I hate and fear the cloud and so cling to my small external hard drive.

You have a document holder so I will assume that you are keeping a similar set of financial and medical records in hardcopy as I am.

 

somnilogical:

>basic tools, flashlight

i haven’t needed basic tools yet. might be good to get a swiss army knife

my [external battery, large] doubles as a flashlight! though in practice i have only used it once and other times have just used my phone

>bike, chain lube

i want a bike pretty badly tbh

>food container, knife, bowl

i had a bento box, i had knives, i had a bowl; i didn’t really use them. i eat ramen using utensils and bowls i find around the house. ill get a bowl and utensils in the future.

>sentimental things, things i make myself

yes! i am trying to upload everything to the computer. i used to have stacks of notebooks ~1 meter tall that i carried with me everywhere. i left these behind along with lots of other creations. (i do have photos of a few of them uploaded to tumblr.) i am trying to burn away sentimentality, it’s a spiritual project

i want to not say “everything i love can be uploaded to a computer or die” but im also feeling this a bit rn

>headband, bandanas

i used to have these, bandana for cleaning things and stuff. they weren’t essential but they were fun

>vision

yep! i have better vision than the majority humanity, 19/20. although this may no longer be accurate as i ruined a bit of my short-range vision by staring at the full moon through a telescope for ~3 hours when i was 12

>library card

i have a library card! i didn’t inventory my wallet, because i was tired at the end. this is the only significant thing i knowingly didn’t inventory

business cards (x16) (backpack) (wallet)
mental health card from uni (backpack) (wallet)
aclu know your rights! mini pamphlet (backpack) (wallet)
starbucks gift card (x3) (backpack) (wallet) (one of these was a gift from @lethriloth)
cvs prescription card (backpack) (wallet) (my sister’s)
insurance cards (x4) (backpack) (wallet)
BART tickets (x5) (backpack) (wallet)
1$ bills (x2) (backpack) (wallet)
bus tickets for [redacted] (x4) (backpack) (wallet)
disabled bus pass for [redacted] (backpack) (wallet)
my uni id (backpack) (wallet)
someone else’s uni id (backpack) (wallet)
laundry card for old apartment (backpack) (wallet)
clipper card, defunct (backpack) (wallet)
storage facility access card (backpack) (wallet)
sf library printing card (backpack) (wallet)
sf library card (backpack) (wallet)
visa prepaid card (backpack) (wallet)

>external hard drive

i think i left this at my parents’ i need to pick this up. i p much keep everything on my laptop+the cloud

>document holder

yeah that’s why i do it! come to think of it, [document holder] and [passport+birth certificate binder] could be merged

—

thanks! this was v helpful

(I tried to double-check the relevant parts of your inventory (or absences) before remarking on them, but I might not have succeeded.)

No water bottle? (I use a one-quart Rubbermaid bottle.)

(Plus a water bottle holder with a shoulder strap, for easier carrying. If you’re using a backpack, though, that might not be necessary.)

Do you keep a dream journal (other than the occasional Tumblr post)? I know you said you’re trying to computerise everything, but personally I find that keyboards and (especially) backlights put me in the wrong frame of mind for dream journalling, so what I do is write it out by hand and later transcribe it into a digital backup. I don’t know if you’re the same way.

Hair ties are finite? What kind of hair ties are you using? I’ve had the same scrunchie for several years, excepting the few months where it was lost. (Found it inside the couch during spring cleaning.)

I notice you have three Starbucks gift cards.

If you’re looking for ideas for useful things to keep around, this list might help. It’s outdated, but many things are still accurate, and often the general idea of an object holds even when the specific object has changed. (For example, instead of biscotti, I currently use a pair of granola bars: one berry and one peanut. Gives me options depending on what I feel like having and whether I’m in a nut-free environment.)

What about non-ingestable medical stuff? Band-Aids, alcohol wipes, wound ointment? (also mentioned in the list linked above)

Another thing from my list that I want to draw particular attention to: a sub-container dedicated to handheld-computer and its accessories. (have since upgraded from MP3 player to smartphone, but basic idea remains the same) You’ve got SD converters and USB converters in different areas, whereas mine are next to each other. (Keeping the phone in the accessory pouch also prevents “I forgot to bring my charger” issues, though I understand some people like to keep their phone in their pocket. Probably harder to get at the phone from a backpack than from a belly bag, too.)

Tags:

#reply via reblog #long post #Useful Things

~ Brin ~ Leave a comment

sdhs-rationalist:

disneysmermaids:

cherribalm:

site that you can type in the definition of a word and get the word

site for when you can only remember part of a word/its definition 

site that gives you words that rhyme with a word

site that gives you synonyms and antonyms

THAT FIRST SITE IS EVERY WRITER’S DREAM DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY TIMES I’VE TRIED WRITING SOMETHING AND THOUGHT GOD DAMN IS THERE A SPECIFIC WORD FOR WHAT I’M USING TWO SENTENCES TO DESCRIBE AND JUST GETTING A BUNCH OF SHIT GOOGLE RESULTS

i cannot overstate how much i need this

Tags:

#useful things #writing

~ Brin ~ Leave a comment

thisoldapt:

DAILY FIND: Sometimes the Internet is a crappy place full of crap. But today I’m reminded that it’s an amazing trove of free and good information from reliable sources: The University of Illinois Extension has created a searchable index of every stain known to man and stain removal solutions for each. The tool will even tell you what your window of stain-treatment time is to achieve optimal results.

This is nerd GOLD, people. Use it in good health. -ts

Tags:

#habitat unfucking #interesting #the more you know

~ Brin ~ Leave a comment

slepaulica:

brin-bellway replied to your post:There should be a google maps game where you get a…
Yes! I was just talking yesterday about coping mechanisms for a bad sense of direction, and I think something like that would be helpful for me. (I’d do terribly at first, yes, but it would encourage me to study and show me how I was progressing.)

Does google maps have street view where you live? Maybe you could make your own game (not coding something, just loading google maps and wandering around with a goal in mind) where you put yourself down somewhere in the city (near home to start) and have to find your way home?

Level 1: start a block away from your house, different direction each time. google maps will have you facing in a random direction probably. try to find your way home.
Level 2: start a couple blocks from home. same goal: try to get home.
gradually proceeding to about as far as you’d reasonably end up walking, then move on to:
starting from home, walk until you find the nearest [place]. time yourself and try to beat previous times if that works for you. don’t time yourself if that’ll make it worse. different place each time.
example places: the grocery store, the library, the gas station, the park, the movie theatre, the river (if you have one), the pond (if you have one), where your friend lives, your favourite tree (if you have one. i do; it’s one of the ones downtown. i say hi to it every time i see it.), your favourite restaurant, a restaurant that is near home, the hill (if you have one), the train station, the nearest tram stop, the ice creamery. any place that is meaningful to you really.
another thing you can do (level: hard): find the nearest tram stop for a tram you’ve taken before and try to trace out its route.
—
+ it actually might be possible to take a screenshot of your neighbourhood on satellite view on google maps, photoshop the street names out, print off a bunch of copies, and work from there with a pencil. you’d have to grade them yourself though.
+ another thing you could do: take a camera with you and take a photo every ten steps while you go somewhere. then later you could look at the pictures of the story of how to get somewhere. i used to do this for my girlfriend before google maps did street view in my city. it was pretty fun. we had “going downtown to pay rent” and “going to my favourite restaurant” and “going for a walk with the cat”. and then we’d look at them on skype together.

Street view? I wish. They haven’t even updated the satellite view since spring 2006. My driveway has the previous owner’s car in it, and my dentist’s office is an empty lot.

I’m okay with the stuff within walking distance (except the housing development, but I only go there for trick-or-treating (so it would still be useful one night a year)). Trouble is, I’ve been learning to drive (no public transit pick-ups and few stores within walking distance, so I pretty much have to) and realising that even after being driven around this county often for over six years, my knowledge of the parts outside my village consists of a bunch of disconnected pockets a few blocks long. I’ll know when I’m close to, say, the grocery store, and I’ll know when I’m close to the computer repair shop, but how to get from one to the other? No idea.

(Actually, they might have street view in the city proper. Let’s check a couple example places.

Walmart: yes, image taken April 2009. Grocery store: yes, image taken August 2011. This might be a workable idea after all.)

Tags:

#fun with Google Maps #useful things #reply via reblog

Image ~ ~ Brin ~ Leave a comment

slepaulica:

killsmedead:

lizznotliz:

gigidowns | courtenaybird:

The Get More Out of Google Infographic Summarizes Online Research Tricks for Students

I consistently forget these tricks. Now I have a visual. Thanks, Internet.

image

I wish I’d known this in undergrad.

Sending this to my coworkers on Monday.

the site:website.com thing doesn’t seem to be working anymore. :/

Really? Works fine for me. I even tried putting a space between site: and the URL and it still worked.

Tags:

#reply via reblog #useful things