willow-wanderings:
jumpingjacktrash:
faranae:
blue-pixiedust:
woodelf68:
shipperqueen93:
iwadab-me:
boasamishipper:
lifelovebookssex:
cloningmycat:
kiokushitaka:
shrineart:
caitatonic:
sunflower-b-pondicus:
flutterjedi:
mixedy:
my parents aren’t teaching me life lessons.
#i need some adults to TEACH ME SHIT ABOUT LIFE
I’m an adult.
Some shit about life, from a bonafide adult:
even if you get along great with your family you will get along even better with them after moving out
generic is almost always just as good as name brand. But there are some things you never buy generic, including: peanut butter, ketchup, liquid NyQuil, Chips-Ahoy chewy chocolate chip cookies
just imagine the person on the other end of the phone hates talking on the phone as much as you do. Even a receptionist. I worked as one and I hate talking on the phone
at least once in your life you will go to Wal-mart to buy something under $20 like an ironing board or something and your debit card will get rejected. No one will judge. Everyone at some point in their lives has had $2.98 in their bank account.
thrift stores
everyone else is too busy panicking about everyone else noticing every tiny thing that could possibly be wrong about them to notice any tiny thing that could possibly be wrong about you
you will screw up. a lot. you live and you learn. and when you start to think too hard about that embarrassing thing that happened and how you wish you could change it, just tell yourself that what’s done is done. There’s no changing it, so just forget it and move on. It’s the only way to stay sane.
do the dishes before the sink grows its own ecosystem
you can’t put Dawn dishsoap in the dishwasher.
if you are the only one in the aisle at the grocery store, and you need to get from one end to the other without even looking at anything in that aisle, then you should totally cart-surf down the aisle. Growing old is mandatory. Growing up is optional. Hold on to the little things. They make all the difference.
never try to make cake from scratch at 3am. You end up with a topographical map of Middle Earth.
15% tip.
the best way to get money for food is to tell your grandparents about how you basically live on microwaved mac and cheese. Their horror may result in twenty bucks and orders to go out and get yourself “a real dinner”.
sometimes life sucks, and knowing that it might get better doesn’t always make it suck any less, but you’ll never get to the non-sucky days without enduring the suckiness.
no seriously, NEVER put Dawn in your dishwasher
Do not buy generic brand spaghetti sauce either.
Always check the type of light bulb that goes in lamps. A 60w is not interchangeable with a 40w.
Dollar store batteries work just as well as store brand.
Reward yourself from time to time when you do things that you needed to get done. It’s a good way to remind yourself to do them. Going out to pay a bill? Get Starbucks or something you don’t get often. Rewards don’t have to be huge, they can be small things like that.
Rice, pasta, flour, sugar, cheese, eggs, milk, a pack of chicken, a pack of frozen veggies and a well stocked spice cabinet go a long way food-wise. Splurge and get the biggest container of rice you can. You don’t have to go back and buy it again anytime soon and it makes a TON of meals in the meantime.
Rice can be cooked on the stove. You don’t need a fancy rice cooker. Two parts water to every one part rice (two cups water for one cup of rice for example). Get your water boiling, add rice, put a plate or lid on it, put it on low for 20 minutes. It should be done.
Keep a calendar on your pc of bill due dates. If your bills are set up at inconvenient times, like all of the services started on the first or something, then call up the company and find out if you can get your billing date switched to something more manageable. A lot of places do try to work with you.
There is no shame in calling a company and asking for an extension on a bill. Let them know what you can pay, pay that amount, and they arrange when the rest of the payment is required. This can stop you from having services shut off man. It shows responsibility on your part.
Take time to eat, even when you don’t feel like eating. Your body needs energy to live.
Wash or rinse your dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. It prevents gross caked on junk.
“The Works” is an excellent cheap toilet cleaner.
MAGIC. FUCKING. ERASERS. THEY WORK ON EVERYTHING JUST DON’T SCRUB HARD. I took the ring out of our bathtub with one. Also generic ones work just as well.
Keep some bleach around but if you use it for cleaning? Dillute it. There’s rarely ever a case where you need to pout straight bleach on anything. A cap full or two in a bucket of water works just fine.
DO NOT MIX CLEANERS. Chemical reactions are can be very dangerous. Here’s a good list. (Note that vinegar and baking soda can actually be a good combo for removing smells from things but it’s not very good at actually -cleaning-.)
If you drink? Don’t take meds at the same time it’s just not good.
Make sure you check the dosages on your pill bottles. No one wants to accidentally overdose on cough syrup or ibuprofen.
If you have a uterus make sure you have a heating pad and ibuprofen on hand for the pain. Hot baths also generally help and Ginger Tea is excellent for any nausea.
Buy a first aid kit. It’s worth it in the long run.
You can often do your taxes online at places like TurboTax.
Here’s some good sex ed resources because I had to explain what a yeast infection was recently.
Petroleum jelly (aka Vaseline) is good for chapped lips and you can get a decent sized tube or tub of it (generic brand version) for cheaper/same price as Chapstick.
KEEP TRIPLE ANTIBIOTIC OINTMENT IN YOUR HOUSE FOR CUTS AND SCRAPES AND SORES.
~~Medications~~
Over the counter medications (stuff you can buy right off the shelf no prescription needed) have a name brand and a generic name. ALWAYS buy generic if it’s available it is literally the same thing and way cheaper usually.
Some names to remember when you’re looking for meds!
Acetaminophen = Tylenol
Used to treat pain and reduce fever. Do not take with Ibuprofen.
Ibuprofen = Advil, Midol, Motrin
Used for pain and fever, is an anti-inflammtory. Is good for period cramps because it is an NSAID (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug).
Naproxen = Aleve, Naprosyn
Treats fever, pain, arthritis pain, gout, period cramps, tendinitis, headache, backache, and toothache. Is also an NSAID.
Acetaminophen + Asprin + Caffeine = Excedrin
Usually marketed as “Migraine Relief” as a generic.
Asprin = Bayer
Use for pain, fever, arthritis, and inflammation. Makes you bleed easily so should not be used for periods. Might reduce risk of heart attacks.\
Triple Antibiotic Ointment = Neosporin
Used on cuts, sores, and scrapes to reduce risk of infection and promote healing.
Also a general mutli-vitamin isn’t a bad idea and if you don’t get a lot of fruits or milk/sunshine in your diet you might want to get vitamins C and D specifically for daily use.
if you do accidentally lapse and put dawn in your dishwasher, run it empty and put hair conditioner where the detergent goes. that’ll clean it out (tip given to me by dorm custodian when roommate did the thing).
if you live off ramen, add stuff to it! add veggies you like, don’t use the whole flavor packet to cut down on sodium and msg or don’t use it at all and add your own spices.
if you’re making something with potatoes in it (beans, stew) potatoes are done when you can easily stab a fork through them.
you can microwave a hotdog as long as you put it in a microwave safe container of water. microwaves work by making water molecules vibrate. also, when reheating rice leftovers, add a small amount of water, like maybe a spoonfull, so it doesn’t get hard and crunchy.
the rice cooking advice above is for long grain rice. if you’re making short or medium grain rice, a 1:1 ratio (one cup water for one cup rice) is better, so the rice doesn’t come out too mushy.
buy a few cans of chicken. wholesale club stores like sam’s, costco, or bj’s tend to carry multipacks for a good price. they’re incredibly useful for when you forget to defrost meat.
buy meat on sale and put it in the freezer. buy vegetables on sale, and put them in the freezer. frozen veggies are often as flavorful and good as fresh ones, keep longer, and often come in microwaveable bags or with microwave directions.
soak ink stains in milk to help get them out or at least lighten them.
soak blood stains in water as soon as possible, with a bit of detergent or stain remover. scrub at them. use cold water, heat binds proteins to fabric. tbh, there’s no real need to change the washer from cold-cold setting unless the thing you’re washing says to wash in warm water.
acetone, found in most nail polish removers, dissolves super glue.
YOU’RE ALL DOING GOD’S WORK BLESS YOU
Takes pictures, have prints made and put them in photo albums. Be IN the pictures, have someone take pictures of you and your friends. Get over not looking perfect in thw picture. Someday that friend might be gone and those pictures might be all you’ll have, you will want to be in them. I made that mistake with my best friend, i always felt weird asking for a picture together… he died of cancer January of 2014 and now i have no pictures of us together. Its my only regret in life.
This is really helpful, thank you all!
I’m the newest of new adults but I’m gonna throw these little tips in there. IF YOU HAVE AN OLD CAR:
-coolant or water if your car overheats (coolant is preferable cause it won’t hurt the engine in the long run but hey i know money is tight)
-flashlight in case you break down at night and need to check under the hood and your phone is dead
-SPARE TIRE.
-jumper cables.you will at some point leave your lights on. you just will.
AAA or any other road side service is never a bad investment i swear. (try to mooch it off your parents as long as you can though)
Know how to change a tire. You’re going to need to do it at some point in time and you can’t always rely on someone else to do it for you.
Don’t be afraid to go to your local food bank. They are there for a reason.
Don’t be ashamed to ask for help period. Life is hard, everyone needs help occasionally.
You can put a LOWER wattage bulb in a lamp that says it’s for a higher one, but don’t put a HIGHER wattage bulb in. Also, watts refer to the amount of electricity used. LUMENS refers to the amount of light put out, and can vary quite a bit between brands, even though the wattage is the same. Look for the one with the highest lumens unless you actually want a slightly dimmer bulb in a certain location.
Those dollar store batteries? Fine if they’re alkaline. “Heavy-duty” batteries, however, won’t last nearly as long.
You can microwave a hot dog and bun simply by wrapping them in a toweling for a minute, less if you don’t want them scalding hot.
Reblogging to save lives.
Two adulting (kitchen-related) tips from me!
1. Buy a roll of parchment paper from the cooking shit aisle. A big roll will last you for-fucking-ever. Pretty much any time you’re using a baking pan you can line it with that stuff and save yourself A: food sticking to the pan and B: it’s a quick rinse and it’s clean.
2. Bread can get fucking expensive, so make your own. A bigass bag of flour and a bag of active dry yeast (store it in the friiiiidge!!!) works out a FUCK of a lot cheaper than buying bread at the store, and you can do so much more with it. Bread, pizza, rolls, cinnibuns, homemade pizza pockets. It seems intimidating but it’s stupid easy.
Seriously. It’s stupid simple to make, and most of the “3 hours” to make it is sitting around surfing the internet or doing whatever the fuck you want while the dough rises. If you have an afternoon free once a week to sit and play video games or surf the net, you have the time to make your own bread on the cheap. Here’s my simple-as-fuck recipe:
2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast (You can buy a bag of this stuff CHEAP in bulk stores, the little packets are hella stupid priced)
1 cup warm water (think a hot bath)
1 ½ teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons oil (any kind works for the most part)
2 ¼ cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1. Stir the yeast, water, sugar, and oil up in a bowl. Let it sit for about 10 minutes. It will foam up VERY high, this is the yeast getting happy! If it doesn’t get all foamy, the water may have been too hot or not hot enough. Remember, Yeast is alive! Treat it like a nice girlfriend!
2. Mix your flour, salt, and the yeast concoction up in a bowl.
3. Knead that shit for about 5 minutes. It will start sticky as heck, but will come together into a nice dough. If it’s still super sticky, toss in a bit more flour. Here’s how to knead it:
4. Put your dough in a covered, lightly oiled bowl and leave it someplace warmish for an hour. At that point it will have roughly doubled in size, give it a gentle punch to release the gasses that have built up inside. Cover it again and let it sit for a bit longer.
Boom. You have bread dough. Here are some baking times and uses for ya:
Optional egg-wash: Just crack an egg into a bowl, add a pinch of salt, and mix the bejeebus out of it with a fork. Brush (or if you’re like me, goop it on with said fork) that shit thinly on bread before baking for a nice crust.
Pizza: Stretch it on a pan, stab the fucker all over with a fork, add toppings, bake 425*F 15-20 minutes.
Bread Sticks: Make snake-shapes, let rest on pan 10-ish minutes, bake 400*F 10-20 minutes.
Dinner rolls: Make ball-sized (yes those balls) balls. Place on greased pan, let rest 10-20 minutes to rise. Egg-wash and bake 375*F 25 minutes.
Bread: Lightly score (cut) the top, let sit for 20-ish minutes on/in whatever you’re using to bake it, egg-wash, bake at 375*F for 20-ish minutes. It’s done when it sounds hollow if you knock on the bottom.
You bet your ass you can deep-fry this shit for cheapie yeast doughnuts. Roll that shit in sugar or dip it in whatever, it’s fucking tasty.
Bagels: YES. YOU. CAN. Form bagel-shapes out of the dough and boil them in salty water for about 2 minutes. Egg-wash them and bake them at 400*F for 10 minutes.
Cinnamon Rolls: Roll that shit out into a rectangle. Brush it with a mix of butter, cinnamon, sugar, and a pinch of salt (no exact amounts here, do it to your taste). Roll it up into a log, and cut it into discs. Let them sit 20 minutes in a pan and then bake at 375*F 15-17 minutes.
You can add whatever you want to the dough for some variety, just if it’s dried spices remember you really only need 1-ish tablespoons. I personally like making bread with about 1 tablespoon of dill in the dough. Roll it out flat, sprinkle it with cheddar, roll it into a log, squeeze the ends shut, and bake it like a regular loaf of bread. Cheesy dill bread OMNOMNOM.
*ahem* That got a bit long. But yeah. Bread’s expensive, yo. Save your wallet.
(Also it’s ridiculous amounts of therapeutic to bake, for me anyway)
relationships! romance, roommates, besties, etcetera!
you will fight. you will be awful little shits to each other once in a while. nobody’s immune.
when you’re the one who is being a little shit, apologize for reals. don’t do that “i’m sorry you feel that way” bullshit. don’t be a politician, don’t cover your ass. just say “i’m sorry.”
when the other person’s being a little shit, think about the times you were the shit and remember how it felt, how stressed out and desperate and hurt and angry you were, and try to understand.
don’t hold grudges. it’s never worth it.
don’t punish people or take revenge. no, not even if your feelings are super hurt and they totally don’t understand. that’s like trying to fix your car by kicking in your neighbor’s headlights. now two things are broken.
consent is important for more than sex! don’t break/lose/use up your partner’s stuff, don’t make changes to their living environment without consulting them, don’t mess with their hair if they said to stop, stuff like that. respect their autonomy.
stand up for yourself, but don’t retaliate. refuse to be stepped on, but don’t ‘show them what it feels like’.
celebrate the good times wholeheartedly.
tell them what you like about them! even if they already know!
DO YOUR OWN LAUNDRY UNLESS YOU HAVE BEEN MARRIED TEN YEARS. at least the underwear.
DON’T BE PAGGRO. if you have a problem with them, bring it up clearly and openly, sometime when you’re not fuming mad and they’re not on their way out the door. troubleshoot, don’t blame.
it might not work out. that doesn’t mean it wasn’t worth doing. everyone you spend time with enriches your life somehow.
laugh together, even when everything’s gone to hell. especially when everything’s gone to hell.
driver picks the music.
but if only one of you can drive, maybe make a joint playlist.
DRIVING ADVICE!
don’t drive with two feet. if you’re using one foot for the brake and one for the accelerator you’re doing it wrong and you could easily hit the wrong pedal by accident! pick one foot to use for both pedals and stick with it. (if you’re not driving a stick shift, you don’t need to use two feet when you’re driving)
remember to signal BEFORE you turn or change lanes. signaling as you do the thing is not helpful (we can see that you are currently doing the thing, the signal is redundant at that point). the signal is to warn people you’re going to do the thing so they will (hopefully) stay out of the way. put your signal on about four or five seconds before you’re going to do the thing.
when a traffic light turns green and you’re in front, wait one second after the light has turned before moving ahead. just say “one and two” quickly to yourself before you hit the gas pedal. i have avoided being hit by red-light-runners so many times by doing this it’s not even funny.
IF YOU HEAR LOUD SIRENS, PULL OVER! i don’t care if they’re not in your lane or are going the opposite direction or if you can’t see the vehicle making the noise. cops and emergency vehicles don’t have to obey all the traffic laws when they have their lights and sirens going because when the sirens are on their job is to get where they’re going as fast as possible and they need to be able to move freely to do that. ASSUME YOU ARE OR COULD BE IN THEIR WAY AND PULL OVER.
you can get pulled over for going too slowly, not just for going too fast. try to stay within 5mph/kph (above or below) of the speed limit and you should be fine.
you can get pulled over for going the speed limit if the rest of the traffic is going way faster or slower than you are. if the speed limit is 65 but literally everyone else is going 80, you should be going 80, otherwise you’re a traffic hazard and you’ll get pulled over.
if you do get pulled over DON’T PANIC. stay in your car unless asked to get out by the officer, be calm and polite and you should be fine (if you are a poc or a woman, signal to let the cop know you intend to comply, and then pull into the next populated area, like a gas station or grocery store, so there will be witnesses and possibly cameras around in case the cop starts shit with you)
in general it’s safer to assume that none of the other cars see you. always assume that no one else on the road sees you or has any idea what you’re going to do. this will keep you from doing stupid shit like changing lanes without double checking behind you because “well obviously the car behind me sees me”. No. assume they don’t see you. assume they have no idea you exist. you will live longer.
always always always check your blind spot before turning or changing lanes. ALWAYS.
IF YOU ARE BEHIND AN 18-WHEELER/LORRY AND YOU CAN’T SEE THEIR MIRRORS, THEY LEGIT CAN’T SEE YOU AT ALL. they have no idea you’re back there. also if you’re close enough to that truck that you can’t see their mirrors, you’re too close to avoid being turned into pink slurry if they stop or slow down suddenly. that is an 18,000lb death machine, i don’t care how big your car is, you’re not gonna win that one because physics. ALSO do not ever cut off a big truck and always stay at least two or three car lengths ahead of a big truck so they have room to stop. it can take a large truck up to 9 seconds to stop “suddenly” and they will crush you like a teeny little bug if you are too close.
if you move to a new city, spend a few weeks taking the bus or riding a bike around town instead of driving (if possible). this will give you an opportunity to learn the new city’s traffic patterns before you try to drive in them.
if you have never driven before or you just got a new car, get some little orange cones and go to a parking lot at a ridiculous hour (when no one is there) and practice running into the cones on purpose. this will help you learn where the car’s fenders actually are. knowing exactly where your car begins and ends is extremely important information to have and will help you avoid accidents.
watch the road three or four car lengths ahead of you and in all directions, not just the car immediately in front of you. you will swerve in your lane less and will be able to see trouble before you reach it, avoiding possible accidents more easily.
start looking to the left and right BEFORE you reach an intersection, not once you’ve already pulled up and stopped. bicycles and pedestrians travel in that space and if you’re not looking, you could hit someone. it is your job to be aware of and avoid hitting pedestrians and bikes, not their job to get out of your way.
take curves in the road as one long smooth turn, not a series of short sharp turns. turn the wheel slowly until your car is following the curve and then hold it there until you need to go straight again.
don’t slow down to an almost-stop before making a turn. you not only annoy the people behind you but you run the risk of them not slowing down enough and hitting you. when you are turning, your goal is to get out of the flow of traffic as quickly as possible without hitting anyone. if you’re not driving a fully loaded school bus then you do not need to come to a dead stop in order to do that.
this one is hard but if the choice is between hitting a dog in the road and swerving violently into other traffic, hit the dog. it’s awful, i know, but it’s far less awful than dying or causing a multi-car pileup by swerving into other lanes suddenly.
if you do need to swerve suddenly to avoid something in the road (like if something falls off the back of a truck in front of you or there’s a box in the road, something that will win the ‘it vs. your car’ fight), honk your horn for as long as possible before swerving to alert other cars that you’re about to do a sudden thing.
don’t be afraid to use your horn! if someone cuts you off or starts to change lanes while you’re still in their way HONK AT THEM. that’s what the horn is for.
DON’T TALK ON YOUR PHONE WHILE YOU’RE DRIVING. NO HANDS-FREE SHIT EITHER. TURN YOUR PHONE OFF WHILE YOU’RE IN YOUR CAR IF YOU HAVE TO. multiple studies have shown that even hands-free talking is dangerously distracting. you are in a half ton hunk of metal and explodium going at truly abominable speeds, YOU CANNOT AFFORD TO BE DISTRACTED. IT CAN LITERALLY KILL YOU (OR OTHER PEOPLE). your job while driving is to pay all of the attention to driving and nothing else.
in general you don’t need slow down when getting onto a freeway/highway. try to speed up to near the speed of the rest of traffic and find an open space to move into as you do. this will make it easier to get onto the highway and avoid backing up traffic behind you.
don’t ride the line! if you, sitting in the driver’s seat, are positioned in the center of the lane, you’re probably crowding the lane next to you. make sure the driver’s seat is positioned on one side of the lane, not in the middle.
if the sun is setting but not fully set or rising but not up all the way (or if it’s a cloudy day), turn your lights on. having your lights on in half-light conditions will make you easier to see and will help other people avoid hitting you.
if you’re driving through fog, leave your lights on low. do not use your high beams, the fog will only reflect the light back at you and make it harder to see. if the fog is thick enough that you can’t see more than a few yards ahead of you, pull the fuck over and wait for it to go away, otherwise you may as well be driving blindfolded.
if it’s raining SLOW DOWN. it may seem like common sense but a lot of people don’t do this. the road is going to be slippery when it’s wet because of built up oil on the road being washed all over the place. this means it will take you longer to stop and you may slide if you try to stop too suddenly. so go slower and begin stopping sooner to compensate for the wet oily road.
being late is better than being dead. if you miss your turn/exit, DO NOT dart over suddenly to try to make it at the last second. you will piss off everyone else on the road and could get killed. take the next exit, find a place to turn around and go back. you do not need to make that turn right this very second, it will not suddenly disappear if you go past it. turning around and going back is always an option.
driving while sleepy is literally as bad as driving while drunk. get enough sleep before you have to drive somewhere, make sure you’re fully awake before you get behind the wheel. if you need to take a long drive, take someone with you and drive in shifts or, if you have to take a long drive by yourself, pull over as soon as you start feeling tired and take a nap. yes it’s a pain, but again, it’s better than being dead.