E013 Stuff You Should Know At 50 with Mary Rogers

E013 Stuff You Should Know At 50

There is stuff you should just know at 50. My wonderful listeners contributed their best tips, tricks and jewels of wisdom to this episode. We cover how to tie your shoes, get better results in the voting booth, how to make awesome eggs, the difference between a trip and a vacation, how to pay off your mortgage faster, matching socks and tupperware lids with bottoms, health, home and kitchen, what to do when you get a serious diagnosis from your doctor, and more!

Bullet Voting- If you can vote for more than one candidate on the ballot, if you only really care about one candidate, only vote for that candidate and throw away your other votes.

Car gas tank – look for the picture of a gas pump near your gas gauge on the dashboard. You will see an arrow indicating which side of the car the gas tank is on.

CLOTHING

Shoe laces– To keep them from coming untied and to lay properly, wrap your second lace around the first loop CLOCKWISE. Feels weird at first, worth it.

Avoid wrinkled clothes when packing. Pack dress shirts, dresses, suits, etc… inside dry cleaner bags

Hate matching socks- Only buy the same kind of socks in a limited number of colors.

Hairspray will leave a film on eyeglasses. Never use hairspray in the same room as your glasses.

HEALTH

Always get a second opinion from a larger health system in a different city. Ask what is the expected benefit of treatment.

Coconut oil for Keratosis Pilaris (tiny bumps on fronts of thighs, back of upper arms, cheeks), it works.

HEALTH

Vacuuming carpeted stairs? Use a good broom from the top of the stairs, vacuum the bottom of the stairs.

Silverware for large groups. Go buy an inexpensive boxed set of flatware.

Cloth napkins? Buy large quantities from a restaurant supply company.

Bathroom tubs get nice and shiny with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.

Electrical- Red Positive Black Negative. Always disconnect the spark plug before working on snowblowers, lawnmowers, etc…

Rubbing Alcohol removes ink from clothing and can be used to clean sticky stuff from hands or anything else. No awful smell like Goof-Off.

Folding and storing bed linens. Fold sheet sets and pillowcases and store them within the matching pillowcase. You now have a “bag” ready to go when changing sheets.

MONEY

Set up automatic minimum monthly payments to your credit cards and any other monthly payments. Set it and forget it.

Pay your mortgage off early by making payments every two weeks (half of your monthly payment).

How to calculate a tip? Take the amount of the bill, move the decimal point one place to the left. Double that amount= 20%

WORDS AND LANGUAGE

When writing 1950s or I’m in my 20s. No apostrophe.

I couldn’t care less. I could not care less. NOT I could care less, which means that it would be possible for you to care less than you do.

TRAVEL

Know the difference between a trip and a vacation.

FOOD AND KITCHEN

Bring steak or any meat to room temperature before grilling.

When making any chocolate recipe from scratch or a box, replace water with cold coffee from the morning.

Tupperware madness. Once a year, throw it all out and buy a whole new set.

Cut off and discard the bottom third of an onion to avoid crying while chopping.

Eggs- Fried eggs on high, scrambled on low. For large quantities of scrambled eggs, add cream cheese to keep eggs silky soft.

Use a hand blender to partially pulverise healthy soup to make it thicker, rather than adding cream or flour. So much easier than pouring soup into a Cuisinart.

Tap the lid of a jar against the counter to break the seal, making it easier to open.

The dishes can always wait.

TIME VS. MONEY

Get a maid, do it. Even once a month.

Pay for home services to do chores that become a source of argument. Lawn service, snow shoveling, etc…

Consider a caterer for your next home party. Get quotes, you’ll be surprised.

Pay for safe parking or valet.

BITS O’WISDOM

When the voice in your head says, “This might not be a good idea”, listen to your gut about physical danger. On a ladder and can’t easily reach something? Go back down and move the ladder!!!! Don’t let laziness kill you.

You don’t have to attend every argument you are invited to.

Event + Response = Outcome

No response, no game. It takes two to play, walk away.

Carry water. Make your grass green where you are.

Things can be fixed, people can’t.

Take time to take care of yourself, you’ll be better able to help others.

When somebody does something that ticks you off, if it will still matter in months or years, speak up! Otherwise, let it go!

Both your body and your marriage will age. Be prepared to take care of both.

Write a letter to a loved one who has passed away.

In dealing with family members that always disappoint you… expect nothing, be pleasantly surprised if they deliver.

Our eyesight isn’t what it used to be. Buy a good lighted magnifying mirror for the bathroom.

At the 55:00 mark I share iPhone tips. You can listen to the episode or visit Lynda.com for a full lesson on your iPhone with your free membership.

Thanks so much for joining me today.

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Thank you so much for listening,

Mary.