Winter is upon us and it's being reported that it could be the coldest, most frigid season on record. So bundle up kiddies, we've got aways to go before the sun returns. Now for those of us who can't snowbird to the south for a reprieve, we have to devise a survival plan before we turn to ice.
Redditor u/tjb3232 wanted to garner some seasonal assistance by asking.... What are your winter life pro tips?
55%....
GiphyPut the window insulation kits on. You lose up to 55% of your homes heat through windows.
This will drastically help your electric bill and minimize the draft.
My wife is working on it today actually, and I will finish when I get home. Lost_Gypsy_
H20....
Drink more water!
In the summer, you don't need to be reminded to drink water and hydrate.
But in the winter? You're wearing layers to wick sweat away from your body, the humidity in the air gets really low, and you're not feeling hot, so you don't always remember to drink enough water.
Drink more water; kidney stones are no fun! RodeoBob
Bare minimum....
Keep a prepared kit in the back of your vehicle. Hell, keep it in it at all times. All are useful for every season, but when you add winter to the equation things get deadly. Should include this as a bare minimum:
-Blanket
-Jumper Cables
-Light amount of dry food with some water
-Flashlight
-Something reflective
-First Aid kit
-Single use Handwarmers
-Spare Clothes NAbberman
Dry Air...
The air in winter is really really dry. both inside and outside. just because there's snow doesn't mean it's humid. also with heaters running now the air inside is dry too. this is why people get chapped lips and stuff in the winter. drink lots of water, always have chapstick. Dawashingtonian
think like a penguin.....
GiphyWhen walking on icy surfaces, think like a penguin. There is a reason penguins walk how they do; it keeps them stable on the slippery surfaces they are accustomed to walking on.
Take short steps. Keep your arms out to your sides for balance. And it is counter-intuitive, but lean slightly forward while you are walking. This will help you keep a good center of balance and reduce the likelihood of slipping and falling. GeraldFord210
Get the "D!"
Make the best use of sunshine when it comes. Go for a walk if possible. new-monkey
And if you're somewhere where it gets dark at 4 PM a full month before the winter solstice (forget you, Canadian winters) take vitamin D supplements. _ser_kay_
Thanks for the reminder on this. The sun set for me at 4.41pm today. Getting vitamin D tomorrow. CursingUnicorn
Shivered...
When you're really cold and shivering a bit, you'll find your shoulders are tensed up and elevated. Relax your shoulders and bring them down to your sides. It's weird, but it makes you stop shivering and feel much warmer. moderate_extremist
Whenever i do this it makes my whole body feel like death. kmancooke
Rise & Shine....
Get a "sunrise" alarm clock, AKA an alarm with a light that gradually brightens before the alarm goes off - it makes it a little easier to get up in the pitch darkness of winter without wanting to throw up. _frisco
I have something like this, except its a vintage bomb shelter light that is brighter than the sun itself and I have it hooked up on a timer. I wake up at 4:40am M-F all year, so it's kind of necessary. good_morning_magpie
Bottoms Down....
Drinking alcohol does not warm you up. You actually lose heat a lot faster with booze in your system. HiddenLayer5
It takes heat from your core and warms your extremities is what I always heard.
So it's a really bad idea to drink in a survival situation, but nice if you're just on a walk or something. ApathyToTheMax
Hit Pause.
GiphyGive yourself time to stop. crossroader1
On a similar note, 4 wheel and all wheel drive are great for gaining traction to move but do absolutely nothing for stopping. Don't get a false sense of security and drive like a fool. QualitySeycoTimepiec
Redditor atomicturdburglar wanted to help out a few career paths with some positive chat.
"Which profession unfairly gets a bad rap?"
I've had so many jobs. I'm interested to see what y'all add to this list.
From Behind
Awkward Lucille Ball GIFGiphy"Gastroenterologists get a bad wrap because buttholes are gross and who would want to spend time there, but these guys save lives."
guyuteharpua
“dignified”
"I was a cleaner. People used to treat me like furniture and assumed all kinds of things about me. That was the best-paying job I ever held, with the best benefits, and most vacation! I went back to school for a more 'dignified' career, and my 'dignified' job sitting at a desk ended up being worse in every way."
DearAuntAgnes
Hot Skills
"Plumbers. People always assume they’re gross greasy old dudes but really they’re extremely skilled professionals."
randomnessamiibo
"I'm straight up so jealous of my plumber. He's really fit and like movie star handsome, nice and great at his job, an honest professional, just built himself a gorgeous dream home in a great neighborhood. Dude is just slaughtering life."
Essential People
"Janitors. Give them respect, people, unless you want to empty your own trash and clean your own work or school space. Seriously, being nice to the janitor saved my tail one time when I was locked out of a room that contained some vital work material. The big boss didn't have keys to that room, but guess who did?"
Roguefem-76
"I’m a teacher and the first people I befriend at the school was the janitors. They keep that place running. I made a point to learn about them, things they like etc. and on Custodian Appreciation Day as well as Christmas I make sure to get them a little something as my way of saying thanks."
makeitwork1989
Sky People
Shock Electrocute GIF by Dr. Paul BearerGiphy"Meteorologists. Lotta jokes along the lines of 'must be nice to be wrong half the time and still keep your job.' Do you know how difficult it is to predict the weather 2-3 days out, let alone a week out?"
wxmanify
I don't understand the weather. So I'll pass.
Tip Accordingly...
kitchen dancing GIF by StaatsloterijGiphy"Hospitality industry."
Reeceqld
"Was hoping someone wound say this. I miss working in restaurants. Good Pay, good people. Unlimited time off. Physically exhausting and mentally challenging but so worth it."
Wingkirs
Full of Thanks
"Embalmers. Thankless job people think they are creepy but who else would do that."
Signal-Opportunity-2
"Embalmer here. Luckily it isn’t always thankless. Surprisingly, in my experience, families do appreciate and understand the care taken with their loved one which makes it all worth it."
The People at the End...
"Morticians. Really don't get why; they're the last ones to ever let you down."
cwbrumm
"A lot of them are family owned enterprises passed down through the generations. If you've grown up hearing about that kind of stuff, it doesn't seem weird at all. Most people don't want to acknowledge our mortality, but it's one of those certainties in life; along with that comes job security."
"But people definitely assume we’re creepy/morbid/obsessed with death when they hear embalmer. And while it’s true sometimes, overall we’re a (relatively) normal bunch who have the unique gift of somehow being able to healthily compartmentalise the horrific things we see on a daily basis."
deathbloomsonce
"My job's certainly gross, but there's usually not as much of an emotional component to it. I've got empathy for people but not enough patience to deal with them all day every day. It exhausts me. But spending hours listening to music, chatting with a coworker or two while figuring out exactly what happened, why this person died? That's rewarding to me."
Beat_the_Deadites
"I've working in coroner/ME systems for a good while, and there's a fair amount of job switching between county morgues and funeral homes. Funeral homes can pay better and may be less busy, but you also have to deal directly with grieving family members, i.e. take money from them during their darkest days. It's a delicate and often thankless job."
The Counters
"Auditors. Clients are rude to them. Bosses treat them like s**t. And Public just wants them to work like donkeys and find fraud even though it's not their primary responsibility."
chesapeakeripper_18
"I think I'm pretty nice to the auditors that come into my company."
"Apart from that one year where I had to explain the same thing to a guy three times and then had to teach him some basic accounting principles, like how to deal with prepayments and why we were accruing certain costs. I didn't want to deal with him again after the first day."
DragonStar1
Objection!
Law Lawyer GIF by GIPHY Studios OriginalsGiphy"Lawyers, when they're/your/lawyer they're good lol. But yeah people often like, don't understand what the job of a lawyer truly is so people are quick to demonize them."
"Yeah there's some that truly are out there abusing loopholes and being scummy, but most lawyers are just doing what they're supposed to. Making sure their client is getting charged fairly. Even if they are guilty, they still are there to ensure a just punishment and not overkill."
Reddittoxin
These all seem like reasonable jobs. Some difficult but worth the effort.
Curious to hear from strangers Redditor poetic__ asked:
"What ingredient automatically ruins a dish for you?"
You would never expect these as responses for the assignment.
When The Emperor Lost His Groove
"Poison. Kuzco's poison. The poison for Kuzco."
– Warkitz
Doesn't Plate Well
"Spaghetti sauce if it's a plastic dish."
– misswallflowerr
"A bit of water and lemon juice gets the stain right out of plastic."
– Gundarium_Alchemist
Someone Swam In Your Soup
"Hair"
– GboyFlex
"Little black curly hair."
– highxv0ltage
Nope To Beach Picnics
"Sand. It's coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere."
– Halcres
Now we're getting somewhere.
Finding The Right Balance For It
"Too many cloves. I have had many tooth pains in my lifetime and the taste of clove oil lingers dreadfully in my mind. I do like curry powder and some of my favorite pickle brines include a lot of cloves. The taste just has to be balanced with the other spices and seasonings. If I get any faint hint of it I'm immediately grossed out."
– glistening_cum_ropes
Doesn't Mix Well
"That piece of spices in your stew that you thought it was meat."
– Bewluga
"Ginger? Chomping into a piece of ginger when you thought it was meat.... 🎵You'll get the shock of your life."
– SynthPrax
Faking Sweetness
"Stevia. Blech"
– paytonsglove
"I'll never understand why people think stevia is a replacement for sugar. Doesn't taste anything like sugar. Same with Sucralose."
– anfcrazylady
Let's get specific.
Jiggly Dessert
"Jello. I have spent FAR too much time in a hospital as a child. according to my mother jello was basically all I could eat. since I got out, it's been my only culinary hate. taste, texture, just, nope."
– Nepeta33
There's A Time And Place
"Raisins where there should not be raisins."
– stressandscreaming
"Hey alright! Chocolate chip cookies! Don't mind if I do.... oh F'K YOU!!"
– conradbirdiebird
Tainted Sweets
"Rose Water."
"I want to love Indian and Middle Eastern sweets. They look so good, but nope every time it goes in my mouth all I can taste is rose water. Like chewing on the potpourri from grandmas bathroom."
– OkBoomerEh
I'm not a shrimp fan, however, I can eat it when it's fried in tempura batter.
My family would periodically order fried rice–which I absolutely love–whenever we ate at Chinese restaurants.
Even though we ordered pork or chicken fried rice, I found that many of the LA Chinese restaurants we ate at threw in surprise shrimp as if to spite me.
I would pick them out and eat the rest. Now, I don't know if it was just me, but I would still taste hints of shrimp juice every time, which ultimately ruins the dish for me. Yeah, it's just me.
Stay in your lane, shrimp!
Redditor ReddBolt511 was curious to hear the best retorts people have given, or recieved, to being told they were late, leading them to ask:
"What's the best response to 'You're late'?
I learned my lesson.
"The first time I was late in over two years, HR wrote me up."
"In the evening I went home on time and HR asked me why I was already heading out."
"I told them I have learned my lesson and won't be late for the second time."- atot806
Tell me something I don't know.
"I know, thank you for your patience."- dayglo98
Priorities...
"Sorry I didn’t want to come."- HonestSapphireLion24
Argue Peace Out GIFGonna have to do better than that!
"A bloke in my high school had a cracker that I’ll never forget."
"Teacher: 'you’re 10 minutes late'."
"Student: 'yeah sorry I was walking slowly'."
"It did not go down well."- Rosemount3051S
Catch me up, why don't you!
"Why?"
'What did I miss?"- rwubmc
Be one step ahead.
"Don't give them a chance to say anything."
"Walk in and say: 'I see you have started without me'."- JustBeingDylan
Here I Am Oscars GIF by The Academy AwardsGiphyBe like the superhero they are...
"Walk past them and say:"
'"Well, now we’re waiting for you'.”
"RDJ as Iron Man".- miguelmoen
Maybe just be honest?
"I remember a guy was late for grade 12 chemistry class and our chemistry teacher was really strict and when the teacher asked him why are you late he quickly spat out"
"'Because I didn't make it here on time'."
"It's a great line but he didn't do it on purpose."- nardpuncher
You knew it was coming...
"How do you know my menstrual cycles?"- ThisAnswerIsLit
Black Girl Period GIFGiphyNext time you find yourself running late, rather than worrying about it the whole time, maybe spend it thinking of a clever response?
You'd be surprised how much is forgiven by a good laugh.
Redditor NikonDexter was curious to learn people's hidden knowledge on which they could provide an impromptu lecture, leading them to ask:
"What topic could you talk about for 30 minutes with no preparation?"
People believe anything I say.
"Anything, as long as nobody’s fact-checking me."- Left_Complaint1604
You think the werewolves in Twilight are scary?...
"Why most modern interpretations of classic folklore creatures, werewolves, faeries, vampires, etc., are less scary than the original stories."- Applesintheorchard
Don't even get me started...
"Why people who don't use turn signals are f*ck heads."- scotsworth
Red Car Headlights GIF by 7-LightsGiphyWhenever I need to vent...
"All the stupid sh*t my coworkers do."- DerpWilson
Tell me it's just a game...
"Video games most likely."
"I could easily talk about one of the Ace Attorney cases for 30 minutes."- zettasyntax
"Warhammer 40000."
"It won't be a quick 30 minutes."- Son_of_steven19
Video Games Game GIF by For Better or for WorseGiphyThe force is strong...
"How f*cking incompetent the Jedi order are."- species-baby
Just listen
"Music."- Love-In-Veinz
Happy Jump GIFVaried interests...
"Metal."
"Both the fabrication material and the music."- Faythlessly
Everyone has a passion that they will never tire of learning.
But, don't be surprised or offended if your friends and family don't seem as interested.
That just means you don't have to pretend to be interested in what they start talking about...