Tips

Tips 18

A neurologist says that if he can get to a stroke victim quickly he can totally reverse the effects of ...

A neurologist says that if he can get to a stroke victim quickly he can totally reverse the effects of a stroke. He said the trick was getting a stroke recognized, diagnosed and getting to the patient within 3 hours, which is tough. Sometimes symptoms of a stroke are difficult to identify. But doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three simple questions:

1. Ask the individual to SMILE.
2. Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS.
3. Ask the person to SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE (Coherently, ie: It is sunny out today)

If he or she has trouble with any of these tasks, call 9-1-1 immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.

— Passed along by Michael Hawley

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For small, point & shoot digital cameras, there is always the problem of holding it steady in low light situations. I happened upon something — the “Chain Pod” — that was used back when the first 35mm cameras appeared. To make one is easy — just buy a 1/4″ #20 thumb screw from Home Depot and a 6′ length of small chain. Drill a hole in the thumb part of the screw and attach the chain. After attaching it into the tripod mount hole, just step on the chain and pull the camera upwards until taut. I was thrilled by how light it is (and portable — in your pocket!) and how well it works.

— Bryan Quattlebaum

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I must confess I owe Martha Stewart for this one: All my power cords, other computer cables, phone cables, power-strips, and even the DSL modem and the wireless router are contained in a wire basket (from Hold Everything or Pottery Barn or Ikea or something) which is hung from the bottom of the desk by four screw hooks. Leaves plenty of room to stretch my legs without the fear of yanking out a cord or kicking a power switch with my feet.

— Charles Kiblinger

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Clear silicone rubber makes an excellent fabric glue, especially for hard-to-sew fabric like T-shirts. Small holes can be easily sealed nearly invisibly in three steps or small pieces of fabric can be used as patches, visible or invisible. There are no problems with laundry–it goes through the washer and dryer just fine without losing adhesion or being damaged by the heat of the dryer.

I’ve been doing this for years with EXCELLENT results.

— Michael Rudas

10/4/06

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