Hacked Off

They are called Life Hacks- suggestions intended to help us cope with the mundane, procedural and ordinary issues in our everyday lives.

They started off as recommendations passed down by word of mouth through the generations and then modified by each successive era to suit the technological, social and lifestyle conditions prevailing at that time. They have now assumed the role of a genuine community minded movement.

For example, anyone without access to an oven but wanting to warm up a sausage roll in the 1930's could leave it next to a Nightwatchmans brazier on a street corner.  In the 1950's it could be wedged on the cylinder head of the family motor car during a jaunt around the county. In the present try sellotaping the short of puff pastry snack between two mobile phones and then ring the numbers simultaneously.

My Scottish Gran had a tip for longevity in the keeping of a good gob of saliva in your mouth at all times. She did live well into her late 80's so that physiological trait may have some credence. However, in polite company nowadays the inevitable consequences do not go down well.

Life Hacks can apply to just about every facet of everyday lives and their ingenuity or downright madness are restricted only by the sanity of those proposing them.

Here are twenty five of my favourites from different sources over the last few years.

1. If you regularly forget to take your five a day fruit and veg then before you go to bed use strong tape to stick the portions to the inside of the front door of where you live so that they cannot be missed as you leave for whatever you have to do in the morning.

2. Whilst tidying out the accumulated old cereal boxes from the cupboard pour out any residue of contents into just one box and enjoy a variety of brands and types for a few days more.

3. Have you experienced a panicky feeling about not being able to find your car in a large surface or multi storey car park? Attach a brightly coloured balloon for easy and quick locating.

4. Buy lots of photo frames and keep the stock supplied pictures in place so that, in a quiet moment,you can daydream about who that person is.

5. If you do not have a Sat Nav then order a taxi for a specific address and follow it in your own car to get there easily.

6. If family, friends or visitors arrive unannounced and you do not have any oven chips to feed them with then cut the crusts from a sliced loaf and oven bake them for about 10 minutes for a very comparable snack.

7. This one is a bit contentious but I can see the merits of it. Take a photo of your friends and the items that they borrow from you.

8. With the latest fad of home baking it would be worthwhile covering the receiver of your landline phone with a plastic bag so that even with your hands covered in pastry mix or flour you can still answer a call.

9. An ironing board draped over with a brightly coloured sheet makes for a great emergency buffet table for that home party.

10. If you cannot afford a fashionable gilet jacket then simply cut the sleeves off your favourite and best quality fleece.

11. My sister, after a recent operation gave me this one. For those having to use a Zimmer Frame why not attach a bicycle handlebar basket to take all manner of useful items from TV Remote to books, mobile phone to necessary medication.

12. If you, like me, have accumulated vast quantities of 10p carrier bags then take them with you to a car boot sale and offer them as an incentive to buy your goods. In my experience I have closed  a 1 pence deal by doing this.

13. If you over fill your kettle when making a single cup of tea then use the surplus boiling water to sterilise that bacteria ridden dish cloth lying limply in the sink.

14. Absent minded or feeble minded? Write everything on Post-It Notes, I mean everything, and attach them where they apply all around the house. As well as serving as an aide-memoir it also makes for a nice decorative finish on drab walls and ceilings.

15. Wellington boots are difficult to store so that they stay as a pair when needed. Take the handrail off your staircase side and use the exposed upturned spindles to hold those welly's easily to hand and ready for action.

16. If you are fed up when the bath taps dig into your back then try sitting up the other end for a change.

17. For in car entertainment on those long, boring motorway journeys just look out for a large luxury car with TV's in the back of the headrests and hog their bumper for great viewing.

18. If you have a hole in the toe of your socks then paint the exposed nail in the same colour as the sock rather than waste time on fiddly darning.

19. If you are sending out E Bay parcels then use popcorn to surround and protect fragile items.

20. On the same E Bay theme why not cover all of your personal belongings in polythene or cling film so that even if you get the benefit and enjoyment of them they will remain in nice condition and can be quickly sold to raise extra cash.

21. Instead of paying out for a home safe or strong box just keep your smaller valuables inside the tube of the toilet roll that you are currently using.

22. A budget en suite toilet can be fashioned from an old dining chair with a hole in the seat and a bucket underneath.

23. If there is a ban on wearing pyjamas to your local Tesco Supermarket then just put your normal clothes on over the top of your nightwear.

24. To warn pedestrians and other road users of your approach on a bike just omit to carry out any repairs or maintenance and the resultant noises will serve that purpose.

25. In order to enjoy a lifetime of free Wi-Fi move your family permanently into a Starbucks.

Sources; Buzz Feed, Womans Weekly, My Gran, My Sister Susan, the far corners of my own mind.