Life Hackery

It’s the Christmas season, but The Man just wouldn’t give you a break. While you were having your coffee break, the company executives decided that the most cost-efficient way to celebrate Christmas at the office would be to do away with the tradition of Secret Santa. Instead, everyone would have to bring “unisex” gifts for the company Christmas party. Whoever thought of “unisex Christmas parties” must be a real Grinch.

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During the eighties, you can’t say the term “;music”; without associating it with the cassette tape. The small cartridge, containing two connected spools of film, is the preferred means of storing music. Most music lovers have decent collections of cassettes back then. As technology progressed, cassette tapes were eventually replaced by more modern devices. Cassette owners are now in a bind on what to do with the outdated music cartridge. Good thing there is always a DIY solution to everything.

The cassette tape can be turned into a ton of different items. You can tweak its plastic casing or the film to form toys, fashion accessories and other useful items. You can even combine a multitude of cassettes to create cool nostalgic themes for home fixtures. Surely, you’ll be amazed with the number of things you can do with a seemingly useless device. So without further ado, here are 23 wacky uses for cassette tapes:

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Reading is not just a hobby. For the avid reader, it is the act of summoning portals that lead to wonderful realms, endearing characters and lush storylines. Many people take time to visit those escapist worlds through the novels they read. Unfortunately, not everyone gets to finish his or her book, especially novels that go beyond 800 pages.

Readers succumb to fatigue then lose their concentration. They eventually lose interest and place the book on their list of regrets. As a wide reader, you should make it a point to finish what you started. Here are three sound strategies on how to get through lengthy novels.

I. The Chapter Break

Books are separated by several chapters, which represent a change of scene, setting or character in focus. For the reader, the end of every chapter is a chance to rest and prepare your mind for the next scene.

You can put down the book for awhile and think freely until your mind feels refreshed. If you are a smoker and a caffeine lover, you light a cigarette and have a few sips of coffee before proceeding to the next chapter. That way, you can absorb more details and decipher the intentions of each character. Here are examples of good activities that you can do during the chapter break:

• Free Thinking – Thinking freely is a common practice when readers become exhausted. It rests and stimulates your mind, preparing you for the next chapter. You can start by thinking about things totally unrelated to the book. If you find your thoughts tiring, don’t think about anything in particular. When you feel the mental strain ease off, you can slowly return to the story’s details. Focus on the most peculiar and interesting details, so your mind will be stimulated for more reading. Free thinking with coffee or soda is highly advised, since both drinks are effective stimulants.



• Character Impressions – Boredom appears when you feel that you are a mere spectator to what is happening in your novel. You can go through some of the exploits of your favorite character, so you won’t feel alienated by the story. If your chosen character received fifty lashes, you can ask one of your buddies to slap you on the face a dozen times. You can also do impressions of the character every chapter break. In doing so, you will not get bored, even if the novel dedicates four pages in describing a boring scene like how the characters stare at the sunset.
• Get Your Adrenaline Pumping – Adrenaline, being an additional source of energy and focus, can work in your favor once you get tired from reading. Tap your adrenal glad into action by doing something that induces sweat or at least involves continuous physical activity. You can stroll around the area after reading two or three chapters then return to your novel when you feel pumped up. You can even do exercises like jumping jacks and sit-ups, if you please. Your concentration will improve after a round of exercise. As a result, you’ll finish more chapters right after.



• Journalize – Books with heavy themes naturally exude heavy vibes. You are bound to tire out after reading a continuous barrage of anger, hatred and deep sorrow, especially if you are quite imaginative. Freeing yourself from those heavy vibes is a top priority during the chapter break. An effective way to shake off the stigma of heavy scenes is to write journal entries. Your focus will switch from the tragic events in your book to the happenings in your own life. Unless your life is as tragic as the novel, you will surely feel refreshed for further reading, once you finish your entry.

The good thing about chapter breaks is, you can switch or even combine activities. For instance, after reading four chapters, you can do some free thinking while drinking coffee. You can then walk around the area for your next break. The mixing and matching of activities adds variety to your routine, which makes the entire reading experience more interesting.

II. Reading Aids

Every book has at least a few slow chapters. They are often used for building characters and establishing subplots. Through the lengthy dialogues, you may gradually lose interest. You might be tempted to put the book down and do something else. Before you give up on the novel, try using some of these reading aids, so you can endure the most dragging chapters:

• Music That You Don’t Totally Adore – One of the main reasons why music is considered a distraction because it can easily take the focus of the reader on his/her reading material. If you listen to music that you won’t sing along to, you can concentrate more on your novel. The tune will act as background music for the imagined scenes, which makes the reading experience more magical.
• Tap Your Fingers – This may sound strange but tapping your fingers actually works as a reading aid. The risk movement of your fingers will provide some stimulation through the most boring parts of your book. Just keep the tapping sound at a minimum, since it can be distracting.



• Skimming – Skimming, also known as speed reading, is pretty useful, as long as you have understood the whole idea of the lengthy stretch early on. You can slide from one paragraph to another until you stumble upon an important detail or the start of a significant event. This tactic is only used for heavily descriptive books. You can’t use it for detective novels and psychological thrillers, since those books require readers to focus on the tiniest of details.

Effective as these tactics are, they will not work if you are not really interested with the novel that you’re reading. Consider buying a new book to read if none of these strategies work.

III. Avoid Disguised Distractions

As a reader, you already know that you should shy away from obvious distractions like noise, uncouth individuals and annoying establishment attendants. These factors are automatically discarded when selecting a reading spot. What some readers don’t know, there are actually things that seem harmless but can wreck your concentration at any given moment. Here are three of those items:

• Food – Notice the people in coffee shops. You will rarely see anyone eating while reading. The reason for this is, eating requires much attention. Using the spoon and fork, munching and the taste of food each take a piece of your attention. You probably know how hard it is to read when your attention is scattered all over the dinner table.
• Preoccupation – The only way for you to treasure your reading experience is to give your heart to the story. Being preoccupied with an issue or a concern will leave you no choice but to read half-heartedly. You will not feel the rightful impact brought by all the important scenes. If, by some stroke of luck, you actually reach the end of the book, you won’t be a happy camper, even if it is the best thing that you have ever read.
• Leaks – The sound of a leaking faucet or roof may be faint but it can get pretty distracting as you progress on your novel. The leak’s sound, for some reason, grows louder and louder as you become focused on the story’s twists. Soon enough, you’ll be too annoyed to concentrate on the novel.

Finish One, Gain a Collection

A full-length novel looks daunting for people not accustomed to reading anything beyond a hundred pages. You don’t really need to be an “artiste” or an avant-garde in literature to finish novels. You should just have your appreciation for exceptional storytelling and a set of sound strategies. Once you finish reading your first full-length novel, you’re probably on your way into building a fine literary collection.

It started with Data East’s Karate Champ way back in 1984. Its first version pits the player strictly against CPU opponents. In that same year, however, a direct sequel—Karate Champ: Player vs. Player Edition—finally lets the player challenge another human opponent.

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It’s nice to have a collection of vinyl LP records, whether it’s a rare copy of the Sex Pistols’ unreleased singles or the greatest hits of Neil Sedaka. Many music fanatics preserve their vinyl records like sacred objects, although many people end up having records that are too scratched or cracked to play and enjoy on a record player. While it does suck to break a valuable record that’s worth a lot of money when it’s in mint condition, most broken records are from a bygone era where the music does kind of suck.

Millions of broken and ruined vinyl records are thrown to dumps and landfills every year. Vinyl is non-biodegradable, and adds up to the volume of garbage that pollutes and endangers the planet. Covering up a room of your wall with old vinyl records is just too clichéd, and there are many other ways to have fun with those old black LPs. Instead of throwing those vinyl records away or covering up a wall with them, here are some ways to reuse them.

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