They say it is more dangerous to use a blunt knife than a sharp knife. That’s because fighting with a blunt blade makes you more likely to slip – and nobody wants that.

To prevent your knives from losing their sharpness quickly, never put them in the dishwasher. Hand wash and dry immediately. Keep them in a knife block or in a special drawer and cover the blades with guards.

Once you find that your blades are no longer slicing like they used to, you have a few options for honing. (Please note that honing and sharpening are different. Honing is just a smoothing of the sharp edge of the blade and should be done regularly. Sharpening is the process of sanding the metal. To do this, you will need to send your knives to a metal shop every few years.)

If you have a two-sided grindstone, soak the stone in water first, then place it coarse-side up on a damp paper towel for stability. Hold the knife at a 15-degree angle with the heel of the knife on the back of the stone and use a sweeping motion to slide the knife until the tip of the knife reaches the other end of the stone. Repeat this process 4-5 times, then switch sides of the knife, turn the stone over and repeat the process.

You can also use a honing steel by holding it perpendicular to the counter with the shoulder of the blade on top of the steel. Slide the blade down until the tip of the knife reaches the bottom of the steel. Repeat this process 4-5 times and then switch sides.

If you don’t have these tools, you can use the rough ceramic edge of the bottom of a coffee mug. Slide the knife blade from heel to tip along the edge a few times, then switch sides.

G / O Media can receive a commission

Photo: Claire LowerGrill bossGrill bossJoin Claire on her journey from Grill Baby to Grill Boss.

We tend to think of cucumbers as cool and crispy, best smashed and served in salads or in brine and pickled. But a cooked cucumber has beauty, especially a grilled one.

Cooked cumbers are surprisingly sweet and fragrant, with an intoxicating aroma that is similar to, but not identical to, a zucchini. Thanks to their extremely high moisture content, they stay firm when exposed to high heat, giving you a spear with a crisp, juicy inside and a deeply aromatic outside. I like grilled pickles a lot more than I was prepared, I say.

And high heat is key when grilling these babies – you don’t want to fry your cukes, you just want to give them a little outside color and char. The larger your segments, the cooler and firmer they’ll stay inside. I grilled cucumber halves and cucumber quarters, and both are good, although quartering gives extra surface to brown (and browning is equal to taste). As for the skins, you can leave them on or peel them off. I like the touch of bitterness they add and they blow in a delightful way.

Aside from this little knife (and / or peeling) job, grilled cukes require little preparation. Throw them in enough oil to coat them – something neutral is preferable, but I used cheap olive oil and they turned out great – and beat them up with a few generous pinches of salt. Grill over high heat until browned, blistered and slightly softened. Let them cool to room temperature, then drizzle or pour a salty, sour dressing or sauce over them, or chop them into pieces and toss them with a salad. I also think they’d make a killer tea sandwich. You know the variety – cream cheese and white bread could always benefit from a small dimension, and grilled pickles have at least five.

G / O Media can receive a commission

Photo: Maridav (Shutterstock)

Where most people have to dab their foreheads, my sweat glands trigger an inexorable tide when it’s hot outside. The technical term for my plight is “sweaty bastard,” and you may know our breed.

My body regularly gets as slick as an oil rig in the summer, so I’ve long been an advocate of showering as much as necessary. Whereas rarely showering is totally cool Under the right circumstances, people like me have to do just the opposite during the hot months to maintain the appearance of a normal person.

But showering several times a day can feel unnecessary at best and a funky waste of water at worst, not to mention attacking your skin. To that end, if you’re sweaty like me, I recommend rinsing off while you shower – and yes, there is quite a difference.

How is flushing different from taking a shower?

Showering is part of leisure time, at least in some ways; When showering, you can enjoy the hot water and stable water pressure. Rinsing, however, is purely pragmatic and is intended to rid your body of the excess bacteria that have likely buried themselves in your skin after the last body rain.

G / O Media can receive a commission

Rinsing is actually not a pleasant activity. You don’t flush because you want to – you flush because you have to. For this purpose, rinsing should be short and to the point. There is no such thing as daydreaming, you are not exploring new soaps and peeling methods, because rinsing is little more than damage control. You can rinse with either hot or cold water, but your rinse shouldn’t take more than two to three minutes.

The nice thing about flushing is that you can do it as many times as you want since you are not abusing the system. You really shouldn’t have to flush more than twice in any given day; The impetus for flushing is to save water. Therefore, the cumulative effect of your flushing schedule should be the same as that of a thorough, but not overly indulgent, shower.

How do you rinse to avoid getting too sweaty?

As mentioned earlier, washing up is a pragmatic ritual. You rinse to cleanse yourself and nothing else. (This technically goes for showers, but people do all sorts of things in the shower that don’t involve actually bathing). To rinse off, get in the shower and scrub yourself with soap – or don’t even use soap if you’re concerned about skin irritation and don’t have body odor. You probably don’t need to shampoo your hair unless it’s littered with sand from the beach or you haven’t washed it in a while. A nice cool douche is also a great way to lower your body temperature.

Flushing is a seasonal practice and should be used with caution – taking into account the environment and your sweat glands. Showering too often can be bad for your skin, and putting too much soap on your skin can be kill bacteria that are actually good for you. Same goes for shampooing, which you should still only be doing when you need it.

For all of my immensely sweaty brothers out there, I ask all of you to flush twice a day over the summer. After all, showering could be too much for the earth – not to mention your sensitive skin – to handle.

Photo: Fizkes (Shutterstock)

If you are one of them 56% of Americans who live from paycheck to paycheckSometimes you may need to raise extra cash to make ends meet through payday. Increasingly, People are turning to cash advance apps to help cover their bills. Typically, you can get a few hundred dollars for a small fee without worrying about an interest fee (unlike predatory payday loan deals). While useful in a pinch, these apps have hidden costs that can also sustain a debt cycle, so they’re best used sparingly.

How do Paycheck Advance Apps work?

Also known as Earned Loan Access or On-Demand Pay, these apps allow you to access wages that you have already earned before payday. Advances are typically small – typically up to $ 250 – and there are no transaction or interest fees. The apps are divided into two categories: an employer-provided service built into your company’s payroll (like DailyPay, PayActiv, and Rain), or a separate public app where you enter banking information yourself (some of the most popular) To earn, Dave, Brigit, Carillon, and MoneyLion– Money under 30 has a good overview of the best of them Here).

There’s a legal loophole here: since these apps don’t charge interest and the money is technically yours already (because you’ve earned it and just waiting for it to get into your bank account), it doesn’t take into account a loan that the prepayment companies give it to allows you to avoid the regulatory hurdles you would see with payday loans. They then make money by charging subscription fees ($ 1 to $ 10 per month) or voluntary “tips” on an advance payment (up to 20% of the total).

Although the tips are not mandatory, they are “suggested” (“[A] Tipping more helps pay for users who can’t afford to tip, ”Earnin pleads, according to Nerdwallet. in addition, according to the New York TimesIf you don’t tip, you can reduce the advance amount that you will qualify for next time.

G / O Media can receive a commission

The downside of cash advance apps

Even if this type of prepayment is not considered a loan by law, it is difficult not to consider it as such. Sure, using one of these apps is a better option than paying triple-digit interest rates on a payday loan, but the subscription fees and tips associated with prepayment apps add up to what feels a lot like interest.

in the one An example reported by NBC News is that a former earnin user paid a tip of $ 5 on an advance of $ 100 – an annual interest rate of 130%, which is well above the average interest rate of 16.15% that you may be charged to your credit card. As a Missouri State Senator, Jill Schupp said NBC News::

“Using the word ‘tip’ in place of an usury charge, an interest rate, or a fee is just semantics. It’s the same at the end of the day. “

Since these apps are automatically debited from your checking account (once payday has passed), you run the risk of being hit by overdraft fees that can get you stuck in an endless cycle of debt payments. As the time reportsThe Dave App Terms of Service state: “Dave will monitor your balance and will try to ensure you have sufficient funds before debiting your account. However, Dave does not guarantee that there will be no overdraft.”

How to choose the best prepayment app

Half the battle is being aware of the fee structure for these apps and avoiding unnecessary fees wherever possible (i.e. a subscription fee may be worth the extra cost if additional services are offered, however otherwise don’t pay them if you don’t have to). In any case, avoid a prepayment app that charges interest or upfront fees. For more information on choosing the right app, see Check out these tips from the Better Business Bureau.

Bottom line

Cash advance apps shouldn’t be used all the time, nor should they be viewed as replacements for your emergency fund. However, they can be a convenient option when you are short on cash and in a hurry. Before using one, however, consider your other options: many credit unions and banks offer small loans that can be repaid in affordable monthly installments, or you can see if one of your credit cards has a 0% APR offer. In both cases, you have more time to make the repayment.