Photo: Khamosh Pathak

Most of the time, instead of actually reading it, you’re probably skimming the web. And that’s fine for quick news updates and social media browsing. But when you have a long article open that you really want to read, it becomes difficult.

You find your mind wandering and it becomes harder and harder to pay attention to the same page. Yes, you can save the article to read later pocketbut we all know your reading list is going to die there. The endless stimulation the internet has destroyed your ability to concentrate– so what to do?

Don’t worry, the “Reader” mode in your browsers gives you a chance to fight. These special modes are designed to make reading the web easier. They remove formatting, spaces, ads, and all other extra elements from a given website so you can focus on the text and some images.

Even better, you can customize the text to make your experience as inviting as possible, so you’re less likely to click away. Here’s how to use Reading mode in your favorite browser (except Chrome – but we’ll get to that later).

How to use Safari Reader mode

Screenshot: Khamosh Pathak

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Safari is the king of reading mode. Not only is the built-in reader mode nice, but there is also an option to automatically load all articles into the “Reader View” by default (although that might be a bit too much for most users).

When you’re browsing the web and come across a long article that you want to read, just click the Reader View button (which looks like a page icon) on the URL bar on a Mac, iPhone, or iPad. Immediately, the site morphs into its far less busy cousin. Press the “Aa”Button to the right of the URL to adjust the formatting.

How to use Firefox Reader View

Screenshot: Khamosh Pathak

Firefox does a really good job with Reader View too (and no, you don’t have to use Pocket for that).

Just click the Reader View icon (looks like a sheet of paper with lines of text on it) in the URL bar within the desktop or mobile apps (yes, it works in the iPhone, iPad and Android apps too) to quickly convert the entire page into the more reader-friendly version. Here, too, you can use the “Aa”In the left menu to customize the font and background.

How to use the Immersive Reader in Microsoft Edge

Screenshot: Khamosh Pathak

While Microsoft Edge’s reading mode is limited to the desktop app, it does a really good job. When you come across an article that you want to read without the distraction, click the Immersive Reader icon in the URL bar (it looks like an open book).

To adjust the text, click on “Text settings“Possibility. Edge has a pretty neat trick up its sleeve here – you can use the”Read out”Feature to have the entire article read to you with natural sounding voices (you can even choose a different voice if you want).

Or try the Reader Mode Extension in Chrome

Screenshot: Khamosh Pathak

Chrome is the only major browser that doesn’t have a dedicated reading mode. But don’t worry, you can have the same experience with that Extension of the reading mode.

The Reader Mode Extension gives you a simple, customizable and distraction-free reading environment. You can jump for that Pro version ($ 15 one time license fee) to add highlights, notes, custom CSS, professional fonts, and more. There’s even a premium option ($ 4.99 / month) that adds cloud storage, read-it-later features, and other extras.

Photo: girls

In his popular – albeit questionable and somewhat staid – novel Still Life with Woodpecker from 1980, Tom Robbins describes the following three ways in which one can remain love:

1. Tell love you’re going to Junior’s Deli on Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn to pick up a cheesecake, and if love lasts, it can have half. It will stay.

2. Tell love you would like a keepsake and receive a lock of hair. Burn the hair in a censer from the dime store with yin / yang symbols on three sides. View to the southwest. Quickly talk about the burning hair in convincingly exotic language. Remove the ash from the burnt hair and use it to paint a mustache on your face. Find love Say you are someone new. It will stay.

3. Wake up love in the middle of the night. Tell him the world is on fire Jump to the bedroom window and pee out. Casually return to bed reassuring love that everything will be fine. To fall asleep. Love will be there tomorrow morning. “

For those of you who are too far out of New York’s tri-state and / or are not particularly inclined to vaguely appropriating a bag of spiritual “practices” or urinating out the window, I would like to offer a fourth – Hopefully more practical – suggestion to force love to stay: Bring love a delicious cocktail while it is in the shower to prepare for the evening. Extend your arm with a closed but sincere smile, as if you were handing him a bouquet of flowers. Tell them to take their time and when they’re done call the cab to take you both to dinner. Love will stay

If it’s the next morning and love is hungover from the day off, then a tonic that you gently place in the corner of your eye as you rinse the smell of last night’s cigarette from your hair, an act of pure poetry, is better than any Sugar-sweet melody on the radio. Love will think you are brilliant and it will stay that way (at least for the rest of the weekend).

I have a cocktail that I think is excellent for this enchanting endeavor. The Intro to Aperol is a stunning drink, perfect to whet your appetite and inspire the heart. It doesn’t require a syrup, swizzle, or garnish; just your good intentions and an honest shake of a god. Love will love it.

But of course you know love best, so this is just a suggestion. If for some reason you can’t make a cocktail, don’t let that stop you from showering love with a wet rune. A frosty large can or a flute filled to the brim with champagne can be magical and medicinal at the same time (and is a good reason to fill the refrigerator with one or both).

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Introduction to Aperol (Audrey Saunders, Pegu Club, 2006)

• 2 hearty dashes of Angostura
• ¾ ounce lemon juice
• 2 ounces of Aperol
• 1 ounce gin
• Optional: an orange twist

Add all of the ingredients to your shaker, then top it up with ice when you’re ready to shake. Cap your shaker and shake vigorously – this is no time to be restrained – and count slowly for 15 seconds. Strain immediately into a chilled coupe and serve immediately.

A note for my cocktail enthusiasts, you may have noticed that the specifications for the Intro to Aperol are a bit unusual – instead of sticking to a more Standard sour format of ¾ ounce lemon, ¾ modifier and 2 ounces alcohol, the Aperol serves as both a modifier and alcohol. The originality of this recipe is testament to its groundbreaking and tenacious creator Audrey Saunders, owner of the widely respected and sorely missed NYC Pegu Club (which sadly closed in 2020).

The story goes that the talented and meticulous owner tested numerous iterations of the idea before meticulously getting to its final Goldilocks sweet spot. I never had the pleasure of visiting the iconic institution and if this drink is any reference to its other offerings then my regrets are obviously justified.

Photo: Beth Skwarecki

To clear your head and move easily, the only thing that beats walking is getting on the water. I’m lucky enough to live close enough to a lake that I can go kayaking at sunset for a few days a week, where I watch birds and sometimes just bring a snack, drop anchor, and swim a bit.

I finally bought my own kayak a few years ago and I have absolutely no regrets. It took kayaking from something I did when the weather was fine and the rentals were open to something I can do anytime. Here’s what you need to know if you want to join me.

Rent a kayak before buying one

Before buying a kayak – which is a good option if you know you will be using it often – it is wise to rent one a few times. If you don’t have a way to store and transport it, renting it might be your only option anyway. (There are inflatable and foldable models, but more on that another time.)

My kayaking experience is mainly on rivers and lakes; I don’t know about sea kayaking even though I’ve heard it’s a thing. I’m also a fair weather kayaker so don’t ask me about wetsuits or skirts or how to perform a role.

If you want to paddle down a river, the rental equipment will take you a few miles up the river and you will meet them at the end. This is difficult to do alone without friends and several cars.

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A chiller experience is renting a kayak in a location by a lake and going out for an hour or whatever you feel like doing. Almost every state park where I live has a lake, and almost every lake has a place where you can rent canoes, single and double kayaks, and sometimes a selection of other watercraft such as row boats, pedal boats, and stand-up paddleboards.

The site will give you all the necessary equipment (boat, paddle, life jacket), give you a crash course on how to propel and steer your boat, and warn you of all parts of the lake that you should stay away from.

Do you get wet on a kayak?

The inside of a sit-in kayak is a relatively dry place, but no guarantees. My personal rule of thumb when planning a trip on the lake is to assume that one day I might turn the boat around and throw myself and my belongings overboard. It hasn’t happened yet, but I’m prepared.

It is also only wise to get dressed to get wet as the paddle will leak and you may have to wade in the water to get in and out of your boat.

On a typical day, I wear shorts and waterproof sandals and dress as usual from the thighs up (t-shirt or whatever). I attach my car keys to my belt. I put my phone in a plastic bag and put it in a zip pocket or belt pouch, or leave it in the car. Sometimes I bring an old phone with me because a deactivated phone can still call 911 in an emergency.

How do you paddle at all?

The first time out in a kayak, you’ll focus on practical considerations, like how the hell am I controlling this thing. It’s okay if you don’t think any further. (here, by the way, is a video that shows you how to control this thing.)

If you don’t care how far or how fast you go, you can go without instructions. You certainly don’t need a class just to frolic around a calm lake. However, if you want to move skillfully on the water or use paddling as a workout, learning a technique will help.

A proper paddle stroke uses your torso and lats (upper back) to pull the paddle towards you as you brace your body against the boat. You may also have sore deltoids (shoulders) the first time after lifting the free end of the paddle out of the water. All in all, a tough paddling session falls somewhere between cardio and strength training.

What should i do in a kayak?

Once you get used to the mechanics of paddling, it’s time to go exploring in your small boat. Even on the little lake in my county park, I know that if I start at one end, I have a few choices of where to go and I may see different wildlife in different parts of the lake.

For me, observing nature is the most beautiful thing, because I like birds and cool animals and often see animals by the lake that I don’t see in my garden just a few kilometers away. There is often a great blue heron somewhere in the shade, perhaps a green heron hunting for fish at the bottom of the marshy end of the lake, a colony of swallows scurrying around to catch beetles, and the occasional swimming muskrat. The other day, an osprey circled overhead a few times before finally splashing in to catch a fish. Once I saw a dark brown figure swimming in front of me, and I paddled softly closer, only to see it dive down and hit its tail into the water. A beaver!

(If you love fishing, a boat allows you to fish in parts of the lake that you can’t get to from land. I don’t know about kayak fishing, but if you are a fisherman I am sure you will find out or find someone to do it.)

If you can get an anchor (from $ 10 at your local bait shop plus whatever it costs for a line), you can drop it in your favorite part of the lake and relax a little. This is a good time to pick up drawing supplies or a packed lunch. True to my “what if I fall in” rule, I just bring blank paper, not a filled sketchbook, and put my snacks in a paper bag instead of a sweet bento.

Kayaking with friends is more fun, but if you are bringing a dog or child please make sure they are safe. Children under the age of 12 should always wear a properly fitting PFD (Personal Flotation Device, also known as a life jacket), and no matter how good an idea seems, they should not be tied to the boat. Same goes for pets – yes, Your puppy needs a life jacket.

If you want to buy a kayak

If you enjoy paddling another paddler’s kayak, buying your own might be a good idea. Remember, you are now responsible for providing your own PFD, paddle, and any other accessories or safety equipment you may need.

For the kayak itself, you need to make a few decisions:

• Sit-in or Sit-on-Top? A sit-in kayak is the traditional way and will keep you a little drier. A sit-on-top is more convenient when you want to get on and off for a swim.
• How long? Long thin kayaks move faster and steer straighter. Shorter, wider ones are a little more stable on the sides, but your paddling won’t be as efficient.
• One person or two? Two-person (tandem) kayaks are usually longer and heavier, and they may not balance or maneuver properly if you paddle them with just one person inside.
• What is the weight limit? In addition to your own weight, consider whether you plan to bring a dog, child, or a picnic cooler with you.

Be sure to check the rules for paddling; For example, you need a boat launch permit. And think about whether you can pick up your boat yourself and attach it to the car; A lighter kayak is much more comfortable than a heavier one when you are usually alone.

In the end I got one very basic 10 foot sit-in kayak. I paddle on calm lakes where a little inefficiency isn’t a big deal and thought that I would do most of my trips on my own. The weight limit is enough that I can paddle it with a child, or my husband could paddle it alone. If I had a bigger budget, I would probably have gone for a longer, fancier boat – maybe even for two.

When pricing, keep in mind that you need a paddle, a PFD, and a car carrier, and you need a place to store them. (There are some clever storage options available so you can store your kayak on a wall or ceiling.) If storage is a potential dealbreaker, inflatable and foldable kayaks also exist – but more on that next time.

You may recognize her from a brief cameo on ABC’s The Goldbergs earlier this year (in which she plays herself), but Nancy Glass is more than just a host on camera. For decades in the media business – despite the seismic changes in the way companies make money and stay relevant – Glass has done it all: She became the first woman to host a nationwide syndicated news show and started her company, Glass, for over twenty years Productions before.

Glass spoke to Lifehacker about how they have worked over the years.

How do you stay motivated despite setbacks?

There is no success without failure first. When something goes wrong, no matter how painful the situation, it is an opportunity to find out how to do things right. As I was rowing with the rowing team, my trainer said, “If you screw up a stroke, don’t stop at it. You have to concentrate on the one in front of you. ”

The fact is, things will go wrong. You need to have the ability to focus on what you want to achieve. If you deal with the bad moment instead of learning from it, your boat will tip over. And in my case, I didn’t have a choice. When I started my business, I had children that I had to support. I had to keep rowing.

If your to-do list is long, do what you least enjoy first. Then everything else seems a little less daunting.

What was one of the most important work lessons you learned?

It seems like everyone is juggling right now. We’re all too busy. The only way to get things done in this environment is by splitting it up. Focus on one project at a time. It’s not always easy, but when you think about everything you need to do at the same time, you will get overwhelmed. Another thing: if your to-do list is long, do what you least enjoy first. Then everything else seems a little less daunting.

For anyone looking to take a career leap on their own – I’m thinking of how you started your own production company – what is your most important piece of advice?

Do not give up. When I started my company 20 years ago, everyone I spoke to (and even those who had just heard about it) said it was stupid and it would never work. It was terrifying, but I didn’t listen to people who underestimated my work ethic, ability to learn, and optimism.

I also turned the negative into the positive. We don’t pay rents in NY or LA so we can put the money on the big screen. Customers got quality work. As for the staff, people like to live in Philadelphia; It’s a great place for families.

What are some skills that you have developed over the course of your career that you think are applicable beyond work?

Leading people was a wonderful learning experience. It made me more patient and a better listener. It teaches you that divergent viewpoints are healthy and should be considered. You will learn how to help without interfering and how to support independent thinking. You also learn that it’s not just your stars or fighters who need attention. Everyone deserves to be heard.

What’s next on the horizon for you?

Lots of exciting things are happening. Our podcast space is growing exponentially. It’s a very fulfilling way of storytelling. We are working on new shows for CNN, A&E, TLC, Discovery and HGTV in addition to our current program. We just partnered with Marcus Lemonis from The Profit. As a company, we’re constantly thinking about challenging ourselves and in a business where shelf life is somewhere between cottage cheese and yogurt this has been a great run. I can’t wait to see what’s next.