Category Archive

safety

We live in the future! Awesome door locks for your sci fi, Steampunk, or techie home

The technology on this door look works like those push-to-start car ignitions, where all you need to do is have your keys with the special key fob, or your smartphone on your persons and BOOM! Doors start opening, cars start starting, the world is your fucking techie oyster. If you’re thinking of making your home smarter — starting from the outside in — check out the rest of these futuristic, sci-fi-inspired, and even Steampunk-y door locks…

The importance of teaching kids about their bodies to protect them

I still remember the conversation, in the coat room of a restaurant for my eighth birthday where my parents tried to explain to me that I had done nothing wrong and why I needed to tell them when an adult acted in a way that made me uncomfortable. They also reiterated that while respecting adults is important that, my body belonged to me and that no one should yell at me, bully or ever touch me without my permission.

Talking about being safe online freaked out my kid

We started with a basic conversation on how not everyone online is who they seem, and that she shouldn’t give out personal information. I kept it light, like “In your game you’re a wizard with purple skin, and we know you’re not really a wizard and you have peach skin, so the person you meet who say’s they’re an 11 year old boy with a Mohawk could really be an eight-year-old girl with a ponytail”, etc. Through the course of our conversation, she asked why safety is an issue online, and I let her know, in generic terms, that sometimes people use online personas to manipulate or bully or hurt other people, and that sometimes it can spill over into offline life.

6 family-friendly tips for placing an emergency phone call

If you live in the United States you know that three digit, potentially terrifying phone number. Indeed, I’m talking about the 9-1-1. We all know it, and we all hope we’ll never have to be the ones to dial it. As a 911 call-taker and dispatcher, I love my job even though it’s sometimes stressful, scary, or overwhelming.

Protect yourself with a kitty cat keychain… with claws

This $6 keychain from Wicked Clothes is fierce! REALLY fierce. Slip your fingers through the holes and the kitty cat becomes a close-proximity defense tool.

The Velvet Rope: Why every hostess needs boundaries

Over the years, my “velvet rope” has had hugely positive results, for my housemates and my friends. It cuts down on drama and keeps my parties fun, happy, and safe.

Use the Map of the Dead to stay alive

Hopefully the internet will keep working when the zombiepocalypse comes to our door, so we can use new app Map of the Dead as a quick way to ID high-population danger zones, liquor stores, outdoor stores, and more.

Always be prepared: How much water do I need to keep on hand in case of emergency?

If disaster strikes tonight, if Godzilla comes down your street, crushing the pavement, ripping up water lines and making travel difficult, will you be prepared? Part of running a household means making contingency plans. How will you stay safe and healthy in case of natural disaster, monster infestation, disease outbreak, service interruption, alien invasion, civil unrest, or war?