Seems like the term "hacking" has been appropriated to mean pretty much anything you want it to, these days.
Maybe I'm just old, but my familiarity with the term rarely extended beyond anything not related to messing around with computer code. As I said, I'm getting old.
One of the more popular things these days seem to be so-called Life Hacks; little ideas that ostensibly makes the world easier to live in. But do they really?
Maybe I'm just too cynical in my old age, but most of the time it strikes me that there's nothing "clever" about them... and quite a few are so obvious that calling them a "hack" is outright disingenuous.
But there are also a whole bunch that outright do not work, and potentially only exist because someone needed "a list of stuff" so they could publish an article or make a video.
What made me think about this was that — once again — a popular hack involving using fresh lemons as a way to clean and polish marble and granite counter tops came by my feed the other day.
It's one of those things that's absolute rubbish. Think about it. What is lemon juice? Highly acidic, right? Rubbing it on a polished marble or granite surface is going to etch it, not clean it, because these types of stone contain calcium, which reacts with acids... at least if you have contact for more than a few minutes.
Meanwhile, because we have cats — and used to have dogs — it is pretty inevitable that "accidents" have happened.
One very popular life hack is that you can remove pet stains with a mixture of vinegar and baking soda.
Trust me, you can't.
I suppose people believe it "works" because the mixture does produce bubbling and fizzing that makes it look like something is happening... but you're basically watching a chemical reaction that creates carbon dioxide and water. Clean, it does not.
It also doesn't clean your plumbing.
Of course, then there are the many financial life hacks.
I saw one earlier today — which turned out to be satire, thank God — where someone suggested saving a penny a day could save you $36,500 in a few years.
Whut? That's just stupid math.
But one that is serious that I run into from time to time is the idea that if you give up your daily latte (or other treat) the $5 a day you're saving will enable you to retire early.
No. No, it will not.
You might be able to take a nice trip in 20 years or so, but that's about it. As someone who has thrown the daily loose change into a big jar for most of my adult life, I can promise you that "saving a little, every day" does not make you rich. Or able to retire early.
But it does definitely offer a way to build a small vacation fund!
Maybe you've seen this one — perhaps suggested by truly lazy people? — which is to microwave eggs, rather than boil them.
There's just so much wrong with this suggestion (including rubbery texture), but mostly the fact is that the heat build-up inside the shell is likely to make the eggs explode. Or they may actually hold together and then explode in your face when you try to peel them.
I understand that we live in a busy world, so people are always looking for shortcuts. But there's a good reason why these "shortcuts" in many cases makes your warranty null and void, or might cause you bodily harm.
Some are just outright dangerous... like the "9 volt battery and steel wool fire starter." While it does technically work, what most of these videos/articles fail to mention is that the tiny fibers heat to about 1,800 degrees! Which is a severe burn, if it touches you. And it will, because the fibers pop and jump everywhere.
Perhaps the biggest and most fantasy filled type of life hack is medically and health related.
There is just so much dangerous quackery there, yet people seem to believe it all. Sure, it makes "perfect sense" that you can pick some leaves outside and mix them with some household soap and cure in two weeks what the entire medical profession has been unable to, in 100 years.
A little critical thinking goes a long way!
Thanks for coming by, and have a great weekend!
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Created at 2025.10.25 00:38 PST
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