John McGehee

  We all have instruction manuals and documentation for our stuff. Where do you put them so you can easily retrieve them? File instruction manuals alphabetically by manufacturer name in an A-Z expanding file. Just put them in the pocket for the first letter of the manufacturer name without further sorting within the pocket. While filing by manufacturer name might seem disorganized or arbitrary, it is actually a simple hash table , which in computer science is well known for efficiency. I recommend the Smead 70121 A-Z expanding file . Order online—retail office stores usually stock only a cheaper, harder-to-use store brand.

A relative recently fell victim to the virtual kidnapping scam, where criminals demand ransom for a loved one whom they only claim to have kidnapped.  To make their claim more convincing, the perpetrators make their ransom demand when the purported kidnapping victim cannot be contacted.  They might simply know when the person is isolated and unavailable, or they might force them to go incommunicado by stealing their mobile phone.