Average Jane’s Life Lessons

Written by

In the 30-ahem years I’ve been alive, I’ve learned a number of things through experience. As a public service, I’m going to share a few of them with you today:

There’s no such thing as a sale price for a pair of glasses. Whether the offer states buy one, get one free, free frame with the purchase of lenses, all pairs half price, etc., a pair of glasses is going to cost $200-$300. There’s no getting around it.
My mother was right when she made me take typing class in high school. I can still type 88 wpm, even though it’s not the sort of thing I put on my resume these days. It sure speeds up blogging, e-mailing and IMing, though. And I RULE at Typer Shark.
High thread-count sheets are worth the extra money. It took me decades to find out firsthand what everyone had been going on about all that time, but once I experienced sheets that didn’t exfoliate me in my sleep, I was hooked. You don’t have to be like Jessica Simpson and spend $2,500 on sheets. Target has 400 thread count sets for less than $80, if you catch them on sale.
Salon shampoos and conditioners are NOT worth the extra money. After literally pouring hundreds of dollars down the drain over the years in the form of expensive salon hair products, I’ve finally wised up. I wash my hair with the shampoo that our water softener company gave us when we had our water softener installed and I condition with Infusium-23 from the drugstore. Guess what? It makes absolutely no difference at all – and I have about three gallons of surplus shampoo in the basement when the bottle runs low.
Washing your face every night makes your skin look a lot better. I know, I know. Seventeen magazine should have taught me that when I was twelve. Somehow it failed to sink in until convenient, pre-moistened, cucumber-scented exfoliating cloths appeared on the market. I’m not saying I’ve started getting carded at the liquor store, but it certainly makes my skin look fresher.

Now it’s your turn. What have you learned from experience? Was it something you’d heard before but didn’t believe until you found out for yourself? Was it something new that will change all our lives? Let’s hear it!

Comments

13 responses to “Average Jane’s Life Lessons”

February 1, 2005

Claire

Scarily right about the face thing, but anyway:
All that stuff about eating 5 fruit and veg and drinking all your water DOES work. Pizza doesn’t count as a vegetable
Being polite to everyone helps you get along easier. Bending over backwards to help people doesn’t, and is rarely appreciated. Keep it for those that really matter to you.
Nothing hurts so much that you can’t get through it. Give yourself the credit you deserve for coming this far.
Suncream is a good thing. Lobsters are UGLY.
Always ask for compensation or a refund if you think you deserve it – they won’t just offer it to you, but you’ll usually get SOMETHING if you ask.

Reply
February 1, 2005

Huts

Software does not install as easily as indicated.
You can get electronic devices to work together where the requirements don’t match.

Reply
February 1, 2005

Cagey

–Being polite to customer service folks nearly always pays off (take it from an ex-customer service person herself!). I’ve had some incredible stories in the past with customer service folks helping me out on the sly.
–In line with your shampoo-related observations, drugstore makeup is really just as good as the expensive department store brands (and are often sister companies to them ie. Estee lauder and Loreal).
–Just learned this one last night – a cheap Great Clips haircut CAN be just as good as a salon one. I saved almost $30 last night and am even happier with the results.
–Switching to soy milk from cow’s milk DOES help with congestion – it wasn’t the cats after all. Should have switched YEARS ago.
–A car can be driven well PAST the loan payoff date. Not having a car payment totally rocks and allows you to start saving for the next car ahead of time. The bonus is that you have more bargaining power when you walk in the dealership that way.
–Student loans for college are well worth it. I gladly pay that bill every month knowing full well that I wouldn’t be where I am today without them.

Reply
February 1, 2005

Becky

Generic brand Q-tips are no good.
Men: they come the way I like ’em, or they go back. Life’s too short.
Ditto the “being polite to customer service folks.”

Reply
February 1, 2005

Goofy Girl

1. Life is too short to read bad books. Just PUT THE BOOK DOWN if it’s not caught you within the first 50 pages.
2. Along the ‘face washing’ lines – those face cleansers that they sell are really much better than regular soap. I only learned this a few years ago as I was blissfully using Tone on my face every day and wondering why I needed so darn much face lotion. Duh.
3. If you want something, no matter how ridiculous or unreasonable it seems, ASK! You’d be surprised at how often you get it.
4. Bed Bath and Beyond coupons never expire. Who knew?!

Reply
February 1, 2005

Fi

Floss from an early age – it’s a guaranteed way to stop your gums overtaking your teeth.
Flaky nails? Dry skin? Oil yourself from the inside, not the outside – take cod liver oil tablets, or flaxseed oil.
If your partner hits you, even once, leave. Don’t wait it to happen a second time.

Reply
February 1, 2005

Cagey

Goofy Girl,
I hoard those B,B and Beyond coupons like GOLD. I have also successfully used more than one at a time during a single purchase period of 2 items.
I think the 50 page rule should be extended to 100. 🙂 Some of the very best books I have read took me 100 pages to hit what I like to call The Hook. (Maybe 100 minimum for 500 pages total, 50 for 300 pages? LOL)

Reply
February 1, 2005

Jane

An amazingly outstanding face-washing product is Cetaphil lotion. Isn’t oily & doesn’t strip your own oil so your skin overcompensates by making more.
The world’s best facial scrub is a paste of bicarbonate of soda with a little water, used weekly. It has round particles so doesn’t scratch you.
Adding these two incredibly cheap products together I have never had a pimple again.
Like you, I just discovered the wonder of Target 400 thread-count sheets. Your exfoliating thing reminded me of a discovery about linen sheets. I had been fantasizing about bedlinen made of real linen for years and onde day found a pretty and, to the hand, very smooth linen sheet in an antique shop. It was like lying on fine sandpaper!

Reply
February 1, 2005

mojokittycat

No time for thought tonight, but darn it, I now am ADDICTED to Typer Shark. I suppose you owe me for Book Worm, but curses on you Jane! (and thanks for the link!)

Reply
February 2, 2005

maggie

My mother also made me learn to type. Perhaps we are of the last generation where that was an option? A visiting artist in art school also told me it was an invaluable skill. It did lead to lots of spare cash in college and grad school.
I would also say that I think everyone should work as a waiter or waitress (even if it is only for a short period). I gave that advice to a lot of my students. It teaches you to respect what servers go through and it’s a lot of ready cash in college. I made more bartending than I ever did teaching…

Reply
February 2, 2005

Dave

1. If you don’t like your job, get another one. You won’t regret it.
2. The moment you’re sick of the city, go camping. My scientific research indicates that too much steel and concrete cuts off proper blood flow to the good parts of your brain. This can be fixed with a tent in the woods and cooler full of beer and meat.
3. Fellas… if the girl can’t make you laugh, don’t bother. Funny girls are are gold.

Reply
February 2, 2005

Goofy Girl

Dave’s a smart man! (on all counts!)

Reply
February 2, 2005

some girl

I’ve learned that exercise is extremely important to my well being. The minute I stop, things change.
Oh, and I’m so with you on high count thread sheets!

Reply