The Lyft app is often at the wrong pickup point. Sometimes I have to walk to a popular restaurant to be found. I had a really bad time at the airport recently.
When I entered the name, O’Hare International, the app should have prompted me to choose a specific pickup area. He didn’t, so I typed in O’Hare’s address. What a mistake. The driver never approached where I was standing. In the cold, freezing air, I twirled my frozen thumbs.
I texted him several times to tell him I was in “green zone D”. I also left a voicemail message. When he called me back, I shouted “Green Zone D” over and over again. The connection was bad but I heard him say, “I don’t care where you are.” My first rude driver! And in addition to a three hour flight delay too. I was instantly reduced to my 3 year old self. “I hate you,” I said. I hope he didn’t hear me. Then I canceled the trip.
Fortunately, Lyft waived the usual $ 5 cancellation fee. Better yet, when I restarted the app, it let me choose my area. So I still love carpooling. Uber and Lyft track drivers in real time, and their cars are cleaner and newer than taxis.
EBAY TIPS
I recently sold almost new men’s sunglasses on eBay to a guy who said he shared the cost with his sister as a Christmas present for their dad.
The list of things you can sell on eBay is amazing. They include empty perfume bottles, broken jewelry and watches (people want the parts), empty printer cartridges, and even pantyhose (used for craft projects). We all have too much stuff. Why not sell some of it?
No need to worry about privacy. You will not share any financial details with buyers or potential buyers other than the price of your item. They don’t even need to know your name. To get your money, you tell eBay the routing and account number of your checking account. The buyer pays eBay and eBay deposits the money in your account.
The buyer also does not receive your contact details. If they want to send you a message, eBay acts as an intermediary by placing your response on their site. My potential buyers sent messages about what they were willing to pay. When I didn’t respond, they increased their bid until it was only $ 15 less than my original price. When it comes to writing a description for your item, you can usually find one online if you need to. There is a form to fill out, but eBay will push you in the right direction.
MAKE YOUR OWN DRONE
You can build your own drone for under $ 20, complete with camera. It would be great for taking photos at birthday parties.
The Circuit Scribe Kids Drone Creation Kit includes a drone with cardboard arms. It can stay aloft for three minutes at a time, but if the arms get crushed in an accident, you can draw new ones on any old piece of cardboard. After you cut them out, you fill them in using a conductive silver ink pen, which is included. Then you attach the hub and motors, download the free app, and you’re ready to fly, using your phone as a controller.
According to Engadget.com, the drone is easy to maneuver with the free app and will stay connected to WiFi over a range of 150 feet. See it in action by going to YouTube.com and searching for “Unboxing Circuit Scribe Drone Building Kitâ€.
YOUR TEXTS GO HERE
My text messages are boring. It’s usually things like, “Ready? But if yours are worth saving and you’re using an iPhone, try the Keepster app. It turns texts and photos into a little book.
First, download the free app on a Mac or Windows computer. Then connect your phone by cable and choose texts and photos from your iPhone app iMessage, WhatsApp or other SMS service. You can delete the texts you don’t want and edit the rest. For more information, watch the video tutorials at Keepster.co.
Keepster books start at $ 13 for a maximum of 30 pages and up to $ 275 for 800 pages. For a romantic book, they suggest a title like “How We Met”.
GOOGLE DOCS BECOMES “POOF”
“I never travel without my journal. There should always be something great to read on the train,†Gwendolen said in Oscar Wilde’s play, “The Importance of Being Seriousâ€. Fortunately, she didn’t use Google Docs.
I drafted a personal essay for my group of writers at the airport, then spent three hours on the plane reworking it. I used the free Google Docs app on my phone, but forgot to go offline. Pouf! There were three hours of revisions.
A good alternative is the free WPS Office, which has over 100 million downloads. It allows you to save a document by pressing the floppy disk icon (looks like a square). The default storage location is in the cloud, but you can easily change it to local storage by choosing it from the drop-down menu.
Unfortunately, when you install the app from the App Store, WPS Office will try to get you to go for the premium version. Tap outside of the offer to return to the giveaway. Otherwise, go to wps.com and install a version for your computer.
Joy Schwabach can be reached by e-mail at [email protected]
