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GuideCal Brennan3 Oct 20267 min

Four emergencies, and the instinct that makes each one worse

Bleeding, burns, choking and sprains each come with one obvious move that's wrong. Learn the right one now, while nobody's hurt.

How to stop serious bleeding before the ambulance arrives

Pressure, packing and a tourniquet, in the order you'd actually use them, plus the mistakes that cost people the five minutes they had.

GuideWes Dunbar23 Sept 20265 min

Purify Backcountry Water Without Guessing What's In It

Pick the source, strain the grit, treat it right, and keep the dirty bottle away from the clean one. The order matters more than the gear.

Ask BRO

What should I wear to this?

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GuideWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Sew on a button and mend a seam so they stay fixed

Eighteen inches of thread, a needle and a toothpick. Ten minutes of work that outlasts whatever the factory did the first time.

Dude.com — 16 advisers who listen, talk and pray with you

PartnerDude.com

5 min read

Choking rescue for an adult, a child and a baby

The hands go in three different places depending on who's choking, and the one that works on a grown man will hurt an infant.

Poll

When did you last ask for a raise?

GuideWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Replace a broken window pane without butchering the sash

The glass is the easy part. Skip one step and your fresh putty cracks out by next winter.

GuideWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Hang a ceiling fan that doesn't wobble, hum or fall

The whole job hangs on a part you can't see from the floor, and most failed fan installs fail right there.

PartnerWhackAWoke.com

GuideWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

How to get a fire going when every stick is soaked

Wet wood isn't wet all the way through. Here's the order of operations that turns a soggy woodpile into a fire that stays lit.

Quiz

Is your money actually in order?

Six questions. No email required, no sales pitch at the end.

GuideWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Finding north with a stick, a watch and the Big Dipper

The sun gives you west in twenty minutes, Polaris gives you north in ten seconds, and neither one needs a battery or a signal.

GuideCal Brennan23 Sept 20266 min

Burns, Sprains And Deep Cuts, Handled In The Right Order

Cool water for twenty minutes, pressure you don't peek at, and a short list of things that mean you stop treating it at home and get in the truck.

Ask BRO

Rewrite my CV so it actually gets read

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GuideWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

The Axe Work That Drops a Small Tree Where You Want It

Read the lean, cut the notch wide, leave the hinge alone, and be twenty feet away before it lands. Then limb it without burying the bit in your boot.

Shirts.com — Design it with AI. Wear it this week.

PartnerShirts.com

GuideWes Dunbar23 Sept 20267 min

Unclog a toilet the right way, plunger first

The first eight seconds decide whether you're clearing a clog or mopping a floor. Then a flange plunger, used properly, handles almost all the rest.

Poll

How many days a week are you actually training?

GuideWes Dunbar23 Sept 20267 min

Fix the rocking toilet before it eats your subfloor

A wobbling bowl has already broken its seal. Reseating it takes an afternoon, a few dollars of parts, and one bolt you must not overtighten.

GuideWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

A Sagging Gate Is Three Problems, Fixed In Order

The post, the hinges, the frame. Diagnose it in ten minutes, fix it in an afternoon, and stop lifting the thing every time you walk through.

Delicious.com — Nine thousand recipes and a plan for tonight

PartnerDelicious.com

GuideWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Read a map and compass in the order you actually use them

Set declination, orient the map, walk a bearing, and find yourself again when the trail disappears. No battery required.

Quiz

Does your wardrobe actually fit you?

Five questions, honestly answered, and a plan for the next fortnight.

5 min

Spotting a stroke or a heart attack in the first ten minutes

6 min

Reset the breaker, then find out why it tripped

Ask BRO

Give me something to do with my kids this weekend

Ask it

GuideWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Sharpen a chainsaw chain by hand, in the right order

If your saw is throwing dust instead of chips, ten minutes with a round file will give you back a saw that pulls itself into the wood.

Names.com — The name is the first thing you sell

PartnerNames.com

6 min read

An oil change in order, with a checklist you can print

Crack the fill cap before you touch the drain plug, and eleven other things that go in a specific sequence for a reason.

Poll

Where does your best time with your kids happen?

Older articles

Use tools in Skills

Latest news · Use tools

Four emergencies, and the instinct that makes each one worse

How To Use An AED And Where To Find One First

Change a tire in the dark and the rain without getting hit

Learn Stick in an Afternoon Without Cooking the Clutch

Build an overnight shelter before the light goes

Pulling Someone Out of the Water Without Drowning Yourself

How to stop serious bleeding before the ambulance arrives

Purify Backcountry Water Without Guessing What's In It

Sew on a button and mend a seam so they stay fixed

Choking rescue for an adult, a child and a baby

Replace a broken window pane without butchering the sash

Hang a ceiling fan that doesn't wobble, hum or fall

How to get a fire going when every stick is soaked

Finding north with a stick, a watch and the Big Dipper

Burns, Sprains And Deep Cuts, Handled In The Right Order

The Axe Work That Drops a Small Tree Where You Want It

Unclog a toilet the right way, plunger first

Fix the rocking toilet before it eats your subfloor

A Sagging Gate Is Three Problems, Fixed In Order

Read a map and compass in the order you actually use them

Spotting a stroke or a heart attack in the first ten minutes

Reset the breaker, then find out why it tripped

Sharpen a chainsaw chain by hand, in the right order

An oil change in order, with a checklist you can print