Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Try to "crop" your photo as much as possible during the shot. Remember the Rule of Thirds when you compose your shot. Save the initial image so that you can crop it in more than one way. Get rid of the dead space. Know when not to crop. Consider what you are going to do with the image. Always ask yourself what the image is about.

Answer: If you are taking a shot of your friend, make it of your friend, not of your friend at the end of the hallway. Then you won't have to cut a lot out of the picture when you come back and edit the photo after it's been uploaded. This is not quite the same as the 'golden mean' which is more applicable to painting and not photography.  Basically, the rule of thirds is "Mentally divide your viewfinder or LCD screen into thirds, using two vertical and two horizontal lines to create nine smaller rectangles and four points where the lines intersect."  Try to frame pictures so that the focal point of your subject is right in between or close by one of the four intersection points caused by the lines. Our eyes naturally gravitate to these four intersection points, not to the center of the photograph. Always work on a copy, so that you can always go back to your image and do something else to it, if you happen to have new/more inspiration. Go back to the friend in the hallway: the hallway is a lot of dead space. Crop the picture so that the person takes up a good majority of the frame, leaving a little background space to establish context. Sometimes, you need to leave some of the photo there so that the picture is in context. Are you going to print it out or have it on the web. You will definitely want more pixels to work with if you are printing it out, whereas a picture that is put out on the web will generally require fewer pixels. Crop the image accordingly. Like writing, it can be helpful to remove all the clutter and extraneous information. Crop that out so that what's left is a pure expression of what the image wants to be.


Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Reflect upon past situations. Look for patterns. Explore the thoughts that justify offense-taking. Choose to privilege yourself over the “offender”.

Answer: To cultivate an ongoing understanding of situations that tend to offend you, try journaling about some of your most memorable moments of victimhood. List 3 or 4 incidents with as much detail as possible.   Push yourself to think deeply about these moments, expressing how you felt and why you took offense. Don't assume that the offense requires no explanation or is "obviously" offensive. Write why you were offended, not why anyone would take offense at the same thing. Then, write these moments down as if you are a journalist reporting an incident. Instead of writing about how you feel, try writing about what an outside observer saw. Is there anything you notice across these situations? Does a particular way of being treated frequently make you indignant with consistency? Look for the deeper reasons you were offended.  For example, say you are offended by someone explaining something to you that you already know. Perhaps you are offended because your ego is bruised because the person doesn't see your smarts. Can you reasonably expect that this person should spend their time keeping track of what you know and don't know? These patterns are your triggers. When something like this happens to you in the future, you will know that the moment is ideal for trying out other responses. We typically justify or "prop up" our actions and beliefs with thoughts that rationalize them. What thoughts about what should and shouldn't be the case allow you to claim offense? What makes you think it's a proper response? Maybe you are offended because someone comes to your house-warming party without bringing a gift. The thoughts that might support taking offense could be ideas like:  "Bringing a gift is the only way to show warmth." "A gift for me should be this person's priority regardless of other financial obligations." "I need to receive tokens from others to know that I am loved and supported". When it comes down to it, we can either spend our time trying to get others to adjust their behavior or work on our own reactions. Trying to change others is a weighty task because people are always changing, surprising us—not to mention how many there are out there. What’s more, trying to change others amounts to controlling others. Ethical issues abound.   When you work on your reactions, you are making yourself a more flexible and joyous person who can handle more of the world with ease. Taking the “high road” is not just more noble, but actually more beneficial to your ability to cope with everyday life.


Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Calculate the monthly interest amount. Compare interest to principal payments. Total the sum of all monthly interest charges.

Answer: For each cell in Row 6 where you have an account enter the following formula: "=[Letter]2*[Letter]3/12" in the cell and hit the Enter key. For example, if you were going to enter the formula in B6, you would enter: "=B2*B3/12" and press the Enter key. Copy the formula in cell B6 and paste it into all other cells in Row 6 that have columns for accounts. Excel will automatically adjust the formula for any cells you copy/paste the formula into.  You will have previously entered all the credit card information in columns C, D, E, etc., depending on how many credit cards you have. The copied formula will calculate the new data from each column automatically. The annual interest rate is divided by 12 to arrive at a monthly interest charge. For this example of a $1,000 balance at 18% annual interest, the formula will return a monthly interest charge of $15. Once you have entered your data and the formulas have been calculated, you will see how much you are paying in interest on each card and how much your minimum payment of principal is each month. It's important to note the proportion of your payment that is allocated to interest and the amount that is being used to reduce your principal. You want your monthly payments to reduce your principal amount as much as possible, which you can do with a lower interest rate. To pay down your credit cards as quickly as possible, transfer your balances to cards with a lower interest rate or a zero percent introductory rate. See elsewhere in this article for ways to do this. Create a formula using the "SUM" function. The syntax is "=SUM(B6:E6)" where E6 represents the last cell in row 6 that has a number. This is how much you are paying in interest each month for all your credit cards. Keep in mind that the interest fee will change every month as you make payments on the balance.


Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Remove the lid from your toilet tank and note the parts. Take the chain off of the handle arm. Hook a paperclip to the handle arm. Connect the chain to the paper clip. Flush the toilet and check the chain tightness.

Answer:
Grab the lid from both sides and gently lift it upward. Set it down on a piece of cardboard to avoid getting your floor wet. Take note of the parts in your tank: the flushing handle should be connected to a long metal or plastic handle arm that connects to the flapper chain. In turn, the chain connects to the flapper. Don't worry about emptying your toilet tank to tighten the flapper. Reach into the tank and remove the chain link that connects the handle arm to the flapper. There should be a small opening in the link that lets you remove it. Put on a pair of rubber gloves to avoid getting wet. Start by opening up the paper clip until it's straight. Now, bend the clip into a circle with a small opening in it. Afterward, hook the circle into the end of the handle arm where you removed the chain. Use a plastic-coated paper clip for the best results, as it won't corrode as fast. Attach a link on the chain to the paper clip—which should now be a circle shape—by inserting it into the open end. Now, squeeze the sides of the paperclip to close the space and tighten it. Select a link that allows the chain to sag slightly. Press down on the toilet handle and make sure that the chain is tight enough. The chain should bring the flapper high enough to stay open while the toilet flushes. If it doesn't, continue adjusting the paperclip location until the chain tightness is ideal.  If the chain isn't tight enough and the flapper doesn't go all the way up, attach the paperclip to a chain link closer to the flapper valve. If the chain is too loose and the flapper doesn't completely seal the hole, move the paperclip to a chain link closer to the toilet handle or add another 1 to 2 paperclip links.