It’s the compass icon typically found on the Dock. It’s near the top-left corner of the screen in the menu bar.  It’s the icon with the gear near the top-right corner of the window. It’s next to “Proxies” near the bottom of the window. This brings you to the Proxies tab of your network preferences. This ensures that no proxies are enabled. All proxies are now disabled in Safari.

Summary: Open Safari on your Mac. Click the Safari menu. Click Preferences…. Click Advanced. Click Change Settings…. Remove all check marks on the screen. Click OK.


Get some space so you can gain perspective on your parent’s behavior and your relationship with them. If you’re around toxic or abusive behavior all the time, you may get used to it. Taking a break can help you get a clearer-eyed look at what’s wrong.  If you still live with your parents, creating some distance can be tough. Try joining extracurricular activities that keep you out of the house, spending time with friends who have healthier family dynamics, and arranging your sleep schedule to minimize the amount of toxic behavior you’re exposed to. If you no longer live at home, try a time-out from contact with them, including texts, phone calls, and visits. Coming to terms with a parent’s toxic behavior can be difficult emotionally. Allow yourself time to experience a range of feelings, and avoid judging yourself for those feelings. Anger, sadness, guilt, and relief are a few of the emotions you might experience. It’s not uncommon for toxic people to be abusive as well. Remember that abusers are acting out their own pain. If you’ve been abused by your toxic parent, know that their behavior is not your fault and not a reflection on your own character, no matter what they may have told you. Growing up with a toxic parent can create emotional complications and relationship difficulties later in life. A mental health professional can help you unlearn negative thought patterns, adopt good coping strategies, and build stronger relationships.

Summary: Take a step back from your parents. Give yourself time to process your feelings. Remind yourself that emotional abuse is not your fault. See a therapist.


You could use a tabletop or work on the floor. The sheets of newspaper will smooth out any rough spots or grit on the flat surface and give you a slightly padded workspace. The flat surface needs to support the entirety of the mirror. Do not place the mirror over 2 sawhorses, for example, or you'll risk breaking it in half. The surface of the mirror will have dust and grit on it. If you cut the mirror without first removing the dirt, you'll risk dulling your cutting tool. Worse, you'll also risk a rough and imprecise cut. You can buy both glass cleaner and microfiber cloths at a large supermarket or hardware store. Use a metal ruler to measure the mirror and find where you want to cut. For example, if you would like a 2 ft (0.61 m) wide mirror, measure 24 inches (61 cm) from one side of the mirror. Measure in 3-4 different places and mark each spot with a small dot with your permanent marker. If you're cutting the mirror to fit in a frame, measure so that the cut mirror will be 2–4 millimetres (0.079–0.157 in) smaller than the interior of the frame. This will give it a nice secure fit. Hold the side of the metal ruler along the 3–4 dots you've marked in marker. Draw a straight line with a permanent marker. Use one hand to apply pressure to the ruler so that you'll draw a straight line exactly where you want to cut the glass. Since you'll be working with a cutting tool and with the sharp edges of the mirror, put on a pair of thick leather work gloves to protect your hands from cuts. Also wear protective glasses to keep glass dust from getting into your eyes. If you don't already own work gloves and protective eyewear, you can purchase both at any hardware store or home-improvement store. Use your finger to rub the beads of glass cutting oil evenly across the area you'll cut. Glass cutting oil will lubricate the patch of glass you'll cut through. If you don't apply oil to the glass before cutting, you may end up with an uneven, rough cut. You can purchase glass cutting oil at a hardware store or home-improvement store. You could also use an all-purpose oil. Take your cutting tool and set its tip at one end of the line you drew in permanent marker. Press down hard on the tool and slowly draw the tip along the line you've marked. Continue to apply pressure so that the tool will uniformly score the glass.  Do not stop scoring the mirror once you've begun. If you stop scoring partway through the cut, it'll be very hard to re-begin scoring at the same place. If you're scoring the glass with a steel file, you may need to make 2-3 passes before the glass is adequately scored.

Summary: Lay 4-5 sheets of newspaper on a large, flat surface. Spray the mirror with glass cleaner and wipe it with a microfiber cloth. Measure where you want to cut the mirror. Mark the line you'll cut with a permanent marker. Put on a pair of work gloves and protective eyewear. Squirt 4-5 drops of glass cutting oil along the line you marked. Score the mirror by tracing a line across it with your cutting tool.


There are three main benefits to neutering a male dog. These include a decrease in unwanted puppies, medical benefits to the neutered dog, and a reduction in negative behaviors associated with intact (unneutered) dogs.  Population control. A male dog that is neutered cannot produce any offspring. There already are 3.7 million unwanted pets that are euthanized (put to sleep) in the United States each year. By neutering your dog you take away the possibility of him contributing to this overwhelming problem. Medical benefits. By removing the testicles any cancer or disease that affects these organs is prevented. Also, as a male dog ages it enlarges and it can become infected. Neutering prevents both of these problems and it decreases the chance of your dog developing prostate cancer.  Negative behaviors. Intact male dogs develop behaviors that most people find repugnant. These include urine marking, aggression, roaming (to find females to mate with), and mounting behaviors. While neutering can completely eliminate these tendencies it can greatly reduce the occurrence and make behavior training a bit easier to perform. You need to make sure your dog is healthy enough to undergo anesthesia, as it will be sedated and under anesthesia during the surgery. This always carries a little risk to the dog, so be sure your dog is healthy. Proper feeding, exercise, and vaccinations will go a long way to ensure your dog is as healthy as possible. You will need to call your veterinary clinic or hospital to schedule a surgical appointment. They will give you their pre-operation protocol, which generally includes withholding food the night before surgery and discontinuation of certain medications. They will also let you know if your dog will be able to go home the day of surgery or if they prefer to keep them overnight for observation. When you bring your dog to the veterinary office the day of surgery, your dog will be weighed and examined to make sure it is ready for surgery. If so, the dog will then be prepared for surgery. This generally includes giving a sedative, placing a tube down the windpipe, putting the dog on anesthesia, putting in an IV (in the vein) line for fluids and medication administration, and shaving and cleansing of the surgery site. The operation itself is straightforward. An incision will be made either directly in the skin on top of the testicles or immediately forward of the testicles. Each testicle will be teased from the body, the blood vessels and attachments will be “tied off” with suture material, and then the testicles will be removed. After carefully making sure there is no bleeding the incision site will be sutured, stapled or glued shut depending on the surgeon’s preference. The anesthetic gas will be turned off and the dog will slowly awaken from the anesthetic.
Summary: Understand why it is important to neuter your dog. Make sure your dog is healthy enough for surgery. Schedule the surgery. Bring your dog in for surgery. Understand what is involved with the neutering surgery.