If you are experiencing the suicidal feelings described above and believe you are imminently at risk of committing suicide (i.e. you have a plan and the means to carry it out), call 911 immediately. You are in need of emergency help. While you are waiting for first-responders to arrive, call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-TALK. This will help pass the time and decrease the risk until help comes. If you are having suicidal thoughts and feelings but do not have a plan, make an appointment with a therapist or counselor. If your situation worsens while you await your appointment and you develop a suicide plan, call 911.

Summary: Call 911. Call a suicide hotline. See a mental health professional.


Even a fun night of gaming with friends will hone your abilities, but putting in concentrated effort to improve your weak points will lead to faster improvement. The best way to learn, if your pride can stand it, is to play against people who are better than you. Watch what they do, and ask about the reasoning behind their decisions whenever you don't understand. Playing your favorite games is one of the best ways to improve your skills, but past a certain point it may be helpful to focus on one talent in particular. Regardless of the type of game you're training for, a rhythm game like Step Mania can train your fingers to move fast. An honest understanding of what happened is required if you're going to be competitive. If you always blame luck, a slow internet connection, or other factors beyond you control, you’ll never focus on the things you can improve. If you're too worked up after a game, make a mental note to "replay" it in your head, and think about whether there were any decisions you should have made differently. . If you love to play the newest multiplayer game on the best graphics setting, you could be facing $1000 or $2000 in computer upgrades, but that's the extreme case. There are many cheaper accessories that can make gaming life easier, and that's all you should consider if you tend to play older games, games with simple graphics, or games that don't require reflexes.  A gaming mouse and ergonomic keyboard that comfortably fits your hand is invaluable for many games. If you're playing on a laptop, any external mouse and keyboard at all is better than your track pad and built-in keyboard. A headset will let you communicate with allies in multiplayer games, without having to spend time typing.

Summary: Practice against good opponents. Improve your reaction time. Learn from your mistakes. Upgrade your hardware


If you are reading over a pre-shot video, make sure you can see the video from your recording area. You may also record the voice-over without the video, simplifying your job and allowing you to focus on speaking. However, if you need to react to the video then it is best to read with the video in the background. Whenever possible hit play on the video and microphone recorder at the same time. Then, when you start recording, you'll be perfectly synced up to the video. Standing opens up your chest cavity, allowing you to speak with a clear, unencumbered voice. It also allows you to be more animated, acting out some events so that you sink deeply into the character. You want to be 8-10 inches from the mic. Roughly the distance between your thumb and pinky if they are both extended out. If you do not have a sound-proofed room or recording booth you can still make one for yourself. The echoing sound will appear in your recording and keep your voice from sounding clear if you don't take the time to soundproof. Many amateurs have found that recording in a closet is easy: your clothes will naturally dampen the sound and you can put a towel or blanket on the floor and door to fully close it off.  The main goal is to get rid of or cover any hard surfaces, which reflect sound back to the microphone. If your mic has a "hyper-cardioid pattern," use it. This means that the sound is moving through the microphone and out the back instead of echoing around inside. You need to be able to hear your voice as you record, and quickly play back your audio to listen for any mistakes. Try and invest in good headphones, preferably over ear, that will provide the best playback of your voice over. " This sweet spot is tough to find, but it is the basis of all good voice-overs. Your voice tends to lose some character in a recording, so overemphasizing emotions and enunciation brings back the natural energy of your voice. To test this, try out 3-4 lines in the beginning of recording at various levels of energy. Play them back and adjust your voice accordingly, finding the one that sounds best in the recording, not when you are saying it out loud. You do not need to worry about speaking loudly into the microphone, just being clear and emotive. Inflection is the rhythm and tone of your speech. Many beginners like to start with all their sentences ending in "up" tones, like they are asking questions. Good inflection, however, is about varying your voice to sound natural and dynamic. A lot of this comes from "Acting out" your parts as you speak. For example, audiences can actually "hear" smiles, as it changes your tone of voice slightly into a happier register. These words only have a place in the voice-over if your script asks for them. "Uhm," "ahh," and "uhhhh" are all missed in everyday conversation, but they will be glaringly apparent in a recording, when the audience is only focusing on your voice. Focus on reading the script and nothing else. If you need to pause, just stay silent. This takes practice, but listening to your own recordings over and over again will help out.

Summary: Set the footage you're reading over up on a computer screen. Stand while delivering your lines. Make sure your recording room is silent and free of echo. Wear headphones. Speak a bit "larger than life. Focus on strong, varied inflection. Never say "uhm" or other filler noises.


In “The Strike,” Festivus dinner consisted of meatloaf on a bed of lettuce. Make this as the main entree to celebrate festivus dinner correctly. Dan O’Keefe’s family always had either turkey, ham, beef stew, or lamb chops for Festivus dinner. You can also celebrate Festivus by serving one of these foods. Also, serve some pecan pie for dessert. If you aren’t feeling meatloaf, turkey, ham, beef stew, or lamb chops, you can also serve any food eaten in the Seinfeld series for Festivus.  Make it easy on yourself and go pick up some food from Arby’s. Choose from many different foods, including shrimp, pizza, risotto, bagels, home-made sausages, egg rolls and more. Serve a soup such as wild mushroom or crab bisque and make sure to quote the “No soup for you!” line at least a few times over the course of the meal.
Summary: Stay true to the episode with a meatloaf dinner. Serve a traditional turkey and pecan pie dinner. Serve any foods seen on Seinfeld.