Be Safe!: Simple Strategies for Death-Free Living

By Melissa Heckscher

Better Safe Than Sorry

The littlest things in your everyday life can have injurious or even deadly results. Tomorrow, you could be in line at the bank when a robbery occurs. You could catch hepatitis from your toothbrush. You could be killed at a baseball game. Do you know how to live more safely? Haven’t you wondered about the safest:

• Seat on a Plane?
• Lane on a Highway?
• Way to Defrost Meat?
• Stall in a Restroom?

Be Safe! teaches you the safest strategies for everyday life, whether at home, at work, on the town, or abroad. Live a longer, happier life with Be Safe! in your back pocket.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Quirk Books
• Release date: Nov 10, 2015
• ISBN: 9781594749087

Book preview

Copyright © 2004 by Quirk Productions, Inc.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Number: 2004103015

eBook ISBN: 978-1-59474-908-7

Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-931686-71-6

Designed by Karen Onorato

Illustrations by Willie Ryan

Quirk Books

215 Church Street

Philadelphia, PA 19106

quirkbooks.com

v3.1

WARNING

! DISCLAIMER: It is our intent to make your life as safe as possible. The safety information included in this book is the conclusion and opinion of the author alone, based on research and interviews with industry experts. The PUBLISHER, AUTHOR, AND EXPERTS DISCLAIM ANY LIABILITY from any harm or injury that may result from the use, proper or improper, of the information contained in this book. We do not claim that the information contained herein is complete or accurate for your specific situation. It should by no means be considered a substitute for good judgment, skill, and common sense. Be careful out there!

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Warning

Introduction

Chapter 1: Around the House

What Is the Safest …

Position for TV Watching?

Number of Appliances to Plug into an Extension Cord?

Kind of Landline Phone?

Position for Sleeping?

Height to Climb a Ladder?

Way to Hammer a Nail?

Way to Get Paint off Your Hands?

Way to Protect Your Home Against Burglary?

Way to Get Rid of Roaches?

Way to Get Rid of Backyard Pests?

Kind of Lawn Mower?

Chapter 2: In the Kitchen

What Is the Safest …

Temperature at Which to Set Your Refrigerator?

Amount of Time to Keep Leftovers in the Refrigerator?

Amount of Time to Let Food Sit on the Counter?

Amount of Time to Store Canned Foods?

Way to Clean the Kitchen Counter?

Amount of Time to Keep a Sponge?

Kind of Cutting Board?

Kind of Home Fire Extinguisher?

Chapter 3: Food and Drink

What Is the Safest …

Way to Defrost Meat?

Way to Barbecue?

Way to Cook a Hamburger?

Kind of Raw Fish?

Kind of Fruit?

Kind of Bottled Water?

Way to Drink from a Soda Can?

Amount of Caffeine to Allow in Your Diet?

Artificial Sweetener?

Way to Open a Bottle of Champagne?

Chapter 4: In the Bathroom

What Is the Safest …

Way to Bathe?

Way to Wash Your Hands?

Place to Store Your Toothbrush?

Number of Times to Use a Disposable Razor?

Way to Color Your Hair?

Chapter 5: Man’s Best Friend

What Is the Safest …

Way to Meet a Dog?

Kind of Over-the-Counter Pain Reliever to Give a Dog?

Way to Transport a Pet?

Chapter 6: Sports and Entertainment

What Is the Safest …

Spectator Professional Sport?

Seat at a Major-League Baseball Game?

Seat at a Professional Hockey Game?

Seat at an Auto Race?

Piece of Gym Equipment?

Seat at a Concert?

Kind of Fireworks?

Amusement Park Ride?

Piece of Playground Equipment?

Chapter 7: Travel and the Great Outdoors

What Is the Safest …

Kind of Hotel?

Room in a Hotel?

Way to Sleep in a Motel Bed?

Place to Pitch a Tent?

Way to Swim in the Ocean?

City in the United States?

City for Air Quality in the United States?

Place When Outdoors During a Lightning Storm?

Place When Indoors During a Lightning Storm?

Place to Be During a Tornado?

Place to Be During a Hurricane?

Chapter 8: Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

What Is the Safest …

Kind of Flight to Take?

Kind of Plane?

Location on a Plane?

Form of Mass Transit?

Car on a Train?

Type of Car to Drive?

Seat in a Car?

Driving Lane?

Day of the Week to Go for a Drive?

Color Car to Drive?

Place to Pull Over When Stopped by an Unmarked Police Car?

Place to Park in a Parking Garage?

State to Drive In?

Chapter 9: Everyday Safety

What Is the Safest …

Time to Go to the Bank?

Bank Location?

ATM Location?

Time to See a Friend Who Has the Flu?

Kind of Pain Reliever?

Temperature for a Hot Tub?

Amount of Time to Sit in a Sauna?

Stall in a Public Restroom?

Way to Sit on a Public Toilet?

Way to Dry Your Hands in a Public Restroom?

Part of the Body for Piercing?

Month to Get Elective Surgery?

Way to Talk on a Cell Phone?

Sources

Acknowledgments

About the Author

EVERYTHING CAN BE DANGEROUS.

The littlest things in our everyday lives can have injurious or even deadly results. Tomorrow, you could catch hepatitis from a toothbrush. You could crash your car on the way to work. You could be killed at a baseball game.

At a dinner party, do you know how to make sure the hors d’oeuvres won’t make your guests sick? In a public bathroom, do you know the cleanest way to dry your hands, or which stall you should choose to best avoid germs? And when you sleep in a motel, do you know how to avoid catching anything from the person who slept there before you? And I do mean anything (see here).

If not, then this book is for you. Here’s how to avoid the pitfalls of everyday living—how to stay safe in a world where everything is dangerous. And while there’s no way to completely safeguard your life,