Are you sure you want to delete this Tweet? Cancel Delete Continue reading →

Photo credit: Wikipedia Ah, the life of a freelancer. Eating chocolates, not dressing for work, and stuffing chocolates in your mouth during a conference call — the perks are abundant. Of course, then there’s the downsides: no water cooler talk, forget about benefits, and the dreaded invoicing. As a full-time, salaried employee, that paycheck simply appears in your mailbox or bank account. Independent contractors wish we were so lucky. After we invoice for the work we’ve done, we’ve got to chase down our money. My Facebook friends include career freelancers. I asked them how they get paid. Here’s how they do it. TIP #1: Be pleasantly annoying. “Author, humorist, journalist, shut-in” Eric Spitznagel suggests a near constant rapping on the door in order to get ... Continue reading →

DALLAS — Miniature laundry detergent packets arrived on store shelves in recent months as an alternative to bulky bottles and messy spills. But doctors across the country say children are confusing the tiny, brightly colored packets with candy and swallowing them. Don't miss these Health stories Nearly 1,000 dogs sick from jerky treats now Nearly 1,000 dogs reportedly have been sickened by chicken jerky pet treats from China, according to a new tally of complaints from worried owners submitted to federal veterinary health officials. No routine PSA tests for men, panel rules JPMorgan exec's Lyme infection shows need for quick care Stress turns guys into social butterflies Toxic mushrooms: Drug promises new cure Nearly 250 cases have been reported this year to poison control centers. ... Continue reading →

Marine Lance Cpl. Robert Dearborn guides a truck carrying boxes of food at Patrol Base Alcatraz, Afghanistan on Aug. 26, 2011. Photo: DVIDS In 2008, the Pentagon began investigating whether the main supplier of food to troops in Afghanistan overcharged taxpayers. Since then, there have been audits, recriminations and the discovery that the supplier may have overbilled the military as much as $756.9 million. Now lawmakers are squeezing both the Pentagon and the contractor in an attempt to find out what happened. That’s according to a statement released today from the two heads of the House Subcommittee on National Security, Homeland Defense and Foreign Operations. The congressmen want documents and information within 10 days from both the Pentagon’s Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) and the Switzerland-based ... Continue reading →

19-year-old secretly squats in AOL offices for 2 months until finally discovered The entrepreneur had been sleeping on couches, living off company food, and showering in the corporate gym News | Computers AOL | Internet | Startups | Education | Weird Tech | Show AllAOL | Internet | Startups | Education | Weird Tech | Law | Show Less Some Silicon Valley entrepreneurs will go to extreme lengths to make their startup dreams a reality. For 19-year-old Eric Simons, making his internet startup a reality involved squatting in the AOL offices for two months, hiding from security guards as he slept on couches, and dining almost exclusively on the free food AOL provides for its employees.Simons' life as a permanent resident of the AOL offices ... Continue reading →

Robert LeHeup will be the first to admit that he's an alcoholic. “I drink so that I don't go to shit,” says LeHeup, a 30-year-old bartender living in Columbus, South Carolina. “I drink because I have to.”LeHeup is a former Marine sergeant, who served two grueling tours in Afghanistan during the US invasion and early occupation. He drinks to dull memories of the everyday chaos and carnage. He drinks to tolerate his disgust at the raucous bar-goers who have no idea how easy life is in America, compared to the casual violence and grinding poverty of Afghanistan. He drinks because, in the Marines, that is just what everybody does.“There was this drive to prove to each other that we can handle our liquor,” recalls LeHeup, ... Continue reading →

The Wanted and One Direction are killing it. This two-pronged British boy band behemoth has hit the shores of the U.S. hard with myriad magazine covers and morning show appearances—1D even became the first British group ever to see their debut album hit number one in the United States. They’ve sent Tumblrs and young fans into a tizzy, and set the stage for what could possibly be a veritable boy band revival this summer. But as K-pop expert Jeff Benjamin, and others, have pointed out, something’s off with these two bands: they don't dance in their videos. What the hell?! As part of a generation that grew up during the boy band heyday of the late-90s, heralded by Olympians like Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC—groups with ... Continue reading →