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Updated: Aug 2, 2020 62 Comments · by

Coffee Break: Flexible Clip Reading Light

Coffee Break

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Does anyone else remember the Itty Bitty Book Light? It was a ’80s-era reading light that you could clip to your book. (All the current product listings look to be out of stock, except for used ones on eBay.)

I prefer this option, which is designed to clip onto your headboard (or table, desk, etc.) and also can stand up by itself. It's been great for my son — when he has trouble sleeping, he uses it to read without having to turn on a bright lamp. If the dimmest setting gives you more light than you want — there are nine brightness/color combos — the light's flexibility lets you angle it away from yourself as far as you want.

I think this light would also work well for putting on makeup or for using in a baby's room during middle-of-the-night diaper changes. It charges via USB but lasts quite a while on one charge, depending on the brightness level you use. 

The light, which is available at Amazon from one of those random all-caps brand names, is only $11.99 and is eligible for Prime. Flexible Clip Reading Light

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About Kate Antoniades

Editor of Corporette since 2014, Kate Antoniades lives in her hometown of Rochester, NY. A cat person and Oxford comma loyalist, she loves thrift shopping and has too many craft supplies.

Comments

  1. Anonymous

    Since there are so many different interests/backgrounds here, I’m hoping people can weigh in — my quarantine/safer at home project has been learning Arabic. It was kind of a whim and kind of — I really want to go to the Arab world (Jordan, Morocco, Dubai) at some point in life — so wouldn’t it be nice if I understood or could read even 1% of the language. Downloaded Duolingo on a whim and have stuck with since mid April. I’m probably 3/4 of the way thru the lessons in the app — slowing down a bit because I need to do some extra things for my professional life. Question though — clearly this is one of those languages that you could keep studying for years and still not learn it all so I’d like to keep it up; plus it also is a language that I think you’d forget quick if you didn’t keep it up since it’s not roman/latin characters.

    So what do people do after finishing a language app? Do I move onto something else like Rosetta Stone or Babbel? Is there something else Arabic specific I should use to keep growing my vocabulary and reading skills? Duolingo is modern standard Arabic — should I be looking into then moving onto a specific dialect? I have no preferences re dialect since it’s not about speaking to family members in a specific place or anything — I hear Egyptian Arabic is commonly used but IDK that for sure. Thoughts on how you’d continue this? I’m literally one of those people who basically goes to work and comes home, so I’d love for something like learning or practicing Arabic to become a “lifelong” hobby — I find it uses a totally different part of my mind than my usual work in finance. Thoughts?

    • Anon

      I recommend using something like italki to connect with a language tutor so you are forced to actually use the language, no matter your level. Regular conversations with a native speaker will help you learn and grow in a new way.

      • Former Parisian

        Seconding italki. I have been learning Spanish in lockdown, and have found a really excellent Spanish teacher via the site. Nothing beats some good old-fashioned tutoring by a native speaker.

        The gamified experience on Duolingo really annoys me – but it clearly works for you!

    • Anonymous

      Maybe see if you can find an online language group (or university) to practice with since I assume these have all gone online? I took Arabic in college and googled the textbook I used (like 15 years ago…)-it now has an audio/video online version that might be more robust than duolingo (haven’t used duolingo)-https://alkitaabtextbook.com/ (I did not keep up with it and remember very little, unfortunately)

      As for dialects, a native speaker once explained it to me this way–if you know modern standard but not a dialect, everyone is likely to understand you, but you may not understand the dialect, sort of like how everyone understands the “accentless” American newscasters but my northern friends can’t understand a word my Southern accent father says. I’d probably just stick with modern standard.

    • lydia

      what a fun hobby! unfortunately, the duolingo tree for arabic is really short — doesn’t get you far, but you’ve gotta start somewhere. You should probably keep learning modern standard; it’s what will be taught in most classes. Egyptian is widely understood (in part because of pop culture dominance). the major textbook (at least when I studied), al-Kitaab, starts to introduce some Egyptian phrases in book 2. One thing to note, because you mention Morocco — Moroccan Arabic (Darija) is *completely* different — you can speak Fus’ha there, and people will understand you,but they will switch to speak to you (or to French, probably). It’s more like a swiss dialect compared to standard German than it is like American southern English, which is just an accent (e.g. different words entirely, not just a different pronunciation).

      A few other tips:follow language learning pages on instagram — I’ve been invited to join online classes this way (for Turkish, via whatsapp). also good passive reinforcement. italki is a good idea; Rosetta Stone or Babbel or something might be a good second step. I’ve started Babbel after finishing the Turkish tree and it has a different approach from duo, which is probably helpful as to round things out. have you learned to write the letters by hand? youtube would be good for this, or the book Alif Baa. Also, watch Arabic movies and TV — it helps you get the sounds in your head. Ramy (on Hulu) actually has a lot of spoken Arabic (Egyptian), especially toward the end of the first season and then throughout the second. you could also look into a tutor. after finishing Duo, you’ll probably still be A1 or maaaaybe A2 in the European language level system, in case that helps…

    • Anon

      Very late on the reply to this, but that’s awesome. Congrats! What a fun project.

      I took Arabic for a year or so post college and it was so fun. You get to create a new handwriting for yourself and it was so different from the French and Spanish I had taken earlier.

      Also, re your travel. People in the Middle East are super friendly and will be impressed by the language skills of anyone who doesn’t look like they should have them. A few years after I stopped studying Arabic as much I had the opportunity to go to Egypt, Jordan, and Syria (pre-war) and people were super nice and patient with my speaking. I second all of the resources lydia mentioned.

  2. Cat

    Can any Philly ladies talk about getting a covid test if you don’t have symptoms? Penn says they don’t do asymptomatic testing unless it’s required for an upcoming procedure (so, not me), and when I look up the city-operated test sites they all ask you to name your symptoms or say you’ve been instructed by the government to get tested.

    My family, including parents in their 60’s, has plans to spend a week together at a rental house an easy drive away. While all of us have been wearing masks, distancing, not attending gatherings, etc and therefore would be surprised if any of us are infected, I’d rather get tested beforehand if at all possible to be sure. Any advice?

    • Anonymous

      You can go to Rite Aid but unless you’re prepared to quarantine between the test and departure you can’t be sure anyway.

      • Cat

        Thanks – no issue staying home in the interim as we both WFH and just do a weekly grocery shop so could plan ahead. Do you know how long their results take?

        • Anon

          I went to the CVS on Oregon Ave. I waited 3 says for a testing slot and I’m on day 5 and since testing and still haven’t gotten results. The mild cough I had resolved itself days ago but I’m still stuck in quarantine until I get my results.

  3. Velvet Covered Furniture?

    Anyone have experience with velvet furniture, specifically a sectional that will get daily use? I love the appearance so much, but am wondering if it is impractical versus a boucle or something like that.

    • Pink

      Do you have kids? We were gifted a velvet Flexsteel couch that went in our tv room. It promptly had both milk and yogurt spilled on it, and I was unable to get them out very effectively, although to be fair I didn’t try that hard. Also when my SIL visited with her dogs (who are not allowed on our furniture, sorry not sorry) it got covered in dog hair. I guess they sat on it while we weren’t looking? Our microfiber couches have weathered much better. If you don’t have kids or pets I say go for it as velvet is gorgeous and feels very luxurious.

    • Aunt Jamesina

      I imagine a lot of it has to do with the fiber content and quality of manufacture of the upholstery (see if you can find out Martindale test specs for any fabric you’re interested in), but my experience almost two years in with the Sven chair from Article is that the nap gets more worn in seating areas, and even gentle spot cleaning can alter the sheen of the fabric. It’s cotton velvet, which tends to be more “grabby” with lint and fur than synthetic velvets. Before our dog passed, it was a fur magnet– and he had short hair that shed relatively little, I can’t imagine what it’d be like with other breeds of dogs or with cats. See if you can get a swatch of the upholstery you’d like and subject it to some testing.

      We do have an ottoman from West Elm in their “distressed velvet” fabric that reads a bit more like chenille to me (the nap is shorter and it feels more like chenille), and it’s worn beautifully and doesn’t have any of the issues our velvet armchair does. I LOVE velvet, but I think I’ll stick to velvet throw pillows and drapes from here on out. And RUN AWAY from the Sven chairs and sofas at Article. They’re pretty, but become misshapen and the velvet starts to look worn about a year in :-)

    • JB

      I have had a velvet sofa from West Elm for six years. Absolutely no issues with the fabric holding up or showing wear, although I’m not home a ton and I don’t have children or pets.

    • BB

      I have a Room and Board sectional in a blue velvet. It’s probably faded over time from being in the sun but still looks great after 5 years. It gets daily use, and we basically sit on 2 parts of it all the time. We also have a cat that covers her section with hair (which I clean weekly). I just noticed last week that one of the corners was sort of wearing thin, but that’s it. It’s been reasonably easy to clean small spills with a cloth and some water. I don’t think we’ve had any stains stick. We got it professionally cleaned about 2 years ago.

    • OP

      My only comment is that if you have a cat, your cat will really appreciate you getting him a room-sized scratching post.

      Or at least that was my experience with my velvet couch, RIP.

      • BB

        Totally depends on the cat! :) Mine would have DESTROYED a boucle couch as she likes thin carpet-like things to scratch. Couldn’t care less about velvet or microfiber (or cardboard or sisal or you know…any other normal cat scratching things)!

  4. Anon

    Hi there, are there any newly pregnant ladies here that are (or are not) participating in the ASPIRE study (pregnancy during COVID times)? I just got a message about it from my doctor and have never been part of a study – or pregnant for that matter, first time after a long and difficult journey – so curious if anyone else was considering it. As I’m still early, we haven’t told anyone yet, so I don’t have anyone to talk about it with either!

    • Anony

      I am! My participation has just been filling out questionnaires, nothing invasive. I’ve really liked participating – it’s been a nice opportunity to just be honest and it’s sort of made me feel better to answer the questions at times that I was feeling pretty stressed out. I hope it ends up being helpful to the researchers.

      • Anony

        ETA: I should say, I’m further along in my pregnancy now, but was very newly pregnant when the pandemic started, with my first, after infertility. The study felt like something actionable I could do at a scary time.

  5. HM

    Anybody have any good recommendations for books/other resources for improving active listening?

    • Anonymous

      How to Talk So Kids Will Listen and Listen So Kids will talk.

      One key for me – don’t listen just to the words that are said; listen for and respond to the subtext behind them instead. So example: when someone at a client company says something heated and stupid – notice the words they use, but don’t react to those – react to the anger and ask them about that.

  6. Anon

    Does anyone have any experience buying a vacation/rental property in Europe? Can you provide any resources or insight? Mostly looking in Tuscany, but curious about other experiences.

    • Anonymous

      Both in the U.S. and Europe, Air B and B and similar services destroyed the short term rental markets in many areas. Too many renters cycling through drove other owners nuts, and in region after region the backlash was to enact bans on short term rentals. So I would not buy a unit I could not afford to keep vacant.

  7. Silly Valley

    A couple weeks ago someone recommended face masks made by a company that makes scrubs. I can’t find the mention again – I want to say the name of the company started with F. Anyone?

  8. Spousal listening

    What do you do when your spouse just tunes out when you are talking or doesn’t pay attention? It’s not obvious at the time — we are both present in a room talking to each other (e.g., what are the kids doing this week?). Then, a couple of hours later, he will ask about what we just talked about. The answer is never complex (scout camp, running wild in the streets, nature camp vs “log of n-2”). He gets mad at me when I say “It’s what I told you earlier”. But I told him earlier and I am exhausted by not only having to repeat myself but b/c I’m apparently not worth paying attention to. We both WFH and I am damn sure he is not like this at work. He probably has ADD but I see this as a him problem vs a “my attitude towards this needs fixing” problem — is it not upon him to keep up with things (he also has an excel chart of the summer and g-d forbid he do anything but ask me what the answer is and then re-ask).

    • Anon

      So I’m your husband in this scenario. I’m getting worse at multi tasking as I get older, and he is kind of a chatterbox, so there are times when he has been talking for a while and I glance at my phone or email, or even just think about the last thing he said, and I unfortunately miss what he’s currently saying. I think I was better at paying attention to him when we weren’t together 24/7. I know I’m not in the right here, I fully admit not carefully listening all the time is disrespectful. But on the other hand, if he talked a little less I think I would be able to focus more.

      • Anon

        But to answer your specific question, “it’s in the spreadsheet” is a perfectly acceptable answer.

        • Cat

          co-sign all of this. You ever drive somewhere and when you get there wonder how on earth you managed to get to your destination because you were so absorbed in thought? That happens to me when I’m multitasking and it’s worse now that we’re WFH. My brain is so used to Work being Not Husband Time that it defaults to paying attention to Work during business hours… even when Husband is right there.

          I do apologize when my autopilot self manages to answer, ex, the question about which leftovers we’re getting out of the freezer for dinner, and then I later ask Husband what we’re doing for food… he (kindly) says “the leftovers you said you wanted this morning” lol.

        • Monday

          Sounds like he doesn’t think so, and just wants her to re-answer without comment. But I think this is a fine solution. He’s annoyed if you won’t re-answer, but you’re annoyed that he’s asking again in the first place. Fair enough.

    • anon

      Ugh my mom is like this and it really is so exhausting. I am the opposite of a chatterbox so it’s not a matter of flooding her with too much information.

    • Anonymous

      I kept doing this when I was newly married. I had a brain bleed once as a child and wasn’t sure if it was creating a memory issue. After a lot of physical and neurological testing, it came down to I did show some ADD. You don’t remember what you never attended to. I went on medicine for a bit but didn’t like the effects. Weirdly, I didn’t ever notice this problem with work–in fact, folks complement my attention to details and ability to recall meeting info. Now, after more than a decade with my husband, I realize that it was probably a mix of things. He sometimes thinks he tells me that he’s told me something when 100 percent he hasn’t or he has told me part of the details but not everything.Like, dude, I would remember if you talked about going on a trip for spring break. He will never admit it though. Then there’s times he is interrupting me when I’m thinking about something else, and my brain doesn’t fully transition fast enough. And then there’s also the rambling conversation where he’s telling me things ordinal order versus cutting to the point. For a lot of stuff now (any dates that are important), I ask my husband to email me. It just helps confirm nothing getting lost. I don’t think there is anything wrong with keeping a joint calendar if it helps everyone be on the same page. You call it a him problem. But it becomes a you problem if he can’t do this better whether due to desire or actual lack of ability. The frustration just will escalate, so you need to focus on the practical of working through things rather than focusing on who is to blame.

  9. Career Advice Needed

    Last week, my previous employer reached out to me and offered me a job out of the blue. I’ve only been at my current job a little under 2 years. I left my previous employer under good terms and mostly left due to a desire to try something else because I had been there for many years and it was my first real job. There’s a lot to consider and I have a bit of time to make a decision. The job would be somewhat similar to what I’m doing now, but broader in scope. Instead of focusing on one particular public policy issue, I would work on many different issues. Job offer PROS: at least a 20% raise and I haven’t negotiated yet, expand the scope of the issues I work on, work more closely aligned to my own political views. CONS: this job likely will only last 2 1/2 years given there will be a change in leadership, but there would be the potential for them to move me somewhere else (but no guarantees). My current job offers interesting work and I have a bit more power and influence now compared to this other job, but my political views mostly don’t line up with my current employer and that can be really tough. I also think my current employer has done a lot of horrible things during the pandemic, including bringing us all back full time many weeks ago when we can easily work at home. So many people aren’t wearing masks and they just aren’t taking this pandemic seriously. I’ve also not been thrilled with general management at my current job because while I have a high-level position that works long hours, their policies treat me like an hourly employee. For example, if I came in an hour late, then I need to put in an hour leave even if I work an extra 3 hours that day in the evening. I didn’t plan on being in my current role long-term and figured I would only stay a few years, but obviously didn’t think I would leave this soon. When I left my prior employer I did think I might come back someday, but didn’t think so soon. Any thoughts or advice? What questions should I be asking myself? TIA!

    • anon

      I would accept the offer in a heartbeat if my current employer had such an awful pandemic response. In fact, I would’ve already been looking for a new job based on the pointless rigidity about work hours.

      • The original Scarlett

        +1 – there is nothing you’re saying about current employer that makes that job worth sticking around for

    • Cat

      it sounds like you really want to go back to Prior Employer – if you have a good cushion in case you are looking for a new position for longer than expected in 2.5 years (and Prior Employer’s role for you would be a good launch for your desired career path)… then I don’t see the downside of going somewhere that’s a better fit in many different ways.

      • Coach Laura

        Yes, take the job and squirrel away the extra 20+% for a job searching fund, unless you already have a huge emergency fund.

    • Anon

      For me, the pandemic thing would cancel out everything else on the pro/con lists. I would not want to continue to work for an employer who didn’t take their responsibility to protect their employees’ health seriously.

    • Anonymous

      You really don’t have anything good to say about your current workplace except “a bit more power and influence,” so …take the job offer.

      • anon a mouse

        Yep. More power and more influence means less if you don’t agree with the leadership, right? Go where you feel like your influence, even diminished, is better aligned with your personal philosophy.

  10. Maudie Atkinson

    With thanks for some of the great advice I got from y’all in selling my house during a global pandemic and challenging economic times, I wanted to share an update now that the transaction has closed. Short story: I was under contract with an over-asking offer within a week.
    Longer story: I don’t know that there was any magic, besides a great agent and being in a very desirable school district with very low inventory. I did the things folks typically recommend. I packed up more than half of everything in my house, including removing some furniture. I had the landscaping refreshed and the exterior painted. We moved totally out of the house while it was being shown and until due diligence had passed to minimize exposure to other people, which also had the advantage of keeping the house in show-ready shape all the time.
    The house is more than 100 years old and had all of the charms and challenges inherent in a very old house. On the advice of my realtor, I took care of some structural repairs I knew would come up in an inspection because we worried that those things, while very typically in very old houses, might scare off some buyers.
    Now–tell me your packing/move tips, please! We’re only going 0.3 miles, but we’re hiring movers. I know to label and number boxes by room and keep an inventory of the box numbers. Anything else?

    • Cat

      Hanging clothes – literally bag them in trash bags while still on the hangers. Get the kind with built-in ties so you can tie the hangers together at the top. If you’re as uptight about closet organization as I am, you can number them to be able to hang up your clothes in the exact same order :)

      Breakables – if you’ll have time in your new house before your current sale closes, we actually just moved those ourselves over a couple of car trips, rather than risking a fragile box being overlooked in the chaos. (We kept them all in our kitchen cabinets and just told the movers to ignore them.)

      Organization – if things will be changing rooms in the new house (maybe you have a den now in addition to family room, etc), try your best to pack them designated for the new house location. We moved from a condo to a rowhouse and color-coded what boxes were going to which of our newfound 4 floors. (Our movers were by-the-hour so any time saved not having to stop and advise on location was money in our pocket).

      Have a “move in day” box set aside for yourselves – things like paper towels, TP, shower curtain, basic toiletries & cleaning supplies, etc. so you’re not searching for that immediately! Another great tip we used is to make the bed as soon as it’s rebuilt… no one wants to be doing that after a long day of moving.

    • Anonymous

      If you plan to paint or do anything to the floors, do that before you move in if you can. Provide lunch and lots of cold drinks to your movers and tip them well.

      • Anonymous

        Thank you for saying this. This is what I have done for eons for movers and my husband thinks I am crazy. Even if I am crazy, it has served me well, with no drama and nothing broken. I can’t say why I think this, but IIRC when I used to work weddings, my boss specified that the wedding party had to provide meals for us b/c we couldn’t really leave and to shovel food in so we didn’t faint mid reception. It just seems humane. [This was for a VA wine country venue where we couldn’t really leave to eat — think not just the caterers but photographers and the musicians.]

    • anon

      The best thing we did in our last move was to color-code boxes/large stuff by room (with tape). We placed a piece of tape at the entrance of each room. The movers placed the boxes in the correct rooms. We moved on a Friday and were 90% unpacked by the end of the weekend. (Contrast this to a move when I was 7-8 years old, and the movers couldn’t read and placed boxes anywhere. It took a year to unpack.)

      Also, hire someone to deep clean the new house before you move in. Have them clean out the insides of cabinets, clean baseboards, clean bathrooms, clean appliances, etc. It’s so nice to move into a completely clean house–it’ll never be the same again.

      • Anon

        “Contrast this to a move when I was 7-8 years old, and the movers couldn’t read and placed boxes anywhere. It took a year to unpack.” This does not exactly sound like the movers’ fault.

      • anon

        +1 to deep cleaning the house before moving in, but don’t bother deep cleaning non-carpeted floors until after the move-in. Dirt/dust/shoe tracks will happen all over the house.

        I also tackled some home improvement projects prior to moving in, including re-sealing the hardwood floors. I wish I had gone one further and had someone professionally refinish them, but what I accomplished in a weekend of sealing was a marked improvement.

    • Anon

      Pack a box or two with things you will need right away (like toilet paper, blankets, cleaning supplies) and label those boxes clearly.

      • anon

        Yes, but drive those things to your new house since it’s so close. Also: tools! Bring your toolkit.

  11. Lilly Pulitzer sizing / shape

    OMG I think some Lilly athletic wear may pull me out of my summer corona funk and get active again. How does the sizing run? I am a pear. S in Athleta skort bottoms (but really at the max end of S lately). I think I’m an 8 hip and a 32C bust, so able to wear a S top if it can skim over my 39″ hips (so: shaped like Godzilla). Any thoughts as to how mail ordering might go?

    • Cat

      OMG I think some Lilly athletic wear may pull me out of my summer corona funk and get active again. How does the sizing run? I am a pear. S in Athleta skort bottoms (but really at the max end of S lately). I think I’m an 8 hip and a 32C bust, so able to wear a S top if it can skim over my 39″ hips (so: shaped like Godzilla). Any thoughts as to how mail ordering might go?

  12. Twilly on purse

    I have a Twilly (silk ribbon / mini skinny scarf-lette) that was my late grandmother’s. I want to tie it onto a purse, but all of my purses seem to have two handles and I don’t want it to look weird (I’m not French or particularly chic; I just don’t want the twilly to sit in a drawer). Just tie on one handle, devil-may-care?

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