These do-not-mail lists are maintained by the major marketing associations that distribute the major mailing lists, but they do work. The US mail preference service will charge you one dollar ($1) to add your name to their opt-out list by mail, but it is free using their online form. In the UK, it's free of charge. If you do write your address or phone number, write alongside it something like, "Please do not sell or distribute my information, nor add to mailing lists." It's generally not necessary to send in warranty cards or "register" a warranty for the warranty to be valid, regardless of what the card may imply. Some items are sent in such bulk that they go to every resident on a postal route. These are addressed to "Resident," "Our Friends At," or some variant. Your postal carrier cannot, by law, determine what you consider "junk mail". All "resident" mail must be delivered as addressed. You must contact individual mailers to have your address removed from their database. Look around on mailers for return addresses and phone numbers. Here are quick links to some common ones. ADVO is responsible for the blobs of sales circulars and the little card with the missing children. Call sweepstakes mailers like Publisher's Clearinghouse (phone 1-800-645-9242 or email mailto:service@pchmail.com) with your full address and instructions to remove from mailing list. American Family Sweepstakes is another common solicitor of this type (phone 1-800-237-2400). Pennysaver, Potpourri, and Redplum. The online form does require a valid email address, but the confirmation requires no reply, so if you are concerned about your privacy, you can use a service such as Mailinator. You can also mail the entire back label with a request to be removed to 2830 Orbiter Street, Brea CA 92821-6224. Their circulation message listing these details can be reached at 1-800-422-4116, but it is a recorded message. Mail suppression of this publication is good for one year and they do not honor mail removal requests from third parties. Many companies target specific areas based on neighborhood subdivisions or home values. By making your information confidential in the county and state databases you may eliminate quite a bit of junk mail. If you do business with a company via mail services, it will put you on its contact list. So the first time you make a transaction (such as placing an order) with that company, ask to be put on its "in-house suppress" or "do not promote" lists. Tell the company not to "rent" or share your name with other companies. Free papers and handbills are another form of unsolicited advertising that often plagues our front lawns, but most are not delivered through the mail. Many of the people who deliver free papers will simply stop once the resident has placed a sign near their mailbox that reads "No Free Papers." In the USA, it is illegal for anyone other than the letter carrier to put things in your mailbox. They're not junk mail, but it does require paper and resources to mail them. Many businesses and banks now offer electronic notifications, which will significantly reduce unnecessary mail clutter.

Summary: Write to the mail preference service (US) or the Mailing preference service (UK). Avoid placing your address on surveys, raffles, and product warranty cards. Ask individual senders to remove you from their lists. Request your name be eliminated from the county tax database. Remind companies you do business with of your mailing and privacy preferences. Place a sign by your mailbox that reads "No Free Papers". Sign up to receive statements and bills electronically.

You can find inexpensive tank sprayers online or at department and hardware stores for under $10 (USD). Fill it up at home, then use it to blow up balloons at another location. In addition to being portable, a tank's spray nozzle is perfect for filling water balloons. They come in multiple sizes; a 1 gallon (3.8L) tank makes about a dozen balloons. Water balloons can be tough to transport. If you need to bring some to a park or other location without a water source, filling up balloons on-site will prevent accidental popping during during a car ride. Gather large milk, juice, or water jugs, rinse them out if necessary, and fill them with water. Bring them along to the park so you can refill the tank and make more balloons. Use the water in the tank to make one batch of balloons, then refill the tank with the jugs and make additional batches.

Summary: Purchase a tank sprayer and fill it with water. Use empty jugs filled with water to refill the tank.

You can do this by using your toothbrush to brush your tongue. The point nearest to the front of your tongue that makes you gag is where you should concentrate. Don't stick your fingers in your mouth. You might induce vomiting. Yes, you'll gag, and it will be unpleasant, but it won't last long. Spend about ten seconds brushing that area (and gagging). Then call it a night. Repeat the process over the next few nights in the exact same spot. Your gag should gradually decrease each time you do it. Once you can touch your toothbrush to the original starting point without gagging, it's time to move the toothbrush farther back. Try brushing to inch (6mm12mm) behind where your gag used to begin. Repeat the process as you did in the first spot. Do this each time you make progress desensitizing small areas in front. Keep moving it farther back until you've reached the farthest visible point of your tongue. Eventually, the toothbrush will come into contact with your soft palate, if it hasn't already. Be persistent. This process takes about a month to complete. Afterward, you should be able to have a doctor swab the back of your throat without gagging. You might have to repeat the process from time to time, as your reflex might return if you don't. A good way to keep yourself desensitized is to brush your tongue regularly. Not only will it help quell the gag reflex, it'll also give you fresher breath!
Summary: Find out where your gag reflex starts. Brush your tongue right where your gag begins. Increase the brushing area. Move the brush farther back. Desensitize everyday.