Dogs pulling your washing off the line? Hang out a few pillow cases with pepper in the bottom. Trains 'em real fast (they only try once). Also, it doesn’t seem to hurt the dogs as in my experience, they back off within milliseconds and then go about other, non-clothes related doggy activities without looking distressed. Leave plenty of water around if you’re worried.
Catching a train and you’re running late for an appointment? Use the time waiting for the train to walk to that end of the platform that has the stairs at your destination station’s corresponding platform. Not only does it save you the time of walking a train length, but you don’t get caught up in the congestion at the stairs and ticket barriers. You can sprint through before the crowd surges up. Obvious, but I think I’m the only person in Sydney that does this. People are sheep.
If you’re on a budget, and you’re finding canned food for your dogs is an expense, mix boiled rice into it. The dogs don’t seem to notice or care, and it’s good for them.
Feed your cats at random times. No more ulta-loud meowing at what the cats decide is dinner time (well, a minimum of it anyway). Most people seem to let the cats train them, not the other way around. Food should be a random act of God from the cats’ POV, not something they reckon they can summon up with annoying screaming.
When you’re looking for an unfamiliar street, don’t just look up that one in the street directory, but also the one before it. That way you’ll cruise on up to the target street just like a local would, and you won’t piss off the people behind you by doing the 20-40-20-40-20 MPH shuffle. This is another obvious one that a lot of people don’t seem to do.
Thank you. Plus, anyone who’s ever watched “Ask This Old House” knows to never put anything in their mouth that has gone through a hot water pipe. :shudder:
How much vinegar, how much bleach, and any water? Soak how long?
And here’s a few tips in exchange:
When loading grocery bags or what not in the trunk of the car, put them in the left side of the trunk (if your country drives on the left side of the road). You’re more likely to be doing a fast right turn on your way home (e.g., at an offramp, onramp, or stoplight where you don’t have to stop) than a fast left turn, and your bags & contents won’t slide all over the trunk as much.
To store certain veggies longer in the fridge:
For mushrooms, keep them in a paper bag. For cilantro or other fresh herbs, remove the rubber band, wrap in 1 or 2 paper towels, and put in a plastic bag. For asparagus, cut a half inch off the bottoms and place stalks upright in a tall cup with a couple inches of water, then put the whole thing in a bag.
If you’re falling at sleep at work or while studying for an exam, walk to the restroom and splash cold water on your face. Works as well as caffeine but without the drug addiction. Yeah, kinda obvious but I can’t think of anything else.
If I’m driving for long periods of time and I get drowsy and start to lose attention, I slide the temp. to the coldest it can go. If that doesn’t work I turn on the AC, even in the winter. Yeah I’m freezing, but at least I’m not swerving or anything. In the summer I already have the AC on, but it still works.
This is interesting. On one hand, a left turn in a country that drives on the left of the road is going to be lesss rushed as you will not be crossing oncoming traffic or trying to beat the lights (I assume this is the logic of it). On the other hand though, the left turn is around a much tighter radius, so this would negate the effect.
If it hasn’t set yet, spray it heavily with hairspray. Get the 99 cent can of Aqua Net from the drug store. Works fine. We keep a can in the laundry room for exactly this purpose. This will prevent the ink from setting.
Then rub the ink out with soap and water. May take 2 or 3 attempts.
So far, we’ve been able to remove every ink stain we’ve had.
I don’t think this will work for Sharpies or Magic Markers, though.
:smack: sorry, it’s supposed to say load the left side of the trunk if your country drives on the RIGHT side of the road.
Not sure if you’re thinking the same logic as me; in the US, our right turns tend to be faster (like if you’re on an onramp, offramp, or at an intersection where you don’t have to stop to turn right); as opposed to our left turns, which usually start from a fully stopped position (like if you’re waiting for the left turn arrow or waiting for opposing traffic to clear).
And yes, the right turns are a tighter radius which may seem to negate the usefulness of the tip, but in my experience doesn’t.
My headlights on my car are the crappy plastic-y kind that are all scratched up. They get very dirty and it makes it hard to see at night. Whenever I wash my car, I mix up baking soda with water to make a thick paste. Then I use a clean rag to scrub it all over on the headlights. After rinsing off with water, your headlights will appear to be much brighter since there isn’t all that dirty plastic covering them up!
I got this hint from a mechanic who told me to use toothpaste to clean my headlights. I figured baking soda is way cheaper and just as abrasive, but you can use toothpaste too. Just don’t use the gel kind because obviously that won’t work.
Another vinegar tip, courtesy of Mr. S (actually an old girlfriend – the only good thing he got out of that relationship, but I digress . . .)
To take the sting out of a sunburn, soak in a cool bath infused with white vinegar. Yes, you’ll smell funky, but it beats the pain of a sunburn. Works a treat. Mr. S swears by it.
If you need energy, take a ten minute walk. Works better than caffeine, sugar or napping.
Use the crust of an old loaf of bread to soften brown sugar. It doesn’t mold in there (sugar has some anti-bacterial properties.)
Use frozen bread for sandwiches for lunch. They are thawed by lunchtime, and it keeps them nice and fresh, especially if you don’t have access to a fridge.
Pick bad grapes off before buying the bunch. You don’t need to pay for rotten fruit.
Hot pepper drench works really well for ants. Make a huge pot of water boiled with hot peppers, and just drench the little bastards.
Look back at your car after you park it, so you can get the perspective you’re going to see when you come back to it later.
Regular dish soap works well at stain removal on clothes, too, especially grease. Just put it on the spots and rub it in a little, then wash.
Right turns do not require a green light except when there is no right on red. (At least in the US) Thus, maximizing right turns over left turns indeed saves time, though planning the route for a short car trip that closely might easily just devour said time.
Actually, I just did a search and ran across some cautions against mixing bleach and vinegar full strength. Diluted, there should be no problem. But I’d appreciate input from chemists. Don’t want to steer anyone wrong. I’ve mixed the 2 in dilute solutions for decades with no ill effect. However, a friend of mine was nearly killed by mixing bleach and ammonia in a mop bucket in a small bathroom.
Another jar trick. Put a wide rubber band (the ones that come around stalks of celery or broccoli are perfect) around the rim of the lid, grip and twist as usual.
It seems too simple to work, but it has never failed me! I got the idea from those textured rubber sheets you get as freebies. I figgered the rubber band would do roughly the same trick, but it actually seems to work better because it fits snugly around the lid. Also, it seems like when it slips at one point, it stretches the rubber band, which just redistributes the torque to another point where it’s got good traction.
Have you ever poured soda into a glass, and had it filll 3/4 with foam and had to wait a minute for it to go away? Rather then wait, stick the tip of your finger in the foam for a second. The foam dissolves much more quickly.
I use the same principle with bottled soda. Its usually too carbonated (except for mt dew) for me, and always gives me hiccups. I open the bottle to release initial pressure. Then I stick the tip of my finger in the soda for a few seconds. Then I cap up the bottle, and shake hard. It foams up, but goes away quickly. I then drink a mouth full, close it up and shake again. After that, its safe enough to drink without getting hiccups
I’ve gotten quite a few strange comments on my method - but it works. And I hate hiccups.
Another jar tip: turn it over and give it a good wallop with the heel of your hand (I put a folded dishcloth over the jar first, because I’m a wimp and can hurt my hand otherwise). This helps break the vacuum seal, making the lid easier to open. I also just put on a dry rubber glove to get a good grip - same idea as the rubber band.
On cleaning:
If I have a task I’m putting off, I’ll make a deal with myself. I set a timer for 15 minutes, and I work on the task for that long. Then I’m allowed to stop. But most of the time, I get enough momentum I actually want to finish the job.
If I have to clean one area, say a closet, I concentrate solely on that. Any item that has to go to another location gets put there without triggering any cleaning of the secondary location. If you try to clean up everywhere at once, you get tired and frustrated, since nothing seems to get done. If your closet is perfectly organized after an hour, you feel like you’ve accomplished something, and you might feel motivated to move on to another spot.
Baby stuff:
Terrycloth baby washcloths or cloth wipes are much much better at cleaning up after a dirty diaper than disposable wipes. What takes ten disposable wipes I can clean up with one or two cloths. Just wash them in hot water and run through the dryer or hang in the sun.
Never buy a baby item without cruising at least one consignment shop first. There’s always a million strollers, swings, exersaucers, and so on at the consignment shops near me. Not to mention really nice name-brand clothes for about half price. (Exception: car seats should be new so you know they’re functional.)
