As I was brushing my teeth this morning, I remembered that my six-month dentist appointment is this Thursday, and that I’d better find time to floss this week. And then I look, and I have no tartar build-up. At all. I have always been good about brushing, and regular in my cleaning appointments, and my whole life I’ve had to endure all that scraping and tugging and chipping away during my cleanings. But a year and a half ago, my dentist told me to switch to tartar-control toothpaste, and I did, even though I always had believed that the stuff really doesn’t make any difference if you’re a regular brusher. I didn’t change my flossing habits one bit…just the toothpaste. And at my first cleaning after switching…no scraping, no tartar. Since then…no tartar, no scraping, no nothing! And my dentist is a big, tough, ex-military dentist…when he cleans your teeth it’s brutal to begin with, so anything that reduces the time he spends in my mouth, the better.
So tartar control toothpaste works. And works really well, to my complete amazement. Because I never believe the marketing claims on products…if it says faster, stronger, more whitening, improved, repels stains, reduces hair growth, eliminates odor, firms and tightens…I don’t believe it.
So what other things have you used that really work…that live up to their claims?
I hate to pimp for anyone, but Paul Mitchell super skinny serum works great. If I comb it through my hair when it’s still wet, it decreases the time it takes for it to dry. Also, my hair isn’t frizzy or unruly at all. Great stuff.
Three- and four-bladed razors. One-bladed razors don’t seem to exist anymore, so I’ve only used multiple-bladed ones. I began with a Gilette Mach 3, and when my brother lost it, I switched to an old Schick that only had two blades. I began shaving with just water, then, so I didn’t notice the sharp decrease in performance until I borrowed my other brother’s Mach 3 and was amazed at how quickly it shaved. Definitely and improvement; I may have to buy myself one.
Thermacare heat patches. I had a sharp pain in my shoulder from resting the phone receiver between my ear and shoulder (I’ve long since switched to a headset).
I tried the Thermacare heat patch overnight and the next day the pain was almost completely gone. I’ve usedthem for various pains since then and they’ve never let me down.
Old fashioned shaving soap and mug. Before I stopped shaving, I used it for a year or two. Far fewer nicks and cuts than even the gels.
A while ago, I got a bunch of strawberries onto a white shirt. Somewhere I read that you can remove it by pouring boiling water over the stain from a height. I didn’t believe it, but gave it a try. Took the stain right out.
Canker sore toothpaste. If you get them often, give in and pay the 7 bucks a pop for the canker sore toothpaste and I promise you you’ll get less. And even one less would totally be worth it.
A few years ago, I had a 1956 Buick. In hot weather it would vapor lock when I’d make a short trip, shut it off to go in a store, and try to restart it. No start until it cooled down. A former owner of the car told me to put 3 or 4 spring-loaded wooden clothespins on the metal fuel line between the fuel pump and carburetor.
There’s no earthly reason why that would work, but it did. The car never again vapor locked.
Also, running the flat of a knife blade over your hands under water to get the onion off them. It’s the silliest fuzzy-thinking folk thing in the world, but it really does work IMHO.
get a big glass of water, hold your nose, and drink the entire glass all in one breath. Do not stop to breathe and do not let go of your pinched-shut nose. This has always worked for me.
Pet theory as to why it works: if you’re drinking, your body can’t hiccup without basically drowning you. Your body’s survival instinct is more powerful and important than whatever is causing you to hiccup. Since you take a relatively long time to drink a big glass of water, it gives your body time to ‘reset’ itself and basically forget that it was hiccuping. By the time the threat of drowning is over, the hiccup switch is off again.
You need to lean over a sink for this one: fill a large glass to the brim, and then gulp down as much water as you can without taking a breath from the opposite side of the glass: you’ll end up bent practically double, and you’'ll only get through about half the glass {and spill a lot, hence the sink}, but it is guaranteed to work.
Oh, and if you feel a sneeze coming on, press hard on the vertical ridge on your upper lip.
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You need to lean over a sink for this one: fill a large glass to the brim, and then gulp down as much water as you can without taking a breath from the opposite side of the glass: you’ll end up bent practically double, and you’'ll only get through about half the glass {and spill a lot, hence the sink}, but it is guaranteed to work.
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One of my girlfriends gets hiccups a lot, and this is the only thing that makes them go away. She might have to do it twice, but it’ll work. Makes her look all kinds of weird in bars, but she emerges hiccup-free and happy.
As for the OP…I gotta vote for the spit-on-your-own-blood laundry theory. Wherein you bleed on your clothing (however that happens, it does) and you douse the stain with your saliva before you throw it in the wash.
It’s never failed, even on white clothing. Have no clue why, but it works.