LITTLE ROCK — DEAR READERS: My Monday column has included a “Sound Off” or “Sound On” feature for many years. It has run at the end of the column, but I think it deserves to move up. It is very popular, and it can be enlightening, too. This is your chance to complain or compliment a business, product, what people do and how they act. If it’s warranted, I’ll do research about the problem and try to explain the whys and why nots. Hope to hear from you.
DEAR HELOISE: Why do people take their children out in public when they are sick? I understand that sometimes it cannot be helped, but what really gets me is when parents take them somewhere they don’t have to be.
My son and I go to a mommy-and-me class weekly, and this past week, a little girl was coughing all over the place.She shouldn’t have been there. A sick child can spread a lot of germs in a short time.
- Hayley in Pennsylvania
DEAR READER: How right you are, and adults should keep this in mind, also. A sick co-worker can spread germs like Typhoid Mary. Can you say “hand sanitizer”?
DEAR HELOISE: I purchased a box of slate tiles at a yard sale, intending to use them for various craft projects. I never did. It was quite windy yesterday, and I had to fetch my garbage can from the neighbor’s yard twice. I remembered the tiles and put two in the bottom of the trash can and replaced the bag, and it stayed put the rest of the night.
Proud of myself, I began to wonder what other uses the tiles might have. I realized they would be perfect for holding down a tablecloth on a picnic table. Also, because they essentially are flat stones, they are the perfect place to put hot dishes - even more so if the tablecloth is plastic or vinyl, because it won’t melt.
- Kim in Pennsylvania
DEAR HELOISE: With rain expected tonight, I moved all my washable decorations, pots and plastic chairs out of my covered patio this morning and placed them in the open area of my patio. Sure enough, the rain started about 11 p.m. By doing this, I saved water and got all the dust and dirt off my items without any effort. I will just have to wipe off any leftovers in the morning.
- Charlene in California
Send a money- or time-saving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, Texas 78279-5000; fax to (210) 435-6473; or e-mail
ActiveStyle, Pages 26 on 07/30/2012