DEAR HELOISE: Please help me find a place interested in dress patterns. I have many, and they are still in good shape. I don't sew anymore, but patterns are expensive.
-- C.T., Helena
DEAR READER: How nice of you to want to donate your dress patterns! Look at schools (including extracurricular activities), churches, secondhand and resale shops, scouting groups, local theater groups and other organizations in your community.
Do you have any ideas? How many of you still make your own dresses? Sadly, it seems to be a dying art.
DEAR HELOISE: I've just had a three-day visit from my son and his wife, and it was perfect! I'm 91 (I'm able to live alone; I enjoy a nearby senior center) and do very little cooking. My son and his wife planned and brought the essentials for cooking full meals. They did everything, and I sat and visited.
They even performed small fix-it jobs around the house, and this made their visit complete. So well-planned, and no stress for me, just enjoyable time spent with dear family.
-- Catherine S.,
Kimberling City, Mo.
DEAR READER: What a wonderful family! That's what it's all about: people helping people. Thanks for writing in.
DEAR HELOISE: My complaint is that restaurants serve dinner rolls, but the butter is hard as a rock. Why can't they let it sit out for a while so we can spread it without tearing up the dinner roll? Soften the butter for us, please!
-- Martha M. in Ohio
DEAR READER: And when the butter is soft, it seems to taste better. The restaurant may be concerned about food safety.
DEAR READERS: We all know the benefits of walking, and all you really need is a good pair of shoes and a friend to get started. Walking gets your circulation flowing, increases oxygen to your heart and can improve overall health.
Start your walk slowly to warm up, then walk a bit faster. Each day you'll find that you are walking a little farther. When you are getting toward the end of your walk, slow down a bit. You can keep track of your steps with a pedometer, if you'd like.
Check with your doctor before starting an exercise program.
Send a money- or time-saving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, Texas 78279-5000; fax to (210) 435-6473; or email
Heloise@Heloise.com
Weekend on 11/30/2017