DEAR HELOISE: OK, Heloise, you are the final word on this, and you will settle our ongoing disagreement.
Eggshells down the garbage disposal, or into the trash? Buying everyone a latte is hinging on your answer.
-- The California Girls
DEAR READER: Oh my -- this is a debate! There's a latte riding on my answer. This problem is not all it's cracked up to be, however.
Eggshells have a gooey membrane that can wrap itself around the blades of the disposal. Eggshells should go in the compost pile, and not in the garbage disposal. If you don't compost, the trash is the best place for them.
Want a quick way to freshen up that garbage disposal? Put 1/2 cup baking soda and 1/2 cup vinegar down the drain. Wait 15 minutes for it to stop bubbling, then flush with cold water.
By the way, potato peels are another thing that should not go in the disposal. When wet, they can be as hard as cement.
DEAR HELOISE: When our son was ready for kindergarten, I invited several moms with boys the same age for an afternoon to play and get acquainted. They had a great time, and the fear of not knowing anyone was over. To this day (even though they are 40-plus), they still are all good friends.
-- Marilynn M.,
Delphos, Ohio
DEAR HELOISE: My daughter shared with me an idea for helping her children be organized.
She purchases a matching notebook and file for each school subject in a different color. At the end of class, each student can file the papers in the right-colored file before going to the next class.
At home, they don't have to search through jumbled papers.
-- Ann Marie D.,
Bakersfield, Calif.
DEAR HELOISE: I don't like wet bath towels, washcloths, etc., left lying in the bathroom, nor do I like them stuffed in the laundry basket in the laundry room to mildew and get stinky before I can wash them. I keep two clippie hangers in each bathroom. When the user is finished, the towel is hung in the shower tub area to dry. Then the towel can be put in the laundry basket. Most department stores will give you hangers with clips.
-- Carla N., via email
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 09/14/2017