HELPFUL HINTS
DEAR HELOISE: I love air conditioning, as I’m sure many people do, but I’ve been in far too many restaurants, theaters and stores where the air is absolutely freezing! My husband and I recently went to a live performance at a theater where the air was so cold that people left at intermission. My hands ached from the chill, but we stayed until the end of the performance. I’m not sure I’d ever go back to that place again if that is how cold they keep their building.
I still like air conditioning, but not to a point where people are so cold they are either terribly uncomfortable or feel they need to leave because the cold has such a negative effect on them.
— Grace T., Hollywood, Fla. DEAR READER: I’ve been in the same situation. I know that an audience of warm bodies will warm up a room, but there is no need for the temperature to be so low that people shiver and can’t enjoy the performance.
DEAR READERS: Here are some uses for those lone earrings we all have in our jewelry boxes:
■ Break off the back and glue to a hair bow.
■ Collect several and make a work of art.
■ Collect several and make a bridal bouquet.
■ Decorate a package with them.
DEAR HELOISE: What is cream of tartar used for?
— KSK, Burbank, Calif. DEAR READER: Cream of tartar is a byproduct of fermenting grapes, but it’s acidic, not creamy. You can combine cream of tartar with baking soda to make a leavening agent. Or add a pinch of cream of tartar to boiling vegetables to retain their color. It also will stabilize whipped cream and strengthen meringues. You can use it as a nontoxic cleaner as well. Add a little water to cream of tartar to make a paste to clean steel and aluminum pots and pans.
DEAR HELOISE: When I have leftover grease from frying meat, I pour it in an empty vegetable can and refrigerate it until it’s solid. When the can is full I throw it out in the trash. — Elizabeth C., Hamilton, Ohio DEAR READER: That’s a good idea, but in this warmer weather you might want to place the can in something, such as a bag or old piece of plastic so you don’t have grease melting in the bottom of your trash can.
Send a money- or time-saving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795001, San Antonio, Texas 78279-5000; fax to (210) 435-6473; or email