Hints from Heloise
COIN SHORTAGE?
Dear Readers: Surely you’ve noticed retailers posting signs about a coin shortage. It’s not really a shortage, it’s a distribution problem.
During these times of a global pandemic, some businesses have had their doors closed or have been limited in service for social distancing and stay-at-home orders. Some of these include businesses that rely on coins (laundromats, car washes and even vending machines), and they have seen their revenue plummet. Therefore, there are fewer coins in circulation.
As the economy recovers, you’ll see more coins around and fewer signs stating, “We may not be able to make change for you!” -- Heloise
TECH TALK TUESDAY
Dear Readers: Are you getting more and more spam emails? The best way to cut down on them is to not reply, never buy anything and, in fact, don’t open them in the first place. Also, be sure to block them by marking them as junk or spam, or create filters to make sure they go to a spam or junk folder instead of your email box. Your volume of spam emails should decrease. -- Heloise
GREETING CARDS AS BOOKMARKS
Dear Heloise: I like to use greeting cards as bookmarks. It gives them another use, and you can re-read them and enjoy the sentiment from time to time. -- Lauren C., via email
NOT WHO YOU THINK
Dear Heloise: I was looking through an online dating site (don’t judge me, lol!), and I happened to see my friend’s picture on a profile that was NOT his! Weird!
I told him about it, and he says he’s had that happen before. It’s not really dangerous, just creepy, invasive and misleading! Beware! -- Jenna in Arizona
DIARY POCKET
Dear Heloise: I hot glued a jeans pocket cut from an old pair of denims to the cover of my diary. I can keep a pen, pencil, ticket stub, receipt -- anything I need -- in that pocket. -- Sandra in Indiana
PRICE ADJUSTMENTS
Dear Readers: Know your store’s policies on price adjustments. Stores today are in big competition for our dollars, and they probably will lower a price either to match a competitor or to match a sale price they had a couple weeks ago. Don’t be afraid to ask. -- Heloise
LIPSTICK FILLER
Dear Heloise: I line and then fill in my lips with my lip liner completely, then apply the lipstick. This way, if the lipstick, which can be glossy and slippery, comes off, I will still have some color on my lips until I can do a touchup. -- Lauren, via email
PILL SORTING
Dear Heloise: When opening the pill bottles to sort my medications into the daily slots in my weekly organizer, I put a dish towel on the kitchen table first. If I drop any pills, which I invariably do, they land on the towel instead of falling and rolling across the floor. This has saved me from crawling around under the table looking for them. -- Helen in Ohio
Send a money-saving or timesaving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795001, San Antonio, TX 78279- 5001, or you can fax it to 1-210-HELOISE or email it to Heloise@Heloise.com. I can’t answer your letter personally but will use the best hints received in my column.