Hints from Heloise

Cherry pit suggestion

Dear Heloise: Now that fresh cherry season is upon us, I thought your readers might want to know about this easy cherry-pitting trick.

I use a metal reusable drinking straw, insert it at the top of the stem-end of the cherry (stem already removed), and firmly push the straw down to the pit till it comes out the other side.

Hold over a bowl and clean the straw with pipe cleaner. Enjoy! — Lindsay Collins, via email

Recylcling bags

Dear Heloise: As a second grade teacher, my students are always bringing money to school in plastic zip-top bags. These bags just went in the trash, until I realized I can recycle them! Since the bags had previously held money, I didn’t want to reuse them for food products. Now, I take them to the teachers’ lounge and to my house, where they are repurposed to hold several days worth of the used, wet coffee filters and pods before going into the trash. One teacher sometimes gathers up the used coffee grinds for her compost pile! — Jane Farris, Holly Springs, Mississippi

Telephone scam

Dear Heloise: After reading your item regarding a stock scam over the telephone, I thought I would share an example of how sophisticated these threats can be. Recently, I received a phone message from my boss asking me to call him at a number I did not recognize. I instead called his office to see what he wanted. He answered, yet said he had not called me. The voice on the message was certainly his. I have known this man for over 30 years. This is an easy example of why phone solicitation should always be dismissed. — Tim Woodington, Glendora, California

Tool kit

Dear Heloise: The letter from Kay W. in your column made me chuckle. You see, when my daughter graduated from college, I gave her a nice toolkit to help her in her new apartment. I also put a $100 bill under the bottom tray. Over the next year or so, she would sometimes mention how handy her toolkit was. When she came home for a visit, she needed to put on a new license plate, so she asked her brother to help. She got her toolbox from her car and gave it to her brother to use. He rummaged around a bit, and then pulled out that $100 bill! She was shocked, while the rest of the family just laughed! — Bob Grand, via email

Packing fillers

Dear Heloise: Need some filler to keep things from shifting in the package you’re mailing? Use those little individual-size bags of chips to fill in the spaces. They provide shock absorption, and the recipient gets a snack afterward. No waste, and none of those annoying Styrofoam pieces flying all over the place! — Donna R., Oakton, Virginia