Probating your will is a necessity
Dear Heloise: In some (maybe all) states, you must have a will probated within a specified time, or it is like the will never existed. My friend found that out, to her sorrow, when she tried to get a home equity loan on the home left to her by her husband. Because she had not probated the will that had specifically given her the house, half of the house went to his children from a previous marriage.
Another issue I thought of: Why didn’t she have her name on the title to the house in the first place, as she was also making payments? I wish she had done that or had the will probated in time. -- Mercy Grace, via email
Helpful hints
Dear Heloise: When clearing leaves, debris, soil, etc., I use my snow shovel as a “dustpan” to pick up these things. It works wonderfully, since it is wider than a normal dustpan.
Also, in the kitchen, I am sometimes able to use my long kitchen tongs to reach items on my top cabinet shelves, instead of bringing out my kitchen step stool.
Love your hints. — Carolyn Purdy, Harrisonburg, Virginia
New mail scam
Dear Heloise: A new scam to me (when aren’t there?) was a text from the United States Postal Service. I apparently had a package that had insufficient information about my address. I have to tell you, it is so tempting to click on the link and fill out the form to get that package!
Folks, with anything that seems suspicious, stop yourself. Call a friend if need be! I believe this case was related to my mail-in ballot, which had my phone number on it. I don’t know how else USPS would have gotten my phone number.
Be on guard all the time. Had I clicked on that link, I may have given up vital information. No package is worth that. Be safe, all of you. — Beverly, via email
Two hints in one
Dear Heloise: I often found that my steel wool soap pads would become rusty, so I would usually throw them away. I then thought, if I cut them in half with scissors, I wouldn’t waste a whole pad! Works for me.
I also have another hint. Since I often make iced tea, I would struggle not to lose the string and tags as I added boiling water to the container. I now clip the string and tags to the top of the container with a chip clip. Problem solved! — Pat, in Florida
Too much fruit?
Dear Readers: If you have grown or purchased too much fruit and cannot use it all before it starts to brown or go bad, do not throw it out. Instead, chop the fruit into pieces or puree it to make a topping for ice cream, waffles or cakes. You can also make a yummy jam. If all else fails, try freezing them. — Heloise
Chocolate replacement
Dear Heloise: Baking chocolate bars are expensive and a bother to melt. Some recipes call for several bars of chocolate, which cost much more than a box of cocoa. Cocoa can be substituted in almost any recipe that does not require shaved chocolate or chunks of chocolate. The substitution is 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder and 1 tablespoon of butter per square (of the bar type).
Do not try to mix the two together; just mix the cocoa with the dry ingredients and add the butter in with the other shortening. (The cocoa must be mixed thoroughly into the dry ingredients.) — G.C., in