HinTs from Heloise

DEAR

HELOISE: Bringing food and items to a family is a nice thing to do after the loss of a loved one. But my fabulous father-in-law recently did something that, I think, sets a great precedent. His nextdoor neighbor lost someone, so my father-in-law took his lawn mower over and mowed their lawn. He also polished their shoes for them. —Emily Murphy, Kingwood,

Texas

DEAR READERS: To make your workspace easier to work in, organize your desk. Store supplies, paper cartridges, and disks in one area where they are easily accessible. Use an attractive basket on your desk to hold clips and pens. Use a cord organizer that will bundle all the cords. Dust the entire area weekly.

—Heloise DEAR READERS: If you do not have enough dirty dishes to fill the dishwasher, take out china that’s been stored for a while or other rarely used tableware or glasses. Fill up the empty space so that you have a full load. This will also help you save energy and water.

—Heloise DEAR HELOISE: I’ve been reading your column for many years. I learned something the other day that I believe will be interesting to your readers. Like many others, I have a home security system that, when armed, calls a central office if a door is opened or a window is broken.

You are supposed to test the system on a regular basis by arming it, then opening a door or window and allowing the screaming alarm to sound for 60 seconds. You should first call the central office to set up the test, then call them back to see if they were notified.

I ran a test, but it was a failure. So, now I need a repair. I don’t even know how long I was without protection, since I couldn’t remember the last time I had run the test.

—D.A., in Texas DEAR HELOISE: I like hardboiled eggs, particularly in potato salad. The easiest way I have found to cook them and, more importantly, peel them is by steaming them. You can easily do a dozen at a time.

I have a large soup pot, and I use a colander that will hold a dozen eggs. I put a 1/2 inch of water in the pot, then put the colander and the eggs inside. I put a lid on the pot and turn it on high heat. I turn off the heat after 9 minutes.

I let the pot cool down naturally for half an hour to an hour, then put the colander and eggs in the fridge. The eggs will be fully cooked, and 90 percent of the time, they are very easy to peel.

I love your column and read every day. it

—D.Z., in California DEAR HELOISE: When I travel for business, there are so many things that I take with me, such as my daily to-do book, a list of clients, slides, additional papers, etc. I worry that some of it might get lost.

In order to get these things returned, should they happen to be left somewhere, I have a set of labels printed up that read: “If found, there is a $100 reward for its return to …,” followed by my address and phone number. I started doing this after I set down my slides one day and couldn’t find them. I thought all that work was lost, but it was returned to me by someone who saw me set them down. I thanked the person and gave them a reward.

—E.W., in Arizona

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