Overcast. Low 62F. Winds light and variable..

Overcast. Low 62F. Winds light and variable.

Dear Heloise: If your high-school- or college-aged child will be going abroad this year, make sure you have a passport, too! If you already have one, make sure it won’t expire anytime soon.

Imagine yourself getting a call from the trip leader in another country, saying your child is in the hospital, or has another emergency, and you cannot get there because you do not have a passport. It’s better to have it and not need it, rather than needing one and waiting five weeks to get one. — Mary Anna Anderson, Omaha, Nebraska

Dear Heloise: In the summer months, we have a lovely little garden, but it requires a lot of water. To save money and water, I keep a bucket near our shower. When we turn on the shower to let it heat up, we leave the bucket in there to collect water until we get in.

This saves us gallons each week, which is enough to water some of our plants — tomatoes, blueberries, cucumbers and huckleberries. — Emily, via emailLaminated floors

Dear Heloise: The hint with five points about caring for laminate floors are good ones, but I would add just one more. When damp-mopping the floor, my wife always adds a little vinegar or ammonia to the water. This gives the floor a clean, shiny new look. In fact, many floor manufacturers recommend this. — Herb S., Kingston, New York

Dear Heloise: I never fail to read your column, and have learned a lot from them. You’ve also printed a few of my suggestions.

Here is one of my favorite tricks for berry-picking: Cut the top off a plastic half-gallon milk jug, leaving the handle intact.

Then, use a carabiner clasp to hook it onto your belt loop. This leaves two hands free to pick berries. — Jean Farnam, Three Forks, Montana

BENEFITS OF APPLE CIDER VINEGAR

Dear Heloise: I am giving apple cider vinegar to my dog in her water and spraying her paws with it, and it has solved an allergy problem that she has had for years! I wish the veterinarian had told me about this years ago. It would have saved us a lot of hassle with trying to soak her paws and applying salves. — Frank Antonowitz, via email Another use for newspaper bags

Dear Heloise: Another good use for recycled newspaper bags is holding clean safety glasses and keeping them ready to use when needed. With a wood shop and a metal-cutting shop, there’s always the danger of a piece of metal, such as a tooth from a circular saw blade or a single wire from a rotating brush, flying loose.

Last week, I had a one-inch long wire stuck in my forehead an inch above my eye. Safety glasses left on a table or bench always become covered with dust and need to get washed before using.

I have eight safety glasses among my workshop and garage. It’s a lot quicker to take a cleaned pair of safety goggles out of a sealed bag and immediately put them on, instead of taking the risk of going without them.

Newspaper bags are relatively deep, leaving plenty of bag left to twist like a cord to close the bag with a simple slipknot. A little tug removes the knot; the glasses fall out easily. — Bob Salter, Morganton, North Carolina

Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos.

Would you like to receive our daily news?  Signup today!

Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.

Check your email for details.

Invalid password or account does not exist

Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.

An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the e-mail address listed on your account.

Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.

A receipt was sent to your email.