Handy Hints for Wednesday ~ 35
So how many times do I mention the V word this week……?
To keep a burn from blistering, spray with or steep in vinegar.
When you buy chips/French Fries from your local take away do you ask for salt and vinegar with them? They might be tasty, but I wonder what it does for your stomach since salt and vinegar make a really good copper cleaner.
Do kitchen stools slip or slide on your tiled floor? Try putting rubber ferrels or tips from crutches on bottom of legs.
Are cooking odours a problem. I have mentioned before to light a candle while cooking, but if you do not have one try boiling a hand full of cloves in water for 30 minutes. All odours will disappear.
We had a debate the other week about slicing onions under water. Nancy if the bath is in use, I have another idea try freezing the onions before slicing them.
Magpie11 said,
July 8, 2009 at 10:48 am
Ah1 The stomach is not made of copper and is highly acid anyway! The acid involved is hydrochloric acid and the pH is around 1 to 2,,,very acid indeed.
Grannymar said,
July 8, 2009 at 11:38 am
Magpie,
who do you think I had in mind as I wrote the question?
lette said,
July 8, 2009 at 11:59 am
another great trick for onions for those who have extremly sensitive eyes to onions, wear swimming goggles!!! sounds silly but it works
and I adore copious amounts of salt and vin on my chips thats why I stay away from chippers for as long as I can then allow one every now and then to satisfy the Omnomnom!!
gail said,
July 8, 2009 at 12:03 pm
I have found, if one leg hurts, cut the other leg off and you will not feel the pain in the 1st leg. What do you think?
Great tips Granny!
Grannymar said,
July 8, 2009 at 12:40 pm
@Lette - I think somebody mentioned that last week and indeed to use a snorkel as well!!
@Gail - Hello and welcome, I don’t think I want to try that trick yet… I might need the good leg.
steph said,
July 8, 2009 at 2:05 pm
Grannymar,
I could use some of your vinegar right now.
Drip…drip…drip
Nancy said,
July 8, 2009 at 2:22 pm
Grannymar,
The very idea! Putting onions in the freezer! Then trying to slice them…
What do you slice them with? A HATCHET?????
OR,better yet, maybe I can get Leatherface to come slice the onions with his Chainsaw…….
Geri Atric said,
July 8, 2009 at 3:19 pm
I have got ants everywhere grannymar. Any ideas on how to get rid of them? I can’t see where they are coming from. They just seem to suddenly be there, in the middle of the sitting room, heading for my lemonade and sticky bun on the coffee table….! (Please don’t tell me to get rid of my sticky bun! I’ll try anything else..).
Nancy said,
July 8, 2009 at 3:46 pm
Dear Geri,
Have you ever heard of Army ants? That is the answer to your problem. Have your ants join the Army, declare war on your neighbor and deploy the ants to their house.. Problem solved….
While on the subject, I saw an ad in the New York Times the other day asking if anyone knew where this fellow could get 25,000 ants. I called and asked him why he would want all those ants. He told me that the lease was up on his apartment and the lease clearly stated that he had to leave the place exactly as he found it and ,when he moved in ,there were 25,000 ants in there.
Probably the previous tenants were sticky bun eaters….
Grannymar said,
July 8, 2009 at 3:55 pm
Geri,
We covered this one when you were away on family nursing duties.
If they are on a hard surface spray the area with vinegar. If not try a mix of 50/50 borax and icing/confectioners sugar, place on a piece of cardboard or paper near the site of the ants. the sugar will attract while the borax kills them off.
NB: Not suitable where there are children or pets.
I seem to remember someone suggesting chalk
Grannymar said,
July 8, 2009 at 4:00 pm
@Steph - I hope the drip sent you to sleep or that a handsome hunk came to hold your hand.
@Nancy - I am doing my best for you with the onions!
If I could I would fly over and slice them for you!
I dread to think of an apartment with 25,000 ants in it… where were the uncles?
Geri Atric said,
July 8, 2009 at 4:53 pm
Hi Nancy, oh I like that idea! Enlistment. Some of them do already appear to be busy joining the Air Force. There’s been hundreds of them flying up from between the pavement tiles for the last few days - mostly straight into your eyes and hair! Someone told me they’re off to find a Queen and have a good time before they lose their wings and drop back down again (or is that bees?)…. Well anyway as long as they all stay out of my sitting room!
Thanks for the tips grannymar. The sugar and borax sound an excellent idea. (A bit like the bowl of beer for slugs, in the garden). At least they’ll die happy. Much preferrable to hitting them with a newspaper. They are so light, even though you manage to smack a few the rest just get wafted around the room!
steph said,
July 8, 2009 at 6:07 pm
This is for Geri…
The ants go marching ten by ten, hurrah, hurrah
The ants go marching ten by ten, hurrah, hurrah
The ants go marching ten by ten,
The little one stops to say “THE END”
And they all go marching down to the ground
To get out of the rain, BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
I’ll do a rain dance for you, Geri. Mind the flood in the your sitting room!
kenju said,
July 8, 2009 at 7:12 pm
Grannymar, these are all good tips. I keep onions in the fridge and they seldom make me cry when slicing.
Thanks for the tip about painting the keys and using them on my Christmas tree. I will do that in Dec!!
Grannymar said,
July 8, 2009 at 7:20 pm
@Geri - I hope the ants are boraxed very soon!
@Steph _ What did they put in that drip? You are singing very high!!!!
@Kenju - Judy when you mentioned the keys were old family ones it suddenly struck me that it might be a nice idea and a reminder of the old days.
Magpie11 said,
July 8, 2009 at 8:01 pm
Ants! Geri, This is serendipity at it’s best…I have been wondering how to set this up and you have given me the chance
Those of us in the know understand about Borax and sugar but..
I was sitting waiting for a train at the local station when I over ehard a bit of the conversation going on on the next door seat. It was all about the merits or not of Pigeon droppings…as the people involved were a Norwegian couple and an elderly Indian lady I piped up with the superstition that says it’s good luck to receive a message.
The subject moved on and we ended up talking about ants and how to stop them coming into the house. The Norwegian lady told us that she uses, “Ze brown powder zat you put on ze…(unknown dish).” We concluded that it was cinnamon (the dish turned out to be either and apple dish or a rice pudding) The ants she was talking about were over 1cm long so must have been wood ants.
So here we go…Who is up for giving this a go? we can try cinnamon powder, Nutmeg powder and possibly Ginger powder and see if any of them keep the ants at bay!
Grannymar said,
July 8, 2009 at 8:08 pm
Magpie,
Will it be a scientific test… do we need 100 ants surrounded with each spice - like they do on the gardening programme?
Brighid said,
July 8, 2009 at 8:14 pm
Thanks for the tip about the swim goggles for cutting onions. My grands are ROL over granny and her goggles.
I prefer Chocolate covered ants myself.
Magpie11 said,
July 8, 2009 at 8:42 pm
no need to be too scientific as yet…just a prelim trial! I am serious as I’d love to know if any of them work and we have no ants at the moment!
Baino said,
July 8, 2009 at 9:21 pm
There just had to be vinegar didn’t there! You should be buying shares in the vinegar company and they should be paying you for endorsements. I’m going to try it with ants in the summer though! I wonder if it will work for bull ants . . ouchies!
Grannymar said,
July 8, 2009 at 9:35 pm
Baino,
I wish I had shares in a Vinegar Company. You could also try Magpie’s suggestions.
Geri Atric said,
July 9, 2009 at 8:34 am
Crikey (scratching head) - cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, vinegar, sugar+borax, and Steph rain-dancing with her drip…..? Those ants are doomed I tell ye, DOOMED!!!
Grannymar said,
July 9, 2009 at 10:21 am
Geri,
I am beginning to think that anyone who visits here is well doomed!