Tuesday Cleaning Tips

Good Morning! Here are a few tips you may find useful.

Freshen Laundry Basket: Place a fabric softener sheet in the bottom of your laundry basket (remember to change it weekly.) You can also simply sprinkle some baking soda in the bottom of your basket and that will help absorb the odors as well.

First, if you're trying to find ways to stretch the budget, cut your dryer sheets in half. Just half a sheet should provide you with the same static cling protection as a full sheet. There are so many uses for used fabric softeners so keep a little ziploc bag near the dryer and put them in there rather than throwing them away. Then you can just pull one out as you need it. Below are a few suggestions for using the used dryer sheets.

Pick up pet hair
Pet hair can get a pretty tenacious grip on furniture and clothing. But a used fabric softener sheet will suck that fur right off the fabric with a couple of swipes. Just toss the fuzzy wipe into the trash.

Lift burned-on casserole residue
Those sheets will soften more than fabric. The next time food gets burned onto your casserole dish, save the elbow grease. Instead fill the dish with hot water and toss in three or four used softener sheets. Soak overnight, remove the sheets, and you'll have no trouble washing away the residue. Be sure to rinse well.

Freshen drawers
There's no need to buy scented drawer-liner paper; give your dresser drawers a fresh-air fragrance by tucking a new dryer fabric softener sheet under existing drawer liners, or tape one to the back of each drawer.

Do away with static cling
You'll never be embarrassed by static cling again if you keep a used fabric softener sheet in your purse or dresser drawer. When faced with static, dampen the sheet and rub it over your pantyhose to put an end to clinging skirts.

Wipe soap scum from shower door
Tired of scrubbing scummy shower doors? It's easy to wipe the soap scum away with a used dryer fabric softener sheet.

Repel dust from electrical appliances
Because television and PC screens are electrically charged, they actually attract dust, making dusting them a never-ending chore, but not if you dust them with used dryer softener sheets. These sheets are designed to reduce static cling, so they remove the dust, and keep it from resettling for several days or more.

Do away with doggy odor
If your best friend comes in from the rain and smells like a ...well ...wet dog, wipe him down with a used dryer softener sheet, and he'll smell as fresh as a daisy.

Tame locker-room and sneaker smells
Deodorizing sneakers and gym bags calls for strong stuff. Tuck a new dryer fabric softener sheet into each sneaker and leave overnight to neutralize odors (just remember to pull them out before wearing the sneaks). Drop a dryer sheet into the bottom of a gym bag and leave it there until your nose lets you know it's time to renew it.

Prevent musty odors in suitcases
Place a single, unused dryer fabric softener sheet into an empty suitcase or other piece of luggage before storing. The bag will smell great the next time you use it.

Buff chrome to a brilliant shine
After chrome is cleaned, it can still look streaky and dull, but whether it's your toaster or your hubcaps, you can easily buff up the shine with a used dryer softener sheet.

Use as a safe mosquito repellent
For a safe mosquito repel-lent, look no farther than your laundry room. Save used dryer fabric softener sheets and pin or tie one to your clothing when you go outdoors to help repel mosquitoes.

Abolish tangled sewing thread
To put an end to tangled thread, keep an unused dryer fabric softener sheet in your sewing kit. After threading the needle, insert it into the sheet and pull all of the thread through to give it a nonstick coating.

There is so much going on in this country and across the world at this time and it sure does seem petty to be sitting here writing about recipes, cleaning tips, etc. My heart just isn't in this right now. Today I am thinking of a little 2 year old boy (Moshe Holtzberg) who watched as his mother and father were murdered in Mumbai. I think of this child screaming for his "mommy" and my heart breaks for him and all the children like him.

Perhaps I am just an idiot, but I do not understand all the flippin' violence in this world! How in the heck can a terriost attack be of benefit to ANYONE? Do people really believe that after they kill innocent people that others will say "Oh, it's all so clear now. I understand why they did that." Do they really believe they will influence others to believe the same as them by killing?!

So many of these senseless deaths are in the "name" of religion. Can you believe that? I can't! What sort of religion tells you to kill others that have a different belief or religion than yours? That's not religion! That is fanatical politics! Mindless idiots following the ideology of some psycho fanatic.

I don't care if you're an Israeli, Palestinian, Protestant, Catholic, Wiccan or if you pray to a freakin' Volkswagon Beetle...I do not believe that any God would want one person to kill another in His name. Life is a precious gift from God, not something to be taken lightly. I don't care what you're fighting for, there is no reason to resort to violence and murder. Without compassion we are nothing more than animals. Worse than that, because even an animal will only kill for substanance.

I am so disappointed in the human race and what we are willing to do to those who believe differently than ourselves. I pray that instead of being so disgusted and angry that I can learn to pity and pray for those who know nothing more than to attack and spread their vile hatred in these ignorant displays of violence and murder.

So for today I leave you with my wish for a peaceful life for little Moshe, and the families of the other victims. May they find strength in their religion, support from their communities and love throughout their life.

Jill Marie