Notabilia

Miscellaneous

Nifty Knacks

276 through 300

276. Flowers.
     Cut flowers suffer terribly in the heat. It makes them wilt sooner than they otherwise would. Revive a bunch of flowers by immersing them for a few minutes in a sink full of tepid water. Then put them back in a vase full of cold water.

277. The barbecue.
     Check whether the coals in your barbecue are hot enough by holding your hand 0.79 inches above them and counting to three. If the heat is unbearable, the coals are ready to cook on.

278. Cool bottles.
     The hotter it gets, the cooler we like our drinks. Keep soft drinks cool by wrapping the bottle in plenty of layers of newspaper or putting it in a thick, wet sock. As the water evaporates, the bottle cools down.

279. Flies.
     Repel flies by doing what the Spanish do. Scatter a few half lemons stuck with aromatic cloves here and there.

280. Ants.
     Ants come into the house in search of food - preferably sweet food. As well as products specially designed to keep insects at bay, it helps to repel them if you sprinkle vinegar or bleach in their path. They will about face and be off.

281. Smells.
     A weekend home in the country can smell musty. Leave small wads of cotton wool impregnated with essential oil of pine needles in the rooms to get rid of the smell.

282. Travel sickness.
     If you don't want to get travel sick in a car, coach or bus, never travel on an empty stomach. Bear in mind that a little sugar is good for nausea.

283. Tomatoes.
     Tomatoes are much better if they are not kept in the fridge. If they are a little over-ripe, a five-minute bath in very cold water will firm them up.

284. Melting ice.
     Try the following trick if you want cold water without lugging the picnic cool box around. Freeze a bottle of mineral water (not one that is full as it may burst) and take it with you to the beach. The heat of the day will melt the ice at the same rate as it makes you thirsty.

285. Beach umbrellas.
     The covering of your beach umbrella will withstand ultra-violet rays better if you spray it with hairspray at the beginning of summer.
     Remember, too, to check that the umbrella is completely dry before you close it. Otherwise watch out for mould stains. They don't come out.

286. Inflating airbeds.
     Put airbeds and inflatable beach toys in warm water before blowing them up and you won't find it such hard work. When you put them away for the winter, don't forget to wash them and sprinkle talcum powder on them so that they do not stick.

287. Tar.
     Very high temperatures melt tar and it sticks to the bodywork of cars. How are you to get rid of it? First of all, put linseed oil on the parts where it has stuck to soften it. Then wipe with a cloth soaked in more linseed oil. If you get dirty tar marks on your feet, you can get them off by rubbing with a little butter or margarine.

288. Doing the washing.
     A little shampoo is a wonderful substitute when you haven't got any detergent handy.

289. Fizzy drinks that don't go flat.
     If you don't finish your bottle of fizzy drink, it will go flat - unless you turn the bottle upside down after putting the lid back on.

290. Salad.
     Salad suffers in the heat. Revive a sad-looking salad by putting it into a bowl full of cold water with the juice of half a lemon in it.

291. Wasps.
     When you are out having a picnic, keep wasps away from your table by scattering wasp traps (dishes of sugar water) around it. You should also watch out for over-ripe fruit left hanging on trees. Wasps make frequent visits to it.

292. Nettles.
     Nettles that produce white flowers don't sting, but the other ones give you a nasty rash. Rubbing your skin vigorously with a little vinegar will soothe it.

293. Fruit.
     Fruit ripens much quicker in very hot weather. Don't throw fruit away when you have more than you can eat. Make fruit preserve, marmelade or jam, and keep some in the freezer, too.

294. Photographs.
     Holiday snapshots get handed round a lot and end up covered in fingermarks. Get rid of the nasty marks by rubbing the surface of the photographs with facial tissue.

295. Cameras.
     Don't risk your camera getting broken when you travel. Wrap it in a thick towel and pack it in the centre of your suitcase.
     Sand is your camara's number one enemy. When you take your camera to the beach with you, put it in a zip up case and only take it out when you want to use it.

296. Sweaty hands.
     If your hands get very sweaty in hot weather, rub a little camphor into the palms every day.

297. Finding your way.
     It is useful to know that moss grows on the north facing part of a tree trunk. So if you need to find the right direction when you haven't got a compass, look at the trees.

298. Fish.
     Red fish are not adapted for life in warm water. If the temperature of the water in your fishbowl goes above 77 degrees, put some ice cubes in a plastic bag and drop it in the water to cool it down for them.

299. Ripening fruit.
     Even when summer is over there will be some fruit left in your garden, but it will still be green. You can ripen the fruit yourself.
     Pick any tomatoes and put them bottom side up in a light place, but out of direct sunlight.
     Pick green fruit and wrap it in a slightly damp cloth. Then wrap the whole thing in newspaper.

300. Bouquets of flowers.
     A bouquet of flowers in a vase will last longer if you leave the vase outside every night.