DEAR READERS: Here's a hint to consider when flying: Try putting any and all things you plan on using during the flight inside a resealable gallon-size bag.
You can toss the bag onto your seat before putting everything else away in the bin above you. Just that little action, and not digging for your stuff when you arrive at your seat, will improve boarding by not slowing down others.
DEAR HELOISE: On occasion when I travel with my child I'll ask her to find our destination on my cellphone. When the GPS directions are ready, she will, with the help of the prompter, guide us to our destination.
She observes distances, street names, turning directions, movement of traffic and so on. This requires her to watch the screen when doing so, and allows us to converse during the ride, as we are determined to get to our destination.
-- Janice R., via email
DEAR HELOISE: Do you have a marinade I could whip up and use for meats?
-- Greg D., Austin, Texas
DEAR READER: Try combining the following ingredients in a medium bowl, and use as you would a commercial marinade:
Meat Marinade
1 cup dry white or red wine
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1 cup salad oil
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon dry tarragon
1 bay leaf, crushed into small pieces
1/2 teaspoon thyme or marjoram
1 large clove garlic, finely chopped
Combine all ingredients and store in a covered container in the refrigerator.
This marinade has a lot of other ingredients besides the vinegar that you asked for, but I think you'll find it savory.
DEAR READERS: A reader wanted ways to preserve steel-wool pads. I gave him a couple of hints, and then this one came from a faithful reader that I thought would improve upon the original hints.
"My suggestion for helping to keep your steel-wool cleaning pads rust-free is to wet the item you are cleaning, not the steel-wool pad.
"Then I store the pad in the freezer, as others have suggested."
-- Hilary M., California
Send a money- or time-saving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, Texas 78279-5000; fax to (210) 435-6473; or email
Heloise@Heloise.com
MovieStyle on 01/13/2017