Gorgeous day today - finally. Nice weather after a long crappy spell does wonders for one's outlook on life.
My daughter spent the last few days of her spring break with her grandmother instead of coming home. Sad she didn't stay with us, but her grandma needed to see her, too. Today, Daughter stopped in on her way back to school. We went out to lunch at a local cafe and then wandered around in a store that is going out of business. Daughter is now safely in her own town and headed to her apartment. She had to get back because not only does she have homework to do, the person that was taking care of her cats needs her to take care of his cat over the weekend. Sigh. Yes, I'm okay. Sigh.
White vinegar is a wonderful smell remover. One towel is now fresh smelling and very soft. (I haven't washed the other towel yet.) I'm going to the grocery store after while to stock up on vinegar and Borax. I used to mix Borax with water in the diaper pail to soak the diapers. How could I have forgotten that it is a good odor and stain remover??? (Well, in my defense it was 29 to 30 years ago when I quit using cloth diapers, and Daughter was only diapered in disposables.)
The pickup didn't start. The battery was dead. Imagine that.
Our friends, Joanie and her son Brian, cooked St. Patrick's dinner. We wound up having stew and soda bread instead of corned beef and cabbage, but it was absolutely the best stew I have ever eaten. (Joanie said she couldn't find a decent corned beef, which I certainly believe.) There was supposed to be a huge crowd, but Joanie's dau-in-law and the grands and greatgrands all had the flu. So, there was just Joanie, Brian, an older gentleman that I'd never met, my husband, and me. We ate, visited, and ate some more - such good company and such a good time.
The "good" bookcase that got wet dried out very nicely. There is about 1/4 inch along the bottom of one side that is rough, but if anyone looks that closely... And, if the bookcase is ever set on carpet, it won't show at all. Whew!
DH jump started the pickup, and took it to Lewiston and Clarkston yesterday. J had a job to finish up, so it was a good excuse to go buy a new vacuum cleaner. (I hope it is a good one; I haven't yet taken it out of the box.)
While in "town", I looked for filing cabinets. Staples only had the expensive chintzy kind that bend easily or the really expensive wooden ones in stock. There is only one other office supply place in the Lewiston now, and they don't keep filing cabinets in stock.
Also for several years now, I've wanted one specific kind of storage cabinet. The only place I've seen them, besides in a catalog, is at Shopko. I didn't want to order them and pay shipping (heavy and over-sized = $$$$), and I've been "too cheap" to pay the price Shopko was asking. I've checked on these every time I've gone into the store. You can imagine how surprised I was yesterday when I found that they were on sale for 52% off (!!!), and we had the pickup to haul them! I really only needed two, but bought the 3 that were in stock. Finding things (fabric??) to fill the third cabinet will not be difficult.
Let's see. Bookcases (laminated particle board) were also on sale. Purchased three for J's office at his "other" job (I didn't have to pay for these. Yeah!) and two for my sewing room.
And, since J was along, he got to man-handle the huge sacks of dog food and the heavy buckets of cat litter that Costco sells. Actually, taking him to Costco is not good, because he wants to buy fattening goodies.
Ordering clothing from a catalog is for the birds. Daughter normally wears an 8 petite dress, so that is what I ordered. The dress is huge - at least two sizes too big. She normally wears __ size shoes, wide width, and a half size larger if purchased from Payless. I ordered several pairs of dancing shoes to see which style she liked best and/or fit best. Yep, they are all too long. (One pair is even defective!) But, where in Idaho would one buy ballroom dancing shoes - especially ones in wide width - except out of a catalog? Is there a place in Spokane? (We don't have time to travel anywhere else to try on shoes.) And, why in the world doesn't the catalog state that the dancing shoes run larger than regular dress pumps? The dance world is new to me; I don't know these things. I'm sure other people don't know, either. Every single item I ordered has to be returned, and I get to pay the shipping. Grrr.
It is now 6 PM. Time to fix dinner. Hope everyone has a good weekend.
Showing posts with label laundry hint. Show all posts
Showing posts with label laundry hint. Show all posts
Friday, March 20, 2009
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Cranky/Happy/Cranky/Happy/...
This morning, looking south from the sidewalk in front of my house. There is a hill (mountain) hidden in that cloud.
Happy St. Patrick's Day! It's a cranky/happy wintery day. First it was quiet and rather nice outside (even though there is snow on the ground). Then it "blizzarded". Then the sun shone for a few minutes. Then it "blizzarded" again. Now the snow is lazily drifting down. No, the sun is shining!
Corned beef, potato, and cabbage dinner is being served at friend's house this evening. Musical notes here: I don't have to cook dinner. nanner, nanner, nanner. Friend said I cannot contribute toward the dinner, so what to take her??? I know! Hot cocoa mix or mocha mix. If I were rich, I'd buy her a dishwasher, but I'd want to buy myself one, too. :)
Got up to a mess this morning. The dogs? the cat? had spilled the watering can. My own fault! I filled it and set it right where it would get knocked over. To clean up the water, I had to unload a bookcase that was loaded with junk, kitchen appliances, food stuff. The bookcase has real oak laminated to particle board. Right now, about an inch of the veneer looks bad. I have the bookcase on its side so that the bottom will dry. We'll have to wait and see what damage was done.
Sometime today, I need to try to start the pickup, because there are errands to be run. Wish me luck! Makes me so mad, though. I'll go out and try and try to get it started. I'll tell DH that it won't start. You guessed it! He gets in and it fires right up. GRRRR (I do exactly what he tells me to do, and it still won't start for me.) It is "my" pickup. Why does it hate me so much???? lol
Tale of Two Stinky Bath Towels. They smell like a combination of sweat and pet urine even after they are washed. I've tried everything I can think of: Woolite, Clorox 2, hot water, Spray and Wash, Murphy's Oil Soap, lots of baking soda (except chlorine bleach). These two towels are of a different size, different weight, and different color and get washed in different loads. I cannot get the smell out of them. I'm now running one through a second soak cycle with a cup of white vinegar in a small tub of water. Not only do these always get hung up to dry after a shower, but a fan gets turned on them so that they dry fast. And, I think, they are always dried thoroughly (after washing, of course) before I put them away. I've probably spent more trying to get the smell out than it would cost to buy new towels. We have wooden towel racks. Would that cause the problem? If so, why only those two towels???
Something scary. Try this sometime. Put your towels in the washer without adding any laundry aids. Fill tub with rather warm water and agitate. Real SUDS not just air bubbles! I use less detergent than the directions say, and I always use the second rinse option!
I love recycling. I'm not an environmentalist, but I don't like waste. When our (privately run) recycling center closed, I was really upset. For quite a while we saved all the stuff and hauled it to Moscow's recycle center. Well, finally it just got to be too much, so I threw a bunch of it in the trash. Then about four days ago there was an article in our little local rag saying that we can still recycle metal if we take the cans to the transfer station (dump). At least it is something. (I always save aluminum cans to take to Moscow, because we get cash back on those.)
Murphy's Law at work. Last week DH and I broke down and bought a treadmill - a luxury purchase. Late that evening after we got home from Lewiston and moved the furniture so that the treadmill could be set up, I plugged in the vacuum cleaner, and it went "spofffsst". It wasn't even turned on, and sparks flew out of its butt. Now I have to buy a new vacuum cleaner. :(
AHA! I think the vinegar is working. I'm running the towel through one more vinegar wash just to make sure. It must have been mildew causing the odor, although I'm not sure why or how.
What the view south looks like now (11:10 AM). It is gorgeous out - warm, no wind, and bright blue sky.
Blessings!
Happy St. Patrick's Day! It's a cranky/happy wintery day. First it was quiet and rather nice outside (even though there is snow on the ground). Then it "blizzarded". Then the sun shone for a few minutes. Then it "blizzarded" again. Now the snow is lazily drifting down. No, the sun is shining!
Corned beef, potato, and cabbage dinner is being served at friend's house this evening. Musical notes here: I don't have to cook dinner. nanner, nanner, nanner. Friend said I cannot contribute toward the dinner, so what to take her??? I know! Hot cocoa mix or mocha mix. If I were rich, I'd buy her a dishwasher, but I'd want to buy myself one, too. :)
Got up to a mess this morning. The dogs? the cat? had spilled the watering can. My own fault! I filled it and set it right where it would get knocked over. To clean up the water, I had to unload a bookcase that was loaded with junk, kitchen appliances, food stuff. The bookcase has real oak laminated to particle board. Right now, about an inch of the veneer looks bad. I have the bookcase on its side so that the bottom will dry. We'll have to wait and see what damage was done.
Sometime today, I need to try to start the pickup, because there are errands to be run. Wish me luck! Makes me so mad, though. I'll go out and try and try to get it started. I'll tell DH that it won't start. You guessed it! He gets in and it fires right up. GRRRR (I do exactly what he tells me to do, and it still won't start for me.) It is "my" pickup. Why does it hate me so much???? lol
Tale of Two Stinky Bath Towels. They smell like a combination of sweat and pet urine even after they are washed. I've tried everything I can think of: Woolite, Clorox 2, hot water, Spray and Wash, Murphy's Oil Soap, lots of baking soda (except chlorine bleach). These two towels are of a different size, different weight, and different color and get washed in different loads. I cannot get the smell out of them. I'm now running one through a second soak cycle with a cup of white vinegar in a small tub of water. Not only do these always get hung up to dry after a shower, but a fan gets turned on them so that they dry fast. And, I think, they are always dried thoroughly (after washing, of course) before I put them away. I've probably spent more trying to get the smell out than it would cost to buy new towels. We have wooden towel racks. Would that cause the problem? If so, why only those two towels???
Something scary. Try this sometime. Put your towels in the washer without adding any laundry aids. Fill tub with rather warm water and agitate. Real SUDS not just air bubbles! I use less detergent than the directions say, and I always use the second rinse option!
I love recycling. I'm not an environmentalist, but I don't like waste. When our (privately run) recycling center closed, I was really upset. For quite a while we saved all the stuff and hauled it to Moscow's recycle center. Well, finally it just got to be too much, so I threw a bunch of it in the trash. Then about four days ago there was an article in our little local rag saying that we can still recycle metal if we take the cans to the transfer station (dump). At least it is something. (I always save aluminum cans to take to Moscow, because we get cash back on those.)
Murphy's Law at work. Last week DH and I broke down and bought a treadmill - a luxury purchase. Late that evening after we got home from Lewiston and moved the furniture so that the treadmill could be set up, I plugged in the vacuum cleaner, and it went "spofffsst". It wasn't even turned on, and sparks flew out of its butt. Now I have to buy a new vacuum cleaner. :(
AHA! I think the vinegar is working. I'm running the towel through one more vinegar wash just to make sure. It must have been mildew causing the odor, although I'm not sure why or how.
What the view south looks like now (11:10 AM). It is gorgeous out - warm, no wind, and bright blue sky.
Blessings!
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Laundry hint of the day
We have house pets - four dogs and two cats. As you can imagine, pet hair from shedding is a major problem.
For items that have static such as fleece, acrylic, polyester, silk, some rayons, some blends, I have learned a neat trick. (This might not work if you have to do your laundry in coin operated machines.)
Wash the item as you normally would - by hand or in the washing machine. First, when the wash tub is filled, aggitate the item(s) a little first, then stop the washer and carefully skim off the pet hair. If you forget or don't have time or have a front loading machine, don't worry about this step.
Next put the item or items in the dryer - the fewer the better. Make sure lint trap is cleaned out. Then, set to air fluff - NO HEAT or dryer sheets - for about 15 minutes. Heat causes static, which causes the hair to cling to the items. (Even the most delicate items can usually go in the dryer as long as there isn't heat, Velcro, zippers, or hooks.) Clean out the lint trap, again.
Now dry the item or items as you normally would, whether by hanging to dry, laying flat, or finishing them up in the dryer with or without a dryer sheet.
I have found that items put in the dryer on air fluff have usually lost quite a bit of the moisture that was in them so the heat cycle doesn't take as long. This can be a way to save energy, too, since it is the heat cycle that uses the most.
For items that have static such as fleece, acrylic, polyester, silk, some rayons, some blends, I have learned a neat trick. (This might not work if you have to do your laundry in coin operated machines.)
Wash the item as you normally would - by hand or in the washing machine. First, when the wash tub is filled, aggitate the item(s) a little first, then stop the washer and carefully skim off the pet hair. If you forget or don't have time or have a front loading machine, don't worry about this step.
Next put the item or items in the dryer - the fewer the better. Make sure lint trap is cleaned out. Then, set to air fluff - NO HEAT or dryer sheets - for about 15 minutes. Heat causes static, which causes the hair to cling to the items. (Even the most delicate items can usually go in the dryer as long as there isn't heat, Velcro, zippers, or hooks.) Clean out the lint trap, again.
Now dry the item or items as you normally would, whether by hanging to dry, laying flat, or finishing them up in the dryer with or without a dryer sheet.
I have found that items put in the dryer on air fluff have usually lost quite a bit of the moisture that was in them so the heat cycle doesn't take as long. This can be a way to save energy, too, since it is the heat cycle that uses the most.
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