respublica

Coca Cola what can't it do

This seems kind of gross, but it is what it is. There is a belief out there in house keeping country that using Coca Cola to clean you toilet is amazing. I just wonder if they use the regular, every day Coke, or the Mexican Coke. I would not waste Mexican Coke on my toilet.

But, here goes. Some believe this is amazing.

"Simply pour some Coke around the rims of your toilet and watch it fill up with all that carbonated fizz. Then, let it sit overnight, Today advises. When you go back in the morning, give the toilet a good flush to wash the fizz away and you will see the Coke also washed away the dirt and grime in your toilet bowl".

I don't know if Dr. Pepper or Pepsi would work the same because Coke is the Real Thing.

 

What we're missing here in the Metro East

It's surprising to me that there are some very popular stores found on the St. Louis side of the Metro area, but not here on the Illinois side. I mean, we over here shop and like the same things people like over in Missouri. So why are these stores avoiding us?

Costco. Everyone around here wants a Costco. Surely that company sees how people pack the Sam's Clubs in Edwardsville and O'Fallon. A Costco would be very profitable.

Whole Foods. I mean why not?

World Market. That company left O'Fallon some time back but we miss it and there are some things very great to buy in that store. So we drive out to the Brentwood Promenade.

I was happy when Total Wine and More went to Fairview Heights. I'd gone to the one in Brentwood often when living over there. They have so much more wine, spirits, beer, selections than anyone and I hope they make it.

We can't get Jeni's ice cream here on the Illinois side. Truth be known, though, it's even hard to find in St. Louis. It's sold in Straub's and Whole Foods but so worth the effort to get it. Just the best.

Life Hacks

I waste too much time early in the morning reading posts on the Smart News app. Some things catch my eye, especially things having to do with cleaning or gardening or decorating. Maybe this is because after moving back to Collinsville we had the whole house redone except for the basement and Dale is doing way too much down there. However some things I've read seem doable and actually worthwhile. Take this for instance:

Rubbing alcohol will remove paint from clothes. It will also get rid of chewing gum that somehow gets onto things like shoes. Rubbing alcohol became hard to get in the early days of the pandemic when we all went searching for anything that would be an anti-bacterial. It's readily available now.

Also this morning: chopping onions with a wet knife will stop the tears. And, vinegar in a plastic bag tied around the end of faucets will dissolve hard water deposits. I am going to try this.

Some are just silly. "Yell at your vacuum cleaner to get the dog to stop barking at it."

Car tricks

This list of advice on how to overcome a few issues with your car or even advice on clever ways to do things is kind of fun. Obviously the car fob comes into it several times, mostly when it comes to trying to find your car in crowded parking lots. (If you've forgotten where you parked)

Some cars with electric or key fob openers have a hidden spot under the drivers side handle so the actual key can be used should you fob battery die. I went out and looked at our cars when I read this and Dale's car does not have it. My truck has an actual key slot on the drivers side right out in plain sight. Dale's car does have a narrow silver button on his handle but I have no idea what this does and don't want to push it for fear the alarm will go off. There is nothing louder than a car's alarm. I'd bet he doesn't even know what this is for.

The tip I liked the most was how to quickly get the moisture fogged windshield cleared. We've had a lot of that recently. The advice is to put rice in a cloth bag of some sort and lay it on the dash. The rice will absorb the window foggy-ness. I may have some of this in the car.

Oh, and, you can also use a plunger to pull out dents.

Many of these are just silly, but a couple are worth remembering.

Cars. You never know what will happen

Last week, Dale was to preach the evening Good Friday worship service at Holy Cross. Because of this he wanted to get there earlier than I would. He got into his car and it wouldn't start. This was weird because there was nothing wrong with the battery. He was a bit panic-ed because his car was behind mine and the only way to use mine would be to back out using our neighbor's lawn.

So he first called our St. Louis daughter Elizabeth who was headed to Holy Cross with her family to see if they were close. And they had just gotten into Collinsville so would come by and pick us up. Well, as often happens, Dale's car finally started and he was able to get going.

But. This had to be looked into, this strange behavior by the car. Yesterday he was able to get the car started and took it into St. Louis to be examined. He went to St. Louis because that is where the warranty fixers were located. It took a few hours of the mechanics checking things and in the end they discovered the problem.

The battery in his key fob was dead. I mean seriously. This key fob not only opens the doors but it also starts the engine remotely. All you need to do is have the key somewhere on your person or in the cup holder, push a button on the dash and the car starts.

This is something we never ever think about. Changing a key fob battery. I'm kind of glad my key fob just opens the door locks.

But this is not an easy battery to get in and out. The mechanics showed Dale how it's done and he tried practicing last night and couldn't do it. So hopefully this new one will last quite a while. At least we have a spare should this happen again.

Now I'm worried that my key fob has a battery inside that will die and I'll be standing next to the locked car door with a cart full of groceries and no way to get them in. Mine only locks and unlocks the doors, but still. It does look like it may open and have a battery in it. It's never died as many years as we've have the car so, my paranoia is: When will this battery die and where will I be?

Noticy Time

Maybe it's Dale having retired or the Covid closures, but it seems to us that the days are long, but the weeks are short. Why this is I don't understand, but one minute it's Monday and the next minute it's the weekend again. In between are days that take forever to end. Crazy.

Our weekday conversations often go like this: "Is it only 10?"  "Feels like it should be at least 2." Then, "Can you believe it's Friday! It's already Friday. What the heck did we actually do this week?"

Cucumbers fact or myth?

Came across this article on the many benefits of cucumbers. I have no idea if any of these are true or just old wives tales made up in order to justify growing them in the garden. When you grow them you'll get hundreds and since squirrels don't like them as they do other vine vegetables such as squash and melons, you have to start giving them away. Here are the touted facts about cucumbers.

Cucumbers contain most of the vitamins you need every day, just one cucumber contains Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B6, Folic Acid, Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium and Zinc.

2. Feeling tired in the afternoon, put down the caffeinated soda and pick up a cucumber. Cucumbers are a good source of B vitamins and Carbohydrates that can provide that quick pick-me-up that can last for hours.

3. Tired of your bathroom mirror fogging up after a shower? Try rubbing a cucumber slice along the mirror, it will eliminate the fog and provide a soothing, spa-like fragrance.

4. Are grubs and slugs ruining your planting beds? Place a few slices in a small pie tin and your garden will be free of pests all season long. The chemicals in the cucumber react with the aluminum to give off a scent undetectable to humans but drive garden pests crazy and make them flee the area.

5. Looking for a fast and easy way to remove cellulite before going out or to the pool? Try rubbing a slice or two of cucumbers along your problem area for a few minutes, the phytochemicals in the cucumber cause the collagen in your skin to tighten, firming up the outer layer and reducing the visibility of cellulite. Works great on wrinkles too!!!

6. Want to avoid a hangover or terrible headache? Eat a few cucumber slices before going to bed and wake up refreshed and headache free. Cucumbers contain enough sugar, B vitamins and electrolytes to replenish essential nutrients the body lost, keeping everything in equilibrium, avoiding both a hangover and headache!!

7. Looking to fight off that afternoon or evening snacking binge? Cucumbers have been used for centuries and often used by European trappers, traders and explores for quick meals to thwart off starvation.

8. Have an important meeting or job interview and you realize that you don't have enough time to polish your shoes? Rub a freshly cut cucumber over the shoe, its chemicals will provide a quick and durable shine that not only looks great but also repels water.

9. Out of WD 40 and need to fix a squeaky hinge? Take a cucumber slice and rub it along the problematic hinge, and voila, the squeak is gone!

10. Stressed out and don't have time for massage, facial or visit to the spa? Cut up an entire cucumber and place it in a boiling pot of water, the chemicals and nutrients from the cucumber will react with the boiling water and be released in the steam, creating a soothing, relaxing aroma that has been shown the reduce stress in new mothers and college students during final exams.

11. Just finish a business lunch and realize you don't have gum or mints? Take a slice of cucumber and press it to the roof of your mouth with your tongue for 30 seconds to eliminate bad breath, the phytochemicals will kill the bacteria in your mouth responsible for causing bad breath.

12. Looking for a 'green' way to clean your taps, sinks or stainless steel? Take a slice of cucumber and rub it on the surface you want to clean, not only will it remove years of tarnish and bring back the

shine, but is won't leave streaks and won't harm you fingers or fingernails while you clean.

13. Using a pen and made a mistake? Take the outside of the cucumber and slowly use it to erase the pen writing, also works great on crayons and markers that the kids have used to decorate the walls!!

 

 

One of the poorer ideas

Ah the 1980's. Remember water beds? Not such a good idea as it turned out for many owners who woke up soaking wet.

News we probably don't need

From the Guardian: The Average Westerner's eating habits leads to the loss of four trees every year.

"Chocolate consumption in the UK and Germany is an important driver of deforestation in Ivory Coast and Ghana, the scientists found, while beef and soy demand in the US, European Union and China results in forest destruction in Brazil."

Now I have to take issue with one thing. Chocolate consumption in the US certainly has to be as high or higher than in the UK and Germany. Otherwise this is one weird conclusion on tree loss.

Stop eating trees!

 

Another use for plastic wrap

I apologize for being a sucker for headlines which begin with: 20 Things you never knew you could......"

Today I came across "20 Plastic Wrap Uses You Probably Didn't Know About." This was from Family Handyman, a site I also didn't know about, but has a couple of plastic wrap uses I knew about, a few I'd never ever us, and one that just made me laugh.

Here's the head slapper item: Unclog your toilet when the plunger fails.  Use plastic wrap to cover the toilet bowl and flush. Once the plastic swells, you should push down on creating enough pressure to unblock the pipeline.

I honestly will never try this and don't believe for one minute it would work. Thankfully we haven't had this issue recently although when our kids were young they occasionally dropped weird things into the toilet and tried to flush them.

One plastic wrap idea I have used is folding a piece into a rope and tying it around the stems of bananas to keep them from ripening too fast. This does help although for some reason modern day bananas go brown way too fast.