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Dear Heloise: I had to chuckle when I read the letter in your column from the woman who mentioned taking a crossword puzzle book to the doctor’s or other appointments when there’s a wait. I’ve been doing this myself for years. Everyone else is sitting there playing with their smartphones and looking at me like I’m weird. But my cellphone is a “dumb” flip phone, and I enjoy the crosswords. I’m in my 80s and call them “mental gymnastics.” — An Old Fuddy-Duddy in the Buckeye State
Fuddy-Duddy, I’ve read that crossword puzzles help keep the mind sharp and active, so keep it up! — Heloise
DISPOSING OF DOCUMENTS
Dear Heloise: You recently printed a hint from someone who recommended getting rid of paper without a shredder by soaking it in bleach water to fade the ink. I have a more environmentally friendly way that people with a compost pile can try: I simply tear documents up and put them under a few items in the compost. In no time, they’re completely gone and added into my precious compost for my plants.
If you’re more paranoid than I am about your sensitive documents, simply bury them even deeper in there. I can almost guarantee that no one will come into your yard and dig down into your compost for your personal information. And it’s a totally sustainable practice! Win-win!
Thank you for your column. I read it in the Daily Freeman. — Victoria R., in Kingston, New York
Victoria, this is a novel approach to hiding documents, and it might be a useful method for some of my readers. Thank you! — Heloise
FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
Dear Heloise: When my kids got older and started asking for the latest expensive shoes, jeans, etc., I decided that I’d let them do their own shopping for school. I gave them the amount that I had planned for this, which was $100 each at the time, and I told them that they could buy whatever they wanted. I said that they can buy the $100 pair of shoes or jeans, but this was all they were going to get until Christmas.
This really made them think: Was it worth it? Well, they both decided that it wasn’t. They came home from shopping excited about all the stuff they found and couldn’t wait to show me how well they had shopped. I was impressed by how well they did; it was even better than I would’ve done. It taught them a very valuable lesson, especially when they started using their own money for purchases. One of my sons still goes shopping at secondhand stores and has made some amazing finds. — Liz N., via email
Liz, every financial advisor I have ever spoken with has said that it’s never too early to learn fiscal responsibility. Too many people want to save for things like a house but don’t have the discipline that it takes to save money toward their goal. So much of life is about compromise. — Heloise
Send a money-saving or time-saving hint to Heloise@Heloise.com. I can’t answer your letter personally but will use the best hints received in my column.