HOUSEHOLD TIPS NOT FOUND IN WOMAN'S WEEKLY

[Stanley]

The programme 'More or Less' on World Service this morning addressed sleep. It appears that the latest research seems to be pointing at an average of seven hours a day being a good target. I got there before them but split it into two, five hours at night and two in the afternoon. One thing is certain, the right amount of sleep that suits you is essential to health. Guard it well!

[Stanley]

One of the responsibilities we all have is to look after ourselves. I don't intend to let any last minute mishaps spoil my trip to Keele so this week I shall be on high alert, no heavy lifting, no extraordinary efforts, just have a quiet week and keep myself at the peak I am enjoying at the moment. So today's tip is be constantly aware of what you are doing, one hand for the ship but the other for yourself!

[Stanley]

I think it's working. If you discount incontinence and failing short term memory I am in quite good nick!

[Stanley]

It's a good idea to empty the fridge if you are going to be away from home for a week.....

[Stanley]

Give thought to your essential support systems when packing for a week away, they change as you get older. I'm having to give a lot of thought to my packing.... Remember that this is a man who doesn't like to be too far away from his own lavatory and home support systems honed over many years.....
Of course I might be pleasantly surprised, I hope so. A change is as good as a rest they say. Wish me luck, I shall report at the end of next week!

[Stanley]

If your washing machine goes AWOL in the middle of a programme don't panic, it's most likely a brain fart in the controller. Start again on a different programme and it will almost certainly sort itself out.

[Tizer]

The same applies to human beings - if you can't solve a problem do something else, either the answer will come to you or the problem will go away.

[Stanley]

Very true Tiz. I developed the Stanley Graham method of 'problem solving' when I was running Ellenroad.
If you have a perceived problem ask yourself the following questions. Is it in fact a problem? If so, whose problem is it? What will happen if I do nothing?
This is invariably a solution if you are honest and act on the answers.

[Tizer]

Yes, I employ that approach - I'm very good at doing nothing!

[Stanley]

I had a bloke working for me once who used to manufacture problems, tell me not to worry, he would deal with it and report and a week later would tell me it was solved. No problem in the first place of course..... He was a lousy teacher as well.....

[Stanley]

It is better to travel hopefully than arrive.

[Whyperion]

It is better to travel hopefully than arrive.

Not always, a simple Hebden Bridge to Huddersfield via Brighouse disappeared for two hours on Northern Rail yesterday. Would not normally be a problem except it was supposed to be connection for down to London (cheaper than via Leeds )

[Stanley]

My preparations for leaving the house for five days worked well. No surprises when I got back and the milk I bought the Saturday before was still perfectly drinkable. Wonderful how the keeping quality of milk has improved over the last 40 years! Before the days of refrigerators milk could go sour within two hours of delivery, especially if it was a thundery day. Some progress is good!

[Tizer]

It is better to travel hopefully than arrive.

Not always, a simple Hebden Bridge to Huddersfield via Brighouse disappeared for two hours on Northern Rail yesterday. Would not normally be a problem except it was supposed to be connection for down to London (cheaper than via Leeds )

No, and a lot of people on their way to France via Dover would have preferred to arrive than to `travel hopefully' when that included 5 hours stationary on the road to Dover due to the French border controls.

Stanley, for once we can also thank the supermarkets, they used their clout to demand that pasteurisation controls were tightened up and a more rigorous process was used.

[Stanley]

You are right Tiz..... RLS had it wrong in this case! And you are right about milk, the standards of cleanliness in production and the efficiency of the dairies is quite amazing. I can of course remember different times. When I was milking we tried to be clean but wouldn't have passed today's standards....
Later.....



Today's tip. Don't leave stove maintenance until you need the stove, do it in the summer. I attacked the Morso Squirrel this morning and gave it a thorough clean out. When I came to chip the clinker off the grate it broke in two. No point trying to weld burnt cast iron so I have ordered a new one. Plenty of time for it to arrive and be fitted before the heating season. Summer is the time for boiler and stove servicing and repair!

[Stanley]

There are many recommendations for the treatment of stove exteriors. They have of course to withstand over 600F. The best option by far is old-fashioned black lead (Still available as 'Zebrite'), we used that on the boiler fronts when I was running the mill. If you can't get hold of black lead old sump oil works well as it contains a lot of carbon but smells as the oil burns off. I did mine with Zebrite yesterday and it looks like new.

[Stanley]

You are all aware of my obsessive hot bleaching of my sink each morning as I sterilise my pint pot. Not a bad idea occasionally to reinforce this ply by filling the sink with hot water as high as the overflow and pulling the plug, allowing a good flush of water through the pipes which will shift anything in there. The aim is for the sink to empty quickly without sucking air and for a loud gulping noise as the last of the water falls and the vacuum in the pipe tries to suck the water out of the U-bend. All right it might be a bit over the top but far better than a dirty or blocked drain!

[Julie in Norfolk]

I couldn't agree more with the summer stove service. I am yet to black lead the outside, however the inside of my stove is cleaned and fine. Steve-in-Norfolk had to deal with blocked kitchen plumbing this week, the cause of which became apparent accidentally. I had been suggesting in a motherly way that grease was going down the sink causing slow draining; the washing up bowl was not in the sink one day and the dishwasher water rose up through the sink plughole! All is good now as the blockage has been removed.

[Stanley]

A good point Julie. Even with my measures and a separate drain for the washing machine I had a build up of solid detergent, hairs etc in the separate pipe and it backed up one day. An occasional hot wash can help but I frequently take the outside drain pipe into the soil stack off and make sure it is clear. by the way, this build up can be worse in very cold weather which seems to encourage residues to build up in the pipe. I have never used them but there are proprietary treatments for cleaning the insides of dishwashers and the pipes. I don't know how effective they are.

[Cathy]

I have my landlady coming tomorrow to have a look at my front door. It has suddenly started to be jammed and is very hard (and noisy) to open or close. From the inside I have to pull with all my might to open it, and from the outside I have to push it open with my shoulder. It's only been happening since our weather has turned nasty. Fingers crossed that it is easy to fix.

[Stanley]

Cath, most likely the exceptionally cold and damp weather has swollen the wood slightly, not a serious matter.



After banging on at you all I checked my drains yesterday.... All is well, good management works!

[Cathy]

Yes , my door problem was easily fixed. Landlady is the 'hands on and capable type' and came equipped with a sander which she used on the floor-level wood of the doorway (haha, you can see I am hopeless about knowing what things are called) and now I can easily open and close my security door and front door. Our recent bad weather had swelled the wood.

[Julie in Norfolk]

When shopping, place all your frozen goods in one bag surrounding a bottle of white wine. Bingo! Chilled wine as soon as you are home.

[Stanley]

I don't drink wine but always have two bags and keep the dry stuff separate from frozen and veggies etc. Two bags is good for me because it spreads the load to two hands. It's better for my old war wounds.....

[LizG]

When shopping, place all your frozen goods in one bag surrounding a bottle of white wine. Bingo! Chilled wine as soon as you are home.

Love it.