Two dozen pairs of stockings

Don't you just hate it when you have a whole bunch of knee-high stockings and you can't find a pair whose colors match exactly? Used to happen a lot to me until I figured out a way to keep my stockings' colors even throughout their lifetime.

Instead of washing each pair as they're used, I have two sets of a dozen pairs. Each dozen has to be of the same color. After using a pair, I place them on a stool in my room (I really should be neater and keep them in a little plastic pail or basket) until I use up all the pairs in one set. Only then do I wash them altogether. That way, the color of the set remains consistent for each piece. And while that one set is drying, I begin using the second dozen.

This way, you can grab any two pieces and they're sure to match. And it doesn't matter if one piece gets a run, because its pair will match the rest of the set anyway. When one set is down to a few pieces, then I go out and buy another dozen.

One squirt stove cleaning

Another kitchen product that I love is SC Johnson's Mr. Muscle Kitchen Cleaner. If you read the label, it says you can use it to clean almost anything in the kitchen (except things you use to cook and eat). I mostly just use it for the stove after cooking, because I'm such a messy cook there's bound to be a spill or two on it always. Just squirt Mr. Muscle Kitchen on the spill, leave it on for a minute or two, then wipe it off. No scrubbing needed whatsover.

I heart Lock & Lock

I confess: I'm addicted to the Lock & Lock brand of storage containers.

We live in a 40-year-old house which ants of all kinds have decided to call home too, and they used to get into everything—cereal boxes, syrup bottles with the cap screwed on so tightly I had a hard time opening them, dog food, even the uncooked brown rice! We used to place water in cookie trays, put plastic trays on them and keep the foodstuff in the trays. But this awful solution was just that—awful. First, the stale water is just an invitation to mosquitoes to breed. So that meant having to change the water often. Second, have you tried carrying an extremely shallow tray full of water? Third, the trays took up too much counter space. And fourth, the ants learned to swim.

When that last one happened, I decided to go buy a whole bunch of Lock & Locks. I found out about the brand about seven years ago because of my sister, but didn't pay it much mind. Now my kitchen is so full of their products I can actually throw a "Lock & Lock Party." The reason for the heart: they're airtight. As in, you can put water in the container and if you close it properly (there is such a thing as not closing it properly), you can place it in your handbag secure in the knowledge that it won't spill or even leak.

I now keep everything in Lock & Lock containers—at least the ones I want to keep away from ants. And from moisture—this is such a humid country, the containers are perfect for keeping foodstuff dry too. I have tiny ones for spices; small ones for bouillon cubes, salt, pepper; medium ones for powdered milk, ground coffee beans, powdered juice; large ones for sugar, cereals, brown rice, dog food; and one extra large one which serves as a catch-all for oddly shaped items or food we know we'll finish within a day or two. Then we also keep a few small ones as lunch boxes—no more worrying about food with broth or sauces.

The only thing I've discovered so far that Lock & Lock can't handle is onion powder. But I just found out that they've come up with a line of air-free containers. Definitely on my shopping list now.

Rice cooker cooking

I don't know why I never thought of it before when it's so obvious, and I've made flavored rice in the past (although in an ordinary pot).

I've been trying to use up a sack of jasmine rice and I've been cooking variations of Thai fried rice to do so. Our staple at home is brown rice so no one's going to eat plain white rice, even if it's jasmine. But fried rice requires that you cook the rice first then cook it again in a wok with the other ingredients. Then this morning, I suddenly realized that I can just add the flavor directly into the rice cooker. So I dissolved a pack of curry mix into the water needed for cooking the rice. Halfway through, I dumped a can of drained mushroom pieces into the rice cooker, mixed it and let it continue cooking until it automatically stopped. Tadaah! Curry rice with hardly any effort.

Should have thought of this ages ago. Now I can't wait to try out other flavors.

All wrapped up

Because yesterday was a holiday, I was able to do something that I want to do monthly but usually can't: wrap all the birthday gifts for the month before the first birthday comes along. I place all the wrapped gifts on top of a low bookshelf on the second story landing so when the special day comes, I just grab the gift before going down to leave.

Most months, though, I either get to wrap only a few in one sitting or don't get to wrap any until the night before the person's birthday.

Send in your warranty cards

Two years ago, our digital camera's lens got damaged through no fault of our own. Luckily, it was still under warranty, and even luckier still, my husband had kept all the papers it came with and the official receipt. When it turned out that the model had been discontinued and the lens couldn't be replaced, the company gave us a brand-new higher model.

Since then, I have been religious in filling out and mailing warranty registration cards (if required) for all the appliances and gadgets—even software—that we buy. At the very least, I get the warranty card, list of service centers and the official receipt, staple them together, and keep them in a clear plastic filing case in my desk. I'm not one to keep them alphabetized or indexed, but at least I know where to get the papers when I need them. It only takes a few minutes after a purchase, and if it'll save us a lot of money in the future, then those few minutes are worth it.

Fresh book catch

Our office gave us an extra half day off work, so we decided to spend the afternoon trawling for books at the bargain floor of the NBS Superstore. Added to my piles of yet-to-read books:

The Fatal Shore by Robert Hughes
non-fiction, history - about the colonization of Australia

Nathaniel's Nutmeg by Giles Milton
non-fiction, history - the story of nutmeg, the spice trade, captain Nathaniel Courthope and the island of Run

Black Maria by Diana Wynne Jones
children's fantasy fiction

The Kin by Peter Dickinson
children's historical fiction

All Tomorrow's Parties by William Gibson
science fiction

Super-State by Brian Aldiss
science fiction

Night Watch by Stephen Kendrick
mystery/detective fiction - Sherlock Holmes meets Father Brown

Another half year's reading added. I think I'm up to five years now.