Septic system user and aquatic scientist here. Lye and other caustic chemicals kill the bacteria I need to keep alive in my septic tank to digest organic matter so it doesn’t exit the tank and clog the infiltration trenches. Vinegar and baking soda generates a lot of CO2 with impressive hissing and foam but does…

“A study by Tilburg University found that women, on average, cry 3.5 times per moth, while men cry at a rate a bit more than half that, around 1.9 times.”

Here in Alaska we have a significant population of Alaska Natives, along with people from all over Asia and other parts of the world. In many of these cultures eye contact during conversations is not as common as it is in Western European culture. It fact, it is seen as disrespectful and even threatening, especially…

1) Article fails to mention genetic variability in caffeine metabolism. I am a fast metabolizer; someone who is not would not would manage their drug intake differently. I brew a single large mug of coffee and sip it for about 90 minutes each morning.

Exactly. Unless we’re talking about cleaning raw poultry juice etc. off our counters, there is no reason to constantly sanitize them. News flash: the air is full of stuff like mold spores and aerosols that contain bacteria and viruses. Any surface not inside an actual clean room is going to get coated in that stuff.…

Put the sponge on the top rack of your dishwasher.  Better than microwaving!

Citric acid works better than vinegar. You can buy a big bag at your local natural foods store or online. It’s the active ingredient in the ridiculously expensive coffee maker cleaning sachets that come with the maker when you buy it or that you can buy at a supermarket etc.  You can also use the powder in cooking,…

Aerogarden planted with herbs. Cilantro in particular — you can never have enough cilantro and the stuff from the supermarket goes bad fast. Save money, buy a bag of 50 replacement sponges for it, and plant it with seeds from those little packets you can buy at Home Depot, your supermarket, etc. Just look for dwarf…

We have a Vizsla (short coat) and Golden retriever cross (long double coat). We’ve never washed the Vizsla, although he does like to swim, so during our 2-3 months of summer each year he might get totally wet a few times. The Golden, OTOH, lives to roll in moose poop, horse poop, etc. In spring and early summer when…

Something to take into consideration in the HSA v FSA decision: HSA balances belong to you. FSA balances belong to the employer. While at first glance this seems to favor HSAs, you need to understand that FSA’s “work” because some employees end up forfeiting the amounts they contribute. By the same token, employees can…

Here in Anchorage AK (zone 2-3), we traditionally can’t plant outside until Memorial Day weekend. Some hardier plants that we’ve started indoors can be put out in pots in south facing areas (especially if backed by a dark wall) and covered at night. Our soil temps are the real problem. Even though we have 18 hours of…

I’ve got the Nesco. Paid more than $100 for it last summer due to Covid surge pricing, but so far it’s been working well. I needed it then to help freeze a bumper crop of golden raspberries, and it worked well for that, also for dealing with good prices on food at Costco (where, BTW, you can get a good deal on a LARGE…

I’ve got the Nesco. Paid more than $100 for it last summer due to Covid surge pricing, but so far it’s been working…

Great article. I have a sibling whose religion it is to believe in any fancy, expensive new nutrition or health product out there, as long as it is organic etc. Our father is on blood pressure meds, and feeling a bit dizzy from time to time. It could be due to dehydration (most BP meds are diuretics), it could be…

We East coast establishment types consider people like Trump to be nouveau riche, not a true coastal elite Brahmin. The decor from his boyhood home (plastic covers on the sofa and lamp shades!) to his glitzy buildings everywhere reeks of this, as does his social striving, habit of cheating at golf, TV addiction,…

I don’t see any mention of volunteering to burden some of the costs of BC if this is your regular, exclusive partner. The person taking the pills, having an IUD or Provera rod implanted in their body, or putting a hormone ring in their vagina is already having to pay for prescribing doctor appointments, having to…

Yes, they stay open all winter here in Anchorage, too. But they don’t use fresh water for the entire wash because it’s expensive to use that much water and to heat it up. Meaning that at least part of the time, they are pressure spraying salty water from previous washes into every nook and cranny of your car. Good…

I live in Anchorage Alaska, the land of cracked windshields. There are two things that make them crack and built up ice and snow are not one of them. 1) We use a lot of gravel here for traction, not alluvial or beach sand. Other vehicles’ snow tires pick up large pieces on local roads and parking lots, then shed the…

This. A virus’s sole purpose is to create copies of itself. If it can’t find a host capable of making thousands to millions of copies to spread to others, the chain of transmission will be broken even if it manages to gain a nose-, mouth-, or eye-hold in new hosts like me (vaccinated). I will continue to wear a mask…

If you have any drawers in your kitchen, buy one or more “over the drawer” towel bars. I’ve got lots of these in my kitchen and bathroom. You can hang them on the tops of lower cabinet doors, too.