I am also the only one in my family who does those things. I'm also the only one who will pick up a penny that I've dropped. Nobody else seems to think it's worth anything.

(chuckle) I grew up being the one to change the roll! Don't know what the big deal is. It just never bothered me. Guess it gave me something to do while I sat there. I never could understand reading in the bathroom. That always bugged me for some reason. I prefer to TCB and leave that particular room. Perhaps there were odoriferous encouragements? :)

Nobody here but me - one problem I don't have.

But I checked bag of garbage as kids finished cleaning out Mom's house - found enough "Apricot and Passion Fruit Jam" to (almost) do a slice of toast - and liked it so well that I bought a jar. Enough PB to do a slice, as well.

Bottles needed little washing when I got done scraping.

ole joyful

I think the spatula is my best friend in the kitchen...another jar scrapper..Budster

Another jar scraper here too! No kids, but my DH is the big waster in our house. I buy PB at Costco so I usually get 2 big jars at a time. He will leave the "empty" jar in the pantry and open the other one and there's usually enough for 2 more sandwiches in there! It's crazy. Same with jelly. I buy it by the case at Aldi cuz it's cheap and really yummy and I swear there's always 2 or 3 in the fridge with an inch of jelly left at the bottom. I guess the good thing is that he leaves them in the fridge and doesn't throw them away because I can at least scrape them out into one jar rather than waste it.

Rubber spatula gets used on the butter dish too, although I tend to let laziness take over and often just leave the butter stick in the wrapper which is easier to scrape with a knife. Or used the wrapper to butter a dish when needed.

Any potential clients here for the "Tightwad Gazette" books - I, II or III?

By the way - have you ever tried to add, subtact, multiply or divide using that numbering system?

The Arabs had it all over the Romans, that time!

I need my margarine, coffee, jam, PB, etc. empty containers.

I've been having trouble with grain moths - that love nuts and several kinds of cereals - but I find that I can leave prepared breakfast cereal unprotected: they won't eat it.

Smarter than we humans, I guess.

I thought that they couldn't penetrate the thick, multiple-layered paper flour and oatmeal porridge bags - found out that I wuz wrong!

Thought those divided-shell English walnuts would be immune - wrong, again!

Those tin cookie boxes are a real help, as well.

I used to put peanuts, almonds into empty frozen juice tubes, then drop a small yogurt container into the top - until I lost almost all of my teeth. Had to make do with PB, then.

But I recently fell heir to a blender, so ... the other night at the supermarket when peanuts were on sale, I got some, did 'em up in the blender - not only can I eat 'em, the smell when I pull out the yogurt container warms one's heart, as well.

Which I need, right now - a bit of snow last Fri., more coming now and promised(threatened?) for tonight and tomorrow: upwards of a foot, they foretell.

Have a happy home, everyone.

ole joyful

It snowed.

And the wind blew - heavy duty. Car sitting near corner of shed - engine compartment half filled with snow.

Car wouldn't start - but it wasn't the snow, as it started and ran for a couple of seconds, as it has been doing for a while and the garage can't find what's wrong.

I wasn't about to go anywhere on shank's mare, let me tell you.

The owners of the cattle came and gave them some hay and we hooked up the plastic hose from the pump to the water trough to water them - they were thirsty, hadn't broken the ice in the pond, I guess.

We have to unhook it and drain it, or it freezes. Which it did last Friday and after I'd carried several gallons of hot water to run slowly back and forth over the pipe to melt the ice enough to let water pass through, I called the younger man (in his 40s - his Dad's 85 and active) to ask how far he thought we'd have to go to find a few fellas dumb enough to have left a pipe full of water outside last night and expected it to carry water today. He said possibly not too far.

I can't say that I envy cattle - running around with no overcoat. It must be really tough running the range out west when it gets 40 below.

Sump pump not working yesterday: saw the sump full, lifted the float line, pump didn't start, wiggled the electric line, pump started - and ran, and ran, and ran.

Oh, oh. Shouldn't keep running like that.

Looked into the sump - water was swirling around, not going down. Knew what was probably wrong - drain line frozen. Lucky the pump didn't run and run and run - and burn out. Drain line outside had been moved when they cut the grass and left lying so that the discharge end was higher than part of the pipe. Water lying in there froze, plugged the pipe. Next time pump ran, filled the rest of the pipe outside the house with water, so the whole thing froze. Took about 10 gal. of hot water to thaw it out.

Put a block under the line close to the wall, so that there's fall all along the discharge line, now.

Called my landlord to tell him what I'd done - he thanked me for clearing the system.

Told him not to plow the lane, as not enough snow to bother with. Actually - it was clear this morning - the 35 m.p.h. wind had blown all of that snow somewhere else.

Sort of like leaves in the autumn - when the guy who'd raked his leaves gets disgusted with his neighbours who hadn't.

'Twas nice not to have to go to work, though.

I don't envy the guys/gals who must scrape windshield in the dark in the morning before going to work, then drive home at night in the dark.

Hope you're all enjoying winter.

ole joyful

There are four in my family,myself, DH and two teen daughters. All have a brain, two hands, and two legs. Yet I am the only one who ever removes a full bag from the wastebaskets. The other three like to "balance" items on top of the full bag. I have seen 6 or eight inches of stuff piled on top of the wastebasket.I guess they consider themselves "performance artists". I am tired of being the only one to pick up the bag, lift it out of the wastebasket, and carry it to the trash can outdoors.

Jannie, I think that's called The Great Wastebasket Pyramids! Soon to be an Olympic competition.

Isn't it great when someone sets something across the top so more can be stacked up on top of it? Inevitably, someone bumps it and it's all over the floor. Cats or dogs are great assistants to spread the wealth. :)

I can add to the trash can thing. Mine is under the sink in the cabinet. When the trash can gets full you just keep throwing it in anyway. Just fill the cabinet. Mom will clean it all out, finish filling the bag, and take it outside.

Yes, I do the toilet paper, toothpaste, & trash bag! Only we have a little system, DH & I: he puts fresh roll on edge of tub, he takes the trash out. But I have the toothpaste thingey licked since I hide the new tube until ALL is pushed out of old tube, then I replace it,too:)!

Hilarious, ROFL...All sounds familiar!

Jannie,

Have you ever tried leaving their places at table empty of plates until they sit down, then bring in plates already loaded with some of the stuff that's been piled on top?

Have a friend ready to snap a pic of their faces when they realize what's going on.

Have a great week - and holiday.

ole joyful

It's light switches here. Apparently my hubby knows how to turn them on, but not off. I wander about the house turning lights off (repeatedly.) But at least I know where he has been. . . :-) If I need him, I just follow the well-lit path.

LOL Lola_Lola, at least you save money not needing a bloodhound to find him! ;)

Pretty much the same story here, too.

Thanks for the laughs.

DW will change the toilet paper roll, but she always hangs it so the paper hangs from the front. I have to change it so it hangs properly with the paper against the wall. Sheesh.

Thinking of trying to get her to get some counseling.

spewey,

Good luck.

o j

P.S. I agree with you about the proper way to get well hung.

o j

I being a wife, mother, only woman in the house of 5, means I do most of the cleaning. Always have the pyramid of trash in the waste basket. I have a trash can with the lid that you push open in the front, well it gets taken off. Then the trash get packed down so tight, Im surpized that I don't have a hernia trying to get it out!! As for the toilet tissue, I hang it front ways. Hate it the other way. My husband and I disagree of course, so I'm always changing it around. Oh the life of a Super Mom... will they ever change???

I like the toilet paper hanging against the wall too but when you buy anything fancy, the pattern is such that it has to be hung the other way. Why???

ivamae,

Find an empty core.

Reroll the fresh roll onto it.

Backwards.

(Or should that be, upside down)?

(In which case - you'd have a lot of TP on the floor in the interim).

Have a great week.

ole joyful

P.S. Did you see my story a year and a half ago about how I reused TP?

Asked if others had found a way to do so.

Not much response, as I recall.

Actually, at the speed at which this forum moves ...

... maybe it's still down there in the past pages, somewhere.

o j

I am the only one who can recognize the jelly spot on the floor that needs wiping up. Apparently the sticky noise your shoe makes only bothers me. It's like nails on a chalkboard!

We have the same problems here, garbage is filled until it's overflowing - often they take the time to take the lid off so they can stuff more in.
Toilet paper paper is hung away from the wall, stops little kids fingers smudging the wall with whatever they just got on their fingers - most of the time anyway. My husband sometimes does change the roll but he won't put the empty into the trashcan, no they are left on the window sill. My kids just throw them on the floor.

What would happen were you to put one of those plastic covers that you get on dry cleaning down on their beds ...

...and dump the contents of the trash can on it?

Think that might get their attention?

If they call you, "irresponsible" ...

... seems to me you might be able to think of a fitting reply?

Have a great, trash-free, for once (well, if not "-free", "-taken care of", at least) week, everyone.

ole joyful

Ivamae, it's called the "Northern Rule". If you're going to hang the paper backwards, then you have to look at the pattern backwards! ;)

Let's face it, there's only one *right* way to hang the cheek-scrape.

Anything else is uncivilized!

cybic,

Now, now!

Talk about prejudice!

Or narrow-minded.

Or something.

o j

I've always wondered if it mattered which way the paper hung, now I know!

I shouldn't complain about the garbage, usually when it gets high enough my DH takes it out. However, he seems incapable of putting in a new liner. Sigh! Oh well, he makes it go away, I put in new liners.

He also has his own tube of toothpaste and he can do as he wills with it. Squeeze it in the middle for all I care! In my estimation, all households should have separate toothpastes and separate computers to be happy households.