White vinegar = cleaning product

I've read a number of useful columns on a site called Dumb Little Man. This one confirms something with which others have also agreed: white vinegar should be placed under the sink as a cleaning product and not used for cooking. The article suggests a few ways to use vinegar for cleaning and if you're interested in natural cleaning products, you can also look up what you can do with lemon juice or tea tree oil, as well. I know that lemon juice works really well in removing calcium deposits in the bottom of a kettle, for example. Even if you don't use them exclusively, it's a good idea to use them on surfaces where you prepare food so that you don't have to worry about any harsh chemical cleansers in your meals. Happy cleaning.

Notice to Attached People

A few times now over the past few weeks, I've received surprisingly insensitive comments from Attached People about my currently being single. The comments were particularly blunt from those with children: "You have to stop doing this; you know, you're almost out of time; etc." Here's a little reminder to those who spoke those words: there's a 50% chance you won't stay attached You have the same probability of maintaining your current status as you do winning a coin toss: heads you win, tails you lose your wife/husband and kids. Is that really something to gloat about?

Another related topic is the idea of a Soul Mate. While the idea that there is a perfect person out there for someone, I think the odds of meeting The One is astronomically small. I think that people end up with someone with whom there's good chemistry and who meets enough of the items on the checklist. For you to meet that person takes luck and for things to last takes effort, compromise, and a little more luck. Granted, you can improve your luck by adopting certain attitudes and behaviours, but you can't control all events. If you're attached, how certain are you that you would stay together if you lost both your savings due to your investment choices; if you changed physically and weren't attractive to them anymore; if you discovered your partner wasn't really working late?

Given all the things that need to go right for a relationship to work out, I'm asking you, Attached People, to be a little more understanding and encouraging with those of us who, despite the odds, are trying.