Hola! It has been a little while, did a little traveling, and answered a pretty important question.  Of course while away from the blog, I was constantly thinking about new material and here I am back and ready for action.

As soon as I mentioned that I did not have fruit flies (which is one of the major down sides to composting), they must have read the blog and then flew straight to my kitchen. Oh course I sighed and said sh**, but then looked it up in my vermicomposting book and came up with a solution.  If they travel to your house for one reason or another, the best way to trap and rid them is TO set a cup with apple cider vinegar about half full, put plastic wrap over and secure with a rubber band. THEN poke some holes in the top, but not too big. You want them to get in but not be able to get out. They will be drawn to the vinegar, and away from your kitchen.  My cup is pretty full with those little fruit eaters!

My new recent obsession mixed with an old obsession has created a great cleaning bonanza in the house. Not literally mixing them together, but having them both near by.  The new: Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, and the old: tea tree oil.  You can basically get anything done with both of these bad boys (oh! and of course my best friend vinegar).  Mr. Clean takes off the dirt from the lawn chairs, stains on the kitchen floor, and scum in between the tiles in the bathroom. Tea Tree oil (diluted with water) gets the makeup off the counter, oil off of my skin from my bike chain, and so many other things.  Absolutely love them both, and you can literally use them for just about any household anything.  I mentioned in a previous post, but will reiterate, tea tree oil is great for your skin too.  Helps reduce pimples, heal bacterial infections, and great for your cuticles.  It does have a very potent odor, so it's not for the weak of smell.

I did answer an important question and now have a bit of bling on my left ring finger.  It was my grandma's engagement ring, and therefore had a couple of years behind its '"belt".  I wanted to give it a little extra lovin, and mixed it in a solution of 6 parts water to one part ammonium and put it into a vibrating denture cleaning machine.  Of course this is something that I have access to because of where I work, but this solution will also work if you let them soak for a while.  After your rings have relaxed for a bit, rinse with soap and water and scrub with a soft brush. The key to this is PLUG THE SINK when doing this so your valuables don't go right down the pipe.  This solution can be used on gold, sterling silver, diamonds, all types of jewels.  Should have taken a before and after photo, but if you trust me, it definitely makes things sparklier.

The next and final tid bit was given to me by a generous contributor and I have not  tried it personally.  You can clean dry erase boards with nail polish remover.  If they are starting to look a little dingy, you can pour a bit on there and it will clean right up. Apparently the acetone-free type worked great too!

Thanks! Flanagan out.