The handy Hints From Heloise column in many daily newspapers is a source of endless entertainment. I’ve blogged about this in the past (click here for Hints from Heloise Live On). Sometimes her readers come up with great tips like the one about depressing the little cardboard tabs at either end of your aluminum foil or Saran Wrap dispenser to prevent the roll from popping out when you pull on it. That brilliant little tidbit was news to this old Boomer and has improved my life immensely. Every so often though, the advice is so way over the top I have to share and today’s was a real “corker”.

Sandra M. of Lexington, Kentucky ran into a problem I also recently experienced. The little cork or rubber stoppers in the bottom of salt and pepper shakers sometimes deteriorate and no longer fit tight enough to hold the contents. This is a common problem which could have involved a lot of legwork visiting kitchen or hardware stores to find replacements that fit. My solution was to go to Amazon.com, search salt and pepper shaker stoppers and presto, dozens of replacement parts were instantly available to be delivered to my doorstep for less than five dollars. I made my choice, clicked Place Order and a few days later multiple pairs of perfect stoppers arrived in my mailbox in a little bubble envelope.

Here’s how Sandra M. solved the problem.“I discovered brass wind instrument (trumpet, trombone) water key (spit valve) corks, which are sold at music stores that have and service brass wind instruments. The corks come in various sizes . . . and because I needed a small number, the store gave them to me free.”

While I admit Sandra was more far more clever than I was in that she got hers for free and she was infinitely more resourceful than I’ll ever be, all I can say is, “Holy s$%&!”. How she ever managed to make the connection between salt and pepper shaker stoppers and horn musical instruments’ spit valve is . . . well, let’s just say, it blows me away. I’m amazed she doesn’t have her own newspaper column.

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