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Worried about how lonely my life will be

Dear Annie: I am very confused. I have a friend who is 70 and is in the hospital. She has put a mutual friend, “Dorothy,” down as her daughter. She has a son, but he is a man-child. Our friend Dorothy has so many obligations as it is. Dorothy and I are close, and we are similar ages. I do not have siblings, since my brother passed away at a young age. I have an 85-year-old father who has been both mother and father to me. I have had “Fred” as my life partner for nine years already! You see, after my father passes, I will have Fred to lean on. But when Fred passes, I will ...

Learning geography in fun ways

Dear Heloise: You had a letter from a woman who complained that geography isn’t being taught in schools nowadays. It is a subject that has always interested me, and I was lucky to study it in school. Also, my mother bought my sisters and me a jigsaw puzzle of the United States. The capital city of each state is shown, and it’s a great learning tool. I gave one to my daughter for my grandchildren. -- Carolyn McDonough, Canaan, Connecticut SHREDDED PAPER HINT Dear Heloise: I wanted to share this hint with you. When we receive a sturdy, medium-sized box, I save it for recycling my ...

2.4 billion Easter people can spread a lot of love

Easter is unique among holidays in that it skips around on the calendar. It depends on the vernal equinox and a full moon. Regardless, it comes in spring. Which is perfect. New life, resurrection, birth, greening of nature: all of a piece. There was one Easter morning in history. But we remember and celebrate that single event every year. It’s interesting that we humans commemorate things at regular times on our planet’s journey around the sun. It is a way to make sense of the eternal by connecting it to time and days we can understand. The church calendar is a creation of ...

Baggage with daughter keeps grandma from her grandsons

Dear Annie: I have eight beautiful grandchildren. I have been blessed to help care for six of them from birth to 5-6 years old. My daughter has twin 7-year-old boys. She has issues with me that I’ve apologized for and have given her space to work through things. I’ve never met my twin grandsons. I’ve only seen them in pictures and several times in public, but neither she nor her husband knew I was in the same store. I know our relationship isn’t going to get any better for the moment, but I want to meet my grandsons and get to know them with my hope being that she sees I’m a ...

There’s no need to preheat oven

Dear Heloise: Almost every recipe I read starts with: “Preheat oven to the ‘appropriate’ degree.” Most ovens will preheat to 400 degrees Fahrenheit in less than 10 minutes. Some recipes’ prep time is 30 minutes or more; therefore, you are wasting energy and money. While I realize the importance of preheating for the finished product, I wait until I’m about 5 minutes from finishing prep time to start the oven. -- Smitty, McGaheysville, Virginia TAP-ON-THE-FLOOR LID TRICK Dear Heloise: I endorse the “tap on the floor” method of breaking the seal on a lid. It works for ...

Giving grandkids the gift of quality time

Dear Annie: When my nephew was a toddler and his family visited, my mom (his grandmother) got big furniture boxes discarded from stores and made forts and tunnels in our large family room. She got down on the floor and played whatever character he chose her to be in this turf maze. She didn’t care if she played a dinosaur or the Lone Ranger. You could hear them giggling and laughing and enjoying play time that lasted for hours. She wasn’t concerned about her appearance or how others might see her as weird. She knew the impression she left on her grandchild and knew she had ...