Tips: From Grandpa

Today marks the 30th anniversary of my maternal grandfather's passing. I never had the chance to meet him, but I am lucky to have my mom's memories of him, many of which show his resourcefulness and practicality.

When we were discussing why I keep a separate stick of deodorant to swipe on my arches before slipping on sandals so my feet do not get sweaty (or stinky). She replied my dad used to apply it to his forehead to keep the sweat from his eyes when he was working in the heat.

The other week when we were painting and I asked why on the DIY shows that people aren't speckled with paint? She said, my dad liked to paint and he never got splatters on himself.

She told me how in his workshop, he created hanging jars of nuts, bolts, nails, etc by nailing the lids of jars to the underneath of a shelf so that each jar could just be screwed in for storage.

Another time, I reached into a nearly empty bag of chips and stopped, took scissors and cut off the top part of the bag so the next time I reached in, the back of my hand wasn't covered in oily potato chip grease (yes, I know a better solution would be to not eat them!). She told me her dad did the same thing.

My mom is a smart cookie, too! She uses an extra mouse pad under her coffee bean grinder so it doesn’t reverberate on the counter as loudly.