DEAR HELOISE: A cautionary thought to a neighbor across the river in Omaha, Nebraska, who had a suggestion on solar lights for emergency use. Be sure not to depend on bringing them in during a thunderstorm. Stay in the house when thunderstorms are in the area.

Use the alternative options that you should have on hand in case the power goes out. Save the solar lights for long-term outages after any storms are out of the area.

• Steve T.,

in Council Bluffs, Iowa

Steve, there are also light bulbs that have batteries in it, and every time you turn on the lamp that contains one of these lights, you can charge up the battery. When a storm (or any other mishap) comes along, you can turn on the lamp that contains this bulb because it will be running on the battery rather than electricity. All my lamps contain these bulbs, and I get them at a hardware store.

• Heloise

DEAR HELOISE: Whenever I’m at a loss as to what to make for dinner, I often turn to the restaurant ads in my local newspaper. Many of them list their weekly and daily specials, and even if I don’t make the exact same dishes, they provide “food for thought.”

— El, in Conyngham, Pennsylvania

El, now this is a creative idea! The ads provide variety and sometimes clever ideas with combinations of different flavors and textures in foods.

• Heloise

DEAR READERS: How’s your hearing? If you’re like most folks, you might ignore the signs of potential hearing loss. Millions of people experience unsafe noise levels at work, and 20% of teenagers have reported hearing loss due to loud noise. Hearing loss is the second most-widespread health issue worldwide.

The National Campaign for Better Hearing wants you to check your hearing beginning at age 60 with its “Test Your Ears at 60 Years” campaign, and then once a year after this. To schedule a free hearing assessment, call 866-TEST-AT-60 (866-837-8286).

For every hearing test given, participating health practices will donate $5 toward upping the awareness of the risks of ignoring hearing loss. For more information, you can email Info@CampaignForBetterHearing.us.

• Heloise

DEAR HELOISE: My wife and I store our wine in a wine cooler at around 55 degrees Fahrenheit. Several years ago by happenstance, we put our bananas in the wine cooler. Lo and behold, they didn’t turn brown and lasted for at least twice as long as they would when leaving them out at room temperature. Of course, we’ve used this trick ever since.

• Charles H., in Mission Viejo, California

Send a money-saving or time-saving hint to Heloise@Heloise.com. I can’t answer your letter personally but will use the best hints received in my column.

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