cently received a dwarf hamster for her 9th birthday. He is a zippy little escape artist! To keep him safe when she wants to play or cuddle with him, she sits in a dry bathtub. Smart girl! — Debbie Brewer, in St. Paul, Texas

POWER OUTAGE HINT

Dear Heloise: With the increase in power outages, we have started filling plastic containers with water and keeping them in our freezers. This way, when the power goes out, ice is already in place to help keep things cold even if we aren’t home.

If we are home, we can quickly grab one for the refrigerator to help things in there stay cold as well. — Valerie Hess, in Lolo, Montana

CORK IT

Dear Heloise: If a piece of cork winds up in my guest’s glass of wine, I don’t use my finger to fish it out — that’s a no-no. I use a straw instead. I put the straw over the floating cork and cover the end with my finger. The piece lifts out cleanly. — Gary T., in New York

COUPON COLLECTOR

Dear Heloise: Please let your readers know that there are often coupons on the back of a receipt. I was at a grocery store yesterday and discovered coupons on the back of my receipt for a discount on a car wash, dry cleaners, and $3 off my next basket of groceries! — Ida L., in Madison, Indiana

Ida, what a great way to stretch your budget! — Heloise

DIRTY MICROWAVE CLEANING

Dear Heloise: Have you ever looked at the inside top of your microwave? You might be surprised at how dirty it is! Mine had several burned-on marks that were hard to get off. Remember to also clean the inside top when you are cleaning the rest of it. — Granny, via email