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IfyouownaKeurigcof- fee maker and it started out brewing a full cup of coffee then a half-cup and is now on its way to the landfill — you are not alone. There are many disgrun- tled Keurig owners out there. That makes me wonder how many peo- ple have actually tossed a perfectly good Keurig cof- fee maker into the trash, when 30 minutes of their time, a slosh of white vine- gar and a paper clip could have put that thing back into tip-top shape. Hopefully, if you have a Keurig that's giving you fits because the thing just will not work (read: turn on, pump water, make a full cup), you haven't given it the ol' heave-ho. I'm pretty sure it will be worth your time to get it back up and working. Before I go on, let's cover some disclosures: I do not own a Keurig. I roast my own coffee (the freshest, best coffee in the world) and brew it in a Bo- navita coffee maker. I find the Keurig machines to be on the pricey side and so are the disposable K- cups required to make the thing work. With that out of the way, let's get down to Keurig business. Every Keurig coffee maker comes with instruc- tions that it must be des- caled routinely, and only Keurig Descaling Solution should be used. You do not need this product to get your Keurig coffee maker up and working. That's be- cause the biggest problem this product has is getting clogged up with a buildup of minerals from water and from tiny bits of coffee grounds. I'm no engineer, but it does seem to me that there is a design flaw somewhere in the Keurig empire. The machines are notorious for giving a message that the ma- chine needs to be descaled when, in fact, the thing is hopelessly clogged. Here is what you will need to fix and clean your Keurig machine: warm soapy water, a paper clip, a drinking straw, a soft cloth and about 30 min- utes. 1. Unplug the machine. Do not skip this step. 2. Take the thing apart. First remove the wa- ter tank and lid, then the stand that the cup rests on. Open the top to re- move the K-cup holder. 3. Wash all of these parts you took off the ma- chine in warm soapy wa- ter, then dry them thor- oughly. 4. Partially unbend the paper clip. 5. Keeping the top of the machine open, very carefully insert the free end of the paper clip into each of the three tiny holes that pierce the K- cup. This will be evident as you hold the thing up and look in that area. Those little holes are likely clogged with min- eral buildup and debris, even though you may not be able to see that. Wig- gle the paper clip while inserted in each of the holes. You won't break anything because these are not working parts — only holes through which the water is dispensed. 6. Turn the machine up- side down. Smack it a few times with the palm of your hand to dislodge any other debris and scale. 7. While the machine is still upside down, locate the spout. Place the drink- ing straw over it, grasp it tightly to seal the straw to the spout and blow into it. Blow hard! You want to force air through the Keurig to clear the water line. You guessed it: debris and scale in the line. 8. With a cloth, clean the cup holder and the outside of the machine. Make it shiny like new. 9. Put the thing back to- gether, including the parts you washed and dried in Step 3. 10. Fill the water tank with half water and half white vinegar. Run the machine without a K-cup until you've run through the entire reservoir of 50- 50 water vinegar mix. Toss the cups of hot smelly wa- ter down the sink. 11. Refill the reservoir with just water and repeat the process. Do it a couple of times until there is no trace of vinegar. 12. Repeat Steps 10 and 11 once each month to maintain your Keurig. If it ever begins to make less than a full cup or gets sluggish or stops alto- gether, repeat from Step 1. By the way, if you are a Keurig owner, consider purchasing a refillable sin- gle cup (sold by companies such as Ekobrew, Meta- Cups and Solofill). Make sure the cup is compatible with your Keurig model. You can use your own cof- fee and save a bundle over the cost of individual pods. Youcanemail Mary at mary@ everydaycheapskate.com. EVERYDAYCHEAPSKATE HowtokeepaKeurigmakingcoffee Mary Hunt BROOKINGS, OREGON The sky will be filled with color at the 23rd Annual South- ern Oregon Kite Festival, July 18-19. The action will begin on Saturday at 10 a.m. at the kite field at the Port of Brookings-Harbor. This free two-day one of a kind event is one of the most unique kite festivals in the country. An invitational kite fes- tival, it attracts nation- ally and internationally renowned kite fliers and kite makers to the com- munity of Brookings-Har- bor where they perform with their colorful collec- tion of kites. More than 30 "Wizards of Wind" will be guests of the community and entertain the spec- tators with their awe-in- spiring routines choreo- graphed to music, creat- ing an atmosphere of fun and excitement for attend- ees of all ages. Popular announcer Ar- nold Stellema will intro- duce the flyers as they per- form and will educate the spectators about what they are seeing on the kite field. Attendees are invited to set up their chairs or blan- kets around the perimeter of the kite field and enjoy the performances. Unlike at a typical kite festival, the kite fliers en- joy interacting with the crowds and can often be seen walking around the perimeter of the kite field displaying their kites up close to spectators — let- ting them inspect and sometimes even fly the kites. Through their per- formances the kite fliers show the crowd just how much fun kite flying re- ally is. The weekend's activities include free children's kite building workshops from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. both days. There is a vendor area with a variety of specialty food items and a multitude of crafts and merchandise for sale. A pancake break- fast sponsored by the Har- bor Fire Volunteers is held on Sunday from 7 a.m. to noon. Attendees are encour- aged to park next to the Chamber of Commerce building at the Port and take the free shuttles to the kite field. For more information, visit www.sokf.org. KitefestivalfliesintosouthernOregon COURTESYPHOTO One of the many kites expected at the Southern Oregon Kite Festival Saturday and Sunday. TO DO The Franchise Tax Board (FTB) is sending let- ters to more than 46,000 California businesses that have not filed their 2013 state income tax returns as a first step to recover- ing unpaid taxes. Business taxpayers filed 1.7 million tax returns for the 2013 tax year. Each year FTB reviews more than 5 million income re- cords received from the IRS, the State Employment Development Department, the State Board of Equal- ization, financial insti- tutions, and other busi- nesses. FTB then matches this information against its tax records to identify nonfilers. Last fiscal year, FTB col- lected some $36 million from businesses that ini- tially failed to file tax re- turns. FTB gives business non- filers 30 days to file a tax return or show why one is not required. Businesses that disregard the letter will get a tax assessment based on income and other information reported to FTB. The tax assessment includes interest, fees, and penalties. For more information go to ftb.ca.gov. Search for: Demand for Return. Select: Respond to request or demand for tax return. Businesses can request more time to respond, get information to help file a return, sign up to receive an email reminder to file, and more. Information is also available by phone at 866.204.7902. Editor's Note: Please call for county and city statistics. FTB administers two of California's major tax pro- grams: Personal Income Tax and the Corporation Tax. FTB also administers other non tax programs and delinquent debt col- lection functions, includ- ing delinquent vehicle reg- istration debt collections on behalf of the Depart- ment of Motor Vehicles, and court—ordered debt. Annually, FTB's tax pro- grams collect more than 70 percent of the state's general fund. For more in- formation on other taxes and fees in California, visit taxes.ca.gov. FRANCHISE TAX BOARD State contacting business non-filers SHINGLETOWN Looking for some wild summertime fun in the country? Well, look no further than the Wild Horse Sanctuary an- nual open house noon to 5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 15. Ad- mission and parking are free. Open House festivities include docent-led walks to view wild mustangs and burros up close; free horses rides for children 10 and younger, face painting, crafts for the kids, live mu- sic, a vendor fair and bar- becue. Other returning favorites include demonstrations on horse shoeing, grooming and saddling scheduled throughout the day, stock dog demonstrations and a question and answer ses- sion with a veterinarian. Special guests Terri Far- ley, author of the popular Phantom Stallion series and the soon-to-be-released Wild at Heart, and Craig Downer, wildlife ecologist and author of The Wild Horse Conspiracy, will be on hand to visit and offer signed copies of their books. To help raise funds to care for the Wild Horse Sanctuary's wild horses and burros, a raffle of pre- mium items is being held. Tickets are $10 for a book of five. Topping the list of raffle items is a three-day Wild Horse Sanctuary trail ride for two and two-night stay at the sanctuary guest cabin valued at $1,300. To view all raffle items, visit http://www.wildhorsesanc- tuary.org/event-raffle.html. The winning raffle tickets will be drawn at the open house and one need not be present to win. "The Open House gives folks the rare opportunity to walk onto the Sanctuary and view wild mustangs in a natural setting," said Pres- ident Dianne Nelson. "It is also an opportune time to thank our Wild Horse Sanc- tuary friends and support- ers and share our story with others who aren't aware of what we do." The sanctuary is free and open to the public 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesdays and Sat- urdays for wild horse view- ing. A non-profit 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization, the Wild Horse Sanctuary has served as a haven for Amer- ica's wild horses and burros since 1978. It's at 5796 Wil- son Hill Road near Shingle- town. For more information and directions, visit www. WildHorseSanctuary.org or call 474-5770. WILD HORSE SANCTUARY Family fun day planned at open house Local Business Customer Appreciation Days: "Thank you, "Thank you, Tehama County!" Tehama County!" Spacereservationsdeadline:Tuesday,July28 Here'syourchanceto"gopublic"withyourappreciationofthe support of local consumers, hopefully with a sale or special offers to keep their spending at home on the big payday weekend at the end of July! All ads published throughout regular sections of the daily editions on FULL SIZE PAGES! 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No cost to participants! • WINDOW POSTERS delivered to participants on July 29. Regular Haircut $ 2 00 off KWIK KUTS FamilyHairSalon 1064 South Main St., Red Bluff • 529-3540 ANY RETAIL PRODUCT 20 % off withanychemicalserviceof $50 ormore Notgoodwithotheroffers Expires 8/05/15 With coupon Reg. $13.95 LIFESTYLES » redbluffdailynews.com Thursday, July 16, 2015 MORE ATFACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS B3