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There'snothingIen- joy more than opening my mail to find it stuffed with my readers' money- and time-saving tips. Shar- ing them with you is a close sec- ond. Before I do that today, we need to go over a few things: I may not have person- ally tested and vetted ev- ery tip, trick and idea that I share with you. Some I consider to be clever no-brainers that make me go, "Well, of course that works — and what a great idea!" Other tips just don't lend themselves to being tested under my pres- ent circumstances, while some are just so "out there," I wouldn't know how to make 100 percent certain that they would work, even when they do make sense. And then there are the tips you will never know about because they are so off-the-wall or down- right ridiculous that I am not willing to waste my time or yours with them. When it comes to sharing clever tips and great ideas, I rely on your good judgment and common sense — and from time to time, your sense of humor! With that in mind, check out this fresh batch of great reader tips: WASPTRAP We have a lot of wasps in the sum- mer, and commercial wasp traps at my grocery store cost $12.99 each, so I make my own. I take an empty plastic sports drink container, cut the top off just below the point where it tapers up to the screw-on lid, then invert the top and place it inside the bottom portion and add a couple inches of or- ange juice (anything sug- ary will work) and set it on my deck. The wasps fly or crawl into the bottle but can't figure out how to get out, and they eventually die. It works like a charm, and it's free! When the trap gets full, just make another one! — Linda EATING OUT I often just get an appetizer at a good restaurant. Most restaurants serve too much food, and appe- tizers are a good way to stay on budget and diet. — Teacher in LA RECYCLED CONTACT LENS CASE Ever since hearing about the tip to cut open a tube of lotion to get to the last bit of product, I've been amazed at how much I'd been wasting all these years. (I've even started to wrestle open pump bottles with a pair of pliers to get every last drop of that expensive eye cream.) But how do I store that remaining lo- tion to avoid it drying out? As a contact wearer, I have many extra con- tact cases and realized they make perfect stor- age containers for those last lotion bits. An added bonus: These containers are perfect for travel. I write the contents on the lid and take my pomade, hair gel, eye cream, etc. without the bulk. — Kate DISCOUNTED NEWSPA- PERS Recently, I got a bill for our daily news- paper. The full price was almost $10 per week, around $500 per year. I looked online and found the same paper at Dis- countedNewspapers.com for $169/year. When I called our paper to can- cel our subscription with the intent of subscrib- ing through the other website, they offered to match the online price. A savings of $330 for the year! — Susan Wouldyouliketosend a tip to Mary? You can email her at mary@ everydaycheapskate. com, or write to Everyday Cheapskate, 12340 Seal Beach Blvd., Ste. B-416, Seal Beach, CA 90740. EVERYDAY CHEAPSKATE Wasp traps, cheap eats and more great reader tips Mary Hunt When it comes to sharing clever tips and great ideas, I rely on your good judgment and common sense — and from time to time, your sense of humor! With that in mind, check out this fresh batch of great reader tips. Passages Health Insur- ance Counseling & Advo- cacy Program (HICAP) is presenting Welcome to Medicare workshops for those turning 65 this year or younger adults who will be entitled to Medicare due to a disability. As people get closer to Medicare eligibility, there are several things to con- sider. In light of the fact that Medicare's coverage is much like employer group coverage it's important to know what questions to ask: How will my retiree plan work with my Medi- care? Can I delay enroll- ing into Medicare and not be penalized? Do I need a drug plan? Are there pro- grams available to lower my Medicare health and prescription costs? Workshops will be of- fered 2-4 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 10 at Lakeside Pavil- ion, 2565 Lakeside Village, Chico; and 1-3 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15 at Red Bluff Com- munity Center, 1500 S. Jack- son St. Registration is required by calling 898-6716. This free workshop is designed for boomers and others who will be new to Medi- care this year who want to understand how their Medi- care benefits work. Family members or caregivers are also welcome to attend. People who are new to Medicare will be deluged with information from dif- ferent insurance companies marketing their products. Ronda Kramer, program manager for Passages HI- CAP warns signing up with the wrong plan, or not do- ing anything may cost new Medicare recipients thou- sands of dollars, and they may not be able to make changes if enrollment dead- lines are missed. For more information, call HICAP at Passages at 1-800-434-0222. If your group or agency would like a workshop, contact Kath- erine Tilman at 898-5927. HICAP does not sell or endorse any insurance products. MEDICARE Wo rk sh op o ffe re d fo r ba by b oo me rs Disasters can strike at any time, and the most common disaster threat people face across the coun- try is a fire in their home. The American Red Cross Gold Country Region en- courages everyone to be ready for emergencies like home fires by creating a di- saster plan for their house- hold during National Pre- paredness Month. The national theme for this year's National Prepared- ness Month is "Don't Wait, Communicate. Make Your Emergency Plan Today." As part of its Home Fire Campaign, which aims to reduce deaths and inju- ries from home fires by as much as 25 percent over the next five years, the Red Cross urges households to develop a fire escape plan and practice it with every- one in their home. "Having an emergency plan is an important step so everyone in the house- hold knows what they should do if something happens," said Lilly Wy- att, Red Cross Gold Coun- try Region Regional Com- munications Director. "We believe people should mark National Preparedness Month by creating or up- dating their plan." National Preparedness Month is a good time to develop a fire escape plan and practice it with every- one in the household. When developing the plan, walk through the home and look at all exits and possible es- cape routes, including win- dows. List two ways to get out of every room in case fire blocks one of the paths. Pick a place to meet out- side, a safe distance away and — no matter the cir- cumstances — stay out of the home until fire officials say it is okay to go back in- side. All households should practice their plan at least twice a year. People should also in- stall smoke alarms on ev- ery level of their home, in- side bedrooms and outside sleeping areas. They should test the alarms monthly, re- place the batteries at least once a year and replace them every ten years. Everyone in the house- hold should help put the emergency plan together so they know what they should do if something occurs. Because everyone may not be together at home when a disaster hap- pens, the plan should in- clude ways to contact one another and two places to meet — one near the home in case of a sudden emer- gency like a fire, and one outside the neighborhood in case circumstances pre- vent people from returning home. The plan should also identify an emergency con- tact person from outside the area in case local tele- phone lines are overloaded or out of service. Any emergency plan should also include deci- sions about where to go if ordered to evacuate and what route to take to get there. It's a good idea to include alternate routes in case roads are closed. Don't forget family pets. Make sure to include plans for them such as pet- friendly hotels and animal shelters along the evacua- tion route. The Red Cross has devel- oped mobile apps that pro- vide information on what to do before, during and after emergencies. The all- inclusive Emergency App and other preparedness apps have a "Make a Plan" feature on how to develop an emergency plan. Us- ers can develop their plan and share it with house- hold members through the apps. People can also down- load the Monster Guard App so 7- to 11-year-olds will have a free, fun gam- ing environment to learn how to prevent emergen- cies like home fires and stay safe in an emergency or severe weather. The free apps can be found in smart- phone app stores by search- ing for the American Red Cross or going to redcross. org/apps. Founded in 1898, the Gold Country Region of the American Red Cross serves 4.4 million people in Tehama, Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, El Dorado, Glenn, Lassen, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Plu- mas, Sacramento, San Joa- quin, Shasta, Sierra, Sis- kiyou, Stanislaus, Sutter, Trinity, Tuolumne, Yolo, and Yuba counties. RED CROSS September is National Preparedness Month TEHAMA The Tehama County Museum will fea- ture two special items avail- able to the public in Judy's Country Store at the 34th annual Jubilee, which is scheduled 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 12, at the museum in the city of Te- hama. Judy's Country Store will be located in the Marty Graffell Annex of the mu- seum just behind the main brick building and will be stocked with all kinds of homemade, home baked and preserved goodies in- cluding jams and jellies, cookies, breads, pies and of course the featured 36-Lady Prune Cake. Store manager Colette Bauer reports that the very popular cake will be avail- able on a limited basis dur- ing the Jubilee. "These cakes have a his- tory which we would like to share with folks who drop by the store," Bauer said. "The recipe is not origi- nal to the museum, hav- ing been widely circulated ever since the early 1960s when 36 ladies submitted the same recipe in a contest sponsored by the California Prune Advisory Board." Those responsible for picking a winner agreed that this cake was by far the best, but with 36 identical submissions they couldn't pick a single winner or give it a single prize — hence the name 36 Lady Prune Cake, Bauer said. The cakes will be made with locally-grown prunes and walnuts. Anyone fa- miliar with the home arts or anyone with an over-pro- ductive garden who would like to help stock Judy's Country Store should call Bauer at 384-1463. The second featured item will be an 82" x 82" Around the World-style quilt made by Tish Bauer Harper, niece of Margaret and Merrill Bauer — founding members of the original museum's board of directors — and donated to the museum as a special raffle item. It will be on display at the store throughout the day and the special raffle drawing will occur at 2 p.m. The Tehama County Mu- seum is open every Satur- day and Sunday, 1-4 p.m., lo- cated at 275 C St. in the City of Tehama. TEHAMA 36-Lady Prune Cakes return to Jubilee COURTESYPHOTO Special quilt to be raffled off at the 34th annual Tehama County Museum Jubilee Saturday, Sept. 12. 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