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Ifyouaretakingsalad for lunch, pour the amount of dressing you will need into a small plastic bag. Tilt the bag so the dress- ing goes into the corner. Tie a twist tie above the dressing to cut it off from the rest of the bag. When you are ready to eat just snip off the corner and pour the dressing onto your salad. — Kristine My toddler only eats a small portion of a box of macaroni and cheese. Leftover mac and cheese is never a hit, and the in- dividual packs are too pricey. Instead, I buy the boxes when they are on sale, and then store the cheese powder and noo- dles in separate jars so I can prepare individual servings as needed. I use 1/3 cup of dry noodles and one heaping tablespoon each of cheese powder, butter and milk. — Michel To get rid of mineral rings in the toilet, put some warm water in the toilet bowl and add one or two denture cleanser tab- lets. Check the toilet after 30 minutes, or go ahead and leave it overnight. The toilet should be spar- kling clean afterward. — Amy I hang a shoe bag on the inside of my coat-closet door. My family stores gloves, scarves, sunglasses and even the dog's leash in it so we have a quick and organized morning depar- ture. — Steve I save water by washing my car with early-morn- ing dew. The condensation on my car plus the suds on the sponge does the trick. I only turn on the hose for a quick rinse after the scrub down. — Helen To get a dark stain out of whites and light-col- ored clothing, I dip a Q-tip in hydrogen peroxide, rub it to the spot and let it set overnight. It bleaches the stain without removing any color. — Rachel I have accumulated many cloth tote bags over the years from different seminars I've attended or book clubs I've belonged to. Instead of purchas- ing reusable cloth bags for groceries, I use the tote bags. They are machine- washable and environmen- tally friendly, and I save money! — Cindy Several years ago, I bought a package of plas- tic clothespins to use in the kitchen. I bought col- ors that match my de- cor, and I use them to seal bags of bread, chips, sugar and other items. They even work in the freezer and the refrigerator crisper drawer. — Jean I save money by put- ting dish soap, body wash, shampoo and liquid soap in pump dispensers. I find that I use much less of a product each time when it's in a dispenser. Now I buy soaps and body wash much less often. — Tess When I paint, to avoid having to clean a paint tray I slip it into a large, plastic supermarket bag and pour the paint into the tray over the plas- tic. After painting, I sim- ply turn the bag inside out and discard it, and I am left with a clean tray. It saves a lot of time and costs nothing. — Tony Would you like to send 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. EVERYDAYCHEAPSKATE Coolthingsreaders do to save time and money every day Mary Hunt WASHINGTON The Internal Revenue Service recently is- sued a consumer alert about possible fake charity scams emerging due to last week- end's mass-shooting in Or- lando, Florida, and en- couraged taxpayers to seek out recognized charitable groups. When making donations to assist victims of last weekend's terrible tragedy, there are simple steps tax- payers can take to ensure their hard-earned money goes to legitimate chari- ties. IRS.gov has the tools taxpayers need to quickly and easily check out the status of charitable orga- nizations. While there has been an enormous wave of support across the country for the victims and families of Orlando, it is common for scam artists to take advantage of this gener- osity by impersonating charities to get money or private information from well-meaning taxpayers. Such fraudulent schemes may involve contact by telephone, social media, e-mail or in-person solic- itations. The IRS cautions donors to follow these tips: Be sure to donate to rec- ognized charities. Be wary of charities with names that are sim- ilar to familiar or nation- ally known organizations. Some phony charities use names or websites that sound or look like those of respected, legitimate organizations. The IRS website at IRS.gov has a search feature,Exempt Or- ganizations Select Check, through which people may find qualified charities; do- nations to these charities may be tax-deductible. Don't give out personal financial information — such as Social Security numbers or credit card and bank account num- bers and passwords — to anyone who solicits a con- tribution. Scam artists may use this information to steal a donor's identity and money. Don't give or send cash. For security and tax re- cord purposes, contribute by check or credit card or another way that provides documentation of the gift. Consult IRS Publication 526, Charitable Contribu- tions, available on IRS. gov. This free booklet de- scribes the tax rules that apply to making tax-de- ductible donations. Among other things, it also pro- vides complete details on what records to keep. Bogus websites may so- licit funds for victims of this tragedy. These sites fre- quently mimic the sites of, or use names similar to, le- gitimate charities, or claim to be affiliated with legiti- mate charities in order to persuade people to send money or provide personal financial information that can be used to steal identi- ties or financial resources. Additionally, scammers often send emails that steer recipients to bogus websites that appear to be affiliated with legitimate charitable causes. Taxpayers suspecting fraud by email should visit IRS.gov and search for the keywords "Report Phish- ing." More information about tax scams and schemes may be found at IRS.gov using the keywords "scams and schemes." SCAM ALERT ConsumerswarnedofscamsrelatingtoOrlandoshooting NEVERGIVEUP UNTIL THEY BUCKLE UP. VISIT SAFERCAR.GOV/ KIDSBUCKLEUP VISIT SAFERCAR.GOV/ KIDSBUCKLEUP Have you made your summer vacation plans? Do they include attending Youth Camp sponsored by the Tehama County 4-H Program July 15-19 at Camp Tehama in Mill Creek? All youth, 9 years old by July 15 and 13 years old by July 19, are invited to at- tend. Bring a friend or meet some new ones. Being a 4-H member is not re- quired. Campers from all over the state are invited to attend. This camping program allows youth to be in- volved, teaches positive life skills and creates lifelong memories! Camp activi- ties include: nightly camp- fire songs and skits, dress up days, archery, fishing, creek play, team games, nature and crafts. The cost for the five-day camp is $123 for youth and $85 for 4-H members. Parents are invited to dine with the campers on Mon- day night for an additional $10 and pre-registration is required. Applications must be turned in by 5 p.m. Wednesday to the Tehama County 4-H office at 1754 Walnut St. Applications will be accepted based upon availability. Fees in- clude food, lodging, acci- dent insurance and all ac- tivities. Transportation to and from Camp Tehama must be individually ar- ranged. Camp is run by trained teen staff who have grown up in this camping pro- gram with help from ap- pointed 4-H adult volun- teers. To donate or learn more about the camping pro- gram, call 527-3101 or visit http://cetehama.ucanr. edu/4-H_Program/Youth_ Camp/. 4-H Youth invited to attend camp As the first official day of summer ushers in some of the hottest temperatures of the year, the California Independent System Oper- ator has issued a Flex Alert for southern California. A Flex Alert is a volun- tary call for conservation, which helps the state's balancing authority man- age the electric grid dur- ing high demand. PG&E encourages customers to support Flex Alerts when called in their service area — doing so also helps in- dividuals save energy and money. In addition to respond- ing to voluntary calls for conservation when needed, PG&E offers customers a variety of Demand Re- sponse programs which provide incentives for busi- ness owners who curtail their facility's energy use during times of peak de- mand. You can learn more at: http://www.pge.com/ mybusiness/energysav- ingsrebates/demandre- sponse/. Homeowners can save energy and money during the hot summer months by following a few simple steps: Tipsforcoolingyour home Set your air conditioner thermostat to 78 degrees or higher when you're at home, health permit- ting, and 85 degrees when you're away. Three to five percent more energy is used for each degree the air condi- tioner is set below 78 de- grees. Use ceiling fans when at home, but remember to turn them off when you leave. Fans move air but they don't cool it, so they waste energy if you leave them on when you are not at home. Whole house fans are a different story. They can draw cooler air into the home and blow the hot air out that's trapped in the at- tic, increasing energy effi- ciency. Shut windows and draw the shades to keep in pre- cooled air from overnight and early morning. Have your central cool- ing duct system checked for leaks. Up to 20 percent of cooled air can be lost through leaky or poorly insulated ducts. Buy an Energy Star air conditioner if your air con- ditioner is ready to be re- placed. It can reduce en- ergy usage by up to 10 per- cent. Avoid using an electric oven on hot days. Instead, cook on the stove, use a mi- crowave oven or grill out- side. Powering electronics, lighting and appliances Turn off and unplug electronics and appliances when they are not in use. Even when they are off, many electronics and ap- pliances still use energy. Swap out incandescent bulbs with more energy- efficient lighting choices. Energy Star qualified lighting not only uses less energy, it also produces about 75 percent less heat than incandescent light- ing, so cooling bills will be reduced, too. Clean the coils on your refrigerator and don't set the temperature too low. The refrigerator should be kept between 38 degrees and 42 degrees, and the freezer between 0 degrees and 5 degrees. Use cold water to wash full loads of laundry. Wa- ter heating takes up about 90 percent of energy used by clothes washers. Today's detergents work great in cold water. Clean the lint from the clothes dryer af- ter every load. SUMMER HEAT Utility offers energy and money saving tips COURTESYPHOTO Allison Tucker, Tehama County 4-H Program community educator, and Richard Buchner, Orchard Crops farm advisor and county director, with donor appreciation board. 530-526-9887 645 Antelope Blvd. • Suite 8 Red Bluff, Ca 96080 www.countrycaninedayspa.com info@countrycaninedayspa.com Professional Groomer for 10 years, serving Tehama County and surrounding areas Country Canine Luxury Day Spa We care for the whole dog 25yearsprofessional experience. QualityWork Very Reasonable Rates Red Bluff Transmission • Automatic • Manual • Computer Diagnosis • Clutches • Transfer Cases • CV Axles CALL TODAY! 529-4493 440 Antelope Blvd. #6 Bob's Youcantmissus... Weonly moved 50 feet!! 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GreenMountainGrills & Accessories Serving Butte, Glenn & Tehama Counties Smog Check (MOST CARS & PICK-UPS) 527-9841 • 195 S. Main St. starting at $ 29 95 + $ 8 25 certificate Shop Equipped With 4SmogMachines For Fast Service No appointment Needed EVICTIONS Fast, Efficient & Affordable 530.527.2104 756 Rio St, Red Bluff www.atwellpropartners.com LIFESTYLES » redbluffdailynews.com Tuesday, June 21, 2016 MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS A5