Guidelines make donated books, magazines salable
Dear Heloise: I really appreciated your helpful column on donating appropriate items to charities and thrift stores. Thank you for making our jobs easier by giving the guidelines.
I volunteer with many others at a charity whose mission is to help people in our small community who need temporary help with various problems. The charity also runs a thrift store, and our community has been very generous.
Because I spend time sorting the books and magazines that are donated, I would like to point out the things that make them more difficult to sell or pass on:
UPrice stickers on the books -- it takes time to remove them, and they are unsightly to mark over. If you have a garage sale, sell books from boxes that are priced (e.g., "cookbooks $1 & quot;).
UAddresses torn off magazines. We respect privacy issues, but find that using a permanent marker to hide this information makes the magazines more attractive to the new owner. (Note from Heloise: We tested this, and some markers do not cover the information, so you might need to carefully cut the mailing label off.)
UItems that are old, disfigured, damaged, torn or soiled.
UCollege textbooks that are more than three years old. (Note from Heloise: I like to collect college textbooks in certain subjects, like mathematics and aviation, so there still might be a market for older textbooks.)
UAny books or magazines that are heavily underlined or written on.
Thank you for your cooperation in making our tasks simpler. Nelma Jasperse, Allendale, Mich.
Fast facts
You've suggested numerous uses for the moisture-absorbent packets (desiccant silica gel) that are placed in boxes of new shoes, purses, etc. Could you please print these again -- I would greatly appreciate it! Lee Berry, Fort Wayne, Ind.
You bet.
UPlace in camera bags or video bags.
UUse in storage crates for clothes, household goods, etc.
UPut in garage organizer drawers that hold hardware.
UPlace several in the back of your mailbox -- change often in highly humid weather. Heloise
Dear Heloise: As the physical size of cell phones has continued to shrink, it has become easier to lose or misplace them. Because there are few external distinguishing marks, it is difficult to identify your phone from the others in the lost-and-found drawer.
To make your phone more likely to be returned, put a return-address label on it. That not only identifies the phone as yours, but supplies the finder with the address for the return.
I trimmed an address label to reduce the size and then placed it on the back of my phone. Ed Stanley, Lisle, Ill.
Sound off
I am very upset with the false advertising I have experienced. I bought a frozen-food item that had a picture depicting lots of delicious shrimp in a Chinese dish called "shrimp and garlic." To my disappointment and surprise, there were no visible signs of shrimp in the entire dish. As a consumer, I want to know, How can they get away with this? Jen R., Austin, Texas
XSend a money-saving or timesaving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, TX 78279-5000; fax to (210) HELOISE, or e-mail heloise@heloise.com.
King Features Syndicate