HELOISE: Emergency flashers send the right message

Dear Heloise: Recently, we traveled to San Antonio to attend a funeral. The funeral directors there had what I thought was a wonderful, practical idea for the procession. With automatic headlights, the old custom of funeral-procession members turning on their headlights in daylight to alert other drivers is no longer effective.

This funeral home, in conjunction with the police motorcycle escorts, asked that drivers following the hearse turn on their emergency flashers.

And Heloise, it worked!

The emergency flashers definitely sent the message to other drivers that this was a funeral procession.

In a day and time when many drivers no longer pull off to the side of the road for these events, I was gratified to see that the majority of drivers did exactly that upon seeing our procession. Not only was the act of turning on the flashers a signal to all other drivers on the road, it had a definite safety aspect. I hope more funeral homes and police departments take up the practice. C.A.S., via e-mail

Thank you for sharing this valuable update. We checked with several funeral homes here in San Antonio, and they said it is an accepted practice today to turn on your emergency flashers and headlights when in a funeral procession. This is relatively new, since many cars today do have daytime running lights. Also, some funeral homes have a banner to place on the antenna that reads “Funeral.” This gives you the right of way in traffic, but still always yield to emergency vehicles such as ambulances and firetrucks. Heloise

P.S.: And readers, if it’s safe, please try to pull over into the right lane so the procession can pass by.

Dear Heloise: The cardboard drink holders from fast-food restaurants come in handy for multiple uses — here are some of my favorites:

• Storing cleansers.

• Organizing the pantry.

• Transporting other beverages or using in vehicles that don’t have enough cup holders. Alma Brooks, Tyler, Texas

Dear Heloise: To make beautiful place mats for your table and to help keep your tablecloth clean, use last year’s calendar pictures and put two months back to back. Have them laminated with heavy plastic. They are so pretty and durable. If you get tired of one picture, turn it over for another picture for a while. June Bomar, Abilene, Texas

Dear Heloise: Plastic packages can be extremely difficult to open. Many packages can be safely opened using a can opener. Just use as if opening a can. I’ve found it even will cut around corners. K.B., San Angelo, Texas

Sound off

Dear Heloise: I am a cashier and have contact with different people throughout a day. Many customers have on strong cologne (not just women!). Heavy scents aggravate my allergies and send me into sneezing fits. So, I’m asking people to be more conscientious when wearing fragrances. W.W., via e-mail

• Send a money-saving or timesaving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, TX 78279-5000, or you can fax it to (210) HELOISE or e-mail it to Heloise@Heloise.com.

King Features Syndicate