Wisdom From Grandma

Even though she was an excellent cook, Grandma wasn’t perfect. Sometimes she would get distracted and forget to keep an eye on a pot of spaghetti sauce, soup, or beans. By the time she remembered to check the food, it would be starting to burn.
Usually, Grandma could save at least part of the meal if she worked quickly. She would carefully pour or spoon the top part of the food into a new pan and taste it to be sure it wasn’t contaminated by the burned food on the bottom of the pan. Usually, it tasted fine and all she would lose was the bottom layer of food. I am not the cook Grandma was and I’ve had to save quite a few meals using Grandma’s tip to get the burned taste out of food.

I love living out in the country, but there is one drawback. In the winter, field mice turn into house mice. Luckily, I have been able to use Grandma’s tips on how to get rid of a house mouse to keep them out of the pantry and the kitchen. Grandma always used a tin can lid to stop up any mouse holes. Then, she put a fresh Eucalyptus branch close by. Mice do not like the smell of Eucalyptus.

Grandma used to make absolutely gorgeous braided rugs out of old clothing. I had a bunch of old jeans sitting around, so I thought I’d give it a try using them. I ripped them into long narrow strips. (They are a bit dusty to work with.) Then I braided the strips and stitched them together. The rug turned out pretty good for a first attempt and the different shades of blue looked really nice. I think Grandma would be proud.
Other ideas for re-using old clothing:
Cut clothing into strips and use the strips as yarn for knitting.
Cut the clothing into 4 inch squares and make a simple quilt.
Make small throw pillows.