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Dear Heloise: With the holidays coming up, I plan to bake cookies for our smallish family gathering. How should I determine how many cookies to bring? — Jo in Kansas Jo, you should plan on having between three to six cookies for each person, depending on the size of the cookie and if other desserts are offered. — Heloise UNDER THE SINK Dear Heloise: Recently I took a look at all of the cleaners I had accumulated under the sinks and in the utility room of my home. I’ve found there really are only five cleaners I use all the time, so I decided to organize these areas by asking ...

Daughter’s Fashion Choices Causes Mom Embarrassment

DEAR ABBY: Our 19-year-old daughter is wonderful in many ways. She’s smart, attends a university on academic scholarships and earns excellent grades. The problem is the way she dresses. Her shorts are so short they show some cheek, the bathing suits she wears in our backyard pool are almost thongs, she runs at the track in spandex and a sports bra and gets catcalls. I understand the outfit would be OK for a formal race, but at the track? Why not throw on a T-shirt? The most recent example was a Sunday afternoon, ladies-only baby shower, to which she wore a pale pink (it looked nude) ...

National Mill Dog Rescue

Today’s Sound On is about a kind and caring dog rescue organization: Dear Heloise: I know you are a friend to all critters, and I’d like your readers to know about National Mill Dog Rescue (NMDR). They pick up and rescue hundreds of dogs and puppies from puppy mills all over the country. These dogs — which are deemed no longer usable for breeding — are too old, too sick or are still unsold, and would otherwise be killed. Many of these mills regularly call on NMDR to come and get these animals before they are put down. NMDR gives these dogs and pups any treatment they need to ...

Hidden Phone Used Nonstop Is Hard for Colleague to Take

DEAR ABBY: I am unsure how to handle a coworker who is constantly on their cell phone (hidden between their legs) during their four-hour work shift. I have reminded them to leave their phone in their car since they have a hard time not checking it or texting during work hours. We have spoken several times about this unacceptable behavior, which improves for two days and then reverts back to using their cell phone as usual. Is this generational acceptable behavior that I am missing? I’m in my mid-50s, and I can live without texting friends and family while I’m supposed to be ...

Enough Already!

Ok, you can stop now. I’m not sure who is to blame for all the uninvited text messages to my phone and email. All I know is that when they ask me for their support or ask who I am voting for, I text back STOP or IT’S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS. And how do they know whether I have voted already or not? Sometimes it makes me want to pull the blinds tight and survey my yard with binoculars over fear of just who is watching me. I’ve not quite reached the paranoia stage but I do carry a rosary in my purse. I am beginning to think that my smartphone is way ahead of me, and that Alexa ...

Mystery Attracts Antique Enthusiasts

Do you like a good mystery? I do and I’ve read many of the famous mystery authors from Arthur Conan Doyle to Louise Penny and everyone in between. But my favorite of all time is Agatha Christie. I was pleased to see her featured in this past week’s Sunday News-Register Parade (Oct. 18) insert. The piece discussed the 100-year anniversary of her first book, “The Mysterious Affair at Styles” and the introduction of her famous detective Hercule Poirot. Poirot is my all-time favorite detective so naturally I went to my small library of detective classics and pulled the book ...