ENJOY SOUP WITH TOOTH & NAIL

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COUNTRY LORE

Hearty Cup of Soup

Last winter was a financially lean one for us, and one evening my father called while I was struggling with the concept of preparing dinner. As I complained to him about my "empty" refrigerator and pantry, he suggested that I cook a batch of "nail soup." Nail soup?

He proceeded to tell me the recipe: Find a nail for the pot and set it aside. Then look around for a potato or carrot to give the soup "a little substance and flavor." When I told him I did have a potato, he told me to keep looking. "You're bound to have a few more ingredients to add to the pot," he said.

Oh, I did have a little rice left, and a handful of beans, half an onion, some pepper ... I started to get the idea. Smiling, I thanked him and hung up. When I served my family nail soup that night, they enjoyed their dinner so much they asked for seconds. They also had fun trying to find the nail, which, of course, I never used.

— Nona Perez
Calistoga, California

Pack Up Your Feet

Don't throw away the Styrofoam plates from meat packages. Instead, have your child place his or her foot on one, trace the outline of the foot in marker, and cut the shape out. Do the same for the other foot. Then stick them inside the child's shoes or boots. They will keep the dampness out all winter so that your child's feet will remain warm and dry.

One more tip: To keep battery terminals from corroding, dab a little bit of Vaseline on and around the posts. Then put a penny on the top of each post. It'll do the trick.

—David Dudley
Argyle, New York

Scent-sible Idea

When the flood left us with no running water, I found a solution to the vile odor that developed from being unable to flush the toilet. I poured approximately 1/3 cup of apple-cider vinegar into the toilet several times daily. It worked so well that I poured some down all of our unused drains, and it got rid of all the stale odors.

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