If humor is the best medicine, I am a very healthy person. That's because I get to read your mail every day, and quite frankly, some of it just cracks me up. Take today's first reader tip, for example. As great an idea as it is, the visual of Tena in her front yard banging away with two giant pot lids as if she were the head percussionist in the St. Louis Symphony. Well, read on, and you'll know what I mean.

QUICK PICKUP. Fall is upon us, and now is the time for the backbreaking work of stuffing leaves into large bags. My hands are small, so I have a difficult time picking up very many leaves at one time. Last year, I came up with this idea: I went into the kitchen and pulled out two large lids from my pot rack. Holding the pot lids as if they were cymbals, I was able to scoop twice as many leaves at one time to speed up the process. -- Tena F., Missouri

FREE GOODS. In the area where I live and other areas, there is a double incentive to keep track of grocery prices and compare them with the scanned prices at checkout. Our supermarket has a scan guarantee. If you go through the line and catch errors, our supermarket will give you one of the items free and correct the prices of the others. I've received a number of free items under this policy. -- Louise T., e-mail

COMPUTER LOGIC. Turning off your computer routinely is a good habit to get into. When the computer is on, it is building up memory use. When you power down your computer, the "in use" memory clears. If you don't frequently reboot your computer, its performance may slow down progressively and respond sluggishly. Be careful to turn it off properly, rather than just flipping the switch or holding in the power button. This could damage your hard drive. -- Barbara B., e-mail

WASTE NOT. I buy the supermarket rotisserie chickens when they are on sale for half price. After serving them for dinner, I use the bones to cook up homemade chicken broth. I add onions, celery and carrots to the water, bring it to a boil and then let it simmer for a few hours. After I strain the liquid, I have wonderful broth with way less sodium than the packaged kind. I purée the veggies and add a bit of milk for cream of veggie soup. -- Sandi B., e-mail

FREEZER SAVER. I recycle my milk jugs by washing them and filling them with water. Then I put them in my freezer. They help the freezer run more efficiently, and I have free ice when I need to pack a cooler or fill a drink tub for a party. When the power goes out, they keep my freezer cold longer. -- Judy B., e-mail

Would you like to send a tip to Mary? You can e-mail her at mary@everydaycheapskate.com, or write to Everyday Cheapskate, P.O. Box 2135, Paramount, CA 90723. Mary Hunt is the founder of DebtProofLiving.com and author of 17 books, including "Debt-Proof Living" and "Tiptionary 2." To find out more about Mary and read her past columns, please visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.
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