My Digital Online Diary

We have plans of installing an air-conditioning unit in the next couple of weeks. After receiving the good news, that I passed the training exam for the hospital of my dream we decided to settle down for a while here. Despite all complaints regarding leaks, we can still find perks in the place such as convenience in transportation and lower monthly rent.

But, we really need to put a cooling system if we opt to stay here for long. Of course, we need to close down the windows to avoid the cool air from escaping. For that matter we need a good lighting system. Speaking of lighting, I found a modern lamp that suits our personalities. We really like modern, sleek accessories at home rather than contemporary styles. I will keep an eye on this one until we will finalize the air-conditioning unit plans.

Don’t waste money on fancy jewelry cleaning solutions! You can save money by cleaning your jewelry at home using things you’ll find in any kitchen or bathroom. Here are some cleaning tips you can follow:

• Silver Jewelry – use a soft bristle toothbrush with mild soap and warm water to restore the shine and brilliance of silver jewelry. Avoid immersing your sterling silver jewelry into jewelry cleaning dips; they should be cleaned by hand. Use a soft cloth to buff your silver jewelry for a nice, clean shine.
• Diamond Rings & Jewelry – use a solution of six parts water and one part ammonia. Use a soft bristle toothbrush or toothpick to remove any dirt or particles from any crevices. Rinse well in water and buff dry with a soft cloth.
• Gold, Platinum and other Gemstone Jewelry – use a solution of mild dishwashing liquid, like ivory. Soak jewelry in this solution for a few minutes, and then lightly brush away any dirt with a soft brush. Rinse with lukewarm water and air dry or buff with a soft cloth. Be sure not to soak any soft stones like turquoise, amber or lapis, as soaking can damage their polish. For particularly dirty gold jewelry, soak in alcohol or ammonia before cleaning.
• Cleaning Pearls – a mild soap and water solution works well for cleaning pearls. Then wipe dry with a soft cloth.
• Costume Jewelry & Rhinestones – use a soft brush to sweep away any dirt and dust. Use window cleaner, like Windex, sprayed on a soft, lint free cloth to clean the stones surface. Also try alcohol on a q-tip to get in between small spaces.

Do you want to make your showers green? Well, you must first, figure out how long they are. See how much time you spend between getting in and toweling off, and try shaving off 30 seconds – just for kicks. Here are some tricks to keep track of how long you spend in the shower:

• Time yourself with a kitchen-egg timer, stopwatch, or the shower coach – an electricity free timer that suctions onto your bathroom tiles.
• Put on a favorite album and figure out how long you’re in the shower based on the number and length of songs that play by the time you get out.
• Put the stopper in the tub and see how much water collects as you shower.

Doing these things would give you the awareness that can cause you to change your habits (often subliminally). Another is you can get a prime water savings. For every 30 seconds you shorten your shower, you’ll save up to 4 gallons of water. And freeing up local funds from east to west wastewater plants and drinking water systems spend about $4 billion each year to treat water.