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Our summerhouse is infested with poison ivy. What’s the best way to eradicate it?

answer:
Put on a hazmat suit and start digging it out. “You might have to do it a few times, but eventually you’ll get rid of it,” says Leslie Weston, Ph.D., a professor of weed management at Cornell University. “Poison ivy doesn’t reroot well after disturbances.” A slightly quicker, albeit less thorough, method is to yank the vines out by their bases (a low grip ups your odds of getting the entire root). Seal the weeds in plastic bags; don’t burn them. “The smoke can inflame the mucous membranes of your lungs and throat,” says Weston. Translation: The same rash that causes your skin to ooze an oily goo is now inside you.

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When my mother-in-law comes to visit for “a few days” each summer, she ends up staying for weeks. We love her, but our house is cramped when she’s around. How can I get her to leave?

answer:
Figuring out how to fit relatives into your busy life can be a challenge. If you enjoy your mother-in-law’s visits, why not be straight with her about the space problem? Before she books her trip, tell her, “Our house is just too small for you to stay here for long periods. Let’s figure out a solution.” Offer to book her into an extended-stay hotel or rent an apartment for a short period of time. If the issue is also the length of the stays, you might plan a vacation together and stay in a large condo or hotel suite for a limited time. That way everybody gets to visit, have fun, and not be on top of each other—and there’s a definite end point to the togetherness. Another idea: Maybe you can work out a few short visits each year, which will be easier to handle and schedule.

The biggest problem is that you’ve let this issue recur without doing anything about it, which can cause resentment to build up and ruin everybody’s good time. You have options. Talk to your mother-in-law, and I’ll bet you can come up with some creative solutions.

My boss seems to love useless meetings. Anything I can do at these gatherings besides daydream?

answer:
Absolutely. A productive meeting establishes what needs to be done, who will do it, and when. With that in mind, informally help your boss. You can also model productive behavior by asking good questions, being accountable and dependable, and respecting others’ input. This should raise the energy in the room and gradually inspire others. Now, if the purpose of the meeting is to brainstorm ideas, then the what, who, and when aren’t required. In those meetings, it’s important to create an atmosphere where everyone’s ideas are welcomed and seriously considered. Here, creative daydreaming is definitely okay.

If you check on the lamb chops you’re broiling and they’ve burst Into flames. Close the door to the oven immediately and turn it off.

If you’re lighting candles and your sleeve catches fire. What you learned in third grade still holds. Stop. Drop. And roll: You want to take the oxygen away from the fire, so you never want to wave your clothes around.

If you’re cooking Thanksgiving dinner for your entire extended
family and a small grease fire breaks out. Put a lid on the pan. Never put water on it; it will splatter and spread. Don’t lift the lid or the oxygen will start the fire up again. If you’re discreet and the stuffing’s good, no one will notice.

If your husband’s cooking Thanksgiving dinner and a large grease fire breaks out. Grab the Dry Chemical ABC fire extinguisher you bought immediately after reading this article. Remove the plastic tie from the handle, pull the pin out, and, aiming the nozzle at the base of the fire (but keeping the extinguisher upright), squeeze the handle. The fire-eating stuff should come out. Sweep the extinguisher from side to side until the fire is completely out.

If this doesn’t work, back out of the room, direct your guests to the nearest exit, get the hell out, and call 911. Then take everyone out for burgers.

Use a journal to gear up.
I go to a cafe and write in my diary— anything that’s taking up space in my head. It helps me connect with the writer inside me.

Eavesdrop. It’s a great tool. You pan be inspired by everything that surrounds you.

Make time to write—but not too much time.
The idea of sitting in front of a computer for hours every day is enough to give any writer performance anxiety. So don’t tell yourself, I’m going to write every morning from six am until noon.

Break down the task into tiny little pieces
I settled on a main character, and I had her go on little adventures every Wednesday. When I gathered all those adventures or scenes or ‘bricks,’ as I call them, they all started to come together. Because if somebody asked me to build a house and then gave me all the construction materials at once, I wouldn’t know how to do it.

Start in the middle
Whether you’re working on a toast to someone or a speech or a novel, writing out of order takes the pressure off and frees up your brain. People sit down and they write ‘Chapter One’ and they freeze. Or they think they have to know what they want to say or they have to have a big thought. But all you have to have to start writing is a desire to express yourself. And then give yourself a little time.

First, nobody calls them that anymore It’s drawings or plans.
A floor plan is a bird’s-eye (view showing the width of walls and the placement of windows, fixtures, even light switches and outlets. (There are also roof plans and basement plans.) Elevations show the front, side or rear of a house from dead-on and include finishes and roof pitches; cross-sections are just that: a slice right down the middle. To make sure what you see is what you really want, take put a tape measure and actually plot the size of that stove or bay window. Or think in terms of rugs, offers Winifred Gallagher, author of house Thinking. “If I am looking at a plan for an 8-by-10-foot porch, I think of a rug that size so I can visualize it.”

When introducing two people, start with the name of the person you know. “I’ll say, ‘I want you to meet Joan Smith. She’s a dear friend. Joan … ?’ Joan will then introduce herself, eliciting a response from the person I’ve forgotten.”

If the situation is one-on-one, restate your name and pray the person returns the favor. Or leave the name out: “Use a detail you remember about them instead, such as ‘How are things going with your new health food business?’ If all else fails, say, ‘It’s so nice to see you again. I’m so sorry, would you please tell me your name again?’ Nine times out of 10, they can’t recall your name either!”