The "Step-Down Principle"

The University of Idaho extension educators write articles for our weekly newspaper. They are always very interesting. The county agent, Stuart Parkinson, writes articles on gardening & farming. The home economist, Laura Sant, writes articles on cooking, diet & home.

In June, one of Laura's article was on saving money by using a "step-down principle." The example she used was that you could go buy 3 pancakes at IHOP for approximately $5 or you could take a step down & buy pancakes from McDonald's or you could buy premium frozen waffles or store-brand frozen waffles. Each alternative was a step-down & you'd save money.

This was an interesting concept to me. I've been wondering how I could save money since I shop the DI or clearance racks & buy store brands to begin with.

I also subscribe to a newsletter called "Everyday Cheapskate." I don't read them every day & they pile up in the folder called "Cheapsk8" in one of my email accounts.

Tonight, I've spent a couple of hours just reading & enjoying the things I've read. It's a nice break from the book I'm reading about bipolar.

So, I found an antibacterial solution in the Nov. 24 issue of Everyday Cheapskate entitled, "Don't Poison the Family on Thanksgiving" & I thought, "Hmmm, if I leave this here, I'll never find it again." I immediately thought of copying the paragraph here, but wondered if that would be copyright infringement & saw this little sentence at the bottom:

Copyright © 2008 Mary Hunt. All rights reserved. Permission to reprint required.

So, yes, it would be copyright infringement if I copied the whole paragraph. But if I write about it, is that copyright infringement?

To make the solution, take 1 gallon of cool water plus 1 TEASPOON liquid bleach. I looked at it again, just to be sure that it didn't say tablespoon or cup or anything like that, but no, it says teaspoon. It also says to measure carefully. Ok, so I'm not the most careful measurer. It also says LIQUID bleach. I don't like to use liquid bleach. I have holes in clothes & also some towels that were once a pretty color & are now some ghastly shade. The newsletter claims that this solution will not harm wood, paint, marble or fabric. However, the newsletter does not tell me how to store it.

Now, I'm a great believer in 409. I love 409. Is this a step down from 409? Does 409 harm wood, paint, marble or fabric? Will the weak bleach solution clean as well as 409? I guess the only way to find out is to try it.