Ask the Past: ghosting etiquette
I met this guy on Tinder who seemed really nice, but we went on one creepy date and that was enough. I don't want to see him again, but I also don't want to have to discuss it, so is it OK to just ghost him?
Ed Goode
Ask the Past: Korean skincare
For the last few years, I have been following a Korean skincare routine that made my skin look and feel amazing, but the company that made my favourite cleansers went out of business a few months ago. What should I do?
Vermicelli pudding
It would be impossible for me to choose a favourite old recipe book, because they are all full of craziness, but I do have a soft spot for 365 Puddings, One for Every Day of the Year. I love its singular focus on a dish that we basically don'
Ask the Past: Cleaning etiquette
I live with two flatmates, and we have a roster for the cleaning. One of my flatmates never does his fair share. The two of us who do clean are starting to get really annoyed with him. What should we do?
To remove the smell of paint
Writing a book of household hints seems to have been a bit like figure skating - you could do whatever you wanted as long as you included all the compulsory elements. If your book didn’t include sections on stain removal, dealing with scorched pans, cleaning the stove, and at
Ask the Past: Fish pie etiquette
I work in an open-plan office, and my desk is the closest to the tearoom. One of my coworkers keeps bringing fish pie for lunch and reheating it in the microwave. The smell is appalling. What should I do?
Surprisingly, considering we are talking about a time of uneven access
Delhi Pudding
Among all my household encyclopedias, old cookbooks, and promotional advice pamphlets published by kerosene companies, I also have a couple of handwritten recipe books that belonged to my great-grandmother. There are several different kinds of handwriting mixed up in there, so what I like to imagine is that the most
Ask the Past: Assistant etiquette
My flatmate thanks Siri every time he asks it to do something for him, and he says it's rude that I don't. I think thanking Siri is weird and borderline creepy. Which of us is right?
Ink stains
Ink stains were obviously a bit of a problem because most books of household hints include several methods of removing them. The advice to soak them in mustard, however improbable it sounds, was either pretty effective or a very persistent urban myth, because it appears at least twice in print.
Invalid cookery
A lot of old cookbooks and household guides have whole sections dedicated to recipes for sick people, and surprisingly enough, lemon albumen wasn’t the most bland or disgusting thing you could be fed.
What To Do and How To Do It recommended this bran tea, which it says is