DEAR HELOISE: I love getting fresh flowers, but they never seemed to last very long. So, I started putting ice cubes in the vase every day and changing out the water when it got cloudy. They can last for up to two weeks this way, and sometimes I have to take out a few flowers that were in full bloom when I got them. I’ve been doing this for years now, so I hope you pass this on.

— Mary M., in

The Villages, Florida

Mary M., I like your ice cube trick to keep flowers alive for longer periods of time, and as you can see, I’m passing it along to my readers. Thanks for writing in!

— Heloise

DEAR HELOISE: When drinking a glass of milk, I like it cold. In order to keep it cold once it’s sitting next to my dinner plate, I put a couple of frozen milk cubes in the glass. These cubes are also handy when making a recipe. My husband measured the amount, and one cube is equal to an 1/8 cup of milk. Just use a standard ice cube tray. Additionally, this can keep extra milk from going bad.

–Martha, in San Antonio

DEAR HELOISE: This is in response to a reader in a recent column who claims that saying “thank you” for a gift isn’t important. Yes, when we give a gift, we don’t expect anything back. But we certainly appreciate a “thank you” and acknowledgment. This is called having good manners. This modern trend of not saying “thank you” is simply rude and lazy.

— Nadine J., in Spokane, Washington

DEAR HELOISE: I challenge all CEOs and presidents to call their own customer service line and try to get through to a particular department.

This has been prompted by a problem I had with a company that sends emergency medical services to people who have an accident or get sick. I accidentally bumped into my call button, so the dispatcher called my phone and left a message that included a phone number to call if I was actually OK. However, I couldn’t understand her; she spoke very quickly and not distinctly at all.

I tried recalling the number as best I could and got a supermarket. I went through all my paperwork from this company but didn’t find a number to call to cancel an emergency. The employees who work in customer service must learn to speak slowly and distinctly!

— Roberta S., in Stafford, Virginia