Lifestyle

Dear Readers: Most of us worry about our homes looking perfect when entertaining and having guests over. Well, we shouldn’t.

We’ve all heard about how singer and songwriter Elton John struggled with bulimia for 16 years. He got treatment in 1990. And “Good Morning America” personality Ginger Zee contended with anorexia as a child from age 10 to 14, following her parents’ divorce. “It was a horrendous spiral that could have taken my life,” Zee revealed.

Dear Amy: I’m a new mom to a wonderful, healthy and happy baby. The birth was traumatic.

Dear Heloise: This isn’t anything earth-shattering, but I found that if I place my coffee mug on top of my coffee maker while the coffee is brewing, it warms up my mug and keeps my coffee warmer, longer.

All coconut milk is not created equal. Canned coconut milk – both regular and light – is made from finely ground coconut meat that’s recombined with water for a uniform, viscous texture that can easily overwhelm other ingredients. That’s one reason why in Colombia they make their own, and we found at Milk Street it was a lot easier than it sounds.

It has bite and zing. It comes in the most unusual package.

With the “new normal” changing the way we travel, opportunities can be a bit more limited, not to mention that travelers are becoming more discerning, often opting for more private and personal stays. Hotels and resorts may no longer be just a place to stay, but actually a destination in and of themselves. h With this in mind, here are some once-in-a-lifetime destinations from which to pamper yourself silly, truly escape the crowds and perhaps even actually enjoy being “locked down.”

Dear Amy: I have always been against senseless consumerism. I am a minimalist in almost all aspects of my life. I do not try to impose my beliefs on anyone, however, whenever I am invited to birthday parties, I almost wish I wasn’t.

When Leonard DiCaprio bought his Greenwich Village residence (for a cool $10 million in 2014), he redid the plumbing so that his showers sprayed out vitamin C-infused water. That may seem like money down the drain, but a less-drenching topical application of vitamin C can help slow or even reverse the signs of sun damage and aging, such as wrinkles and dull, saggy skin.

Dear Readers: When you purchase a live Christmas tree, ask the seller to make a fresh cut, straight across the base of the trunk, removing around an inch from the bottom, to be sure that there’s plenty of water absorption.