Nails

Painted nails for malesThe peacock revolution is in full cry. Esquire's March issue devotes a 24-page special section to "The Truth About Male Vanity," including musings on baldness treatments, facials, penile implants, cosmetic dentistry, pedicures and back waxing. surprise, then, that the latest cosmetic counter news is male nail polish. We're not talking clear and buffed Goodfellas-style manicures, but tough color. The new gloss is called Candy Man, from the makers of Hard Candy polish for hip girls.

So you have yet to get away for that spa vacation you've been craving. No worries. With a handful of products, you can create a spa in your own home. Sure, there won't be any 25-mile pre-dawn hikes. And we won't be trying to pass off two blueberries and a no-fat tortilla as dinner. But it will give you an opportunity to sit down, relax and give your bod the TLC it needs. Did someone say dimples? Your vows to work out 12 times a week and swear off potato chips forever didn't work. And as a result, your thighs are looking a tad too dimply for your taste.

My teenage son has really smelly feet. He can't take off his shoes when we're in the car or the house, or he stinks us all out. His feet must be covered. (Fresh socks, a blanket or a hazmat-response suit all work equally well.) He bathes every day, so this is not due to bad hygiene. No one else in the family suffers from this ailment. (We suffer enough just from his.) He wears a variety of shoes, but they all smell bad. The ones that he wears more often just smell worse. We've heard of home remedies that involve soaking in a weak tea or boric-acid solution.

Start a spring gutter inspection by walking around the house and checking for sagging gutters, usually caused by loose fasteners or brackets, and fittings that have separated from gutters or downspouts.Since repairs must be done from a ladder -- also needed to check for debris or clogs that can make gutters overflow and cause basement flooding --make sure it's firmly planted. If necessary, use boards under the ladder legs to provide firm support.Clean gutters of any leaves, twigs, shingle granules and other debris.

Q.Would you settle an argument? Several of us take garlic pills in conjunction with prescription medicine. We hope it will lower our cholesterol and our blood pressure. One opinionated fellow says we might as well toss the pills out because only fresh garlic works. I hate garlic, but don't mind taking the pills. My 82-year-old neighbor has lowered her blood pressure to 132 / 72 in three months with garlic pills. That fellow still insists that only fresh garlic is useful. Do we pitch the pills and gag on the garlic?

Maryland's higher, 6 percent sales tax took effect Thursday and drew plenty of comment. "Do I give the extra penny to you or do I send it right to Gov. O'Malley?" somebody queried the cashier as I stood in line to buy breakfast. Until Thursday, Maryland's sales tax had been 5 percent. Forgotten, however, is that the old rate was actually often more than 5 percent, and the new rate will often be more than 6 percent. Why? Unlike most states, Maryland rounds the tax up to the next-highest penny even if a strict 6 percent calculation says only a third or a fourth or a 10th of an extra penny is owed.

Recent columns on dealing with old tile floors drew queries from a couple of readers. Both were considering removing old resilient floor tiles -- one to replace it with other tile, one hoping to find wood flooring underneath -- and wanted to know whether and how to proceed.The problem with removing old tile, besides its being a messy back- and knee-breaking task, is that even tile very recently put down may contain asbestos. Asbestos fibers can cause lung disease if inhaled. There are two things you can do to minimize the risk: Leave the old tile in place and put down new underlayment and new tile; or remove the old tile using recognized asbestos abatement procedures.

To get a good fit at molding joints in inside corners, an ingenious technique called coping can be used.A finished coped joint appears to be a perfect miter, in which the ends of two mating pieces of molding are cut at 45 degrees. In coping, however, only one of the pieces needs to be cut.Here's how to cope a joint:* Put the molding in a miter box. Make a 45-degree cut in the end to be joined, using a back saw or fine-toothed handsaw. This cut exposes the profile of the molding on its front side and leaves a wedge of wood extending beyond the profile.

It is getting to be door-closing season. When the weather is warm, I don't much care whether the doors in my house close snugly. But once the temperature starts dropping and the wind picks up, I feel the need to bar the door.Part of this feeling is hereditary. I come from a draft-conscious family. My mother has an uncanny ability to detect the presence of an invading wind. When I was kid, for instance, my mom would be sitting in the living room at night working the crossword puzzle, when suddenly she would announce: "There's a draft in here."

Vinyl siding is reasonably durable, but like all house sidings, it can require occasional repair or cleaning.For example, the siding can crack from a sharp impact, especially if the impact comes during cold weather.A small crack can be patched with caulking compound and touched up with paint. Be sure to use paintable caulk or a colored caulk that closely matches the siding.The best solution for severe damage to small areas of vinyl siding is to replace the damaged panel or panels. This requires matching panels.