Paper Towels

TORONTO -- Scott Paper Ltd. and Procter & Gamble Co. have reached an out-of-court settlement over claims that P&G's "quicker picker-upper" advertising for Bounty paper towels in Canada are unfair.The companies said they agreed to clarify advertising claims and how Canadian products will be differentiated from those in the United States. Further details of the confidential agreement were not disclosed. Company officials could not be reached for additional comment.Scott had been seeking damages of more than $725,900 in its suit.

Dwayne Johnson is not only responsible for the education of 1,200 Dundalk High School students, but he also must be sure they have enough paper towels and toilet paper.It's all a matter of budgeting.It's also part of being a school principal in Baltimore County -- and every other locality that has given principals more authority in recent years. And in Baltimore County -- with schools short on money and principals ordered to freeze 25 percent of their annual budgets -- principals may begin to see the drawbacks of power.

You hold in your hands a valuable commodity -- and that's not pulp fiction.Because of a worldwide surge in the demand for wood pulp, the price for paper products of almost all kinds -- including the newsprint on which this newspaper is printed -- is soaring.Executives of companies that use or sell paper say they've never seen anything like it.The price increases have been so steep, National Public Radio reported last weekend, that thieves in New York have taken to swiping bundles of used paper before the city's recycling trucks can pick them up.The effects are being felt in a multitude of ways -- some visible to consumers, some hidden but all very real.

Around the house* When going on vacation, remember to stop delivery of the newspapers; have someone pick up your mail; set timers for lights, radios and TVs; lock all doors and windows and hide empty trash containers.* Remove mineral deposits that have accumulated at water level in the toilet. Try rubbing stain with "wet" sandpaper available in hardware stores. Or, pour one cup of bleach into bowl; let sit for a few hours and scrub off stains.* Strain fat from broth by pouring through a paper towel into container.

Women, I have observed, fall into two main categories: Those who are Martha Stewart and those who are not.I, after a long period of denial, am resigned to being part of the latter group.In other words: It's over. I give up. Uncle!Or to be completely non-sexist: Uncle! and Aunt!What can I tell you?I tried raising my own free-range chickens. I tried making curtains from bedsheets. I tried creating centerpieces from gourds and Gouda. I tried garnishing desserts with apple-tree branches -- from my own orchard -- dipped in chocolate.

The following is a list of several area organizations accepting donations that will make Christmas brighter for some people. These groups responded to a recent Sundial invitation to list their needs.* Christopher Place, 709 E. Eager St., a shelter serving homeless men in Baltimore city needs new underwear, toiletries, canned goods, paper towels and toilet tissue. Call (410) 576-0066.* Catholic Charities is collecting donations for the homeless and the needy at Hunt Valley Mall. Take donations of non-perishable food, new clothing, toiletries, canned goods, paper products and new toys to the empty store next to Lane Bryant near the Food Court (on the second level of the mall)

Around the house* Keep bedspread clean. When making bed, pull up the spread halfway and fold it over on itself. The spread will be protected from daily wear and will still look neat.* At least twice a year, vacuum pad and the floor beneath area rugs.* Remove white spots on hardwood floors that have accumulated after waxing.Pour liquid wax over stains, rub gently with fine steel wool, following the grain, then polish area with a clean cloth.* Store cast-iron skillets -- without their lids -- between paper towels in a dry space.

A little booklet called ''You're A Young Lady Now'' got me into trouble in the fourth grade. My mother had told me that I wasn't to share it with other girls, that this was something for their mothers to deal with.It was the most vague and euphemistic booklet, with drawings of happy looking pony-tailed teen-age girls doing active things, and it had some little drawings of Fallopian tubes flowering and flowing gracefully somewhere in the human body. The drawings did not connect those tubes with any other essential parts; that might have led to the ''What goes where?

Strapazza must be doing something right. The popularTowson pizzeria and inexpensive Italian restaurant has spin-offs in Annapolis and now on Charles Street, with a new Strapazza scheduled to open across from Oriole Park at Camden Yards.The Charles Street location puzzles me a little. Towson and Annapolis and Camden Yards make perfect sense, but it wouldn't occur to me to open a restaurant like this in the basement of a downtown office building. What makes the combination lunch and dinner menu so appealing is that it's remarkably inexpensive for dinner.

Around the house* Repair torn holes in which curtain hooks are threaded at top of shower curtain. Apply clear, waterproof tape to top of curtain and make a new opening with a hole puncher.* Remove wax from glass (not crystal) candlesticks; Place holders on folded paper towels in microwave and turn on low for one minute. Wax will melt onto paper towels.* Prepare interior walls for painting. Be sure the area is free of dust and dirt. Fill holes with spackle. Record the amount of paint you use and the name of the color.