Problem: Article: Your pillow will probably smell better just by washing it, but if you're concerned that it's really stinky, add 1/2 cup (260 g) of baking soda to the soapy water. Then wash the pillow and rinse it completely. If your pillows are covered in yellow stains when you remove the pillowcase, soak the pillow in hot water while you make a soaking treatment. Stir together the following ingredients until they're dissolved and soak the pillow in the mixture for 30 minutes before washing. You'll need to mix: 1 cup (520 g) of powdered laundry detergent 1 cup (520 g) of powdered dishwasher detergent 1 cup (240ml) of bleach (or bleach alternative) 1/2 cup (260 g) of borax Add 2 to 3 drops of your favorite essential oil to the water that you're using to rinse the pillow. This will add a subtle smell to the pillow that will also cover up any unwanted odors. Some good essential oils to try include: Lavender Rosemary Citrus, such as grapefruit or tangerine Rose If your pillow is smelling old or musty, hang the dry pillow on a clothesline in direct sunlight for a few hours. Sometimes just getting fresh air blowing through the pillow will make it smell better. The sunlight can also kill bacteria in the pillow that are causing it to smell.
Summary: Add baking soda to the wash if your pillow smells bad. Soak the pillow in a peroxide-vinegar mix to remove stains and mildew. Add 2 to 3 drops of essential oil when you rinse the pillow for a nice scent. Hang the dry pillow in the sun to deodorize it.

INPUT ARTICLE: Article: By learning new skills, you keep your brain engaged and challenged, which can build new neural connections and improve your cognitive function. Learning a new language is an excellent way to expand your mind. It will force your brain to work in ways it isn't accustomed to and can help you see the world around you from a new linguistic perspective. Trying new activities or hobbies can also help keep your brain tuned up. Look for opportunities to learn how to do new things, like taking ballroom dance, a martial art, a sewing class, or a writing workshop. Play games. Playing new games with friends or family, particularly more intensive games like chess or cribbage, can help you add to and enhance your cognitive abilities. Don't accept things as they are. Instead, learn to constantly question things--even things that seem obvious or basic. Deliberately seek out things that are new and different. While it may be tempting to avoid rather than pursue things that are strange or different--new foods or dining styles, new religious ceremonies, new neighborhoods, etc.--your brain builds new and more diverse connections each time it encounters something unfamiliar or difficult to understand. Embrace challenges to your ideas, beliefs, and experiences. Reading engages your brain as well as your imagination and is an excellent way to learn new things and to learn to see people, places, things, and ideas in new and different ways. Seek out reading that's at least moderately challenging in terms of its vocabulary, content, or ideas. Look for readings that can not only grant you access to new knowledge, but allow you to explore new and different ideas, perspectives, and beliefs as well. There are all kinds of games available designed to keep your brain limber and fit. Look around, experiment, and find what works for you. The old standbys of crossword puzzles and logic games have been around for some time, and they persist today because they work--they're excellent ways to challenge and expand your thinking skills. Newer alternatives for challenging your brain are available online and as smartphone apps. Many sites offer games designed to keep your mind active and engaged, so rather than spend your downtime browsing cat pictures, consider trying a virtual brain-game. Commit to focusing closely on learning and improving your thinking. When you come across a new idea or fact, focus on learning about it and committing it to memory. Then, periodically go back over the new ideas and facts you've learned and rehearse them to yourself. Revisiting new information this way--particularly soon after learning it--is key to incorporating it in a meaningful and lasting way into your memory. It may seem trivial, but it turns out that just making up your mind to focus and commit to a new idea will help you retain it. Research has shown that writing down new information longhand helps you integrate it more thoroughly and recall it more easily. For example, while listening to new information in a meeting, conference, or class, write out the most important information. Be sure to write legibly and to review what you've written down afterwards to help it stay fixed in your mind. Try to relate new information to your five senses to help you absorb and retain it. Relate the idea or fact to a taste, tactile feeling, smell, or image. The more multi-sensory you can make it, the more powerfully it will stay with you.Most people already relate the smell of their favorite food to it's taste and to the experiences they've had consuming it. Another thing to try is counting the number of people in a room. This will help you quickly develop a sharper mind when it comes to remembering, especially if the people are milling around in a hallway or something like that. For example, if you want to remember that you left your keys on the counter next to the sugar bowl, make an effort to associate the thought of your keys with the taste of sugar and the whiteness (or whatever color) or the countertop.

SUMMARY: Learn new skills. Cultivate curiosity. Read. Do brain games and puzzles. Focus and review. Write things down--longhand. Involve your senses.

In one sentence, describe what the following article is about: Run the vacuum over the furniture to pick up as much hair as you can. If you don't have a handheld vacuum, you can use your regular vacuum's hose attachment to pick up hair. Go forward and back over the furniture in rows so you don't miss any hair. Grab a clean, dry squeegee, the kind you use to dry off windows when washing them. Place the rubber edge on the couch, and gently scoot it across the fabric. The rubber will collect the hair on the couch, making it easy to pick up. Run a vacuum over it when you're done with the squeegee for easy cleanup. This will also work on carpet. Put on a fresh rubber glove, the kind you use for household cleaning. Run it under the faucet and then shake off the excess water. Rub the glove lightly over the fabric, and it will easily pick up pet hair. If the glove gets clogged with hair, run it under water to clean it and begin again. You can also use a spray bottle to lightly spritz the glove. Wood, plastic, and laminate can also pick up cat hair. While this is easier to clean up than fabric, pet hair can still cling to the surface. Wipe down the furniture with a clean dryer sheet from your laundry room, which will make picking up pet hair a breeze. The dryer sheet has enough fabric softener in it that it will grab the hair. Plus, it will make your room smell fresh. Grab a non-abrasive rag, such as a microfiber cloth. Hold it in your hand and lightly spray it with furniture polish. Run the polish over the wooden furniture to quickly pick up pet hair. Run the sponge down the curtain to gather up the hair. You may need to place a hand behind the curtain to hold it in place against the sponge. Collect the hair with your fingers to toss in the trash and pull any excess hair off the sponge to use again. Alternatively, vacuum the hair off the bottom of the curtain with a hose or hand vacuum.
Summary:
Vacuum the furniture with a handheld vacuum. Run a squeegee over microfiber furniture. Wipe down most fabric furniture with a damp rubber glove. Rub a dryer sheet over hard furniture. Spritz a soft cloth with furniture polish for wooden furniture. Use a dry sponge to wipe pet hair off of curtains.