Q: After cold winter weather ends, you can start assessing your Yellow and Mexican Bird of Paradise flowers to prune them. Pruning at this point will encourage new growth in the plant later in the season. Both Yellow and Mexican Bird of Paradise flowers should be pruned sparingly when flowers and stems begin to die. Strelitzia Bird of Paradise flowers don’t require as much pruning, but you can remove dead blooms and foliage in the springtime. Only remove the stems and leaves that have died and are brown. If the plant isn’t growing well throughout the year, prune at least half of the stems to the ground to allow the plant to grow healthy blooms. Once the weather turns warmer and there’s no more threat of frost, trim Red Bird of Paradise plants to 6 to 12 inches (15 to 30 cm) from the ground. Depending on the level of growth throughout the spring and summer, trim the flowers again in the middle of summer. Red Bird of Paradise flowers are very hardy and can handle heavy pruning two times per year if the plant is healthy.
A: Begin pruning Yellow and Mexican varieties in late winter and early spring. Prune Strelitzia variety blooms sparingly in the spring. Tend to Red varieties in the early spring and midsummer.

Q: If an ignorant person is bothering you, you can choose to disregard them. This is especially true if the person is simply trying to make you angry or start an argument. You can simply not respond, or, if you are with a group of people, turn your attention to someone else. If that doesn't work, turn around and tell them to leave you alone. Sometimes just physically separating yourself from an ignorant person is enough to stop him or her from bothering you. Furthermore, if you walk away when a person says something ignorant, you are sending the person a clear message that you think his or her point of view is unacceptable. Even if you are dealing with ignorant people online or on social media, you can choose to ignore their comments. In many cases, you can block users or hide their comments/posts if you find them bothersome. If someone’s ignorance is bothering you and you can’t get away from him or her, you can distract yourself by turning attention to work, a hobby, or entertainment. Distracting yourself can also work if you find yourself still thinking about someone’s ignorant comment long after it has been said. Given the close relations, you may not be able to simply disregard or walk away from family members who say ignorant things. Focus on being as polite and sensitive as you can, and try to diffuse any volatile situations. You can try:  Changing the subject. You can simply shift the conversation away from topics where a family member shows ignorance. You can also tell an ignorant family member that you want to avoid conflict and move on: “I don’t want to argue, so let’s change the subject and talk about something else.” Creating a diversion. Suggest playing a favorite game, watching television, or some other distraction to change the mood and topic. Resorting to humor. Laughter can diffuse tension and shift attention, so telling a good joke or funny story is a good way to keep the peace and overlook a family member’s ignorance. Commiserating with other family members. If other family members are bothered by someone’s ignorance, you can vent to each other. Just make sure to focus on the ignorant comments, and not on criticizing or attacking the family member. If you are dealing with someone’s ignorance while at work, staying busy and focused on your tasks will keep you from dwelling on it, becoming angered, and not doing your job well.  You can try using work as an excuse to escape someone’s ignorant comments. If a coworker is saying ignorant things in a conversation and you want to get away, tell them something like: “Wow, I’ve got a lot of work to do. I better get back to it.” Giving signals that you don’t want to be disturbed can stop coworkers from pestering you with ignorant comments for the first place. For instance, if you are able to wear headphones while working, this might deter people from interrupting you. Meditation, breathing exercises, or even taking a short break can calm you and help keep coworkers’ ignorant comments from bothering you. Try to take a couple of minutes once or twice during the workday to get away and clear your mind using one of these methods. Find a work friend you can vent to about a coworker’s ignorance. Just make sure to focus on the ignorant comments, and not on criticizing or attacking the coworker. Avoid open confrontation at work. Arguing with your coworkers over their ignorant comments will not only make you angry, it makes you seem less professional and could even cost you your job if the situation escalates. Consider what might have led the person that is bothering you to think the way that he or she does, and try to understand.  Think about this person’s background, and how it might have contributed to their views. Ask yourself: “How would I feel if I were this person, or in this situation?” Remind yourself that everyone has flaws, and that no two people see things in exactly the same way. Likewise, remember that no one knows everything, and that you are surely ignorant about some things, too. With these thoughts in mind, you can try to forgive or overlook someone else’s ignorance.  Think about a time when you said something ignorant. How did others react? How would you have wanted them to react?  Think about how you can acknowledge, understand, and share the feelings of the person that is bothering you. Choose your words carefully when speaking to him or her. Use a non-accusatory tone of voice and say things like “Let me see if I have this right….” or “It sounds like you’re saying….” It is often said that you can’t change other people, only yourself. Keep in mind that an ignorant person may simply refuse to change their views or try to understand yours. Instead of making yourself angry and stressed about trying to change what you can’t, focus on modeling virtues that you might value, like open-mindedness, tolerance, and self-control. There are two issues in conflicts of communication: objective (factual) differences, and emotional issues that are attached to them. You might not be able to change people’s erroneous view of the facts, but you can change how you feel about their ignorance.
A: Ignore the ignorant person. Walk away. Distract yourself. Keep family situations peaceful. Stay professional at work. See things from the other person’s perspective. Practice empathy. Rise above.

Q: Though the triangle doesn’t really resemble a bottle of bleach, try to remember that it represents one. You may bleach as needed, using either chlorine or oxygen-based bleach on the garment. Use non-chlorine bleach only if the symbol of a triangle has diagonal lines in it. Chlorine bleach leaches dye out of fabrics, so it is typically only used for white fabric. Non-chlorine bleach is oxygen based and shouldn’t stain or ruin your clothes. That goes for both chlorine and oxygen-based bleach. If you have a stain, try using another method to remove it.
A:
Bleach your garment if the label contains a triangle. Identify what kind of bleach to use. Do not use bleach if the symbol of a triangle has an X through it.