While he chose it as a novelty, it turned out not to be very good Russian vodka. But a vodka bottle with all-cyrillic lettering was gift enough.

We decided to fill the Russian bottle with better vodka, and were wondering if we should simply pour the firewater down the sink.

Then, we received an email with “green” household uses for vodka. Here are 12 alternative uses for vodka besides drinking it.

Check out these nifty uses for vodka you don’t want to drink. Our favorites: keeping cut flowers fresh and making vodka mouthwash. You can also spray it as an insect repellent.

Who knew?

If you’d rather drink the vodka, here are cocktail recipes.

Trivia napkins break the ice or stump your
friends. Photo by Jaclyn Nussbaum | THE NIBBLE.

Trivia Party Starters prints cocktail napkins that entertain your guests and get them to interact.

We chose Beer and Wine versions, but there are 12 subject categories that include Baby Shower, Celebrity, Christmas, Comedy Movie, Sports and TV Sitcom, among others.

While they’re a bit pricey, at $5.99 Canadian/$6.23 U.S. for 20 napkins and 40 different questions—two questions per napkin—you only need one pack to get the party started.

You can also make a game out of it, playing “Napkin Trivial Pursuit.” The person who collects the most napkins wins…a bottle of wine or a six-pack of beer.

Check ‘em out at Trivia Party Starters.com.

P.S. What vitamins does beer contain?

Answer: All of the important B vitamins, plus vitamins A, D and E. More about beer nutrition.

It isn’t chocolate syrup, which is chocolate-flavored corn syrup.

It is a thick chocolate sauce that’s the consistency of fudge at room temperature. When you heat it up it becomes pourable—hence, “hot fudge sauce.”

July is National Ice Cream Month. We’re starting our Top Picks this month with America’s favorite ice cream topping: chocolate sauce.

These are the best we’ve had, and include milk chocolate sauce, dark chocolate, white chocolate—even milk chocolate caramel sauce.

In one word: Yum!

Check out the best chocolate sauces: four stellar brands including The King’s Cupboard, Robert Lambert, Sassy Sauces and Somebody’s Mother’s.