I am a disabled senior citizen who gets around most of the time in a motorized chair. Because of the chair and shoulder problems, I had to store certain frequently used foods in easily reachable containers. I bought plastic 1/2 gallon drink containers, rectangular in shape (rounded corners), with handles. I put them in cabinet above my microwave because these were the most used items. I kept in that cabinet; my coffee, oatmeal, instant potatoes, and instant milk.
I did not decorate the containers, so that I could see through them easily. I put them on the shelf with the handles towards the front so all I had to do was reach up to grab the handle, and put them back by putting the edge on shelf and pushing them back using the handle. These sure made life a lot easier for me.
By Linda from Bloomington, IL
This is a clever solution to a problem a lot of us have as we get older: we start shrinking. I've lost about 3/4" in height in the past 15 years, and that makes things farther away than they used to be. A step stool is not always handy, and standing on your tiptoes isn't safe, so the container with a good handle on a reachable shelf is much more practical. Good idea. Thanks.
I am not a senior yet nor disabled but I'm short so I do try to find ways to make it easier for me to get to things w/o always standing on a stool. I find small lazy susans (turntables) added to cabinet shelves can help a lot. One cabinet I put herbs & spices, oil, vinegar, etc on turntables and then I am able to reach by just turning them and bringing the item I want to the front.
Baskets with handles or any sort of a container with a handle does make things easier to grab.
I have arthritis pretty bad. One thing I use is a grabber. I got it at the drug store for around $10.00. It is a heaven send.I think WalMart may have them too.
I am 70 and arthritic so I have to be creative about storage. I keep my plastic mixing bowls and plastic collanders upside down on the top shelf and I can pull them down when I need them with my trusty salad tongs.
