Did you notice or read about that big internet outage a number of weeks back? As I fumbled and fumed over a variety of websites being down, I had to laugh at myself.

There I was upset about a delay that would be measured in minutes, when not that many years ago, I had to wait days — even weeks — to get responses. Back then, your responses and feedback came in stamped envelopes.

Whether I hear from readers via U.S. mail or my inbox, I love it. But I have to admit that I am impatient. When it comes to hearing from you, the sooner the better!

Dear Mary: I've been reading your Instant Pot postings for a while, and I haven't seen anything about the practicality of this appliance for a one-person household. Do you have any input? (I've yet to see a smaller version of the Instant Pot.) — Cate

Dear Cate: As I read your note, my mind went immediately to slow cookers and the requirement that the contents match the size of the cooker. A slow cooker needs to be 1/2 to 3/4 full for the best results. That's why slow cookers come in so many sizes.

An Instant Pot is a completely different kind of appliance. Like an oven, you can prepare either a single serving or enough to feed a crowd. Take oatmeal, for example. To make a single serving of oatmeal, you would place the oatmeal in a small bowl or mug, set it on the trivet inside the IP and pour 1 cup of water or some other liquid into the bottom of the pot. To make enough for a family, you would simple use a larger bowl or container and increase the ingredients.

Another example is eggs. You can prepare one or a dozen perfectly cooked soft- or hard-cooked eggs in an IP in four or five minutes without making any adjustments.

As long as you have at least 1 cup of water or other liquid in the IP, you can make a single serving of just about anything, from a single chicken breast to a whole chicken.

You can easily adapt current recipes or find a plethora of single-serving IP recipes online.

As for the capacity or size of an Instant Pot, it is measured in quarts — 5, 6 or 8. You'll see the difference mostly in the depth of the inner pot. I have the 6-quart size and love it for so many reasons, one being that it is tall enough to handle a whole chicken.

Dear Mary: What do you use for an air freshener? I use Nok-Out faithfully on and around litter boxes, but the air starts to get sour, I guess because of having small rooms and too many cats. I need a good reliable air freshener to keep the area smelling fresh and clean.

Dear Linda: Nok-Out is not an air freshener and doesn't really work that way, as you know. It must come in direct contact with the offending odor. I use Febreze Air Heavy Duty Odor Eliminating Power. I have trouble finding this specific product in the store, so I order it online. You may have better luck. It's the best thing available to clean air of tough odors. Hope that helps!

Mary invites questions, comments and tips at [email protected], or c/o Everyday Cheapskate, 12340 Seal Beach Blvd., Suite B-416, Seal Beach, CA 90740. This column will answer questions of general interest, but letters cannot be answered individually. Mary Hunt is the founder of www.DebtProofLiving.com, a personal finance member website and the author of "Debt-Proof Living," released in 2014. To find out more about Mary and read her past columns, please visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators.com.