Archive for the Home category.
Carey lived in a rented house with two roommates while she was in graduate school. She worked full time with a legal firm during her school years so she would not have extremely high student loans. She also planned to go to law school after she finished her graduate degree in psychology. The reason for two degrees is that ultimately she wanted to work in family law and be an advocate for victims of domestic violence and she decided that a degree in psychology would be benefit her. Meanwhile, her life was pretty stressful in those years and she had a lot weighing on her. She had some major responsibilities in her paralegal position and graduate school was also extremely demanding.
One day another student who was in Carey’s program was talking about a hot tub she had recently purchased and which made all the difference in her ability to relax and had a complete reduction in her stress level. While this seemed remarkable to Carey she started to ask questions about her classmate’s recent purchase. Carey realized that this would be the perfect solution for her too however it would be impossible at that point because she was in a rental house. Her classmate invited her over to experience the joy of the hot tub and Carey couldn’t believe how good she felt during and after her soak. She had to have a tub she thought and suddenly her classmate remembered that she had seen some portable hot tubs while she was shopping for hers.
Carey couldn’t believe her ears. The next day she went to the local distributor and found some great portable models. She also sound a wide variety of permanent hot tubs and was amazed at the amount of options she had. However, at that moment in her life she opted for what she thought would be a comfortable and durable portable model and could not wait to have it delivered. She was also excited about taking it with her when she went on to law school and knew it would be extremely beneficial to her at that time as well.
In the past four hundred thousand years, we’ve come a long way in our relationship with heat. At one time, fire was something our distant ancestors saw only when lightning hit the Earth, but today, we take the fire into our homes, contain it in brick, stone, ceramic, iron or steel, and then reinforce those places with more metal boxes, fitting snugly inside the hearth, and allowing us to not even use the traditional methods of heating, like wood or coal. Instead, we now have everything from the wood, gas, coal, or pellet fireplace.
The truth is that, over the years, we’ve discovered wood smoke can cause many problems for people with health problems, especially among the very young, the pregnant, and those who have problems breathing. Everyone from the Children’s Health Environmental Coalition to the United States Environmental Protection Agency warns about the potential dangers of smoke from a wood fire and those not healthy enough to be near it. Does this mean your family has to give up its fireplace? The answer is no, because there are healthier alternatives, a way to stoke a greener fire, if you will, by installing an insert, particularly a pellet fireplace. By burning wood pellets, which consist of lumber byproducts and sawdust, the burn is much more efficient. There’s so little moisture in these pellets that fewer pollutants get into the air, either inside your home or outside!
How does a pellet fireplace work? It’s a device that inserts into your existing fireplace, and it uses an igniter, which fires up the pellets, and a blower, which fans the fire, and then an augur, which adds more pellets into the flames. Altogether, they eliminate any need to open and close a stove door to feed the fire, thus eliminating the need to allow smoke into your house.
Posted on December 7th, 2009 by Sandy in
Home Could the high quality well crafted Napoleon fireplaces be named after Napoleon Bonaparte himself? It would make sense actually given the fire that was instilled in Napoleon I to end up influencing the European countries as a whole. So what was his story. There are so many stories I am sure I can’t list them all here but here are a few.
He was born in Corsica on August 15 1768. He trained as a artillery officer for the French army on mainland France. He grew to be a powerful military leader as well as a political leader of France. Of course landing him the position of the Emperor of the French. His actions shaped the 19th century politics of Europe. There were a series of events that lead up to him becoming the Emperor. First was a rise against the government in a coup making himself the First Consul. Then the French Senate recognised him, after a few years, and made him Emperor. He then for the next decade of his new power he took on every European power which was called the Napoleonic Wars. This surely put France on the map as a super power of the day.
But as all good fires they do eventually burn out. The lowering of his flame began when he went up against the Russians. Yes, in 1812, the French invasion of Russia began. This was the beginning of the end. His army was depleted and damaged and never really recovered. But he burned on and through the year until his forces were defeated in Leipzig. Then France was invaded by Coalition forces and force Napoleon into exile. He was put on the island of Elba. He tried to escape but was once again taken down in the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. He only lived another six years on the island of Saint Helena. Did he die of stomach cancer or arsenic poisoning? There is still an ongoing debate as to how this fire was put out.
Posted on December 3rd, 2009 by Sandy in
Home Have you heard about the Burn Wise program of the EPA? This program for the Environmenal Protection Agency is designed to help you find out how to burn wood in a safe, efficient way that helps reduce the amount of pollution we put into our atmosphere. For centuries, of course, people burned fires without a concern about what it might be doing to the air around them, but as cities grew more populated and chimneys more abundant, and buildings became increasingly sooty and the air fouled with smoke, the need for some form of control became apparent. Before the Internet, in the early 80s, I remember cities limiting the number of homes that could have a fire in a fire place. Today, we also have suggestions via the Burn Wise program to keep our fireplaces but also to help the environment.
There’s a number of suggestions available: To season your fire wood, which means cutting it, covering it, and storing it for at least six months, so that it’ll burn hotter and dryer. To start the fire with newspaper or kindling, but not other fuels, such as gasoline or propane. Make sure to keep the chimney and the vents of any wood burning appliance clean. To follow the state and local codes regarding fire places and to make sure you’re following the instructions of any of the appliances. Note that on EPA-Certified fireplace inserts wood burns much more efficiently than the older models. Make sure you upgrade!
In addition to helpful suggestions like these, you’ll also find posters and videos and information on agencies and partnerships, designed both for the consumer and for state and local agencies. The state can examine ways in which to make air quality better using education and changeout programs. Sections on partnerships talks to manufacturers about developing cleaner burning appliances. All in all, if you have a fire place or inserts, it’s a site well worth exploring.
Posted on December 3rd, 2009 by Sandy in
Home Oak Stoves, Todd Stove, Franklins, Cottage, Column, and Base Burners — I never realized the great variety of stoves in the world, but of course, inventors and manufacturers have been tinkering and refining them since Benjamin Franklin made dramatic improvements to the basic fireplace, so it shouldn’t be too much of a surprise. Still, when you begin to investigate the antique stove, you’ll discover a whole world of stove aficionados opens up. Here’s just a small number of the stove types I’ve found:
The Base Burner, Base Burner Globe Type, Circulator, Double Cased Air-tight Surface Heater, Cook Stove, Parlor Cook, Cottage Parlor, Cylinder Stove, Cannon “Pot Belly,” Oak Stove, Step Stove, Ten Plate, Column Stove, Fireplace Heater, Todd Stove, Franklin, Oval Air-Tight, Kitchen Heater, Box Stove, Wood-Coal Range, Gas Range, Laundry Stove, Combination Range, and Farmer’s Boiler. It seems as if there’s almost as many stove types as there are grains of sand on a beach. Here’s even more with some colorful names: Sunray Stove, Station Agent, Zenith Cookstove, Dandy Oak, Acorn Cookstove, Caboose Heater, the Peerless Stove, and the Star Gem.
Many of these stoves date from the 1800s to early 1900s, some even from the 1700s. A number of these stoves are now highly collectible and may be worth thousands of dollars.
One of the more interesting types was the Round Oak Stove. It first appeared around 1886, a popular model. A tall, plain black circle of a stove, containing a removable ash door. Later, in 1887, the ash door was designed with a hinge. The round Oak Stove was the Model T of stoves, and many thought it to be the best in the world at providing heat. You could also control that heat, creating as much or as little as you liked, as well as burning whatever fuel you liked, which at the time would have been not only wood, but soft and/or hard coal.
Posted on October 26th, 2009 by Sandy in
Health,
Home Having a portable spa at your disposal opens up all sorts of possibilities, and in your own backyard. You have your own stress relief right at your disposal, and you can use it any time of the day, even in winter. You don’t have to answer to anyone about your right to relax, and it’s a wonderful feeling to know that it’s always there for you. But buying your spa can be a very exciting experience too. Taking time to look for the best spas can pay off, and it’s nice to daydream about what your spa will be like. The drive home from work is easier when portable spas are on the horizon, and there’s a new energy to the days.It doesn’t go away when you choose the perfect spa for you, and in fact it only gets better in time. When people start to hear about your new addition, you’ll have more callers to invite in, or turn away. You’ll also start to feel some of the many benefits to having a spa in your own home, most of them related to improved physical health. It’s not hard to see why this is the case, when you think about that amazing reduction of stress you’ll get with the hot water and massage treatment in your home. There are a number of things that stress can affect, from subtle changes in mood to extraordinarily apparent physical ailments, and the hot tub can melt away many worries.
Perhaps even more apparent, though, will be the way your body starts to respond to the water. After a bit, it will get used to the sensation, and even come to expect it. Because the effects are so pleasurable, it will have a greater capacity to relax than before. You’ll start to see that there is a relation between hot tubs and better sleep, and it’s been shown in medical studies that sleep cycles are deeper when you have hot tub therapy at your fingertips. There are more physical benefits, too, like increased circulation and even a healthier heart, and it all adds up to a wise choice with fantastic benefits.
Posted on October 1st, 2009 by Sandy in
Health,
Home Treatment for an injury to the spinal cord begins with the emergency room. Personnel will assess and evaluate the situation and make their judgements, and their recommendations. The first eight hours following the initial incident are the most crucial. This is the time when a patients recovery is most determined, aside from the internal where with all of the person. The reason being is that just following the injury, the spinal cord will swell. The reduction of that swelling is key to the prevention of further damage to the cord itself and to the membranes which surround it.
If inflammation is not controlled, nerve death will occur. One of the ways in which this is treated is through hydrotherapy, hot and cold water therapy alternated will not only ease pain, but will contain and alleviate that inflammation. Spas found at choosehottubsdirect.com will help in the recovery of those who suffer from this type of injury. Of course, each person is unique, and on many occasions, surgery becomes necessary to fix alignment, to remove damaged tissue, or to help stabilize the spine. If one may need surgery, it will depend on the specific needs of the patient, and of the perceived outcome. The structures of the spine along with the specific tissue damage will indicate to the surgeons, if this is the proper procedure to embark upon.
Once this has been decided and the recovery process has begun, rehabilitation will follow. The support that the patient receives from family and friends is tantamount to their healing. This also includes time spent in rehabilitation therapy and physical therapy, which will help the patient restore their mobility, their strength and flexibility as well as their coordination and mental state. Recovering from an injury to the spine is a long process, but when approached with patience and with hope, one that will surely be successful.
Posted on June 30th, 2009 by Sandy in
Home It’s pinching pennies time in the United States and that mean that everyone is looking for ways they can save money and maximize their budget.
A lot of money is thrown away each year due to the fact that Americans are still using old appliances and other products in their home on a day to day basis. Another way we are all using energy and throwing away our money is by keeping appliances plugged in all day.
There is such a thing called vampire power. Vampire power is when small appliances that are turned off but still plugged in are using energy while they are not in use. They are using energy just by being plugged in. So that blow dryer you keep plugged in at all times of the day is actually costing you money in the long term. The same goes for cell phone chargers, computers, televisions and lamps. Keeping those appliances plugged in is a waste of money!
Another way to reduce your energy costs is to be more energy efficient appliances. It may seem like a big expense right now to plop down the dough for a new washer and dryer or refrigerator, but it will save you money in the long run.
Think about installing new blinds . Or if you don’t have blinds you really need to think about getting some. They keep the sun off of your house so you will be able to reduce your cooling costs. There are many services for blinds, like Next Day Blinds. They offer tons of options when it comes to window treatments. Next Day Blinds has both an expansive website and showrooms. They take all of the measuring and other guess work out for you. So it really is a no-brainer.
Also never forget the little things like turning off lights when you leave a room. Or turning off the water while you brush your teeth. Happy saving!