Home Inspection: A Doctor Visit for Your Home
March 31, 2006
Has your house had a check up yet?
Home inspection is like a visit to the doctor for your home. The home inspector will give your home a physical from top to bottom.
Most of us do not know enough about the structures and systems of our home to give it the kind of thorough investigation that a good home inspector can give you. This leaves us open to unexpected and costly repairs. A good home inspection is preventive maintenance that lets you know about some of the problems before they occur. Home inspectors will let you know about anything dangerous they see.
Home inspection checks the roof for leaks and potential leaks. They look at possible hazards from trees and wires above the house. They check the attic for any dangerous wiring or storage or structural problems. They will check the electrical systems and plumbing to be sure they meet the codes for safety and are functioning properly.
Home inspection looks for insect problems such as termites that could be damaging your home from the inside. They help you catch these pests before serious problems occur and advise you how to get help for any damage already there.
Home inspection checks your foundation and your basement. Many homes have problems no one ever sees because they are below ground. Homes literally go up in smoke each year because of the poor storage of hazardous cleaning rags and chemicals. Home inspectors are alert to these, as well.
Home inspection also tells you what’s working well in your home. If the foundation is solid, the plumbing and electrical systems up-to-date, and the roof is fit to last another 10 years, they will let you know.
Don’t wait. Check with American Society of Home Inspectors at Ashi.Org, one of the oldest and largest organizations of home inspectors in the US. Get your home inspected soon!
About this writer -
Peter Mettarod started his home inspection business to help people get the most value from buying and selling their homes. He shows them how to really know what they are getting. You can read more articles about home inspection at Your Home Inspections
The Perfect Garden Sundial
March 31, 2006
Is it possible for a garden sundial to tell perfect time?
The chances are very good if you can make one yourself, or get one custom made for your location. But both these alternatives will take either time or money.
The reason for this is that apart from adjustments for time zones and daylight saving , covered in another article, there are three things that must be done.
Compensating for the Earth’s Path Around the Sun
If the earth followed a perfect circle as it revolved around the sun, life with sundials would be easy. But its path is elliptical or oval, and this causes errors of up to 16 minutes in sundial time at some times of the year. The corrections are straightforward, and can be made using a table, or from a figure 8 line called the Analemma, often seen on old globes and sundials.
Correcting for Latitude
Let’s consider the components of a sundial for a moment. It consists of a dial on which the time divisions, and sometimes other information is marked, and a triangular piece which sits vertically on the dial. It is called the gnomon, pronounced nomon, and the part which casts the shadow onto the dial is called the style.
For more information on how sundials work, including how to design your own, go to Google and type “how + sundial”, without the quotes but with the +, in the search box.
To be accurate, the angle between the triangular part of the gnomon and the horizontal must be the same as the latitude of the place it is to be placed in (You can find the latitude - and longitude - of your home from any topographic map or good atlas).The arrangement and distance between the hour markings on the dial must also be correct for the latitude.
Hmmmm! This means that unless you are very lucky, that elegant sundial in your local garden supply shop will probably not show the time particularly well. It may be calibrated for an average latitude (commonly 45 degrees), which is good if your latitude is not too different. Or it may be purely ornamental and will really only be useful around noon.
Now of course this doesn’t matter at all if you are looking for something pleasing to the eye, and don’t mind answering the inevitable question “Does it tell the time?” But if you’d like your sundial to be more useful, make sure you find out which latitude it is calibrated to.
Once you know this, all you need to do to compensate is to work out the difference, and tilt the dial towards or away from due south depending on whether you need to add to or subtract from the latitude the sundial was designed for. There may be slight differences to the ideal spacing of the hour marks, but the apparent time will be reasonably close.
Finding North
The final essential in sundial installation is to make sure the gnomon is oriented north-south. Sounds easy and, with a little patience, it is.
One way, suitable for the northern hemisphere, is to identify the pole star. This is very close to the projected position of the earth’s axis, about which the sun and stars seem to revolve. You could mark the direction from your sundial’s location to the pole star, but this method isn’t quite accurate, and needs to be done in the dark. And the southern hemisphere doesn’t have a pole star.
Method 2 uses a compass. Sounds pretty simple, doesn’t it. But you guessed it - there are some complications.
Firstly, the needle on a compass points to magnetic north, not true north, which is what we want. The difference between the two is called the magnetic declination, and is usually shown on good topographic maps. And while a simple addition or subtraction of the difference between the two norths should give you the right direction, there may be some local magnetic effects which can’t be compensated for.
The third method goes back to the ancients - and there were some pretty smart operators around in the old days.
You’ll need a stick, some paper or board, a marker, a tape measure or long rule, a sunny day, and a bit of time on your hands. Set the stick up vertically at the location you have chosen for your sundial, so that the top of its shadow falls on the sheet of paper or board. If you stand with your back to the sun, behind the pole, set the paper up so that the morning shadow falls on its left hand side.
Now mark the end of the shadow with a permanent marker. Come back through the day and mark the new positions of the tip of the shadow - the more often the better. As the day goes on, you’ll notice the marks form a curve.
Later in the afternoon - any time after three is OK - connect the marks you’ve made into the smoothest curve you can manage. Do this while the pole and paper are still in place. Then carefully measure the distance between the base of the pole and the curve. The shortest distance corresponds to true north. Mark it in some way, and align the gnomon in the same direction when you put your sundial in place.
You can find true north in other ways - again I suggest you try google as suggested above.
Once you have set up your sundial, check the time, compensate for differences with your official time zone, pat yourself on the back, and if the sundial tells you it’s after midday, pour a glass of your favourite beverage and put your feet up. Your time is now your own.
Copyright 2005, Graham McClung.
A retired geologist, Graham McClung has had a lifelong interest in the outdoors. And where there’s outdoors there’s weather. He is the editor of http://Home-Weather-Stations-Guide.com, where you can find reviews and advice to help you choose and use your own home weather station. You can contact him by email at information@home-weather-stations-guide.com
Teach Your Children About the Importance of Water
March 31, 2006
The Flow of Water
Water is essential for life on the Planet, we all know this, water holds a very special place for us for that very reason. Some of us fish, some of us surf, some own a boat, some of like water features near our homes, some own swimming pools, but all of us drink water. Perhaps there are serious supply issues where you are? Perhaps, there are filtration needs, upgrades to sewer plants, perhaps you are in a part of the world with no such facilities?
The Flow of Water is ranked near the top, because without water you have no civilization at all. If one were to travel to every city in this nation you would be able to tell each time when you are coming to where a city might be located simply by the way the terrain is formed and where water might flow. The towns are all built near water. These towns were originally connected by dirt roads, then the railroad connected the towns near water to fill up the steam engines, then they build the highways connecting the cities. But it all started with a river, creek, lake or well. Water determines, where and how we live. Why is the flow of water so important to our lives? Well, we are all familiar with the cycle of water. The evaporation, rain and then the long flow back to the ocean.
http://www.epa.gov/OGWDW/kids/cycle.html .
There is not a shortage of water on this little blue planet; from what we can see with 2/3 of the Earth’s Surface covered with it. However 97.2% of the water is salt water in the oceans. We need fresh water to drink and sustain life. There are tremendous amounts of frozen fresh water in the polar ice caps. There is actually more water in the atmosphere than in all the rivers. About nine times as much fresh water in the lakes than atmosphere; there is lots of ground water at about 95% of the fresh water is in the ground. There is as much water between 1 half mile to 1 mile from the surface as there is deep lying ground water which is more than a mile underground. This table will help you understand the situation better.
http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0004674.html
There is not a shortage of water in the world. There is merely a problem with its salinity and distribution to various regions such as deserts, often mankind has triumphed over these issues, often he has not. The flow of water affects everything we do. Where we live and work. What we eat and how we play. The flow of water is one of the most important flows of life on the surface of the Planet and has more to do with the evolution of life on Earth than nearly every other factor. Life seems to have begun in the shallow water and expanded into all depths and areas of the oceans. Life on land grows best where water is plentiful. These basic facts should be taught to all children and teens in school. Here is a basic course outline:
http://www.utm.edu/departments/ed/cece/seventh/7I3.shtml
This will teach kids to understand the issues and conserve the fresh water supply. Children should be taught to conserve and respect water. How we use it, treat it, divert it and how it brings us life, food, transportation and beauty.
“Lance Winslow” - If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs
Blood Type and Diet
March 31, 2006
Eating right to suit your blood type” is a subject that is come up a lot in the chat rooms lately, so as promised, here is more information about the topic.
First of all there are two bibles on this subject written by Dr. Peter J. D’Adamo. The first is “Eat Right 4 Your Type” and the second, “Cook Right 4 Your Type”. If you are really interested in pursuing this lifestyle, I STRONGLY recommend you buy both of these books and read them from cover to cover to see if these diets are for you. For those of you who have cancer, low blood sugar, are on medication or are diabetic, check this plan out with your doctor before embarking on any new diet. Below I have summarised the basic principles behind the Eat Right 4 Your Type, which is intended to spiritually and physically heal people by feeding the body’s blood the “right” foods.
D’Adamo’s theory is that certain blood types represent an older strain of mankind. Your blood type, which you can find out from your doctor, can represent a certain stage of evolution and also indicate how much ancestral history you are carrying in your DNA
People with Type O blood were thought to be the earliest humans on earth and were mainly carnivorous cavemen. Type O dates back to the ascendance of the Cro-Magnons and is still the most common blood type in the world. People with Type O blood are thought to have extremely high acid content in the stomach, which enables them to digest protein-heavy foods.
Red meat is the most recommended source of protein for Type O’s followed by chicken and fish. Eggs and dairy are considered to be a poor source of protein for the Type O. Olive oil is the cooking medium of choice but they gain a lot of weight if they eat nuts. They do not digest beans and vegetables well and are allergic or intolerant to wheat or other grains. Vegetables from the cabbage family cause digestive distress for Type O’s, as do melons, cantaloupes and citrus. Corn causes them to become overweight or diabetic. Good fruits for the Type O are plums, and figs and optimum vegetables are the leafy green ones such as kale and spinach.
Type A blood type did not evolve until about 25,000 B.C. These humans were cultivators who mainly thrived on a diet of plants, grains and fish. They were different than the Type O hunters who needed red meat to keep their bodies in optimal working order. The Type A blood human being could convert plant material into protein much easier.
Type As can’t digest meat very well, so soy and fish should be the main sources of protein. Most of them can’t tolerate dairy products at all, only small amounts of yogurt. Type A’s should avoid corn or safflower oils as it raises their cholesterol. Type A’s are big seedeaters and thrive on almonds, walnuts and peanuts. They also tolerate beans and grains well. All vegetables are a crucial part of the Type A diet with the exception of potatoes and peppers which aggravate their digestive system. They can also tolerate any kind of fruit, except persimmons and pomegranates.
Humans with Type B blood did not begin appearing until about 10,0000 B.C. This is one of the best blood types to have, as they are basically the hybrid blood type created by the mixing of both Type A and Type O blood types. This blood type, which is known as the nomads thrives and survives eating just about anything.
Type B’s take well to any kind of protein; except for chicken and that can lower their immune systems. They should also avoid shellfish. Type B is the only blood type that can fully enjoy all dairy products, as the lactose in the milk is the primary sugar that supports their blood nutritionally. They should avoid corn oil and avoid eating nuts and seeds, which can interfere with their blood sugar levels. They should avoid all beans except for kidney or navy beans. Type B’s should avoid wheat and rye, which causes them to gain weight and stick to rice and oats. They should also limit soy. They can eat any vegetable except for the tomato and any fruit except for pineapple
Approximately ten centuries ago, a new, rare blood type emerged called AB. This is the evolution of Type A and Type B bloods through evolution and people with this blood type are thought to have strong immune systems but weak digestive systems.
The primary sources of protein for AB should be seafood and tofu, except they are to avoid the lighter coloured fishes such as halibut and cod and shellfish. Dairy products are not agreeable to this blood type at all can make them very sick with illnesses such a asthma. They are to avoid nuts, which causes gallstones for them. They are usually allergic to wheat and corn. Lentils are an important cancer fighting food for AB’s. They tolerate every vegetable except for the tomato and avoid all tropical fruits and stick to grapes, plums and berries to alkalinise their acidic blood.
For those of you who are interested in pursuing this further please remember to read D’Adamo’s books first and check this plan out with your doctor before embarking on any new diet.
Samantha Steven’s articles have been published in many high-standing newspapers and she has published several books. If you wish to buy Samantha’s books about metaphysics click here http://www.insomniacpress.com/author.php?id=110 You can meet Samantha Stevens at http://www.psychicrealm.com where she works as a professional psychic. You can also read more of her articles at http://www.newagenotebook.com
The Christmas Dress
March 31, 2006
From the time I was a very little girl, I had always loved to watch my big sister, Loretta, when she was sewing. So, one Sunday afternoon while she worked on the red velveteen jumper that was going to be my Christmas outfit, I didn’t want to miss a single thing.
Because it was Sunday and Loretta did not have to go to work at the electric company, she was dressed casually in a white sweater and a pair of periwinkle blue slacks that matched her eyes. Loretta was an assistant bookkeeper at the electric cooperative that supplied electricity to our farm and to many of the rural areas in our county. I could still smell the perfume that she had worn when we went to church that morning. The bottle said it was called Lily of the Valley.
As Loretta spread the fabric on the kitchen table, I stood as close to her as possible, practically breathing down her neck.
When you live on a farm and the next-door neighbors are elderly and no other neighbors live on your mile-long stretch of road with children for you play with, and in fact, no other children live within several miles, what else is there to do on a Sunday afternoon in December except pester your big sister?
"What’s this stuff for again?" I asked, taking a sheet of waxy paper out of an envelope.
"That’s tracing paper," Loretta said. "I use it to make lines so I know where the seams should go."
I picked up the tracing wheel. "And that’s what this is for, right?"
In a way, the tracing wheel reminded me of the spurs worn by all the cowboys in my favorite Westerns on television. I would have given almost anything to be a cowboy.
My sister glanced at me. She was busy pinning the pattern to the fabric.
"Yes. That’s the tracing wheel."
I watched for a moment. "Can I help? Pleeeeease?"
Loretta smiled. "Sure. See how I’ve got the pins put in on this side? You can do the same on the other side."
I happily started pinning the pattern onto the fabric. The pins were the kind with little colored balls of plastic on the end: blue, green, white, yellow and red. Pinning the pattern was easy. Push the pin through the sheer pattern paper and the fabric, and then angle it to come out on top again. Push the pin through the fabric and angle it upwards. Push the pin, angle it up.
Everything went along just fine-for about the first six pins, anyway-until I bumped the pin container and knocked it onto the floor.
I never knew pins would scatter so far when they fell from the kitchen table and hit linoleum.
My sister looked at me, looked at the pins on the floor-and sighed.
After what seemed like a long time, we managed to retrieve all of the pins.
"I’ll just finish this part," Loretta said. "It’ll go faster that way."
Then it was time to cut out the pattern. As my sister expertly wielded the scissors, I couldn’t help but think it looked like tremendous fun.
"Can I do that?"
She paused. "Ummmm-why don’t you find the white tracing paper for me. That would be a big help."
I considered her suggestion.
"How come it has to be white?"
"Because it will show up better on this red fabric."
"But wouldn’t blue be all right?"
I thought the blue paper was very pretty.
"No, the white is fine."
"Yellow?" I asked.
Loretta shook her head.
"Pink?"
"Just get out the white. That’ll be the best."
I pulled the white tracing paper out of the envelope, and then, as Loretta continued to work, I kept right on asking questions: What happens if you don’t pin the pattern? (It won’t stay in place when you cut the fabric.) What’s that funny scissors for? (A pinking shears; it keeps the material from unraveling around the edges.) What are you going to do with the scraps? (Cover the buttons.) And on and on.
Finally Loretta was ready to sew the jumper. She moved into the living room to set up the sewing machine, and as she started to sew, I stood right by her elbow. Since this was going to be my dress, it seemed to me that I ought to keep an eye on the entire operation. And if I was going to keep an eye on things, then I had to ask more questions. Didn’t I?
When Loretta had finished the first seam, she pulled the fabric back?and discovered that her finger was sewn to the dress.
I was horrified.
My mother was disgusted.
"I’ve been sitting here in the living room all afternoon, listening to you," Mom scolded. "It’s no wonder your poor sister ended up sewing her finger to the dress. Your incessant talking is enough to drive anybody crazy."
Loretta finished snipping the thread. "No, no, it’s nothing. See? Just a little bit of skin."
As I watched her pull the thread from her finger, my stomach did a small flip-flop.
"Maybe you’d better clean that up and put a bandage on it," Mom said.
A little while later, with a bandage securely wrapped around her finger, Loretta began to work on my dress again.
"How come??" I said-and then I remembered that I shouldn’t talk.
Loretta paused and looked over at me. "How come what?"
I shook my head. "Nothing."
I watched Loretta sew for a few minutes, and then another question popped into my head.
"What happens if?"
Loretta reached for the scissors and glanced over at me. "What happens if what?"
I shrugged. "Nothing."
Somehow I managed to make it through another five minutes without asking any questions.
After a while, Loretta looked over at me again.
"What’s the matter?" she asked.
I shook my head.
"You’re so quiet, I thought maybe something was wrong."
Loretta looked at me closely. "You’re not mad at me, are you?"
I felt my eyes widen. "Mad at you? Why would I be mad at you?"
She shrugged. "You’re never this quiet."
And without warning, tears filled my eyes. "I’m s-s-sorry I made you sew your finger. I didn’t m-m-mean to?"
Loretta shook her head. "You didn’t make me sew my finger."
"Yes, I did. Mom said."
"No, you didn’t. I always thought it would happen someday. And today just happened to be the day."
For as long as I could remember, Loretta had been making clothes. Sometimes she sewed outfits for me, sometimes for herself, and sometimes for Mom. She even had a couple of skirts she kept in a trunk upstairs that she had made when she was in high school.
Loretta reached for the scissors again. "So, come on. Ask some more questions."
"Why?"
"Because it’s not normal when you’re this quiet. And besides, how are you ever going to learn about anything if you don’t ask questions?"
In the end, Loretta finished the red velveteen jumper without further mishap. I wore the dress for the Christmas programs at school and at Sunday school, and for Christmas day, too, and for school when Christmas vacation was over.
But every time I put the dress on, I thought about Loretta’s finger pierced with red thread. And about how she had said that it wasn’t my fault when I knew, deep in my heart, that it was.
Maybe that’s why I loved her so much. Not because she sewed clothes for me. And not because she wasn’t angry when I spilled pins all over the floor or chattered non-stop when she was trying to concentrate.
But because, no matter what, I knew that my big sister always had time for me.
**********************
(From the book: Christmas in Dairyland - True Stories from a Wisconsin Farm; August 2003; trade paperback; http://ruralroute2.com
About The Author
LeAnn R. Ralph is the author of the book: Christmas in Dairyland (True Stories from a Wisconsin Farm) (trade paperback; August 2003). Share the view from Rural Route 2 and celebrate Christmas during a simpler time. Click here to read sample chapters and other Rural Route 2 stories - http://ruralroute2.com.
Types Of Bedsteads
March 31, 2006
Selection of bedstead is also an important thing as selection of bed mattress. The frame, which provides support to bed, is called bedstead. In a stylish bed room bed plays an important role. Various criteria’s like material used, frame of bed do matter. Generally bedstead is made up of rectangular wooden frame supported by four legs of wood. Wooden slates support bed mattress, which are placed in rectangular wooden frame. Now day’s different verities and shapes are available in bed. Large variety of bedsteads is available as per requirement in online stores. If people do not want to show base of the bed then they use bed skirt to hide the base of bed. Online stores offer all categories of bedsteads as per customer’s requirement.
Iron bedstead-
Iron bedstead becomes very popular because of its aesthetic looks. Iron bases are durable and easy in design. Large variety in design is available in iron beds. Life of iron bedstead is longer than traditional wooden bedsteads. To avoid rusting of iron frames, anti rusting material is used for coating the metal. Iron bedsteads are easy to assemble. Pre assembled iron rods are easy to transport.
Bunk bedstead-
These bedsteads can be used in children’s room. It is also a space problem solving solution. Two beds are assembled in one bedstead. Generally wood is used to make bedstead. Durable and strong wooden frames are required to make bunk bedstead. Iron rods also used in making of bunk bedsteads.
Captain bedstead-
These are also designed for compact space. In captains bedstead drawers and shelves are made in the frame of bedstead. It is designed for storage place. Wood is used to make these bedsteads. Because of drawers and shelves frame become heavier as compare to other frames. More raw materials are required at the time of construction. Trundle bed is the type of captain bed. In trundle bed a smaller bed is stored beneath of main table instead of drawers. Bedstead of trundle bed is made up of iron. Roller coaster is attached to the legs of trundle bed.
Bedstead for Murphy beds-
Murphy beds are the beds, which can fold down in wall. Because of lighter in weight, instead of wood iron metal is used to make frame. These beds hide in wall rob. The frame is designed for standard mattress size.
For more interesting reading about beds visit the authors website at: Bed Articles
