Never too early to plan for next winter

April 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Winter’s over. Are you enjoying the warm days of spring and forgetting the winter woes? It’s never too early to correct that which plagued you during the cold months.
Steps can be taken to weatherize your home. Many older homes have windows and doors that are not air tight and allow chilly drafts. Spring is a good time to get estimates on replacement windows and make a decision.
The IRS allows income tax credits on replacement windows, heating and cooling systems up to a total of $1,500.
Most modern heating and systems, whether gas, electric or fuel-oil fed, are designed for energy efficiency. If you are considering updates, lists of eligible tax credits can be found at the Internal Revenue Web site.
How about problems with pipes freezing in crawl spaces? There are ways to avoid the big expense of replacing broken water pipes. Heat tapes and additional insulation will do the trick in most cases. Decide what you need, buy it soon, have it installed or do it yourself on a warm summer day.

One creative solution is to relocate problem pipes to a heated area of the house. Since air is warmer near ceilings, it makes sense to locate them there. A decorative enclosure may be constructed from finished one-by-four lumber and made to match the room’s decor. Fastening the enclosure with wood screws rather than nails allows access to pipes for any future repairs.
Another innovation in plumbing is a plastic pipe known as Pex, a semi-rigid conduit connected with crimped brass fittings.
So plan to button up your home this summer. If you get a jump-start on Old Man Winter, he won’t get the upper hand when it’s cold outside.

Filed Under: Seasonal, Travel Tagged With: ,

After all these years, Santa still reigns

December 3, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Santa has been with us for hundreds of years, but has not one extra wrinkle on his face.

He loves kids and loves his reindeer, which makes him special. He’s industrious. There at the North Pole, it is said that he and his elves work tirelessly to fulfill children’s Christmas wishes.

Santa Claus symbolizes the holiday season like nothing else. The Christmas tree is a symbol of the season, but Santa Claus personifies the season in a way that trees cannot.

His image is not related to any church or country, so he can cross cultural and religious lines. It places him in a unique position for the entire season rather than for Christmas alone.

He’s not just for kids. Adults enjoy his red-suited presence in stores, and his image on Christmas cards and in decorations. His is a sweet, loving image in a world where those qualities are sometimes hard to find.

Christmas grouches say the Santa is a lie that should not be told to children. But young ones add a few years of knowledge and intuition, they know the gifts are from Mom and Dad.

At this point, wise parents explain that Santa symbolizes the spirit of good will and giving at holiday time.

If history is a reliable predictor, Santa will be alive for centuries to come.

Filed Under: Seasonal Tagged With: ,

Facts for Thanksgiving Day 2010

November 24, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Thanksgiving 2010

In the fall of 1621, the Pilgrims, early settlers of Plymouth Colony, held a three-day feast to celebrate a bountiful harvest, an event many regard as the nation’s first Thanksgiving. Historians have also recorded ceremonies of thanks among other groups of European settlers in North America, including British colonists in Virginia in 1619. The legacy of thanks and the feast have survived the centuries, as the event became a national holiday in 1863 when President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday of November as a national day of thanksgiving. Later, President Franklin Roosevelt clarified that Thanksgiving should always be celebrated on the fourth Thursday of the month to encourage earlier holiday shopping, never on the occasional fifth Thursday.

242 million

The number of turkeys expected to be raised in the United States in 2010. That’s down 2 percent from the number raised during 2009. The turkeys produced in 2009 together weighed 7.1 billion pounds and were valued at $3.6 billion. Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service <http://www.nass.usda.gov/>

Weighing in With a Menu of Culinary Delights

47 million

The preliminary estimate of turkeys Minnesota expected to raise in 2010. The Gopher State was tops in turkey production, followed by North Carolina (31.0 million), Arkansas (28.0 million), Missouri (17.5 million), Indiana (16.0 million) and Virginia (15.5 million). These six states together would probably account for about two-thirds of U.S. turkeys produced in 2010.

735 million pounds

The forecast for U.S. cranberry production in 2010. Wisconsin is expected to lead all states in the production of cranberries, with 435 million pounds, followed by Massachusetts (195 million). New Jersey, Oregon and Washington are also expected to have substantial production, ranging from 14 million to 53 million pounds.

1.9 billion pounds

The total weight of sweet potatoes — another popular Thanksgiving side dish — produced by major sweet potato producing states in 2009. North Carolina (940 million pounds) produced more sweet potatoes than any other state. It was followed by California (592 million pounds) and Louisiana (162 million pounds).

931 million pounds

Total production of pumpkins produced in the major pumpkin-producing states in 2009. Illinois led the country by producing 429 million pounds of the vined orange gourd. Pumpkin patches in California and Ohio also provided lots of pumpkins: Each state produced at least 100 million pounds. The value of all pumpkins produced by major pumpkin-producing states was $103 million.

If you prefer cherry pie, you will be pleased to learn that the nation’s forecasted tart cherry production for 2010 totals 195 million pounds, albeit 46 percent below 2009′s forecasted total. Of this 2010 total, the overwhelming majority (140 million) will be produced in Michigan.

2.2 billion bushels

The total volume of wheat — the essential ingredient of bread, rolls and pie crust — produced in the United States in 2010. North Dakota and Kansas accounted for 33 percent of the nation’s wheat production.

736,680 tons

The 2010 contracted production of snap (green) beans in major snap (green) bean-producing states. Of this total, Wisconsin led all states (326,900 tons). Many Americans consider green bean casserole a traditional Thanksgiving dish.
Source: The previous data came from the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service <http://www.nass.usda.gov/>.

$7.3 million

The value of U.S. imports of live turkeys from January through July of 2010 — 99.1 percent from Canada. When it comes to sweet potatoes, the Dominican Republic was the source of 62.1 percent ($3.4 million) of total imports ($5.5 million). The United States ran a $3.9 million trade deficit in live turkeys during the period but had a surplus of $31.5 million in sweet potatoes.
Source: Foreign Trade Statistics <http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/>.

13.8 pounds

The quantity of turkey consumed by the typical American in 2007, with no doubt a hearty helping devoured at Thanksgiving time. Per capita sweet potato consumption was 5.2 pounds.
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture as cited in the Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2010, Tables 212-213 <http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/>.

The Turkey Industry

$3.6 billion

The value of turkeys shipped in 2002. Arkansas led the way in turkey shipments, with $581.5 million, followed by Virginia ($544.2 million) and North Carolina ($453 million). In 2002, poultry businesses with a primary product of turkey totaled 35 establishments, employing about 17,000 people.
Source: Poultry Processing: 2002 <http://www.census.gov/prod/ec02/ec0231i311615.pdf>

$4.1 billion

Forecast 2010 receipts to farmers from turkey sales. This exceeds the total receipts from sales of products such as barley, oats, sorghum (combined) and peanuts.
Source: USDA Economic Research Service <http://www.ers.usda.gov/Data/farmincome/finfidmu.htm>

The Price is Right

$1.33

Retail cost per pound of a frozen whole turkey in December 2008.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics as cited in the Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2010, Table 717 <http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/>

Where to Feast

3

Number of places in the United States named after the holiday’s traditional main course. Turkey, Texas, was the most populous in 2009, with 445 residents, followed by Turkey Creek, La. (362) and Turkey, N.C. (272). There are also nine townships around the country named Turkey, three in Kansas.
Source: Population estimates <http://factfinder.census.gov/> <http://www.census.gov/popest/cities/cities.html>

5

Number of places and townships in the United States that are named Cranberry or some spelling variation of the red, acidic berry (e.g., Cranbury, N.J.), a popular side dish at Thanksgiving. Cranberry township (Butler County), Pa., was the most populous of these places in 2009, with 27,560 residents. Cranberry township (Venango County), Pa., was next (6,774).
Source: Population estimates <http://factfinder.census.gov/> <http://www.census.gov/popest/cities/cities.html>

28

Number of places in the United States named Plymouth, as in Plymouth Rock, the landing site of the first Pilgrims. Plymouth, Minn., is the most populous, with 72,849 residents in 2009; Plymouth, Mass., had 56,842. There is just one township in the United States named “Pilgrim.” Located in Dade County, Mo., its population was 126 in 2009. And then there is Mayflower, Ark., whose population was 2,257 in 2009.
Source: Population estimates <http://factfinder.census.gov/> <http://www.census.gov/popest/cities/cities.html>

117 million

Number of households across the nation — all potential gathering places for people to celebrate the holiday.
Source: Families and Living Arrangements: 2009 <http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/hh-fam/cps2009.html>

Filed Under: Seasonal Tagged With: , ,

A Thanksgiving Day story

November 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Thanksgiving Day storyThe story of Three Sisters and the pilgrims’ survival

When the pilgrims landed on the shores of America, they were ill equipped to live off the land. Without the aid of the Indians, they might have perished before they built a settlement.

Part of their survival training was the Indians teaching them the secrets of the Three Sisters, a collective name for corn, beans and squash.

The Indians planted these crops in one mound. The corn provided the ladder for the beans to grow and the beans returned nitrogen to the soil. The squash plants provided the shade that held precious moisture in the ground.

The origin of the name “Three Sisters” is told in many different legends. One tells of an Indian medicine woman with three feuding daughters. She asked the Creator for help. In a dream, she saw each sister as a different seed that she planted in one mound so each could help the other.

In the morning, she cooked an egg for her daughters, but fixed them differently. She told her daughters they were as different as each egg but that they were loved. The daughters began to celebrate their differences, the feuding stopped, and from then on the Native people planted the three crops together.

The first Thanksgiving, in 1621 at Plymouth, Mass., was both a thanksgiving for the harvest and a thank you to the Wampanoag Indians who had given of their knowledge to help the colonists.

But this was not the first thanksgiving held in America. Each year, Native Americans such as the Pueblo, Cherokee and Creek celebrated harvest time and a bountiful crop.

And the tradition goes on as we too give thanks for our blessings and celebrate as so many others did in the past.

Filed Under: Food, Seasonal Tagged With: , ,

History of Veterans Day

November 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

veterans dayEmporia, Kansas, declared the founding city

Veterans Day began its existence as Armistice Day, honoring those who served in World War I. But a shoe repairman in Emporia, Kansas, Al King, led a drive to honor all servicemen including those who served in war and in peace. King had been too young to serve in World War I, although it is said he did try to join the Navy near the end of the war but he was only 15.

King had been actively involved with American War Dads during World War II. He and his wife, Gertrude, helped raise their young nephew, John Cooper. Cooper, who served as part of the Third U.S. Army in Germany, was killed in action on Dec. 20, 1944. That started AlÕs quest.

The Emporia Chamber of Commerce backed King after determining that 90 percent of Emporia merchants and the Board of Education supported closing their doors on Nov. 11. King was named general chairman of an All Veterans Day Committee that included representatives from VFW, American Legion, War Dads and AMVETS. King also contacted a U.S. Representative from Emporia, Ed Rees, to help him with his idea. President Eisenhower signed the bill that established Veterans Day as a national holiday.

The first Veterans Day was held on Nov. 11, 1954.On Oct. 31, 2003, Congress declared Emporia the Official Founding City of Veterans Day.

Though Veterans Day was once moved to the 4th Monday in November, the official celebration is again Nov. 11. It is often filled with parades and galas. The veterans celebrate joyfully.

What matters most is the honor given to those who have served their country through good times and bad. They truly make this the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Filed Under: Seasonal Tagged With:
« Older Posts