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If you are new to shopping garage and estate sales, flea markets and thrift stores you might benefit from some expert advice.  It is important to plan your day so that you can score the best deals and find some great treasures.  Some tips include: researching and planning your route, leave early and price negotiations.  There are number of things to be learned from experts that will help your search be more enjoyable and fruitful.

If you are already an avid junker, bargain shopper, or a weekly hunter, shopping at garage, estate, thrift and flea-market sales is familiar territory. You probably already are sharp on your skills and pretty organized for some successful buys.

But it wasn’t until I accompanied someone else who planned a recent thrift buying trip that I realized she did not really know how to plan the day so we could score some good deals. I was not in my own territory, so I was not in a position to take control. It was a very baffling and exasperating day for me with very little success.

With that being said, here are some thrift-shopping tips . .  . Continue Reading

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A blast from the past can be found in the Blue Moon Antique Mall, a phone booth.  Something that used to be common all over towns is now a rare find that kids these days have never seen.  The piece was restore by the shop owner and is now an attraction people come in to the store to see and take pictures in.  The shop owners were contacted by the show “Auction Kings” and will be featured in a coming episode.

Moving items around at the Blue Moon Antique Mall is all in a days work. Vintage furniture comes with the territory too.  Last year, just as the store was getting its start in Warner Robins, operations manager Dennis Howdeshell picked up items from an estate.

Among those items was an old phone booth that dates back to 1966.

“It was covered in dirt and ants, end pieces and cattywampus… We didn’t even know all the parts were there,” said Blue Moon owner Cheryl Romich.

Over time Howdeshell was able to bring the vintage item back to life. . . Continue Reading

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This month marks 100 years since the flooding of 1913 in Dayton, Ohio and surrounding areas.  The days of flooding were filled with chaos and urgency as everyone tried to get to just stay alive.  Flood waters were so high many residents were being rescued by boat out of second story windows or roofs. When the waters subsided Ohio was quick to make sure that never happened again building flood control dams and rechanneling the river.

The weather is crazy.

You might think we have it bad with an icy Palm Sunday, but think back 100 years and you will feel pretty lucky today.

On this day, March 25 in 1913, the Mad River crested at its highest flood level in recorded history.

Along Buck Creek, flooding in Springfield forced people to be evacuated, and many had to be rescued off roofs or out of second-floor windows. . . Continue Reading

Find out more about crawl space encapsulation and how it can protect your home in a flood.

Mold was found in Mason County Sheriff’s Office and Jail.  The basement of the office and two cells have been closed off due and will not be reopened until mitigation and cleaning has taken place.  No airborne mold spores have been found throughout the building.  The county board approved actions for cleaning and hiring a contractor to develop specifications for the rehabilitation.

The county board Tuesday approved action that may lead to the removal of black mold from the Mason County Sheriff’s Office and Mason County Jail.

The board also approved an action that could lead to the cleaning of the sheriff’s office/jail air duct system.

The actions were to hire an architect to develop specifications for rehabilitation of the sheriff’s office and jail, including the mold problem. . . Continue Reading

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The severe drought in the Midwest is causing more problems than previously expected.  It is causing higher levels of radon to seep into homes.  When the water levels fall it speeds up the radium decay causing more radon plus the drought is causing cracks in foundations or walls along that radon gas in.  Radon cannot be seen or smelt but is a dangerous, cancer causing pollutant that should be mitigated from your home if high levels are present.

The drought in the midwest could be causing an unhealthy amount of radon gas to seep into your home, putting you and your family at risk of lung cancer. While that may sound overly dramatic, experts say it is a real concern.

Craig Istas said he was shocked how much radon was in his home.

“I built this house 20 years ago,” Istas said, “I’ve been breathing this stuff for 20 years, so yeah I got concerned about it.” . . . Continue Reading

Information available about foundation repair Westchester, NY here.

The workers’ compensation system is designed to protect all employees and their families from financial ruin in the event of a serious or long term injury on the job.  We often think of workers compensation in terms of people who do hazardous job such as heavy equipment operators or mining or logging however more often than not it is the average worker that does an office job or a delivery truck driver etc that is hurt on the job.  This year there are a number of bills before the state Legislature that would lessen the benefits of workers compensation and threaten the protection it offers.

UNLESS you’re self-employed, you’re probably covered by our state’s workers’ compensation program. It affects pretty much anyone who brings home a paycheck.

Still, a serious injury on the job is something many of us never have to worry about. When we think of injured workers, we tend to think of loggers and heavy-equipment operators and other hazardous jobs.

But the ranks of injured employees include everyday office employees: the guy whose back goes out after lifting too many boxes of copy paper; the secretary who can no longer click a computer mouse because of a repetitive-stress injury; or the delivery guy who shatters a hip slipping on a patch of ice. We’re talking about software designers, pizza twirlers, supermarket cashiers. . . Continue Reading

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Buildings or materials soaked for more than 48 hours are considered to be contaminated with mold.  Moldy indoor environments cause upper respiratory tract symptoms, wheezing, coughing and asthma symptoms and allergic reactions.  Homes flooded by Hurricane Sandy are flourishing with mold and causing homeowners trying to build more problems.

Superstorm Sandy left a wake of destruction when it swept through the East Coast late last year, causing widespread flooding, power outages and wind damage.

While the floodwaters have subsided and power has been restored, many of those affected by the storm are still struggling to rebuild their homes and lives. For some, that challenge has proven to be more difficult by the presence of mold, which is flourishing in homes that never sufficiently dried out or remain vacant and unheated.

Beverly residents Sanaa Hachem and David McClain said they understand the plight of East Coast residents who are forced to rip out floorboards and walls to rid their homes of mold. The couple recently purchased a home on the 10300 block of South Seeley Avenue that they said is uninhabitable because it is contaminated with aspergillus, a genus of mold with several species known to cause disease and infection in humans. . .  Continue Reading

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More and more American workers are taking advantage or workplace wellness programs.  They say they have more energy and motivation to work harder and perform better.  In an economic time when businesses are stretched thin and looking at all costs a wellness program is employee benefit that keeps a positive working environment which could be well work the costs incurred.

More American workers recognize the rewards of participating in workplace wellness programs, according to the latest survey from Principal Financial. Sixty-two percent of workers, up from 55% in 2011, believe workplace wellness activities are successful in improving health and reducing health risks.

By taking advantage of workplace wellness offerings, American employees are approaching their work with more energy and motivation. Fifty-one percent of respondents feel wellness benefits encourage them to work harder and perform better, and another 59% of program participants say they have more energy to be productive at work as a result of their participation in employer-sponsored wellness programs.

“As wellness programs become more established in the workplace, we are seeing a growing number of employees appreciate – and expect – that their employer offers these benefits,” says Lee Dukes, president of Principal Wellness Company, a subsidiary of the Principal Financial Group. “In the wake of the financial crisis, which has left many companies stretched thin, maintaining a productive workforce is a priority for organizations.” . . . Continue Reading

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One in 15 American homes contains a high level of a dangerous cancer causing gas, radon.  Radon is a naturally occurring, colorless, odorless gas that can seep into your home and get trapped.  Testing kits are available at a low cost and are simple to use.  If high levels of radon are present mitigation is possible to lower the risk.

National Radon Action Month is ending, but that doesn’t mean people should forget about radon safety.

Radon is a radioactive, colorless, odorless gas and naturally occurs as a product of uranium or thorium as those elements decay.

“It’s not a big problem (for Carbon County),” said Bridget Hettgar, Wyoming Public Health manager for Carbon County. “I don’t know of any areas that have been labeled high-end radon.” . . . Continue Reading

Protect your home from radon with mitigation.

The Workers Compensation Appeals Board denied the case of a professional football player citing they did not have jurisdiction in that particular case.  The football player played for the Arizona Cardinals and had a contract stating that all workers’ compensation claims need to be handled in Arizona.  However, he filed a claim in California stating he had played 7 out of 80 games in the state as well as attended a training camp there.  It was deemed that this was not enough contact with the state and that his contract was the final word in where this case should be addressed.

The Workers Compensation Appeals Board has issued a decision in what can best be called a niche case involving professional sports, specifically professional football.

In McKinley v. Arizona Cardinals, the WCAB has issued an en banc decision specifically declining to exercise jurisdiction over the applicants workers compensation claim for injuries alleged to have been sustained during his career as a professional football player on a cumulative basis. This case addresses a couple of issues in what has become a cottage industry in the State of California of filing workers compensation claims for employees who have tenuous connections with California but sufficient contacts that the state has the ability to make findings of injury particularly on a cumulative trauma basis and award benefits.

Dennis McKinley played football from 1999 through 2003 for the Arizona Cardinals. During his career approximately half of his games were played in Arizona and the other half were played in other jurisdictions, including a total of seven (out of his career 80 games) in California. The applicant also testified he participated in a training camp for five days during that four-year period of employment in California. Mr. McKinley, during the time he played for the Cardinals, resided in Arizona and regularly performed most of his work duties in that state where the team not only played but also practiced. . .  Continue Reading

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