Fireplace Directory

Archive for December, 2009

Merry Christmas From Elvis Presley….

It was Christmas time, and in the local paper there was a short article about an old woman in North Memphis, it was near the area where Elvis lived while he was growing up.

The man and woman were old, black and very poor, they lived in a two-room house with only a tattered curtain dividing the rooms, in the poorest part of Memphis. The old woman had been confined to a wheelchair all her life. She had no legs and her old wheelchair had become worse from age, she wasn’t able to use it anymore and left her unable to move around her home.

The story was written by a charitable woman who knew of the old lady’s circumstances and decided to do what she could, and try to raise enough money to buy the old lady a new wheelchair. When Elvis read the article he turned to Marty Lacker and said, “Moon, take care of it for me. Get her a new chair.” Marty made a call to the phone number which was with the article, and asked the woman who answered the call, if she was still looking for a wheelchair for the crippled woman?

She said, “We are taking donations and will very much appreciate anything you can do.”
Marty then asked how much had already been raised; so far the donations received totaled a little over eighty dollars. Marty explained to the lady, he is acting on behalf of someone who would like to remain anonymous but would like to buy the old woman a new wheelchair.

The lady on the phone said, “Oh, you want to donate some money.”
Marty replied, “No, we want to buy a new chair for her. You take the money that has been raised and give to her. We’ll get the wheelchair.” The lady seemed to be unsure about the caller, until Marty asked for the old woman’s address and reassuring her that they would get the old woman her chair, she then seemed satisfied this call was genuine.

She said to Marty, “You are very kind,” then she offered to pick up the wheelchair and send the bill on to them, he said, no, ma’am. “We will pick the chair up and personally deliver it, there is somebody who wants to do this for the old lady.”
“God will surely bless you and your friend.” She replied.

After getting the elderly woman’s address Marty made another call to a hospital supply company in Memphis, where Marty and one of the other guys found a really nice electric, automatic wheelchair and bought it, put it in the trunk of the car and went back to Graceland to show Elvis the chair before they delivered it to the old woman.

When they got to Graceland, Elvis and Priscilla were dressed to go out.
Marty asked Elvis if he wanted to see the wheelchair before taking to the woman, Elvis answered “Priscilla and I are both going with you.”

Elvis, Priscilla and Marty got into one car and two of the guys followed in a second car, using the second car was normal procedure for security, or in case anything happened to the car Elvis was traveling in. They drove to one of the poorest neighborhoods in Memphis. It was the pits, and they all wondered how people were living like that and yet, most of the guys had begun their lives in little better conditions.

Marty went to the door making sure they were at the right address; an old man let him in.
It was a shock to see what these people lived in, he noticed the newspapers, which were there to try and stop the wind from coming in the windows, there was an old Wood Stove in the middle of the floor. It was the poorest place Marty had ever seen, and the shocking fact was this place was in the city. It was a run down shack, not a house.

Marty explained to the old man three or four times why he was in the neighborhood, even then it’s not certain the old man understood. Then Marty saw the old woman sitting on a wooden chair in the other room, he then told the man he would be right back.

While outside, he told Elvis the old lady was in the house and got the other guys to put the wheelchair together. Elvis carried the chair into the house, with Priscilla, Marty and the others following. Tears welled in everyone’s eyes at the sight of these dear old people during such poverty. Elvis went to the lady and said, “Hello, I came to give you this chair as a gift for Christmas”.

The dear old woman didn’t understand why this white man was in her home to giving her a new wheelchair. She kept looking at the chair and Elvis while he explained and showed her how it should be operated.

Suddenly she seemed to understand this wheelchair is truly a gift to her, then she tried her hardest to get off the wooden chair to her new chair wheelchair, but she struggled and was unable to do so. Elvis then gently picked her up and carefully placed her in her new chair.

As her tears began flowing from her old eyes she cried, “Praise God! God bless you!”
The moment was filled with genuine emotions, with Elvis on one side and Priscilla on the other, sharing this “happy sadness” moment with the old lady.

Even the tough members of the Memphis Mafia couldn’t control the powerful emotions floating in the room; each of the guys came forward and put their arms around the old lady and clasped the old man’s weak hand. The general feeling that surfaced from this special visit was the love felt for the elderly couple, Priscilla and all that were present, but most of all they truly loved Elvis and the sincerity with which he gave his true gift, himself.

Before leaving the couple, Elvis turned to Marty and said, “Look at the way they’re living,” each person involved in the experience felt thankful for what they had.
Elvis then asked Marty to give him a couple of hundred dollars; Elvis then placed two one-hundred-dollar notes in the old woman’s hand wishing her a Merry Christmas.

Elvis gently kissed her, then turned and walked out.

Theresea Hughes
http://www.articlesbase.com/art-and-entertainment-articles/merry-christmas-from-elvis-presley-50047.html

We had our Napoleon gas Fireplace running on Saturday night and after approx. 1-2 hours the glass front exploded and smashed into pieces over the rec room floor. Thank God, no one was hurt. The fireplace is approx. 10 years old. We asked a dealer about it and he said that is is a "B vent unit" which they are trying to ban in Ontario. Has anyone else heard of this?

http://advice.thisoldhouse.com/showthread.php?t=9685

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071210115913AAb7qCP

Now that you have made the decision to have your kitchen cabinets refaced, there will be a few things to remember. After finalizing all the necessary paperwork and specs for your kitchen cabinet refacing remodeling project with the hired contractor and designer, there is still some work you need to do. The remodeling of your kitchen will not take long, usually 3 to 5 days, but this preparation will help the contractor and designer remodeling your kitchen and also help yourself.

Emptying Your Kitchen Cabinets

Start moving the items that you won’t be using in your kitchen about one week before the kitchen cabinet refacing project starts. By the time the project begins, you should have moved most of the items out of the kitchen cabinets. Once the project is finished, be sure to wash all of the dishes before putting them away. Also, while your kitchen is being refaced try to keep all you items far away from the kitchen to prevent dust from getting on them.

Other Kitchen Objects To Consider Removing

Remove any magnets, pictures, and anything on your refrigerator and walls. Although the contractors may end up moving your refrigerator into another room, to prevent any damage to your property it is advisable to move these items. Also, if there is a kitchen table and chairs, you may want to move them into a near by room, this will prevent the contractor from placing heavy objects on them. All plants, or other items on the kitchen window or on the window ledge, should be moved as well.

Contractor Responsibilities and Parking

Your contractor will need an area where debris can be placed temporarily until the project is finished, the contractor will then remove it and take it to a dumping area. Tools such as table saws, miter saws and materials will require space so wood can be cut. Parking will be needed as well. If you have things that might be in their way, your vehicles for example, move them away from their path and move them back when they are gone. This will help your contractors work more comfortably and finish the job sooner. Your contractor should disconnect the stove to prevent it from turning on accidentally, your heating and air conditioning system should also be turned off, this will prevent dust or fumes from going to other rooms. The floors should be covered with protective pads or mats to prevent the floors from breaking or scratching. Finally, all the openings from the kitchen to other rooms should be covered to prevent dust and fumes from getting into the other rooms in the house.

By following the steps above you will help the contractors do a better job in a more comfortable surrounding that you have created for them and as a result a more satisfying finished kitchen remodel. Also, this will prevent any valuable items from breaking, after all, most kitchens are small to begin with!

Tony Bargas
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/kitchen-cabinet-refacing-remodeling-preparation-95659.html

I ran out of money during our new renovation of our family room. I wanted a Fireplace but now I can’t afford one. We have a beautiful little one that we use on the patio. Could I bring that one in and use it if we keep the windows open while it’s lit?

As long as it’s not too cold outside and you only burn candles in it. It should be quite pretty. You could save for a real one next Christmas so Santa has some way to get in the house.

I’ve got a gas Fireplace. I shut off the pilot light for the summer and now it works, but not as well as it did last winter. Sometimes it makes a high-pitched sound, and rarely does the flame get up to the height it should.

Turn the gas valve off and get out the vacuum and wand attachment. Make sure the pilot light went out and with a long brush and vacuum clean out the burner. Hopefully this will do the trick. If the pilot is low there is a small screw on the line from the gas valve to the pilot light, this is an adjustment screw to raise or lower the flame. Make sure the valve is fully open when you start it up again

DuraTech Class-A Chimney System 8″x18″ – Talk about innovation – DuraTech sets a whole new standard in quality, design, and performance for chimney systems. Using a compressed blanket insulation, DuraTech keeps the outer wall of the Chimney cool while ensuring high flue gas temperatures for optimum draft performance. Encased between dual walls of stainless steel, Thermal Tech blanket insulation is locked into position. This eliminates hot spots common with loose fill type insulation’’s. No sifting,

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The Uniflame Copper Accented Outdoor Fireplace can turn any patio, deck, or backyard into a cozy, outdoor living room. The Uniflame Copper Accented Outdoor Fireplace gives off enough heat to provide warmth on even the chilliest nights, while the durable

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Pellet StoveThe NPS45 amalgamates Napoleon?s superior pellet performance with the convenience of complete automation. The NPS45 has a purge cycle which automatically cleans the burn pot of residue at start-up, shutdown and every 60 minutes, substantially reducing the frequency of cleaning cycles. For maximum comfort, the NPS45 allows for convection blower adjustments, no matter what the heat setting is at Flashing light warns you when fuel is expended Fine-tuning adjustment modifies combustion air and/or pellet feed rate to the burn pot to compensate for poor quality pellets and/or venting variances Purge cycle (on start-up, shutdown and every 60 minutes) cleans the burn pot of residue depositing it in the ash pan From 8,000 to 40,000 BTU s (may vary depending on pellet quality) Concealed, large capacity ash pan FAILSAFE- auto ignition and auger system allows you to start the fire quickly and easily Large 55 lb, easy-loading hopper for up to 55 hours of continuous, trouble free operation (55lb capacity allows for a full 40lb bag of pellets to be added while 15lbs still remain in the hopper, eliminating the inconvenience of partial bags) Easy to access, automated control panel 3″ or 4″ pellet vent A Napoleon Go Green environmentally friendly product: pellet fuel is a renewable resource Certified for bedrooms, bathrooms, bed sitting rooms and mobile homes President?s Limited Lifetime Warranty

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Rutland Chimfex Fire Suppressant Toss In Stick For Wood Stoves – Case of 8 is indispensable as the first line of defense for controlling fires that occur from creosote build-up in Chimneys

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Just plug in and relax! Our electric fireplace is completely vent-free and requires no hookups. It features a 1,500W heater that uses a whisper-quiet fan to disperse warm air evenly, producing up to 4,600 BTU/hr.- enough to heat 400 square feet. The realistic flame pattern has a brightness control for day or night viewing and operates independently of the heater, for when you want the ambience of flickering flames without the heat. Classically designed fireplace is crafted from solid wood with wood veneers and is easy to assemble. Remote control for added convenience. Size: 42″ x 29″ x 40″H. Found in Home Furnishings , Home Decor , Decorative Accessories , Fireplace Sets

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