Ken Herman|Austin American-Statesman

An email with a good opening line is sure to capture my attention. Heres a recent one:

Howdy Herman. This is the bull sperm muralist with another idea for an article.

I like a good mural. And Im always looking for good ideas to write about. And, though Im not an expert, I have reason to believe bull sperm somehow is important in the bovine cycle of life.

The electronic missive came from Tom Besson, an artist I wrote about in 2017 when he completed a fabulous mural celebrating the history of Elgin Breeding Service, a Central Texas business that collects and sells frozen bull semen.

Thats right. Frozen bull semen. You got a problem with that? You think you can get frozen bull semen via Amazon? I typed in frozen bull semen and the first four results were for a masters thesis about Norwegian Red Bull semen, flea pills for dogs, an energy drink and a box of staples.

But Besson didnt want to talk about frozen bull semen. Pity. He wanted to talk about the festive holiday season.

My family and I have a 40-plus-year history of painting Christmas windows at Austins car dealers, Besson, who also goes by Snap P, told me. It started in the mid-70s when many car dealers were in downtown Austin and no one had to beg that we keep Austin weird because that was its natural state.

Weird, yes. And often unbound by traditional notions of taste and standards. Oh, Snap P, please do regale us with tales of car dealer holiday art of yesteryear.

The bean counters had not yet overtaken the world and the sales managers had a free hand, he said, recalling a downtown dealership that was OK with Bessons interpretation of a band of hippies dancing around a bonfire whose flames became a 20-foot-tall dancing naked woman.

Yes, that says festive holiday season. To somebody.

At a truck dealer, Besson, 69, once painted a New Years artwork featuring an outgoing-year grim reaper that was so scary they had to call me to change it because the grade-school kids on the bus started crying when they rode by.

Yes, what says festive holiday season more than crying kids on a school bus?

Thats all in the past, Besson said as he fondly recalled the last of the halcyon days of hippie Austin and cheap rent.

I recently caught up with him as he, with wife Beth Rolingson and son Pascha, were doing the windows at Leif Johnson Ford on East Koenig Lane. Fairly standard holiday fare was going up there, but Besson fondly remembered when lots of unstandard holiday fare went up on the windows.

It just depended on the personality of the sales manager and general manager, he said. Back in the old days, those people had more freedom to do what they wanted. Austin was a weird city. They accepted strange things.

Maybe even expected them, especially when Besson was hired. From his website bio: My work is born of some strange marriage of Paganism and Roman Catholicism, substituting the juxtaposition of evil and good with the mundane and the inspirational.

Reality, it says, comes with such limitations.

So true.

Besson says he generally doesnt get specific painting orders from his customers. Wife Beth immediately recalled that the problem with Christmas windows sometimes is Christmas. As youve perhaps heard, the word has become somewhat controversial. Besson told me that last year they had to scrape Merry Christmas off the window of a customer who didnt think it was a good idea.

You also can go wrong by excluding Christmas.

Someone came up to us telling us she was offended by our message, Besson reports. We had painted Happy Holidays and she said we were taking Christ out of Christmas. I gave her a little history of Christianity usurping the pagan holidays but this failed to appease her.

Surprising.

Images also cause controversy. Rolingson recalled a window on which they painted gnomes headed to a bonfire and carrying lit torches.

So,Besson said, youve got these torches in their hands and youve got this 10-foot figure and the people say, What in the hell are those torches for? Thats not very Christmasy. So you think, Damn, I dont want to have to scrape that stuff off. So, quickly, theyre holding bells!

Some customers offer general instructions on whether they prefer religious or secular.

I tell them, Well, if I put anything religious up there its so damn pagan nobody will recognize it anyway, Besson said.

Later that day, he sent me another email, this one devoid of frozen bull semen references. I read it anyway.

Do we do what we want or ask the client what they want? Besson wrote. For the most part we do what we want but across the years we have learned what we will be asked to scrape off and repaint.

A few years back, he painted what he called a beautiful winter scene with snow cranes on a winter lake on the windows of a Japanese vehicle dealership.

We were told it wouldn't do as it looked too Japanese, he said. It was scraped and repainted into the more mundane, resisting a mischievous notion to replace it with a Pearl Harbor scene. That would have been wrong.

Though it wasn't a Christmas window, Besson told me of another painting, one of our saddest scrape and repaints was a kneeling 10-foot Jimi Hendrix with his guitar aflame and with the hand of God passing him a joint from the heavens.

This years whimsical, yet pandemic-appropriate offerings include one on a medical facility showing a stethoscope-wielding nurse/angel.

Despite having to learn to live with periodic rejection, Besson enjoys window art.

Like most artists, I enjoy working at a large scale but find that large-scale work is hard to sell and very hard to store, he told me. Window work, which lies somewhere between art and cartooning, allows me to draw big and get paid for it. And the whole family gets to color for a living, at least for awhile.

And, because some things and people in Austin still are weird, sometimes the family gets to color outside the lines. No bull.

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Herman: 40 years of painting holiday decorations on windows - Austin American-Statesman

SINGAPORE - There were 49 cases of fallen windows across Singapore from January to November this year, but no one was injured, said the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) on Friday (Dec 11).

The majority of them, 32 cases, involved casement windows, while 16 were fallen sliding windows, and one case of louvre windows.

"There were no injuries from the cases reported," said the BCA in a press release.

The agency said investigations showed that the key causes of fallen casement windows included windows that were found fitted with aluminium rivets which had corroded.

"Corrosion compromises the strength of the rivets, rendering it unable to hold the casement window panels firmly in place," said BCA.

Since 2004, BCA has been issuing retrofitting orders requiring home owners to replace all aluminium rivets with stainless steel ones.

Home owners can be fined up to $5,000 and jailed up to six monthsfor failing to carry out the replacements.

For sliding windows, a key cause is the lack of proper safety stoppers and angle strips to keep the window panels within the tracks, said BCA.

"Sliding window panels without these safety features in place detached and fell when homeowners applied excessive outward force in opening or closing the windows," BCA explained.

It added that home owners should ensure that the safety features are in place, and also replace any worn-out ones.

If a window falls due to lack of maintenance, home owners can be fined up to $10,000, jailed up to one year, or both, said the agency.

Since 2006, 378 people have been fined and 92 people were prosecuted for fallen windows, said BCA.

BCA's facade engineering and technology department director, Mr Lee Chee Weye, said: "Over the past few years, the number of fallen window cases we see yearly remains at about 50 cases. While there has not been an increase in numbers, there has also not been any improvement.

"The risk of injury from falling windows is high and is not a trivial matter. All home owners and occupants can play a part to mitigate this risk by checking and maintaining their windows regularly. Together, we can keep our community safe."

BCA added thathome owners can prevent falling windows by checking and maintaining their windows at least once every six months.

For casement windows, check that fasteners are not rusty or loose, and clean and oil the joints or moving parts. All aluminium rivets should also be changed to stainless steel ones by an approved window contractor.

For sliding windows, check that safety stoppers and angle strips are in their proper places, and change those that are worn out. The tracks also have to be cleaned so that window panels can slide smoothly.

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49 cases of fallen windows reported in first 11 months of 2020 but no injuries: BCA - The Straits Times

Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is one of 178 trusts nationwide set to receive a share of 600m to tackle their maintenance backlogs.

It will get 1,515,000 to spend on 25 projects, covering critical maintenance and improvement works.

Outdated ventilation plant and controls at Thomas Linacre Centre will be replaced and water systems at Wigan Infirmary and Wrightington Hospital will be upgraded.

Leaking flat roofs at Wrightington Hospital, Wigan Infirmary and Thomas Linacre Centre will be replaced, and a trust-wide window replacement programme will start at Wrightington and Leigh Infirmary.

Other work includes a new boiler plant at Wrightington, improved cafe at Wigan, and a fire alarm and emergency lighting upgrade at Leigh.

Medical gas systems plants will also be replaced at all sites.

David Evans, the trusts director of estates and facilities, said: I am delighted that the Government has recognised the importance of additional investment to help us address the on-going condition backlog issues across the trusts estate.

The NHS estate is both extensive and complex with many of our buildings and engineering services being built and installed many years ago.

Ongoing investment in the estate is critical in ensuring compliant, high quality and reliable facilities for our clinical teams to treat patients and the continued commitment to fund these critical maintenance and improvement works is welcomed.

The national investment is part of 1.5 billion capital funding announced in the summer, which includes plans to modernise mental health facilities, expand A&E capacity and improve infection control ahead of winter.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: Alongside delivering on our manifesto commitment to build 40 new hospitals and 20 major hospital upgrades across the country, this investment will help our NHS build back better.

These crucial maintenance projects will deliver immediate benefits and provide NHS staff with the facilities they need to provide world-class care to their patients this winter, helping ensure the NHS is always there for you when you need it.

Thanks for reading. If you value what we do and are able to support us, a digital subscription is just 1 for your first month. Try us today by clicking here

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Trust reveals how 1.5m fund to improve Wigan's hospitals will be spent - Wigan Today

SINGAPORE: There were 49 cases of fallen windows across Singapore between January and November this year, the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) said in a joint media release with the Housing and Development Board (HDB) on Friday (Dec 11).

Thirty-two of these involved casement windows,or windows with a side that is hinged to a frame.

Sixteen cases were of fallen sliding windows, while the remaining incident involvedlouvre windows or those with horizontal panels.

No injuries were reported from these incidents, said the agencies.

The number of cases reported in the first 11 months of this year is not far from the 51 incidents in the whole of 2019.

Over the past few years, the number of fallen window cases we see yearly remains at about 50 cases.While there has not been an increase in numbers, there has also not been any improvement," saidBCAs director of facade engineering and technology departmentLee Chee Weye.

BCA said the key causes of fallen casement windows included corrosion in aluminium rivets in casement window fittings."Corrosion compromises the strength of the rivets, rendering it unable to hold the casement window panels firmly in place," said the agency.

Since 2004,a retrofitting order issued by BCA requireshome owners to replace all aluminium rivets in casement windows with stainless steel ones.

In the case of fallen sliding windows, investigations showed that there was a lack of proper safety stoppers and angle strips to keep panels within the tracks.

"Sliding window panels without these safety features in place detached and fell when homeowners applied excessive outward force in opening or closing the windows," BCA added.

Home owners can face a penalty of up to S$5,000 and/or a jail term of up to six months for failing to replace all aluminium rivets in casement windows with stainless steel ones.

In cases of fallen windows due to lack of maintenance, home owners can face a fine of up to S$10,000 and/or a jail term of up to a year.

Since 2006, 378 people have been fined and 92 people prosecuted for fallen windows, noted the authorities.

"The risk of injury from falling windows is high and is not a trivial matter," the agencies said, adding that home owners and occupants should check and maintain their windows regularly.

Read more:
49 cases of fallen windows in the first 11 months of this year - CNA

ALBANY -- Congregation Beth Emeths biggest sanctuary has seven floor-to-ceiling stained glass windows, cascades of hundreds of hues of blue dramatically symbolizing the cosmos, skies and oceans during Creation. Floating in the abstract colors are realistic and detailed stained glass scenes of men, women and children celebrating holy days and worshipping. Those scenes were rescued from Temple Beth Emeths 19th century building on Swan and Lancaster Streets.

International authority on stained glass art, Robert Sowers, worked to incorporate those highly detailed human stained glass scenes into the towering blue, green, purple and white abstract designs. The building was dedicated in 1957 and has optimistic, midcentury modern elements like swooping, curved roofs, lots of light and glass.

Even on a gray snowy afternoon, the stained glass shimmers with light.

The realistic scenes are vibrant against the blue background. A beautiful woman gleaning golden sheaves from a field of grain smiles down at visitors.

Yes, thats Ruth from the Bible, an old window from the previous building explains synagogue maintenance director Steve Squires.

He explains that when the old windows included the names of the people depicted, those names were removed before the smaller windows were incorporated into the abstract cosmic windows.

Now, without names, we can see them just humans, just people who are part of all Creation, he adds.

Squires has worked for the synagogue for 30 years and knows all about the treasures it holds.

One of the most fascinating is the Torah scroll displayed in the lobbys glass case. It belonged to Czechoslovakian synagogue but was stolen by the Nazis for Hitlers museum curators. Squires explains that Hitler dreamed of building a Jewish Museum that would showcase the art, religion and culture of an entire population he was determined to murder.

He had curators who kept meticulous records of each object that would go into the museum, said Squires, who remembered that when the Torah scroll was rescued and given to Beth Emeth the tag written by the Nazi curator was inside the box with the scroll.

He leads visitors into a nearby Wolk Hall (named after Rabbi Samuel Wolk, who sadly died right before the 100 Academy Road buildings dedication) where three Tiffany windows sparkle in the darkness. Three wooden doors leading outside were removed and replaced by the Tiffany windows that fill the door frames. One window depicts a life-sized Moses. Visitors have the odd sensation of standing a couple of feet from and eye-to-eye with Moses. His red and burgundy robe and the greenish blue gems surrounding him have the rich pigments that helped make Tiffany famous.

Squires says a Metropolitan Museum of Art researcher came to Beth Emeth to examine the three windows. But she was more astonished by a sample of Tiffanys fabric art owned by Beth Emeth. Its also displayed in a glass case: a silky Torah cover in a shade deep rose with Hebrew words embroidered on it. The researcher said examples of Tiffany's fabric art were rare.

A lot of people dont know that Tiffany made robes, prayer shawls and Torah covers for synagogues, Squires says.

A hall table is loaded with Hanukkah gift bags and little sacks packed with gelt (chocolate coins wrapped in gold foil). Most of the celebrations will be via Zoom but at 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec.13, there will be a drive-up Menorah lighting worshippers can enjoy safe and warm in their cars.

Just down the hall, a group portrait of the greatest Jewish baseball heroes crowded in front of one dugoutand most of them autographed their portraits. Sandy Koufax and his signature are front and center. Even better, the artist painted the portrait of every person who bought the work of art into the stands. movie director Rob Reiner and talk show legend Larry King are among the famous buyers painted into the stands. They autographed the painting hanging in Beth Emeth.

The synagogue also has striking sculptures outside the building. But Beth Emeth education director Shara Siegfeld, who looks forward to giving tours of the synagogue when the pandemic ends, says the stained glass windows seem to have an especially powerful impact on visitors.

"When all the sunlight is streaming through, the sensory experience is amazing," she says.

In this pandemic year, when so many have lost loved ones, the Creation windows stir the emotions. Those small windows showing nameless humans set against the vast, blue cascade of Creation remind visitors of how brief one individual life is in the thousands of years before and after one person's birth and death. Yet, as Siegfeld points out, the feeling inspired is somehow reassuring because the small, human scenes are so brightly luminous.

In one, two children and a rabbi gaze at candles burning with orange flames surrounded by gold haloes. In another, a stained glass portrait of three men in prayer shawls, their expressions are so vivid. Its the same expression the children have.

Its awe, says Siegfeld - the awe at how valuable an individual life can be, even if its just one fragment in a huge creation.

View original post here:
Temple's stained glass shimmers with light and history - Times Union

KANSAS CITY, Mo. Danielle Benson is eternally grateful her life was spared on Thanksgiving, after the minivan she was in got caught in the crossfire of a late-night shooting outside the Troost Market.

"I was praying that I don't get shot," Benson said Tuesday. "I couldn't even get down there because my seat was too far up."

Benson's son and brother were still inside the convenience store when the gunfire stopped. It would eventually cost a man his life and this mother of eight children lost her own way of getting around.

"We got to get to the store and during this Corona[virus pandemic], we can't ask people for rides," Benson said. "We have to literally pay out of pocket to ask people to take us to the store."

But that might soon change.

"She was in the wrong place; wrong time," Jean Peters Baker, Jackson County, Missouri, prosecutor, said.

Peters Baker's office is working to raise money to replace Benson's minivan through a GoFundMe campaign.

"While we can replace doors and windows, we can replace tires, sometimes we cannot replace vehicles," Baker said, referring to the Caring for Crime Survivors program created in 2018. "So thats why were asking for others to help us, even in small amounts, to help us get there."

Other members of the community also are stepping up.

A KCPD spokesperson told 41 Action News they have identified a person of interest in this case. As detectives search for the suspected killer, the departments social workers are helping Benson's family.

"I know a lot of people say stuff about the police, but just seeing how they helped me in this situation I know all of them [are] not bad," Benson said.

The prosecutor's office, with the help of community members, launched the GoFundMe campaign Wednesday afternoon.

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KC mother of 8 loses minivan in shooting; prosecutor seeks donations to replace it - KSHB

By Monica Laliberte, WRAL executive producer/5 on Your Side reporter

While landscape re-dos, painting and organizing are typically among the most popular home projects, there are a few chores you should see to regularly to keep your family safe.

Start in your laundry room. The washer and dryer are workhorses that need attention to keep from causing you a flood, or worse, fire.

According to the National Fire Protection Association, dryers spark nearly 17,000 fires each year. So at least once a year, vacuum and clean out the air duct and port in the back of the dryer.

Cleaning the lint out of your dryer can actually help the appliance run more efficiently and dry better and cleaning the duct work in particular can help prevent dryer fire, says Paul Hope with Consumer Reports.

Next, check the water hoses on the back of your washer. They should be replaced every five years. If they look brittle, swap them out with a braided, stainless steel version.

Check all doors for loose hinges and tighten screws.

If they just spin, try this contractor tip: Remove the screw and coat two to three toothpicks with wood glue, then push them into the screw hole. Break off the ends that stick out. Once it dries, tighten your screw back in.

In the bathroom, unclog the shower head by soaking it in distilled vinegar for an hour.

For grimy grout and caulk, try a bleach pen.

"If you find that bleach doesnt get out all the stubborn stains from your bathroom, it may be time to re-caulk or even re-grout between the tiles. Caulking is an easy job you can do yourself in an hour or two. While re-grouting between tiles is usually a job best left to the pros, said Hope.

Finally, clean the windows. Choose a cloudy day. Full sun could increase streaks, so can using an ammonia-based cleaner.

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Homeowners: You need to replace this every 5 years - WRAL.com

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The "Tempered Glass Market: Global Industry Trends, Share, Size, Growth, Opportunity and Forecast 2020-2025" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The global tempered glass market grew at a CAGR of 6% during 2014-2019. Looking forward, the global tempered glass market to be negatively impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. From 2021 onwards, we expect the market to recover and grow moderately during 2021-2025

Tempered glass refers to a type of safety glass that is treated by tempering to impart high durability and strength. The tempering process, involving thermal or chemical treatments, compresses the glass surface, thereby reducing the risks of breakage. Tempered glass is more efficient than the conventional annealed glass in terms of heat resistivity, design versatility, lightweight, scratch resistance, and tensile strength.

Owing to these benefits, it has diverse applications across various sectors, including consumer electronics, automobile, home furnishing, construction, etc. Rapid digitalization coupled with the increasing penetration of smart consumer electronics such as, smartphones, laptops, tablets, etc., is primarily driving the demand for tempered glass.

Furthermore, the increasing awareness towards several structural properties such as durability, thermal shock resistance, tensile strength, etc. has catalyzed the product demand in the automotive and electronic sectors. In addition to this, rapid development in the construction industry has led to the increasing utilization of tempered glass as a durable building material in doors, windows, facades, skylights, etc.

Both developed and developing economies are experiencing high demand for tempered glass owing to the rising construction activities including smart housing projects and increasing demand for smart consumer electronics. Rapid urbanization and rising government expenditure on infrastructural development is also contributing to the escalating market growth in these regions.

Furthermore, remodeling activities across these markets have also led to the replacement of traditional glass with tempered glass in both residential and commercial infrastructures.

Moreover, the rising usage of tempered glass for automobile manufacturing, owing to its lightweight and high strength is further catalyzing the market growth.

Key Questions Answered in This Report:

Key Topics Covered:

1 Preface

2 Scope and Methodology

2.1 Objectives of the Study

2.2 Stakeholders

2.3 Data Sources

2.4 Market Estimation

2.5 Forecasting Methodology

3 Executive Summary

4 Introduction

4.1 Overview

4.2 Key Industry Trends

5 Global Tempered Glass Market

5.1 Market Overview

5.2 Market Performance

5.3 Impact of Covid-19

5.4 Market Forecast

6 Market Breakup by Type

6.1 Plain Glass

6.2 Coloured Glass

7 Market Breakup by Shape

7.1 Flat Tempered Glass

7.2 Bent tempered Glass

8 Market Breakup by Application

8.1 Construction

8.1.1 Market Trends

8.1.2 Major Types

8.1.2.1 Residential

8.1.2.2 Commercial

8.1.2.3 Industrial

8.1.3 Market Forecast

8.2 Automotive

8.2.1 Market Trends

8.2.2 Major Types

8.2.2.1 Rear Window

8.2.2.2 Slide Window

8.2.3 Market Forecast

8.3 Home Appliances

8.3.1 Market Trends

8.3.2 Major Types

8.3.2.1 Refrigerators

8.3.2.2 Washing Machine

8.3.2.3 Microwave and Oven

8.3.3 Market Forecast

8.4 Gadgets

8.4.1 Market Trends

8.4.2 Major Types

8.4.2.1 Smartphones

8.4.2.2 Tablets

8.4.2.3 Laptop and Computers

8.4.3 Market Forecast

8.5 Others

9 Market Breakup by Region

10 SWOT Analysis

10.1 Overview

10.2 Strengths

10.3 Weaknesses

10.4 Opportunities

10.5 Threats

11 Value Chain Analysis

12 Porters Five Forces Analysis

12.1 Overview

12.2 Bargaining Power of Buyers

12.3 Bargaining Power of Suppliers

12.4 Degree of Competition

12.5 Threat of New Entrants

12.6 Threat of Substitutes

13 Competitive Landscape

13.1 Market Structure

13.2 Key Players

13.3 Profiles of Key Players

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/fs73lb

The rest is here:
Global Tempered Glass Market Report 2020: Industry Trends, Share, Size, Growth, Opportunity and Forecasts 2014-2019 & 2020-2025 -...

Listen and subscribe to The Argument from your mobile device:

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As part of our series The 46th, the hosts and guests on The Argument are debating what America under a Biden administration might and should look like.

This week, Ross Douthat is joined first by Jane Coaston, formerly of The Weeds, and future host of The Argument. Together they discuss the reasons for widespread theories of voter fraud among the Republican electorate and what led to such a moment. Then, the senior elections analyst of Real Clear Politics, Sean Trende, joins the pair to discuss the future of Trumpism and whether anybody else can capture the Republican Party quite like Donald Trump. And finally, Jane recommends building your character and your calf muscles.

How to listen to The Argument:

Press play or read the transcript (found by midday Friday above the center teal eye) at the top of this page, or tune in on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, Stitcher or your preferred podcast listening app. Tell us what you think at argument@nytimes.com.

Ive been an Op-Ed columnist since 2009, and I write about politics, religion, pop culture, sociology and the places where they intersect. Im a Catholic and a conservative, in that order, which means that Im against abortion and critical of the sexual revolution, but I tend to agree with liberals that the Republican Party is too friendly to the rich. I was against Donald Trump in 2016 for reasons specific to Donald Trump, but in general I think the populist movements in Europe and America have legitimate grievances and I often prefer the populists to the reasonable elites. Ive written books about Harvard, the G.O.P., American Christianity and Pope Francis, and decadence. Benedict XVI was my favorite pope. I review movies for National Review and have strong opinions about many prestige television shows. I have four small children, three girls and a boy, and live in New Haven with my wife. @DouthatNYT

The Argument is a production of The New York Times Opinion section. The team includes Alison Bruzek, Phoebe Lett, Elisa Gutierrez, Vishakha Darbha, Kathy Tu, Kate Sinclair, Paula Szuchman and Isaac Jones. Special thanks to Corey Schreppel and Michelle Harris. Theme by Allison Leyton-Brown.

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The 46th: Who Will Replace Trump in the G.O.P.s Heart? - The New York Times

Lindus Construction Owner Andy Lindus was on the show to discuss simple, inexpensive ways to winterize your home.

It's been a nice run Minnesota, but winter is always around the corner.

Lindus Construction Owner Andy Lindus was on the show to discuss simple, inexpensive ways to winterize your home.

She provided the following project ideas:

A Tube of Window Caulk (About $10)

Use this to seal up any spots inside the window frame that allow air to get in. Or, use it in areas where existing caulk has hardened and is breaking away. Be sure to remove the old caulk first. Also make sure to buy 100% silicone caulk as it is waterproof, flexible, shrink-proof and will last over 20 years.

Also, be aware if youre putting lipstick on a pig when it comes to your windows. Sometimes replacement is worth it and windows can be installed even in the dead of winter.

Socket Sealers (24 for less than $3)

This is such an easy, cheap fix that can make a difference. You simply screw off the socket plate, place these socket sealers over the outlet and then screw the outlet plate back in place. (But, before you do that, just feel the draft that comes in once the socket plate is off the outlet!)

Door Draft Stopper (About $10)

This is a simple way to stop those dreaded under-the-door drafts. Just peel of and stick.

Hot Water Pipe Covers (25 ft for $10)

Another quick and easy task. These foam insulators fit snug around your hot water pipes to keep them warm in a cold basement and therefore, saving energy.

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Quick and easy home winterization tips - KARE11.com