Design Awards Ceremony Pencils In Famed Architect
It’s not often that awards ceremonies are open - or of interest - to the general public. But the Robert Fraser Memorial Masonry Design Awards next week could be an exception.
The guest speaker for the Thursday night event, Hugh Newell Jacobsen, is an internationally known architect and recipient of more than 100 design awards. The talk is at 7:30 p.m. at the Masonic Temple second-floor ballroom, 1108 W. Riverside. It’s free and open to the public.
Be careful: About 150,000 people head for hospital emergency rooms each year with injuries sustained while doing some type of home improvement, according to the Hand Tools Institute.
Many injuries could be prevented by using the proper tools and safety goggles. The most common mistake is using tools to do jobs for which they are not made, such as prying or punching objects with screwdrivers, assuming plastic-covered pliers are protection from electrical current or striking a chisel with a claw hammer. For more information on using tools safely, consult the information desk at your home improvement center, or write the Hand Tools Institute, 25 North Broadway, Tarrytown, NY 10591.
Follow the guidelines: When decorating for the holidays, it’s easy to suspend some of the safety rules we normally follow. Christmas lights end up too near the drapes or lights approved only for indoor use somehow end up out on the eves.
The Underwriters Laboratories has prepared a booklet, available for free, which outlines safety tips for happy holidays. For a copy of “Decorating for a Safe and Happy Holiday Season,” write UL, 333 Pfingsten Road, Northbrook, IL 60062-2096.
Just wondering: Those curious about how long new home appliances can be expected to last should check out these statistics from Appliance magazine: Dishwashers, gas water heaters and food disposers have an average life expectancy of nine years; electric dryers and washers, 13 years; gas dryers, 14 years; freezers, 12 years; microwave ovens, room air conditioners and water heaters, 10 years; electric ranges and refrigerators, 15 years; gas ranges and gas furnaces, 18 years. , DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo