Plumb Smart Inc - August 2020

the

AUGUST 2020

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Learning How Much I Don’t Know About Painting on Canvas

You can pick new hobbies for any reason—or no reason at all. In fact, there’s a whole holiday that celebrates doing just that: August 27 is National Just Because Day. A few years ago, I started painting on canvas, just because I found that I enjoyed it. I never would have guessed just howmuch time and effort I would put into trying to become a better painter, but to this day, I’m glad that I started. I got my first painting supplies after reading that painting is a good way to develop your imagination. The author of that blog wasn’t talking about actually working to become good at painting, just about buying a cheap set of

I have a client who’s a professional painter. He paints still lifes of wine bottles and wine glasses for wineries and tasting halls, and he makes thousands of dollars for each painting. He’s been very successful doing this, so I’ve picked his brain a little bit about what it’s like to paint for a living. One thing he told me is that it’s easy to romanticize painting when it’s a hobby, but when it’s how you make your living, it’s your job. It becomes work. Now, I’m not saying I would ever try to make a living as a painter, but hearing the perspective

watercolors and dabbling them on some paper. Initially, I just wanted to find ways to get more creative with my plumbing business. Soon after

I started, though, I found that I actually just really liked painting. So, I decided to start doing it for fun.

“I’ve always had a bit of a creative spark, and painting is a great outlet for that. I’m looking forward to learning … that I have more to learn.”

Since then, if I’ve learned anything about painting, it’s that there’s always a lot more to learn. After I worked with watercolors for a little while, I

tried painting with acrylics. After that, I moved on to oil painting, and that’s what I’ve been working with lately. I pored over dozens of YouTube videos to learn different techniques for makingmy paintings look realistic. I learned how to start by painting the horizon on landscapes (which is most of what I paint). Mixing gray with

of someone who’s been a painter for far longer than I have was certainly an eye-opening view of what a hobby can become for some people. I’ve always had a bit of a creative spark, and painting is a great outlet for that. I’m looking forward to learning because I know I have more to learn. One of these days, I might even try to get myself a booth at the next county festival to try and sell some of the stuff I’ve made. For now, though, I’m just having fun playing around with a hobby. And all things considered, I’ve gotten a lot more out of it than I initially expected the first time my paintbrush touched the canvas.

the colors used in the background creates a sense of depth. I’ve even learned that there’s some math involved with getting your perspective just right —and

–Pa u l Little

all of that from the tip of a paintbrush!

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Your ‘Clean’ Workout Routine TURN HOUSEHOLD CHORES INTO EFFECTIVE EXERCISE

Everyone knows how labor-intensive cleaning can be. A long day of scrubbing down your house is a great way to work your muscles and get your blood pumping, so crank up some tunes, grab a mop, and get ready to transform your cleaning routine into a great workout. To get physical benefits from cleaning, you need to turn up the intensity of your methods. Exaggerate your motions, pick up your pace, and keep your abs tight and knees flexed. Nearly any chore can be turned into an exercise, but here are some ideas to get you started. • Vacuum: Vacuum briskly nonstop for at least 20 minutes, switching arms as you go. For an added challenge, do lunges as you vacuum and remember to keep your toes pointed straight ahead and your knees bent at 90-degree angles.

legs, not your back. You can also do squats while unloading the dishwasher or with any other chore that involves repeated bending.

• Wipe Down: Whether you’re wiping windows or scrubbing appliances, do big, exaggerated arm circles until your muscles start to burn and make sure you’re switching arms as you go. • Cook: It’s not cleaning, but it’s still a chore with useful downtime. While food is simmering or thawing in the microwave, do some pushups, situps, or planks to get your muscles moving. You can implement dozens of exercises to turn mundane activities into beneficial workouts. Some chores will burn more calories than others, but every bit of activity helps. Now’s the time to work your way to a cleaner house and a healthier you.

• Pick Up: Instead of simply bending over to pick up toys or clothes, do a squat with every item you grab. Remember to use your

HOW TO AVOID AND FIX CLOGGED DRAINS SAVING YOU TIME AND MONEY

Let’s talk about drain care — specifically, how to avoid clogging them. While clogged drains are sometimes unavoidable, you can do a few things to prevent backups. We’ll start in the bathroom. The first thing you can do to avoid clogged drains is never flush any material other than toilet paper. Don’t flush paper towels, feminine products, or “flushable” wipes, even if they say flushable on the packaging. They’re flushable in the same way that marbles, monopoly money, or phone chargers are flushable. They might fit down your drain, but they will still clog your pipes. Let’s move on to the kitchen sink and the garbage disposal. Garbage disposals are useful, but they’re not magic, and they’re certainly not garbage cans. If you regularly dump half a plate of food in your kitchen sink, try dumping it in your blender or food processor sometime. Run it for a few seconds and look at the food. That’s what you’re letting sit in your drain. Don’t dump rice, pasta, potato skins, or any food that expands on contact with water, as that can cause major clogs in your pipes. Instead, scrape all solids into the trash. Whatever residue is left on the plate is safe to rinse into the disposal. When you’re done, turn the water to hot, run the disposal for 10 seconds, and then continue to run hot water through it for 10 more seconds after you turn it off.

This will ensure that nothing is left in the disposal.

Sometimes, however, you can’t avoid clogged drains. Hair builds up in sinks and showers, and over long periods of time, food residue can build up in kitchen pipes. When this happens, don’t use a chemical

drain cleaner. Aside from the hazards of working with incredibly corrosive chemicals, they often don’t fix the issue and can damage the drain. Instead, try clearing the blockage manually with a drain snake or look for an alternative treatment. We use Bio-clean, a bacterial compound that eats organic matter without damaging the pipe.

As always, if you find yourself in doubt, you can give us a call or book an appointment online. Stay safe, stay well, and stay Plumb Smart!

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WORD SEARCH

PEACH AND ARUGULA PASTA SALAD

Camping Fair Firepit Friendship

Peridot Poppy Rafting School

Sundae Thunderstorm Virgo Watermelon

Inspiredby AmbitiousKitchen.com

SUDOKU

Nothing says summer like a pasta salad filled with your favorite fresh fruits and vegetables, and this combination is the perfect way to cap off a warm summer day!

Ingredients

• • • • • • •

8 oz penne or fusilli pasta

•

2 large fresh peaches, diced or sliced 1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced 1 pint heirloom cherry tomatoes, halved

2 tbsp olive oil

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

•

1/2 tsp sea salt Pepper, to taste 2 tbsp lemon juice

•

3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

• •

1 cup corn

6 cups arugula, packed

Directions

1. In a large pot of boiling water, cook pasta for approximately 9 minutes or until al dente. Drain pasta and place in a separate bowl. 2. In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Drizzle the dressing over the pasta and toss with the feta cheese. 3. Add peaches, red onions, tomatoes, corn, and arugula to the pasta mixture. Lightly toss to mix well. Add more olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper to taste.

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Learning How Much I Don’t Know 1

Exercise Your Way to a Clean Home

How to Avoid and Fix Clogged Drains 2

Peach and Arugula Pasta Salad

Take a Break! 3

3 Organization Tools for Stress-Free Mornings 4

Turn Your Entryway Into a Command Center

“Has anyone seen my backpack?”

mounted coat rack is a great workaround. Install the rack close to the floor and have your kids hang their shoes on the hooks when they come in.

“Dad, did you sign my permission slip?”

“Mom, I can’t find my shoes!”

To your battle stations, everyone! Make sure each member of your

This is the household anthem heard on school mornings across the United States — a chaotic rush of tracking down shoes, throwing together lunches, and racing to the bus stop. What if there were a stress-free way to make sure everyone in your family had everything they needed to walk out the door each morning? Believe it or not, it’s possible! And it all starts with turning your home’s entryway into an organized command center. Get hooked on coat racks. Building an entryway command center starts with coat racks. You should have enough hooks for every member of your family to hang their jackets, backpacks, and purses. It’s also good to have some extra hooks just in case. Get your family in the habit of hanging their belongings in the entryway rather than trailing them through the house. Create a clever shoe solution. Keeping your shoes by the door ensures that on busy mornings, the left shoe isn’t in the bedroom while the right shoe somehow ended up in the playroom. However, shoes can quickly pile up into a mess of their own. If there’s space in your entryway, cubbies or labeled storage bins are a great solution to make sure each kid has a designated spot for their shoes. If you don’t have storage space by the door, a wall-

family has a designated spot to put their belongings in the command center, including you. Sure, you might not have homework to keep track of, but what about your keys? Your parent battle station can include a bowl for keys, a tray for new mail, and a calendar to help you monitor your weekly schedule at a glance.

Organizing your entryway won’t magically make school mornings stress-

free unless you consistently utilize the system. Kids will need to build the habits of leaving their shoes by the door and returning their backpacks to the hooks after they do their homework. So stick to the plan, be patient, and take it one day at a time.

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