juan0505

http:// http://www.tootoo.com/w-Furniture_Furnishings/buy- Bar_Furniture /src_product/ Like so many small mom-and-pop places,Po’s Dumpling Bar got its start around a kitchentable. For years friends and family raved aboutHuei Ying Ow’s cooking and encouraged her to open a placeof her own. Truth be told, she was a lousy cook when they married30 years ago, says her husband, Po Kang Hwang. But his father tookOw under his tutelage and successfully taught her to cook familydishes. After the kids were grown and gone and,according to Hwang, the couple “had nothing else todo,” they opened their own restaurant in the former Circespace on 39th Street. The space still looks like Circe —press-tinned ceilings, modern furniture and retro Americansoundtrack — but the food is clearlyAsian. The menu is an ambitious mix of standardChinese dishes familiar to Americans — think cashewchicken and sweet and sour chicken — and more authenticdishes from their native Taiwan. And while Ow runs the kitchen,Hwang, a gentle-faced man with a perpetual smile, works the diningroom and teaches diners about the authenticity of hiswife’s dishes and ingredients. Whatsets Po’s apart from many other run-of-the-mill Chineserestaurants is the variety of the sauces; instead of aone-sauce-fits-all mentality, each dish had its own distinctflavors. Many sauces, like the plum sauce served on the lettucewraps and kung pao chicken, were made from scratch. Seasonings andsauces were light but potent: lots of scallions, ginger and garlic,for example Instead of the typical moon-shapeddumplings, the Emperor dumpling appetizer was cigar-shaped,pan-fried wonton wrappers stuffed with a delicate pork and scallionfilling. For the lettuce wraps, Ow spooned finely chopped chickenand crunchy vegetables into three iceberg lettuce cups, served witha thick, smoky-sweet plum sauce. Both appetizers were subtler, morerefined tasting than many other dumplings and wraps I’vehad. Po’s also serves several kinds ofdim sum, small servings of fried or steamed dumplings and bunstraditionally served only on weekends in many Chinese restaurants.The cha su buns were pillowy, steamed dough balls filled with bitesof pork sauced in a Chinese-style barbecue sauce. The shu-mai porkdumplings — crinkled, one-bite, minced pork fillednuggets — were steamed in a bamboo steamer on cabbageleaves. Like the other appetizers, they were tender and exotictasting. During two dinners, my party of fourmostly ordered authentic entrees. The sesame sauce noodles werelong, thick, knobby wheat noodles dressed with a soy-based dressingand served with a small cup of crumbled pork and sesame paste sauceto pour on top the noodles. Hwang explained later that Ow makes herown eggless, wheat flour noodles almost daily with an Italian pastamachine. The kung pao chicken was just the sortof offering that showed off the kitchen’s ability tocraft a well-seasoned, flavorful dish without overloading it withgeneric, commercial sauces. A heap of vegetables, cubes of chickenand whole red chili peppers mingled in a woodsy, housemade plumsauce. Hwang’s eyes lit up when Iordered the mao po tofu, cubes of cushiony tofu in a fiery saucedotted with chili pepper flakes. But the prettiest and tastiestdish was the sautéed shrimp with soybean peas.Custard-tender, flamingo pink shrimp was coated in a white sauce ofwhite pepper, garlic, ginger and cooking wine and dotted withspring-green edamame. Although the restaurant hasa full bar, I wanted to try some of Po’s loose leaf teasand bubble teas instead. The Taiwanese and Chinese tea leaves,including a fragrant Jasmine Dragon Pearl and the King 103 teaenhanced with ginseng, are served in three-part teacups. The tea isspooned into an infuser; the lid of the cup serves as a cozy forthe infuser. The potent leaves can be brewed up to three times,simply by adding more hot water to the cup.
2008-06-20 16:29:03

http:// http://www.tootoo.com/w-Furniture_Furnishings/buy- Bedroom_Furniture /src_product/ The Furniture Choices store on Sycamore Dairy Road is going out ofbusiness after more than 30 years in Fayetteville. The owner, Gary Regan, said he is retiring. But he also describesthe economic climate as the worst he has seen for furnitureretailers. Soaring gas prices, inflation on the grocery aisles andthe sagging economy have hit certain retailers hard. “Furniture stores, out of all retail, have been hurt the most— even more than automobiles,” said Regan, who is 62.“It’s a luxury item.” He believes there will be more stores struggling to stay open. “I’m not by myself,” Regan said.“I’ve never seen the furniture business as bad as it isnow.” Regan is selling everything — from his remaining stock ofliving room suites to the buildings themselves at 3756 SycamoreDairy Road. He also owns a building behind the store, which housesCoastal Carpets and Interiors Inc.; the sale is contingent on thenew owner honoring a rental agreement with that store. Furniture Choices is open today through Saturday for a continuationof its liquidation sale. The hours are 10 a.m. to 7p.m.; untileverything is gone. The store sells finished and unfinished furniture, includingentertainment centers, bedroom furniture, dining room tables andchairs, accent pieces and lamps. Regan said he has mixed feelings about his pending retirement. Healso owns stores in Winston-Salem and High Point, which havealready closed. A home office in Greensboro will shut down once theFayetteville store is gone. “Fayetteville was a great store,” Regan said.“I’ve had a wonderful, wonderful opportunity to workwith employees that were friends to me.” One of his employees has been with him 31 years, he said. Othershave worked for the company for 20 years. Debbie Graham, the Fayetteville store manager, said customers haveexpressed sadness and disappointment over the impending closure. Some customers say they feel as if they are “losing theirbest friend,” said Graham, who is also the store’sbuyer and designer. “They are talking about the furniturestore.” 2008-06-20 16:28:12

http:// http://www.tootoo.com/w-Furniture_Furnishings/buy- Glass_Furniture /src_product/ Don't refinish your furniture. Original finish adds to the value.This warning is given over and over on TV shows about antiques. Butis it always true? No. An original finish on a superior example of an 18th, 19th oreven 20th-century piece of furniture should add value. But becausewell-to-do Victorian housewives had their furniture touched up andpolished every few years, many pieces now have finishes that, whilenot original, are more than 100 years old. If you have a piece with such a bad finish it would look out ofplace in a home, it could be refinished and gain in value. Sometimes a refinished piece sells for a high price because it isso rare or decorative. At a Rago Craftsman auction in New Jersey, aGustav Stickley trapezoidal tall-case clock just sold for $32,500.The catalog description said it had a "skinned finish." That's aslang term meaning the original finish was scraped off and a newfinish was added. Oak Arts and Crafts furniture was out of fashion from about 1920 tothe 1980s. When collectors started buying it again, they wantedattractive furniture with a perfect finish. A few dealers sandedoff the original scarred and darkened finish -- "skinned" the piece-- then applied a new finish that very closely resembled the oldone. Experts can spot these skinned pieces, but few novices will noticethe difference. The clock was so rare that even with the announcednew finish, it sold for a high price. But it was below the pre-saleestimate. I have a green glass vase 6 inches high by 4 inches in diameter.It's marked "Hoosier Glass" on the bottom. Have you ever heard ofthis maker? Glass flower vases marked "Hoosier Glass" were first made in 1979by Syndicate Sales Inc. of Kokomo, Ind. Hoosier Glass was a utilityline sold to commercial florists. The vases sell today for $5 to$15 each. Lately, we have seen more interest in this glass amongcollectors. Syndicate Sales is still in business, still makescommercial glass for florists and still lists Hoosier Glass amongits trademarks and product lines. My mother left me a 30-piece set of "winter scene" figures. Shemarked the box they are in "valuable." The small figures, mostunder 2 inches tall, are flat, lead and painted. Many of thefigures are skiers, skaters and sleigh riders, and they're allwearing winter clothing. There are also trees and streetlamps. Theword "Germany" is embossed on the base of the larger pieces. Wewould appreciate any information you can give us about the figures. Collectors call "2-dimensional" lead figures like yours "flatbacks." The first of these were toy soldiers and saints made by16th-century German tinsmiths. The molds used to make the figureswere simple -- two slabs of slate, one engraved with the figure'sright side or front and the other with its left side or back. Leadwas eventually added to the tin to lower the cost of the figuresand to make a smoother liquid metal. By the middle of the 19th century, flat German tin soldiers werebeing exported to the United States. Standing sets of flat-backfigures like yours on a mirror or sheet of cotton created a winterscene. They became popular during the 20th century, and Germanmanufacturers still dominated the market. A set of 30 figures made right before World War II sold a few yearsago for $175. That set was marketed in the United States by aNorwalk, Conn., company called Art Craft Products. Sets continuedto be imported from West Germany into the 1980s, but the newerfigures are lighter in weight and the painted clothing and featuresare less detailed. My niece inherited a dining-room table from her grandmother. It hasa label that says "Alliance Furniture Co., Jamestown, N.Y." Couldyou give me some information on the company? The tabletop needssome work. Would refinishing hurt the value?
2008-06-20 16:27:34

http:// http://www.tootoo.com/w-Furniture_Furnishings/buy- Kitchen_Furniture /src_product/ Have you ever looked at your file cabinet and thought that spacewas just wasted? After all, it could be holding cold sodas andsushi, thanks to Marvel Industries' refrigerator drawers. Keep thefridge under wraps with overlay doors or go for the sleek stainlesssteel look or various color choices. An extra deep lower drawerlets you store 2-liter soda bottles and opened bottles of wine. Itcomes in several widths, so you can find something to fit any roomin the house. But why limit yourself? The Outdoor series lets you toss out coldbeers to go alongside the hot steaks fresh off the grill.Weather-resistant doors protect your food from the sun, and frontventing lets you mount the unit in an outdoor grill center. Discreet touch controls let you set the ideal temperature for yourfood. Marvel's drawers use a Sentry System refrigeration monitor,which predicts the contents temperature based on demand and adjuststhe temperature to keep your food just right. Should theunthinkable happen and cause a temperature change, you'll knowright away via visual and audible alarms. Kosher consumers (and anyone with a bad hangover) will appreciatethe built-in, user-activated Sabbath mode, which disables alldisplays, alarms, and lights and sets the compressor to cycle onand off randomly. Only one small problem: If I do replace my file cabinet with thisdrawer, I may never leave my chair again.
2008-06-20 16:26:30

Washing Enzyme Thieves stole copper pipes from some vacant buildingsand from the high school football locker rooms, according toreports from the Blairsville Borough police. The former Vale Tech campus buildings along West Market Street, nowowned by Michael LaMantia, were stripped of $2,000 worth of pipesand $2,600 worth of specialty power tools between June 1 andMonday. LaMantia said the thieves stole new copper pipes that workersplanned to install, a load of old pipes that were bound forrecycling and some pipes that still were in the walls. Missing tools include a Partner cut saw worth $1,000; a saw bladevalued at $300; a DeWalt sliding miter saw valued at $1,000 andseveral hand tools estimated at $300.
2008-06-12 09:48:41

Washing Enzyme The robbery attempt happened about 1:30 p.m. in Oakwood Estates inthe 900 block of 21st Street East, according to Manatee Countysheriff's reports. The victim, a Plant City resident, was selling ice cream from a carwhen two men confronted him, authorities said. Witnesses say themen demanded cash. The victim does not speak English and did not understand thedemands, authorities said. The man with the gun pointed it at theice cream vendor, who fought the robber. Both men ran off. Therewere no injuries. Man faces charge in drive-by shooting BRADENTON -- Police this week arrested a 24-year-old man on anattempted murder charge in connection with a drive-by shooting thatinjured two people. Carlos Jurado is accused in a May 11 shooting in the 400 block of10th Avenue East. Police say Jurado opened fire shortly before 3a.m. The victims, George Gutierrez, 27, and Vanessa Diaz, 22, sustainednonfatal injuries, police said. Gutierrez was shot in his abdomen. A bullet tore into Diaz's shoulder, according to police reports.Gutierrez reportedly identified the shooter, saying he saw theman's face through a car window that was rolled down, according toreports. Deputies arrest man after 6-minute chase PALMETTO -- Sheriff's deputies arrested a 22-year-old man lateMonday following a six-minute pursuit of a stolen vehicle. Authorities said they saw Christopher Owen, 22, driving a stolenBuick sport utility vehicle about 11:15 p.m. The pursuit traveledthroughout Palmetto between 8th Avenue West and U.S. 41. Deputies said the chase ended in the 300 block of 22nd Street Westwhen Owen abandoned the vehicle and ran into a wooded area. Therewere no injuries. Authorities said they found Owen smoking a cigarette in the woods. He was arrested on charges that included grand theft of a vehicleand aggravated fleeing to elude. Sheriff's deputies said Owen doesnot have a valid driver's license. Owen is on conditional release from jail on a theft chargeinvolving the same victim's vehicle, according to sheriff'sreports. Shots fired at house, but no one injured MANATEE COUNTY -- A 62-year-old homeowner was asleep late Mondaywhen someone shot five rounds toward his house, sheriff's deputiessaid. The shooting happened about 9:55 p.m. in the 700 block of 59thAvenue Terrace West.Witnesses told sheriff's deputies that thedriver of a pickup truck shut his truck's lights off and drove downthe street. Someone in the vehicle fired and a bullet pierced thevictim's car. No one was injured.
2008-06-12 09:48:32

Washing Enzyme Frustrated with the rising cost of produce at grocery stores andfarmers' markets, more first-time vegetable growers are putting outhome gardens this year. As a consequence, Mike Green of Green's Feed & Seed on PiedmontRoad has been answering a lot of questions. The rookies want to know what to plant, how deep to plant, whatfertilizer to use, how often to water, what seeds grow andgerminate quickly, and what's easy to grow. "I tell them soil preparation is most important and then tryto answer their other questions as best I can," he said. The store sold out of bush beans and several types of sweet cornseeds earlier this spring. Green said they sold more chicks around Easter time than everbefore. "Maybe they didn't want to pay the high prices foreggs," he said. At F.M. Pile Hardware on the West Side to M-M Feed and Seed inClendenin, people have been buying more vegetable plants and seedsthis year than ever before. "We've seen greater sales of seeds and plants this year butyou have to remember that last year was a very dry year," saidSandy Pile, who along with her husband Bill own F.M. Pile Hardware. They sell seeds in packets and in bulk. She said people are buyingboth this season. And she can recognize the first-time growers bythe questions they ask. "They want to know what to do with the seeds and how deep theyshould be planted," she said. "If they give us an idea ofhow much room they have for their garden then that helps us offerthem advice." Sheela Midkiff, one of the owners of M-M Feed and Seed in Clendeninis also seeing more first time vegetable farmers. "We've found that younger people ask a lot of questionsbecause they're planting vegetables for the first time," shesaid. "They're not so sure about the process so we just givethem the best advice that we know." The store has seen more customers than usual this year. "Ithink it's because of the high gasoline prices," she said."They can stop here and buy the vegetable plants and seeds andhardware items they need without having to travel toCharleston." Midkiff said they have also sold more vegetable plants and seeds tothose who plant gardens every year. "As food prices continueto rise, I'm sure those folks are planning ahead and building theirgardens with more and more vegetables this year," she said. At Capitol Market, growers are seeing people buy more vegetableplants than flowers this spring. Romin Fields, who helps out at Ron and Alta Crihfield's stand atthe market, said they are selling to first-time growers, too. "They ask me all sorts of questions. How deep do I plant this?What fertilizer to use. Lot of things," he said. He still has tomato plants, peppers, squash, watermelon plants, anda few greens to put into the ground. The Crihfields' farm is inJackson County. John Crihfield and his family farm 598 acres in Roane County. Their stand at Capitol Market is still selling a variety ofvegetable plants. "I've been selling vegetables for almost 64 years," hesaid. "And I've talked to more first-time growers this yearthan ever before." The people he has spoken to usually ask him what's the easiesttomato variety to grow and take care of and how deep do they needto be planted. People who come into his stall are spending more on vegetableplants this year and his prices are the same as last year. Crihfield suggested that if you don't have a lot of garden space,some of the vegetable plants can be grown in large pots. "You can grow some tomato varieties in pots, as long asthey're not the 50-75 pound yielding varieties," he said."Cherry tomatoes can be grown in pots as can eggplant, peppersand squash." He even advocates growing cucumbers and strawberry plants inhanging baskets. The hot weather has been good for the growing season, he said."Our first sweet corn is starting to tassel and it won't belong until we'll be bringing it to market." While onion sets have sold out, Crihfield may have green onions inby Friday. These Oso and Vadalia varieties can be planted throughJuly, he said, and they sell out as quickly as he can bring them into market.
2008-06-12 09:47:48

Washing Enzyme Hmmm! Rich, chocolate-covered desserts, olives and all kinds ofdelightful nuts and seeds. Sounds scrumptious and, at last, allpart of a waistline-friendly diet that doesn't tell us to eattasteless rice cakes and drink cabbage soup. Foods like these are now being called 'flat-belly foods'. Quite afew studies and a recently published diet book called, The Flat Belly Diet , have been touting the idea that we can lose belly fat by eating a1,600-calorie diet which is rich in monounsaturated fats (MUFAs). Chocolate, olives, seeds and nuts, avocado and some oils (forexample, canola, flaxseed, olive, safflower, sesame, walnut) areall rich in MUFAs. The studies are indicating that diets rich inMUFAs reduce belly fat as these healthy fats are said to increasepeople's fat burning ability and to attack the fat that sits aroundthe waistline. MUFAs, polyunsaturated fats and omega-3 fatty acids - the healthyfats - have long been prized for lowering heart disease risk bycutting total and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levelin blood. Cholesterol, produced by the body for cell building, isthe main substance in fatty deposits or plaque that can develop inarteries. No magic foods But not all nutrition scientists are gung-ho about MUFAs asflat-belly foods. Some international experts say that most peopleon a diet of 1,600 calories will lose weight anyway and questionwhether there can be magic foods or even exercises that canclinically target belly fat. (You can read more of their views onwww.webmd.com.) Other critics also say that MUFAs, though they are healthy fats,like all fats have nine calories per gram which is more than twicethe amount of calories per gram in proteins and carbohydrates, eachof which carries four calories per gram. These experts, however,are not gainsaying that MUFA-rich foods are good for us with provenhealth benefits.
2008-06-12 09:47:43

Washing Enzyme The Department of Agriculture and Food hopes that new hemp trialsin Kununurra can create another market for growers after thecollapse of the sugar industry. The department began planting 30 hectares of hemp for a privatecompany at its Kununurra research station yesterday. But growers have mixed feelings about the crop's value, after asimilar departmental trial failed in 2000. The department's Gae Plunket says if this trial is a success, itmay pave the way for Kununurra growers to export the fibre toChina. "The last trials here were in 2000 and the varieties we grew uphere that time didn't grow very well at all," she said. "We had very low yields, we were actually even lucky to get thequantity of seed back that we planted so it was a bit sad. "We're hoping to get something like 100 tonne a hectare of fibreoff these crops to make them worth your while."
2008-06-12 09:47:38

Washing Enzyme A fruit market and restaurant on the Danforth have been severely damaged in a two-alarm blaze Wednesday morning. Fire crews were dispatched to the scene at around 8:15 a.m. after a fire broke out at 2541 Danforth Avenue, just west of Main Street. Janny's Fruit Market and Smiley's Restaurant were affected by the blaze as were about six apartments located on top of the businesses. The health department has been called in to assess the situation inside the establishments, said Capt. Adrian Ratushniak with Toronto Fire Services. Ratushniak said officials are investigating how the blaze was sparked but that it appears it began on the building's main level before creeping up to the third floor. "We're not sure how many smoke alarms were put into this particular unit," he said. "We're going to take a look through it and investigate." It took about an hour to get the blaze under control, said Ratushniak. About 60 firefighters responded to the scene. Ratushniak didn't know if the shops were open for business at the time the fire broke out. There have been no reports of injuries. Fire trucks have been cleared from the scene though one truck will remain on the scene for the early part of the afternoon to help with the investigation.
2008-06-12 09:57:19