ATTENTION! Will all new subscribers kindly move to the front of the greeting line.

 

Why? Don’t be silly, it should be so obvious.

 

Welcome! Be aware that I love love love listening to music when I create this missive. Allow me to probe your past liquid-courage experiences.

 

Have you ever been drinking beer at noon on a Tuesday at that bar across from the giant car wash? What song am I listening to now? CLICK or TAP HERE and be prepared to start dancing no matter where you are or what you’re wearing!

 

Are you one of my pals who's farther back in the greeting line? Please tell with one of our new subscribers about my column when you discovered how to keep basements and crawlspaces BONE DRY. Yep, it’s the same method I used to dry out my soggy backyard. CLICK or TAP HERE and see how my college degree in geology has paid off in spades!

 

The Second Autumn - Shades of Green

 

You may or may not know that I have the distinct pleasure of living in the Lakes Region of central New Hampshire. It’s quite rural and hundreds of thousands of people come to the Live Free or Die state to vacation each year because of its abundance of natural beauty.

 

Autumn is especially busy as many leaf peepers come from hundreds of miles away. New England, along with parts of Japan, is reported to have some of the most vivid fall colors on the planet. Here’s a photo I shot a few years ago on a peak-color day while target shooting on some land I own.

What most tourists miss is the second autumn we have. It happens each May, two weeks or so before Memorial Day weekend.

 

The same trees that produce all the varied colors in the fall, sport vivid distinct different shades of green for about four days in the spring. I’ve tried to capture this shading difference several times, but just can’t seem to pull it off.

 

I’ll try one more time this year. I’m hoping my superb Canon EOS 50D digital camera with its superior light-collecting chip is sensitive enough to do the job.The different shades of lime green almost take your breath away. The leaves definitely put you in the mood for a mojito.

 

The Fun Quiz

 

A few weeks ago, on a whim, I decided to try to inject a little more happiness into your day. My simple one-question quiz is my tool of choice for this task. Is it working? Are you happier and do you exclaim, "Well, I'll be! I NEVER KNEW that! That was fun!"

 

Think about it. What do you have to lose by taking the quiz? Is thirty seconds worth a little more happiness?

 

Check out what a few fellow subscribers have to say:

 

Colette said, “I like stretching my mind.”

 

Robin responded, “Yes, they’re educational and interesting.”

 

Steve quipped, “It adds something interesting to my day.”

 

Today’s quiz is quite unusual. I’m pretty sure you’ll agree. Have you ever been here? How about at night? You better not be afraid of the dark is all I can say!

Creating these quizzes has been quite enlightening for me. I’m discovering astonishing new things and my trivia knowledge is climbing faster than a thermometer at Badwater Basin on a blistering July morning.

 

CLICK or TAP HERE if you feel your gray cells are in the superior range. Oh, are you already boasting that you can’t be easily fooled about those bewildering noises in the middle of nowhere? Actions speak louder than words.

 

Take the quiz and allow the happiness to ooze into your day like the honey that’s going to drizzle onto my scratch biscuits this morning.

 

CLICK or TAP HERE to see all the past Ask the Builder quizzes you missed.

 

Your Hose Bib

Are you frustrated with the hose bib on your home? I know I am and I’m a plumber! Now’s the time to vent and help others with the same complaints.

 

CLICK or TAP HERE and take a fast three-question short survey about your hose bib and all the things that are WRONG with it.

 

I hand you a magic wand in question three. Use it wisely!

 

Do you want to know the two different hose bibs I'm installing this spring at my home and at my daughter's new house? Rest assured it's not the plain vanilla one you see in the photo above. I'm going to share it with you on Sunday once I see your responses in the above survey. Please take the survey, you'll be glad you did.

 

STOP Mosquitos!

 

Here in central New Hampshire, we have mosquitos all summer long. They love to hang out in the shade around my lower deck. My house is next to lots of woods, where I’m certain they live and breed like bunnies.

 

I’ve tried all sorts of things in the past with not-so-great results:

• sprays
• UV lamps with fans
• protective spells cast by my fellow NH wizards
• photographs of my foes on pike poles placed around the perimeter of my property
• blah blah blah

Just days ago I positioned two tubes in trees at the edge of my open spaces. I think they hold great promise based on the reviews I read! One of my goals is to minimize the number of these pests so I can enjoy my deck and eat outside more often.

 

Did I mention that my hammock is on the lower deck?

 

CLICK or TAP HERE to discover what I deployed in the mosquito conflict. Let me know if you’ve used these tubes and what type of success you’ve experienced. Just leave a COMMENT at the bottom of this page.

 

Pebble Stone Shower Floor

 

What size are your feet? Be honest. My guess is they’re smallish as opposed to hobbit feet.

 

Have you ever had the soothing experience of taking a shower while standing on a floor that looks like this:

CLICK or TAP HERE to get a real feel for how wonderful a pebble stone floor is. You’ll also discover how easy it is to install one and keep it CLEAN.

 

That’s quite enough for a Thursday!

 

Tim Carter

Founder - www.AsktheBuilder.com

BEST CLEANER - www.StainSolver.com

Wave Bouncer - www.W3ATB.com

 

Do It Right, Not Over!

 

P.S. Do you live in an older home? I’m talking about something built before 1978. That may not seem old, but there’s a serious latent defect in almost all homes built before 1978.

 

I’m talking skull and crossbones hazard.

I’m talking about a serious nervous disorder hazard.

 

I’m talking male impotence hazard. 

 

Do I have your ATTENTION YET?

 

CLICK or TAP HERE and be WARNED! 

 

PLEASE PASS THIS LINK TO ANY AND ALL YOU KNOW who live in an older home.