the brown eyed bookie ,

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Backflow Devices

A backflow device prevents water from flowing backwards into the potable water system. Many residential and commercial building have one or more of these on lines that go to irrigation, fire sprinklers, down to a dock and other places.

The Orange County Health Department requires all backflow devices in Orange County, CA to be tested once a year by a certified tester. These testers attend a state-regulated course to learn the proper method for testing and repairing these devices. Testers have to be re-certified every two years.

At AB&R, we have 3 employees who are certified by the county to test backflow devices in Orange County. We also use a subcontractor to test devices outside of Orange County (we are in the process of getting certified in both LA and Riverside counties).

If you have a backflow device at your home or business, you should receive a notice from your local water district, every year about the same time, telling you your device is due for testing. If you are not receiving this notice, please, call your local water district and ask them why. Yes, it will cost you money, but it isn't very much, and here is why it is a good idea to have your backflow device tested.

Lets say (for example) you have a backflow device at your home that is on the line that provides water to your irrigation sprinklers. Let's further say that it has not been tested in more than a year, and there is something wrong with it. If a low pressure condition occurs in the city water supply - and this happens a lot more often than you know - water that is sitting on your lawn could be sucked back into the city water supply. This water might have debris, bugs, pesticides, fertilizer, animal waste and more in it.

Do you really want to drink this water?

It only costs $49.00 per device to have your backflow device tested, and you only have to do it once a year! That's less than $1.00 a week! If you contact AB&R Plumbing, we can schedule your test. We fill out all the paperwork, send it to the water district, the OC Health Department, you get a copy and we keep a copy. Next year, when it is coming due again, we will contact you and let you know.

Less than $50.00 a year to keep animal waste and chemicals out of our drinking water... Sounds like a good idea to me!

TO change the subject...

I am sure there are tons of people out there who have comments about the election. If you want to say anything here, please remember the following rules:

1) No profanity. If you use it, I will simply delete your comments. They will never make it to anyone!
2) Be polite. You wouldn't want someone being rude or calling you names if they happen to disagree with you, so don't do it here, please.
3) Be respectful of other people's opinions. I am sure that my opinions are not shared by everyone else. And yet, I am asking people to voice their opinions. Show everyone else the same respect.

That;s it! Not too bad! Let me get it started...

President-elect Barak Obama! I never thought I would live long enough for this country to get past something as unimportant as skin color. Will he do a good job, do you think? He has said he will bring the troops home from both Afghanistan and Iraq, do you think this is a good idea?

Monday, November 17, 2008

Beetroot Halwa

My husband's ammamma (Maternal grandma) cooks very interesting recipes. Some of them are real quickies. She had a stock of shortcut recipes of the otherwise time consuming ones. When ever her grand children ask for sweets, she makes sweets in a jiffy. This beetroot
halwa is one among them.

Grated beetroot - 1 cup
Powdered jaggery - 1/2 cup. (You can increase if u like it more sweet)

Chopped nuts for garnish (optional)

Method

MW grated beets with a teaspoon of water for 4 minutes or till soft. Heat a kadai. Add the powdered jaggery. Jaggery will start melting. Stir in the cooked beets. Keep stirring, till the jaggery melts fully. Cook on low flame, till it comes together as a whole mass. Don't cook till the moisture fully dries up, since it will harden on cooling. Garnish with roasted, slivered nuts.

A healthy sweet is ready in 10 minutes. A fat free dessert. You can also serve it with a scoop of ice cream. You can use it as a bread spread for kids' sandwiches too.

This is my entry to the following events :

1) The Challenge hosted by Veda Murthy (No garnish halwa fits the challenge)

2) Suganya's Vegan Ventures Round 2

3) Sweet Series-Halwa, Kathli, Burfi, Peda by Mythrayee

Its raining Awards and MeMes and Whatnot!

Dear fellow bloggers have passed on some awards, and a meme too. I've been lazy in posting and passing it on. I had just started drafting this post, and WHOOOM Lakshmi has rained a whole lot more awards!

Well let me begin with a MeMe from Anudivya which goes like this ...
The rules of the MeMe are:* Pick up the nearest book* Open to page 123* Find the 5th sentence* Post the next three sentences* Tag 5 people and acknowledge the person who tagged you.

The nearest book turned out to be 'First Things Fast, A Handbook of Performance Analysis' by Allison Rosset. The 3 sentences on Page 123 starting from line 5, turned out be a set of profound questions that concern the Training Industry "What can be done to turn experiences with customers, clients, products and the literature into archives of lessons for their associates from other disciplines? What role can human resource leaders play in knowledge management? What Technology in the hands of human resources and training professionals has much to offer here?"....

Hee Hee ...sorry it was not more generic! I tried to cheat and found two more books, but with similar and more nerdy results, so I stuck with the first book!

Now for the awards....

Thanks Malar for sending us the Hardworking Food Blogger. I love your Tamil Haiku, but hated the massacared rabbit!!!

And then thanks Lakshmi for sending alllllllllllllllllllllllllll of these!!