Online Features
Green Living
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Home tech: affordable and uncomplicated ideas to add enjoyment to your home
Did you know it's almost the year that Michael J. Fox went "back to the future?" While we don't have hover boards or flying cars, our innovations have changed drastically since 1985, especially when it comes to technology in the home. Now there are many affordable innovations that are simple to use and can add unique ben...
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How to 'green' your home in 48 hours
Our lives are more hectic than ever. With everyday maintenance tasks depleting your free time, you may think it's impossible to fit in bigger home improvement projects. It's time to change your mindset and re-evaluate your home improvement to-do list.
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Go green and save on heating with pellets
We've all been bombarded with the buzzwords: eco-friendly, renewable, green, sustainable - the list goes on. We turn off the lights, recycle and even swing by the local farmers market, but what else can we do? Are there any other practical solutions to help our environment? Maybe some that don't require solar panels or s...
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Become a produce professional: healthy eats from farm to family
Local. That's the buzzword when it comes to healthy eats these days. From the farm to the city, locally grown goods are keeping menus fresh and food lovers satisfied. This trend is on the rise in hot-spot restaurants around the nation and now it's never been easier to make fresh, culinary magic happen in your own home. H...
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Great ways to 'green' your holiday season
With trees dressed in fall finery and homes adorned in holiday hues of silver, gold and red, fall and winter are colorful times. This year, why not "green" your holiday by adopting some eco-friendly traditions? From making holiday meals with organic ingredients to wrapping gifts in recycled paper, it's easy to find ways ...
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Clean Water Act celebrates 40 years of water improvements
The Clean Water Act was established 40 years ago with the goal of protecting waterways and ensuring homes and offices receive clean drinking water. As the legislation marks its 40th anniversary, water officials and water consumers alike are looking back on the accomplishments and planning for new ways to continue water q...
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Green living project: Revamp your kitchen pantry to avoid waste and save money
For a basic green living project with benefits to your wallet and the environment, consider revamping the kitchen pantry. The cupboard is the starting point for most kitchen activity and is more than just a storage space. Develop good buying habits and build a strong foundation and you can avoid the waste of food and mon...
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Tips for a sustainable school year
Many of us are trying to live more sustainable lifestyles by wasting less, recycling more, and purchasing products made with recycled materials. What about our kids at school? Does back-to-school shopping - which doesn't really end when the kids are back to school - offer an opportunity to teach our kids a thing or two a...
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Three ways to give energy savings the green light in your home
"Red means stop, green means go" - we learn that axiom as children. When it comes to home energy costs, however, going green can help homeowners put a stop to runaway utility bills. And maximizing your home's use of natural light - call it "green lighting" - is a great way to boost your home's energy efficiency.
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Driving green for dummies: It's easier and cheaper than you think
Green driving is easier and more important than many people think. It's important because, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, highway vehicles account for 28 percent (1.5 billion tons) of U.S. carbon dioxide emissions each year. The good news is that you don't have to buy a new car or dramatically change y...
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Plumbing primer: The most important system behind your home's drywall
Do you know what's behind the drywall in your home? Typically, when builders construct a house, they conceal electrical wiring, air ducts, insulation, home networking wires and plumbing within the walls. It's important for all those systems to be well-made and high-functioning, but in the case of plumbing it's especially...
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Garden now to refresh your outdoor space for entertaining
This summer gardens and outdoor green spaces often look limp and lifeless due to lots of hot, sunny days and limited precipitation. No need to despair, just a few simple tips can help to rejuvenate any outdoor space well into fall - and be water-wise as well.
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national news

Danielle Stephan holds boyfriend Thomas Layton as they pause between salvaging through the remains of a family member's home one day after a tornado devastated the town Moore, OklahomaBy Carey Gillam and Ian Simpson MOORE, Oklahoma (Reuters) - Rescuers went building to building in search of victims and survivors picked through the rubble of their shattered homes on Tuesday, a day after a massive tornado tore through the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore, wiping out blocks of houses and killing at least 24 people. ...


Tue May 21 20:29:24 UTC 2013

Rescue workers look through the rubble at Plaza Towers Elementary school in MooreBy Ben Berkowitz and Julie Steenhuysen (Reuters) - Moore, Oklahoma, has had the bad luck of being hit by two highly destructive tornadoes, both in the month of May, 14 years apart. But the Moore that got struck on Monday is not the same as in 1999. Like a lot of towns across America and in the so-called "Tornado Alley," rapid growth has made it a bigger target, vulnerable to more damage. The tornado, with winds that may have topped 200 miles per hour, killed at least 24 people and injured hundreds more, with many of the casualties children from two schools that were destroyed. ...


Tue May 21 15:34:25 UTC 2013

General view of a landscape almost cleared of debris from a tornado in Joplin, MissouriBy Kevin Murphy KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Reuters) - Less than three hours after a deadly twister on Monday flattened a swath of Moore, Oklahoma, tornado warning sirens sounded in Joplin, Missouri, 215 miles to the northeast. While no twister touched down, the Oklahoma disaster and the sirens stirred painful memories in Joplin, which on Wednesday observes the second anniversary of one of the most catastrophic tornadoes in American history. "It brought back a lot of fear, especially since there was a chance that a tornado could hit here," Sarah Jo Radcliffe, a Joplin resident, said on Tuesday. ...


Tue May 21 17:13:55 UTC 2013
[Updated at 2:30 p.m. CT] MOORE, Okla. –As a hailstorm bore down on the devastated region Tuesday afternoon, first responders continued to sift through debris to try to find survivors and figure out how many people died in the massive tornado that ripped through southern Oklahoma City and other towns a day earlier. Twenty four [...]
Tue May 21 18:36:00 UTC 2013