| Mortgage firm helps serve those who served
Army Staff Sgt. Brent Bretz was driving a supply truck near Mosul, Iraq, in 2004, when the truck hit an improvised explosive device. He lost both legs and suffered other injuries, resulting in two years in the hospital and outpatient rehabilitation.
He has prostheses for his legs, but the 25-year-old spends much of his time in a wheelchair. Unfortunately, the home he bought in Tempe wasn't accessible to a person in a wheelchair.
That's where a program called Serving Those Who Serve, which was founded by one of Chandler's largest companies, came in. .
Consumer Reports reveals the ten most hyped kitchen products
Yonkers, NY — Consumer Reports' latest tests reveal that many of the most loudly hawked products (and often most expensive) delivered less than they promised and several were beaten by the old standards that cost far less. The 2007 August issue is CR's largest kitchen package to-date with over 30 pages of advice and comprehensive Ratings that will help consumers decide which appliances, countertops, sinks, faucets and flooring offer the best combination of style, performance, and value based on our independent lab tests. Consumer Reports cooked up 850 pounds of ground beef in tests of appliances and used over 40 stain-producing materials including red wine and ink to test the stain-resistance of flooring, countertops, and other materials. .
Size doesn't matter: Small kitchens mean big opportunities
This is the room where you need the most function, but if the house was built several decades ago, it probably doesn't take advantage of modern downsizing technology. The trick is to make modernizing changes within the confines of the space you have available. It can be done! The problems inherent in construction from another era are many: The style of cabinetry doesn't take advantage of new concepts, so there is typically a lot of wasted room. The hot-water heater is in a cupboard that takes up valuable space. An old-fashioned ironing board housed in a shallow cupboard takes up valuable room that could be devoted to more useful cabinets. Doors and drawers to the cabinets are small and leave 5 to 6 inches of the face frame surrounding them in inaccessible areas. If the budget allows, the best way to maximize a kitchen like this is to remove everything and begin again.
|
