November 28, 2019, 12:37 AM

2 min read

The Latest on a Hawaii man accused of sending hundreds of unwanted service providers and others to a Utah home, including plumbers and prostitutes.

(all times local):

2:30 p.m.

A man arrested in Hawaii wants a detention hearing in Utah, where hes accused of sending hundreds of unwanted service providers and others to a home, including plumbers and prostitutes.

Loren Okamura was in federal court in Honolulu Wednesday for a detention hearing. Federal defender Sharron Rancourt says he wants to have that hearing in Utah, where federal prosecutors say he tormented a family with what they described as extreme cyberstalking.

Okamura was indicted last month on charges of cyberstalking, interstate threats and transporting people for prostitution.

Rancourt says Okamura has been mourning his wife, who died earlier this year.

Okamura will be detained in Honolulu until hes taken to Utah.

Authorities wont disclose the relationship between the victims and Okamura, but say it was not random. Rancourt declined to comment after the hearing.

Midnight

U.S. prosecutors say a Hawaii man tormented a Utah family for over a year by sending more than 500 people to their house for unwanted services, including plumbers and prostitutes.

Loren Okamura is scheduled for a detention hearing Wednesday in Honolulu, where he was arrested.

Authorities say Okamura targeted a father and her adult daughter, sending the woman threatening messages and posting her picture and address online. One posting said the homeowner wanted drugs and prostitutes at the house in a quiet, middle-class neighborhood in a Salt Lake City suburb.

Okamuras federal public defender, Sharron Rancourt, didnt immediately return a phone message and emails seeking comment.

Authorities wont disclose the relationship between the victims and Okamura, but say it was not random.

McCombs reported from Salt Lake City.

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The Latest: Extreme stalking case hearing to be held in Utah - ABC News

Demand for skilled labor and plumbing trade workers expected to grow at an increasing rate over the next few years and companies need to offer the best to employees, says Four Seasons Plumbing.

ASHEVILLE, N.C., Nov. 27, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ --According to the Department of Labor's Occupational Outlook Handbook, the demand for plumbers is growing at a faster-than-average rate, and by 2026 you should expect to see an additional 100,000 jobs in plumbing and HVAC-related fields. There's been a recent trend with skilled labor companies investing in recruitment to spread awareness about their incredible career opportunities that do not require experience to alleviate any potential barriers to entry. One such company is Four Seasons Plumbing, a family-owned plumbing company based in Asheville, NC. As a result of its enticing company benefits, vibrant culture and even relocation assistance, the team has on-boarded several new members this year alone.

"When someone chooses to train and get a skilled paid job, such as construction, HVAC or plumbing, you can be on the job and earning a living much faster," says Max Rose, owner of Four Seasons Plumbing. "The wages for jobs in skilled trades are higher than average. The average hourly rate for this type of work is upwards of $20 per hour after participating in on-the-job training through an apprenticeship."

Rose mentions that company culture and work-life balance are also important factors, and many times the final determining factors for candidates. As many Americans struggle to find variety and balance in their work lives, skilled trade could become increasingly viable as a career choice.

"We understand the competition and demand for skilled employees, which is why we have created a culture fit for anyone who wants to feel cared for, valued, and doesn't want to be stuck behind a desk all day," says Rose. "There's not an abundance of jobs where you can get a paid vacation, 401k, benefits, 100% paid health care, and paid holidays, while also having the opportunity to make more than $75,000 a year."

About Four Seasons Plumbing: Four Seasons Plumbing is family-owned and operated. From the very beginning, we believed putting the best tools in the hands of the best people would be the key to our success. Today, our people are still our most important asset. Four Seasons Plumbing has established itself as the leader in providing reliable, professional plumbing services throughout the entire Asheville and Hendersonville area and surrounding communities. We pride ourselves on a commitment to customer service and can answer any and all of your plumbing needs, even emergencies. To learn more about career opportunities and to apply online, visit https://callfourseasons.com/careers/.

SOURCE Four Seasons Plumbing

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Skilled Trade Worker Demand Means Companies are Upping the Ante in Recruitment - Yahoo Finance

ABILENE, Texas According to the City of Abilene, countless amounts of fats, oils and grease are poured down the drains every day.

Over time, this grease builds up and cant pass through the sewer system.

The City of Abilene is made up of 650 miles of sewer pipes. Now, imagine all that grease from holiday cooking being disposed of at the same time.

Overflows are large, messy and smelly. Now who wants that?

And, did you know that when grease hardens in pipes it turns into logs that are hard as cement?

Not only is it unsanitary, but if this happens at your household it's expensive.

Follow these three steps to dispose of your grease.

Cool itCan itTrash itPrevent a drain wreck from happening in your own home and the rest of the Big Country - and remember to keep grease out of your sink.

RELATED: Brown Friday: Day after Thanksgiving is most popular day for plumbers

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Brown Friday: Busiest day of the year for plumbers - myfoxzone.com

Mark Young of North Vancouver was happy with his 5K time of 23:19 in Sunday's WECHCPC Vancouver Historic Half at sunny Stanley Park. He was eighth overall and second in the 50-59 men's age class. He takes part in all the TRY EVENTS races and continues to get faster.Gord Kurenoff / Postmedia News

Hear about the plumber who went to Las Vegas and couldnt believe a full house was better than a flush?

Watching Mark Youngs eyes roll like wild casino dice suggests he has perhaps a few times too many.

The classy 58-year-old North Vancouver resident, fresh off posting a 5K time of 23:19 in Sundays WECHCPC Vancouver Historic Half at sunny Stanley Park, appeared satisfied with his eighth overall finish, and second in the 50-59 mens age class. And he should be.

The owner of a small plumbing company and father of four only started running three years ago to stay in shape to live as long as possible for my kids. Since taking the plunge hes wasting no time making his new passion look much easier than it is.

FOR SUNDAYS UNOFFICIAL RESULTS, click HERE

FOR MY FUN SUNDAY PHOTOS, click HERE

Even though Young took it easy Saturday morning in the fifth Movember Moustache Miler a gentle 5K effort at 26:20 to show support for mens health and save my speed for Sunday hes still beaming after enjoying a superb weekend at the Humana Rock N Roll Las Vegas earlier this month where he posted a personal best 23:16 in the 5K and a gentle 53:01 a day later in the Sin City 10K.

The man with the megawatt smile has been a regular fixture in the TRY EVENTS road race series I always do them all and is no stranger to the age-class podium. But he still remembers Vegas in 2016 and that inaugural 5K crawl.

More than 700 runners took part in Sundays half marathon, 10K and 5K races, but not many of them were as excited as these bubbly women! (Gord Kurenoff)

Hey, I thought it was a great idea since we were all there and got a few other friends to run. I could barely walk after that 5K! But Ive never regretted it. I keep meeting great people at every race and that makes it all worthwhile. Running for some great causes, supporting the communities and friends where we live is also a bonus, says Young.

Asked about his next local challenge, Young grins ear-to-ear and offers: The Big Elf Run in Stanley Park (Saturday, Dec. 14), where I look forward to beating you again!

Oh yeah, did we mention he likes to trash talk friendly and slower race rivals? A plumber with a potty mouth? Go figure! (Bet he still has a picture of actress Farrah Faucet on his wall!)

Drew Nicholson of Surrey, with friend Dora Velazquez, right, brought the heat Sunday in the Vancouver Historic Half, finishing second and third overall in their respective categories. (Gord Kurenoff photo)

While Young drained a lot of energy Sunday, the event suffered a total power failure with its electronic timing device, which created a few headaches for race organizers who otherwise staged another great show for more than 700 runners. The annual event also helped raise funds and awareness for the West End-Coal Harbour Community Policing Centre, whose volunteer members do some incredible work plus provide road closure assistance for running events like RUNVANs Granville Island Turkey Trot.

New York runner Ryan Thoreson didnt suffer any power problems in winning the half marathon in 1:16:21 20 seconds ahead of Surreys Drew Nicholson, whose recovery from summer injuries appears nearly complete.

That was my fastest half of the fall season, said Nicholson, who will be competing in the California International Marathon on Dec. 8 in Sacramento. And the best part today was that I helped get my good buddy Hans Zimmerling a personal best and third overall (1:17:27).

Nicholson was also proud of his good friend Dora Velazquez who finished third overall in the womens half in 1:31:09.

The other ladies in the half were insanely good. I fought really hard today for third, said Velazquez, who jokes that her short legs really have to motor to keep up to the taller runners. Im a very happy camper with my time and all the support along the course.

Postmedia News reporter Derrick Penner at Sundays finish line in Stanley Park, where the completed his first half marathon attempt in a respectable time of 2:18:26.

Another happy camper was my colleague Derrick Penner, a quality reporter with Postmedia News, who thanks to a successful weight loss program and dedicated training has gone from newbie to zoomer in no time. Penner started to notice improvements in the 2019 St. Patricks Day 5K, then the Vancouver Sun Run and this fall clocked a 62-minute 10K in the Granville Island Turkey Trot.

He completed his first half Sunday in 2:18:26, finishing 314th in the 377-runner field. He said his running journey will likely include more halfs and fast times to take over the office bragging rights. Sounds like a challenge buddy!

TRY EVENTS will launch an expanded road race series in 2020, starting with the popular Vancouver Chilly Chase on Sunday, Jan. 26 with a half, 15K, 10K and 5K at Stanley Park.

The final leg of the 2019 TRY EVENTS road race series served up picture-perfect weather for more than 700 runners on Sunday (Gord Kurenoff photo)

FINISH LINES: Ill have another blog this week highlighting popular and new December races, including the fifth annual Big Elf Run on Saturday, Dec. 14 and the 36th annual Gunner Shaw Memorial Cross Country Race on Saturday, Dec. 7. Well take a look at the 2020 PEN RUN Fraser Valley Trail Run Series that opens Wednesday, Jan. 1 at Crescent Park in Surrey, the popular Steveston Icebreaker 8K and New Balance 1K Kidsrun on Sunday, Jan. 19 and a few other surprises.

Gotta run

gkurenoff@postmedia.com

Twitter.com/ohgord

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Fun On The Run: Plumber Young taps into running to go with the flow of podium placers - Vancouver Sun

Adam Jacoby learned from his parents how to help people and now that his small plumbing business is growing he has been reaching out to the community. Paul Kuehnel, pkuehnel@ydr.com

A Facebook postcaught Adam Jacoby's attention:A man's car battery died, and he didn't have money for a new one.

"It was the Wednesday before payday, so I didn't know how I was going to get to work the next couple of days," said Rob Austera, who commutes 40 minutes each way. His post attractedcar advice about whether it was the starter or thebattery, but Adam saw it differently.

Adam thought, "I can help this guy."

Austeralives 30 minutesfrom Adam in New Freedom, so Adamcalled an Auto Zone in Hanover for help that evening. Ten minutes after closing time, Austera pulled up to findthe Auto Zone crewstill on the phone with Adam, purchasing the battery.

"They waited for him. He got there, they put it in, and his car's been running great since," said Adam, 35.

This wasn't unusual for Adam. If he can help, he will.

Adam Jacoby, right, installs a flag for Shirley Puente on Manchester Street in Glen Rock.(Photo: Paul Kuehnel, York Daily Record)

"If somebody asks for help, I try not to judge anybody. Everybody has their own story," Adamsaid. "If there's something I can do to make their life easier ... just like the guy with the battery, 130 bucks, and he can make it to work for the rest of the week."

Compassionate. That's the word his mother, Dawn Jacoby, uses to describe him.

When he was little, he spotted a homeless manasking for money. His grandmother explained that sometimes a person isn't actually homeless. Adam's answer:"Nope, he's true blue." Then, Dawn remembers, he handed the mana couple of dollars.

So when a woman recently posted on the Southern York County Facebook page that she was looking for building scraps, Adam jumped in again. He would donate supplies so she couldconstructan outdoor playhouse for her daughter's birthday.

At Starbucks a couple of weeks ago, he bought coffee for someone behind him in line, and she then paidfor others.

"All it takes is one person to show care for other people, strangers. It's like the butterfly effect," he said. "One person does it, then before you know it, everybody wants to give."

Shirley Puente with a flag that was just installed by Adam Jacoby in Glen Rock.(Photo: Paul Kuehnel, York Daily Record)

When Adam and his sister, Jennifer, were kids, they really wanted to go to Hersheypark. Knowing how important it was to them, their mother pawned her wedding ring to pay for the trip.

"She's a giver," Adam said. "My dad's the same way. He'd give you the last dollar he had and the shirt off his back if he had to."

Terry and Dawn Jacobydidn't have much money, so they did what they could for their kids and others. (Dawn went back for the ring after she got her paycheck. It was still at the pawn shop, and she bought it back.)

"They never really asked for help," Adam said. "So, I guess we would have been further ahead or in a different spot if they would have asked for help, but they didn't. It was always: 'We'll get through this.'"

When Adam was 15, a plumber visiting their house for serviceasked the teenager if he wanted a summer job. That began Adam's career path.

After more than a decade working for others, Adam decided to start his own plumbing business eight years ago, Jacoby Plumbing & Heating. Another business owner had told him: You'll never get rich working for somebody else.

With $1,800 in the bank, he took the dive, using his Chevy Tahoe to run plumbing jobs. Today, there are six employees in his company, including his dad.

"It takes a village to raise a child. Well, it takes a village to support a small business, too," Adam said.

Adam was in his early 20s, playing softball for a church team in Shrewsbury, when the ball, thrown to get him out at second base, hit him in the temple. He finished the game, but a doctor in the stands took a look at his head. It wasn't swelling, which worried him.

It turned out to be a fractured skull and artery damage, which required surgery.

"They told us: 'He's not gonna make it unless we do this now," Dawn said. "He was literally dying."

Dawn was distraught, but Adam was calm. He knew he would be OK; it wasn't his time, he told his parents.

Late at night, during surgery, aminister appeared to talk to the Jacobys. Dawn remembers his counsel: "Adam Jacoby does not need your tears. He needs your prayers."

His Pentecostal parents prayed, and their son with the sense of humor and gift for giving survived.

Adam Jacoby has patriot wrist bands he uses in his plumbing business.(Photo: Paul Kuehnel, York Daily Record)

Adam remembers driving through York County as a kid and seeing flags flying from front porches, but he doesn't notice it as much these days.

So, last week, he went back to Facebook with this: "I'm a very proud American and I love my country so I'm gonna order 25 American flags and porch mounts tonight and donate them with free install for hopefully this weekend if they come in by then. If you or someone you know wants one either like this post or message me and let's get patriotic."

The requests came in, and Adam drove through his southern York County "village" to mountflags for his neighbors on Sunday.

"I love America and love that I can go out and start my own business without a blink of an eye. If it takes off, great. If it doesn't, I still had that chance to do it," Adam said.

He doesn't weigh in on politics, but he does hold on to this: "When it comes down to it, in God we trust. He's got it. We'll be fine."

Keeping the faith: She lost her husband then her son, daughter and mother. But she holds on to faith.

York County: In 95 years, these twins have never lived more than a couple miles apart

Subscribe: 12 reasons to subscribe to the York Daily Record

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'All it takes is one person': Meet the plumber who is full of good deeds to help strangers - York Daily Record

More than 2 million people in the U.S. lack running water and basic indoor plumbing, according to a new report by the human-rights nonprofit DigDeep and the nonprofit U.S. Water Alliance and race and poverty are key determinants of who has access to clean water and sanitation.

Native Americans are 19 times more likely to lack indoor plumbing than their white counterparts, putting them in the worst spot of any group, and African-American and Latinx households lack indoor plumbing at almost twice the rate of white households, the report found.

The United States is home to some of the most reliable water and wastewater systems on earth, and many Americans believe access is universal, the authors wrote. But in fact, millions of the most vulnerable people in the country low-income people in rural areas, people of color, tribal communities, immigrants have fallen through the cracks.

Lacking access to safe water and sanitation makes it difficult to stay healthy, earn a living, go to school, and care for a family, they added.

The reports analysis drew upon data from the U.S. Census Bureaus American Community Survey. Given that surveys limitations it doesnt ask about wastewater services or about the affordability or reliability of water service, the authors said they also conducted qualitative research on a handful of regions (the Navajo Nation, Californias Central Valley, the Texas colonias, Appalachia, Puerto Rico and the rural South) that struggle with adequate water and sanitation access.

Race, the authors found, proved the strongest predictor of whether a household has access to water and sanitation. About 0.3% of white households in the U.S. dont have complete plumbing, for example, versus 5.8% of Native American households and 0.5% of African-American and Latinx households.

Racial water gaps for Latinx and African-American households are particularly salient at the regional level, the authors added: In parts of the South, African Americans are the group most likely to lack complete plumbing. In California and Texas, Latinx people are the most affected.

Economic status also played a role, as the report found that complete plumbing access was correlated with household income, unemployment rates and educational attainment. Higher educational attainment and income in African-American and Latinx households, for example, was positively associated with complete plumbing access. (Complete plumbing refers to running water, shower or bath, tap and flush toilet, though the Census Bureau eliminated the toilet question in the 2016 ACS.)

Whole communities often clustered in specific areas experience lack of access to complete plumbing, the researchers found. Access gaps are concentrated in places including Alaska, Maine and the Dakotas, as well as regions in which the researchers conducted field research. At the same time, smaller pockets experiencing lack of access to water and sanitation are nestled into some counties that generally have better access.

Disparities in water access arent the result of individual choice, the authors said; rather, they stem from historical and geographical factors that have left entire communities without adequate services. The report points to federal water-infrastructure funding that has dried up over the decades, and an even greater disadvantage for communities in which the government didnt initially invest money.

Vulnerable communities disproportionately lack access to water and sanitation, in part due to discriminatory practices embedded in some past water infrastructure development initiatives, the authors said.

A separate study published in the Annals of the American Association of Geographers earlier this year also found hot spots of racial and geographic inequality in Americans water insecurity. Having incomplete plumbing was concentrated in specific regions and was clearly racialized, the authors wrote.

Living in an American Indian or Alaskan Native, black, or Hispanic household increases the odds of being plumbing poor, and these predictors warp and woof through space, they said.

A 2017 analysis published in the journal PLOS One projected that the share of American households that will experience unaffordable water bills could spike from 12% to nearly 36% over the next five years. Factors like infrastructure repairs, climate change, water quality and sanitation all place an increasing strain on water prices, according to the research.

Continued here:
2 million Americans dont have access to running water and basic plumbing - MarketWatch

By Ed Del Grande, Tribune News Service

FridayNov22,2019at6:55PM

Q: Dear Ed: My wife and I plan some aging-in-place changes to our home. One big upgrade in the bathroom will be a walk-in shower stall with grab bars and hand shower. Any other AIP shower ideas we can add?

Mike, Nebraska

A: When removing a standard bathtub to install a walk-in shower, usually a new mixing valve needs to be roughed in as well.

If you want to be trendy and pick up some additional AIP features, check out the new digital electronic shower mixing valves. These push button temperature control valves feature large LCD display screens along with built-in diverter controls.

Aside from easy fingertip operation, other AIP features can include high-temp limit settings, pause settings and second control option outside of shower stall. Eco-mode setups are also available for multi-zone showers.

So when you add up all the numbers, a digital shower valve can be a smart choice for any bathroom.

Master Contractor/Plumber Ed Del Grande is known internationally as the author of the book "Ed Del Grande's House Call," the host of TV and Internet shows, and a LEED green associate.

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Plumber: Digital shower valves are a growing trend - The Topeka Capital-Journal

With festive turkey-based feasts fast approaching, and having just re-watched a classic Thanksgiving-themed Steve Martin video, I thought it appropriate that I share a few of the things for which I am thankful. I apologize if the list is too predictable and schmaltzy, but please bear with me.

I am thankful for the deer that frolic in my yard, for indoor plumbing, for pimento cheese, for CBD oil, for a loyal readership, for online treasure troves of long-ago photographs.

I am thankful that in this country a person no matter his station in life has the opportunity to pursue his wildest dreams, at least until he awakens to find that his friends have dipped his hand in a bucket of warm water.

I am thankful that the conscientious use of abbreviations, nicknames, acronyms, hand gestures and emojis has provided mankind enough spare time to conquer the common cold and land a human on Mars. Oh, wait

I am thankful that today is the first day of the rest of your life, unless somebody knocked you into the middle of next week, which would make it the eighth (?) day of the rest of your life, unless they hit too hard and youre, you know, dead. In that case, I am thankful I have a new suit coat for the funeral.

I am thankful that the government hasnt yet placed a microchip underneath my skin to keep track of my every movement, because that landline phone my mother got Dr. Rutledge to insert back in 76 made wearing long sleeve shirts a pain in the keister.

I am thankful that I am wise enough to know to keep my friends close, my enemies closer, my cousin over on the sofa in the corner and that guy I kind of remember graduating with my brother somewhere in the nosebleed section of the auditorium.

I am thankful that you cant always get what you want, because someone has to keep Amazon humble.

I am thankful that my white privilege means shopkeepers dont profile me and watch warily as I search for 7 million SPF sunscreen.

I am thankful that the advertisers who announce get a great meal and HAVE CHANGE LEFT from a five apparently live in a delightful world where only leprechauns and unicorns must pay sales tax.

I am thankful that my sudden realizations involve thoughts like Oh, I left the steam iron plugged in instead of Duh, I just realized that what I overheard the president say was probably significant to this investigation. Do over!

I am thankful that I have never served serious jail time for strangling mental giants whose idea of holding up their end of the conversation is Oh, did you? Is that right? Really? Can you beat that?

I am thankful that when one door closes, another opens, because otherwise we would have a roomful of losers packed in like sardines.

I am thankful that history is written by the winners, because history written by those who received a participation ribbon would be lame as heck.

I am thankful that only God can make a tree, because humans would be selling you an extended warranty on a sugar maple.

Finally, I am thankful that all those times I was dropped on my head as a child have not had the slightest long-term cognitive effects on me

Danny Tyree welcomes email responses at tyreetyrades@aol.com and visits to his Facebook fan page Tyrees Tyrades.

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DANNY TYREE: On being thankful for indoor plumbing - The Albany Herald

Dale Anderson

Special to Village News

The holidays are prime time for a plumbing crisis, especially Thanksgiving. It's easy to imagine why; it's all that cooking and cleanup.

It's stressful enough getting the house spiffed up for guests. Then the food shopping begins and shoppers must lug that huge turkey home.

Next, families begin preparing the vittles, but this time is the moment to think about plumbing. Yep, think about protecting the plumbing now and help prevent a disaster when guests arrive.

The garbage disposal will get more of a workout over the holidays than any other time of the year. Consider this list of what not to be feeding it.

The main troublemakers for garbage disposals and a home's plumbing are potatoes and potato peelings sweet potatoes and regular potatoes; oil, grease, butter and margarine; bones; banana peelings, celery, artichokes, corn husks, onion skins and other fibrous foods; egg shells; fruit pits; pasta and coffee grounds.

Yes, some of these items may make it down the garbage disposal fine at first. In small bits, it may not have a problem at all.

But let's get real. Families will likely be frazzled with the prep work, looking at the clock, wondering if the mashed potatoes will be pasty enough to apply wallpaper and if they have enough wine so no one will notice. Best to keep it simple and just say "no" to putting even "small bits" of these items down the garbage disposal.

The real problem isn't so much that the garbage disposal may break down. It's that the kitchen sink and other plumbing may back up.

That's because the garbage disposal, naturally, feeds into the rest of the plumbing. When those bits and pieces are pushed down into the garbage disposal and ground up, they need to make it through the home's main plumbing and into the sewer line. The problem comes when they can't make it all the way through the line.

When looking at the list above, it's understandable why they may not all make it through the plumbing pipes. Potatoes, after all, are primarily starch. With enough starch and just a little water these are times of water conservation, the potatoes turn to paste. That paste lays somewhere inside the plumbing line and eventually mixes with everything else that goes down the drains.

Bones are hard to grind and may break the garbage disposal. But even if the garbage disposal is powerful enough to grind up bones, then what is left? Mostly calcium particles. And calcium is one of the minerals that build up in plumbing pipes. Egg shells may grind up in the garbage disposal, but like bones, they're made up primarily of calcium. That mineral build up eventually causes pipes to corrode and leak, but not right away.

At first they lay there in the pipes and mix with the oil, potato paste and coffee grounds just a few feet below the kitchen sink inside the drainage pipes. Then imagine if a few bits of fibrous foods like banana peelings, celery or onion skins are pushed through. These fibers often get wound up in the blades, making them difficult to grind up. They may even cause garbage disposal to stop working altogether.

Voila. It's the perfect recipe for a plumbing backup. And it's most likely going to back up at the kitchen sink, either right before guests arrive or after the meal while everyone is helping to clean up.

This very scenario actually happened to a friend of mine. It was her first Thanksgiving meal with her new husband and her husband's family. She's a vegetarian so it was her first time cooking a turkey. She'd peeled a massive amount of potatoes to make mashed potatoes, continuously pushing those potato peelings down the garbage disposal.

The peelings mixed with the egg shells and coffee grinds she'd previously dumped in the garbage disposal after breakfast. The garbage disposal chugged through the onslaught of peelings, egg shells, coffee grinds and butter drippings from breakfast.

And the sink backed up; then the smoke alarm went off. The paper holding the gizzards inside the turkey caught on fire she didn't know to look for paper inside the turkey. Then the doorbell rang.

Her mother-in-law arrived in time to throw baking soda into the oven to extinguish the fire. It all ended well in her case. In fact, her in-laws had a good laugh about it. It turned out to be a great bonding experience. They had enough wine that no one complained about the pasty mashed potatoes or burnt turkey. Since they couldn't use the dishwasher or wash the dishes by hand, they all helped to stack up the dirty dishes. First thing the next day, she got to know her plumber.

Yes, the day after Thanksgiving is a busy day for plumbers. Call them for any plumbing issue. We are locally owned and operated. In fact, I grew up in Fallbrook helping in my dad's plumbing business, and now I've been running my own plumbing business here for over 30 years.

If we're too busy, I'll recommend another locally owned and operated plumber. Most plumbers people find online may appear local, but actually many are contract plumbers from all over. So with those guys, people will never know who will show up at their door.

Hopefully, these tips about what to keep out of the garbage disposal will help reduce stress over the holidays. Helping neighbors save money and reduce the stress of plumbing issues is our mission at Waterheaters Plus Plumbing.

Dale Anderson is the owner of Waterheaters Plus Plumbing in Bonsall, Fallbrook, Oceanside, Temecula and Vista. For more information, visit http://www.waterheatersplusplumbing.com.

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How to guard against a sink backup and other potential plumbing crises on Thanksgiving - Fallbrook / Bonsall Villlage News

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) The Oklahoma City Utilities Department wants to remind residents to prevent clogs by tossing your FOG.

This means tossing any fats, oils and grease into the trash and not down the train.

If poured down the sink, FOG can clog sewer lines and cause costly repairs to you and to the city.

Officials say more than two-thirds of sewer line blockages in Oklahoma City are caused by FOG.

People tend to think that small amounts of oil or grease dont matter, said Michelle Aumiller, the Citys environmental unit supervisor. But even small amounts will build up over time and cause significant problems by clogging household plumbing or the Citys lines. Throwing fats, oils and grease in the trash is an easy way for residents to avoid expensive plumbing visits and help prevent blockages in the citys wastewater system.

To help prevent clogs, pour liquid FOG into an old can and place it in the freezer until it becomes solid, then throw the can in the trash.

Also, use a paper towel to wipe out any remaining FOG from pots and pans before cleaning them in the sink or dishwasher.

People tend to cook larger meals and use more grease and fat in their holiday cooking, Aumiller said.

Aumiller notes that while FOG is a year-round problem, the holidays are a good time to remind people to be careful.

For more information on how you can protect your pipes from FOG and other contaminants, visit okc.gov/water.

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OKC Utilities: Stop holiday plumbing clogs by tossing fats, oils and grease into the trash, not down the drain - KFOR Oklahoma City