‘This Old House’ Brings Past Into The Present

“This Old House” goes to work in Salem, Mass., for its first project of the new season. The half-hour show, narrated by the PBS show’s hosts Steve Thomas (a Spokane native) and carpenter Norm Abram, will follow renovation of a Victorian-era home built in 1768.

In the Spokane market, KSPS-Channel 7 airs “This Old House” Sundays at 5:30 p.m. with a repeat the following Saturday at 10:30 a.m.

Safety-consciousness: October is National Fire Prevention Month and it’s a good reminder of the importance of storing important documents, records, photos, computer disks and family heirlooms in a fire-resistant storage container.

For information about protecting your belongings from fire, call the Sentry Group (a manufacturer of fire-rated storage containers) at (800) 828-1438.

It’s also a good idea to replace the batteries in smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors, whether they have gone dead or not. Or consider converting to a new 10-Year Lithium Power Smoke Detector, manufactured by First Alert. The device requires no battery changes and lasts a decade. For fire safety tips send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: CO/Fire Safety Tips, 415 N. La Salle, Suite 700B, Chicago, IL 60610.

Get organized: It seems a natural to celebrate Fire Prevention Month and Get Organized Week simultaneously. The National Association of Professional Organizers is celebrating its 10th anniversary and has proclaimed next week as Get Organized Week. They claim 80 percent of the clutter in our homes is a result of disorganization, not lack of space. The American Demographic Society weighs in with this collaborating info: Americans waste more than 9 million hours a day looking for lost and misplaced articles. For free: Those inclined to buy cut flowers as cart bouquets rather than as an arrangement from a florist can learn about arranging cut flowers by sending for a free brochure, “Easy Steps to Flower Arranging.” Send a self-addressed, stamped, legal-size envelope to: California Cut Flower Commission, 2339 Gold Meadow Way, Suite 101, Gold River, CA 95670-4467. , DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color photo