The weather outside …

… isn’t frightful. Well, not yet, at least. But it does seem as if we’ll be kicking off 2014 with some snow. And this, of course, will necessitate snow removal.

It’s no secret that we’ve got lots of ads for plows and other snow removal equipment. And if you’ve found yourself looking for a way to remove all that white stuff, you might have wondered what, exactly, is the difference between a snow thrower and a snow blower (or if there’s any difference at all).

Turns out, they’re two separate things. And the difference is pretty simple. As the name indicates, a snow thrower … well, it throws snow. It’s a single-stage operation; basically, the snow is thrown away from its undesired location in one movement. A snow blower performs an identical function, but does so in two steps: the snow is picked up, then fed through an impeller and finally thrown through a chute. It’s a two-stage operation.

Whether you’re a blower or a thrower (or even an old-school shoveler), we’ve got you covered. You’ll find snow throwers & snow blowers listed with Lawnmowers, Etc. and plows and shovels in Machinery & Tools.

 

It’s about time!

With our weekly deadline, we’re all about the countdowns here. So we’d like to think we’re rather well-rehearsed for the biggest deadline of the year: midnight on December 31.

While it’s an exciting time no matter where you are, the most famous of New Year’s Eve parties is, of course, in the Big Apple. And if you’re among the estimated billion worldwide watchers (not to mention the approximately one million folks live in Times Square), you already know you’re part of one of the most exciting annual traditions. But here are some pretty neat factoids you might not already know about that famous glittery ball and its yearly voyage:

• The inaugural drop was in 1907 and the first ball to be lowered was made of wood, iron and one hundred 25-watt light bulbs. It was 5 feet in diameter and weighed in at 700 pounds!
• The ball has dropped every year since with only two exceptions: blackout restrictions due to World War II prevented it happening in 1942 & 1943
• There have been a number of different balls used throughout the years, but a fifth ball design, lit by LED, was introduced for the celebration’s centennial in 2007.
• The current ball design – the sixth – was introduced in 2009. It clocks in at 11,875 pounds and has a diameter of 12 feet. It’s made up of 2,688 Waterford crystal panels.
• In over a century of celebrating, there have only been 7 white New Years Eves – the most recent snowy celebration was in 2009.

Brushing Up on Tree Trivia

Yeah, it’s a cheesy title for a post, but not quite as cheesy as you might think. Here’s why:

During the last century, there’s been quite a demand for artificial Christmas trees. Whether it’s due to allergies, environmental concerns or just a dread of the many needles that wedge themselves into carpeting to be found well into the new year (it can’t just be us, right?), there are quite a few reasons why folks might prefer a tree that’s, well, not real.

The first artificial trees were created in Germany in the 1850’s in response to concerns about deforestation. They were generally crafted from feathers that were dyed green, but some were made of wood, too.

The US, unsurprisingly, brought us the first commercially produced artificial trees. In 1930, the Addis Brush Company put its toilet-brush-making machinery to use to create a series of bristled Christmas trees. These brush trees had the decided advantage of being far less flammable than their feather counterparts, and they enjoyed a degree of popularity for quite some time.

These days, most artificial trees are made of PVC plastic. If you find yourself treeless in these final days before Christmas, we’ve got you covered. Check out our Miscellaneous category for trees of all sorts: indoor, outdoor, pre-lit, whatever your heart desires. And if you’re more interested in looking at trees, well, make the time to check out the lineup of the 2013 Festival of Trees at the Electric City Trolley Museum in Scranton. You’ll find our tree there – and it’s made entirely of pages from Paper Shop. But that brush idea? Pretty intriguing. Maybe next year …

White Tuesday, Black Friday

We know. You most certainly weren’t dreaming of a white Tuesday. Neither were we, though it was a rather nice surprise for a number of our advertisers; we can only imagine the delight of the folks who are currently advertising snowplows, snow blowers, snow tires and all other sorts of cold-weather accoutrements.

But whether (weather?) we’re ready for it or not, we had a winter wonderland on our hands this morning (interesting fact: the song ‘Winter Wonderland’ was written about Hawley, Pa., but that’s a subject for another post).  And it’s funny how that first set of flakes does start to get you into the holiday spirit. So we felt it was a great time to let you know our plans for the upcoming holidays.

Our office will be closed on Thursday, November 28th in observation of Thanksgiving. But we will be here on Friday, November 29th. We never miss a Black Friday, and that’s mainly because it falls squarely on our deadline day. And neither snow, nor sleet, nor big screen TVs at rock bottom prices can keep us away from putting together the following week’s book. We’ll have our usual deadline of 11 AM on the 29th for the December 4th issue.

The final issue of the year will be the December 18th issue. It’ll be on stands for three weeks and it is – by far – the largest issue we produce all year. The deadline for that behemoth edition is 11 AM on Friday, December 13th. And even though there are no more issues until January 8, 2014, we’ll still be here in the office to take your ads and every single one we get will be posted on thepapershop.com  within 30 minutes of us receiving it.

Staying Power

Between the recent government shutdown and yesterday’s Facebook fiasco, we’re willing to bet that, like us, you’ve had just about enough of things not working when they’re supposed to. Yeah, it’s a crazy and somewhat out-of-control world out there, but it is possible to take control is some small ways.

One of those ways? Having a generator on hand. And we’ve got ’em – check out Machinery and Tools to find generators of all sorts & sizes.

We know we’ve talked about these dynamos before, but it’s a subject we find quite, well … powerful. Early prototypes of generators differed greatly from those we know today for a simple reason: the first inventors just didn’t know quite what to do with alternating current, so the focus of the first ones was on trying to eliminate the AC in order to harvest direct current. By the late 1880’s, however, inventors like William Stanley, George Westinghouse, Nikola Tesla & Elihu Thompson had begun to develop their own designs for generators that used the more controllable and more powerful AC currents. And today? Well, we use those back-and-forth currents of electricity to keep life moving forward, even when things go seriously awry. Between fall hurricanes and upcoming winter storms, we’ve got you covered with an impressive number of listings for generators.

Feeling salty?

Even if you aren’t, the roads are. Sidewalks, too.

You’ve likely noticed dozens of trucks spreading salt over the last 24 hours or so, but did you ever wonder why? In a way, it’s a two-pronged assault on icy conditions. The main reason to spread salt over potentially icy areas is because the salt lowers the freezing point of water, making it more difficult for icy patches to form. There’s also a secondary benefit: salt can provide a little traction in slick spots.

Could you take a salt shaker outside and do the same thing? Sure, you could … but it would be very time-consuming and, once some moisture hit that shaker, rather frustrating. The salt used on roads, sidewalks & walkways is treated with a number of chemical additives to keep it from caking.

Before the days of motor vehicles, there was no need to clear roads since most travel required horse-drawn sleds; in fact, a snow cover made for a more comfortable and smooth ride than the usual dirt roads. By the 1920’s, however, both plows and gritting vehicles (early salt trucks) came into widespread use with the popularization of the motor vehicle.

Looking to provide a little traction of your own? Check out or Machinery & Tools section for salt spreaders.

Snow Days

Before the days of the internet, we remember listening to local radio on snowy mornings to find out about school cancellations and delays. You really had to time it well, though, because the names of the schools were read in alphabetical order, and if you happened to tune in just past your school’s spot in the ABC’s, you’d need to keep listening until the alphabet ran full circle to that particular letter. To this day, whenever we hear certain local ad jingles, it takes us right back to those snowy winter mornings and that special anticipation that if we were lucky, we just might get an unexpected day off from school.

Perhaps that’s why we’re big fans of local radio. We’re proud to bring you a brand new show every Saturday morning, and each time we show up at the Times Building in downtown Scranton to take over the airwaves, we feel like we’re part of something really special. If you haven’t yet tuned in, join us this Saturday at 9 AM. You can find us on the dial at 96.1 & 100.1FM or at 630 & 1240AM. If you miss the broadcast, listen online to the podcast of the show. We also post links to each week’s podcast on Facebook, Twitter & Google+.

Pellet like it is.

Funny-looking little things, aren’t they? If you’re the owner of a pellet stove (or even someone who’s done their homework & considered buying one), you’ll recognize them immediately: fuel.

It might shock you to know that pellet stoves burn pellets (we know! Completely floored us, that one did). Sarcasm aside, here’s the really interesting part: those pellets are made from biomass. Biomass is basically compressed sawdust and other wood products; in other words, those little pellets are fuel that’s produced from waste wood that would otherwise end up in landfills. The pellets are poured into a hopper and an auger gradually feeds them into a burn pot area of the stove where they’re burned to produce a steady source of heat.

Pellet stoves were developed in the ’70s in reaction to fuel shortages caused by the Oil Crisis, and they’ve steadily increased in popularity ever since. With current rising heating costs, they’ve become a very viable option for home heating. There’s a wide range of types and grades of pellets, and the stoves can be either stand-alone or installed as a fireplace insert.

And, yes, we’ve got ’em. You’ll find pellet stoves in our Heating & Plumbing category; if you need to consult with a professional about pellet stove installation or if you’d like to find a source to buy pellets, we’ve got those, too.

Valentines Day

 

We’d like to take a moment to wax sentimental – it is, after all, Valentines Day. We truly appreciate our readers and our many advertisers.

That said, we also love trivia. Since we can’t take all of you out for a fancy dinner nor can we send everyone bouquets of flowers, we’ll just share some fun (and offbeat) Valentines Day facts:

• Thirty million boxes of chocolates are purchased every year for Valentines Day. Sweet! But did you know that the Richard Cadbury came up with the notion of boxed V-Day candy in the late 1800’s?
• On Valentines Day in 1876 Alexander Graham Bell applied for a patent for the telephone. 49% of Americans show their affection on this day with a phone call to loved ones.
• Verona, Italy was the hometown of Romeo & Juliet. Every year, over 1000 love letters arrive in that city, all addressed to Juliet

Off to see the blizzard?

We don’t know about you, but we’re getting ready to batten down the hatches for a storm that may turn out to be quite a blizzard. Even if it isn’t a full-blown nor’easter, we’re still in store for a little of the white stuff within the next 48 hours. It goes without saying, we suppose, that we’re thinking snow. Because we love strange little details, we wanted to dig up some cool (see what we did there?) snow facts:

• The largest recorded snowflake was 15″ across and 8″ thick – wow!
• The patent for the first snow shovel (one that both scooped & scraped) was granted in 1889 to Lydia Fairweather
• Chionophobia is the fear of snow
• Snowflakes fall at 5.5 feet per second
• The Victorian Era was a period with serious air pollution. Because of this, the snow that fell was often dark gray
• The U.S. averages about 105 snowstorms each winter