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Famous and often controversial rockstar Ozzy Osbourne was a plumber's apprentice before getting into the music industry.
The word "plumber" dates all the way back to the Roman Empire. In Rome, pipes were originally made from lead, which is "plumbum" in Latin. People who worked with lead were called Plumbarius, which was eventually shortened to the word we use today.
The term "plumbers" was a popular name given to the covert White House Special Investigations Unit established during the presidency of Richard Nixon in response to the leaked "Pentagon Papers" documents. Their job was to plug intelligence leaks in the U.S. Government relating to the Vietnam War; hence the term "plumbers".
The average person visits the toilet six to eight times a day. During these six to eight visits to the toilet a day, each individual uses approximately 57 sheets of toilet paper.
You have a 1 in 10,000 chance of being injured by a toilet.
Thomas Crapper is commonly thought to have invented the first toilet, though is not true. A man by the name of Arthur Giblin invented the first effective flushable toilet. He was an employee of Crapper's and sold his patent to Crapper.
The first toilet paper was invented in 1880, but it didn't come on a roll. Instead it came as a box, like tissues.
Scott toilet paper has been around over a hundred years. The company developed its toilet paper on a roll in 1890.
72.4% of people place their toilet paper to be pulled from over the roll, rather than under.
The toilet uses more water than any other appliance in the house.
More toilets flush during half time of the Super Bowl than during any other time of year.
A third of people flush their toilet while they're still sitting on it.
Rats can survive being flushed town toilets. On top of that, they can often return to the dwelling they were in via the same route.
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What our customers
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Casey's Plumbing
"Very pleased with your company. I'll be recommending you to others". Jo Hodges, Milwaukie"Thom was always courteous of our home and went the extra mile for us". Cameron & Rhonda Azari"Excellent - Explained everything well. Even made friends with my dog". Ross Wine, King City"Thom was great! Professional and good about explaining the process". David Bleyle, Beaverton"Great workmanship; competent and skilled". Ken Moss, Gresham"We found all of your people to be professional, friendly and considerate". Michael Lowe, Beaverton"The best! I am continuing to recommend you guys". Carol Smith, Beaverton"I saw my neighbor using you guys and knew they only use good companies". Patricia Treece, West linn"As usual, work was performed promptly and explained in detail". Dan Ziglinski, TigardThanks to all for the above comments!
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Recipe of the Month
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Spicy Italian Pork Cutlets By: GEORGIAK "Delicious garlic and fresh tomato sauce cover tender pork cutlets. Serve with crusty bread, a leafy salad, and maybe a side of buttered pasta with a little of the sauce on top. Terrific and fast. Prep Time: 15 Min Cook Time: 20 Min Ready In: 35 Min Servings 4 Ingredients 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, divided 4 boneless pork chops, pounded to 1/4 inch thick salt and pepper to taste 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced 1 large tomato, diced 1/3 cup chicken broth 1/4 cup dry white wine 3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes Directions Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Season the pork chops with salt and pepper, and quickly sear on both sides. Remove from heat, and set aside. Heat the remaining olive oil in the skillet over medium-high heat, and saute the garlic about 30 seconds. Mix in the tomato, chicken broth, wine, parsley, and red pepper flakes. Cook and stir until thickened, about 2 minutes. Return the pork chops to the skillet, and continue cooking 5 to 10 minutes, to an internal temperature of 160 degrees F (70 degrees C). Serve pork with the tomato and broth mixture from the skillet. Nutritional Information Amount Per Serving Calories: 261 | Total Fat: 18.9g | Cholesterol: 38mg 
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 March 2011
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Greetings!
I am just back from a one week business training seminar and I am more pumped than ever. I gained a lot of new insights on how to serve you, our clients better, and will be implementing some of them right away and others over a longer period of time. But again, the whole purpose is to provide you the best service on th planet because you are worth it!
I want to thank you for taking the time to read our Newsletters. This month is not only International Women's History Month but it's also the month we celebrate St. Patricks Day. I suppose, my last name being Casey, allows me to appreciate this holiday a lot.
You probably have noticed in previous Newsletters that I try to include the history of a major holiday for that month. This month, I have included the history of St Patrick's Day as well as the origins of International Women's History Month. You'll also notice that "Tips for hiring a contractor" is in this month's edition again. I have decided to leave this story in place indefinitely. Remodels and repair work occur all the time and I want our readers to always have at their fingertips good resources for choosing who will do the work.
Finally, I would like to encourage you and your families to continue praying for all the tragic victims of Japan's earthquake. It's hard to imagine the grief and despair being experienced by all those who have lost loved ones. I also continue to pray that the nuclear melt down threat subsides and indeed, compeletey disapears.
Thanks so much for your time and continued patronage.
Until next month,  Brenda Casey / Owner and Operations Manager BACK TO TOP
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Turning Your Outside Faucets back On
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A few months ago, we provided instructions for winterizing your outside faucets using the pictures here in this frame. If your system hasn't been disturbed since the initial winterization, your outside faucet will still be in the open position and will now need to be turned back off.
Now before turning the water back on to the outside faucet, check to see that the gasket to the air cap on the valve providing water to the outside faucet, is up in place. Then, secure the cap back on to the valve and turn it on. The valve lever will be parallel with the pipe when it is on.
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At this point, take a quick look around to ensure there are no leaks. If the system was improperly winterized, then it's likely there are broken pipes somewhere.
Assuming all is dry - no leaks - go outside and open your outside faucet allowing the air to purge from the system. After the flow looks normal, slowly turn the faucet off and you are now back in business, ready for the spring.
As always, if you need any help with any of this, please don't hesitate to give us a call. We'll always be there when you need us!
503-620-9111
503-620-911
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Tips for hiring a contractor
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Check with the CCB (verify contractor's license), before asking for bids or entering into any agreements with a contractor. When checking a contractor's license: - Verify the contractor is actively licensed. This means the contractor can legally work in Oregon, has a surety bond, provided proof of liability insurance at the time of application and insurance renewal*, and assures that you have access to the CCB (Construction Contractors Board), Dispute Resolution Process.
- Check the contractor's history of complaints (disputes) and any other licenses associated with the contractor's name.
Get more than one bid from licensed contractors before making a decision. Don't automatically accept the lowest bid. A higher bid may be worth the price in better materials or workmanship. If you get a very low bid, the contractor may have made a mistake or not bid everything. If the bid is too low to make a profit, they may use cheaper materials or take shortcuts. Ask for references. Check with previous customers. Were they satisfied with the work? Was the work completed on time? Did the contractor return phone calls? Check the BBB (Better Business Board) and Angie's List for records of complaints and / or praise. Learn as much as you can about the contractor you are hiring. Read "Building/ Remodeling Checklist" and "16 Ways to Avoid Remodeling, Repair and Construction Problems" for a more comprehensive list of issues to consider when hiring a contractor. *Many insurance companies do not contact the CCB when the policy is cancelled since they are not required by law to do so. Consumers may want to verify coverage is still in effect. The above information was taken straight from the CCB as we believe they are your best resource for checking lincensing. If you have any questions or need to schedule a plumbing service call, please contact us at... 503-620-9111
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History of St. Patrick's Day
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The person who was to become St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, was born in Wales about AD 385. His given name was Maewyn, and he almost didn't get the job of bishop of Ireland because he lacked the required scholarship.
Far from being a saint, until he was 16, he considered himself a pagan. At that age, he was sold into slavery by a group of Irish marauders that raided his village. During his captivity, he became closer to God.
He escaped from slavery after six years and went to Gaul where he studied in the monastery under St. Germain, bishop of Auxerre for a period of twelve years. During his training he became aware that his calling was to convert the pagans to Christianity.
His wishes were to return to Ireland, to convert the native pagans to Christianity. But his superiors instead appointed St. Palladius. But two years later, Palladius transferred to Scotland. Patrick, having adopted that Christian name earlier, was then appointed as second bishop to Ireland.
Patrick was quite successful at winning converts. And this fact upset the Celtic Druids. Patrick was arrested several times, but escaped each time. He traveled throughout Ireland, establishing monasteries across the country. He also set up schools and churches which would aid him in his conversion of the Irish country to Christianity.
His mission in Ireland lasted for thirty years. After that time, Patrick retired to County Down. He died on March 17 in AD 461. That day has been commemorated as St. Patrick's Day ever since.
Much Irish folklore surrounds St. Patrick's Day. Not much of it is actually substantiated. Some of this lore includes the belief that Patrick raised people from the dead. He also is said to have given a sermon from a hilltop that drove all the snakes from Ireland. Of course, no snakes were ever native to Ireland, and some people think this is a metaphor for the conversion of the pagans. Though originally a Catholic holy day, St. Patrick's Day has evolved into more of a secular holiday.
One traditional icon of the day is the shamrock. And this stems from a more bona fide Irish tale that tells how Patrick used the three-leafed shamrock to explain the Trinity. He used it in his sermons to represent how the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit could all exist as separate elements of the same entity. His followers adopted the custom of wearing a shamrock on his feast day.
The St. Patrick's Day custom came to America in 1737. That was the first year St. Patrick's Day was publicly celebrated in this country, in Boston.
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WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH
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In 1911 in Europe, March 8 was first celebrated as International Women's Day. In many European nations, as well as in the United States, women's rights was a political hot topic. Woman suffrage - winning the vote - was a priority of many women's organizations.
Women (and men) wrote books on the contributions of women to history. But with the economic depression of the 1930s which hit on both sides of the Atlantic, and then World War II, women's rights went out of fashion.
In the 1950s and 1960s, after Betty Friedan pointed to the "problem that has no name" - the boredom and isolation of the middle-class housewife who often gave up intellectual and professional aspirations - the women's movement began to revive. With "women's liberation" in the 1960s, interest in women's issues and women's history blossomed.
By the 1970s, there was a growing sense by many women that "history" as taught in school - and especially in grade school and high school - was incomplete with attending to "her story" as well. In the United States, calls for inclusion of black Americans and Native Americans helped some women realize that women were invisible in most history courses.
And so in the 1970s many universities began to include the fields of women's history and the broader field of women's studies.
In 1978 in California, the Education Task Force of the Sonoma County Commission on the Status of Women began a "Women's History Week" celebration. The week was chosen to coincide with International Women's Day, March 8.
The response was positive. Schools began to host their own Women's History Week programs. The next year, leaders from the California group shared their project at a Women's History Institute at Sarah Lawrence College. Other participants not only determined to begin their own local Women's History Week projects, but agreed to support an effort to have Congress declare a national Women's History Week.
Three years later, the United States Congress passed a resolution establishing National Women's History Week. Co-sponsors of the resolution, demonstrating bipartisan support, were Senator Orrin Hatch, a Republican from Utah, and Representative Barbara Mikulski, a Democrat from Maryland.
This recognition encouraged even wider participation in Women's History Week. Schools focused for that week on special projects and exhibitions honoring women in history.
Organizations sponsored talks on women's history. The National Women's History Project began distributing materials specifically designed to support Women's History Week, as well as materials to enhance the teaching of history through the year, to include notable women and women's experience.
In 1987, at the request of the National Women's History Project, Congress expanded the week to a month, and the U.S. Congress has issued a resolution every year since then, with wide support, for Women's History Month. The U.S. President has issued each year a proclamation of Women's History Month.
To further extend the inclusion of women's history in the history curriculum (and in everyday consciousness of history), the President's Commission on the Celebration of Women in History in America met through the 1990s. One result has been the effort towards establishing a National Museum of Women'r History for the Washington, DC, area, where it would join other museums such as the American History Museum.
The purpose of Women's History Month is to increase consciousness and knowledge of women's history: to take one month of the year to remember the contributions of notable and ordinary women, in hopes that the day will soon come when it's impossible to teach or learn history without remembering these contributions.
Credit to About.com for this story.
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MONEY SAVING COUPONS
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COUPONS NOT GOOD WITH OTHER OFFERS
OR WORK PREVIOUSLY PERFORMED
 
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A Word From Bill Casey
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It's getting to be a real problem in our world today. Innocent homeowners call contractors looking to have work performed on their home.
A service person shows up, and the homeowner doesn't think twice about letting that person into their home. They presume that person is honest and coming to help them with their problem. All too often these seemingly innocent calls turn tragic.
Not long ago, I read about a Florida woman who was killed by a registered sex offender who was performing work in her home. In another instance, a service technician in the Minneapolis area was convicted on several counts for stealing from customers' homes. In yet another story, an unsuspecting housewife in Missouri hired a contractor only to have him call back two weeks later and make lewd remarks over the telephone. What if this guy had done more than just make telephone calls? You don't think about this possibly happening until it's too late.
You and your family deserve to feel comfortable and safe in your own home; to live life without fear. Women home alone with small children, the elderly, or the disabled shouldn't have to be wary of their security when calling a contractor. As a person who's been in this industry for years, it sickens me that this has
become an issue... but it has.
Knowing this, we have made a commitment to you and all of our loyal customers. You will never have to worry about a person from our company that enters your home or be concerned about their true intentions. As a service to you, every single one of our employees is background checked and drug tested. No criminal or drug addict will ever wear one of our uniforms. We have one of the most difficult hiring processes around, and only people of high moral character are given the opportunity to be employed by us. We then take these hard working people and provide them with the best technical and communication training offered in the country. So, you'll know that when one of our people shows up, they're upstanding citizens who are eager and able to help you with any and all of your home's needs.
Many contractors in the home services business do not bother to practice such stringent policies... But that's what distinguishes us from the rest. Indeed, recently when screening applicants to fill an opening we had for a journeyman plumber, only a very small percentage passed the drug screening. And these people are now working for someone!?
When you call Casey's Plumbing, Rooter n Drains or Metro's Best Electric, you know you're dealing with professionals who care about your personal safety, the safety of your family, and the well-being and security of your home. We feel that's the least we can do for you.
Thanks your continued patronage.
Sincerely,
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