I happened to see your magazine(Summer Issue)in the office where I am employed. I found the cover inviting and therefore started reading it. I did not know at that time how much money my partner and I were going to save just by reading your article found on page 30, titled “Dollars & Sense”. We were having to run the cycle on our dryer several times to get the clothes dry and a new dryer was not in our budget. After reading the article, I discovered a kink in the dryer hose. After a simple adjustment, the clothes now dry within less than a complete cycle. It is like having a new dryer while saving a lot of energy and money. Again, thank you for this article and thank you for making me a fan of your magazine.

With trees in the background adn layered plantings in the forground, a frame is created that will showcase a special water feature.

Pools mean different things to different people. Parents of young children are most concerned with safety and fun, giving their kids a place to play in the water, according to Ellen Lee of Atlantic Pools. Some want a water feature focal point for their outdoor entertaining, and still others a bit older may use a pool for low impact exercising to ease joint pain. In whatever ways you might use a pool, you always want it to look nice and inviting. For that, landscaping or hardscaping are great ideas to keep your swimming pool a pleasure to the eye.

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Trees, like most other plants, typically go through a growth phase in the spring after being relatively dormant through the winter.  The tree puts another ring on its trunk, a sign that it has thrived another year.  With the arrival of summer, a tree is ready for its evaluation.

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Fred and Elaine Delk and their two daughters are a busy family.  While their careers, studies, and interests pull them in various directions, they all seem to cross paths, as most families do, in the kitchen and immediate surrounding areas like their breakfast area or stairwell with the laundry nook.  If anyone needs to get into the back yard, they have to pass through the kitchen, since the back door is located, as in most 1920’s homes, at the end of the counter.

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As those lazy days of summer approach us, Historic Columbia Foundation offers a variety of outdoor and indoor activities for families, couples, and tourists in the city’s historic district.

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The key people at Michelle Productions left to right - Ray Gailard, Monique Mack, Kurt Cowan, and Shawn McDaniels.

Instead of letting a mid-life crisis bog him down or get him off track, Ray Gaillard spent time soul-searching at home in his self-described man cave.  He had reached a point in his life where he felt like he needed a creative outlet.  He recalled wanting to make movies as a young man, but life intervened as it often does on pipe dreams.  That is until one of his brainstorming sessions led him to write a script.  He teased out messages echoing his fundamental Baptist upbringing, talked to local filmmakers about the details of their craft, and finally, he purchased a Panasonic digital camera with a speed setting that would mimic celluloid film, giving scenes a rich, cinematic luster.

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