Expert Advice on Home Improvement

      Surveying the damage

Over the weekend, Hannah, my daughter, was upstairs in her room cleaning when suddenly I heard a loud crash and her scream. Sprinting up the stairs and nearly colliding with our huge cat, Carter, I arrived to find magazines, books and pictures scattered everywhere, along with her stereo receiver and cable box upside down in the all the rubble.

What happened??? She explained that as she was trying to shoo Carter away from the fish bowl he freaked out, darted away from her, and jumped onto the flimsy bookcase, pulling it down.

Lifting the crumpled bookcase and steadying the receiver, I decided the frail piece of furniture had to go! So, off to Target we went to pick out a new one. I agreed to get whichever one she wanted as long as she agreed to put it together.

With the help of some friends, we got the bookcase upstairs and Hannah began taking all the parts out of the box. Spreading them out on the floor and grabbing the instructions, she went to work.

                    Hannah ready to tackle assembling her new bookcase!

The nice thing about the bookcase was that it required very simple tools so Hannah wasn’t intimidated. The hardware was pretty simple as well. Inserting the cams into the holes on the side, Hannah made sure that the arrow on each cam was pointed towards the outside edge of the pieces.

Once the cams were all in place, the dowels were inserted in each cam and locked in place with a Phillips head screwdriver to create a nice, tight fit.

                Inserting the cams                             Locking the dowels in place

Now that the sides were ready, it was time to align and tighten down the two bottom shelves that would serve as the drawer compartment. This was a bit tricky for Hannah to do on her own, so I helped steady the side while she tightened the cam to draw the two pieces together. Moving to the top of the bookcase, Hannah aligned the top shelf and locked it into place.

            Attaching the bottom and top shelves to the sides of the bookcase

Turning the bookcase over, Hannah attached the back panel with the tiny brad nails. Since the back panel had a cutout for TV and stereo cables, she had to make sure the panel lined up perfectly with the frame before nailing it down.

            Nailing on the back panel                         Assembling the drawers

Next came assembling the drawers. She was almost there and still had a smile on her face! I was impressed!

After sliding the drawer into place and installing the two remaining shelves, Hannah jumped up and down, twisting in a sort of jig at her accomplishment!

Here is the finished bookcase with all her things back in place! I am so proud of Hannah. This is really the first project she has taken on by herself. There just might be a future in home improvement for her yet!

This is only an overview of the main steps involved in assembling a bookcase from a kit. The actually procedure will vary depending on the brand of bookcase you purchase, so be sure to read the instructions that come with it thoroughly.

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Much fun was had recently as I headed down to Mobile, Alabama, to shoot with Danny and the gang. This was our first shoot in the New Year and I was thrilled to be with everyone again!

Our first stop was shooting in The Home Depot. Allen, our producer and co-host, had everything ready to go while Scott, our fearless director kept us all on pace to bang out four BNP (Best New Products) segments before lunch, and then the remaining four after lunch. It was a jam-packed day filled with some truly great products we are highlighting this season on the show.

Day two proved to be just as rigorous with shooting in the morning on location inside a private home highlighting a “trash to treasure” idea for old shutters. Then it was off to the studio where Allen had me set up to build the prefect little garden or utility room bench made from simple dimensional lumber. It was a snap and I can’t wait for it to air so you can see just how easy this woodworking project is to make.

The days flew by too quickly, and I was sad to leave my Alabama buddies. Heading back to a very cold Atlanta, I was struck by the wonderful feeling I get when I head to Mobile. While the shoots are fast-paced and a whirlwind while we’re working, there’s always that warm feeling a being at home surrounded by good people who love what they are doing just as much as I do . . . we are blessed!

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I can’t believe it! We received another reminder from Ol’ Man Winter than he’s still in mood for cold weather!

Yesterday, March 1st, we had a wonderful, and usually a typical, day with warmer temperatures inching towards 60 degrees. Hannah, my daughter, was thrilled since she just made the golf team and was itching to get out on the driving range. I was equally excited to finally get on the back porch and start some much needed cleaning. Ahhhh, maybe the coldest winter we’ve had in twenty years was finally coming to an end…not!

This morning, March 2nd, I awoke to clicking noises at my window. At first, in my sleepy haze, I thought Hannah was in the kitchen popping popcorn . . . then I realized it was in the middle of the night. Alert now, I got up and looked outside. From the streetlamp light I could see chunks of rain, no wait a minute, that’s sleet! Oh no! It’s back! Crawling back into bed, I buried my head under the covers shivering at the thought of another freezing day ahead.

That must have been around 4 am when I heard the ice chipping away at my windowpane. By 8 am we were underway in a snow shower that lasted until 7 pm tonight.

I love snow, especially if I can ski it. I love Christmas cards with beautiful scenes of Victorian folks ice-skating on outdoor ponds surrounded by banks of snow. I get it. It’s lovely. But I have to go on record now and I will sing this from the highest rooftop I can climb…Jodi Marks is ready for spring! ☺

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The devastating earthquake this week in Haiti has shown us a tragedy that is hard to imagine. With the death toll rising and supplies becoming scarce, if not already depleted, thousands more may soon perish. Time is of the essence to provide aid to these helpless folks.

With the outpouring of relief available to make donations, I went online to see what programs were out there to help in getting aid to this desperate country. Here are just a few:

• Doctors without Borders
• Catholic Relief Services
• Samaritan’s Purse
• American Red Cross

You can also make a $10 donation to the American Red Cross that will be added to your mobile phone bill by texting the word HAITI to the number 90999. Once your text has been sent you will receive a verification text, free of charge, asking you to confirm your donation.

Please copy and paste this info to an email if you would like to send it to your family and friends.

God bless those in Haiti and anyone who is suffering today.

Thanks,

Jodi

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Happy New Year everyone! I am very excited to be ringing in a new year! I hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas and holiday season and I hope that you all are as optimistic as I am for 2010!

I decided it would be good to write some of my more personal New Year’s Resolutions down to motivate me to stay on track this year and hold myself accountable. I have a few professional ones like working more, blogging more, honing my construction skills and taping more videos to share on my website; but I thought digging a bit deeper would truly help me accomplish the ones that I need to do for my personal happiness . . . so here are my top five goals I’m planning to shoot for in the coming months:

1. Spend more time with my daughter, Hannah, before she goes off to college. She is only a junior in high school, but I swear the time is going faster and faster and before I know it, she will be waving goodbye to me from her dorm hall entrance. Plus, she just turned 16 and since she can drive now, she is almost never at home! I am going to insist on a “girls night out” every week! Wonder how much grief she’ll give me!☺

2. Eat fewer sweets! I just can’t live without chocolate! But I am now in the process of training myself to do so. It’s hard! As most women will tell you, nothing comes between them and a great piece of chocolate . . . but lately, I’ve noticed the scales inching upwards, so it’s time to cut back . . . sigh!
3. In keeping with the chocolate cut backs, I want to find myself in the gym more this year than I did last year. I used to work out religiously and still have an active lifestyle with tennis and horse riding . . . but I think it’s time to get back into the habit of going to the gym again. Trust me, it’s super boring sometimes, no it’s super boring all the time, but I know I always feel better once I do it. So here’s to more time in the gym! Hannah likes to work out at our gym, so this will be a great thing for us to do together!
4. Improve my tennis game. Jenny, my twin sister, and I play in ALTA, the tennis league here in Atlanta. We have gone undefeated thus far and are looking forward to a great spring season. I have a tendency, though, to get tennis elbow if I’m not careful about proper execution when hitting the ball. So, hopefully with a few extra lessons, I can get that problem under control and have as successful a season this year as I did last year.
5. Improve my horse riding skills. Growing up with horses, I used to ride trails all the time. But it wasn’t until a few years ago that I decided to get back in the saddle and this time, go over jumps. What a blast! It’s not as easy as just throwing your leg over their back and saying “giddy up!”. Not only is it a workout for the horse, it’s a workout for the rider, too. I recently changed trainers and already my riding has improved exponentially. I’m excited to see exactly how far and how high I can take this jumping. It’s a thrill a minute!

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Santa came early at my house this year! I decided that Steve, my fiancé, needed to have a little fishing buddy on those cold morning when I just couldn’t get out of bed to meet at the dock . . . brrrrr!

Steve had a Jack Russell terrier, named Orvis, years and years ago while he attended film school in San Diego. And even now he tells stories of his quail hunting days with Cokie, his Chesapeake retriever, by his side when he lived on a ranch in Rand, Colorado. I sensed that Steve longed for the companionship he found in those furry, four-legged friends, and thus began my search for the perfect dog.

After looking at every conceivable site online, I narrowed it down to an Irish Jack Russell. The original Orvis that Steve had was a standard one. Reading about the Irish Jacks, I discovered that they were a bit smaller in stature and had a more even temperament. Perfect.

Black Friday may be the biggest day for shopping, but for Steve and me, it was viewing day of all the litters of pups that would be available for Christmas. Finding a great breeder in South Carolina, we looked at scores and scores of puppies, each so precious we couldn’t decide on just one! They were just adorable. Then, Donna, the owner, asked if we’d like to see all the mom’s and dad’s of these babies . . . we stepped outside to see such beautiful dogs . . . all so happy and healthy!

Greeting everyone, we were introduced to Snowie, Trudy, Rocky, and Bosco. Now Bosco was an interesting one . . . he was from a litter almost a year ago, and they were going to keep him as a stud dog for the kennel. He was a very handsome puppy, but as he grew, he was still very timid and shy. So Donna had him neutered and said she was trying to place him in a good home filled with love and patience. Steve looked at me and I at him and we instantly knew this was our baby!

All the way home to Atlanta, we tossed the name Bosco around on our tongues. It just didn’t seem to fit his personality. He seemed cuter and brighter than that . . . so we decided that Orvis the Second would be his new name.

What a joy Orvis is to us! This weekend we introduced him to my Labs, Daisy and Reilly, and to my cats, Carter and Chloe. They all just melded like old buddies from days gone by, even the cats! Once we got to Steve’s house, Sharky, his cat, got introduced as well. It didn’t go as smoothly with him as the others, but he has been an only “child” now for four years . . . so it’s going to take some time.

Adopting Orvis was the best present I could give Steve. They are like two peas in a pod and virtually inseparable. Truly a dog is a man’s best friend.

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Well, with Thanksgiving right around the corner and Christmas not too far behind, getting your house spruced up and ready for your family and friends can sometimes strain the joy and holiday spirit.

I recently traveled to NYC to do a SMT (Satellite Media Tour) to share some products you can incorporate into your planning to help rid you of the bah-hum-bugs!

From cleaning your house to making those special days more enjoyable for your guests, here are some holiday home improvement ideas that might make great gifts as well. You can also watch the SMT video.

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Jodi (standing, third from right) and Jenny (standing, second from right)

This fall my twin sister, Jenny, and I joined an ALTA (Atlanta Lawn Tennis Association) league in our community. Having played tennis on and off since we were about 8 years old, we decided to dust off the rackets and give it a go.

Practices for the team started back in August, and by September we were underway in weekly tournaments. ALTA is a doubles only league, so naturally Jenny and I were paired up and hit the ground running.

Our first match was quite an experience. We hadn’t played competitively since high school, and as doubles partners, we had only played a few times. But there we were, a bit nervous, yet ready for the challenge.

After battling it out, we won our first match 7-6, 6-4. We were over the moon! As the weeks passed, our families started getting excited since Jenny and I were going undefeated! No one missed a match as we ploughed through the season line-ups.

We did, however, later learn that an erroneous technicality by our coach on the initial roster line-up the first week of matches caused our first win to be reversed. But it didn’t matter to us, in our hearts and minds we had beaten those ladies fair and square.

Moving through the season, Jenny and I remained undefeated at Line-1 for our team. And throughout the season, our team slugged it out to win the division title and to go on to the City Finals held this past Sunday!

Our group of ladies, ranging from 21 to 47 years old, played like champions! And because of the hard work and dedication, our team took the City Finals Championship for our division!

I am so proud of our team!

Most of us have now moved into the winter season for the USTA (United States Tennis Association) league here in Atlanta. Jenny and I are doubles partners, the aptly named JJ Duo, and won our first match in this league this past Saturday!

Hopefully, we can keep the spirit alive and go undefeated in this winter league, too! Our rackets are crossed!

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Fall leaves and footballs are in the air… Sort of sad to say goodbye to the summer fun and warm weather, but it’s time to get energized for those seasonal “honey-do’s”!

Simple projects you can tackle now will help ensure a nice, toasty winter, and also help you save on those energy bills.

I’ve created the perfect list you can print to keep things organized…pick the ones you find most helpful or add ones you’d like to get done.

Happy Home Improving!

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As we move into the halfway mark of Energy Efficiency Month, I am celebrating on October 15th by being part of a panel discussion in Washington, DC, for the conservation of energy and the solutions to attaining this global goal.

Asked to join the panel to give insight for reducing energy use by homeowners, I will be sharing my thoughts and suggestions on different products and techniques available for new construction builders as well as for homeowners thinking of ways to bring their energy bills down.

While there, I will also tour the U.S Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon Homes that have been erected in the Mall. The Solar Decathlon is made up of 20 college and university teams in a competition to design, build, and operate the most attractive and energy-efficient solar-powered house. To see what these students are up to, go to www.solardecathlon.org.

This is an exciting time to be mindful of the popular adage: Our greatest source of immediate energy can be provided through conservation.

Here are some popular and quick fixes for your home:

• Caulk those doors and windows.
• Turn off the lights if you’re leaving the room.
• Plug all your TV components into a power strip and turn the strip off before going to bed.
• Install a ceiling fan to help air flow in your room so you can turn down the thermostat in the winter and up in the summer.
• When using smaller pots and pans, use the smaller burners on your stove.
• Install insulation pads behind all your light switches and wall receptacles.
• Check your attic and floor insulation to make sure it is in good condition and hasn’t begun sagging or is crushed with things stored on top of it.

If we can all do just a few simple things, the dividends to the planet and your pocketbook can really add up!

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