Maybe you know the story of the Tower of Babel. These old-timey peoples began building a tower to reach the heavens, but God deemed it an homage to man’s glory, not his. So he smote their society — which was united by a common language — by creating multiple languages and distancing the people.
I think those forces are still somewhat at work. Ever notice the members-only speak of certain professions? I’ve worked in the journalism field for more than 10 years and I know we’ve got some unique lingo and notations of our own.
“The paper’s been put to bed.” = “The paper’s gone to print.” “Adjust the kerning.” = “Take in the spacing between letters.” “SIC” = “Spelling is correct.”
And so it goes with other professions, as well. To me, a budding handyman(dy), it happens most frequently with construction specialists and home improvement gurus. Continue reading ‘Home improvement Babylon’
Mandy Miller is senior online editor for Angie's List publication department. When she's not focusing on the
magazine's website and other online offerings, she's tackling a mounting list of home improvements she thinks she can do herself. Plus, she really likes to ride her bike, play with her puppy, Boo Radley, and take naps.
I’m by no means rich, which means sometimes I have to settle for less. Like, I’m not really thinking about such grand luxuries as remarriages at this stage in my life. I’m more concerned with convincing the right girl I’m not some sort of waif.
But, alas, that’s the life of an impecunious intern and college student. Once I amass enough wealth, my first goal is to move out of my apartment building, buy it and level it (my second goal is to buy the choice items pictured at right). That purchase might take time, of course, but I’m convinced it would be the best fate for my apartment complex, an edifice of ugly.
I’ve lived in a horde of rentals. I’ve had noisy neighbors and have been the noisy neighbor, both of which are equally stressful. That’s why I’d like to one day become a homeowner. Continue reading ‘Life is rich’
As editorial intern, Mike writes the monthly employee page, edits content and talks to service providers for the Comparative Shopper column in
Angie's List magazine. His favorite place is the Appalachian Trail (except for the areas that have bears, snakes or birds). His favorite album is "London Calling" by the Clash.
Most Angie’s List members, when checking the List, look for a company to hire based on their prices, punctuality, and quality of work, and most reports reflect on these same factors. But there’s more to a service company than what’s in its report.
Members may not realize it without visiting the company’s website or hearing it from its employees, but many companies, when they aren’t painting, installing windows, or remodeling kitchens, are involved in their communities. Continue reading ‘Good companies and good neighbors’
Liz is an associate editor at
Angie's List magazine. She enjoys eating chocolate chip ice cream on the beach after swimming. She also likes colder, drearier places like London.
A couple of us magazine staff writers have been working on a feature story about the plethora of home improvement TV shows for our June issue. I have to admit, when I first started reporting on the topic, I knew very little about the quirky hosts my co-workers gushed about and the drama-filled plots that seem to keep millions of viewers enthralled. My TiVo only records a few of my favorite sitcoms, so I hardly ever venture out of my comfort zone to check out what’s airing on the other channels.
Apparently, Angie’s List members are big fans. In a recent poll, 79 percent of our members said they watch these types of programs — everyone from “This Old House” old-school fans to the fanatics who love watching the fiery Niecy Nash annihilate clutter in “Clean House” chimed in to let us know why they watch. Some have a pretty serious addiction to home improvement TV as a handful of respondents admitted they tune in to more than 15 different shows per week. The majority said they watch it to get ideas for their own house and because they’re entertaining. Continue reading ‘Channel surfing’
Brittany is senior editor of national affairs for
Angie's List magazine. When she's not busy reporting for the magazine, she enjoys relaxing, bowling and watching movies.
When we started doing research for our green issue, I didn’t know much about building a “green” house. I figured if you turned the lights off when you left a room and turned the water off while you brushed your teeth, you were doing your part to help the environment. People who really knew what they were doing could add some solar panels to their home or replace their windows with new, low-e ones. But that was it, right?
Wrong. Continue reading ‘Going green across the country’
Liz is an associate editor at
Angie's List magazine. She enjoys eating chocolate chip ice cream on the beach after swimming. She also likes colder, drearier places like London.
“Green is a color, the perception of which is evoked by light having a spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 520 – 570. In the subtractive color system, it’s not a primary color, but is created out of a mixture of yellow and blue or yellow and cyan.”
— Wikipedia
With all this buzz surrounding sustainable living and eco-friendly practices, I bet some of you had forgotten: green is actually a color. NBC devoted a whole week to going green, Al Gore mysteriously pops up in front of every camera on Earth and Angie’s List magazine just printed our “Green Issue,” exploring everything from LEED-certified houses to green products for the home.
It seems everywhere you turn, green’s a buzz word that’s being used. And there’s a reason. While many promote green as a way to save the environment, it seems the true catalyst in this current movement is economics. People are moving towards sustainable living to save the most important green element: cash. Continue reading ‘Green is a color?’
Conor is an associate editor for
Angie's List magazine. He has a cat named Kanye and a puppy named Sherman, his favorite movie is
Back to the Future, he loves playing basketball and his favorite place is his couch.
I wouldn’t call my sister Teresa an activist, but I’m starting to change my thinking. She believes and supports many causes, but I don’t usually hear of her doing something about it (I think most of us are like that). So, when I got an e-mail from her earlier this week about her mission to implement two of the three R’s in the eco-friendly creed “reduce, reuse, recycle,” I was pleasantly surprised.
Teresa has been taking canvas bags to carry home her groceries in so that she doesn’t have to use the plastic ones (reduce, reuse — see?) On a recent trip, the cashier was obviously irritated by this, which in turn irritated Teresa. “I don’t think she liked messing with my bags. Pfft!” she wrote.
Irritable cashiers aside, I definitely believe it IS a good thing, and it was a small anecdote that jibed with my mental state here in the magazine department. My head was filled with thoughts of green this and that as I had just finished the update of Angie’s List magazine’s website, magazine.angieslist.com. Continue reading ‘Actually, green is my favorite color’
Mandy Miller is senior online editor for Angie's List publication department. When she's not focusing on the
magazine's website and other online offerings, she's tackling a mounting list of home improvements she thinks she can do herself. Plus, she really likes to ride her bike, play with her puppy, Boo Radley, and take naps.
