Welcome to a rich and enjoyable assortment of water-related essays written for a weekly column, “The Water Closet,” by the Middleton Stream Team and published from January, 2006, through December, 2011, in the Tri-Town Transcript, a community paper serving the Ipswich River watershed towns of Middleton, Boxford and Topsfield, Massachusetts. The Middleton Stream Team is an active volunteer group with the broad purposes of environmental stewardship, conservation, advocacy, public service and education. The essays and information provided span all these purposes.
Although Thomas Crapper is most commonly associated with the invention of the flushing toilet, his models were in fact the result of a long line of improvements to earlier designs which date back to ancient times. This book is an ideal introduction to the history of the toilet, tracing its development from the primitive - and very smelly - privy maiden to today's one-piece, all-ceramic WC. Illustrated with superb photographs, this book tells the intimate story of the lavatory.
In "Toilet," noted sociologist Harvey Molotch and Lauren Noren bring together twelve essays by urbanists, historians and cultural analysts (among others) to shed light on the public restroom and how it reflects and sustains our cultural attitudes towards gender, class, and disability.
This New York Times bestselling book is filled with hundreds of fun, deceptively simple, budget-friendly ideas for sprucing up your home. With two home renovations under their (tool) belts and millions of hits per month on their blog YoungHouseLove.com, Sherry and John Petersik are home-improvement enthusiasts primed to pass on a slew of projects, tricks, and techniques to do-it-yourselfers of all levels. Packed with 243 tips and ideas—both classic and unexpected—and more than 400 photographs and illustrations, this is a book that readers will return to again and again for the creative projects and easy-to-follow instructions in the relatable voice the Petersiks are known for. Learn to trick out a thrift-store mirror, spice up plain old roller shades, "hack" your Ikea table to create three distinct looks, and so much more.
Did you know that about 40 percent of the world's population lives without toilets? That's more than two billion people, most of whom live in rural areas or crowded urban slums. And according to the World Health Organization, diseases spread by the lack of basic sanitation kill more people every year than all forms of violence, including war. In particular, diarrheal diseases kill more than two million people each year, most of them children. Everyone needs to go to the bathroom, and from the citizens of the world's earliest human settlements to astronauts living on the International Space Station, the challenge has been the same: how to safely and effectively dispose of human body wastes. Toilet history includes everything from the hunt for the causes of infectious disease to twenty-first-century marvels of engineering. In Remaking the John, you'll explore the many ways people across the globe and through the ages have invented—and reinvented—the toilet. You will learn about everything from ancient Roman sewers to the world's first flush toilets. You'll also find out about the twenty-first-century Reinvent the Toilet Challenge—an engineering contest designed to spur creation of an ecologically friendly, water-saving, inexpensive, and sanitary toilet. And while you're at it, mark World Toilet Day on your calendar. Observed every November 19, this international day of action works to raise awareness about the modern world's many sanitation challenges.
Based on the 2006 International Plumbing Code® and authored by an industry leader in contractor education, the DEWALT Plumbing Code Reference is a must-have for novice and experienced plumbers alike. With 80 pages of illustrated code requirements, violations, and installation concerns, the book covers everything from materials, water heaters, and bathrooms, to backflow, isometrics, and trenching. Ideal for anyone required to work with plumbing systems or at home do-it-yourselfers, this resource will provide the critical information needed to get the job done right - the first time.
“Like the YouTube channel, this is a touching yet informative guide for those seeking fatherly advice, or even a few good dad jokes.” — Library Journal
