The Dish: Owens Pipes Up Again

Terrell Owens will never win a championship.

Neither will Randy Moss, Barry Bonds, Jeremy Shockey or Kellen Winslow Jr.

But today I'd like to talk about Owens, the anti-New-England-Patriot, the man about whom nothing surprises anyone, the Dennis Rodman of the NFL, the man who is positive that the world was created primarily to praise him. You know about his big contract stink with the Niners a couple years back, when his agent forgot to cross some Ts and dot some Is, and Owens accidentally missed free agency. You know how he vetoed a trade to Baltimore by threatening not to report, and you know how he muscled into Philly. You know how this offseason, he stomped and whined like Angelina Jolie standing before a fake-boob detector, because he didn't like the incredibly lucrative contract he signed the year before. But do you know T.O. wasn't pleased that the Eagles didn't stop the game and hold a ceremony in honor of his 100th career receiving touchdown two weeks ago?

That's right, horror of horrors, Owens came out this week and questioned the entire Eagles organization because, in the middle of a terrible skein in which the defending NFC champs look like they could struggle to finish with a winning record, the team didn't single out an individual achievement for a player who's been louder than Cyndi Lauper. And this after the Eagles did recognize his 100th overall TD just a few weeks ago. Then, after calling out the organization, Owens set his sights on QB Donovan McNabb, saying that it's Donny's fault the team is losing, and that if the Eagles had Brett Favre at the helm, they'd be undefeated. Is the man insane? They lost 49-21 last week. Does McNabb plug rushing lanes? Does he defend bombs? Does he blitz? Does he tackle?

No, T.O. is through in Philly, just as he's through in San Fran and through in Baltimore. He'll never get the fans back now, and he'll probably be gone this offseason, gone to another franchise who'll buy into the fool's gold of his physical talents, and who will guarantee themselves, like the Niners and Eagles before them, that they will never win a title with Owens aboard. I feel a huge NFL game in the offing. How do you see the Colts/Patriots game next Monday night? Even if you don't want to tell us who your pick is, tell us how you think bettors will behave. Where do you think the public will wind up, and why?

Rob Gillespie, BoDog.ws: Colts undefeated, defense getting respect, coming off a bye week. The Pats' injuries are common knowledge and they looked mediocre against the Bills on national TV. The public will be in on the Colts and even a few pros have appeared to jump that way early. The Patriots have been amazing in finding ways to frustrate the Colts in recent years, but the injuries at running back make the challenge especially tough. I can see it being closer than people expect, getting 3.5 at home would be enough for me to bite.

Ditto for the huge tilt in Blacksburg this weekend: Miami against Virginia Tech. Does Tech have another huge conference win in them? Does Miami have enough offense to score? Where will the public be on this one, and what do you expect the national title implications will be?

RG, BoDog.ws: Going to be an interesting game. Both teams have not played a tough opponent for weeks. Miami has been a double-digit fav in their last five games (and 20-point-plus faves their last four), while VT has been a double-digit fave their last seven games. Whoever gets out of the gate quick will have a huge advantage. Tech has held Miami in check the last two years and I can see that happening again. I expect public action to be split as people really aren't sure about either of these teams. If VT can win, orbetter yet, win big, they can maybe pull a couple of votes away from USC or Texas, but the reality is they won't get themselves into a title game unless one of those teams lose. They should get a boost in the computer polls which will help keep them ahead of Alabama and UCLA. Miami would likely only climb one spot with an upset and would need several teams to lose to have a title shot.

Is there any way Reggie Bush doesn't win the Heisman?

RG, BoDog.ws: Yes. If UCLA holds him to 30 yards on 20 carries, he fumbles three times returning punts and the Trojans lose 48-10. Or if Vince Young puts up 500 combined yards a few more times in comeback wins.

What do you think of Theo Epstein resigning as GM of the Boston Red Sox? Is the world going to fall off its axis (as everyone in Boston seems to fear), or will the Sox will be a major contender in '06?

RG, BoDog.ws: If you asked me a month ago which of Epstein or Cashman would be with their team next year, I would have been wrong! The Red Sox must have some front office troubles; they win the World Series and Pedro bolts. Now they are contenders and ManRam wants out. Why do players want to go to the Yankees and leave the Red Sox?

Christopher Harris is a featured writer for the Professional Handicappers League. Read all of his articles at http://www.procappers.com

Hose Pipes – Types and Uses

Hose Pipes find enormous use in every walk of our life. The Hose Pipes are manufactured in different types, shapes and sizes. Hose pipes are made of different types of materials to suit the applications they are put to. In olden days the Hose Pipes were made of Rubber and its Compounds, which were very bulky, and could not be easily moved from one place to another. They also got damaged easily and it was difficult to repair.

Now the Hose pipes are made of Poly Vinyl Chloride the wonder chemical of the last Century that has got enormous applications throughout the World. The PVC tubing is made of Virgin Grade P.V.C. and range of Hose piping materials include: Flexible Tubing, PVC Flexible Pipes, PVC Garden Pipes & Hoses, PVC Sleevings, Sanitary Waste Connection Pipes & Tubes, Nylon Thread Reinforced Braided Hoses, Double Layer of Triple Garden Hoses, Solid Doris, PVC Strips, Belts and Profiles.

A Vast range of Products are being manufactured in different sizes. Many different types of Hose Pipes are manufactured each for a different type of use like Pneumatic Hoses, Water Hoses, Welding Hoses, Chemical Hoses, Car Washing Hoses, Sanitary Connection Hoses and a range of other Hose pipes.

The Hose pipes for Pneumatic uses are usually Nylon Reinforced Hoses in which the Nylon yarn is fused in between the inner and outer layers of the Hose pipe that gives higher resistance to withstand high pressure without the problem of splitting. They are resistant to various chemicals, Oils and other corrosive materials.

The Water Hose Pipes as the name itself suggests are made for use in transporting Water and they are co-extruded flexible ones most useful for Gardening, Construction, and Irrigation purposes. They manufactured in sizes from 1/2", 3/4" & 1".

Yet another type of Hose pipes is Welding Hoses that connect the Welding Machine with the Welding electrodes carrying Gas for the Oxy-Acetylene welding purposes and cutting equipments. Chemical & Pesticides Hoses pipes are Nylon braided Hoses being used for conveying Chemicals and spraying Pesticides, Insecticides, Fungicides Weeding etc. The Car washing Hoses are the abrasion and Chemical resistant three layer double reinforced high pressure Hose Pipes that are mostly used in Garages as well as Service stations for car washing purposes.

Another type of Hose pipes is the Sanitary Connection Hoses. These are the Nylon braided Hoses finding wide application in Bathroom fittings and connections. These are corrosion resistant and flexible the connections/ shower Tubes made out of colorful Hoses giving aesthetic looks and adds elegance to the bathroom decor.

John Gibb is the owner of hosepipe resources , For more information on hospipes check out http://www.Hose-Pipe-Information.info

Sell Vintage Collectable Pipes on eBay

Collectable pipes are also commonly found at local auctions from country and deceased estates and, like ashtrays, they were often given as gifts or special awards and more often kept and cherished than used or discarded.

Pipes were made from many different materials, some short lived and easily broken and made from inferior clay, or expensively fashioned from ivory or rare woods and embellished with silver and porcelain. The latter represent the highest profit potential.

Carved wood and ivory bowls fetch the highest prices especially with famous faces (a bowl with portrait of Napoleon fetched £400 at a sale in Newcastle last month), and most highly valued of all are long stemmed pipes, up to fifteen or sixteen inches long with ornate carved bowls sometimes embellished with silver and precious gems.

eBay.com's recent high prices include:

* $3075.00 was paid for a Lars Ivarsson Pipe

* A large Dunhill pipe fetched $1875.00

* A Dunhill White Spot Briar Pipe and Case fetched $954.81

* An Ivarsson Pipe, Pot with Bamboo, made $860.00

* A Meerschaum pipe carved with face of a mountain man made $661.00

I won't go further because in just a few minutes I spotted the following trends:

* Pipes represent one of those collectables that fetch high prices and rarely go unsold on eBay.

* Names like Dunhill and Ivarsson are amongst the highest achievers of all on ebay.com and other ebay sites.

Meerschaum pipes are also extremely collectable, meerschaum being the material from which the pipes are made. Meerschaum is better known as magnesium silicate, a porous mineral found in rock veins.

Pipes made from meerschaum absorb nicotine and gradually grow darker. The better types are elaborately carved to represent people or animals. The more intricate the design, the higher the price is likely to be, such as a pipe depicting an elephant's head with long winding trunk and tusks that several years ago fetched £1,000 at Christie's in the UK, and a cheroot holder (not exactly a pipe) in the shape of two ladies sitting on a snake that fetched almost fifteen hundred pounds at Sotheby's.

Avril Harper is a business writer and eBay PowerSeller who has produced several guides to making money from eBay, including MAKE MONEY TEARING UP OLD BOOKS AND MAGAZINES AND SELLING THEM ON EBAY which you can read about at:http://www.magstoriches.com 103 POWERSELLER TIPS can be downloaded with other freely distributable reports and eBooks at http://www.avrilharper.com

Evaluating A Home - Water Pipes

When evaluating a home you are considering buying, it is easy to get caught up in the visual aspects of the home. Water pipes are just one unseen area you remember to inspect.

Water Pipes – Drip, Drip, Drip

Alright, I’ll admit right away water pipes are not exactly the most glamorous aspect of a home. In fact, water piping in most homes is more than adequate to keep you in hot showers while you live there and take care of all your water needs. If there is a problem with the interior water pipes, however, you are in for a very costly and disruptive experience.

The main issue with water pipes on the interior of a home is their location. It is easy to forget about them because they are primarily hidden behind the walls of the house. While this is good from a visual perspective, it quickly becomes a negative if a pipe starts leaking or, god forbid, actually bursts inside a wall. Leaks lead to rot and mold problems that can effect the health of you family. A burst pipe leads to flooding, new carpets, rebuilt walls and large bills.

When evaluating the water pipes in a home, keep in mind the following issues.

1. Copper – The best piping material for water pipes is copper. It will last forever and is resistant to hard deposit build ups which can impact the amount of water flowing through the pipes. Copper pipes are also the sign of a quality construction effort as they tend to be more expensive than alternatives.

2. PVC – If you see PVC water pipes anywhere other than on the sprinkler system or from the main street line to the house, red flags should wave before your eyes. The presence of PVC piping is an indication of an owner doing the piping themselves, as most construction companies will not use PVC. In a majority of locations, such use of PVC is outright illegal. Do not buy a home with PVC piping in the walls! Ever!

3. Iron Piping – For a long time, iron piping was pretty much the standard in home construction. There is nothing particularly wrong with using such piping with one exception. Iron piping is susceptible to water and will rust over time. If you find this grey, metal piping in the home, find out when it was put in and check for rust. Iron piping should last roughly 30 years without any major problems. If replacements must be made, go with copper.

The pipes moving water around the interior of a home may seem uninteresting. Your attitude, however, will change if one of them bursts in the middle of the night.

Raynor James is with the FSBO site - http://www.fsboamerica.org - FSBO homes for sale by owner. Visit our home buying page - http://www.fsboamerica.org/buyer.cfm - to view and buy homes, houses, condos, land and real estate.

The Exhausted Exhaust Pipe

Do you know what your exhaust pipe is for?

Well, in the most basic sense, the exhaust pipe that you find in your vehicle is a tube that actually guides any exhaust or waste gases away from your car’s engine. It is very essential for if the waste gases simply accumulate in your car’s engine, you and your passengers can actually suffer from poisoning of these gases and it could be very lethal.

Exhaust pipes are not just any tubes or pipes. They have been designed with precise computations and with accurate designs so as to guide these harmful gases away from the engine. You can see that the exhaust pipe is part of your vehicle’s exhaust system and it connects to the exhaust manifold of your vehicle. So as to lessen any engine noise, there is a muffler as part of it. The harmful emissions are even lessened in toxicity with the assistance of a catalytic converter.

You may not notice your exhaust pipe as you may take much attention to other parts of your vehicle like your paint, windows, or tires but your exhaust pipe can really get rusty and old. Now, when this happens, you just may find out one day that it could fall off and start a ruckus by being dragged on the road. Now that would be something that you may not want to have.

If you are faced with this kind of situation, you should try to check if it is attached very thinly, then you should try to break if off. Keep in mind that before you do touch your car’s exhaust pipe, make sure that it is cool enough to touch or you might just get burnt in the process. On the other hand, if you cannot break it off, look around for a wire coat hanger or a mechanic’s wire. Wrap this around one end of the hanging pipe and then fasten the other end to the underside of your car. This should keep it in place right up until you bring your car to the muffler shop.

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As a former news correspondent for an auto-related websites, Kevin has gathered extensive knowledge and experience in the automotive industry. This 34 year old father of three from Pennsylvania is a genuine car lover.