| Town reemerges over last year
It's long been said the passage of time heals all wounds. However, sometimes it takes a while to determine the required dosage. The town of Marmaduke is still healing one year after an F-3 tornado ravaged the small city on April 2, 2006. In the aftermath of nature's wrath, more than 750 of the town's residents were without homes. Also, the town's school, a source of community pride with a rich history and strong following, was severely damaged, resulting in classes being suspended for 17 days. Homes, buildings and structures not affected by the tornado's onslaught were far less common than those which suffered damage. Entire sections of the town were leveled, leaving behind just debris as a reminder of the lives impacted by the destruction. The damage was so dramatic, long-time Marmaduke resident, postal employee and school board member Gene Bennett had difficulty recognizing the area immediately after the tornado.
Show of artworks by Vail founder, wife shine on creative careers
At 90 or so and climbing, Dick Hauserman is often too engaged in his current fascination with art to detour into the past. When asked to clarify how he became one of the founding fathers of a Colorado town and a world-famous ski resort, Hauserman describes Vail as it was in 1959. "There was a valley 50 miles long with nothing in it but a cattle ranch. Eight of us got together and bought it. Not developers, all businessmen. We saw those open slopes, with no trees. That's why it became Vail," said Hauserman, who was a founding director of Vail Associates, the developer of the original resort 100 miles west of Denver. Fast forward to July, when Hauserman and his wife, Bobba, received the Vail Symposium Explorer Award in honor of their later-in-life interests in art and writing.
Japan toilet maker offers free repairs
Japan's leading toilet maker Toto Ltd. is offering free repairs for 180,000 bidet toilets after wiring problems caused almost 30 units to catch fire or send up smoke, the company said Monday. The electric bidet accessory of Toto's Z series caught fire in three separate incidents between March 2006 and March 2007, according to company spokeswoman Emi Tanaka. The bidet sent up smoke in 26 other incidents, the company said. "Fortunately, nobody was using the toilets when the fire broke out and there were no injuries," Tanaka said. "The fire would have been just under your buttocks." Toto will repair for free 180,000 toilet units manufactured between May 1996 and December 2001, she said. A manufacturing defect is thought to have led to the faulty wiring.
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