The Weekly Dirt, for 26 August '03
An e-mail newsletter from Garden Center Merchandising & Management
editor Carol Miller http://www.carlinsales.com

* After intense pressure from the business community, FCC delayed the
start of its rule requiring advance written consent before a
commercial fax can be sent until Jan. 1, 2005. The FCC ordered the
delay to allow companies more time to gather permission, as well as
permit further study to determine if the rule should be revised.
Vendors can continue to send availability lists or other commercial
faxes to customers without first obtaining written consent.

* Have you ever heard of a "grass photograph"? If you travel through
Chicago in the next month, you'll have the chance to see one if you
stop by the Chicago Cultural Center. A couple of British artists
discovered that chlorophyll reacts in much the same way that
photographic film does. By projecting an image of Piero di Cosimo's
"Satyr Mourning Over a Nymph" over sod kept in a dark room, the
artists were able to create a living replica of the painting in shades
of green and yellow.
http://egov.cityofchicago.org/city/w...eEnumValue=128

* Home construction jumped in July to the highest level in more than
17 years as the red-hot housing market showed no signs of slowing down
even as mortgage rates began to rise. The U.S. Commerce Dept. said
housing construction totaled 1.87 million units at a seasonally
adjusted annual rate last month, an increase of 1.5% over the June
level of 1.85 million units. The gain, which lifted housing starts to
the highest level since April 1986, was much better than expected.

* U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled some Great Outdoors
Gas Grills. The right wind conditions "can cause overheating or
flashbacks under the control panel" of models #GH450SBP and #GH450XBP,
the recall said. "Flames could damage the hose that supplies gas to
the burner, causing an uncontrolled flame."
http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml03/03173.html

* Wal-Mart plans to open its first location in Fairbanks, Alaska, next
year, and with it could come a flurry of new businesses such as Lowe's
and Fred Meyer stores. "We are certainly evaluating potential
opportunities in Alaska," said Chris Ahearn, spokesperson at Lowe's
headquarters in Wilkesboro, N.C., told Fairbanks Daily News-Miner.
"But we don't have any specific sites that we can discuss at this
time." ACT NOW! Don't miss your weekly connection to the garden retail
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