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NEWS FROM SUMO SAM December 2020 QuickSumoPestControl.com
5 NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS TO KEEP YOUR HOME PEST-FREE
SEAL YOUR EXTERIOR CRACKS AND CREVICES. It might surprise you how many ways a pest can infest your home. Gaps can occur anywhere the edges of
Merry Christmas everyone! I hope your holiday season has been sailing as smoothly as possible so far. For the past several months, I’ve been privileged to share many personal stories about my family and life lessons I’ve learned. However, this month, I thought I’d share some information that may be very important to you after this holiday season: preparing your home to be pest-free in 2021.
Here are just a few New Year’s resolutions you can make to ensure your home is happy, healthy, and safe from unwanted little guests.
your home meet, such as where walls meet your foundation, windows, bricks, stone, or any other type of barrier material. Take some time to investigate these cracks and holes and seal them with a copper mesh or silicone-based caulk. Also, you want to check places that have plenty of moisture, which will most likely attract pests. Make sure those areas stay as dry as possible. REMOVE FOOD AND SHELTER SOURCES FOR PESTS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. Of course, a great way to prevent pests is to clean your house. A few key tricks: Make sure your food is stored in sealed containers off the ground. If there are any containers that have bite marks or other evidence of pest tampering, make sure to get rid of them right away. Keep in mind that pests are looking for food, water, and secluded areas to nest, so if you’re keeping piles of cardboard in the house anywhere — especially in a more humid part of the home like the bathroom — it could be providing them with that opportunity. Although these tips can’t always prevent pests, they will certainly make your home far less appealing to them. With any luck, I hope these tips will help you and your family have an incredible 2021, and may no mice stir on your holiday celebrations. Merry Christmas, and we'll see you next year!
TRIM YOUR BUSHES AND BRANCHES. Don’t wait for your garden’s bushes and trees to grow into rebellious teenagers! Your shrubbery and trees need a little TLC (specifically, regular grooming or trimming) not only to feel wanted, but also to prevent them from inviting critters and insects to your home. For example, in a previous edition, we’ve talked about how dislodged roofing can invite pests. Any plant that hugs your walls can act as a bridge to your roofing, giving pests big and small more ways of exploring access to your home. Make sure to pay attention to your plants before they host undesirable house parties.
RAKE LEAVES AND TURN YOUR MULCH REGULARLY.
Decaying matter — especially when it has moisture — often invites all kinds of pests to live there. If you aren’t raking or turning/changing your mulch regularly, then you’re much more likely to have pest issues. MAKE SURE YOUR GUTTERS ARE CLEAN. In that same line of thought, cluttered gutters tend to be a major problem when it comes to pest control. Make sure leaves, twigs, and other debris aren’t clogging your gutters before they become new homes for pests. Meanwhile, at ground level, you want to make sure your drainage pipes and downspouts aren’t providing pests with an entryway into the home.
Josh Hopewell
“Keep in mind that pests are looking for food, water, and secluded areas to nest.”
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SNOW SHOVELING HACKS Hate Shoveling Snow? Try These Hacks
Everyone loves the snow — at least until it settles on the driveway, a barrier between your car and the open road. Shoveling snow off your driveway and walkway can be so tedious that you might be tempted to just hope and pray the sun melts it all before you have to shovel it — which, of course, almost never happens. However, you can use a few tools and methods to clear the snow away faster than shoveling for hours on end. Check them out below.
BE PREEMPTIVE WITH SOME TARPS.
Did you see on the weather forecast that your area is about to get some major snowfall?
CREATE A NONSTICK SHOVEL.
Throw down some tarps on your walkways and driveway. Then, after the snow stops falling, lift the snow off to the side, and your walkways will be as clear as if it hadn’t snowed at all.
Wet, partially melted snow might work well for packing snowballs, but it’s a pain to shovel. It has a tendency to stick to the scoop and not let go — unless you spray it with some common household cooking spray. This will make it a lot easier for the snow to slide off your shovel. Just remember to wipe your shovel down afterward!
BLOW THE SNOW AWAY.
If you’re lucky enough to be clearing your driveway while the snow is still powdery, rev up your leaf blower instead of breaking out your shovel. You’ll be able to clear your driveway in a fraction of the time it would take to shovel and dump it off to the sides of your driveway.
MAKE YOUR OWN SALT ALTERNATIVE.
Sometimes you start shoveling, only to find that the snow concealed a layer of ice that you can’t scoop up with your shovel. However, if you combine 1 teaspoon of dish soap, 1 tablespoon of rubbing alcohol, and 1/2 gallon of water in a bucket, you can spread the mixture over the ice and melt it away, much like the salt you see on major roadways.
With one (or a few) of these methods, you can clear your driveway and enjoy the fun side of snowfall in no time!
MAKE YOUR CHRISTMAS A LITTLE ‘GREENER’
The holidays are a season for giving — why not give back to Mother Nature, too? With all of the environmental progress we’ve made in 2020, there are lots of ways we can do our part and support the natural world in our own communities.
better than regular ones, considering they eventually get thrown out. Buy presents that can be solar powered, or, at the very least, make sure you recycle your used batteries! Third, use sustainable or alternative wrapping paper. There are plenty of attractive ways of wrapping your presents without using glossy or metallic wrapping paper, which is difficult to recycle. Try using recycled paper or paper made with fibers like hemp. You could also use cloth, newspaper, old calendars, maps, magazines, and much more. Fourth, recycle old items and electronic goods. Not only can you be paid for recycling your old flatscreen TV or smartphone, but you’ll make a big difference for the environment while doing it. However, your old clothes or kitchenware doesn’t deserve the landfill treatment, either. You could also find other ways of passing them on or recycling them, such as gifting them to a loved one who might need them or donating to a local charity. If everyone made a few more environmentally conscious choices this holiday season, it’d help end this crazy year on a great note. From everyone at QuickSumo, we hope you have wonderful, green holiday celebrations this month!
First, source your presents locally whenever possible. Your wallet can be a powerful voice in your community. Buy your
gifts from a local mom and pop store — or, you could even buy your loved one a subscription to a local farm’s CSA box! It’s even better if the gift is locally made, reducing transportation emissions. Although it might cost a little more than on Amazon, buying local can help make your neighbor’s Christmas a little better and boost the local economy. Being eco-conscious pays! Second, give more "battery free" gifts. Forty percent of battery sales occur during the holiday season, and, unfortunately, discarded batteries are a major environmental hazard. Rechargeable batteries aren’t much
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H ere’s an interesting fact to win your next holiday music history trivia night: “Jingle Bell Rock” by Bobby Helms has played on the radio every single holiday season since its release in 1957. Yet, there’s still one surprising controversy that remains: Did Bobby Helms and his lead guitarist write the song? Hank Garland — Helms’ lead guitarist — was an exceptional musician, one whom Elvis Presley described as "one of the finest guitar players anywhere in the world." When Garland and Helms teamed up to create “Jingle Bell Rock,” they expertly adapted it from a song called “Jingle Bell Hop” and made significant changes, from changing lyrics to adding a bridge (“It’s a fine time / It’s the right time / To rock the night away”). However, Joseph Carleton Beal and James Ross Boothe did write a majority of the music and melody, and many people had covered versions of “Jingle Bell Rock” before Helms’ version became famous. So, while Helms and Garland didn’t necessarily write the song, it’s arguable that they did deserve some writing credit for adapting the song so significantly. THE SURPRISING STORY BEHIND THE LEGENDARY ‘JINGLE BELL ROCK’
Unfortunately, Helms and Garland were never credited for their writing contributions to the song and never received subsequent
FESTIVE APPLE CIDER
writing royalties. It was estimated in 2001 that the music industry owed them over $100 million for their hits including “Jingle Bell Rock” and “Sugarfoot Rag.” Don’t let that get you down, though! Most musicians experience a fade of
If you’re cutting back on calories, skip the eggnog and buttered rum this year and fill up your mug with this delicious mulled cider!
INGREDIENTS
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1 lemon
2 tsp allspice berries
1 gallon pure apple cider
1 inch fresh ginger, thinly sliced
1 large orange, thinly sliced crosswise
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2 tbsp honey
popularity (and royalties) in their music as time goes by. One special thing about “Jingle Bell Rock” is the fact that its popularity has only grown exponentially. It peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard Best Sellers in Stores chart upon release but, over 60 years later, reached No. 8 in the Billboard Hot 100 in January 2019. Helms broke the record for the longest wait to be in the Hot 100’s top 10 after 60 years. The recording even reached a new peak at No. 3 on Jan. 4, 2020.
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2 tsp whole cloves
3 cinnamon sticks
DIRECTIONS
1. Using a paring knife, shave the lemon peel off in curls. Reserve the curls and save the lemon for use in a different recipe.
2. In a large slow cooker, combine the lemon peel with all other ingredients. Cook on low for 3–4 hours.
3. If desired, use a sieve to strain the spices. Serve and enjoy!
Thanks for reading! We hope you get to jam out to “Jingle Bell Rock” this holiday season!
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279 Highview Lane, Anna, TX 75409 | 214-334-1466 | QuickSumoPestControl.com
1 5 New Year’s Resolutions to Keep Your Home Pest-Free 2 Hate Shoveling Snow? Try These Hacks Make Your Christmas a Little ‘Greener’ 3 The Surprising Story Behind the Legendary ‘Jingle Bell Rock’ Festive Apple Cider 4 The Surprising History of the Snowman INSIDE
NOT JUST A CORN COB PIPE AND BUTTON NOSE
THE MIRACLE OF 1511
Building a snowman is one of the most picturesque winter activities, which is why snowmen have become a wintertime
In Brussels in 1511, during six weeks of subzero temperatures called the Winter of Death, the city was miraculously adorned with hundreds of snowmen. The spectacle told stories on every street corner — some political and some demonstrating anger with the church, many too risque to speak of. For the people of Brussels, this Miracle of 1511 was a defining moment of artistic freedom. But when spring came and the snow thawed, the Belgians were left with damaging floods.
cultural icon. A snowman appeared on the very first postcards, was the subject of some of the earliest photos, and even starred in silent movies. Frosty may be a happy snowman now, but his ancestors have a much more varied — and sometimes dark — history.
THE SCHENECTADY MASSACRE
THE MIDDLE AGES
Not all snowmen have an innocent history. In 1690, former Fort Schenectady in upstate New York was home to a remote Dutch settlement, which was under the constant threat of attack. Soldiers guarded the gates at all times because they were frozen open, but during a blizzard, they left a pair of snowmen to protect the gates while they sought shelter. That's when 200 French Canadian soldiers and Native Americans approached. Naturally, they were unfazed by the snowmen and ruthlessly invaded the settlement. Building a snowman seems like a simple and charming activity, but after learning about its surprising history, you might find those piles of snow seem a little more complicated and a lot more meaningful than before.
Snowmen were a phenomenon in the Middle Ages. They were constructed with deep thought and great skill because, during a time of limited means of expression, snow was a free art supply that literally fell from the sky. These artistic feats were popular winter attractions for well-to-do couples who wanted to get their fix of temporary art. Snowmen were often created by famous artists, including 19-year-old Michelangelo who, in 1494, was commissioned by the ruler of Florence to sculpt a snowman in his mansion’s courtyard.
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