Would You Clean A Haunted Window?

“We’ve probably been to 360 locations throughout the Midwest. The Belvoir Winery is probably the most haunted place we’ve ever investigated,” said Nick Spantgos, co-founder of Paranormal Research Investigators.

Spooky Kansas City - A paranormal paradise: Kandice Walker was relatively new on the job at the John Wornall House Museum in 2006 when she had the first of what was to become many odd experiences. “It was my third day, and I was opening the museum for the first time,” she said. But as she pulled in and looked up at one of the museum’s windows, she was alarmed by what she saw. Two little girls were apparently inside. Having children locked all night in the museum is never a good thing to have happen on your watch. “I was fairly freaked out,” Walker said. But when she worriedly searched the premises, there was no sign of them.
Only later did she learn that two small girls had lived at the house and had died of childhood disease, and that people frequently claim to have seen them. Walker didn’t know it at the time, but the Wornall House had a long-standing reputation as being haunted, with numerous sightings not only of the girls but of soldiers and the Wornall family. Walker, who went on to become director of the museum, can laugh about it now. “Nobody told the new kid about the ghosts,” she said.
That wasn’t the only weirdness Walker experienced with locking and opening up. Another time, Walker arrived early to unlock and found the door open enough that leaves had drifted inside. But the motion-sensitive alarm didn’t sound until Walker herself entered. That happened twice in a row. The third day, all the doors were shut but none locked, including a “widow’s balcony” door that was never unlocked by museum staff, she said.
Distinct and unaccounted-for footsteps are a common occurrence, say staff members, as well as the smell of cherry pipe tobacco, which is attributed to John Wornall, the home’s former owner. Children seem to be a common sighting as well, according to docents who spend a lot of time there. A few years ago, a little boy whose family lived nearby asked if he could play with the girls he saw in the windows. Another childlike spirit is thought to be that of Mittie Pigg, an orphan who became a servant during the Civil War.

This is the Oliver Family Mansion in Chester, PA. The Oliver family went missing in 1898. The mystery baffled investigators and the family was never found but locals say they can see them in the windows of the mansion.

Photographer Seph Lawless is a master of the abandoned - his frames are filled with eerie portraits of shopping malls, factories, homes. All dilapidated, all empty, all but forgotten. He usually travels across the United States via hybrid vehicle, equipped with a camera and a knack for finding ways inside strange structures, collecting stories of his adventures along the way.

It shouldn't be surprising that Lawless' travel logs include more than a few ghostly tales. He is, after all, venturing through the detritus of tougher times. He was bound to stumble upon a few terrifying properties, left to crumble while the rest of us are too afraid to notice. Just in time for Halloween, Lawless has compiled the most hauntingly beautiful of the bunch in a book titled "'13: An American Horror Story."

Essentially, the tome is a high quality coffee table book for the macabre obsessed. From Texas, Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Kentucky, Wisconsin and Connecticut, Lawless shows off the real life haunted houses he's visited throughout his work, and the slightly startling histories and personal stories that make them unique.

Most haunted places in Cirencester revealed: The night where ghosts and ghouls come out to play is upon us again. As Halloween approaches, Cirencester Ghost Society describes its top places to visit on a spooky walk around the town. Black Horse pub haunting..  There have been several unknown apparitions in the popular pub. In one incident an evil looking lady appeared in a bedroom, scratched a signature in a black window, before disappearing. Others have smelt lavender by the pub’s fireplace. It is thought that it comes from a ghost of a previous cleaner who always spayed lavender polish near the fireplace.

The town hosted its first haunted house tour (Chesterfield) - "This is the first year of what is to be an annual event," said Keith Reimann, adding there is plenty of material to make each year’s tours different. Stories of ghosts have been around this town for generations, he said. He said he had a disclaimer and a warning before continuing the tour. "Nothing you are going to hear tonight has been made up by me or anyone else for the sake of this tour," he said. "And now, the warning: The history of Crosswicks is full of events that are cruel, violent and tragic and I won’t be sparing any details."

Mr. Wolverton told his guests that if they were brave enough, they could continue with him to their next stop, the Garden Hand Inn, a stagecoach stop up until the 1850s. He told of new homeowners who moved in the early 1990s. The mother was outside cleaning windows one day and ran out of the commercial brand of window cleaner and didn’t want to stop cleaning so she went to the closet, but there was no more, only Uncle Al’s window cleaner. "Her Uncle Al was a favorite," he said. "He liked to invent things and make his own solutions and give it away as gifts to friends." He said Uncle Al had died so she just kept it as a memento.

"It was then she noticed smoke coming in the window," he said. "She looked out; no one was there. She went all the way around the house, and there was no fire. She went back to work. It was then she realized that it was not just any smoke, but it was pipe smoke, and it was the very flavor of cherry pipe smoke that her Uncle Al use to smoke." It comforted her to know her Uncle Al is always here, he said.

July 15, 1962, John Wine came home from a weekend fishing trip sponsored by the insurance company he worked and arrived home around 8 p.m. when he opened his front door and was blown into the middle of Main Street by an explosion, Mr. Wolverton said. "It was a back draft caused by a sudden rush of oxygen to a fire that had been smoldering all day," he said. "His wife, Ethel, 51, had been smoking in bed and was burned beyond recognition." It might have been Ethel’s ghost waiting for the new owners in the late ’70s when the Seahuts moved in, he said. "Someone was trying to keep them out of one of the bedrooms," he said, adding they kept finding the door locked from the inside with a deadbolt. They had to climb out on the roof and go in through a window to unlock it, he added.

Watch moment 'ghost' reveals itself in the window of Britain’s ‘most haunted’ pub: This video footage is believed to show the moment a ghost reveals itself in the window of Britain’s ‘most haunted’ pub. The 19 second clip shows a strange light flickering in a first floor window of Bolton’s 763-year-old Ye Olde Man and Scythe. The footage was taken by a tourist who  - speaking in Portuguese - describes the old Churchgate boozer as ‘one of the oldest’ in England, adding: “And the most haunted.”

Just after he refers to a famous CCTV clip - which became an internet hit after it was first published it in February - something strange can be seen in the first floor window. As the man talks about the ‘crazy cider’ for which the pub is known, a flickering light appears in the window. Pub manager Tony Dooley says the clip is further proof the pub is haunted. Tony, 36, said: “I’m not too happy about it. That’s my flat behind the window. My attitude before I became the manager nine months ago was not to believe in ghosts. I’m convinced now.”

Only a few weeks ago he said he was woken by what he thought what his partner’s pet dog Kallie licking his feet only to discover the animal was fast asleep. “My feet were clammy and wet, like sweaty palms only worse. I went straight to the bathroom and took a shower with the dog in the room making sure nothing else happened. It was creepy. My attitude is as long the ghost doesn’t harm me then that’s fine,” said Tony.

The first ‘ghost’ video emerged after spooked Tony had checked CCTV cameras and discovered a strange, luminous figure flickering into view in the bar. The pub’s owner Richard Greenwood said he is now trying to get in touch with the person who shot the latest video. Asked whether it was a stunt, he said: “I wish I’d have thought of it if that’s the case.” He insisted the pub is haunted, adding: “This gives the original video more credibility, I suppose.”

Factfile on Britain’s ‘most haunted’ pub: The pub, which dates from 1251, is the fourth-oldest pub in Britain and is reputedly haunted by the Seventh Earl of Derby, James Stanley. The royalist, whose family originally owned the inn, is said to have spent the last hours of his life there before he was beheaded in 1651 towards the end of the Civil War. The chair he sat in before he was taken outside and executed is still in the pub today - and some say so is he.

Hundreds of soldiers and civilians were also killed outside the pub in the Bolton Massacre of 1644. With such a bloody history, it has long been considered a hotspot for paranormal activity and a psychic evening held there in 2006 reportedly found it to be haunted by at least 25 spirits. Among them is said to be a woman who hung herself in the cellar several centuries ago as well as an eight-year-old girl and a phantom dog.

The 'ghost' in the bottom right window of Michelle Midwinter's house.

Creepy 'Victorian ghost' picture in house 'haunted by murder suspect' will give you nightmares: Terrified mum saw a spirit staring out from inside her house but on closer inspection, there was no-one was there. This creepy picture supposedly shows the ghost of a murder suspect who is haunting a family home. Petrified mum Michelle Midwinter, 30, spotted the spectre in a photo of her house, which she took to share with friends on her Facebook page. The eerie image appears to show a figure of a man, implicated in an infamous Victorian murder, staring out the window from inside her property in Trowbridge, Wiltshire.

Mum-of-one Michelle took the spine-chilling photo last month, a week after moving in to North Bradley. Mobile phone case designer, Michelle, who has nicknamed the phantom Old Man Kent, said: "I went outside and took a picture but after initially admiring the brickwork the face just sort of jumped out at me. "I ran into the house to make sure no one was in there because I knew everyone else was at work, but it was just me and my two-year-old daughter. "I studied the photo for a while and then put it on Facebook to see if anyone else could come up with an explanation as to how the face could have got there."

She believes the photo shows the spirit of Samuel Kent, whose daughter Constance brutally murdered his three-year-old son in the nearby village of Rode in 1860. The factory inspector, who died in 1872, was originally a suspect in the Rode Hill House murder but was cleared when his daughter was convicted. Michelle added: "The picture caused quite a stir on Facebook, but no one could really come up with any plausible explanation. "Most people thought it was a reflection of the flowers below the window but the angles are all wrong." "It's hard to believe but it clearly looks like the face of an old man."

This terrifying image comes after a spate of reports that ghosts have been popping up in photographs across the nation, most recently at Cannock Chase, in the Midlands, where a black-eyed girl was caught on camera. Michelle, who denies claims that the picture has been doctored, said a number of ghostly goings on has led her to believe her house may be haunted. "Another weird thing was that my friend saw a door handle move down and the door opened in the same room the face in the window was in. "I was just so surprised because I thought someone was in the house. We also checked the attic to make sure no one was living up there. "I can't really say what I think the face in the window is, as I honestly don't know.

The most haunted part of the building is said to be the oak-panelled ‘Dark Room’, so-called because the windows have various stained glass bearing the Giffard family associations with the site. Several members of staff have refused to go into the room unless there is somebody else with them.

Giffard Arms, Wolverhampton: Also apparently haunted is the Giffard Arms, in Victoria Street, Wolverhampton. There are believed to be a number of ghosts which haunt the pub, in Victoria Street. One of them is believed to be the spirit of Anne Horton, whose ghost has been reportedly seen following young men back from the pub at night. She is said to have been a prostitute who took her own life on the site in the early 20th century. The pub was built in 1922, but the Giffard family had owned a house on the site prior to that.

There have been other sightings of a girl around the age of 11, who is often seen playing with wooden play bricks in the main bar, in the middle seat by the back window. She is also reported to have been seen in the doorway in the kitchen of the upstairs flat. Another sighting is of a man, who is believed to be an old landlord named John, who has been seen locking up the pub at night. He walks right through the actual bar area as it wasn’t there when he had the pub. There have even been reports about a dog haunting the bar.

Over the years there have been stories of glasses moving and exploding for no apparent reason, cold spots in certain places in the pub, doors closing, strange noises and smells. The most haunted part of the building is said to be the oak-panelled ‘Dark Room’, so-called because the windows have various stained glass bearing the Giffard family associations with the site. Several members of staff have refused to go into the room unless there is somebody else with them.

The White Jockey: A white jockey was once seen in the grandstand of the former Ripon Racecourse, now part of the Cathedral Choir School in Whitcliffe Lane. According to Ghost Stories from around Ripon and other Dark Tales of the Past, written by local historian Maurice Taylor and published by Ripon Civic Society, a khaki-clad First World War soldier has also appeared in the projection box of the former Palladium Cinema in Kirkgate, and a hooded monk at St Anne’s Almhouses on High St Agnesgate. Ripon’s first Mayor, Hugh Ripley, is also said to have appeared at the window of the Wakeman’s House, while clergymen and housemaids have been seen at the Old Deanery. A poltergeist, experienced by Mervyn Usher of the former Cobbler’s Corner in High Skellgate, is also featured in the book. Recalling the day in 2003, he said: “It just came flying across the room towards us. We got out of the way and the plate hit the wall. “It didn’t smash, the middle piece just dropped out and stayed in one piece.’

Also see: Spooked Window Won't Get A Window Clean

The Halloween Window Cleaner

A Halloween story: The mystery of the ghostly handprint By John R. Schmidt - April 18, 1924 was a Friday. At 7:30 in the evening, a passerby noticed smoke coming from Curran Hall, a massive four-story brick building at 1363 South Blue Island Avenue. The man ran to the corner fire-alarm box and pulled the lever. Two miles to the west, at Engine Company #107, fireman Francis Leavy was washing a window. The call came in and Leavy rushed out with the rest of the company. He told the captain he’d finish the window when they got back.

Chicago firemen at work, 1924.

Five squads converged on Curran Hall. The blaze seemed to be minor. The firemen were getting it under control when one of the outer walls began buckling. Then it collapsed, trapping eight men. The falling wall knocked out electrical power at the site. Portable lighting was brought in, while firemen combed the wreckage for their comrades. But all eight men had been killed. Among the dead was Francis Leavy. It was later determined that Curran Hall had been deliberately torched for the insurance. The building owners were tried and convicted of the crime.

Now for the rest of the story . . . The day after the fire, one of the men at Engine Company #107 noticed the window that Leavy had left half-washed. In the middle of the window was a handprint. The man tried scrubbing it out, but the handprint stayed. From that time forward, so the legend goes, every fireman assigned to Engine Company #107 attempted to remove the handprint. They used water, soap, ammonia and acid; they scraped it with razor blades. Nothing worked.

(Chicago Daily Times)
The ghostly handprint in 1939.

The Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company was called in. My dad was a glazier at PPG, though years later. The way he heard the story, PPG applied their strongest chemical solvents to the handprint–and still couldn’t remove it. Was the handprint a ghostly souvenir of the dead fireman? It’s said that Leavy’s thumbprint was obtained from his personnel records, and compared with the print on the window. They matched perfectly. The end of the tale is prosaic. A newsboy threw a paper through the window and broke it. Most accounts say this happened in 1946. But one version claims that the window was broken on April 18, 1944 – 20 years to the day of Francis Leavy’s death.

The face in the window of the White Hart in Ironbridge.

Mystery face appears in 'haunted' pub's window: Drinkers in one Shropshire pub have been left scratching their heads after a series of spooky goings on - including this face appearing on the bar's window. Drinkers in one Shropshire pub have been left scratching their heads after a series of spooky goings on - including this face appearing on the bar's window. Staff and punters at the White Hart pub in Ironbridge might have been accused of drinking one too many ales until one customer snatched this picture on his mobile phone. Bar manager Mike Herbert said there have also been spooky goings on upstairs in the pub's restaurant. The mystery face was only noticed on the window on Wednesday and since then, staff have noticed other peculiar things happening. Mr Herbert said: "We just don't know what it is. "It was noticed on Wednesday and everyone has been trying to guess who it is. One person said it looks like Elvis Presley. "It just appeared on the window and we don't know if it is on the inside or the outside.

We don't want to touch it incase we disturb it either. "Then on the same day, upstairs in the restaurant we noticed something weird on one of the seats. It was only a short time after we saw the face on the window. "It was a strange triangular indent on the seat and when the housekeeper when to clean it off it just disappeared. "Then we went back later and it was there again, so we went to get the camera, but it disappeared again. No one can explain any of this, it's very strange." Mr Herbert added the pub has never seen anything like it before. "No one knows who the man in the window looks like and we have not come across this kind of thing in the past." Mr Herbert had to intervene yesterday when it appeared the face might be destroyed. "We had the window cleaner around and I had to stop him from cleaning that window," he added.

No such thing as ghosts – except the spitting kind: Do you believe in ghosts? The tales of otherworldly events that I am about to relate are not for the faint of heart. If you read any further, it may take you at least five extra minutes to get to sleep tonight. You have been warned (CATHERINE FORTE).

Do you believe in ghosts? The tales of otherworldly events that I am about to relate are not for the faint of heart. If you read any further, it may take you at least five extra minutes to get to sleep tonight. You have been warned.

I was on my first summer home from college. My sister Karen, five years younger, and I were bored, so we took a drive. We headed out into the nearby countryside with no particular destination in mind. After awhile we neared the top of a hill where a small cemetery stood.

“Let’s stop!” Karen said, so we did. It was about 8:30, just starting to hint at getting dark. We started walking around, reading headstones, when Karen spit on a grave. “Karen, don’t spit on graves, that’s disrespectful!” I said in my best big-sister tone of voice.

After walking around some more, we went back to the car. It wouldn’t start. So, we walked down the road about half a mile to where our dad’s friend Mr. Willander lived. He came back with us, and we were all standing outside of the car with the hood up, when suddenly the car started on its own. Then it died again (pardon the expression, ghosts).

Needless to say, we were more than a little spooked. Finally we got it running again, and Mr. Willander followed us home for safety’s sake. Back at home, Karen confessed, “All the kids at school say that cemetery is haunted.” “Well, why did you spit on a grave in a haunted cemetery?” I asked incredulously. We said our prayers with extra sincerity that night.

The kids at school also used to tell stories about hauntings in the school building itself. In the hallways of my small, rural high school were pictures of all the graduating classes dating back to when the school was first built, around 1916. Rumor had it that a kid was helping clean up after school one time, and when he sprayed window cleaner on the picture of the Class of 1918, one of the pictures spit back at him. Clearly, ghosts don’t like you spitting at them, but they feel that they can do it to you. Perhaps ethereal beings feel they have the lock on that particular form of rudeness.

19th century depiction of ball lightning. A new scientific paper, and has also given the first mathematical solution explaining the birth of ball lightning and how it is capable of passing through glass.

Scientist Claims To Have Theory On Mysterious Balls Of Lightning: CSIRO scientist John Lowke thinks he has the mysterious balls of lightning thing figured out, despite himself never witnessing one. Lowke has written a new scientific paper, and has also given the first mathematical solution explaining the birth of ball lightning and how it is capable of passing through glass. Documented sightings of ball lightning have been made across the world for centuries, but no explanation of how it occurs has been universally accepted by scientists. These balls of lightning have been known to form on glass, appearing in homes and even in airplanes.

Previous theories of ball lightning include microwave radiation from thunderclouds, oxidizing aerosols, nuclear energy, dark matter, and even black holes as causes for ball lightning, but Lowke disputes all of these theories. He proposes that the ball lightning is caused when leftover ions are swept to the ground following a lightning strike. After lightning strikes the ground, it leaves behind a trail of charged particles, or ions. In most cases, these positive and negative ions recombine in a split second, and any remaining ions travel down to the ground.

He says this is a result of a stream of ions accumulating on the outside of a glass window and resulting electric field on the other side excites air molecules to form a ball discharge. He said the field gives free electrons on the inside of the window enough energy to knock off electrons from surrounding air molecules, as well as release photons, which creates a glowing ball. “This is the first paper which gives a mathematical solution explaining the birth or initiation of ball lighting,” Lowke told Discovery News.

He said the next step is to use the theory to replicate ball lightning in the laboratory, which could prove to be difficult. One account of ball lightning comes from the 1960s, when a C-133A cargo plane was flying from California to Hawaii. Former Lieutenant Don Smith says he saw two horns of Saint Elmo’s fire appear on the planet’s radar cover, followed by ball lightning inside the cockpit. “It looked as if the airplane had bull’s horns…they were glowing with the blue of electricity,” Lowke told Discovery News. “(It) was driven by ions from the aircraft radar operated at maximum power during a dense fog.” He said about a third of the sightings end in a bang, which may be because the electric field tends to heat the gas making it hotter and hotter.

Window Cleaning News

GUILTY: John Flynn admitted working with no licence as a window cleaner in Aberdeen.

Drunk Aberdeen window cleaner worked without licence: An illegal window cleaner who was often drunk while working has been warned he could face jail. John Flynn worked as an unlicensed window cleaner in the Rosemount area of Aberdeen for more than 18 months before being caught. Police inquiries uncovered that he had frequently worked drunkenly and at least one customer was forced to ask him to leave due to his inebriated state. Flynn, 56, whose address was given in court papers as 12c Rosemount Place, Aberdeen, pleaded guilty to working without a licence at Aberdeen Sheriff Court, and will be sentenced next month.

A video has emerged which appears to show a ghostly-looking figure resembling Princess Diana in a stained glass window. The video was shot by Chinese tourists in Scotland and has been described by paranormal writer Michael Cohen - who was sent the video - as one of the "clearest" paranormal images he has come across. It is understood the footage was taken inside a church in Glasgow, which some who have seen the video say might be significant, as the Princess of Wales' mother spent a lot her life in Scotland, passing away there in 2004. The video-takers did not notice Diana when they took the footage but saw the image when they played their holiday video back when they got home. Michael Cohen said: "The footage is currently being examined by myself and other researchers to ascertain if it is a genuine ghost capture. It might be a bizarre optical illusion, but then again, it could be a ghost - possibly Princess Diana's. "Ghosts often appear in places connected to their lives and families. Ghosts might appear to warn individuals, groups and even entire nations of possible impending danger." The footage is being used in an upcoming TV series on Paranormal mysteries.

Mr. Tightwad’s money-saving tip: Ditch that expensive window cleaner - If you haven’t already discovered the magic of microfiber cloths, here’s another reason you should be using them. Instead of using that expensive window cleaner, dip a microfiber cloth in warm water, wring it out and wipe down your window. Then, take a second microfiber cloth (which needs to be dry) and wipe the window until it’s dry. You’ll have a sparkling clean window and best of all, those cloths can be used over and over again.

Where there’s muck, there’s money for Alan: A mucky job led to a new business for Alan Brown, who has set up a bin cleaning company. Alan, 49, of Whitecross Lane, Shanklin, was cleaning inside a wheelie bin at the Fighting Cocks pub, where he used to work, when landlords Phil Mew and Micala White said they would be prepared to pay someone to do it on a regular basis. Alan did some research and it led to him setting up his family business, The Island Wide Bin Cleaning Company. Alan, who will donate a percentage of the profits to the Earl Mountbatten Hospice, said: "I got absolutely covered in muck cleaning that bin and I thought not many people would want to do that. "When Micala mentioned about paying someone, I thought why don’t I go for it."

Alan bought a purpose-built vehicle, which lifts the bin into a wash position before it is disinfected and deodorised with high-pressure washers inside the van. Four hundred litres of water are stored on the van and Alan has a special licence to dispose of it safely. Customers can have their bins cleaned on a weekly, fortnightly, monthly or period basis, timed around the days their refuse is collected. One-off cleans are also available.

Alan, whose wife, Clare, 51, three sons, Oli, 23, Harry, 17, and Ryan, 17, are involved in the business, compared it to a window cleaning service. He said: "The job only takes a few minutes but we hope it is something people find really valuable to them." Ten pence for every domestic wheelie bin and 20p for a commercial bin cleaned will be donated to the hospice and Alan has set a £2,000 target for the first year.

Teenage job-creators make their own opportunity: That’s exactly the lesson to draw from the responses to my letter last week, after which dozens of people wrote in with stories of young Americans who are learning early that hard work pays off. I enjoyed your story about that young entrepreneur - that is what this country needs.  Plus a government that will help not hinder him as he tries to make this into a successful business and brand. It reminds me of my own story...I started with a window cleaning company at 16 and now I am 35 and we have grown into a multi-million dollar home improvement company serving SE Michigan.

This is Part I of our tribute to legends of Bay Area TV news. I grew up enjoying most of these broadcasters. Then, when I moved away for college and work, I learned how good we really had it. The worst news team in San Francisco was twice as good as the best in Los Angeles. I’m focusing on television anchors and reporters who worked 1990 or earlier. DENNIS RICHMOND (May 1987): I never thought I'd see Richmond anywhere except acting completely serious in the anchor chair. He's working as a high-rise window washer here during a KTVU 5-part sweeps month series called "Risky Business."

GLOUCESTER CITY — NEST International is cleaning up. Rob Almond (pictured) is the chief operating officer of NEST International, which is headquartered in Gloucester City. The company swept up $42 million in 2011 maintaining stores for such retailers as Target, Walgreens and Petco, a 25 percent hike over 2010 revenues. That translated to a $4,000 bonus for every one of NEST’s growing roster of full-time employees, who are encouraged to contribute ideas on ways to boost profits or cut costs. Part-timers got $2,000. “Employees are very careful about how we spend money when the bottom line impacts them personally,” says Rob Almond, vice president of operations. “They come to us with ideas that are wow.” In the past year, NEST doubled its payroll, growing from 59 full-timers to 128. The company added space at its Klemm Avenue headquarters for 25 employees who work the phones, calling retailers daily to keep track of windows that need washing, carpets due for shampooing, walls that would benefit from touch up.

Clementi says handing the headaches to NEST and their network of vetted vendors is more efficient. “Like most businesses, we are looking for ways to do more with less,” she says. “Managing up to 15 vendors for various maintenance duties takes a tremendous amount of time, so we benefit from having NEST do that for us.” Last year, NEST was ranked 2,593 on Inc. Magazine’s list of fastest-growing companies. A second office opened in Florida. Employees in Texas and California work from home. At the local office, NEST has run out of room. Visitors try to schedule appointments during the lunch hour in order to get a spot in the parking lot. “We are looking for more space, either a second building or a bigger building where we can continue to grow,” D’Andrea says.

NEST’s expansion strategy includes enhanced accessibility. The call center is open from 7 a.m.-9 p.m. seven days a week. Remote workers field calls during off hours. There is no phone tree. Each call is answered live. “We used to be available from 8 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday through Friday, with a guy with a laptop and a BlackBerry filling in after that,” Almond says. “It was not enough.” Bob Almond, Rob’s dad, and Phil Dwyer founded the business in 1994. The elder Almond and Dwyer now work out of the Florida office. Showing appreciation for workers has been part of the corporate culture from the start. At the root of the company’s prosperity is a willingness to get down to the nitty gritty. When floods damaged 15 stores at King of Prussia Mall in October 2010, NEST had cleanup crews on the ground within hours. The company forecasts another healthy boost in profits this year as more retailers address deferred maintenance. “We know that a clean store enhances the shopping experience,” D’Andrea says. “We are here to solve problems — and we are ready for the next opportunity.”

Conman told victim was easy target: A callous conman targeted a vulnerable pensioner after being told by another cruel scamster he was an “easy target”. David Morris (pictured) was snared by a neighbour after fleecing his victim of £35 by claiming he was owed the cash for cleaning his windows. Remarkably, Norris, 30, who has 31 convictions for 50 offences, walked free from court despite magistrates being tole he went to his victim’s home after being tole he was easy prey. Today the victim’s family have revealed that 67-year-old has been repeatedly targeted by conmen who have fleeced him out of thousands of pounds. In one such con, bogus builders persuaded him to hand over almost £2,000 to have a garden wall at his home in Seaton Carew repaired - but the work was never done. He was targeted so many times, his family had to install CCTV cameras in his home.

But after this latest scam his family are now looking to rehouse the pensioner in sheltered accommodation to protect him. Hartlepool Magistrates’s Court heard how Morris, of Ilkley Grove, Hartlepool, was cornered when he tried to target the pensioner on December 29 last year by a suspicious neighbour who contacted relatives. He was still being detained when the victim’s brother-in-law arrived - and brazenly tried to front out his scam by telling them he was owed £35 for five weeks worth of window cleaning. But police were called and he was arrested. Lynne Dalton, prosecuting, told the court: “in police interview Morris said ‘I was told if you go to this address and ask for money for cleaning windows he pays you’. She added: “He visited a friend who informed him that the victim was an easy target and you could get money out of without any bother.”

Mitigating, Neil Taylor said: “This is a fairly unhappy case all round - without a shadow of a doubt this gentleman has been targeted.” He said Morris had been “encouraged” to go to the address. Mr Taylor added: “It won’t come as a surprise, probably to the court but certainly to the police, that my client has gone round and done it at the behest or certainly of another the person.” He added there was no confrontation with the victim, the money was recovered and Morris had shown remorse. Recovering heroin addict Morris, who had a £10-a-day habit, amazingly walked free from court after admitting fraud.

Hartlepool magistrates sentenced him to 18 weeks in prison, suspended for two years, with an 18-month community order and 12-month drug rehabilitation requirement after conceding his involvement was a single incident. Chairman of the magistrates’ bench Keith Kitching said: “This gentleman was targeted by yourself and, we begin to understand, by others, so much so that his family have had to install CCTV to his house. “He was targeted by yourself and he was a vulnerable victim.” Speaking after the hearing, one of the victim’s family slammed the sentence. He said; “This person is the lowest of the low. To target vulnerable people like this, he should have gone to prison. “He is 67-year-old, he lives on his own and he is vulnerable. He is very trusting and believes what people say to him. “He has obviously been seen as an easy touch by these people who have targeted him. “As a family, we cannot keep an eye on him 24/7, but we feel there is no other option but to get him into sheltered accommodation where he will be safer. “But to have to take his independence away from him is shocking, it really is.”

Tuition rebate excludes those who need it most: I am no longer eligible for student loans that lead to years and years of payments and deprivation - and I no longer want them. They are toxic to anyone starting out in life. However, those who make the rules bring about a promise to help and then discriminate against those who behold this glorious gift. I bet the households with a combined $160,000 income had presents under their tree. It sickens me that I make six times less than the criteria income and I am deemed ineligible for the tuition grant given to those who I consider wealthy. If anyone has extra work around their homes - painting, window washing - I will be trying to earn money for the rest of my schooling since the government thinks I already have enough to get by and pay our province's tuition fees.

Willmar, Minn., police requests to the council’s Labor Relations Committee: Also, the committee approved a request from Stevens to seek proposals from private companies to assist the current two custodians with cleaning the community center, the old wastewater treatment plant, new wastewater treatment plant, the Public Works garage, airport and fire department. The service is being requested after the council Dec. 19 defeated a motion to hire a third custodian to clean city buildings. Also, Stevens will seek requests from companies to clean carpets and floors from four times per year to once a year and requests for proposals to perform exterior window cleaning twice a year.

Smart Window pushes your home into the future: A new device at CES 2012 will really brighten some technophile homes. Samsung's "Smart Window" technology uses an OLED display and a touchscreen to turn a normal window into a computer.  The Smart Window can do anything a current tablet can do, all while seeing what's going on in the neighborhood. At night, special lights allow for the screen to be used despite the lack of natural backlighting. Another great function of the Smart Window is that it is on one-way glass, so neighbors won't be able to check out what you are watching.

I receive a lot of questions about foggy windows in the winter. Apparently, I'm not the only one. "We often get calls from homeowners who are concerned that their windows are 'sweating' or leaking either inside or outside the home because they see moisture on the glass," said Christopher Burk, technical product manager at Simonton Windows in Columbus, Ohio. That's simply not the case. "While condensation may collect on the interior or exterior of energy-efficient windows, the units are really doing their job by helping serve as a barrier in the home," Burk said. Windows don't cause condensation. They just prevent the moisture in the home from escaping to the outside. "If the inside glass surface on double- or triple-glazed windows show excessive moisture, you can be reasonably sure that the moisture is also collecting on your walls and ceilings," Burk said. "This means you should take steps to reduce the humidity level in your home by using exhaust fans and dehumidifiers." To help control the condensation in the home, experts at Simonton Windows recommend these tips:

♦ Use kitchen and bathroom exhaust fans.

♦ If you have a humidifier, set it to the correct outside temperature.

♦ If your home is overly humid, or if you have a damp basement, use a dehumidifier.

♦ Properly vent clothes dryers, gas appliances and stoves.

♦ Open a window in the bathroom.

♦ Make sure your attic, basement and crawl spaces are well-ventilated and free from obstructions.

♦ Store firewood outside. Even well-seasoned firewood generally has a 20 percent to 25 percent moisture content.

♦ Open curtains and blinds to allow more air circulation around your windows.

Burk also recommends knowing the difference between condensation on the glass and between the glass panes of the window.

"If you see moisture, fogging or cloudiness between the panes of glass in your window, this indicates that the seal of your window has failed and it's time to get a new window," Burk said.

Police have fined more Victorians (Australia) for pedestrian offences than they have nabbed for serious crimes such as stealing cars. More than 5800 fines worth $357,313 were issued to pedestrians by Victoria Police in the 2010/11 financial year.  They include Institute of Public Affairs review editor James Paterson, who slammed the police for fining jaywalkers, saying it was a waste of the authorities' resources and time. "I think this is crazy. As an individual if you cross when the little green man is not flashing you hold the responsibility and pay the cost," Mr Paterson said. "We should be deploying police to solve rapes and robberies, not to fine people for walking across a road. "This is a complete waste of police resources." The most common offence that resulted in a fine was failing to obey traffic lights and signs. Other charges included meandering on the road and walking on bike paths. 298 hitchhikers and window cleaners were fined worth $17,880.

SmarterShade proprietary smart glass technology is 50% more cost effective than current solutions and will disrupt the $5 billion market.   Its smart glass allows varying levels of light to enter through a window based on user controls. SmarterShade received the $100,000 Kleiner Perkins Clean Tech Prize at the 2011 Rice University Business Plan Competition.

Snowmass Village needs a chamber of commerce: Snowmass Village's challenges go beyond the mere commercial and into the heart of community. A true chamber of commerce could provide an energetic gathering place for many constituencies ranging from the new window-washing company to the school district. As a safe and informal idea exchange, consider the creative problem-solving potential of a chamber of commerce. Contrast the dynamic of a lively “business after hours” event with a public hearing.

Parents’ heartache after baby dies from meningitis: When one-week-old William would not feed and had trouble breathing, parents Amy Bevis and Richard Fraser instinctively knew something was wrong. The engaged couple from Sarisbury Green were distraught after William Fraser died at 19 days old from pneumococcal meningitis – an aggressive form of the brain bug. Richard, a window cleaner, said: “We want something good to come from his life and draw as many positives from it as we can.” Now Amy, 28, and Richard, 25, are backing Meningitis UK’s Trust Your Instincts campaign and will be fundraising in the Western Wards for the cause.

SACRAMENTO— A piece of glass has fallen from at least eight stories up at a building downtown Sacramento, smashing on the sidewalk and reminding employees of prior incidents. The decorative piece of glass fell Wednesday morning from the Board of Equalization Building along N & 5th Streets. It shattered on the sidewalk along 5th Street, at a location where employees tell FOX40 some usually take their smoke breaks. As FOX40's crew was at the building, another piece of glass fell to the ground, startling employees and other gawkers. No one was hurt, and drivers are being moved over a lane to allow crews to clean up the glass. This didn’t surprise many, who remember a streak of falling glass back in 2005 from the same building. Over the summer of 2005, there were repeated incidents of glass falling or becoming dangerously cracked at the 24-story Board of Equalization Building. At the time, forensic architects looked at the building and said the heatwave of that year created stress on the windows, causing them to break.

SALEM — Local small business owners and vendors were given a chance to meet and mingle with representatives for some of Salem County’s heavy-hitters in business during an event held here Wednesday. Bill Morgan, owner of Natural Windows, a window cleaning service based in Pedricktown, said any savvy business owner should jump at such an opportunity. “As a small business, who’d want to miss an opportunity to meet with Mannington or PSEG? It’s a place to jump start right into a larger customer base,” said Morgan. “It’s a terrific advantage for small business owners, and it’s also a good networking event to meet other small business owners. You never know what something like this might lead in to.”

The Window That Never Needs Cleaning

The lone window overlooking the driveway, which never needed cleaning, even when the rest of the house was covered in dirt and grime.

The history of the haunted Schweppe Mansion - The Schweppe Mansion stands in all its glory, as a palace fit for a princess. In 1917 this beautiful English Tudor, was a gift from John G. Shedd (president of Marshall Field and Company and founder of the Shedd Aquarium) and his wife to their daughter Laura Shedd. It was a wedding present for Laura and her newly wedded husband, Charles Schweppe (the drink dynasty).

The Schweppe Mansion became the home for Laura, Charles and their children. Its beautiful, breathtaking interior and exterior would soon be darkened by tragedy. According to findagrave.com, Laura Schweppe lost her life due to a heart attack in 1937. Laura was only 58 years old. But this devastating death would not be the last that the Schweppe Mansion would experience.

In 1941 relayed by strangeusa.com, servants entered Charles Schweppe’s bedroom and found him dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Charles Schweppe was only 60 years old. The only clue left by Charles as to why he took his own life was a note found on his dresser that simply read, “I’ve been awake all night. It’s terrible.”

There are several theories as to why Charles Schweppe committed suicide. When Laura Schweppe passed she had amassed a fortune of over 10 million dollars, of which a mere 200 thousand dollars was bequeathed to her husband Charles. The remainder of her fortune was given to their children. At the time of his death Charles’ health was rumored to be riddled with sleepless nights, deteriorating health and mental status. Could it be that Charles was so disappointed with his inheritance, or that sleep deprivation and or ill health created enough turmoil within his soul, that he believed death was the only way to escape his pain? One will never know the true reasons behind Charles’ desperate act. The spirit of Charles Schweppe will forever hold the secret.

After the death of Charles Schweppe the Schweppe Mansion remained lifeless and empty for 46 years. During that time it was reported that Laura and Charles’ ghost haunted the mansion’s bedrooms. Ghostly servants were also rumored to roam the halls of the majestic Tudor. In addition, a single window in the master bedroom reportedly remained free of debris and dust, while the other mansion windows collected the cobwebs of time passing. The ghost of original owner, Charles Schweppe, has been seen keeping watch over visitors to the house through a window overlooking the front driveway.

Of particular interest to psi-searchers is a window overlooking the driveway. According to ongoing testimony, this lone pane has never needed cleaning, even when the house has been otherwise covered in grime.

In 1987 the Schweppe Mansion experienced a new beginning. According to Dennis Rodkin author of the Deal Estate blog, a couple purchased the home and extensive renovations were performed. The Schweppe Mansion, recondition to her original glory, once again stands tall amongst the houses on Mayflower Road, in Lake Forest, Illinois. No comments by the current owners could be found, regarding the haunting of the grand Schweppe Mansion.

The Schweppe Mansion is currently up for sale. The included video is a Deal Estate tour of the historical mansion from Chicago Magazine and Dennis Rodkin. According to realtor.com the list price is 15 million dollars. A reduction from the previous 18 million dollar price tag. The ghost of original owner, Charles Schweppe, has been seen keeping watch over visitors to the house through a window overlooking the front driveway.

Spooked Window Won't Get A Window Clean

Mystery face appears in ‘haunted’ pub’s window: Drinkers in one Shropshire pub have been left scratching their heads after a series of spooky goings on – including this face appearing on the bar’s window. Staff and punters at the White Hart pub in Ironbridge might have been accused of drinking one too many ales until one customer snatched this picture on his mobile phone. Bar manager Mike Herbert said there have also been spooky goings on upstairs in the pub’s restaurant. The mystery face was only noticed on the window on Wednesday and since then, staff have noticed other peculiar things happening. Mr Herbert said: “We just don’t know what it is. “It was noticed on Wednesday and everyone has been trying to guess who it is. One person said it looks like Elvis Presley. “It just appeared on the window and we don’t know if it is on the inside or the outside. We don’t want to touch it incase we disturb it either.

“Then on the same day, upstairs in the restaurant we noticed something weird on one of the seats. It was only a short time after we saw the face on the window. “It was a strange triangular indent on the seat and when the housekeeper when to clean it off it just disappeared. “Then we went back later and it was there again, so we went to get the camera, but it disappeared again. No one can explain any of this, it’s very strange.” Mr Herbert added the pub has never seen anything like it before. “No one knows who the man in the window looks like and we have not come across this kind of thing in the past.” Mr Herbert had to intervene yesterday when it appeared the face might be destroyed. “We had the window cleaner around and I had to stop him from cleaning that window,” he added.

 

Does this look rather earily similar? Mystery of ghostly face pressed to pub window at The Bell Inn, Almeley. Regulars will be glad to know there is no shortage of spirits at a Herefordshire village pub. But the news is baffling landlady Lisa Lewis as these appear to be of the extra-corporeal variety. Lisa and her customers at the 15th century Bells Inn, Almeley, watched in amazement the other evening as a ghostly image of what looked like a face appeared on the outside windows of the pub’s French doors. “It just seemed to appear on the window,” said Lisa, who has been in charge of the pub with her fiancee, Jason, for three years. “Nobody knew where it came from. It could have been somebody playing a joke but we would have seen them doing it if it was.”

Lisa, who believes there is “some sort of truth” in the paranormal, said a spider’s web which was covering the window on the outside would have been broken had a person pressed their face against the glass.“The customers were all as freaked out as we were,” she said. The pub isn’t the first building in Herefordshire rumoured to be haunted. The Black Lion pub in Bridge Street, Hereford, is said to host paranormal activity while Avenbury Church is also reputed to be haunted. Click picture to enlarge.