Hose

AT our last home in Encino, we had six outdoor hose bibs, and after trying every type of reel or rack I decided to get hose pots ["The Indispensable Hose," July 20]. They looked great and certainly were easy to use, but something unexpected occurred that was a real turnoff and resulted in me getting rid of the pots. Because there is a drain hole in the bottom of the pot and another hole for the hose to come out to be hooked up to the water nozzle, snails were able to get in the pots.

American Honda Motor Co. said it would recall 52,615 model year 2007-08 Acura TL sedans in the United States to replace the power-steering hose. The automaker said the hose may deteriorate and leak fluid. That might cause a loss of power-steering assistance or, if it leaks onto a catalytic converter, may result in smoke or fire, Honda said. No crashes, injuries or fires have been reported related to this issue. The company said it wanted "to encourage owners of all affected vehicles to take their vehicles to an authorized dealer as soon as they receive notification of this recall from Acura.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued a recall on 65,000 diving suit inflation hoses after a diver died in Los Angeles. The manufacturer, SI Tech AB, has received six reports of hose inserts dislodging, including the one involved in the diver's death. The hose connects a diver's dry suit to the air supply so the suit can be inflated, helping it stay watertight. The hose contains a black, blue or green insert that can restrict air flow. If the insert dislodges, the air flow could be restricted, posing a drowning hazard.

The game ran late, as night games sometimes do, so it was nearly 11 p.m. when the Dodgers finally cleared out of their locker room. With the final players heading for home, clubhouse attendants began gathering crumpled uniforms in a cart. They started two big washing machines going in a room beside the showers. "A lot of laundry to do," said Alex Torres, an assistant clubhouse manager. "We'll be here all night. " This is the part of Dodger Stadium that fans don't see. PHOTOS: Pitch to pitch: A behind the scenes look at Dodger Stadium After the last out is recorded on the field, after the parking lots empty and the lights dim, a new kind of competition begins.

If there's one thing harder to get than a good garden hose, it's a good nozzle to fit on it. Now that we're in a drought, good nozzles we need. Nozzles can cut the amount of water used during hand watering, and they're now required in Los Angeles for car washing. The way nozzles achieve these savings is simple. They shut off water as hose-draggers move around. Most modern nozzles also are water-shapers.

The intruder arrived with a 3-foot piece of rubber hose. The store owner met him with a sawed-off shotgun. Sunday, the intruder was in the hospital with wounds to the arm. The appliance store owner was in jail, facing possible assault and illegal weapons charges. Police say business owner Robert Lewis Crose, 33, of Ventura was inside Stan's Appliance, in the 1700 block of Thompson Boulevard, just before 9 p.m.

Regarding water rationing and proposed penalties: Many Californians may be paying through the hose. VIRGINIA EBRIGHT, Pasadena

Cyclists like to spread the love. They want everybody to ride a bike -- male or female, young or old, athletic or klutzy -- so it's no surprise that they're constantly churning out new products like the ones below. Tested at the annual International Bicycle Expo this month in Las Vegas, each of them makes cycling more exciting, practical, comfortable and fun for some kind of rider. Whether you're a commuter, cruiser or high-performance racer, there's probably something here for you. -- Roy M. Wallack -- Turbo trunk Ridekick Power Trailer: Rider-controlled motorized trailer that turns your regular bike into an electric bike.

Hookah use is establishing roots in the strongly anti-tobacco state of California, says a new study, with usage rates increasing more than 40% over a few years. Hookah involves smoking from a water pipe and hose. Specially made tobacco, often flavored,  is heated and smoke passes through water and a rubber hose into a mouthpiece. Studies so far suggest that hookah smoking carries many of the same health risks assmoking cigarettes. Researchers from UC San Diego and San Diego State University examined data from the California Tobacco Survey.

Mazda Recalls 14,082 Sports Cars: The auto maker is recalling all of its 1993 and '94 RX-7s sold in the United States and Canada to inspect and replace fuel system parts. The company, based in Hiroshima, Japan, said heat stress may lead the fuel hose to deteriorate in some models. In the rare case where the hose loses elasticity and isn't properly fastened, an engine compartment fire could result, Mazda Motor Corp. said.

Two Long Beach police officers who shot and killed a 35-year-old man last December when they mistook a black water hose nozzle for a gun, acted lawfully in self-defense, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office said Thursday. "The evidence examined in this investigation leads to the conclusion that this was a tragic mistake of fact," said Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley in a letter to Long Beach Police Chief Jim McDonnell. The findings show that at the time of the shooting Douglas Zerby had an object believed by witnesses and responding officers to be a handgun, and that his position was consistent with someone having both arms extended straight out and pointing the object at an officer.

Cyclists like to spread the love. They want everybody to ride a bike -- male or female, young or old, athletic or klutzy -- so it's no surprise that they're constantly churning out new products like the ones below. Tested at the annual International Bicycle Expo this month in Las Vegas, each of them makes cycling more exciting, practical, comfortable and fun for some kind of rider. Whether you're a commuter, cruiser or high-performance racer, there's probably something here for you. -- Roy M. Wallack -- Turbo trunk Ridekick Power Trailer: Rider-controlled motorized trailer that turns your regular bike into an electric bike.

The federal government has proposed a $590,000 fine against Alaska Airlines for allegedly operating a passenger jet on more than 2,000 flights under unsafe conditions. The Federal Aviation Administration said Friday that the airline flew a Boeing 737-400 jet for about 18 months with an improperly installed hose clamp above the flight deck. Chafing between the clamp and adjacent wires sparked a fire while the plane was parked at Anchorage International Airport in January 2010, the FAA said.

Hookah use is establishing roots in the strongly anti-tobacco state of California, says a new study, with usage rates increasing more than 40% over a few years. Hookah involves smoking from a water pipe and hose. Specially made tobacco, often flavored,  is heated and smoke passes through water and a rubber hose into a mouthpiece. Studies so far suggest that hookah smoking carries many of the same health risks assmoking cigarettes. Researchers from UC San Diego and San Diego State University examined data from the California Tobacco Survey.

A 35-year-old man was struck 12 times by gunfire in the chest, arms and lower legs last December when police mistook a water hose nozzle he was holding for a gun, Long Beach Police Chief Jim McDonnell said at a news conference Monday. McDonnell told reporters that he wanted to offer further details about the fatal shooting and "clarify outstanding issues. " He said a coroner's report showed that Douglas Zerby was hit 12 times with shotgun pellets and bullets from a handgun and was grazed three times.

Could new cars have come with spiders? Mazda's spider problem could be the result of an infestation by the venomous arachnid at an auto parts supplier or the Flat Rock, Mich., plant where the automaker assembles its Mazda6 cars, rather than at the garages of owners, an entomologist said. This week, Mazda Motor Corp. said it would recall 65,000 cars to fix a problem with spiders nesting in tiny rubber hoses linked to fuel tank systems that could cause pressurization and ventilation problems in certain cars.

Poor Fran Harrison hasn't seen a rainbow in years. Come on over to my house on any sunny afternoon and I will show you a rainbow. While watering the lawn I discovered I can "make my own." When the sun is bright I take the hose, turn the water on full force, and with the nozzle on high I make about a 7-foot arch of water over the lawn and presto a rainbow appears! If the day is especially balmy I hook the hose in the branches of an old birch tree, turn on the water, pull up a seat and watch the birds and butterflies fluttering about in the spectacular splendor of my very own rainbow.

Stepping out takes on a new dimension this season, with shoes and stockings shot through with special effects. Classic black velvet pumps ablaze with silver filigree, left, are by Stuart Weitzman for Mr. Seymour, $125. A strategic rhinestone star burst illumines Christian Dior's sheer black hose, $10. Both at Neiman-Marcus. Erica's red-velvet slippers with satin bows, right, $98, pair perfectly with red-and-black rose-pattern hose by Evan-Picone, $25. Both at Saks Fifth Avenue.

Mazda Motor Corp. has an itsy-bitsy problem, and it's recalling 65,000 cars to fix it. Spider nests in tiny rubber hoses linked to fuel tank systems could cause pressurization and ventilation problems in certain cars, according to the Japanese automaker. In a worst-case scenario, such clogs could lead to fuel leaks and fires. But the problem hasn't resulted in any serious incidents so far, the company said, and all technicians fixing the hoses have escaped unbitten. After dealers around the country found 20 cases of the arachnid infestation, the company pulled back 65,000 Mazda6 cars from the 2009 and 2010 model years in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

The young lawyer sat in a cafe, burn marks on his hands, purple and yellow bruises hidden under the legs of his jeans. He knows he might be followed, but he doesn't care. He says that telling his story might be the only way to protect himself. Mohamed Badr is among dozens of middle-class Egyptians, many of them never in trouble before, who were picked up by the state security apparatus after their country erupted in protest against President Hosni Mubarak. Among the most prominent is Wael Ghonim, the senior marketing executive for Google Inc. in the Middle East and one of the architects of the demonstrations.