Have you decided to take the plunge—pun intended, and buy a hot tub? Coming home after a long day and climbing into a hot tub can be extremely satisfying. The hot water bubbling and washing over sore muscles can soothe all those aches and pains that tend to build up over the day.

Your first step is to head to the specialty store that sells the hot tubs. Pick the tub that is the right size for your family’s needs. There are a lot of choices and this may be a process that takes you several weeks. Once you have chosen the perfect tub, you need to decide exactly where it is it will go in your yard. Remember to consider the power needed to operate the tub when you are thinking of placement. Then, you will need to call your electrician. Beverly Hills homeowners can give The Electric Connection a call to discuss installation.

Because of the amount of electricity needed to power a hot tub, it requires a dedicated breaker. The luxury appliance will also need to be hard-wired into your home’s main power. This is a big job that requires the experience and knowledge of a certified electrician. In most cases, county and city codes require a licensed electrician completes the hook up.

If your home is older, you may need to have an electric panel upgrade to accommodate the new hot tub. If you are unsure of what you have, call your electrician. Beverly Hills homeowners will need to ensure their home has the additional power needed to power the hot tub. This is typically not something the average person would be able to tell by simply looking at the electric panel.

Give The Electric Connection a call and we will be happy to inspect your electrical panel and complete the hot tub installation for you.

I grew up in the 90’s, back when thrift store shopping was considered alternative and grunge.  While I tooled around Goodwill listening to Nine Inch Nails on my Walkman, my more sophisticated friends were at the mall, looking adorable & stylish in the latest trend from The Limited.

But that was the 90’s.

Thrift-store shopping, dumpster-diving, and hand-me downs deliver a new parlance that has clever DIY’ers quaking with excitement for Saturday yard sales and obsessively scouring Craigslist for the Next Big Find.  This elegant new term for taking used items and making them new = REPURPOSING.

Also commonly referred to as recycling, upcycling, reinventing, revitalizing and/or reusing, entire boards are dedicated to this subject on Pinterest. Everything – and I mean everything – can be repurposed.  So why not the light bulb?

With a few basic tools and a steady hand, a light bulb can be hollowed out and transformed into a unique gift or decorative project.  Prepping the bulb, however, is not a task that we recommend for the kids.  Before you undertake any of these projects, take a moment to read a tutorial on how to safely hollow out a light bulb.

1. Witches Brew

What better way to celebrate Independence Day than to do so in Virginia, one of the first colonies to create talks of revolution against the British? Virginia had a huge rule in the American Revolution. In fact, our first president of the United States, George Washington, was from Virginia! Thomas Jefferson helped expressed reason for colonial independence from Great Britain by writing the Declaration of Independence. The last major battle of the Revolutionary War was fought in Yorktown, Virginia and that victory led to the end of the war.

Virginians have a lot to be proud about for their involvement in the American Revolution, so you know we love to celebrate July 4th big! Our fireworks are always over-the-top and our parades are the best in the country. If you’re planning to celebrate big this Independence Day, consider these activities to do the weekend of July 4th. Make this Independence Day a day to remember!

To commemorate our fifteenth year, we are taking a look back at what life was like 15 years ago. Do you remember May 1999? It was a month of ups and downs. We gained Star Wars: The Phantom Menace but lost Shel Silverstein. Natural disasters of epic proportions and new leadership in world powers made the month one that would change the course of history. Legal precedents were established and technologies that we all utilize now were just being announced. Here are fifteen moments in history from fifteen years ago. Next stop: May 1999.

1. Bluetooth Is Announced

Early in the month, for about six days, 152 tornadoes ravaged the mid-west and eastern U.S. It was the worst in Oklahoma, with one F5 tornado – the second strongest recorded in U.S. history – that caused $1 billion in damage.

3. Goodbye, Shel Silverstein

In Milan, Italy, after 22 years of restoration work, Leonardo da Vinci’s newly-restored masterpiece The Last Supper was put back on display. This is an unforgettable moment in art history.

5. The Ancient Operating System

via wordpress.com

The Mummy, a horror adventure starring Brendan Frasier, was released in the U.S. in May 1999. Although the film was originally meant to be a low-budget horror series, it turned into a blockbuster hit.

7. Not So Entertaining Anymore

Star Wars: The Phantom Menace was released in theaters, and millions of children began having nightmares about red-eyed guys with horns chasing them with two-sided light sabers. And we thought Darth Vader was intimidating…

9. Italian Stallion of Politics

Teenie boppers lost their minds as they excitedly tore open the packaging on their copies of The Backstreet Boys’ newest release, Millennium.

11. Here’s SpongeBob!

Kansas City, Missouri, wrestler Owen Hart (Blue Blazer) fell 78 feet to his death while being lowered into a World Wrestling Federation ring during WWF Over the Edge.

13. So Long, Home Improvement

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 11,000 for the first time in its history at 11,014.70. Many speculate in hindsight that this bump was actually artificially created by overlending and that in retrospect this was a warning sign for the future recession. It was a cause for celebration then: Now, it’s something from which we have hopefully learned a lesson. 

Early in the month, American Airlines Flight 1420 crashed near Little Rock, AK. This crash, along with a few others that took place soon before and after, inspired research into the deleterious effects of sleep deprivation on pilot safety.

3) A Whole, Whole Lot of Drug Money

In June 1999, George Bush announced his candidacy for the office of President of the United States of America. So much was about to change in our culture during the next 8 years.

5) Lord Stanley’s Cup

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In June 1999, Stephen King got hit by a car and was flung 14 feet while walking on the shoulder of a road in Maine. What’s the name of that Stephen King book about the car? Oh yeah, Christine. Any connection? You never know. But I’m sure King was thankful Kathy Bates didn’t find him after the accident.

7) The Weird Looking Predecessor of the MacBook Is Born

That mildly annoying yet overall charming goofball Austin Powers (Mike Myers’s colorful character) graced the cover of Rolling Stone in June 1999, exuberantly celebrating the sequel to the original Austin Powers blockbuster smash hit. Smashing, baby!

9) Adam Sandler Tones It Down a Little

The universe’s hippest couple, who, of course played in a rock band together, hit the popular scene with their debut album in June 1999. Then, they became insanely famous. And then, thirteen thousand two-piece rock bands, featuring only guitar and drums, were born. I think now, 15 years later, we are finally beginning to see the decline in that questionable trend. Bass matters, people.

11) That Kid from Walking Dead Was Born

Venus and Serena Williams, two twin females from a socioeconomically disadvantaged place, won the Grand Slam female doubles event for the first time. They were the second sister team to win a Grand Slam event since 1890. This is the kind of thing that just makes you smile. These are some of the best ever to play the sport.

13) MORE TENNIS!