Wax

Under a blaze of April sun, Kurt Solmssen applies a wax coating to a reclining figure at the base of the Equestrian Statue of George Washington in Eakins Oval near the Art Museum. Recently cleaned by the Fairmount Park Art Association, the monument is being coated with wax to protect its figures from the corrosive effects of acid rain. Work is expected to continue for about two weeks.

Though it's gentle teasing, "Don't You Wish You Were Me" is, perhaps, applicable in this case. How many people can say they have been approached to host a party on a weekly basis? "It's a joke," the single-named Lizz said about the name of the weekly at Wax on Fridays. "Everyone thinks they're so great when they go out. " Lizz, a hairdresser by day who calls her business Razor & Blade, got the offer from Wax after holding a fashion and hair show there. She had titled that show "Everybody Hates You" - further evidence of her sense of humor, "The owner of the club loved the crowd we brought in, so he said he would give us Fridays," Lizz explained.

Dear Polly: How can one remove the waxy substance that coats cucumbers purchased in the supermarket? I find it most objectionable. - B.A. Dear B.A.: Not only cucumbers, but also rutabagas, tomatoes and green peppers, among other vegetables, may have a wax coating that protects the vegetables from moisture loss. While these waxes have been approved as edible by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, they are unaesthetic and there is some controversy about the safety of eating them.

If you are new to this holiday, need a refresher, or are just plain curious, here's the lowdown on lighting up for the Festival of Lights. The candles for a Hanukkah menorah are thin tapers, and 44 are needed for the eight-day holiday. Each night, a shamash, or helper candle, is lit; that is used to light the others, one on the first night and an additional one each night. Like Sabbath candles, Hanukkah candles are allowed to burn out on their own. They are not blown out like birthday candles.

EVEN WAX MUSEUMS have to change with the times. It's not surprising that Madame Tussauds is creating a sculpture of Beyonce. What is surprising is that according to the London Sun, the museum's wax wizards have been working for the last three months to create a moving bottom for the faux Beyonce to ensure that the wax figure does the Beyonce bounce. When she's not on tour or at the Beanie Sigel trial, Beyonce has reportedly been making secret visits to the museum to make sure the booty makers gets the booty shaker just right.

It's amazing what they can do with wax figures. Why, Paris Hilton looks almost lifelike in this film. Seriously, folks, House of Wax is a spry, if savage, twist on the teens-in-peril formula. It takes only its title and a shred of premise from Vincent Price's 1953 3-D chiller. This is really a slasher film dipped in paraffin. A group of college-age kids - Carly (Elisha Cuthbert of 24), her boyfriend Wade (Gilmore Girls' Jared Padalecki), her felonious "twin" brother, Nick (One Tree Hill's Chad Michael Murray)

Early in its storied past, the Liberty Bell became a proud symbol of resistance against the British monarchy. These days, the big hunk of bronze has to contend with more prosaic enemies: airborne pollution and grubby tourist fingers. So it was that museum tech Jonathan Miller was charged with applying a protective coat of wax to the massive bell's insides last night, working with a cotton cloth and a pair of white gloves after the crowds had gone home. "It's great," said Miller, 43, of Upper Darby.

Some people just like to make things. Kathy Solomon, 26, of Chalfont in Bucks County, can't remember a time when her hands weren't busy. As a kid growing up in Haddonfield, N.J., she created a steady stream of things - pottery, candles, macrame and even her own clothes. But it wasn't until her junior year at Ohio University - where her output expanded to stained-glass windows, etchings and vases blown from glass - that something clicked and the slender, quiet-spoken student found herself a niche in the art world - jewelry making.

Hidden in the micro-squiggles of wax cylinders and old discs lies a treasure of voices long gone from opera stages. New recording techniques and the crowd of today's singers have combined to push historic voices farther into the distance. But not irretrievably. Those voices are singing again - in Swarthmore. Walk upstairs in Ward Marston's house, and you're likely to hear Johanna Gadski, the German Wagnerian superstar of the early years of this century, or some other past-obscured singer in surprisingly fresh voice.

This is the story of the two Nathans brothers, Sonny Saul and Peter Paul, and the pink bubble gum-colored liquids that have come between them in the federal courts. The older brother, Sonny, 52, is the sole proprietor of S.S. Nathans, a Stratford company that develops and sells polishes, soaps and detergents. One of his top-selling products is Liquid Brilliance, billed as "a nonabrasive, state of the art, aerodynamic, fast brilliant luster for new showroom cars, expensive classic and antique automobiles . . . and sleek, beautiful limousines.

David Wax says there are plenty of things that set his band's music apart, most noticeably the use of Mexican instruments such the quijada - a donkey's jawbone complete with teeth that, despite its jarring appearance, provides an oddly appealing buzzing noise. "We're always striving to integrate and weave Mexican folk into our music, but it's not glaring in our overall sound," the 30-year-old Boston-based musician says. Still, he notes that the quijada - played by his musical partner, singer/fiddler Suz Slezak - and a guitar-like jarana, which Wax mastered during his many visits to Mexico, are "obvious markers" that something unique is happening sonically.

Ralph Macchio, Lord of the Dance. Bet you didn't see that one coming. I always get a little disoriented when a kid from TV's misty past (Macchio was on Eight Is Enough ) pops up as an adult. Scott Baio, Rick Schroder, Butch Patrick, Sarah Jessica Parker, David Cassidy, Mindy Cohn - they all give me a slight case of the whirlies when I see the ravages of time etched on their faces. (I've built up an immunity to Neil Patrick Harris.) But who would have thought Macchio would foxtrot to the top of the leaderboard on the season debut of Dancing With the Stars ?

Cooks may wonder about the difference between wax paper and parchment paper. Can they be used interchangeably in baking? Wax paper is lightweight tissue paper coated on both sides with paraffin. Parchment paper is heavier nonstick paper that is treated with sulfuric acid and coated with silicone. It is sold bleached and unbleached. Parchment paper is grease-proof and moisture-resistant. Wax paper is not as moisture-proof. Both are used in baking, but not always interchangeably.

Here is an excerpt from Thursday's Ask Gonzo chat on Philly.com with columnist John Gonzalez: Page 2 HQ is open for business. Just got done shoveling snow. Time to shovel something else. Comment from Ted in Ridley: The Flyers are extremely popular. Why do you have zero knowledge of hockey? Gonzo: That's ridiculous. Hockey is the sport that uses the wicker-basket thingy called a cesta. Comment from ImAwesome: Do you think the new Daily News Live studio is horrible?

Question: Is it a problem when there is moisture around the inside edges of a window? My son and his wife have bought a house that is about 25 years old with casement windows, and often in the winter, there is about an inch of moisture around the edge of many of their windows. What causes that and should the windows be replaced? Answer: Excessive indoor humidity comes in contact with the cold glass and the inside edges of the window fog up. It happens to the Paladian-style window in our master bedroom when I shower too long on a cold morning and don't turn on the exhaust fan in the bathroom.

If you are new to this holiday, need a refresher, or are just plain curious, here's the lowdown on lighting up for the Festival of Lights. The candles for a Hanukkah menorah are thin tapers, and 44 are needed for the eight-day holiday. Each night, a shamash, or helper candle, is lit; that is used to light the others, one on the first night and an additional one each night. Like Sabbath candles, Hanukkah candles are allowed to burn out on their own. They are not blown out like birthday candles.

I was sitting in a chic Asian fusion restaurant - they sprout effortlessly here - listening to my friend, Patti, describing the city's charms: "I like it that there is a choice of restaurants and the menus are in English. I like it that Berlin is green, but not so green that it's too spread out. And I love it that they have Wax in the City!" "Wax in the City?" I asked. Apparently, it's a waxing-studio franchise, and it makes my friend, a former resident of Philadelphia and New York City, very happy.

When Joe Perchetti sits in the sturdy porcelain-and-red-vinyl chair at Caravelli's Barber Shop in Haddonfield, he doesn't need to tell owner Anthony Fiore what to do. "He gets it short, and then he likes his mustache according to military standards," Fiore said as he took electric clippers to the hair on the sides and back of the former soldier's head. It's the ease of a quick haircut in the comfort of a familiar place, with a touch of warm shaving cream around the ears, that draws a faithful, almost entirely male crowd to Caravelli's, the nearly 110-year-old Haddonfield institution that Fiore describes as "a throwback.

Billie Jean King, in town to promote the start of the 34th season of World Team Tennis, stopped by yesterday at the soon-to-close Wachovia Spectrum. "I walked in there, and the memories kept coming back," she said. At Broad and Pattison in the 1970s, King, one of the most celebrated tennis stars ever, played in high-profile tournaments for the Philadelphia Freedoms of the WTT and the U.S. team in Federation Cup matches. And, not surprisingly, she found spectators at the Spectrum to be unlike any other crowd on the professional circuit.

Early in its storied past, the Liberty Bell became a proud symbol of resistance against the British monarchy. These days, the big hunk of bronze has to contend with more prosaic enemies: airborne pollution and grubby tourist fingers. So it was that museum tech Jonathan Miller was charged with applying a protective coat of wax to the massive bell's insides last night, working with a cotton cloth and a pair of white gloves after the crowds had gone home. "It's great," said Miller, 43, of Upper Darby.