Columnist Lisa Ferguson: Sun Lite for Sept. 15, 2003

Lisa Ferguson

Monday, Sept. 15, 2003 | 8:49 a.m.

Seeing infrared

Fall officially starts next week, and you know what that means: Well, it actually means different things to different people.

To football fans, of course, it's tailgate-party season. Time to dust off that tried-and-true grill, invest in a couple of gallons of lighter fluid and hope that well-worn team jersey of yours is at least a little fire-retardant.

Or is it? This year's tailgaters may want to consider trading the charcoal briquettes for the purported cleaner, quicker cooking technology afforded by the Solaire Anywhere Portable Grill, which uses infrared heat (think space heater) to sear everything from burgers to veggies.

Weighing in at 20 pounds and fueled by propane, this bad boy boasts 14,000 BTUs of cooking power twice as much as similar-sized conventional grills, according to its maker, Rasmussen Iron Works Inc. of Whittier, Calif. Its infrared burners, they claim, produce "intense, uniform heat," while its V-shaped grates vaporize drippings back into the food for better flavor. So, while the resulting chow may prove easier to swallow, Solaire Anywhere's price tag about $400 could cause some to choke. Still interested? Visit www.solairegrills.com.

Leafing around

For reluctant gardeners, fall signals the seemingly endless chore of raking pretty-colored leaves that litter the lawn.

Ames True Temper manufacturer of non-powered lawn and garden tools, including something called the Clog-Free Rake is offering tips to take the "ache" out of "raking" this year:

All dressed up For retailers, the start of fall means they're already late that is, when it comes to overloading store shelves with Halloween goodies.

The holiday still more than a month away is a cash cow milked by the party-supply industry for about $6 billion in annual sales according to surprise! iparty.com, an online retailer of party supplies. The company, which also has 35 stores in New England and Florida, has already posted its predictions for what it's certain will be the top 10 Halloween costumes this year.

In the top spot are "The Wiggles" four grown Australian men who wear brightly colored shirts and sing silly songs on their wildly popular self-titled Disney Channel series. If that isn't creepy, we don't know what is.

No. 2 are superheroes, including Incredible Hulk, Spider-Man and Power Rangers; third is Cat in the Hat, fueled by the upcoming release of the movie inspired by the Dr. Seuss tale. Divas such as pop-tarts Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, as well as the ultra-hipster dolls of the Bratz toy line landed in fourth place, with the "Scream" flicks' slasher rounding out the top five.

The bottom half of the list includes lovable cartoon creature SpongeBob SquarePants and his best buddy, Patrick Star (No. 6), and characters from "The Wizard of Oz" (in the seventh spot). In eighth place is Austin Powers, trailed by anything "gothic" (No. 9). Rounding out the Halloween who's who at No. 10 are flappers, a la the Oscar-winning musical "Chicago."

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