Earrings

Pat Van Horn is not your average legal secretary, particularly in appearance. Sometimes she wears pantaloons beneath her skirts or mismatched socks, and she almost always wears earrings of different lengths. "Some people might think that's strange," says Van Horn, who lives in Baltimore. "But when I get among a group of artistic people, I look ordinary." That's probably because she's really one of them; the secretary gig is just her "survival job" -- a.k.a. the one that pays the bills.

NEW YORK - It was a random act, one of few reported, but the looting that occurred at William Barthman jewelers in the days after the Sept. 11 terrorist attack stunned the store's managers. Barthman is at the corner of Broadway and Maiden Lane, a stone's throw from what is now called "ground zero." Across the street is Liberty Plaza, a skyscraper that officials worried might collapse in the wake of the destruction that brought down three buildings at the World Trade Center. "I couldn't comprehend that with that building being on the verge of collapse they would risk their lives for a few earrings," said Renee Rosales-Kopel, standing in her first-floor shop, where a thick coat of fine gray dust covered everything: windows, the gorgeous display cases that date from the 1860s, telephones, computers, the rug. "They spent a lot of time in here opening boxes, only to find that they were empty."

The Houston Astros entered the weekend with a four-game lead over the Chicago Cubs in the National League Central, which should buy them just enough time to finish piecing their strong starting rotation back together for the tough final weeks of the division race. Right-hander Pedro Astacio just went on the disabled list with a sore shoulder, but the club was heartened to learn that a magnetic resonance imaging test revealed no structural damage. Astacio, who is 2-1 with a 3.14 ERA in four starts since being acquired from the Colorado Rockies, should be back in action in a week or so. The Astros also hope to have veteran starter Shane Reynolds back from the DL in the next few days.

Christened the "Oscars of the beauty world" by its promoters, the Cosmetic Executive Women Beauty Awards 2001 recently presented first-place awards to the best new products in various categories. Here's some of what was voted best of the bunch by 1,300 women in the cosmetics industry: Best new women's scent: Avon Incandessence Eau de Parfum Spray (floral scent with hints of freesia and tulips) Best new home fragrance: Coty Healing Garden ZZZ Therapy Serene Dreams Pillow and Room Spray Best new facial skin-care product: Olay Daily Facials (lathering cleansing cloths that remove makeup, exfoliate and moisturize)

''There are no bad faces," says Marla Anker, the new director of cosmetic services at Paul's Salon and Day Spa in Pikesville. "Just lots of bad makeup."

If you think you're all through with that broken typewriter or bent bicycle wheel, you might want to think again, says Reena Kazmann, artist and founder of Washington-based Eco-Artware.com. "Before you throw something away, stop and ask, 'Well, what else can I do with it?' " she says. There are hundreds of possibilities, and Kazmann's Web site is proof. Eco-Artware is a clearinghouse for treasures made from trash. Discarded Mardi Gras costumes and wires from broken TV sets have been transformed into multi-colored pins.

Sometimes kids are just not ready to try something new, such as an overnight at a friend's house, learning to swim or starting school. Rosemary Wells has written a threesome that reminds children and their parents that things take longer for some than for others: "Edward Unready for a Sleep Over," "Edward Unready for Swimming" and "Edward Unready for School."Being unready is not limited to the preschool set, nor is it confined to the reluctant child. Judith Viorst's "Earrings!" shows the frustrations a child can feel when she thinks she is ready (to have her ears pierced)

"Now there's a way a pet owner can really show their pet how much they love them," said Patricia Henderson.Hmmm. Let's guess what that could be. Allowing the dog to sleep with her head next to yours on the pillow?No, the answer is pet earrings."I was designing jewelry and I sold an ear cuff," explains Henderson, of Chicago, and the store owner "calls me and says, 'Mrs. Henderson, we just love them, but do you mind if I sell them to men?' I said, 'I don't care if you sell them to dogs.' Then it hit me -- that there is no dog jewelry!"

Last fall, when the "World Famous Pearl Gown" first came to the International Gem & Jewelry Show in Baltimore, it was displayed near the front entrance, a glamorous and poignant lure for visitors anxious to feel the sympathetic magic of the dress' former owner, Princess Diana, who had died three months earlier.Yesterday, the show returned, as did the pleated, beaded winter-white gown, purchased last summer at a Christie's charity auction in New York. This time, it was relegated to the convention center's most remote corner.

Carbonated drinks were served in drugstores before they were bottled and sold at grocery stores. The drinks originally were promoted as medicinal, but by 1900, they were marketed as delicious.Coca-Cola, Pepsi Cola, Hires, Moxie and a few other brands were popular in the early 1900s. Each company advertised with calendars, tin trays, mugs, dispensers and small paper giveaways.Collectors now search for old and new carbonated-drink advertising pieces.This year, an old Hires syrup dispenser set a record when it sold for $106,700.