I sprayed white primer on my Wonder Pony. Next I'll decide what color I want him. Instead of doing a carousel pole, I got a pole lamp from Goodwill and used that as a stand for him. Just drilled a hole in his belly and slipped him over the pole. As for other instructions, years ago, PaintingFool on Trash to Treasure gave some real good ones. "I made a lot of these carousel horses in the past. You should first fill the holes. I cut down the dowels holding the springs, glued them in place and filled with wood putty. Then if you like it crackled, paint the entire horse with the undercolor you like, put on the crackle medium, paint with the finish color and wait for crackle. I can't wait so I use a hair dryer. If you don't want to crackle, just paint the areas the colors you like. I paint roses on the seat and down the neck. The mane and tail in gold. I spray it with a finish varnish. I mount it on a closet dowel (using small dowels under neath to keep it from sliding down the pole. The base can be wood or an outdoor umbrella stand (please paint though). Hope this gets you started." hugs, Karen

Two other old rose books you'll find this type of useful information in are Henry Ellwanger, The Rose, 1982, and Foster-Melliar, THE BOOK OF THE ROSE, 3rd. edition was 1905, so it was of the era and the authors knew the roses. Those books contain much useful information about which roses were similar to others, etc. One, I don't remember which, as it's been some years since I read them and mine are still packed in the garage after moving, actually categorizes many OGRs such as, "Paul Neyron type", General Jacqueminot type", "La Reine type", etc. What we don't usually understand is MANY of the roses of the Edwardian and Victorian periods were simply raised from self set hips, and the vast majority of those seeds would have been actually selfed, "the variety X itself". So, many of them were so similar as to be virtually synonymous, unless they were significantly inferior, and after several generations of inbreeding, I'm sure many were. It was very common for you to raise a new, successful rose, then for me to propagate it, give it a name I wanted it to have and then sell it as MY new rose. VERY common. Add importing new roses, or even older established ones from other countries and renaming them. THEN, read the story of William R. Smith. That rose was sold something like six times, which is one reason it carries so many synonyms. There was no trade marking or patenting so popular names were used over, and over and over again resulting in much confusion. HMF lists three Napoleons, a China, a Gallica and an HP. Who knows how many others there were we don't have record of? As I suggested, there really wasn't an "official decree", but older authors such as these two attempted to sort through the mud and straighten the roses out. If you've seen how many variations of Slater's Crimson China are floating around, you will get a feel for how many HPs, Bourbons, etc. have been SO closely similar to so many others, and for the same reason. They're siblings, raised from self set seed of established, popular varieties, and many of them look so similar that, other than glaring defects, they could easily be deemed synonymous. Raise a small batch of self set hips from your OGRs and see. Many will look very much like the seed parent. Most will be inferior regarding vigor, health, rebloom, etc., but when most of the descriptions were the quality of "full, large, pink, fragrant", many imposters have easily been passed off as "the original". I love that passage from Nicholas, Gean. He illustrated bud selection, a whole other can of worms. There is little in the literature to support it, but the bits you find certainly make a strong point for the ability to perfect as well as destroy a variety, simply by judicious bud selection. If it really IS that easy to improve or degrade, imagine what your chances of getting an improved version are from modern rose production. Kim

I had a great day today getting caught up on a few things that were stressing me out. I am beginning to relax. We are putting up two Christmas trees this year. The first one is up and in the computer room at the front of the house. It is hard to describe without sounding like it is a bit strange. It has white lights and several wooden seashells on it. I bought the shells in a large quantity box at J.C. Penney here when they went out of business many years ago. They must have used them to decorate, not sure. Anyway, the are about 2 inches across. My husband likes to deck the tree with the white lights and shells. I must say it is very striking when lit at night. Our other tree will be live one that we will put up next weekend. That will have multicolor lights and be decked with assorted bulbs and ornaments collected over the last 31 years. No theme, just warmth and memories including many received in garden website swaps. I am anxious to start unpacking each memory to deck on that tree. It is very cold here and we are having flurries tonight. The week ahead looks cold and bitter and the map of the whole country looks pretty miserable. It isn't starting out so great so far. Stay warm everyone and have a great week ahead. Margo

When I was in college in the late 90's, I used a Rainbow at one of the houses I cleaned on the side. I LOVED it and knew one day I wanted a water vac. (*NERD ALERT) In 2008, I bought a Hyla. My then husband nearly fell over when I told the salesman I would take it. I think I spent around $1500-2000 with the carpet cleaner attachment and all the bells and whistles. In 2009, we had a house fire. I made sure the Hyla was safe when we exited. She survived just fine. In 2010, I used my Hyla while cleaning various residential properties for remodel. In 2012, we adopted another pet or two which means more fur. In 2018, I took the hose into the local vacuum repairman. He is an odd dude. He made negative comments about Hyla and was reluctant to help me. Apparently, it was a towel stuck in the hose, which he removed for a hefty fee. I believe he doesn't like Hyla because if everyone had them, he would lose business. The 2 repairs I've had to make in 12 years have been minimal and mainly due to user wear and tear. Our Hyla gets used A LOT. Fast forward to 2020. I still have my dearest Hyla, but not the dearest husband. I chose well! She always picks up after herself. She cleans like a champ. I can't stand the way a regular vacuum feels like you just push dust around the house. I am very attached to this vacuum and have always been happy that I purchased it. I pray she lives forever, but if her time comes to an end, I will 100% buy another! I write this review now, after 12 years of having this vacuum because I hate reading reviews and wondering if a product held up but not knowing because the review was written so soon after purchase. I'm here to tell you, if they still sell Hylas, I would 10/10 recommend. PS: I'm not a paid reviewer, I just love the hell outta my Hyla!