The rain has been pretty intense here in Middle GA - everything is growing mildew. It's 1:45 pm and it has not rained yet today and I'm constantly checking the radar... it's supposed to be dry. It's hard to believe. My raised beds have been an enormous benefit - usually they dry out so fast, I spend much of the summer hauling hoses and changing out what got shorted on water so I could water something desperate. This year I'm hearing squooshing sounds when I walk between garden beds. My tomatoes are so sad - lots of disease, tho they are still sort of producing. Hardly any bird damage this year. The okra is pitiful. The peppers are worse and I have no idea what is wrong with the eggplant other than too many flea beetles and too much rain. My beans are growing by leaps and bounds, but almost no flowers on the limas and no pods. The rattlesnakes are growing, but even they are looking sad and are slower than usual. I'm hoping that the predicted dry for a few days will help me get some harvest. My corn mostly collapsed and is growing horizontally. (First year growing it for me.) This is the first year that I have had tarragon actually live tho. And I had a bumper crop of garlic and onions.

I just got done reading your dilema and wish to offer what I can. As a carpenter taught and trained by my father, I share your disappointment in what has occurred--there are very few crafstmen left and hundreds of parties who call themselves a carpenter because they claim to know which end of a hammer to hold. I suggest the following: 1) Take your own detailed phots of the damage as future evidence in case you end up in court over the matter later. Photograph the poor workmanship presently completed, the good work you were satisfied in the past, and any work that remains untouched from original installations. Remember, your photos will be reviewed by a judge who has not seen your home, so be sure to review them honestly regarding the detail they provide. 2) I would refuse any further attempts at this contractor to correct the problem. Their carelessness has already brought you to this juncture--no point in exacerbating the matter "hoping" that it will somehow get better. 3) Seek out the assistance of a good restoration carpenter/contractor. This can likely be resolved by going to the yellow pages or similar directory for assistance. Going to the carpenters union may also be a good solution, but if they tell you just about anyone can do the work, get out fast. I think you got really lucky with the first carpenter and, if you think the contractor you used can get you back to him, you might try that also. When you think you've found someone you can trust, demand references and/or a portfolio of completed projects to assure youself your confidence is properly placed--this type of work is tedious and demanding--anyone worth their snuff is going to be documenting their work for future customers to build confidence they can handle the project. 4) Once you have found the contractor you like and feel you can trust, let them give an estimate on repairs and bring that to the contractor you first used. You will likely get the cold shoulder, which will make point #1 all that more important. 5) Let the new contractor make the repairs, but insist on watching them for the first window if you wish to be sure they will meet your standards. A respectable contractor will not be offended by this and is even proud to demonstrate the cautious behavior required in dealing with such work. They will also have access to suppliers for replacement mouldings if the need develops. I caution you that it will only be through your own dillegence that the matter is corrected to your satisfaction--it may take 3-6 months of hard searching to locate the person to go to for the repairs--but I assure you it will be worth it. Good Luck. Bruce L

Don't be panic for painting the latex over oil. It is not a good combination but definitely can't ruin the look. Let your dining set be dried in sunlight for 2 to 3 days completely before moving to the next step. I am sure you can get the exact outcome that you want.

If you can come up with an old piece of chain link fence and a couple logs you can make a drag to pull behind the mower. Basically the chain link will scrape a little dirt off of the high spots and drop it in the low spots. It may take a little while but as long as it's not too bad this will work wonders for smoothing out the bumps. If it were me, I would hold off doing anything that will leave you with bare dirt for now. Otherwise you will end up with more weeds to deal with and there's a good chance you could have some soil erosion from storms or heavy rains during the summer. Leaving the weeds alone will allow them to hold the soil in place. From there, get started with the "destruction" process in mid to late July. About 1 week prior spray everything with RoundUp to kill off all of the weeds. Once the destruction is complete and the lawn area has been smoothed and ready for seed begin watering lightly 3 times per day for a couple of weeks to germinate any weed seeds that were left behind. By lightly I mean just enough to keep the very top layer of soil damp. Spray anything green again with RoundUp. By this time all this is done you will be into your ideal time for seeding which should be mid to late August for you. In the meantime, use the search feature here to learn proper seeding, watering, fertilizing, and all the other stuff involved in maintaining the new lawn as all this is important if you want the lawn to be successful. It's really not too hard but you don't want to spend all this money to have it go wrong. You've got a good group of folks here on the forums to help you through it and answer any questions that come up along the way.