I've got a mix of "walmart" and garage sale (some very good!) type full sized spades/shovels/long handled "stand up" and use tools and they are holding up fine, as you say. Maybe higher quality would make the job quicker/ easier, but I get by. What I find snaps on me is cheaper hand sized tools (shorter, for sitting and working). Like I said earlier, I do need about 1.5 ft of handle as I do most garden chores from a rolling cart I sit on because my knees are bad. One thing that occurs to me - - I think I've got to stand up more when I garden, use bigger, longer real tools for big jobs like transplanting - perhaps I am asking too much of the shorter ones! And investing in ONE really good quality "medium" handled digger is probably a sound idea. Hoping it arrives for my anniversary gift! Some would not think it romantic, but I do!I am too cheap myself to buy expensive items for the garden, so most really nice elements in there have been gifts from the hubby - slate installed for pathways, a fountain, a stone birdbath. He's a keeper - I just have to point him in the right direction. Nancy

Wow, Lucy, I am speechless!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!!! Christine has a great selections in her fuschia stock. She will be getting future business/referrals from me! Well, I'm still pinching myself! Lucy, this is quite a surprise!! YOu must have been chuckling the whole time you were placing the orders!! I wish I could have recorded the look on my face for you! Thank you, that is very sweet and giving of you and I will cherish them. And, I will have something to post photos of instead of those boring old brugs!!! LOL! Ha, I should never get so bored of my brug babies!! Brenda

Thanks for all the advice. I wish I'd seen the comment about getting people to write a "memory" to be put into a book but I just started posting on Cooking looking for help and didn't come back here until now. Maybe I shouldn't have used the word "potluck", my cousin's intention was originally to have the rest of the family (and very close friends) supply all the food since she had spent more than her budget on renting the hall, but it didn't work out that way. She ended up buying 2 hams, coffee, soda, and water as well. I made Chicken Marbella (10 lbs), about half was left but practically all the 10 lbs of roasted potatoes I made were eaten. One grand-daughter made 10 lbs of Shake and Bake chicken, almost all of that went, plus the 20 lbs of ham (about half eaten? Maybe 1 ham would have been enough) and the homemade rolls that her sister made (I didn't ask how many, but she must have been baking all day/for days). I *am* glad that we prepared the protein since there wasn't much kielbasa in the HUGE (18x13?) pan of sauerkraut (most left over), and the only other meat was a 9x13 pan of sausage and peppers. We also had to work with just heating things in the oven, since we weren't allowed to use Sterno and were told we could only plug in 1 coffee urn (or other appliance) at a time otherwise we'd trip the breaker, so most items had to be served at room temperature. There were lots of side dishes, and many (like a wonderful cold chicken and pasta salad, and the veggie/dip platter) were practically untouched. No desserts except cake and ice cream (unless you count the "salad" made with fruit, pudding and Cool Whip - though come to think of it, I think I did see a big plate of cookies in the kitchen earlier but it disappeared before I got done putting food away & washing utensils). Should have had more water, I don't know how much soda went, but all 24 8-oz bottles of water she had bought "for the kids", the gallon of iced tea, and 1.5 gals of lemonade did. Too bad she made 90 cups of coffee b/c I don't think we drank half of it. I was told there were 65 or so people coming, but I think 10 of them were kids, and there were only 40-odd adults since we had tables set for 72 and they weren't full. I spent most of the time in the kitchen so I didn't really get a chance to count heads LOL. My great-uncle had a good time, one of his grand-daughters had made up posters with family photos "100 years of Love" (wedding photos) "100 Years of Family" etc. (I didn't get a chance to look at them all) and there was also an album I'm going to have to go visit him to see since I was in the kitchen most of the time. One of his great-grandsons serenaded him (he's been performing in local theater since he was 5, his 13 now and has been accepted to local performing arts high school for the fall). He got a garden scooter (tractor seat, big mud tires and a 5-gal bucket in the back) in John Deere green and I had made him a carry-all bag to put his cordless phone, pen, notebook, etc. attached to his walker (too bad there's no place to hang it on the scooter - no handlebars). Maybe I'll make him a "man bag" to hang around his neck while he's on the scooter in case he wants to bring the phone and a notebook out in the garden - I have JD fabric. He can't wait to get out in the garden, though he can't bend over he likes to supervise his DD and her fiance LOL. This post was edited by ajsmama on Mon, Apr 8, 13 at 8:16

Hi Roxyl, I'm just wondering what else could be done with that equity in our situation (like investments or acquiring a rental property, etc.)? Where would I find out info about this kind of thing? EVERY market has opportunities, and generally the uglier & downer a market gets (especially BEFORE the actual recognition of reversal back upwards,) the sweeter the opportunities. Successfully investing in ANYTHING is never obvious nor easy... or the opportunity wouldn't exist because the hordes would have already applied their buying pressure, bringing market equilibrium back to level again. WHERE TO LEARN... truly, there are books, and seminars, and CD/DVDs, and workshops and bootcamps and compendiums and summits ad nauseum. A) Check with your local county free-loan library... I guarantee they have TONS of top-notch books & materials by some/many of the most powerful and popular course teachers & authors. Look up Robert Kiyosaki as an engaging start. Look up Robert Allen also. B) Check out your local real estate investor's club. They'll likely have evening meetings once or twice a month, for free, or entry fee in the teens. Don't be shy, don't be afraid to admit being a novice... r/e investors are notoriously extremely friendly (and regular, sown-to-earth folk,) GO! C) Commit to meeting, interviewing, and finding several currently-active real estate investors (everyone has a different style, so you need to meet many to "discover" which style actually fits YOUR temperament as well!) Make good friends of them... go to coffee with them often... "pick their brains" (again, surprisingly, most private r/e investors keep very little secret, and are often willing to share what really works for them.) I currently own 9 profitable income properties... and I have to tell you, the current home markets are so incredibly exciting for me as an investor!!!!! I expect to see more profit in my pocket from my own chosen investing style* this year (2008, I'm already weeks ahead in my mind,) than in all the previous 5 years combined!!! And I expect 2009 to be as much as double 2008!!! * My style is to acquire properties with an eye toward seller-provided terms (paying them over time, and keeping their old financing in place when able,) rather than haggling/scrappling to lowball & pish everyone off. With generous terms, I can be generous in my buying price (often offering full retail... of today's prices (which will only be paid out in 3-5 years, of course.) I structure my acquisitions preferrably so I have 3-5 years to complete the terms with the seller. THEN I get tenant/buyers in place who will gladly pay a significant rent-to-purchase premium (because there are so few mortgage programs available for them anymore.) The above may sound a bit complicated... and it takes understanding, to be sure (virtually no real estate agents I encounter fully understand what I am doing,) but it is EXPONENTIALLY EASIER than getting bloody in the fight to lowball people out of their percieved equity. "Selling price" is one of those hallucionatory numbers that people emotionally grasp onto... and it you let them KEEP it, they'll hand you almost everything else you want (which can significantly MORE than make up for it!!!) Good luck, and repeat after me; "Learning Is Fun!!!" Cheers, Dave The Dealmaker