Well, heck, I didn't mean to say that it was "nuttin'" but we have surely seen worse storms. Guess I should have been more clear that I was only speaking of the 30-40 miles around Sacramento. Crews have been working all day to restore power. Route 80 (pass through the Sierra) is closed, but Route 50 (through Tahoe) is not--go figure. I heard the same as you, WhiteCat, about the big rigs, but that three were blown over--maybe the third was in a different place. Perhaps someone closer to SF can tell you how that area fared. Southern California, with all that fire-cleared land, probably has the most potential for problems when storms like this one blow through. Something to be thankful for is that a family which disappeared while playing in the snow near Yosemite, was found tonight in good condition, according to the late news. People forget that the mountains are serious business, year around. I didn't say it before, WhiteCat, but thank you for your concern. Sweetcicely

Just for fun I stopped at the Ravenna Gardens up in U Village this weekend (I took the bus since my neighborhood's side streets were totally snowed in this weekend). Renee's Garden seeds has packets of rose seeds. I thought it would be fun to give them a try. It says they've been scarified and pre-treated for somewhat speedy germination (I've grown plenty of roses from my own seeds and always just plant them in autumn and wait until spring so they get variable temps/moisture that they need to sprout in spring (or muuuuuch later)), but this is the first time I've tried from purchased seed. I thought it would be fun to give them a try. We'll see how they do, but I'm curious. It says they are small growing, small flowering types in various shades of pink with some white. Below is a nice link to the actual seed pack. Happy growing and sowing, Grant Here is a link that might be useful: Rose seeds from Renee's Garden seeds

not sure what guidelines you're referring to. There are many options for shallow hoods. They are somewhat less effective than deeper hoods, but it's not a huge difference as long as you're not going with a so-called Euro-style hood which has a flat plate rather than a "box" that functions as the capture zone. They are definitely crippled when it comes to effective ventilation. Do you have any specific hoods in mind? I'm struggling a bit to picture that shallow a free-standing hood amd a picture would help. Would also be nice to see any schematics of your kitchen layout around the range. Have you considered some type of custom enclosure that would hide both the hood liner and the soffit?

Powder-coated appliance panels in a range of colors from retro pastels to modern deep colors would be huge -- I know so many folks who are tempted by the retro-styled SMEG and Heartland appliances, only to regretfully pass them up for larger, better-rated models that are big hulking chunks of stainless or black plastic. Probably the one biggest complaint you read on this forum over and over is the lack of choice in appliance color. Take note of how Frigo design does it with their appliance panels, perhaps? Something similar, except in durable powder-coating, would be grand. If it were possible to match my fridge and/or dishwasher (and range hood!) to my vintage yellow-and-white enameled stove, I'd be in heaven. Here is a link that might be useful: Frigo Design