I'm going to the Smokies at the end of May for a few days. It won't be great salamander weather but we'll see what we can find. I have agreat spot in Smoky Mountains National Park where you can find Four Toeds and Black Chinned Reds right next to each other. As well as many other species. Dave

There are localized exceptions to this but generally, the further west you go through the middle band of the state, the more gprs likelihood is-- Kansas, though further than you plan to travel is where emoryi mecca begins. There may be other sure bets in small pockets closer to St. Louis. Calligaster and phaeogaster shouldn't be a problem over there-- the eastern component to this forum will likely be able to point you to them. Good luck and welcome Matt.

We're dealing with the same issue here in Central Ohio. We own our land, have financing lined up, already have our plans and know exactly what we want. It's a straightforward design - classic American farmhouse, simple, clean lines. Everything is in place, have the necessary permits for our septic and well. Our price range is $300,000 - $350,000 for the house alone, without factoring in site improvements. I know what I want and I'm choosy, but I'm not excessively fussy or anal and I don't sweat the small stuff. We're on our secord round of interviewing builders. We've already talked to many and thought we had found our guy twice now. The first one started out wonderful and I was thrilled with him, thinking he understood keeping within a budget and what I was after. We worked with him for over 3 months tweaking stuff. When we got to the final review of the numbers and the specs, we came to find out that he had changed the design and changed the materials without our input to maximize his profit. When I questioned him about it, he proceeded to tell me what I should "settle for" instead of carrying out my wishes. we had his numbers run by someone else and found out he had seriously low-balled the original estimate and couldn't possibly deliver the house with my requests at that price, so he made the subs to lower quality materials and hoped I wouldn't notice! Needless to say, we walked away immediately. It was sad because if he had been honest with us in the begnning and had quoted an accurate estimate, we would have gone with him because it would have been in our comfort zone. The second one we walked away from also was great in the beginning - did excellent work and was highly recommended. His problem soon became evident when he took us to see some of his prior builds - all way over our price range with none to show anywhere close to what we can comfortably afford. He took us to see a multi-million dollar house he'd built and constantly talked about how the owners "Just turned him loose" without regard to costs. It became pretty clear that he wasn't used to sticking to a budget. So now we're seriously talking to one that we passed over in the beginning. Why? Because as we've talked to more and more of his clients, most of them in less costly houses than we're building, the same point has been made by all of them - he does things right the 1st time and he stays on whatever budget he's given. He's been in business a long time and has built every kind of house imaginable, from million dollar mansions to starter tract homes. He listens to and respects his clients and does fabulous work. He doesn't have to solicit work because he's always in demand by referal. And they all say he's worth waiting for. So keep on plugging and don't settle for what you don't really want. Make sure whoever you pick listens to you and is easy to discuss things with. It's your house and you deserve to get it done the way you want it. ...

This is the new room with exsisting furniture? I do think a piece that will act as a landing spot in that nook is a better idea than a chair. It could be a table, bookcase, cabinet -- even a tall bookcase or armoire since yu don't have anything tall -- but do keep in mind depth and overall scale. Your room is already small for the upholstered pieces. In deciding what kind of piece, think about how your needs will best be served by something there -- what you want it to do raher than a space filler. Do you need an entry spot for coats and shoes? A spot to drop mail and packages when you come in? Do you have books and such or would shelving just be something to dust? Do you need media storage? Would you want a dry bar or serving area? If you don't know yet, don't rush into a furniture purchase -- work with what you have until you know what you need. When you do, a painted finish -- and consider a color for more interest than everything dark vs white -- and then some pillows to pick up the same color (yellow, orange, red, possibley green or blue -- Target has a Threshold Windham series in colors). Before you hide wires, have you tried the tv on the wall where the other chair is now with the sofa oulled down towards the door? It would separate the room from the door, but it would also create a bit of an entry hall and more of a pathway in the hall to the other rooms on the other side of the tv. Is either that or the current location a problem for glare on the screen? Would you be able to let in more or less light through the window with the TV moved? Do you have another room for that chair or possibly both chairs? If you have other chairs that are smaller that you could switch out for the ones in this room, it would help the room feel larger. Either way, you will need to limit yourself to one of the larger chairs in this room. Don't rush -- it takes some time to figure out how a new space is going to live for you. Look at other rooms and play with things you already have before adding more. It's a no cost way to test your ideas if nothing else.