Amanda, I heard on the radio this morning (while driving as a passenger on a day-trip, so had to wait 'til now to go on-line) a conversation with an interviewer and someone from a non-profit volunteer organization called SCORE. They are retired or semi-retired businessmen/women from all walks of business life who donate/volunteer their services to small business people, both those with a business and those starting out. They are a national org., and can be found locally on-line by going to SCORE.org and typing in your zip-code. I would think you could hook up with someone where you are now, and someone from your new location, and get help. The various chapters also sponsor monthly talks on various aspects of running a small business - some of which you wouldn't need (Workman's Comp., etc.), but others sounded like something ANY business might need. Hope this might help. Also, even though the forum keeps mentioning goats milk soaps, you can make soaps from a lOT of other ingredients, so don't get stuck on one idea yourself - think of what you might like to have or to give or receive. Look through catalogues, go to craft fairs, talk to local business people while they have a moment, and see what THEY might like to stock - then go home and cost it out to see if you can produce it AND make a profit! I would take any classes you can on possible crafts, offered through community colleges, local art guilds, etc., etc. I took a faux painting class (for walls and furniture, boxes, etc.)a few years ago, offered by a store that sold the supplies - still haven't done much with it, but really enjoyed the class. And dressing up old, flea market furniture can be an income producer as well - buy it for $20, spend an hour or two painting it and sell it for $75-150, depending on the market, and the effort - not bad. Jewelry is another possibility, made from simple items that you "fuss up", if your interests incline that way. Dried flowers, made into wreaths, bouquets, placed in frames, and sold as-is are another option - most of the flowers used for drying are tough plants, and don't have to be perfect, as fresh cut flowers do.

So many things to factor in! We started demo one month ago today, December 17. We expected to be doing minor finish work at this point. Our big delay has been the cabinet maker. In the big picture, he really isn't taking that long (slightly less time than I would have waited to order cabinets from elsewhere), but he is taking longer than he told us he would. That means that we started demo earlier than we should have. If he had been finished on time, we'd be a week into using our functional kitchen. As it stands, we're still waiting for him to finish our cabinets. He's now scheduled to install at least all the base cabinet boxes on Monday. The counters will be installed Tuesday and Wednesday. He may need to continue to work on getting doors, drawer fronts, pantry cabinets, and shelving done, but he promises to have everything necessary done so the counters can be installed. So, even with delays, it looks like I could very well have a functional kitchen (still needing some finish work, backsplash, etc.) approximately one month and one week from start to finish.

I have a TONNE of problems with the vinyl replacement windows in our home. From what I understand the level of quality varies with the manufacturer and even within one manufacturer. Our windows are now 9 years old. Numerous double hungs are now without a vital peice that keeps them within their tracks and allows the lower part to be raised. These windows will just fly straight down at full weight if you attempt to raise them and if you're older, you wouldn't be able to unless you're used to regular weight training. Really check out the manufacturer and go with the highest quality you can in order to get a lifetime out of them as opposed to the 10 years these suckers are lasting. HTH. PS -- I cannot get any response from the manufacturer or the installer as to what is wrong with these windows. We bought the house in 2006 and have no idea what is missing (it's obvious that something is missing or broke in these windows) and would much rather fix them than replace them. With zero response we cannot do anything. Here is a link that might be useful: My garden blog

You've probably already noticed that there are complaints and dissatisfaction from all brands and lines of laundry equipment whether top of the line or bottom of the line. There are also lemons in every line whether through faulty manufacturing, bad installation, or mistakes in using the equipment. I've been told more than once that the average life of a front loader whatever the brand is 10 years. Miele will deny that, but there are posters here who have replaced expensive washers at 5 years of service. There are others who have the same machine for ten years or more. In my experience, the washers manufactured since about 2005 do not stand up to heavy usage the way the older simpler top loaders did. It's probably not entirely the washer's fault; computer boards do burn out through no fault of the owner/operator. The new speed queens are very sturdy, but they do have the new electronic touch screen. If you don't want an on-board heater for the "true hot wash", this might be the way for you to go. It's also true, you get what you pay for: your experience shows that bottom of the line appliances (yes, Amana is only a brand, owned by Whirlpool as part of Maytag)haven't given you the full ten year life span. Have you considered moving to the middle of the line and looking for only the features you use with good build quality and, above all, service in your location? Scratch and dent and floor models are a good place to look for new appliances at a discount. Most of Kenmore laundry products are now built by LG. Maytag and Whirlpool build some reliable washers in the 500-800 range if you catch a sale. LG has some nice washers in the same price range, but you need to be careful of the model. I don't personally recommend Samsung or GE due to really bad experience with bad service and poorly built machines. Yet, there are many on this forum who love these machines. If you find something you like, I suggest you look at reviewed.com and automaticwasher.com and here on the laundry forum to check some reviews. Another trick is to buy from a store (usually big box) that will let you return the machine no questions asked for 30 days. Speed Queens are only sold through independent dealers at a bit of a premium with respect to other lines. Maybe that is worth it to you. Currently there is a discussion of the new frontload speed queen with an unhappy owner. I believe San Diego Steve is a participant. Good luck.