Funny Al! Actually good idea to think of seasonal interest...one more thing for me to consider! I will think about it, but I imagine that means digging another flower bed and accumulating yet another pile of rocks! I made that mistake on a front bed and when I cut down my Purple fountain grss the bed looked bare because it was a new bed and the other plants were insignifigant. Fortunately it is coming back nicely and some wildflower seeds of Desert Bluebells that I planted 2 years ago and had long given up on are now blooming like crazy... They are a beautiful and unusual blue flower... very prolific. Of course as wildflowers do...they are coming up in random locations... but def. worth it for the flowers! They stems and leaves are burgundy accented, which makes them very interesting with the Purple Fountain Grass... Hopefully the Mex. Sage I transplanted from cuttings will start blooming before they die out..I think it will be a nice contrast. dis.. got my Chaste at Peppertree Nursery in Wildomar. She didn't even know she had them until I asked her a question. I was surprised to happen upon them. I had always wanted one and yes they are NOT a water hog. My daughter mentioned there is also a NZ Chaste Tree that has Pink Flowers. Well...I have to go and start figuring out how to design a whole new garden bed around that Chaste Tree that just insisted on coming home with me! Any ideas for good winter interest Flowers and plants that are low water use?

An allowance is a small Cost-of-the-Work contract inside a Fixed Price contract. Of course, that loses the benefit of a fixed price so you should only use an allowance when you have no other choice. Selecting materials and their installation methods and including them in the Fixed Price contract can save you money. An exception would be kitchen appliances that are normally supplied by the owner and installed by the contractor. Removable equipment should not be in the allowances. An allowance should not limit you to a particular sub-contractor or supplier unless you agree in advance. You should have the right to reject a sub's proposal or ask that others be considered. Try to structure the allowances so they are for materials only and installation is in the base contract price. That means you must determine the quantity of the allowance items in the contract even if it is arbitrary. If the quantity can't be determined try to put an installation unit price in the contract. An allowance clause should state that the final resolution of an allowance is by a Change Order signed by the owner. It should say The Change Order can be 1) an increase in the contract amount equal to the difference between the Allowance amount and the actual final cost, 2) a decrease in the contract amount equal to the difference between the Allowance amount and the actual final cost, or 3) a decrease in the contract amount equal to the entire allowance amount (material supplied by the owner). Ask the GC to put his OH&P for allowances in the base contract price so that increases and decreases in the allowance amounts will not be increased or decreased by mark-ups. Warranties vary with the products. Usually there is a warranty from the manufacturer and if you supply the material the warranty will be from the manufacturer to you so keep the paperwork. The installation would be warrantied by the GC often for only a year (check your contract and the laws of your state). A problem arises when a material fails and you have to pay for the removal and reinstallation. However, that will be the case after the GC warranty ends so you are only increasing your risk for that period of time. Unfortunately, really bad products often fail in the first year. So, find out how long that period is and avoid supplying the materials that are unusually expensive to remove and reinstall (like whirlpool tubs, etc.).

Well this is an different sort of problem that we don't usually see here ! I guess you are the father of this child. I think after a bit of settling in time (at the prison), perhaps you could be sure in your own mind, that the mother wants to see the child, and the child wants to see the mother. That they are united in their need to see each other. The child is old enough to understand what is going on. If you ask yourself what are the pros and cons of the visit.... The child sees what happens when you break the law - valuable life lesson about consequences. The visit will let them keep in touch and foster their love and caring for each other. The mother sounds like she is sorry for what she has done, I don't see why she should miss out on family support in her trying time. That shows compassion. 14 year olds can say some pretty mean things, but they don't mean it most of the time. Good luck - a bit of a ramble from me.

Another vote for leave it and price accordingly. In my case, if I were looking at it, I love the openness of the space and the beautiful ceilings, but there really aren't that many cabinets for the size of that L-shaped construction, and they seem to be built into a drywalled frame in a bit of an odd manner. That's fine if it was for functionality for you, but for me, I'd be considering replacing the L-shape part with new (and more) cabinets. I don't care for the pots-and-pans clutter under the island, so I'd want to put cabinets in there. The granite on the island would make me look at closing it in with shelving and doors instead of replacing it (don't want to throw away perfectly good granite). So if there were granite on the L-shape, it would be psychologically harder for me to want to buy. Keep it something that's guilt-free to tear out. And like others said, others may be perfectly fine with the setup, or just think "ok, I'll want to replace the tile with granite down the road." Don't assume adding granite will raise the market price.