Not sure if you are talking about a landline or a cell phone or both. I used to screen all of my calls via answering machine when I had a landline. I'd come home from work and be amazed how many hang ups we'd get because the more sophisticated out dialing systems can detect a fax machine or an answering machine. Don't hate me, but I used to sell that technology before I retired. LOL. DH and I pulled the plug on the land line (literally) and now he and I only have cellphones. We have distinct ringtones programmed on our cell phones for most of our close friends/businesses and a generic ringtone for anything else. That helps us decide how motivated we are to pick up. Most of our friends and family text more than call. If I don't recognized the number, I rarely pick it up. A legitimate business will leave a message and rarely has to speak to you that very minute. If someone is calling me repeatedly from the same number, I'll add them to my contacts as TRASH so that number will appear in the CLID next time around. But that doesn't really work if a machine or even a real person is calling you and their system is pushing out random or spoofed numbers. Same as sushipup said...............for us, they seem to come in spurts. It really hasn't been anywhere near as prevalent to us as it was with the land line. And I realize yanking a land line is not a good option for everyone.

misntroya:I love the look, the clickity click of the dial, the heft of the handset, the sound of the ring." I'm with you. LOVE PHONES TOO ! I bought a Western Electric rotary and moved the jack around the corner to be placed on a small hallway shelf(well not a big hallway just a bit of wall perpendicular to the sofa). I do not have a mobile here since my non local calls are international. I keep a touchtone for calling card calls overseas. I find conversations are rushed at best and tinny sounding/echoing on mobiles. They are handy, though for real long heart wrenching conversations I want my rotary/touchtone landline because the conversation is richer sounding. My GF has a cordless which stops in mid conversation due to charging issues. Do you rewire them yourself or have someone hardwire them ? I would love to hook up a princess. I kept all jacks and would never be without a "land" line(stupid expression, sounds like the opposite of "boat" line) wherever I move.. but I also have a Toastmaster toaster and waffle iron and a wooden ironing board. I keep it simple.

The problem here in No Ca, you don't really know what the weather will be! I've had tomatoes last into January, but last year we had a couple of weeks of temps around 19*! (pretty darned cold for this area!) I have 2 3x6 beds that I clear out for winter stuff , and just cardboard over the other beds til it's time to start working stuff in (now, cause of drought and warm temps and compost being ready) It's difficult to predict and plan. It's been in the 60s-70s, even a couple of 80s the last couple of months! We have poppies blooming, for goodness sake! Nastursiums and petunias never died off! We are still1 1/2 months til last possible frost, though. Nancy

I built my own house, so I ca't answer all of your questions, but I'll try a few. There are so many ways to build a house, it's hard to give one answer. Many of them will be 'It depends'. 1) Most houses in regular subdivisions the contractor (or someone else) owns the land. Many times, on custom builds on larger plots the homeowner may own the land outright. 2) If the land is included with the house, you don't own it until the final closing. 3) That would take a book. 4) Yes 5) You can try to negotiate anything. 6) Oddly enough, it seems like builders expect the customer to pay for their mistakes. I would have it strongly worded in the contract that the builder is responsible, period. Would you buy anything else that wasn't right? You can always opt to let it slide if the mistake doesn't bother you. 7) Another book. 8) There are many, many ways to build a house beyond 2X's (stick building) Our house is ICF. There are a number of methods that way out-perform stick built, and there are also many ways to dramatically improve the performance of a stick build. A lot depends upon your location. Extreme weather calls for different methods than a balmy, calm climate. I recommend you research various construction methods, and try to figure which one you like, and which one(s) are appropriate for your climate. 9) It does usually save some money, and saves a bit of water. 10) Many are now going tankless. Look into other options, too, such as heat pump water heaters. 11) Geothermal is hard to justify based just on cost savings. There are tax savings. Your climate will affect whether it would pay or not. It also depends upon what other options are available in your area. Natural gas, for instance, is pretty cheap heat. 12) Not sure. 13) It depends. In a typical tract home, the builder buys everything, and some don't allow for the customer to buy anything. There are other variations, all the way up to DIY, in which case you buy everything. Personally, I would want some say in what went into my home, and the flexibility to shop around. 14) HVAC vents can be in the floor, wall, or ceiling. I mostly see them in the ceiling. There are other options, such as ductless mini-splits, which we have and love, and radiant heat with the heat built into the floors. Whatever way you go, don't let them put the ductwork, if you have any, in the attic unless the attic is insulate and considered 'conditioned' space. I've been reading here lately of houses where the HVAC system wasn't designed in, and they are now having to try to adapt it to fit. Not good. 15) There are a lot of ways to screw up a foundation. It must have appropriate footings. Everything should be plumb and level. There are a number of stages to a proper waterproofing and drainage. Too much to post here right now. 16) Solar is getting close to worth it in many parts of the country. It depends upon your power demands, available sunshine, etc. Again, there are tax credits, I believe. I haven't seen summerfield on here in a long time. I hope my replies help a little. You have a long way to go if you want to be really informed on building a house. I would recommend starting to look into all of the construction techniques. Greenbuildingtalk is a good forum to start researching the various methods, and you can get detailed info based on your climate, budget, and end goals. I also recommend researching each of your questions seperately, and ask those questions. Your list is a little daunting!