47, I've read recently that genetic research done into the origins of today's hybrids has found that most of our cultivars have originated from one species, S. ionantha. When violets were first classified, they were divided into about 20 or so poorly defined different species. From this came the idea that several of them were responsible for today's hybrids. Now, with genetic testing, (plants have DNA too), this number has been reduced to about nine resulting in the theory that S. ionantha is the fore-runner of our violets today. Several species of Saintpaulia proved to be unsatisfactory for growing in homes with several never have been recorded as blooming indoors. S. ionantha proved highly adaptable and was hybridized extensively. There are several sub-species of S. ionantha which probably led to them being classified differently as classification was based on morphology. These differing sub-species probably all helped with the wide variety of colors and leaf types that we have today. Fascinating stuff. Linda

I sew, mosaic, and paint/distress small vintage wood items for the house (shelves, foot stools, cabinets, etc). To be more specific, my theme is cottage, and or shabby, whichever you prefer. Lately, I have been into pillows. I buy vintage Wilendur tablecloths in rose patterns and strawberries as well. I have scraps left over that are still good enough to make more pillows, but had them up on Craigslist, hoping to trade for pieces of vintage chenille. No bites yet. Would love to trade them if I could find chenille. I love vintage fabrics. I also make curtains out of feedsacks, and chair covers, and more pillow cases. LOL As for Mosaics, I have over 3 dozen items I have made over a period of 3+ years, using fine china. As for painting and distressing. I just love finding old items to re-purpose. I also crochet. Mango Princess

"what do you say to those folks who are born with a disability or end up getting cancer, etc?" That is what and who "health insurance" should be for. It should not be, not at neither my nor any other taxpayers expense, for those who are the primary cause of their own decline. If you want to have your bills paid for that which you are the primary cause of, then it should be your responsibility to pay the premiums. My apologies to all for upsetting most everyone off on this subject, but the truth is the truth, deal with it. I was once a rather rotund 262 pounds. My cholesterol ratio was terrible, my blood pressure was bouncing all over the place. Then in a moment of fantastically good fortune, an internist who specializes in diabetics found out just why I could gain and lose (if I didn't mind being sick half the time) large quantities of weight on a repetitive basis....And it turned out that other than diet and exercise, there wasn't and still isn't anything other that can be shown to have any long term effectiveness at all. This it turns out was one of the best things that could have ever happened to me. 16 months later I was down to 175 pounds , a weight I have been at SINCE 1998! No pills, no TV medical miracles, no magic anything. Just a daily 3.5 to 5.1 mile fairly fast walk and a 55% complex carbs/25% quality proteins/20% quality fats diet. You know, the kind of stuff that actually works but that family and friends don't want to hear about. If it is your "health" you are looking to "insure", do you watch what you eat, get plenty of exercise, read/study/and-stay mentally-active.? Do you turn off that TV and take the spouse the kids and the dogs for a 35-45 minute walk every evening? Do you eat lots of whole grain foods and see to it that your diet consists of mostly complex carbohydrates, a moderate amount of quality proteins, and certainly no more than 25% of all your calories are from fats of any kind? Or do you prefer to moan and groan and whine about how it ain't your fault because of genetics or some other "medical issue" or how they can't make you do this that or the other because after all, yer an American and they ain't gonna tell you how to live your life. This is ESPECIALLY for those "conservatives" who insist that all us Americans need to be held responsible for all of our own actions whatever those actions might be... "Personal responsibility", what a great concept that is! Unless and except for...Oh yeah... except for the sorry shape folks have managed to put themselves into and that they now want, nay, demand that I pay for...... The almost 2/3 of us, yes that would be all those folks we all know, mama/daddy/aunt/uncle/son/daughter/spouse/boy/girl-friend... they are NOT pleasingly plump, not a BB-Anything, not large nor husky not anything except fat lazy and health ignorant by choice... Too many Americans are just plain fat, lazy, physically revolting pitifully inept whiners deserving of NO special consideration at all. Folks who are plain what is called FAT, and expecting everyone else to pay for the results of such lifestyle choices. Health insurance, what is insurance anyway? Insurance is a shared risk based system whereby the greater risk of damage/whatever the higher the premiums. Let's see.. A) How about if you drive a 10 year old 4 door family sedan have no tickets and no accidents charged to your record. How about if I drive a late model big block Corvette, had a couple of DUI's 4 speeding tickets and another moving violation or two and have had 3 accidents that I was charged with causing. How about if we both get to pay exactly the very same exact auto insurance premium? Sounds fair to me..... B) How about if you live on a paved road 1/2 mile from the nearest publicly supported fire station, 100 yards from the nearest fire hydrant and nobody smokes. How about if I live 1 mile off the road, 10 miles from the nearest fire department, and a volunteer one at that, no fire hydrants or fill ponds anywhere, 4 of us smoke like fiends and we have only wood heat. How about if we both get to pay the same exact fire insurance premium? Sounds fair to me.... C) How about if you live on top of a hill, 1 mile from the nearest body or stream of water, 200 miles inland, in a county with storm water run-off planning and no building in anything even remotely resembling a flood prone zone.. How about if I live right next to a river, 2 miles from the coast and there is no storm/run-off planning at all. How about if we both get to pay the same exact flood insurance premium? Sounds fair to me.... D) How about if you are height/weight proportionate, don't smoke, don't drink, get lots of exercise, stay mentally active and watch what you eat. How about if I smoke 2 packs a day, drink 8 beers a day, have high blood pressure, high cholesterol and triglycerides watch 4 hours of TV a day,and my exercise consists of pushing the remote, lighting a cigarette, and walking to and fro the fridge. How about we both get to pay the same exact health insurance premium? Sounds fair to me. In example "A","B","C", I venture I couldn't buy a policy anywhere. Which is a very reasonable thing. Also very very reasonable is that if I could find an insurer, my rates would be far far higher than yours. Not only is that reasonable it is also FAIR AND JUST!!!! And yet for some reason the majority of Americans, a majority is overweight, under-exercised, with the poorest of diets, TV addicted, mentally lazy and "suffering" from a spectrum of 100% preventable ailments, seem to think that when it comes to health "insurance" that it's only fair and right that they get coverage at the same exact premium rate as you. Most unreasonable and unfair and not only that, unjust as well. Is that socialism or what? That is not what many would consider "socialism", no, it is not! That is "communism" >from each according to his ability, and to each according to his needNo more kidney transplants for 68 y.o diabetics, no more endless years of dialysis for 45 y.o. fat folks who got themselves into their condition all by themselves. No more chemo/radiation/drug "therapies" for those with cancer/cirrhosis who insist it is their "right" to continue smoking/drinking. No more triple bypasses for 83 y.o.'s. No more endless prescription regimens for chronic medical issues known to be caused and contributed to by ones personal lack of concern for proper diet, exercise, and effort. No more years of amphetamine and other stimulant based "therapies" for your kids while you continue pouring vast quantities of artificial colors and flavorings and refined sugars down their throats. If you want to continue eating massive quantities of grain fed beef pork and fish, consuming vast quantities of agricultural goods grown and treated with all sorts of agri-chemicals, demanding and taking various pharmaceutical products for every "ailment" and issue imaginable.... If you want to do little other than eat and watch TV and type at your computer. If you want to continue eating modified fats and refined sugars... Those who due to circumstances beyond all human control find themselves in need of medical treatment are exactly who and what health insurance should cover and be for, not those who are merely lazy and ill intended. There are those here on this board who have major issues through none of their own doing....And that by the way would include me....I was once forced to choose between head-oning a school bus, head-oning the moron in a big hurry to pass that school bus , or a bunch of schoolgirls who just got off the bus, or a culvert and a tree. I made what I think was the right decision regardless, but I doubt diet and exercise were doing me much good under those circumstances... It took me over 7 months to where I could walk one mile without falling or having to take a break, and I have never looked back. I >worked Oh my, how do I manage to get on with life while refusing the "advice" and recommendations of massive quantities of all sorts of uppers/downers/stabilizers/modifiers and lots of other pharmaceuticals that nearly all of the modern medical establishment, save the research neuro's I see, seem to think I cannot survive without...... Maybe it's because I was raised to realize that life has its ups and downs and that one needs to just shut up, quit whining, and deal with it all... Yes, just get on with the business of making oneself a better person today than one was yesterday. Something which quite apparently is no longer neither an expectation nor teaching here in 21st century America.... It would seem that when it comes to "health care", personal responsibility has come to mean taking your meds "on time" Amazing isn't it that I pretty much just eat well, stay mentally active and involved, do stuff daily, and walk a giant dog somewhere around 3.5 to 5.1 miles each day 6 days a week Last Thursday 07/01: age : 57 Ht. : 72" wt. : 173 B.P.: 110/68 ARP : 49 BPM Glucose Level was 89 two hours after eating Cholesterol is what would be considered rather high at 228 total were it not for a 3.7:1 HDL:LDL ratio and those rather moderate pulse and blood pressure numbers. And I do eat quite well too....And I do consume what is considered by all except the neurology folks I see to be way too much coffee. And I eat quite a bit of what I do eat too..... I even have every week a big bowl of Bryer's and some Pecan Sandies, and even an occasional Hershey Bay, the occasional bar-b-que sandwich or chili-cheeseburger, and even a chili-cheese dog (with mayonnaise-slaw. and onions) on a somewhat irregular basis too. Life is good and should be enjoyed in all its many pleasures, otherwise life would be all too tedious and boring. No need to overdo anything though. And besides, making things occasional tends to make them special too Now let us just assume for one little bitty minute that 25% of the adult American population could match my numbers and that another 50% could meet existing "targets" and the other 25% showed an overall 25% improvement....Just how much do you think the monetary savings would add up to??? And it wouldn't just be a money thing either folks...there is nothing like being able to live a normal and healthy life. People tend not to realize that until one day they find that they for-what-ever-reason cannot. I hope this make my feelings on the subject somewhat more digestible, but in truth, I doubt it.

Kate, Thanks for starting this. Your table runners are great. So many wonderful projects. Marcia, I really like your attic windows and they inspire me to do something similar with some panels I didn't know what to do with. Msmeow, I have those exact place mats I made, according to the date, in 1991. Don't even remember where the pattern came from; probably a magazine. I also did them on red and have used them every christmas since I made them. I have been contemplating how to clean them before I put them away this year. I usually just spot clean them but feel it is time to really clean them. Ha. I love them. Hope you enjoy them as much as I have. TFS everyone. Love to see what everyone is doing. Sally