Thanks to dim4fun for the interesting link. I am a lighting novice so I had no idea that there was a difference between one dimmer and another. Our cans were installed today and they put in temporary switches. Our contractor said he will put in dimmers, but I don't know how much he knows about different types of dimmers, particularly in light (no pun intended) of our intent to use CFLs. Davidr has posted dimmable CFL's on another thread. I wonder if they work with different types of dimmers such as the ones discussed in this thread. I'm hoping he's lurking on this thread to follow-up. Also, is there a dimmable CFL that doesn't look like a CFL (with the loopy tubes). It is OK for it to be a cool light as we will have xenon undercabinet lights and a couple of halogens (2 pucks in wood trim over sink and 3 mini-pendants over the center island and its attached table). Besides, our countertop is a light color and we want the cool light to bring out the accents in the granite. Anyone out there who can help here? Thanks.

Whoa, if you get a degree in industrial arts you get to acquire carpentry textbooks along the way?!? Sweet! Kim, I've always enjoyed/appreciated your contributions; given the wisdom of trial and error that was behind them, I see why they stood out. My mom got us a couple of the Reader's Digest fixit books (have to run downstairs, one of them might be the very one you have); I like the way they are encyclopedic and detailed. I know Jane Powell but not the Small Houses books (do you mean The Not So Big stuff by Susanka, or the Small House anthologies from Fine Homebuilding?) Thanks for mentioning books; I think I might start a reference book thread for this forum. Hey Casey, THANKS for taking the bait. And you are NOT a bloody genius, you are an old house DEITY for crying out loud! Would you please start your own show on youtube? Or maybe just a house tour? Even Petch house has youtube videos. Or, do you already have a project blog and everyone knows about it but me? Actually for someone with a degree in historic preservation, I am impressed with how low-key your posts come across; they read more like an old friend who's "been there" and wants to pass along lessons learned along the way, it's really very nice and encouraging. But if you ever want to browbeat me feel free; I would take it as a compliment. To be honest if I post about something I'm thinking of doing to my house, and you don't opine, I figure one of two things is going on: 1) you're not on the forum; or 2) you're politely disapproving. Most of the time I assume it's 2 because you seem to be pretty consistent around here. But I just want to say, and I hope I speak for many, that I love love love your posts, especially when I'm searching on a problem I'm trying to solve and something from you pops up! (PS I finally got around to using that general finishes gel varnish you recommended and it was fantastic, thank you; I will post photos to the woodworking forum sometime before the next census.) Oh, and I love the way you "aged" the color tones in the new pine beadboard in your kitchen; reminds me of the pine in my grandmother's kitchen. When I was really little I used to look at the gleaming pores and think it was the closest wood could get to 24K gold.

This is making me laugh. I got the e-mail the other day too. I had to get right up and check. Sure enough the plastic and the foil had em. I stood there in the kitchen and said 'no way!'. How could we go all this time and not know that. All that past aggravation over the plastic wrap flying out of the box and landing on the food I was trying to cover, only to have the roll get all mucked up from the food. Don't I feel silly now

Re: cornmeal and ants. Have been having a problem with ants on my sunporch. They seem to be living underneath and coming up through cracks in the tile floor. There's no way for me to get to where they live to spray (and I don't like sprays anyway). So I mixed up some cornmeal and borax in a little deli container lid and left it near where they've been arriving. It's been about a week, and the problem has considerably slowed. BUT they seem to be 'burying their dead' in the cornmeal mixture. I've actually seen a live ant dragging and leaving a dead one there! and there were several little carcasses last I looked. But hey--if it works, without dangerous chemicals, or smells that will give me respiratory problems, I'm thrilled.