Hi Pamela! I have a couple witchhazels, I think they're just about done blooming. The native hazelnut is blooming now (weird little blooms), and my snow crocus are in full bloom, with the big crocus starting to bloom. Daffodils are mostly in full bloom, though the late ones are just now coming out of the ground. Hellebores are in full bloom, purple-leaf plums are just about in full bloom, white-flowered plums are just past peak, and Clematis armandii is starting to bloom. No roses whatsoever here. Also, some species tulips I got are starting to show color. I bought a bunch of fritillaries, and they're popping up, and loaded with buds! I just love them, even if they do smell funny. I looked on the winter chilling website put out by UC Davis (thanks Paula, that was a helpful link a few years ago!), and noticed that winters here have steadily gotten more chill, 63% in the last 6 years (from about 800 hours to 1400 hours now). I think it's true, some of the fancy tulips are coming up with buds for their 3rd year, usually a sign of good winter chill. Some magnolias are just barely coming out here, whereas in town they're in full bloom or past it. --Ron

Hey, this is great stuff!!!! I had this problem with my Craftsman Lawn Tractor "it starts, runs, then turns off as soon as I take my foot off the brake. I read all your comments and ran out to my tractor. I then removed the 2 bolts holding the springs and seat switch, removed the seat switch from the housing unit but left it connected to the wiring. Then I put the housing back under the seat (without the seat switch in place) and laid the seat switch down under the seat. Now when I let my foot off the brake my tractor continues to run. The only thing is that now when I get off the tractor it continues to run but who cares. I always wished it wouldn't stop running when I got off anyway. Dreams to come true. Thanks guys for your wisdom.

"berryberry," please think whatever you want to off me, but you're apparently misreading. You claim that I wrote "half a dozen times about some darn refrigerator that she bought from Eurostoves and was replaced at her request with a different model that cost $600 less and she is sore about not getting $600 back." The fridge was non-working/damaged on arrival. It was attempted to be fixed many times. In the end, it was leaking water on the floor and the freezer had failed totally (wouldn't cool below 42 degrees). It was replaced with a different model than what I'd paid for, because Jade, the original brand, had gone under/changed hands since the purchase. I was forced to accept a lesser-value exchange OR pay to re-do my cabinets to fit another brand OR wait 12-15 weeks for the Jenn-Air built-to-order through my local dealer. (And to get the buy back, they would have already had to have the other fridge back during that 12-15 week wait. Why they couldn't help my local dealer get the replacement fridge in a reasonable time--so I could buy it from them--I never understood, but it was made clear that wasn't an option.) That's a HUGELY different scenario than "Eurostoves replaced [the fridge with another brand] at her request." The fridge I paid for had features--namely total stainless steel interior, glass shelves and more of them--that I paid that up-charge to get (I had looked at, and decided against, the Jenn-Air in the purchasing process), and now don't have. How is that fair? "berryberry," please think whatever you want to off me, but you're apparently misreading. You claim that I wrote "half a dozen times about some darn refrigerator that she bought from Eurostoves and was replaced at her request with a different model that cost $600 less and she is sore about not getting $600 back." The fridge was non-working/damaged on arrival. It was attempted to be fixed many times. In the end, it was leaking water on the floor and the freezer had failed totally (wouldn't cool below 42 degrees). It was replaced with a different model than what I'd paid for, because Jade, the original brand, had gone under/changed hands since the purchase. I was forced to accept a lesser-value exchange OR pay to re-do my cabinets to fit another brand OR wait 12-15 weeks for the Jenn-Air built-to-order through my local dealer. (And to get the buy back, they would have already had to have the other fridge back during that 12-15 week wait. Why they couldn't help my local dealer get the replacement fridge in a reasonable time--so I could buy it from them--I never understood, but it was made clear that wasn't an option.) That's a HUGELY different scenario than "Eurostoves replaced [the fridge with another brand] at her request." The fridge I paid for had features--namely total stainless steel interior, glass shelves and more of them--that I paid that up-charge to get (I had looked at, and decided against, the Jenn-Air in the purchasing process), and now don't have. How is that fair? "Add to that the multitude of times she has mentioned ordering the 2006 model to save money (based on her estimated house completion time of Jan 07) but when her house was delayed til April she was upset she didn't get the 2007 model." I've NEVER once said I purchased the 2006 Bluestar model to save money. That was Mr. Lawson's claim--that he did me a favor by having me order so early. In fact, we actually spoke--and I have it in writing via email--many times about me not wanting to be stuck with last year's model of anything. (He assured me he would do research and do his best to make sure that didn't happen, though he never guaranteed it.) By the time I ordered my appliances I knew Jan. '07 wasn't likely and I feared I was ordering too early, but again I listened to Mr. Lawson's advice. My point was that, if he hadn't mistakenly shipped my appliances in 10/06, when I didn't need them until 4/07, I would have received the new model AND wouldn't have had to pay extra to move the burners. There was no "savings" at all, despite Mr. Lawson's claim, AND I got an older product. As I said before, you are definitely correct that the fridge has nothing to do with this thread topic. And, again, I was using it only to clarify my problems with Eurostoves and respond to a poster who cited it as an example of why I should be dis-trusted. (Notice I didn't even mention it until MONTHS after the first posts.) "Add to that the multitude of times she has mentioned ordering the 2006 model to save money (based on her estimated house completion time of Jan 07) but when her house was delayed til April she was upset she didn't get the 2007 model." I've NEVER once said I purchased the 2006 Bluestar model to save money. That was Mr. Lawson's claim--that he did me a favor by having me order so early. In fact, we actually spoke--and I have it in writing via email--many times about me not wanting to be stuck with last year's model of anything. (He assured me he would do research and do his best to make sure that didn't happen, though he never guaranteed it.) By the time I ordered my appliances I knew Jan. '07 wasn't likely and I feared I was ordering too early, but again I listened to Mr. Lawson's advice. My point was that, if he hadn't mistakenly shipped my appliances in 10/06, when I didn't need them until 4/07, I would have received the new model AND wouldn't have had to pay extra to move the burners. There was no "savings" at all, despite Mr. Lawson's claim, AND I got an older product. Also, Mr. Lawson is well aware--because he was copied on the emails too; he even forwarded one back to me, just today--that I have emailed Bluestar multiple times and received no response. Because this entire thing has turned into he-said, she-said, I prefer to keep all communication in writing, since I have been, MANY times in this process, promised/told one thing on the phone and then told I was a liar when I repeated it back. If we do everything in writing, that can't happen, on either side. (Also, again contrary to Mr. Lawson's claim, Mr. Trapp never gave me his cell phone number--not that I think he should--but, Mr. Lawson is correct, because of what I said above, I haven't called. I will add that Mr. Trapp has always had my phone number too, and hasn't called me either.) Mr. Lawson also sent me a threatening email today saying he was if I "bite him" one more time, he's "done helping me." Whatever that means. I mean it when I say, I don't care if you agree with me--I respect your right to believe I'm a crackpot--I just can't help but be bothered when what you're saying I said/did just isn't at all accurate. I never once threatened anyone. I didn't say, if you don't do this, I'll post. I said I'd post if he did something good, just to let him know I'd be fair, and because Mr. Lawson has let me know he's hugely invested in what is written here about him and his company. I HAVE posted to try and get him to do the right thing, but only because I learned, the hard way, that unless you "shame him," as he once said to me himself, he doesn't do anything. I did say to Bluestar, when they said they wouldn't get my burners working (this was after months and months of round and round), that if they didn't want to deal with me, they could buy my unit back. (I said this to them directly, not via this forum.) That's not a threat, it's just the truth. It was only after the fridge debacle that I even knew such a thing was possible. From install in April to December 2007 I could only use three burners on my six-burner stovetop, and only one worked 100 percent correctly. We paid to have a gas company come out and make sure the line and pressure was correct (Bluestar insisted it couldn't be, even though they wouldn't check) and, even after that proved out, I had to sign a document saying I would pay Bluestar if the person who came out discovered my burners weren't right because of an "install error." It was NOT an install error, by the way, but I never heard a single word of apology, or anything else from Bluestar. I waited eight months--and wasted hours of my life calling, writing and begging, while they told me it wasn't their problem--for a fix that took about 35 minutes. Instead, after my first post in this thread, I got a nasty email from Mr. Trapp that basically said how dare I say anything negative about his company after they did me a favor by getting my burners working. All I've ever wanted--and I reiterated this to Mr. Lawson today--is the appliances I paid for to work, properly. To receive what I was promised prior to sale. That's it. Nothing more, nothing less. Nothing special. Anyway, the reason I usually don't read or post here is because the whole thing has been hugely stressful for me and now I'm right back there in that bad place where I walk around all day feeling sick to my stomach, flabbergasted and confused at how people are so angry at me for telling my story--or how they can so totally misunderstand my comments and intentions. It seems like if I keep it simple and just state my broad complaint, I'm slammed for being vague, and if I then go back and explain my issues in detail, I'm told I'm "changing my story." I hope no one ever has to go through ANY of the things I have had to go through, with any vendor or product. -Susan W.

You can also go to the DWTS official web site (part of the ABC web site) and sign up for tickets. Last season I received an e-mail from DWTS offering me FREE tickets to attend a results show taping. I said something to my hubs cuz I was so surprised to get an e-mail like that, and he told me he had gone to the web site and put in my name for tickets. That eBay auction has a starting price of $499 and it says "reserved not met." It also says that each dollar over $500 that is spent is tax deductible. Uh, what about the first $500? Where does THAT money go that it's not tax deductible? I realize the seller shows a 100% rating, but I didn't read any of his feedback to see what folks had purchased, or for how much $$. But there's no way I'd pay $499 for tickets that you can EASILY get for free. There was nothing on that eBay page that said what extras you get for having allegedly VIP tickets.