I am not an expert on plant nomenclature, but generally, when there is a part in a plant's name converted to the "xxxxx-ii" form, that is a form of the actual surname of the person who either discovered, first cultivated, extensively studied and id's the species, or developed the plant. Their name becomes a part of the plant "for posterity". Like Heliconia rostrata "Ruiz y Pavon". Its my understanding Ruiz and Pavon were botanists who studied and catalogued a lot of Amazonian and rainforest plants. Or names attached to plants like "evansii", "wilsonii", "williamsii"....these are the names of people converted to "plant naming code" if you will to designate their involvement with that particular species. Names that refer to COLOR are add-ons like "rubra" for red, "alba" for white, "albo-variegata" for white variegated, "albo-marginata" for white leaf edges etc etc etc.

I'm not skilled in any of it. Dad can do it all. He definitely won't be taping or doing dry wall. He hates it. Nephew is a painter - I can help with that - if needed. I'd love to take more time and put more money away, but...we've been through some serious stress already. I'd hate to air my dirty laundry, but here it is in a nutshell. Back in March we started the loan application. We are both teachers for almost 30+ years combined - secure jobs. As our broker says "squeaky clean credit, you can't get much better than that". Bank was in no hurry to loan money. Were approved in June with plans to sign the next week, so we took our own money to get the project rolling. Workers dug out kitchen, mudroom and porch area. We're living in dirt!!! Mind you, it's summer, we aren't working, and so on... State comes into bank and says stop all lending just as our loan is being finalized. We're living off of our savings which has been reduced substantially. On to the next bank. They want 10 comps instead of 3. Again, in no hurry. Now it's been 7 months since we applied to the first bank and we are getting much less than we asked for. Good bye granite, goodbye windows, etc. However, the teachers have learned their lesson. I may just do builder grade to be safe, and then let dad do the upgrades where we decide.(he'll be living with us). It keeps him busy too. Anyway, reality has set in, and all of the wonderful selections I've made have been tough to let go of. I'm holding strong on the hide-a-hose though. My builder knows how bad I wanted it and says I'm getting it no matter what. Our builder is so understanding, and he needs the work just as much as we do. So, he suggested my dad do the trim work, painting, etc. We'll see what happens. There's always the lottery, right?

Means different things for different trades; the finish plumbing is setting fixtures and hardware; finish electrical is switches, outlets, cover plates and fixtures. Finish paint is the last coat that shows. Finish carpentry is doors, baseboards and casings. Finish carpenters usually turn over other elements to specialists such as stair railing installers and flooring installers, even though both involve woodwork. Often the floor installer does the base shoe or quarter round, even though that's really trim not flooring, but it saves the trim crew a separate trip and setup for what is a very small quantity of work. Specific to a kitchen, I would think that finishing work is whatever would take place as a last necessary step to complete the work; toe kicks or other cabinet base; crown on cabinets; trimming out edges, margins and backs of islands not already done when the cabinets were set, any trim work that could not be accomplished before cabinets and counter tops were placed. Touch-up of cabinet chips and dings that were incurred during the installation. It could be a long list. It would then be incumbent upon the owner to produce a "punch list" of sore spots that appear unfinished or unsatisfactory. Casey

Try anything you decide on a piece of similar wood first---it is difficult to remove stains. Yes, you can do what you suggested. Sanding will need to be done after each step---except the last one. However, as most woodworkers find, finishing properly can be more work than building the project. A good finish needs proper preparation(oak does not take much), proper application of stain/colorants(again, fairly simple with oak---especially if the stain is hand applied with a rag/brush) and correct application of final finish(follow the manufacturer's instructions with NO short cuts!)