Hi Mike & Welcome! Congratulations on taking the plunge! I agree w/joepyeweed - 3:1 ratio of average items works well for me too. Here's my experience - I compost in a bin - a self-made 33 gal rubbermaid that's got some drilled holes & bottom cutout & is hidden in a corner (also have a HOA). I happen to like getting "nearly finished" compost sooner (& I don't screen b/c too much of a setup for my small HOA space) rather than later for a few reasons - would rather use my "good wholesome" quality compost in the garden than bagged compost - would rather use my almost $0 cost than pay for bagged compost - enjoy replenishing the earth w/my kitchen scraps than filling a landfill w/it I mention these b/c everyone has their individual reasons for composting - and a lot of times, the reasons inform what one does & why. So, I like to my compost to be done sooner rather than later - so, I do a few things (that others might not do) & I like the results - BUT after you compost for a little while, I believe that you'll find your own groove w/a little experimentation & you'll find out what you enjoy & what "works" for you, so here's my thoughts/experience for you to build on & take w/"a grain of salt": - I cut things small - in a container & given the "rate" of 2 mos or less for my desired "almost-finished" compost, I find the smaller the pieces the better - that means that instead of just chopping off the tops of the celery - I keep chopping up the tops & then put into the countertop crock - it works for me, it may "burden" others - so do what works for you - I use a countertop crock (stainless steel) to put all my kitchen scraps (including used napkins, papertowels w/o cleansers) for one or two days & then take to compost - sometimes I put coffee & UCG in there, sometimes I keep them in their own separate container - b/c I don't have a paper shredder & would rather not spend the time to tear pressed board, cardboard, paper towel inner tubes, scrap paper, envelopes, junk mail, etc into finger-sized pieces, these usually get torn into pieces as small as time & my patience allows, which is, well, not too small - my compost pile really likes beer (which I drink about 2x a year, so if I'm buying beer from a package store, it's probably for the compost) - it heats up & the slugs come - which means that they stay out of my garden - I LOVE to turn my compost - I have a pitch fork which allows me to get down into the top 2/3 of the rubbermaid when full - I enjoy the exercise, the checking out the pile, feeling the "heat," adding the oxygen, the analyzing (I love analyzing things, so of course, I enjoy doing that w/my compost, others feel differently), etc., So, I enjoy turning my pile everyday, which usually doesn't happen if I'm busy w/work or it's raining. With the lid on the container 75% of the time, I believe that the turning adds the much-needed oxygen that it doesn't get b/c it's in a container. - As to the bottom 1/3, it really tends to get compacted in the bottom of the rubbermaid, so I've added some additional air holes down there & I've gotten a "bulb auger" attachment for my drill, which I haven't had a chance to use yet b/c it's been too rainy here. - I usually leave the lid (has no holes in it) on my rubbermaid container, except when I'm home for a little bit on a non-rainy day, then I know that if anyone (say, from HOA) comes snooping, I can deal w/it. Also, it gives me more confidence (although I probably don't need extra precautions b/c there's no "odor") that little guys - or big black bears - from the nearby woods will stay out. - As to greens/browns, I usually go by moisture & smell, and adjust accordingly. I'm usually adding a thin layer of leaves (or torn pressed board, etc.) on top to discourage aromas wafting into the nearby woods anyway. And so, when I empty the countertop crock, I'm usually adding a couple handfulls of browns (yesterday it was from my "stash" of cut up old white cotton socks & paper towel tubes). Again, too much moisture, I usually add more browns. Looking/feeling lame, I usually add more greens & cut back on the "browns." I go by feel. Fastest compost I made in the bin was last October 1 - 22 (ish) - compiled it all at once - from a lot of garden scraps - especially chopped up tomato plants & spent butterfly bush blooms and leaves (whole, not shredded) and shredded paper/pressedboard and kitchen scraps - turned it (almost) every day. Reduced in volume by about 1/3. Came out wonderful - not perfect, but wonderful for me. I don't really like doing it that way all the time b/c without a 2nd compost bin to accumulate stuff, it doesn't allow me to continue composting stuff & it "forces" me to have all the stuff on hand all at once - I just give you this experience w/these factors so you can have some sense of other peoples' experiences & timeframes. Hope this helps, and keep asking questions! Wishing you, All the Best, Tree PS Which type of "bin" did you buy? What does the manufacturer recommend about turning, moisture, etc.? PPS I added a link below to get your brain "brainstorming" about compost ingredients in your house (including browns) that you may not have considered before.

Joe's making a good point -- what focal length means has gotten a little confusing these days for the amateur photog with the advent of digital sensors in various sizes. Here's some more info: Focal length is the distance from the nodal point (center) of the lens to the film (sensor) when the lens is focused at infinity (the far horizon). Lenses come in three basic groups: short or wide angle, normal and long or telephoto. For any given camera the normal focal length lens is the diagonal of the film (sensor). 35mm film has a 46mm diagonal therefore the normal lens is 46mm (rounded up) 50mm. Focal length is related to angle of view which is likely what you're concerned about. Angle of view is a functon of focal length and the size of the film format. Simply put angle of view is how much the lens takes in. For what it's worth here's the math: Where V = angle of view, F = focal length, and N = length (width) of the negative: V = arctangent((N/2)/F)*2. Short lenses have a wide angle of view -- they take in more information. Long lenses have a narrow angle of view -- they take in considerably less information. Consider the two sunset photos below. The first was taken with a normal lens (45mm for 35mm film). The second was taken from the same camera location with a telephoto lens (135mm for 35mm film). Notice how the second sunset is just an enlargement of the central section of the first with most of the first photo cropped away. The photo below of the cross was taken with a wide angle lens (24mm for 35mm film). Notice how the shape of the cross appears distorted in the photo. The cross does not taper up yet in this photo the base appears larger than the top. This is because the camera is so very close to the cross. The human eye from the camera position would not be able to see the entire cross like this camera lens does. Standing there you would have to scan up and down the cross. Wide angle lenses (especially when used in close quarters) can show us aspects of the world our eyes do not show us and these photos can appear odd at times. Focal length is related to perspective. Perspective is a function of where you put the camera. Camera placement determines the apparent 3D relationship of objects in your photo. If you place yourself close to the objects in your photo the 3D space between them will appear emphasized and even exaggerated (common with wide angle lenses). If you place yourself far from the objects in your photo the 3D space between them will appear de-emphasized and even suppressed (common with telephoto lenses). This begs the question: Is there a correct focal length that will show viewers of my photos the scene the way it looked to me when I was there taking the picture? Yes there is; for a 35mm film camera that lens focal length would be 75/80mm. If that was all too esoteric and you're still with me here's a few tips for how to best use the different types of lenses. Short: expansive landscapes, tight places, buidlings and architecture, crowds and street photography. Normal: snapshots, family and friends. Long: isolate distance subject, wildlife, sports, fashion portraits. Joe

hi OB2B, so nice to meet you today? did you enjoy the tour? I had a chance to see a few of the houses this afternoon. It was a great day. steph2000, thanks so much! i think you are right re: the semi-flush. right now I am going to take a breather until the hood is ready. I pushed really hard to get this done for the tour today -- there were so many people here this week. will be nice to take a little break. deedles, I purchased the wolf 20" riser with shelf for behind the range. it isn't up yet. the guys were having trouble sliding the range out. the riser has to attach to the back of the range (i would have assumed it could just attach to the wall) and so the range has to slide out. The marble countertops are very tight to the range with really no gap at all so it was difficult for them and they were rushing so much to get so many things done that I suggested we address it later when they can slow down a little (I was a little afraid of them damaging the doors on my range ... they were pullling on them trying to slide it out and that was definitely not okay with me!).

Hi all, it has been a while but thought I'd update you on my progress. I've taken a lot of the comments on board (other than switching the painting as we love this painting), and I'm getting there. But I'm still struggling to pull everything together. I do still need to change the curtains to floor length ones, but I have no idea what colour/pattern to go for, so any suggestions would be very much appreciated! I've tidied up the bookshelves, built up the mantel, and we've finally installed our wooden flooring, I swapped the corner chair for a rocking chair and think everything feels a lot neater now and less chaotic. As you can see, I ditched the red couch cover - the red and blue was too jarring for me. But now I think the green couch along with the blue chair is too much? If so, what should I do? Both are IKEA and can have their covers replaced, I just don't know what colours to go for...maybe a light blue for the couch? I also think I should change the grey walls to a cream? It's an East facing room so I'm limited on what wall colours I can use but I feel the grey is too cold and flat in the evening. I'm thinking it's my colour scheme that's stopping everything from feeling coherent, but it could be other things I'm not picking up on? Please ignore that half the tiles are missing from the fireplace, haven't got round to fixing them yet, also the plant has seen better days and I'm slowly nursing it back to health after it was attacked repeatedly by our kitten. Thanks all.