Hey Guys : Thanks for all the welcome backs. I pop in once in a while to help someone. Shaun , I'll try to find the Photo's . I had problems with my Computer. Many times before, I've said everyone makes a big deal about, " who's Pizza Dough is better." Basically they are all about the same, except for minor variations. You can't please everyone. Some like thin Crust and some like The thicker Crust like the Sicilian Pizza. I enjoy any kind as long as it is Crispy and Tender, not like a piece of rubber that wants to fight you. Of course it has to taste good too. Lou Here is the Pizza Dough Recipe : An alterative to baking on a stone is to use pans. A 12 inch round pizza will take from 8 to 12 ounces of dough. According to thickness you want. After the dough is made weigh it out and roll into balls. You will have to adjust the size of the ball to the thickness you like. Oil the pans and place a dough ball in the pan and flatten slightly, working the dough towards the side of the pan, with the palms. Then let it rest a few minutes. Repeat this every so often until the dough reaches the side and up, enough for a crust about inch. Let it raise slightly , pinch the dough all over, with a fork and put into the oven to bake at 400 deg. If it bubbles while baking pinch it with a fork again. When light tan specks show ,take them out onto a rack to cool fast. Then you can use them right away or freeze , to use later. When cooking the Pizza, place the Pre Baked dough back in the oiled pan , Or cook on your Stone. put a latel of sauce on the dough and swish it around, sprinkle some Parmesan or Romano , put it in the oven for a few minutes. Take it out and spread the topping of your choice and the Cheese Topping. A good topping cheese is a mixture of Mozzarella and Provolone chopped and mixed. The provolone gives it a good flavor and doesn't get like rubber when it cools. I use all Provolone. A little trick for baking. Keep a cup of water and brush handy, to baste parts that are cooking too fast. If you can get new metal pans, (uncoated) they have to be cured in the oven, so they won't stick. Coat them with oil and bake them for at least 6 hours. Never clean them with soap and water. Just rinse with water & wipe with a paper towel. Dough recipe: 1 cup of warm water (not hot) 1 Package of rapid rise yeast 1 tablesps sugar ,in a half cup of warm water 1/4 Cup of Veg. Oil 1 teasp.Salt About 3 1/2 cups Flour ½ cup of Whole wheat flour or up to 1 cup Place in a mixing bowl, the Water, 1 cup of flour, wheat flour , yeast if risen Add the oil and salt and more flour. Add enough flour to make a soft ball of dough, that doesn't stick to your hands. Knead until smooth. Put it back in the bowl , Smooth side up and Rub on some Veg. Oil Cover and set in a warm place to rise until it doubles in bulk. I put it in a warm oven, Covered with a damp towel. It rises in about 1 hour. When doubled, punch it down and knead it well. Divide into Balls , about 11 to 12 ounces and place in oiled pans. 12" round Dough should be about 3/16 " thick on the bottom and about ½" around the edge. For Sicilian Pizza , I used most of the dough in a 11" X 16" pan Follow the previous instructions. Good luck, Lou

The brick provides a strong vertical accent ... maybe too strong for your wife's tastes. Right now, with no furniture or rugs or other visual weight on the bottom of the room, it looks HUGE. But that's because the room is bare. 1 - Clean it thoroughly 2 - Paint the surround 3 - Add some weight to the bottom of the wall ... Turn that sink thing 90-degrees Build it into a whole-wall bookcase and/or storage unit that takes up the spaces on either side of the fireplace. You have a natural division ... the red line along the bottom of the upper windows lines up with the landing for the staircase. (upper arrow) Below it is "room" and above it is "space" ... With some weight and width at the bottom the fireplace will be less overwhelming.

nancy_east -- thanks for your nice words! How exciting about your kitchen -- this will be fun to watch develop! The widest walkway we have is 36 1/2" (countertop to countertop), with it going down to 34 1/2" where our apron front sink "jumps" out. From our cooktop to the widest point of the bowed island countertop is 35 3/4". The only times (or rather, areas) our aisles feel tight are when the dishwasher door is open and there's only 12" of clearance (between the open door and the island cabinetry). But so far, no barked shins! We're careful and aware. The other area is our refrigerator (which is 30" wide, all refrigerator so it's a wide door): when it's open the only one who can sidle by (and then it's just barely) is our two year-old. But neither of those conditions are permanent (meaning, the dishwasher is mostly closed and the refrigerator door is mostly closed as well). While 36" for an aisle isn't "ideal," for us it's working out fine. Our only alternative would've been to give up the island and that wasn't an option! We need the storage space. Your aisles will work out fine; if it there's an impediment in the 36" aisle (like a dishwasher), then you all will learn the same careful two-step we and many others have as well! Good luck with your kitchen-in-progress! (and whole house, too!)

I think the first pic is of Vinca (annual periwinkle) and the other evergreen pics are Gardenia "klein's hardy.' If you want to go organic (which I would do since it is an ornamental)-treat with Neem Oil (apply in the evening I suggest). Gardenias are famous for whitefly (usually happens first) and then aphids appear because the whitefly weakens the plants and then you get the black sooty mold from the aphids' honeydew. I treat my gardenias every early Spring with a systemic insecticide/miticide/fungicide before I see any insects or diseases to avoid the headache of treating them once they get infected. With gardenias-it's inevitable they're gonna get something. Good luck!