eyes: Do you know the name of the park? I was thinking the same thing, but didnt know if TWU owned it or the City of Denton. If you know the name of it just let me know. Thanks, Paula

JM, I'm in my second summer of gardening here in Austin, and started out trying the SFG approach. The big thing I'd say, and I harp on it a lot here, is forget entirely about the peat in your mix. My experience last year was that once we got over 100 and it got harder and harder to keep everything soaked, that peat dries out and is really hard to get wet again. If I were starting out now, I would actually try to use more of our native clay soil in my mix. I know that kind of goes against one of the SFG basics, but most gardens do just fine with 80-90% dirt. I would think even 25% would do wonders for moisture retention and necessary minerals without hurting your drainage too much. And be sure to mulch -- I use shredded leaves and grass clippings -- to keep the summer sun from baking all the water away. I used drip irrigation last year and found that it didn't get much of the bed wet. I'm trying soaker hoses this year. As for keeping your plants cool, I think you might lose most of your water to evaporation with misters. I found that as long as you keep everything sufficiently watered, the plants may wilt in the heat of the day, but will perk right back up in the evening. However, everything does start looking pretty worn out by mid-August and sunscald on any exposed tomatoes is a problem, so shade cloth might be a good plan. I filled my beds with compost from big box stores before I had my own compost pile going. You can might do better buying compost in bulk from a landscaper or nursery. I'm a fan of the Natural Gardener, out toward Oak Hill, and they make some good stuff. You can also use shredded leaves or grass clippings to get more organic matter into your mix for free. Check out the compost and mulch forum and look up "lasagna gardening" for a lot more ideas. Hope this helps, Kelly

What type of diving board and stand are you putting in. The classification will dictate the dive profile. The diving board is a 6' "Edge" diving system by Inter-fab (inter-fab.com). We did check with our insurance and HOA first. Here's another "top down" artist rendering: And a few site photos: We're still in the bidding process, but this is basically the exact drawing that I supplied. We're looking at Riverbend, Claffy and ClearTech right now. We'll probably consider a couple more before a final decision is made. Riverbend won't supply a full list of specific equipment (even though we've asked so we can compare apples to apples)... I've very hesitant about spending $85K without specifics! Too many corners can be cut if you don't have it in writing. I had an interesting talk with the bank about financing Friday. They (Frost Bank) said that they are one of the only banks still doing loans for pools. The problem that we're running into is because of the fire and rebuild. Since a pool / home improvement loan is tied to the appraisal value of the house, we can't get a loan until the house is finished and get a full appraisal. This puts us in a bind because the clearance from our property to next door is now 12', but will decrease to 8' when the air conditioners are installed (the golf course will not allow access from behind the property). Unless I can figure something out, we'll have to pay for the pool out of pocket rather than finance. We can do it, but it'll put a crimp in my cash flow and I'll have to cash in a few investments. Anyone have any suggestions?

Good morning Moni. I heard you hollering helloooo from the kitchen. LOL Sorry, I've been busy trying to get ready to meet some friends for an early lunch today and then an afternoon of wig shopping. My dear friend was diagnosed with stage 4 adenocarcinoma lung cancer about 5 weeks ago. She's only had one chemo treatment and is already losing her hair and wanted some company in trying to pick out a wig. I don't know how much help I can be, but I'm there. Problem is her 3 DDs and their families are due in town tomorrow and I'm helping her get prepared for her company's arrival. They all want to be here for her 2nd chemo treatment Monday. When will you be headed back home? Maybe we can catch a bite or a cup of coffee on your return trip. Let me know.