My good friends just joined a CSA. I went to visit them and as a thank you gift wanted to get them a cookbook/coffee table book on cooking with farm fresh produce. I was AMAZED at the number of books available out there. This is a HOT topic, and for many good reasons that we've discussed here. Everyone had a book out on it. And I agree, canning is going to make a comeback. All these food scares will only increase as our world grows more hectic. There is an alternative. We once had vibrant agriculture all over this country, not too long ago. And as greenhouser said, kids did not get bored without TV or computer or their cell phone, lol! I think that's why canning went out of fashion for a while. Folks in my mom's generation had childhood nightmares about it . . . please, please, please, no more peas to shell, corn to shuck, beans to snap, cherries to pit, etc.! :)

I have a POSITIVE STORY about getting over rebound congestion caused by overuse of a decongestant nasal spray (a generic version of Afrin)! This may be boring, but when I was suffering with a totally stopped up nose and looking around on the web for information about recovering from the condition, I couldn't really find out what it would be like or how long it would take. So hopefully I can help fill in the information gap here. I initially started using the decongestant nasal spray because I was dealing with a case of the common cold and had a stuffy nose. Foolishly, I didn't read the spray bottle label closely, so I didn't realize that using the product for more than 3 days was a bad idea, nor did I know it could result in so-called 'rebound congestion' (I had never even heard the term before). So I used the spray for about a week. I would feel better for hours after taking the spray, breathing easily through a clear nose. But afterward my nose would get horribly congested. It felt like a brick wall in my sinuses--way worse than any congestion I'd ever had with a cold before. I got suspicious that the spray was contributing to my problem, so I did a little research online and found out about the ironic side effect of the nasal decongestant spray. I was determined to kick the nasal spray cycle and dove into recovery. After trying the cold turkey method of avoiding use of the spray altogether, which lasted about an hour (haha), I decided to wean myself off by using the spray in my left nostril only. I would really recommend trying this for anyone suffering from rebound congestion because it worked well for me. By spraying in one nostril, you allow your non-medicated nostril to begin healing from the effects of the rebound congestion, and in the meantime you can still get by with one clear, medicated nostril. This allows you to talk, eat and breathe at least somewhat normally while you're recovering. I started this weaning process on a Sunday night. I sprayed in my left nostril Sunday evening and then once in the morning on Monday. To my surprise, this was the last time I felt spraying was at all necessary. By Monday night, my right nostril (the one that I had stopped using spray in) had gotten A LOT better. It was still stuffy, but it felt more like the congestion of an average cold, not the horrible, completely clogged nose I'd been experiencing due to rebound congestion. By Tuesday night, both nostrils were feeling a lot better, and throughout the course of the week they kept getting noticeably clearer. It's now Friday evening and I am feeling almost completely better. Damn does it feel nice to breathe through my nose--and without the use of medicine! I was worried that the recovery period would be much more frustrating and gradual. Bu it really wasn't too bad. My heart goes out to folks suffering from the cycle of rebound congestion due to these sprays. I hope that my story gives people confidence to move forward with breaking the uncomfortable cycle for good. Cheers, -Ms. Hobbes

After nearly every winter I need to repair hydraulic cement cracks on my pond waterfall. The cracks develop because of the freezing weather in Charlotte NC and I would like to find a trustworthy pool company to gunite the entire water fall and pond � can you please provide advice and any references. Thanks in advance!

It should be ok provided the surface was properly prepped prior to the addition. What bothers me as an owner is, someone, the owner an employee of the company, should have been on site the day of the shot instead leaving it up to the gunite crew to guess break lines and/or finished depths. I am on every pool shot to go over every detail of the pool. Depths, break lines, pipe stub locations are covered in detail. After all, my clients are spending money on project with expectations set forth by me. Cost of a project isn't at play here. Our projects can go from $50K-$350K or more so all are treated equally.