I wasn't even talking about a HOA agreement. When I bought that house, there was no HOA involved, and I have no idea what-all was in that 6" stack of papers. Curiosity hasn't overwhelmed me yet although the file cabinet dutifully stores it. They told me what they were, the terms of my loan, all of which seemed to match the few sheets that were the meat'n'potatoes of the whole thing, and I signed the appropriate spots where told. Brandon, from a semantic standpoint, it sounds like you didn't read every word either. "...would require a few minutes per page to look through." Not did require. That's all I was saying, nobody reads every word, not particular in reference to a HOA. There doesn't seem to be an actual disagreement, just a misunderstanding about the focus of what was said. On top of a 6" stack of paper, a HOA could seem like a very low priority, hardly concerning kind of thing unless you were expecting it to be restrictive and/or plan to take a more personal and perhaps unusual approach regarding landscaping in an "everything's about the same" neighborhood governed by the HOA. All Jbrad did was plant one little palm tree afterall. Not like he/she turned a front lawn into rows of squash vines. Everyone's tastes and understanding grows and matures and they learn more about plants, and many people leave the 'burbs for garden reasons. A lot of the plants I yearned for as a newbie have lost status with me for whatever various reasons. Jbrad probably had no idea how much more would be learned about this tree by starting this discussion, not to mention the vast array of alternative suggestions offered from everything from pruning to replacements to legal and lifestyle advice. Amazing and quite entertaining.

From a former Waterfront Director at a boys' camp: When my sons were teenagers, we put in a pool with a diving board (built above and beyond all regulations regarding depth and length), but we wouldn't do it again. Our kids loved the diving board and clearly understood that they needed to use caution when diving into a home pool (as opposed to the Rec Center pool), but their friends did not. The combination of normal teenage exuberance and the fact that most of their friends were over six feet tall resulted in too many close calls for comfort. Even when their friends weren't actually diving, they'd use the board to "catch air" as they'd carelessly lunge out towards the sides to catch a frisbee and would sometimes scrape their knees, ankles, elbows on the sides or bottom. Small stuff, but it began to make me feel uneasy- so much so, that when we were asked to host big events, like church picnics, etc., we'd "close" the diving board for the day and hire a professional lifeguard to keep an eye on kids in the pool. (It's frightening how easy it is to lose track of what's going on in the pool when there are lots of people around.) We've moved and are now in the process of building a new pool, but it's designed more for empty nesters. However, if we still had kids at home, we'd consider a volleyball pool (shallow at both ends, deep in the middle) or pool with a tube slide or a slide built into a hillside or berm (so you can't fall off). Other suggestions to keep kids from getting bored with the pool: try to make it long enough to swim laps and races (they can think up some crazy relays) and try to preserve enough of the yard for grass to play games on so they can work off some of their energy - and then cool off in the pool :-) All the best with your plans!

Interesting that the positives come from an owner point of view. From a repair/install point of view I think you'll find the opposite. It is a diving accident some years ago that bankrupted the nations largest association of pool professionals when they had nothing to do with it. Because of that, you will find that the nations largest association of pool service people are not insured to install or touch diving boards for one reason. Lawsuit exposure. Boards are great and when properly used, they are not a problem. But, court rulings have found that it is not proper use that determines liability. It is deep pockets and slick lawyers. Ultimately, the future pool owners pay for this in the form of higher pricing and lack of purchase options. In So Cal, you will be hard pressed to find boards these days that are installed by professionals as the risk of exposure is too great. My business is not worth making a few bucks on a board only to be sued later for something I had nothing to do with. Regardless of depth, injury is highly likely with a head first dive and it is the industry who ultimately pays. Just a view from the other side. I liken the whole situation to helmet and seatbelt laws. Put a helmet or belt on and statistics say there are fewer injuries. Swim in a pool without a board and the statistics ar better.

In my opinion, proper bonding is the most important aspect of a swimming pool. Improperly bonded or pools not bonded have caused deaths. It's not to be taken lightly. As I had stated, an electrician or pool pro who has knowledge of pool electricity is the best person to evaluate your current condition and advise you on any corrections to be made to bring it to the current code requirement and, make it safe. We have been required by town building depts. on some residential renovations to have a bond test performed by a trained individual to prove the current bonding is ok. A written document accompanies these tests. In New Jersey for instance, public pools must get tested and certified every 5 years for bonding. Diving boards are fine provided the pool meets the current standard for one.Yes, they are fun for the kids-and some adults!