I second this THANK YOU! The folks here are so helpful and knowledgeable, I'm SO glad I found this forum!

Guys I really appreciate the kind words! Trust me, we are going to get the fall MTPS turned around and back under control. I'll be contacting several of you soon for some serious planning. Lavonne and I are still pretty much wiped-out but we're recuperating little by little so thanks for your concern. Hold on to your hats and relax..... Now that I've had a couple of days to reflect here's what I came up with. Ok this is like me, pretty long-winded but here go my props: First and foremost to Jan and Jim: You guys are so gracious to let us hold the swap at your business even though it takes away from your ability to fully operate that business and costs you additional finances and labor for a weekend at your own expense. I doubt that any of us will ever know or can really appreciate the actual tangible cost that you two incur because of us. Thank you, thank you, and thank you!!! I cant say enough or show enough appreciation to you for what youÂve done for all of us over the years. You are uncommonly wonderful generous Christian people and we love you very much! I only hope that the debacle Saturday might garner you some additional business revenue in the future. Maybe some folks in that mass of humanity Saturday will go back to their congregations and suggest a weekend outing for their group at Buffalo Canoeing! Now there is some advertising that you canÂt buy!!! ;-) (BTW if your church group, school, Scouts or club are looking for an enjoyable day in natureÂs splendor, call Jan and Jim at Buffalo Canoeing and show them that you REALLY do support them for what they do for us!!!) Chef Ziggy: Way to go dude!!! You pulled double, triple, quadruple-duty all day with the photography, setting up the signs, being my eyes and ears for everywhere else that I wasnÂt at the moment and for eating dirt all day doing traffic control. IÂm sure you did more but I didnÂt get a chance to see most of what went on Saturday because I was usually several hundred yards from the Swap. My hats off and I owe you Bud. Thanks to Kathy and Judith for letting you work like a dog, totally ignore them and not help them with your table either. What a cool family you guys are! Love yaÂll! Lavonne, Marianne, Renee, Martha, Cindy, AprilÂ.How could I possibly thank you guys enough for the job you did grabbing the bull by the horns and taking over registration, logistics, organization and control of the "lower end" traffic of the Swap where all the action was? I canÂt believe what a disaster you averted by your hard work!!! When I think of how easily this could have turned into an ugly mob scene without you guys it makes me cringe. No way could this have gone off as smoothly as it did without yaÂll. You are all strong, intelligent and capable women that I love and admire greatly. (One of you more than the rest!) ;-) Marty: Great job! Even I didnÂt fall asleep. As expected you provided us with and, effortlessly commanded by your presence, the most organized; controlled; informative; relaxing and enjoyable part of the day. Duh! As if we anticipated something else? YouÂre just freakin awesome! We all needed that. Norman and Barbara: How could any of us have a good time without you two? I know that it makes the whole day worth while for Lavonne and I when you are there. You two will always own a very special place in our hearts! Robert Holt: What a kind and thoughtful man! For a "first-timer", like Martha, you guys exemplified the true spirit of what this whole thing is all about. I still canÂt believe that yaÂll were so helpful. We are all better people for meeting you and we are very happy to now count you among us. Mary Hance, aka. Ms. Cheap: Now thatÂs what I call REAL publicity! Even though there was something lost in translation between me, you, the article and the readersÂWow! What a statement it makes for the readership and strength of your column!!! We really do appreciate the pub and it sure did get the word out to folks that never knew we existed. We will benefit from this growth pain and become better and stronger because of it. I generally need a good swift kick in the pants and I sure got it! Thanks a lot. Many peopleÂs lives will be touched for the good by coming to the MTPS so before we get too wrapped up in the few negatives of the day letÂs remember to put things in their proper perspective and focus on the positives in this big picture that will surely come as a result of it. I know that I saw several others that helped with dinner but like I said, I didnÂt see much of the Swap Saturday. I know that I also spied countless others picking up the slack and busting their humps by taking on different responsibilities as they arose. IÂd sure like to name each of you personally but my memory is still a little blurry about the whole event! I realize that IÂm forgetting the names and faces of many who dared to roll up their sleeves and jump into the fray and I apologize for that but you do have my most heartfelt thanks. Suffice to say that this was a HUGE group effort on a lot of peopleÂs part and I thank all of you from the bottom of my heart for carrying this Swap and me on your shoulders. To everyone that attended: Everybody from the "old guard" to the "first-time newbieÂs", thank you for coming and sharing your plants, food, wisdom, advice, hospitality and good will. We can all agree that this event is about people that have a common bond of growing stuff and sharing it with others. You are one incredibly diverse group that comes together crossing all lines and every type of stratification just to be generous to each other! You are all the most selfless and magnanimous folks around. Where else can so many different people and backgrounds meet under one umbrella and kick off a day that is so cool for EVERYBODY? If your heart and spirit arenÂt lighter and uplifted by the fellowship with these, your swapping buddies, then you need to check yourself and look hard into the mirror. For those that couldnÂt attend because of circumstances beyond their control: To Mona and David especially (we love you so much) but no less to Doug and Bec & the kids, Cheryl & the kids, Ann Bell (who donated tons of stuff) and all the scores of other regulars that really wanted to be there but couldnÂtÂ.you were sorely missed. We benefit from your presence and are diminished by your absence. Did I miss anybody? IÂm sure I did. A big "Thank you so much" to all of you for your support, thoughts and prayers. IÂm sure youÂre sick of hearing it but this is why I always say (over and over and over and overÂ.) "YOU GUYS ARE THE BEST" !!!!!! Jeff

oldhouse1, What beautiful words you wrote....thank you. Strong? Goodness, Hubby remarked a few weeks ago that I should get an academy award for my acting. Acting strong. :) marti8a, Wringer, yes. Strong? Oh goodness....that's why I came here the first time....I needed something to shore me up. lol At that time, the kitchen was so overwhelming, I didn't know where to turn or who to talk to that would understand. The replies I received with that first post....that's what gave me the strength I needed. Thank you so much for your beutiful thoughts and prayers. remodelfla, Your Blessings for me and my family are so truly appreciated, thank you! katsmah, Sincerely, that means so much. Thank you. buehl, Your prayers for us and the medical professionals means more than you know. Yes, I've re-grouped and reading all the replies on this post got me focused again so you can be sure I will be here on a regular basis with.....what else? Kitchen questions. lol But I'm going to warn you in advance, I'm long-winded. Not in real life but seems I write novels when I post on these GW forums. After awhile you all are just going to be reading 'wah wah wah' much like Peanuts, the Teacher. *big smile* kitchenaddict, Oh gosh...noooo tears or you'll get me started all over again. Blessings to you with the beautiful soul......your words, priceless. rhome410, Your prayers mean more than you'll ever know...thank you. I am going to be getting back into the 'fun' things and I'll explain a bit more about that later. Yes, like you said.....A place to get away, like this forum, where people will understand that a misaligned cabinet IS a big thing and yet, in the grand scheme of things, it isn't. Know what I am trying to mean? Balance. Yea, that's it. Balance. Balance in life. ebean, Your words, your gentle thoughts came through loud and clear and mean so very much.....Thank you! bmorepanic, Oh, not amazing. Otherwise I wouldn't be on this forum with my tales of woe. But thank you so much for thinking so. Your wishes mean so much....bless you! bill_vincent, Mr. Vincent *grin*, you were there for me during our closet-sized bathroom renovation and here you are now....means so very much. I read the last line of your post and a strange sound came out of my mouth. I think it was a snort. The good kind of snort. The kind that comes out when you least expect that you are about to laugh out loud......felt good! You are what my hubby calls "A REAL Man". jejvtr, Your words, your whole post.....really penetrated my soul. You are so right about putting life in perspective. One day I am fretting over a misaligned cabinet and the next day it all seemed so piddly. In one day I went from frazzled kitchen mode to 'who cares!" mode. I am desperately needing to find balance. I got a good start on the balance yesterday....right here, reading these responses. Your post means so much...Thank you. rookie_2010 , Oh Rookiie, I wish I was strong but thank you for saying so. Your Best Wishes mean so much...thank you! flwrs_n_co, Your thoughts and prayers mean so much, more than you know. I wish I was good at all those things you listed....I'm working on it. Practice makes perfect, right? :) cat_mom, That hug feels good....I needed that. :) Thank you so much for your beautiful post. motherof3sons, Oh Mothero3Sond, I am sooo sorry to hear you are going through trials and challenges too! I hope things calm down a bit for you, soon! I would LOVE to sit face to face over a cuppa with someone that has a similar life situation.....you! I've always found that sharing ideas, tips or just venting is so good for what ails ya. I did that years ago with like-minded neighbors when we were all raising our kids. It sure did help get us all through those rough patches....thumb sucking, bed wetting, temper tantrums, back-talking, homework not getting done, etc. Sometimes listening and helping out with the problems of someone else helps keep your mind off your own. So if ever you need to talk, to vent, to unload, feel free to email me via GW's email system. And again, I SO hope things calm down for you soon. Sending you Good Thoughts and positive vibes! dianalo, That cyber hug felt so good...thank you! I hadn't thought of it that way..."putting one foot in front of the other"....Yea, I guess that's what I've been doing all along but I just didn't have a name for it....I appreciate that so much, more than you know. florantha, Boy, did you ever hit the proverbial nail on the head! "the GW Kitchens forum is a surprisingly personal online cohort that has lots of special people on it..." No truer words! I've mentioned my parents on other posts in other forums here on GW. I've mentioned them being ill a few times, I remeber coming to GW looking for support when my parents moved in.....I KNEW it would be an adjustment, just never realized how HARD an adjustment it would be, not only to me but for my hubby and my returned-home-adult-kids. But to completely open up about the whole kitchen saga, the illnesses, my emotions?? Heck, I don't know what drove me here in the first place but whatever it was, I am now so very fortunate to have people to 'talk' to that understand not just the stress of not having a kitchen for nine months, but understand other trials that happen in life...and are compassionate and really take the time to 'listen'. I am soooo very blessed to have found you all! marcy96, Your prayers mean so very much to me, more than you know...thank you! shelayne, Yes, that was me about 5 months ago, coming to Kitchen Forum when I was at the end of my rope. Then more stuff happened and I never got back to GW at all. Then things fell into a pattern that allowed me a little time for me and I realized I had never updated this forum, these wonderful folks who had taken the time to respond to those first postings of mine. Those posts got me through! I am really not liking when I read "Oh, it's just a forum, it's ONLY a message board". NO.....for some of us, even accidentally, it can become so much more than that. Your post, your prayers...all mean so much. Thank you. itsnotrocketscience, "Perspecive in life" Boy, I sure learned that one quickly....like a hammer over the head. :) If you didn't know how to reply, you faked it well because your post is beautiful and I will cherish your words. Compared to others, I am relatively new, also. I lurked for a couple years and then finally signed up when there what a question on the Home Decor Forum that nobody had answered and it was about "budget decorating" and that's something I know oh-so-very-much-about lol so I registered to respond to that question and then asked one of my own. Got so many neat, helpful replies, I stuck around. So, Welcome to the Forum Itsnotrocketscience (such a fun name!) and I hope we run into each other again really soon! ---------------------- I read these responses yesterday. Had to regroup. Totally pulled myself away from my kitchen stuff. Called my Sis and we had a nice, long talk and even laughed quite a bit. She's just 50, so it took me a bit to get to the root of my anger? if that's what it is. But 50....too young, her young adult kids still need her. I am very, Very angry about that. And of course, I am constantly asking myself "Why?" But talking with her yesterday, we agreed...well, she made me agree....that "WE" are not going to put our life on hold just because she's not feeling well (that's what she calls it...not feeling well). Not exact wording but her attiude is .... Hey, I am not in a casket yet so why the sad faces? Let's live each day for what it is. Plenty of time to be sad later. Today, today we visit, chat, gossip, talk about our kids, laugh and go on with life. Okie Dokie. I will respect her wishes. But I did take all day yesterday to regroup and I stayed completely out of the kitchen. Today I will go in there (after Mom is done doing whatever she is doing in there...have no idea but I hear pots and pans clanging. lol) and with a fresh start, fresh attitude, I will be back here with the photo album with new pics added and PLENTY OF QUESTIONS...so don't say I didn't warn ya all! LOL HUGS TO EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU! Am p.s. No, I am not going to take the time to preview so you are seeing this post warts and all.....gotta get the furbabies fed. :)

IT is amazing the regional variation in surgical costs… here in Los Angeles you would be very lucky to find someone to do a disc surgery for under $8000… $4000 was early 2000 prices… $1000 for a back surgery would be 1970 prices. I have had cases go to the specialist and spend over $15000 for all the treatment… and some still cannot walk. Yikes. Glad your puppy is better… 'Always' a veterinarian will suggest medical treatment prior to surgery (unless there are or no very little pain reflexes- then emergency surgery is really the only hope for a disc problem… if that is indeed what it is… fibrocartilangenous emboli show up very similarly and are not really surgical problems anyway)…. so few specialists would push a back surgery if medications were helping (back surgery is much better these days than it was 20 or 30 years ago, but it still has its dangerous and no guarantees). I have seen many cases of paralysis in dogs and it is really hard to predict which will improve and which will not, particularly without a myleogram or MRI. But it is always worth a try… and I have been happy to see at least about half or more respond to medication (not all, sadly), though not all return to 100% normal gait.