Bartlett bark appears grey and Moonglow more tan at least around here.

If the sand works for you, go for it. I'm trying another year with peat/pearlite and let it wick up the water (will dampen it first, of course), but I like the way you prepare your cuttings and am tired of the powder. I do like using plastic cups w/2 holes like Michelle, I sink them in the ground, then I can lift them up and see if anything is happening without disturbing anything. Where do you get your 5x dip 'n grow? I think I will try scoring though and sinking my cuttings deeper than I was to get two rather than one nodes in the medium, leave only the top leaf set. I'm still sticking with the plastic bottles only switching to green. I'm also toying with the idea of leaving the caps off so they get more ventilation. I did that with some seeds I started, and the bottles stayed just as moist inside as with the caps on. I don't drink anything in green bottles, so I'm going to have to "buy back" some at the store lol. Last year I ran out of pepsi bottles, so had to buy a few. I'm also experimenting with an aquarium bubbler but think things would be going better if I used some root stimulant, didn't know what to use to try rooting in water. Sitting on north window ledge, two long cuttings, longer than I could get with the few I've managed to root, some leaves drying, none have fallen off, lots of new top growth. Been about 2-1/2 to 3 weeks now. It's two junk pieces of Dr. Huey just to see if anything will happen.

I almost posted a few weeks ago, "what dumb thing did you do today?". I had a years worth of oddities in one day trying to multi-task. Fortunately i checked all pockets before doing laundry...2 dozen cherry tomatoes, half a chocolate bar, tape, scissors....one milk dud, lol. Always loosing coffee cups... I think one of the worst was leaving for a long weekend and DH left the front door open. A few birds moved in and shat everywhere. We now double check and again when we leave even for work. Think, check, and check again. (i printed out a check list by the downstairs exit door) Add to daily life a medical issue and i do understand how difficult that would be. When we are stressed from work and not so young anymore, we just slow down and use our cell phone timers...

If you hate ladder work (me too) and are willing to do it yourself, look into renting a scaffold. Mine had a generous 3x4 platform for paint tray and walking room, ladder rungs with hand rails on both sides. Easy access to the top, super stable and was perfectly comfortable for hitting the high area of wall in our foyer. Stood there cutting in wall at ceiling and it was eye level, nice! Comes in pieces like a puzzle for transport, just put it together at home. I got one at our local rent-it center for abt $75 for a weekend, or $150 for a week. Way cheaper than hiring it out. Piece of cake to work from. Just wanted to offer a tip for future reference. Every time I paint something I take a fresh wooden stir stick and with a fine tip Sharpie write the manufacturer, date, room, color name/#, sheen and formula. (Abbreviated you can squeeze all that onto half the stick at the handle end, using both sides if necessary. Don't use a fat tip Sharpie, it bleeds too much and is illegible.) Then dip the stirring end of the stick in the paint can (with paint well mixed) so it's covered about half way up but doesn't cover your written info. Set it on edge of can lid with newspaper underneath to catch any drips & let it dry overnight. I keep my painted sticks loosely rubber-banded in a storage box inside the cabinet where my brushes and misc paint sundries are. Takes up little room and you have a ready reference in a case like this, just walk in the store with your stick in hand. (I've found it comes in handy too when shopping for fabrics or other items for the room, painted stick is bigger than a small paint sample and is precisely what was put on your walls.)