The dowel or other object has to go up through the BOTTOM of the pot into the perched water there - a dowel in the top of the pot won't affect drainage, even if it's stuck way down into the soil. Think of it as making a bridge for the water at the bottom of the pot to cross. We're talking about drawing the water DOWN and out, from the bottom. Here is a picture of someone who was using yarn to wick perched water out of her pots: I looked and looked for a picture of someone using the stick-through-a-drainhole-to-drain-more-water-out trick, but couldn't find one. I'll try to stage one in the next week. It's amazing when you're not expecting it, LOL! Cotton is a good wicking material, the problem with it is that it will rot pretty quickly. As long as you don't mind replacing those wicks regularly, it will work. I would replace a cotton wick every year, because though you MIGHT get 2 years out of it before it starts to rot, you also might not, and end up with nonfunctional wicks halfway through the 2nd year. However, you might be able to get cotton t-shirts for free or cheap from local thrift stores - they often toss damaged or stained items, or sometimes even stuff they just get too much of. T-shirts these days are usually a 50/50 cotton-poly blend - so wicks made from this will probably be a little bit longer lasting than 100% cotton. I'd still replace them every spring, especially if you're getting them free or for super cheap. Just be sure you don't end up with t-shirts somebody was working on their car in, soaking up oil with, or using while painting and/or cleaning their paintbrushes! Some people use strands from Rayon mop heads. These also tend to break down (they're made from wood fibers, cellulose) but they are cheap and effective. Al, of Al's gritty mix fame, uses them. Go to the following post and search on "Tue, Jan 1, 13 at 13:24" to go down to the post where he talks about wicking to remove perched water. Container Soils - Water Movement and Retention XVI Here is a picture showing the kind of wicking you need to do to drain off that perched water, from the thread above: Now, if we're talking about drawing water UP from the bottom (wicking UP rather than down and out) here are some pictures illustrating that. You can use almost anything that will absorb water for the wicking - I bet even cut up strips of "super towel" might work, though I don't know how long they might last. But nylon clothesline is a good choice that is cheap and easy to find. You could also buy capillary matting (which comes by the yard in widths up to 72") and cut that into strips. I think that is mostly polyester felt (THICK polyester felt, you won't find it at JoAnn's). Anyway here are some pictures: Here's one who used cut up capillary mat: Here are her directions for how she made her pots: DIY self watering pots A lot of folks swear by using soil wicking systems. There is a reservoir (or several sometimes in commercially built self watering containers that use this) into which you firmly tamp soil, which will be partly below the water line of the water reservoir in the bottom of the container. Here is a picture showing the system: The air space between the water reservoir and the soil is important to this design, and its what makes it different from sitting your pot in water and doing what we think of as conventional "bottom watering". As for the video links you posted - there are problems with that guy's system. First is the soil medium. Straight MG garden soil is a TERRIBLE medium for a container. That needs to be mixed 1:1 with peat, or even 1:2. Even so, in our conditions here that isn't an ideal potting medium by a long shot. I've used it for years and so far I am getting away with it here- but I'm not sure I would be getting away with it in a tall container like that, wicking or no wicking. Second is the way he planted that tomato. Firstly, a 5 gallon bucket is really too small for most tomato plants. Still you can manage with that more or less, if you take a little extra care. When I plant tomatoes in the ground (or in a raised bed), I snip off all but the top two or three leaves/stems and plant it in a trench with the root ball at least 8" to 10" deep, angled up from there so the top two leaves come out just an inch or two above the soil. I also plant in water catchments (a depression so water is guided to the plant. Because a tomato will root all the way along the stem, and this is one of the best ways to drought-proof your tomato plants. When planting in a container, I do something similar - I will snip off all but the top 2 or 3 leaves/stems and plant it with just a couple of inches of soil below the root ball, then fill just to where those top few stems are poking up. This will likely be way below the level of the top of the container. Then as the plant grows, I remove lower stems and add planting medium. This way the tomato roots all the way along that stem and you aren't waiting for the roots to grow down into the bottom of the container - they are already there, and strong and healthy to boot! when I get to within about 3" of the top of the container, I mulch (about 2" of bark). Then there is your selection of plants. For a 5 gallon bucket, a determinate variety is a must. Also, look for varieties specifically bred as "patio tomatoes" or for containers, such as Celebrity, Bush Champion, Bushsteak, Bush Early Girl, etc. Burpee's has a bunch of varieties specifically for container growth - probably other seed sellers do as well. I grow determinate paste varieties in small spaces in raised beds when possible, though this year I ended up with Early Girl because that was all that was left by that time (mid-July, we moved at the end of June so my garden went in VERY late). When I was growing tomatoes in containers, I grew them in cut-off garbage cans instead of the 5 gallon buckets. I just don't feel those are really big enough for tomatoes. Garbage cans were a lot cheaper back then ... but if they go on sale, you might grab some for your tomatoes next year. I use the garbage cans because they are UV stabilized, intended for outdoor use. Other plastic containers usually break down pretty quickly in the sun. I HAVE grown them in 5 gallon buckets but they were hard to stake, hard to keep from falling over in a wind, and didn't yield as well as when they're in larger containers. I put the garbage cans up on spaced pavers or concrete brick to improve drainage - but that might not be as much of an issue in LV, with the right potting medium. Just make sure the drainage holes are good sized - like 1/4". Cover with soil fabric or coffee filters to keep the soil from washing out. You can also build mini-raised beds out of concrete blocks - a raised bed doesn't HAVE to be 4' wide and 10' long. Bonus - for me anyway - is having that thicker edge to sit on when I get tired, LOL! A concrete block "container" 24" square (internally) would need 2 courses (16 total) of standard 8x8x16" concrete blocks, and you'd then have a 16" tall raised bed to work with which will NEVER wear out (well not in OUR lifetimes). The soil dynamics in a raised bed are MUCH more forgiving than in container growing. The bricks run about $1.50 here when they're not on sale - if you keep your eyes peeled, watch craigslist and your local freelist, etc, you might catch them for less. A concrete block raised bed takes no real skill to build - just lay them out so the corners alternate. With no frost heave you'll be good to go to just lay them out on a level piece of ground. Hope there are some ideas that might be of use to you.

I know the event has come and gone and hope it was okay. But I did want to point out that people really don't "have" to attend family events that will distress them. There is nothing wrong with passing on the wedding with a sincere apology that you are simply not able to do such things yet. There's nothing wrong with their going ahead with their plans, either. If it is ok for them to have the wedding because that is the best course of action for them, why wasnt it ok for you not to attend, if that would have been better for you? Sometimes I wish we still had the custom of not going to social events for a set mourning period after the death of a close relative. Just think--- no invitations to have to decline, no well meaning friends urging you to get out and have a good time or move on, etc. and at the end of mourning the social restrictions would be over. ....much less chance of breaking down in public, etc., and those inclined to dwell on sadness would have a sort of built in mechanism and set point at which to stop mourning and come back out socially. I think that would be a useful custom to revive, at least for a three months period and preferably for six months. People would still have to go back to work during that period, but imagine how nice it would be not to be asked to take on extra volunteer responsibilities during that time, like company-sponsored Habitat events or teams running 10k's for charity, etc.

She's getting an awesome deal on the photographer, but sometimes you do get what you pay for. I know a few that would charge $4500 for wedding photography. It's an all day job (follow the bridal party all day, pre wedding, wedding, reception) then go home and process the pictures--it's a lot of work. I see no problem with family making meals for weddings. My husbands family does it quite often. My favourite wedding meal was pulled pork and oven roasted potatoes with home made dinner rolls. Saved the bride and groom a bundle of money. When I got married, we used a JP and got married at my mother in laws back yard. Only the bridal party and immediate family had dinner in a restaurant, and everyone met back at the house for a fire pit party. We got married for under $1000 (including the JP, our clothes for the day which included our kids and my wedding dress, and dinner out) and 24 years later, we're still married. I don't expect wedding favours (who does that anymore?). How much one spends on their wedding is up to them. I specifically asked for no gifts when we got married as I had been away from home for 13 years at that point and didn't need or want anything. People feel they have to give a gift anyway. I'm not a fan of e-vites. If you have a computer, print your own invites and RSVP note cards (there's a million templates online) and mail them out. I used my typewriter to do that 25 years ago. LOL It took FOREVER! All in all, it's her wedding. She can do as she likes. In the end it doesn't have to affect anyone else. Also, I can't remember ever going to a wedding where the guests didn't pay for their booze. Other than a bottle of wine on the table to toast the bride and groom, we've always paid for our drinks. ETA: also, the wedding is all about the bride and groom, and not what's in it for the guest. Just because you spend $ on a gift, doesn't mean they have to give you a gourmet dinner and a 'favour'. In my day, we went to weddings to be witnesses to a joyful event. We danced. We had fun. And we gave gifts. We didn't expect anything in return. This post was edited by debby_ab on Fri, Nov 7, 14 at 8:19

I knew two houses, growing up, with master suites I liked. These are "squared bubble diagrams", no dimensions are given, this is just rough placements. The first, I like that there is a dressing area so you can "finish up" before/after dressing without getting your stocking feet wet. I'm pretty sure there was a door to the bath at the open area, which may have been more to the left, away from the wet area. This next one, I liked how there was a short "entry" to the whole suite; as I recall the door was arched. The closets were to the right, they were reach-ins so it was basically a walk-in but with doors in front of the clothes. Tidy. And at the end was a door to the bathroom. The bathroom also had a door to the master bedroom, so you could do a circle. But you could also use the bathroom in the night without a long trek, and could also get ready for the day or for bed without disturbing a sleeper. Neither required a long hallway. And remember, no dimensions are given, these are just placement.