So far we had less then an inch. I am really worried. We have a well, the snow pack that feeds the aquifer is way below what it should be. Without a deep snow pack, Shasta & Oroville lakes won't have the water needed to keep water flowing to the South. There won't be enough water to keep salt water out of the Delta or to keep the salmon alive. Three years of drought in a row could destroy this state.

I'd never heard of a "galley sink," but they are awesome! In looking them up, I see that they are often installed right next to or very close to the cooktop. It looked weird at first, but it makes sense given how they are essentially your prep counter. And you'd want a prep counter next to your cooktop. As it seemed that the galley you're interested in is large enough for two people to work at, it certainly can function simultaneously as your clean-up sink and your prep sink. So with that in mind, here is a suggestion: Keep in mind that, though the cooktop and galley sink look as if you don't have much prep space between the two, essentially the sink is your prep space. So if only one cook is in the kitchen, that is 5' of prep space on the sink + 3' of counter next to the cooktop = 8' of prep space. Or if there are two people at the sink, the one on the right has 30" of prep space on the sink + 3' of counter to the right = 5.5' feet of prep space. And the one on the left has (if cooking) 30" of prep space on the sink + 4' of counter to the left = 6.5' of prep space or (if cleaning) 30" of sink + 4' of counter = 6.5' of cleaning space. That is PLENTY. This initially started because I was excited about your galley sink, and it sounds as if you were too, and I wanted you to have it. But also with that, I was concerned about your aisle widths. They are technically within reason, but given how many doors you have in and out of your kitchen, it really just looks as if you need wider aisles all around the island/table so people aren't running to each other/things. 1) So I gave you wider aisles and also got rid of that weird jutting out bit of wall next to the basement door. The latter made a big difference to how well the island/table fit. 2) Because wide walkways seem to be called for, it poses a dilemma for the island. If it is to be a major player in regular prepping, an especially wide walkway in the work zone would put the island uncomfortably far from the cooktop on the perimeter. To address this, I put the galley sink on the perimeter (so the island wouldn't be your major prep station -- the galley sink would). And then instead of an island, I gave you a big workhorse-type kitchen table, which would be fine to have a bit farther away from the perimeter. You won't be going back and forth between the cooktop and the table a whole bunch. Those big tables are really handy as an extra large expanse of surface when you are laying out cooling racks or any other big elements of a project. And they're great for social things like gathering the kids around and decorating cookies or making gingerbread houses or whatever. And, of course, they are great for seating everybody in a place handy to the kitchen. And those tables are also nice as a nice place to sit down while you peel a million apples or whatever time consuming activity might not be so fun to do on your feet. But those tables aren't meant to be your main prep station (no sink, usually not counter height), so it's not a big deal to have the table pushed a bit farther away than you'd want an island. Here are some examples: (Most of these do not have wide enough walkways around the table by a long shot, but you get the idea.) 3) Another benefit of a table is that it costs way less than an island. That would help you pay for the galley sink. :) 4) The layout you posted looks like a very dark kitchen with its one little window. I gave you a big, centrally-located window for maximum light penetration. 5) I have grouped non-cooking activities in one location outside the main work zone. So people can come in, get a bowl/plate/glass/fork/spoon/etc., get something from the fridge or freezer or pantries, and use the microwave without ever entering the major work zones. It would make sense to have the coffee maker on the counter next to the fridge too. 6) The dishes are also handy to the dishwasher, so unloading will be fast and easy. 7) Your ovens are now next to the baking zone, which is much handier, and the ovens are placed where it would be unlikely that someone would run into them by accident. 8) The cooktop is on an exterior wall for easy venting. 9) I am picturing the pantries being used for snacks and things that aren't really used in the cooking/baking area. It would make more sense to store the cooking ingredients (flour, sugar, spices, oils, vinegars, etc.) in the upper cabinets of the baking zone. This post was edited by Jillius on Tue, Jan 27, 15 at 15:46

Signet, It gets a lot of sun, but it does have shade times too. I do have sunnier spots but they are all taken. However, I have been trying [not too successfully, thanks to this forum!] to down size some, and this one has to go! If you seriously want it, I'll sent it for postage. I am also going to get rid of Top Guns Ninja Star, not for performance but it is not my favorite color; and Catherine Woodbury as I've gotten ones similar that I like better.

I keep eyeing this thread but hesitated about posting because I think it's still too soon to really comment about most of my roses, being as they went in the ground in 2013 or later. But the more I think about it, there are a few which stand out. Not in ranked order.... Best "Bermuda Spice" -- gets hit hard by Winter here, but comes back strong after removing damage in Spring. Thereafter, I don't touch it, save for snapping off faded blooms if the petals don't drop off on their own. No diseases at all for me, and hasn't been without at least a few blooms since it started back in late May. If I ever need a handful of blooms to give to someone, I always have some "Bermuda Spice" in the bunch. 'Marie Pavie' -- first of mine to bloom, then has repeated flushes with short pauses. It's blooming now. No disease through most of the season, but it's getting a bit spotty now -- in November, so I don't care. I've since learned -- thanks to 'Perle d'Or' -- that when deadheading Polyanthas, Teas, and Chinas, it's best to just snap off the blooms. Cutting bare candelabra stems back to the next set of leaflets just delays the next flush. Oh, and while not powerfully scented up-close, this one gently fills the air in the front yard with its fragrance. 'Golden Buddha' -- as with the Chinas, Polyanthas, and Teas, this one gets only dead bits removed in Spring for pruning, but has far less damage. Still, it remains small and blooms in wave after wave through the season. All I do is snap off blooms when the petals start to look dingy. It seems immune to blackspot here, despite my not using fungicides. It did start getting a touch of mildew last month, but very little. Oddly, I saw mildew starting last month on things that never had it before, so I think it was unusual (for here) weather that brought it on. 'Souvenir de Victor Landeau' -- ok, this year I didn't get any Autumn blooms, but I also didn't give it a July haircut, which is what it seems to need to promote that last flush of the year. Instead, I watched to see what it'd do if given only a Spring prune -- and now I know. And what it did was have two or three flushes beginning late May and running through late July. Oh, and it also kept clean foliage. Even out of bloom, I enjoy looking at it as a sprawling shrub. This doesn't mean that everything else was just "meh" -- or worse. I keep in mind that I'm still "letting them grow wild" after their Spring prune, and am seeing which roses seem to need that haircut to trigger another bloom cycle. I've come to learn that the Chinas, Teas, and Polyanthas don't need this extra attention. Neither do the shorter moderns -- various Austins, 'Golden Buddha', my few HTs and Floribundas -- nor the repeat-blooming OGRs leaning more toward their Asian ancestors -- 'Souvenir de la Malmaison', 'Mme Dore', 'Mlle Blanche Lafitte', etc. But the larger-growing, longer-caned Bourbons, Damask Perpetuals, and Hybrid Perpetuals seem to need that "reset button" of a haircut to get them to set buds again here. 'Paul Neyron' and 'Rose du Roi -- original' had just a bloom or two after the main flushes, and were getting really tall. So I cut them back again to about 50% larger than I left them after the Spring prune -- and they responded with new flushes. Too bad I waited too long to do this to 'Yolande d'Aragon', because it's setting buds now -- the first since June. I also have a few more contenders for "best" next year, but they're still too young to say for sure. Worst 'Monsieur Boncenne' -- beautiful first flush, with another after a very short pause, then riddled with blackspot. I don't spray here, and this one goes completely naked by July. It keeps trying to put out foliage, but spots appear even before the leaves mature. 'Jude the Obscure' -- same as above. These two are side-by-side, so their nakedness is made all the more obvious. I'm considering a dormant sulfur spray before everything leafs out, then continuing the season with weekly Castile soap "rinses" via hose-end sprayer. Thus far, neither of these two "worst" roses have me eyeing them with the shovel. However, if either fails to improve next year, that situation may change. :-) ~Christopher