Raybo, Celery should be mounded up with loose dirt at least 6 inches on the stalks to blanch the stems. Celery is mildly poisonous and blanching helps reduce the level of toxins. The leaves make excellent flavoring for soups and stews. Celery is a cool season crop best grown either in late fall or early spring. It can handle short periods of sub freezing temps down to 22 degrees, but this seriously slows down growth. Do NOT grow celery in the heat of the summer, it will not be happy. Knowing your climate, you could probably grow it successfully from either December or January seed start. It is best started in cell trays with 2 or 3 seed per cell. The above tip about taking 12 weeks from seed to transplant is pretty close. I've managed to transplant at 8 weeks but the plants are small. My suggestion would be to fill an earthtainer 1/2 full of a very rich soil mix and set the plants to grow. When the plants are nearly full size, fill the earthtainer up with peat moss to induce blanching. DarJones

I have been married now for 15 yrs and have lived in this home we custom built for 10 yrs. The first 5 yrs we lived in a 2 BR, one Bathroom, tiny apt where we shared many precious times. We moved there after getting married in our early twenties. Prior to getting married, we struggled to scrape together $7500 for a down payment on 9 acres of land. While living in that small apt, we payed off they land, saved money, and had our first child, a beautiful baby girl. We also made many special friends. During that time, we also started building a 2400 sq ft home that we contracted ourselves. Not to mention the countless hours my DH and Dad spent plumbing, painting, doing trimwork, etc. We did not see each other much over the yr it took to build our home. When we finally were finished and able to move in I remember the excitement I felt moving the boxes and all the toys from that small apt just a couple of miles from our new home. But once we moved here, I felt isolated. No more neighbors to visit everyday. Only though it was only a couple of miles away, it seemed like 1000 miles, because my life had taken a drastic change. I cried for a couple of months. My DH even offered to sell our home and move back to the apts we loved so much our first 5 yrs together. I knew we had worked and planned so hard for this home to be perfect. We stayed and had a son about 3 yrs after moving to our new home. Now I would never dream of going back to the life I had before, but memories are securely attached in the back of my mind that I will never forget. Our family of 4 would have never made it in the small apt. I find myself now lurking on this website everyday that I discovered while remodeling my kitchen. My husband thinks I am crazy that I spend so much time looking at others visions and dream kitchens. He often makes the comment that I should be thankful for the home we have which will be payed for in just a few years and our kids are still just 8 and 13. I do see things on this website that I love and sometimes even makes me dislike the home I have. I have gained much knowledge on this website, but I also have become more critical of every detail I see. I am glad to read this thread that reminded me to be thankful for the things I do have. I know there are people from all places and walks of life on GW, but you never know what kind of situation they are in. My aunt and her DH have no children and make plenty of money. She has a brother who is basically homeless that moves from motel to motel just to survive. She does help him tremendously, but he lived with her for awhile while she was in the process of remodeling her kitchen. When she got a new frig she cried because it was not what she had envisioned. He just looked at her and said "you can't even be happy with a brand new frig, and I don't even own a frig or place to put one." That opened my eyes to the real world. There are so many people who have lost there life savings in these terrible times we live in. I hope this thread helps everyone on GW realize how thankful we all are to have the homes we live in. I could dream all day of something bigger and better or changed, but I still would not be any happier in life than I am today! Thanks Creekylis for the thread. In time your heart will heal and you will have wonderful memories of your other home!

I use them at home for my creepy crawlies, and have also used them at work for cold kitties. They are great, but you MUST prevent kitty from being able to touch the lamp and the shade- both get VERY hot. When I use ceramic heat lamps, the critter in question is always caged and therefore not able to touch the lamp. Another suggestion is a full-spectrum basking bulb that uses the same type of lamp. I personally think kitty would benefit greatly from this. You may as well. Basking bulbs provide both light and heat, which may prevent her from getting SAD (seasonal affected disorder). Since cats originally came from the desert, it is no wonder that they like to bask in the sun. I am a firm believer in providing the most natural environment possible for all critters. Again, the bulb and the shade get VERY hot, so prevent kitty from touching them. As a safety warning, be sure the lamp is rated for the wattage bulb or heat emitter you get. You wouldn't want a short and fire.

I would not use paint. I have spray "painted" with fabric dye a shade that was some sort of off-white fabric on the outside - with plastic on the inside/adhered to it. I found fabric spray dye(pump...non aerosol) at a craft store and just sprayed the outside fabric. It came out nice and there was no flamable issue. It was a few years back and I am guessing that I spent about $5.00 or so for the spray dye. I used blue, but also bought a black spray dye that I have never used. The shade on my lamp was a very unsual shape that I could not find in the color of my choice so I used this method. However, my opinion is that since black shades are fairly easy to find, you may want to just buy a new shade. Possibly, black on the outside and metalic gold on the inside?