OK, I put the solar lights in the lamp and they have stayed for several days without me connecting them in any way - they are just sitting over where the cardboard tubes were before I removed them. But the lights won't stay straight - they lean because the tops are touching and it's the only way they'll stay. I haven't painted the lamp yet because I haven't had time. I just went out and took some pictures but the solar lights have been stored unopen for quite a few years so they do seem a little dim. I like the overall effect but I think I need a different style solar light. It was a good idea and I'd like to say thanks to JoAnn for bringing it up. Well, maybe I'm just tired (yeah, that's it, sure) but I cannot post the pictures. I highlighted the link address but it only takes you to the photobucket sign in page. Or, I did something else (I don't even know now what I did) and pictures came up with none of my message and it said it was rejected because I did not name the link. I will try posting the pictures tomorrow and hopefully I'll be able to do it right. Sorry but I'm going to quit now while my computer is still in one piece because my patience is wearing verrrrry thin. Colleen

Great posts all. These chemicals are so dangerous and so many are so unaware or couldn't care less. Years ago my aunt's cat was diagnosed with sclerosis of the liver disease. She jokingly stated that her cat didn't drink. Her veterinarian asked if the cat went outdoors and told her that the disease probably developed due to exposure to her neighbors lawn that was treated by ChemLawn. My husband works for the utility company. They sprayed Roundup several years ago to kill some weeds at one of their job sights. NOTHING has grown there since. We use no chemicals in our yard but have very few honey bees although we do have lots of bumblebees. My crab apple tree had plenty of spring blossoms but has virtually no fruit due to lack of honeybees. We have no lawn, just flower beds and gravel paths on about 1/4 acre of our 1 acre lot. The rest is woods. I don't know if the lack of bees is due to our being in such a wooded environment or if there is something else going on. We have plenty of dragonflies and butterflies so it may be that honeybees like a more open area rather than dense woods. I bought Bayer 3 in 1 once and never used it when I reasoned that there was no way for the pesticide to distinguish the good bugs from the bad. I now deal with the insect damage if not too severe and try to manually kill the damaging insects when they start to overwhelm the plants. When you look at the seeming explosion of cancers in our generations, 1959, and later it's difficult to not question whether this is due to the fact that we are poisoning our food with this toxic arsenal. I know several women who have had breast cancer but don't recall any of my mother's friends being diagnosed with this disease in their 40's and early 50's. 2 of my 6 grandchildren are mildly autistic, one also suffers severe food allergies, a third was diagnosed with cancer at age 9 1/2. It really makes you wonder if the explosion of allergies, autism and cancer diagnosis is related to the explosive use of such toxic chemicals that contaminate our air, water and food. Massachusetts is considering passing GMO labeling laws so at least the shopper will be aware of whether the food they eat is GMO or not. Monsanto is now making GMO grass seed so soon even grass fed beef will not be safe from contamination. What is scariest though is the apathy and indifference among most people who either don't know or don't care about all of the toxins being introduced to our foods and water supplies. I recently purchased some David Austin roses from a nursery in NY. She recommended both disease and insect spraying. I might spray for disease if absolutely necessary but adamantly refused to spray for insects. Her anecdotal response was that she has plenty of insects around so she really couldn't believe that she was having an impact on the ecosystem. What would happen if we all felt this way? Sharon

I have spray painted a ceiling light bases in place. One was a cracked white porceleine fixture in the kitchen that I sprayed red. I masked off the ceiling iwth tape and newspaper, stuck newspaper into the fixture (after removing the globe) and also held a big piece of cardboard behind when I sprayed. It looks awesome. The cracked porceleine reminded me of a broken toilet, but in red it looks all new and pretty! the second was a groovy 60s globe light ceiling base that was black and I sprayed it silver. I sprayed both with kilz primer first. I also sprayed some accents on my kitchen clock red to match. I sprayed my wicker chairs that I got at Kings dept store 30 years ago brown. Now I have to touch them up every year, but they do look nice on the front porch. I wish i had known about the spray stain, maybe that would have lasted better. I think that most other furniture I would brush for the sake of durability. Except plastic lawn furniture which there is a special spray paint for. Have fun. Kathy

I have a question for a pachy pro... I've been keeping a P.saundersii that is growing beautifully, and have germinated multiple P.lamerei... however, in trying to germinate P.geayi and P.rosulatum, I'm having the worst time! I've tried miracle grow cactus mix 50/50 with perlite, and a vermiculite/perlite 50/50 mix. Both with zero germination. They're surface sown, under fluorescents, at 70F. They keep developing fungus, but seriously NONE of my others have, and I am raising multiple succulents, adeniums, and deinostigma in the same setup. Any advice? I want to find out what I'm doing wrong. I hate killing seeds. Thanks, Jennie