Lisa, No!!!! I can't wait 3 months for spring! I'm in Michigan, too. I count March as spring so only 50 days to go! Even if we still have snow then, the days will be longer and the sun brighter. I think it's time we had an early spring anyway. The thermometer under my pond cover says it's 51* in there with the sun shining. I wish I had a web cam in there. This is the new improved pond cover. Last year it was 6 x 11 ft. This one has new boards and bolts so it can be put together in place by one crazy lady (me) without much help. Lisa, do you have anything under your cover to provide heat? You run air bubblers to keep the ice open? Do you run a pump? Today I am going to go stand outside the pond cover and listen to the water run and wait for spring... sam

Bonnie... Congratulations! You're hired! You probably did a better job than any licensed electrician that I have ever encountered. Most do a very sloppy job. Hurry up and run! Had to upgrade my service about 5 years ago and the power co. required a licensed electrician to do the work, since the weatherhead, meter loop and distribution panel was to be replaced. What a joke that was! Some of his work had to be redone 3 times to comply with local codes.Once the power co. accepted the power loop to the distribution panel (they are only responsible for that part), I fired the jerk and finished the work myself. He got mad and cancelled the permit and said I would never get a county inspector to approve my work. Heh-Heh! Once he cancelled the permit, they weren't required to perform an inspection! Telephone wiring connections are simple, They are low voltage (max 48 volts, direct current) (DC). Just don't handle with wet hands or stand in a puddle of water and you shouldn't feel a thing. Red & Blue are the primary wires. Keep the colors straight and splice by twisting wires together and secure with a small wire-nut. Keep the splices protected from the weather to avoid corrosion. After you finish the rewiring operation, if you have a Touch-Tone keypad and you can't break dial-tone to place a call, you will need to reverse the Red & Blue wires, as the keypads are polarity (+ & -) sensitive. Even though you have observed correct color while splicing, there may be a reversal in a connection along the cable line somewhere. It happens! Have fun! Rb

About two weeks ago I dug a new flower bed in the front yard and a vegetable bed in the back. A week and a half ago I put in a bunch of composted manure into the bed in the back and planted onions, peas, spinach, and lettuce. I also noticed that the garlic I planted last fall is poking up through the leaves I used to mulch it, so I side-dressed some manure on them and cleared away a bit of the mulch so the soil would warm up faster in the sun. Last weekend I turned over some area in the main side-yard garden, added more manure, and then planted my potatoes. Three different heirloom kinds I got from Seed Savers (the garlic is heirloom, too), Caribe, French Fingerling, and All Blue. This weekend I started my heirloom tomato seeds. Two pots each of 36 varieties. I'm going for variety this year to judge which types I want to keep planting in the future. Assuming they all make it to planting time, I'll probably only plant one of each and then give the others away, since I'm limited on space. I also cleaned out my worm bins this weekend so I'd have a ready supply of worm compost for the upcoming season. I like to use a 50/50 mix of potting soil and worm compost when I re-pot my tomato seedlings, and I like to through in a scoopful when I plant. The tomato plants seem to just love it. Oh, I have some other small stuff started in the basement, too. Some peppers, brussel sprouts, and a bunch of prairie flowers that my wife requested for the new bed in the front. I'd like to get out soon and get the rest of the garden and the new beds ready by loosening up the soil and adding manure. That's my task for this coming weekend. Mike

Went first to Sharp Shopper. Got some nice fresh veggies and a few other things. Then went to KMart. Got printer ink, and they are having the double coupon up to $2 again. I had two Hershey Bliss $1 coupons, so they were doubled. Yummy! Went to $Tree for a couple things, and then to Big Lots which is a couple store fronts from $Tree for light bulbs. Last stop was Krogers for Rx and groceries. Good buys on chicken tenders and stew beef. Used a coupon for free cookies: pound bag of Nutter Butters. Home to unload the car and put away the stuff and like GEM, I was pooped. I hit the recliner, tuned on the TV and went to sleep. You know how it is, you come in with a gazillion bags, and nothing for supper. Had leftovers. There are a few things still not put away and dishes in the sink. Oh, well. Again today, every where I went people were pleasant, but the conversations were mostly about having to count pennies. Weather was nice and sunny. Had the heater on going in, air on coming home. Caroline, that was quite an understatement. Made me laugh. Sue