I kind of question the idea of trying to grow vandas in vases unless you know how the original grower managed it or can ask them about it (it's a bit unusual, they usually like to dry out between waterings and need air movement around the roots). As for the bugs, that doesn't sound like anything I'm familiar with, unless they were indeed mites, spidermites or otherwise. As for treatment, I don't know what to tell you - not having pets (loose ones anyway) or kids, I tend to use the big guns where plants are concerned but mites are tough, typical insecticides are not always effective. If you seem to have cleaned them off for now, I'd wait and see if they come back before treating, and then ask around, imx, you'll get more useful info from actual users of various products than from the manufacturer labels - lots of insecticides claim to "control" mites but do a poor job of it and sometimes damage plants, actual miticides are a mixed bag, hard to find in small home-user packaging. Needless to say, if you're not comfortable using "strong" chemicals in your home, you'll have to stick with things like soapy water which are marginally effective but perfectly safe; if you go for proper insecticides, one of things I do to minimize risk to myself is spray plants in the bathtub with the shower curtain pulled semi-around everything, keep windows open and wash down the tub shortly after spraying. Fwiw, I'm still here and still have the appropriate number of heads, limbs, etc (lol)

I've used this treatment a couple different times for bad colds: Cold Socks Treatment: Randall Bradley, N.D. , a naturopath from Omaha Nebraska, frequently uses the cold socks treatment, a long-standing naturopathic therapy for stimulating the immune system. Dr. Bradley finds this treatment to be effective in relieving the symptoms of many upper respiratory conditions such as head and chest colds, earaches, the flu, sore throats and even allergies. With this procedure, he says, relief is often seen within thirty minutes. If it is not, one can repeat the treatment while the patient remains covered and in bed. After four hours or usually by morning, the wet socks should be totally dry, the feet warm and the symptoms gone or much improved. Dr.Bradley says it is effective with both children and adults. Step 1: Soak the foot part of a pair of 100% cotton socks in very cold water and wring them out thoroughly. Step 2: Put the child's feet into a basin or bathtub of hot water, as hot as tolerable without burning. Have the bath deep enough to cover the ankles. Have the child sit on a chair or the edge of the tub, and keep the rest of the body warm. Soak the feet for about 5 to 8 minutes until they are hot and pink. Step 3: Remove the feet from the hot water and pat then dry with a towel. Step 4: Immediately put on the cold wet cotton socks, and then a pair of dry wool socks over those. At this point the patient should be covered and kept warm. Step 5: Have the child go directly to bed, keeping the feet covered throughout the night. According to Dr. Bradley, this therapy will fail if the feet are uncovered, or if the patient walks around or sits in a chair uncovered. Dr. Bradley believes that this home remedy works hemodynamically (by moving the blood to a specific area of the body -- in this case the feet). He suggests that when the blood is drawn away from the head to warm the feet, pressure in the head is relieved. As a result, the symptoms of the illness may disappear, and children usually fall asleep immediately. People who try this remedy will not only feel better the next day, but the treatment may actually boost their immune system, moving them through the illness faster.

If people would quit buying from telescammers they wouldn't call. But it works. Same with fundraising. It works. They call people and give the political hysteria and people break out the checkbooks. Which means you'll get called again and again. Plus you put yourselves on calling lists often. ANY time you give a phone number out you risk getting scum calls and that includes doctors, dentists and otherwise. Any time you call a toll-free number, you give them your number (and no, you can't block it) *and* you give them permission to call you since you're establishing a relationship by calling them first. If you call those numbers on real estate signs, yup, you're going to get calls. Do not call lists are not the end-all, be-all. Yes they help, but it has to be a business that will honor the DNC list for it to be effective. The ones that just buy/sell/trade lists back and forth don't use it.

Confit is a "T&T" method of food preservation, but Harold McGee talks about a "small but real risk that botulism could grow." He says the risk traditionally is reduced (not eliminated) by 1) placing the salted, slow-cooked meat in a sterile container over an additional layer of salt, 2) using nitrates in the salt 3) storing at a temperature less than 40 degrees 4) reheating "periodically to extend its useful life." I'm guessing that's critical. Of course, McGee says over time the meat will go rancid but that "a slight rancidity is part of the flavor of a traditional confit." For me personally a short preservation without nitrates (or the rancidity) is more appealing. Carol