This isn't an online company, but you can use this link to get their number to call for a catalog. The selection is small, but so are the prices- and the plants for that matter ;-). He is in Duluth and originally started Shady Oaks Hostas which is now run by his son and is strictly wholesale but he sells some of the hostas through his catalog. Like I say, the plants, prices and catalog are small but always contain a few gems. tj Here is a link that might be useful: North Wind Perennials

you made me remember my parents first remodel. My Mom happened to run across an ad in the local paper for an appliance store that was closing. She went over to check it out and found the following: a 7-element Thermador cooktop (over 48" wide?) a Thermador double oven. a VAH wide enough for the cooktop with heating racks. a GE 25' SxS fridge a KA (or at that time Hobart) dishwasher a KA (probably Hobart) disposal a GE washer/dryer pair. Mom said, "How much?" The store owner said, "well, if you take them off my hands today and pay cash, how about 25% of list price?" Mom said, "give me the phone." She called my Dad who drove over with the pickup, loaded everything up and paid cash. It all sat in the garage for the time it took to complete the cabinet build-out, but at %75 off it didn't matter. Oh, the Thermadors, VAH and dw were stainless. The fridge was white. But the price was right. ;-)

Hi again donaldsg, I was able to use Dave's post to convince my husband to shop around some more and I'd like some advice on alternatives. Good... but ugghh!! These are the best offers & advice he's secured??? Option 1) Home equity loan from our credit union with a fixed rate of 6.24% for a 10 year term, and costs are mortgage tax only, or Even Bernanke has come out & explicitly stated that the Fed is going to keep short-term interest rates low "well into the foreseeable future." Currently, HELOC money is available around Prime (plus or minus maybe 1/4 to 1/2%) That means you can get the money you need (and only draw it *as* needed) at around a net rate of 3%-ish. That's under *HALF* the costs of the fixed loan, without the more dangerous burden of a forced 10 year repayment amortization*!!! If you anticipate the ability to save up enough money over the future 10 years to pay for this kitchen addition... then you are likely far better off using a HELOC to do the job (which is also exponentially cheaper in closing costs... from jest a few hundred bucks,) and then using your "savings power" to apply your budget to retiring the HELOC balance. (* The reason amortization is a responsible person's nightmare is because it removes budgetary control from YOU. Now, this may actually be a good thing for those who know they are "money-management challenged" and if this is true for you I understand... many people are. HOWEVER, if you are indeed a strong income and budgetary manager, then you are far better off keeping 100% control of which direction you send 100% of your money each month (which you can only do when you are NOT constrained by amortization.) The *BEST* way to eliminate your mortgage (for responsible people,) is to accumulate a side "Mortgage Freedom Account" which grows to the point that you can then stroke out a single large check to extinguish the entire balance at once. EVERYONE ought to eliminate ALL of their home leverage (HOWEVER, never a day nor a dollar earlier than it is SAFE to do so!) Option 2) refinance with our current mortgage carrier for a 20 year term at 4.75%, paying closing costs of $5500 and $1920 for points. Again, going the wrong direction on amortization (I am assuming from your self-description you are indeed a tight and responsible budget manager.) Further, 4.75% is way too pricey on today's market for a 20 year loan. EVEN FURTHER, if you are planning on staying in this home longer than 5-8 years, and you accept a higher interest rate offer in order to have a lower closing cost (which will entirely be financed by the loan anyway,) then you will be tilting the cost/savings trade-off into the present, and casting your permanent costs into your permanent monthly payments which will NOT get reduced back down after the 5 year breakeven period. Put it this way.... For approximately every $1 you spend in higher closing costs which results in a lower interst rate.... You save an annual total of about $0.20 in interest costs, permanently, per year. After 5 years has passed, you CONTINUE to save that $0.20 per year, EVERY year. SPEND $5,000 in discount points, save $1,000 per year on interest charges. After 5 years, KEEP saving $1,000 per year. ALTERNATIVELY; For approximately every $1 you REDUCE in closing costs which results in a HIGHER interst rate.... You SPEND an annual total of an additional $0.20 in interest costs, permanently, per year. After 5 years has passed, you CONTINUE to SPEND that $0.20 per year, EVERY year. AVOID $5,000 in discount points, SPEND $1,000 per year in higher interest charges. After 5 years, KEEP SPENDING $1,000 per year, permanently. Make more sense? This is one of the reasons why it pays to use a properly educated planner to structure your finances, if you aren't familiar with all the variables and how they can really affect you over time. Cheers, Dave Donhoff Leverage Planner

Gayle0000 .. that map is beautiful! What a wonderful find for you. Allison0704 .. thank so much for listing those wonderful maps. They make me appreciate the price on this map even more. After swim practice, one of my girlfriends offered for the girls to stay at the pool with her girls ( our girls are best friends ) so I could run back. I picked up the map, the lamps and I also found a painting I liked in the 60% off room. Th guy that owns the place come down to $55 for the map, $50 for the lamps and the painting wasn't supposed to be in the marked down room, but he honored it since someone there had tagged it wrong. So I got the painting for $20! Here's the map .. it has more yellow on it than I remembered, but I still love it. There is also no orange, that's red and it reads red in real life, my camera didn't pick up the accurate color for some reason. Key : Side top : Other side top : Side bottom : The painting, didn't think it was too bad for $20: It's of a cottage .. Close up : The lamps .. I just threw this stuff up here, this is not the final resting spot for the lamps or painting :