Actually, it didn't survive Dutch Elm Disease. In fact, that's what put it on it's deathbed. The tree warden has been injecting it with antifungals over the last 50 years that slowed the progression of the disease. However, the disease eventually got the better of the tree especially after the tree warden got too old to continue the antifungal treatments. It's sad but even worse is how we lost essentially the entire American Elm population from this disease. These trees used to line the streets of many a city and they were all wiped out within a very short period of time. There are some Elms on the market that are resistant to DED but only time will tell if they are truly resistant. Many of the resistant cultivars are not purely American Elm (Ulmus Americana). They are a hybrid offspring produced from American Elms that are showing some resistance to the disease and Elms from a different species. However, there is an effort to produce offspring from strictly DED-resistant American Elms. Again, only time will tell if those experiments will work out.

I love the way it looks lit up from across the lawn of the Jardin d'Acclimatation. The Bois de Boulogne is one of my favorite places in Paris and I am having a difficult time picturing it now, but the French have always been very good at integrating the modern with traditional spaces. Not everyone likes it, but the juxtapositions usually end up working and often become iconic. The Eiffel tower is a case in point.

Josey1 - When rust appears on stainless steel it is because something external is on the stainless steel's surface that is rusting. You can use Barkeepers Friend to remove it. Any brand stainless steel sink can show rust if steel wool pads like Brillo are used on it. When you see rust from steel wool, it's from the iron particles left by the steel wool on top of the stainless steel. Stainless steel sink manufacturers like Franke and Blanco warn about rust appearing on their sinks from using steel wool or leaving other metallic items (cans, metal spatulas, etc.) on the sinks which rust. - From Franke's website: Stainless steel sinks can, however, harbour ferrous particles from the water supply and these often occur with newer installations when the pipework is disturbed, or from ‘wire’ scouring pads or utensils. These filings get deposited and cling to the sink surface, and unless removed will rust. - From Blanco's website: Can stainless steel sinks rust? This question can be answered with a definite "No", provided that the sink is cleaned regularly and exposed to typical domestic wear and tear. Please follow the advice below regarding using and caring for your stainless steel sink: Remove dirt and limescale deposits on a regular basis. Do not use cleaning agents containing chlorine (generally sodium hypochlorite) or hydrochloric acid. If you use steel wool for cleaning, it must be made of non-rusting stainless steel. Avoid lengthy contact with salty liquids. Avoid direct or prolonged contact with rusting iron objects (cast-iron pans or iron filings). Do not use your sink for dyeing or bleaching fabric or hair.

Years ago we had a couple of cats that didn't like our new baby. They started urinating right outside the litter box on the carpet. The time to sell came a few years later. Despite lots of cleanings there was still a faint cat urine odor when it was humid outside. It was on the OSB (or whatever it was). We pulled out the carpet, washed the area with Nature's Miracle (or something like that) sold in pet stores. We poured a lot of baking soda over the area and let it absorb any remaining odors. The final step was sealing it with Kilz. There might be better sealing choices, but it's what we had. The combination worked. No more smells on high humidity days. If all of the above worked for cat urine, I'm pretty sure it would work for human waste stains and odors. One additional note: if you find stains, also check nearby baseboards. We had to remove a small section and clean there too.