Thanks to everyone for the responses and suggestions! I really appreciate it. Toolbelt: part Canadian is still good. :) I have asked at a few nurseries and everyone seems a little "meh" on the rose options here. One high-end, quite well-known nursery basically told me to choose from the Explorer series and that was all they could offer me. They only had about 3 selections and I left feeling a little blue. But I'll keep checking. ptwonline: I'll check into Campfire; thanks for suggesting it. I hadn't thought of growing in pots. Maybe once my deck is done...can you do DAs in pots in this zone? Slimy_Okra: I'm in the Edmonton area so no chinooks for me. I'll make sure to mulch like mad; I learned the value of mulch in my last garden, so I'm sold on that. But I didn't think much about exposure except for "full sun", so I appreciate the wisdom about the early budding. I wouldn't have thought of it myself. blackgavotte: Wow. Two of the most beautiful places in Canada, and you've lived in both! Though I can't imagine going from a garden in B.C. to one on the coast. My hat's off to you for soldiering through. Zaphod42 gave me some roses to try, and Campfire was suggested, so I'll keep trying. I just can't seem to get past the form and fullness of the DAs and I think now that what I am really asking is if anyone makes a rose like them that survives in my climate. Of course the answer is "no", but I keep asking as if someone will someday say "yes". "Hansa" has a lovely colour though, so that's a plus. Zaphod42: many thanks for that list! I've looked over it and I am going to give the three Canadians and Great Maiden's Blush a try. I had Henry Kelsey before, I think. Light pink? And Snowbeauty is a favorite out here if I'm not mistaken. But it only blooms once, right? That's one of my hold-backs; I'll just have to plant colour around it. We get tons of snow cover. Too much. :) But you're right, it's good protection. And since we have what appears to be an entire village of hares around here, perhaps the snow cover will keep them from eating the roses when food is scarce in winter. Thanks again everyone! Lots of interesting user names too. ;)

Growing up on a farm, we raised almost all of our own food. As a kid, I thought any kind of "store-bought' anything was a rare and special treat. That included Spam. I liked it then, and I like it now. Preferably sliced thin and fried crispy. I also like lima beans, especially those big "Fordhook" limas Everyone knows that ham or bacon or salt pork goes really good with any kind of bean, so why not Spam & limas? Got to admit, though, that picture is not very appetizing. Too bad they didn't have dcarch doing their presentations. :>) Rusty

that firebox is a Schrader and I bought it from a friend, about 20 years ago..I had another friend put it in and seal it..it's only a metal sheet in the back and sides, so it keeps the fire more contained but wasn't anything that was either already here or even necessary. I don't use it all that much and if the power goes out, with a proper screen, there's plenty enough heat from it...and then there are the generators...plural! lol he works up in the hills, so generators are a foreman's friend. I do believe he has about 5 of them. not much to worry about in the event of power outage. we could accommodate the neighborhood, I do believe..lol I liked the look of it, in the beginning but I'm to the point now, of just wanting the fireplace to be more decoration than function. I"m not so "little house on the prairie" mentality anymore, since I can't be lifting the firewood, like when I burned all the time, when the kids were in school and would come home to a roaring fire. geez, I even used to bake fresh bread, once in a while for them...hot bread, with butter all drizzled over it..., not so now....I just turn up the heat and curl up on the couch...no afternoon noise, or chaos anymore. and the dog has relocated to the end of the block, at my oldest son's place..lol she gets much more attention over there. it's just me and the chirping birds, during the day. (5 love birds and 1 cockatiel)

Here's a perspective from someone who ran into the plate pretty regularly: "I pass his car on my way to work almost every day. As someone who has experienced sexual assault, it was jarring to me. My past experiences are my own, and I don't expect the world to accommodate me, but to be honest, seeing that plate, with no context, bothered me enough that if I saw his car in the lot at the Tim Hortons he frequents, I walked in a way that I didn't have to see his plate. I noticed in January that it had been changed, and frankly, was pleased with that. I'm sorry this guy is upset about this, but his name would be interpreted by 99% of the population as a phrase that is unacceptable in our society without the context of this article. My mornings are improved that I don't have to see his plate every morning. I want to make it clear I did not complain about his plate. I'm not sad that I don't have to look at it anymore either. He can say it never bothered anyone, but I'm sure I'm not the only person who saw it parked somewhere and didn't bother to track down the owner for an explanation."