Thank you, sam, for answering. I just went and looked, and yes the leaves are opposite, not alternate. Gosh, you really know your boxwood! I did not know what kind they were. I only know that they were about a foot tall when I bought them over 20 years ago. So, what do you think we should do with them? If you don't think they need to be pruned, then I would like to go in and clean out the dead leaves that have worked their way into the interior over the years, prune out the very few pieces of branches that are brown, and then tie them in a few places to give them a more tidy look. If you think this is a good plan, should I cut some garden hose, and then put some sort of roping inside of that to protect the bark and support them this way? What type of rope/cord should I use which won't degrade in the weather?

Isn't there a form of nut cast into the metal part, at the top of the bolt you say keeps turning? If not, you will have to try to grasp the bolt with Vise-grips, or a pair of Channellock pliers. Some tie rod ends are a complete end, screwed onto the tie rod. Others are made right in the end of the rod, with the bolt being stamped into the hole, with the edges holding the bolt in. I have had some success at repairing those tie rods by welding a long, headless bolt into the end, inserting it thru the hole it goes into, then double nutting the other end, to create a snug fit, but you'll be able to turn the wheels, if you only made the nuts tight against each other and left the tie rod loose enough to enable it to turn, in the hole it belongs in! Double nutting is done when there is no way to use a lock washer in an application, and where rotation is necessary. New tie rod ends are available, at lawn mower supply shops, tractor sales places, and others. Lawn equipment businesses that cater to golf course, etc, lawn cutters, usually have many catalogs that have new parts in them, probably just what you need. There are several companies that have large catalogs of parts, and they cover most all of that equipment.

gardenluv, I wasn't always this way, used to want things nice like other people, tried really hard on my limited resources to make it that way, made my own curtains, painted, worked, went to school to support us, etc. Now I don't care what the house looks like any more, and I escape with my flowers and photography. And the internet, ignore the not-so-nice ones and have met some wonderful people. My son isn't a bad person, has a stressful life, I am not at all demanding, give plenty of time, always thank him for every little thing he has done and mean it, but just gave it up and accepted my family the way they are. My sister who is very wealthy is ashamed of me, too. I can tell. Finally I even stood up to her about it in a nice way, said if my house was such a problem to everybody, they don't need to come here, can't stand the nagging to spend that much money I don't really have. She never had to struggle like I did and had a cleaning lady. My mother had a cleaning lady. My son has a cleaning person. I don't really want one but am going to have to accept some limited help. I can still clean quite a bit if I will motivate myself to do it and not try to do too much at once. My house is really pretty nice if all the repairs got made and in a nice location. I try to keep the outside looking nice soas not to alienate the neighbors; otherwise I don't care what they think either. The fight really started one day when I was feeling so happy about a beautiful rose, took a picture of it, one of my most beautiful photos ever, emailed it to my son. He shot back about my estate, that I won't make a plan, won't talk to his expensive lawyer, finally in my own defense explained to him that he can deduct it as a business expense; I can't. He's mad I won't let him manage my money (for good reason) and affairs, it made me very hurt and angry. Accused me of not caring about the grandchildren, how little he knows how stretched thin emotionally I am with all THEIR problems. I would never have badgered my father about his estate or said one word. Now I'm worried how to set it up because each one would just blow what my parents and grandparents worked so hard for. My main asset is one half of two small farms, the value is in the land, and selling them would be the ultimate defeat if I don't have to which I don't yet AFAIC. I do need to find an attorney and even know how to make my own will, did it once when facing surgery, but this is more complicated. I can clear some of it out myself and have some help lined up. I can't get all the expensive work done at once, and yes, I grab things for myself sometimes. I refuse to squander it all on myself because the lives some people lead don't appeal to me any more. And you know what? I'm going to get my beautiful iron ended yard bench boards replaced along with dealing with one expensive thing. That will make me feel better than any of the rest of it. My daughter had some of our beautiful family heirloom furniture, and brought them back when her house was foreclosed. Some of it is sitting in the living room because I don't have room for it, and I can't bear to part with some of it. My pianos I need to give up. That will hurt so I put it off. That will make more room. And I can organize my garden things better. I don't want to move but don't know if I should stay. I can't bear the thought of not having some room to grow my plants outside in the ground or I'd do like others. But I'm not them. Anyway, my son has done a couple nice things for me which I appreciated but wish I hadn't let him do it because he paid, and there is always a price I guess. He left me holding the bag with the rest of what he said he wanted to do, new gutters and new windows. So I just gave up. They don't owe me anything, and you have to learn to just accept them for what they are. I still love them, but it's not the same like when I fought to raise them. As to independent, it's a reaction to realizing how dependent and totally vulnerable I was after my divorce in the 70's and what it took to get men to help you. I wasn't willing to do what I saw other women doing to get a man, and I have made mistakes. I learned from them. So I had to pay and pay and got tired of it, and men will take advantage of you and your ignorance about doing things right, well I guess women will, too. I really got shafted a couple years ago when I paid a guy to help and my arbor fell over, did a terrible job. I was monitoring what he was doing until I got distracted by his wife and talking to his little girl. He took off for FL. So I'm going to make some tea and wait for my seeds lol. In spite of it all, I haven't lost my sense of humor at times. But writing about that jerked me back to reality. That's not the half of it, enough, others have it far worse, doesn't make me feel any better. It's beautiful out today, and makes me feel better just looking out the window and thank heaven for flowers and winter sowing; I'm having so much enjoyment from it and others here. I'm sorry you have to deal with parents being like that. It's not you. It's them. They should be ashamed of themselves. Not you. I think it very gracious of you to do what you are doing to keep what's left of the peace in your family. You have your priorities right where it really counts. And the rare ability to be able to understand what it's like for some people, not only me. Bless you!

>> I think that there are CFPs out there who charge by the hour to do a plan and make recommendations, and who do not sell investments or insurance of any kind. That is what I would look for. Not to say that there aren't good, ethical brokers out there who will put your interests up there with theirs. I just haven't encountered one myself! There are certainly CFPs who charge by the hour. However, all CFPs have broker licenses. And there is nothing wrong with affiliating oneself with a brokerage, any more than you need be nervous about taking your car to a factory-authorized dealership rather than an independent garage. There are good and bad in both sectors. You need to remember there is a substantial legal difference between "investment advising" and "financial (estate) planning." It sounds like many of you folks posting have used "investment advisors". They have NO fiduciary responsibility to you. None. Nada. Zip. They are NOT legally obligated to put your personal interests FIRST. I cannot emphasize this enough. It is a critical, crucial, legal difference. A CFP must, by law, put your personal interests first. And yes, there is little profit for them in doing so unless you have a portfolio of assets to manage. Do you grudge them a living, any more than your doctor or carpenter or mechanic or gardener? When I worked at the independent CFP's office, there were many people who came for their first introductory no-cost meeting. Most of them were not suitable clients, for varying reasons. It might be something as simple as a personality clash (such as the couple who came in and spent two hours contradicting one another with every answer), or as basic as a differing risk assessment (clients who wanted options, offshore leases, or anything risky were politely declined). But surprisingly often, it was because people couldn't adequately define their goals, yet thought they could still somehow afford everything they wanted without saving sufficiently for it. They got offended when they were told they couldn't retire early, travel around the world, fund four children for college and graduate school, and pay off their mortgage in five years, on their current debt-to-assets ratio. Now, I am certainly not saying anybody involved with this current discussion is like that. What I am trying to explain is that any advisor, whether a CFP or not, cannot make you something out of nothing. What a CFP can do is help you define your goals, and determine if they are achievable. This involves MORE than diversifying your portfolio. A lot goes into your complete financial picture, and everyone's situation is a little bit different, because their goals and risk-taking factors are individual. Life being as changeable as it is, it can be handy to have someone there with the professional knowledge to help you and your family analyze and cope with changes to your financial/legal situation as the years progress. Many couples have differing views about money and any good CFP will tell you they spend a lot of time "counseling" couples so that everybody stays "on the same page" together. You don't have to have a CFP, and many of us can't afford one. But for those who can afford it, a CFP can be an invaluable resource. And I say that, even though I handle all the investments in our family and have done a very good job of it. There is a world of difference between an amateur and a professional - this is even more true of finance and investing than it is of most areas.