nope ... no floor drain ... let me try to describe what i have ... there is a 10"x10" sq. cut-out in the wall behind the washer with 2 rubber hoses for the hot & cold water coming in and another larger hose for the drain water going out ... i pulled out the *going out* hose (i presume this is the standpipe?) and poured in some vinegar ... and will follow that in an hr. with hot water ... no bleach on hand, but i will definitely buy some and try that tomorrow ... could my machine have a "automatic fill device that is malfunctioning" or is that something that only relates to a floor drain? ... now that you know i don't have a floor drain, any other thoughts or suggestions? ... thank you so much, phyl

Wow! What a wonderful collection of suggestions :) Lynn, what a unique and beautiful troweled hood, and the painting really makes it 'yours', so kudos. I am looking at the 3M page right now. Aboth, I'm planning to give away an old non-descript cabinet and replace it with an antique wood bookcase that should indeed ground the room some more. Leafy02, my walls are a warm creamy off-white (Benjamin Moore's Vanilla Ice Cream) which is somewhat boring but actually works well - I don't want a 'color' per se, and I want to keep the walls light and bright, plus the creamy white enables me to add other elements and colors without much color competition... Lincac, an after midnight dinner for 70 to 80 people, are you serious? You are one brave cookie! Your suggestion to use lamps in lieu of overhead lights is right on, it's exactly what I need... I do have 4 huge halogen sconces across the length of the mirrored wall, and 3 pretty white pendant lamps over the yellow Corian countertop, and not one lamp! Are floor lamps a good choice do you think, or are table lamps a better choice? I ask because I don't have much in the way of side tables... I'd love to post some pics but I'm embarrassed to right now because my upstairs is under renovation and everything from upstairs is downstairs in the living room, cluttering up the space. Hope to be able to post pix soon though, and also to start living my life again, lol. This reno has been going on for months...many glitches, do-overs, and delays have bogged it down.

The Ekornes Stressless sofas work fine for lounging if you get the ottoman to put your feet up on. Because of the structure of the seats, they generally aren't wonderful for lying across the seats. There are styles that aren't as "funky" (to use k9arline's word) as the Craig's list one or the Paradise (which we considered because it is very comfortable). The Space or the Wave are pretty normal looking transitional/modern - especially in the low back versions. We bought the Space lowback and the Orion chairs for our family room. k9arline, my DH and I don't have any condition that needs specially supportive seating and we both find the Ekornes sofa and chairs very comfortable. I think that the Ekornes Space (with wood legs, not the metal ones) would go nicely in the room and could be combined with PB furniture. The PB comfort square has a pretty similar shape. So perhaps he could have his special chair or a love seat in Ekornes and some of the other seating could be PB. That would also be cheaper than doing it all in Ekornes. Here is our room with the Ekorne Space. (We did a three seater with the arm in between two of the seats but you can do one, two or three seats and don't need to have an arm in there.) This post was edited by cloud_swift on Mon, Sep 16, 13 at 19:12

I am fine. I have been doing my normal routine since Friday. I misplaced my phone, which is why I haven't posted an update. Erin, one of the squirrels "self released". I haven't seen her so I hope she is okay. The others are doing well but I am going to keep them another week so they are a little more used to the area. Jody is able to take care of my animals, if necessary. He helps with the horses every day. Jemdandy, I appreciate your concern. I have had pneumonia twice in the past....I know how sick you get. This time I had a sore throat and a temp of less than 100. Annoying, yes. The Dr told me my lungs sounded clear but an x ray showed a slight shadow in the bottom on my right lung. Told me to take an expectorant and stay hydrated. Gave me meds to treat pneumonia....one horse pill a day. As I feel like it, I get up and do something. I don't think laying on my back in bed all the time is conducive to getting well.....especially since I didn't feel sick. The sore throat is gone. Fever...gone. I am not exerting myself. I am still taking the pills. I will make an appointment tomorrow at one of the clinics as a follow up. That's all I know to tell you. Looks like I will live.