It will last for months, at least. We noticed the extra-layer of dust for almost a year. We don't have filters b/c we have a whole house air purification system instead, but we did clean that at 3X the frequency that was recommended by the manufacturer. My neighbors have changed their filters every other week for 6 months, and they still are experiencing the dust. They have extremely dark, almost ebony, wood floors though which cannot be helping! I think that you will always notice the dust more since you have dark floors. As mentioned above, you would serioulsy need to clean them daily to keep the dust away. It's a pain. The worst for me is that there is no sippy cup in the world that does not leak, so I'm cleaning up milk spills hourly...which requires a full floor cleaning. :(

I'm going through that right now. She's a neighbor which makes it worse. This woman calls me every day on the phone expecting to chat for an hour or two or three. My handset has a speaker so I just let her talk away while I clean the house. Nothing I hate more than a person who talks AT me instead of TO me. Have you met people like that? You start to appreciate there is an art to conversation when you meet people who don't understand that it should be TWO WAY! She talks, I listen. I have no sympathy for her problems because she's so self-serving. Has no interest in my life. Day after day she calls mostly to repeat what she said the day before. She lives alone. Talking on the phone is her favorite pasttime whereas when I'm bored I turn on the TV or get on the internet. When I tried to ween her off of me by not answering the phone she started calling at odd hours like 10pm or 9am in an effort to catch me. She would even show up at my door if I didn't answer the phone after a couple days. I can't not ever answer her calls or she'll think I've died or something so now I "return her phonecall" with an email. She hates email because she can't monopolize the conversation and you're in control. That's what I recommend you try. Don't answer her phone call, instead reply by email so you're still being polite. With a properly scripted email you can impart a message without being overtly rude. Doesn't require brutal honesty. The shorter the response the quicker she'll realize you aren't interested in her. If I'm not home when my neighbor calls she'll have a conversation with MY ANSWERING MACHINE! She doesn't just leave a message she will talk until the machine cuts her off. DH laughs that even the machine can't listen to her for very long. She's the only person who has ever run the time out on my machine. A couple of times she's run the battery down on my handset because she's talked so long. I thought we had been disconnected but a slow walk to the other end of my house to pick up another receiver revealed that we hadn't. I just wanted to call her back to explain I didn't hang up on her when I realized we hadn't been disconnected. She was still talking! Completely unaware that there was no one on the other end. Didn't matter a bit to her. LOL The problem comes when people are too dense to pick up on "social queues". Those are the ones we all loathe because they force you to act in a way you'd rather not ...rude, curt, or the bearer or the silent treatment. But when polite hints fail you do what you gotta do!

I'd ask him to list the things that make him want to go back: then see if those things are really there or just his longing for the way things used to be. Sometimes we tend to glorify the good things & forget about the bad. You don't mention the size of the city where he wants to move. Does it still have the amenities, entertainment sources, restaurants, etc. that you both like? What are some of the issues facing the community? We live in a small town where many have moved away; however they keep their home (or parents home when they die) so that they have a place to stay when they come back to visit or can someday move back. But the world they knew it as is no longer reality. The businesses have changed (or gone), the friends & family they knew are no longer around, people don't neighbor like they used to, etc. I'd test the waters before committing. Go back & stay for a month or so. If you want to get out of the city, make a list of the features you'ld really like in your new place and see if his hometown can provide those things.

Pretty petals...500 roses! I have en entire back yard that doesn't have a single flower/shrub, etc., ..but I'm pacing myself. :-) Rose_crazy - the soil is all that but there are still chunks of that deep red sticky clay. I can't recall any place that has yellow roses down here....but I have seen other bush roses (nothing this pretty I don't think!) Let's hope they adapt and I can keep the happy! Diane...thank you! The yellow/purple combo has become my favorite and my son had no idea when he bought the Get Mees. He just knew I needed plants and his "new tradition" he said was going to be to buy perennials each year. (I like that tradition!) Your Get Mees look great. Sylvia - we'll have to swap notes as we go. When did you plant yours? How's she doing? Sheila-I hope you do, too! :-) I hope I do, too! Thanks for the welcome, all!