Hi windowsonwashington and toddinmn, thanks for responding! It's really great to get somebody else's input. I love GardenWeb for the sense of community here. windowsonwashington, wow your comment about the pandora's box is spot on! That is a big worry for me after I managed to make a mess of this one window -- there are still a number of windows in the house that I can see have this aluminum in the side tracks. No double pane. This house was built in 1887, and these sashes seem to be the original, single pane, double-hung sashes. Of course, I could be wrong, and the sashes are not original. But the mouding/carving profiles on these sashes is the same as that on the ones here that still have the pulley&rope system, that I suspect at some point, the owner put the original sashes in this aluminum jamb liner/spiral balance combo. (And actually, the weight pockets for this window are still there with the weights in the pockets). The glazing is falling out in chunks whenever we open and close the sashes. I think it is just age and sun over time -- these windows face south. We knew that the glazing was going to have to be done at some point, but I didn't realize that these windows are put in so differently than the older pulley&weight window. Due to a reno last year, I had done a bit of work on a first floor window, and thought I had learned what I needed to know about taking out the sashes. toddinmn, You have a good point about re-glazing from the exterior. I think that I can do that with the similar ones that are on the first floor. But I am a bit nervous about doing it, with these on the second floor, up on the ladder and all. It's a great thought though -- I can at least investigate what sort of ladder and setup I'd need. And I still need a solution for the set of sashes that I wrested out of the window frame, because I don't see how that set of jamb liners is going to go back into the frame. Thanks! Lee

For all the specialty tools I have and love, I really do use a knife most of the time. About 80% with my 8" chef's knife, 10% with a paring knife, and 10% with a specialty knife or tool. This is the Kyocera paddle mandoline. It should be great for slicing table vegetables. I generally just use my knife if there are only a few of us, though I have to concentrate to get even slices. Usually, a V-slicer is better for tomatoes than a straight edge, but the angle of the Kycera's blade helps with that. And it's sharp enough to think nothing of turnips. I can definitely recommend it. Plus, it fits right in the knife drawer, can go in the DW, and is easy to clean by hand. There's a rod at the back that turns to select thickness (.5 mm 1.3mm, 2mm, and 3mm). The hand guard doesn't mash the veg, and moves back and forth easily. I've never cut myself on this one (my usual complaint with mandolines), even though the ceramic blade is supersharp and won't get dull as fast as steel. If you don't need a julienne, the Kyocera is top quality and excellent performance for $25 or less. The $10 kind (I've used one several times) has julienne blades but the deck is narrow and it's harder to slide back and forth on it, the handguard isn't as good, and many of my veg are too big for it. I was using it in a crowded kitchen and looked away, hit a bump and got a chunk out of my thumb (not serious, but still). The OXO looks like a very nicely designed V-slicer if you want the julienne blades. A lot of traditional, steel mandlines on the market have beds that are too narrow and mechanisms that are hard to clean. The DeBuyere V-slicer was a gift--very expensive and really not necessary if one isn't catering. I haven't cut myself on that either but the pusher--far more of a mechanism than a mere hand guard--is the size of a small spaceship. It's not horrible to clean, like some are, but it's awkward and heavy. I really love it, but it's overkill for most purposes. Be careful in choosing a mandoline. A lot of them aren't well designed for either safety or cleaning, or both. I agree with you about the apple culls. Salvaging them takes so much personal attention that you might as well peel and slice while you've got each in your hand. And it's nice to be able to hear the birds. In my laundry list above, I totally forgot choppers! I have an old fashioned multiblade chopper and chopping bowl (though my mezzaluna seems to have wandered off...) and a spring mechanism flat chopper. I don't think I've used the former since I got the Cuisinart (which is why I haven't gotten a new mazzaluna). I might for a small amount of apple sauce, though (or something similar), since I prefer the hand cut texture. I always make my hummus by hand (with a metal grid potato masher). The spring chopper is great for being lazy. Throw in a few cloves of garlic or nuts and go bash bash bash and one doesn't actually have to work at cutting them. It's delayed work, actually, because then one has to take apart the chopper and clean it, but that can be put off a few hours. I also have a food mill that was given to me as I was packing up the old kitchen. Soup season is upon us so I'll be seeing if I like using it soon! Most of the time I'm happy with slightly rustic and the immersion blender is perfectly fine, but supposedly the mill is the way to perfect purees. We'll see...

Thank you ladies! I am prone to motion sickness and, at least this time, not crazy if others notice it also. Honestly, it makes me hesitant to view that site. Note to funky: I'll take rustic wooden tables, white plates, linen napkins, and artful crumbs over this style of photo. I'd rather yawn than do something else that vertigo can cause. Another devil on your shoulder note to funky: think how cool your blog pictures will look with an occasional spiralized vegetable, as long as it's not taken from a vertigo inducing angle.

Try this site. It's an infomercial but fun to watch. Starfrit Electric Peeler and Spiralizer w/Spare Blades - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3j2tEqVKBQ ============================== This is a review of 3 spiralizers also a fun watch. Review Of The Spiralizer Range - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZTphQ1TLno