Dsnine.. okay.. well.. I just have to get you caught up on something I am sure about! You are going to experience a lot more bugs than Alaska! I am familiar with upstate NY, near Buffalo, Rochester and Finger lakes. We almost moved to Ithaca but the taxes ;). The summers are really lovely in that zone more than VA! The summer; the heat, bugs, humidity, but I still have lots to do with kids. Plus still need to keep gardening for me (food, harvest, sowing again for more susscesions like lettuce, sometimes carrots (a bit later) and radishes and beets.. but eventually, life suddenly tells me, to go inside and drink some ice tea and homeschool the kids! Take them to the pool, etc. It seems like my choice not to do summer is also based on native annuals that are super happy! And some others like daisies. I guess I was trying to say; I don't try for summer but I keep up with what is going on; watering. I don't like to weed unless a weed is going to flower because the earth gets like a sun burn (top soil death)! And I relax in the heat a whole bunch to protect the roots of the plants I want to stay happy near by. I should have had all my weeding done but, nothing is perfect! Summer to me is a time to get busy and relax too! Lol! It is lovely weather for all kinds of fun in the evening here at least and some days; telescope out, campfires etc. Spring and fall for people that eventually grow green thumbs are a big deal and people that grow cheaper thumbs- FALL! Not only cheaper but surpirsingly well established plants had the luck of fall planting or seed sowing. Many native bulb like plants (perrienals) that will be gorgeous and give you so much interest and spread well, are almost unknown to me without fall seed sowing. Many annual seeds I tried sowing in the spring for our fenced garden showed up the following year due to, my layman's guess, a freeze! There are some nice bushes and bulbs (you will see Lillies in Ohio I bet in summer) that love summer. That is absolutely worth a try! You have figured me out by now that I can't stay away from the plants lol. We were suppose to not garden this year for house! But I was trying to voice that I threw seeds; tickseed, echineace and echineace and daisy keep on each year like almost wild flower annuals here. This is how I define my "no summer gardening plan" (starting self sowers (annuals, each fall, or when a free seed packet comes, even in winter under the snow sometimes.) I want to water the fruit trees and veggies on a timer one day! But we have to share the well for now and too tricky. The summer flowers and ornamentals need to be totally independent plants and they absolutely are! Drought tolerant or just not me tolerant. Watering in the spring and fall is so much more enjoyable with breaks with the rain and cool weather. Summer watering is so hot too, and basically, we feel irresponsible if we do more than for our food sake; very minimal for other plants. Small trees are okay to help start. Winter gardening is a new book topic (and fall too, but that book points mostly to color and sometimes to fall blooms, but chances are if it is foliage, the plant will be thriving in the spring too.) I love talking winter gardening! This is still new to me but what it says to me is mostly about form, evergreen and surprising blooms! The winter garden can be so everlasting! Elegant and besides sourcing the plants, easy! It is lovely to think of still forms placed carefully that add enough grace year round that the garden feels like a familiar room. Much like a favorite tree and a bench or swing. I don't see winter gardens that often and I know I will be one of the first in my circle. Many people have them if you thought about it a tiny bit.. like all the landscaping basic installments that people line their homes with. That is almost exactly it. You just take those plants and make them in front of your and on a path that you focus your attention on instead of something hugging your house or porch, like walking down a brick, or mulch, pea gravel path to a bench and a winter garden delighting around you. That is what it felt like to me anyway! You need to go to more historic gardens than most to find some. Here is the book! It is like a catalog and very few pages are the same but chapters do hold the similar ideas together. https://www.amazon.com/Cultivating-Garden-Style-Practical-Personality/dp/1604694777 Praire nursery is great eye candy too! (And a teaching and design catalog if you read it right.) It can help you sow wildflowers seeds on your septic leach field. We didn't buy a mix from them of it, but have gotten seeds from them before. (It can be pricey but easy and a good source for seeds; they always tell you the mix). They have your style for sure! And btw, you might like some purple grass! A sedge is like a grass (but not) and a wonderful mate to iris and others if you have water spots or gutter runs.

Its absolutely a myth. i gurantee the quack whi was citing medical experience probably received his training and never cared to follow up or continue education. Plus, anyone who claims to be in a medical field yet cites a half ass site and not a medical journal has zero credibility. here is a link stating this is a myth: https://www.alz.org/alzheimers-dementia/what-is-alzheimers/myths i have a full set of the original Magnalite pots and pans as well as a full set of Magnalite GHC Professional series, They are amazing and have incredible longevity, so many people from southern LA use them and i love using my grandmothers old set. I cook minimum of 5 times a week and i make my coffee daily with a Magnalite coffee pot

Ah, the world of work. It's a crazy place. I remember when we had a meeting in a room that had a glass window to the hallway. The snacks for our meeting break were on a table in the hallway, thoroughly covered and wrapped. It was obviously not meant for passersby. During the entire meeting we watched as people walking down the hall helped themselves. At first they just kind of wiggled a finger under the plastic wrap. As that got looser, they went in for a little more. each person unwrapped it further and pretty soon it was a feeding frenzy out there. I was pretty appalled by it, although those of us in the meeting room who were facing the window were in hysterics at the comedy of it all. The people with their backs to the window couldn't understand what we were laughing at. Then when our meeting took a break and went out to eat what was left, we could see people peeking around corners for us to leave so they could swoop in for the remainders. After that we kept the snacks in the meeting room. Frankly I wished things like showers, retirement parties, birthdays, etc. would take place outside of work. They are such time wasters and you feel as if you must participate. I wish no one ever brought doughnuts and cookies and candy to work. It is so hard to resist when you have to walk past it a hundred times a day. Outside of work I would never eat a doughnut, but when I can see and smell them I eat three. And don't get me started on all those people taking up collections for someone;s retirement party, engagement party, wedding party etc. I am sure over all the years of my career I shelled out a thousand dollars or more. I was already married (and divorced!) and had kids when I went to work, so there was no payback. I left when my job was eliminated (and then decided to retire), so there was no goodbye party either. When I worked for a small nonprofit there was no budget for parties. Since I had one of the highest level positions, I felt compelled to buy most of the goodies. Leadership, and all that. Every birthday set me back $50. I'd load up on frozen TJs desserts rather than expensive bakery items. Oh well, I am just glad I don't have to haul myself off to all that craziness again. I like the idea of putting names on each donated items so those who are eating and not donating may feel awkward (but I doubt it).

I have always loved Houzz and used their pictures as inspiration for my kitchen reno, however, it was GW that helped me pull it all together. I got actual sources, advice, support and, dare I say it, "love" from GW. A totally different thing from what I've used Houzz for. This merger doesn't make sense to me, unless Houzz was somehow worried about the power GWers had on large purchasing decisions. If you like the GW enough to buy it; then let it be. It wasn't broken. Thanks for the opportunity to say my piece.