Wanton: The agaves were A. americana. They were pups from parent plants grown on the campus of my school. They were just gonna get thrown away, so I collected them up to give to anyone who wanted them. I did not realize they were water hogs, though. I'd be willing to bet, then, that's what I did wrong - not enough water. Thanks so much for that list and link. I'll definitely have to check that out. As to my losses, I had been working really hard to try and keep them out of direct sunlight. When I noticed that the sun's orientation in the sky was shifting as we progressed closer to the end of summer, it was getting harder and harder to keep the plants out of direct sun, so I put up a sun screen curtain thingy. It's certainly helped to keep the front stoop cooler; but by the time I put it up, most of the damage had already been done. I think they just weren't meant to be in that kind of heat, especially with me freaking out over the heat and overwatering them. When I eventually replace those plants, I'll be sure to keep them indoors during the summer heat and winter cold. Stush: Yay, the agaves are looking great! I'm so happy they're doing well for you. Alas, I lost the one you sent me a while back. The only agave I have left is this one, bought at a nursery. I do still have that monstrose you sent, and it seems to be doing just fine. Here's a pic, taken just this past week. Rosie: Hi, Rosemarie! I know how it is, being super busy. No worries, I'll chat with you when you have some time. :) *CG*

Punk, I was just joking about Christmas. I'm one up on everyone, anyway. We had bought a new prelit 7' Christmas tree after Christmas the year before we bought this house. The first Christmas here we put it up in the living room and it is now 4 years later and it is still up!! So I don't have to put up the tree!! It's so fun because if I find an ornament I like - I just buy it and bring it on home and put it on the tree, even in July!! DD has forbidden me to put any more on it. Says there is TOO MUCH STUFF and the tree is going to fall over from the weight!! The living room is usually off limits to the GKids unless I am in there with them because of the ball and toy throwing (I get crazy and throw ball inside with them when it is too cold outside sometimes, Shhh, don't tell Alfred.) and the fact that I store LOTS of dishes and accessories behind the sofa. (Everyone else likes the den better and goes there to hang out anyway, so the living room is my sanctuary.) I also have 2 china cabinets in there and one is a beautiful antique that DH's Aunt B had given me when we moved here with the curved glass. (They used to sneak in there and hide when playing hide-n-seek until I found out and made it off limits !! Just think of the damage possibilities. Shivers!) Before we moved here we had lived in a single-wide trailer for about 3 years. Just imagine trying to raise 4 young children, 3 boys and a girl in a single-wide. (Long Story) His older 3 had grown up and left home by then. My DD was grown and married before we married. God knows what he is doing when he doesn't let us see into the future. We would never do what he wanted if we could! No storage, no privacy, no sanity. Needless to say I had great gardens because I couldn't stand the chaos inside!! If I wasn't at work, I was outside daylight 'till dark. Sometimes after dark. Poor Alfred would open the back door and holler out, "Honey, don't you think you ought to quit for the day?" I would holler back, "In a minute." and keep on planting peas by flashlight!! LOL So when we moved here the living room became my refuge. It is where I start my day with my cup of cappaccino,(sp? I just drink it-I don't spell it!!), my Bible study, and LOTS of prayer. I would go in and turn on the tree and sit in silence. Ahhh.. Every woman should have a refuge. I followed Judith's example and my tree is definitely a ' more is more' tree. I started with a bird theme and it grew from there. The color scheme is mostly blue/white except for the birds and a few sentimental items. I still want to order some crystals to give it some more shine. If I ever solve my storage issues and have a nice place to store it, I will put some strings of white lights on it when I put it back up. Now it just has colored and is darker than I would like. I will try to do a post with some pictures as soon as I go buy a new memory stick for my camera. I'll do a separate post for the Thanksgiving 'tables and tales'! I'm feeling some better, now. I will need to get a few more shots to kill all of the infection. Then I'll be as good as new. Thank you for your concern. I love my family here at C&H forum so much. The sewer? What's up with that? Sounds like your life is even more 'interesting' than mine used to be! Details, Girl! Give me details!! I don't know what you are using for energy, but please share your secret! Betty

I doubt that you'll get enough energy to run a pump which is as powerful as you want without spending more than you figured. But here's some figures. A 15 watt panel costs about $50. Typically they come as '12' volt meaning they're made to charge 12 volt batteries. However they put out 15 volts (About) in full sun. And will put out about 1 amp. In real life meaning less than perfect conditions you can expect to run a motor which requires 10 watts to it's full potential. But you'll need a motor that is a voltage requirement of 12 volts to 15 volts. And to compound the electronics part of the problem.. only a certain pump and panel combination will get the most out of the 2 sq meters (about) that your panel covers. Get a motor that needs slightly higher voltage and the panel won't match well enough to give full performance. Ask around and learn what you can. It's not all that hard make the pump spin. But when you get to where you're expecting certain results that's when the problems will begin to show up as lack of performance. Now that I've scared you a bit. What about the mounting for the panel? It's glass with metal frame. You must put it into another frame to keep it safe. ie you can't just screw into the panel's frame or the glass might crack. Battery backup? You could help the situation if you used a battery in that the battery would suck up all of the power the panel had available and the battery would also 'fix' the voltage to about 13.4 volts. Get a pump for 13.4 volts and your match will be better than a panel and pump only. But you've added some cost. You don't need any electronics between the panel and battery (if you use a car type lead / acid battery) but if you use NiMH or especially Lithium you must have some electronics to regulate the current and voltage. Let's put it this way. If you can find what you want already as a product for the price you want to pay except that it's 30% higher than you expected.. You probably can't do any better than that unless: A. You have a background in electronics and know what kind of products , pumps/panels/voltage converters are available off the shelf. That usually requires someone working in the field daily. B1. You have a friend who's done it and will help you. B2. You have a reputable site which tells you what to buy and tells you how well it worked. I wish you luck. If you want to mention how much water per minute / hour / day you want to move and how high it has to spray and if it's moving something with the water pressure .. mention what itis and how much it weighs and how far it has to move.. I can look back in a week and give you more accurate power requirements. Andre

This information came from wikipedia. It is a well written article and to the best of my knowledge is factual. The original Pyrex type of low thermal expansion glass was first discovered in 1893 by Otto Schott, a German. He founded a company using his name and produced this glass under the name, Duran. It was a borosilicate glass. This low expansion glass was favored for lab ware, battery cases, and other containers that benefitted from this property. The Corning Co. removed the lead from the glass and began to produce cookware under the tradename, Pyrex. Pyrex has enjoyed a long history of trusted thermal gradient resistant glass, that is, until 1998. Corning quit making cookware and licensed Pyrex to several manufacturers. Some of these makers slapped the name Pyrex on their soda-lime glass, an ordinary glass. These days, you can not trust any product made after 1998 with the name Pyrex unless it states that it is borosilicate glass. This information came from wikipedia. It is a well written article and to the best of my knowledge is factual.