What beautiful stories....thank you, kindred spirits! My own love of nature began in childhood, when my parents' 2 acres of woods and creek seemed to hold unlimited possibilities for discovery and adventure. I knew no names of things, only the richness of sensory experience.....the scarlet of Virginia Creeper in September, the trilling of Spring Peepers in March, the smell of honeysuckle in June. I loved the strangeness, the vast mystery, the invitation for exploration that the woods represented. As a teenager, I drew away from nature, absorbed in the usual teenage activities. Then in college I needed a science credit of some kind and impulsively chose Field Ecology. The choice changed my life! I learned, for the first time, the LOGIC of nature, the amazing harmony of ecological interdependency. It just blew me away that 'nature' wasn't just some hodge-podge of living things, but that each component......from rocks to soil type to plants and trees to insects to birds and mammals....each were intertwined in marvelously balanced, perpetual cycles which made sense, made more sense, in fact, than most human activities. I learned to identify the "22 natural communities of Missouri," the limestone glades and granite balds, the oak-hickory forest and the ox-bough slough. For years after I could go nowhere without drawing a companion's attention to the natural community we were passing. Then I moved away. But I came back some years later. It seems I am as hopelessly native to this region as an indigenous bird or wildflower. I could not feel at home anywhere else. Having returned here, I've made an ongoing project of identifying trees and birds, fossils and wildflowers. I'm rehabilitating my family land to (hopefully) return it to its natural state, and I've volunteered with wildlife and wild bird rescue groups. These have been very educational experiences, but the scientific aspects of nature hardly represent the full picture for me. As an artist, my aesthetics are almost entirely inspired by nature, the seasons, the textures, the colors.....these define my personal sense of soul and spirit. Alone on a walk in the woods, I experience a peace and larger perspective, profound feelings of awe, respect and gratitude. Much, much gratitude. I guess, as Frank Lloyd Wright would say, "Nature is my church." I've also been very involved in local efforts to curtail development that would destroy the last refuges of nature here, both in zoning of private land and public parks. Because if you love something, especially something that cannot defend itself, sometimes you have to fight for it. This activism has also added enormous richness to my life, for I have learned the fascinating protocols and structure of community politics, and through it met my closest friends, including my dear, sweet boyfriend, a nature lover like me. But where did I get my love of the woods? I don't know. It seems to have been there forever...

Hi, Jessie - The measurements for the LNT stools are: Seat - 9 x 17 1/2; Legs (widest part) - 14 1/2 x 17. If these are too big for you, there are similar ones at Ballard that are smaller and more squarish. I have linked those below. Well, thanks for asking about my RH Brightwood pendants. They are hung and look great, but they still don't have shades. You remember that I had gotten enclosed bell shades from Schoolhouse Electric in the 2.25 fitter size? (I wanted the enclosed shades because I was worried about the glare from exposed bulbs, since I was hanging them high above the table. RH doesn't have enclosed shades that small.) Trying to be environmentally conscious, I ordered the fixtures with the GU24 socket and 24W bulb, but did not think it through or do my research. As it turns out, I have yet to find a GU24 bulb that fits into the shade. (In fact, you have to go down to an 18W to even get a shade that will fit into a 2.25 GU24 socket, never mind the shade. RH is changing their site to not allow you to select GU24 in 2.25 fitter size with a 24W bulb.) I understand there are 13W and 9W bulbs out there, but I hate to order them without knowing the dimensions because they have mercury in them and are difficult to dispose of if they don't work, and with shipping returning them is a hassle and expensive. And these bulbs are so new that I am not finding them IRL. Plus, I am now also reading that the bulbs may not be safe with an enclosed shade! Anyway, I will keep you posted... Here is a link that might be useful: Ballard Stool

Hi andrea and no.s & uncle -- thanks. As an appliance garage, I agree with all you say. I don't have one in my kitchen and was never tempted. I don't actually have a problem seeing appliances sitting on countertops (obviously; if you've seen pictures of how I live you will notice a certain high bar an tolerance for clutter). But you're right, andrea, it's the tambour door I'm after, not the appliance-housing capacity. I wondered about that reliability issue. If you install them yourself is it any better do you think? I'm pretty much anticipating the door being open much of the time. It's intended for waist height in a floor-ceiling narrow-ish stack used for linens and things. It's located on a hallway and I think having a drawer at chest-and-above height will not be so good. But I'm worried about cabinet doors opening smack-dab at chest height into the walk-way. So I was thinking at that mid-height to nix the doors altogether with a "roll-away" one. I saw those swing up doors but worry about their stick-out-edness the same as swinging cabinet doors. An open shelf could work but I'm afraid it would look a little cavernous. So andrea - what's a "garage door" style door if not a tambour door? Maybe, having wider slats? I don't know the lingo. I've seen those open and slide back type doors on cabinets intended for TVs ... I could look into finding the hardware; it must exist. That's a good idea. I hadn't followed up on that. But you'd need to keep the side areas of the space clear. I can imagine when housing a massive TV that's easy enough, just position it on top of a shelf, which they do. When the space is intended for kchatkes, I'm guessing it might become a nightmare and unusable very quickly. Good point about the cabinet above needing to stay closed for the up-and-out hinges. Actually, best would be a tambour that slid horizontally all the way around - not up but sideways. I bet that would be better-functioning. You wouldn't be fighting gravity... I haven't settled on the making of these cabinets. But we had our kitchen done by, basically, a maquiladora. That's a whole nother set of options when on the border. For some reason I feel a little queasy about this, though I'm no fan of nationalism --- anyway, that's what we settled on before. It worked well-enough in the end, but it was something of a fight that I've been reluctant to return to the fray of. Still, it is likely where we'll wind up. And yet, none of it is settled. They certainly could do inset but it might look a little funny? Though the tambour is essentially inset, so there you have it.... Thanks for thinking about this, all.

I just ordered mine from rejuvenation. i found they were an exact match to my bar pulls from another brand. for my style, they have 8", 12" and 18" ones. I got 12" ones for my 36" fridge. I am receiving and installing them today. I can update with photo later. large pulls from rejuvenation