tt be sure not to actually say you do anything wrong :) It's one of those trick questions that you have to trick right back. Like "What are three of your weaknesses?" You want to say, "When focused on a project I am often so interested in seeing it completed that I forget to take my breaks or lunch". Etc. I always hated writing my own review...lazy bosses ask for this (I don't care what you say, it's what all my lazy bosses did...the good ones wrote it and then asked for my comments). You could take this as an opportunity to ask them to communicate better with you by saying something like "I don't ask often enough for feedback on XYZ from my direct supervisor. With more feedback I could perhaps preform at an even higher level than I do now" (Or in english...if you'd tell me what the hell you want from me I'd actually do it dummy) :oP Umm use version one if you do take that track LOL

Now that I have looked at your screen name I guess doing a Google search won't be of much help. "Sapphires" is sure to bring up oodles of hits not related to your name unlike a screen name like Dilly_Dally. There has been a problem with the board and as you can see on some days only the last letter of a screen name shows. Some posts have been lost forever too. "Recorder" does not bring up any with your screen name but all the posts are identified only by one letter due to a glitch. Maybe this will be fixed? http://ths.gardenweb.com/search/nph-ind.cgi?term=recorder&forum=kitchentable&forum_name=Kitchen+Table Here is a link that might be useful: Recorder

I'm happy to give you prices of my recent build - but according to the forum I am in a really cheap area and you are likely at the other end of the spectrum. Here are a couple examples - 1) 520 sq ft Diamond Brite plaster spa and pool, including 6 drain covers, 7 returns, 6 jets, 4 ft bench, 3 barstools and cleaning - total $2240. 2) Excavation - $2900 (125 ft dirt walk, no rocks, etc.) 3) Steel - $3200 - including raised spa, and a 43' long one foot high raised bond beam. 4) Plumbing - $8900 - about 150' gas run, 80 foot run to spa, minimum 2.5 in pipe, 1 water feature pump with about 60 foot run, 2 skimmers, 1 circulation pump, separate spa pump, separate blower, heater, salt cell, filter, included all Jandy valves. Price included the skimmers and drains, etc, known as "white goods." 5) $2500 for material for travertine coping, I did the labor myself. $10 for pain pills after doing the labor myself! 6) $2300 for tile labor - smart enough to hire it done after doing coping myself! (I had a lot of tile, including 1" mosaic in the footwell of the spa, and he tiled the whole raised wall (3 rows of tile at 43') - he also grouted all the coping. Tile material was about $1500, including 2 large dolphin mosaics) Took 3 guys 3 whole days. 7) About $4800 for 800 feet of concrete deck including 6 drains, 3 downspout tie ins, around 80 feet of drain pipe, foam backer between concrete and coping, various expansion joints, and a couple of 4'x2'x2' pads to hold water feature. 8) $2400 for spray deck, including building and spraying a 22'long 16" high seating wall out of cinder block. 9) Right around $5k for equipment all Hayward - two 1 1/2 hp pumps, one 2 hp pump, 400k btu heater, 48 sq ft de filter, with valve, Pentair salt cell, 2 hp blower for spa, 2 standard 500w pool lights, one spa light, Intermatic timer. About $3750 for electrical - hooked up everything, including 3 outlets along the back of the property, plus one at the outdoor kitchen. Also ran 4 switches to the inside of the house, and added an extra outlet to a room in the house. We had a separate 200w sub panel added, plus an outdoor motion light at the equip pad. This guy was a little expensive but VERY good. About $7000 for gunite - I think...3.5 to 6.5' deep, 43' raised wall one foot high, raised spa - 7' round and raised 6", 3 barstools, corner bench, 3 steps at 12 feet wide, and a 3'x12' pad for equipment with rebar and about 4" to 8" thick due to sloping yard. Again, this is in Katy, TX outside Houston. I started on Halloween 2008. Most was completed in about 3 weeks, although I waited until this past week to do spray deck. Hope this helps.

You have a beautiful space. I love the pulls you used too! The white doesn't look bad but I would go opposite and choose a darker solid BS. Your granite is on the busier side and it's my belief anytime you have a busy counter, you need a simple backsplash so the two don't clash. Your white BS isn't busy but I think a darker solid colored tile would look awesome. It would pull the darker spots from the granite, along with the dark pulls you have. It will also "pop" from your gorgeous white cabinets. sample pic that i believe is similar, lighter cabinets, with granite and solid BS. Quick mock up