Karen, glad to hear that you are feeling a little better. I can surely relate to all you have been dealing with. We had the last of our 3 family weddings yesterday, this time my son's. It was a beautiful day and the wedding was just beautiful. It was an outside wedding and reception and it couldn't have been lovelier. She used fall flowers and deco's and her dress was ivory, and after the service, they had a lovely barbecue dinner with great food. I really enjoyed it= the fact that it waas the last of 3 in 3 months time, (also a grand daughter and a grandson) When I finally got home last night, the fibro really hit me. I was so tired and achey that I went to bed at 8:oo. My Dh woke me up this morn and asked if I was going to church, but when I looked at the clock it was 10:10, so I said "I guess not today" I"ve just been dragging all day long, and am so achey I can hardly move without moaning and groaning. I don't think the weather forcast is helping any either , we are supposed to start getting rain tonight that will last through Thursday. I thought if I could just get through these weddings, I would feel better, but I guess the Fibro devil had other plans. I am glad that you are feeling better though. Maybe what is really wrong with me is that I haven't had my "retial therapy" for a couple of weeks. Maybe I just need a few hours out of the house by myself. Take care, Janet

Janet, so sorry to hear you have had such a rotten time, but glad to know you are on the mend. We all love to look at the pictures on the posts and I am happy that they have provided you with some diversion. You are correct when you say the ladies here are the greatest and most caring bunch in the world. Even though we haven't actually met, I consider everybody here a friend and am so glad I have gotten to "know" each and everyone. Take care of yourself dear friend and don't worry about posting until you feel up to it. Just know everybody here is sending you positive thoughts and prayers as your body continues to heal. ((((Hugs))))) Candy

We call these guys professionals. I guess the term has broadened its meaning. It used to be that anything that produced a physical result was a "trade", which required a knowledge of materials and practices with these materials. The person was "in the trade" and a tradesperson. Back then, white collar people produced results that were far more intangible, and their activities came to be grouped into field they "profess" to know, claim to know, can profess to know. Obviously, a tradesperson also has a lot of knowledge. Ideally they receive a lot of supervised training. This is a strict requirement for plumbing and electricity. Stone-cutting-polishing is not an organized profession. -- In any field, profession or trade, there are bad methods that enable the practitioner to get off scot free with the cooperation of his/her coworkers. Some TV shows highlight this a lot and make you laugh while it's happening. (NCIS is one example). aliris19, your OP's last question was "And when some or all of this didn't happen, then what? " Like the last big line in the movie Casablanca, right after they apparently get told there is illegal gambling going on and they say "Really? Wow. Ok. " But they knew there was gambling going on. Then somebody gets killed and a guy says in an ordering voice "Go round up the usual suspects". In both situations they already knew it all. They knew who the right person was to arrest for the killing but they pretend to be dumb and they set out to go round up some "suspects". You must be the more threatening entity. There has to be a hint of a threat. Not a real threat, which they can push back consciously and brush off. You too can play dumb and let them sense that you will play smart once they act honestly. Oh golly, did I write your last check from the right account? Let me see. Oh, gee, I think you already got that payment. This can be your means to be threatening. They must be motivated to act honestly. If knowledgeable people are not using their knowledge to produce results, you cannot be merely asking technical questions. You must ALSO manage the motivation and honesty equation. -- Assuming there is money still owing, someone might say "well give us X thousand now and we'll come back for the remaining money ( " $Y " ) when we fix the outstanding problems" To which you can say, if I can't get you to come back and fix things for a large amount like $ X+Y, then I know you won't come back and fix things for a much smaller amount. If you EVER concede to pay anything partial along the way, you lose the argument. If you like losing arguments, losing your position, losing ground, go ahead and give them some more money for any reason. Go ahead and concede. Give in. In the FAQ for first-time renovators, some of these strong tactics could be decribed. But a lot depends on the individual. Have you ever had to get medical bills reduced ? Hth

This morning when I looked outside, I couldn't miss this--MB/MO Seed.#4 had five blooms. Believe me, this daylily really shows up. The blooms are consistent again in color and they are wonderful--no blotches, and the scapes are holding them up just fine. Mister Butters/Mint Octopus Seed. #4 Another beautiful bloom on Rosabelle Van Valkenburgh. I may make a cross with this one shortly, either Star Child or Little Rainbow. Rosabelle Van Valkenburgh Ruth, we plant our daylily seeds as soon as the pods mature. They go straight into the ground and then we just hope for the best. My favorite lavender: Berma Abercrombie--hooray, no blotches. This is for Debra--Small World Snow Owl/Malaysian Marketplace Seed. #6. It is a large, pale version of Malaysian Marketplace, bloom about six inches.