I don't think the giant japanese beetles are actually Japanese Beetles. I think, like a lot of insects, all Japanese Beetles are more or less the same size. THere are many, many species of beetles, and most are more or less harmless. One nice thing about the large, night-flying beetles is that they are an important food for large, noctunal predators like Whip-poor-wills and Screech Owls (screech owls eat lots of insects in the summer)

Update: Both coconuts died within a 3 weeks of being home. Last winter's brutal temps and my struggles to keep the greenhouse in one piece resulted in 2 dead coconuts. :( Laura in VB - if you're still on here - that's why you never got one. Sorry. However, I am not discouraged..... Generation 2 greenhouse is WAY stronger, better insulated, better heated etc. Temps dropped to 39 F ONCE during a power failure, and otherwise never fall below 48 at night. Day temps are routinely over 70 (usually 75-90). I don't know if this helps, but by way of comparison - my Cavendish banana flowered and is producing a huge bunch of fruit, all my citrus trees (especially the lemon) are flowering like crazy and growing fast. I would take this as a sign that a coconut should manage such conditions. SO - I have located a 5' tall coconut palm at a Home Depot in Jacksonville which I will take home this weekend. Hopefully the combination of getting in there with the worst of the winter behind us (hopefully), it being a bigger tree, and the improved greenhouse will mean success.

I just got back from looking at the 30" model. It was hooked up, so I saw the burners in action, but there was no hood so I couldn't actually try it out to cook anything. I have attached a link to some pics of the burners, drip pans/tray, etc. My initial thoughts, in no specific order... 1. As with all the American Range ranges, it is very well put together. Seams and corners are finished nicely. Understated look, less industrial by far than bluestar but not overly softened...just really straightforward pro-look. 2. The approach is a little different than bluestar, there is both a drip tray under everything and also separate drip pans under/around each set of two burners. More like the Bluestar drop-in cooktop, less like the range. Reminded me a bit of the Jade residential open burner ranges. 3. The drip pans are black enameled steel, and are very deep - seems like the likelihood of things actually making it to the drip tray is pretty slim. They also, however, don't seem to have any obvious way to get a grip on them to remove them...it was a bit fussy when I did it. 4. All the burners click when you ignite any single burner. 5. The center area on the 30" is a removable stainless steel piece...I don't know if they are going to offer an optional grate, but it seems like it would be really simple to get something to work even if they don't. 6. Unlike the other American Range ranges, the grates are free-floating...there are no "dents' for the feet to rest in and hold them in place. AS a result, the grates move around a bit more, and are noisier...this is especially noticeable because of the other "moving parts" (i.e., the drip pans and tray)...its a little "clanky." 7. My big reservation...the grates are really, really high. Pots are going to end up really far above the flames, which kind of seems to defeat the purpose of having super-powerful burners. I would be concerned that in the real world a lot less heat would be transferred to the pan on this than on, say, a bluestar (or probably a culinarian, but I haven't actually seen one of those in person yet). I may be wrong about this, but it worries me...I hope somebody does do some real world comparison testing soon. That's it for my iniitial thoughts. If anybody has any specific questions, feel free to ask and if I can answer it based on my look today I will. Here is a link that might be useful: pics

Snidely, give it up, will you? It's a pathology with you.....always needing to be right. Even when you aren't. Just leave it! To answer questions: the strips do not whiten crowns, fillings, or other dental work. The bleaching agent is a type of peroxide. I've heard that some people are very sensitive to these treatments.....I wonder why? My gums became a bit tender, but I swished coconut oil in my mouth before bedtime and never a problem after that. Yaya, I think that you're doing it too frequently. The treatments keep working even after you're finished....I probably won't do mine again for another year. But, I'll have to see; with my usual dental hygiene routine is pretty thorough. About why the kits are behind the counter....I asked why when I bought mine. The reason is THEFT! I had a heartbreaking talk with the manager when he brought out all of the options for me to choose from. He said that they cannot keep anything of value out on shelves or it will be stolen rapidly. Items like makeup are so expensive because of theft.