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*

Shellac sticks come in all colors - you heat the shellac stick until consistency of putty then fill crack - use hot knife to smooth surface before it dries (dries pretty quickly) - once dry can be polished to match luster of chair. Can purchase at woodworking supply, art supply and online - run @ $4 per stick - it's what restorers use to fill and color match cracks in furniture.

Still need suggestions on how to fix this issue. The driveway is actually slightly pitched towards my house which cause rain to channel water against the house. This is what's causing the bricks to erode. But I can't really replace my driveway so that water runs away unless I also replace the garage floor. Because if I only do the driveway, the garage floor won't be at the same pitch and thus causes a trip hazard. This is really frustrating because there is no easy fix and the concrete isn't even cracked or broken. Replacing the entire drive way next to my house along with the garage floor is beyond my budget right now. I tried having a concrete leveling company raise the it so it pitches away from the house but it was unsuccessful. Paid a $1000 and it still doesn't pitch away from the house and they said they can't raise it any higher. So is there anything else that can be done to keep water from making this any worse?

After two years of looking for the right shades for our home I had an A-HA moment this past week - get the windows tinted. We will be getting our windows tinted with a 3M product that gets us where we want to be in terms of UV protection, day & night privacy and allow us to retain our sound & mountain view. Added bonus is tinting will help keep the warmth in winter and coolness in summer. We have three fairly large South and West facing windows that we have scheduled to tint soon and then I'll finally order some natural woven top down/bottom up roman shades! Tinting takes care of another problem I was having when it came to finding the right shades for my home - the need to have a liner. I won't need one now as the woven shades will hang nicely without one and tinting offers the UV & privacy. On another liner note, it would be great if window treatment companies offered liners in something other than plain white for the street view / exterior view color. I found only one place that offered something different - they had the option of an oatmeal, natural, tan or ivory color - any of those would have been best for me as I have a white house w/ white trim and having white showing window shades would have been too much of a good thing. Also, pure white tends to show any wrinkle, water or dirt spots more than other shade color. Just take a look at the backside of your window treatments - up close inside and from your yard.