Who "ships" more oil to the U.S. than any other supplier? Canada, that's who ... and many U.S. entities have been buying their oil (plus other) companies, which is quite likely one major reason for the recent substantial rise in the Cdn. Dollar. Plus, no sheiks here: well, not in charge, anyhow. They have increasing cash assets ... still, for they're still pumping oil. At increasing price. U.S. assets, due to their huge debt ... plus that major annual deficit (some of those overseas borrowings recently being used to pay for ludicrous tax cuts) ... are decreasing. Would be a good idea to buy foreign oil sources as well as growth-oriented future assets of other kinds, wouldn't it, while your dollar buys more? And I shouldn't be saying this, as I've been trying to tell Canadians for years to buy their own assets, damn it! And some U.S. folks recently got pretty upset that the Chinese were using some of those U.S. bonds that the products which they've shipped over here have earned them, to buy some Canadian oil companies and propose building some pipelines from Alberta to the West Coast. As for holding bonds ... as U.S. debt continues to increase and foreigners become less willing to buy their bonds, they'll have to offer higher interest rates in order to entice them to buy those bonds. Which will have an impact at home. And you know what happens to bond prices when interest rates rise?! No guarantees of non-shrinkage of price offered, prior to their maturing at the agreed price. One of the largest Canadian suppliers of oil and natural gas has been talking of methods to maximize value, and their stock price has risen 17% since mid-March ... they've just announced that they're planning to split their company into oil producer and natural gas producer. Analysts expect price to be up, tomorrow (Mon, May 12) from close of just over 86 on Fri.. Several of our major mining and smelting companies have been sold overseas, several of them privatized (so we can't buy company shares, even based in the country to which they've gone): Brascan, Noranda, Inco, Falconbridge, Alcan, Dofasco, Stelco, Ipsco. All gone. I bought shares of one of the ones left ... up substantially since Jan ... one of my best deals (of only a few) in years. ole joyful

Fishies, I cannot answer your question about the waterlox, but I have had wood counters in the kitchen for six months now, and treat them with homemade beeswax/mineral oil. There is one area I cut on primarily and the rest is just, well, countertop. I would not change it for the world. The finish repels water just fine (I re-do it every couple of months when the water stops looking so bead-y, doesn't take very long at all). I have not used a cutting board at all since we moved back in, which simplifies life quite a bit. I think the risk with a varnish or tung-type finish is that once it gets dinged up (and even if you don't cut on it, if you have active people in your life something is bound to happen) it is hard to patch an area. But there are several folks on this site who do have Waterlox and I am sure can better tell you how that holds up. Here are a couple of pictures of my kitchen - admittedly this is only a few months into things: But better yet, here's an old thread that was my inspiration - this owner really outlines the pros and cons of an oiled finish, complete with post-use pictures. Here is a link that might be useful: Walnut island used as a cutting board

Mtnrdredux, I've got many of them, purchased over a year and a half or two. I know you really liked the one in the bathroom, and so did I, but I didn't really like the gold part of the inner frame. So I finally found a silver toned one and swapped it out last week. I also ditched the antler collage and put in an oil horse painting, moved a small antler over to the small wall by the fireplace, moved the new one (well, new at the time) down to the dining room above the secretary desk, moved the one that had been in the bathroom up to the master bedroom, and moved the one where that one now is to over by the tartan chair and curtains. And then there's the two I've had: one in the canopy room and the ship one between the windows in the living room. You really cannot beat them for $50 - $80 a piece (assuming they're right for the space). New bathroom one: New living room horse one: Above the desk one: Relocated antler where that painting used to be: Canopy room one: Two in master (one old, one moved from bathroom): Old one in living room between windows: And here's the damn door I've spent a month stripping and repainting and finding matching door hardware and polishing the brass mortise, and getting a matching skeleton key and tassel for the bathroom. So, it's done; it just needs to be hung, and I need to get some nice cast iron or black hinges. And the new antique (made in England) brass spittoon I bought for the orchid on the dining room mantel and the antique brass and cast iron andirons in the fireplace below: This post was edited by KevinMP on Wed, Apr 24, 13 at 23:13

Linseed oil is pressed from the seeds of the flax plant (whose fiber is used to make linen). Always has been, for 103+ years. You want "Boiled Linseed Oil". It is not boiled (yet another lie), but had polymerizing catalysts added. Raw Linseed oil dries very, very slowly. Just about any decent paint store or department will have Boiled Linseed Oil (BLO). I can highly recommend Bob Flexner's book, "Understanding Wood FInishes" (2d ed., if you can find it) or the article linked above. This should give you a good understanding of oil finishes. Tung Oil is from the nut of the Tung tree, indigenous to China. In order to find this you have to look for two things: 1) A label that says something like 100% tung oil or 2) Complete absence of a thinner on the label or MSDS, generally listed as Mineral Spirits, White Spirit, Stoddard Solvent, Light Aromatic Hydrocarbon, OMS, CAS 8052-41-3, Petroleum Distillates, or the latest obfuscation, "Aliphatic Hydrocarbons." It's not that 95% of the things labelled "Tung Oil Finish" aren't bad products, you are just being lied to and you are not getting what you think you are getting. I just have a problem with that. Due to the fiber identification act, it's illegal to say something like "Scottish Shetland Wool Sweater" just because it looks like one but happens to be made of acrylic. Not so with finishes. Sanding is the worst way to remove a finish, in terms of both efficiency and effectiveness. Some varnishes, polyurethane in particular, will not stick well to a waxed surface.