Hi every one! Can you believe it? I still cannot believe my luck and I was there!!! Again while on my way to work this morning there was someone white and *quite* chunky looking flying across the road. I pulled over, backed up a bit, and admired a stunningly beautiful snowy Owl perched on top of a utility pole. This one was much larger than the first Owl I had seen and was more heavily barred. The barring seemed darker / black. I believe this Owl was a female as her face, nape of the neck and center of the breast were white. From what I was able to research that does describe the female snowy. Maybe this was an immature but I did not find much description of them. Any way ... I am 113% sure this was another Snowy Owl! What a wonderful start to the day! As my luck would have it, I did not have my camera in the car for the past week. Had the camera been there then for sure the Owl would NOT! LOL! So that was a great start to the day. I was 20 minutes late to work but work is just soooo over-rated. LOL! The rest of the day was downhill but who cares? I saw another Snowy Owl! The Owl was about 1 mile south of the earlier sighting on Rt. 83 in N. Ridgeville again. C3D and 2 Snowy sightings this year!

Hmmm, maybe I could make the trip to Hawaii next year too.It would be my 2nd,having been there in 1994,but on the island of Maui.My son Bill lives in Honolulu,so it would serve the purpose of seeing him again,and meeting up with you both. Sounds like a plan. We'll see. I had Cr.lacerdae for a time,from Tropiflora,but after doing well for a few months,and having a half dozen stolens with pups,it suddenly conked out. No idea why. I really liked that one. Never heard of latifolius being available anywhere recently,but Southern Exposure listed it in their catalog in 1993.It was discovered in Espirito Santo Brazil,however,its habitat was destroyed in 1985,so it became scarce in cultivation,and expensive. Stephania/Lisa,There may be one person that I know of who may have it,or may know where to obtain it. Mary Jo Kellogg,who knew Bob Whitman well,and obtained some of his plants when they went out of business.She e-mailed me a sad story of how the nursery went downhill by lack of attention from Bob's son,I believe. "broms baking in the sun,when she drove by." A shame. Her e-mail is www.bromeliadsrus.com I'm sure you both have many other sources and contacts too,but just thought I'd add this info. Bob

Reflections are a challenge, aren't they? I've been in your shoes, helping out a friend & here is my experience. I don't have any success using the camera flash which bounces straight back. And since I don't have a hotshoe, I can't set up flash from any other direction. But I have had success by setting up a bunch of lights from assorted directions. I use 2 or 3 clamp-on lights with bright bulbs which can be angled up or down from the side. I also have a couple of floor lamps which I set around. You'll probably need a multi-outlet bar to plug everything into (some nicely have a switch which let you turn everything off & on with one click.) A tripod is essential for a long exposure. You would be surprised how helpful a sheet or two of white cardboard (even a pizza box but larger is better) is to bounce even light onto the picture. Move it around & you will find the right spot to brighten the painting . You might need a friend to hold it in the best place. I also have had success going outdoors with the natural light. Working in a shadowed area or overcast day is preferred. To avoid reflections if shooting glass surfaced art I use a large (4x8) sheet of black matte-surfaced foam board and shoot from a slight angle. Again, the white board will be very helpful in providing a generalized soft light on the surface. The artificial light will cause color imbalances so you should correct this in your camera to minimize later corrections. You might have to experiment with different settings to get the color about right. Hope this helps. ~Alice

I don't know your market and certainly can't tell you what your home should sell for, but it should show very nicely if you can do just a little for the curb appeal. If the neighborhood is good and desirable, it's too bad you aren't enjoying it, but someone else should. I suspect the realtors are having a hard time because of a difficult market and/or the fact that your charming studio could be worth nothing to one buyer and worth a great deal to another. You'll need to play it up for the later. By way of example, we are facing a 25% increase in our appraised value this year because the only two homes to sell in the last 2 years have been very large corner lots with huge backyards on a greenbelt. As our area develops out, lots are getting smaller and there are some folks who will pay a HUGE premium for a large lot and a greebelt. My backyard though, on the oppposite side of the street, is small. I have to go in and argue that the recent comps on my street are not as accurate for my home as the next street over. Some neighbors are protesting and others are not -- they want to refi and remodel. The appraisal picture will continue to get fuzzier as the area ages. Back to your home and getting it sold. From what you have shown, the inside is lovely and the studio is charming -- play them up, but you have to get folks inside to do that. That means doing what you can to help the curb appeal and draw them in. If you can't paint the whole house and fix everything, try to fix anything that is structural and small enough that you can do it yourself without a significant expense. A small piece of rotted trim or a hole that can be filled and touched up might be repaired at little or no cost to thinking of but suggest thousands of dollars -- even no interest in making an offer for a buyer. For the cosmetic side, you just need enough to draw them in. Can you use your artistic nature and create a slightly weathered, but warm and inviting picture? The white shutters do stick out like a sore thumb. They were probably picked to tie in with the white window frames, but by themselves, they aren't working. I'd paint the porch columns, spindles, trim, maybe even the brick (or sandblast off the paint on the brick railing and spindles, but that would be more money and mess if you can't do it yourself and don't have the equipment). I was originally thinking black -- reminds me of New Orleans and wrought iron, and use it as a neutral backdrop to the plants and some color. Maybe more white or another color. Maybe someone with photoshop can help you there. Looks like the garden has color but could be a little neater -- maybe just trimming. Do you have a couple of mosaic pieces to add some color and interest? A birdbath or one larger piece might do it, or a couple of smaller pieces. If your studio has a bath and can be used as in-law unit, guesthouse, a rental, etc., really play that up in your listing and perhaps also in how you stage it for showing. It may be only workspace for you, but find ways to include some furniture and/or accessories to suggest an additional living area. Do some work yourself to carefully analyze the comps you are being given. What do they have that is the same, what is different, what is their condition (cosmetic and structural -- inside and out) and what would a person have to spend to get your home into tiptop shape? Good luck.