Sorry for the late reply, but the wi-fi in our motel was down, I don't have one of those Smart@$$ phones, and been busy since leaving Indiana. I had checked out PP but although they weren't far away, didn't really have what I was looking for, plus needed an appointment. Thanks for the suggestion though. That firmiana simplex went in to decline several years ago so we cut it to the ground. It re-sprouted fairly nicely the next spring, but by mid-summer was already in decline, so we dug it up. I was over at Dawes two years ago and they still had a couple in deep containers from seed I had given to them, but I don't think they ever planted one out -but haven't looked at their database to verify that. Was sorry to see the tree die as it was an interesting tree with unusual seed clusters. The current management is too involved with planting mainly natives so trying another is out of the question right now. Marshall

Sharpening knives can be challenging, but only if you want to shave with your kitchen knives. Sharpening for general kitchen use is extremely easy. Don't let all the complicated talk scare you. This are just my own opinions, there are many different opinions if you do a search. Five types of kitchen knife users. 1. People who don't care if their knives are sharp or dull. 2. People who have general department store knives. 3. People who have general department store good knives. 4. People who have expensive good quality knives. 5. People who are sushi chefs or knife hobbyists who spend a ton of money on knives. For type 1 and type 5, they don't need any sharpening advices. For type 2 and 3, sharpening (honing) steel can be very useful. For type 4, good sharpening skills with stones is a very good idea. Stropping is for type 5 mostly. For type 2, Wusthof 2 Stage Knife Sharpener or similar are fine. For types 3 & 4, a sharpening system such as Edgepro or Wicked Edge can be helpful There is no magic in general good sharpening skills. Grind you knife on the sharpening stone at a consistent angle, go from coarse to medium to fine grid stones, about 10 minutes of work. Google "magic marker trick for sharpening" for correct sharpening angles. Instead of fine grid stone, you can also use 2000 or finer grid wet/dry sand paper to do the final fine sharpening. dcarch

I'd like to see this as well.IMO, the older ones seem to be better built, BUT, not better designed. And I think the design is more important. The 2 by 4s in this 1900s house are true , straight, and strong, but are 24" on center. Perhaps the same strength as the newer 1.7 by 3.6 pieces on 16" centers. But, IMO, the newer wood is not as good, but todays standards are higher. The stone masons from 100 years ago must be very proud of their work, its first class..

So, party_music 50, didn't folks show you how some of us knife lovers can have opinions and good tips? I found so many good ideas and I too had to waste some money and learn. I've always loved cooking. I have various knives for various tasks, but the one I go to these days for a lot of simple slicing and chopping is the one Sushipup mentioned, the Victorinox Fibrox 8" chef's knife. I have both the 8" and the 6" and bought my cookin' sis the 6". We both love that one. It's sharp, easy to hold, lightweight, easy to clean (just wipe with your soapy dish cloth, rinse, and put away), AND it has a very nice, textured handle that gives a secure grip. I used mine so much I went to a town farm market knife sharping kiosk to get it tweaked. He gave me some tips to refreshing the edge (realigning). I was surprised to find how much I love this little knife. The 8" version is just as nice. I have "too many knives" with some redundancy, for sure. LindaC, I believe I've got the very Chicago Cutlery 6" knife that you have. No longer my favorite for a while, but probably because I let it go dull-ish. I also have some of the older Elephant Sabbatier carbon-steel knives. Just wipe it clean and put away. That one is probably 40 to 50 years old and my father did a "bad bad thing" by trying to sharpen it with one of those electric can opener sharpeners that took a lot of the steel off in a certain area. The 6" knife at the top with the wooden handle is an older Chicago Cutlery forged knife. Above: a Chicago Cutlery 5" parer I bought at Walmart a couple of years ago. Too bad the yellow rubber grip deteriorated. The knife at the bottom with the black handle is the 8" Vitorinox Fibrox. dcarch, I have hung onto the ratty Chi Cut knife thinking that I might fashion a wooden handle for it (it has a sort of long tang). Party, I think people has mentioned this, but don't put kitchen chef's knives into the dishwasher or leave in the sink (one of my siblings does this). I'm with dcarch in thinking that you might want to treat yourself to a nice knife, say that 6" Vitorinox. Than your sister can test it when she visits. I'll have to warn you, however, I was impressed with how sharp they were from the factory. Over the summer, I took my favorite knives to the fellow at our farmers' market and he did a great job. I was going to by one of those pricy but very good Apex sharpening systems, but I decided to take knives to the farmers' market fellow and I will just tweak them sharper as needed on a nice sharpening stone I have for that sort of thing. Ci_lantro, I bet that carbon steel Chinese cleaver is great to use. Photo? I have a few cleavers and a heavy one is good for persuading hard squash to see things my way.