Leg, scale are pains in the behind..still, I'd rather deal w/them than mealy bug. Since you can't use the hose, I'd keep up using the shower. When you last showered your tree, did you find any scale on the floor? I'm curious if water will actually knock them off. One other thing, I know it's work ridding them, but be seated, set your tree in front of you, turn on the tv or radio, and start plucking. LOL..Set a piece of paper towel nearest you away fro tree and set scales on paper. Continue doing this daily/nightly. One other thing..I make my own brews for certain insects, though I don't have one for scale. One thing you can do is, using a mister, add Cayenne Pepper and ground citrus rind. Shake..Then spray away..If anything this will keep kitty's away..It will not harm them and might keep bugs at bay. It's ironic because I came up w/this concoction a few yrs ago..then while browsing through a plant catalog, I saw an ad for hot pepper insecticide..they've one for bugs and another for wildlife. Then about 2 months ago, I saw another organic fertilizer that contained citrus rind. LOL. If only I had marketed this idea when I first thought about it, I might now be loaded..Not drunk mind you, rich..lol.. One other thing you can try is spraying tree w/Fish Emuslion..Since it's an organic fertilizer it won't harm your cats. I was told to do this by a woman who owns a citrus nursery..they spray the leaves/stems..it not only works as an insecticide but a foliar feeding, too. In fact, when I spray my trees, I'm going to add the fish emulsion, citrus rind, garlic, Listerine, 2 drops dish soap, and cayenne pepper. My brew will hopefully keep bugs at bay..spray the tree well, and voila, instant bug killer. Good luck, Toni

That cake looks delicious! ! I can almost imagine how delicious and refreshing It would be on a hot summer day. Ever since I first read about Meyer lemons on this forum, I have watched the stores here for them. No luck at all. Yesterday I was in the store, They had "Texas Valley Lemons", which are pretty common around here this time of year. I've never bought any, Because they never look very good. BUT! ! ! Lo and behold! In small letters, Under the name "Valley Lemons" it said "Meyer Lemons". I've never seen that before! They really don't look very good, But they are shaped like those in the pictures Ya'll post here. I bought a couple to try, (Hopefully today.) In the Lemon blueberry muffin recipe Annie posted a few days ago. I'm definitely saving this cake recipe to try later on! Rusty

Okay...my confideence level for baking just went waaay down. I haven't baked much at all since my children were at home and my youngest just turned 45....and...I was never great at baking anyhow. I just finished making the Lemon Blueberry Bread and it's still cooling. The topping was about the consistency of peanut butter, so no crumbling it and the batter was so stiff I could hardly stir it and folding in the berries didn't go well either. I checked the ingredients of both the topping and the batter and I did both of them right. It may taste fine, I wonder what the texture will be. Just don't understand why I am such a dismal failure at baking. Apparently no one else had the difficulty I did. Where oh where did I go wrong. jude

benjesbride, thank you for the suggestions – I appreciate all ideas. I should have included an earlier render of the layout in the TV room (including the largest double recliner we’ve found but not purchased). I’ve added it below. To give DH his dedicated coffee making area, buehl put a coffee bar in the tv room, suggesting we make it a combo snack bar (love this). Yes, this room is for TV viewing only, but also works as a small man-cave (other than the coffee bar) – we have another tv in the Great Room. We’re going with a double recliner because: We don’t entertain - it’s just the 2 of us; Not there now, but as we age, circulation issues may arise, so legs/feet in elevated position; Wish to make this room about comfort for DH, thus, a (double) recliner. In the current location below: the recliner won’t obstruct the passthrough view as it sits lower in both positions. It’s the perfect location – I can easily see DH and talk to him at the passthrough (or close it off for noise buffer)! This is DH’s dedicated room, and he loves the ‘vintage industrial’ look, so we are building the tv/coffee-snack bar as a large cabinet. I built furniture, refinished antiques, and was a decent woodworker 2 decades ago, so have experience, and DH can build pretty much anything mechanical/metal. We intend (for now, plans change!) to go with a distressed copper countertop to make the coffee bar masculine/bar-like for DH, add shelving to display his man-tiques (masculine antiques/collection), enclose the mini fridge, snack, and bean storage areas, and I’ll refine some of the industrial look to go with our whole-house décor. As you wisely mentioned, that’ll be a narrow room and I’ve been very concerned about this. We’d marked it off with painter’s tape, but that’s not adequate. Last weekend we brought a large (temporary) sofa from storage to the room, got his huge tv hooked up, and have loved the set-up! The distance is perfect: no scanning the tv (moving eyes side to side for complete viewing), and in the reclined position, the higher position of the tv will also be perfect. We’ll build vintage wall lights at each side of the recliner. cpartist suggested a mantlemount, and we are keeping this option in mind to raise and lower the tv. Later, when all is done, we’ll decide if we have room to add simple seating if DH wishes to have a hangout area with more than 1 friend at a time… as well as more wall display areas. Tho’ I love the idea of a window to view the herb garden, windows aren’t conducive to tv viewing (on weekends during daytime sports). If you see any flaws in what I’ve described, please point them out to me! Thanks!