Howdy......I see that the Blue Ridge Pig has popped up! It's a fun little place, definitely on the 'local dive' side. I do take-out from there when I'm homeward bound from hikes in that area, 'cause I don't find the atmosphere inside especially compelling. (That, and I usually have my dog with me.) Basic Necessities, the little French place a stone's throw from the Blue Ridge Pig, does have a dining room/porch, but I don't know if it's in operation year-round. Might be worth a call to find out. If not, it's a nice place to pick up good bread, cheeses, wine, and what-not if you're in picnic mode. Another restaurant in the Nellysford area is MC2 (Mossy Creek Catering), in the middle of the main strip shopping center. The big Wintergreen Resort, naturally, has a few restaurants, ranging from very casual to pert fancy. If you're into resort-type settings, it's fun---there's a nice spa there. If you're planning to do part of the Blue Ridge Parkway, either Nellysford or Wintergreen would be convenient food-and-gas stops. If you're in the mood for tapas while you're in Cville, Mas in the Belmont neighborhood is a good choice. Other restaurants in town that are favorites for food and atmosphere: Ciboulette, Mono Loco, L'Avventura, Hamilton's, Bang!, Fleurie and OXO. I know I'm forgetting PLENTY of others, but those are the ones that leap to mind first. (I hope none of these has closed--it's been a while since I've had time to go out to dinner!!) When you get to Charlottesville, you might try to get your mitts on that week's "Cville" or "The Hook", our two competing local freebie newspapers---they'll have dining guides to help you sort out your options. Plus a calendar of events in case you have time to explore. Have fun!

We bought our counter depth Frigidaire Gallery FGHC2342LF model at Lowes for $1200 we love it. It's very attractive and works well. We like the in door ice and water dispenser. Previously we had a Samsung RSG257AARS at our previous condo (sold with the condo). It was similar in form and function but cost $2400. So far we are just as happy with the less expensive fridge but we have not owned it very long so I can't speak to longevity. For dishwashers, I will never again buy a Whirlpool or any line made by the same company (that includes now Maytag, Frigidaire, and Kitchen Aide, possibly a few more!). We had a Whirlpool "Gold" dishwasher in our previous home, the motherboard died at 13 months of age - only 1 month out of warranty! Whirlpool would do nothing for us, not even offer us a discount on a future appliance or the part. The replacement part was $250 plus installation labor. Apparently the same motherboard is used in all the dishwashers made by Whirlpool, Frigidaire, Maytag, KA, etc. and it is notorious for failing. We chose to replace the Whirlpool with an entry level Bosch SHE43P05UC dishwasher, on sale at a local specialty appliance store for $600. I loved that dishwasher, I wish we could have taken it with us when we sold the place! Stainless inside and out, beautiful, whisper quiet, and everything came out clean, even with very hard water, every time. The Bosch warranty is 1 year complete and 5 years for parts including electronics/motherboard (which makes me feel better about the quality of the electronics). So when we bought our current home it came with a cheap-looking Frigidaire. It's "stainless look" which next to real stainless just looks silly. Anyway it stopped draining and it appears the pump is dead, and the part and labor to replace it is not worth it for a dishwasher that was not great to begin with. So I am at home today awaiting the delivery of our new Bosch SHE3AR56UC, this time in white, but still stainless inside, where it counts. Our cabinets are white so with the stainless version costing about $150 more, we opted for white this time to blend in with the cabinets. We had a Whirlpool Gold range at the old place and the new place also came with a Whirlpool range. Ours is entry level and just OK. We'll replace it some day but Whirlpool ranges seem OK based on my experience. We have an LG washer again model WM2650HWA (we had LG also at the previous home - so happy with it we bought another) and a Hotpoint cheap dryer. I didn't want to pay more for a fancy matching dryer since we didn't need to stack it- this one dries just fine! But I did want the front loading water efficient washer for 2 reasons - it is on the second floor and if the washer ever leaks, FL's have much less water in them so a disastrous flood is not as likely. Also water is expensive in CA and saving water is important, and after the $150 in rebates the LG on sale was actually cheaper than a top loader. This model WM2650HWA has steam and gets things nice and clean, they also solved the issue of smelly washers by putting a magnetic seal on the door so that when not in use it stays slightly open to dry, without endangering children or pets. It seems to me that you can't just choose one brand for each appliance, few brands make quality items for different applications. So you may want to gather some info on each type of appliance and find the best deal/quality rather than looking for a matched set. They tend to look the same once installed as long as the finish is all real stainless (some are just "stainless look" which is metallic painted plastic and I'd rather have white than that!)

Hi Kurchian - I've been on a quest for low maintenance roses for about 5 years at least. I also grow organically and do not spray at all. So far, my best recommendation would be for 'Julia Child', a yellow rose. In my experience it is a trooper. It has been very disease resistant and vigorous. I've also had many good recommendations from the Rose forum and the Antiques Roses forum. Very knowledgeable roses growers there who are always very helpful. 'Julia Child' Rose

Good! First, send a soil test ($25) in to Logan Labs in Ohio, post the results here, and morpheuspa will read it for you. He'll tell you what to apply, how to apply, how much, when, and where to buy it. Logan has the best soil tests and morph is the best at reading them. Next, and you can do this immediately, STOP WATERING FOR A FEW DAYS. Was I shouting?? OMG, you'll never have a great yard by over watering it. You are SO close to the ocean, I mean, seriously! Stop watering. I was in Phoenix a few weeks ago and visited with a former GW member I've been writing to for years. He waters once a week...in PHOENIX, with temps around 115 every day. Having said that you have to know how much to water when you do. Put out some cat food or tuna cans and time how long it takes your sprinklers to fill all the cans. It might be exactly 2.5 hours or it might be 8 hours. Every sprinkler is different. My neighbor's takes 20 minutes. And having said all that, you cannot go cold turkey with northern grasses. You'll have to wean your lawn off of frequent watering into infrequent watering. So start by watering 1/2-inch, twice a week for a few weeks. Then back off to one inch, once a week. By then the temps should be in the 70s for you. Keep backing off until you're watering once every 3 weeks. ONCE. Every 3 weeks. That's for temps in the 70s. When the temp drops back into the 60s, back off to once every 4 weeks. What that does is grows much deeper roots which can get nutrients from much deeper in the soil. Those roots will be more drought tolerant in the summer. Furthermore by withholding water in the spring you will not be sprouting weed seeds. Mulch mow at the mower's highest setting. Are you interested in an inexpensive approach to organic fertilizer? Way back when I introduced the idea of using grains from the feed store to fertilize the lawn. The idea has caught on and most all the lawn gurus are doing some form of it. Basically you get a bag of corn meal, soybean meal, cottonseed meal, or alfalfa pellets (rabbit chow) and apply at a rate of 15 to 20 pounds per 1,000 square feet. Those ingredients are the main ingredients in the better organic fertilizers. You can get them at the feed store and save about 5/6 off the cost of fertilizer. There are many advantages to organics, but I'll wait to see if you're interested before blasting into that essay. Don't do anything else to the lawn. Don't aerate, dethatch, top dress, compost, dig holes, or anything without getting the pros and cons from the members here. Don't just do stuff because your parents did or you neighbor is doing it. In fact even if your county ag agent tells you, please ask here for our thoughts. If you want the yard of the month, you could really screw it up by jumping off the wrong cliff. The cost to have the yard of the month is not really much more than the weeds of the month. You just need to be doing it right. Here's a motivational picture. Planetary yard of the epoch. It's KBG in eastern PA. Thanks to morph for having the best lawn around. Pic was taken in July a few years ago. The neighbors water like you do. Morph waters once a week. Morph is organic (mostly). The rest are unknown.