Fairegold, you hit the nail on the head. Her ability to deal with any kind of problem is so low now as to be non-existent. This had been happening gradually, but it really accelerated after she broke her hip last year and had to have surgery followed by a month-long stay in a convalescent hospital. I remember you once saying that dealing with an elderly loved one is mainly going from one crisis to the next, some of them real & some of them not. Settling fear & soothing them is almost as important, maybe more important, than dealing with physical issues. I understand what you're saying about finding another doctor with a better bedside manner. When my husband & I went to calm my mother down, I put some moisturizing drops in her eyes. Even though both the doctor & I have told her numerous times to use the drops, especially after the injections, she never has bothered. But, apparently, they really helped her. When I called the next day to tell her I had made an emergency appointment for her, she told me she felt 100% better; her eyes didn't hurt anymore. I had asked her over & over the night before about pain & irritation in her eyes, but she assured me that there was no pain only vision loss. And, of course, once the irritation was gone, her vision seemed to improve too (to her way of thinking). So this crisis has passed, but I know there's another one just lurking around the corner. Her tolerance for pain has diminished so much that I don't think another injection, no matter how helpful it may be, is an option any longer. Thanks for your encouragement & advice. I'll be back when the next crisis, real or imagined, happens. Sue

Contact lenses are much abused eye products and can actually cause damage if not picked wisely. Here are a few reasons why contact lenses should be picked wisely after a prescription and that too after a visit to a qualified eye specialist. To begin with, a contact lens need not be 'fits-all' type. One must get it prescribed. Since a prescription is an authorized statement that clearly mentions what is ok, you can shop with confidence and it feels good that you are doing the right thing. Since buying a pair of contact lens can happen only through a prescription, any website selling 'branded' contact lens are likely to be selling lens that may not be branded and that isn't good news for your eye. If you have been wearing both glasses and contact lens, you are now aware that the prescriptions are a little different from each other. While most of us know what we need a prescription to buy glasses for eye sight problems, the same prescription cannot be used for contact lenses. This means, you need to get a separate prescription for contact lens. Even if you wish to wear contact lens for changing your eye color, you will need a prescription from an Opthalmogist. If you prefer to wear a specific type of contact lens, you can talk to your doctor so that she or he can recommend and also mention that brand in the prescription so that there are no hassles tomorrow. The doctor can also clear any doubt and specify the positives and negatives about any special type of Contact Lens. A prescription will have the doctor's contact details and this way, the dealer can call and check should there be any kind of confusion or if any clarification needs to be sought. Here is a link that might be useful: Contact Lenses

codeslinger First off,I am not a Trane basher. I live about 1 1/2 hrs down 26 from your area and have a Trane dual fuel system. But I would not have the XL16i for several reasons. 1.efficiency numbers are poor for such high end HVAC 2.performance numbers for both heating and cooling BTUs are very poor. 3.I don't believe Trane recommends the XL16i for zoning-it has about 70-100 split between low and high stage. 4.There are just too many anecdotal stories about issues relating to the XL16i. 5.The HW VisionPro IAQ feature "dehumidify on demand" is not compatible for the XL16i which is important for your area/climate. See below AHRI Performance numbers for various configurations. XL16i HP with matching var spd air handler 1236563 Active Systems XL16I WEATHERTRON TRANE 4TWX6024B1 4TEE3D31A1 22800 12.00 16.00 20000 8.25 12100 1236565 Active Systems XL16I WEATHERTRON TRANE 4TWX6024B1 4TEE3D37A1 22800 11.80 15.75 20000 8.50 11000 1 1106622 Active Systems XL16I WEATHERTRON TRANE 4TWX6024B1 4TEE3F31B1 22800 12.00 16.00 20000 8.35 12100 1 1106624 Active Systems XL16I WEATHERTRON TRANE 4TWX6024B1 4TEE3F37B1 22800 12.00 16.00 20000 8.50 11000 1 Good SEER-that's about all now the numbers for the XL15i 1383387 Active Systems XL15I WEATHERTRON TRANE 4TWX5024A1 4TEE3D31A1 25200 12.90 15.00 24000 8.50 14000 1 1383389 Active Systems XL15I WEATHERTRON TRANE 4TWX5024A1 4TEE3D37A1 24000 12.50 14.75 23600 8.50 13400 1 1383391 Active Systems XL15I WEATHERTRON TRANE 4TWX5024A1 4TEE3F31B1 25200 13.00 15.25 24000 8.60 13900 1 1383393 Active Systems XL15I WEATHERTRON TRANE 4TWX5024A1 4TEE3F37B1 24400 12.90 15.00 23800 8.30 13600 1 1382158 Active Systems XL15I WEATHERTRON TRANE 4TWX5024A1 4TEE3F39A1 25000 13.00 16.00 24000 9.00 13800 much better EER and cooling/heating BTUs for the XL15i and if you have the space, the 4TEE3F39A1 air handler configuration offers the best XL15i system configuration now take a look at Carrier's sgl stg Performance 15 with Infinity Air Handler and Controller 1125333 Active Systems PERFORMANCE 15 PURON HP CARRIER AIR CONDITIONING 25HPA524H30 FE4AN(B,F)003+UI 23400 13.00 15.50 24000 9.00 15100 1 not shabby numbers either. I agree with Ryan's comments. As far as Clean Effects and EACs, I see no problem as the fire related issue has been resolved. There may be a small price advantage for the built-in Clean Effects. As far as the performance/efficiency numbers, there is no difference. I am not a fan of EACs because of maintenance/cleaning responsibilities for the homeowner. There is something to say about the old adage "keep it simple". Most homeowners will not adhere to properly maintaining EACs. For over 99% of homes, a good 4-5" pleated media filter cabinet MERV 10 is more than adequate for IAQ and protecting blower motor and evap coil. Changeout is up to one yr interval, takes a couple of minutes, and is very easy. Foe two systems, you should be able to negotiate a good price on the 10 yr ext warranty-parts and labor. A price below $1k for two systems would be good. Ductwork install is relatively cheap as long as its sized correctly and insulated properly=R8. I see no reason to zone one room as long as it receives the recommended CFMs to match the load. I would want to see a written copy of Man J and Man D and review with dealer. If you do decide on the XL15i, you should insist on the HW VP IAQ stat. IMO

I find there is an enormous people spending time on this board showing everyone why they need an architect and do not know what an architect does. In response to what I believe you meant, let me comment on the current discussion and answer this question. First, I am not sure I need to know what an architect does to know what an architect does for me. However, that is not really the point of this, so I will ignore that portion. There was a study done on architects quite some time ago, that informed my thoughts then, if this has changed please let me know. I am going to get some of this wrong but believe I can relay the basic ideas. The study selected three groups of people (1) office workers, (2) upper class college students in a selective institution, (3) and architects. They then presented all three groups with design problems. The people in the office had interaction needs and environmental preferences, while the physical space had environmental conditions. All three groups were then asked to create the best office in three different physical spaces. The environmental results were then scored on a 3 point scale: met requirement, partially met requirement, or didn't meet requirements. The interaction scores were then very slightly modified by those environment scores. This was all known to the participants and individually these interaction modifications were fairly small, I don't remember the exact numbers, but the cumulative effect could be significant. The architects performed significantly better than either other group. I don't remember the exact explanation proposed for this, but I do believe the idea was that architects tend to focus on some type of synergy between physical space and needs, while other groups tend to focus on one or the other. ---------------- So, what I believe architects do in a nutshell: Take my requirements and make all the things I need a little bit better by creating an environment in which those things can happen a bit more pleasurably or with a little less effort. Having said that, I believe that architects suffer from Baumol's cost disease and the value hurdle is becoming increasingly difficult for architects to meet. I personally find the value proposition for using an architect diminish as constraints increase. At this point, if I am developing something for sale, the quality of the design takes a back seat to the quality of the finish carpenter.