Triple, I planted Marmalade Skies today. I did a great job, if I do say so myself! Funny how careful I am with the first few bare root plantings. Perfect weather and soil. It should be overcast and drizzle/rain this week. Tonight I went nuts and ordered the following Buck roses: Quietness Folksinger, Hawkeye Belle Mountain Music Prairie Star Prairie Sunrise I still have these coming... Lady Emma Hamilton Just Joey Pat Austin Brother Cadfael French Lace Enchanted Evening Sally Holmes Climber Happy Chappy rose in hanging basket Happy Spring!

I'm back. I was in California for the levaya (funeral) and the first 3 days of the shiva period and back here in Baltimore for the rest. The formal 7-day shiva week ended today, at the conclusion of Shabbos morning services. A period of lesser mourning continues until 30 days after the levaya, and then (when mourning a parent) an additional even lesser period until 12 months after. While at my mother's home we went through hundreds and hundreds of old photographs. I brought many back to Baltimore, which I have been showing to visitors -- during the shiva, friends and acquaintances come over to comfort the mourner. I will scan and put them on CD's for my sons and nephews and nieces (and their future children) to make a family history. I hope they will enjoy seeing photos of Dad's great-grandmother in Lomza, Poland, his kindergarten class in Cleveland in the 20's, WW2 pics from India, his wedding to Mom, etc. The week has been one of reminiscing, of retelling the life of a very good, decent man, and of much reading and introspection as I attempt to channel the mourning process and my emotions into a closer relationship with G-d. I will close with a story about Mom and Dad, both of them very easygoing, mild people. Mom and Dad were married for 57 years. In that time they had exactly one argument -- really! I remember it, I was about 9 years old. Mom and Dad had converted the garage into a bonus room, and they were debating what color the carpet should be: blue or white. We 3 children were already in bed. To quote Mom, "We were each vociferously defending our positions when we suddenly heard crying and wailing from the children's rooms." I had never heard my parents argue and I still remember my catastrophic thinking: "Oh, no, Mom and Dad are fighting, now they'll get divorced!" Mom and Dad had to come in and calm down and reassure each of us in turn that everything was OK. Afterwords they discussed what had happened, and decided that if that's what arguing did to the children, they would never argue again. And they didn't. BTW, the bonus room had white carpeting.

When you place an order for factory made cabinets, you are slotted for production on a certain day or week at the exact time you place your order. Once your order is placed into the system, your production date is pretty set in stone. Usually there is a window of time in which the order can be delayed for later production, but this is usually just the first few weeks after the order is placed. Once your week comes up or they are made you can't stop the train. You seem to be about 2 weeks away , so it's prob. too late to change. Sounds like your "delivery" is being handled by the factory, that's the free or rather "included" delivery. They are not really a "delivery" company as much as a common carrier or shipper. They just transport bulk goods. And once good are in motion they can't just park them somewhere on the side of the road waiting for people to be ready for them. They go to warehouses, and that has fees. Yes it's reasonable for you to pay storage fees and delivery charges. I know it's hard to have another expense now, but a savvy cabinet designer would have already rolled these fees into the price already because customers, contractors, and jobsites are never ready when they are supposed to be. So, you would have been incurring this expense anyway with a lot of places. there are ways to avoid this expense but YOU take on some risk or control over the final timeline in exchange for saving the money. RE: you situation, perhaps there will be a snowstorm week of and delay the truck a day or two, or a flood or.... Also, not sure you need to be present, I cannot remember the last time a client was present at the site on the day of delivery, that's what builders are for and what you are paying the cabinet firm / designer for. They meet the delivery, check to see that it' complete and in good condition and gets placed in a location condusive for their installers. I also cannot imagine that you builder already knows he's going to be two days later completing this 20 days out ??? Something doesn't square, get the lead out in the next to weeks to make up the 2 days OR, the site isn't going to be ready on the 28th either in which case this is all moot and you need the storage anyway. I'd say take deliver on the 26th and put em in the dining room.

Grout does not have to get disgusting! Mine isn't and never has been! I have had tile countertops all my life and they clean up just fine. My beautiful artisan tile countertops (complete with trim, but costing more than stone) in my new kitchen clean up just fine. One does have to actually clean up after oneself, though... Tile is a wonderfully functional and easy on the planet choice. Route66Services, I agree that 4"x4" tiles are a more retro look than 6"x6", but either will be fine. Another traditional look is to have contrasting trimwork. That part comes from the fact that stores only tended to stock a few colors. The "8 week backorder" that LWO referred to regarding trim pieces is actually a "we have to make those up for you and it's going to take a little while" thing. Don't let it sway you. Just plan ahead, and give yourself some leeway because tile companies over promise on delivery dates. If the tiles don't pass inspection, they have to start all over again. And sometimes, they have to wait a month to finish a big run before making your tiles. This is the big boys. It's the same with the artisans, but they're more forthcoming with the time frame. Most of all, however, it's important that you get a really good tile setter who knows how to do countertops. You can't just glue the tiles to the underlayment with thinset the way some people do with backsplashes. The best backing is an old fashioned mortar bed, though there are some backerboards that I think are appropriate for counters. Done right, with wet mortar, also takes time, because it has to cure. But it's worth it. I have a feeling a lot of the horror stories about tile come from people whose tile wasn't set correctly. BTW, good quality tile made from good quality bisque, set correctly, is very hard to break, and shouldn't do so just from random stuff falling on it. It should take the equivalent of a sledge hammer in full swing. Even that might not break it on first try. If you're interested in going artisan, I can recommend Architerra-NW. Gorgeous tile, amazingly good bisque, and all the trims you could ever want. Daltile, however, is mass produced (i.e., faster) and their plain, glossy tiles should give you that retro look you want.