There is alot to see. If you go up interstate 5, that will take you up fast, 101 is scenic, but bad traffic. I personally would avoid LA area, Ventura has a nice mission, as does Santa Barbara. Bakersfield is nice also. Around Santa Nella is good, If you have children look for Montery Bay aquarimarine. Go to Auto Club and discuss what you want to see. Also go into the motels/hotels in your area and look for broucheurs. No matter where you go it will be fast heavy traffic. Go to the library, and look for Sunset Magazine. Lots of ads etc as the Coastal Mag also

Michael Short, Insurance Agent South Bay Great questions and answers. Before this life I was in the Mechanical Contracting business large commercial. There are some great answers in the threads above. 1. Know why you are getting the insurance and what it is you are protecting ( for all lines, but for the sake of discussion keep on homes you live in although most people auto is their largest liability). 2. As you are doing now find out the rebuild price per sqft. in your area 3. All fires are not equal. Your home burns down you can take bids negotiate, prices remain what they are. All of the homes in your area burn down forget it. Like my dad used to say ... son the price of poker just went up, right before he would take all my money :). Not enough contractors to go around highest bid wins. 4.How much would a vacant lot or a burned down house sell for. In Willow Glen I saw a burned down home sell roughly $800k .... 5.Prices go up they don't go down especially in these times... sheets of plywood last year home depot 7-10 dollars each now 50-60 dollars!!! Your insurance agent should give you price/s on per sqft cost to rebuild In the end its your home and your decision. Your agents job is to give you the information to assist you If your looking to save money go with a high deductible and do the math 10k vs 20k ded. Remember you don't come out of pocket on your home owners insurance claim. Whatever the "approved claim" is they take that ded amount and pay you the difference. Like one person said know what you need to rebuild and know what you need to walk away with and not be sick to your stomach. New home owners that put down 1.5% may be in a much different situation then someone with 50-100% equity. Hope this helps You can shoot me an email if you have any questions. mshort@farmersagent.com

I love the photos, S. I think the foxgloves will be beautiful. You are a great photographer too.

Is there any discussion group online for woodworkers located in the San Francisco Bay Area? I want to inquire about local service providers.