DaisyCake

Our cottage ceiling was damaged by water and we're going to replace it. Thinking about knottypine car siding, but just had a thought about whether that creates a fire hazard. Do I need to apply drywall behind it, or should I just patch the old acoustical tiles and put the car siding over them?

I have to make table signs for a medieval banquet to remind parents to turn off their cell phones and pay attention to the kids. How do I word this to sound "medieval"?

My house is going on the market in just a couple of weeks. We have old "harvest gold" countertops that we didn't replace because we were going to do an addition and new kitchen. Now my husband's been transfered so we have to sell with the old kitchen still here.

So... should I go with standard laminate ($200 or so), high-res custome laminate w/ tile backsplash ($400) or do I have to spring for granite/ quartz? Granite's the "standard" in our neighborhood - as people remodel, they're putting granite in... maybe 50% have it.

After all, he said basically, that Dems are too racist to elect a dark-skinned black, or one with a black dialect? He's saying that if he were darker (like Clarence Thomas) that you'd vote for a white instead.

It wasn't Obama he was insulting, it was the intelligence and moral turpitude of potential voters!

We're considering a transfer to Milwaukee and want the best possible school district for our children. It's very important to us that the schools have high academic standards and good college-bound stats.

Any suggestions? TIA

My child doesn't "qualify" for gifted because of CoGat scores (7A), despite an AR reading level of 4.9-11.8. (The school has seperate gifted classes for reading and math).

I think that test anxiety is the reason behind the low scores - there's a pattern of low test scores and very high work, with the test scores rising during the year. Today, half of the reading group got moved to gifted, leaving just my child and one other behind.

How do I keep the motivation high when it seems all extra effort is ignored by the teacher?

The WH has put out an RFP for bidding that would mine social networking pages for your political views. Is this a violation of our constitutional rights?

We just put a Wisconsin mound at our summer home (required). It's huge - 18x25, 5' tall. I'd rather not put grass on it, as I don't want to mow so I'm looking to do something in a ground cover..maybe.

It's full sun - no shade at all - and I can't put anything with deep roots on it (there's just 12" of soil, and deep roots can ruin the system).

If I pull from my main house, I have unlimited pink creeping sedum (stonecrop), some ajuga, lots of snow on the mountain (which I fear would be invasive), lots of lambs ear and some periwinkle. Should I just do the whole think in stonecrop?

I'm planning on some perennials on the buffer zone (15' in front and back of the mound) - mainly iris, day lily, coreopsis.

Any ideas or great resources on line for me? I'm looking for inspiration.

Thanks!

My nephew is headed off to basic this fall, and then to Special Forces training, if all goes as planned.

How long will he be gone and what can I send him in care packages?

I'm looking for a type of cuisine that commonly eats grasshoppers or bugs, so I can buy some for my daughter's "Survivor" party. I just need a couple and the cost to buy & ship them online is huge.

I live near Chicago, so I'm sure there's a store that carries them, I just don't know where to start.

I was told that a person is here legally. He came w/ his wife & children in 2000 from Mexico. He has no degree and works in a restaurant. He has no other family in the area.

He's a nice guy, but I think the odds are against him having legal status.

What are the odds that he got an immigration visa?

My Girl Scout troop has to provide a snack themed to the World Center in Pune, India (S. of Mumbai). The three other groups are served tres leche cupcakes (Mexico), Swiss chocolate, and scones (England).

I need to prepare this at home and transport it to the school. Ideally it would be finger food, peanut free, not too spicy and not require plates.

My kids are getting a Wii for Christmas. It comes w/ the sports game, one controller and one nunchuck. We'd like to be able to play it on Christmas day so we'll need to plan ahead.

What accessories should I get - more controllers? more nunchucks? The sports package w/ the tennis racket (or is that just fluff?).

Also, what would be a good second game for 7-10 year olds? (It needs to be totally family oriented).

Apparently, a suit is being filed right now in SCOTUS, asking for Obama's proof of being a "natural born citizen".

One site said 3 1/2 cups of ground coffee - but at that ratio I would be using a cup of coffee for every 10 cup pot I brew at home.

Should I just follow the ratio I use at home?

www.littlegreenfootballs.com is reporting that all those rumors came from a Democrat-leaning PR firm that's done work for Obama's campaign. They call it "astroturf" (ie: fake grassroots).

So how long before the MSM media picks up on this... or will they?

Is there a guideline - like 5% of the total budget?

I'm putting on a small addition to the second floor (over an existing 1st floor area) to enlarge the master bath, and remodeling the kitchen.

Caging, according to Wiki, is when a political party targets an area that they suspect has a high amount of voter fraud. They send a certified letter to the registered voter, for which the voter has to sign.

If the letter is returned as undeliverable (resident moved, wasn't home, etc), the party files a challenge to the validity of that voter registration. When the voter tries to vote, they are challenged and have to provide proof of residency. If they don't (or can't) they cannot vote.

Opponents say it disenfranchises minorities. Proponents say it cuts down on voter fraud. What do you think?

First they've sued to have factual ads taken off the air that highlight Obama's relationship w/ Bill Ayers. Now it's learned that they email and text their accolytes to flood talk radio and overwhelm talk shows with calls, emails and hate language if the station interviews anyone who speaks against Obama.

What's next? Riots and physical attacks on radio stations?

For those unfamiliar w/ crooked Chicago politics, here's an informative op/ed piece from today's Chicago Tribune.

Does this clarify why many in Chicago are against him? (For those who don't trust links, it's Dennis Byrne, in the Chicago Trib)http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi...