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I was looking at some bathroom vanities from this catalog. The prices seem very reasonable - too reasonable, I guess. I am aware that this is not high end stuff, but I was wondering how it might compare to a big box store? I need a small vanity and top for our 2nd bathroom, mainly used as a powder room, not every day bathing/showering etc.
Any thoughts on product quality from this catalog?

I have bought a new house in Washington (Seattle), which has two lots of 30 x 40 ft and 40 x 60 ft sizes. The second one has a large strand of Birch/ maple trees. I need landscaping done for the entire plot in addition to other small jobs, which include some roofing etc. Can anyone refer me where I can advertise about my project and get bids from landscaping service providers?

In my relentless quest to acquire every possible tool before I leave this planet, this weekend I picked up a leaf vacuum.

Thanks to my neighbor's regrettable decision to plant a bunch of poplars in his yard, all of which grew to over 60 feet in a few short years, my back yard maintenance has increased several-fold, especially this time of year. If you have any experience with poplars you know that they shed like sheepdogs. It was all the excuse I needed to invest in a new electric tool. No more acoustic brooms for me!

Lowes carried Black & Decker, Toro and Troy-Bilt. They were all 12 amps, all fairly heavy, all injection molded plastic and they're probably all made in the same Chinese factory. So I looked for details on the box to close the sale. The B&D had a "metal impeller". I wasn't sure what difference that made, but it was ten bucks more than the others so it had to be better, right?

I wanted to write a review of the Black & Decker but it died on me five minutes into its maiden voyage. The motor started making a clicking noise, slowed down, started smoking... I took that as a clue.

I've never had much luck with Black & Decker, from the toaster oven that caught fire to the power screwdriver than came apart in my hand. Okay, their stuff is pure crap. I mostly acquire B&D junk only by way of well-meaning gift givers. Folks, I have no product advertisers here for a reason.

Lowes took the return in good spirit. The nice lady at the return desk said, "Another one, huh?" I thought she was asking if I wanted to replace it, which I didn't. Instead, without looking up she pointed at the wall where there were two more expired B&D leaf vacs.

I'm really getting fed up with the false lifetime claims of Compact Fluorescent Lighting manufacturers. On average, I've been seeing these bulbs fail at half their published life spans. Maybe we need a class action suit to force companies to publish the MTBF (Mean Time Between Failure) hours for these bulbs in the real world.

The issue isn't with fluorescent technology. In my last home, an industrial loft that was previously a paper bag factory, I took possession of two dozen large fluorescent ceiling fixtures. I could tell from the dust on those bulbs that they were already years old. Nevertheless, every single one of them was still doing its job three years later when I replaced them with ceiling floods. They KNOW how to build a long-life CFL.