Here's a repost of my $.02: I have bought individual items as well as sets; one advantage to a set of pots is that you learn about the responsiveness of one pan, it's pretty much the same across that line. That's not that big an advantage, to be sure. After all, you're gonna be watching the pot anyway, right? Restating some of the points of earlier posters, you'd do well to buy individual items (of very good quality) that perform the function you want that pot to do. If I were to stock a new kitchen today, here's what I'd start with: A couple of enameled cast iron dutch ovens of size appropriate to your needs. Those babies are some of the most versatile items you can get. Very worthwhile if you do a lot of braising. A nonstick frypan or two for sticky stuff like eggs (Sam's Club has some Tramontina skillets, a set of 3 for around $30) A black cast iron skillet for searing meats A big stockpot for soups and boiling pasta. A couple of saucepans: if you really do make fancy sauces then it's worth it to get very responsive pots. If, like many people, you use saucepans just to warm things up, the quality is not as critical. One item most people don't think of is a pressure cooker. I'm sold on them, and wouldn't want to have a kitchen without one. If you think of pressure cookers as those things that your mom told you stories about them blowing up, do know that they've improved them greatly in the past couple of decades. A Kuhn Rikon 8 qt stockpot/pressure cooker is an awfully nice indulgence and you can cook a great deal of comfort food quite quickly. Check out any of Lorna Sass's cookbooks and missvickie.com if you are at all interested. Whatever you get, get items you will enjoy using.

This could be just a matter of not scoring the tape before pulling it, no? When you tape and then paint over the tape, you have created a seal there between the trim and the walls. You can't really just pull the tape without breaking that seal first or you may pull mass amounts of wall paint off in sheets. You can break that seal with a sharp putty knife or razor knife. This paint is not cured...in a month of so it will be stuck a lot better than it is now. I'm not saying there isn't an adhesion issue...there may very well be one, but I am saying that it could also be just a matter of not scoring the tape before pulling it.

Paula is married also. Her husband appears on some of her shows. To me the entire thing centers around the change in policy with the Food Channel, DIY, Home & Garden, etc. In the beginning of these channels they had people that actually cooked, folks that actually fixed stuff and people that actually gardened. Shows had more content, fewer commercials and commercials geared more toward the content of the programs. All of that is pretty much out the window. Many of the shows are contrived with, IMO, Iron Chef taking the cake. There are several shows I do like on PBS when they aren't having their endless pledge drives. I am a guy that actually cooks, fixes things, collects antiques, does woodworking and teaches high school science.

Hmmm...reunion in New York. I could handle that, Pops could go to buddy up with the guy stuff and I'd swim at pool, get my hair done (maybe nails too), do a bit of shopping, check in and see what going on now and then and in down time I'd shop shop shop. I'd have a great time. LOL. I actually don't enjoy spending the day/evening with a bunch of people I don't know and have nothing in common with. I deal with people all the time, the last thing I want to do on my 'me' time is deal with more. I do do the family stuff I'd rather not when I have to, but I have no trouble excusing myself and doing my own thing after I get bored to pieces surrounded by people expecting me to make small talk. The DH does not mind, we enjoy the actual outing and getting away together, it's just the 'social hour' I back out on. Myfam, SIL does indeed seem to be the one with the problem and a bundle of jealous crap. I kinda 'get it' to a point, she does not have her husband home all the time and does not want to share when he is. Too bad. Childish to expect to have him all to herself the entire time. Of course he wants to see his mother and siblings. You'd think one dinner with all together would not cramp her so much. She sounds like a greedy one. I spend time with my DIL and even my ex DIL at times DS is not around. I call/email/text with the ladies, we have the occassional lunch, blah blah. I like the ladies above and beyond their connection to my DS. If I'm somewhere and I see something I think either lady would like, I pick it up for them. I really don't feel a need to buy for both just because I bought something for one...but both ladies get gifts and little treats, just not always at same time. I doubt my ladies compare notes to see what and if I've been up to. The other Ds's GF gets the same attention. This lady is a bit different. We get along, I like her, I respect my son loves her, but there is just not the closeness with this one as with DIL and exDIL. She does not get left out though. She gets the same treats and stuff everybody else does. We just don't do much of the lunches out and shopping blah blah together. It's not a snub, we just don't feel a need to hang together. She does come to family stuff, is always welcome and she knows we care about her...it's just we likely will never have a close relationship. She has a close one with her mother though. Those two lunch, shop, gossip blah blah. I think it's just a matter of we don't really have a lot in common and she'd rather spend her 'me' time with her own family. Which is fine and understandable. Quick question. Does your mom reach out to just the DIL minus Brother occassionally? Maybe drive over once in a while and see just SIL and the kids when Brother is not home? Phone calls to keep up with the DIL/kids on their routine daily lifes? I will assume yes, but if not a bit of just the two ladies one on one attention might ease the jealous notion SIL has going on. Your poor mom, carrying for an elderly too. That is a true labor of love. Caretaking for the elder family members is not an easy thing to do. And as the person gets more and more dependent they are not always real pleasant. It's hard on these older people to find their independence slipping away and to have to have someone else do for them and/or assist them in what they use to do all by themselves. I cared for my grandfather in his final year with alzheimers. One of the hardest and most heart tearing things I've ever had to do. He would say and do things that were so hard to deal with, but I had loved the man my whole life and he had cared for me ...it was my turn to thank him for all his years of taking care of me by me now taking care of him , no matter how hard it was or how much it hurt. Don't know the situation with your mom and the person she is now having to be care giver for, but I know it's not an easy thing to do and I wish your mom the strength and love to get through it. In the end she'll be glad she did and that she was able to do it. Give Mom another hug, she'll need lots of them.