Today began early. 6-9 am at the KUER pledge drive. I admit, I had one or two difficult calls today. Perhaps some public-radio listeners hadn't had their morning Joe? Then, after checking-in with the contractor (The Stetan Company), I traveled way out to visit our granite slabs. Oh, yes! we have three slabs of granite with our names on them. I brought a sample of our kitchen cabinet color, Ralph Lauren Home Country Stove White WW02 on maple. Also, paint chips for two other whites:

• Lattice White WW46, trim
• Basic Sand IB42, ceiling

We've used the trim and ceiling colors before. They're good, warm whites. The cabinet color is a new discovery. And it looks great on the sample cabinet door. Our cabinet makers Above and Beyond Custom Cabinetry.

Then there is the wall color. I brought piles of other paint chips, mostly greens and yellows. The granite, the cabinet, the trim, and the ceiling all got along fabulously. The other colors, the ones we'd like to use on our walls, not so much. So, we have the challenge of finding a wall color that will work. Right now, we've got a test coat of Sage Sweater VM105 on the walls. It's a great color. But, with one coat over primer, it's a little bit too hard-candy green. Cheerful. Very green. And not quite right. I should also mention that we could veer away from the Lattice White WW46. It's not yet painted on any kitchen trim. The Basic Sand IB42 is already on the ceilings and isn't likely to change. Some of the other knowns-we-know include:

• GE Cafe appliances, stainless steel
• Franke Oceania sink, stainless steel
• KithenAid Architect Series II wine cellar, stainless steel
• Danze single-hand kitchen faucet with spray, polished nickel
• Common red oak, natural finish, 3 1/4 inch width flooring
  

Then we're likely to have, but haven't purchased, the following items in polished nickel from Rejuvenation Lighting:

• Mission, single-pole, art glass chandelier
• Eastlake bin and drawer pulls

We'll see what color we determine to paint the walls. We're doing that ourselves. And I just had buy-in from Kirk to find another white. So, we could end up with three or four whites, brushed nickel, stainless steel. Neutrals. In that case, the only color would come from the granite counters and the oak floors. After all, the new windows will need treatments. Why muslin Arts & Crafts roller shades from Anne Wallace?

I DID manage to read the newspaper today. Of course, I'm concerned about the news regarding Tim DeChristopher. Of course, this is the same day we're reading about how Ted Stevens may be successful in having the OBAMA-HOLDER Justice Department reverse his convictions. The juxtaposition of the two stories is poignant. A 20-something student who, for ideological reasons, attempts an act of civil disobedience, one that the Bureau of Land Managment (BLM) could have detected and prevented by simply verifying DeChristopher's qualifications. And DeChristopher is facing 10 years. A lawmaker with many years of experience manipulating and, even, willfully abusing the law may have his conviction reversed. Mind you, though I agree with his positon, I myself don't advocate the methods DeChristopher used. And I understand that, at 27-years old, he's not so young that he should be excused. But why are we wasting taxpayer funds in an effort to punish him to the extreme. The effort only draws attention to DeChristopher's position and to the inefficacy of the BLM auctions. And that, incidentally, encourages those who might like to emulate DeChristopher.