I think I have a similar fear, meara. I don't know that I do anything about it, but that is striking a chord.

Mmm, I would love to have a skylight. My bathroom just has a tiny north-facing window that looks onto the covered patio, even during the day it's pretty dim in there. Which is actually nice in the summertime, because it also stays fairly cool.

That may be the most radical version a guy telling you to smile so he's not uncomfortable that I've heard, msbelle. Damn.

I second sarameg's praise of our dentist office. They are the best! I was just talking about them today with another friend who goes there.

I love our skylight in our redone bathroom. You can't really see out it but it lets a ton of light in directly over the bathtub/shower.

wow, people can be crappy

It is my number two dream of renovating the house, putting in skylights. Number one is finishing the attic, which would ideally involve adding skylights up there, but I would also like light tunnels from the roof into the rooms that don't get much light if such a thing would be practical.

Who do you have as your hygienist and dentist, lisah? Just curious. I had my initial consults with Sherri & Dr. Murphy, but both concurred that I should go with Dr. Welzel and Sandy because smaller hands (apparently, I have a small space to do dental work. I get the peds dental bumper so I don't bite anyone....)

Those solar tubes are the best. They are easy to install, bring the light efficiently into dark rooms, and are not giant insulation breaks like traditional skylights. Plus, they basically just look like ceiling lights when the sun is out. I have one where I don't need it (in the hallway, turns out it gets plenty of light from the office window because that door is always open) and one where I do (guest bath). We had two more planned and nixed them for budget, and I would totally go back on that now. So great.

Oh, btw, do we have Richmond, VA area peeps right now? I'll be there the last week of this month.

Dr. Welzel and, usually, Sherri usually. Dr. Welzel I knew before she was my dentist, actually. Both of them are also involved in the Ride. Because, Baltimore!

Yeah, -t, did you notice the ones in my living room? Had the solatubes installed a couple of years ago into my cavelike living room and the transformation was wonderful!