An appreciation "of" or "for"?

Dear Saidie,
I was in a meeting this afternoon with three newspaper writers, one English professor, one professional novelist, three PR people, and other smart and important people. We spent an inordinate amount of time discussing whether to say "an appreciation of" or "an appreciation for" something. Help! What would Saidie do?
Signed,
Perplexed on Peoria

Dear Perplexed,
Use "appreciation for" when talking about the finer things in life. But use "appreciation of" when referring to the value of your home. One of our own members has a wonderful resource for all kinds of grammatical and word usage questions called "The Writing Coach." It is written by Lee Clark Johns and can be ordered at Amazon.
Saidie