got'er...it was the welcome.tpl..thanks!
in case anyone else sees this,
replace
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[img]{$ImagesDir}/customer_images/welcome.jpg[/img]
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with, (for example, one cell split in 2)
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="537" height="262">
<tr>
<td width="269" height="262" valign="top">This a test </td>
<td width="268" height="262" valign="top">This is a test</td>
</tr>
</table>
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Just needed a nudge.
