Boy, am I guilty of some of this stuff. I'm always planting too close and for some reason I seem to think bigger is better. However, as some have recognized, if something gets too big, just whack it down and let it start over again. In the case of succulents one can just cut large pieces of a mature specimen and start them someplace else. In this pic I'm posting, that large shrub in the top corner is a Cape honeysuckle (Tecomaria capensis). I have to whack that thing down about every five years. I'm not going to replace it though because it has 3-4 wonderful bloom flushes every year and the Hummers love it. Also, that patch of modest sized Euphorbias next to it, well eventually they get about 40 feet tall! I'm 60 years old so I don't worry about that--but I do take SUBSTANTIAL cuttings and root them someplace else in the yard or give them to friends. One of the benefits I've noticed of planting "too closely" is that I don't get the unwanted weeds and grasses (or at least quite so many) like my neighbors do. Also, because I live in a dry area, I don't have to water so much when plants are more closely spaced (don't ask me why--just doesn't seem to dry out as quickly between waterings). I think one of the issues not discussed is that some like a nice looking yard, but don't really like gardening all that much. It does make a difference (one's attitude). -Ron-

*sigh* I am not alone. I've often wondered if I was just a cranky ol' b!tch because so many little things bother the crap out of me. thank you for the reassurance that there are others like me out there! And now, for my latest pet peeves regarding words. I am coming to detest the word Absolutely. I hear it everywhere, in every occasion. Did you watch Idol last night? ABSOLUTELY. I need to pick up bread at the store, want me to get you anything while I'm there? ABSOLUTELY. It drives me nuts. And the other one isn't new by any means, it's the use of the word Like. I was watching the Bachelor a couple of weeks ago, have never watched this show before. A couple of the women (don't know their names) was talking to the hunky guy and used the word Like about every fifth word. How could you stand to be around someone like that for the rest of your life? It'd be a deal-breaker for me. Then the next morning, listening to the radio on the way to work and the female announcer was chatting and ... Like ... had to say Like about every ...Like fourth or fifth word to Like ... get her whole story out it was Like ... hard to follow along because I would Like ... get distracted by her Likes. Oh, and the timing of commercials. I can't forget that one! Hubs and I watch TV while we eat ... now I know that's our own fault, but it really disturbs us to see commercials for Colon Cleanse, Stool Softeners, and other personal issues, while we eat! If these companies think that I will remember their names and buy them even tho they're offensive, they're wrong. I will remember their names and buy a competitor's product if I ever need to! Ooops ... and another one. Just reading the end of Cynic's up above me and that reminded me ... people who just will NOT tell you what they want to tell you without you having to pull it out of them. Geesh. Friend: I really screwed up. Me: What'd you do? Friend: I ran that report. Me: What report? Friend: The special report. Me: Well, what happened when you ran it? Friend: It didn't work. Me: WHAT didn't work? What happened????? and on and on and on. Just tell me the whole story please, without all the drama!

Martha Stewart uses fresh eggs from her farm (she brags about the different shell colors -so "pretty"- and quality all the time), and for those of us who grew up doing the same thing, or use fresh farm eggs now, we check the eggs by cracking them into a separate container because there are many possible anomalies, especially if they are fertilized, since they generally aren't candled. I've seen Martha go ahead and add an egg with a blood spot and most people probably wouldn't use it, or might remove it and use the rest of the egg. I even smell a farm-fresh egg I've cracked into a cup because you never know what farm chickens have been eating and it can affect the egg flavor, as well as what you are adding it to. My mom always candled eggs she gave or sold to other people. That was her job on her family farm in Canada when she was growing up. Even using a double-yolk egg could alter a recipe if you went ahead and used it. As to plllog asking about my food judging experience.... We are trained to judge a long list of food characteristics for each type of food judged, and follow a set of fair-judging standards. The flavor is actually a combination of taste and smell. I don't get picky about the vanilla flavoring (real or imitation), unless it's over-powering and too much has been used. But I will judge down for using poor quality eggs, fats and oils that are a little "off" or rancid, getting a bitter taste from using too much baking powder, or rancid nuts, and the flavoring not being well-blended throughout the food item. On a personal note, I've used Cook's Pure Vanilla Powder with success (especially good when making my own dry mixes and "convenience" foods). Recently I've been trying a bag of Terrasoul Raw Organic Vanilla Bean Powder, which includes trace minerals, potassium and magnesium, and is completely different from the Cook's product. The Terrasoul product is twice as flavorful as an extract since it doesn't evaporate, so you use half as much. And I also have Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Bean Paste. I've also made homemade vanilla with vanilla beans and alcohol-of-choice. Always looking for the next big "secret" ingredient. ;-) -Grainlady

Interesting article, but I am not convinced. To me the statement that the length of the backup can be reduced up to 50% seems unsurprising but not especially relevant. For any given number of cars the length they occupy in two lanes will be about 50% of the length the occupy when they are in a single lane. The datum that zipper merging can improve overall traffic flow by maximum of 15% without also stating the average improvement in flow and the minimum improvement seems incomplete and makes me suspect that the average improvement is either 0% or perhaps actually negative. (Although it could be that it is a journalistic summary of the original studies) Furthermore it notes that California DOT examined similar data and reached a different conclusion. Lastly the article also notes that even states that recommend the practice consider zipper merging is to be "not intended to be used when traffic is flowing briskly, with ample distance between vehicles to move over earlier without causing a slowdown. But when traffic is slow moving .... " it can be effective. This sounds to me like the practice is intended for city streets or more urban environments as opposed to the more rural 2-lane freeways I usually frequent.