Valentine: thanks for those detailed tips! So you suggest I put the rosemary on the windowsill inside or outside? And if I wrap it with bubblewrap, do I wrap the plant too, or just the pot? (It's an old giant tomato sauce can from Lombardi's Pizza) Oldrose: My window faces southwest, but because of all the buildings around me (I'm on the second floor) light doesnt last very long :P So I'm in California now guys, San Jose visiting some old friends and it is COLD out here! Something is really up with the weather--this past month has just been World Natural Disaster Month. For the love of Al Gore, let the government set standards already and stop this madness! I came out to Cali for a tan!!! ;)

I have, much to my complete embarrassment, watched OC and NY. I think I like NY much better - OC has become a train wreck and I have to wonder if a lot of "acting" is now being done. I mean, who could be that completely AWFUL. Or, in Vicki's case, completely loud, crude and desperate for the worst kind attention? In Tamara's case, so completely cruel and really - she is not "the hot one" - the fact that she demands to be makes her a cruel and a rather pathetic aging woman who doesn't know when her arc of youth is well behind her. And, OMG, the kids of these people. I know some people from that area and everyone there doesn't spring from the orange tree as that grasping group of women, I promise you *LOL* NY women seem to be much more 'real' even if they, too, are a bunch of oddballs. But - who would watch if they didn't put on a show for the viewers? And, these women are willing to be on TV for the world to see, so they aren't going to be normal or average. Which, of course, is why we all watch. At least most of the "chest apparel" seems to be "nature provided" on this one - except for maybe Bethanny's - her clevage does seem to be a little false, but she is a really gorgeous girl who might be sporting a hard working push up bra - but if it's false, she did it right. Not too much for her frame. The "soul mate" couple, Alex and Simon .... are they for real? They make me feel icky after I've seen them in an episode. And yes, please spare the speedo, please. Double ick. Alex needs some color in her hair or face, it's all one color to me. This is not an attractive couple in any sense of the word. Jill seems to be the most "real" of the bunch to me, Bethanny the kindest. The Countess needs to get a life. A real one. I agree with Fran - how is the financial train wreck we are in as a nation going to play with these two shows? The excess of both shows will have to be addressed, the days of conspicious consumption are now behind us, eventually nobody will want to see that stuff, even on tv. How they cope will make it even better television, I believe.

Hello -- here's my list too For plays I would see a Musical -- go for the big bang. For all time favorites I loved Les Mis. For more recent choices Wicked is excellent and if you love Abba Mama Mia is a lot of fun. Of all the Disney ones Lion King stands out well above the rest (haven't seen Little Mermaid - going in May with kids) For the park - it's a whole day. Go to H&H or Zabar's have a picnic on one of the lawns or by the boathouse and people watch. Bike or rollerblade the Big loop -- I have biked in the city a fair amount. You have to have the "I'm a bike messenger attitude and just go for it" but don't expect cars to yield to you or behave remotely like drivers in other cities. I wouldn't suggest it - I'd stick to the park for biking -- then again I have been hit on my bike in the city so . . . Also in the park - Tavern on the Green is sooo pretty at night. Yes, it is touristy but I still like taking people there. I also like taking them on the carriage rides. On the upper east side Serendipity for dessert. We always used to go there for the frozen hot chocolate -- have you seen the movie? It's very crowded but fun -- I've eaten lunch there too but I think dessert is best. For museums the Met is so amazing but choose what you want to see. I also like going down to SoHo and just wandering in and out of all the galleries that catch my eye. ABC carpet was a huge favorite when I lived downtown in the early 90's but it is much more commerical now and not as much of something you discover if that makes sense. Greenwich village is also a great place to just wander around and people watch on a nice night. There is a place called the Back Fence on Bleeker Street that we always used to go to and listen to covers by James Taylor, Van Moorison type guys - although I think they have a variety. Sawdust on the floor, people get a table early and hang out all night. A pedicab in Times Square at night is pretty cool to do once.(even for someone who has lived in the city for years) I've never gone to the Statue of Liberty or taken a Circle Line Cruise but I mean to at some point. Also just from a safey issue wear you purse across your body or keep a hand on the strap - tourists tend to walk slowly and spend a lot of time looking up in the city and can become a mark. There are 1000 other things to do but it is the kind of city you only really discover by living there for a long time.

KLI_6B: Also brandywine plants were huge and I want a smaller productive type if possible. The average tomato plant is very large. It's quite normal for tomato plants to get to be 8-10 feet tall. Don't believe the puny "tomato cages" you see online and in big box stores--most experienced tomato growers use those for eggplants or peppers. Unless you are specifically growing compact varieties, you should be prepared to offer at least 6 feet of support structure for a tomato (when the plant gets taller than that, you can let it drape over back down toward the ground). Compact varieties exist, but many are determinate (this means all of your fruit will form and ripen all at once, and then your plant is done--no more tomatoes after that) or not as productive. And even plants that are supposed to be compact can surprise you over a long growing season. IMO it's better to just prepare adequate support. There are also "dwarf" varieties (2 feet to 4 or 5 feet tall) that are indeterminate (keep producing fruit gradually all season), but they will not be nearly as productive. I think you can fit 3 plants in that bed without ending up with overcrowding issues that lead to disease and general frustration. If you select some good hybrids, you should have plenty of tomatoes for fresh eating. You probably can't go wrong with Big Beef F1 - large, beefsteak-style slicers with very decent taste, good for sandwiches Juliet F1 - saladette (larger than a cherry tomato) size plum shaped tomatoes, meaty but still tasty for fresh eating, good taste, good for salads, snacking, cooking Mountain Magic F1 - saladette globes, excellent taste for a hybrid, good for salads, cooking, snacking, etc. Sungold F1 - orange cherry tomato, very sweet and fruity, excellent for salads and snacks (F1 = hybrid. Some people sell "open pollinated" versions of these, but they are usually inferior in taste and production) In your situation, I would personally plant a Big Beef, a Sungold, and choose between the MM and Juliet depending on which shape I prefer. The nice thing about these varieties is that you can usually find plants for them at big box garden stores, so if you're not really sure about starting plants from seed, you can purchase transplants. They also have some disease resistance bred in. It sounds like you're growing tomatoes year after year in the same bed, which means you need to select varieties with soil disease resistance. Sungold is the least disease resistant of these, but if you like cherry tomatoes, they are among the best tasting and routinely show up on lists of people's favorite tomatoes. KLI_6B: 1st have decent crop (at least for me). I was happy I harvested home grown tomato. But this year, there were blossoms, but only few tomatoes actually formed. May be it was weather and may be it was something else. 1) Did you grow from seed or transplants? 2) How often did you fertilize and what kind of fertilizer did you use? 3) What is your watering routine? 4) What is the date you planting out (planting transplants out in your bed)?