Angelaid, "a hungry mind is a terrible thing to waste" I really like you....it's about this time of the day I start thinking of food, too! LOL! My Favorite cookbook is a Community Cookbook that was compiled for a benefit with proceeds going to a non-profit organization. It is a compilation of tastes and flavors I grew up with. A mixture of Tex-Mex and German/Polish/Bohemian flavor. So, I go through that recipe book about 3 times a month looking for goodies. (I don't usually "bake", as I don't have a sweet tooth.) I tend to favor Casseroles. But, Main Man is Meat N Taters. My Best Friend is French/Italian. She conjures up some pretty tasty stuff and has turned me into a seeker of Mediterranean Flavor. I found out I looooove Garlic. Gayle

Since I posted this, I have had another phone call from her - it is almost getting to the point where I get the giggles! It is not that I don't help people, I've made over 80 full size or bigger quilts and I only have one on my bed and one on the sofa - all the others have been given to others. But I hate being manipulated. The fact that I quilt does not obligate me into starting/finishing a quilt for anyone who is looking for the finished project w/o putting anything into it. She did keep saying how much work this is! Yep! And how long it was taking. Yep! She still hasn't caught on that it would take me the same amount of time and work. I only had one other time that someone really tried to take advantage. The women's leader at church thought it would be nice to give a baby quilt to every baby born in the church and to give away a quilt to one woman every year at the women's retreat. She turned to me and said the first baby quilt should go to the newest baby born the week before. I was stunned as I realized 'we' meant 'me'. I asked her who would be making the quilt, 'You.' I asked how the quilt would be from the group and different from the one I had already made and given to this mother. 'Well, we have donated fabric to you, haven't we?' NO! Then she said, 'well, you're still making the quilt to give away at retreat, right?' By then I was getting over being stunned and was moving into being indignant. I asked again, how this quilt would be from the group - would everyone be doing a block and I would just be assembling? She looked at me quite shocked and exclaimed that she did not even have a machine. So once it was clear that what she expected was for me to make the quilts and let her put her name on them, I said NO! I had a back log of projects I was working on and did not have time to do that, and it was being rather presumptuous of her to tell me what I would make. And she even said, 'well, you'd have a whole year to make one; that's enough time.' I think that is when my 'No' was enabled! (I even gave her an older, but in good-working-order Kenmore machine.)

Missy May, Let me begin by giving your a warm welcome from Massachusetts. I grew up in Salem, Ohio before I ran off to the Air Force to see the world, then back to Ohio where I drove truck out of Youngstown hauling steel for years, then off to Texas and along the Gulf Coast to Florida before going back to Youngstown, but I got bored and moved here to Massachusetts. (Who knows what the future may hold,,,LOL) Now, I have to tell you, I started a rule in this forum about a year ago.... You can only be a Newbie on your first visit to this forum,,,After that you are to be considered one of the regulars returning for the fun... There is a large group who come in at least once a day, and some of us come in about once an hour all day..So grab a coffee, tea or cold drink of your choice and jump right in,,we are all glad to see you and look forward to chatting with your often...

@daninthedirt, This is a screen shot of our historical average temps. I must explain that it's really for the town below us. We are in a microclimate here, so a little cooler in summer and a little warmer in winter EXCEPT for random heat waves and snow flurries! It's not entirely accurate. The lows are really around 68-72, and highs around 95-105. Still, the tomatoes seem to be ok with it. My compost volunteers ALL came from the grocery store so they have to be hybrids. This is our first year growing ONE tomato intentionally. We thought it would be a BIG Boy, but it's just a cherry. However it turns out we are growing 11 unintentionally, and the developing tomatoes are all bigger than any fruit on the cherry tomato plant. I'm sure I'll be looking for ripe soon, but I'm happy with green now. There is a hint of color change on some big ones hidden under the canopy of a salad type. Those might be the first to turn.