Hi Barbara, It has been forever since I posted but I had to put my 2 cents worth in concerning the planting by the moon. I have planted by the moon and zodiac for about 20 yrs now and I believe whole heartedly in it. My husband can tell ya he hates it when I do the outside garden planting because if done correctly I end up with stuff that gets way bigger than it is supposed to be and be healthy as an ox so to speak. It was so bad one year he was adamant that I was not planting any more flowers by the signs. I do a lot of things by the moon and zodiac signs cut my hair, set my eggs, paint the house, my husband will ask when is it time to cut wood for the winter each month. I will not have any surgery if the signs are not right. Enough said, let me see if I can explain it. Everything on earth is governed by the zodiac and the moon. There are 12 signs of the zodiac and 4 qtrs of the moon phase. Well each of the signs represent different parts of the body, Pisces-feet, Capricorn-knees, Aries- head and face and so forth. Also these signs are either masculine or feminine and they can be airy, watery, dry, fiery, moist, and earthy. They will also be either fruitful, semi fruitful or barren. I do all of my plantings on fruitful or semifruitfull. I also cut my hair on fruitful days. This is where the moon comes in. When the moon is on the increase everything is growing (the moon on the increase is controlling top growth) if you want a plant to grow or you want to cut your hair you do so on fruitful days when the moon is on the increase, this is so that the plant grows or your hair will grow. When the moon is on the decrease all of the energy is going into the roots of the plant. Lets say I want to paint my house, then I would paint on a dry and airy sign. If I want to destroy weeds for good I would do so on a zodiac sign that is: barren, dry, fiery and barren . Aries, Gemini, and Leo would be excellent signs. Now don't get me wrong because some of your garden plants can be planted on these kind of days. Onions, are said to grow best if planted in Sagittarius even though it is a barren, dry etc. sign. If you think about it an onion would rot if planted in a wet sign. (Pisces) I hope this gives you an idea of how the signs work. Now for the moon, There are 4 quarters regarding the moon. There is the new moon, this is when the moon has completed all 4 qtrs and is starting over. The new moon is for balanced leaf and root growth. The 2nd qtr is for increased leaf growth. This is a good time for transplanting and grooming of your av. The full moon and up to the 4th qtr is for root growth. This is also the best time to plant new leaves, sew seeds, bulbs, plant perennials and biennials. transplanting of your avs at this time will give you a better root system. The 4th qtr is when everything rests. There is no root or top growth going on at this time. This is the best time to destroy bugs, destroy weeds, put herbs up to dry and harvesting of seeds . This is also a good time to remove dead limbs on your trees, plant etc. I hope that maybe I explained this so you can better understand. If one thinks about their grandparents, some of them probably did everything by the moon so to speak. No I am not wiccan, Native American, yes but that really doesn't have anything to do with the way I do things. I experimented and listened to what the older generation said. The older people sure made a lot of sense if people would listen. There are too many young adults and children today that will never have this knowledge. It is important to pass the knowledge on so that it doesn't get lost somewhere like in cyberspace. Happy Growing!!! Doris

"I'd give the moon if it were mine to give" -the Yardbirds, "For Your Love" A thought: if you could do anything with the moon, anything at all, put it wherever you wanted, decorated it whichever way, what would you do with it? I think I might sink it into the Atlantic for a wee little bit, just to see the ocean shine from the inside! Of course, my 'magical moon powers' would allow for the moon to actually shine after being plunked into the ocean. What a silly morning! Shelly

TUESDAY UPDATE: These are the questions currently open: What do you call.... #523...a laid-back creature (2,2) - Jasdip #530... a terrific decision (3,3) - moonie #532 ... the devil as a sideboard? (This might actually be a ~ ... not sure how common one word is.) (1,3) -chibimimi #551 ... a polite animal that's not native to North America (3,4) - Jasdip SOLVED cordial marsupial #556 ...to call up a formal examination of the facts? (2,2) - comtesse #570 ... a street vendor who sells non-filling food? (2,2) - chibimimi ?577 ...Herb with a bad vibe (4,3) - Outside #581 ...judge someone's mental fitness ahead of time (3,2) - Annie ~583 ... Helen Keller could be described as such (2,3) - Annie **587...buy your fare ahead of time for this transportation (2,2) - Annie #591 ... you are miffed that someone made a mess with chocolate candy (2,1) - Annie #593 ... make your ovaries dry up (1,3) - Annie **595 ... daylight shines on currency (2,2) - Annie SOLVED sunny money #601 ... watered down stand-in (2,3) - Annie SOLVED dilute substitute #602... a snifter-full at the ready (2,2) - Annie SOLVED handy brandy #603...it becomes this when the pope attaches a few pages together (2,2) - Annie SOLVED Papal staple #604 ... you wash Mama Sheep (2,1) - Annie SOLVED shampoo ewe #605... take this class to learn how to race cars. (2,3) - moonie #606... to question the prisoner. (4,2) - moonie SOLVED interrogate inmate #607... fearless outlaw (3,3) - moonie ** 608 ... run-of-the-mill tile art? (3,3) -- chibimimi SOLVED prosaic mosaic # or ~ 609 ... elaborate fortune-telling? (2, 4) -- chibimimi #610 ... out-of-time word puzzle? (5,3) -- chibimimi #611 ... childhood disease of a ferret's cousin? (2,2) -- chibimimi **612 ... a ballad about chopped veggies? (2,2) -- chibimimi #613 ... a faux boundary? (4,4) -- chibimimi #614 ... the difference between true north and magnetic north? (4,4) --chibimimi ALL NEW PLAYERS WELCOME! Please post all guesses, comments and questions on the other SinisterMinister thread. You'll also find general discussion there, and sometimes extra clues from the setters. NOTE: ** clues are ones the author considers easier ~ clues use difficult or unusual vocabulary words % clues that use slang or contractions like ain't or somethin' ? clues that are a pun, quip, quirky or humorous Happy rhyming! :-)

Many good quotes today. Barbara Walters's quotes I practically saw happening, since I remember when she joined NBC and remember the fuss which some people made. Wish Shel Silverstein still would be here and write. One of the authors I miss. Luanne Rice's books I really like and look forward to the next one.