Actually, there are a couple of temperate zone Dioscorea species that are hardy to about Zone 5. I have the Chinese Mountain Yam, which some sources label as D. batatas and others give a different specific name. Whatever it's called, it is fully hardy here, and makes a lot of white aerial tubers in late summer that are about the size of a nickle and taste basically like a slightly less starchy white potato. I like to gather them up and boil them whole and make them into potato salad -- my couple of vines usually yield up to 2 quarts of them. I did try digging up a small, self-sown one once, and it had a very small tuber, about 1 inch in diameter and 8 to 10 inches long. Never tried digging into the older ones, as both are planted on trellises in flower beds and I don't want to disturb them. Oikos, Raintree, and Sand Mountain Herb Farm all sell starts of this plant. Here is what Oikos has to say about them: Here is a link that might be useful: Oikos Tree Crops link about Chinese Mountain Yam

Clip Art Guy, please stop posting here! You need to read the Garden Web rules and regulations. Luvs

I'm new to this board as well. I am looking for ideas to downsize our stuff. It is so hard. I tend to want to save DD's too small dress for a cousin who lives an hour away and won't fit into it for 4 years. I pile, bag, save things only to find that recipients are overwhelmed with things and are not always willing to take on stuff they might need in a few years. It's a NOW world. Anyway, I feel I am always in put away / tidy mode and I can't progress to actual cleaning. I spray a little windex, throw down comet in the bathroom, laundy, cook, and dishes and that's about it. My swifter wet jet is a godsend. 24 hours in a day and 100 hours of chores to do. As for hobbies, I think they are very worthwhile (even though I don't have much time now for my top 10, or even top 3 thanks to full time job and mother to 2 busy gals). I gave up one craft that I very much enjoyed because I found it tiresome to constantly have to hunt down materials to make a new project exactly like the one I made last year. Also, I often spent alot more $ on my craft project than I could have bought a ready made for. Granted, I would have some extra materials, but not enough, so the buying cycle continued. I have noticed that people without hobbies, whether its music, exercise, art, crafts, wood work, genealogy, etc. are bored people and this multiplies as you age. So often, I see people who could easily retire continue to work just so they'll have something to do. I think that's sad.

Go to Google and click on images to do an image search for Indian and tomahawk. There are several pictures that you could print out or turn to black and white. I think it is legal to use these images as long as you're only using the picture for yourself.