I know a lot of people say you can't start seeds without a grow light setup and heat mat, but I've been successfully starting all kinds of seeds every year with just a south-facing window. Sometimes there are leggy seedlings, especially if we've had a lot of overcast days when they sprout, but I've planted them deeper if possible and they've worked out just fine. To be honest, I see the minimal requirements for a beginner gardener to be a few tools like spade and trowel, seeds, and seed starting soil. Not much expense at all. Like the rest of us, gardeners just catching the bug this year will collect up the rest over the next couple of years, fencing next year IF they have a problem with deer or rabbits, maybe a canner or dehydrator the year after when they get more confident and enlarge their tomato patch. If they REALLY catch the gardening bug, a rain barrel or composter. If they want to get into a competition with their neighbours for the earliest tomato, they can get a heat mat and grow light setup to get a jump start on the year. They can try all sort of different tomato cages to see which ones suit their needs best. Keep in mind these things are optional and free alternatives are possible. I use hockey sticks with broken blades from the arena for my tomato stakes. (Nice and sturdy!) Composters can easily be made with free materials or just a compost heap used. A drum to use as a rain barrel can be found for free from some places, but plastic food grade drums can be bought for less than $20.00 if you're willing to cut the top off yourself. Seeds can be started in a south window using free materials. Someone suggested yogurt containers, which is a great idea. Check recycling bins if you don't buy yogurt for yourself. Most soil is at least marginally OK for growing plants so replacing your own soil with topsoil is optional. For those who have really bad soil, some form of lasagna gardening might suffice. We all want the best soil but sometime we have to work with what we got, yet we still manage to get food out of the ground. My point is...for those of you who are just starting out, don't be discouraged by what is being said in this thread. Sometimes, gardening is just as easy as sticking a plant in the dirt and letting it grow. It doesn't have to be expensive and it doesn't have to be backbreaking. As you learn and get experience, then think about expanding the garden and canning food for the winter.

Freshman, You asked if I saw the Whirlpool Latitude (their new ~28 cu ft French-door refrigerator). Sorry it's taking me so long to respond, but construction to repair flood damage here has kept me busy. Yes, I did look at the Latitude on a couple of occasions. I think it will be strong competition for the Samsung, containing most of the same features. The Latitude does offer a superior ice maker that is in the door and the bin is easily removable. The display has more info than the Samsung, such as the TOD, and the water dispenser is adjustable, so you can fill large vessels. What it is missing is the twin-cooling, but I haven't been convinced that's important. I dismissed the Whirlpool for my application solely because of esthetic design considerations. My kitchen and family room are one open space, and the fridge dominates, so getting the prettiest "monster" is very important. I need a black refrigerator (only because SS have grey sides -- anyone know of a SS with black sides?), and the Whirlpool black is a tinny looking metal vs the shine of the Samsung. I also am not wild about the design of the handles, but I could live with them if the finish suited me. I was told that KA will probably introduce a similar FD in about a year after the bugs have been worked out of the Latitude. I would expect the KA to have a bit more "polished" look. I think the Latitude would be a nice addition to many kitchens, it just doesn't seem to fit mine. I hope this helps. Ellencr

I've been thinking...what I really want, is the courage to follow my gut. I made the mistake of telling someone about the plan to paint the entryway pink, and I got that "Oh..." Then I found fabric I like for some chairs. For the pink entry. Looked at the swatch for a few days, decided it was the perfect thing, drove the 25 miles back to the fabric store, carefully measured it out with the chair pattern, bought it, brought it home, and my parting thought when I went to bed was that it would never work, the cats would shred it, it was the wrong weave, the wrong color, and would look like a hot mess. Today, not so much.

May_flowers, I understand that not everyone lives in a home that you can make drastic changes to. I am one of them! My comment (and I think californiagirl's comment) was referring to showcase kitchens where the budget is more than ample to address issues like windows. It wasn't intended as a judgement of people who are dealing with midsize/midprice kitchens in the real world. We all have to make trade-offs that fit our needs and budgets. I am just sharing my strong personal bias towards facilitating light flow. I've had to make tough choices to make that a priority in my tiny kitchen. I will not have ample storage space in my new kitchen, because I'm forgoing upper cabinets, for example. We're a family of four and I cook big scratch meals every night as well as regular cooking of breakfasts and lunches so we *do* have storage needs. Some of my canned goods will probably end up in a crate on my balcony! But I care more about the light/space - it's a trade-off that works for me and I understand that it would not work for many. If I had to look at a neighbour's wall in order to get natural light into my kitchen, I probably would stick curtains over the window and be OK with that. But I understand that others have different priorities. Part of it is that I live in the PNW where light can be scarce at certain times of the year. I know that some of you live in climate where there's tonnes of sunlight year round. Perhaps a windowless room feels different in that situation?