I now realize I'll have to choose the winners and get your addresses well in advance of the mailing day, so when I do announce the winners, using your GardenWeb handle and real name you will have to give me your mailing addresses. I should think I should allow several weeks for that to happen, don't you think, so I'll get the winners out in the first week of July. Send that information to me at cactusmcharris at geemaildotcom but use the appropriate spelling and punctuation in the email address for me. That's all for now, folks. Again, rots of ruck. And one more thing - upon review, the offering 'What Kinda Cactus Izzat?' isn't really all that helpful and, not to put too fine a point to it, is more than a bit juvenile. However, as you may have guessed, I'm a pseudointellectual elitist snob, part of the so-called coffeehouse illiterati. So public self-analysis aside, I'm thinking of just getting rid of it altogether in the going-to-the-thrift store box, rather than making it one of the prizes. What do you think?

Annpan, yes, that was the stuff. Probably came from Gaylord. It seems like the majority of library supplies came from them. Actually, writing your initials or whatever mark you choose to remind yourself that you've already read this book doesn't strike me as so bad. When my mother in law was bedridden, I took large print mysteries to her by the dozens. I used to make a small mark in the back so I knew what she had already read. It was on the same page as the pocket for the date card was glued, so the page was already less than pristine. I remember some people doing this and also adding a "review" such as "A+" or "PU". Here's my latest peeve. My library now puts the bar code on the front cover of the book -- on the plastic cover. Whoever puts them on does not always consider what they are covering. I just read Nemesis by Philip Roth and the title (in smallish print) was nearly obliterated.

One thing I didn't mention was that this lady retired & moved a couple hundred of miles away to be closer to her unmarried son, her only child, & that was the reason she sold her(now our) long-time house. Unfortunately, two years later, this son died of cancer at the age of 40. I don't know if he was also a smoker, but his early death certainly may likely have been caused by that and/or second-hand smoke. She did a good job in clearing out her house for our move-in, but a few years later, way in the back of a built-in cabinet drawer, I found her son's baby book from 1935, including notations on his baby shower. Since I heard from a neighbor that he had passed away, I wasn't sure if it would just bring back bad memories, but decided to have my husband drop it off on his way to a ski trip. He said she seemed appreciative of receiving the baby book back, although our only previous personal contact with her left us with the impression that she was not the most pleasant person.

Our local library lends out canning equipment like jar lifters and wire baskets for scalding fruit, both pressure and hot water bath canners, the Ball Blue Book and they have a community garden behind the library. They also have a seed library where you can take whatever you need, and they ask that you bring back seeds for the next year, it doesn't have to be the same kind you checked out. No baking pans, though... Annie