Tell the manager that if they don't remove the diseased plants that you will be calling the State Dept of Agriculture to report them. Then do so if need be. Steve

Modern builders seem to have bought into the idea that everything is DISPOSABLE. You use it and then throw it away. Even seashells (the original creatures in the shells) keep on adding on as the animal inside grows. Only the hermit crabs who live in a shell long enough to grow into it, and then abandon it for a larger one as the crab gets bigger, those are the disposable critters. But then our economy has put a hitch in our gitalongs, and the "starter home" that was OKAY as long as the new couple could afford to move on up as the family grew, well, they cannot sell that starter home, and it is suddenly a trap they will have to come to terms with. Because with TWINS on the way, they need more space, or suddenly one of them is working at home part-time, and they need room for an office. And they must have two cars but the garage is full of STUFF and only room for ONE CAR in the driveway. So they pave a narrow strip off the side, if there is room, and then the neighbor starts turning around on it instead of backing out into traffic every morning. Or, there is a problem with the garbage can sitting near the only entry for guests, and trying to hide it from view is an issue. Not a big one, but I mean it is not the most attractive welcome, is it.... I like multi-use spaces. Which is why I think a carport that is toward the back end of a driveway is a perfect place to use for a cookout, maybe a party can take cover there when it rains. It makes a great space for the ice cream freezer and a picnic table when the temp is hovering at 100 F. And a row of container plants can find shade there, and vines can grow up the support posts. It can look really nice, and give the illusion of privacy without too much effort. What I've discovered this last week as I packed up a PODS, and what my DH commented on tonight, was that the house is still not looking empty. True true. We got rid of about 7500 pounds of STUFF, and the house is not empty yet. I told him that it looks like the house has BREATHING ROOM. Sort of like a diner who has to let his belt out a notch or two after Thanksgiving dinner, the house is giving a sigh of relief to finally have room to relax. Not so devastating when something is out of place now, because it doesn't look so overcrowded. Mercy, it took me a long time to convince him to let me do this. You know, I'd still be carrying things back to Alabama in a "body bag" strapped to the top of the car otherwise!! And up here in MA, it is hard to dispose of things, but in AL I can have one hellashus yard sale you betcha.....I will be thinking twice before bringing new purchases home with me. Books, however, are a particular weakness of both my DH and myself. So I'm trying to convert to e-books as much as possible. Easier to find them that way too. But my picture books are still something I love to touch. Paper is so satisfying a medium for color prints. Gotta go to bed, folks. Keep up the good work.

I don't like to see animals abused. But - I don't like to see people abused, either. When upwards of a million people were killed in Rwanda in something like 100 days, in 1994, we said that we were not going to stand for such to happen again. But it has been going on in several parts of Africa, including the Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo ... and Sudan. For years. And what have we been doing about it? The killing and systematic/purposeful raping of many thousands. And pushing hundreds of thousands out of their ancestral lands. Pretty well ... ... nothing. Doesn't say much good about our vaunted humanitarianism. ole joyful

(((alisande))) Here, I'll make it the third one? Maybe. I was driving home the other day, and I had a blowout! Not just a flat tire. We heard BANG! and I said, what was that? He said maybe we ran over a rock? And then the car started to try to swerve. I did keep control and then I heard it--a flat tire. As I pulled over, it was smoking! Smelled like burned rubber to me, and it practically welded the tire to the axle?! What's worse? I just got the car in July (used, it's 18 years old) and I hadn't checked the spare to make sure it fit and was in good shape :O The equipment to change the tire didn't really fit or work well :( The jack would only turn a half turn at a time. The tire iron was too long? It kept hitting the ground. What was cool though? Someone else had fixed a flat in the exact same spot, and accidentally left a tire iron-that fit my bolts. I had another shorter tire iron, but it too, did not fit. So it took three tire irons, a lot of turning for the jack, and holding my breath for the tire to work. Yep, the tire turned out ok. I had planned to buy new tires next month, but now, I will have new tires this weekend. Two more days instead of two more weeks... hurray! Back to normal then. Whew. Now, we don't need a third car incident. How's that for closing the loop? Well, I tried!