I see small used JD riders on craigslist all the time, and some look like they are in real good shape. the prices are from $800 to $t500 dollars. I would not worry about the model year as much as I would condition. I would look for a LX model (top of the small rider mower line) and i would look for 1997 to 2000. My son-in-law has an old late 1960's model 111 that he used for years before he had to fix anything, and he stills mows with it.

Go to Craigslist.com and in the Free Stuff you will find posted for March wood chips, manure, etc. Good luck. I like using wood chips. Hay or straw will blow away. El

I was wondering about this as well, maridy. I saw some azaleas at one of the nurseries over the weekend that I thought would be perfect in my front yard. I didn't get it, though, because the rhodie I've tried growing has just about had it. Could be where I planted it, but I've tried it in two spots before I thought it was too weak for another transplant. I did get blooms from it last year though. I'd be interested in hearing if anyone else grows either here as well.

I was going to put my blood type on the helmet too, but an EMT told me he would never pay attention to what someone claims their blood type to be, he uses universal plasma and at the hospital they use a quick blood typing test. The risks of infusing an incompatible blood type are too high. Medical insurance information sounds like a good idea. Although [rant] have you checked what your "insurance" actually covers, lately? Our family of four pays about $16K/year in employee contribution. And our total family deductible is around $12K/year. We have not consumed over $12K/yr of medical care in at least ten years, probably not since the last child was delivered. Basically we pay $16K/year - and my company pays at least as much - for catastrophic coverage. On a day-to-day basis, every doctor visit and every prescription is coming out of my pocket. I'd rather we had the system they have in France. Everyone, rich or poor, has basic, no-frills medical coverage. Those who want nicer, fancier, more sophisticated treatment - private rooms, cutting-edge technology, $100K/yr drugs - have the option of buying commercial insurance policies, if they can afford it and want to. But everyone, rich and poor, has a basic and decent level of care. We may get a version of that in the US, starting in 2014. Maybe. "There's many a slip, 'twixt the cup and the lip." Who knows if it will actually happen. [/rant] After reading this http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/21/technology/bicyclists-using-cameras-to-capture-accidents.html I got interested in wearing a video camera, so you see on the helmet my initial experiment. It is not the $300 GoPro that a serious biker-recorder wears, but a $38 micro-cam from a Hong Kong mail order hobby shop. Meant for use in radio control aircraft, helos, etc. After experimenting with this cheap camera, I'm putting a nicer videocam on my Santa list. Aside from the "evidence" aspect, it is instructive to view a recorded ride and think about what dangers I did and didn't perceive at the time. I've been riding in traffic since I was a 7 y/o boy riding in downtown Vancouver B.C. on my Peugeot ten-speed, but I still make mistakes every day. Just like we all make mistakes driving, even though we've been doing it all our lives. I'll post a link to some video later. Here is a link that might be useful: NYT Story