I am down in the Bay Area, warmer but our nighttime temps can get into the high 20's. I just started my tomato seeds last weekend. I plant the seeds in 6 oz yogurt cups with 4 holes punched in the bottom (about 3mm each). I plant in plain old Supersoil Potting Mix. I put the soil in the cups dry then soak it through really good. Plant a seed in each one then spritz once more with a pump sprayer just to make sure the seed is good and moist. I keep the cups in a plastic tray with a dome, but any kind of loose cover to keep in humidity will work. I've used a plastic Rubbermaid bin that I've drilled holes in the top. That works. I leave them in the house until they sprout. I water them about once a week using a pump sprayer so as not to disturb the soil. Soak them until water starts dripping out the holes in the bottom. In the larger yogurt cups, you don't need to water more often than every 5-7 days, but when you do water, don't be stingy. The split second they sprout (and I mean split second to keep them from bolting for sun), I move them out to my workshop, which is a Tuff Shed unheated. They go under plain old shop lights. I have some reflective insulated panels I place around the seeds. The lights provide enough heat, and the insulated panels holds the heat in well enough even on those cold nights. I leave the lights on a timer about 14 hours a day (5 a.m. to 7 p.m.) and try to keep them about 2 inches above the plants, which means you'll need to be able to adjust the height as the seedlings grow. Below is a link to my gardening blog which shows my seed set-up out in the shop. I've never had a solitary problem, and all the plants I start from seed always outperform the occasional plants I might pick up at a garden store. I buy good seeds though. Johnny's is my choice, but there are other reputable companies. When the tomatoes outgrow the yogurt cups, I move them up to the Solo (keggar cups, I call them). By then, the weather is getting close to planting and I start leaving them in the yard during the day and bringing them in at night. You'll see lots of posts on my blog under the label "Seed Starting" that has plenty of pictures. Hope this helps! Incidentally, it's the folks on this forum who taught me most everything I needed when starting my garden, so you're definitely in the right place! Here is a link that might be useful: Tomato Seed Starting

Sochi, of course, you are right: everyone is different and their family situations and housing needs differ. That said, I am constantly amazed at the number of postings here asking for comment on floor plans which are often so similar to one another and often so very large. The similarity among many plans posted here tends to indicate that builders go to home shows and conventions where this year's "house of the year" is featured and bring some or all of those features to incorporate into their line-up. Doesn't matter too much if the builder is in North Carolina or California; climate, site conditions, local and regional conditions don't matter too much. Many of the houses look closely related, both in floor plan layout and in exterior appearance. When it comes to size, it takes builders about the same amount of time to build a 3,500-4,000 SF as it does a 2,500 SF house. The larger houses give such a greater return to the builder, so it's easy to see why there are so many large houses on the market and being built. When a prospective homeowner, particularly someone who may be building their first custom house, looks at plan after plan of this over inflated type and size it doesn't take long for a prospective homeowner to think they really need all those feature and all that size! If the family is only two people, perhaps with a small child, the large house is often justified as "my forever house", or "needed for resale in this neighborhood". No one seems to accept that real estate statistics suggest the average home owner sells their home every 5-8 years, and that it's not mandatory to move into a neighborhood of 5,000 SF, 6-bedroom houses! One has to be pretty creative (and persistant) to find and design a "smaller" house that really fits their needs and some of their critical wants! But, everyone is different, and as long as the budget permits, why not? Only some thoughts...

I didn't think to do that, but I imagine it's about the same age as the house: 100 yrs old. Its twin is on the other side of the walkway by the new compost pile and is probably feeling surprised right now and wondering its fate. There was also a massive elm that died a long time ago, but I think they grow bigger. One limb heated the house for two years. That's the wood compost I now use. We cut that ourselves and couldn't move the pieces they were so heavy. By the driveway is another huge liquidambar (sweet gum) that was planted in the teens or twenties for Arbor Day. They were giving them out for planting and the original owners' kids planted them. Now I park my car under its shade, but worry about limbs falling. They look small far away, but are really heavy. There are quite a few of these beauties in the neighborhood from that time. The original landscapers and builders really thought about shading the house in summer and solar gain in the winter. They chose unusual species and natives as well. Such forethought is generally unheard of today, but it wouldn't be that difficult or expensive to incorporate these ideas that worked so well. I'll need to replace the awnings now that the tree won't shade the front rooms.

How do you get salt inside a baked potato? Or do you eat them without salt? I sometimes eat potatoes without salt, and the same for squash and corn. I find that salt on these (and a few other vegetables) detracts from the natural sweetness of the vegetable. I do not consider it a flavor enhancer. I like to add herbs at the end (such as parsley and basil) or else the flavor gets cooked out. I also often cut the salt in a new recipe in half, as I find that most people like more salt than I do. I pretty much never add salt at the table, but I will add pepper. The flavor of pepper changes when it is cooked, and sometimes I want that change and sometimes I do not. I often prefer to add olive oil at the end also. When I sauté mushrooms, I add pepper (and sometimes dried thyme) while cooking, but I never add pepper to cooked mushrooms. I also do not add any salt to mushrooms, but I will often add a bit of white wine at the end and allow that to evaporate. If I want salt on a baked potato, I have no problem with the salt being on the food instead of in it. I sometimes add sumac to rice after it is cooked but never before, and I have some za'atar that I add to some dishes at the table. Other spice mixtures I add during the cooking process. I made pita bread last night and added za'atar to the pita before baking it, and I did not remember that I had pepper or chili powder in the za'atar, as I store it in the freezer, since it has sesame seeds in it. I also made hummus, and I often add extra ingredients to hummus after it has been made, particularly olives and maybe a bit more olive oil. When I make fresh pasta, I add salt to the dough and none to the cooking water.