veilchen: yes in general it is milder here, because of the costal location (We have the sea all around us ...so it takes longer time to get cold here (water takes longer time to cool down than land surfaces) than places with inland climate) and as long the the west wind blows and we have a constant stream of low pressures coming in from west it is mild here 34-45 degrees most of the winter. But every year a high pressure builds up and the bitter cold from east and north comes our way and temps drops below -16F- -10F or more for weeks sometimes months. And then it is certainly a zone 5 here and I choose roses accordingly. Only push the zones in sheltered locations and south facing walls. (Last winter was more like a zone 8 winter ...never seen that before here!!!).I always hope the winter is going to be mild ... At the end of winter in February and march we see very low temps since the ocean has become so much colder ... but yes a zone 5 with inland climate is much colder for longer time than here since the cold are more constant and comes earlier than here where we see great fluctuations. I love Papa Meilland. For me it is the quintessential red rose. Dark red, with a sheen like velvet! And a very, very strong perfume. Perfume Exceptional as Meilland says... It may not be an easy rose to grow (very mildew-prone here) and the plants are very small and barely hardy here. I have a few groups with 3-5 plants in my garden and a row of 12 in my cutting garden so I can cut one of these wonderful red roses many times during the season. There are many better HTs out there that are more disease resistant and hardier than this and looks better as garden plants...but that exceptional strong rose perfume and the velvety petals make forgive the flaws this rose have. And sometimes I am lucky enough to capture the beauty of almost perfect flower like this one... I really do like all classes of roses ... but I prefer roses with a very strong scent. Yes I also like the glowing colors on the Autumn picture. It may not be very sharp and a bit out of focus, but it did not make the impression worse since it captured the essence of Autumn some of the places I go fishing (Another one my hobbies). I sometimes make large prints of some of my pictures and frame them. I have really bought better cameras and lenses and hope you will enjoy some of the results next season. And no I do not Hibernate ... These days I really try to get in better shape so I can handle working harder ... making gardens for my clients (which takes good strength, especially a strong back and stronger shoulders)... I swim, do Pilates and work out with weights and work on better and healthier eating habits. I have lost 45 pounds during the last 15 weeks. I also need to take some courses so I can make some good homepages. One for my garden design business and one about the joy of gardening and roses. And another one about flyfishing and flytying (I am one of the best fly tiers in Northen Europe and have won many awards for my innovative designs). So I certainly do not have time to hibernate. Soon the holidays are coming and I am visiting friends in Chicago and Iowa. Hope to get to meet Foghorn Leghorn and maybe Aliska? Take Care all of my rose friends on this forum. Niels

THANK YOU so much for the birthday wishes!! Yesterday was a great day... I got to spend a few hours outside (in the heat!) "playing" with the hostas, which was awesome... potted up some "give-away" divisions of hostas that are duplicates (I love to enable others!!) Then we went out to dinner at Fleming's, a fantastic new-ish prime steakhouse in the area. The food was fantastic, I was stuffed to the brim! They provided a huge helping of freshly-baked peach cobbler a la mode as my birthday dessert, and I shared it with hubby :-) Then we went to see Pirates of the Caribbean 3, too fun! Hubby got me a gift certificate to a spa for a pedicure (I can't WAIT to go!), and hubby's parents sent me some $$ to get a new hosta, so Janice, you ARE psychic and I will be making a trip to Meadow View or Knollwood's, sometime soon! You all will probably laugh at this, but I had a bit of a "milestone" birthday yesterday... I turned 30 years old :-) I was a bit depressed to not be in my 20's anymore, but isn't 30 the new 20?? And I guess this is as good a thread as any to spill the beans on what Janice alluded to... I am 6 months pregnant with my first baby, a little girl, due on October 4th. My goal was to have my first child by the time I turned 30, and I *almost* made it! Well, thanks again for the birthday wishes!! Buff

A very happy birthday to you.......... Parmesan Pan Fried Tomatoes 1 cup all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon onion powder 2 teaspoons granulated garlic 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese 1 cup Panko Japanese breadcrumbs 12 slices tomatoes, sliced 1/2-inch thick (about 3 tomatoes) 2 large eggs 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 3 tablespoons olive oil Combine flour, onion powder, granulated garlic, salt and pepper. Mix well. In separate bowl combine panko and Parmesan. In third bowl combine eggs and mustard. Take slices of tomato and dip in flour, dust off excess. Then dip in egg mixture, letting excess drip off. Finally dip in parmesan/panko mixture, pressing Parmesan mixture onto slices for good coverage. Repeat until all slices are breaded. These should be stored in a single layer dusted lightly with extra crumbs. Heat olive oil in non-stick frying pan, over medium-high heat. Place 3 slices in pan, and let cook about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes on each side, until just golden brown. Don't flip too soon or Parmesan mix will fall off. Serve hot. Makes 4 servings. Linda in Tennessee

Thank you all! And a very happy birthday to Joan(my twin!!;) and monkeymama too!