There is no proof, only conjecture, about Einstein actually being in the autistic spectrum. He did have eccentricities and undoubtedly had a brain with unusual wiring. It's not all that rare in highly intelligent children to be bored silly with anything they don't deem useful and the part of the brain processing numbers isn't the same one processing verbal communication. One sometimes grows at the expense of the other. Pick up an old book about psychology written in the infancy of its inception. All women were supposedly one breath away from hysteria. Children who did what we consider normal things now were supposed to go crazy. And children were strapped to toilets until they relieved themselves so they wouldn't develop compulsive personalities. No wonder they thought him retarded. His label was compliments of retroactive speculation. I suspect all humans have points where they'd test outside the range of normal if we gave them the 'right' tests. ;-)

I would like to go back to the VFT discussion, because sometimes I get too caught up in science discussions, and I do not have time for so much writing. Has any one ever seen a B52 with traps of more than 2" in size??? Because this plant is selling for $25.00 each with only one inch size traps. And until now, I have not found one pic on the net that shows me this is a true giant. I have Dingley Giants, Big Mouths, Dutch, Big Vigorous, and the Royal Red. Well, I have more cultivars than this, but these are the giants. In all my fifteen years growing these plants, I find that the trap sizes are as follows in smallest to largest: Dutch, Big Mouth, Dingley Giant, Royal Red, and the largest of them all.. The Big Vigorous. This plant without seen the label I can spot it in my CP garden because it always deploys large traps. So I am wondering if the B52 might trully be bigger than the Big Vigorous, or would the Big Vigorous win in size. The greatest thing about the Big Vigorous is that the traps are not only larger than any other cultivar I know, but the traps teeth are thick making the plant look stronger which is why it is call Vigorous. In my garden I actually have others that are bigger than even the Big Vigorous, but they are plants that I grew from seeds and have not registered them as cultivars. I am looking for the largest traps in the world and they might be right in my garden..... that is if the B52 is not as large as they claim. I guess the best thing to do would be to buy one, and grow it big myself. So my next question woould be....Does any one knows a good reputable place to buyt this plant?

Christy, Spring cuttings grow on well - no special problems. I usually take them a little later and they get outside faster (a good thing). But I got some bare-root plants in November that I kept in a minimally heated sunroom and some of them started leaf bud swelling, so I took all my cuttings on Feb. 20. I bought eight varieties: Black Mission, English Brown Turkey, Hardy Chicago, LSU Everbearing, LSU Gold, LSU Improved Celeste, LSU Purple and Sal's. The Black Mission were the first to show roots. I had started them horizontally in a box with sand (a variation of elder's technique) and there were very long roots showing on the bottom of the box on March 3 (11 days). I also tried some Black Mission wrapped in newspaper hanging upside down in my boiler room. One of those was rooted on March 2. I potted the rest of the Black Mission today (22 days). This is the first time that I've had this variety, and I thought that it must be an easy rooter! It was the variety showing the most green in the leaf buds and the fastest to root. The other varieties showing a good deal of green were LSU Improved Celeste and LSU Gold. The Celeste had roots on March 6 (14 days) and the Gold had initials on March 10 (18 days). Both are potted at this point. Of the other varieties above, none were showing green and none have rooted yet. A fig that I've had for a number of years, Alma, has also rooted. It was in the garage and I took cuttings at the same time. You could tell it was coming out of dormancy, but it wasn't as far along as the BM, LSU IC, or LSU G. I potted 5 of them today (22 days). This is intriguing. It seems worth trying spring harvested cuttings on hard to root varieties - if you can protect your plants so that there is no winter die back. I've tried several rooting methods: elder's, my upside down in newspaper, and Jon's. Elder's worked fine, but not knowing what was going on - not being able to see the cuttings - drove me crazy. Mine was OK, I could unwrap and see any problems (had to mist once with 50-50 hydrogen peroxide and water when some mold started) and root formation. But Jon's was the best. Much easier to keep an eye on what was happening - no need to unwrap - everything very visible. As for "other" cuttings - just about everything. The trick is figuring out the "window" - the period of time each particular plant is most likely to co-operate, and what part of the plant gives the best results. Propagation books usually have tables giving cutting times for various plants and which types of cuttings are best (tip, basal, etc.). Great fun.

I feel like such a creature of habit. I've been using Kirkland brand shampoo/conditioner for at least 3 years, my hairdresser always compliments me on how healthy my hair is, despite the fact that it's colored/highlighted. It's sulfate-free, and very cheap. And my DH doesn't mind using it as well so we have one less bottle in the shower. In 2016, I started a new skincare regime. Previously, I used Cetaphil wash and Oil of Olay moisturizer with sunscreen, which was what was recommended to me by my dermatologist in my teens. I just started using Retin-A again after 10 years of not using it, and my skin is consequently flaky and dry, so I started using Cerave AM sunscreen and Cerave PM moisturizer. And some Cerave cream that I bought for my baby on the driest spots. I discovered these Burts' Bees lip shimmers which are a lip balm with a hint of color. I had stopped using Burts' Bees a number of years ago. I had a very special dog, Pepper, a black and tan Cavalier King Charles spaniel, who loved the menthol fragrance of the Burts' stuff and would eat an entire tube whenever she could. So I stopped buying it so she wouldn't get sick. On the way to her final visit with the vet while she was dying of heart failure, we stopped to buy her a tube so she could lick it while she went to sleep :( Needless to say I didn't buy it for a while, but time does heal wounds, and I have fond memories of Pepper when I use it. I have Champagne which is just a little shimmer and Fig which is a better than natural type color. I still use Aquaphor at night though. Off of the skincare/haircare topics, I recently discovered the Anova sous vide cooking machine. I don't actually have one yet, but I borrowed one from my brother, and it's awesome. I individually vacuum sealed chicken breasts with a little lemon and parsley, then cooked them, then froze them in the same bag. Now when I want a quick lunch I can just defrost one, and they are very flavorful and moist and healthy. I did my Christmas ham in it, and I also did pork chops and the best duck breast I ever made during the week that I had it. I am a pretty decent cook, but this thing is so much fun! You can also make up sous vide packets ahead of time and keep in the freezer, then cook from frozen, then sear. I really want one but I am waiting for a sale or holiday (Valentines' Day?) to get one.