For winter reading, try Gaia's Garden. The writer's garden was in Oregon and he gives lots of excellent ways of yearound gardening. The magic moment for winter sown veggie crops is 10hrs of daylight. Around early October. Plants need to be a certain size by then in order to produce in winter. I bet your chard will come on strong with the increasing spring light! Eliot Coleman is another great resource for yearround gardening. Jim Here is a link that might be useful: Eliot Coleman Four Season's Farm

Pete: Below are a couple of websites to consider when you are looking. I'll ask around the office regarding independent living facilities in the area. The only one I know of like you are describing is closer downtown on the west side (it's at Mesa and Spicewood Springs). I've known of a couple of people whose mothers were there and both were satisfied with the care received (they required some kind of minimal assistance -- medication, etc., but were otherwise independent). The first one was there over 10 years ago and the second one passed away a few years ago, so my info is a bit dated, but I still work with the daughter of the second one and I'll ask her if she considered any places closer to the northeast side. That's hilarious information about Tahitian. I don't doubt it for a minute. I bet that there will soon be more services for the elderly. There's now the Lakeside Hospital which is right next to Tahitian, so at least you don't have to go so far for minor emergencies. I understand they're building some sort of cancer facility next door, or something like that. Anyway, the more doctors living and working in the area will hopefully improve things. I know TV isn't any kind of Sun City (just that it was proposed as a retirement country club enclave at one point), as I currently live in TV (where all my neighbors in my cul de sac are retired except myself and one other). The further you get into the subdivison, the quieter it is. I used to live in Cedar Creek (near McKinney Roughs) on 9 acres and my place in TV is way quieter. Also, I now have an ironclad excuse to not come into the office on bad weather days, as there's no way I can get out of my cul de sac, let alone Tahitian Drive when there's ice on the road. Back when I lived in Cedar Creek I would still go in as the roads were all flat and not difficult to maneuver (I lived in Maine before Texas and so while I don't enjoy that kind of driving, it's a foreign concept to me to not go into work anyway). http://memberofthefamily.net/tx.htm http://www.medicare.gov/NHCompare/Include/DataSection/Questions/SearchCriteria.asp?version=default&browser=IE%7C6%7CWinXP&language=English&defaultstatus=0amp;pagelist=Home&CookiesEnabledStatus=True Kerri

Don't do it. My daughter, now 28 and a mother, was looking through her senior yearbook today. I brought it up to her so she could find a classmate. As she went through the back of the book, she looked up and said "have I ever thanked you for NOT putting one of those stupid ads in the back of the yearbook?" Looking at them 10 years later, she said it was very embarrassing for her to see the ads her friends parents put in, and she couldn't imagine how awful they must feel now, especially the ones the kids did with their current boy or girl friend. I told her that it never occurred to me to place one of those ads, as I firmly believe in not embarrassing my children. Those ads seemed like an awful idea at the time, and they still do. If you have to do something, wish them all well and remind them that there is life after high school, and it just gets better and better.

Love this Lodis framed wallet, very, very slim, not at all bulky, is just a bit larger than a dollar bill (looks larger in photo), quick & easy to open & close, opens fully & will lie completely flat, very high quality, available in colors & patterns.