Leaving the house can be somewhat of a chore. Some days it's nice to be secluded in my apartment, reading or watching television. However, once I step foot outside of the apartment, I immediately feel a warm pleasantness come over me. Rick's garden sprawls across the small front yard. The garden is an explosion of all kinds of different plants, colors and textures. With every new day of spring and summer, there is always something new and interesting blooming, making for a pleasant surprise. There are traditional beauties like roses and irises, but also plants to satisfy unusual tastes such as Mullens, which grow over six feet and are covered in pods and look as if they arrived from anoth

Needless to say, the Super Bowl is a huge deal. Millions upon millions of advertisers' dollars go into it. The spirit and enthusiasm of hundreds of millions people are vested in this one showdown of the "best of the best." In the South, it is a little different. Football is not a sport but the sport to Southerners. It is a common occurrence for people to ride through town replicating rebel yells to the best of their ability just over a high school game. Yes, a local high school game... The Southern reaction to a college game is a similar one but with an underlying hostility. Everyone has a team they are rooting for either because it is nearby or their alma mater. The camps separate and st

Originally from the Deep South, the comfort food I grew up on was fried chicken, mac and cheese and mustard greens. My dad, a chef of sorts, would come up with new family classics monthly, be it a rare steak, chicken Marsala, pulled pork sandwiches, fried catfish or tilapia covered in scallops and mushrooms. It was not until I was fifteen that our small town got its first Mexican restaurant. This was a very cosmopolitan event for most Natchezians who had grown up on soul food with the exception of Chinese or Italian for special occasions. However, the specialty of the sole Mexican restaurant was the fajitas. Don't get me wrong. They were fabulous but my dad had been making them sporadical

As of 9:54 CST 11/03/08, my vote was received by Adams County, MS. Will it count?  Who knows?  At least I tried. Here's to hoping Adams County will be an Obama one.

There is nothing I enjoy more on a stressful day than to go for a walk around Midtown. I love to watch the trees changing colors and losing leaves. I love the various dog walkers and their curious pooches, sniffing everything in sight. I love the craggy old men stumbling along, lost in thought. Most of all, I love going to Sutter's Fort and feeding the ducks who are always ecstatic to see me. That short walk is the perfect de-stressor to life and can elevate my day from so-so to good. The only thing that majorly detracts from this is the bicyclists. First of all, I would like to state clearly that I have the utmost respect for those choosing walking, bicycling and using public transportat

Thanks again so much for the suggestions! It took me years to find all the good taquerias in the Bay Area because I was too shy to ask. You guys have given me a ton of thoughtful feedback. I will take Ben's suggestion and try all the recommended places in the near future... like over the next few weeks. I will compose some kind of scoring system and feast. The results of this quest will be posted as a follow-up article. (Alejandro, I have a bit of a hectic schedule and may not be able to make it to Napa any time soon. I will not forget your recommendations and will totally look those places up. I need a vacation soon!) Thanks again and I hope my follow-up will spark nearly half as much interest.

As I was reading your article, I was reminded of lyrics from a Bob Dylan song: "Old lady judges watch people in pairs Limited in sex, they dare To push fake morals, insult and stare" I guess what I am trying to say is that we get progressively more jaded with age and, sadly, we take it out on happy people. Whether is because of missed opportunities, bad experiences or being cynical we look at young people being in love as temporary or do not give it its due.

Hmm... Go to a certain locale at a certain time of day. I like that. It has a certain mysterious and dramatic flair. Thanks a lot for the tip.

Thanks for the recs, Patrick, and for confirming my fear that I will never be within walking distance of a great burrito. I expected so much but that hasn't stopped my friends from trying to pump me up with false hope. The honesty is greatly appreciated. I will definitely look into Ay Jalisco and El Herradero.

Heh... I like your narrative. I have read much less comprehensive tips in In Style magazine (where consumers are paying at least $5 per issue.) When will beautiful girls get that spotty tans are not doing them any favors? Cheers to volunteering your beauty tips for free