Life Style & Travel

UNITED STATES—The original Dodge Dart, with the slant-six engine, was not much to look at, but was built to last. While cars were expected to last 10 years or a hundred thousand miles, Darts easily lasted twice as long or twice as far. A few are still going now! Such resiliency really made a reputation for Dodge. The problem...

UNITED STATES—'Chill' could almost be a pleasant euphemism for 'frost'. Both words describe cool or cold weather that occurs during winter. The obvious difference is that one is good, and one is bad. Chill is a minimum duration of cool weather that some plants require through winter to maintain their schedules. Frost is weather that is cool enough to...

UNITED STATES—When a fatality as final and conflated as that which occurs, a void descends upon a family. A home, a blank wall which gets sealed with a photo of the one who was taken. There will be a wall festooned with many photos from the football fields and the plantation hot springs, and especially those polished studio photographs...

UNITED STATES—It is funny how so many different plants get here from all over the world, and then become so popular so far from their natural homes that they seem to have always been here. It is now hard to imagine that some of the more popular cymbidium orchids actually came from tropical and subtropical Asia and northern Australia....

UNITED STATES—Boston ivy and creeping fig are good aggressive vines for freeway overpasses and sound-walls. They are resilient to harsh exposures and pollution, and help to muffle the sound of traffic. Boston ivy provides remarkable foliar color in autumn before defoliating in winter. Creeping fig provides thick evergreen foliage that overwhelms any graffiti that it can reach. However, their aggressive...

UNITED STATES—I love all things spicy, but even I have my limits. I love the habanero pepper, but that is probably the hottest that I will ever go. On top of that, the ghost pepper which I have always been tempted to cook with scares me to the death. With that being said, most Americans are more familiar with...

UNITED STATES—There is so much more to gardening than mere horticulture. There is so much more to horticulture than mere plant life. Plants get eaten by insects and animals, and also take advantage of insects and animals for pollination and dispersion of seed. Some of us who enjoy gardening also like to attract some types of animals and insects...

UNITED STATES—Winter is generally the best season for pruning. Obviously, it is when a majority of plants are dormant, and therefore most complaisant to such potentially invasive procedures. Of course, there are exceptions to this generalization. A few plants are dormant during other seasons. Some simply prefer late pruning to accommodate their bloom or fruiting cycles. Late pruning is important...

ROSEVILLE—According to their website, lead-k.org, LEAD-K, Language Equality and Acquisition For Deaf Kids is a civil rights movement in direct response to the growing epidemic of language deprived Deaf children who have been denied ASL skills, which has an irreparable impact on their education and developmental years. Most Deaf children denied ASL are not Kindergarten-ready by the time they are at...

LOS ANGELES—With interest rates at record lows and a rebounding real estate market may make it seem like it’s easier than ever to buy a home or rental property. The truth, however, is a little more complicated. Even those in the midst of a purchase sometimes see their deal fall right out of escrow and down the tubes for good....