The best plants for the self-identified plant killer are plants that stretch and turn towards the sun, plants that send up tender new leaves that unfurl into fresh new shapes.  These plants are a joy to care for because they respond, they grow, they evolve in the shifting light.

Court it, coax it, goose it, dampen it — to produce a successful meal, one must become a master of the flame. Electric coils, smooth glass tops, living, jumping flames that ignite and sputter — they all demand your curiosity and reverence, or they will ruin everything.

We had a beautiful meal from his elegant, clean kitchen, used the spa-like bathroom, then headed home in the cold winter night. As we were pulling out of the long driveway, my daughter asked from the backseat, with concern in her voice, “Are they coming back?” We said, huh? Coming back? Who’s coming back? And she said, “The slobs, are the slobs coming back?” She was genuinely troubled, frightened by their power, but we couldn’t help laughing. Oh, the terrible scary slobs!!