Baseball

“I wrote 63 songs this year. They’re all about Jeter.” Just kidding. The game we love, the players we hate, and more.

Culture and Criticism

From Norman Mailer to Wendy Pepper — everything on film, TV, books, music, and snacks (shut up, raisins), plus the Girls’ Bike Club.

Donors Choose and Contests

Helping public schools, winning prizes, sending a crazy lady in a tomato costume out in public.

Stories, True and Otherwise

Monologues, travelogues, fiction, and fart humor. And hens. Don’t forget the hens.

The Vine

The Tomato Nation advice column addresses your questions on etiquette, grammar, romance, and pet misbehavior. Ask The Readers about books or fashion today!

The Vine: March 9, 2011
March 9, 2011 · 22 Comments
The Vine: March 9, 2011

I got home from a vacation with friends a couple of weeks ago, and I’ve been wondering on and off about my mental state since then.
I’d really been looking forward to this trip ever …

TN Read-Along #8: Little Women Discussion Thread
March 8, 2011 · 89 Comments
TN Read-Along #8: <I>Little Women</I> Discussion Thread

Touched to the heart, Mrs. March could only stretch out her arms as if to gather children and grandchildren to herself, and say, with face and voice full of motherly love, gratitude, and humility:
“O my …

Paddysnack
March 7, 2011 · 58 Comments
Paddysnack

During a quick run to the deli for coffee and kitty litter, I spotted a sign at the dollar store: “HAPPY EASTER.” That means it’s Peep season. Even better, that means it’s “guess the brand …

The Vine: March 4, 2011
March 4, 2011 · 38 Comments
The Vine: March 4, 2011

A really quick Ask The Readers query — can any members of the glorious Nation point me in the direction of any useful infertility forums? Hubs and I are really going through the mill at …

Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman
March 3, 2011 · 13 Comments
<I>Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman</I>

I’ve read Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild and Into Thin Air several times each, and I ripped through Under the Banner of Heaven in a day and a half; his prose is among the most …

Tomato Nation Read-Along #8: Poll
March 2, 2011 · 11 Comments
Tomato Nation Read-Along #8: Poll

After losing out to Zinn by a mere two votes, the Shannen Doherty book is back for another crack at the TNRA, along with Grann’s nonfiction yarn; a fistful of Alcott; and a couple of …

The Vine: March 2, 2011
March 2, 2011 · 34 Comments
The Vine: March 2, 2011

My best friend (who was just my maid of honor in my wedding back in October) and I have been friends since we were 10. We are now both nearly 34. That’s a long time …

And Then There Were Three
March 1, 2011 · 90 Comments
And Then There Were Three

Mabel, formerly “Mei-Mei,” formerly “Betty,” arrived at my house July 4th weekend as a foster cat, tiny, bitter, and silent. At first, she hid on a bathroom shelf, and tried to impersonate a Scrubbing Bubble …

Bradelor! DUN!: Live-Chat Sleepover!
February 28, 2011 · 3 Comments
Bradelor! DUN!: Live-Chat Sleepover!

…In which we braid each other’s hair, eat tons and tons of candy, and debate whether Brad has any idea where anyone’s rosebud is and/or what to do with it. Chat goes live at 7:45 …

Oscars 2011 Death Race: Picks/Postmortem
February 27, 2011 · 13 Comments
Oscars 2011 Death Race: Picks/Postmortem

I didn’t do so well on these last year, which I think is because of the Death Race, not in spite of it — but perhaps I can improve my percentages in ’11. From a …