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!

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Articles in The Vine

The Vine: February 3, 2012
February 3, 2012 – 12:28 PM | 50 Comments
The Vine: February 3, 2012

Okay, Nation: I need your help. Between claw pulls, tears, and the fullness of fashion time, my black-cardigan fleet is down to one acceptable option, and even that one is kind of a C-plus. I …

The Vine: February 1, 2012
February 1, 2012 – 3:02 PM | 57 Comments
The Vine: February 1, 2012

For the past couple of years, I have asked for my birthday/Christmas for a charitable donation (mainly DonorsChoose). I even had a housewarming and asked guests that instead of a hostess gift, they make a …

The Vine: January 27, 2012
January 27, 2012 – 10:03 AM | 10 Comments
The Vine: January 27, 2012

There is an earworm that has been crawling around inside my brain for the better part of three decades, and I am seeking the assistance of TN’s loyal readers in identifying (and possibly purging) it.
My …

The Vine: January 25, 2012
January 25, 2012 – 8:43 AM | 10 Comments
The Vine: January 25, 2012

If I am describing how something relates to another thing, I generally use “in relation to” or “in respect of.” However, I keep seeing the phrase “with respect to” used in the same way. My …

The Vine: January 20, 2012
January 20, 2012 – 9:25 AM | 10 Comments
The Vine: January 20, 2012

About two to three years ago, I occasionally read a blog about a woman going through her second pregnancy. She had some kind of rare blood-clotting disorder that really only became a problem while pregnant. …

The Vine: January 18, 2012
January 18, 2012 – 2:52 PM | 11 Comments
The Vine: January 18, 2012

“H” and I have been friends for seven years. For the first four, we were very close; then I moved schools and we both went to university, so we saw each other less often, but …

The Vine: January 13, 2012
January 13, 2012 – 9:15 AM | 112 Comments
The Vine: January 13, 2012

I have hair.  And when I say that, I mean I have hair.  It doesn’t go far past my shoulders, but it is thick, and coarse, and full of weird waves and cowlicks.  It has …

The Vine: January 11, 2012
January 11, 2012 – 2:22 PM | 30 Comments
The Vine: January 11, 2012

My best friend is just that because she’s fun, honest, caring, and a truly good person. I know I can count on her for…well, almost everything.
Here’s the thing — BF believes she can’t have a …

The Vine: January 6, 2012
January 6, 2012 – 3:48 PM | 53 Comments
The Vine: January 6, 2012

I wonder if the Nation can help me with a retail request. I’m a graduate student, and I’ve just split the seams on my trusty old backpack. I’m looking for a replacement that can hold …

The Vine: January 4, 2012
January 4, 2012 – 11:22 AM | 52 Comments
The Vine: January 4, 2012

Mine is a question involving grammar and preserving my sanity. I work for a very wealthy family who, rather than solely passing on genetic markers, pass on one particularly grievous grammatical error. It started with …