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: September 29, 2010
September 29, 2010 · 56 Comments
The Vine: September 29, 2010

I’ve had my 7-year-old kitty since she was a 3-week-old rescue kitten that had to be bottle-fed. For the most part, she is wonderfully behaved.
However, she whines.
She’s always been very vocal kitty, and that is …

DVR Break-Up: The Event, House
September 28, 2010 · 20 Comments
DVR Break-Up: <I>The Event</I>, <I>House</I>

I had high hopes for The Event — a lot of actors I enjoy (Jason Ritter, Laura Innes), a tantalizing concept, and the opportunity to learn from the mistakes of Flash Forward.
But the actors can’t …

The Tomato Nation Fall Classic
September 27, 2010 · 2 Comments
The Tomato Nation Fall Classic

Welcome, friends! It’s time to raise some money. The super-duper crazy-big six-figure blowout fundraiser for Donors Choose will return in spring 2011 — but why not rustle up a few bucks now?
The project is called …

The Big Sad Machine
September 24, 2010 · 11 Comments
The Big Sad Machine

I spotted a billboard for this promotion earlier today, near a gas station. Just how broke is this mofo, anyway? Does the Hit King still have back taxes to pay?
At least he’s not selling signed …

The Vine: September 24, 2010
September 24, 2010 · 16 Comments
The Vine: September 24, 2010

I have gone crazy trying to find two “movies” that were aired on (I think) HBO back in the early to mid-1980s. Google and other sites have failed my usually pop-culture-infused brain.
(Note: I think these …

Tomato Nation Read-Along #5: Jacob Have I Loved
September 23, 2010 · 6 Comments
Tomato Nation Read-Along #5: <I>Jacob Have I Loved</I>

Paterson wins our latest poll handily; you can find the book here. (Bargain-hunters, check half.com or your local bookseller; it’s widely available secondhand, in my experience.) A somewhat downbeat selection to kick off the autumn, …

The Vine: September 22, 2010
September 22, 2010 · 45 Comments
The Vine: September 22, 2010

Dear Sars,
One of my husband’s best friends (I’ll call him Kevin) is married to Kate. I feel close to both Kevin and Kate, although we only see each other every few months because we live …

Wing + Ill-Advised Pullover = Crush Of Over A Decade, Shit-Stomped
September 21, 2010 · 14 Comments
Wing + Ill-Advised Pullover = Crush Of Over A Decade, Shit-Stomped

Wing: I am still LOL at that photo. It’s the lead image for my new game, “High Or Head-Injured?”

Sarah: I like to call it…The Crush-Killer. And the hair, WTF. ‘Sup, Methy?

Wing: I mean, dude. Don’t …

Word Of The Day: “pwaft”
September 21, 2010 · 14 Comments
Word Of The Day: “pwaft”

I suspect that “pwaft” needs no definition, but I will let you supply your own in the comments section for a while and then formally update the entry.
Update: “Pwaft” is both a noun and a …

The Vine: September 17, 2010
September 17, 2010 · 126 Comments
The Vine: September 17, 2010

Dear Sarah,
I will be spending a month in the States shortly, flying into New York on the third of October and out of San Francisco third November. Those flights are pretty much my only parameters. …