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!

Red Ops: Target Selection Complete
May 12, 2012 · 12 Comments
Red Ops: Target Selection Complete

This is Red Leader speaking. We have confirmed our fund-raising targets for the Red Ops contest. The cities/regions appear below, in alphabetical order:

Albuquerque, NM
Brownsville, TX
Buffalo, NY
Camden, NJ
Columbia, SC
The Dakotas
Detroit, MI
Joplin, MO
Northridge/Dayton, OH
West Virginia’s northern panhandle

This …

The Vine: May 11, 2012
May 11, 2012 · 36 Comments
The Vine: May 11, 2012

I am on the hunt for the perfect work bag. I have tons of large shoulder purses that would work, but I do a lot of walking and have a lot of stuff in my bag, and …

The Vine: May 9, 2012
May 9, 2012 · 21 Comments
The Vine: May 9, 2012

I am a longtime reader and have honestly found myself in an anxiety-creating moral pickle (so to speak…though being in a literal moral pickle might be rather nice!).
Here is the short version: I was in …

Red Ops: Choose our 10th community!
May 8, 2012 · One Comment
Red Ops: Choose our 10th community!

It’s time to choose the tenth and final community we drop a bazillion dimes on during the contest. The poll is below, and includes a few entries from the original poll, plus some write-in candidates. …

Out With The Crowd: “I’m so glad this is his last season”
May 7, 2012 · 4 Comments
Out With The Crowd: “I’m so glad this is his last season”

Out With The Crowd ventured into the NL East late last week when I interviewed Lauren, the head rodeo clown at LoveMyBravos.com, about bullpen-management issues, stupid baby names, and J. Hey’s new look.
Sarah D. Bunting: …

Girls 104: Totally not an attached bleeder
May 7, 2012 · No Comment
<I>Girls</I> 104: Totally not an attached bleeder

From my recap of “Hannah’s Diary,” over at Press Play:
“Just be who you are,” he says, oh so sweetly, and it’s a moment Hannah is going to take out and look at with brimming eyes for …

Red Ops: The Tomato Nation / Donors Choose Spring 2012 Contest
May 7, 2012 · 14 Comments
Red Ops: The Tomato Nation / Donors Choose Spring 2012 Contest

10 cities. 2 weeks. 1 mighty Nation. Wheels up May 21.

Out With The Crowd: “Pure joy. Gone forever.”
May 5, 2012 · 6 Comments
Out With The Crowd: “Pure joy. Gone forever.”

Welcome back to Out With The Crowd, and our first foray into the National League. Joining us is TN reader and Colorado fan Leigh Bingham; we discussed Jimenez v. Tulo, pantsless mascots, porous defense, and …

The Vine: May 4, 2012
May 4, 2012 · 65 Comments
The Vine: May 4, 2012

I have a question about a topic I know is near and dear to you — snacks! Well, snacks and other food, and I’m hoping the TN readers can help with some suggestions.
I’m fat, …

Out With The Crowd: “You are not Herb Brooks”
May 3, 2012 · 15 Comments
Out With The Crowd: “You are not Herb Brooks”

In this installment of Out With The Crowd, I talked with TN/baseball regular commenter — and level-headed Red Sox fan — BSD about Cherington agonistes, chicken tattletales, and stabilizing douchebags. We spoke on April 21 …