Do you toss the whole notion of gardening aside as simply beyond your skills? Do you think of yourself as a wannabe gardener with no hope of ever having a green thumb? Gardening is easier than you may think, especially if you follow these ABCs: Attitude, basics and choices.

As 2008 nears its end, San Diego's once-high-flying builder community is looking to the past to foretell the future – and hoping 2009 will mark a turnaround. At the Urban Land Institute/San Diego chapter's recent real estate trends conference, veterans of past recessions acknowledged to the youngish audience that things are bad.

To save energy, brew a pot of coffee then shut off the coffee maker. Move the coffee to an insulated container or reheat individual cups in a microwave.