Words looked up

When for some reason Delia can't join us for nightly reading from the last chapters of Sorcery and Cecelia (as tonight when she conked out before dinner with a fever) I read to Fiona from Pride and Prejudice. Tonight we interrupted to look up the following words in the dictionary:

supercilious
pedantic
complaisance
inducement
felicity
archly (as in "arch look")
insipidity
intrepidity

Ten points to the first person to figure out which chapter we were reading. Edited to add: That didn't take long! tinymich, you rule!

Bah to Burpee

In an attempt to try to cut my gardening costs, I've set up fluorescent shop lighting in the basement, and bought flats and potting soil in attempt to start a bunch of stuff from seed. I figured that buying a flat of impatiens costs $18, but I could start it for less--I had only a hazy idea, but I guessed $8 or so. There's a start up cost to buy the equipment, of course, but this year would be the worst, and I could reuse in coming years.

I'm having doubts. It takes a long time to set up flats and plant them. Stuff isn't germinating. Maybe I'm just impatient ("3 to 21 days" as indicated on the seed packet is a wide window, after all), but maybe my basement is too cool. And the warming pads to put under the flats are $30 a pop at the garden store, so that's out--the idea was to save money.

I bought two packets of impatiens seeds, intending to plant two flats (72 plants to a flat). The Burpee package didn't indicate anywhere how many seeds were in the package. I looked carefully, and asked a salesperson, too, who was of course clueless. Got home and discovered there were less than thirty seeds to a package, so those $2.00 seed packets don't look like such a bargain anymore. I don't know about you, but I like to plant two or three seeds to each pot, so you'll be sure to get at least one to germinate. And those impatiens seeds are just about microscopic!

What have you started successfully from seed for your garden? Are certain seed companies better than others as far as giving you value for your money? What's too much trouble to try: the hell with it, you'll buy the plants from the garden store?

[Cross-posted to growing_indoors]

Edited to add: Starting flats on top of the refrigerator is a terrific idea, except that in my house the top of my refrigerator is part of my pantry, storing food that won't fit in my cupboards.