By KIMBERLY PIERCEALL, The Press-Enterprise

Lettuce and tomatoes have recently become a luxury in some restaurant chains as bad weather in Florida and Mexico have set the global supply chain askew.

Subway sandwich artists are stacking fewer tomatoes and green peppers. At many Wendy's outlets, a sign on the drive-thru advises customers that they may need to ask for a tomato if they want one.

Like any stock-market bet or Vegas gamble, the owners of a couple thousand comic-book stores in the United States try to pick the right mix of Batman, Superman, Spider-Man and lesser-known book titles that might sell.

And if they don't?

"That's money sitting in a box," said Chris Brady, 38, who co-owns 4 Color Fantasies in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.

The number of foreclosed hotels in California continued to climb in the first three months of 2010, according to the most recent survey from Atlas Hospitality.

Since the end of 2009 to March 31, the number of foreclosed hotels statewide increased 27.4 percent to 79 properties.

Typically a standard garnish for hamburgers, sandwiches and salads, tomatoes have become a scarce luxury.

Three out of five round, field-grown tomatoes come from Florida during the winter, but an unexpected and prolonged cold spell that froze Florida's crops in mid-January wiped out most of the state's tomato crop.

Before the Na'vi in James Cameron's "Avatar" and Johnny Depp in Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland" took on another dimension -- and an extra few bucks for each ticket sold -- movie-theater owners spent between $65,000 to $125,000 per auditorium to retrofit screens and projectors to show the reach-out-and-touch-air effects in 3-D films.

Financial desperation may be driving more Californians to ditch their cars or set them on fire to get an insurance payout, according to the California Department of Insurance.

The state agency, led by insurance commissioner Steve Poizner, recorded 300 more suspected fraud cases involving arson and theft in 2008 than in 2007.

Entrepreneur Richard Heckmann is diving back into the water business, with an aim to consolidate the bottled water industry in Asia, much like he did in the United States to the tune of billions in revenue.

INDIO, Calif. -- Friendly barbs were traded, players went all in and cocktails were served inside Fantasy Springs Resort Casino's poker room during a recent afternoon Texas Hold'em tournament. A few things were noticeably absent though, namely a dealer, playing cards and chips typically stacked in uniform colors to be fiddled with on the green felt.