21.   Barkin, in one of her few non-sexy roles, makes a rather incongruent frontier woman who lived as tough as the men she faced down.

22.   Boston starter Roger Clemens was just as tough as Martinez.

23.   A big deal is often made of preparing leeks, and indeed, they sometimes have outer leaves that are so tough as to be nearly inedible.

24.   After his shaky start, Johnson settled down and proved to be as tough as his reputation.

25.   But as tough as starting over is proving to be, Ngwijabanzi said he was pleased to be home.

26.   But as tough as Fordham was Sunday, Manhattan was tougher.

27.   But John Sweeney, the new AFL-CIO president, was as tough as Gore on Gingrich and his Republican colleagues.

28.   But in Chamelecon, the struggle back undoubtedly will prove as tough as anywhere.

29.   But not as tough as it will be to play in the Ryder Cup, no matter how much the captains try to defuse the rivalry.

30.   But it is as tough as leather next to a roasted chicken.