The care and feeding of cast iron skillets

[elbiesee]

I heard through the family grapevine that my pleas for decent kitchenware is going answered this Christmas, and one of the gifts I'll be recieving will be at least one cast iron skillet.

As any new owner of a CIS, I have a few questions:

1. How do you properly season one?

2. Is it true that you never 'properly' wash it? Ever?

3. Do they really up the iron content in food cooked within?

4. What's your favorite recipe using cast iron?

Thanks in advance!

*anxiously waits under the tree for thirteen more days*