jeffrey lohn wrote:
Would greatly appreciate any suggestions regarding laying sod-- and
maintenance after it's put down.
we are sodding a tiny urban(NYC) back yard area -- only about 12 x 15
feet. area gets sun for apprx 1/2 day.
we just bought the sod-- nursery said it was a kind of "sun/shade"
variety.

The nursery where you bought the sod should be able to tell you all
about how to prepare the soil before laying the sod. If not, there
are plenty of places online that'll tell you too. See for example
http://www.sod.com/html/installation.html .
I hope that when you said "bought" you meant "ordered" and that it will
be delivered later, because if you already have the sod and still need
to go and prepare the soil and whatnot, you're a little late.