My round trip commute is 30 miles. I ride the bus every day.....

My round trip commute is 30 miles. I ride the bus every day..... [2008-05-12]
It is free to employees of the hospital I work for.

I forgot to add that I ride the bus....every day.... [2008-04-22]
My employer pays for us to ride the bus...Helping us all be green.

How would St. Lucia be for anniversary trip? [2008-04-22]
I have heardfrom a few people it is fabulous and worth every penny, but I wonder what anyone out there has heard. I really want a special and very memorable trip because this is our 25th anniversary. Are there any tips anyone can offer? Any insight anyone has would be much appreciated!

trip [2008-04-22]
don't forget passoports there and airpot security -- Maybe a US territory no passport no hassle BON YOAGE

that i used to ride race horses, [2008-04-21]
that i've been a crime victim more than once, that i'm a descendant of Eric the Red and Leif Erickson...gosh, lots more!!

Filled up the Bounder for our first trip last week. It cost $897.52. [2008-04-01]
We will probably camping longer and routing very cautiously this year. No more spur-of-moment long-distance trips.

And TV or radio dont mention fog 2 miles away? [2008-02-06]
x

I'm cooking a round roast in onions and V8 juice.sm [2008-01-22]
It smells so good I want to eat it now! Yum.

my favorite, I think, is the little green round onions ..... [2008-01-21]
that that you see topping soups or like that topping the Taco Bell Nacho Supreme. I think I love them all but those are my favorite.

Just want to say my trip to Greece anything but fun [2008-01-18]
I would never go there again and would not tell anyone to do. The ugly American certainly was something I picked up on there, the people were obnoxious, really nasty to me- spent lots of $$$$ and sorry I ever visited.

I'm giving mine a trip to Vegas [2007-12-07]
NM

Corpus Christi Texas - 150 miles of beach... [2007-12-06]
sand is very hard though....LOL - and since I was there, I heard they built up that city. I was there in the 70s but I remember what a GREAT time we had (a bunch of us) and how laid back it was.....bring lots of sunscreen/block as it's subtropical sun there as is S. Florida.....and for west coast of Florida, Naples, Fort Myers, Sarasota, Tampa, Clearwater

You don’t have to just ride the freeways [2007-11-29]
I know, lived there and found all kind of back streets to get any and everywhere I wanted- so much easier- always listened to traffic report in the morning and made my travel accordingly. The freeways are just parking lots here, any wreck shuts them completely down for hours. Can he not go on a different route than what he travels now? I do when traveling through now.

Let him do it. Like you said, it's temporary. obviously, he doesn't like the commute. Would yo [2007-11-29]
It's not a big deal. My mom and dad live in a rural country area. My dad is a prison warden and has a 3-1/2 hour commute. Plus they work 12-hour shifts so he lives in the town where he works a few nights a week. He's wasting a lot of money on gas. You should really let him do it. Don't be selfish. You said you cried when he mentioned it. Be strong. You are strong. You can do it. It's not forever. Think of HIM in this situation. It sounds perfectly reasonable to do this.

Would this have made you mad - husband planning trip [2007-11-14]
My husband has a habit of making plans and then telling me where I am expected to be without discussing it with me first. This drives me crazy and I have asked him many times to stop. He also makes lots of plans for himself for weekend and sometimes 3 or 4 day trips and just e-mails me a note to put it on my calendar, without asking if I mind. He does this all the time. Yesterday he came home from work and announced that Joe and I are planning a family trip for this summer, so start saving your money. I said, oh is Joe your wife now?? Do you think you could ask me if I want to go there before you tell me to save my money? So he got really angry and started yelling at me that I never understand anything. I told him I like to be treated as an equal in the marriage and that I would not plan a trip for him without discussing it with him. It is a HUGE trip, to California, and we live in NC. I would have been happy if he came home and suggested it to see what I thought..but I was angry that he planned it out that way. He wants us to go with a family that I have never met. My kids are elementary age and their kids are in high school. The two men would be in conferences all day so this other lady and her kids and me and my kids are expected to hang out together. He is very furious with me for not being receptive to this whole plan. Should I have not been mad?

Ready for round 2... sm [2007-11-01]
I have been seriously considering having it done a second time, which my doc had said might happen. Periods aren) My cousin had it done in the office and the pain was so excruciating, they had to stop the procedure. Apparently the machine was on trial, and they have since decided not to perform in-office procedures. Fortunately, she hasn't had a period since. I highly recommend having it done. Best of luck to you.

No, but they live 100 miles away.....sm [2007-10-31]
so we always know when they are coming. My BIL is rallying really hard to get them to move to where we live though so he does not have to deal with them anymore (he is the favored child of their 2 sons so to me it is the price he has to pay). We used to live about 20 minutes from them but even then they did not just drop by though they did have keys to the house. We moved 2 hours away just before my first daughter was born (yeah!), had we stayed I know we would have had some issues. They told me a few months after Jess was born that had we stayed they would have been over every day, I told them I would have changed the locks and not answered the door. (I was not kidding). So I would (1) keep your doors locked, you should anyway (2) if they have keys either get them back or change one lock, add deadbolt, whatever so when it is locked they cannot get in with the other key. Simply way of keeping them out, and if they try to visit them, just say no, you cannot come in right now as it is not a good time and to call next time and shut the door. Maybe they will get the message then. Good luck.

Maybe the Miles Kimball catalog?? Been a while since [2007-10-28]
s

How much money would you give towards this field trip....sm [2007-10-22]
16-year-old comes in from school today and says the drama teacher has invited the 3rd and 4th year drama classes to go to New York in March for a week to see shows and tour the city. Supposedly the cost would be around $700, including airfare from Atlanta, lodging, meals, tickets to shows, etc. I asked what fundraisers were going to be held and she had no idea if any would be. Personally I don My daughter asked how much I She doesn She is a good student. I told her first off that she would also need to get a job because we Wex amount of money into the savings account each month as we want to move to a different area in a couple of years. So.... how much do you think we should require her to raise herself and how much should we pay? I was thinking that maybe to contribute $200 would be plenty generous and let her get a part-time job after school/weekends to raise the rest + spending money. Do you think I

Hey my hubby and I took a trip [2007-10-17]
to Williamsburg Virginia long time ago and went through Colonial Williamsburg, took a dinner cruise around the Navy ships in Norfolk, spent some time on Virginia Beach, went to a beautiful plantation! We have tons of pics but I have no idea where I put them all....geez I think that was like 20 years ago!

Vegas trip [2007-10-16]
Hey Hoku, Well,give us all the dirt!!! Did you or did you not have a great time with yourfriend best friend in Vegas?Enquiring minds need to know!!!

Hoku/Vegas trip..see above..nm [2007-10-16]
*

A trip to Ireland? (see msg) [2007-10-08]
Just talked to a dear friend on the phone over my break, who just got back from a tour guided trip to Ireland. She and her husband went to celebrate 30 years of a wonderful marriage. She tells me one woman went alone and had a great time. They stayed in a castle overnight and met the keeper of the castle, a wonderful Irish Wolfhound named Oscar. The thought of doing this is exciting and yet somewhat scary and depressing at the same time. I am single and so tired of being along and doing nothing I could scream! I am tired of always being looked upon as the one who is ALONE. . . Comments, PLEASE!

Fried round steak, mashed. pot, chinese cole slaw, biscuits and pumpkin pies. nm [2007-10-08]

dream trip [2007-10-08]
Been trying to get my mom to go with me to Ireland....she lost her DH last year....I http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQDPenBUC68

It depends on where I order it from...sm [2008-08-18]
Pizza Hut now charges a $1.75 delivery fee and is only 1.5 miles from my house, so I typically tip 15% if we have it delivered instead of going to pick it up ourselves (Which we do more often since they raised their delivery fee). If we order from another place that doesn't pass on a delivery fee than I'll usually tip 20%. I never, ever, put money into a tip jar anywhere. When we do eat at restaurants I usually tip 20% or more depending on the service, but if I get suboptimal service I

What a great idea! [2008-08-17]
I don't live where I grew up and now live in the boonies with no pizza delivery or anything. Thanks for the idea ladies. I never thought of having something shipped to me. I'm sure my family could probably do it and save a little on shipping costs too. It's certainly less than planning a trip home when you really want something you remember. :)

Gas surcharge, that stinks, here the drivers - sm [2008-08-17]
have to pay for their own gas, etc. So whatever tips they get helps pay for their gas, and doubt they make more than $6 an hour here but have to drive long distances (boonies). I don't know what their deliver area is but it is a minimum of 5 miles out from the store, and those short trips eat up the gas. They have about 5 people delivering on the weekends as they are kept busy (only delivery service in the area--Domino's)

You must live in a high pizza delivery paying [2008-08-16]
area that they get $7-8/hr. Most make minimum, if that, but keep their tips. Oh, add in gas to save you the trip of lugging it home yourself, then yes $2 is insulting.

bleeding dog: tore off toenail, what to do? [2008-08-16]
there was a lot of blood, i applied pressure to get it to stop. she managed to tear off the entire little toenail on her back foot. i then applied peroxide and tried bandaging it, but she won i don also, i hate to admit this, but i cannot afford a trip to the emergency vet (could put it on credit if truly necessary). don't know what else to do --- anyone?

"It's A Small World After All" -- [2008-08-15]
Ever gone to Disneyland and stood in the long line outside of the Small World ride? They play the song about 4 million times, and that's before you ever even get in there and get into the car, or boat, or whatever it is. By the time you're halfway through the ride, you'll feel ready to jump out and run screaming for the exit. Not to mention having the rest of your day at Disneyland tainted by that song running through your head hour after hour. So then, at the end of the day you attend the Main Street Electrical Parade, and the theme song for that one is even more insidious and intrusive on your brain than Small World! Still worse is the fact that itIt, Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah, and just about every other well-known Disney song. So NOW your poor brain has multiple, unstoppable songs bouncing around the inside of your skull, possibly for DAYS. Yes, those songs are EVIL -- probably some form of Disney Mind Control..........

Did you know what the responsibilities were (sm) [2008-08-09]
before saying yes? That is a full time job in itself. I did it and actually had to chuckle a bit reading your post - typical PTO and their induction tactics. Unless you have a strong board you Oh, and then politics and it Wait till the real school year gets going. I assume you Everyone says they Is it a 1 or 2 year appointment? You might want to verify that. You can do it, but don Also, you can count on making enemies - it just comes with the territory. I don't have any other real advice, but good luck!

Great advice. [2008-08-05]
I actually have told him that when he grows up and he gets a dog and hurts it, I will be the one to call the police because it is against the law. A friend of mine drove her three boys to the police station just yesterday and took all of them in, they were all acting up and out of control. She is a single mom. She asked them if she could spank her kids and told the officer what they were doing. He said YES! Bring Maybe a trip to the police station is enough to scare him out of doing it. Thank you for the advice about taking things away and such. I do believe I will try that fora while and if it doesn't work then to the police station and then on to counseling or something.

irregular heartbeat - when to worry? [2008-08-04]
Okay, I have called two docs (a cardio and our reg physician) and cannot get a danged answer other than let me take a message and maybe someday call you back about it. Can you tell I am a wee bit down on docs? Here is the problem. My hubby has been having this weird heart beat where he says it feels like his heart is fluttering around. Now, a few years ago he was having cp and had a holter and a treadmill stress test. Those were fine. This symptom he says he has been having for a while, had actually gone to the doc before but was told it was probably gas, esophageal spasms, muscle spasms in the chest wall, etc. Doc had listened, I had listened and never heard anything abnormal.Anyhow, he asked me a few days ago about going to the doc (this from the man who wonwhat. He told me he had had more fluttering, and so I said the standard spasm, etc but then last night I actually got to hear it. Here is what it sounds like - normal heart beat (if a little clunky I guess would be the best word) and every 4-5 beats he would get this weird beat like the heart tripped. Then a little bit of a pause before the next beat, then 4-5 regular beats. Then the trip again, then the pause. Questions: What do we do? I told him that in my humble opinion he should wait until it is doing it again and go to an urgent care center, er, whatever, and tell them it is doing it, please gimme an EKG. All the reg doc is going to do is that, and then order a bunch of tests, tell him it is stress because it takes more than five minutes to diagnose and send him home, regardless of what it is. At least at the urgent care center he can get someone to do a little bit more in depth look at it. Like I said earlier, I left messages with his reg doc and with my cardiologist, but the latter said it would probably be Wednesday before they get back to me, and I am concerned about this abnormal beating. Anyone with any advice? HC

Problem with 5-year-old and dog [2008-08-04]
( Before asking this question, just to make sure, I am not paid for this message so typing errors will occur.) We have three dogs, weiner dogs. Bear who was first, sister, then almost a year ago, Bob. My 5-year-old has started for a little while now, pulling his ears, tail, legs, anything he can or wants too. he will walk by and kick the dog. He covers him with blankets and lays on him. He will step on his tail. I have actually spanked his bottom more than once with no reactions and my common and everyday saying is leave the dogs along. I am tired of this behavior. I saw a special Dr. Phil show that said somehting about killers hurt animals first?!! I need some great advice to keep him and the dogs, mostly the dogs, safe from harm. I believe to some extent it has something to do with having the I am bigger than something/one power trip. He has an older brother who is 12 and has been gone most of the summer to his fathers house. When the older is here they argue and fight about little things like kids do but I have a no hitting or hitting back policy and a I take your toys away policy. Still doesn't phase the kid. I know he is only five but my next step, I am considering taking EVERY TOY away. This may be tough for such a young age but I don't know what else to do next. ANY SUGGESTIONS? I NEED HELP!!! PS He is also getting into this habit of doing something bad and saying he didnlies happen and he tells me I am not a chicken. I have done this calling him chicken little twice. He will be going to kindergarten in about a week and I have tried to tell him that kids don The dogs still want to play with him too.

to tx mt [2008-08-01]
So sorry, I have a friend whose sister has had this all her life, too. She has had problems with the peritoneal portion and the neuro told her not to have her transported by ambulance because the ride was too rough and when they get to UTMB they are to call him, no one else. She pretty much has led a full life, just this one thing, but you have to know her and when something is not right and what to do. Good luck to you.

NO WAY do I want universal healthcare!! [2008-07-30]
My boyfriend is Canadian and the taxes to pay for their healthcare are REALLY high!! I just got back from a 2 week trip up there and just eating out the tax rate was 15%!! Their income tax rate is even higher! I have an individual health plan that is as good as the one I had through my former employer and pay $109/month, which costs me a lot less than it would if I had to pay the extra taxes to help fund this retarded universal healthcare!!

get out of the house and go for a walk [2008-07-28]
or a bike ride or a picnic. Sometimes I go outside and talk on the phone or watch my kids play. The point is to get out of the house and be outside.

I like to eat--doesn't matter if I'm hungry or not. [2008-07-25]
During high school, I lost about 30 pounds eating only 1 salad a day and Special K cereal for breakfast. I ran about 5 miles a day and was able to lose 30 pounds in 30 days. It was a complete turnaround for me. I gained self-esteem. I kept the weight off until I went to college. Of course, in college, I started to revert to my old eating habits and didn I had settled to a comfortable 180 pounds (which wasn After the birth of my first child, I weighed in at about 220. When he turned 1, I tried some sort of diet pill (probably had ephedra in it) and lost down to 170. I felt wonderful. I kept that off until 3 years later when I had my second child. I lost some of the baby weight, but not all of it. Two years later, I had my third child. I weighed about 230 pounds and really wanted to lose. I tried Stacker with ephedra and lost like 40 pounds in 6 weeks. I felt wonderful. I kept that off for 2 years. At that point, I started Effexor and the weight just slowly crept up on me. I won Now, I I I've tried most of the ephedra products, phenteramine prescribed by my doc, Nutri-System (but only for 2 weeks - the food was yuck!). I I know from past experience that diet pills only work for so long, but I really think that if I could just get in the groove, I I like to exercise. I only work about 4 hours a day, so I have the time. I just can I especially love to eat late at night when watching TV. I can do so good all day long and then 10 o My other problem is that I The only veggies I really like are corn, potatoes, and green beans. The starchy ones. I like fruit, but it I get tired of eating chicken and I I I love junk food - chips, candy bars, nachos, cookies. I eat when I Okay, I know I Is there a good appetite suppressant? I These are the ones I Leptovox, Fenphedra, Proactol. Anyone try any of these and did you see results? I know I have to eat healthier and exercise. I

For starters, I think you need to (sm) [2008-07-22]
RUN, don Do the math - your daughter is 16 and 18 is around the corner? She wants you to go slow and nice. You simply do not have the time for slow and nice. Your daughterI don See, I can say this because I was once in your shoes, although I wasnnice as you seem to be. I also had afew more years to work on it - yes, I said years. You are not going to undo this in a matter of months,trust me. Do you have any Tough Love chapters in your area? If so, contact them ASAP. You are in for the ride of your life. I think you have to first step back and realize your daughter is playing you like a fiddle. She can anticipate your move by her behavior. That is the control you MUST take back. So she wants to leave? Have you offered her a ride? I agree with the other poster (?Linda) - you leave with the clothes on your back, not with what I have purchased with my hard earned money. You're old enough to be on your own, you need to find a way to support and clothe yourself. She If not, who is paying that cell phone bill? If you are, I believe that phone belongs in YOUR possession. You really need to sit down and realize that right now your ONLY obligation to her is to do your best to make sure she is safe. You may not like being called names, etc., and try to ration with her about this, but you know what? Very simple - you home, your rules. She does not have the right to speak to you under the roof you pay for. I know it breaks your heart that shesweet little girl that you once knew. Right now those days are gone. I can assure you though, if you Yes, I said thank you. Do you have a juvenile officer in town? Maybe you need to speak with him/her. I Definitely hook up with Tough Love - at the very least buy the book. You are going to need support for YOU. Eventually this will invade your marriage if you continue on the path you First order of the day - TAKE BACK CONTROL. No more you can but rather I will not tolerate that language in my home. Take baby steps to regain your footing. She needs to know who is in charge and believe it or not, way deep down she may even be craving this - an adult to guide her. I wish I could give you a (((BIG HUG))) because I know exactly what you are feeling. I don If handled correctly though, you and your daughter can become friends again in a couple of years. Right now she needs a mother and consistency. Good luck and keep us posted!

Your daughter was me 4 years ago... [2008-07-17]
I am only 20 years ago and your daughter sounds exactly like me 4 years ago... I agree with the above-mentioned posters that you need to get dad involved. I too knew that I could manipulate my mom but was very afraid of what my father would do. It She's just saying that to manipulate you. AS FOR THE DRINKING: Do not allow this to be acceptable behavior. I drank as a 16-year-old and my parents tried to ground me, keep me home, etc. and I still went out and did it... guess what, I got a DUI because kids do not use smart judgement when drunk. I guarantee there is no safe ride because she is with other kids who are drinking, and she will never call you for a ride. My parents were very against teenage drinking and I got into big trouble, I can JMO The best thing that happened to me was the DUI because I stayed home for 3 months (had no license) and I learned that I did not have to go out every night, that I really wasn After that, I didn Maybe the best thing to do is have her stay home for month, only let her go out during day or for a short amount of time and then after that month allow her to go out once a week until she comes home drunk, past curfew or you found out that she was somewhere she was not suppose to be and then have her stay home for two months, then let her go out again until she abuses it, etc. Eventually, she will either get into trouble and she'll learn that way or she'll learn that she does not need to be out all the time. Oh, as for her swearing she isn My friend in high school was valedictorian, honor student, everyone thought she was so perfect and even she had sex in high school. My sister is younger than I am, her friends are your daughter's age, and they were almost all sexually active by 15, sad huh :( Good luck to you. I promise it will get better. My father and I had the worst relationship when I was 16 and now we get along great… there is hope for you and your daughter!

16-year-old daughter - need help from all who have gone through this [2008-07-16]
Just found out that my 16-year-old, good kid, honor student, has been leading a double life for the past two years. I found out through some snooping and confronted her. She fessed up to drinking and smoking but swears no drugs. The times that I thought she was sleeping over at the house of her friends that I knew, she was apparently sleeping at random places with a bunch of other kids that I dondoing nothing wrong. She swears she has not had sex. She apparently has a lot of guy friends and most of them I don't even know and did not even know existed. She feels that now that she has come clean, I should be okay with this whole situation and allow her to continue to live her lifestyle that she simply loves and is unwilling to give up. We have been fighting daily. I have not told her father about this, because he is european and would definitely come down hard on her and I don't even know what he would do. She tells me that she will definitely leave if I tell him. She demands one day a week that she can sleep out whereever she pleases and I should be okay with that. I am not. I am at my wits end. She swears she will leave if I don. My rules are simple: 1. Home by curfew (11:30 friday and saturday) and 10 weeknights in the summer (but I don't feel she needs to go out every night and she disagrees). 2. I no longer let her take the care whenever she wants, as I don't trust her. 3. She can socialize with her friends and I will pick her up and drive her within reasonable distance close to home. 4. I can even learn to live with the drinking, as long as she gets home safe by my picking her up or having a safe ride home. 5. I don't want her sleeping out any more. She is fighting me tooth and nail and is swearing she will leave the house if I donleave her alone. We used to get along so well or so I thought, and now I find out she is a complete stranger and not at all the daughter I thought I had. I am so depressed and don't know what to do. I don't want to have to tell my husband, but she is leaving me no choice but I am scared to death that she will leave. The worst part is that she knows my fear and is using it to get to me. I desperately need some good sound advice. Thanks and sorry so long.

daughter [2008-07-16]
do you have younger children; how you handle this is a learning curve for them. Your first loyalty is to your husband, agree with all the other posters to tell him. don't let her wiggle herself between the two of you or hold you an emotional hostage. You may have to deal with her leaving so be prepared for that. and yes, I have gone through it. My daughter that I spent so much time with hid very successfully she had been drinking for 2 years before I found out and I lost that battle. At 30 she had untreated hypertension and developed a severe headache and walked into an ER. That was the last time she walked 3 years ago. MRI did not show the pontine infarct until too late to treat it. She is now a prisoner in her own body fully cognizant, in a nursing home. She who do swim, dive beautifully, ride and show horses, dance like a champ. your job as a parent is just as everyone else said, not to be her buddy, but teach her whatever hard lessons she needs to learn so that she will grow up to be a self-sufficient person who can take care of herself. I wish you all the luck in the world. It is far from easy.

oh yes, you are not alone! [2008-07-10]
Like my momma always tells me, there is a reason I am not named Grace! The other day I went out to ride my horse. I had thrown his saddle on and lightly put on his girth while I walked him out to the field. I was so excited about FINALLY having a chance to ride that I didn't even think about it, went to step up into the saddle, and found myself laying UNDERNEATH my horse! Lucky for me, he's a good boy! I have a nice little bruise on my bum from it too! :-D

My female maltese [2008-07-10]
is 10 now and developed this problem a couple of years ago. It was not just at night, but anytime she was asleep, napping in my lap or asleep on my pillow snuggled next to my head (not a good way to wake up btw). It seemed to come as a complete surprise to her, as she woke up during or immediately after urinating, not before. All of her labs were normal, the only explanation was that it was a hormonal imbalance that occasionally occurs in older female dogs that were spayed at a very early age. As nearly asI coulddetermine from the records I got from the lady I got her from was that she was about 3-4 months old when she was spayed. Since dogs can also have unwanted side effects from hormone replacement she was placed on antihistamines which resolved the problem for the most part, but she still gets the late night trip right before bedtime. Since your dog just started this late in life it may not be from the same thing, but it couldn Here is a link to Merck Veterinary Manual online edition page that describes the condition (you may have to cut and paste). http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/130614.htmword=canine%2cbladder%2ccontrol

Things to make a bike more fun - sm [2008-07-07]
I'm a big believer in mountain bikes. Not only are they great for riding on regular pavement, but you also have the freedom to go on dirt roads and trails. I don't know why, but riding uphill on pavement seems like a chore to me, but on a trail, it's an adventure. You can probably get the bike shop to replace the standard seat with a wider one... lots of people do that. The ones with gel padding are GREAT... and will make it possible to ride more miles before your posterior gets tired or sore. The other thing I do when I buy a bike (especialy a mountain bike) is have the shop remove the toe-clip-things fom the pedals, and just put on standard pedals. I don't like the feeling of my feet being attached to the pedals, and want to be able to put my feet on the ground at a moment's notice. (Or, jump off! Haha...) If you get a bike with lots of gears, such as a 21-speed, then going up hills will be much easier, since you can put it into a very low gear. If you have the money, a lighter frame adds to the ease of climbing hills (or, just carrying the bike, or loading it into a car or truck.) If you ride lots of bumpy or dirt roads, Rock-Shox on the front wheel can help ease neck, wrist or shoulder pain. I don't have them on my current bike, and boy do I feel it when I hit a bump. But I can't afford them right now. Also, especially with a moutain bike, I believe in getting the tires puncture-proofed. (Or more puncture-RESISTANT, I should say.) Nothing worse then getting far from home, running over a sticker-weed, and then having to walk home pushing the bike. They make interior tire liners called Mr. Tuffies that can be put inside the tire to help resist flats. Finally, invest in a good bicycle lock, so that if you ride it to the market, or leave it anywhere, someone else won't come along and steal your fun!

No, I'm totally thinking getting back into exercising - sm [2008-07-07]
- Mountain bikes are easier to ride and more balanced than other bikes. Wider tires, wider handlebars, more upright position. - It's not like shifting gears in a car. Nowadays they have smooth-shifting index shifters and just pedal, and push the button to whichever one you want. - Unless you live where it's absolutely, perfectly level, you will encounter at least SOME kind of a slope. To an unfit person, or anyone on a bike with not much gearing, even the slighest slope (or even riding upwind on level ground) can be daunting. More gears equals easier ride. - If a person REALLY doesnEasy Rider or (?), that do the shifting for you. All you do is pedal and steer. Still, I can think of nothing that will turn a person off to exercising and bike riding in the beginning like a heavy, clunky, one-speed bike. - Regarding trails, IRails-To-Trails paths which follow old railroad beds. Most are linear, level, and great places for beginners to ride. Quit being so judgemental about what was 100% meant as a helpful post. You might go out an learn something about bikes, too, before you go calling people nuts for trying to help.

For undertow, swim perpendicular [2008-07-04]
to the current. The rip current is very narrow, but can push a person out quite far, so swimming parallel to the force will get you out of it quickly. We just got back from the beach where there is an inlet. I like to ride the flow out where it's shallow for a long way there.

A very small town in West Texas [2008-07-03]
I live in an 890 sq foot rock house. I am guessing at the sq foot actually. It is close to 900 but not quite there. It ihas 2 bedrooms, 1 bath. Metal roof. I live close to the schools. I live 2 blocks from the local hospital. I just applied for a job there in fact. I worked 8 years for a big 300-bed multispeciality hospital that was 35 miles away. I left because of the climbing gas prices and I thought I needed a break from the office politics. I started working for an on-line transcription company and for some reason just cannot seem to produce the lines or make half the money I was making at the hospital. I have been here 6 months already. I applied to another company to try my luck there and they offered me a job but I read in the paper yetserday this little hospital here is hiring. They do light transcription, filing, I forget what else it said. The best part is I will have benes. As I was applying a nurse recognized me and was telling me about them and they have improved since I worked there 10 years ago. I hope the pay has as welland I hope they still like me. LOL.

Your little girl - sm [2008-07-02]
I can't blame you about the bill. That was unconscionable to be so petty about the money. They're lucky their dog wasn't put down and they should know it. About your daughter - I wouldn't dismiss out of hand getting her a dog. Not right away, of course, but after some time has passed. Let me explain. I saw my sister attacked by a dog when I was five, and although I wasnmagic cure for your daughter's fear as she finds out that most dogs are friendly and loveable. This also worked for our son, who was nine when we got our first puppy. He was so scared that he actually spent the afternoon in the garage rather than come into the house with Sam (who incidentally was a three month old golden retriever!). Now he owns his own dog and is considering going into veterinary medicine. Good luck to you and your family. And I pray the owners of the dog that attacked your daughter have an attack of conscience and do the right thing by your family.