Maybe your friend thinks you homeschool out of necessity like she does/did.

I took it to mean "synthetic" nitrate. So a non synthetic nitrate is one that occurs naturally in celery powder. Curiously enough, Hormel's cold cuts still include celery powder + starter culture in most products. Who knows what their deal is. Maybe they cure the meats in the same old "deceptive" manner and then kill all culturing bacteria off in the end using HPP? Or maybe they really add the rare and highly sought after nitrate-free celery powder because it's fun? (Most likely they just forgot to tack on the "except that which occurs naturally bit", or it's written very small) What gets me is that all these "no added nitrites" cold cuts cost quite a bit more than the standard variety where at least the added nitrite level is a known quantity. And standard brands don't add any extra bacteria either! Oven Roasted Deli Turkey Serving Size: 56g Servings Per Containers: Varied Per Serving: Calories: 60 Calories from Fat: 10 Total Fat: 1g Saturated Fat: 0g Cholesterol: 25mg Sodium: 460mg Total Carbohydrate: 1g Dietary Fiber: 0g Sugars: 1g Protein: 11g Vitamin A: 0% Vitamin C: 0% Calcium: 0% Iron: 0% Ingredients: Turkey Breast Meat, Water, Salt, Potato Starch, Turbinado Sugar, Rice Starch, Carrageenan (from seaweed), Baking Soda, Celery Juice Powder, Lactic Acid Starter Culture (not from Milk).

Hormel (and other natural brands) proclaim no added nitrites/nitrates, except that which is naturally occurring in celery salt or something to that effect. BUT, please keep in mind that ... From http://tinyurl.com/cl73kse This notion of "nitrite-free" or "organically cured" meats is a public deception. This method of curing instead of adding nitrite salts directly to the meats, they add celery salt which is about 50% nitrate. They then add a starter culture of bacteria to the celery salt to reduce the endogenous nitrate to nitrite "the curative molecule". So they can label it nitrite free but in fact they are generating more nitrite from the celery salt that what is allowed to be added as a salt. That is the reason for the higher nitrite content in the "nitrite free bacon". It is the exact same molecule as added to regular cured meats it just comes from a natural source, celery. I think it is probably less healthy than regular cured meats because of the bacteria load and the unknown efficacy of conversion by the bacteria. Some covert 40% some convert 90% so the consistency of the residual nitrite is highly variable. My hope is that we create awareness and educate scientist, physicians and food people of this concept. Even this FAQ answer from Applegate Farms doesn't come close to a full picture but uses roughly the same # of words as above. They add nitrates all right -- just not chemical nitrates! Do Applegate Products Contain Nitrites or Nitrates? Applegate FAQ (Official Rep) 8 months ago The short answer is yes, but with another longer story. Nothing is ever simple, is it? All animal proteins are made up of amino acids that contain naturally occurring nitrites and nitrates. And so Applegate products made with animal protein will have levels of naturally occurring nitrites and nitrates. In addition, the celery juice and sea salt used to cure our meats also contain naturally occurring nitrates. For these reasons, the USDA does not allow animal protein products to state “nitrate/nitrite free†on their labels. So, being law-abiding citizens, we don't state that. Packages for our products are required to say “no added nitrites†since they contain the naturally occurring variety, but were cured without the addition of chemical sodium nitrate. (emphasis mine; underscore not in original text)

Apple Camp is starting up for one of kids next week. Their email said for the child to bring "a digital or video camera." Is bringing an iPod Touch with camera video capability good enough?

:grouphug: Thank you for memorializing your dear mother to us with stunning and touching clarity.

Well, so far the trend is that as the rise in cost of college tuition dwarfs the aid provided by all sources, gov't included, student debt increases out the wazoo. So I think the result is that in the OP's scenario, only the mega-rich could attend debt-free. There will always be young people willing to sign away their future earnings or parents' retirement for a the diploma. Enough anyway, to keep those tuition rates looming as high and higher as they are now for the foreseeable future.

Sorry to hear that all this happened. If any sort of meltdown or horseplay happens around a campfire, the leaders (or basically anyone anyone physically stronger than the horseplayer) are right to step in immediately. Habitual yelling is not a leadership trait you want your scout to model. Just ask the 14yo to tell his brother where he is. He did well as it is. Leave the troop by all means, but I think you should try to hear out (again) the other adults' version of what happened.

I think it really depends on how complex the family's expenses are. If the family has several cars, the husband is probably also the fleet manager (scheduling oil changes, tire rotations, etc, location of spare keys).

If you could carve and keep any object you want from a single piece of wood, what would you carve? Let's say your object should be smaller than a house. Describe! (Gush!)

This thread is funny. I remember you used to be able to buy small, medium, large, or jumbo sized eggs. Now they are all large or xxx large. Did chickens lose track of portion control also?

4 words: Lower North Fork Fire Prescribed burns are ok if they can be controllled.

2x post

Finally this thread is getting down to brass tacks. It is too bad we have to imagine such things happening to our kids as a litmus test for what is good enough coaching material for others'.

The rest of the sauce has 2 boxes of Pomi chopped tomatoes, 1# browned ground beef, onions, mushrooms, garlic, spices (oregano, basil, thyme, sage, rosemary). It will cook on low for the next 7 hours. If add feta, when should I add it? (I don't have much any other cheese) Amount of feta to be added ~ 8-10 oz.

I've never owned a cat. I am even allergic if I get cat dander well into my eyes, but have no problem visiting others who own cats. Ideally this cat would be a mouser, or at least not completely disinterested in chasing off stuff (like Garfield) and be happy to use a clean litter box. The kids would love to have a cat as a pet. So I imagine it would live indoors but have free reign over the house and a yard 0.25 acres. But it would have to be let out by a human. (no kitty door) The house has an upstairs. If I adopt from the SPCA and I turn out wildly allergic to the one I get, is there a say to return it? Same question for a store like Pet Smart. I don't have a problem paying for a cat. In fact, if some types are known to be less allergenic, I would buy one instead. Kittens are cute but I am not sure any of us wants to help train up a kitten. (I have no idea what is req'd to train from the kitten stage) If it helps, we don't have any other small pets like birds or fish. No babies in the house either. Youngest member is 6yo. So if you've read this far, what stuff would I need to welcome a cat in the house? Thanks, I appreciate all your tips!

Any recommendations on where to get good Rx sunglasses? I know you get a Rx from an eye doctor first. Then what? I want good fancy sunglasses. The kind that you cry if you lose. Are some stores better known for sunglasses selection than others -- e.g Pearl Vision vs. Lenscrafters vs ______? I haven't bought even regular glasses since the 90's and have no idea what to expect anymore. Thanks for any help.

Can you choose when to start Prime? Wait until the day you have something to order b/f starting if so.

What a bad day! Although it is considerably worse for the poor man who managed to land two such prizes. I would cut away all the friendship misinformation (there is none) and ask yourself as a professional what would you do for another repeat customer who claimed, truthfully or not, they did not get what they asked for? If you have a written contract, you really couldn't just withhold or destroy the images. Were it me, I would deliver some or all of the images, watermarked REALLY BIG right across the nose (ok, joking) and not invest anything more emotionally. That is really the easiest way to permanently sweep away her scat. Honestly, I feel worn out by her myself, and I am something orders of magnitude less than a tourist in all this. Pity her husband.

How do the nurses know the father has custody, or did not just get into a big fight with Mrs. K and want to run away with the baby? How did they know this baby didn't have smallpox, need to be on O2, or had something ultra contagious? Seriously, I bet those nurses have just about seen it all. Just because a doctor has privileges at a hospital does not mean he may overwrite the hospital's rules. The baby wasn't even his patient. Suppose this was all a big sting to reveal how good security was at the hospital, "We just walked right out the door with a KENNEDY baby!" Actually, I find the doctor's quotes very measured, very careful. Anytime you assault a nurse, you should plan to be unpopular for a considerable while.

Yes, which is to say, this shooting is a greater comment on cowardice than culture. A shooter starts shooting other people when the shooter is pretty sure the others will not or cannot shoot back. He was chased away by a mean man! Seriously. I remember days of hunting your way to and back from school. If you dared to raise a firearm to anyone, you stood a good chance of getting shot. Everyone knew this.

Friendship or not, you can't let others dictate when and how you will perform charity work. I wouldn't even let my husband do this. Stop thinking about her and NJ.

I imagine there are all these mobile website teams trying to outshine each other, when in fact everyone just wishes they would all go away! I order from Amazon plenty but never from their mobile site.

Because I'm thinking I do not.

I changed my mind and agree that you're right.

:grouphug::grouphug: Glad to "meet" you. Welcome. (I have no experience with what you're handling on a daily basis, but plenty of good wishes)