I said earlier but perhaps should have said again in each post that I don't begrudge the people using food stamps. I do get bothered when people act indignant at even the idea that many people could get by with less than they have. In my first post, I said I didn't care what people bought with FS if they could budget it in with their allotment. But it isn't an honest conversation if people want to say they should be able to do ________, but don't want to hear about people who choose to live without ___________ because they can't afford it on their own. Comparison is the death of contentment. I live in a decent house with a lovely yard. Until my sister moved last week (in with my parents, by choice, but that is a whole 'nother thread), she lived in a lovely 400,000 dollar home with a really nice kitchen. In my badly laidout kitchen, the refrigerator freezes the food in some areas, the big burner on my stovetop doesn't work, I have to turn the oven on with a screwdriver and I can't fit a cookie sheet into it, and my dishwasher (the only decent appliance) broke two weeks ago. If I only compared my kitchen with my sister's, it would be depressing. But not everyone has a nice, modern kitchen. Saying I deserve good appliances just isn't - I don't know - correct? I'm sure many people put up with worse kitchens than mine. No one, I hope, wants people to go hungry. But many people do without other things to buy their own food. I don't think it is bad for people to know how other people live - on all sides of the issue.

The Mark of the Lion series was my favorite books. I hated the first half of The Scarlet Thread but liked the second half. Redeeming Love is well written, but I didn't care for it. I did like the Sin Eater a lot. And the Shofar Blew was good. She is an excellent writer.

Three years goes by quickly. Really, it does. We get transferred every so often. I'd kind of like to pay cash for our next place if we can swing it and save money to build. I think in 3-5 years we could save enough to build if we went bare bones. I haven't quite talked Dh into it.

And you realize that my parents bought a farm, livestock, and farm equipment while earning that much money? You did catch that we lived off the 5,000 that Mom earned cleaning houses part time? My dad took an evening class to learn carpentry skills. He built our house himself paying cash as he went (we lived in an unfinished basement part of that time and had 2x4 steps for years until Mom designed an afghan with pictures from our town and sold them so that we could afford a staircase). Mom has a very nice hardwood floor in her kitchen and entryway. Many people remark on it. Mom and Dad were allowed to pull it out of a house that was getting torn down. Us kids had to clean up the pieces. Mom and Dad refinished them. I had a great childhood with parents that loved me, but we lived on less than the amounts you are mentioning. Things cost in either money or sweat equity. If you have less of one it is going to take more of the other. Sometimes a lot more. But discount it if you want, since it doesn't fit your worldview.

:iagree:I find it interesting that people seem to think that all people who haven't been on assistance have been "lucky" or are rich. Sometimes people just choose not to use assistance even if they qualify for it. When I was growing up, my mom cleaned houses for 5-8 dollars an hour. My dad, as one of his three jobs, did carpentry work. He charged $12 an hour when the going rate was over $20. Why? Sometimes because the people he did work for were elderly or single moms. Mostly because he lived in an economically depressed area (more than half of the people in their county are on welfare). Most of the money Dad earned (less than 20,000 a year) went to paying off the mortgage on the farm. One year the income on the farm was $7.00. That is the year my brother decided he was never going to farm. We paid the bills and bought groceries with the 5,000 Mom earned cleaning houses. We always gave beef to the pastor and garden vegetables to people who needed them. One year Dad lost about half of his income because he (voluntarily) spent that year building the church. I am very fortunate that Dh has a good job, but if he didn't it wouldn't be the end of the world. I don't begrudge food stamps to those that need them, but being poor in America is often a state of mind.

Copied from the above post: Part of this is providing for his daily needs. I bring him food throughout the day, I keep easy-to-make things available for him at night (when we're asleep and he's not). When I bring him food I cut it up so it's finger food or easily eaten with a fork. Throughout the day I'll pop in and remove dishes for him, or ask him to bring them to the kitchen when he gets a second. Oh. My. Goodness.

Do you really mean this? Or is it sensationalism? Because if you mean this, it would be fine with you if someone took everything you have except the bare minimum of food, clothing, and shelter. At least until every child in the world had enough food to eat. Because if your baseline of someone having too much is whether everyone has enough to eat, there are only two groups of people - those who have enough food and those who don't.

:001_huh: What in the world? Every time I think I've heard it all....

:iagree: I think food stamps should be a reasonable (not intending to debate what reasonable is) amount for the family and their COLA. After that the family should be able to buy what they want. If they can budget in treats, good for them. I wouldn't complain about the new law, though, if I was on food stamps. If I wanted the pop that badly, I'd pay cash.

Is there a wall on another side of the room that has space at the top? You could put a shelf about 18" from the ceiling and store items you need infrequently up high.

Would you have the resources to replace one of the bookshelves with a cabinet with doors? I am very fortunate that I have a closet in my school room. I still have stuff everywhere because that is how I am, but the little stuff that creates the most visual clutter can go in the closet. If you could put all the odd shaped or small stuff behind closed doors, the open shelves could be just as full but look less cluttered.

100,000?:svengo: If I spend a looong time on the treadmill, I can burn between 500-1000 calories. Best case scenario I can burn 100,000 calories in 100 days. How are you going to do that in 1 month?

We have a refrigerator in ours and haven't had a problem with it.

What a great experience! One of my favorites that I still reread regularly is The Moonspinners. It was the only one of hers I read until I was an adult, though. My Dd is the same way.:lol: In addition to The Moonspinners my list would include: Anne of Green Gables and all the sequels Down the Long Hills (my first Louis L'amour book) Safe as the Grave Where the Red Fern Grows Fur Trappers of the Old West While My Pretty One Sleeps Island of the Blue Dolphin

Some kind on crock, barrel, or cylindrical tub would work well for the light saber, swords, etc.

I'm wondering how this is the patron's responsibility. If a postal worker is not physically able to do the job, they shouldn't be doing it. Or if their route is too long to do the job well, the post office should add another route making all the others shorter. I understand from your post that your Dh had an illness. I'm not attacking you or your Dh when I say this. If a mail carrier has a temporary issue that would only affect their job for a little while, it would be one thing. It is something else entirely if they aren't fit enough physically for the job.

We've just started using their blank books (I think $1.80 each). It has a nice hard cover that kids can write or draw on and completely blank pages. My son makes each page a chapter with writing on one side and a picture on the other. My daughter isn't into creative writing, but she writes history essays in them for fun.

3. Nicknames? Bella (We already have Ella) or Izzie (and we already have Lizzie) This is a problem IMO. If I had an Isabella, I would call her Isa with the I saying a long e sound.

See, he's looking at it all wrong. All the money we pay in shipping is great job security. If I'm not home and the door is locked, my postman (the one I already mentioned) will leave a missed delivery slip. But I never go pick it up. He will redeliver once he knows we are back from wherever we've been.

I have five sets and have never seen anything objectionable. I've never heard anything negative about the pictures. Most people, I think, say they are beautifully done.

My postman rings the doorbell then cracks open the door and slides the package into my entryway with a cheerful greeting for the kids if they've run up to meet him.

I was just wondering about this today. Our medium sized (but on the small side of medium) dog was eating a raccoon this morning. I don't think she killed it. I'm wondering how it died. I think we'll keep the dog penned. I haven't found the raccoon yet. If it was road kill, I won't worry. Otherwise, I'm not sure what to think.

That is cool!