I will try it without the vinegar when the tomatoes are ready! Thanks. And I fixed the "police" thing. I feel like I was caught with something in my teeth and someone finally let me know! I guess that's appropriate for this thread.

Rose, I'm sending hugs and keeping you in my thoughts. :grouphug: Some of you know I have some craziness in my life right now that has kept me from getting much reading done and from visiting the boards much at all, but I have a break from that right now and so I checked in. I am honestly shocked at what transpired last week. A dear friend and a valued member of this forum and this thread was treated badly, and I am astonished at how quickly some people attempted to soothe things as if the problem was merely ruffled feathers, with little regard for how deeply hurtful the situation was. Some time ago someone posted something on the BaW thread which was distressing to me. It wasn't personal, and I haven't thought about it for a long time. But at that time we had extensive discussion on this thread about it, and it deepened our caring of and understanding for each other. I'm not sure why that empathetic discourse was cut short this time, but I am sincerely disappointed in the outcome. I do not feel comfortable participating in a group in which certain people are held to the "no politics" standard and others are not, particularly a group that revolves around reading. I do not feel comfortable participating in a group where people are snarky toward other participants. I do not feel comfortable participating in a group in which people raise concerns and are told to lighten up, or that they cannot take a joke. I know I'm coming in during the 5th quarter, but I cannot remain silent about what I have witnessed. I am at this time seriously re-evaluating my participation in this thread, and that makes me sad. But if rules will not be adhered to, and good friends will be scoffed at for being hurt, I do not feel good about taking part. I definitely have to give this some thought.

It is ridiculously good. The dressing is so nice and lemony and garlicky, and I love that the kale doesn't wilt so I can keep eating it the next day. I sometimes double the almonds because I love them when they're toasted.

He did, and he was integral to the math circle too. He still comes back once in a while. Unless my recollection is faulty, when he went to Harvard he started with graduate-level math.

Garbanzo beans, olive oil, Kalamata olives, and sun-dried tomatoes. Sprinkle with shredded Parmesan. Caprese salad is my favorite. It's a bit early for good tomatoes, but sliced fresh tomatoes and sliced fresh mozzarella layered and topped with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and basil. 2nd favorite: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/kale-brussels-sprout-salad-368295 I tend to get lazy and just use all kale because prepping and shredding Brussels sprouts takes a lot of time.

If you're comfortable in medical waiting rooms, sometimes just the driving to the appointments can be a huge help. When my dad had cancer and had treatments every week, his students set up a rotation to drive him so my mom had that time to get other things done.

Subscribing and trying not to panic. I'll try to start figuring this out over spring break.

I'm so sorry this is happening. I'm glad you're still pursuing the Lyme disease trail as well. Someone on these boards had a son who had a non-Lyme tick disease and went to what sounded like an excellent tick disease center. I wish I could remember who, but hopefully she will pop in here. :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug:

I don't have time right now to expound, but check out Harvey Mudd in CA as well.

I'm almost done with A General Theory of Oblivion. Somewhere in the middle it too a completely different turn from how I imagined the book was going to go. Maybe I'm getting older, but for some reason I'm losing track of names in this book, resulting in several "What, who's that guy?" moments. I also started Suspended Sentences. I have a habit of stopping by the bookstore while waiting for a movie, so I often use ticket stubs as bookmarks. Apparently I purchased this the night I went to see Jurassic World. I am enjoying this one, especially all the inclusion of light and shadow. I feel someone here read it last year, but I can't remember who. At the time I finished it I posted that it reminded me a bit of Grey Gardens.

Well I showed up in the kitchen to make dinner, so there. I will not be showing up on those linked web sites, however. I miss c'est la vie too.

Oh enjoy! The Jack Reacher books are a guilty pleasure and The Killing Floor is one of the best.

I finished Grisham's The Client. It was really a touching and deep book, with much more legal maneuvering than his usual books. It was well-written and made me so sympathetic for one of the main characters, even though he was a member of the KKK who participated in his younger years in various racially motivated crimes in Mississippi. Definitely my favorite of his so far. Well, that was some ending to the Oscars! And the quilt gathering sounds really inspiring! If you ever get up towards Reno, there's a pretty good-sized Basque community there. We were there once for a conference and had wonderful Basque food. :lol:

I've been thinking about you and your little guy. Thanks for the update!

Are there more "likes" available than there used to be? I was able to like more than 50 posts just now. Anyway... I am almost done with Grisham's The Chamber. At about 700 pages, it seems meatier than most Grisham books. I still don't know the outcome of the main plot even though I am close to finishing. It's about a character who is on death row, and just like all the last-minute appeals, this book makes me feel like we're really down to the wire because I'm so close to the end and still can't figure out what's going to happen. I'm reluctant to finish because I'm enjoying the anticipation of the ending so much. I was wondering what I would read next. A thanks to you for reminding me of Stacia's review; I just pulled A General Theory of Oblivion off the shelf. Fun! Thank you. I often have many unread books lying around so I'm rarely trying to find alike authors, but DH is a much faster reader than I am so he's always wondering. I also avoided Shirley Jackson after being scarred by The Lottery in high school. (Are high school English teachers secretly sadists?) I'm one of those who read We Have Always Lived in the Castle last year and would like to hear what you think when you're done. I read it when it came out so it's been a while, but it's a fun book. There are a few dystopian things I found depressing, but I enjoyed the writing. Do it! I finally read it last year because I got tired of saying I hadn't. I'm a slow reader and I finished it in an evening. :grouphug: I know a lot of people struggled with this book and I hope you are okay. The last ~25 pages were so difficult!

I wish I could read the wonderful Harry Potter series for the first time again. Prisoner of Azkaban is my favorite too.

My city's storm drains are having a big problem. Everywhere we drove today they had manhole covers open and pumps running.

I've not been online as much but I'm checking to say I hope everyone is safe. The rain arrived here late, not starting until today instead of yesterday as forecasted. We're at 2.5" since noon and we're in flat areas. The hills are probably getting slammed.

Oh no, feel better soon! Welcome Happy! :seeya: I'm glad they got it all and you're on the mend. I've not been getting much reading done these last two weeks. A friend of mine is dealing with a very stressful illness and I've mostly been chauffeuring her mom and her kids around, plus watching the kids at my home. Deciding I don't have the right frame of mind and circumstance to read anything requiring a long attention span, I am reading Grisham's The Chamber. I picked it up a while back at the Little Library down the street. I read the first few Grisham novels, and then got away from him because I didn't enjoy The Client. Well I stopped one book too early at least, because I am really enjoying The Chamber, its setting of Mississippi after Civil Rights, and its plot revolving around a KKK bomber on death row. I mentioned last week that I lost a long post on Euphoria and as new things pile up, I've not only lost the wherewithal to recreate it, I'm also feeling pressed for time to make a mini version. Instead, I'll post a poem referenced in the book. One of the characters has lost a brother in WWI and uses this poem to cope with it. It really moved me and I keep thinking of the last line. The author is Edward Shillito, a Free Church minister in England. Hardness of Heart In the first watch no death but made us mourn; Now tearless eyes run down the daily roll, Whose names are written in the book of death; For sealed are now the springs of tears, as when The tropic sun makes dry the torrent's course After the rains. They are too many now For mortal eyes to weep, and none can see But God alone the Thing itself and live. We look to seaward, and behold a cry! To skyward, and they fall as stricken birds On autumn fields; and earth cries out its toll, From the Great River to the world's end--toll Of dead, and maimed and lost; we dare not stay; Tears are not endless and we have no more.

Thanks for this thread. I'm glad it got bumped!

:grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: What I would do in your shoes: I agree with those saying to get rid of half your stuff. Cancel school for a couple of weeks, and have everyone pitch in when they're not working. Bag items, donate them, get a dumpster and start tossing things. Be ruthless, knowing it will help everyone, especially the 2yo. Stop on the instrument lessons for a few weeks. Unless DS is getting ready to audition for something life-changing, it can wait. That will give you the car back while you declutter and get organized. Oldest can walk unless there's a blizzard. She has to be told in no uncertain terms to help more. Don't count on her being there at a certain time, maybe, but give her a daily and weekly list and hold her accountable if things are not done. Plan your school for 6 weeks on, 1 week off. Use that week to deal with all the things you are getting behind on and to get organized, and make sure the family members understand their role in that week as well. Use the knowledge that the week off is coming soon to get yourself through the crazy weeks.

Adding--if you're looking for a good general and historical documentary, I recommend PBS's Islam: Empire of Faith. The link takes you to Youtube.

Sure, Muslims go year-round. The topic you're looking for is called Umrah. It tends to be cheaper and less crowded. It doesn't "count" towards the goal of going to Hajj once in your life, but people like to visit for both spiritual and practical reasons.

I've been thinking of you as well. Thank you so much for the update. :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: And thanks to Stephanie for asking.

It might have been an urban legend which made it into print, but I definitely saw it rather than heard it. I took it to my parents who then had to explain the world's oldest profession. :lol: