I would never get to drink tea with friends.

Me neither. I have done the countdown thing and told them to stop interrupting, but not in that stereotypical "mom" tone. But I also never did baby talk so what do I know? It was funny though! :laugh:

Beneficial nematodes eat maggot larvae. Call the local nursery and/or Home Depot/Lowes?

I wonder what percentage of people would do it if there was no money, i.e. doing it for accountability, direction, testing, feedback, etc.

I see what you did there. ;) :grouphug:

We just like the flexibility and freedom to do our own thing. It would drive me a bit crazy to meet with someone and go over everything each month.

Visiting is on my "someday" list. There's also a podcast. We use the iTunes version but I'm sure there are others. We have one too, an inherited object from DH's grandfather. :)

Good and Cheap PDF cookbook. It's free. More about the project and Leanne Brown, the author.

I know. It feels good!

Great, thanks!

Just a reminder if you haven't filed yet. :)

Mazel tov! I am so happy you are all together and your granddaughter has excellent care. :grouphug:

But what am I going to do with this pitchfork?

After the talk about No Country for Old Men I picked it up at the library while browsing yesterday. This is a re-read for me. I think I'm in Chapter 4 of Poynton. Tristano Dies is sitting on my shelf and I'll get to it in November, I think. I'm kind sorta determined to not let the Archipelago books pile up too much, but my reading time is full for October. :lol:

I'd ask the sister in private and just handle it the way she prefers. Congrats!!!

Ooooh. I guess I'll jump in and try it out too. After I read this passage to DH, he promptly disallowed the departed Mr. James from ever visiting our home. I guess ghosts count too.

Me too. E-book here, if anyone is interested.

And to think I was just lounging on my friend's Victorian sofa last week. (Did I mention the purple velvet!?) I didn't realize the implications at the time and will be more careful going forward.

You've got me intrigued, not least of all because I live in a land of Victorian houses and acquaintances own such furniture. If a neophyte were interested in reading their first James book, do you have one you would recommend? Yes, thank you. I was mislead somewhere along the line when I read it was very popular with Victorian readers. The should have looked more closely at the date of publication. I've watched 24 and Sicario is much more intense than that, not just in imagery and storyline, but also music and sound editing. I haven't seen Breaking Bad. Woohoo! Enjoy. :grouphug: Next month is a ways off. Can you get some pain relief from the doctor in the meantime?

The horrors! :D

I finished The Vicar of Wakefield. The first third was a fun and interesting view into Victorian society and strata. The second third was a soap opera. The last third took me a long time to finish, let's just put it that way. I think the book provided some interesting insights but the overall plot was, how shall I put this...oh yes...nuts. I'm still working on House of Leaves and A String in the Harp. In a poor part of Oakland a large grant for an urban farm was lost a few years ago after the soil was tested and found to contain too much lead and arsenic. It's a real issue and Oakland-based urban farms will talk to buyers about what they do to remediate lead. On the other hand, they are loosening up restrictions and allowing people to sell their own produce from their houses as part of a way to relieve the food desert issue and provide some opportunities for entrepreneurship. I'm not sure what's going on with the lead in those situations. Thanks for the info about The Martian. I think I'll wait in the queue and if I get my chance I'll just do a quick read then. I'm also going back to see Sicario. I went alone but I'll go back with DH. Yes, that line was chilling. It was also the "just shut up and do this" line for me. Yes, it was has the same feel as No Country for Old Men. (I read the book and saw the movie.) There's that same relentlessness and hopelessness, mixed with the vast landscapes of West Texas.

I watched two movies yesterday. The first was The Martian. Yes, I really was planning to read the book first but I started going backwards in the Overdrive hold queue, as if people were cutting in front of me. I talked to the librarian and they're not sure what's going on. Worried that it would leave the big screen before I get my turn, I headed off to see it. It was pretty good, but I can't decide if I want to re-read the entire story now. Anyone else read the book after seeing the movie? The second movie was Sicario, which was very intense. And I say that as a lover of tense movies. I was so wound up I cried while walking home. What a movie. The audio/score work alone should garner an Oscar nomination, I think, and the cinematography was excellent. It did make The Martian pale in comparison so perhaps I shouldn't have seen them back to back. I'm always complaining that Hollywood does too many sequels and adaptations and should produce more original content. Well they did and now I'm wishing I could read the book! Anyone have a good Mexican cartel fiction book they could recommend?

It's not just about intake, but also absorption.

Well my jaws are clenched just reading this. I would do my own exercise program and check it out again after the winnowing in 2nd grade.

Ugh. DH is saying those should be called "spoiler notes" instead.