Both. But serious posts I can only handle to certain page number. I have no attention span when threads become tit for tat- which is a shame because I know some great points are made later in a thread. I just don't like it when each statement is challenged, defended, re-worded, etc. I must be ADD like Mrs. Mungo [high five?] ;) The funny threads that go on and on seem to keep me laughing. Man o' man there are some witty people on this board. Jo

Argh! What is a girl to do without access to Amazon! I'm sure it is a great list. I'll check it later when the internet fairy allows me back on the Amazon website. Yes, I'm looking for other artists! Thanks so much Jenny! Jo

shameless bump. :001_smile:

I have a bunch of stuff to order....maybe it's a sign. :glare: :001_smile::001_smile::001_smile::001_smile: Jo

Thanks.

We have a large Cd collection...inaccessibly packed away in a boxes somewhere far, far away. We need to redeem our driving time. I'm looking for help. I'm thinking about They Might Be Giants? Memory songs of some sort? I'm trying not to duplicate Cds we already own- so I need help. You can look below at the ages of my children for guidance. Thanks so much! Jo

I think you cannot forget the children. I think children do best with both a mom and dad. I think you can't find a country that has legalized homosexual marriage that hasn't eventually had a drastic decline in marriage period. Norway is great example. People just figure "why bother?", start co-habitation, and thecommitment everyone agrees is best loses traction. There are many studies to support this. Finally, I think "live and let live" is a great theory, but we all have to live with the results- as a society- and it's not as kind and open and loving when the families falls apart. Jo And decent, kind people can disagree....

One ping...one ping only please.... I say this all the time! The Hunt is a great movie (but we're biased over here- ahooooooooogah!) Jo

Kids movies was harder to decide- mainly because they can never agree. :glare: So I'll just list my favorite kid movies. 1. Winnie the Pooh 2. Story Keepers 3. Night at the Museum 4. National Treasure 5. General Pixar- Toy Story at the top. (I know that is cheating, but :D)

That makes me so happy. There is good in this generation. ;) Jo

1. Much Ado About Nothing- with Brannagh ofcourse. 2. Pride and Prejudice- A&E 3. Lord of the Rings 4.House of Flying Daggers (or some other equally gorgeous martial arts kick butt movie) 5. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers Those pretty much hit all the genres I need to have contact with on a regular basis. I could interchange a few, but my moods dictate my comfort movies.

That is the quote from Harvard's polymath professor Steven Pinker. He was quoted by Fareed Zakaria in the latest Newsweek article "The Rise of the Rest". "We are told that we live in dark, dangerous times. Terrorism, rogue states, nuclear proliferation, financial panics, recession, outsourcing, and illegal immigrants all loom large in the national discourse...But just how violent is today's world?" Next quote: "Why does it not feel that way? Why do we think we live in scary times? Part of the problem is that as violence has been ebbing, information has been exploding. The last 20 years have produced an information revolution that brings us news and, most crucially, images from around the world all the time. ...Every weather disturbance is the 'storm of the decade.' Every bomb that explodes is BREAKING NEWS." "Because the information revolution is so new, we- reporters, writers, readers, viewers- are all just now figuring out how to put everything in context." Bingo. I'm done with the article yet. I just thought I'd share these thoughts because they were being discussed earlier. Any thoughts? Edit: Here is the link to the article: http://www.newsweek.com/id/135380 Edit #2: The article is much more wide reaching than what I brought up above. I'm sure it would cause some interesting discussions, but I was pointing out the passages that refer to the posts from earlier today.

general information: http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/fs169-97/ For trip planning and current air quality: http://www.nps.gov/havo/planyourvisit/lava2.htm

I would definitely suggest refundable tickets. They have had to close down the National Park for Sulfur levels several times. The vog is a weird abnormal wind pattern that doesn't come around that frequently, but the Sulfur levels really would ruin his trip. I'm sure there is a website that tracks the air quality at the volcano. I'll look. Jo Edit: My post isn't clear. Vog is not a concern when it comes to trip planning. It is the air quality at the actual Nat'l Park that your brother would want to monitor because they will close the whole kit and kaboodle down if the Sulfur levels are too high and wide spread.

The original. I think they'll have to wait. This was going to be the babysitting movie tonight if dh and I went to a movie. Um, I think this one will need some parental discussion- but I'll probably let them watch it eventually. Jo

I know it's old, but my kids haven't seen it and it arrived from netflix. I'm completely clueless about this movie other than a vague recollection that World mag liked it, as comic book movies go. My kids have seen all the Star Wars and Pirates of the Carribean, but my dh and I wouldn't let them see Transformers (because of the gratuitious skin exposure and inference:glare:- we have a nearly 12yo boy). So you can see that my concerns aren't action or intensity- more mature themes- does that make sense? Jo

We never had this when we lived "out Ewa" either. Weird. It's so bad right now you can't see across Kaneohe Bay. I can't even see the Koolau mtns at a certain distance. I have been busy freezing juice boxes and preparing for a relaxing day of water play in the shady areas of our yard. My goal is to do as little as possible- and then when/if the heat overwhelms us, we'll head out to some place Air-conditioned. Sometimes packing up and going out is more energy expenditure than its worth. KWIM? Jo

I'm always suggesting Dorothy Sayer's Lord Peter Wimsey mystery series. They are the only fiction books that I love, love, love. I usually steer clear of any current best-selling fiction. I still need to get through the classics I missed in my highly limited literary youth. ;) I'm getting ready to read the George MacDonald fiction titles- At The Back of the North Wind, etc. I also like Stephen Ambrose and McCullough for non-fiction titles. Jo

Borders!!! You are brilliant. I hadn't thought of that. I considered the library, but keeping the 1 and 3 yr olds quiet in our persnickety library sort of defeats the "take it easy" order given from dh. Thanks for the idea. You are exactly right in saying it feels claustrophobic and panicky- that's exactly how it feels. Jo

No airconditioning. Usually we can handle it. It's only miserable for a couple of hours in the late afternoon, but it's 8:30 am right now and I'm sweating sitting here typing. :glare: We usually have great breezes passing through the house to keep it comfortable- right now it feels stagnant- dead air. Blah. Jo

of what it would be like living in Los Angeles in August. Remember my question about air conditioning breaking points? I've reached mine. I had some sort of heat stroke yesterday. I was dizzy, nauseous, headache, and couldn't breathe. It's hot here in Hawaii- duh. But we have this "vog" or volcanic fog over the island and I can't get enough air. http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/frontpage I had to lay on the couch and try to stay conscious- this has never happened to me before. Yikes, it was scary- more because I was worried about my kids, and I couldn't reach my dh. Admittedly, I over did it yesterday. I ran several errands that kept me out all day, and when I started to feel lightheaded I didn't immediately take it easier. :001_huh: Again...duh. Anyhoo, it's still really hot today, with no air circulation and this blasted vog. I think we may actually go to the mall. blech. Jo

I would support Ron Paul if we could have a co-president for foreign policy. :) Sometimes I want to stand up and give him a standing ovation, sometimes I just scratch my head and say ":001_huh:". On this issue, the Newborn Screening Act, I give him a standing ovation. The Medical Legislative Assistant I spoke to for a half an hour this morning from Senator Bill Nelson's (FL) office refused to recognize any potential harm in this legislation. I felt exactly like this=====:banghead: by the end of our conversation. Letters with quotes and excerpts are next on my to-do list. Call, call, call ya'll. Jo

These are the co-sponsors of the bills http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:SN01858:@@@L&summ2=m&|/bss/110search.html You'll notice a prominent presidential candidate on the one above. http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/D?d110:2:./temp/~bd6YSq:@@@L&summ2=m&|/bss/110search.html| I'm off to search the voting records. Jo

I'll be the fluke. I really didn't like that movie. Everyone really praised this movie when it came out, so I really expected to like it, but I couldn't wait to pop it back in the mail and get something new. My kids enjoyed it, but not enough to make an impression, IYKWIM? Jo

Yeah...what Janice said. To have that many choices will never be our lot. How could you pass up an Academy post? The weather can be bad everywhere. But the quality of life benefits, not to mention that little career bonus, far out weigh the weather, IMO. The sporting and musical events would be a huge draw for me to go to any Academy, or college town. As for the others choices, it's hard to know. I would be heavily weighing the actual job details- that is something only you and your dh can decide. No matter where the duty station is located, if the job sucks, so will your memories of the tour. Some jobs have longer hours but are really exciting, some are a snore but have your dh home for dinner every night. I would chop off the assignments that your dh would hate to have and see if that shortens the list at all....