All this remembering reminded me of the Bowling for Soup song, 1985 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K38xNqZvBJI. Up until the time my mother sold her house to move to Arizona she still has rotary phones, some even still had the 3 prong phone jack.

Fellow people who remember Brenda V. So nice to know I am not alone. When my father was in the hospital a few years ago I remember thinking that the doctors were not old enough to be doctors. They looked like children. I don't dare tell my dd that I had outfits exactly like hers (e.g., purple and black check skirt, black leggings, big shirt, vest) She would die. Another how to know you are old-the music of your youth is in a luxury car commercial. Yep, you are a target audience. I have experienced the time warp. The 80's seem like just yesterday. I want to know when I went from being made fun of for being so young to making fun of the young. That was a rude awakening.

The microwave was a big deal. All my friends came over to watch the glass of water boil. We were also the first block on the house to get cable. Who can forget that long cord attached to the tv and to the box.

Raise your hand if you know who Brenda Vaccarro is. Nothing says old like referencing an actress and getting a polite smile.

I have always been a believer in my dad's theory on leaves. "G-d put them there and G-d will take them away."

I don't know if it shortens the duration. As someone who has spent her life catching any stomach bug that comes within 50 miles of her I will tell you that I will take the temporary relief given by throwing up over that nauseated feeling.

I am a married relation. My in-laws do treat me as one of their own but in my mind they are the in-laws. They are not my mom and dad and I do not feel free to speak to them as I do to my own parents.

We use History Odyssey.

I usually say "You never really know what you are capable of until you are in a situation." Then I smile and change the subject.

If the meat is cooked through then it is not underdone.

I bring my own beverages. I buy the popcorn. There is something magical about movie popcorn. But I get it plain. No butter flavored oil for me. If the kids want candy we bring that from home, too.

I love that book and recommend it to everyone along with the other one The Gift of Fear.

I don't know what it is but I recommend you start using a neti pot to clean out your nose. The saline solution will help kill off the germs. The blood may be because the membranes are swollen and the frequent blowing is irritating to them.

I choose not to take it personally. On the upside, I rarely get negative comments. I tend to shut down potential offensive subjects by thanking them for their concern and asking them to pass the bean dip.

We are home most days. If we do have an outing I try to plan them in the afternoon so we can get school work done first.

After 2 years of trying to resolve the bullying my ds was putting up with on a daily basis and the fact that my ds developed trichotillomania from the stress and spent 4th grade with no eyelashes my dh realized that we needed to do something. I had wanted to hs and he was opposed. After the eyelashes he agreed to bring our kids home for a year and get ds emotionally healthy. After all, we couldn't screw him up emotionally any more than the school did. After the first year we decided we liked it. It was really working for our family and 3 years later we are still at it.

I find the USPS to be a great thing. I rarely have had any issues. My letters and packages arrive where I shipped them in a timely manner and the things people send me arrive in the condition they were sent. Some of the experiences people have been posting of late give me pause but my experience is still excellent. I have run into poor customer service in many environments. Some people are just miserable and love to spread it. I don't think the USPS would have the time to deliver to the letters to the courthouse. Postal workers are under a lot of pressure. The "Going Postal" phrase entered our language for a reason.

I try to stay out of these conversations because they are nothing but trouble but I made the mistake of reading the thread. Offensive doesn't even begin to cover it. Children need real love. That love can be provided by family and it can be provided by paid care providers. Parents who care make the effort and normally succeed in surrounding themselves with people who will love and care for their children when they are not around. I see the problems with the youth of today as a lack of parenting. I see the same rude behavior in children with a stay at home parent and children without one. I see the same rude behaviors in homeschooled children and in public schooled children. People don't parent. They are busy being their kids friend. They are busy with other interests. They just don't care. They think "Boys will be boys" so their awful behavior is to be expected and there is nothing I can do about it so I will ignore it. Whether or not both parents work outside the home is not the crux of the matter. That is just a smoke and mirrors tactic designed to remove focus from the real issue by flaming emotions. Parents need to parent. Period. Unfortunately, many don't know how. This is the education that is needed. As for the original topic-the race to nowhere. It is a very real race. I see it all around me. I struggle against getting caught up in it. My dh is in it and this does cause the occasional conflict between us as we discuss the upcoming high school years. My personal opinion is years from now people will study the public school system and decide that the final nail in the coffin of what was once a great institution will be the No Child Left Behind Act. The people in charge now are the ones who grew up with it. They do not know anything else.

That was a well needed laugh.

A prayer for my health, love, happiness, general well being, I say thank you. A prayer is a prayer and I am happy someone is thinking good thoughts for me. Praying for my soul because you think I missed the boat and am going to rot in hell, well, that is a different ball of wax.

Ranger. Definitely Ranger. Unless I was ready to settle down and start a family. Morelli would be the better choice. But Ranger, so hot. You know this reads like an advertisement for that book-Smart Women, Bad Choices.

Atlas, Globe, Wall Maps, and Internet.

I had the big fairy tale wedding. 245 guests. Dh has a really large family. The guests left saying exactly what I wanted them to say "The food was great. I could have danced all night. My feet hurt from dancing and I am tired." I did get married the day after the big Nor'Easter of '92. I had no heat or hot water the day of my wedding. I had to shower and get ready at my aunt's house. My neighbor let me use her house for the makeup artist I had coming to do everyone's makeup. Up until 10 hours before our wedding the place where we were getting married had no power. Due to the weather the best man was still circling the airport when we started taking photos. Most of the bridal party was coming from out of town and all had adventures getting to our wedding. Our Rabbi almost didn't make it because of the weather. To put the cherry on top-our photographer skipped town while we were on our honeymoon. Fortunately, my mom had picked up the proofs while we were away and we were able to eventually hunt down the photographer and get our negatives and an album made. Tomorrow we will be celebrating our 18th wedding anniversary. I love weddings. Big ones, small ones, destinations, it doesn't matter. I cry and laugh and bask in the love and promise of two people pledging their lives together.

Out state has no law about age. I started leaving ds home alone for short periods of time when he was 11. I will leave both my kids (12 & 10) home alone for a couple of hours if I am local. Dd started staying home alone for short periods when she turned 10. I will leave her home alone for extended periods if I am within 20 minutes. In all honesty, if it wasn't for the fact that we have a large, protective dog I would probably not leave her home for those extended periods yet. I would have waited until she was 11.

It is hormones. I am well into perimenopause and I am an absolute nutter two weeks out of the month. My cycle is still regular but it is a much shorter cycle then it used to be. There are some herbal teas that may help with some of the symptoms. I would go to the doctor to confirm if you are in menopause.