There are a bunch of places to eat at in Central Park, which is route 3 west.. Unless you are talking about old town/downtown Fredericksburg itself? So much has changed in the area since I lived there.. There used to be a nice park off of route 17 heading east, but I am drawing a blank to it's name.. Sorry I'm not much help to you....

Thank you VERY much!! :001_smile:

The title of the book is: Mowgli et les elephants Mowgli avait toujours vecu dans la jungle. Ce jour-la, il faisait la sieste sur une grosse branche d'arbre, en compagnie de Bagheera, la panthere noire. and of course many of these words have that little accent line above them that I can't imitate with the computer... :glare: So..... is it French? :confused:

It depends on where dh's current job location is. But it averages out to be about 2 hours each way. Dh thought he held the longest commute record until he met a guy who commutes from Alexandria, VA TO Richmond, VA every day. That's about a 2 1/2 - 3 hour commute each way depending on speed. :D

It's getting aggravating! Ever since the economy turned ugly it seems as though they call our house every other month, looking for someone who we have never heard of. And it always seems to be a different person they are looking for each time a collector calls. They will call several times a day for several days until I end up 'venting' on a 'real' person (the calls are usually automated). A debt collecting agency called again this evening at 8:59pm. People are sleeping (young kids and dh) in our house at that time of evening. Again, it was an automated voice. How can you stop this without totally disconnecting your phone? (personally, I liked to find the debtor's myself so I can give em a piece of my mind for the aggravation THEY are causing us) :glare:

Diamond Gussett Jeans Dh has a physically demanding job and he LOVES the diamond shaped gussett in the jeans! No more stopping to adjust! :D They are also very durable and long lasting! Howe's Candy is made in the USA! We buy their brand instead of Brach's, which is now made in Mexico. :glare:

No! Many, many years ago when I lived near double coupon stores, I was able to feed our then family of 4 on just $100 a month. That of course, was back before Internet, coupon groups, and credit cards that offered cash back, all the reward programs, etc. If I had those available then, I bet I could have only spent $800 a yr easily. We now live in an area where the stores do not offer double or triple coupons. I have also lost access to a bread thrift shop. :crying: So I am back to baking our own bread just like when there was just 4 of us. :D

If you had read my previous post to this comment you would see that I stated that shopping and stocking up on sales and changing shopping habits saves more money than shopping at the big box stores. These were posted sale items that I stocked up on. The post you quoted was in response to someone who strongly disgreed with my statement. I have been shopping sales and stocking up for over 20 years. Our grocery bill is averaging $700 a month for a family of 8!!! (we live in the NOVA area where regional prices tend to be higher than average and have 2 grown men and 2 teenage boys to feed) So far in the 3 weeks of this month I have only spent $500. I have only used $15 worth of coupons and have a freezer and pantry full of REAL food. Not processed boxed junk. Deals ARE to be had, WHEREVER you live! You just have to look for them. Big box stores thrive because people do not wish to take the time to LOOK for and take advantage of the sales at other stores. (this only takes me 15 minutes every Sunday to look over the sales adds in the paper) This is a persons personal perogative to choose which way they want to shop! I was just stating the FACT that you can save more money on your grocery bill without having to join a big box store. Deals are to be had. It is up to the WISE consumer to find them. :) If the consumer so chooses not to look for the deals than so be it.... That is their choice! Resorting to calling my statement foolish is just YOUR personal opinion!

I disagree! WHOLE HEARTEDLY! I just purchased 2 lb bags of shredded Mozarella and Cheddar Cheese on SALE for BOGO! That works out to be $3.35 for 2 lbs. How much did you pay for your Cheddar Cheese at Costco? The week before that I purchased 16 oz. packages (24 ct slices) of Kraft American Cheese for $2.00. How much did you pay at Costco? Changing your habits, shopping and stocking up on sales saves you more money than shopping at Costco. However, if you prefer to shop at Costco because of the convenience then by all means shop there. I however prefer to save my dh's hard earned dollars!:)

I find I do much better by shopping sales. The only time we have ever saved any money by shopping at a big box store was when we purchased tires for our vehicle. But now with the Internet dh is able to find better deals on tires. The big box stores DO NOT save you any money!! You do not necessarily have to use coupons in order to save. They are a help but there are plenty of other ways to save on your grocery bill if you do not wish to take the few minutes a week to clip them. I would start by creating a price book. The Tightwad Gazette explains the use of a price book thoroughly. You will be amazed at the difference in prices between stores. When I started a price book many, many, many years ago, I discovered my FAVORITE store that I thought was the better value was actually charging me a $1.00 more for our favorite brand of Peanut Butter. They were also charging more for a few other items. By changing my shopping habits I was already able to save a few dollars. I developed a routine where I shopped at x store one week and then y store the next to pick up the cheaper items. Also by keeping a price book you can see when an advertised special is a great deal or not. When you see the great deal (stores usually call them loss leaders because they are hoping you will spend your money on other overpriced items) you know you should stock up on the deal. I did that this week when hamburger meat went on sale for $1.49 a lb. (it's usually $2.39-$2.99 a lb.) I bought $50 worth (we have a crew of 8 to feed) and froze it in meal sized quantities. It will be enough to last me until the next sale. By keeping track in my price book of sales the next great sale on meat should occur in either Sept. or Oct. (This tracking doesn't always hold true, but 75% of the time it does.) Coupons are great too! I have a few coupon queen stories I could tell, including two 'they paid me' stories, however where we now live we do not have any stores that offer double coupons. So it's really hard to earn a coupon queen status in this area. :D There are also many wonderful rebates out there you can take advantage of. In many states the beer/alcohol companies put out rebates for meat/salty snacks/water/etc. and you DO NOT have to purchase beer for the rebate. Just a receipt and being over the age of 21 is all you need. I did this with my meat purchase. I had a rebate that if I purchased $25 in fresh meat I could get $10 back from the rebate. These rebates can easily be purchased from coupon services on the most popular auction site on the Internet.;) You can also save on your groceries in many other ways. Start cooking from scratch. Don't buy preboxed foods. Bread and even Mac N Cheese IS cheaper and HEALTHIER when made at home fresh. You can garden. You can purchase from pick your own farms. You don't have to buy all those expensive cleaners, especially when vinegar, bleach, and baking soda and elbow grease really do go a long way. Change your shopping habits! Create a price book, and be amazed! ;) Hope this helps!

Uh...I'm starting to lose brain functioning capibilities this evening....:D That would be a refrigerant leak.

I know an upright isn't suppose to last as long as a deep freezer. I too am like most the other posters. My deep freezer is over 25 years old. Now my 90s upright is a hand me down. It's still going strong. It could have a small freon leak in it. Which would be the cause of it losing its freezing capibilities. With freon leaks most of the time its just worth getting a new one instead of having them fix the leak. It's up to you to decide if its worth a service call to find out it is condemned.

I agree! Everyone's jumping off the bridge and I DON'T WANT TO GO!! Why are they making me jump off the bridge with them? Help! Someone's got ahold of my ankle! Ahhhhhh.........:D

Actually the article also DOES NOT state that parental consent will be asked for. You can easily google mandatory swine flu vaccinations and come up with a dozen articles. But since that article wasn't good enough here are a few more: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/07/04/Warning-Swine-Flu-Vaccine-Coming-Soon.aspx Quote from this article: "Many do not realize that such laws even exist. But the Model State Emergency Health Powers Act (MSEHPA), which was passed by many states in 2002, includes provisions that would allow state health officials to use the state militia to: Take control of all roads leading into and out of cities and states Seize homes, cars, telephones, computers, food, fuel, clothing, firearms and alcoholic beverages for their own use (and not be held liable if these actions result in the destruction of personal property) Arrest, imprison and forcibly examine, vaccinate and medicate citizens without consent (and not be held liable if these actions result in your death or injury) " Here's another article: http://www.examiner.com/x-6495-US-Intelligence-Examiner~y2009m7d7-Swine-flu-Vaccine-risks-and-dangers Quote from this article: "States Enact Stronger Quarantine & No Free Assembly Laws In some states, like Massachusetts, public health doctors have persuaded legislators to quickly pass pandemic influenza legislation that will allow state officials to enter homes and businesses without the approval of occupants; to investigate and quarantine individuals without their consent; to require licensed health care providers to give citizens vaccines and to ban the free assembly of citizens in the state. [23][24] What Can You Do? What does this declaration of a public health emergency in the U.S. mean for you and your family? It means that, right now, you need to become educated about vaccination, influenza, vaccine risks, and the public health laws in your state. You need to find out what your rights and options are under new public health laws that may require you and your children to get vaccinated or be quarantined. [25] Take Action Now Go to www.NVIC.org and learn more. Register now to attend the Fourth International Public Conference on Vaccination Oct. 2-4, 2009 in Washington, D.C. and help organize in your state to protect your right to informed consent to vaccination. Call and write the state legislators you elected to make public health laws that govern you and your family. Make your voice heard."

I CAN'T WATCH the video or my satellite company will FAP me!! :banghead: But if Ronald Reagan says anything like this, I am sure I would LOVE it!! "Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free." ~ Ronald Reagan OR "The nine most terrifying words in the English language are... I'm from the government and I'm here to help." ~ Ronald Reagan

Swine Flu Shots at Public Schools http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hXFe712UD7TL1akfJ1qCC6SEs1hQD99B59G02

Not Elaine here. But, without pulling out our policies to re-read them, if I remember correctly, it's like a cash-out plan. You get x amount of dollars paid out. Similar to a life insurance plan.

We have these! Dh acquired them, one on him and one on me, through our life insurance company.

It's my understanding were all suppose to move to Texas!!! :D

I have a 50 yr old relative this has happened to! She lost her income and health insurance coverage but Medicare or is Medicaid (I get the 2 confused) is now paying for her treatments.

AMEN!!! What's next on the everyone DESERVES to HAVE agenda? A car? A house?

Your not the only one who has posted this same sentiment! BUT...... Isn't this what our TAX DOLLAR PAID representatives are doing?

You know, once upon a time......a short time ago.......oh, let's say 50 plus-ish years or more..... Healthcare was considered a luxury item....I don't think health insurance even existed when my grandmother was a little girl. Which is probably why they paid their doctor with pies and/or eggs.... So I am just curious, why now do so many people think it is a luxury that everyone deserves to have? :bigear:

Insurance is a priority for this family. Dh has been known to turn down GREAT job offers because they didn't carry decent insurance coverage. We would forgo electricity and phone service just to be sure we had coverage. Matter of fact many years back, we did EXACTLY that!! NO food too! But we had health insurance and a steady paycheck! We couldn't bear the thought of allowing our medical bills fall onto the shoulders of others. But millions of other people every year have no problem doing that. I guess it all has to do with one's conscience and morality levels. My mother was one of those who 'couldn't afford health insurance' while we were growing up (however she never had an affordability issue purchasing cigarettes, lighters, and going to the bars). Now your and my tax dollars are paying for her longtime lifestyle choices 3 times a week when she goes to her dialysis appts. Oh and I don't recall her EVER paying for any of her children's ER appts. Grandma and Grandpa always took us to the doctor when we got sick. She also CHOSE not to have a job since I was 15. She bummed from one friend or another. So how could others who don't have a job pay into a system that GIVES them health coverage! BTW, I have a sister who is following my mothers footsteps. She CHOOSES not to work! We CHOOSE to work and are going to be punished for those who choose not to!

Oh! I forgot my fire stories too. Do these even qualify as strange household accidents? When I was 5, I was playing with my dolly's and I got a little too close to the gas heater. (It's hard to describe the heater, but it was sort of like a square version of a Kerosene heater, so you have a open flame.) I accidentally dropped my dolls clothing onto the heater and set the house on fire. Thankfully the kitchen sink and my mother weren't far. She put it out with 1 soup pot of water and 1 soup pot of soup. Then when I was 9 or 10, I was burning trash and managed to accidently set the field on fire. I think a gust of wind picked up a piece of the trash out of the barrel and set it in the field. Again I nearly burnt down the house. We lived in a very rural area then and we did not own a phone. So my barefooted little feet had to run a mile and half on gravel dirt road to the nearest neighbor to ask them to phone the fire dept. I then had to run back and help my mom put out the fire. When I arrived the fire was really close to the house and my mother had me get my little sisters (who were only 3 and 4 at the time) and put them into the car for safe keeping. All (4 or 5 of them) the nearby neighbors arrived to help put out the fire. (I assume the neighbor with the phone called them.) The fire dept took over an hour to get there so we had the fire out before they arrived. I managed to burn up 2 acres that day. The fire came within 6 inches of the house. Now you all know why we live by the Murphy's Law philosophy!!! :D I'm signing off before I remember any other "tragic" events of my life! :lol: