[Do you have a pillow that improves the quality of your sleep?]

I have the perfect pillow--old, flat, floppy. Anything else gives me a headache. 

[Can someone explain to me how the Ronit Bird books work?]

We love the Dots book here. Over the summer we've been using it to review basic facts for DS9 (who has dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, ADHD, ASD whew!) and DS6 and to teach the facts to DD4. The games are fun, quick, and the kids like playing with and manipulating the "jewels" (dollar store glass aquarium beads). The dice and dominoes games book is free, and reinforces the ideas presented in Dots.

 

Math this year will be different for us. We had been using Rod and Staff, and DS9 had been doing well with it, more or less--his recall of facts wasn't perfect or quick, but it was pretty good. Until we got to the 7 multiplication facts, and suddenly everything fell apart. I mean, all facts suddenly slipped out of his brain. One week he had been doing pretty well with 6x2, 6x7, 6x12, and the next week he was unsure about addition facts within 10. :huh:  We stopped R&S and went back to Dots. That, and various board games requiring math, are all that we've been doing all summer. I decided that instead of charging straight through a curriculum, I would pull materials from different sources according to what he needs. Yes, lots of homeschoolers do that, but I was so sure that I would miss something by not going all the way through a curriculum, but...teach the kid, not the curriculum. It just took me a while to implement that.  :laugh:  

[I'm so tired of being the nice neighbor]

The illegal thing might not - laws differ so much as to how they are perceived, often I think we go much more by how they are commonly followed than what the law says is strictly the case.

 

As far as the neighbour thing - yes, but I wonder how seriously they realize that the OP is annoyed?  And, what sort of effort do they consider proportional to that annoyance, based on how they see it as a social obligation?

 

For example, what if the OP asked them to play their music more quietly.  Clearly if they are nice, they'd want to help out and there are some guidelines in law.  But, would it be reasonable to expect them to never play music outside or let their kids out to play and be loud, or the dog to bark?  Maybe not - but some people do seem to feel that way.

 

They also may be unsure how to keep the dog where they want it, especially if they aren't very well organized people.

 

Well, I tend to follow the law as written. The other examples you give are actually codified into ordinance here. Noise is okay before 10 o'clock. Dogs cannot bark continually for more than 15 minutes. Decent guidelines to follow. I can sympathize that fences are expensive. But we kept our dog on a run when she was outside until we could afford to fix the fence so she could not escape. If one cannot afford the rope to make a run and a collar to attach to the run, they really cannot afford to have a dog. Anybody who knows me knows that I am not an organized person. I'm just not an a-hole who lets their dogs poop all over the neighborhood.  

[Indoor toys for very active toddler boys..]

Zombie thread! But I'll add to it anyway. :) We are putting a swing in the school room this year. I've been thinking about it for years, and we're finally going to do it.

[I'm so tired of being the nice neighbor]

Different backgrounds and expectations make a huge difference to how people perceive situations.

Sure, plenty of people grew up in areas where dogs were allowed to wander. But after moving to a place where it is illegal, and where the neighbor has repeatedly told you that it bothers her, you continue to do the same thing? Nobody is asking them to change their religious beliefs, the way they eat, how they parent their children, what music they listen to, etc. I really doubt that letting their dogs poop all over the neighborhood and destroy property is an important part of their belief system or culture.

 

Can you tell this is a major pet peeve (no pun intended) of mine? :D

[I'm so tired of being the nice neighbor]

They are nice people and our kids play together. In this area, yes, assholes.

Huh, this just doesn't compute to me. In my mind, nice people don't repeatedly do something that is not only against the law, but that they know bothers a neighbor and creates a significant inconvenience for her. I mean, I wouldn't really classify myself as a nice person--I'm kind of bitchy--but even I draw the line at broadcasting dog shit throughout the neighborhood.

[I'm so tired of being the nice neighbor]

Are they concerned about preserving neighborly relations? It sounds like they're fine with being assholes.

[CNN Student News (CNN10) Returning Aug 14th!]

Thanks! I've been thinking that we need to add a bit of current events to our day, and this looks perfect. :)

[I'm so tired of being the nice neighbor]

I would be so steamed. I agree with the previous poster about getting evidence of the dog breaking the laws and getting the HOA or animal control involved. That kind of assholishness just makes me crazy and I feel for you, OP.

[If you feel a cold coming on...]

Zinc lozenges. I find that they work better with a cold that starts as a sore throat, though.

[Why do you wear make-up? (if you do)]

 

I say let's try this out. We should all not shave pits or legs, put on a dress with no make up but comb our hair and not be disheveled. Go out and do the daily things and then pay very close attention to the inner voice of discomfort. Just thinking about doing it makes me want to hide as painful as that is for me to admit. Why? Why do I feel uncomfortable with that?

 

 

 

I do this every day. If people think less of me, I don't really notice. Maybe it's the circles I run in? I'm also in an area of the country with lots of hippie types, so I blend right in.  :lol:

[Your favorite vegetables]

 

 

I also like seaweed but realize that is a long shot for you!

 

 

 

If you have a Trader Joe's nearby, their seaweed snacks are great. The regular one in the green package and the wasabi in I think a blue package are excellent, the teriyaki is okay too but the combination of sweet and seaweed doesn't do it for me. My kids love it tho!

[if you saw . . .]

Huh. I'm known as kind of a dog-hater, and I write the occasional facebook rant about people not picking up after their dog, but it wouldn't occur to me to get mad about a dog peeing on my lawn. Poo, the owner might have it flung back at them. 

[s/o Don't like and/or won't eat leftovers]

 Leftover fish => curry (in an era and place where a 70+ white woman making curry was somewhat unusual).  

 

 

 

I'm impressed. After reading my grandmother's cookbooks, and seeing that she still the original spice set she received as a wedding gift back in the 40s, I had the impression that if somebody was going to venture out and try something as radical as a curry, they might add 1/4 tsp curry powder to a 8-serving recipe.  :lol:  They sure were afraid of flavor in the 60s. 

[s/o Don't like and/or won't eat leftovers]

Eh, we love you anyway. I can't imagine breaking any sort of relationship up (friend or otherwise) over food. But if we get together for any sort of meal that could include leftovers, let's do something else instead. I'll spring for take out.   :lol:  ;)

 

Sounds good. Can I take the leftovers home to put on my salad the next day?  :laugh: 

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[s/o Don't like and/or won't eat leftovers]

You could always do what my mil did--throw whatever in a salad! Leftover beef stew--throw it in the salad--cold! Leftover spaghetti--throw it in the salad--cold! Leftover fried potatoes (she fried potatoes for EVERY meal!)--throw it in the salad--cold! It was the most disgusting table I'd ever seen. 

 

:leaving:  I do this. 

[Verbal tics that make you giggle]

:lol:  :lol:  :lol:  I thought I was the only oppressed 12 year old!  In my head, every time, "chicken butt" is my answer.

 

I just say it. I guess I'm actually 12.  :laugh: 

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[It's official: I hate tradespeople. (JAWM vent.)]

Well, I don't know, I've received shoddy services from well-known, licensed and bonded, expensive companies, and excellent service from inexpensive to mid-priced handymen with homemade business cards. In my experience, it's kind of a crapshoot.

[Verbal tics that make you giggle]

I had a college prof who, instead of "is that" used "is is that." The reason for this is is that.....It was distracting.

 

I use way too many verbal fillers. Like, so, etc. I sound like a valley girl, except monotone.

[The semester hasn't even started yet and she's questioning her major]

I declared my second major at the beginning of second semester, senior year. Of course, I had been taking classes off and on, but I wasn't confident in my ability to pass enough classes to finish the major. It worked, tho, and I went on to grad school in a field closer to my second major than my first, so my nontraditional course sequence must not have made an impression on the grad school departmental admission team.

[It's official: I hate tradespeople. (JAWM vent.)]

I feel you, OP. At this point, we do most home improvement and repair projects ourselves. Unskilled + careful seems to get the same (or better!) results as skilled + careless, so I'd rather have a nice diy job for the cost of my time vs. pay out the nose for something I'll frown at every time I walk by. When we have to hire someone, we get recommendations from friends or family.

[s/o Don't like and/or won't eat leftovers]

many years ago - miss piggy had an advice column. she got a letter from a woman who had ten children. they were all grown and gone, but she was still cooking like she was feeding that family of twelve. she wanted to know what to do with all the leftovers.

miss piggy: what are leftovers?

 

Oh dear, I'm with Miss Piggy there. That must be why I have Miss Piggy's figure. :D It's easier now that we have chickens. If there is less than a serving of something left over, instead of picking at it myself, I feed it to the chickens. I figure it's not going to waste--it's being turned into fresh eggs.

[PSA: if you have or are purchasing solar eclipse viewing glasses, please read this post.]

Good advice. I saw the paper eclipse glasses at Lowe's, of all places, and thought they seemed kind of sketchy. I went home, googled the brand, and hey--they're legit! On Friday I went back and picked up several pair along with my flooring supplies. :)

[Fake Bus Stops Keep Alzheimer's Patients From Wondering Off]

Off topic, but I once waited at a defunct bus stop for like 45 minutes. They had moved the stop around the corner but left the old shelter up. In retrospect, it was no longer labelled or had the time tables up, but it was still where google maps said it should be! I eventually gave up and went home, but later found the correct stop by accident. LOL

 

The fake bus stop is a great plan as long as unsuspecting airheads like myself are warned...

At least you'd have a nice conversation if you waited there. And maybe the nurse would take pity on you and invite you in for coffee with your new friends. :D

[Good news! My son knows everything!]

Tangentially related--I was always calling my parents for advice about home and garden topics, because they've always had a nice garden and have done lots of diy home projects. Now I only call my mom, because the last time I asked my dad a garden question, he said, "Why are you asking me? Can't you look it up on the internet?" :O Thanks, Dad, love talking with you too! :D