It's increasing for me. I was never afraid to fly and I have flown many times in life. But once I started taking these long trans-Atlantic flights when I am in the airplane for 17 hours solid, I started to panic. My doctor gives me Xanax whenever I need to fly now.

I am so sad and humiliated that this happened in my home state. I feel like crying.

The conference proved a failure because both the United States and Britain refused to accept any (substantially) more refugees, and most of the countries at the conference followed suit, the result being that the Jews had no escape and were ultimately subject to what was known as Hitler's "Final Solution to the Jewish Question". The conference was seen by some as "an exercise in Anglo-American collaborative hypocrisy."[4] ETA, I know that's Wikipedia, but it gave a good summary. This actually made me feel nauseous when I read it. We should be so ashamed. I have mixed feelings. As someone who just went through FOUR YEARS of waiting and living outside the US and piles of paperwork and thousands of dollars to get US citizenship for my adopted daughter (and I am a US citizen for goodness sake), you would think I'd be yelling that all people should be forced to go through what I went through. If I had to do it why shouldn't they, right? But instead, I only feel like it is a ridiculous process that was too difficult and expensive for me and I am highly educated and have the financial resources to pay for it. I can't imagine being poor with no English skills and trying to navigate that process. Believe me, I've had moments of anger thinking about "all those illegals sneaking in while I followed rules and did things the right way." But in the end, I understand why they do it. The process is so convoluted it makes you feel desperate enough to find other ways to get in. So I argue with myself in my head: am I an American first with a responsibility to protect American resources? Or am I a human being first with a responsibility to help other human beings in need? We could help these children but it would take a DRASTIC change in our mindset to do so and I'm not sure that's going to happen.

(((Hugs)))

We use http://www.unblock-us.com so we can get Netflix and Amazon Prime streaming. It works very well.

It is this type of utter disregard for anything we believe that makes us hold onto our beliefs even tighter. You treat our beliefs with condescension and contempt... As if they are nothing. And maybe they are nothing to you. So be it. There is plenty of blame for this rift in our society to go around.

We may not be forced to have abortions but we are being forced to pay for them. We may not be forced to recognize same sex marriages but we are being forced to participate by providing services for the marriage. And so forth... And honestly, just because "others" have felt in the past what we are feeling now... Does that negate the feelings we are having? Like some sort of strange "payback"? And I am truly not asking you to sympathize with my being "disheartened" but I would expect for you to empathize with it since you seem to hold to your values so strongly and are willing to fight for them.

In many ways you are right. It is difficult to be part of a shrinking majority (minority?). It is sad to see all of your deeply held religious values not only tossed aside, but scorned and mocked. It is devastating to have everything that goes against what you believe now held up as the model for all. But what's even more difficult is being forced to participate in something you are deeply opposed to. It may be the way things are, and to the victors go the spoils... but it is still difficult to accept. I get that the tide has turned, that the majority opinion is already against us (or soon will be). It doesn't surprise me and I've been expecting it. But it is tough. We won't let go of our deeply held beliefs without a fight and we don't expect those who believe differently to give up without a fight either. I mean, seriously, how important is our faith to us if we don't fight for it? Seems like those of you fighting for what you believe would get that part at least. This is all new territory for everyone and there will be growing pains as we all figure out where we fit among all these changes.

My niece (9yo) has recently been diagnosed with Asperger's. My brother and his wife know virtually nothing about it and want to start learning more. Can you recommend favorite websites or books? Thank you!

Can I ask a sincere, related question? Did insurance companies commonly cover contraceptives BEFORE Obamacare? I ask because I have always had really good insurance as a teacher (small or no copay, Rx coverage, not an HMO, etc.) but my "Cadillac" insurance has NEVER covered birth control pills. I had to pay for them out of pocket for decades. I assumed that most people did? So the idea that these companies won't pay for birth control didn't really surprise me. I thought that was the norm. Are all these lawsuits really about birth control/abortifacients or is this mostly a reaction to Obamacare?

I hope you have a wonderful trip!!! Iceland sounds awesome!!

Another vote for a kitten. Cats are the easiest pet in my opinion. We had guinea pigs and they were vicious.

I don't know if I would call it "forcing" my child to go. Going to church as a family unit is just something we do. It's understood that on Sunday morning we go to church, all of us, including my teen. He has never asked to stay home. If he did? I would say no, this is a family thing and we do it as a family just like all the other family things we do.

We just flew 21 hours and we will fly back next week. We take iPads for each kid loaded with games, books and movies and headphones for each kid. And snacks. That's it. For charging we bought extra battery packs.

I think it sounds awesome and I am proud of you! I'd be both terrified and excited to do some of those activities. But I would still try to do them!

This is what we do. We try to make a trip of it.... Drive 5 hours, stop somewhere that has something we want to see or do (a museum, etc.), stay in a budget motel that has a pool and let the kids swim. It's like starting the vacation a day early! Then we wake up, everyone gets a shower and a hot breakfast and we are at our destination by lunch time. Easy peasy. iPads have made travelling a breeze, too.

It's a good question. It's because my 3 master's are all very different and have helped to move my career forward in different ways. They have broadened my scope of abilities, and opened up different pathways for me within my industry making me very marketable. If I had just gone for the doctoral degree I would have had to become very specialized and singularly focused on one thing. I have way too much wanderlust for that! :)

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I am halfway through my third master's degree. This one is in curriculum and instruction. The class I am currently taking is on gifted learners. I also work full time as a principal. How do I manage my time? I hired a housekeeper. :) Congrats on your new adventure!

Back on topic... This is an interesting wake up call. Many in America claim persecution for whatever it is they believe. Americans in general do not have a clue what real persecution is like. All the more reason to be vigilant and protective of our freedom of (or from) religion. Without it, we will devolve to Nigeria or any other country with the death penalty for not being the favored religion.

It goes by fast doesn't it? We originally signed to come to Malaysia for 2 years and now it's been 5 years. In the blink of an eye! I know what you mean with people leaving. They come in and out of our lives so quickly here. Like a revolving door of friendships. Sometimes I catch myself not getting to know many people because I know they will leave soon. I have to make a concentrated effort to make new friends. But it's worth it so keep diving in!!! An interesting note on raising TCKs: my ds was reading up on this since he will be going off to college in two years and most of the literature out there talks about how TCKs don't feel "at home" anywhere. My ds said "That's not true. Because of this experience, I feel at home everywhere!" :)

Well, Nigeria seems like just a peachy place to live. You cannot FORCE a person to actually BELIEVE something. You can force them to say they do, I suppose. But you can't actually force the belief. So are countries like the Sudan and Nigeria (and heck, even Malaysia has laws against converting) actually concerned with people having the proper belief according to the government or are they just trying to have power over what comes out of your mouth? In Malaysia for instance, not letting the Malays convert from Islam is more of a political move than a religious one. Seems like it is the same in these other countries. This is awful.

Praise God!!!

I'm so very sorry.

Started reading: The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer Still reading: all caught up! Finished reading: 1. The Curiosity by Stephen Kiernan (AVERAGE) 2. The Last Time I Saw Paris by Lynn Sheene (GOOD) 3. Unwind by Neal Shusterman (EXCELLENT) 4. The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty (EXCELLENT) 5. The Rage Against God: How Atheism Led Me to Faith by Peter Hitchens (AMAZING) 6. Champion by Marie Lu (PRETTY GOOD) 7. Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel Pink (INCREDIBLE) 8. Cultivating Christian Character by Michael Zigarelli (HO-HUM) 9. Detroit: An American Autopsy by Charlie LeDuff (um...WOW. So amazing and sad) 10. Pressure Points: Twelve Global Issues Shaping the Face of the Church by JD Payne (SO-SO) 11. The Happiness Project: Or Why I spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun. by Gretchen Rubin (GOOD) 12. Reading and Writing Across Content Areas by Roberta Sejnost (SO-SO) 13. Winter of the World by Ken Follet (PRETTY GOOD) 14. The School Revolution: A New Answer for our Broken Education System by Ron Paul (GREAT) 15. Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen (LOVED IT) 16. Beyond the Hole in the Wall: Discover the Power of Self-Organized Learning by Sugata Mitra (GOOD) 17. Can Computers Keep Secrets? - How a Six-Year-Old's Curiosity Could Change the World by Tom Barrett (GOOD) 18. You Are Not So Smart: Why You Have Too Many Friends on Facebook, Why Your Memory Is Mostly Fiction, and 46 Other Ways You're Deluding Yourself by David McRaney (GOOD) 19. Hollow City by Ransom Riggs (OK) 20. Follow Me by David Platt (GOOD) 21. The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking by Oliver Burkeman (SO-SO) 22. Falls the Shadow by Sharon Kay Penman (OK) 23. A Neglected Grace: Family Worship in the Christian Home by Jason Helopoulos (GOOD) 24. The Valley of Amazement by Amy Tan (DEPRESSING) 25. No Place Like Oz by Danielle Paige (SO-SO) 26. 84 Charing Cross Road by Helen Hanff (DELIGHTFUL) 27. The Light Between Oceans by ML Stedman (WORST ENDING EVER) 28. Dreams of Gods and Monsters by Laini Taylor (SO-SO) 29. Mere Christianity by CS Lewis (BRILLIANT) 30. The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker (WONDERFUL) 31. Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell (CAN'T-PUT-IT-DOWN-READ-IT-ALL-IN-ONE-SITTING BOOK) 32. Dark Places by Gillian Flynn (SUPER CREEPY BUT REALLY GOOD)