The kitchen is cleaned once a week. The droppings were new. There are droppings in the drawers and on the floor. The sheer amount of destruction suggests that it's a major infestation. Someone mentioned that the basement has been infested for some time, and of course the mice will come up looking for food and things to line their nests. Here's my issue - if I was going to a restaurant and someone told me that it was infested with mice and had droppings all over the kitchen where my food was being cooked, I wouldn't eat at that restaurant. Moreover, I don't think the Board of Health would allow the restaurant to operate under those conditions. Had the other members been unaware of the situation, I wouldn't feel so dismayed. There are so many health hazards associated with mouse droppings, I simply can't believe that they don't seem to think it's a problem.

I'll try to state this as briefly as possible. The church we attend will soon be holding a community event in which free food is given (a hot meal). Dh and I recently had cause to be in the church kitchen. We discovered that the cabinets are infested with mice. There are large amounts of droppings and shreddings. Some droppings were on the paper goods that are used to serve food. Some of the coffee packets had been chewed open. We cleaned it up as best we could and brought the situation to the pastor and other members who are involved with the upcoming event. While they all feigned surprise, it is our suspicion that the problem is not only known about, but has been covered up (we were lucky enough to discover a dead mouse in a trap in one of the drawers). Because food is being given away at this event and not sold, no permits are required from the town. Apparently, even with our discovery, the event will proceed as planned without any other precautions except placing all paper goods and utensils in a container that the mice will not be able to access. I am thoroughly grossed out and concerned for the public welfare. While I am very happy at the church otherwise, I don't believe what is being done is ethical. Thoughts?

The way I see it, he's not sorry he did it - he's sorry he got caught. From many reports, since the end of the Olympics, this guy has been partying hard and often. I highly doubt this was an isolated incident. I highly doubt this was his first time partaking. And regardless of just how much casual drug use has become a societal norm, it's still illegal. And I would bet money that he's well aware of that. When Phelps signed on to do all those lucrative endorsements, he knew what he was getting into. He knew that his behavior - in and out of the pool - would be held to a certain level of accountability. He accepted the money, therefore he should have kept his reputation clean. In this day and age, there's always a camera around, and while I don't expect the guy to sit home for the rest of his life, there are many other ways to blow off steam. Would anyone care if he drank like a fish every night? Probably not, so long as he didn't get behind the wheel. Bottom line, he broke the law. Rationalizing it by saying other people have done the same thing doesn't make it right.

Just a word of caution: Both my mom and brother were diagnosed with H.Pylori several years ago. Their symptoms progressed and ultimately each of them ended up in the hospital being treated for diverticulitis. In my bro's case it required IV antibiotics; in my mom's, she had a rupture and needed extensive surgery. Also, my cousin was having similar symptoms (vomiting and abdominal discomfort) for a few months and - you guessed it - he ended up with a diverticulitis diagnosis as well. Please keep that in mind. Over the past year alone I know of at least four people who didn't know they had diverticulitis and ended up in the OR for emergency surgery because of it.

Probably bad taste, but I will admit to spitting my drink all over the place during the Dorito commercial when the guy threw the snow globe and hit his boss in the unmentionables.:D The guy who played the boss looked so much like Stan Fischler (hockey commentator) that it made it even funnier.

Mark Pender (he plays the trumpet).

One of the horn players is a friend of mine from years back. He is an outstanding musician - one of the most talented guys I've ever met. It was such a thrill to see him out there doing his thing!

I saw one researcher's comment to the effect that it's got something to do with the processing of HFCS. I'm of the opinion that if we had any idea what's really involved in the processing of food, most of us would probably never eat again (at least not anything store bought!).

I hadn't seen that figure (bolded by me) either. Heaven forbid someone should lose access to the boob tube and have to do something awful to fill the extra time, like read a book or something.;)

I have a family member who lost his job last August and hasn't been able to find anything, and then his wife lost her job in two weeks ago. It's a big shock. They're both battling depression and anxiety and it's very hard to know what to say to them. Mostly we have all been praying - hard. I will pray for a quick resolution to your situation as well.

I'm not a gloom and doom person, either - but I believe your words to be true, and seeing them in print is somewhat depressing, especially when so many people I know IRL are so very complacent about things.

Hi, Rebecca, My father just had an emergency in December with respect to a clot that traveled to his lungs. While he was in the hospital he had extensive testing to find out why he had developed the clot (at 74, he had no history of anything that might have led to its formation). Ultimately it was decided to be hereditary in nature and he was told to pass the info along to his children so that we could get tested. I haven't been tested yet, but I was advised by my doctor not to take BCP's. An 39 yr old acquaintance of mine recently had a mini-stroke as a result of BCP's (her mother had died under similar circumstances and yet nobody had warned this woman not to take them). She was driving at the time with her child in the car and had she not had the foresight to pull over when she got dizzy, things might have had a much different outcome. She has since been advised not to take hormones under any circumstances. This is just my opinion, but with respect to your situation, I would err on the side of caution and steer clear of BCP's. Blessings, Kris

Well, from a very simple-minded approach (because I'm not well-versed at all on the specifics of the package), my main concern is that what's in there isn't going to address the root(s) of what created the current situation in the first place. For example, I haven't seen anything so far that says that all (or even some) of the jobs that have been exported over the past, hmmmm, thirty years are going to be brought back. IMO, we as a nation need to become producers instead of consumers. I live near an area that was known as the "Silk City" and another that was known as the "Embroidery Capital of the World." Seeing how much of their history and productivity have been lost makes me want to cry.

:iagree: The medical aspect really bothers me for several reasons, one of which being that if Patient A and Patient B are seeking treatment for the same problem and Patient A's genetic testing shows that he has some kind of weakness/predisposal, would Patient B get better care because he is more genetically sound? As far as the roads go, as I look out onto my street full of potholes [sigh], I really wish there was something in the transportation section that said the US would approve a study comparing current methods of repair and upkeep to those of other places (i.e. Europe) because whatever we're doing here clearly isn't working. We've had the mother of all potholes repaired three or four times since last winter and yet several drivers per month are still losing mufflers. The latest solution was to put some kind of metal sheet over the hole, and now all day long I'm treated to the sound of "clump-clump" as the cars pass over it.

If there is even a modicum of truth to it, it's disturbing.

Those commercials make me laugh out loud, between the poorly written dialogue, the painful faces the actors make, and the anvil of a message that's dropped on the viewers' heads! The forces behind it might want to consider that those commercials are doing more to turn people off to HFCS than just leaving the subject alone would have.

I just read the article you posted and all I can say is - I'm speechless.

I'm a throwback to the antique era, I guess. I have an email account but still sometimes communicate with snail mail. One of my New Year's resolutions was to cut my computer time to about 1/2 hour per day and use it mainly for hsing purposes. I also have dd on a 1/2 hour per day time limit, and she is limited to Webkinz/computer game/educational sites. I don't ever post pics and I try not to put too much personal information out there. Dh is in IT and one of his fascinations is Internet security. Perhaps that has colored my perception of the hazards of using technology somewhat, but an even greater concern is the privacy factor. It bothers me (even though I know that many of the social networking sites offer the option of setting a page to private) that a random stranger can access someone's personal information for his own purposes. One of the things that shocked me in the course of following the Caylee Anthony case was the ability of amateur sleuthers to access Casey Anthony's photo accounts and MySpace pages and easily share the photos and information with all interested parties. Sure, the girl put all the information out there, but I can't help wondering if living in a society with such a glut of personal information available won't change the legal process and the basis of innocent until proven guilty. It also bothered me that people involved only on the fringes of the case had their information distributed and were, based upon what was found, the subject of much rumor and speculation. Reputations can be destroyed, and that can affect someone's future employment, etc. Luckily for me, most of my friends/relatives are older and less interested in becoming involved with FaceBook, etc., so I don't have to worry about missing much, because we communicate primarily by telephone or email. I'm a dinosaur and I admit it, but I feel that the Internet is still too much of an uncharted waters situation to jump in with both feet. I found it interesting that when the Obama administration was interviewing prospective employment candidates, one of the questions that was asked had to do with what websites the applicants posted on, what their screen names were, and what kind of content they had posted. The Internet has changed the world - made it smaller and much more accessible - but I don't think the true ramifications of its impact will be known for quite some time.

to me, the dress looked chartreuse. Personally, it wouldn't have been my choice if I was picking out a dress for her, but if she was happy with it, that's all that matters! She's a very strong woman and I would love to see her in some deep, striking colors like royal blue, burgundy or even a pink. God bless her, it must be very intimidating to have the eyes of the world upon your every move. Also, when they were walking the parade route, it looked like perhaps her shoes hurt. I've got to hand it to her. If it was me (and I'm short) I would have forsaken the fashion police and gone with a pair of comfortable flats!

Just by chance last night I happened upon a Seeing Eye dog class (they rent space in my church and I saw them there after bell practice). Dd was with me and she is a huge dog person, so of course we ran in there and saw all of the dogs! It's an amazing program. Anyway, I got to talking with the husband of the woman who was in charge and, because I was interested for future reference, I hit him with a barrage of questions. One of the things he told me was that the dogs who fail the test (and there are a variety of reasons, everything from being too friendly to taking a pee during the test) are put up for adoption. Apparently there is a long waiting list. but I thought I'd mention it because he said that people who receive the dogs who don't make the program essentially receive a fully trained dog that's still only about 19 months old. It might be a really great way to ease into dog ownership without the trials of puppyhood or the uncertainty of a shelter dog. Blessings, Kris

My GSD uses the treadmill. It's pretty funny to look out the back door and see him in the garage cranking along. It comes in very handy when the weather is bad and he can't go for his 45-minute walk. A few days of missing his exercise and I'm pretty sure his head would explode. We clicker-trained for a while and it worked very well. We should have stayed with it but we got lazy. The trainer we're using now uses more of a positive reinforcement approach. It makes me laugh when our two dogs hear anyone using a clicker - they run over, sit down and wait for a treat - even if it's someone they don't know!

My response is along those lines as well. I have not spent nearly enough time with the Bible (which I'm trying to remedy), so I can't back up what I'm saying with Scripture, but I do believe that the timetable is already written, and certain things need to come to pass before other things can. I also believe (based upon a mishmash of my Catholic and Reformed viewpoints) that there is immeasurable value in suffering. It's very inspiring when I hear of people offering up their suffering for others. In my own experience, when my pregnancy was going poorly and we were getting constant bad news from the doctors, offering up my worry and sickness combined with prayer was the only way I got through it. The people in my life at the time were very uncomfortable with what dh and I were going through, and most of them turned away from us because they didn't know what to say or do. I wasn't angry about it, but it was a very lonely time in my life - very isolating and frightening - and humbling, because it made me realize how very little control I had. Letting go and trusting God - and accepting whatever His decision would be - was a turning point in my life.

I thought it was me! Oh, after the second or third time through, how I despised reading those books, especially the flop flop flop part every time he walked.... It reminds me of when I was about three and my favorite book was about an Itty-Bitty-Robin. Whenever I hauled it out of the bookcase and headed for my mother's lap, I could see her entire body tense up and a look of utter despair on her face. One day it simply disappeared and was lost forever (I'm thinking it disappeared into the garbage can after we hit about the 1,000th reading and my mother simply couldn't take it anymore!).

MEP does require a password for some of the printouts. I emailed them for it and they got right back to me. I was very appreciative of their timely response.

Ruthie, I didn't go to law school, so I can't speak to that directly, but in my other life I was a real estate paralegal, so I've spent a lot of time in the company of lawyers, and I've met many who went to law school later and were very happy that they did. Also, my sister is a lawyer, and I recall that when I attended her graduation, the graduating class was made up of all age groups, including one woman who was being graduated at age 72! Kris