best seller! (for next few weeks anyway...lol.

https://wlap.iheart.com/content/2019-01-03-florida-teen-hires-lawyer-after-sat-officials-accused-her-of-cheating/?Pname=local_social&Keyid=socialflow&Sc=editorial&fbclid=IwAR0qhxc0xnJTmBG4WiWK0x-qvJyq90UDL7TlGjfDAhz3KaP97ue03QORNH8 This could change things. Interesting read. Jim W

Hello, I live in Lexington, KY where UK is located. I visited UK with my son in August of this year and we both were impressed. We walked the campus with a student guide, met with a student panel, ate at the main campus cafeteria, and looked at a couple of dorms. As a parent, I was blown away at how much technology UK has. The Library is huge! and there are current students that can help your child in any subject. The library also as a safety program where the ROTC cadets walk you home at night. UK also has a police department which seems active and well funded. The dorms ... wow. Not like the dorms when I went to college. The dorms we looked at were in great shape and very clean. There are different types of rooms you can choose from. They even have an app to let you know when the washer and dryers are available and track your laundry progress. crazy. The cafeteria is the best cafeteria I have visited (we have visited several colleges). The cafeteria is a large area that offers a variety of foods and drinks. The only thing that could be a negative is that the campus is spread out and large, but it's a large university, so there's that. There are tons of local businesses on and near campus in walking distance from the dorms. UK is also loved by the surrounding community and a great place to go if you love sports. The UK football team is doing well this year and the UK basketball team will be a top 5 team again this year. The student panel we spoke with (all homeschoolers) loved the university. I hope my description of the UK helped and good luck in your search. Jim

Great topic! There is already a great list but let me add another site. Noodle.com Noodle.com: You do have to have a user name and password. I just use my FB account info that transfers. There is a ton of great info for colleges and high schools (I use the college section). I like that it shows the breakdown of students, what students say about the college, what the college is known for, etc. It's an overall good source for any college you are looking at. Thanks for this topic. Jim

Hello Quill, I've served in the Army Reserves for 26 years and counting. I've also served as a police officer (Retired in May 2017) for 22 years. The stress in both of these careers is high. Very high. Let's start with the Army. I've been deployed four times, including Iraq and Afghanistan. There were no front lines so everyone was in danger and the stress level remained high the entire time I was deployed. I can't tell you how this effects the body. I would tell anyone going into the military that they WILL get deployed, no matter who is president. The positive is that the military will pay for your college, you can do any career you want (if you are smart enough), and if you go active duty, you will travel the world. Has my 26 years (and counting) been worth the stress on me? hmmmmmm.... tough question. I returned from my last deployment in February 2017 and retired from my police department. I just couldn't see myself going back on the street. Being a police officer has been a totally different experience. I have been in several scuffles and you can't help most people. Yes, there are those you can help, but joining a church and doing a charity would go further. Being a police officer today isn't easy. You have a target on your back and you are constantly questioned. When I first started, many years ago, the police officer's word was good, but not today. The stress is 10 times more today than what it was when I started as a police officer. I worked the street, as a detective, as a narcotics detective, and on a DEA Task Force. My career was very rewarding but ...again...very stressful. I'll end by saying that if your son has anxiety now, it will worsen in either of these careers. Sorry, I know by experience. I deal with it daily. But, a career in LE or the Military is a calling. I would support your DS and have him do a couple of ride-a-longs and also speak with an Army Recruiter about the ROTC College program. ROTC is an excellent program. DS would do Basic Training, go to college, be in the Reserves, get his college paid for but owe the military 6 years after graduation. The good news is the military have many great programs on how to handle stress, free healthcare, great pay, free education, and a solid career. One last thing. I'd pick going officer over enlisted. I went enlisted and they get the short end of the stick in many instances. I then became an officer and there was a big difference. Going officer gives you the opportunity to lead and make changes. It also gives you the best chance to help others. I hope I've given you some insight and if you have any questions, please ask. I hope I wasn't too negative, but I like to be blunt and truthful. Jim W

Happy Birthday to my Epic wife Lynn. Love you honey!!! :party:

I'm nearing my retirement after 21+ years in Law Enforcement. I have seen many changes in policing. I have had only one DUI trial but have testified many times in court on DUI's and Drug cases. Narcotic cases (not alcohol) has been the majority of my cases. Cases are plea bargains at a very high rate. Easily over 90%, guessing closer to 98%. Why? many reasons. Jail capacity, cost, client, money, etc. After many years of dealing with Criminal Defense Lawyers, I find only a very few that I would trust. There are a thousand reasons why. Most are just doing what they can to get their client off. I could type a book of examples. Hopefully it's not that way across this great country, but I doubt it. Of course, I'm looking through 21 years of history dealing with lawyers. I believe a lawyers job is to make sure their clients constitutional rights are guarded, to be their adviser of the law. It should not be to get their client off, It should not be to find a gray area and muddy the water so they can get a better plea bargain, It should not be to sell their soul to the devil for money. This causes many problems, as does the high rate of plea bargaining. Of course, this is my opinion. I'm just speaking from my experience of dealing with them for 21 year (and counting). I also believe are system here in America is a good one. There is no easy answers but I'm ok with that. I'm also all for ideas to make the system better. :patriot:

http://www.cnbc.com/2015/10/06/raising-minimum-wage-wont-work-commentary.html A living wage is a bad idea. It all sounds great but there are bad side effects. When you raise the minimum wage, people lose jobs, businesses raise prices, or businesses can't survive. It's one of the Liberal "Feel Good" ideas that just doesn't work. Sounds great though. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-05-26/where-a-higher-minimum-wage-hurts-the-poor http://www.downsizinggovernment.org/labor/negative-effects-minimum-wage-laws There are many studies and examples that raising the minimum wage is bad. I agree. We have enough Socialism in America. Of course this topic is political.

Happy Easter! :grouphug:

I haven't read the other post. We have had two children with acne problems. We put both of them on Accutane and has worked miracles. I would suggest talking with your dermatologist. There are options. :grouphug: .

Great site. Thank you. :patriot:

:iagree: I agree and I send prayers your way. :grouphug:

I find it fascinating and somewhat sad that sports have changed so much. I graduated high school in the early 80s. Soccer really hadn't even gotten started yet. Sports were competitive but nothing like it is today. It seems like all the sports are year a round and if your kid doesn't play year around with the sport they chose then they will get little playing time or won't get to play at all. One of our Ds liked basketball and played for a league that did some traveling. We were at a tournament and I was speaking to a group of parents. I was amazed that many or ALL the parents were holding their kids back a grade so that there kid could be more competitive in basketball. Really? You are going to hold your child back a grade just for a sport? I was blown away, but was told by several of the parents that it is what everyone does so you have to do it too, if you want to be competitive. Wow... I couldn't believe it. Of course, we would never hold our kids back for sports, but there are many that do just that.

Hello all. It's true. I pop in every now and then to find out what my wife is always laughing about. I don't read all the post but I have to admit, this group can be pretty funny. :lurk5:

I found a detailed article that sees the situation different. http://theconservativetreehouse.com/2016/01/03/full-story-on-whats-going-on-in-oregon-militia-take-over-malheur-national-wildlife-refuge-in-protest-to-hammond-family-persecution/ Interesting reading. It appears this dispute has been going on for a while. Lots of history. :patriot:

It is a Sci-fi. Book 1 is just under 60k words. Thank you for the advice. I will start there. Jim

You are in luck, My family went to several movies last year (2015) and we rated the movies we watched. Here is our top five movies of 2015. 1. Star Wars - The Force Awakens 2. Jupiter Ascending 3. Jurassic World 4. Goosebumps and 5. Ant-Man Note we saw probably 11 or 12 movies. Thanks, Jim :patriot:

I'm not sure if this topic has been covered. I can't seem to find it, so I'm starting one. I have written a novel. It started out as a novel for my kids, who love it, and I'm now thinking about getting it published and making it a trilogy. Has anyone one here ever gotten a novel published? I would like any advice you could give me. Thank you in advance, Jim W

The military is a great option, if shes at all interested. You can take the ASVAB and find out where she needs to improve. My brother took on a similar challenge that you are taking on. I commend you for stepping out of your comfort zone to help her. It worked out good for my brother and the 20 year old he helped is now full-time Army and doing great. It has been two years now and he's 22 years old, married, and plans to make the military his career. I pray you have similar success! Note: He failed the ASVAB several times. Don't give up! She can do it. :patriot:

Last year, My wife and I let our 10th grader decide if he wanted to continue being home schooled or attend a private school. He shadowed the large Christian School and the large Catholic School in our town. I wasn't big on the Catholic school simply because we are not Catholic but we let him make the decision. He chose the Catholic H.S. Our ds loved it. His first year, he participated on the Dive Team and Chess Team. He did not have any problem fitting in. He is now in 11th grade and continues to love it. The Catholic HS he attends is about 50/50, (Catholics make up about 50% and 50% are non-Catholics). We are Presbyterian. What I love about the Catholic HS here is how if feels like what hs should be. What I mean is there is discipline, uniforms, lots of sports, and the teachers really seem to care. It's like walking into a HS in the 1960's. It has been a great decision and with his life long home schooling education, he is breezing through it quite well. Jim

Good choices. All these post give me ideas for next year! Side note: Our 7 year old dd is still loving her BB8. I guess it's almost time to say Happy New Year!

I just wanted to add a topic on toys that were a hit with your kids. We gave lots of toys to our kids but our 7 year old received a BB8 Star Wars remote control robot. She not only loved it, but it actually works great. I'm very impressed. Most remote control electronics don't do what they're advertised to do, but the Star Wars BB8 works! It's a small rolling robot from the movie. I would give it a 5 out of 5 stars! and my daughter loves it. Anyone else get a present that does what it is advertised to do? Or one that your kids just loved? Thanks, Jim :patriot:

My family and I do an annual Christmas Card and guess what it is this year? Yep, We are all wearing Star Wars gear! It was fun. We have tickets for Saturday at 350pm. We are going with another family and can't wait! From what i'm hearing it's going to be good. Can't wait!!

I'm back from Chicago! Now that I am I can tell you why I went there. If you know me, you know that I'm a Narcotics Detective on a Task Force. We recently arrested several Cartel types. We took off 38 kilos of Heroin with a street value of 2 million. It was awesome. I traveled to Chicago to take the evidence to our lab. Ok, now back to Chicago. It was my first time in Chicago and I was VERY impressed. I didn't have a lot of time I stayed at the Sheraton Hotel downtown. The room was cool because I was told to get a corner room for the view. I did and it was good advice. The only thing I didn't like about where I stayed was there was no free breakfast. I'm not sure if that's normal in Chicago or not but overall the hotel was fine. I walked to the Navy Pier to eat at Giordano's Pizza, which I heard had the best Chicago Style Pizza in Chicago. It was good but with all the hype I was expecting better. It was good pizza though and the Navy Pier was pretty cool Great view of the lake. I then tried to do a Boat Taxi Tour but they no longer did them because it was out of season. :crying: I also couldn't go up in the Sears Tower or the Hancock Tower because the cloud cover was low yesterday and I would not have been able to see much. It was ok, I did get to see them and that was cool. I drove by Wrigley Field. cool. And I saw, from the road, where the White Sox play. Again, cool. I also took pics of a few other buildings. I walked around downtown and was surprised at how many people were out and about. I felt pretty safe, but I always feel that way do to what I do. Anyway, Chicago downtown was extremely impressive! The last thing I did was go to my hotel and have a few Stella's and had a great conversation with a couple of others people who were at the bar. One was named Makil who was from Miami who was there on business. He owned a bar with his dad, which I thought was cool, and worked for a tool business. (I forget which one.) I also spoke with Michael, don't remember his last name. This guy was great. He reminded me of John Candy, heavy, jovial, and funny. He lived in Washington DC, so of course, politics came up. Great conversation and very smart man. I was on him hard during the Washington Redskins VS Dallas Cowboys MNF Game. Good stuff. Anyway, I marked in my mind some of the others sites I'd love to visit the next time I visit Chicago and will look forward too it. Thanks again for everyone's advise! You guys/girls are great! :patriot:

:iagree: Some very good points. When I was in Iraq from 2002-3 I was shocked at how many female soldiers who got pregnant and were sent home. There was another non-pc occurrence that the Army continues to hide. Female and Male soldiers reported that they were raped. When you report a rape, you go home but in 2002-3 many innocent soldiers were accused of rape that were not guilty, the so called victim lied to go home. To you and I this sounds crazy, but people are not thinking straight in war zones. I'm all for women in the military. I'm not sure about them serving in the infantry. imho. The bottom line in all this is that politicians have been pressured by the PC police and have caved for better or worse. Time will tell where this all leads but there will always be babies and rapes when you have males and females working close, especially in a war zone. :patriot: