This is exactly what I was going to post. I have chronic tendonitis and never dress up because I could never find supportive dress shoes. Now I'm wearing sundresses for fun! Abeo has different levels of support so, if you can, try on several until you can find what feels the best. For tennies, I was struggling, too. One day I was inspired (or emboldened) and limped to our local running store. It was full of waif-like runners, and I felt weird, but the salesperson spent a long time and went through lots of shoes to find a pair that fit and gave me the support I need. (They measure things like offset and rise?) These shoes are better than any of the inserts or custom things that have been made for me. Unlike the orthotics people, he never insisted they will get comfortable "with time" or that I'll "get used to" the discomfort. Mine are Saucony, but I'd recommend finding a local place that specializes and find something that is perfect for your foot.

I think #1 would be you, like the counselor's letter from the Common App. It sounds like they want to know about the curriculum or program as a whole, and you are the only one that would be able to speak to that.

I've officially been playing too much Pokemon. My thoughts were "What kind of Pokemon does that catch?" "Are they making toys now?" and "Wait, girls play Pokemon, too!!" I have heard of that kind of purity ball, but only for girls...it's super creepy. I guess I was trying to block the concept from my mind.

Research SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth). In that case the bacteria are making the gases. It can be related to celiac.

Just a guess, but some of it may be realizing that you enjoy spending time with people who can have an intellectual conversation. So you may not enjoy spending time with these people doing the thing you enjoy most. Other examples may be a very athletic person not really knowing how to spend time with a clumsy someone who can't manage a game of touch football, or a hunter/fisherman with someone who barfs at the sight of blood and guts. We may not be naturally drawn to people who we can't enjoy our favorite things with, but if we love them, we find other ways to spend enjoyable time with them. Looking for their strengths and any commonalities might help if this is the case

I put it in my coffee each morning.

Yep, I've had enough of summer, too! I keep trying to get my family to Oregon, but I'm not making much progress. Ds is starting college in Atlanta next week, so we're here for four more years. I'm never one to correct someone's typos or grammar, but I laughed out loud when I saw a Texan was Aggie-tated (that's how I read it!)

Dragon Con isn't the only thing in the South, it's just the big one. Here is a more comprehensive list of options: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_gaming_conventions#United_States Most are smaller, but if he wants something very specific, he can research the individual cons. I knew about MomoCon. Most people I know go for the anime, but it looks like they have lots of video game related things now. It has grown significantly.

The cheapest ticket prices were through May 13th this year, so it would be around there next year. Host hotels are really hard to get, they use a Room Key system now, but Atlanta does have quite a few options. If you don't mind the rail, there is a MARTA stop in the midst of Dragon Con, so you could stay at a hotel near one of the other stations. If you want to look ahead, here is the hotel info for this year: http://www.dragoncon.org/?q=host_hotels_view http://www.dragoncon.org/?q=hotels_overflow (BTW, despite the fact that every single photo has people in costume, not everyone dresses up for Dragon Con. Costumed people just make more interesting photos. There are plenty of normal people milling about. )

Dragon Con in Atlanta, Labor Day weekend each year. http://www.dragoncon.org

I think that some people would say that it is MUCH for the better now, particularly those of minority groups. You don't really find many African-Americans longing for the days of the Founders.

Just another view, because I don't like militant for non-violence: I think of people like albeto* as evangelical atheists (or maybe anti-theists). They believe the world would be a better place if everyone eschewed religion, and they share this view with other people and try to persuade them. In the same way, evangelical Christians think the world would be a better place if everyone accepted Christ as their savior, and they share this view with other people and try to persuade them. I'm using the third definition below: All religions have militant members who bomb abortion clinics, or mosques, or community centers... I'm sure there are actual militant atheists in the U.S., too. I see other categories on the spectrum: -There are live-and-let-live members of most religions. Sometimes you hear the Christians referred to as silent witnesses. They live their life in a Christ-like manner, but don't push religion on people. In diverse cities, people of all religions work together without pushing their religions on others. I think most atheists fall in this category (though they are not the only "real" atheists.) -And there is something between evangelical (encouraging people to their viewpoint) and militant (violence), where members try to deprive the other group of rights. An example would be not allowing a Muslim mosque or a Hindu temple in an area where a Christian Church permit would be easy to get. Or allowing Christian groups or prayers in government organizations, but not other religions. There are also lots of examples of Christians not being able to build churches or worship in other countries. When they are deprived of rights, even the live-and-let-live members of groups start to speak up. They say, "Hey, you can worship however you like, just allow me to do the same." *ETA: albeto, I'm characterizing you based on your posts. My apologies if I'm way off reading between the lines.

Yes, he is an adult, nearly 19. He can do whatever he wants. He can go get a job and support himself. We wish him to go to college, and he wishes to go to college, so we offered to pay what we can. He got a scholarship and a small academic job, and we are choosing to pay room and board for four years if he stays in college. Beyond that, he can live his life as he sees fit. (We don't have a GPA requirement, but if he loses his scholarship, we'll be hard-pressed to make up the difference.) If he quits school and gets a job, he can likely pay his own expenses. We do have a close relationship, so if I feel like he is making a huge mistake, I feel like I can tell him. He would listen to my opinion, but he is definitely the type to make his own decisions. Short of he or his roommates doing something like dealing drugs or running a meth lab, I don't see going back on my deal to help pay for college expenses. Every family is different, just sharing our views.

Ds is an adult. He is not dating, but when he does, those will be his decisions. I'm happy to offer my thoughts if he wants them, like thinking through the questions of breaking a lease on a breakup, but I am not going to micromanage his love life. Right now we can swing the dorm cost, so we are doing so and will likely do that all four years. I doubt we can pay more for an apartment, but he could have our contribution to put to his rent, and that is true for any roommate (rather he is sleeping with them or not.)

In some cases a "real" atheist is fine to live and let live. And then she sends her child to a public school, where other children try to convince him that Jesus is the answer to everything and make him feel bad that he doesn't have Jesus, every single day. The teachers might mention Christianity in class and discuss Creation Science. The fun clubs that ALL the kids are part of are Christian. There are even Christian groups that sponsor assemblies or offer Christian prayer at events. Then the atheist parent might feel that the "live and let live" is a bit one-sided. If "Jesus" is replaced with "Muhammed" and "Christian" is replaced with "Islam," you might get an inkling of how she feels. The hypothetical family probably ought to move out of the Bible Belt, but sometimes that isn't possible and gosh-darn-it public schools are not supposed to push a specific religion. (Some frustration here might explain the origin of the club from the OP.)

nm

This was my thought. Having grown up being told I was going to hell or my heart was gripped by Satan, I can see the urge to just give in and accept the identity. I would have probably liked a safe place where those of us "under Satan's influence" could gather. It seems if a group uses their term to describe groups of people, it is not necessarily disrespectful to use that term to identify oneself. OTOH, I think most of the Christians here may not see that, because you guys aren't the type to regularly tell people they are going to hell or instruct their children to tell other children they are going to hell. Oh and "I don't, I'm a heathen." is really not a good response to the perennial "Where do you go to church?" question, as tempting as it may be. ;-)

Thank you...I think I have lots of tears that need to come out.

Fourteen days here. He is my one and only. I've mostly been panicking. Reading regentrude's poem is the first time I've cried.

I would definitely say that if you want them to have a long term relationship, don't force anything now. I'm not sure why dss15 wasn't invited to the same things ds16 was since you say they are all friends. But keep in mind, it might be at the friend's preference, not just your ds16. It's an age where kids want to be able to talk with a friend that they feel close to and trust. The friend isn't going to be comfortable, if ds16 shows up with his brother. Even if he knows him, it totally changes the dynamic.

I finished this and was satisfied with it. I didn't think it was great, but it was good and enjoyable. I think they developed the human side of the story more than the intrigue or the medical side. The final episode felt more like the conclusion of several love stories. I cried, both happy and sad tears. Did any of the rest of you finish it? Did you like it or not?

Yes, it's normal. It is a crushing loss :grouphug: , but my experience was that the body and mind can only deal with it so long. So it gives you breaks where you can remember the good. Grieving is hard, particularly for someone you loved so much. The emotions run the gamut as time goes on. Take care of yourself today. I hope your eyes get the travel OK on Monday.

This may be another spin-off, but the "suspicious person thing: Is it not common for police to encourage people to report suspicious activity rather than just crime? I remember this in Atlanta after the Olympic bombing and then more so after 9/11 with the See Something, Say Something campaign: Neighborhood Watch or police events seem to encourage this also. Something has to be large to catch my notice, so I'm not a much of a community watch person, but I assumed others followed this police directive more. I've been on the flip side, too, being questioned by the police as to why I didn't call. ETA: I have to leave. Looking forward to more answers tomorrow. I thought I'd clarify, there was no personal injury in the didn't-call cases, just noise that turned out to be destruction of property.

That's exactly what I was curious about. It just occurred to me that I might think twice now on a couple of calls that I made in the past depending on the race. (Actually I don't remember the race of all the people involved then.)

I just mentioned that above. Since I was specifically asking about how people were affected by the shootings of black men recently, it didn't occur to me that those shootings would make people more likely to call police on people of color. Looking back though, it occurs to me that I was not clear about which shootings I was talking about, so maybe the Dallas shooting would make people more likely to call on minorities. (It is sad in a whole 'nother way that we have to be specific about which recent shootings we are talking about!)