There is a test you can do involving popping off the outlet covers and sticking some wire in the wall cavity. Not sure of the detail but I imagine a bit of googling would help. If your sale is subject to inspection you might be able to get the test in that way somehow.

Stay away. I have no experience with them but I'm often coming across articles and posts from people who have. I wrote a blog post some time ago with some links you may want to check out. Anything associated with Mimi Rothschild, and there are a bunch of different sites and online schools, should be avoided from what I gather.

We made that choice 2 months ago and went for A with no regrets. Driving time can be a bit of a pain the odd time but honestly, we spend most of our time at home so why wouldn't we go for the house that offered our family the most?

One thing to consider is that alcohol or hand sanitizer only works if it's left to air-dry completely (you can't hurry it or pat it dry). If that doesn't happen it's not effective. So problems that might arise with alcohol aside, could you reasonably expect a toddler to keep his hands still for the time it takes for his hands to dry? Personally, I think soap and water and probably better options for young children.

Well, I'm Canadian but I don't make the kids sing our anthem at any regular interval. I think the real reason lies in an experience we had when we had to run up to a local school one morning to pick up a prize I'd won in a craft fair. Anyway, we got there just as Oh Canada was playing. It was even blasted out into the parking lot and everyone, even someone walking through the school doors, had stopped and was standing still until it was done. It was downright creepy. The anthem stopped and everyone picked up where they left off. My kids thought it was the most bizarre thing they'd seen in ages. It seemed liked programming people that day. Not respect or any kind of meaningful reflection on the anthem just routine programming to instill a specific response whenever people heard the anthem. Not my cup of tea.

That is helpful in learning why some assert Catholics aren't Christian. No way I'd pass that link on to a Catholic friend though. :)

I think the more-to-the-point question is where is the glossary at the end of the Bible that explains exactly what salvation entails? I'm betting that if there were as clear an answer as some maintain we wouldn't have spent 2000 years arguing about it and splitting off into countless denominations.

Saying that Catholics aren't Christian communicates none of that thinking you've alluded to, doesn't allow any insight into why you think that or any chance for the accused to debate you. It's simply an exclusionary tactic, a way to close the door in someone's face. The quote I responded to was talking about views of scripture and issues of doctrine which sure, might be leading to the point where a person says, "that's why I don't view you as Christian," but the difference is that it does invite that other person into a discussion where they can argue points or gain a different understanding. The door is opened, some respect for the other person's intelligence is shown and debate is welcome. I may be stretching here and I'm not entirely sure I'm buying my own argument but I do see a difference.

What always stops me there is that the earliest Christians didn't have our Bible. What made it into the Bible is a reflection of their traditions and debates. So that can make it hard, for me at least, to condemn denominations that have extra-biblical teachings or traditions. At one point it was ALL extra-biblical and yet those earliest Christians were still Christians, weren't they? :) Now t I think of it that probably has a lot to do with my personal parting of thought with sola scriptura doctrines. Interesting stuff, all of it.

Dawn in Nova Scotia. I was here before under Dawn of NS but messed up when we moved and switched ISP and...Well, I'm Wishbone now. I have two kids who have always been homeschooled. I started out as a radical unschooler, worried when my daughter turned 8 and dived into curriculum and am just getting myself grounded again and am easing out of most of the curriculum. Mostly. Maybe. :D

LOL! I say we work on a rewrite. :D

In this year of my Education for Ministry (lay ministry that is, I'm not fit for the frock myself) course we're in the middle of centuries of church councils that attempt to determine just this matter. My firm and unshakeable conclusion is... "I dunno."

I'm not so sure. Explaining why the doctrine of your church would not accept Catholics as saved is a very different expression from, "Catholics aren't Christians." One opens a discussion with sharing a POV, the other shuts it down with exclusion. I have seen it clearly expressed (though not here) that Catholics were not Christian and I think those who said such things meant exactly what they were saying. That said, I think there's likely some scriptural support for the doctrine you explained (although I'd probably debate you on it :D) but none at all for the idea that Catholics aren't Christian. Be awfully hard since there were no Roman Catholics or Eastern Orthodox folk when most of the authors of the NT were sitting down to dictate or write their letters. :)

Agreed. I remember walking into a pet store with a line up of bettas in mason jars on a shelf. Poor things. One was dead and half of the rest had fin rot. People hear "stress" in reference to fish and think of it in human terms, just psychological discomfort or something. But stress in fish leads directly to disease and illness. I think the best question to always ask before getting a pet is, "Can I ensure I can give this animal an environment it will thrive in?" Not just something good enough but something that will enrich it's life and yours. I remember concern a few years ago about bettas being sold in vases with plants the line being that the fish fertilizes the water while the plants feeds the fish. Nevermind that Bettas are carnivores I guess. I hope that's not still going on.

Wouldn't that be the point of the survey writers? If they did understand it, why would they bother? Understanding is the point of surveys.

I'd say James is pretty clear on the topic of works as a way to salvation. It is at odds with Paul's epistles (the source of salvation by faith) and I often think it really interesting, especially when thinking about all the centuries of trouble the question of salvation caused Christians, why James was stuck in the Bible to begin with. You'd almost think the Bible wasn't supposed to be about the answers but rather about asking questions... Regardless, the question is important and caused centuries of trouble because at the heart of it, it's a question about God's power. If we can be saved by works alone then that means we can be responsible for our own salvation and what does that say about the role and power of Jesus? If we can be saved by faith alone that means we can be excused from works and what does that say about the power of God's goodness? I have a friend who's a minister and he boils it down to this - Are we saved by the faith OF Jesus Christ or the faith IN Jesus Christ? By the demand of faith to live as Jesus lived or the demand of faith to believe in Jesus? I suspect most Christians would feel that to some degree it's both.

A plant is good because it can give a fish some cover and reduce stress. I don't think you need to bother with a snail. You'll be wiping down the sides a bit anyway when you do water changes so you'll take care of the algae. Just remember, if your on town water you must either get an additive to de-chlorinate the water or let it sit out for 24 hours. Also, never use soap. If you need to clean you bowl scrub it with a bit of aquarium or epsom salts and use paper towels to avoid towels that might have detergent residue. Here's an excellent site with lots of articles of Beta care - Healthy Beta.

Snails add more snails. :) They can be a pain in the butt when they reproduced their little hearts out.

I'm not quite sure but we do know what the minimum required for a goldfish to thrive generally is and that's the situation I outlined in my first post. You likely can keep a goldfish in a bowl and keep it relatively healthy but I'm not sure why you'd (I mean that generally, not you specifically :)) really choose to when armed with better information. Besides, if this is about education then how cool would it be to really learn about keeping goldfish or whatever fish you choose and make the best environment you can for it? I had a goldfish in a bowl when I was a teenager too and it lived for a fairly long time. Still, now that I know better I'll do better. If you're interested here's a basic goldfish primer: If your interested in a goldfish then a basic ten gallon tank will do. Marbles instead of gravel are best for the bottom (some goldfish can get the gravel stuck in their mouths - but having something on the bottom is good as it increases surface area for ). A good filter but no heater since goldfish are basically carp and as such fine in cold water. A plant or two for cover to reduce stress. 30% water change every week. No need to ever completely dump the tank or scrub it as the water is a culture in itself and whenever you dump it all and scrub the tank you kill that culture and have to start over. I never even scraped more then one surface clean of algae - the algae makes for a healthier environment and goldfish will eat it (will eat anything in fact). And now I've got a hankering to drag out our aquarium and get some fish. :D

That's true. After I wrote my post and then read yours that occurred to me. My daughter is 10, has a full-size violin and loves playing. If she had started a few years earlier and needed a smaller violin then I think your advice would have been best for us.

The difference being that certain breeds have been bred selectively so that they possess qualities that can make them, even with the best of owners, dangerous. Couple that with the fact that so many dogs, pits and pit mixes especially, are the result of dogs people don't fix or backyard breeders who haven't a clue when it comes to animal husbandry and you get the situation where dogs who haven't had dangerous traits bred out of them are sold to people who aren't screened in any manner and are often entirelty inappropriate owners. Even loveable, loyal rotties have some traits (the no-warning bite, their enormous strength) that make them dangerous with the wrong owner. I love them myself but I doubt I'll ever own one as I don't have the consistency or character that breed demands of an owner. For the record, I own a mutt who likely came from a backyard breeder and who looks like she has both pit and rottie in her. Thankfully it's her beagle side that rules her brain. A beagle I can handle. :)

I'd try used violins. We're going shopping for one this summer and a used one will probably be our best bet. We bought a new but cheap one ($120) last fall when Catherine started lessons but it has been an absolute pain in the butt. The only way to really make it decent (as I've learned in research since) would probably be to take it to a local luthier to have it properly "set up", that is, get the pegs replaced with good quality ones, get a sturdy bridge, etc. By that time we might just as well have bought a good used instrument. Plan on spending at least $400-$500 bucks - the cheap really does come out expensive when looking for a violin.

No goldfish if that's the setup you want! Goldfish are big, dirty fish and need at least 10 gallons of clean, oxygen-rich, filtered water each. I know people put them in bowls all the time but it's a cruel life for a goldfish and would defeat the educational aspect in terms of proper environment and humane treatment. The environment you described would be fine for a Beta fish (aka: Siamese Fighting fish). Smaller fish like guppies would be okay as well but Betas are really interesting and have a lot of unique qualities that make them interesting. They need special food as well since they're carnivores but most pet stores sell dried bloodworms for them. I'd also find a few good websites for research and join a Beta-owners email list. I used to belong to a goldfish owners list that was invaluable when our fish came down with some illness or I needed to know how much of a water change to do.

Not only does it introduce people to curriculum more expensive then they might otherwise consider it also creates a need for consumables and supplementary material (I bought MUS used but then had to go buy the b locks new for instance). It also generates more people who use the material and can review and reccomend the material to others. It shouldn't be assumed that those who buy used would otherwise buy new. In fact that's probably not the case most times. But if they buy used they may become future customers of the new material.

Not sure if this is at all it and someone who knows more about plumbing may laugh my suggestions off but the trap under your sink could be dry. It usually holds water to keep out odors but can evaporate in a rarely used drain or might just not be there because a trap is badly designed. You may also want to see if your drains are properly vented. The air in the pipes needs to escape when you put water down the drain and if your drain aren't vented then the air could come up another drain in your washroom and might smell a bit.