I'm sorry, I didn't mean to imply you personally didn't feed your dogs well. It's just a personal crusade of mine, now, when I know lots of people are reading to get the word out. I come across so many people that think Iams and Eukanuba is good quality dog food -- so whenever opportunity presents, I just hop on my bandwagon. No harm intended. I am still missing my precious Jerry Lee, even though he's been gone a few months. We love our fur babies, and I hope in your case it's nothing. Sending your pup healing and hungry vibes.

I am very sorry. My heart aches for you.

Get your doggie to the vet immediately! We lost our dog just after Christmas. He quit eating, and when we took him in, we found he had liver cancer. As an aside, we learned from this experience, and I share this whenever I have the opportunity. Watch what you feed your dogs! Here is an excellent website that rates dog food. http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/ We believe the low-grade yet popular food we fed our dog was responsible. Frankie feeding Canidae or Innova only to our dogs now

I am a former court reporter. I quit in the late 90s. No one dictates tapes and uses typists anymore. Everyone is on computer using court reporting software. The steno machines make files and everything is done on the computer. No dictation at all. There would be no jobs for typists as you describe today--that's definitely a thing of the past--unless you happen to find a reporter who is about to retire. However, because everyone is on computer, meaning they have special steno machines and software, a new field opened up in the early 90s. Scopists learn to read court reporters' notes and prepare transcripts on court reporting software. The rub is it is a highly competitive market. In the mid 90s when I used scopists, there were 30 or more available for every one job I had. To tell you how competitive the scopist market is, I wouldn't even try it. I have 11 years' experience as a top-credentialed court reporter. I had a superior reputation, (tooting my own horn). I also lectured at state conventions teaching fellow reporters how to use scopists. It is a field I could jump right into -- but I wouldn't, because the market is flooded with scopists. Many former court reporters go into medical transcription, because there are more jobs available.

Safety is of utmost importance, so we will buy a newer car with the best safety features we can afford for our son. I am adament that my son not have a junker, because of safety issues. That all said, I'll probably make my son wait until he is 17 before he can drive alone -- something which I did. A year of maturity goes a long way. Furthermore, we'll probably make him make car payments. Or help, at least. My parents gave all four of us kids a car. I was oh, so lucky to receive their old Gremlin! Many times that old thing overheated. It just wasn't safe.

I just saw that requirement, too. I hope to sell some stuff off this summer, when I have more spare time. I figure I better get to posting now if I want to make 50 by then.:tongue_smilie:

I agree. I live in a district that, depending on who is in charge that year, can be "tough." Some of my friends in past years have had to take all their curriculum in to be looked at. They follow the mutually agreed upon place to meet, so they chose to meet at the school district's offices. Fortunately, the person in charge of homeschooling in my district right now doesn't use that part of the statute where we have to meet. We do get a letter and form every year that we are told to fill out. It asks for much more than the Minnesota statutes require. I have never used the school district's forms, always opting instead to use MACHE'S form. I think the huge advantage to homeschooling in Minnesota is we get the break on our income taxes. Last time I checked, we were the only state to allow for educational credits on the state taxes.

Okay, this is saaad. I got a 26.5 And of that 26.5, I got one 10-point question correct: 83. Warm smell of colitas Rising up through the air Ok either 1)You've read The Straight Dope or 2)You are a god. Either way 10 points. That is from one of my all-time favorite songs, though. In my defense, it's 2 am, I'm exhausted. I bet had I done this tomorrow I would have scored much higher. I graduated high school in 1983. Shame on me!

My DH is 6'5" and we've bought his jeans for years through the JCPenney's catalog. I just recently discovered, however, that our local fleet and farm store carries jeans in his size at the NORMAL price. DH always thought it was so unfair he needed only an extra inch or two of fabric at the bottom, but had to pay more than the big-waisted jeans. :p I just bought him three pair of nice quality jeans for $25 apiece at the fleet and farm store. How lucky is that!

Really? Do people even have antennas anymore? None of my TVs can be tuned. We live in the boonies and if we didn't have cable, we'd have NO tv, so I'm out of touch on that subject -- everyone here has at least basic cable. It must be 50/50 then, because when I watch something that is closed captioned, I can read the errors that come up. They're in steno, a language of its own. and I know what it's supposed to be.:o

Scott here, too. I've used it for years. It lasts. When I splurge and get Charmin, I regret it because it's gone so fast. Scott lasts and lasts.

What you were watching was more than likely being done by a court reporter doing real time closed captioning. That's very big on the national level. If a lot of it looked like "gunk" or not even words, it was probably stenography that the reporter had not entered into her computer. And if it was really a mess, the reporter was probably very nervous. I left the court reporting world 10 and a half years ago just as that was getting very big. Now I can read the text and I know what it should be just because I can read their steno. Typists can't do real time captioning like that because they cannot type that fast. People speak on average 180-225 words per minute -- much faster when they're emotional, up to 280 wpm. So anyway, it was more than likely a bad case of nerves and the reporter's fingers weren't working right, which is why what you saw looked like Greek. wupb one tkaeu day rbgs ,waoe we wr were aoet g eating lufplunch in a in a staurpbtrestaurant thathat dhad t v ae sTV's phraeug playing t thetphaouz newsfpltperiod There, that's what a little steno looks like. :p

You'll catch up. It's worth it to have a day of fun with dad. That's the beauty of homeschooling -- freedom to live life along the way! Sometimes when my husband is home, I make HIM teach. Now that makes for an interesting day. My son prefers me, but my husband gets to appreciate all I do. lol Believe me, they have short days when dad teaches --he doesn't do nearly half the things on the list. It's good for both of them, though.

Did you know they have a Junior Paleontologist program? You have to sign up way in advance, but they let the kids DIG. I really think my son would love to do this. Grandma lives close by, but we just always forget to sign up.

I always forget to recommend The Badlands. Every time I"ve gone there, I've had sneezing fits. The minute we drive in, it starts. I sneeze and have some reaction until the minute we drive out! Gorgeous, though!

Raising my hand. We don't have time to do either. I have tried it in the past and my son and I both thought it was busy work. I see how it can be very beneficial, but not for my son and his learning style. So, you're not alone.

Um, my sewing machine? tee hee I don't sew that much, but my rotary cutter and cutting mat are two things I wouldn't want to give up. Ever. Love 'em.

Happy Anniversary!

Ewww. In the early 1980s I worked at Wendy's, back when they had salad bars. We were doing morning prep, and it was time to do the mushrooms. I had been taught to put the mushrooms in a colander and rinse them thoroughly. My manager taught me they how they were grown. I didn't know! Anyway, that particular morning when we were doing salad prep, I was preparing to wash the mushrooms. An older lady grabbed the colander out of my hands and yelled at me to NOT wash them. She said she didn't care how they were grown, mushrooms and water don't mix, it makes them mushy. She then sliced the mushrooms, poop and all. I have never eaten a mushroom since. I lost all desire/taste for them that morning. ~~~ I'm very thankful I don't like lemons in my water and I don't drink tea. I'll show the video to DH, but he won't care. He's not afraid of germs. I'll stick to my lemon juice I put in my ice water at home.

My son's is not eating either, everything is staying at 100, and I know because I have completely taken over his account. Every time I sit at the computer, I simply must play a game of Tile Towers. I confess, I've been doing this since he got his Webkinz at Christmas. I think I need to buy my own pet!:p

Do you even remember what it's like to be outside in -30 wind-chill? -40? Heck, even -10? Show me a kid that even wants to be out in it. It's nasty, it's unsafe, and it's dangerous. And we had those temps for two weeks straight, a short reprieve, and then another week and a half. My son was out long enough to take his puppies potty. As for being too hot? Last summer a 12 year old boy died in the town my MIL lives in. It was 106 that day, and he had been playing with friends. They went to the golf course and then to the local swimming pool. He had been drinking water, but apparently not enough. He was on the rings swinging across the pool and dropped dead into the water from heat exhaustion. So I personally believe (know!) there are temps where it is too hot or too cold for children, who have a harder time regulating their body temperatures than adults, to play outside. Now they're extreme, but they exist.

Kitchen Table Learners Frankie:o

Jann, I completely agree with you regarding the GSD. We lost our GSD right after Christmas to liver cancer. He was diagnosed in September. During his final months, we decided to get a GSD puppy. We looked at both the show lines and the working lines. We chose, hands down, to purchase from the working lines. They are healthier, and while we had a dog dying from cancer, health was of utmost importance to us. We picked our breeder, paid our deposit, and then walked away because the breeder was a flake -- she produced good dogs with lots of titles in the Shutzhund world, but she was unstable. Of course we then changed our minds and bought two Border Collie puppies! We couldn't be happier. And we all know how the AKC loves Border Collies --and vice versa. <giggle> We're not in it to show, just for the pleasure of having two great dogs. And we see agility and fly ball in our future. As for dog shows, I went to several with my mom when she was alive. While I enjoyed the shows and learned a lot just being there, what I didn't like was all the nasty gossip I heard every.single.time in the audience. It turned me off of the dog community. I was just shocked -- it was beyond competition, it was nasty. I found it very sad. I know they're not all that way, but I really got an earful! So I may watch for a few minutes when I see Westminster on TV, but I just cannot get into it. My favorite class is the herding group, which I would watch all of, but I'd rather enjoy dogs in a different setting.

Hi right back! :D

Well, I certainly see your point, really I do, BUT... I live in Minnesota, and my son has only been able to play outside a few times due to below zero wind-chills in the past several weeks. We're talking -20, -30 and beyond wind-chill. So I actually think they're a good thing, when used in certain circumstances like nasty weather.