TygerLili

I totally support the government not allowing you to buy stuff like pop, candy, potato ships, etc. with a bridge card. That's not what they're for. I agree with whoever said that it's the difference between a want and a need. You may want pop, but you don't need it, and taxpayers shouldn't have to buy it for you. If you want pop, candy, etc. you should have to reach into your own pocket and pay for it, like you would cigarettes or alcohol. When I was a cashier, people would come in with a Bridge Card and buy nothing but pop, Gatorade, Kool-aid, huge bags of candy, and boxes of Little Debbies. That's it. No meat, no veggies, no dairy products, not even boxed dinners. I found that appalling.

So happy for you two! I can't wait to see the pictures!

Unmotivated...

To say that I feel stressed would be a huge understatement!

I was picked on because because I had big boobs. By the time I was 12 I was already a 36D. My weight tended to yo yo, so by the time I got to high school I was overweight. I was picked on because I got good grades, and because my mom was a teacher at my school. I got picked on because I was shy. I got picked on because I was a good girl and I didn't drink, or smoke, or party. Tons of other reasons, probably, but those are the ones I can remember.

Idiot! She looks like a crack whore!

I was thinking the same thing.

Missing my mom...I lost her a year ago today... I also feel like it's been so long since I posted something here that I forgot how to sign on. Doh!

To be fair, the Liberals have gotten plenty of mileage out of that as well.

I predict that: About half of these kids will grow up just like their parents and subject their children to this kind of teaching, never learning to think for themselves and just regurgitating everything that's been thrown at them. About a quarter of them will decide to become atheists or to worship pagan religions in their teens or early twenties, have a very strained or non-existent relationship with their parents, and have a blind hatred for all things related to Christianity and the Bible. The remaining quarter will end up in mental institutions or in prison for things like shooting abortion doctors or blowing up Muslim community centers. Just a rough estimate...

Yep... Thank you! Very informative! Great article, though the comments following it confirm my belief that most Americans are idiots. Not much I can say that hasn't already been said. This whole thing amounts to a whole lot of ado about nothing. Lots of good, well thought out posts in this thread, and a few that are, quite frankly, alarming.

If practice was from, say, 10pm to 1am I could probably get behind that, but if I was the parent of a teenager and they had a sports practice that went on until 4 in the morning I would be pissed. I think it's insane to keep kids that age out that late, and encourages even more messed up sleeping habits than teenagers already have. It's also very inconvenient for the families of the ones who don't have their own car and need to be picked up at 4am. Plus, most schools go back in session before Sept. 10. There's no way they can have football practice until 4 am, then expect the kids to be in school at 7 or 8 in the morning.

From what I've seen, most of the arguments against it and for it are based on people's personal experiences and preferences. I know that my opinion is heavily influenced by the fact that personally, I don't like it. Second hand marijuana smoke gives me a horrible headache, and it makes me way more aggressive and argumentative than I normally am, and it's a big part of why I don't go over to hang out with certain friends more often than I do. I just don't want to be around it, at all. I am against legalizing it for the general public unless legalizing it comes with a huge set of restrictions regarding where and when it can be smoked. That doesn't make my opinion any less valid than that of someone who is for it because they claim it helps them focus, or because it lessens pain, or because they're just a pothead. I think it should be moved from a schedule I to a schedule II drug. It has never made sense to me that marijuana is considered medically more dangerous than opiates or amphetamines, which are both schedule II drugs. I think the effects, both positive and negative, on medical conditions needs to be studied more. All medications have some harmful effects on people. It's all about whether the positive effects outweigh the negative.

Yeah, looks gross to me, too. And I have been known to put some really weird things on my grilled cheese...

I've been craving Panera's tomato and fresh mozarella salad, but they haven't had it the last several times I've been in, so I decided to make my own. 2 Roma tomatoes chopped into large wedges (or whatever kind of tomato you like, I had Romas at home) 4 oz of fresh mozzarella cut up into chunks 2 thin slices of red onion 4 fresh basil leaves, shredded a handful of Italian croutons (I'm sure it would be even better with the fresh focacia wedges Panera uses, but I didn't have any) 1-2 Tbsp balsamic vinaigrette dressing A shake each of salt, pepper and dried rosemary Mix all ingredients in a mixing bowl So easy! Tastes best if you let it sit for a few minutes before you eat it to let everything soak up the flavor of the dressing.

I used to speak German pretty well. I'm out of practice. Now I am braver about speaking it when I have been drinking, lol. I learned a little Korean in college (Korean roommate) but I have forgotten it all. I don't have a huge interest in Spanish, but since I am trying to get into the medical field I am thinking of taking a couple Spanish classes, just to make it easier to get a job.

I would like to do something like this next time I get more than a couple inches taken off, but I know most of these places don't take color treated hair.

This seems like the right place for this:

Tired of rejection...

I actually have, like, 2 or 3 gray hairs now. I kind of think the stress from Morbid being in California caused them, because my mom and my grandma both didn't start going gray until they were in their late 40s to early 50s. My grandma is 90 and she still has salt and pepper hair, I don't know if she will ever go totally gray. I dye my hair, so the 2 or 3 I have are not a big deal. I agree that on some people it looks attractive, and on some people it doesn't. I do think that if you have long hair and you start going gray, you should either cut it or dye it.

I am child-free by choice and have no interest in having children, but I don't necessarily agree with more than half of the things on this list. A lot of these things are affected by your living situation, your job situation, your relationship with your family, your relationship status, your interests, your general outlook on life, and how you prefer to spend your free time, and have less to do with whether or not you have children than those other things mentioned. Also, someone else's blog is not a credible source of information.

I don't see why dancing with a vertical pole has to be a sexual thing, just because a number of strippers tend to use poles in their routines. I have seen little girls (and little boys for that matter) grab a hold of a vertical support pole and spin, climb, or otherwise play, and in no way was I given the impression that they were emulating strippers, porn stars, etc. As a parent, before enrolling your child in any type of activity, I think it's your responsibility to check it out and ask yourself "is this an activity that I feel comfortable with my child doing?" If you see an example of the type of dancing and outfits being used and you don't feel that they are especially sexual or otherwise inappropriate, and more importantly if your child wants to do this, then what's the harm in letting them? Just because we have a bias toward a certain activity because it has often been used in the sex industry does not mean that all forms of the activity itself are wrong. It can be just a fun way for kids, or adults, to exercise. And, Phee, I disagree that ballet is sexual. I studied ballet for 8 years, and I never found anything to be sexual about it. It was my choice to take ballet classes, my parents didn't make me do it. Yes, certain choreographers can take more sexual-type movements and put them in a ballet routine, but that can be done with any type (polka dancing, square dancing, riverdance, whatever) of dancing. It doesn't mean that the type of dancing, itself, is inherently sexual. As for the outfits, Eevee is correct, most dance companies like to put little girls is flashy costumes that resemble the costumes that the "big girls" wear. Again, it's your responsibility as a parent to find out what your child would be wearing and decide if you can get on board with it. Different people have different limits. Some people think gymnastics leotards are inappropriate, some people think head to toe spandex with nothing showing but the hands and face is inappropriate, some people think skirts are inappropriate. It's all relative. I guess my point is: if you wouldn't comfortable with your child doing this, that's fine, but find out what's actually going on before you say that it's wrong for everyone.

I can understand why someone who was 14 would take a picture like that, but I can't understand why someone who is now an adult would share a picture of themselves like that at 14 on a board with other adults.

Green Beans and Mediterranean Tomatoes This is what I have been making since I've been dieting when I get a craving for spaghetti. It has a lot of the same flavors and the entire thing only has about 250 calories. Serves one person as a main course or 2 people as a side dish. 2 cups fresh cut green beans (or 1 14.5 oz can) 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes 3 small cloves garlic 1 teaspoon olive oil 1 1/2 teaspoon sugar 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/8 tsp (one one shake) of basil 1/8 tsp (or one shake) of dried parsley a pinch of crushed mint lots of black pepper to taste Boil green beans for about 10 minutes (or less if you like them firm, I like mine a little soft) Drain green beans Meanwhile slice the garlic cloves very thinly In a medium saucepan heat 1 tsp of olive oil over medium heat Add green beans and saute for about 3 minutes Add garlic and saute for another 2 minutes Add tomatoes and stir Add sugar and salt and stir Add black pepper, basil, parsley and mint and stir Remove from heat and serve