Posts by rachd

Original Post by spoiled_candy:

Erik and Igor wrote the PG's for c-c.  All they ask for is a little respect.  I do not believe that is too much to ask for.

 Agreed.

Why all the drama lately? There have been alot of temper tantrums....

My dog Molly has all kinds of pet peeves, I'm convinced she has OCD.

1. Her water dish...she will only drink out of this dish, none other. I bought a new one that dispenses fresh water frequently...she won't go near it! Refuses to drink from it and starts shaking if I try to make her drink from it. She went 2 days without water when I first set it out.

2. She will only sleep on one side of the bed, the right side. Whether we are at home or my parents house, she will only stay on that side of the bed...and will push me over until she has her spot.

3. People knocking on the door. I'm convinced she thinks they are aliens there to take her away to perform experiments. She starts barking, dives under the bed or couch, and keeps barking for 5-10 minutes...even if she knows the person at the door!

My crazy, OCD dog....man, I love her :)

Learn to appreciate what you have while striving to reach your goals :)

Because they spend all day plowing the fields

This isn't about second chances. Vick was judged by a jury of his peers, found guilty, and did the time. It's over. This is how our justice system works, do we really want it to work another way?

My groomer recommended using Ivory Dish soap when I give my dog a bath. It kills fleas and is gentle enough for her skin.

The vet should have a pill that you can give the dog and this kills and repeals the fleas, but I think it's only used when it's a bad infestation.

Also...put a flea collar in your vacuum, that way the fleas die when they sucked up into the bag or container.

Good luck! 

I hate the fact that you can 'see' everything...Icky, icky! Just knowing I'm so close to all that...bleck...those things have to be the worst!

Original Post by kathygator:

It's hard not to notice the pattern, Pg. It is pretty common to watch marriages disintegrate. It seems to stem from the unreasonable expectations some people have that they should be 100% fulfilled every waking moment.

I think this statement makes a good point. Expectations of marriage have changed. Divorce is now acceptable and to a point, expected.

In past generations you married out of high school and stayed married, whether you were happy or not. There were happy times and there were bad times, but for the most part, you stayed married.  Obviously, this was good and bad....good in that people really worked to make a marriage work, bad that they stayed when it obviously wasn't.

We've become a very selfish society. We want what we want, now with instant gratification. This mentality does not a good marriage make. I know I'm like that...one of the reasons I'm still single :)

Original Post by amethystgirl:

The only difference is that the desire to keep people from driving under 60mph isn't based on ideology, nor is preventing people from doing so depriving others of the chance to be treated for serious, life-changing or life-threatening diseases.

and i guess they don't do that anymore because we have speed limits in NC of 70 mph and we still get federal transportation dollars

been like this for at least the past 10 years

Ok guys..I was giving one example on how the government has always tried to hold the states by the purse strings. Here is a brief from 1989 (I know that was a long time ago, however I don't think rulings from the supreme court have an expiration date) of a case going to the supreme court that questioned:

Whether the federal statute requiring States to adopt a maximum
speed limit as a condition for receipt of federal highway funds is
constitutional.

So...shouldn't the supreme court be blamed for allowing the Federal Government to blackmail the states?

...the Court stated that Congress must condition its grants
"'unambiguously . . ., enabl(ing) the States to exercise their choice
knowingly, cognizant of the consequences of their participation.'"...

Ok...I'm done being argumentive....especially since I agree with lifting the ban on stem cell research :)

Original Post by floggingsully:

Original Post by nomoreexcuses:

Original Post by rachd:

The 'medical industry' makes more money treating sick people, not curing sick people.  Thus, they invest more research dollars into sick-care - pharmaceuticals and new technologies for imaging and operating.

 The ban on federal money going to stem cell research essentially made it impossible for any lab that was getting any federal money (for any purpose) to do any embryonic stem cell research.

I get your point that money is made on treatments, not cures...but this only pertains if stem cell research will create a cure..will it? it may create treatments as well. I'm not sure..I don't know enough about it. 

How did a limit on federal funding make it impossible for companies receiving any federal money to do embryonic research? I was under the impression that the in the past there was a limit on the federal funding, not a total ban.

I'm just trying to understand, not argue :)

It's always been allowed, it's just had limits on the federal funding allowed to go toward the research.

I'm glad that the limit on federal funding has been lifted, but my pessimistic side asks 'what's the difference?'...why will there be so much more progress when there hasn't been any in the last few years? There's always been private funding, so if there's real potential (which means money making possibilities to the industry), why hasn't there been more private funding by the medical industry?

Either way...I HOPE that this change opens up some more doors and I think there never should have been a ban in the first place...but I'm not getting my hopes up for any "miracle cures".

Original Post by alibsam:

Original Post by lidan:

Not to be the voice of doom senioracct, but at least out here in California, education cuts have been deep.  I only know 4 teachers, but all 4 of them have gotten pink slips.

I agree. I know some teachers, too, and some have been told their contracts will not be renewed for next school year. I think the medical field is generally the safest. 

Not in Houston/Galveston. The UT Medical Branch in Galveston just laid off 3800 people. Shriner's Hospital for Children also announced layoffs, effective March 31.

In addition to the economic downturn, they can't afford to repair all the damage from Ike.

So far, I'm on track! If I keep this pace, I'll have 3 months expenses saved by the end of April.

After that I'm going to go back to paying down debt and should have my one private loan paid off by the end of Nov...and my car paid off by May 2010. Yes, I'm a dork...I have a spreadsheet detailing my budget for the next 14 months :)

I spent a few days in Prague during a college tour of Europe. It's been a few years, so I don't really remember details...but I do remember that is was quite easy to get around. We pretty much walked everywhere.

We stayed in a "tourist" class hotel...not expensive, but centrally located and clean. I know we were walking distance from the square and from the castle, which is where pretty much everything is. It's a beautiful city and I felt quite safe, especially since we stayed in the tourist areas....but take precaution of course.  Hotels are pretty affordable in Prague, so you should be able to get a nice one. Just be sure to find one within the city center, near the tourist areas...then you should be able to walk everywhere and it will be the most safe.

Have fun!

Original Post by coffincritter:

Getting back to the original topic, they said on the morning news today that the woman who owned the chimp apparently took baths with him. And I didn't find that gross or creepy at all. (/sarcasm)

When my dog was a puppy, I used to take her in the shower with me. It was an easy way to get her clean...let her sit on the shower floor, soap her up, and let her sit there and lick up all the water. She's gotten too big now, though.

However...I would not take a bath with a monkey....kind a creepy.