Posts by kriklaf

Original Post by floggingsully:

Original Post by moonikins:

 But they are two completely different things.

Ug, I'm never going to get this.  How different do things have to be before it's ok to distinguish between them? 

Coming really late to the party...

I'd say here that the difference between a child born to married parents and a child born to unmarried parents is a difference betwen the *adults* involved, not the kid. The kid most definitely has a mother and father. Those parents may or may not have been married. So attaching a word to the kid seems unnecessary, and I'm not sure what neutral use such a phrase could have. Call the parents married, or single mother/father/parent.

Incidentally, OP, I don't believe that dead certainty before a major decision ever really happens, but if you don't even know if you want to marry or have children, you probably shouldn't. And absolutely don't have kids just because your current squeeze wants to - that isn't fair to you, the kids, or him. Unplanned pregnancies can work out just fine, but intentionally planning one that you, the potential mother, are lukewarm on seems like a very bad idea.

I love grilled fruit! My favorites are grilled pineapple soaked briefly in some homemade teriyaki sauce, and apple/banana skewers, sprinkled with cinnamon/sugar before and dipped in yogurt/maple syrup after. Mmm.

I also really love grilled vegetables - I'll slice zucchini and bell peppers into long strips, onions into rings, and snap off the woody ends of asparagus. Give them a brief bath in balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper and a little olive oil, then grill.

Flank steak is one of my favorite cuts of meat - it's relatively lean and relatively inexpensive, and it has a really deep, beefy flavor when cooked medium-rare and sliced across the grain (but is really tough if cooked well-done or sliced with the grain). On a nice, hot grill 3-6 minutes per side will get you somewhere in the rare - medium range. I don't even usually marinate - just season with salt and pepper.

You can also do fajitas - start the peppers and onions first, then throw on the already-sliced meat (marinated/seasoned to your liking - I like to soak stuff in a mixture of beer, lime juice, salt, pepper, garlic and cumin). This might work better on the griddle side, since you'll want to stir it around.

Congratulations!

If you're mostly looking for Broadway/pop, the suggestions given are good choices. I also like "Now that I've seen her," from Miss Saigon. *ETA: I also like Another Suitcase in Another Hall from Evita, but it's really low - G below middle C, I think.

If you're looking for a classical piece, anything from the classic Italian songs (used to be yellow, I think it's purple now) or typical vocal anthologies would be a good choice - ask your teacher to play a few things for you to find one you like.

Ralph Vaughan Williams' Silent Noon is a beautiful piece (range is ~ Bb below middle C to C or D above middle C - not sure precisely)

Che faro senza Euridice? from Orfeo ed Euridice (Gluck) is also really nice, and very singable (middle C to E, and that I'm pretty sure about)

Although if we're talking "soon" as in, next week, do something you've done before - no need to make yourself worry about forgetting words!

Original Post by gotborked:

Many here are framing this as if it is your problem for feeling this way.  I disagree.  It is completely natural, not to mention rational, to feel this way about a guy who has been so casual with the feelings and the well-being of the 25 women who came before you and stood where you stand now.  It's called self-preservation.

But it is her problem - does she ignore or get over her unhappiness about his past, or does she leave him? There's literally nothing the guy can do to resolve her uneasiness, so it's her problem. Holding the past over him will only make the decision for her - he'll leave. Maybe that's unfair to her, but it's also unfair to him that his honesty about his past has backfired. Sometimes unfairness is nobody's fault.

Mind you, the OP has a right to her feelings - if she's not comfortable with the idea of being with a guy who's slept with lots of women, she shouldn't feel like she has to live with that discomfort. But that doesn't mean she gets to torture him about it, or bring it up in arguments, or in any other way hold it over his head. Others are right: she can either find a way to square it with herself, or she can leave him. 

OP - as long as what's really, truly bothering you is just the number, and not something current in his behavior, I think you'd be doing him and yourself a disservice by not trying to let go of his past.

If you just can't, suck it up and break it off. It will hurt you both less in the long run.

Melon salsa - 1 part jicama, 2 parts melon, a few tomatillos (tomatoes would also work, but that was what I had), minced onion and garlic to taste, minced hot pepper to taste, salt, pepper, lime juice and a sprinkling of cumin and chile.

It's also pretty good as a crudite, and just plain.

I don't know much about the sugar - UTI connection, but I did have a spate of several UTIs in about a year's span, so I think I can safely say that although cranberry juice *might* help prevent one, it won't do much to cure one. I never had much pain with mine, but there's a specific pain medication you can take if you're in pain. However, don't ignore this! I once waited a day or so after I first started noticing symptoms, because I was busy and didn't want to take the time to go wait at the doctor's office, and by the time I did go see someone, I ended up in the ER with a kidney infection. Much more painful, more expensive and even less fun. Blech.

Yeah, cooking for one is a challenge. I don't have much to add beyond the above, but I will say that cooking ahead only works if you'll eat the leftovers. For me, that means lots of soups/stews that taste better the next day, or sturdy vegetables that can take being reheated, or meat that can be eaten cold. I know better than to reheat boneless/skinless chicken breasts, though - I won't eat it. I also won't eat soggy sandwiches or salads, or some casseroles. Before you go crazy with the cooking this weekend, consider what you've eaten leftover in the past, and what you kept pushing to the back of the fridge.

Original Post by clairelaine:

Original Post by kriklaf:

Hyponatremia.

ETA: I imagine Crystal Lite has some electrolytes, but your title was about drinking water.

 Thanks for the link.

Crystal Lite is just colored, artifically sweetened and flavored powder.  It has no nutritional value at all and no minerals, so no electrolytes.  Maybe you're thinking of Gatorade?

Wow - not even any salt? That's surprising! I'm not a fan, myself, but I figured there would at least be a little sodium.

Hyponatremia.

It's generally not common in daily activities, but you bet you have to worry about it on really hot, really active days - people can and do die as a result.

ETA: I imagine Crystal Lite has some electrolytes, but your title was about drinking water.

I don't think she's talking about margarine or other substitutes that function like butter - I think the OP is asking about butter flavor that bakeries add to icing made with shortening to make it taste like butter. It's like a liquid extract, so I bet the calories would be similar to liquid vanilla.

I'm not crazy about the flavor, myself - I'd rather just bake with butter.