AngelaMN

woooooo hooooo!!!!!!!

Why did it get pulled? That's the kind of stuff this site used to
thrive on! Marnie and her ilk were annoying but easy prey, but thanks
to the TOS, they were the only ones (that I saw) calling names and
breaking the TOS.

I was on Dana's side all the way.

What is wrong with a few of the new letters/letter writers today/this
week? Can you freakin' write in ENGLISH? Are you mentally deficient?
One letter was so difficult to understand it was ridiculous.

How do these people get through their daily lives? They remind me of
my redneck paternal relatives. "I ain't got none." "I seen that
movie."

ARGH!

So the Qwest letter writer learned that her lousy attitude with
commenters didn't win her any "Person of the Year" awards, so she got
a letter posted with no commenting allowed?

I suppose she wishes she could do this in her everyday regular life.

I would suppose she needs to.

What a fucking JOKE. Someone can post a letter saying the OP's temper
is "over the top" but I can't post that I didn't think a five hour
delay is that bad, considering how other deliveries have gone, based
on letters we've seen on this site?

Three of my comments got pulled on that letter. But no response from
Greg as to why.

Fucking joke.

As wildfires rage closer to the outskirts of Santa Barbara, I've heard
"exclusive" several times. I have relatives who've lived in Santa
Barbara for over 40 years. They moved there before it was "exclusive"
-- I believe they paid something like $30K for their large home back
then. My mom's sister, Jeanne, and her husband Bob, raised their two
awesome kids, Jeff and Laurie there.

Laurie lives there still, married with two wonderful daughters. Her
husband is a firefighter in Santa Barbara and the wildfires provide a
much-needed income boost, but at the great cost of homes and
occasionally human lives.

Santa Barbara now is so expensive, Laurie and her husband Dean can't
afford to live in the city in which they work (she's a teacher). The
people who keep the city afloat (landscapers, housekeepers, restaurant
workers, hotel employees) can't afford to live there.

Eight years ago, my last stay in Santa Barbara, a shot of vodka on the
rocks cost me over $11! The bartender was from Minnesota like me, and
told me that he can't afford to drink in Santa Barbara!

So, yeah, I guess it's "exclusive." But there's also a mobile
home/trailer park in the direct line of the wildfires... and that is
where many of the lower wage workers live.

I'm not a pray-er, but I'm a thinker. Whichever one you are, please
take a moment to keep them in your prayers or in your thoughts.

http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/yourmoney/44307242.html?elr=KArks
7PYDiaK7DUdcOy_nc:DKUiacyKUUr

The story is:

Effective May 15, Target's return policy improves slightly. Customers
still have 90 days from the date of purchase for returns or exchanges
with a receipt. That's not changing. What Target is "relaxing" is the
policy for returns without a receipt.

Previously, customers could make two returns per year for store credit
as long as each item was under $35. Items costing more than $35 were
not returnable without a receipt. (Target customers can also request a
receipt "look-up" in customer service. If the item was paid for with a
credit or debit card, check or gift card and the buyer can provide the
checking account number, credit, debit or gift card, it qualifies as a
return with a receipt.)

The new return policy without a receipt changes the maximum value from
$35 per item to $70. Customers are no longer limited to two
transactions without a receipt per 12-month period. The customer can
return any number of items without a receipt, up to $70 in total
value. For example, a shopper could reach the limit by returning one
item without a receipt for $70. Another could return 10 items for $7
each to max out.

Once Target customers reach the $70 limit, they may still exchange new
and unused clothing with tags attached for different sizes, colors or
like items. Food items may also be returned at the historical low
price.

The change in policy is in response to customer surveys, said David
Fransen, a Target spokesman.

Saying "the regulars" doesn't make any sense. We have different
opinions and disagree on letters. It's a ridiculous generalization
that just doesn't make any sense.

It makes as much sense as saying "Americans" or "black people" or
"women"--it's a generalization that just doesn't hold water. We
"regulars" don't have same opinions, attitudes, and responses just
because we post at the site regularly.

From today's Minneapolis Star-Tribune's consumer section.

http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/yourmoney/43300777.html?elr=KArks
LckD8EQDUoaEyqyP4O:DW3ckUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aULPQL7PQLanchO7DiUsr

Oh, happy day! My home state, moderately conservative farm country
Iowa, legalized gay marriage today! I read much of the Supreme
Court's written arguments in support of their UNANIMOUS decision,
along with a legal analysis and apparently it's iron-clad,
bullet-proof, UNTOUCHABLE!

The court ruled that it failed to see how the relationship of a
same-sex couple had any effect on an opposite-sex couple. That if
"tradition" means "discrimination," then it's an argument that would
have held water in equality issues based on race and gender.

This ruling is effective TODAY.

Thank you, Iowa, for becoming the third state in the union to
recognize same-sex unions and to give their FAMILIES legal standing,
the same as every other family.

Like you said: "If you can't show me exactly where I have accused
someone of lying, etc., then YOUR mission is over."

I found one and now that's not enough. One is enough to show what kind
of human being you truly are - one who beats up on the little guy.
Yet again, typical for you to try to twist your words to make yourself
look better. Irene did no such thing in her letter - which was not
directed toward you personally. It was you and your cronies that
apparently decided it would be fun to stick it her and then feign
surprise when she reacted and used her response to justify your own
bad behaviors.

Face reality Venice. You're a bully and a hypocrite. You chase
letter writers and commenters off this site who don't agree with you
and your preconceived notions of what constituted "right". Hope you
can sleep at night.

I never accused her of lying. So, let's see... that's one minus one.
I believe that equals zero.

Irene did not try to make herself look better in the letter, but she
did a heck of a job trying in her comments. And you're wrong again,
she did comment to me personally, which was the only reason I
responded.

You're barking up the wrong tree, Wayne. You might want to target
someone else to satisfy your witch hunt.

I turned 41 today. I made much less of a fuss this year than every
previous year. My mom grew up without birthdays (crazy gramma) so she
overcompensated (yay!) and as a result, my birthday lasts a week!

Had beer and food with Hal (my exbf) tonight -- it was good to see
him.

Tomorrow night I have drinks after work with girlfriends. My goal is
to be home and in PJs by 8! Seriously! I have to get to bed early.

Saturday a.m.: Haircut. Noon: "He's Just Not That Into You" with
the girls. After that: Coraline with a guy I've been seeing and then
a party.

Sunday night: A date with a new guy!

I love my birthday weeks. :)

From a friend (white, married to a black woman), who shared this
exchange with his 3-year-old biracial son Kai:

A few months ago on the morning of November 5th I looked at my boys
and I misted up a bit. Hell, I'm still misting up a bit now. The fact
of the matter is that their grandfather lived in the time of
segregation and had to fight tooth and nail to become one of the first
black CPAs in this country. That is a very different world than the
one my boys will grow up in. The first president they will know shares
their mixed racial heritage. Wow.

At one point that morning I hugged Kai and said "Son - you know you
really can be anything you want to be!" and then asked "What do you
want to be when you grow up?"

His response?

"I want to be... a stop sign!"

And I had to admit, as laughter shook the tears of happiness from my
eys, that telling cars what to do is pretty cool!

My dog of 12 years is very sick and likely needs to be put to sleep
early next week. I blogged about her. Just go to the site and look
at the picture, and you can tell how sweet she is from that face.

http://redheadwglasses68.blogspot.com/

I posted a letter to VS, but forgot to check the box to share it, so
I"ll vent here:

Why are Victoria's Secret stores HIRING MEN? I refuse to shop for
undies, bras, and other goodies when there's a man hovering about,
asking if I'm finding things okay. I don't know how teenage shoppers
feel, but they can't like it any more than I do.

Ick. Keep the men out of our underwear stores, unless they're
shopping.

...Gov. Sarah Palin! I have the hair clip, the business suit (many to
choose from), and a baby doll that I'll have others carry for me all
night long!

Luckily, she has many of her own "Bushisms" so I won't even have to
make up ridiculous quotes--her nonstructured, undiagramable sentences
are so perfect, I'll quote her directly. I'll read them, of course,
from my index cards "talking points."

This will be a hoot!

This blog started as a joyful announcement of impending parenthood --
the parents were from Minnesota, living in L.A., and wanted to share
pregnancy and baby news with friends and family who lived far away.

On March 24, after weeks of bedrest, their daughter Madeline was born
about two months premature. THe next day, on her way to see her
daughter for the first time (after an emergency c section), Liz, the
mother, passed out as she was getting into the wheelchair, and never
regained consciousness. She died in minutes from a blood clot. She
never got to hold her baby. It's statistically insignificant -- only
about 60 women a year die from complications resulting from bedrest.
But try telling a grieving family and a motherless newborn that it's
"insignificant."

Pretty damn sad, right? It is. I cried. Their story was featured in
the Minneapolis Star Tribune, which is how I found out about the blog.


But he's doing an amazing job raising his beautiful baby girl, and
he's so in love with her, it's just amazing to watch the
transformation from lost, grieving widow (age 30) to smitten dad who
is with his daughter every minute of every day (thanks to donations
from many people, he hasn't had to return to work yet).

He still comments about his wife a lot, and it's so poignant. He has
yet to sleep in their bed since her death. He has yet to cook a meal
(he can't stand to be in the kitchen without her -- they cooked
together).

But thanks to the baby, he's moving on as well as can be expected, and
it's just a wonderful story of life, death, and everything else in
between.

It's worth checking out. And the pictures of Madeline are out of this
world. He's a gifted writer as well, with a distinct style.

I've never been comfortable around breastfeeding, as I wasn't around
it growing up. The first time I saw it (that I remember) was when my
cousin, same age, was nursing her first baby, around age 22 or 23. I
continued to talk with her, kept my eyes on her eyes, etc. Then in my
30s, as friends had babies, I got more comfortable with it. I'm still
not comfortable with it in public, but I'm better than I used to be.

But on a message board recently, people used this argument against
people who think nursing belongs at home or in a bathroom or under a
blanket:

If you're going to vocally and publicly complain about women exposing
part of their breasts when they're using their breasts for their true,
original function, then you should complain when you see overexposed
breasts for the purpose of titillation (ha!) and showing off.

I loved it. I guess sometimes, people (like me) need to have things
put in perspective when they aren't getting it on their own.

My coworker arrived at work yesterday and started complaining about
Michael Phelps. "What makes him so special? My husband and I think
he's a slug. We saw a thing on him on TV last night and all he does
is eat, sleep, and play video games."

Me: "He also is in the pool something like 30 hours a week, he has
other work-out routines such as weight training."

Her: "He doesn't even have a job."

Me: "Training for the Olympics, and doing world competitions, IS his
job -- he has sponsors, like Speedo."

Her: "What's he doing that's so special? What about academics? We
should be paying more attention to those kids, praise them, make THEM
famous."

Me: "Kids who do well academically likely will go far in life, and
that's great, but on Saturday night, I'm not going to sit back and
watch math geeks solve tough equations on a blackboard. I'm going to
watch THE OLYMPICS."

Her: "I still think he's lazy."

Me: "You're the only person who thinks that, and I'm NOT debating
this with you any further."

Extrapolate out from that one conversation in which my coworker is
calling the greatest Olympian of all time A SLUG WHO NEEDS TO GET A
JOB, and that is my 8-5 experience five days a week.

I'm watching NBC--I don't have cable. Right now, gymnastics are on,
and the announcers WILL NOT SHUT UP. My lord, just let us watch some
routines and stop telling me everything that she is doing wrong as she
does it. One guy (obviously a former Olympic gymnast) seems to be the
primary culprit.

He's making it less enjoyable.

Maybe one of the gymnasts can kick him in the ankle for me.

Did you know that New Orleans had the highest rate of homeownership
among blacks of all major cities in this nation? Some wards had
ownership rates as high as 99%.

Unrelated to that, I do think that how the government prepared for and
reacted to the hurricane was racism, pure and simple.

We've come a long ways in this country, but we have so much further to
go.

I just read this today in my local paper's consumer
watchdog column, in a column about overly aggressive debt collectors:

By federal law, if a consumer disputes a debt, it's the collection
agency that must come up with proof that the consumer has been
correctly identified, along with specifics about the bill.

HOW TO HANDLE DEBT COLLECTORS

If you get a call or letter from a collection agency about a debt you
don't think you owe, here's what to do:

# Tell the agency in writing that you don't owe the debt and ask for
proof. Write within 30 days and send your letter by certified mail
with a return receipt requested.

# Don't provide personal financial information, such as your Social
Security number, to debt collectors.

# Don't pay any part of the debt that can restart the statute of
limitations on debt more than 4 to 6 years old. Plus, a court could
interpret your payment as your admission that the debt is valid.

# If the debt is really old, be skeptical. This kind of "zombie" debt,
which may have passed through several agencies but refuses to die,
could be something that you in fact did pay long ago.

# Don't let the agency harass you. If you send a letter telling it to
stop calling or writing, it must do so, except to tell you that it is
no longer trying to collect or that it's pursuing a legal remedy.

# Contact your state's attorney general's office if the agency still
presses to collect a debt it can't prove you owe.

Complaint letters about bad pornography, hookers who don't finish the
job, pimps who are rude in their demand for payment, bad batches of
drugs, etc.

The mind, it boggles.

Leaving the party late, two friends compare notes. "I can never fool
my wife," the first says. "I turn off the car engine, coast into the
garage, sneak upstairs and undress in the bathroom. But she always
hears me. And she wakes up and yells at me for being out late."

"You should do what I do," says his buddy. "I roar into the garage,
stomp upt he steps, throw open the door and start kissing my wife.
And she pretends to be asleep."

(Read it in Reader's Digest.)

I'm from Iowa. I was born in Cedar Rapids, lived there for five
years, then spent most of the next 20 years on a hobby farm halfway
between CR and Iowa City, which are 30 miles apart.

As of 5:30 tonight, 83 of Iowa's 99 counties have been declared
disaster areas. Iowa City's last two remaining bridges may close this
weekend, dividing the city into two halves (the Iowa River runs
through the city, through the heart of the University of Iowa campus
(thank goodness school is out).

I love Iowa. I love EASTERN Iowa. It's home (Minnesota is home now,
too). I had an amazing childhood and I owe it all to being from rural
Iowa. (I'm sure that's not really true, but that's just the
romanticized feelings I have about a wonderful place.)

Farms have been destroyed. Food prices are going to skyrocket this
year and next year with all the floods in the farming states. I don't
even want to think about the loss of farm animals (my soft spot).

All I could do today when I had slow moments at work was read the
local Iowa papers (www.crgazette.com and www.press-citizen.com) and
cry. Even if I could go down to help this weekend (I can't: two good
friends are getting married tomorrow), the freeway is closed, the
bridges are closed.

I made it through the Des Moines flood of '93 (when we went without
running water for three full weeks--water water everywhere and not a
drop to drink) and I never thought I'd be able to say that another
flood would affect me so much. But this time, I'm not even living
there, and it feels so much worse.

A few recent letters on this site in which the OP came back to respond
to everyone had me thinking last night: I need to start composing my
negative comments as if I were expecting the OP to come back and
respond to me in a very mature, classy way. Guido who has issues with
his leased car, David from another letter... I admit I was a little
embarrassed by my initial response once they came back to the site and
responded to people in a very fair fashion in the face of criticism
and questions and doubt.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/05/27/earlyshow/main4130288.shtml

A Port St. Lucie, Fla., mother is outraged and considering legal
action after her son's kindergarten teacher led his classmates to vote
him out of class.

Melissa Barton says Morningside Elementary teacher Wendy Portillo had
her son's classmates say what they didn't like about 5-year-old Alex.
She says the teacher then had the students vote, and voted Alex, who
is being evaluated for Asperger's syndrome -- an autism spectrum
disorder -- out of the class by a 14-2 margin.

Last Friday night, I had an epiphany. I decided/realized that I
believe in an afterlife, whatever that may be!

I was watching "Ghost Whisperer," a show I"ll admit I enjoy a lot. I
started to think about people who are alive and have told their
stories of near-death experiences, such as on the operating table. I
have always believed these people and their accounts of "the light"
and what and who they saw while they were "Out of their body."

Then it hit me: That means there's an afterlife. And that means *I*
get to have one, too! How cool is that? I'll get to see Gramma and
Grampa and Dad and my cat Spookee again! :)

I'm not Christian and never will be, and I don't believe for one
moment that religion necessarily has ANYTHING to do with an afterlife.
But it did renew my interest in Buddhism, so I grabbed my new/unread
"Buddhism for Dummies" book to keep on hand for when I have time to
kill (like before a ball game).

My summation: Death could be less stressful. Look at it this way.
You're on your deathbed, and while you may be sad that you're leaving
your loved ones, there are other loved ones you haven't seen in a long
time and you'll get to see them again! And then later on, you'll be
joined by the ones who died after you.

Rather comforting.

I normally frown on the practice of "sampling" in the produce or bulk
foods departments. But my last batch of almonds (expensive!
healthful! tasty!), my most indulgent regular treat, was so stale
that I am going to use them in stir-fry dishes this week. They are
inedible -- just so blah when they're stale!

So from now on, I am going to take two or three almonds from the bulk
bin and decide whether I want to spend $7-8/pound based on the current
quality. Otherwise, the canned stuff in the snack aisle isn't any
more expensive per pound.

I'm home early from work watching Oprah, watching this story talk
about how their family was destroyed by a drunk driver. Oprah stated
what MY thoughts have been on the public's (and juries') attitudes
about drunk driving: We are reluctant to severely punish a drunk
driver because we know that it could be US being punished. Oprah
asked how many people had driven after even just one drink, and of
course 90+% of the audience raised their hands. The mother of a girl
killed by a drunk driver said that if Oprah had instead asked how many
people pick their nose, no one (or a rare few) would raise their hand.
She's right.

Americans see more shame in picking their noses than in driving under
the influence.

The mother said nothing will change in this country until we dole out
harsher punishments. I disagree, to some extent. That will make a
difference to a certain degree. But to see a real reduction in drunk
driving requires a change in the mindset and attitude in this
country.

You know that "don't drink and drive" PSA that says, "'Buzzed' driving
IS drunk driving!"?

I have a DUI conviction from seven years ago. I occasionally drove
"buzzed," convinced that I was fine to drive, in spite of three
drinks, or in spite of many more drinks but thought enough time had
passed. I'm glad I got busted, because I learned a lot, and I share
what I learned when an opportunity presents itself.

I used to be ashamed of my DUI conviction. Now I am not, because I
feel like it was a valuable lesson and I was very lucky that nothing
bad ever happened, and because maybe through being open and honest
about it, someone else's behavior will change, even just one night.

"Telling ourselves that only great losses are significant in the grand
scheme of things is unfair to the grand scheme of things a scheme
whose grandness depends on our caring about losses great and small."

This made me think of letters that are about "petty" or "small"
complaints. I've been guilty of criticizing these letters sometimes
as well. "Just Brenda" once commented on a letter that we all have
different "small" things that annoy the hell out of us, so we
shouldn't criticize a letter writer whose complaint is over something
that doesn't particularly bother US, because surely each of us has a
complaint about something that doesn't bother others.

Read this statement this morning. Actor, when asked how his life has
changed since the birth of his daughter 51 months ago:

"I could never have conceived of the relentlessness of the obligation
and the responsibility."

I have a wonderful comforter and it keeps me toasty warm, which is
good because I keep my thermostat set low (60-62), especially at
night, because then kitties come to bed to snuggle with me. If I
cranked it to 75, they'd be lounging on the couch.

I got up this morning and as soon as I walked down the hallway and
past the kitchen, WOOSH! I had left my kitchen window wide open last
night! There was a morning breeze and COLD air (it was like 20 below
last night here in Minnesota ... kidding! I'm guessing it got down to
the mid 30s last night) and my place was FREEZING!

That was at 7 a.m. It's now 10:15 and it's still cold, even with the
heat cranked as high as it will go.

Time for tea.

During the run-up to the current war in Iraq, all of the big news orgs
had interviews with retired military officers, serving as independent
experts on military aspects of the coming war.

Turns out that all or nearly all of them were secretly paid by the DoD
to talk up the war.

The Times broke the story a couple of weeks ago. Since then there has
been an almost complete news blackout on the story. None of the news
networks will cover it. Because it looks even worse for the news orgs
than for the Pentagon or the retired officers. Worse because they got
played by the Pentagon. Even worse than we already knew.

They referred to the article in The Times, which was about four full
newspaper pages long, with lots of sources and shit.

Since then? Silence. The blogs are still talking about it. And
talking about the silence.

I think those retired military officers should be stripped of their
retirement privileges, their pensions should be greatly reduced (they
make considerably more in retirement than they did while on active
duty), and they should be publicly shamed while standing in just
tightie whities.

And whomever was involved in the scheme to pay them should be
immediately fired, banned from all future government jobs, and their
pensions reduced to only what they contributed. No cushy retirement
on tax dollars for them.

I love my country. I loathe my corrupt government.

I listened to an awesome interview on public radio last night:

1980: 40,000 imprisoned on drug charges
2007: 500,000 imprisoned on drug charges

The U.S. has 5% of the world's population, but 25% of the world's
prisoners. China has several times our population, but is a distant
second when it comes to prison population in proportion to the
country's population (and China imprisons political prisoners,
something our country doesn't do, thank goodness).

100 years ago, our prison system was studied by other countries as a
model in rehabilitation. NOw, we're mocked and criticized because
there is zero rehabilitation going on. What minimal rehab there IS is
being performed by nongovernmental organizations (mostly churches and
similar social services outreach programs).

We also penalize prisoners AFTER incarceration as no other country
does (such as taking away voting rights).

Of course, a big part of the U.S. penal system is done (I believe, and
many others do as well) to disenfranchise black voters, but that's
another discussion entirely.

Mildred Loving died yesterday. It was Loving v. Virginia, taken all
the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, that made it illegal to prohibit a
couple from marrying based on their mixed races.

Read Mildred Loving's beautiful statement from June 2007 regarding her
marriage to a white man (she was black) in 1958, when it was illegal
in most of the south to do so.

http://www.positiveliberty.com/2007/06/mildred-lovings-statement.html

The final two paragraphs of her statement:

"I believe all Americans, no matter their race, no matter their sex,
no matter their sexual orientation, should have that same freedom to
marry. Government has no business imposing some people's religious
beliefs over others. Especially if it denies people's civil rights.

"I am still not a political person, but I am proud that Richard's and
my name is on a court case that can help reinforce the love, the
commitment, the fairness, and the family that so many people, black or
white, young or old, gay or straight seek in life. I support the
freedom to marry for all. That's what Loving, and loving, are all
about."

From my local paper:

Like many first-time parents, Matt and Liz Logelin were understandably
nervous.

Two months before her due date, Liz was put on bed rest in early March
to keep from going into labor prematurely. Twice, she was wheeled into
the delivery room, and twice, the baby changed its mind.

So when baby Madeline finally arrived on March 24, small but healthy,
the entire family breathed a sigh of relief.

Then the unthinkable happened.

Liz, 30, passed out the next day on her way to hold her daughter for
the first time.

Within minutes, the young mother was dead from a blood clot no one
knew she had developed.

Suddenly, Matt Logelin was facing life as a new dad and a 30-year-old
widower all at once.

As his world fell apart, Logelin turned for solace to the Internet,
which has become an unexpected lifeline for many sharing joy or grief.
In his case, both. He told their story in a blog, www.mattlogelin.com,
which he subtitled: "Life and death. All in a 27-hour-period."


The blog is compelling.

www.mattlogelin.com

You support the war in Iraq? You support Bush/Cheney/et al's getting
our country involved in other countries' drama that isn't our
business? You think we belong in Iraq, and that we should invade Iran
next?

Then join the military, or have your sons and daughters join. Either
the war is worth fighting, and sacrificing for (YOUR kids, not mine),
or it's not. There's absolutely no way you can say "This war was/is
the right thing to do" and yet not support it with actions.

So either send your loved ones overseas to fight... or shut up about
the war. It's way too easy to be in support of Bush and his war when
you don't have to make a single sacrifice.

Our local newspaper's consumer/shopping columnist does a great
job--usually writes interesting columns. Recently, she tacked the
"Empire Today" (you know, the commercial that seems to run every
single day, touting how they'll come to your house so you can pick
carpet, and they'll install next day). Well, she looked into carpet
companies, and found that Empire Today doesn't do enough business in
the Twin Cities to get an accurate representation as to the quality of
work they provide, their customer service/satisfaction, etc.

But Chicago, where they're based out of, does. And this company is
awful. Their prices are 50% more expensive at the very least, they
use high-pressure sales tactics (when a sales rep comes to your home,
you are STRONGLY pushed, even bullied, into ordering something that
day, and if you want a day to think about it, they'll add 50% to your
total bill just for not signing something that very first day), the
installers they hire for the job don't do a good job, don't finish the
job, etc.

Our local columnist found much better prices AND customer service and
installation satisfaction from the local carpet stores, even on
identical products. And often, you can get carpet installed in a
short time-frame in a pinch, rather than pay the exhorbitant prices
for "next day" installation.

Now if they would only stop with the commercials and that jingle!

I went to my first movie premier tonight! It was a 1950s-style sci-fi
movie. Now... that is NOT on my list of preferred movie genres. I
expected to go because my awesome friend Dan was the star, and that's
what you do with/for friends. I expected to hate the movie, find it
boring and uninteresting and not funny.

I was completely wrong. It was great -- funny at the right times, in
the right ways. The acting was great -- good job, Dan! I just was so
surprised and very impressed.

I knew several, and dated a couple, of film majors when I was in
college. One of my oldest friends has a film degree. So I am well
versed on student film projects. Friends get dragged into the whole
lifestyle, it seems, because they're needed to help with film
projects, and because it's a pretty interesting field in which to
major, in my opinion. I got exposed to some VERY cool animation
movies and shorts, such as Tim Burton's college short, a stop-motion
animation piece about a little boy named Vincent who has delusions
that he's Edgar Allen Poe, seeing death and the macabre at every
turn... narrated by Vincent Price!

Sorry... I was off on a favorite tangent for a moment.

Final product? I always loved watching my friends' projects--I was
impressed! It showed creativity and great follow-through. They were
cool!

So to see a friend on the BIG screen, in a sold-out theatre (family
from South Dakota came--everyone they know came!), was the ultimate
culmination of a film project!

And I can't remember the last movie I saw that didn't have a single
swear word in it.

Recently, I bought two packages of compact fluorescent lightbulbs --
one package of two, one package of one. When I went over the receipt
at home, I saw that the cashier hadn't paid close attention, and
instead of ringing up both packages individually, she assumed both
packages were the same, and charged me for two double packs -- I was
overcharged about $5, give or take a buck. I set them aside, along
with the receipt. When I returned to Target a couple of weeks later
(this past weekend), I stopped at the customer service desk and
explained what had happened.

CSR: "So what do you want to do? Do you want to just return this
single bulb and go get a double pack and call it even, or what?"

Me: "I just want a price adjustment and I'll keep what I originally
bought. Do you need my card to credit my account the difference?"

CSR: "Nope, it's done! Here's your credit, and here's a bag for you
to put them in so you don't accidentally pay for them again when you
check out."

Return within 90 days with a receipt, make a calm request that is
reasonable and fair, and voila! Treated with respect and a smile.
Yup, it was that easy.

Softball season! So far, I am on three teams -- Monday and Tuesday
nights in Minneapolis and Friday night double headers very near my
home. If I think my schedule can handle it, I'll add at least one
more game night (Sunday nights, maybe) once the summer session starts,
but for now, I'll stick with three teams/four games a week.

And this means that's three fewer nights a week I have to hit the gym.
Thank [insert your favorite deity here].

And now it's been one month that I've been unattached, and a month is
probably the longest I've gone without having a date since my divorce
in 2001! It's a nice change to not be doing the online dating--it's
so much work, and it can be time-consuming, not to mention that going
out for dinner and cocktails adds up calorically.

So for now, I'm just going to concentrate on softball and friends and
getting my dog back into good health (long gross story).

I'm so glad it's spring! Happy April!

No, not ADventure, because that would be awesome! I'm talking about a
potential business venture. I did some research this weekend, and I
am thinking of becoming the poor man's garden designer/landscaper! I
thought about the level of labor I could do and what I would charge
for it, then research costs online, and found that I came in below
others.

I would do garden design (which takes into account the amount of sun
and shade at different seasons and times of the day during those
seasons, and the ideal flowerbed is one that always has something
blooming, so you have to aim for spring (March, April, May), summer
(June, July, August), and fall (September, October, November) blooming
plants. Ideally, you can have color from March into October or
November, even here in gardening zone 4 (southern/central Minnesota).
You also want a mix of heights, depending on the location.

I would do plant selection, flowerbed tilling (at my old house, I
hand-tilled all of the flowerbeds and the vegetable garden -- about 10
total, I think), planting, mulching (my specialty!), and watering...
and then perhaps weed on contract (I like to weed).

But the kick is... I could do all of this with no owner involvement,
or with the owner alongside the whole way, or anything in between.

I have some more research to do, and I'm toying with applying for a
weekend job at nursery instead, just to gain another year of knowledge
and make some contacts for the next gardening season.

I decided that I'd start at $10 for garden design/plant selection, but
$20 for any real work spent outside. The cheapest rates I've seen
online were more like $50/hour, even for the lower-end landscaping
businesses.

So... we'll see. I have some research to do, talk to some
self-employed friends (most of my friends over age 30 are
self-employed), call my master gardener friend David, and get some
more perspective and thoughts from people who have been there/done
that.

http://www.themorningnews.org/archives/diversions/and_great_lyrics_qui
z_rock_roll_the.php

I'm only through the first 10, but I got 7 of them right so far. I'm
loving this quiz! 40 years of music loving and listening are paying
off!

I don't want to hear about you southerners and East Coasters who have
blooming plants in your yards, darn it! ;) Here in zone 4, we can't
plant until May 15. No longer having a house has left me with a huge
jonesin' to do some gardening. The south side of our parking garage
gets some dappled sunlight early and mid-day through the evergreen
trees that are on neighboring property, but otherwise is full shade,
so I am thinking of asking the condo association whether we can buy
some plants and plant a woodland shade garden (my favorite). Bleeding
hearts, lily of the valley, hostas (to name the obvious few)... just
the thought makes me happy. And it'd be nice to have plants back
there instead of mud. WE also get geese, so I'd like to give them
some "cover" for protection and security -- although I could live
without the goose poop in the parking lot.

Steven Sueppel beat his wife and four adopted children (ages 12 and
under) with two baseball bats.

I hope there's a hell so he suffers for all eternity.

I hope all the prayers of his nine Catholic siblings, prayers for
mercy and forgiveness, go unanswered.

This morning, an Iowa City man killed his wife and four children at
home, then killed himself by driving his vehicle into a concrete post
near the freeway.

He'd recently been indicted on embezzlement charges. He'd stolen over
half a million dollars from the bank at which he was a vice president.
Rumors of gambling debts were swirling around....

While I don't blame his gambling, I think we'll see more stories of
desperation as we get more casinos. Depending on which branch officed
out of, he could have been as little as five minutes away from a
casino outside of Iowa City. I think of gambling addiction as being
similar to alcohol addiction: It controls a person's actions to a
degree where common sense and logical behavior just flies out the
window.

I may have gone to high school with this man. I'm waiting to see
which high school he attended. His family name wasn't uncommon in the
Iowa City area, and one branch of the family is quite prominent,
owning a flower shop, a restaurant, and other businesses. The name is
well known in town.

Very, very sad.

And not one damn word has been spoken about this on the evening news
tonight, either the national NBC news or the local Minnesota news.

You may remember the horrible news story from last summer. A Twin
Cities little girl sat down on a wading pool drain, and the protective
cover was missing. The suction was so strong, it sucked her
intestines out through her rectum. Her first words upon waking up in
the hospital were to ask whether it was on the news, so other kids
wouldn't have this happen to them. What a special little girl.

Video showed that a when a large beach ball pushed into the water to
make contact with the drain, the suction was so strong that a grown
man couldn't remove the ball from its spot on the drain. Scary.

Here's an excerpt from tonight's newscast:

The six-year-old had been hospitalized in Omaha since December, where
she received a triple-organ transplant in an attempt to repair the
damage from the accident. She had suffered a series of setbacks,
including 16 surgical procedures. In early March, she began
chemotherapy after doctors concluded that she had likely developed a
cancerous condition that is triggered on rare occasions by organ
transplants.

After she was injured, her parents, Scott and Katey Taylor, campaigned
for legislation that could help prevent similar accidents. In
December, Congress approved legislation to ban the manufacture, sale
or distribution of drain covers that don't meet anti-entrapment safety
standards.

The legislation, the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act, is
named for another victim, the 7-year-old granddaughter of former
Secretary of State James Baker. She drowned at a graduation party in
2002, when the suction from a drain pinned her.

U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar worked with the Taylors for passage of the
bill. "When you think of what her parents are going through today you
can't even imagine," she said," yet this may be just a little bit of
solace to them that she made a difference."

Minnesota lawmakers are also considering new pool safety regulations.