Carlene

Lap Dancer....you must not have been listening to some of the other posters (all men, by the way). We are "silly" and need to "chill". Oh.....and "vicious", too. That one REALLY cracks me up.

That didn't give her even the tiniest little clue????

Thanks. Sadly, however, I have GAINED on the mushies. I can hardly wait to be re-filled. Good thing saline isn't an illegal drug.....I would be standing on a street corner come next week, trying to score.

ECONOMIC SUCCESS CLEARINGHOUSE (formerly Welfare Information Network) Time Limits The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunities Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) forbids use of federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds to provide assistance to a family for more than 60 months (5 years) in total. (States however, may use their own funds to provide assistance to families after they have reached the 60 month threshold.) A state may exempt up to 20% of the average monthly TANF caseload from these time limits for hardship reasons, or if the family includes a domestic violence victim. PRWORA also requires that welfare recipients engage in "work" (as defined by the state) within 24 months of receiving benefits, and some states have their own more stringent work requirement deadlines. Information on time limits related to work requirements is included in our TANF Work Requirements page. Welfare clients who are reaching time limits typically fall into three categories: Hard-to-serve recipients with multiple barriers to self-sufficiency who are long-time recipients or who cycle on and off assistance. Employed recipients in states with earnings disregard policies or other 'make work pay' policies who remain eligible for cash assistance because their earnings are not adequate to achieve self-sufficiency. Long-time recipients with little evidence of employment barriers, but no success in securing employment. WIC stands for "Women's, Infants, and Children's" program and is open only to low-income pregnant and nursing women, or pre-school children. This assistance is in the form of "coupons" issued monthly that allow the participant to purchase brand approved (meaning the cheapest) cheese, milk, juice, and a few other items. Just because a family receives some sort of federal assistance (food stamps or WIC, for example) does NOT mean they do not work. More often than not, it means they work, but are low-income. I was raised by a single mother who struggled to raise her children with little to no help from our father. She was a teacher. In addition, she worked every school vacation and long holidays, like Christmas break, at various jobs. Today, my mother would probably qualify for federal assistance. I would hate to think that society would consider my mother, or anyone who tried as hard as she did, a lazy welfare recipient.

Just so you know, there is a time limit on welfare. But I don't blame you for not wanting to support "drug addicts and lazy mothers". I feel the same way about supporting the war in Iraq.

It's not the same thing at all.... 1. Legitimate members are not hucksters trying to sell something. 2. Legitimate members do not "post and run". They stay around to discuss their post.

We know what you said. It speaks for itself. Obviously you have never been the victim of a child molester. Otherwise, you would not have such unmitigated gall. We are not "silly".....you, my friend, are insensitive in the extreme.

I like over-the-top jewelry....what can I say? Especially large, dangle earrings which, by the way, take 5-10 pounds off your face. I wouldn't do pearls with a beaded dress, though. Pearls are more sedate. Is this an evening wedding, or afternoon? If it's evening, you can wear lots of bling. If it's afternoon, not so much. My friends' son got married on New Year's Eve night. It was great. Everyone, including the mothers, wore their glitzy party dresses, even though it was a traditional Catholic wedding. Her colors were white, gold, black, and silver.

Sometimes I guess it's an extra, added bonus. I had an anterior/posterior plastic repair. That means I had plastic surgery on my sit-upon. It wasn't to "rejuvinate" my hoo-hoo, however. I had a droopy bladder and something wrong with my pelvic sling. I also had a vaginal hysterectomy at the same time. My surgeon was a very distinguished, silver-haired gentleman. Very proper, and always the consumate professional. So I almost fell off the table at my post-op visit, when he was examining me (in the stirrups) and mentioned what a good job he had done, and how proud he was of the results. He beamed, "Now you've got a 19 year old twat."

You can't be serious. I agree that children should not be forced to pray in school, however, prayer is far less damaging to a child than sexual exploitation or molestation. I say this as a person who was both required to pray as a youngster, and who was fondled by a perverted uncle. I assume you were the victim of mandatory prayer, but unless you have experienced both, I find your comparison a little flippant, if you don't mind my saying so.

I want the OTHER one....that you look into skinny and it makes you think you're fat. This mirror would be telling me, "Eat something, Carlene....before you blow away."

Last year, this year, next year.....it happens once a year, but never again in exactly that order. No point to it, really. Just a piece of trivia for those who like that stuff.

I saw George Tenet being interviewed today. If he is telling the truth, Condi Rice had information in June of 2001 that might have prevented 9/11. If she had passed it on to George Bush. Did she ignore it, or did Bush? It's hard to believe someone as intelligent as Rice would dismiss such a warning from the CIA. Was anyone surprised to learn that the head of the CIA was utterly STUNNED when the anti-terrorist focus was suddenly shifted from Afghanistan to Iraq?

Good heavens....I certainly hope not. But I'm not holding my breath. I am reading a book - an autobiography - by the daughter of Loretta Young and Clark Gable. Because adultery and illegitimacy were such huge sins when this woman was born, her mother went to extraordinary lengths to keep this secret. She was put in an orphanage for several months, then "adopted" by her natural mother and raised as an adopted child. She was over 30 before her mother told her the truth. Today, this would hardly qualify as a news item, let alone a scandal. No one's career would be destroyed...it happens all the time now. This generation of movie stars and other celebs all try and out-do each other when it comes to unseemly behavior. Paris Hilton's sex tape didn't put a dent in her career. In fact, it probably helped it. At least we haven't forgiven Roman Polanski for having sex with that 14 year old....not officially, anyway.

Trust me, Laurend....it ain't worth it. Just get yourself one of those life-size baby dolls. You can dress them up and sit them on your bed. They stay there quietly and you only have to wash their clothes about 3 times a year.

Forget that. I might take a hit off an unused one, though.

Homemade Marshmallows Confectioner's sugar 2 tablespoons unflabored Gelatin 1/2 cup cold Water 2 cups sugar 1/2 cup light corn syrup 1/2 cup hot water 1/4 teaspoon salt 2 large egg whites 1 teaspoon vanilla Line bottom and sides of 13x9x2 inch pan with parchment paper. Dust the bottom with confectioner's sugar. In bowl of standing mixer, sprinkle gelatin over cold water and let stand. In a heavy saucepan, cook sugar, corn syrup, hot water, and salt over low heat until sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to medium and boil mixture until a candy thermometer reads 240 degrees. Remove from heat and pour sugar mixture over gelatin mixture, stirring until gelatin is dissolved. Beat the mixture on high speed until white, thick, and nearly tripled in size (about 6 minutes). In a large bowl, beat egg whites until they are stiff. Add vanilla and beat this mixture into sugar mixture until just combined. Pour the mixture into pan and sift confectioner's sugar over the top. Chill, uncovered, until firm (at least 3 hours, and up to 1 day). Invert onto large cutting board and remove parchment paper. Cut into one inch cubes. Sift about 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar into a large bowl and add marshmallows in batches, tossing to coat evenly. May be kept for up to one week in an airtight container, at room temperature. For the cake I made, I skipped the last step and simply inverted the whole pan of marshmallow onto the top of the chocolate cake, which was right out of the oven. Then you pour hot fudge frosting over the whole thing.

Here is the Rants and Raves intro..... LBT Rants and Raves *** Off-Topic DEBATE AREA *** Want debate? Get it here. Gripe, complain, moan, fight, rant and rave. Enter at your own risk! There is no inappropriate topic for R&R. Just like it says, enter at your own risk. And once you're there, if you don't like something, don't keep clicking on it. I am disgusted by the whole "boy love" thing, too but I am equally opposed to censorship.

I think sex with underage individuals, regardless of your sexual persuasion, is wrong and should be punished to the full extent of the law. It is not "beautiful" for a teacher to have sex with his/her students. It is not "beautiful" for a clergyman to have sex with children or teenagers. It is ugly...the worst kind of ugly... and the people who engage in it are morally bankrupt and seriously disturbed, IMHO.

Pardon my ignorance....but is "boy love" the sexual attraction of grown men to adolescent boys? If so, I find that repulsive...and totally NOT Christian.

Tomorrow is my MIL's 87th BD. I made Paula Deen's made-from-scratch chocolate marshmallow cake (with homemade marshmallow). Do you think that qualifies as a mushy?

It's dangerous to be right when the Feds are wrong.

Thanks! I hope so, too. My doctor seemed very blasé about it, so I guess it happens a lot. I know I have gained weight though, and I am sooooooooo mad at myself for that. I can't believe how hungry I get, or how much it takes to fill me up! If I had to live without my band, I think I would go into deep, deep depression.

Green..... That is typical behavior for anorexics. They are obsessed with food. Many collect cookbooks, etc.

Is this her? Her name is Sandra Lee and the show is "Semi-homemade". I agree.... I don't like the Contessa much, either, though. She really is pretensious sometimes. Come to think of it, most of them leave me cold. Emeril, especially. I think they are showmen/women first and cooks second.