BJean

P.S. I didn't read the article about AZ's proposition to give voters a chance to win a million dollars. That would probably be a really good thing for getting out the Democratic vote. I'm surprised that Arizona would consider doing something so inspirational to non-wealthy voters.

Seems to me that a lot of this discussion involves semantics. And faith. And how is an argument based on those things ever going to be resolved? It has given a forum to those who wish to make their points, and that's a good thing. But feelings and thoughts and ideas about religion are so very deep-rooted and based on so many life experiences, how can we all be on one page unless we all shared the same background and life experiences? I honestly have appreciated hearing all the sides to these questions that ya'll have offered up. And if these posts have helped people - even just to reaffirm their own convictions, then it has been a good thing!

Nah, I don't think that people who don't believe in Christ are AN anti-Christ. There's a difference between being anti something and not believing in something. Or did I miss a joke in there?

Victoriana: You are aware that Republicans have for many years wanted to give tax deductions to people who send their children to private schools. In fact it has been on their agenda since my children were small - like as in longer than dirt. LOL Interestingly enough I haven't heard a word about Republicans wanting to allow people who don't have children in any school to get the same deduction. Can you imagine what all this would do to the public school system? I only hear them talk about changing Social Security so that they can ensure that they get to keep more of their money out of the hands of the government. In theory it all sounds good and makes sense, but practically it won't give Americans the ability to provide an education for all of our children. And surely the Social Security thing is a joke and they just haven't revealed the punch line yet.

Btw, thanks a bunch for the feedback. As I understand it, PB stands for Productive Burp. But not a productive burp in the standard sense, like a dry belch. More like an up-chuck as my mom used to say. And if you don't want one of those, stay away from bran muffins.

Well who knew? Muffins, huh. Guess I'll look for fiber elsewhere!

PeloRojo: That was hilarious! Thanks!!!

Very funny, T_O_M. There are lots more examples out there, but what we really need to work on in order to up the pay scale for teachers is to up their image. Having young female teachers seduce their 13-14 yr. old students is not helping!

I've never been to a Catherine's. I'll give it a try. I am familiar with Chadwicks catalogue. Anybody else out there have a favorite?

Tami: I've read here that it takes sometimes 6 to 10 days before a fill starts making you feel restricted. It doesn't make sense to me, but sure enough I had my first actual PB today. I had the golf ball thing and almost PB'ed but I thought that was an isolated incident. Then today at breakfast (restaurant, for heaven's sake) I actually had to leave the table and go do my thing. I had only had a small portion of an egg white omelet and a very small bite of a bran muffin. I had a bottle of water on the way to the restaurant and maybe between that and the bran in the muffin, something expanded and caused the PB. I avoided the PB as long as I could but once it actually happened, I felt better. I've been more careful all day. But I can still eat an entire Lean Cuisine, no problem. But I'm not as anxious to get another fill like I was before I had those 2 incidents. If I were you, Tami, I'd give it some time.

Mousecrazy: When I first learned how much administrators in education make versus what teachers make I was furious. Of course a lot of the administrators came up through the ranks, but certainly not all. And how much opportunity is there for a rank and file teacher to get into administration? I also agree that we would be shocked at where the money goes that is allocated to "education". Obviously it doesn't go to the teachers or the tools needed for teaching. It's a crying shame!

P.S. Carter was not a great President, but he is a good humanitarian. And he has contributed to the betterment of people all over the world. Do you know that he and his team have been enlisted to monitor elections in other countries? Too darned bad he wasn't asked to monitor the ones in the U.S.

OU: Didn't you realize you were in a Rants and Raves section? For real support about your Lap Band, check out some of the regular Lap Band Support threads. BTW, why must we settle for either an administration that puts us in a socialist state or one like we have now? Did the U.S. become a socialist state when we had a Democrat in the White House and a more evenly divided Congress? As for Bill Clinton's actions with Monica Lewinsky. His actions didn't embarrass me. The actions that the Republican party took in an effort to oust him embarrassed me and the entire country - or should have. Do middle of the road Republicans not get that even today? Guess that might answer the question about whether your everyday Republicans are upset or embarassed about the past 2 elections where high jinx ran rampant (and not just in Florida). I totally get that my Republican neighbors don't like the platform of the Democratic party. I understand that they do like the Republican platform and agenda. But getting their man into office by ANY means, ethics aside, is downright frightening to me!

gagetlady: Your weight loss is really commendable! Feel better? Now as for George W. - the man and the administration are frightful! Congress is an abomination in its' current configuration. These things are not "worthless drivil". They are observations from a bunch of people who are frustrated and disappointed that our president has turned out to be such a self-serving, intellectually inferior, embarrassment to the United States of America. He has hurt this nation in so many ways. We have a right to speak up and in fact, it is patriotic to speak up. I would hate to think that we have all become numb to the political situation in America. Some of us still have hope!

P.S. It doesn't do a bit of good for someone to put words in my mouth that I didn't say. I am the one that talked about the difficulty of getting a teaching degree. And I was referring to ME, my experience, many, many years ago. Unless it is still one of the easiest degrees to get, why should that get anyone upset? It gave you a perfect opening to address that issue and clarify how difficult it is to get a degree, certification and a master's degree or hours of work toward a master's. I am one of the people who is really upset that teachers do not get the kind of respect and pay they deserve. What we need to do is figure out why this is so, and go about fixing it. It is definitely no longer a "woman's job". Neither is nursing or being a flight attendant. Everybody knows about those two professions, how about teaching?

Man I've had some of my posts shot down. I love it though! It makes me know for sure that someone has given me the courtesy of reading something I've written. And if I've been thought-provoking, so much the better. If someone takes the time to research something in order to shut me down, I know I'm in the middle of a real debate. I'm participating to learn something here. I learn much more from someone citing sources and ranting a little in their opinions than I do from someone agreeing with me. (Although I do love that feeling.)

Well most of my clothes are from "Omar, the Tent Maker". I haven't tried Two Ton Tony the Tent Maker brand yet. However if you're looking for something REALLY nice Dillard's carries Ralph Lauren Petites and I can always find pants and tops there that fit really well. I'm 5' 1.5". But if you're wanting middle of the road things that are reasonable, Dillard's has a humongous Plus Size area (at least at our mall). They carry everything from very inexpensive to very expensive clothes and many of them come in Petites. However I have to ask where the rounders are for petites because they're always moving them. Sometimes they have the petites in with regular plus size clothes sorted by brand. Sometimes they have the petites by themselves. Don't know why they try to trick me like that. I too used to have fantastic luck with Tommy Hillfiger clothes fitting. Especially jeans and casual tops. But lately everything they make looks yukee on me. August Max has petites too, but they are also usually buried in with the other sizes. When they have a sale, you can really clean up!! I've bought things on sale at August max that were less expensive than Wal-Mart and Target and Kohls. Any other sources out there?

Kat: Good job. The word is used so much today it doesn't always sink in just how much a billion is... and just think... our deficit is in the trillions!!!!!!!!!

I guess we might as well laugh about it at this point. Although I sure don't think it's funny that we have such a buffoon as our president. And even if he were just a bufoon, it wouldn't be so bad, but the man's willingness to do as he's told and the power behind him are frightening. Anyone think it's a coincidence that there are more billionaires than can fit on a "Top 100 Richest Americans" list after having the Republicans in power for so long? BILLIONAIRES!!!

I get so very tired of getting this crap all the time. I used to send a rebuttal to the person who did the forwarding because I figured they would get a clue. Didn't happen. I gave up. I just delete them now. Just like the "swiffer jet mop" thing that recently said it's gonna kill my pets and kids. Oh pla-leeeze!

Everything in the world revolves around love and sex - not necessarily in that order.

T_O_M: It's interesting to hear that one woman had the power to bring down the Challenger. You gonna have to show me some proof on that one. I'm a wife, I talk with other wives and with the men my husband works with. I would like to think that I have that kind of influence over cocktails, but I'm not kidding myself, I do not.

Hell yes we've been receiving a lot of spin - and that's a polite term for it! I lived in Montreal a while and found the medical care to be really good. It was so much less complicated than here and I had no problems at all getting in to see doctors. No major medical procedures or surgery, but I don't think that would have made a difference. In the States, having our insurance companies tell our doctors (and us) whether we can have a diagnostic procedure - or any procedure for that matter - is totally compromising health care in this country. In fact, my Lap Band Surgery cost me $18,000 (doctor and hospital) because my doctor (the best around for laprascopic surgery) is "out of network". In other words, he doesn't allow insurance companies tell him how to practice medicine. Cost me bundles - plus I pay big premiums every month to have the coverage that wouldn't have paid even if my doctor was "in network"! Americans are saps when it comes to medical care and insurance in this country.

I feel like I'm no longer a virgin. I had my first golf ball experience and almost PBed. Fortunately it only lasted about 10 minutes and produced tons of saliva. I finally was able to summon a real burp and loosened my bra (underwire) and I know I will live. NOW I know why I don't want to hurry even if the little buggers are going to be knocking on my door any second wanting treats. Last year the little monsters didn't allow me to sit down once from dark until about 9 PM! I wanted to get dinner done before they started coming. My chest still hurts a little... not a fun experience. I can't imagine what it would be like if it lasted for hours as some people have said. Btw, lisalee, I had my first real salad at lunch today. It wasn't a problem going down, but maybe that's why I had this problem tonight. I haven't been eating salad and haven't had the major pain until tonight. Think I'll stay away from them for a while longer.

T_O_M: There you go again, turning this thread into a word thing. LOL You made a very good point and that was exactly why I was asking how someone became familiar with the Bible. If you stumbled upon it and decided after reading it that it was manna from heaven and that for the rest of your life you were going to keep it close to your heart, that's one thing. But if you learned about it when you were attending Sunday School or Church, you should allow yourself to question the interpretations provided by the cleric in that church. Otherwise it could just be a matter of endoctrination and a form of brainwashing that you believe it was written by God and that your church's declaration that homosexuality is bad because it's in the Bible. Maybe this is why the Methodist Church (my earliest exposure to church), referenced "lambs" of God, like the Catholic Church, my latest exposure to church. I don't think it's God's wish that we become sheep in any sense of the word.