trinacriabob

We live in a sick society, one that still expects (1) men to be breadwinners and pay for dates, while AT THE SAME TIME (2) having to treat women like equals. I'm referring to the judge, who could amount to more poison thrown into the equation. Especially if she's one of these tough butch types. One time, while channel surfing, I landed on Dr. Laura. She's annoying (and even hypocritical with respect to her own life) but she commented on how today's situation for men of having to be simultaneously traditional (old values) and deferential (new values) is a mess. She was siding with the men. Claiming date rape is a hefty allegation. They need to look for the use of FORCE. They will probably find NO EVIDENCE of force. Without that, it's consensual...especially when you have two under-age kids porking.

Hey, we all know that tipping in America means about 15% and up to 20% +/- for exemplary service. This being said, I almost always tip a hair over 15%, usually to make my total an even .00 or .50 dollar credit card figure. Now, at a buffet in Vegas or Reno or Tahoe, I usually tip 10%, since they don't take the order nor bring you food. I figure 10%, in that scenario, is ok. This past weekend, in Vancouver, I had two eye-opening experiences and I tipped LESS. 1) trendy Mexican restaurant in a run-down Bohemian area. The food was overpriced and late, for an almost empty restaurant. In the process, I consumed the salsa and chips. I pointed to the chip bowl and the Chinese chick (the waitress was from Mexico) said, "You wan' 'mo chips?" "Yes, thank you." So I get the bill. There was $3.25 for these overly-salty chips and salsa. When I got the bill, I saw this and said, "I wasn't told this was extra. Every Mexican restaurant I've been to brings chips once you finish, especially if the wait is long." She apologetically smiled. And I wrote in "zero" on the CC slot for the tip. 2) family style Greek restaurant I've been to many times. Good food, and they do lamb souvlaki right. The dude brings out 2 big slices of pita in the basket. Again, the food took a while, so the pita slices were G-O-N-E. When my dish arrived, he brought out no extra pita bread. Like what, it will kill you or it will break you. I tipped to close out the tab at $22.00, giving him about 12%, instead of $23.00 which would have taken him over 15%. Bottom line: Chisel on a small item like chips/salsa or pita bread, and I'll chisel on your tip. I swear... Your stories? Overly generous? Have you stiffed someone?

I like Jersey, too, mostly for its PEOPLE - what you see is what you get. Out West, wherever I've worked, my best friends, beyond some Californians I've known for a long time, have always been in-your-face Northeasterners....I roll out the welcome mat for them....others, not so much. However, for the Jersey negatives, TAXES on REAL PROPERTY - WWWWWWWWTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Am I missing the boat here? What exactly are fruit snacks that cost so much, since I eat lunch out virtually every day (Subway, Safeway deli, local grub places, a salad bar buffet, etc.) Which brands put these out? Also, if they are really expensive, think advertising. A sizable portion of consumer products revenues are cycled right back into advertising and promotions. Are we including the plastic bagged craisins and diced tropical fruit that re-seals and one can throw into their morning oatmeal? This is the only kind of fruit "snack" I buy.

Ditto. Atlanta had more good points than bad points. I lived in North Atlanta, barely inside the perimeter from Dunwoody. It was scenic and, once off the main arterials, super quiet. And, if I ever needed to see an ocean, Florida was only 4 hours away by car.

With me, a lot of it is about the aesthetics. I cannot stand the Southwest. It could be sunny everyday but the desertscape or dry Ponderosa vegetation (in the higher elevations) would be guaranteed to depress me. When I fly into LAS or PHX and look out the window, I want to And I'm not touting my place of origin, either. Except for the sweeping coastline areas you see in postcards of LA, SF or San Diego, the appearance only 30 or 40 miles inland is very bleak. I don't like it. That's why I've only purchased housing in Atlanta and Seattle. In Atlanta, I liked the pine forest canopy that practically hid the city. And, no, I didn't know anybody remotely conservative. Most people were transplants with middle-of-the-road political and religious views who come down to work and to own a decent home. In Seattle, it is obvious it is much prettier, but I had to deal with depressed, stoic, flatlining politically-correct people, constant cloud cover, and Subarus and Birkenstocks, the latter of which would make you an outcast in Atlanta. Bottom line: I need to live in a perennially green environment to thrive....not a yellow, beige or brown one.

Parenting doesn't come with instructions. Some people have good innate parenting skills, and some don't. Unfortunately, most bad parenting is generational and people replicate a lot of patterns. I see so many tiny kids on the commuter rail hanging off of (unqualified) people who evidently reproduced to create props for their self-esteem. Seems selfish to me. I come from a nuclear family (i.e. parents that remained married until death); however, I did not get along with my parents because of (a) the gap in age, (b) the gap in education, and © the gap in culture (they did not assimilate to this country). It was a "bit" much. I chose not to have kids a long time ago. Thank God there are good people out there who will take on the responsibility of responsible child-rearing.

area (if you've ever driven up and down I-5, you know how a snooze can save your life)

I would be ecstatic to have just ONE of these in sedan form...the price gets close to $30,000, which is the most I would ever spend on wheels...

Hey, look, someone copied the front of my '08 LaCrosse. Seriously, I wouldn't feel comfortable behind the wheel of an expensive car. It's not me. If I had some serious moolah around, I might look for a perfect low-mileage 75 or 76 Cutlass Supreme or Grand Prix, which aren't cheap BTW, to garage, drive on the weekends, and continue babying.

I admire ALL of you for making, or even trying to make, an omelette. I can't cook. The only time I get NEAR an omelette is at a buffet where you can order one from the omelette chef. But, since we're talking about omelettes, my favorite ingredients for them are a white cheese (provolone and/or Swiss), mushrooms and spinach.

Just out of curiosity...you served, but did you get put on a jury? Several of my co-workers go, and then aren't put on to a jury...the attorneys (defense or prosecution, depends) don't seem to like the coat and tie folks since they can THINK. At least, that's what I've heard.

thunder

No. Not weird at all. Russian is good and I just got a bottle of it during a 99 cent salad dressing sale. They are VERY similar to each other, though I think Russian is sweeter and French is more tart.

cellulite fat asses usually have "cottage cheese," LOL.

Postponement is cool. That's what I wanted. Just a couple of days or a week later. I should be able to get that, no?

Saint Nick

What genre is Aerosmith "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" from Armageddon considered?

I hope you realize this will be "tiered" according to age and life experiences. I listen almost exclusively to jazz and blues. No apologies. Many great jazz musicians are black. I don't know why that is. Joe Sample, in my mind, is off the charts. He is a genius. Also, I like listening and driving to dance/techno. You will hear way more of it in Europe when channel surfing. They are way more into this than classic rock, it seems. Again, I don't know why. The only other place in the U.S. I associate with dance music is South Florida. There is station there that announces its call number and then says in a booming voice "Miami....Fort Lauderdale...and the Palm Beaches...where dance music lives..." It must be something have to do with the Caribbean vibe of the place. Ok, back to those of you who understand rock way better than I do....

Well, well, I go to my mailbox and I see a jury summons. I don't mind. I haven't seen one since college when I got an exemption every time. However, they are fairly automated and show a start date with call-in numbers and blah-blah-blah. Do you know if they can adjust the start date by a couple of days? I don't want a postponement...just a movement a couple of days back. What do you know about this?

rug rat

I love Caesar dressing. I was about to buy some and looked at the nutritionals. A basic serving has something like 31% of your daily fat values. Holy $h!. Peppercorn ranch is also delicious. However, I don't like anything spicy. If I see that word, I run.

Right, love that crumbled feta cheese on the salad and love tsatziki (sp) sauce as well. But, what I've found is that a whole swath of ethnicities do Greek/Mediterranean cuisine and the further east they come from, the less authentic it gets. That being said, Greeks run the best Greek restaurants. Lebanese and Palestinian types also have some real nice flavors in their cuisines, though one can tell it's a little different from what the Greeks will put together. I'm saying this because, near my work, there are some Mediterranean restaurants run by Afghans or Indians and, you know what, I walk in and one is overpowered by the scents...particularly of curry. If I'm looking for souvlaki or kabobs, I don't want a whole slew of curry based dishes on the menu and nothing that looks Greek/Lebanese. I was starving one day and told a friend of mine to meet me at this restaurant for lunch. We get there and it was nothing like we had expected, so we headed to a Mexican restaurant. Hey, you're in PHX, do you like Daphne's? Not bad for a chain.

I put down Bleu Cheese because that's what I insitictively ordered as a kid or teenager. However, the reality of it is that the brand of bleu cheese made a world of difference. Nothing can touch the bleu cheese from Bob's Big Boy. I used to put it on my Big Boy combo's salad and order a side of it in which to dip my fries. I would now say that Thousand Islands seems to be more reliable. It's almost always good whereas Bleu Cheese is more variable. I do NOT like Italian dressing...it's kind of boring. However, the Italians think we're weird because we put "mayonnaise on our salad," as one commented to me. What type of dressing do you prefer?

pervasive