I think they have personalities. Though, the amount that they "interact" with people probably depends on the species of fish as well. One of my koi is very skittish, startles easily. She's sort of getting over this a bit, but still at times. One of my small fantail goldfish seems to prefer being on his own alot. He's always been like that. I know alot of their behavior is food related. That is, they see you and equate you with feeding time, but it's interesting to observe their behavior, each seems to have their own personality.

Oh, what I love about Thanksgiving dinner is that everything goes so well together. We sometimes have a turkey during the summer, but if we haven't had it by October, we DON'T. By the time Thanksgiving day is here, we are anticipating that Butterball. Stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, are all perfect together, and the first person who thought to serve cranberries with turkey was a genius. We also drool over pumpkin pies in the stores all fall, but we don't indulge until Wednesday night. Then we will watch Planes, Trains, and Automobiles and enjoy a piece of pumpkin pie. This is the tradition of many, many years. We're big on tradition, lol. - Gail

I'll ask DH to pick up some "Cackle Berries and Moo Juice" once in a while. I love the "white wash" name for skim milk, especially since that's what I have to drink. I make a lot of one-pot dinners, too. I've taken to making "Chicken Stuff." I'll take left-over roasted chicken, add celery, onions, carrots, and anything else that's in the fridge and cook until the veggies are done. Plop it on some brown rice and call it dinner. I've made it several times; each time it's different. I don't eat meat like I use to. I'm not a vegetarian as such, but I seem to have lost my taste for most meats. So, I tell Wes I'm making "roasted beast" or cooking a "hunk of dead animal" for dinner. Doesn't seem to bother his appetite. I think Macaroni Screw-Up will be on our table soon!

Scott, There is no smell like ANY peppers roasting! Truly! If I was trying to sell a house, I'd have peppers and tomatoes dehydrating or roasting in the oven just to fill the house with that delicious aroma. I think a house would sell based on how good it smelled! I miss frying! I miss making home-made fried chicken and chicken fried steaks as well as fried pork chops, and fried potatoes, or my dad's summer garden dish where he'd mix together sliced potatoes, okra, onions and peppers (hot or sweet) and fry them in lard or bacon fat, sprinkling a handful or two of cornmeal over them as he fried them. We never had a name for that dish but I loved to make it, and it too has been relegated to the more fattening meals of our past and no longer is included in the healthier meals of the present day. Tim has high cholesterol, though, so frying things in the old southern style is something we dropped almost entirely at least 15 years ago. Homemade fried chicken still is a favorite birthday meal here in this household, and I'll make it if that's what the birthday person wants. I think that on their birthday a person should get to eat what they want. If you're eating healthy most of the time, an occasional old-style fried southern meal won't hurt. Stockergal, Well, I grew up on meat and potatoes, growing up in Fort Worth a few miles from the Stockyards. Beef was always the main thing we had when I was a kid, but we did have lots of chicken and occasionally pork or fish. It is just that when you live in a Wild West sort of town like Ft. Worth (I am sure OKC was very similar in the same decades) where beef and potatoes are the holy grail of meals, that's what you eat. I'd still rather eat meat and potatoes than anything else, but we do try to eat more fish and poultry now and less red meat. My first job was as a waitress in a steakhouse and I would have eaten steak every day if I could. It has been hard to slowly (way too slowly, most likely) learn to eat in a more healthy manner. Carol, As soon as I saw "hobo dinners", I did instantly think "Boy Scouts!" That's some good eating, and I love hobo dinners. I also love cooking anything/everything outdoors in cast iron dutch ovens, also a remnant, I guess, from our Boy Scout days. Andria, Well, you made me hungry! We do cook a lot less in the heat. I love it when cold weather returns in fall or winter and find myself spending a lot more time in the kitchen then (coincidentally at a time when I am spending less time in the garden). I find eating healthy works best for me one day at a time. (grin) If I had to think that I'd only eat perfectly healthy meals for the rest of my life, I'd rebel and go buy and eat the biggest ribeye I could find, and then I'd finish the meal with incredibly rich and delicious homemade (made from scratch) chocolate cake. An occasional cheat day isn't too bad, but we truly are eating healthier than we ever have, most days. We are trying really hard to eat healthier as we get older, and it isn't always easy. The taste buds want what they want, but I do think that once I cut a lot of junk out of my diet, I don't enjoy it as much when I do eat some of it because my taste buds have learned to enjoy things that are less fattening, less processed, less salty, etc. I suppose that's a good thing, but I miss the days when I was younger and had better metabolism and could eat anything and everything I wanted and never gain an ounce. Those days are gone forever. If I ever find a way to grow my own chocolate, I'm in trouble. Dawn