Hi, Wanna Run! Congratulations on your iPhone. It was something I didn't know I wanted, either, until I got mine. Now I can't bear the thought of not having one! My land lines were constantly out of service, and they would send out repairmen over and over, only to have them go down in two weeks. I had a basic cell phone, too. Finally, I got mad and decided I was going to cancel the land lines and go get a GOOD cell phone, and that would just be IT. I already had AT&T cell phone service, so I stopped by their kiosk at the mall...and fell in LUUUUV. I adore all the ringtones you can download, and I've learned how to make my own from snippets of favorite CD's. My default ringtone is the opening music from the HBO series, True Blood. ("Bad Things," by Jace Everett...it's so cool.) I found tutorials on how to make my own and spent a whole afternoon getting different ones to personalize for certain callers. I don't have nearly as many apps as Kate, though I do have a lot of the ones she mentioned. Since I'm back on Weight Watchers, I couldn't do without iWatcher. I also found the best birding field guide, EVER. (iBird South) It cost me $10 and was worth every penny. It not only has tons of info on each species, range maps, line drawings AND photos, but it plays their bird calls, too. It's so cool to always have my bird ID info with me when I'm out anywhere. That is the only app I paid more than $.99 for, I think. I don't do many games, but I do like Card Shark. (Everyone needs a game of solitaire for killing time now and then.) I also have a little game called Ant Hill. When I'm really mad at the fire ants in the yard, I come in, pull that up and spend fifteen minutes or so dropping land mines on them, just to hear 'em squeal. Unlike Kate, I don't care for audio books, but I do read all the time, so I got Classics, which she mentioned. (I'm finally reading Call Of The Wild, which I somehow missed in school). I read regular books at home, but in the waiting room or in line, I pull that up and read another chapter or two in it. And there are several others in there I plan to read, as well. I have another book one called Stanza, and I can download books from from several different bookstores into that, at a price. You pay for the books, of course, but not as much as a "real" book. I haven't used it yet, but I plan to. I found a free wildflower ID book called iPlant. It's not REAL comprehensive, but it was free, and I HAVE used it a few times with success. I like Nightstand, which is a great travel clock with several options, and free. I like Just Light, which is a terrific little flashlight. There is an app called iStat which lets you free up memory when things start to slow down a bit. It shows a pie chart of how much free memory you have available and with one click it dumps stuff (from a cache file, probably) and improves performance. It's free, too. I have a good dictionary and iWiki, Showtimes for local movie times, completely with synopsis of the film and reviews, and a real favorite, iTranslate. In that one, you can pick your From language and your To language, type in a phrase and it translates it for you. There are 42 languages to choose from. (If you want to call someone a jerk in Swahili, it's there!) We are AAA members, and I found a Discounts program that does a bunch of stuff, including tracking where you are and telling you what hotels, etc, in that area offer AAA discounts. But it also has a one touch button to call for your AAA roadside assistance, and because of the GPS feature, it can send a tow truck, etc, straight to you, from the nearest garage. Cool!! I love changing my wallpaper daily, and have an app that has hundreds of scenic photos to choose from, plus I use my own photos, as well. The camera is actually pretty darn good, too. It's a feature I just love, because I don't have to remember to take my regular camera along with me. There is a Voice Memo app that I didn't download, but that wasn't on the phone when I got it, so I'm guessing they have upgraded to include it, and it was installed automatically the last time I synched the phone. You can leave messages for yourself there, and it's a lot faster than typing on the tiny keyboard. Oh, yeah...synching...they did NOT explain that to me when I got it, and it was a couple of days before I found out you need to do that regularly. And that's how you add everything. They never even told me I NEEDED to have iTunes installed on my computer to make everything work properly. But I blundered my way along until I figured it all out. There is an app called Wallpaper Maker that lets you add text to your phone's wallpaper. You can put a contact number on there if you want, in case you lose it, and someone HONEST actually finds it. I'm nervous about doing that, but it is fun to add captions to family photos, etc, and use those as wallpapers. I made one with my dogs and a saying under them. Have2Eat is a restaurant finder that will give you a list of restaurants in your area, with info on them, wherever you happen to be. And I forgot, the Showtimes movie finder does that, too. So if you are out of town and want to go to a movie, it will tell you what's playing THERE. Another useful one is WhitePages. It's a phone directory, and saves you the charge of calling 411 for a number. Plus, it gives you a location map of the business or person you are searching for. This device is so amazing, I can't believe it. It's an entire computer in your pocket. I hope you love yours as much as I love mine. Nicki's says I'm obnoxious about it! Hahaha. So I downloaded a ringtone that has a girl with a really obnoxious voice saying, "Look, Everybody. I have an iPhone...and someone is CALLING me on it!" Hahaha. I set it to say that when SHE calls me! Have fun! Hugs, Marcia

Brrrrrrrrrr, yeah I say you need that fuel truck, muey pronto! I would love that wood stove, grew up with one, and have thought about putting one in here. The closest I have is a couple of them Mexican outdoor fireplaces, one pottery, and one cast iron with several grills that one could cook on, but I have not even built a fire in one this year, it has been warm most of the time and things are tinderbox dry, so burn bans are in effect. ----------- > >Bill, I have heard of them but haven'had a chance to listen to them yet. Most of what I have is instrumental. They are awsome, PBS has a deal where for a donation you can get a video cassette or DVD for a certain amount. I really love a lot of good instrumentals, and the background music in lots of songs, like Johnny Cash, When the man comes around, or Dwight Yocham's Turn it on, turn it up and turn me loose. Lots of good pickin on that, that I can only try to emulate with my guitar. ":^) My best audience is my dogs, they sometime seem to be smiling, but do not dare laugh out loud. ------------------------------- You never could completely convince my Dad that men walked on the moon, but he really loved the wrestling on T.V. When I was a cop in Dallas many years ago, we used to check out at the Sporatorium and go in occasionally while the wrestling was going on. It was more fun to watch the fans than the wrestling to me. The sad and ill fated Fritz Von Eric family was from this area and I saw something on T.V. just recently, an interview with his widow and her talking about all the tragic events, and their one remaining son. I have not really got into much except music downloads thus far, althought there are DVD Videos, as well as other types of media you can search for, programs, software etc. etc. Yeah, I remember some of those old commercials, liked the Burma Shave ones, Everyone probably remembers "See the USA in your _________ (fill in the blank)and probably Route 66. I know that the theme song from Bonanza and High Noon could be found. I have Marty Robbins, The Hanging tree. I do not know any words for such things as those weird Clint Eastwood spagetti westerns and have not tried to find them. If I live long enough and get to where I can not do as much outside like welding and gardening, I hope to set aside time to learn how to imbed music in emails. I think that there is a way to do that with a small file that does not take up many kb's and wouldn't it be neat to be able to put some sound effects into a posting here like you can pictures or those little animated graphics you occasionally see. Of course, I am sure that would probably irritate some folks. Thanks for the walk down memory lane. Bill P.

Milkdud and Joyce, thanks for your good input regarding our little girl. Joyce, I'm glad your granddaughter has found a niche in gymnastics. That really helps, I think--for a small child or a child who is "different" from her peers in any way to find something she is good at. We tried gymnastics for Jane. There's only one gym close by, and I was really distressed by how the instructors treated her. We started her in a group class (I couldn't afford individual lessons), and the instructors consistently put her into smaller groups with 3 and 4 year old children, even though she was solidly 7 years old. They just divided them based on size and never tested her beyond the abilities of the preschoolers. I tried talking with them about it, to which they replied that group classes were just laid back, for building confidence, and not really for building their skill levels. The only response I got was to find a way to fork over the big bucks for private lessons. So, we pulled her out because it was just frustrating and demoralizing for her. I wish we had more options! I've been tempted to stress eat for the last few days. I haven't given in, but it seems it's getting harder every day. I'm also experiencing some pretty dramatic cycle changes, which adds to my stress. I'm only 40, but the signs are beginning to look like menopause starting. (Actually, some of the signs started several years ago, but I should say are now becoming impossible to ignore.) I imagine that will mean an even slower metabolism. I think I'm just going to have to give up eating altogether! I just don't think it's good for me. Milkdud--congrats on the rain. I hope it's a good thing for you there. I'm really not sure--we are having a rainier spring than last year and are thrilled with it. Our drought for the last 2 years has been so bad that area lakes are almost impossible to use for recreational purposes in the summer and last year there were all kinds of conservation efforts going on. If it continues, there will probably be mandatory water rationing this summer, which we'd all love to avoid. Yet elsewhere, people are flooded out and it's a tragedy. Feast or famine, it seems. --Rebecca

Rosefolly - What a surprise to find someone here whose father invented the very thing we're talking about! Since I didn't touch the epoxy (wore new workmen's cotton gloves), that isn't what caused my skin to react. It was on my face only. The lumps were below the skin surface. But, it was combined w/ paint; so the mix is maybe what did it? After the anti-biotics, my skin was as smooth as glass. And the project? A great success. I'd painted the porcelain wall tiles, tub, sink, toilet in my new apartment. Not only did it look custom-made, but it shone as if all new. Even scrubbing w/ scouring powder didn't mar the finish -- that's why epoxy is needed in the paint. People asked me if I'd had the bathroom remodeled...a neighbor saw it, did his w/ epoxy paint, too. In spite of my little debaucle w/it , I recommended it to everyone. Sarah Canary - Maybe one reason "Smilla's Sense of Snow" appeals to us so much is because we're both January babies? ... As to the characters -- I'm not having any problems keeping them straight in my mind. Could be because they have such different first and last names...makes it easier. Yes, I agree, the atmosphere is a big part of this story -- really sets the mood.