One of my machines is a Kenmore, too, PM. It was a gift from a boyfriend and the only thing I use it for is making buttonholes. I oil it and clean it before using it as I don't haul it out very often. You can indeed knock a machine out of time by hitting a pin, but that's pretty unusual. Generally speaking, sewing machines are amazingly resilient and will suffer untold abuse without breaking down. The number one cause of failure is LACK OF OIL; coupled with accumulated fabric lint (which soaks up the residual oil robbing the moving parts of it) it can be really bad news. After that, the wrong needle is often used in a machine, or it's put in incorrectly (either will result in failure to pick up the bobbin thread, often mistaken for a timing issue). And then there is the often frustrating issue of properly tensioning the machine... which is covered in the manual and only takes some guts and some practice to master. In fact, when faced with a new hire, tension and proper needle installation are the first things I teach. To make sure the lesson is mastered I deliberatly monkey with the tension while the person is in the bathroom, lol. I do not sew over pins. I tend to use only a few anyway, but sewing over them is asking for trouble. You ruin the pins (they bend under the presser foot and are harder to use later), you can break them or your needle, and when broken they often fly away from the machine. Flying bits of broken metal near eyes is a fully avoidable risk, right up there with not putting your fingers directly in front of the needle. ;) "Safen up!". More warnings for black ice this morning. And I instantly thought of V.'s daughter when I saw the cancellations at O'Hare. I always wear my boots, a holdover from living in the "boonies" and driving home in all sorts of weather, often not passing another car for the entire 20 miles. Best to be prepared for a long, cold walk. I have not left the Compound ONCE since last Wednesday, though today may break the run. On my list of things to do this week is buy some greens for the decorations, and some wrapping paper and ribbon. We don't have our lists ready and they won't be long or particularly tough on our wallets. I VERY much want to see the decorations from Monique and Less!! I love varigated Holly and haven't seen it available in my usual haunts. I'm actually toying with the notion of planting a couple of them... what do you think, too flashy or pleasingly sparkley for a dark time of year? Tales of layers of pastry and butter made my mouth water. I could almost feel my hindquarters spreading across the seat of my chair as I read... . Back to watery gruel for me! I have to get a coat/two of pickling on one more piece of wood in preparation for the helpmeet's assault on the stairwell railing. I'd love to hear from ailing Eden about her present project and it's progression. You've crossed my mind periodically as I've plugged away on my own.

Jane, you could install a second hard drive and run both Operating Systems. This isn't really that difficult to do but would cost some money for the new drive. Maybe, $100.00+ (us), not including installation. Just format both as NTFS drives. After you start the computer, then after the BIOs screen a screen appears that will let you choose the OS you want. You can even move files between the two OSs using a USB memory stick. This works well. the only down side to this configuration is some added scan time for malware and anti-virus scans, check disks and the like because you have two systems installed. You would also need two security software suites if you buy them. It's like two computers in one. Here is a link that might be useful: Not as hard as this makes it look. You get the idea.

Thank you, Everyone, for your help.:) I went into the C drive last night and found a couple Audacity files, so deleted them, then downloaded an older version of the program, shut down for the night, then installed it this morning, and it seems to be working, hip hip hooray! There's a faint background whistle--probably caused by our el cheapo desktop speakers--but maybe we can edit that out with the program. Now, if I can figure out how to include LAME so as to save as MP3s, we'll have it made. I downloaded the zipfile and have it on desktop, but when Audacity asks where the file is saved, it's not showing up. No biggie, we can live without that, if we have to.:) Thanks again, y'all. You've made my day!:) And, Raven, I'm going to check out your suggested program right now. Thank you.:)

Ta Dah! She resent it....she doesn't know what happened....but turns out it's just the Cheesecake Factory recipe.... I would have sworn that the topping was something like cream cheese sweetened and thinned with sour cream....but she says it was just whipped cream. Cheesecake Factory Pumpkin Cheesecake Bonnie Prep time: 30 minutes Serves: 10-12 Cooking time: 65-75 minutes Crust: 1½ cups graham cracker or ginger snaps (I like ½ of each) 5 T. butter, melted 1 T. sugar Filling: 3-8oz. pkgs. cream cheese, softened 1 C. canned pumpkin 3 eggs ½ t. cinnamon ¼ t. nutmeg ¼ t. allspice Topping; 1 C. heavy cream ½ C. sugar 1 t. white vanilla ½ C. chopped pecans Mix crust ingredients together, just until coated and crumbly. Press onto the bottom and two-thirds of the way up the sides of an 8" spring form pan. Bake for 5 minutes at 350F. Set aside. Combine cheese, sugar and vanilla in large bowl, mix until smooth with an electric mixer. Add pumpkin, eggs, and spices and beat until smooth and creamy. Pour into the crust. Bake for 60-70 minutes or until the top turns a bit darker. Remove from oven and allow to come to room temperature, then refrigerate. Just before serving, whip the cream, sugar and white vanilla. After cake has thoroughly chilled, add the whipped cream topping and sprinkle nuts over the cream. Remove the pan sides and cut.