Neil, we used to go to the original Leona's, but they streamlined their menu and stopped with the crabmeat-spinach pizzas I liked so much. We don't really choose restaurants so much as choose dishes we return to again and again. Ten minutes gets us to lots of good places both on Chicago's far north side and in our own little city, including the great Indian restaurants of Devon Ave. We occasionally go to a hamburger joint, Moody's, that's popular for its summer outdoor seating but has indoor tables that are so delightfully dark in winter that the fireplaces can't even light them up. For Chinese we favor Joy Yee's (spicy Korean shrimp & oyster soup is my usual pick), but we take out more often than we eat in. If we confine ourselves to whatever is within five blocks/10 minutes on foot, we have nine restaurants to choose from, not including chain stuff like Subway and Starbucks. We have places we like for gyros, pumpkin curry soup, chili and sushi, and I'm still mourning the move of the Afghani place, if for no other reason than they were willing to sell anchovy pizza by the slice. Summer gets us out more--there's a good Thai restaurant about eight blocks away that has great rooftop tables, and occasionally I really like to go out and split a "fatboy and a dozen" special--raw oysters and a big, cheap beer.

bugsb....I am a certified koi health advisor. This information is common knowledge among the koi community and koi veterninarians (including the KHA program instructors). If you want to feed trout food....go ahead! It makes no difference to me. Koi keeping is not a poor man's hobby....but I somehow found myself right in the middle of it. Believe me....I am not wealthy! I built all of my ponds myself (3100 gallons, 9000 gallons and 1300 gallons plus two 300 gallon Quarantine tanks). Most of my filtration is DIY. I can't afford to feed the BEST koi food on the market....even though I have seen the results in other people's fish. Some of that stuff runs $10 to $20 per POUND!! I do my homework though, and look hard for the best food that I can find for the money.....a food that is formulated for koi, has the proper ingrediants for koi, and is affordable. Good decision Eric! Here's a run-down of the foods that I have reviewed and found to be both affordable and good quality: Aqion (www.aqion.com) is a good food for the money. they are in the midwest somewhere so shipping out to seattle may not be that costly. Their wheat germ food is especially nice. Blackwater Creek (available from may suppliers, including Foster and Smith and also Aquatic eco systems). Very nutritious food. The only thing I didn't like about it the first time I used it is that the food left a slight oily sheen on the water. This is due to the fish oils used during processing. I initially did not like the oily film and declared I would not use the food again....but I have since changed my opinion. My filters are cleaner than they have been before and the pond water looks fantastic. I will order this food again. Azoo is another good, inexpensive food. The only thing I don't care for is that it has color enhancers in it and Idid notice the fish pinked up every so slightly on them. Not a problem for most people....but some of these fish are show fish and I can't have any pink in the whites. the wheat germ food didn't do this....only the high protein growth food. (Aquatic eco sells this) Mazuri wheat germ food is also good. I don't like regular mazuri because it has too much corn in it, but the wheat germ food for cool weather is a good product. Available from Purina dealers.

This is something I wish I could change about myself. I do not eat fish, or shellfish. I continue to try little bits of it when it is offered. It's not so disgusting to me that I can't eat a couple bites, but it's bad enough that I can't continue eating it. Like the first bite is OK, but it gets bad after 3 bites. LOL. But I don't cook it, so my kids don't eat it either. I know it's good for me, and I feel that I miss out on a lot of tasty and nutritious meals, and fun restaurants, because I don't eat it. If I could re-train my taste buds to eat it, I would. Every once in a while I get a bug in my head to search for mild fish recipes, but lose my nerve and don't commit to buying it at the grocery. DH is even pickier than me or the kids, so he is fine with me never cooking fish. My dad is the perfect eater. I wish I learned/inherited my tastes from him rather than my mom. My dad will eat ANYTHING. I know there are a couple foods he doesn't favor, but nothing he refuses to eat. I swear, this is the truth, I have seen him eat an entire meal at a restaurant and then announce it was delicious, but not at all what he ordered. Even when he gets the wrong meal at a restaurant, he just says "great, a surprise, let's try it." He is thin, strong and healthy and looks 15 years younger than his age.

I don't go to hamburger or Mexican chain fast food places, unless I happen to be in Seattle and need food, then I treat myself to a Dick's Cheeseburger. A local chain with a loyal following. Nothing fancy, no sit down, just walk up and take to your car or home. Hamburgers, cheeseburgers and fries, real milkshakes - 3 flavors only, I think. Soft drinks. That's it. Yum. If I'm elsewhere with no time for a sit down, I will get something at Starbucks. I love their sous vide egg whites with red peppers. Low carb, low cal, low fat, very tasty. Or I might get a low fat breakfast sandwich or cold turkey or chicken sandwich. They are decent and predictable, ready made -fast. Starbucks doesn't HAVE to let anyone use their restrooms but made a corporate decision to let even non-customers use them. This came after some unfortunate episodes of what appeared to be discrimination against certain types of people who were perceived as being non-customers (probably not going to buy anything). It will be interesting to see how that plays out for them and their customers.