Animals aren't collections, even if you do have several, okay 6 cats and four dogs. China isn't a collection...you use it. Besides, some of it was my grandmother's and some mothers, and I really liked the soft pink abstract rose on that set and you need Christmas china, and of course, you need different china for the grandkids at Christmas. I suppose having 350 different daylilies means I must admit to collecting them. But all the Christmas decorations are just decorations, not a collection...except maybe the Dickens Villiage is a collection. And Josh, I am really impressed with all of your languages. In addition to English, I speak only Spanish and German, and, like Melissa, I can read French, but I do not speak nor understand the spoken French. And like Susie, Books are not a collection any more than food is. kay

Maureen, I should have clarified. We keep on hand 2 different versions of McCann's steel-cut oats. The box version is a "quick cook" version. For that, I just let the oats soak in a bit of milk while I'm getting the other ingredients ready for the meatloaf and then use as is. For the canned (not quick cook version), I soak those overnight if I'm making oatmeal the next morning and set aside some for meatloaf, but I don't cook it before hand. As for Scotland, we were there last June. My father-in-law had a sabbatical there and he and his wife had rented a house in Crail, just next to St. Andrews. So we used that as our home base and spent three weeks traveling in northern England and Scotland. If you're ever in St. Andrews, there's a butcher shop with the HUGEST, DISGUSTINGEST (is that a word?) display of raw sheep stomach encased haggises... sort of putty grey and rubbery looking. All set up in a lovely pyramid!

I'm a little surprised this thread hasn't been "disappeared", but... pineviewplanter, I'm sure you see your view of the world as The Only Way. However, in most of this world your worldview is considered "incorrect" and "unenlightened". The fighting in Iraq (and the fighting in scores of locales throughout the world now and earlier) is being perpetuated by at least two groups who each believe their version of "the truth" is the only version of the truth. (Why God would sanction anyone to kill another of His creation to succeed in making that point escapes me totally.) The U.S. was founded by people who were escaping a religion (King George's version of Christianity) which did not fit the way they saw God. The Founding Fathers took some pains to make sure that this fledgling democracy did not favor any particular religion, remembering that this country was founded by people seeking such freedom; people who were not willing to trash what they believed for the sake of what someone else declared was correct and true. Though the U.S. is largely Christian (in the broader Judeo-Christian tradition rather than the narrow definitions that keep Protestant sects squabbling among themselves; no offense, OJ), and despite what those hooyocks in Washington are trying to perpetuate, the U.S. remains a country in which one is free to practice any tradition one believes in as long as it does not run afoul of the law (which is agreed to by the majority, not by any religious group that sets itself up as the arbiters). Courtesy of U.S. law, you certainly are free to hold your belief that those who do not believe in your particular flavor of religion are "doomed". Expressing that thought in a public arena, however (and especially toward specific individuals) is offensive and -- frankly -- off-putting. Instead of divisively assigning people into "us" and "them," how about expressing some of that love and joy that God supposedly has given you? Whether U.S. currency has "In God We Trust" engraved on it is not a big thing for me, though I certainly can see the point of those who object to it. It should not be there. But I'll settle for more currency floating around even if it has Ronald McDonald's face on it if it gives people a decent standard of living.

We try to manage our health through diet and natural supplements I'm an advocate of this too, wholeheartedly, and especially as a parent and one who has chronic conditions. I'm not a doctor and many people are put off by my subversity. But I have had such success with alternative treatments that were more cost-effective and safer than pharmaceuticals. It takes time and research but I have found really good alternatives. The most recent incident is with one of my sons who developed really bad acne during puberty (it was awful... his face was riddled with inflamed cystic acne). We tried all the creams and washes and nothing was working. A few friends recommended antibiotics and Accutane. When I researched these, both came with warnings that pregnant women should not take them because they could cause birth defects. Again, I'm not a doctor... but I couldn't get past why I would give my son, whose going through a significant growth stage, medicine that pregnant women cannot take because it could harm their fetus. It just didn't make sense to me. Is a developing fetus and pubescent kids comparable? I don't know... but my gut told me this wasn't right. I continued to research and found a couple of safe supplements that, along with some dietary changes, have made a significant difference in his acne. Within a month, the cystic inflammation was gone. His face looks great and we are so happy for him. I know this is off-topic and I apologize to anyone who's offended. I'm also not advocating dismissing pharmaceuticals entirely because they certainly have their place. I also encourage working with a licensed, board certified alternative care practitioner because the supplement industry can be dodgy and unregulated as well.