Thanks guys. I've checked with the credit union, and due to my previous bad habit of overdrafts, I'm stuck with that lower limit. That's basically just my "mad money" anyways, so it's not important. The debit card that I signed up for from our household bank account has a very high limit ($1000 per day), so no problems there. Small merchants often have higher prices already, so I'm not going to contribute to making those prices even worse by using a form of payment that costs more when I can help it (if they raise their prices, I'm still the one that ends up paying the fee, & more people will choose to shop elsewhere). So I'll use cash for anything under $10 or so, and the debit card for everything else. That should work fine, I think. I'm not worried about the big chains, just the very small local businesses. Thanks Ed - I'll try to stop by the KT later. Not sure if I still know anyone over there or not!

The term "wood laminate" really bugs me because of the insidious sneaky marketing that's tried to insinuate that laminate is somehow wood. It is NOT wood, nor has it ever been. The more accurate term would be "plastic picture of wood" laminate. You can get actual from a tree wood for the same price as a good laminate. Guess which adds value to your home and guess which doesn't? Guess which adds to the landfills in the future and which can be refinished? Even engineered wood can be refinished in the future if you choose correctly. Flooring should not be looked at as a "temporary" solution that can be discarded later in favor of another style. That's fickle consumerism gone amok. Flooring is part of the home's infrastructure. As such, it should be chosen as a investment in the home's longevity of existence. I'm not saying that laminate doesn't have it's place, such as when you're renting an apartment for a temporary design change, but the whole idea of laminate is based on it's impermanence. Laminate is like a rug, not the stone floor that the rug is laid over.

When we moved from MA to Tx, I went to the mall in New Hampshire and bought me a travel purse. It is a fanny pack thing similar to the one posted. It was marked $12 and to my surprise, rang up $6.00 on a half price sale...That was 5 years ago and I am still carrying it. It holds just the right amount...the keys, phone, checkbook, coin purse, cards and there isn't room to junk it up with everything in the house. When I see the purses that some people carry I just wonder what in the world they have in them that they might need just to run from their home to the grocery store. I will never ever carry another big purse. I actually have bought two or three purses since we got here trying to convince myself that I should change and nothing feels as good as the little fanny pack purse. I don't very often wear it fanny pack style, but it fits over my shoulder and fits my body so good that it is the perfect purse for me. I would never be sucked into the designer bag thing...If you have that much money and want to spend it on a purse, I certainly don't have a problem with it, but I admit that I could easily go and spend that amount, but it would be on something that I wanted and that wouldn't be a purse...but I'm not a purse person ...but a doll or sewing something so I don't think it's a money/status thing...it's an "I want" thing.

My mother in law will be 90 soon, and she’s still great fun. I know we won’t have her forever, and I’m dreading the day we don’t. 100 is special. In the UK and Commonwealth countries, if you give her a heads up in good time, your 100yo relative gets a birthday greeting from the Queen (it used to be a telegram, but now I think it’s a card). Circle K s in Bali are generally freestanding so I guess the Mexico City business model is similar.