I am more of a lurker then a poster....and the conversation side seems to be ver quiet for a long time , then will pick up a bit...then nothing again...sometimes I wish this site wasnt soo split up...anyone else agree ?? HI Sue, Angie, Jim, Remy and all others that have traded with me, thanks so much...looking forward to seeing my garden this spring !!

We went with Blockbuster online because at the time it was less expensive than Netflix at the time. Now that they've raised their rates to the same as Netflix I don't mind since I can return movies to the store on the way to work and they get counted as checked in a day or two faster. Also, I get coupons for a couple of "free" store rentals each month. Still, being summer I'm not renting as many. Mostly I'm getting old comedy series, e.g. Kids in the Hall and Strangers With Candy and special interest documentaries like The God Who Wasn't There and Walking with Prehistoric Beasts, cable stuff I don't get like Penn & Teller's BS and of course a lot of mainstream movies. I agree about Walk the Line. Quite good but seemed much like Ray. (We tend to get Academy Award nominees/winners for the few months after the ceremonies) And as for 28 Days Later, that was fun to watch with my epidemiologist. We laughed our butts off. Atrophying biddies. That's funny! What is it about fussy, ugly flowers that draws that crowd?

Hi, lavender, I feel as if we're old friends from Smaller Homes/Old House sites, so I came looking for you, after reading your current threads in discussions. Thank you for the 'shout-out' about my hood. It was kind, as every post of yours that I've read has been kind and helpful. Also--keep your chin up! We've done what you are proposing, on a very small budget, 'paying as we go', although that did involve refinancing our home several years ago, for the biggest project, a 30'x12' story-and-a-half addition, with a partially covered concrete porch. In all it's taken 16 years, and I'm not finished yet! When we bought our house, it had been a rental for 10 years, on the 3-acre remnant of an old dairy farm. Many potential buyers had viewed it and said that it would take too much work. But I had a vision (actually not my vision at first--my parents saw it and convinced me that the property would work for our then-young family). The yard had been neglected, and sadly all the original woodwork and trim had been removed, but the structure was basically sound. As our family grew, we added rooms and made other improvements (new roof and septic system, as needed). We are DIY'ers, and have an extended family-and-friends network of contractors, woodworkers, excavaters, and painters, so our projects have been made much more affordable than if we'd had to hire out all the work, but you may have the same resources, too. I just want you to know that I understand your dreams, love your ideas and pictures, and I know it can be done!!

Yes, FOAS, I agree about multiple servings per meal. But, the next time you order pasta in a restaurant make a guage of how much is on the plate knowing that 1/2 cup is 1 serving. Here, a plate usually has 2-3 cups (I've had plates with even more than 3 cups). That's too much pasta & it's also likely white pasta. I'd be surprised to learn that Americans are not getting enough grain in their diets. Whole grain? Yes, not enough but white flour products...no. Many people who eat the huge plate of pasta for dinner also have had a large sandwich for lunch (likely a roll that's more than the 2 servings of bagged sandwich bread) and possibly more grain for breakfast (English muffin, toast, cereal, donut). Also, with the pasta dinner...often it is served with a crouton containing salad & garlic bread...more grain servings. I eat 5 meals/day...always have. I started doing that when I was young because I was always hungry. Eventually, found out I had thyroid problems, had surgery, but still continued with the 5 meals/day just much smaller. I was fortunate in that my jobs allowed me to duck away somewhere & eat pretty much whenever I felt the need. I know/understand that not all jobs have the benefit of flexible schedules. Still, mid-day snacks can quite easily be upped to mini-meal status. Something like hummus/pita crisps & a piece of fruit. One benefit of more meals/day is to help keep blood sugar levels even & not get ravenous unless you're a lumberjack, or equivilent. Piling all your grains (carbs) into an evening meal is also not condusive to weight loss. Better to have that restaurant pasta meal at lunch. My point is that I believe that due to supersizing many Americans do not realize what's a "serving". Our perceptions are also supersized. While I'm ranting (and I'll quit after this)...people also eat too fast! It takes our bodies about 20 minutes of chewing to feel satiated. If we gulp our meal in 12 minutes we'll likely still think we're hungry even after an appropriate amount of food. If we just stop eating though our bodies will eventually catch up with our forks & register that we're full. So, just slowing down is a great weight management tool. Eating too fast is a pitfall of many singles & families that don't eat meals together. Eating together around a table & enjoying a conversation naturally slows down our eating. My DH is struggling with this issue now. After 6 years of living apart Mon-Fri he had started gulping his dinner down in front of the TV. Now, together full-time he's being forced to slow down because I'm talking to him. He'll still gobble a sandwich when he's alone in 3 minutes flat. :) /t