Ditto here; another two votes for Obama. We're not keen on the McBush plan for another 100 years of war and/or bailing out the predatory lending institutions at taxpayers' expense. Democrats are for the working family while Republicans are for themselves and the rich corporations. It's that simple. Remember what gas and fuel costs were while Clinton was president? Remember when the job market was healthy? Obama's plans are: A $1,000 emergency energy rebate to help families with high fuel costs right now while putting $50 billion into job creation to get our economy back on track. Families making less than $250,000 a year will get a tax cut three times larger than under John McCain's plan and will face absolutely no tax increases. While John McCain has voted against raising the minimum wage 19 times, Barack would raise the minimum wage and set it to rise automatically with inflation. Invest $15 billion a year in green energy research to reduce our economy's dependence on foreign oil and create 5 million American jobs a year.

Hi, Meredith!! This is my first post in ages. I know you're honored (LOL!!!). Here's my take: although everyone has their own unique idiosyncracies (ie: spontaneous vs. need to plan ahead) and every friendship has unique circumstances (best friend lives next door vs. across town), my personal rule of thumb is that friendships work best with less "requirements" instead of more. So, respecting the differences between you means tolerating different styles, otherwise it's just too much work. The key to a great friendship is immediate and automatic forgiveness and acceptance of the little stuff. She made a special dish for you as you asked (how nice!) but forgot about your special needs and didn't give you warning a day in advance to save your energy/back for dinner (oops!!). You are both miffed....NO PROBLEM!! Why? because there is nothing wrong with your feelings. You shouldn't even be debating whether yours or hers are any less or more valid. There's no right or wrong here. It's really all about how much you tolerate and ultimately forgive your friend. And vice versa. The way I'd handle it is: you call and tell her how sorry you are that you missed your favorite meal, especially since she went to so much trouble for you (any leftovers?). You love and appreciate everything she did. Your back sometimes interferes with your ability to be spontaneous (isn't it a bummer?) But if you get a day's notice, you can often rest your back enough to do what you want. Thank her profusely for going to all that trouble just for you (which she did, unquestionably). End of story. Don't tell her what to do in the future (save that for some other time when there's nothing in the air between you), or expect her to say anything like "I'm sorry". That would be imposing a requirement on her in order to soothe your feelings. If she does it, great!! But if you love this friend, and you are willing to tolerate the differences in your respective styles, it shouldn't matter that she occasionally forgets about your style. Yes, my suggestion sounds like a one way apology...and in some ways, it is. However, you are really acknowledging the special effort she made for you, her friend. That acknowledgement is important, because people need to feel appreciated. She did something for you, but blew it in the execution. Like any other gift, it's the thought that counts. My guess is that with acknowledgement, the whole thing will quickly defuse. And if I know you, you've already had that conversation anyway. So don't do anything more. Keep your feelings to yourself. Someone really wise once told me that in every relationship, including marriage, the parties decide every day, subconsciously, whether they still want to be there. This is part of it. Anyway, that's my take on friendship. It comes from knowing, in my heart of hearts, that I am very imperfect, yet my friends still love me and want to be my friend. I try to...

Have you thought of rooting a cane of your mother's plant? Most plants that make woody stems will root from the stem/cane. Bend a flexible branch or cane to the ground and cover it with good soil, and weigh it with a rock or pin it down somehow. Bend the rest of the cane upwards and prop it with a sturdy forked twig. Keep the soil on the buried part moist but not soggy for a few weeks. The places in the plant that have the most root hormone naturally are the stem joints, where the leaves grow from. When the joint is placed on or under the ground, it stimulates roots to form instead of leaves. It's how plants like wild roses and blackberries "walk," in nature. If you do this with a rose, you get an own-root plant instead of a graft, of course. You can also take cuttings from roses and use rooting hormone. You would need to be a little patient--you are not getting a shrub size plant this way, just a twig or single cane! But you would be getting the same thing your mother has, which you seem to be interested in. Good luck!

This was preceding the speech, it explains the intention . "If you missed the many, many confusing speeches at the Democratic and Republican national conventions, dont worry. Weve fed the transcripts into a robot that synthesizes and streamlines the partisan political sentiments of the past 10 days. Here is the resulting amalgamated speech, the keynote of keynotes."