Nightingale

I don't normally drink alcohol at all on dates, unless I know the person I'm with very well.

No. Absolutely not. Thanks to Bush and his war in Iraq, I have one friend who is now considered permanently disabled from a shattered ankle from enemy fire, and one friend lying in a military hospital with a bullet wound in his abdomen. I'm very, very relieved they aren't dead. But... the question of whether I'm better off than I was when Bush took office is not nearly as relevant as the question of: "Are our soldiers and their families better off since Bush took office?"

Personally, I like Ireland's policy... one drink, or one pint, you're considered legally drunk, and therefore shouldn't drive. I completely support people's right to drink. I do not believe one has a right to drink and drive. Just from personal experience, I'm buzzed after half a beer. Legally, my blood alcohol level is WAY below the legal limit. Would I be safe on the road: NOPE. and I have enough sense to realize that. The problem lies in people believing they are capable of driving when they aren't, and I've taken keys away from a good many people in that situation. Drink. Use whatever substances you choose. Just don't get behind the wheel of a car when you do it. There are plenty of people willing to come pick you up. If you're a college student, most campuses have a program where you can call the campus security and they will come get you and drive you back to your dorm room, no questions asked.

I made 22 jumps in '03. I have made 5 jumps in '04.

Elfanie- just out of curiosity, what would you say to the 13 year old victim of stranger rape who finds herself pregnant? Should our society force that child to have a child, simply because the fetus itself is innocent? what would that child have to go through emotionally were she to carry a child to term and give birth to it? would you prefer that our government make the decision for her, that she must carry the child, or that she, her doctor, and her family are permitted to decide what is best for her, both physically and psychologically? I realize this is an extreme situation, but it is a situation that must be taken into account. Either, the fetus is alive and human and should have all the protections of a born, human baby, in which case, an abortion would not be the right choice under ANY circumstances, or, because at this point, the fetus is very much a part of the mother, should she be permitted to choose its fate under circumstances such as these?

I wouldn't have chosen to donate in the middle of my training regimen either, but a friend's little sister had been in a car accident and was needing blood (ruptured spleen or something like that??), so my friend asked if I would donate, as Lizzie and I have the same blood type (A+) but you don't have to be the right blood type to donate in someone's name, which is nice. Her parents are AB+ and B+, and they donated and she got a credit for their donation anyway. Seeing Lizzie healthy was well worth the few days of training I missed. She's a great kid. The good thing about blood donation is that the blood gets separated into its different parts, which allows one single donation to help several people.

I donated blood last december when I was in the middle of training for the international championships for martial arts. My training regimen consisted of 2-3 hours every weekday, 8 hours on saturday, and sundays off. I took two days off training after donating because I got dizzy easily, and was fine after that.

From marrow.org. When you join the National Marrow Donor Program Registry as a potential marrow or blood stem cell donor, a small blood sample will be taken and tested to determine your tissue type. The cost for the tissue typing ranges from $65 to $96, depending on the donor center or recruitment group, the level of testing performed and the laboratory that completes the test. Some volunteers pay for tissue typing when they join. This contribution is tax deductible and appreciated. Sometimes, there are other ways to cover the cost for testing. Some donor centers cover part of the cost of the testing for donors of whole blood or blood components. Funding may also be available through a sponsoring corporation or community group. Please contact your local donor center or recruitment group for more information. If you are identified as a potential match for a patient, all medical costs are covered by the patient or the patient's medical insurance, as are all travel expenses and other non-medical costs.

I'm on the marrow list. The easiest way to get typed and on the list is to call the red cross or your local hospital and ask if anyone's doing a marrow drive, because those are typically at no cost to the donor. They'll get sponsorships or whatnot to cover the cost. I got typed during a marrow drive for a classmate in college who had leukemia. Was no cost to any of us to get typed. Unfortunately, we never did find a match.

the fireproof safe is a great idea! something everyone needs, to store important documents, but not something people always think about buying

1. gift certificates for dinner at a nice restaurant. 2. something fancy that they wouldn't buy for themselves (think waterford crystal here) 3. something on their gift registry 4. something fun/sexy like chocolate body paint, combined with something else nice.

um... add boobies to your "sex" search.

if its just a one time tonsilitis, they usually won't. tonsil removal is a remedy for a continuing problem.

I'm 25. My friends are between 25 and 27. I skipped a grade, so most of the people I got to know in school are older than I am. Only one of my friends, Meaghan, has a child, and is considering another. what I keep hearing from them is "I want to meet my birthmother to ask her why." and I keep asking them why they care, because they have wonderful families. I think the main issue was that their families hid the adoption until they were in their teens, and then sat them down and had this major "talk." All of a sudden, they felt like their lives were turned upside down. All I'm really saying is that while adoption is definitely a solution to an unplanned pregnancy, it isn't an ideal solution, and its certainly not the only solution.

Adoption isn't a perfect answer either, and it bothers me when people present it like it's the perfect solution. I was adopted. I turned out just fine, with little to no issues about the adoption. This is mainly because of the wonderful way my parents handled telling me that I was adopted. When I was very little, they'd say "we're so glad we adopted you!" so I grew up knowing the word, and age appropriate definitions of the word, and there was never this moment of shock of finding out. however, too many people still treat adoption as if its some dark secret, and say "we'll tell them when they're old enough to understand..." and then the poor kid's sixteen or eighteen and has that conversation with his mom and dad, all of a sudden finds out that biologically, he isn't who he thought he was, and that the person who was his mother didn't want him. Kids don't focus on the circumstances and difficulties of a teen raising a child, they focus on the fact that SOMEBODY DIDN'T WANT THEM, and that does terrible things to the self esteem. Adoption is not the perfect solution. I turned out okay. I'm one of the few. I know ten or twelve others my age who were adopted, and every single one of them is screwed up in the head by it. they have self esteem issues and an overwhelming need to find their birth parents, not out of curiosity, but out of a need for validation from the person who gave them up. Me, I don't give a rats ass about finding my birth parents. I'm VERY easy to find if someone wants to find me; I'm registered on the major adoption registries and someone who knows my birthday or case number could find me in ten seconds flat, but I really don't care if they find me or not. I've already got a great family and I couldn't ask for more... but again, I'm not the norm here.

what the heck does skydiving have to do with giving blood??

most companies here are not pay-as-you-go... but, you wouldn't be able to get a regular mobile phone without good credit, which you wouldn't have. what you can do, is walk into a Verizon Wireless shop (or order online) where they sell special phones that are pay-as-you-go, and buy one of those to use. Pay-as-you-go is expensive here, though. Check with your current mobile provider. they should be able to tell you if you have coverage here.

FLORIDA! or CALIFORNIA! Florida - Disneyworld some great DZs wind tunnel (but far away from a DZ) nice beaches warm weather, but humid California - Disneyland Some great DZs (and perris has a JET!) Wind tunnel AT a DZ nice beaches warm weather, no humidity

you can rent a car from hertz (as long as you're 25) and can return it somewhere else without much of a hassle. It would be very expensive, though. consider renting an RV. The vehicle costs will be more expensive, but you don't have to pay for a place to stay, and you don't have to pay to eat out, because you'd have a kitchen. If you have to return it to the same place, start in New York (or Los Angeles), go across the northern states and see what you wish there, and on your way back, head across the southern states and back up to where you started. If you're going to do a road trip, PLEASE, make sure you spend a few days in Yellowstone Park. Its one of those places where you can take a good, hard look at the awesome power of nature, and all you can think is "WOW." Have fun!!!!!

so many people have so many different opinions on how to heal tats and piercings... listen to your artist.

I wore shoes with lots of ankle support for part of my AFF. honestly, they caused nothing but trouble. shoes with ankle support prevent you from easily bending your ankles. Although they're a bit better for landing, they SUCK for maintaining proper body position during freefall.

lol... your avatar looks NSFW!

B... but I like Quade's best!

hehe... I LIKE doing research, Lawrocket! I wouldn't be a grad student if I didn't. Plus, I want to be a lawyer, so I guess its good practice. I think what started me on this whole tangent was hearing about some instructors getting sick or hurt, and losing pay and worrying about rent because they didn't have sick time or insurance or the other benefits that come with being a full time employee. What I heard from them is that they would trade a little less pay for some better benefits when they really needed them.

I'll be thinking of him on my next skydive. Blue Skies, Jeremy.