tigra

I want a pet Hippogriff! I might have a hard time feeding it dead ferrets, but the rides would be cool!

OK, I'm adding to this. Are these really spoilers? Loved the Night Bus! Loved Buckbeak's "pondswoop" I thought Hermoine did punch out Draco in one of the books (now I'll have to go back and re-read....) but I hated him cringing like a biotch. Loved the scene where invisible Harry pulled down Draco's sidekick's pants. Loved Emma Thompson. Did not see enough of Gary Oldman as Sirius Black. And yes, I agree, the relationship between Lupin, Sirius and Snape should have been explained, as well as the significance of the map and its makers. It was this BOOK that explained Snape's obligation to Harry as well as his dislike for his father. The rift between Ron and Hermoine was a big part of the book and was barely touched on in the movie. They left a lot out but still told a good story.

The fireworks are traditionally AWESOME! Really amazing. The boogie will be a good time, and of course I'll be there! maura

Sorry to hear that, Rosa. I just got back in the air last week after I broke mine (tib/fib w/ dislocation, etc) in November. It was also during a canopy control class, the last jump of the day and I was determined to stand up my landing. But changing light and depth perception was a problem and I flared too high. Crunch!!! I think there are a few of us who managed to get "broken" during a canopy control course! Ironinc, isn't it? Anyway, I hope you heal quickly! What's the prognosis? Will you need surgery? Do you know if there's any ligament damage? Chances are the bones will heal quicker than the tendons and ligaments. That's been true in my case anyway! Best to you! maura

Chris, When my sister was in college she had a couple of serious head injuries in about the same location (on her head/brain) over a relatively short period of time. She developed "acquired epilepsy" which she managed with medication. Being a young college student, she had a hard time with the medication- remembering when to take it, IF she took it, that kind of thing. She was also a competitive springboard diver, on scholarship. When she dove from a 3 meter springboard, she'd have seizures. It didn't take long to connect the 2 and she had to stop diving. The epilepsy went away (with no need for medication) at some point after she stopped diving. 20 some years later and she's fine with no trace of epilepsy. Yes, the concern is real. In my sister's case it took more than one injury over a short period of time to cause the epilepsy. Keep in mind that even after you've been given a clean bill of health and are able to resume your normal activities, your brain will probably still be healing. It is something to consider. Skydiving for anyone is a personal choice and you have assess the risks for yourself. The other side of the argument is that you have to live your life and you can't spend the rest of it wrapped up in gauze! And yes, there are many other ways you can get a concussion. Good luck to you!

I'm really looking forward to seeing Gary Oldman as Sirius Black! And I don't see how the movie could follow the book faithfully without being at least 6 hours long! If they can get the essence of it without sacrificing too much, I think that's OK. They left a lot out of the second movie, but it was still pretty good. (I'd love to have seen more quidditch in the first 2 movies as well!) I've heard this movie is "darker" than the first 2, but the book is also darker than the first 2. Anyway, I'm sure I'll see it sometime this weekend! I'll probably have to drag my guy kicking and screaming, but he'll love it once he's there! And to add to my geeky happiness, Steven King's next installment of the Dark Tower series is coming out on Tuesday! Yeah! A movie this weekend and a good book to work on next week! Life is good!

Sounds very much like Elote which you can buy on the streets in Chicago. YUM!

I know from experience that the weekend class is intense, and even with your two dives I wouldn't recommend it. You are probably paying about $50.00 more to cram all this info into one weekend of instruction, and truthfully, you'll probably get better instruction (that will sink in more) doing it over a couple of weekends for less money. The course I took was supposed to be a 2 day course, but we ended up doing everything in one day. Like I said, it was intense. Sure it looks good on paper to get it done quickly, but.... I'm sure you're going to go that route anyway, so make sure you read and understand the course material before you arrive at class. You will be expected to know it. They'll spend very little time in the classroom, and most of that will be testing, not teaching. They should give you your book and video when you pay for the class. I do think its a good idea to get those certification dives out of the way soon after the pool and classroom training while its fresh in your mind. The quarries and lakes probably provide a more controlled environment for training dives, but you are lucky to live so close to the ocean! Have fun! One of my goals this summer is to retake the class and finally get certified. I made 2 dives in Mexico and just loved it!

I did a "weekend class" and ended up doing the classroom and pool training all in one day. I wouldn't recommend it. For me it was overload! In order to do the weekend class, you need to do all of the bookwork before you get there, and the class room part was little more than a quick review of the materials and the test. That's a lot of material to cover, but still that part was OK because I did study beforehand. Doing all the pool training in one afternoon was a little too much for me. I got through it and passed, but by the end of the day it was hard to concentrate and things I had no problems with when I first got in the pool were getting more and more difficult! That's just something to consider when you're looking at your options. I'm actually going to have to do it all over again because I never made my open water dives (I was going to do them on vacation and the plans got messed up) but this time I'll do it over several days and I'll make sure I don't put off my open water dives!

I think a koi pond is cool. I've been wanting one since I bought my house! Check with your local pet store and/or do a search online. You'll get lots of information.

Season finale of 24, of course!

Nope, I did my left one almost 6 years ago. Because it was really bothering me, I had all the hardware taken out a little over a year after I broke it. But I did jump for a full season (spring, summer fall) with it in. As far as future damage, your leg should not be any more injury prone because of the hardware, but IF you were to re-injure your leg with the hardware still there, that wouldn't be good.

The surgery in 7 weeks is probably to remove a couple of "temporary" screws they use to keep your tib and fib from separating as you heal. That's not uncommon from what I understand. Unfortuantely, I've had 2 tib/fib ankle fractures with hardware. The most recent was in November. I'm walking now, but not completely healed yet. The tendons/ligaments/ muscles are taking longer to heal than the bones. But its getting there. I've already had some hardware taken out- vertical screw in my tibia that hurt like hell when I walked on it, plus 2 "temporary" screws that went across both bones. I've still got a plate in my fib and I think I'll have it removed later this year. I'll be jumping again soon, but I'm trying not to rush it. Hope that helps! maura

How about Mooch? or Minnie the Moocher?

She's been sponging quite well from the looks of her! And I guess she's adopted you- congrats! I would definitely take her to the vet for a basic check up and shots. If she's got fleas, deal with them. She doesn't look all that badly matted from the pictures, but mats close to her skin can be really painful, so ask about that too. I've got a long haired tabby, but his coat is pretty low maintenance for a long haired cat. Rarely mats and he won't sit still to be brushed all that often. Not too many cats will actually let you bathe them, so approach that with caution if you decide its necessary! And any decent quality dry food will probably be fine! And I can honestly say my cats probably have better healthcare and a higher quality diet than me! Plus, they get to sleep all day while I'm at work earning their keep! What's up with that?? She's a beauty! I'm sure the right name will come to you as you get to know her better. Good luck!

MissImperfect, I was told you can't really tell for sure if a female is spayed without cutting her open. When I took in a stray female cat, I just waited to see if she went into heat, and she never did. That cat is so fat and healthy looking, I have a hard time believing he or she is a stray. He certainly hasn't missed many meals. Oh and Yoink, FYI, I've never known a cat who doesn't LOVE tuna, but its not supposed ot be good for them! If you're going to keep feeding your new buddy, get some dry cat food from the store. If he snubs it, that's a sure sign he's no stray!

I've got a thing about oceans and beaches. That would have been my FIRST stop when I got to Florida!

OK, I believe you. I actually usually won't watch the show. The physical stuff is cool, but I can't deal with the gross stuff like eating entrails or maggots. UGH! I can't even watch most of the time. How funny that there would be 3 sets of parent/ child combos so similar on both episodes. I think the one I saw, maybe it was a mother/ daughter pair that beat the father/ son team of jerks! And if I remember now that I think about it, the kid was a bigger jerk than his dad. I stand corrected.

Really, because I saw one where a mother/ son combo won. There was a cute father/ daughter pair that missed the final cut, and then there was a father/ son pair and the dad was 1) obviously a weekend father and b) a jerk, along with the kid. I can't believe there'd be another one just like it.

That was a repeat, right? I'm sure I saw that episode last year and I hardly ever watch that show!

Well, since the cat is friendly and in no way looks underfed, I would first try to make sure he doesn't have an owner before you start spending your own money on vets, grooming and food. Could be he's the neighborhood bum cat and everyone feeds him! But most of the suggestions here are great IF he's a stray who has adopted you! (He's beautiful, by the way!) Oh, IF he's an unfixed male, it should be pretty easy to tell. Once they're fixed, it gets a little harder to tell the boys from the girls! (Many spayed females get a little "pouch" on their bellys though!) Since you're new to the neighborhood, asking around about the cat could be a great way to meet your neighbors!

Sort of off topic, but I would NEVER call SDC a "tandem factory". Yes, they do a lot of tandems and other student jumps, and I'm sure the majority of income is from tandems, BUT the dzo(s) always make sure the "fun jumpers" are taken care of. How many other DZs dedicate at least one (sometimes 2) aircraft to fun jumpers and a second to students during peak season? That is not something a "tandem factory" would do! I personally think a tandem as the first jump is a great idea. Should it be mandatory across the board? Probably not. But every DZ has a right to decide which training program(s) to offer and focus on. If you don't like what one dz has to offer, feel free to go somewhere else.

He he! At least I learned a lesson! I even got into it with the newspaper. They offered me a cheap subscription and kept trying to insist I sign up for auto debit or give them a credit card over the phone. Of course I refused, told them I just wanted them to bill me, I had my own way of paying bills. But they didn't want to take no for an answer. I kept saying, why don't you just send me a bill? If you won't bill me then I don't want the paper! They kept transferring me to other people, still trying to pry that card number from me! They had me on the phone with at least 3 different people before they agreed to send me an actual "bill". All that thanks to Ballys!

Ballys did the same thing to me! I joined back when they were Chicago Health Club, I was young(er) and stupid and I put my 3 year membership on a credit card and believed what they told me instead of reading the fine print on my contract. (What they told me would be my ANNUAL dues after the first 3 years were in fact my MONTHLY dues! They totally lied to me, but it was still my fault for not actually reading the contract!) And, while the old Chicago Health Clubs were pretty much full service health clubs with pools, saunas, etc, the new Ballys "Fitness Centers" are pretty stripped down. The ONLY reason I stay with them is that my annual fee isn't all that much (although quite a it more than what I was told it would be), cheaper than anything else I can get, and I paid so much for the damn membership already! (Oh, and after 3 years they started debiting my checking account. I had a fit and ended up closing the account! Now I pay annual dues by check, and I will never again sign another auto debit authorizion for anything!)

If they're having a membership drive OR trying to drum up business for their trainers, they should offer something even for existing members. It seems to me that Ballys has "specials" from time to time, and judging from how empty my club has been lately, they're just about due for another one. (In January, you couldn't park or get on any machines!) Of course, they will then use high pressure sales tactics to try and get you to sign a 3 year contract and agree to monthly debits form your checking account! Ballys is EVIL!