Yogi, your golden's eating habits sound an awful lot like my older dog's. He's a six-year-old pitbull/border collie mix, and he will not eat unless someone is downstairs with him. He adores my father so much, that after a visit to my parents' place or after they visit us, he won't eat for two days and acts depressed. My younger dog, a three-month-old husky, is the exact opposite. It's always the perfect time for him to eat - and it doesn't matter what there is to eat. He'll eat it.

Aussie, my brother is 8 years older than me (my mom also had 2 miscarriages), and we have always had an incredibly close relationship because of the age difference - there was no real sibling rivalry. Sometimes I refer to him as my third parent. When Mr. Psyche and I decide to have human children, I really want to space them out (around 5 years) because it was so nice for my brother and I.

As for what I'm like...well, I'm a 5'2" Asian Indian with medium length wavy hair, and I talk with a mixed Louisiana/Texas accent that makes me sound a little like an airhead. I'm 25, but usually get mistaken for late high school age. I'm not big into makeup or hair, so usually my hair is in a ponytail and I rarely wear anything more than moisturizer. Mr. Psyche and I have been married for 4 and a half years and live in a house outside of Dallas with our already described fur babies.

Wow, my friends, it's so nice to get to know you a little bit more. Living by the lake (bliss), so close to Bloomingdales (yeah!), near the fun of Boston (wow), etc and I got it wrong for nearly everyone when I imagined what they look like. But hey, you all look even better than in my mind!

Me? I'm 162 cms (that's about 5 foot 3 inches) with long straight hair and would love some of Caltrask's curls. We live in the outer suburbs of Brisbane, only a 10 minute drive to get right out of suburbia and into a bit of country with a few (smallish) mountains, horses, cows etc. We are currently renting a 4 bedroom house, the house is nice, but on a small block of land, and we are surrounded by other houses. A very small yard, which is such a shame. Most blocks these days are small, and kids don't have anywhere to run around, like I had when growing up. We would like to move to the area I described above, one day soon hopefully we'll be able to afford it.

Psyche yes, I can see there are many benefits to such an age gap. Our older child is so good with the younger one, and yearned for many years for a sibling. He went through the whole pregnancy with me, looking at books, feeling the kicks etc. He was ecstatic when I had the baby. So sweet.

When you say Asian Indian, what part? My mother is from Sri Lanka, (father Irish), and I was born there, and lived there till we came to Australia when I was 5.

AussieGirl, you're right about stereotypes. I always figure the Aussies on the board are tall, athletic, holding a surfboard & tan.

I'm actually a whooping 5'5, have short dirty blonde (that is getting darker each year - Romeo has been highlighting twice a year to keep me happy) that I wear big & funky (since I never got it big in the late 80s) but in the morning I look like a member of the Strokes or current Bon Jovi. I've got a big butt & I cannot lie and am prone to black, vintagey/funky teeshirts and when the weather is better knee length skirts with either knee-high boots or flip flops depending on the weather. Also, hoodies. I am lacking in the funds to be as fierce as I want but I do my best.

Like Yogi, I live in NYC in Greenwich Village - like 2 blocks from official "West Village" - in the tiniest apartment in the world. Trust me. No one believes until they see it. I live with one of my friends who I know from DC (we moved up here together). Only pets of late were a bad case of roaches last year during construction. And it's terrible, but I live in my dream neighborhood and the thought of moving anytime soon makes me cry. It's charming & accessible & safe & near bars, cheese stores, Italian meat markets, bakeries & everything.

caltrask, I have the exact same kind of hair as you do (except the red part's only in natural highlights), and it's very coarse and heavy. When I wasn't blow drying it straight, I was hiding it from the world in a big ol' ponytail. My neighbor got tired of me bitching about it, and gave me a copy of "Curly Girl" by Deborah Massey last year for Xmas. I also started going to an African-American stylist who was trained in the Aveda system - in short, he prides himself on being able to cut any hair and cut it well. He knows exactly how to cut wavy and curly hair, and what to use to keep it in good shape. Both things changed my routine - I have a few more things in my medicine cabinet, but overall I spend lots less time on my hair and next to no time bitching about it. I loaned it to my co-worker, and she stopped trying to straighten her hair, and now wears it down in pretty waves.

suctionprints, you are a frickin' jewel. I just orderd that book from Amazon thanks to you. I bow down to you!!!

skagirl I guess with your tiny apartment it's a case of location, location, location. Like you said, so close to everything you might want to do. That's what I really liked about Chicago when I lived there, whatever you wanted to do, or eat, no matter what time it was, you could. Here, there aren't even that many good restaurants within a half hour drive. Like I said upthread, nothing beats the food in the USA. It's worth the plane fare just to know that at the end of the journey I can tuck into my favourite food.

One more day....ASS and Peachy in the chopper are on tomorrow.

All of you ladies sound beautiful. Except, I think I saw pictures of yogi and skagirl from TARcon and their descriptions do them no justice.

caltrask, I have curly hair and Back to Basics Raspberry and Almond shampoo and conditioner has totally saved it this winter. I had crunchy hair from dying it light blond so many years and it actually feels like silky hair now. And it no longer appears fuzz-ball esque.

I have dark brown hair now thanks to hair dye and grey eyes. I'm 5'6" to 5'7" depending on how good my posture is. Right now I feel very pale because I used to be a committed tanner. I'm part Native American but I don't think I look it. I do have reddish skin and a big nose.

I'm very jealous of Australians right now, the helicopter has definitely been the hottest moment yet of All-Stars.

Can't quite understand that Hoola, nothing to be jealous of - we finally get to see the show tomorrow night, but you guys have had the opportunity to tape it and watch that scene to your heart's content! LOL.

This is fun! I also live near Boston, although I'm about 20 minutes west. I grew up in Northern Massachusetts and miss it dreadfully. This metrowest nonsense is just that.
At any rate, like draadje, I live in a little house on the shores of a lake. In fact, we were just out skating today, it was lovely. I have two kids, 2 and 4, who are generally acceptable when not wanting to make me hurl china at them. I'm 5'6" and although not from Australia I do have long legs. I also have that unfortunate kind of curly hair. It's not fish or fowl, and it's very annoying. It used to be far curlier than it is now, I don't know the deal there. I blame age. I also have two furry kids of the feline extraction. Must have a cat around.

Hey Hildy, lucky you! Skating on the lake sounds just wonderful. My dream is to live near water, either a lake or beach. One of the happiest years of my life was spent living right on the beach in a beautiful apartment. Glorious sunrises, and I think there is nothing more beautiful than moonlight on the ocean.

I've been told I have long legs, but being only about 5' 2" I reckon that's not quite the case.

skagirl - tall, athletic, holding a surfboard and tanned, I wish, but at least the last one is right! I have an all year round tan, courtesy of my Sri Lanka mother. But my two children are so fair skinned people don't believe they're mine and ask me if they're adopted.

Re Massachusetts, I spent a few days in Springfield MASS, it was a gorgeous place. Yet another part of your wonderful country. I really love the US, as you may have guessed, not just the food. The people are wonderful and very welcoming. Being a world traveller, I really thought the US has the best to offer in nearly everything. But Australia has the best beaches!

This is where I feel like a total loon, because you're the hundreth person to tell me that, but I swear the only options I have under Board Settings have absolutely nothing to do with that. I've got Posts/Topics per Page, Pop-Up Notifications, blah blah -- it's all Yes/No things, except for the per page, which doesn't effect type size in any way. I have nothing anywhere under any possible control/assistant/setting/prefrences, blah blah that lets me adjust anything at all along those lines. (So how on earth am I getting a different "My Controls" page from everybody else on the boards??)

I hate feeling like such a board idiot, when I've been around for so many years, lol!

My TWoP habits seem so backwards from everyone else. Everyone else gets to chat during the weekend and at night, when I am computer (well, internet)-free. I have to wait until I get to work and be thankful that I both read and type fairly quickly as I ingest my first cups of coffee.

Ahhh, caffeine and TWoP in the morning. :-)

Definitely a better morning starter than an email I got out of the blue from an old friend from back in my college days (all, what? 3 years ago?). Nice, chatty email with a few throwaway lines at the end updating on folks we knew. Including the one that ended "He got married a while back".

Ouch.

I love curly hair. I used to get my hair permed to make it look all tight curly. A woman with fine blonde hair does not easily become a woman with beautiful, rich chocolate curls. When I moved to Paris, Olivia took one look at my hair and proclaimed that it was "catistrophe!" She said, "I can do something with it, but not much." I don't know why, but people who speak that frankly to me make me laugh. She was sincerely horrified. I ended up going to her for years, and we became quite close. Eventually, she was able to eradicate all the inappropriate and unsuitable curls from my hair and bring back its natural good health. When I saw the then Fiance Yogi, he told me that he had always thought I had just very bad hair. He was very pleased that I was no longer paying money to have it look all burned and dried out in a misdirected effort to be curly. Now my hair is just shoulder length and naturally wavy so that most days I wash it and go out with wet hair. It usually dries on the way to work. I do blow it dry, though if I'm going to be seeing one of my fashionable friends. I can clean up if I need to!

So I am actually envious of all you curly girls with thick dark chocolate locks of hair! That's my idea of real beauty. And I love that the tallest one among us is 5'6". How does it feel to tower over all us little people, Hildy?

Last night, Yes, Sunday night, at the dinner table, Little Yogi inquired as to when he would be allowed to start purchasing porn. Doesn't he realize he is supposed to steal money from my purse to do that with a gang of his friends. Sheesh. Nothing in my life had prepared me for that question. I'm progressive, and I guess that most young men look at porn, but for Heaven's sake, I'm quite certain that there are very few cases of the mother giving permission for this. Ugh.


ETA: And, oh karatekate, Ouch indeed. Yikes.

Well, good! You flatter me. Let me know how it works out for you, cal!

Lol, yogi!That's a moment that won't make it into an Art Linklater show any time soon. Shouldn't he also purloin any racy books or magazines of his parents and hide them in his room? There's a great tradition of offspring hiding their parents' Playboys under the mattress.

Actually, I'm a Felliniesque five-eight-and-a-half (cue Nino Rota music).

I believe I am aware of this tradition, but unfortunately, we are not able to provide porn for Little Yogi as we don't have any. I realize this makes me look bad, but I've always objected to porn. It distresses me to think of all the people who are exploited in the making of it. I know, there are plenty of porn stars who make a lot of money, but I can never get beyond the stories of young women who do it when they feel they have little other option. Mr. Yogi and I had a huge fight about strippers during his bachelor party. I have toned down with age, but I still just can't enjoy the whole thing on principle. Isn't that obnoxious? Do you think I should plant some porn for Little Yogi to steal?

This is the problem with being an open minded parent and allowing your child to discuss anything with you. You end up with a child openly discussing sex with you. What good can come of this?!?

And wow, suctionprints, curly hair and five eight? You've been blessed!

No, in no way does this belief make you look bad. Your absolutely correct that while a few might make a ton of money off of it (Jenna Jameson, Seymore Butts, etc.) it's highly exploitive and can be very violent, scary & manipulative.

As for Lil Yogi, I remember you mentioning how puberty was a little tougher for him, and I think kids today are exposed to so much more that heck, I didn't know the word "porn" at that age. It may be more a picture of a lady then actual porn.

Like suctionprints, I'm 5' 8 1/2" without shoes. I'm big as well as tall, large-framed and too fat at the moment. Long straight hair, reddish-blonde, starting to go gray at the temples.

I live in a lovely neighborhood of Minneapolis, in walking distance to two lakes. I live with my partner, MrBee, and an orange tabby cat, Sierra. Sierra graciously allows us to pay the rent on the apartment and buy food and cat treats in exchange for her presence in our lives. It's a fair arrangement.

AussieGirl, my family is originally from Gujarat, but both of my parents grew up in Mumbai. I've been back a few times, but am pretty sure (and yes, i am a little sad about this) that once my parents pass away, I will lose all contact/ties with India. Mr. Psyche is extremely white, so I often worry that people will think that my children (when I eventually have them) are not actually mine. But, then again, since they will actually have pigment, people might think they're not Mr. Psyche's either.

Yogi little Yogi is asking about porn? Yikes! Maybe you should just give him the Victoria's Secret catalog and let he and his friends figure out how to get the Playboys...

I think you are right, skagirl. He's interested in looking at some of the comic books labeled for Mature. We were discussing that when he asked what pornography is. We told him that it was pictures of two people having sex. Little Yogi thinks having sex sounds very nice from our discussions. After the big "talk" he suggested that Mr. Yogi and I have lots of it, because it sounds like a good thing. So when we told him that pornography was pictures of people having sex, he said, "Wow, I would like to see some pornography!"

(I share this with you so that you know to let your children learn about sex on the street the way we did as children so that you can avoid having heart attacks when they ask to see the nice pornography pictures of the nice people having sex.)

He's actually a very innocent little guy who thinks the body is fascinating and isn't very self-conscious about discussing it. Adolescence has left him with lots of questions. Ugh. I think a little healthy repression is in order here!

And also, I want to live near a lake!!! Y'all are so lucky!

Yogi, I didn't learn about sex on the street or from friends - when I was three, I asked my dad where babies came from and he came me a watered down explanation of a man having a penis, woman having a vagina, etc... No birds or bees for me! When I got to elementary school, I was the only one of my friends who had been given the straight answer as to babies, so I proceeded to corrupt all of them. When one of friends didn't believe me, I was such a nerd, I actually pulled out the encyclopedia and turned to the entry for "sex" and let her read it. So here's a word to the wise - forget parental controls on the tv and internet...it's encyclopedia usage that you need to limit!!

Yogi I suggest the book Changing Bodies, Changing Lives, which is by the Our Bodies, Ourselves people. It gives adolesents all the information they need, plus more, and has recently been updated. I still have my copy from when I was in Junior High.

And I am now 35, living in north central Maryland. I was born in Boston, raised in Maine, where we had our own pond for skating and swimming. I am well over 5 feet tall (but not tall enough to say 5'1), with blue eyes and long hair that is blond at the ends, but no so much up top. I was very blond as a child, and I still go blond in the sun. I may break down and color is some day, but I am not there yet. Although there is one bathroom at work where the lighting is such that my few gray years glow. So maybe I will color sooner rather then later. I have traveled lots, and have lived overseas. Now I am married, have a house and a mortage, and feel like I will never travel again.

Psyche, Mr Aussie is quite fair too, but with my tanned complexion I really expected to have babies with at least some of my colouring, but they are extremely fair skinned. It's very strange, as my sister, who is married to a whiter than white Englishman, has a son who is quite dark. And my first son had almost black eyes, but the second had blue eyes for months, now they're green/brown. And of course neither of them look anything like me.

Yogi I think you are handling the whole issue of your son's curiosity very well. Good for you. My parents told me nothing, and as a result I was informed, sometimes incorrectly, at school by friends. We have always been very open with information for our older boy, though I think he obviously feels more comfortable discussing stuff with his dad. As for pictures, well I really don't know what I would do there. A lot would depend on his age and maturity.

JDG I know exactly what you mean! For someone who used to work for 6 months, then take off around the world for 6 months, it's hard to not be able to do that anymore. Do you have kids?

Hey everybody - it's finally Tuesday Feb 10. (Well it is here, anyway). Survivor day is finally upon us! ASS is on tonight and I can't wait. I have made arrangements for a simple dinner, and have instructed Mr Aussie that I an unavailable for phone calls or whatever during that time. It's been a bloody long time to wait!

Thanks for the excellent suggestion JDG. That book sounds like exactly what we need around this house. I really appreciate it.

The things that get solved in the Meet Market - curly hair concerns and the challenges of raising and adolescent boy - you put your questions out here and you get your answers. Hurray for youse guys - you're fantastic!!!

I bought a fabulous pink purse today. Seriously, it's fabulous. Plus, I don't have to pay for it until March. Plus, I bought it for wholesale. And that? Is a good thing. Though I won't get it until March. But that's OK. It will arrive just in time for a Pink Spring!

ETA: Hurray, Aussie Girl finally got to see Survivor!!!

At last! Now I won't be the only (freckled) white girl in the black hair products section! I have thick, coarse, curly red hair, and I've had great help from the A-A products. But I do get tired of saying to checkers, "Yes, I know this is an African-American product...."

No, Yogi, I haven't seen it yet. 5 more hours to go!

You sure do like the colour pink, Yogi! Each time I see something in the shops in that colour, it reminds me of you, lol.

Hee. I used to do that too. Except - I never quite grokked the part where slot A fits into tab B, if you get my drift. So here I am, knowing 99% of the picture, somehow figuring that Mommy laid her egg somewhere, and Daddy swam over it and fertilized it (I was big into fish reproduction in those days). Or they went into some sort of sleep trance or something. Imagine my horror when a friend told me the details. "No...no, that can't be. My parents DON'T DO THAT!" This, of course, was in fifth grade after my fourth sister was born. Man, JDG I coulda used that book back then!

All this talk reminds me of the classic Hank Kingsley quote from "The Larry Sanders Show" (and forgive me if I remember it wrong): "Sex is a beautiful experience shared between two or more consenting adults". It's funnier, of course, coming from Jeffrey Tambor's mouth.

When I went to my stylist the first time, the receptionist's voice at the end of the line asked me if I had black or white hair, and I ended up saying "Um, both? I'm Caucasian with wavy hair, but I can't wash it all that much, and if I'm not careful it turns into a giant, matted dreadlock?" My stylist threw up his hands at that - he'd been trying to teach his receptionists to ask "Straight, textured or curly?" for years.

Yes, Changing Bodies, Changing Lives has a lot of great info for young teens. I taught sex ed for a year, and I let then ask anonymous questions, and it was great for getting answers to questions I had never really thought about (like why we have pubic hair). I grew up in a very liberal family, and loved to read. On our bookshelves we had the Joy of Sex, and several other enlighting books that I checked out at a young age. On my 18th birthday my mom gave me Our Bodies, Ourselves and suggested I go to planned parenthood.

I think that your reaction was pretty normal, suctionprints. I'm wondering if I may be doing something wrong because Little Yogi thinks sex sounds like such a nice thing and something his parents should enjoy doing together. On the other hand, sex is a nice thing and something his parents should be doing together, if only he would give us a few moments of privacy!

I definitely need that book, JDG. I'm having it overnighted from Amazon. It's an emergency situation, I think.



"It's my signature color!" [tm Julia Roberts in Steel Magnolias[/]

I do love the color pink. I had to choose between a pair of vintage pink sunglasses, a pink necklace with white coral, pink and coral earrings, and the pink bag the other day when I was shopping. Decisions, Decisions. Maybe I should have gone with the sunglasses - then everything would have been pink!

But as I recall, Miss Suctionprints has an entire room decorated in the color pink, so she may actually trump me in the pink department.

Yogi, I hope my recommendation does is justice, if you are getting it overnighted. I don't remember if it actually has pictures of people having sex. Sketches maybe. I know that the Unitarian sunday school sex ed class uses the book, and I think they use sketches, because it is hard to draw the line between tasteful photos and porn.

Oh, JDG, I really don't think Little Yogi wants to look at porn. I think he wants to understand what's going on with his body and with everyone else around him. The book sounds just perfect for that. I actually usually have things air delivered from Amazon. I'm impatient about books. I just can't seem to wait for them.

I was really kidding a bit about this. Mr. Yogi and I have been laughing together about Little Yogi's request, though not in front of him. Remember that Little Yogi has some serious language issues, so sometimes he says things that are sort of outrageous, because he doesn't really understand the nuances and subtleties.

The Hudson River is completely melted, the sun is shining, and I'm not wearing a sweater. It's a good day!!!

I hope Aussie Girl enjoyed Survivor last night.

It is a good day - it's amazing how fast that Hudson River ice melted - there was tons the weekend before last - almost frozen across.

I'm another short (I say 5'2" but that's rounding up) curly brown haired member here. I guess my hair is more wavy, but it depends on the humidity content of the air. The days that many people term 'bad hair days' are glorious for me. The higher the humidity, the curlier my hair gets. I do not fuss with it at all - shower in the morning and air dry. When it's a misty rainy day, my hair looks amazing and I get all kinds of compliments. When it's freezing cold, dry and staticy inside because of the office heat, I'm not happy with the result.

I used to want straight blonde hair when I was growing up. I know people always say you want what you don't have, but I blame the Brady girls (especially Marcia) for this one. I've made my peace with it now.

IMissEthan, do you use something special in your hair so it doesn't frizz in the humidity? That's my biggest problem...frizz. I'm leaving for Orlando, FL in four days (yeah! vacation!) and I know my hair is going to hate me when I get back.

Hi all of you curly-heads! I am more like Yogi with fine blonde hair. When I finally cut about 10 inches off it actually had style. I am trying to grow it a bit for the upcoming w(adding). I am 5'6" and athletic. I look pretty young actually though I try to have a professional look. Right now I live in an apartment in the suburbs of Princeton. It is quite nice and I love being near things (Route 1).

Just got back from Washington with a ton of kids. It was a great trip with no problems at all! I really love D.C. Our group did not win much, but we ran into the man who ran the Harvard conference for the last two years and he told us that the moderators highly favor returnees and that many schools bring gifts and food! Just like Washington I guess...we only brought ourselves. I do think the trip may have cured the fiancé of wanting children (good).

Well, Mr. Psyche, myself, and the two furbabies are definitely moving to Richmond. He starts his new job at the beginning of March, so we are starting to panic about getting the house fixed up to sell. The furbabies of course are oblivious to all of the impending change. Karatekate is the area around Chesterfield nice?

yogi, I love all your stories about little yogi. He sounds like he's a very sweet and amusing young boy. I babysit for an old professor of mine and her son is 12 and he is always trying to watch the fuzzy channels and I notice that he's noticed that I'm a female.

I remember reading the Joy of Sex at a friend's house when I was around 12. I was a very late developer and I couldn't believe that people had so much pubic hair. I also thought it was written by the same lady who wrote Joy of Cooking and I always laughed when my dad was using a recipe from the book.

I think books like these are a better choice for kids that most porn, because I think that most pornography sets up very unrealistic expectations of what people look like. I also remember that my neighborhood had a huge Playboy ring because my neighbor had like 300 stored in his attic that he forgot about and they found their way into the hands of most of the kids.

That is absolutely hilarious, Hoola! I can't help but picture your precocious little self snickering whenever your father got out the recipe for beef stew!

Though I don't have the dark curly hair, Cal, I can recommend a good product for the frizzies. Fredrick Fekkai makes a wonderful anti-frizzy hair moisturizer called smooth hair. It has a lovely consistency, very light, yet it adds lots of moisture and manageablity. My hair can get little frizzies too!

Yikes, Psyche! Are you moving with Mr. Psyche on the first of March, or are you staying behind to sell the house? Sending you good thoughts for an easy move...

Are you looking out your window at the Hudson River as well, ImissEthan? In what part of NYC do you hang your hat? My office is above Carnegie Hall, so I am watching the sun set on New Jersey as we "speak."

This is the best Meet Market ever! Thank you so much yogi! I'll let you know how it works for me!

Hi everyone! Please be gentle with me, I'm a newbie, I've only posted on the internet twice before in my life! I just wanted to say how much I've enjoyed reading your posts, you all seem like such nice people.
I have a 20 year old daughter and an 18 year old son, and hearing about your little ones brings back many happy memories (and quite a few laughs!!)
I can't wait to hear what AussieGirl thinks of this week's Survivor!

Hoola I thought the same thing about the "Joy of" books. Eeewww. All I remember about learning about sex was some human sexuality classes in fifth grade (at Catholic grade school, no less! And it wasn't fire & brimstone, was all "your body is a temple"), the girl who got felt up & told us all about it in 6th grade, and catching my parents around age 4 or 5 in one mound on bed while I wanted to watch cartoons & play with Malibu Barbie on their floor one Saturday. I'm certain I learned other stuff...my mom's a nurse so we also didn't use fake words for the funny parts either (now that's all I do use), and they were sort of children of the sixties so there wasn't "AHHH! Naked!!!" if we saw one another up to a certain age.

And welcome BirdLady!

First off, beginning of March? Yikes! That's moving quick!

OK, (A) Chesterfield is huge. It's basically everything between Petersburg and Richmond, and for just miles and miles and miles to the west. Huge. Is there a specific part of Chesterfield you're looking at?
(B) Kate'sBoy just bought a house in Chester this summer. We both work in the city. It's about a half hour drive, about 15-20 on I-95. If you're more west of I-95 there are a lot of toll bridges and roads leading into the city that are more congested.
© Greater Richmond is basically Richmond City, Henrico County(NorthEast), and Chesterfield County (SouthWest). Henrico is suburb-y, in a made in the 50s sort of way (at least where I live). Chesterfield is suburb-y in the made in the 70s sort of way. Chesterfield is cheaper to buy. K'sB's house is 2000+sq ft colonial on an acre for $140K; houses in my area are half-acre with small rooms 1300~sq ft. for $150K+
(D)Our feelings: we like Chesterfield. It's a good place for kids (furbabies included :-) ), it's halfway to Petersburg (change of scenery is nice sometimes) but close enough to Richmond that our church is in Richmond.
(E)Unless your company is paying for it, NEVER fly in/out of RIC. Seriously, at least $150 more on every flight than Dulles, Reagan, or RTP (in NC). And it's tiny.

But, seriously, is there a specific part of Chesterfield on which you are centering?

Welcome birdlady!



My parents were pretty honest when I was young and then clammed up around puberty time. I also had two younger brothers who loved running around the house naked so I was too aware of bodily differences. There was a communication blackout from the time I was 13 until my senior year in HS when I guess my parents figured out that I may be having sex because I'd had boyfriends for the past four years. Thank goodness for slumber parties and my more mature friends. And actually, I'm very glad that I got the basics and safety reminders from parents and teachers and not any of the more detailed info.

There are (rare) times when I HATE the Boston area, and this is one. A 2,000 Sq ft colonial on an acre of land in my general area (Metrowest, which is the suburbs to the west of Boston) would cost at least $700,000 and probably more. Arrrgh. The only reason we have a house at all is b/c we fell into it out of sheer dumb luck.

As for sex education, well, my mother sat me down in about fifth or sixth grade and gave me a very practical, reasonable explanation of the birds and the bees. I still remember it, and I'm still impressed that she did it. She didn't seem embarrassed at all, just telling me the facts. As an Everwood watcher, I find this discussion fascinating in light of last night's episode, which was all about teen sex. What is it that makes us just clam up about such stuff right when we need to be squashing down our mortification and forging ahead? I think Yogi definitely has the right idea.

ETA: Welcome, Birdlady! For some reason, your name gets that Grateful Dead tune, "birdsongs" stuck in my head. (I think that's the name. It's been a long time since I followed the Dead.)

Hey birdlady! You are most welcome. I hope this is the third of many posts. I must say, I love your name. I kind of makes me think of Alkatraz, and maybe parrots? Either way, it's very evocative!

Look at you, Cal, industriously finding the link to the hair lotion! I do believe it is good stuff, and I hope it works for you. And Florida, you lucky girl. If you're going to Disney World, I highly recommend the Princess Line of products. They have lots of cute stuff in.... PINK!

Thanks for the vote of confidence, Hildy. I need all the support I can get during this little excursion into male adolescence. I always tell Little Yogi the truth, though not necessarily the whole truth, still the truth about everything. This was a real challenge when it came time to talk about his special needs. But the sex thing - yikes. My mom gave me child-friendly sex explanation books. She also said to me that "Sex is a lot of fun. You're going to want to do it." Though I always appreciated her candor, and I heartily agree, maybe passing that on to my adolescent boy was not well advised? Heh.

Where is Aussie Girl??? Could she have been disappointed with the first ASS? Even with Peachy in the helecopter looking so.... sweet, juicy, and delicious?

Yes, we are going to Disney. We try and go every year but we missed last year so I'm very excited. My family has timeshare about 5 minutes outside of Disney. It's a beautiful resort and I plan on spending most of my days by the pool reading a book. It seems like every vacation I go on, I need another vacation by the time I get back! So I vow to really relax this time around. I already informed my husband that I'm only doing 1 park this year. If he wants to do anymore, he can bring my 12 year old niece with him (It's a family trip). Plus, we are driving there and It's a long trip. We are leaving early Friday morning and will probably arrive sometime Saturday afternoon. Then we will have six full days until we have to drive back. It's hectic but worth it.

*waves to birdlady* Welcome! It's a very friendly bunch here! I'm sure you'll fit right in!

Sweet, juicy, delicious Peachy in a helicopter makes AussieGirl go "mmmm......". You were all certainly right about that, now I know what you were all raving about. Definitely the highlight of the show! God, that man is just gorgeous! Not sure yet about the opening music, it doesn't seem to have the same "impact" that the Pearl Islands opening music had, but it may just take some getting used to. I know most of the characters, but some of them I have no idea about, as I only really started watching from halfway thru S2 and we never got S4 here. So I'm getting to know the new ones. I had such excitement about the show I was literally jumping for joy when it started. My 11 year old son joined in and cudded me and we watched together. I've converted him (though I'm sure Mr Aussie would say influencing someone to watch Survivor would be more like corrupting him!). The good news is..... next week we get 2 episodes, one on Tuesday, another on Thursday, so it's like Christmas has come again! And of course then we'll only be just one week behind you all.

Hi birdlady and welcome. Please make yourself right at home, and help yourself to one of Yogi's cookies - she makes the best in the world. You're right, there is a great group of wonderful people here, they've all become friends. Where are you from? And don't worry about being a newbie, I was too, till I started posting here in December, and I still don't know how to do certain things, like quote people etc. Nice to have you on board!

Hoola your story of the Joy of Sex and the Joy of Cooking had me in stitches!!!

Well, in Henrico Co suburbs of Richmond as you go towards the river the same house and land would cost *easily* $1.5M. Easily. And Richmond can't possibly be as cool as Boston. They don't have the cool accent, even :-)

Hey, I guess Assten went to Catholic school!

Seeing those house prices in Virginia makes me want to cry. In my Minneapolis neighborhood, a very modest (~1,000 sq ft) house on a small lot generally goes for about $225,000.

Welcome birdlady!

Anyone else watch the Westminster Dog Show? The Newfie won, yay!

I saw the newfie on the news this morning. What a beautiful, beautiful creature! Isn't it nice to see a big dog win? I love that he was barking in celebration along with all the applause. What a sweetie. I want another dog!

Now, y'all, don't get me started on real estate in NYC - you folks with grass and trees, and gasp ponds and lakes have got it made in the shade.

What a great vacation, Cal. I've done the drive south many times, and I actually enjoy it. You get to eat all the "road food" like fritos and cinnabuns that you would never eat in your daily life. My yearly trip to Vermont is the only time of the year I eat fast food. Did you know that McDonalds and Burger King have veggie burgers (sometimes)? I was most pleased to find that out. The best fast food in the highway rest stops is in Maryland. I don't know why. Folks in Maryland must like to eat. We always stop in Maryland. I insist.

Hurray, Aussie Girl finally saw Chopper Peachy in action. And it was good!

What a gorgeous day!!! I walked to work, and the pond in Central Park is still frozen solid, but the sun is shining, and we are well into the 40s today. Do you think spring is here?

Ah, I've been meaning to ask the NYC peeps if they get more on the news and such about Westminster. I don't have cable, so I can't even watch. Boo!
I love Newfoundlands, tho. My neighbor bred them when I was a kid, and they are such sweet, goofy lovable dogs. Sadly, they also drool a lot. What category do Newfies show in--working dogs? Hunting dogs? Enquiring minds, etc etc.

And I went skating today! It was so lovely that I said the hell with work and ran out for a quick 20 minute workout. I had the pond to myself, a fine, wild thing indeed. I love my open spaces.

Can I just say that my mental-pictures (vague as they may be) never get it right? Just reading these descriptions makes me realize how height-centric I am. I assume everyone is tall until proven short.

I am 5'6¼" barefoot, but at least 5'9" in any pair of shoes because I hate being so short. People tell me that's not short, but everyone in my family is 5'10" (both parents) or taller (brothers are both 6'). Funnily enough, every man in my life to this point has been 5'6" to 5'8", so I felt silly with heels on, but Kate'sBoy towers over me in even my tallest of shoes (they make me 6' even, y'all, and they are comfortable and cute!!) at 6'3".

I was born a blonde, and stayed that way til age 4, when my hair went from baby fine blond to heavy, wavy brown. I wore it long after a traumatizing haircut at age 5 until I went to college, when I "chopped it all off" to just below the shoulder. Now my hair fluffs shapelessly around my shoulders, though K'sB is seriously wanting the high school long hair (hey, let HIM wash, dry, and support 3 feet of hair, that's what I say).

I like my hair when it is blow dried straight and flat with ends curled under - the kinda sleek look -but other than that it drives me crazy with its blah-ness. And it can't hold curls for more than 15 minutes, no matter what! If you are going to have naturally wavy hair, shouldn't it hold curl? Otherwise, what's the point?