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I've been away for a while due to a serious illness and subsequent health issues. Favourite quotes of the moment:
The children of Israel wandered the desert for 40 years - Even in biblical times men wouldn't ask for directions!
Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. whatever we do to the thread, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect. - Chief Seattle.
We spend the first 12 months of a child's life teaching them to walk and talk. We spend the next 12 years telling them to sit down and shut up!
As you slide down the bannisters of life, may the splinters never be pointing the wrong way.
May you be in Heaven half an hour before the devil knows you're dead.
I've been very happily married since August 1980 to a wonderful man and have beautiful twin girls, now aged 31. Both are married to wonderful young men and one of our girls has recently made us grandparents to a beautiful, smart and feisty granddaughter. I studied geology with the Open University. I am retired from being a manager in a large UK based insurance company which I actually quite enjoyed. (How sad is that?). I love anything to do with the environment and wildlife and try to do my bit for preservation and conservation. I would like there to be a decent world for our grandchildren to inherit. I also have CFS so find life a bit of a challenge at times but always hope for better health in the future.
I have a deep interest in the spiritual and the paranormal worlds, having experienced several incidents myself, and have been involved in meditation groups and groups that (safely) explore the paranormal. There is more to this life than we would normally credit, so an open mind is always the best option. You're not so likely to get caught by surprise!
I have a deep fascination for anything to do with Ancient Egypt, as you can probably tell by my name. I have statues and paintings all around the house. As my hubby has a similar interest in Native Americans, we tend to have a lot of unusual wall decorations, like a tomahawk.
I love cars, especially vintage ones, but my all time favourite has to be the Bugatti Chiron, what a car!
I have had a lot to do with animals over the years. I have fostered many, helped to set up a wildlife charitable hospital and raised a diverse range of young animals from bats to fox cubs and different species of birds, even a baby deer! I have had great pleasure in sharing my life and home with a number of animals over the years, most of them rescues. I am currently sponsoring an Amur Tiger, they are such beautiful cats and desperately need help, there are so few of them left. I was lucky enough a couple of years ago to meet some Aye-Aye's and Livingstone's Bats, a truly wonderful experience. We now have three cats, Oliver and Mollie, a brother and sister, he's a ginger and she's a tortoiseshell and a black and white called Daisy. She arrived in a taxi and was left on our doorstep in a cat carrier with the message that 'they knew we loved cats and would be good to her'. She has settled down well and gets on wonderfully with the other two.
If you have a pet that is showing ANY signs of illness or distress, please, please, please take it to a vet! Even if finance is an issue, work that out later. It is cruel to leave an animal suffering for any reason. Most animals do not show signs of illness until they have been ill for some time, basic instinct tells them it is a display of vulnerability, and certain death in the wild. Their instincts have not caught up with domesticity.
I do feel that we should all treat others as we would wish to be treated. Bad karma comes back to haunt us.
advice
Hello my animal lover companion! LOL.
I read your advice column and it seems you know a lot about animals.
I needed to ask you a question.
My cat, (about 8 yrs.), has been drinking water. He never has before, though-he only drank milk & gravy from his food. Do you think something's wrong with him? He also has been a bit more lazy usually.
Please answer back asap.
Thank you, I have loved animals all my life and couldn't imagine being without them.
I will need a bit more information.
Does he look thinner around his haunches than he used to?
How much water is he drinking?
How much milk, what type of milk and for long has he been drinking it?
Check his coat, does it look odd? Clumpy, 'starry', etc.
Is he eating as normal?
Do you have him on a senior diet?
Let me know asap and I'll answer the best I can.
i played badminton once
in gym and really liked it
theres no school team here though
is it an official sport?
I guess you could say it's an official sport - they play it in the Olympics. It was played in ancient Greece and Eygpt and was originally called battledore or shuttlecock. It ws also called Poona in India, and only got the name Badminton after the Duke of Beaufort introduced at a house party in 1873. It had no official name at the time but as his house was called Badminton............!
If you enjoy it that much, look around for a club. It's a great sport and will keep you fit.
can anyone help me relate the terms:
united kingdom (u.k.)
great britain
britain
england
britons
anglo-saxon
also, what is an english accent? like english people from england, right? but what is welsh and do the neighboring countries speak english as well and in relation to Americans, what accent do they have?
thanks guys
I'm English so here goes:
The UK comprises of England, Scotland and Wales, because they are united lands.
Great Britain includes Northern Ireland. The Republic of Ireland governs itself.
Britain is pretty much the same as Great Britain.
England is where the English come from.
Britons relate to all peoples of Britain.
Anglo-Saxons are a mix of the Angles and the Saxons. The Angles were a Germanic tribe who migrated to England from an area known as the Jutland peninsula, which is shared by Denmark and Germany. The name England comes from them, as in Angleterre.
The Saxons originally came from an area in Germany and along with the Angles settled in what is now England.
Generally, the English speak English, the Welsh speak Welsh and so on. However, as with areas in other countries, you get different dialects, eg. Liverpudlian, Yorkshire, West country and so on. All of the countries making up the British Isles speak English, but they also have their own languages, although sadly, not everyone speaks them now.
It's difficult to explain the different accents, but we do have a rich and wonderful variety. If you ever get a chance to watch some Brit tv programmes, it may give you an idea.
im a girl im 13.i grew up with all brothers and only boy cousins.im very rough w/ every1.i have mainly guy friends.ive never had a bf.i just really wana bf.but im ''one of the guys''.they dont think of me as girlfriend material.yes i wear really baggy pants but tight shirts.i snowboard.i wana bethought of as more girly. ~help me~
That takes me back. When I was your age I was a total tomboy, always getting into scraps with my male cousins and friends, ending up in hospital with all manner of 'war wounds'.
Within two years I had changed into quite a girly girl. I still like to do adventurous things but I'm quite feminine with it, so don't lose hope.
Anyway, if a boy is worth your time, he is going to love you for who you are, so hold on, the right one will come along and he will be worth the wait.
okay so i am going to be getting a kitten soon and i need to know some information
about how often do you need to buy kitty litter and change it
[is it expensive?]
what about food
is there anything in particular i should buy thats good for them?
whats the earliest you can get a kitten because i know they have to spend time with their mother but i dont want it to be too old i want it little lol
lastly how do i train it, like not to pee and poop everywhere but to go in the litter box or will it know?
sorry if i seem clueless
Kitty litter - try to get an odour absorbing one, it's better for your nose. Take the poop out every day and change the whole thing 1-2 times a week. If you don't, cats are more likely to get 'creative' with where they toilet. They are clean animals so you can understand that they would want a clean toilet. Prices vary, I would suggest you shop around. If the kitten doesn't seem to like one, try a different one. Once you have shown them where the litter tray is, they should go to it on their own, but you could, for the first few days, put them by or on the tray after they have eaten. Try to put it somewhere out of the main traffic of the house or buy one with a lid. Cats are at their most vulnerable while toileting, so they need to feel safe.
Don't put food or water bowls near the litter tray. After all, would you want to eat in your toilet?
As kittens need more protein than older cats, start off with kitten food. Preferably the dry variety, and try to get the best make you can, it's better for their teeth, gums and general well being than wet food. Again you may need to try a couple of different brands before you find the one your kitten likes the best. Science Plan and James Wellbeloved, if you can get it where you are, are good makes. Once the kitten gets to about eighteen months you can start to wean it onto adult food. At age seven, it should be weaned onto a senior diet, this has less proteins and phosphates, so it is kinder to their kidneys.
The earliest you should take a kitten from it's mother is ten weeks, although most people have them sooner than this, sometimes as early as six weeks. At ten weeks the mother has had the chance to teach them all they need to know about being a kitten, it has had the chance to bond with it's brothers and sisters, so this should make it easier for you. Also, being slightly more mature means it will not be such a wrench for it to part from its family.
Once you get it home, it may be lonely for a while, especially if it has to sleep by itself at night. You can help to overcome this by leaving a ticking clock near it, (no alarm bells), putting a warm hot water bottle under it's bedding, so it does not come into contact with it's skin and leaving a radio on softly on a talk channel. It will need lots of cuddles and play times.
You need to factor in vets bills, worming tablets, flea prevention, vaccinations and neuturing. You will also need toys and a scratch post so that it can sharpen it's claws. This is something that is very important to a cat.
I don't know where you are from and I know a lot of people in the USA have their cats declawed. It is illegal in the UK to do this and rightly so. It is cruel to take away their self defence and a tool they use to grip things. If you don't think you or your family can cope with the possiblity of damaged furniture, although a cat can be trained to not scratch anywhere other than a scratch post, I would have to suggest you think twice about having a cat.
Hopefully you will allow your kitten to be itself and you will be rewarded with many years of love and companionship.
If you have any other questions or concerns, I'd be happy to help.
So my family is kind of divided into two when it comes to eating I guess. My dad and my sister cannot. ABSOLUTELY cannot go on for more than a day without eating meat. My mom and I, we could really care less. But nowadays my mom is getting swept into the whole "Need meat everyday" scene.
Well, I'm 14/f and I want to be a vegetarian because I find eating meat so often is disgusting and I just want a healthier lifestyle.
The problem is that my mom will not let me be a vegetarian saying that it is unhealthy [I know, ironic, right?] She always prepares meals containing meat so I have nothing else to eat and she literally shoves meat down my throat lol
So my question is how should I bring up the topic of me becoming a vegetarian again? How can I convince her that me being a vegetarian is not unhealthy and that it's not a sin or a bad thing? What are some food she can cook without meat in there and is still healty (try to avoid eggs please)? Just overall how can I get my mom to let me be a vegetarian?
There are unhealthy people who eat meat. As with all diets it depends on what you are having each day. There are now lots of alternatives to meat that have all the nutrients you need. Some people cannot go without eating meat and there are those that can. I have not eaten it for 20 years and I'm still here. I have twin daughters, one eats meat because she has to, the other is a veggie, it's their choice.
How about approaching your mother with a compromise? You eat vegetarian foods but healthily for a specified time, if you get sick, you go back to eating meat until you are old enough to make your own decisions.
I have included some recipes and information so that if you are allowed to try it, you will know what to do for a balanced diet.
http://www.vegsoc.org/cordonvert/recipes/
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/vegetarian-diet/HQ01596
http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/teennutrition.htm
http://www.youngwomenshealth.org/vegetarian.html
My friends and I have been arguing over this one question and I want some outside input to this little argument:
If you are a vegetarian, are you allowed to eat sea food things such as fish, lobster, shrimp, crab, etc?
They say yes but I say no... any help you guys can provide me?
Fish is meat, so you would not be a vegetarian if you ate it. If fish is the only meat you eat, it makes you a pesco vegetarian.
If you eat no meat but do have eggs and dairy, it makes you an ovo-lacto vegetarian, this is what I have been for the last 20 years. :)
Today I was hangin' out at Taco Bell w/ a bunch of my friends, who were all guys. They claimed that men were better than women at pretty much everything. Then when I disagreed, they said to me, "Ok, name one thing that women are better at than men." I was stuck. Then they started laughing 'cause I didn't say anything. They were like, "Yeah, all these great geniuses and inventors, like Einstein and all, all men." It made me so mad, and embarassed. They said they were just messin' with me, but I somehow can't believe that. I feel like they meant what they were saying. Should I confront them again? Or should I just let it slide and hope it doesn't come up again(maybe they were just kidding after all).
Well on top of all the other suggestions, there is one huge thing that women can do and can't, bring life to the world!
Also you have Mother Nature, Mother Earth, Mother Country. Ships, cars, planes etc are all called she.
Men knock woman drivers but if they want to sell a car it's 'one lady owner'!
Don't bring the subject up again yourself, but if it is mentioned you now have plenty of ammunition.
Why do sometimes questions that say "I rate 5's" or "I rate high" make it through the advinetors security?
I would also like to tell people here that you should give a rating, since someone took the time to reply on your inquiries. I see many answers that remain unrated even though you can tell that the advicenator spent a lot of sweat on it.
A lot of those questions do get stopped and the questioner is asked to reword them, some just seem to get through though.
I agree about the rating, it can be annoying if you have spent ages giving an answer, the asker can't even be bothered to rate you for it.
Maybe DN can add something to his never ending list that will require a rating before leaving the answer received?
i go red at the slightest thing why when i dont even feel embarrased
Lots of people blush easily but there can be a few different causes. It also depends on your age.
The skin contains a network of small blood vessels that have tiny muscles in their walls. They are controlled by the autonomic nervous system. This system is the network of nerves in the body which produce reflex or automatic reactions, so you can't control them. This in turn is affected by various things like heat, illness, emotions etc. If you are blushing a lot and when you are not consciously embarrassed, it may that the autonomic system is overworking.
Some people blush more easily than others. Eg. Hot spicy food may affect one person with a barely visible blush, whilst another person may become very red.
Facial blushing can also be accompanied by excessive sweating, particularly of the face or hands. This can be treated by a doctor.
Another cause could be menopause, apologies if you are too young for this, you did not give your age.
Certain prescription drugs can also have this effect, as can some skin conditions.
If you are young, it is possible you could be reacting with embarrassment without it being so apparent you notice it. Teenagers generally grow out of it and if it's due to hormonal activity, this should also die down in time.
If it is really proving to be a problem to you or if you feel there may an underlying medical cause, I would suggest you consult your doctor. There are several treatments for this condition and there should be no need for you to have to 'put up with it'.
Good luck.
i wasn't sure what category to put this under....sorry..
i want to find the song "The Entertainer" for a ringtone for me and my grandpa...is there a site that you can get it from because i can't find it anywhere....thanks a bunch!!
http://ringtones.ez-tracks.com/ringtone-915.html
http://download2mp3.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=64_66&products_id=211
http://www.ringtones2go.co.uk/pd10007638/Joplin-The-Entertainer-ringtone.htm
http://ringtones.mobilefun.co.uk/real-tones/13136_52-From-The-Sting-The-Entertainer.htm
Just a few for you to choose from.
hi..
i found somewhere that another reason for dropping the a-bomb on japan was to keep stalin out of the pacific. but i don't get did they mean the pacific ocean or what? and how did stalin help influence the bombing of the japan.
Within three months of the end of the war with Germany, Stalin agreed to enter the war against Japan on the side of the Allies, in the hopes of regaining what had been lost at the end of the Russo-Japanese war from 1904-1905.
He took some persuading but by the time he agreed the other leaders were having doubts about him. Between the meetings to discuss this the USA had successfully tested the A-Bomb and President Truman's advisors were urging him to use it on Japan. Stalin was only told there was a powerful new bomb and did not ask any questions about it.
Truman was advised that dropping the bomb and not mentioning it's power to Stalin would avoid an invasion of Japan, thereby saving thousands of American soldiers lives. It also had the effect of stopping the Soviet Union's chances of occupying territories in the Far East (the Pacific countries, not the ocean), and extending the Communist influence.
If you need any more information, let me know.
"They're living for the present and not the future’s well-being"
or
"They're living for the present and not the future's fulfillment."
what one sounds better and makes more sense? im writing a poem for school
It depends on the context of the rest of the poem. Well-being and fulfillment mean two different things.
Well-being is the condition of being healthy and contented, fulfillment is to satisfy achievements, demands or requests.
So eg. if you're talking about a generation's behaviours affecting how the world will be in the future, the first would be the most appropriate.
The second one does not make so much sense, as the future cannot fulfill itself simply because the future is something we create by our own actions.
I hope that is not too confusing to follow.
i have a fever cold feet itchy soar throat and runny nose. what could i have? a cold or possiably the flu?
Symptoms of the common cold:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/print/ency/article/000678.htm
Symptoms of flu:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/print/ency/article/000080.htm
does anyone know a good site for information on the first world war? I tried google n stuff but its really hard to understand. If anyone knows any good,simple sites on the war, please let me know.
Thanks
This one has an A-Z of answers.
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/ww1.htm
MY gran got her face swollen on one side and now it's goin down and we noticed her eye is bloody red. When I say bloody i mean like blood and not the cursing kinda 'bloody'. It will get better won't it?
If I get some eye drops for her....will it work quicker?
It depends on the reason for the swelling. It does sound as though she needs to see to see a doctor if she hasn't already. It's difficult to say without more information.
Does meditation make people boring?Isn't meditations way of making people happier by making them care less about things,so would it make you cold and apathetic?I've heard that it's great and improves peoples lives,but if it turns you into like a statue or something,what's the point?
Is the Dahli Lama boring? He's one of the wisest and most interesting of people in the world.
Meditation can make people happier, not by making them care less, but by letting them focus on what is important. Drugs can make you cold and apathetic, meditation actually has the reverse effect. It de-stresses and relaxes you so everything feels better and you're more able to cope. Meditation has an excellent therapeutic track record especially if you're tense and stressed. So give it a try, you'll be surprised.
I feel like I'm always tired and was wandering if its from the food I eat. Seeing as I'm a bachelor i don't really have too much time to eat but when I do I eat enough for the entire day. Could that make me tired? Are there any foods that'll give me tons of energy? I'm also working 2 jobs and going to school, I might start working out pretty soon too so that might make me even more tired. What can I do to not have that tired sickly feeling?
All advice is greatly appreciated,
Thank you
Firstly, it's not a good idea to just eat once a day. Your body needs small, regular supplies of healthy, nutritious food. If you are getting enough sleep and still feel unusually tired, especially if you're feeling sickly as well, maybe you should get a doctor to check you out. It could be something as simple as an iron deficiency.
No one is going to be able to tell without a proper check up. It's a good idea to do this anyway before you start an exercise programme. Also your hectic schedule could make things worse. Please see a doctor before you start to exercise.
Hi,
I am a home daycare provider. I have been taking care of a 2 year old, Mikey, for almost 2 years now. I NEVER call in sick, I am very dependable. The only time in almost 2 years I have EVER called in is when I had to be hospitalized for 3 days. And even then, I got a back-up sitter so the parents didn't have to miss work. I am cheap too. $100 a week for a 2 year old is unheard of! I am very loyal and loving to all of my daycare kids. I have grown very attached to Mikey, I love him as if he were my own.
I am a very passive person. I let people walk all over me and I know it. I never say what's on my mind, in fear that I will lose the kids or cause an argument. But in this case, I have had it!
I have my own child, who is very sick right now. He needed to see a doctor yesterday. I understand that being a daycare provider means that you have to be dependable, and I am. I put the daycare kids first and waited to take my kid to the doctor until all the other kids were gone to take him to after hours care.
I discovered that my son has strep throat and an ear infection. Strep is very contagious!
Trying to do the right thing, I called all the parents and told them that my son had strep. Being that all the kids were here yesterday anyway, they were probably already exposed. I told the parents that their children are more than welcome to attend daycare, but I just wanted to make the parents aware that my son does have strep. I made it abundantly clear that it was THEIR choice whether they wanted to bring their child to daycare or not.
According to my contract, I am to be paid whether the child attends daycare or not unless I have 2 weeks notice. If I call in sick and cannot provide care for their child, then they do not have to pay.
Mikey's mom called this morning, FREAKING out on me. She says that she cannot find another sitter on such short notice, and if Mikey doesn't come today then she isn't paying me...blah blah. She totally made me feel like I was screwing her and leaving her optionless. I explained AGAIN that it was HER choice to bring Mikey or not to bring Mikey, that I was open and already had other children there. She rudely said she would call me back and hung up on me.
She calls back and rudely says she has absolutely nobody to watch Mikey so she is gonna stay home with him. Before I could even say OK or I am sorry, she hung up on me again!
At this point, my blood is boiling. She has no right to get an attitude with me or to hang up on me. I have always given her child love and I have always respected her. I do not deserve to be treated this way.
But being the passive one, I let it go. Then I saw that I had a voice mail. I checked the message and it was her. Again, she is saying I don't know what to do....this is ridiculous....If Mikey doesn't come I am not paying you, I will not pay for 2 sitters...Blah blah...then rudely slams down the phone.
First of all, if the measley $20 is an issue, all she had to do was talk to me about it. In the contract, I am entitled to it. But I am such a push over that I probably would have waived it because I felt bad.
Secondly, I never told her Mikey could not come. I made that very clear more than once that this was her choice.
So my question is, how do I handle this? I am so angry with her that I wanna scream. How dare you talk to me like that and then hang up on me? I would never do that to her and I don't deserve that. Should I offer to waive the $20? I would have anyway. Should I put her in her place and tell her how I feel or just let it go?
I am really upset about this! I love Mikey and want to continue caring for him, but I know this is going to turn into an arguement if I bring it up.
What would you do???
It is very difficult to change your basic character, so if you are normally passive but feel that you should say something, (and I agree you should), it's going to be harder.
If you let this go, what will happen the next time? She will think that she can say whatever she likes, treat you like a subordinate and get away with it.
Without being too confrontational, how about writing her a letter? You can choose your words with care, she won't be able to interupt and you can get your point across calmly and in an adult way. At the moment she is acting like a spoilt child that did not get her own way and is throwing a tantrum. You need to get her up to your level. A carefully worded letter may do this.
Refer her to the terms of the contract and explain calmly that you gave her the option. It may be that she has a fear of illness and your son having strep throat made her panic. Take this possibility into consideration.
Tell her how you feel about Mikey and that you love to have him round but you cannot and will not tolerate her level of disrespect. It has the potential for being a negative influence on the children.
If she has any sense at all she should come round and see that she is not doing herself or Mikey any favours with her behaviour.
In turn, this may help you to be more assertive. Remember though, that your son is the most important child to you, the others have parents of their own to go home to. He will still be with you when the others have grown up and started school. You did everything you could to accomodate the other parents and could not do more. Keep this in mind and feel justified in writing that letter and resolving this situation.
Good luck.
If your driving and you see a brown recreational sign with a white envelope on it is it tell you is approaching?
Which country?