laleo

Probably only Paw and the moderators have access but Paw doesn't realize that. He thinks we can change our own handle at will. I can't. Can anyone else?

Juan!! Cruz!! I feared you stood me up. So when is that limo going to arrive?? ;)--> I hope you stick around awhile.

Zix, I'm not sure if I voted for you or not, but I gave it my best effort. Kinda got lost at that site. Congratulations on all your successes. Good to hear from you.

Did he take any physics courses? My daughter worked as a TA this summer for their gifted camps. The AP courses are weighted at our HS, but you can't earn more than 100%. Congratulations!

Oakspear, I'm probably the only one who laughed, but that was really funny. Just had to be there, maybe. Thanks for the reminder. Actually, the part I remember about it is that he wouldn't eat the donuts. It was his day to fast, or something. Now that I think about it, though, maybe the Lord and Jerry had a better idea. I would have had better memories of the year, if it had played out that way. I've sometimes wondered about Jerry. If you could talk to him now, what would you say? Was he right?

So is yours, Belle. How many times does he have to say that no insult was intended before some of you accept that? I'm not convinced that he has insulted anyone on this thread, and if he did, he didn't mean to (which he has explained repeatedly). You, on the other hand, are deliberately and relentlessly slamming him. Do you want insults, Belle? I'm tempted to direct a few your way. I'll start by saying (politely) that I really don't like the way you are twisting WhiteDove's intent and accusing him of a motivation he does not have. Cut the guy some slack.

WhiteDove, In answer to your original question ("So what is the facination with Harry?"), IMO the "fascination" is more of an identification, not with Harry's sorcery but with his humanity. Harry is kind, and resilient, and witty, and occasionally maddening. He has failures and triumphs. I think the reason why these stories have gained popularity is because the themes address something very fundamental (and common) in people; struggles most anyone can relate to. What you seem to object to most is the means JKR uses to illustrate her theme -- the spells and the magic and all the supernatural pyrotechnics -- and I do think you have a point when you mentioned earlier that some children aren't as well-grounded as others, and may be more susceptible to suggestion, especially if they only have a superficial introduction to the story. For those kids, who dream of violent power, whatever themes JKR is exploring might be over their heads. What they're looking for is immediacy and validation of their own vengeful thoughts and intents. I don't know that the Harry Potter series would aid them more so than other types of media, especially considering who Harry is, as a character. Really, though, if they got to know Harry, they might learn more appropriate ways of expressing (or, rather, restraining) their own aggressiveness. You're as entitled to dislike something as others are to like it. And you're also entitled to say so, whether yours is the most popular opinion here or not. However, I wonder if you aren't overstating the danger. Are you basing your concerns on the actual books (in other words, have you read them?), or on what you've read/heard about them?

This is really funny. The nun they're spoofing -- the one who used to give art appreciation lessons on PBS -- is she still around? I remember watching her from time to time years ago. I haven't gotten to the ones that are in poor taste. So far, it's just been entertaining. *** Google just found her for me. Sister Wendy, her name is. And she has a new series premiering in September. Think I'll try to catch it.

SPOILER ALERT!!! If you haven't read the book and don't want to know what happened, read no further! SPOILER ALERT!!! Okay, what did you think?

I'm starting a (spoiler) thread in the Reading Room, where there isn't as much traffic, with a big warning for whomever hasn't read the book and doesn't want to know. I'd like to hear what people think. Plus I have a daughter who may want to join in.

We weren't there for ten minutes before my daughter joined a card game in the music aisle. So I wandered around until I found a book, Camus' The Plague. I was just finishing the part where 6,000 rats a day were dying a gruesome death in a small French village by the sea, when our number (we were 298) was called. One thing I found out tonight is that I'm getting too old to sit cross-legged on the floor for more than half an hour. We got the BJ's rate at the local Borders. Forty percent off for anyone who pre-ordered. It was crowded, for sure, but pretty sedate, considering. They had a whole system down to herd everyone through. Sort of reminded me of the contortions I went through for those Teenie Beanie Babies, cruising through every McDonald's drive-thru within a ten mile radius. (You just wait, satori. Your turn's coming. We'll see who calls who pathetic.) I'd let you all know if the latest Harry Potter is any good, except I've barely seen the cover. It will be awhile before I get to read it. I'm third in line. Reikilady: That's how my daughter got introduced to Harry Potter. I think she was still in elementary school (when was the first one published?), when she asked the librarian for a good book to read. Harry Potter had just come in, and my daughter was the first one to take it out. She's been hooked since. I mean, seriously hooked, like she (and now her sister) has read the whole series I don't know how many times. There was a major commotion in the house just a week or so ago when they both wanted the same volume. Amazing. This has become a tradition - going to the bookstore at midnight whenever a new Harry Potter is released. The last couple of times, she did the whole costume thing, and had the party, and all that. This time, she bypassed all that, and just went straight for the book. I don't think she'll sleep tonight. Or tomorrow. Steve: What's Spellbound 2005?

Okay, I'm heading out now to stand in line for an hour and a half. Makes more sense to me to head over to the bookstore long past midnight, after the crowd has thinned, but I've been outvoted. Anyone joining me?

What's a cexchef? Should I know this? The glaze for the fish was another hit. I tried it with both the salmon and the haddock (different nights), with the haddock getting rave reviews, especially from my 16 year old. Except you didn't warn me about the moths, which were drawn to the honey. I had to fish a couple of them out of the sauce while I was basting. Okay, so what are your recommendations for chicken on the grill? My daughter and her boyfriend will be here for the weekend, and that's about the only meat she eats.

If Ballroom is out of the theaters, you (or more likely, your wife) might like Ladies in Lavender. Maybe. It's very slow-paced, just like the elderly British sisters who are the main characters. The sisters are in the throes of old age, and the longing and loneliness that accompanies it. Then a young man -- an accomplished Polish violinist, it turns out -- is inexplicably washed up on the beach, laying unconscious, and the ladies find him and take him in to nurse him back to health. I liked this movie, but I can't say why since it's chock-full of cliches, from Ursula dropping her tea-cup when she hears upsetting news, to keeping a lock of Andrea's (the violinist's) hair. Maybe the cliches work because the themes are subtle. I don't know. But my daughter liked it, too. It's not as good as Whales of August (same genre), but it does capture that moment just before the outbreak of WWII; the calm before the storm. The audience knows what is about to hit, but the sisters don't. If you prefer action, adventure, and drama, though, don't bother with this movie. In fact, it's so lacking in drama that it doesn't even explain how or why the violinist came to be washed up on shore, which is the only element of mystery in the movie.

lindy, If you want real rice pudding, find a farmer's market run by the Pennsylvania Dutch. I'm not sure of the procedure, but I think it involves extracting the skim milk from a fatted dairy cow, then adding rice to what's left, and marketing it as a "dessert." It's a recipe that will leave you defenseless. Try it. I guarantee that within a few weeks you'll be joining me in my class action suit againt GreaseSpot and the Pennsylvania Dairy Farmers. I'll be hearing from you (and your counsel) in August.

Yeah, well, some people are under the (mistaken) impression that this is some sort of cyber-cafe where they get to come and go as they please, make up as many handles as they want, as if they have no one to answer to. Guess again, bucko. There's no escaping real life.

Congratulations, Raf.

I changed my mind. I'm not going to celebrate. A couple of summers ago, I had an encounter (well, many encounters) with rice pudding that I still haven't recovered from. It started out harmless enough. They were giving out samples at the local deli, and, because I didn't want to be rude, I tried some. Then I bought some. Then I bought some more. And more. And more. Then it became a ritual. I was posting a lot at GreaseSpot that summer, and somehow I couldn't log on in the evening without slurping up a bowl of rice pudding in the process of collecting my scattered thoughts so I could post. After a couple of months, I stepped on the scale, and . . . well, you know the rest. Haven't touched rice pudding since. I blame GreaseSpot for the damage. Since then, the only kind of ice cream anyone in the house has been allowed to have is anything that involves mint, or pecans, or anything fruity. I won't touch the stuff, and it's better that way. A few days ago, I bought one of those half-gallons of some sort of chocolate, peanut, marshmallow combination, and it was good, very good, and I would have kept going, but I was haunted by the memories of my rice pudding summer. The kids can finish it off. So what flavor ice cream do you hate?

Vickles, You can also use the search function, in the drop down menu on the "Find" tab. If you don't remember who said what but remember someone said something, you can type it in and see what comes up. If you know more information, like the forum or user name, then use the "Advanced Search" feature. Sometimes the "search" function doesn't work, though, so it's hit or miss.

Vickles, see that "Posts: 3412" by your user name? If you just click on that, you'll see all of your posts. Same with everyone else's. That's a short cut to the forum listing.

Well, if that's what it's gonna take, I'm praying he comes back soon. Really, I didn't mean to imply that you are stupid, although being as "smart as Garth" is something we should all aspire to, don't you think? Okay, I'll stop now. I'm glad you found your thread. And if this thread helped in the effort of locating that one, then that's great. I'm glad it all worked out. I like happpy endings. :)-->

Um, Jonny, only one hour passed from the time that you asked where your thread was until Garth answered. Was it really that tough to find? When I can't find one of my posts, I look in my profile to see where it went. Unless the search function isn't working. Then I just go through the forums, if it's that important. But I don't dedicate a thread to my search. I don't really understand why this is a big deal.

That was funny, satori. Did you misplace your Black's Law Dictionary yet again? But, hey, with such an articulately stated, well-informed command of the law (which I'm sure it was, before the moderators put their fingers on your keyboard), I doubt you'll ever have to testify against yourself (or even invoke your free speech) if it comes to that. Unless GreaseSpot qualifies as a time of war or public danger. I suspect it does.

Vickles: Do you think there really are more women in their fifties getting divorced than at other ages? I mean, when I was in my twenties, I knew couples in their twenties who were getting divorced; same with when I was in my thirties, and now in my forties. People seem to get divorced at all ages, don't you think? I mean, the ones I know well are in my peer group, but I don't think I've noticed an increase as I've gotten older. They say the first twenty-five years are the hardest, and maybe there's something to that :)-->. I don't know too many long, long-term marriages that fail, but before that -- well, I think any marriage is vulnerable at any stage. Don't you?

David: I haven't read your thread, except for a few random posts. I drink tap water most of the time. But more to the point of this thread, I don't think I've ever spent four hours writing a post, so I can't really relate to how frustrating that might be to lose it. Then again, I can't relate to much else that you wrote, either. Did you really say this? With nutcases like you around, making nutty recommendations like this, it wouldn't be "responsibility" they were taking. It would be an unnecessary risk. I've often wondered why moderators don't identify themselves. Now I know. David, quit complaining and post on your thread already. It's in the Open Forum, right? So what's all the noise about -- because some moderator thought she was looking out for you by moving it to spare you being "bashed," you take that as an invitation to do some bashing of your own? I don't get it. I'd say more, but I'd better hit "Post Now" before Paw reads this and changes something I've written, while I'm typing it, before it hits the forums. Plus I'm three hours and forty-five minutes into composing this, and don't want you all to lose out, in case it doesn't make the cut.