GrinningKittie

*nods with Rayzor*STICKING to the program is where the difference is made. It's well and easy enough to say "I'm gonna do this" but it is also really easy to burn out or make excuses or slack off by day three. Some people say it takes about 2 weeks for a new behaviour or routine to really start to feel natural and that after 2 weeks it almost becomes habit. I have to agree with that. I know that if I don't keep up with my pilates or bowflex ( I love my bowflex) then I will eventually slump back to square one. HOW frustrating is that eh?And don't feel like "OMG I'm dieting so I have to eat weird and tasteless foods now!" Nope. Just be more conscious about WHAT you are putting into your body. Bag of chips or a bowl of fresh fruit? Chocolate pudding or some frozen yogurt topped with nuts? Mother Nature has provided us with a WIDE variety of foods out there so there are plenty of alternatives for your diet.And Rayzor I know what you mean about meat. I LOOOOVE my pork. I just eat less of it now lol!Oh and another thing cfryonline....Don't feel bad if you don't just jump into the swing of things diet or exercise wise. It's gonna take some time to get used to so don't be hard on yourself if you forget to do your routine for a day or have another portion of something at dinner. Just be conscious of it and make your resolve firmer. Soon exercising will be like breathing and you won't even crave seconds or snacks.

LOL!!I can just imagine your dog happily carrying around a log. Link has this tree branch outside that is like 3 feet long ( only about as thick as my thumb) and loves to carry it around. He wanted me to play fetch with him with it......how crazy?!!Link's big quirk is bath bubbles. I LOVE bubbles in my bath and whenever I run one he comes in to check it out ( actually he is more concerned on whether I am running one for him....he's real good when I get him IN the tub however he is not fond of baths).When he realizes there are bubbles in there he perks up and chomps at them. It's so funny because there is nothing substantial to bubbles and yet he chomps at them as if they were steak sized pieces that need some serious chewing!Silly puppy!

*sniffles*grnjd you said "And don?t use bowflex, I just it at my friend?s house and it sucked big time."Maybe because you are so far into the weight lifting routine it sucked. I could see that because it does come with limited weight resistance.I'm a beginner and I LOVE my bowflex. I use it regularly ( and drink water, 1500 calorie meals as you mentioned as well as pilates) and I have noticed quite a difference in just over a month. I can see my abs now ( still have a layer of belly cushion to walk off though lol) and for the first time that I can remember I found my biceps! LOL!Thank you for all the wonderful information that you posted.

Joshua I love your "imitate a 12 year old" bit. However if I were to imitate half of what my highly energetic 13 year old ( he just turned 13 recently) does I might throw something out of place! LOL! There are some days ( particularly when it is very rainy) where it is all I can do to keep him from throwing himself off my furniture ( he likes to pretend he is a wrestler and his sister and our dog make tempting luchadore partners). LOL!Good post though. Gave me some to think on.In response to walking after a meal I would na suggest it. You need time to digest your meal. You have two types of muscle in your body. Fibrous ( like arms and legs and the rest of your body muscle) and smooth ( such as your heart and digestive organs). You would think that your blood supply and oxygen supply would be evenly distributed but......not necessarily. When you eat your smooth muscles need the extra attention to digest. When you work out ( run, swim, play actively) your fibrous muscles need that extra attention. If you try both activities at the same time on group is going to have to give. This would be why parents are always telling their kids "If you've eaten you have to wait 45 minutes before swimming!!!". Nothing worse than having your gut wrench up or a breathtaking charlie horse in your leg while swimming eh?Just my two guatalajaran centavos.

You gotta be careful when messing with weights or you can strain something and muscle strains and sprains take a while to recover from. Even worse would be if you tore something.Start out with a low comfortable weight. When your body is used to that resistance you will know because it will get easier. That is when you slowly ( pound by pound) add more weight for resistance. If you try too much, too hard in the beginning you could hurt yourself and set yourself further back from your goals.Just my two guatalajaran centavos.

Sad to say there is no EASY and quick way to lose weight and get lean. If there were then we'd have more fit people eh?There are lots of supplements and products that guarantee quick weight loss but most of these products aren't helping you in a healthy way. They may make you pee alot ( to lose water weight) or reduce appetite( not always a good thing and can mess with your metabolism in the long run). These sound great for a bandaid quick fix but in the long run they really aren't good for you or your health.Some things to do for your diet:Eat 3 or 4 SMALL portions of food during the day ( say an english muffin with a few slices of ham or turkey lunch meat and some cheese with a glass of juice or milk as one example) instead of eating big meals or less meals. More SMALL meals means your body has to work throughout the day to break down the food ( burn calories). LESS meals tells your body "oh no food is scarce! Better hold on to that and make it reserved fat!" LARGE meals take longer for your body to digest ( feeling sluggish?) and it's not a good idea to try and work out while digesting ( can you say cramps?). Ugh!By small I don't mean teeny tiny no meal meals at all. If you are a teenager your body is gonna need more calories ( because you are still growing) than say someone my age ( 31 where my metabolism has slowed down and is fighting me regularly lol!).Don't starve yourself. That is not only unhealthy but will get you the OPPOSITE of what you want. Smaller portions sure, but make sure they are HEALTHY foods. Fruits, fresh veggies, yogurts, nuts, sliced meat, eggs........you may be trying to lose weight but your body still needs calories, vitamins, proteins and all that to survive on. Feeding your body junk like chips, fries, candy, pastries ( etc) and counting THAT as a small meal is going to work against your goals real quickly.Hydrate. Your body loves water. It CRAVES it! So remember to feed your body water. I'm not talking about chugging a gallon in one sitting ( that makes MY tummy hurt just thinking about it!). I'm talking 8 oz glasses of it throughout the day. Six to eight glasses is what we are supposed to be drinking daily anyways. If you are not a big water drinker then start off with just a couple of glasses ( 2-3) a day and then increase that weekly. Fun fact here : If you make it ICE water your body actually burns more calories because it has to warm it up before absorbing it. Neat huh?That's just diet alone. If you want to speed up the process ( because diet alone may allow 1/2 a pound of weight loss a week by itself) then you would definately do well to start a walking or jogging routine. I hate running ( ugh) however I have a video game for the PS2 called DDR ( Dance Dance Revolution) and it has a "workout mode" on it where you can program how many miles you would like to equivalate in jogging ( you can also set it to how many calories you want to burn ). Nothing beats trying to dance on a pad in the comfort of your own home on a rainy day to some favorite tunes. ^_^For that lean look I suggest looking into pilates. I have the windsor pilates tapes and my word you FEEL the burn ( even if it only a 20 minute work out). Pilates focuses on your core ( abs) as well as giving you that lean athletic look and applies to all muscle groups.Lifting weights can help you lose weight ( fat weight) and help you strengthen up. If you work out 20 minutes a day 3 times a week you will notice a difference in about 2 weeks. Since you are going for a lean look and not a strong bulky look you would probably want to start out at a weight setting you can handle ( say for example 10 pounds for your arms) and keep it at low repetitions ( 5-10 of the same exercise in a row without wearing out). I could be wrong on that as weights are not really my speciality. Definately get a second opinion on what weight routine would help you to achieve that lean look.All in all it's a combination of all these things that will be giving you the results you want and in a much healthier fashion than say supplements ( IMO). In 1 month I lost about 10 pounds and I feel ALOT better ( more energy). Of course I also changed my diet. We ( my family and I) eat more fresh veggies and freshly prepared meals ( by me) and it has really made a difference in how we feel.Anyways I wish you luck in your endeavor and I hope this helped some.

Another fun fact on smiling here......It's good for your limbic system! What? The system in your body that works with and produces your immunity factor against illness. When you smile you release chemicals ( in the brain) that help boost your immune system. Neat huh? No wonder they say "laughter is the best medicine" !

DogCare2 mentioned "Most of us will have experienced some kind of dog psychology. Dogs have a way of getting us humans to do exactly what they want." I totally agree. Link ( my 7 month old Australian sheperd) paws the door to go out to potty. However he sometimes does this randomly just to see if us humans will open the door! What a brat eh? LOL! We've learned to tune that out because if he REALLY needs to go he paws at the door, waits and then comes to get one of us.He's also really good in letting us know when he wants to play and what kind of game he is interested in. Having pets is about two -way communication and if you talk to AND listen to your pet you will get so much more out of the relationship.

Oh how cute! You are so right in how a shingleback looks like it has two heads. It took me a moment to figure out which one was the decoy. I know, I know....the one WITH eyes...DUH! Still though quite a convincing bit of work!Link is now almost 7 months old and has gotten HUGE! How can something so small grow SO rapidly?? And I fear he is not done growing yet. He weighed in the other day at 45 pounds and he still has those cat like traits. For instance he tries to cram his whole body onto my lap. I am not a very wide person so my lap is not very acomodating. This just seems to confuse him. Also when we are sitting on the couch he will try to clamber behind and over our shoulders. I think if he could perch and rest on them he would! Instead this just ends up with us being mauled and licked ferociusly ( the mauling usually gets a shriek out of us which he thinks means we want to play so hence the licking and tail wagging). We have the kitchen partitioned off with a baby gate so Link canna get in there and eat the cat food ( which is kinda unfair as 'Manda has been putting on the pounds by visiting Link's dish). Well last week he was so excited in seeing me ( I had been gone for a couple of hours food shopping) that he bounded over it with no problems. I thought we were going to have a regular problem of him doing this but he seems to have learned that the kitchen is a "No Link " zone.Just thought I would update.

I don't really have anything to add here about the leash situation ( and it seems that you have that under way for not being a problem any more anyways ). I just wanted to add my two cents about the play biting.I agree that a word like "OW" or "OUCH" works real well. My puppy Link ( an australian sheperd) is 7 months old and still likes to nip the hands or gets over excited when we belly rub him and wants to chew so we tell him "OW!" in a firm but hurt tone and he lightens up immediately ( with big puppy eyes full of apology to go with it....lol what a ham!). I usually keep a favorite chew toy ( like a chew rope) near by so that if he does act up and get the "chewies" ( as we call them) I can redirect him to the right thing to gnaw on instead of my hand. LOL! I am glad to hear that your puppy is coming along with the leash. It takes awhile but in the end they get the handle of it. Link is SO excited by walks ( he is an active breed) that he'll wake out of a dead sleep when he hears the leash being jingled. LOL! Then it takes a moment for him to settle down for me to put the harness on ( we felt more comfortable with a harness than a collar and it works well with him). He gets so antsy he jumps up and paws the door while squirming. It's so funny really and it only lasts a moment. He knows he has to sit still and get the harness on if he wants to go out so he doesn't have a problem complying. It's just that first moment of "OMG we're going out we're going out!" excitement. You would think that we never walk him! LOL!

I may be wrong here but I believe it is illegal to sell body parts (organs), fluids or anything else relating as such in the United States. "But people get paid to donate blood plasma, blood and even sperm sometimes right?"Yes and no. They are not being paid directly for their donation. The loophole as the clinics will tell you is that the donator is being paid for their "time" not their donation.

*hugs*Yeah I know that sounds weird because you don't know me but wow.......lemme explain....Back when I was 16 I had a best friend. He had a crush on me but I didna find that until YEARS later.Anyways at the time I was with my son's father ( who was a bucketful nay barrellful of issues in itself). By 18 I moved to Florida with my son's father ( I had my son just before I turned 18). Things got horrible down there and my best friend bailed me and my baby out. You see even though we lived on opposite sides of the country we kept in contact reguarly.When I got back he courted me ( though I was blind to it at first). When I figured out he wanted to date me I kinda freaked. After all he was my best friend. More like a brother not really a "lover" type. I figured though that if you canna trust your best friend then who can you trust?UGh.......We dated for not even a year. It ended badly too.For starters he never told me that while I was in FL he got into drugs in a bad way. When I found out I told him I would help him through it. However most of our relationship was me being left at home with my son and him never around. We lived together sure, however I never saw him. Either he was at work or out partying and then getting mad at me for making a fuss about it. Soon he started accusing me of stealing, cheating on him and other ridiculous things. None of which I was guilty for. I was crushed and yet perservered. The drugs really addled his thinking though and not a word I said, not a tear I shed filtered in.Then he decided to move out of the apartment we shared. This sucked because I was a roommate and I by the lease rules I had to leave ( not that I could afford the rent on my own anyways). To add another layer of confusion and hurt I was pregnant by him too.He let me down in uncounted and innumerable ways and yet I kept at it because underneath all the bull, he was still my best friend. Or rather the memory of who he was as my best friend is what kept driving me on. I knew there was a good man underneath. I just needed him to find that man again. That was not going to happen.....Eventually I broke up with him. He was not there for me, took very little interest in my kid and seemed to think that me being pregnant with his kid was great....so great that he wasn't around for any of the appointments.When I broke up with him things got UGLY. I told him that things were not working out. He never called when he said he would ( if at all) and showed up randomly ( at best). This was not a relationship of the serious boyfriend girlfriend type. I just wanted my best friend back. The guy I had fun with. The guy who respected me. The guy I loved without knowing it when I did fall for him. I told him that he was more than welcome to be in his baby's life. I encouraged it actually. But no.... he acted like I was the one that had done him some injustice and all my complaints were just me being *edit*y. The final straw was when he tried to frame me.....Apparently he was very mad and called some fellow a racial slur. Said fellow pummeled him. I didna find out about this until a couple of years later mind you. Anyways at the time I found out about the attack because police came to my door informing me of the attack that I and a friend performed on my now ex.WHAT?Yup. Apparently ( according to the report) I invited him over and then banged him upside the head with a bottle of beer ( which was a blatant lie as I was 4 months pregnant and not even 21) and then my friend attacked him.WHAT?It got worse. Restraining orders became involved, and not just involved but embellished. Since he was my best friend at one point he knew everyone who liked and hated me. So he fabricated dirt on his order fueled by people who disliked me. I was crushed. Beyond crushed really. I was devastated. All I wanted was my best friend back and all I got was the worst enemy I had ever had.Eventually I had my lovely daughter.....throughout my pregnancy he "needed to clear his head" and had moved out of state. I was the last person to find out when he was back in town.Still the pain continued.Over the next decade ( almost) he went through his own trials and life and had very little to do with me as a friend or his daughter. It hurt me more for her than it did for me. It took every ounce of patience I had to deal with him. The most frustrating part was that I knew he was better than the lifestyle he was choosing and there was nothing I could do to help him get his head out of his.....well you know.The drugs he took turned me into some nagging horror show in his mind. At that point all I wanted was him to be a father ( at least on SOME level) to his little girl. In the end life slapped him up the head and he got his stuff straightened out. By then I was already happily married ( going on my 6th year now actually). It's taken a long time but I now have my best friend back and he is a great father to his daughter ( he regrets being stupid for so long and missing out on her life).At any rate some relationships are better left at a less intimate level than dating and yes it is possible to be okay with an ex ( depending on the ex and all that).I agree with Shadowx who replied with "All i can really say is the only person you truly TRULY need is yourself". It took me a long and hard road pebbled with frustration and heart ache to really figure that out myself. It's a hard road being a single parent ( and harder when you are a teen) but it's a harder road trying to make things work on a level when both parties are not on the same page as to the responibilities in a relationship ( in your case that would be your fellow). DO NOT try to make it work out because he is the father of the child. I tried THAT route with my son's father and almost got killed because of that thinkology. Seriously. Be true to yourself and if you keep the baby be true to your child.

Well I don't think ALL adults are "ignorant" as you put it but I will say that there are many that are stupid.My definitions:Ignorant - You don't know any better because the information was never given to you ( or you did not learn it properly when it was given to you or the information was misinformation).Dumb - You just don't "get it". You have been given the information but it just does not "stick" no matter how hard you try to understand it. I have that problem with some mechanical reasoning problems. I know what I am looking at should do SOMETHING, however I end up getting confused on what does what no matter HOW many times I am showed. UGH!Stupid - Someone who WAS ignorant but was taught. Someone who UNDERSTOOD and RETAINED what was taught so is not dumb. However this no longer ignorant person and proven to be a person who is not dumb, somehow for some reason tries to act like they are ignorant on the matter they were taught. Um.....this only works validly (IMO) for say amnesia victims ( as example). I really hate it when people play at being ignorant when they know better. This only makes them STUPID and that is something I have a rough time trying to play along with nicely.

I find it easiest to use Hotmail. Okay honestly I have na tried Gmail or Lycos because I already have a couple of Hotmails and a couple of Yahoos. Yahoo irritates me. I've just gotten used to Hotmails quirks.

LOL!I thought it was a weird one but after my husband showed me a "mango " based salsa at the store ( and bought it because that man will eat anything at least once lol!) I was na too sure what exactly constituted as a "salsa". Thanks for the info!

Sorry about the Americanized version. It was quick and easy though.....Thanks for the offer on salsa dips. I just found a lot of interesting recipes online categorized as "salsa" and I have been trying my hand at those ( so far no complaints from the household).I always thought salsa had to have tomatoes in it.......does it? Because these recipes, like I said were under the category of salsa and all...however....well for example one used apples, green onions, lemons and jalepenos. Weird combo if you ask me, however like I said the whole house ( and even some drop by guests) enjoyed it.

I've also heard that storing your herbs and spices in dry ( duh), dark places ( like your cupboards) instead of by your windows or hung up on the walls will help them last a lot longer.I keep my stuff in the cupboards and they seem to last a looooooooooooooooooong time.Just a thought.

Meh. I don't think networking dealies like MySpace are necessarily bad things. I have my personal profile on there for my own entertainment as well as to keep up with other friends who are long distance and/or have schedules or time zones that conflict with mine.I have a second profile there altogether because I run a special interest group and MySpace is a great way to message out info ( especially for peeps who do not have phones or have an interest in checking their emails).Why two profiles? Because many of MY friends aren't part of the group ( they have no interest in it) and I really don't feel like trying to wade through profiles figuring out who is interested in what. I think MySpace can be great if used as a networking tool ( it's worked for me so far). It's kind of a pain in the donkey though when others use it as a drama making factory. UGh. As for driving around and chillin' with friends......not gonna happen there. 1- My car is a pretty blue paperweight at the moment2- I have two kids with two different school schedules3- None of my friends seem to have humane work schedules.So yeah.....my social life either comes to my place in 3-D or I root around here in 2-D.

I'm actually in a fairly decent mood. Some small things lately though have been crawling just under my skin. Perhaps it's because it wasn't just seeing one here and another there, but instead crammed on top of each other in rapid succession like a bad tasting hoagie. Ugh. I don't expect any answers back really. I just wanted to get some stuff off my chest ( though feel free to reply).-WHY do people bulletin "look at my new photos!!!" on MySpace without being considerate enough to make an obviously new section for their ego stroke?--WHAT makes these people think I care to look at 600 pictures of THEM doing dumb poses of pseudo "hotness" to begin with let alone to try and find the "new" pics.---WHAT is the sense in posting 3 or 4 pics of the SAME pose for others to look at?-----DO these people NOT notice that pursing their lips or flipping their hair 1/4 inch in another direction doesn't really crop up to something of a "different " pose?-WHY do people on MySpace bulletin "I?m bored"?--ARE these people so desperate for attention that they can?t myspace a real friend or call said friend and so will willingly put up with whatever crap drops into said bulletin net for a moment of diversion??-HOW many times do you have to have a near death or toxic experience before your synapses snap into place with a "Hey buddy maybe that is not such a HOT idea! Remember what happened LAST time???!!!"--WHY do people who do stuff like that expect sympathy from others?---WHY DO PEOPLE GIVE PEOPLE LIKE THAT SYMPATHY?????-WHY is it that some of those people who like their truth "straight up and sharp" play the "hide the half truths" game?--WHY do these people think they are exempt from the same treatment thrown in their direction??-HOW can someone in the 20-30 year old age range bracket NOT get the concept of OWNING UP TO RESPONSIBILITY???!!!--DO people like that think it is CUTE to back peddle, lie, edit, pass the buck, ignore, procrastinate and/or do anything else to get out of a mess caused by their own HANDS???-HOW many red flags have to go up in a relationship before a smart person starts acting smart and jumps ship?--DO these people know how hard it is for someone else to watch them happily untie yards of rope, blindly knot it, whistle while tossing it over a tree branch and then wait until a chair shows up to finish the job? Emotionally speaking that is. -HOW many bridges does a person have to burn along with other people, places and resources before they can say "Hey it was ME who messed up and I was the one wrong and maybe I should do something to fix this"? -WHY is it that some people think "keeping it quiet" means telling their closest friends whom they KNOW couldn?t keep quiet even if the Good Lord/Lady/Spoon/Elephant/Whatever created said person without ANY way for communication?--WHY then do these SAME people act like it?s a surprise when EVERYONE in their little "clique" "knows" what is/was "going on"? -WHY do some people figure "since I didn?t pay for it, then it?s okay to mess it up"?--WHY do these same people act all mad and indignant when they are wearing the opposite pair of shoes to the first why?---WHAT even gives them the right to get all irritated when it DOES happen to them??-HOW is it one "adult" can be irritated by procrastination, irresponsibility, an a tendency to let others down in another "adult" and then portray THE EXACT SAME BEHAVIOURS? Yeah. It's not that I don't know the answers so much as I am baffled by the behaviour that goes on in an age bracket that one would think "would know better".

I have two cars though one of them is currently nothing more than an oversized paperweight and weed trellis......UGH!Said paperweight is a 2000 Suzuki Esteem. What? Never heard of it? Me neither nor people who make parts for it. For all intent and purposes my little four door blue paperweight is an invisible Japanese make and model.I have several bumperstickers on the back of it ( I do so enjoy giving people something to read whilst in traffic) such as:I took my pain pill, so why are you still here?Who are these kids and why do they keep calling me mom?getoffmyI have too much blood in my caffeine systemAnd of course two terrific kids bumper stickers. I really wish it worked.My second car I inherited from my cousin. She loves to deck her vehicles out in stickers, particularly fairy and pagan like stickers. Hence us calling the Chevy Lumina the "Fairy Mobile" which works splendidly and of course would be the vehicle that my husband drives to work ( just because it DOES work). LOL! So yeah. Those are my two vehicles.

I'm in WA state so I am na sure how it works where you are at Grace. However once your child has a diagnosis of their condition ( I hate that word!) then you can talk with the school and teachers for an I.E.P. ( Individual Educational Program) which will allow you and the school to tailor make and adjust your son's educational program to his level and needs. This can also include any OT he needs.My daughter is also autistic ( medium range, non-verbal) and she recieves both OT and Speech through the school.I hope this helped some.

Daniella- yup guys are dumb. They even know it ( just look at the replies you got agreeing with this). Even my husband agrees. When it comes to guys be blunt. Cutesy, shy, beat around the bush just doesn't cut it for clear communication. If he doesn't like you for your honesty then what does he like you for? Guys appreciate the honest and up front approach ( keep the emotional stuff low though because honestly uber OMG perky or tearful can scare anyone).As for the texting thing.... a lot of people hate that. I'm one of them. I have a phone so I use it to talk. I only text if it is a reply or if I NEED to get a message through and said person is at work or not answering. You feel you are the one making all the effort in communication via talk/text? Then let him know. Ask him how he feels about chatting on the phone/texting. Some guys are just not interested with the phone in any way or form. Some prefer to hang out and chat in person (( or even computer as one here mentioned) rather than talk on a phone. I wish I had the answer to as why. My husband used to be like that and his answer was "I've just never really been a phone person."If you are really concerned that there is no effort being made on his part then why are you still with him? It takes two to make a relationship. Again I suggest talking to him about his views on the phone bit and then letting him know where you stand before you make any serious decisions.Giselle :Perhaps you were crushing on your ideal of who he was instead of who he is ( I'm not saying that you are, I am just throwing this out as something to think on). I've had this happen to me before and I've seen it too. You could also gotten to that stage in your relationship with him where you have exited the beginning stage of infatuation of the relationship and entered the what I call "comfy " stage where said guy is cool to have around but no longer WOWS you because he has become comfy.So ask yourself some pro's and con's about your guy. What are you looking for? Does he meet those standards when you are together? Is it important to you to have a LOT of contact with him? Is there anything he could WOW you with if you were to ask?And yes asking is perfectly fine. I've been married for almost 6 years and I have no problems asking my hubby once in awhile for a WOWing moment like a sponateous date ( that he arranges) or a relaxing shoulder massage ( buh by tension!).Also does his saying he loves you bother you? Don't tell him you do back if you don't ( or are unsure....being really happy with someone or in their company is not by itself love). You can let him know you think he is cool, you appreciate him, etc. I used to tell my hubby ( before we got married) "You are cool people" which always earned me an odd look true.....but he stuck with me and even married me.If your guy's "I love you's" are a bit too intense for you, it is okay to let him know that. Better to be honest now and endure some bruised feelings than lead someone on ( out of indecisiveness, compassion, whatever) and deal with brutal emotional blows later.Anyways I hope this helped some.

Curiosity got the best of me so I checked it out ( after all it helps me to know what everyone else in my house has access to). Check out the "Miscellaneous " channel. All I could do is stare and go WTE ( What The *edit*)?How many people are familiar with virtual fireplace or virtual fishtank? No really I am not kidding. Somebody YEARS ago came up with the bright idea of recording fishes in a tank and then selling the tape as a virtual deal for those who can't have one or don't want to bother. "Great for parties" "Real conversational piece" "Soothing to watch" "Entertain your pets"........um no? The virtual fireplace is the same concept " Enjoy a romantic atmosphere without the hassle". Okay I can KINDA see the point ( not really though...). Mostly I just ask myself "WTE??"Well it's sad that the tapes sold ( they may even be available on DVD these days) but virtual crud for the COMPUTER????? Who is gonna use the computer to stare at fish swimming about the screen ( besides my cats and possibly my autistic daughter)?*shakes head*Sometimes I worry.............

Hellosies!My daughter is autistic. She will be 11 years old next month. She was diagnosed when she was three. She started out "normally" and then somewhere around 2ish or so she started going backwards in social behaviour and speech. They are still doing so much research about autism. Some feel it is a genetic oopsies. Some feel that the preservatives in shots at the time for kids caused it. Some feel it is a malprocessing issue dealing with glutamen and lactose ( wheat and milk). Some theorize that it is a Secretin ( brain chemical) issue.I can't tell you WHAT it is other than how it affects my daughter and who she is, as autism is a spectrum disorder which means no two autistic kids are alike. She is in the medium to high range. This means that all though she is fairly independant, very social, can read and write to a degree, she still has things we need to work on. For instance she does not speak. She can. The words are there, she just has a hard time using her mouth parts to make words. The doctors also feel this may because she also has seizure activity in the part of the brain that deals with speech ( seizures are not uncommon with autism). She also loves to get information from her senses. We call this stimming ( stimulation) as she loves to be squeezed, played with hard ( her brother loves to wrestle and she makes a great partner but I have to tell him to be careful) eat spicey/sugary/bitter/ tangy items ( which may not always be food items so we have to watch that too). Things we are working on are math ( she hates it), and fine motor skills ( still working on tying shoes), social behaviour ( such as body space) and spelling ( she has a hard time with vowels).Yes I said she is non-verbal however we use sign language and PECS ( picture exchange communication system) for communication. She is a bright child who is happy and loves to interract with others. The way I see it with her is that she gets ALL the information you throw at her and more, yet has a hard time filtering what isn't necesary out. It's like when you are talking with someone. You FOCUS on them. You tune out them blinking, the dog next door barking, the light flickering, the heater humming, the sound of someone walking by, the cat breathing too loudly as it naps etc. You tune all that out and FOCUS on the person's words. Imagine if that ability was ripped away. Imagine NOW trying to focus on what they are saying. Welcome to my daughter's form of autism.My Cousin's son is also autistic (and ADHD/ODD) and he interacts much differently. He goes to a regular school ( my daughter is in a specialized program), loves to add and read, speaks real well and loves to help. However he will not make direct eye contact with you, hates to be touched and is compartmentalized with some of his conceptual thinking. Two very different kids, both born under the autistic spectrum disorder ( and both lovable as all get out).Does my daughter embarrass me ( or anyone else in her family)? No. Sure she has some interesting behaviour in public ranging from giddy ( like squealing and flapping her hands) to innapropriate ( such as trying to stalk someone down who is wearing a strong scent which she finds interesting). It is who she is though. We work with her where we can. She is wonderful to have at a restaurant ( she loves going out) and my little helper when I shop. Anyways that is my two guatalajaran centavos on autism.

Ugh!I absolutely loved Saw I and II. I too even think the mastermind JigSaw is an awesome character. Number III just felt like a big let down though. Mostly because of heroin chicky ( Jiggy's assistant). She CHEATED!!! The rules are fair and simple in Jiggy's games. If you got the gumption, skill and will to survive you deserve to live. No matter HOW messed up a trap was, there WAS a way to get out of it. Albeit a slim one. When Heroina ( Jiggy's gal) went about setting everything up she just wanted people to die. She was breaking her own mentor's rules. She shoulda been shot in number one. Aw well.As for Saw IV I heard it was terrrrrrible. I have yet to see all of it ( I only chanced at a few scenes which made little sense). If you are into the Saw series for the plot and interesting characters then the first two are awesome. If all you need is gore with a dash of suspense and a touch of thrill then I supposed 3 and 4 will do just as smashingly as 1 and 2 did.I'm still waiting to come across IV for free..........