While you stitch - who's watching the Olympics

Ain't that the truth. It's why we're looking at Belize and Cancun and Costa Rica for retirement.

Some years back I switched to Hebrew National because they were Kosher and since it is the only "meat" Mark eats (he can't live without mac and cheese with hots) I figured I would buy the least offensive to animals.

Since food has gone up at 30 percent in these parts I bought Ball Park beef franks much cheaper and when he ate them last night he asked me if they were some sort of fake dogs made of soy! I try to slip him the veggie ones now and then to see if it works. They have not perfected the vegan hot dog yet. However, he never said a word when he ate his first Boca Burger or Garden Burger!

I am now going to switch back to HN because he can tell the quality difference by the texture and taste.

I'd like it if Whole Foods would have better prices. I mean,they are a public company now and have stores everywhere and buy in large enough quantities to forward that lowered price down to us. However, I do shop there for certain things. I buy all of Mika Bird's oats, groats,sunflower seeds, sprouting seeds and stuff like it at Whole Foods. My parrot only gets organic!

That's what I believe. What a world.

I was somewhat heartened this morning when the Today Show had a segment with the organizer for Vancouver (winter games, 2010) and he was so laid-back. They asked about how the bar had been raised so high by the Beijing opening ceremonies, did it scare him, and his reply was basically No, because they're not even going to try to compete. Their budget is far more limited, and they'll do what they can with what they've got, and not fall into the trap of ever-escalating expectations. Sanity! How refreshing!

Sue

I think that's why it's important to check the admin costs, operations of various charities. In the fed gov, during the combined fed campaign - which is how you can do charity donations directly via paycheck - the booklet listing all the organizations gives info about admin costs, what goes to the actual end recipients. It's a start.

Ellice

Very famous engineer, known as "father of quality control" . He went to Japan in the 50s, and instituted all kinds of changes in their industrial practices, writing textbooks, etc. It would be hard to imagine anyone taking any kind of quality control, industrial engineering or manufacturing course without learning about him. There was a big change in theories, and institution of statistical and probablistic QC as a result of Demming's work. The guy that I did research with is younger than Demming, and become quite well known in the area of probabilistic approaches to project planning, particularly in construction and manufacturing (i.e. The precursor to the lovely Microsoft Project software that is a simple version of such stuff).

Sounds like you had a great experience going to Japan. I don't know- did you Brits only recognize the other British - and not the sly Americans?

Ellice - r,d,h

International Living is a good website for such decisions:

I agree that they TASTE good but they must have replaced the nitrates with something else nasty as they aren't allowed to be sold in Canada!

Mavia

Yes, but you have to remember they are heavily over budget already and the second time they went back for more money the feds warned them there will be no more money. Trust me, they'll be back and they will receive. That's the way these things go. They underbudget heavily to get the games.

I'm surprised to hear that. Could it be because unlike regular hot dogs they must be strictly kept under refrigeration and either used within a week or frozen?

I'm going to see what I can find out about that.

Lucille

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My Mum sends a considerable sum each month (well, for her, out of her pension) directly to a priest in India. He sends back photos of the things he buys. It's mostly medicines and hospital supplies, but sometimes school books and shoes etc. It's amazing what a hundred dollars will buy in the Third World, it really is!

Mum also sends money to a school in Africa, but she's only been doing that recently (five or so years). I know she's been sending to Father Rajappa since I was seven. Since her money goes directly, there's no 'administration' fees attached to it and she's overjoyed to have helped someone with less than she has.

There are organisations out there which, IMHO, one can donate to with the sure knowledge that the money will definitely be used for medical purposes. Wide Smiles is an international one that takes care of craniofacial surgeries. The Australian Fred Hollowes Foundation does cataract and other ophthalmic surgeries, training native doctors as well. Médécins Sans Frontières is another that (I think) would be trustworthy, although I know a lot less about it.

I think if the doctors are willing to donate their time and skill, then it's fair enough for one to donate to cover the logistics of getting medical teams to where they're needed.

No, we were civilians so did not see too much of the Occupational Forces. My father knew all the other main Americans from DDE down (made his acquaintance in the War when he rescued him from a sandbank) and in fact MacArthur and another General (Clark maybe) were dinner guests. My father was also very thick with all the Ambassadors so we were a pretty cosmopolitan group, but most of all, my father loved the Japanese, even with their warts. He did much to get their shipping going (they built many ships and the first container ships) and also their mines. My father was in shipping, he left the RN immediately war ended. I can proudly say I had one of the first Toyotas off the line, they called it a Toyopet and he told them to get a better name for it lol

There were no other Brits there when we first went, they came later, there were a few British Army people but they were at Sasebo and nothing to do with us.

The Japanese police had been dismantled so it left us with nobody who could tell us what we could or couldn't do. My father taught me to drive and I drove my mother everywhere. We were frequently stopped by MPs who then were mad as hell as they had no authority over us. I guess I did quite often speed up when I saw an MP jeep behind me lol Interesting times.

I called Kraft directly and was told that they are still being manufactured and sold here in the U.S. and the only reason for them to be taken out of the stores in Canada is that they were either not selling or selling very, very slowly and they don't have a long shelf life like regular hot dogs.

Lucille

Unlike these days????

Joan (rdh!!!!)

That sounds like a reasonable explanation......although I wouldn't expect them to say otherwise! :)

When they disappeared from our two local grocery chains I asked the managers of their meat departments why that was and was told that they contained a substance restricted in Canada.

We can buy other Oscar Myer products here. I do miss the hot dogs as they were tasty!

Mavia

You know I can't speed anymore sob !

I got a speeding ticket a month ago. They are going to dismiss the ticket, but it still is going to cost almost 200 dollars for going 16 mph over the limit. I have to take this defensive driving course online, thank goodness, then the test. That and court fees and you have 200 dollars. Better than if I just paid the ticket which would have been 360 dollars US. Oh, and I get 10% off my insurance for three years, so not too bad.