ummm... i don't think smoking a bong is allowed! and drinking beer, well that would be allowed! i'm ok, jimi is my brother, but i raised him from a little thing!! LOL mom being a trucker and all. the other thing i can do pretty easy! pissing me off!! LOL he he he amazing aren't i! LOL funny how those kids are, when your not, looking they just do what they want!! my mom went and got tabor some of those heelys, so now he's like all cool. LOL sooooo, he wears them to church, so i make him change them, and he can wear them at break time, LOL the good news is my banana plant is comin out of it! before after like almost a week. so my banana plant is doing much bettr!! can't say much for the canna's. errr! one was just about to bloom too!! i was FINALLY gonna see this special yellow! LOL and one i've been waiting on never bloomed yet, won't this year thanks to the frost! that's it! i'm moving!! LOL :'))

Some shelters around here have started adopting a policy that no animal leaves the shelter until it has been altered at the shelter. That eliminates the problem of people saying "Oh, yeah, I'll get it done..." and not doing it. But obviously, not all shelters can afford this. Still, I think it's a wonderful idea, and the extra cost they charge me to adopt the animal is still less than paying my own vet. I've never adopted a cat (never had to, the furry little buggers seem to find us OK on their own), but this is what happened with a dog we adopted. We had to wait a week to pick her up, too, so that really let the shelter know that we were seriously interested. As far as hunting cats - I am tempted to say that organized hunts for ferals in rural ideas is probably a good idea. I don't believe that TNR works, given the constant influx of new animals. Open season is a terrible idea, given the many reasons stated above. But a picked group of hunters (probably DNR, DFW people?) targeting known feral colonies - well, it might be necessary. I think we all know that there just aren't homes enough out there, or people with enough patience to rehome ferals (I know it can be done, I have done it several times - but then again, I have had cats locked in rooms for months at a time, screen doors inside my house, etc.) There do need to be stricter leash laws for dogs and cats - and the money, people and will to enforce them. The fact that too few people in charge care about escaped cats and dogs is a big part of the problem.

Annie, I just did a search on last year's swap, and you're right, Wendy did take over the hosting for me. Reading those threads brought back a lot of memories, so I'm gonna keep this short and go to work where I can get my mind on other things. Anyway, has anyone thought to ask Wendy if she's still up for hosting the December swap? Peace. -Dan

How is everyone doing tonight? I had the nicest surprise from Becki today! I got to try some of her Mocha Truffles and OH BABY are they good! The inside was this phenomenal creamy chocolate with the perfect hint of coffee, the outside was the white chocolate with the light dusting of coffee. Oh was it awesome! The flavors all complimented each other perfectly! Becki, You amaze me! I remember you saying that you thought the crystals made it a little bitter but I think it was very good! Perfect! I am rationing them! LOL! I will only let myself have one if I am on my very best behaviour and get a lot of work done! I know what you are going through with the whole getting things to look perfect. I went through the same thing when I was baking pastries for a caterer a few years ago. It is going to come together with practice. The more you get the feel for the chocolate the better you will get at it! I promise. You certainly have nothing to fear in the taste department! Your truffles were amazing! When I was making creme brulee for the first time I was terrified of how the caramelized sugar would look after it was flamed! I tried it under the broiler, nope! That sucked! Took too long, reheated the custard, made soup out of it. Blech! Had to start from scratch all over again. Pulled out the blow torch and it worked great, I didn't like some of the scorch marks but since then I have seen some of the cooking shows with the professional chefs and their's looked the same as mine! LOL! Same deal with my cheesecakes. I do mine in the big sheets instead of the round springforms so I can have lots for a crowd with bite size portions. The cream cheese layer on top was always a problem getting it to smooth perfectly, finally I went to a restaurant supply store and bought a large offset spatulala and it was big enough to get that smooth finish all the way across the 15 x 17 pan. The other day I read an interview with the pastry chef on food network that does the cake show (can't remember his name right now) he said that the one hard and fast rule is to not bake when in a bad mood or frustrated because your desserts will show it! I thought truer words were never spoken! That has been so true for me! April, didn't you say that you had trained to be a pastry chef? Any helpful tricks of the trade that you remember for Becki? I have had similar issues with the chocolate coatings in the past and remember trying different things to get it to work better but not always consistent with the same results. I don't have a ton of experience in this area. I would love to make some Hemp lip balm with you! LOL! I am growing my hair out so I can look more like a hippie at the commune! Communal Kitchen and dining room with separate living quarters is perfect for me! Oh, and a giant great room off the dining room and kitchen for lots of comfort, crafts and gabbing! I would love to learn how to make some of those essential oils. Bath and Body Works makes this awesome Vanilla Oil that I would love to be able to make myself. I have the vanilla, just need to know what to do to make the essential oils! LOL!