In school, I was quiet, never caused anyone any trouble and made good grades, altho I didn't particularly like school or study. My best friend...who I met over the summer before she started school in our little town...and we met because we both had horses, ended up being the most popular girl in school. She was well liked by everyone, had very nice parents and money...had 9 horses...and always a crowd of people at their place. Due to being friends with her, I was included in a lot more and dated a lot. We double dated all the time. My daughter was a lot like me, in that she was also quiet, no problems, and she made better grades than me... A+ in every class she took. The teachers loved her and she loved school. She didn't date but had a lot of friends...all the really nerdy geeky ones In high school she also dressed weird...and would go to thrift shops and buy the most hideous old clothes you can imagine. She went with the school to New York City one time, and wore an old black lace prom grown that was so old, it was turning purple, that she bought for a quarter at the Salvation Army, and a pair of combat boots to a Broadway play. She wore old polyeaster "old lady style" pants suits...1970's, and she would buy old 1960's hostess gowns to wear when they went out to plays, etc. I never said anything to her about the way she dressed, because she wasn't like a lot of kids today and showing body parts. I worried about when she went to college, but was surprised that when she started college, she went to jeans and same type of things that most of the other kids were wearing. She graduated with highest honors, so being weird for awhile never hurt her.

OK. I admit it. I am a secret wannabe moveaholic. I am an Air Force brat who moved every two years while growing up and came to love it. I crave change just for the sake of it. New views, fresh perspectives, wide-open opportunities. Alas. I am married to (and in love with) a content-where-he-hangs-his-hat man. So... I paint rooms, make drapes, work on many projects at once, refinish furniture, create oil paintings. But, I do not feel totally satisfied with where we live. I want to move. The house we are living in is 10 feet away from our neighbor's house---we live in a historic district in a small, Southern city. I CRAVE a view and a lot more privacy. So, yes, cricket0828, I think it is fine to move if you are bored, if you can afford the move and your DH is in agreement. paint chips, you came very close to how I feel when you said, "Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that sometimes you just have to let life pull you along for a ride."

My husband makes the best french fries. He cuts the russet potatoes in rounds....doesn't peel them. Then he cuts them in sticks, so they are about the size and thickness of my little finger. He has a pot of oil, and he dumps them all in at once...which tends to cool the oil a bit, but when the oil reheats and they finish frying, it is like they have been fried twice, which is the real way to make french fries. You fry them, drain them, and then fry them again. They are lightly crunchy on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. I used to always cut my french fries length ways, but after seeing how he does it, I changed to his way. His still taste better than mine. I am another one who loves an electric skillet. I don't think I have ever fried potatoes in one, but I like frying chicken it better than I do using cast iron. And I have over 100 pieces of cast iron cookware. Or, did have. I have given a lot of it away.

Will you give us the recipe? Sounds really good!