sue, is it bad that I'd like my daughter to tell me she's feeling lonely sometime and ask me to visit pronto like your son did? It's really very sweet; be thankful. My daughter attends university 8 hours from home yet never seemed to miss home last year (freshman year) and couldn't wait to return to school a couple weeks ago. Of course I realize it's a positive thing that she loves her studies, friends, surroundings and adventures so much, but ... gosh. We do talk and text a lot, though, something I don't expect to do as much of with my son when he goes off to college in two years. I'm laughing at the comments about engineering students as my daughter attends an engineering school and is studying biomed and mechanical. Her housemates created a spreadsheet listing every item in the house along with separate shopping, utility bill and housework spreadsheets. This is something none of my friends would've ever considered preparing in college. So yes, they are indeed extremely tidy and organized, but I'm also married to an engineer and am well aware that tidiness is not a universal trait in the profession!

Here are some of the ones I've used in the past: Teriyaki Chicken Ingredients for Cooking Day: * Chicken- you can use any chicken parts that you like for this recipe: breast, legs, thighs, wings or a mixture! * 1/4 cup water * 1 small piece of fresh ginger, crushed * 1 tsp. garlic salt * 1 cup soy sauce * 1/4 cup brown sugar * 1/4 cup white wine Directions for Cooking Day: Put raw chicken in a freezer bag. Combine rest of ingredients and pour over chicken. Freeze. Ingredients for Serving Day: * Sesame seeds to taste Directions for Serving Day: Defrost chicken mixture. Cook this any way that works best for you. Sometimes during the summer we will grill the chicken and other times I will cook it in the oven. Sprinkle with sesame seeds before cooking. I usually do about 30 minutes at 425. Cook until chicken is completely cooked through. Wine and Herb Chicken Marinade Ingredients for Cooking Day: * 2/3 cup white wine * 1 tsp. tarragon * 1/4 tsp. rosemary * 1/4 tsp. thyme * 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil * 1 Tbsp. minced garlic * Chicken (this will marinade 2 1/2 - 3 lbs.) Directions for Cooking Day: Combine all ingredients. Put chicken pieces in a freezer bag. Pour Marinade over the pieces. Put in freezer. Directions for Serving Day: Completely thaw chicken and marinade. Cook on grill. Chicken Paprikash Ingredients for Cooking Day: * 3 lbs. chicken, cut up * 2 cups sour cream * 2 cups chicken broth * 3 cloves garlic, minced * 2 Tbsp. flour * 3 cans tomato soup * 1 Tbsp. parsley flakes * 1 large onion coasely chopped * 2 Tbsp. olive oil Ingredients for Serving Day: * Noodles Directions for Cooking Day: Fry chicken until lightly browned. Add the onions and garlic and cook until onions are tender. Add tomato soup and sour cream. Heat chicken broth and add the flour. Combine to chicken mixture and add parsley. Cool completely and freeze using freezer bag. Directions for Serving Day: Defrost completely. Cook on med. low heat for approximately 1 hour or until chicken is completely cooked. Serve over noodles. Pull Apart Cinnamon Apple Rolls Ingredients: * 4 packages cans refrigerated biscuit dough (7.5 oz) * 3 cups white sugar * .25 cup ground cinnamon * .5 cup melted butter * .5 cups chopped pecans * .5 cups applesauce * 1 cups apples, peeled and diced Directions: Lightly grease an 8×8 deep dish pan. In a large zippered bag, mix together 2 cups sugar, cinnamon and apples. Open biscuits and cut each biscuit into 4 pieces. Put the biscuit pieces into the mixture, and shake/mix, until they are all completely coated. Add in the applesauce and shake until covered again. Arrange in pans. Stir pecans and 1 cup sugar into the melted butter. Pour butter mixture evenly over the pan. Bake at 375F for 45 minutes, until top is golden brown. Freezing Directions: Cover with foil and freeze BEFORE baking (ie do not bake). To serve: Thaw. Bake at 375F for 45 minutes, until top is golden brown. Orange Chicken * 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts; cut into bite size chunks * Orange Sauce: * 1 1/2 c. water * 2 Tbsp orange juice * 1/4 c. lemon juice * 1/3 c. rice vinegar * 2 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce * 1 Tbsp grated orange zest * 1 c. packed brown sugar * 1/2 tsp minced ginger * 1/2 tsp minced garlic * 2 Tbsp green onion; chopped * 3 dried pepper pods/ dried red chili peppers * 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes * (added later) * 3 Tbsp cornstarch * 2 Tbsp water * Sesame seeds for garnish (optional) Pour water, orange juice, lemon juice, rice vinegar and soy sauce into a saucepan and set over medium- high heat. Stir in orange zest, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, pepper pods, green onions and red pepper flakes. When mix comes to a boil remove from head and let cool for about 10 to 15 minutes. Place chicken in a zip lock bag and pour 1 cup of the sauce in with the chicken. Try to get out as much air as possible so that the chicken is fully submerged in the sauce. Let the chicken marinate at least 2 hours or freeze at this point. If you can do it over night then that is even better. Store the rest of the sauce in the frigerator as well. Thaw frozen packet overnight. Pour about 2 Tbsp of oil on the bottom of a skillet over medium heat, just enough so that the chicken won't stick to the bottom of the pan. Place the chicken in the skillet and cook until brown on both sides. It is ok if the chicken isn't fully cooked. Once the chicken is browned take it out of the skillet. Wipe out the skillet to get the chicken residue off of it. Add the sauce into the skillet and bring it to a boil over medium- high heat. Mix together the cornstarch and water and stir the mix into the sauce. Reduce the heat to medium low and add the chicken into the skillet. Simmer for about 5 minutes stirring occassionally. Taco Soup Recipe Ingredients: * 2 pounds ground beef * 1.25 cups onion, diced * 15.5 ounces kidney beans (undrained) * 15.5 ounces black beans (undrained) * 15.5 ounces pinto beans (undrained) * 15.5 ounces canned corn, drained * 10 ounces canned green tomatoes with chilies (Ro-Tel) * 1 packages Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning * 1 packages taco seasoning * 16 ounces tomato sauce Directions: Brown hamburger and onion; drain. Place ingredients in a slow cooker. Cook for 3-5 hours on high or until heated through. Top with sour cream, cheese, and/or jalapenos, if desired. Freezing Directions: Let cool; divide among 2 gallon freezer bags. Freeze. To serve: Reheat on stove top or in microwave for 2-3 minutes or until heated through. Top with sour cream, cheese, and/or jalapenos, if desired. Mustard Marinated Chicken Breasts Ingredients: 1/4 c. Dijon Mustard 1/4 c. Soy Sauce (lower sodium) 1/4 c. Lemon Juice 1/2 tsp. Thyme 3/4 tsp. Basil 1/2 tsp. Parsley 1/8 tsp. Sage 6 Chicken Breasts Assembly: Mix mustard, soy sauce & lemon juice and pour over chicken. Sprinkle spices over meat. Freeze in Ziploc freezer bag or let marinade for several hours in fridge. Serving Day: Thaw. Grill or bake @ 350 for 25 minutes or until chicken is done.

First of all, Funky, yes, please send me a care package. This week has been one of those weeks where I could use one! You know those weeks where everything happens at once? I had a flat tire on Mon., had to get the tire replaced on Tues., we got a call from our "house checker" at our beach house on Wed. that the heat seemed to be off so DH drove down there Wed. from work and called the plumber, who didn't show until 5 pm the next day (as DH sat in the cold house waiting!), and my DD has been sick with cold/fever and out of school Thurs-Fri...and she is missing a big gymnastics meet this weekend, so she's upset about that. And then the news from DS. But where was I? Thank you all for the additional ideas. I am sending him a box today. And Sandy, thank you SO much. I also have a HS friend who lives 10 minutes away and he has offered help if needed, too. The worst part for me will be when he says "I'm fine" I can't tell if he's just saying that to prevent me from worrying and/or showing up! I will pm you if anything seems amiss. He is used to my mom friends fawning over him (he's cute, sweet, and polite so they all love him) so it probably wouldn't surprise him much to have another mom showing up at his dorm to have a look at him!

Running, That is true. However, for several generations now, in our country, a university education has been linked to upward mobility ... so much so that people forget that this was not always the purpose! NYTimes did a fascinating piece on how education became synonymous with economic success over this particular point in history, ... wish I could find it (it was in the magazine several years ago). That said, most people cannot afford 50k+ per yr to study something for the sole purpose of enlightenment. I think of majors like Victorian Lit. as reserved for trust funds kids, dynastic wealth, or the fortunate few who can happily lead lives of penury for their art. Or, they are majors undertaken as undergrad by kids who go to excellent schools, and who know they can do post grad in a marketable field anywhere they'd like. But for the vast majority of students, who, on top of it, borrow to fund their studies, they need to select a major that does, indeed, give them a good ROI.