I'm so darn glad! I'm hearing Thunder out in the distance! Yahoo!

That means it's going to rain soon, woohoo, which I'm so happy to hear. It's been SO darn HOT this week, in the high 90s!

Whew! I am glad as can be! It's dark & cloudy too!

Thank you Mother Nature!



P.S. Only thing bad about it is, I'll need to get off my computer here, soon, lol

90's?

Ah heck, that's time for me to break out the jacket and long sleeves!

*Laughing*... it's 108 today. Supposed to go down to 102 tomorrow and 101 on Sunday, then start climbing back up and 110 by Wednesday!

Wish the monsoons would start - and soon - at least the desert would spring into a "bright green" instead of brown!

BTW - when the sun hits my kitchen window in the morning, the thermometer readout climbs all the way past 120 - as far as the red line goes!

Send some of your rain clouds out West!!

I enjoyed 110 in Las Vegas much more than I enjoy the 96 we get here in Illinois. Everyone talks about the dry heat...but it's SO much easier to take than all the humidity. I can't even imagine what it's like down south, where it REALLY gets humid.

Yeah it's a dry heat, but then so is my oven

We had a cool front move through yesterday and usually that brings storms. The clouds kept getting dark and then the sun would break through, all day long this happened! In the evening it was so much more comfortable and all the clouds went away. The house was down to 68 when I got up this morning. The weekend will heat back up to the high 90's before getting back to the 80's early next week. It's a real seesaw this year. I don't mind a few bad days with a nice break. Much better than the record breaking heat that seemed to last for weeks last year.

well, it did finally rain, so that aws good. Rained ALL day long, actually!
That was a bit tough, since I'm so used to the dry sunny weather.

well, not dry either. Humid as can be. I agree with ya, OP, I can take dry heat a WHOLE lot mo' better than humidity.
Humidity sucks. Even when it's only 75 degrees out here, if it's really humid, it feels like you're in a sauna!

I need to get my a/c fixed. Some jerk of a oil furnace guy was supposed to fix our furnace, but this winter, they came out and refused to FIX ANYTHING!
They obviously didn't even bother to change out our air filter either, cuz the whole home is covered with dust... cuz they didn't bother to do that either last summer.
Don't use RHODES Oil, in Wethersfield, if you need Oil for your furnace, They're nothing but a rip off.
To make matters worse, the furnace was making such bad smokey smells, I was getting so dizzy I thought I was going to die one evening, this past winter, but the guy Mike REFUSED to come out until the next day!
Bad service, way BAD!

Well, too bad we cannot be shoppers for bad companies who like to rip off consumers!
I'd love to be an auditor for that! I hate ripoff companies. They're bad news.
Plus they hurt the economy and put people's safety at risk too.
To make matters worse, we were almost down to NO oil at all in our furnace, and the same guy, Mike, of Rhodes Oil, absolutely REFUSED to bring us out any more oil, even though his company was charging at least 20-30 cents more a gallon than all the other oil companies in the area!
Rhodes Oil of Wethersfield, CT, is NOT a good place to do business with!

Sounds like maybe you didn't pay your Rhodes Oil bill?

MovieChecker#7986 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

> To make matters worse, we were almost down to NO
> oil at all in our furnace, and the same guy, Mike,
> of Rhodes Oil, absolutely REFUSED to bring us out
> any more oil, even though his company was charging
> at least 20-30 cents more a gallon than all the
> other oil companies in the area!
> Rhodes Oil of Wethersfield, CT, is NOT a good
> place to do business with!


Okay, I gotta ask...why are you dealing with them still?

It gave me a chuckle reading about excessive heat. I think 80F is way over the top in the heat department. But then I'm sure you Southerners sit back and chuckle when reading about our -25 to -40 days in winter.

I think I'll keep the cold winters. At least in winter you can put more clothing on to keep warm. There is only so much you can take off in summer. I wonder how the construction trades manage to function in those temperatures without getting heat strokes.

That is precisely why I hate winter, all those layers take forever. The less clothes the better

Wish we'd get some nice cooling rain. It hit 101 here in western NY today and I ain't a happy camper.

This is why millions of people live in southern california near the coast. It has been in the 70's and low 80's so far. Winter gets to a low of 50 or so but usually in the 60's. Of course you do need to sell your first born to afford the mortgage.
I miss the snow but I don't miss dealing with bad weather at all. And I miss the reds, oranges and yellows in the fall. I do love NOT having a bad hair day every day.

Cettie Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Wish we'd get some nice cooling rain. It hit 101
> here in western NY today and I ain't a happy
> camper.


Oh that's where you live. I love the country in W NY. We in NW OH are many inches of rain down. Next week cooler, but little possibility of rain. Sooo dry. I would love a full day of rain if I could stay in and read and drink tea. Something very atmospheric and appealing about a rainy day. Just a memory at this point.

Just what is so appealing about r@inyday?

Nice pun, Lisa.

I think reading and sipping tea on a rainy day is nice but not as nice as during a winter snowstorm.

plmccut Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sounds like maybe you didn't pay your Rhodes Oil
> bill?


Nope, that's not true, I had already paid ALL the bills in full, including the supposed "cleaning" he supposedly did of our furnace! It's obvious he didn't do much of anything. All over our home, you could see dust everywhere, so he didn't even bother to change out the filter even!

His company claimed that if you used his company for oil delivery, they'd fix your furnace for free, but only make you pay for the parts. They didn't even want to BOTHER to fix the furnace, and then totally refused to EVER deliver us oil again!
And we didn't owe them a dime! I need to write the Consumer Protection Agency, honestly. That company's putting people's safety at risk. The same weekend, he refused to deliver us oil, we were getting temperatures in the single digits, like 8 degree out!
Bad news! Very bad.....

Do you work for Rhodes Oil, by chance?

Bena, I'm NOT dealing with them still. I will never them use them again.
And they totally refused to EVER deliver us oil again, even though we bought their high priced oil for years & years!

I do wish we could be auditors or mystery shoppers for companies like this...
It would benefit the public, for sure.

Bena Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> MovieChecker#7986 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
>
> > To make matters worse, we were almost down to
> NO
> > oil at all in our furnace, and the same guy,
> Mike,
> > of Rhodes Oil, absolutely REFUSED to bring us
> out
> > any more oil, even though his company was
> charging
> > at least 20-30 cents more a gallon than all the
> > other oil companies in the area!
> > Rhodes Oil of Wethersfield, CT, is NOT a good
> > place to do business with!
>
>
> Okay, I gotta ask...why are you dealing with them
> still?

Oh, you folks have some of the nicest weather in the world... well, next to Hawaii, maybe... lol.

But yes, your housing costs are high, but I think well worth it, in some senses, given how great a state California is.

So beautiful & different & progressive! Love California.. Would love to visit it again soon.
Up north, in the Redwood Forest area, is so gorgeous... But it's pretty in so many spots.

How is your crime rate in central CA? Not bad? I think crime is high on the East Coast now, mysefl!
sandyf Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> This is why millions of people live in southern
> california near the coast. It has been in the
> 70's and low 80's so far. Winter gets to a low of
> 50 or so but usually in the 60's. Of course you do
> need to sell your first born to afford the
> mortgage.
> I miss the snow but I don't miss dealing with bad
> weather at all. And I miss the reds, oranges and
> yellows in the fall. I do love NOT having a bad
> hair day every day.

Moviechecker...not much work checking movie theaters in the Redwood Forests and it can get very hot up there. I drove through when dropping my first born off at college in Oregon. Fortunately I bought my house in Calif before selling your first born was required. Then you need to hock the house to pay for college instead. It was 105 degrees at 6PM that day in the most beautiful surroundings. In the parking lot in the town of Redding my car said it was 114. Dry heat yes but my shoes were melting along with my body.
My brother was living up near Albany, NY and his heating bill was almost as high as my mortgage. And, it took me years and years of living in California before I was able to stay in and read or whatever without feeling guilty being inside on a beautiful day. I am from NY and really miss sitting inside on a rainy or blustery day just looking out the window and reading a good book. There are so many beautiful places to live. They all have their specialties. I don't know what the crime rate in in central Calif but when you drive through you pass high security prison after high security prison...I have never heard it is a high crime rate. But there are bad areas in every city and town where the crime rate is higher than average. My Oregon graduate just moved to New Orleans...now there is a town with humidity, heat, hurricanes and a huge crime rate! But, on the other hand, constant parties!

Definitely a change of topic but I've always wondered why parents seem to feel obliged to pay for college. Maybe it is because I grew up in an era/area where most parents didn't finish high school, maybe it is just because I'm cheap.

I never considered asking my parents to pay for my university, even though they probably could have afforded to without going in debt. The subject was never raised by either side.

I've always considered the purpose of summer/part-time jobs was to save money for your education. Even if you don't make enough to pay the whole degree before you start, many students work and/or take student loans to cover the costs.

For myself and most of my classmates, parents paying for college was just part of the game plan.

In my family there was no question my stepfather would pay and we had our choice of any university and the opportunity for going as far as a doctorate with two caveats, we could not take any time off between high school and college and it could not be in St. Louis. His goal was to get rid of us all as soon as possible. He tried to get me enrolled in a prep school in Massachusetts when I was 13, but my mother put her foot down. The closest relative would have been my step-grandmother who was far from my biggest fan. One of my stepbrothers was sent to military academy for most of his high school years and the youngest did go to the prep school. The youngest also continued through to get his Master's.

It was much different then. I do not recall having any friends or classmates whose mother worked either. We also were not spoiled and did not have any sense of entitlement. We were taught a strong work ethic and most of us held jobs during our high school years. Naturally there were exceptions, but most of us were responsible for buying our own cars, etc. The few who had cars given to them were still responsible for gas, maintenance and insurance.

Way, way, back in the day (okay, I know poetic!)...

I graduated in 1980. It was unheard of that parents would pay for college. I think it's an "entitlement mentality" that kids have today.

For crying out loud - get a freakin' job, save your money, apply for scholarships, grants, etc - and pay for your own damn schooling! Maybe if parents would make their kids WORK over the summer instead of crying the blues about "poor Suzy and Bobby need to socialize, my poor babies are just so overworked staying up all night on facebook and texting their friends, boohoo.. blah, blah, blah! Gag, makes me sick."

ANYWAY:

1. One of my HS Friends - her parents agreed to pay for her LAST 2 years of college, but she had to pay for her first 2 years.

2. My brother, as a teacher, tells his students every year about scholarships, where to find them, how to apply, etc. He read (this was probably 5-6 years ago) that over 70% of scholarships go UNAWARDED - because kids are too damn lazy to apply for them! He told his students: "So the scholarship is only $50.00 or $500.00 - say you are awarded it? It took you 1-2 hours to fill it out - that's the easiest $50.00 or $500.00 you are going to make an hour!"

3. Neither of my two oldest sons decided to go to college. The youngest though, graduated in the top 2% of his class in 2006. Out here in Arizona (from what I understood in 2006), the top 1% in every graduating high school class were given $10,000 yearly scholarships to one of the 3 Universities in Arizona. The Top 2% received a $7,500 yearly scholarships, and then I think it went to the Top 3% of each graduating class - something along the lines of $3,000 - $5,000 per year. The caveat was they had to go to Arizona State, University of Arizona or Northern Arizona University in Flag (which would have been my choice, but my son selected ASU)

My Niece - she just graduated high school. She is going to a private college - the yearly cost? $46,000 PER YEAR. My brother went through the roof. She works about 10 hours a week, she is spending her summer - or as she says (she's 18 and knows it all) - "This is my last year as a kid, I want to do what I want. Besides, if I make any mistakes they are mine to make so let me make them." Well, she's spending 2 weeks going to Croatia with her church group, 2 weeks going on vacation with her mom, no time working, has to take out close to $23,000 in school loans - and just doesn't GET IT. She has NO concept of how much she is going to have to pay back - yet she wants to be a Vet! She is going to owe close to $200,000 when she is done with school! They have tried over and over to talk to her - but she refuses to listen! Brother is divorced, and mom (and I think his ex is awesome btw) has babied my niece allowing her to "do whatever"!

LOL - Yes - can't you tell I'm irked by the way kids are being raised these days by parents? What happened to going out and cutting down your own switch to get whacked across the butt? What happened to being MORE afraid of your parents finding out you got in trouble? I was more terrified of my dad finding out I tried smoking dope or got in trouble at school - than I was about the school finding out! My brother - oh, he was probably 13 - well, mom told him off, and he walked by my dad saying under his breath, "B$%)@!" - dad was out of the kitchen chair and had my brother by the shirt front up against the front door so fast (feet off the floor) that my brother didn't know what happened. I can still hear dad, "IF I EVER hear you call your mother that again, I'll knock you clear across the room." My brother still remembers this and still says he was never so scared in all his life and just about wet his pants. BTW - my parents never beat us - but we got spanked!

Try doing that today to a kid! They'll "threaten to call CPS" - I say, "go ahead, I'll help you pack!"

BTW, I only graduated 4 years before you. There is nothing wrong with a parent being able to afford to send their children to college rather than having them be saddled with a helluva lot of debt upon graduating. The days are over when someone can get by with just a high school diploma and there needs to be a heavy emphasis on education. Paying for your child's school and encouraging an entitled mentality do not have to go hand in hand.

For the life of me I cannot recall what my brother said to my mother once to piss her off so bad. I can tell you he was already out of high school and back visiting from college. He was also 6' tall and she was 5'5" and weighed about 115 pounds when she grabbed him by his shirt and threw him up against a wall.

We were raised with manners and discipline. We had respect for our parents, teachers and any other adult we encountered. We were also encouraged to be free thinkers. It is possible to raise polite respectful children without "stifling their creativity" or what ever line of malarkey is bandied about as an excuse to let kids behave like a bunch of idiots.

I graduated HS in 1967 and lived in an upper middle class area. Most of my friends went to college on their parents money. There was never a question about whether my Dad would pay for college - he wouldn't. He wanted me to get a job, live at home and pay board because he felt I owed him after he brought me up. (I don't mean that harshly, I loved my Dad, he just felt entitled to payback.) His plan was that I would probably get married in 7 or 8 years and until then I would live in his home and the extra board money I paid would give him a little financial cushion. That wasn't my plan. I worked full time while attending college and paid for it myself. After I married my husband, we paid off his school loans together. I paid for my children's college. My reasoning was that it was so hard for me, and I wanted it to be a little easier for them - not totally easy, just easier than it was for their Dad and me. And I made them go to state schools and live at home while they were going.

How times have changed. Stay at home until you get married and the your husband will take care of you. Life never fits neatly into that little plan.

LisaSTL Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> How times have changed. Stay at home until you get
> married and the your husband will take care of
> you. Life never fits neatly into that little plan.

Yes, that fairy tale never came true for me..............

Yes, there is a reason they are called fairy tales. On the other hand, I'm glad that pendulum has swung and woman have taken their rightful places in boardrooms, operating rooms and courtrooms. Now if one of us could just take up residence at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue

I'm a little younger than AustinMom but older than rainyday. My Dad used to tell me that when he was younger, he was expected to "turn my pay packet over to my Mam and she would give me pocket money". That was how it was until he left home.

I think the rationale was that the household was one financial entity and so all members contributed to it. Whatever my grandmother's thinking was, I liked it.

Once my son began working (when he was 8), the deal was that he gave me half of everything he made. In return I provided him transportation for his job (delivering flyers) and other help. Of the remaining 50%, he got to keep half and half had to be saved. I think this still left him with as much money as the average 8 year old got for an allowance.

I had put all the 50% he paid me in the bank and when he was 18 he had over $12,000 in 'my' bank account plus all that he had saved himself (>$6000). He started university but then decided it was a waste of money. This was because he didn't know what he wanted to take. He decided to work for a while until he came up with an educational plan.

Once he started working, I told him I wanted $300/mo in room and board. He reminded me of our contract that said he was to pay me 50%. I don't think he realized at the time that 50% would be far more than $300/mo. I agree to his terms and conditions.

He is now 25 and has just bought his first house. He will be moving out at the end of June. All those years he has faithfully paid me 50% of his net pay, without ever mentioning it or complaining. It has helped during a few lean times, given me a bit for holidays and the remainder went to pay for the house down payment.

What a good son! Obviously the product of a good mother