Lucky

Since there is a Costco near me, I go there frequently. The most returned item I see are televisions.

I have been all over Google trying to find anything that substantiates KYTOP's remarks that the young craigslist kid has a history of going with guys only to back out. KYTOP, in his first post on this thread suggested that blogger gossip is not so reliable, so I am most interested in hearing the basis for his remarks today. I couldn't find anything on my Google search that supports the allegation.

Well, I think he is pretty damn accurate. But I don't know how you can say that King is weeping from his grave. Isn't that inconsistent with being dead?

Actually, I would rather be in New York!

Remember those boyhood days when August meant that school was right around the corner? If you were bored, that was good news. But August for me now means super hot weather. For 4 years we went to Rio to avoid the heat. This year we were scheduled to leave last Tuesday, but canceled due to the high Rio hotel prices. Good thing too since I went to the dentist on Tuesday and got the news that I needed $3000 in repairs. But that still leaves the heat. It was 116 Wednesday and 115 yesterday. I walked the dogs at 5 am and it was 93. And don' tell me "it's a dry heat" as August is our most humid month. 20% at 5 a.m. So I stay in during the day and read. Yesterday I was fortunate to watch the Yankees hit 3 grand slams to beat the A's 20-9. But Irene will probably cancel this weekend's games. So, yes, we have perfect weather here in Riverside County in March and April. But next year, should I still be alive, I have to go somewhere cooler! Thanks for letting me vent. Maybe today we will have 101 posts! Unless Irene knocks out the computers on the East Coast...Irene, of course, is God's wrath against the Tea Party...

Dykstra as a young baseball player had some sex appeal if you ignored the cheek full of tobacco. But he was always a bad boy, and getting into trouble seems to be his best talent.

They sold you two bad TVs and you are still a fan? I'm glad you pay your taxes, though. People who complain about bad roads, bad services, and other government failures and then try to avoid paying the taxes needed to fix the problems amaze me.

The ten inch mattress was for your dog?

He says he's not gay, which makes his credibility dubious. If you are not gay, you do not hire a guy from craigslist for a "good time." So when he how accuses the kid of stealing from him, I simply don't believe it.

KYTOP, please provide some evidence for the allegations you make against this kid. Seriously. If true, it's important information. But without proof, it's just gossip.

He sure has a nice butt.

Reuter's discusses the assumptions that he is gay: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/25/idUS422760388920110825

If we keep losing jobs, soon no one will be working!

Well, you missed a historical game today as the Yankees hit three grand slams- a major league record, on their way to a 22-9 win!! The Slammers

The Franco family genes must be sizzling. Thanks, EXPAT, for posting this.

Rachel Ray says that using a pressure cooker is "moderately easy." I went to ehow.com and found several articles on them, including this one: The Ivory Cooker

Anthony Recker, catcher for the Oakland A's. He's so new that the official website does not yet have his picture. So, let me say this- when he came to bat my jaw dropped. He's beautiful. Okay, I found this pic. Now add a smile, and...

Here's another thread of your that is just waiting for the right moment until people catch on: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/25/business/economy/us-may-back-mortgage-refinancing-for-millions.html?hp

Townsend, I can tell that you are up on all of the happenings in LA. For you to stop posting these bombshells would bring the place to a halt and we can't have that. So, please continue to do your research and drop these items on us so we all can take note of them.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/25/business/economy/us-may-back-mortgage-refinancing-for-millions.html?hp The government may propose a program to allow those underwater in their mortgages to refinance at today's new lower rates. Read the article, then tell me if is a good idea, okay? http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/25/business/economy/us-may-back-mortgage-refinancing-for-millions.html?hp

When I wrote my comment, I guess I was expecting EXPAT to explain the attraction, as I don't see it.

Someone had to! It's more of the Kim Kardashian thing. I just can't understand the deluge of publicity her wedding got. I don't see her appeal. So, when you posted about Amy and Tony, the same sentiment arose. I just don't get why we should care. But I know people do, so I don't oppose posting it, I just wanted to share my thoughts. That's okay, isn't it?

Since I cannot start a new thread, I tack this on here: New rules making things better for passengers are set to take effect. Kathleen Pender at SFGate.com tells us what they are: Starting today, airline passengers get more rights and protections as new Department of Transportation rules take effect. The new rules require airlines to refund baggage fees on lost bags, pay more cash to passengers bumped involuntarily from oversold flights and prominently disclose on their Web sites all fees for optional services such as checked bags, meals, upgraded seating and canceling or changing reservations. Although very few passengers are bumped involuntarily, the new compensation rules could make it easier for passengers who are willing to be bumped voluntarily negotiate a better deal with airlines, says Jon Fox, a consumer advocate with the California Public Interest Group. The new rules also expand the existing ban on lengthy tarmac delays to cover international flights at U.S. airports. Last year, DOT prohibited U.S. airlines operating domestic flights from stranding passengers on the tarmac for more than three hours without returning to the gate and giving them a chance to get off. The rule also required airlines to provide food, drink and bathroom facilities after two hours on the tarmac. Airlines that violate the rule can be fined up to $27,000 per passenger. Starting today, the same rule applies to international flights delayed at U.S. airports, but give airlines four hours instead of three before returning to the gate. The new rule applies to foreign and domestic airlines but does not apply when flights to or from the United States are stuck on the ground at foreign airports. Gary Leff, co-founder of Milepoint.com, says the new rules sound impressive "but won't change the travel experience for the vast majority of passengers." Under the new rules, airlines must: --Refund any baggage fees charged if they lose your luggage. --Provide a link on their home page to a Web page that discloses all optional fees. --Increase cash compensation for involuntary bumping on oversold flights. Previously, bumped passengers got the one-way value of their ticket, up to $400, if the airline got them to their destination within one to two hours of their originally scheduled arrival time for domestic flights and within one to four hours for international flights. They were entitled to twice the one-way value of their ticket, up to $800, if the involuntary bump delayed them for more than two hours for domestic flights and more than four hours for international flights. Under the new rule, bumped passengers will get double the one-way price of their ticket, up to $650, for the shorter delays and four times the one-way value of their tickets, up to $1,300, for the longer delays. These amounts will be adjusted for inflation every two years. While that sounds like a lot, very few passengers are involuntarily bumped -- a little less than 1 out of every 10,000 passengers in the first half of 2011, according to the Air Transport Association. "The upside (of the new rules) has been greatly exaggerated," says Ed Perkins, a contributing editor to SmarterTravel.com. "Everybody focuses on those almost-double payment numbers for bumping, but keep in mind those are maximums. If you are on a cheap ticket you will get a lot less than that." Also, if you are a connecting flight, the mandatory payment applies only to the segment from which you get bumped. For example, if you are flying from San Francisco to New York via Chicago and get bumped from the Chicago-New York leg, the airline can pro-rate your bump payment based on the fare from Chicago to New York. Perkins says the only potential downside in the new rules is if airlines cancel more international flights, which often leave only once per day, to avoid steep the steep tarmac penalties. That was the fear when the tarmac rules on domestic flights took effect last year. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood proclaimed earlier this year that the rule had "virtually eliminated" lengthy tarmac delays on domestic flights. But it's not clear whether the new rules have caused more flight cancellations. Research by independent airline consultants Darryl Jenkins and Joshua Marks say it has; LaHood says it has not. In his blog, LaHood says, "the number of flights canceled after tarmac delays of more than two hours -- the flights that could have conceivably been canceled to avoid violating the rule -- increased only slightly" since the rule took effect. But Jenkins says that's because airlines worried about penalties are not waiting two hours to cancel flights, they are canceling a lot more flights after 90 minutes to make sure they have time to get back to the gate and remove other planes if necessary, which leads to more flight cancellations throughout the system. Under more rules that take effect Jan. 24, airlines will have to: --Include all taxes and fees in advertised fares. --Let passengers hold a reservation without payment, or cancel it without penalty, for 24 hours after the reservation is made, if the reservation is made at least one week before departure. --Disclose baggage fees when passengers book a flight and on e-ticket confirmations. --Provide prompt notification of delays of over 30 minutes, as well as cancellations and diversions. Many airlines already provide these services, but Congress has refused to mandate them, says Rick Feaney, CEO of Farecompare.com. Since the Obama administration took over, "they have been edicting many of the things that were in the passenger bill of rights through the Department of Transportation and Federal Aviation Administration. It's good. Some of these things (such as refunding bag fees for lost bags) were so commonsensical you think nobody would break them," but they sometimes did, Feaney says. Posted By: Kathleen Pender (Email) | August 23 2011 at 05:07 PM Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/pender/detail?entry_id=96012#ixzz1VuPY0kAO

I know this topic appeals to you, EXPAT, and it may appeal to others. But I couldn't care less about a duet between Amy and anybody.

I can't answer that question, but a few years ago I had a similar experience with Marriott. They had a promotion where you had to stay so many nights and then won these prizes. I spent $790 to stay, I think 13 nights, always at the cheaper places, and in the end I won: 2 tickets anywhere Continental flew (I chose Japan) 8 free nights at the Marriott Marquis in New York One week free rental from Hertz and, a collection of coupons good at Marriott shops and other places. So, over $4000 in prizes for $790. They never repeated that offer.