Cindy Hamilton wrote:

> On Sep 24, 4:40*am, ChattyCathy > wrote:
>
>> And I'll never forget when one of my American relatives happened to
>> be in Britain for a "family reunion" which I also attended a while
>> back. He moaned about everything - from the weather to the plumbing
>> to the food in restaurants because it was all "different" from what
>> he was used to "back home". And when he discovered that there was no
>> swimming pool in my Aunt's back yard I thought he was going to have a
>> heart attack. *<laugh>
>
> He must be from some relatively warm part of America. Backyard pools
> are not that popular here where they can be used only from June
> through August or September.

He was living somewhere in Florida back then. No idea where he lives
now, we don't exactly correspond on a regular basis...

>
> When my husband went to England for his two business trips, his
> boss booked him into a hotel that was... older. He complained
> that the sinks had separate faucets for hot and cold water, noting
> that the idea of mixing valves was about 100 years old, and wondering
> why brits seemed uninterested in washing their hands in warm (not
> hot, not cold) water. He didn't moan because it was "different", but
> because it unaccountably failed to use technology that has been
> available for a century.

Heh. My esteemed relative moaned about the fact that although my Aunt
had two bathrooms upstairs (both with bathtubs, toilets and mixer
taps/faucets) only one bathroom had a built-in shower-stall - which
meant (because my Aunt had a house-full of guests at the time) he had
to sometimes "queue" to take his morning shower. Oh, and the guest
toilet downstairs was "too cramped" for his liking as well. Heh, as the
old saying goes, you can choose your friends, but not your relatives.
<g>

>
> He like the food, for the most part. He had a pizza somewhere in
> Salisbury that had sliced fresh hot peppers on it, and he's been
> trying to duplicate the experience ever since.

I enjoyed the food while I was there too. My Aunt is a pretty good cook
and the restaurants we ate out at also served pretty good fare.

--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

On Sep 23, 3:39*pm, Janet > wrote:
> In article <950c81e1-02ed-4b3a-acda-
> >,
> says...
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> > On Sep 23, 12:08*pm, Cindy Hamilton >
> > wrote:
> > > On Sep 23, 11:16*am, Janet > wrote:
>
> > > > In article <1d4306d0-ae31-4373-9970-1c7054806178
> > > > @u13g2000vbo.googlegroups.com>, says...
>
> > > > > As for passports, I don't have any relatives in any other countries,
> > > > > so an "emergency" need for a passport is non-existent in my life.
>
> > > > *You have no relatives who ever travel abroad, even on business?
>
> > > My husband has traveled to England once or twice on business,
> > > and I never considered getting a passport. *If he had some
> > > emergency, what good would I do? *I'm not a doctor or a nurse.
>
> > > Of course, the most likely thing would have been that his
> > > helicopter crashed, thus automating his cremation.
>
> > > Cindy Hamilton
>
> > I kind of had the same thoughts - what's the point to an emergency
> > flight to somewhere because a relative has an emergency?
>
> * So, you wouldn't go to support a relative who had had a heart attack,
> stroke, car crash injuries, accident etc, and might be alone in a
> foreign hospital for some time?
>
> * *Janet.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

I don't have any close relatives who would think I should do
that....sorry, you're beating a dead horse on this one.

N.

On 9/24/2010 9:17 AM, Cindy Hamilton wrote:
> On Sep 24, 4:58 am, (Steve Pope) wrote:
>> Cindy > wrote:
>>
>>> My husband has traveled to England once or twice on business,
>>> and I never considered getting a passport. If he had some
>>> emergency, what good would I do? I'm not a doctor or a nurse.
>>
>> It's possible for a traveler to have a medical emergency
>> that prevents him traveling home for weeks, or even months.
>> Say, they are in traction or somthing. In such an event
>> it might be advantageous for a loved one to go visit them.
>>
>> There are outfits that will get you a U.S. passport in as
>> little as three days, if you pay them many hundreds of
>> dollars. I prefer to have a passport already on hand.
>>
>> Steve
>
> Yep, if something like that had happened, I would have
> paid the extra to get a passport quickly. But in my
> 53 years on the planet, I've never needed a passport.
> Think of all the money I've saved by gambling that
> I'll never need one.
>
> Still, if I ever go back to Canada I'll need one now. It
> used to be so simple to cross the border. *sigh*
> Just another reason to hate those assholes who
> hijacked those planes.

No, hate the damned politicians who used it as justification for making
everyone's life miserable under the guise of Doing Something. And the
damned press that went along with it instead of cutting them to pieces
over it.

None of them entered the US on a US ID so what good does all this
"improved" passport crap do?

Nancy2 > wrote in news:63ebf0f8-2e71-449f-90ef-
:

> On Sep 23, 3:39*pm, Janet > wrote:

>>
>> * So, you wouldn't go to support a relative who had had a heart attack,
>> stroke, car crash injuries, accident etc, and might be alone in a
>> foreign hospital for some time?
>>
>> * *Janet.- Hide quoted text -
>>
>> - Show quoted text -
>
> I don't have any close relatives who would think I should do
> that....sorry, you're beating a dead horse on this one.
>


You're lucky!!



--
Peter Lucas
Hobart
Tasmania

The act of feeding someone is an act of beauty,
whether it's a full Sunday roast or a jam sandwich,
but only when done with love.

On 9/24/2010 10:29 AM, Aussie wrote:
> "J. > wrote in
> :
>
>> On 9/23/2010 6:20 PM, Aussie wrote:
>
>>>>
>>>> Nope. The fact that one has a CCW doesn't mean that one is carrying on
>>>> that day.
>>>
>>>
>>> LOL!! Sorta like the sticker I had on one of my cars...... "This car is
>>> protected by Smith and Wesson 4 days a week. You guess which 4 days." :-)
>>
>> Didn't know you were allowed to have Smith and Wessons in your car Down
>> Under.
>
>
> Some do, some don't.
> Some are legal, some are not :-)
>
>
> Personally, the S&W's lost their appeal to me back in the late 80's. Why be
> arsed with speedloaders every 6 rounds when you can have a Beretta with 16
> rounds (if you keep one up the spout).

S&W M&P 9mm holds 18. They don't just make revolvers you know.

On 9/24/2010 9:10 AM, ChattyCathy wrote:
> J. Clarke wrote:
>
>>
>> Dunno what Canada is but the US is not a democracy.
>
> OMG, I see somebody posted that FB was down for 30 minutes yesterday -
> and now you tell me this. Now I know what those hoof beats I hear
> approaching must mean...

Huh?

On Sep 24, 3:54*am, (Steve Pope) wrote:
> Nancy2 > wrote:
> >Fares are ridiculous....when my son wants to fly here from Virginia,
> >it costs upwards of $400 or more round-trip, unless there's a deal
> >somewhere. *And I'm only halfway across the country from him. *Often,
> >flights to either coast from anywhere are cheaper that shorter
> >flights.
>
> The general trend is that air fares are up in the past year or so,
> relative to a long stable interval lasting the previous 15 or so years.
>
> Only if a discount carrier such as Southwest or Jetblue is operating in
> a given market will fares be low.
>
> I note that Southwest now flies out of Dulles, not sure if that
> helps your son's ability to fly for cheap.
>
> Steve

It may help when he goes to Kansas to visit his daughter at college,
but I'm not sure they fly to the Eastern Iowa airport.... maybe to
Moline, which is only 60 miles away.

N.

Hardee's. [Heh. Even our local McD's outlets don't have sausage
> biscuits on their menu.] But it didn't offend me or even surprise me
> much - after all I've only been posting here for +/- five years which
> still makes me a newbie in the eyes of some posters - and because I
> reckon the majority of r.f.c. posters *are* Americans. Admittedly, when
> it was pointed out to her that I am in fact a South African, she
> apologized politely for her assumption - but the metaphor 'tunnel
> vision' still comes to mind here...
>
> --
> Cheers
> Chatty Cathy

I daresay all of us are guilty of it at some time or other. When
responding, I don't always pay attention to where the person is
posting from - my bad.

N.

On Sep 24, 7:31*am, Janet > wrote:
> In article >,
> says...
>
>
>
> > Nancy2 wrote:
> > > On Sep 23, 3:02 pm, Janet > wrote:
>
> > >> Nope. In Britain, the legal entitlement for fulltime employees, is
> > >> described as "5.6 weeks". You might think that means calendar weeks,
> > >> 39 days, but what it actually means, is " working weeks ". The
> > >> "working week" is 5 days not 7. So, annual leave for someone who
> > >> works five days a week, is 28 days. Part timers get less of course.
>
> > > That's still twice as much as is given here for most corporate and
> > > private sector jobs, unless one is an executive. *Higher ed employees
> > > enjoy more, as a rule, if they're professional status and not
> > > clerical.
>
> * *Same for teaching staff here.
>
>
>
> > And when we say we get 2 weeks, it doesn't mean 14 days,
> > it means 10.
>
> * Thanks.. I did wonder about that, in the part of my post you snipped
> :-)
>
> * *Why do Americans put up with it?
>
> * Janet

Unemployment is high, especially in the older ranks - and for every
professional job opening, there are probably hundreds of qualified
applicants. In this current economy, nobody really wants to stick
their head up above their cubicle....

N.

On Sep 24, 10:04*am, Aussie >
wrote:
> Nancy2 > wrote in news:63ebf0f8-2e71-449f-90ef-
> :
>
> > On Sep 23, 3:39*pm, Janet > wrote:
>
> >> * So, you wouldn't go to support a relative who had had a heart attack,
> >> stroke, car crash injuries, accident etc, and might be alone in a
> >> foreign hospital for some time?
>
> >> * *Janet.- Hide quoted text -
>
> >> - Show quoted text -
>
> > I don't have any close relatives who would think I should do
> > that....sorry, you're beating a dead horse on this one.
>
> You're lucky!!
>
> --
> Peter Lucas * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
> Hobart
> Tasmania
>
> The act of feeding someone is an act of beauty,
> whether it's a full Sunday roast or a jam sandwich,
> but only when done with love.

I have often wished for a larger family - most of my close relatives
(of which there are few) have multiple family members who are closer
to them, and who would fill those kinds of needs.

N.

Nancy Young wrote:

> ChattyCathy wrote:
>
> Looking around I saw a guessimate of 28%.

Yeah, that's what I saw too (GIMF)

> I'm curious what
> percentage of Canadians have a passport, I saw 34% or so, and
> these figures were from when you didn't need one to travel between
> our countries, so the numbers are up by now.

I also have to wonder why this "sudden decision" about needing a
passport for USA/Canada border crossings was made? FWIW, there was some
talk here several years ago about forming an "African Union" which
would (among other things) reduce some of the red tape required for
crossing the borders to our immediate African neighbors, but as far as
I am aware, nothing much has come of it.


>> BTW, you might find my family tree quite interesting; plenty of
>> (North) Americans in there and a bunch of Brits and Europeans too.
>>
>> And I'll never forget when one of my American relatives happened to
>> be in Britain for a "family reunion" which I also attended a while
>> back. He moaned about everything - from the weather to the plumbing
>> to the food in restaurants because it was all "different" from what
>> he was used to "back home". And when he discovered that there was no
>> swimming pool in my Aunt's back yard I thought he was going to have a
>> heart
>> attack. <laugh>
>
> Some people are just like that. He probably bitches wherever he
> goes, he didn't have to leave the states to have that reaction.
> There are plenty of people everywhere who prefer to stay in
> their comfort zone.

Wouldn't surprise me in the least. As I said to Cindy, you can choose
your friends, but not your relatives ;-)

>
> For sure we get visitors from abroad who are like him.
>
> I can only speak for myself ... I don't have some hostility towards
> the rest of the world like, why would I want to go there?? I know
> plenty of people who travel a lot and enjoy it. I also know others
> who do not like to travel. It has to do with them, not 'you.'

I've never understood why some people bother to "travel the world" (on
vacation) and then moan because they can't find a McD's on every corner
in whichever country/city they happen to be in, or that the plumbing is
not up to much, etc. Holidaying "overseas", IMHO is all about seeing
how the rest of the world lives and treating it as an "adventure".

--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

On Sep 24, 9:57*am, Nancy2 > wrote:
> On Sep 23, 3:39*pm, Janet > wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> > In article <950c81e1-02ed-4b3a-acda-
> > >,
> > says...
>
> > > On Sep 23, 12:08*pm, Cindy Hamilton >
> > > wrote:
> > > > On Sep 23, 11:16*am, Janet > wrote:
>
> > > > > In article <1d4306d0-ae31-4373-9970-1c7054806178
> > > > > @u13g2000vbo.googlegroups.com>, says...
>
> > > > > > As for passports, I don't have any relatives in any other countries,
> > > > > > so an "emergency" need for a passport is non-existent in my life.
>
> > > > > *You have no relatives who ever travel abroad, even on business?
>
> > > > My husband has traveled to England once or twice on business,
> > > > and I never considered getting a passport. *If he had some
> > > > emergency, what good would I do? *I'm not a doctor or a nurse.
>
> > > > Of course, the most likely thing would have been that his
> > > > helicopter crashed, thus automating his cremation.
>
> > > > Cindy Hamilton
>
> > > I kind of had the same thoughts - what's the point to an emergency
> > > flight to somewhere because a relative has an emergency?
>
> > * So, you wouldn't go to support a relative who had had a heart attack,
> > stroke, car crash injuries, accident etc, and might be alone in a
> > foreign hospital for some time?
>
> > * *Janet.- Hide quoted text -
>
> > - Show quoted text -
>
> I don't have any close relatives who would think I should do
> that....sorry, you're beating a dead horse on this one.
>
> N.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

....and then there's also the small matter of having to work.....

N.

J. Clarke wrote:

> On 9/24/2010 9:10 AM, ChattyCathy wrote:
>> J. Clarke wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> Dunno what Canada is but the US is not a democracy.
>>
>> OMG, I see somebody posted that FB was down for 30 minutes yesterday
>> - and now you tell me this. Now I know what those hoof beats I hear
>> approaching must mean...
>
> Huh?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_ho...the_apocalypse
--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

ChattyCathy wrote:
> Nancy Young wrote:

>> Looking around I saw a guessimate of 28%.
>
> Yeah, that's what I saw too (GIMF)

I don't know why it's a guesstimate, the actual figures should be
available.

>> I'm curious what
>> percentage of Canadians have a passport, I saw 34% or so, and
>> these figures were from when you didn't need one to travel between
>> our countries, so the numbers are up by now.

The Canadian numbers weren't massively different from Americans.

> I also have to wonder why this "sudden decision" about needing a
> passport for USA/Canada border crossings was made?

To theoretically have it in our control who enters the country.
We're a little more worried about that these days.

> FWIW, there was
> some talk here several years ago about forming an "African Union"
> which would (among other things) reduce some of the red tape required
> for crossing the borders to our immediate African neighbors, but as
> far as I am aware, nothing much has come of it.

So it's similar to the US and Canada/Mexico already, the way
things stand.

>> I can only speak for myself ... I don't have some hostility towards
>> the rest of the world like, why would I want to go there?? I know
>> plenty of people who travel a lot and enjoy it. I also know others
>> who do not like to travel. It has to do with them, not 'you.'
>
> I've never understood why some people bother to "travel the world" (on
> vacation) and then moan because they can't find a McD's on every
> corner in whichever country/city they happen to be in, or that the
> plumbing is not up to much, etc. Holidaying "overseas", IMHO is all
> about seeing how the rest of the world lives and treating it as an
> "adventure".

I agree. I would really like to know what the bathroom situation
is where I'd go, at least to be prepared. Heh. What can I say.
I was raised to have bathroom issues.

I also don't understand looking for McDonald's everywhere, but
not everyone really cares what they eat, it's not what they travel
for. To each their own, I guess.

nancy

On Thu, 23 Sep 2010 21:42:35 -0400, "Paco" > wrote:

>
>
>"Bob Terwilliger" > wrote in message
.. .
>> sf wrote:
>>
>>> Visiting parts of the USA where we don't live is actually a very big
>>> deal. It's a huge place with distinct areas that would be similar to you
>>> visiting another country... think about the Hawaiian Islands, the
>>> Badlands in Wyoming and the Green Mountains in New York state for
>>> starters.
>>
>> Badlands National Park is actually in South Dakota. (Of course, there
>> *are* badlands in Wyoming: Hell's Half-Acre qualifies, but it's much
>> smaller than the national park.)
>>
>> Bob, drove through the South Dakota badlands in 1987
>
>And the Green Mountains are in Vermont. NYS has the Catskill Mountains
>(Sheldonland) and the Adirondack Mountains.

'Zactly.... and New Hampshire has the White Mountains. Poor PA has
the Poconos... beware them Deliverance types... if you hear the twang
of a jaw harp get yer ass outta there pronto. LOL
Demo:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ddhb8oKoWmo

On Thu, 23 Sep 2010 21:30:24 -0700, sf > wrote:

>On Thu, 23 Sep 2010 21:42:35 -0400, "Paco" > wrote:
>
>>And the Green Mountains are in Vermont.
>
>Lake Ticonderoga, Fort Ticonderoga and Fort William Henry are in
>Vermont? Huh. I thought I was in New York state when I visited them.
>I didn't see a single sign telling me I was in Vermont or the
>Adirondacks and those mountains were definitely green... nothing like
>the Black Hills, which are also covered in pine. <shrug>

Perhaps you spent too much time inhaling the Smoky Mountains.

On Fri, 24 Sep 2010 04:20:58 GMT, Aussie
> wrote:

>sf > wrote in news:nn8o9617mctpvcu0s9ii3mvh9n1b904sq2@
>4ax.com:
>
>> On Thu, 23 Sep 2010 22:20:16 GMT, Aussie
>> > wrote:
>>
>>>LOL!! Sorta like the sticker I had on one of my cars...... "This car is
>>>protected by Smith and Wesson 4 days a week. You guess which 4 days." :-)
>>
>> A veiled threat. I'm so scared.
>>
>
>
>
>Humour seems to be lost on you some days, isn't it?

Yes, ironic you'd have a bumper sticker that boasts of your tiny
weewee.

Nancy Young wrote:

> ChattyCathy wrote:


>> I've never understood why some people bother to "travel the world"
>> (on vacation) and then moan because they can't find a McD's on every
>> corner in whichever country/city they happen to be in, or that the
>> plumbing is not up to much, etc. Holidaying "overseas", IMHO is all
>> about seeing how the rest of the world lives and treating it as an
>> "adventure".
>
> I agree. I would really like to know what the bathroom situation
> is where I'd go, at least to be prepared. Heh. What can I say.
> I was raised to have bathroom issues.

<laugh> Well, if you ever get the "travel bug" and decide to pay us a
visit, we have 2 [indoor] bathrooms with toilets (plus a separate
toilet). And we do have running water faucets [hot/cold] and some of
them are even mixer faucets. Furthermore, there's no need to pack any
TP, because I always keep plenty of it in stock ;-)

--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

"Nancy2" > wrote in message
...
>

> I don't have any close relatives who would think I should do
> that....sorry, you're beating a dead horse on this one.

Doesn't seem to matter much if you can get one fast!

--
--
https://www.shop.helpforheroes.org.uk/

"Janet" > wrote in message
...
> In article <63ebf0f8-2e71-449f-90ef-
> >,
> says...
>>
>> On Sep 23, 3:39 pm, Janet > wrote:
>> > In article <950c81e1-02ed-4b3a-acda-
>> > >,
>> > says...
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > > On Sep 23, 12:08 pm, Cindy Hamilton >
>> > > wrote:
>> > > > On Sep 23, 11:16 am, Janet > wrote:
>> >
>> > > > > In article <1d4306d0-ae31-4373-9970-1c7054806178
>> > > > > @u13g2000vbo.googlegroups.com>, says...
>> >
>> > > > > > As for passports, I don't have any relatives in any other
>> > > > > > countries,
>> > > > > > so an "emergency" need for a passport is non-existent in my
>> > > > > > life.
>> >
>> > > > > You have no relatives who ever travel abroad, even on business?
>> >
>> > > > My husband has traveled to England once or twice on business,
>> > > > and I never considered getting a passport. If he had some
>> > > > emergency, what good would I do? I'm not a doctor or a nurse.
>> >
>> > > > Of course, the most likely thing would have been that his
>> > > > helicopter crashed, thus automating his cremation.
>> >
>> > > > Cindy Hamilton
>> >
>> > > I kind of had the same thoughts - what's the point to an emergency
>> > > flight to somewhere because a relative has an emergency?
>> >
>> > So, you wouldn't go to support a relative who had had a heart attack,
>> > stroke, car crash injuries, accident etc, and might be alone in a
>> > foreign hospital for some time?
>> >
>> > Janet.- Hide quoted text -
>> >
>> > - Show quoted text -
>>
>> I don't have any close relatives who would think I should do
>> that....sorry, you're beating a dead horse on this one.
>
> OMG, the poor animal, you neglected your horse too?

*rolls eyes*
--
--
https://www.shop.helpforheroes.org.uk/

ChattyCathy wrote:
> Nancy Young wrote:

>> I agree. I would really like to know what the bathroom situation
>> is where I'd go, at least to be prepared. Heh. What can I say.
>> I was raised to have bathroom issues.
>
> <laugh> Well, if you ever get the "travel bug" and decide to pay us a
> visit, we have 2 [indoor] bathrooms with toilets (plus a separate
> toilet). And we do have running water faucets [hot/cold] and some of
> them are even mixer faucets. Furthermore, there's no need to pack any
> TP, because I always keep plenty of it in stock ;-)

(laugh) I promise you I didn't expect any less.

nancy

On 9/24/2010 11:29 AM, ChattyCathy wrote:
> Nancy Young wrote:
>
>> ChattyCathy wrote:
>>
>> Looking around I saw a guessimate of 28%.
>
> Yeah, that's what I saw too (GIMF)
>
>> I'm curious what
>> percentage of Canadians have a passport, I saw 34% or so, and
>> these figures were from when you didn't need one to travel between
>> our countries, so the numbers are up by now.
>
> I also have to wonder why this "sudden decision" about needing a
> passport for USA/Canada border crossings was made? FWIW, there was some
> talk here several years ago about forming an "African Union" which
> would (among other things) reduce some of the red tape required for
> crossing the borders to our immediate African neighbors, but as far as
> I am aware, nothing much has come of it.
>
>
>>> BTW, you might find my family tree quite interesting; plenty of
>>> (North) Americans in there and a bunch of Brits and Europeans too.
>>>
>>> And I'll never forget when one of my American relatives happened to
>>> be in Britain for a "family reunion" which I also attended a while
>>> back. He moaned about everything - from the weather to the plumbing
>>> to the food in restaurants because it was all "different" from what
>>> he was used to "back home". And when he discovered that there was no
>>> swimming pool in my Aunt's back yard I thought he was going to have a
>>> heart
>>> attack.<laugh>
>>
>> Some people are just like that. He probably bitches wherever he
>> goes, he didn't have to leave the states to have that reaction.
>> There are plenty of people everywhere who prefer to stay in
>> their comfort zone.
>
> Wouldn't surprise me in the least. As I said to Cindy, you can choose
> your friends, but not your relatives ;-)
>
>>
>> For sure we get visitors from abroad who are like him.
>>
>> I can only speak for myself ... I don't have some hostility towards
>> the rest of the world like, why would I want to go there?? I know
>> plenty of people who travel a lot and enjoy it. I also know others
>> who do not like to travel. It has to do with them, not 'you.'
>
> I've never understood why some people bother to "travel the world" (on
> vacation) and then moan because they can't find a McD's on every corner
> in whichever country/city they happen to be in, or that the plumbing is
> not up to much, etc. Holidaying "overseas", IMHO is all about seeing
> how the rest of the world lives and treating it as an "adventure".

I once ran into the opposite problem. In Quebec, my first night there,
it had been a long ride and I was pretty beat, so I took a nap, napped
longer than I intended, and ended up looking for food after 10 PM. Only
place I could find that was open within walking distance of the hotel
was Burger King. Then to thicken the plot further, I ordered a "whopper
avec fromage et frites" and found out that the kid behind the counter
couldn't understand French so I had to order in English. Despite
<http://www.flickr.com/photos/39383723@N00/997804052/>. Found out later
that the St. Hubert in the other direction was also open late, not that
it's that much of an improvement over Burger King.

On Thu, 23 Sep 2010 07:48:29 -0700 (PDT), Nancy2 wrote:

> On Sep 23, 9:16*am, ChattyCathy > wrote:
>> Dan Abel wrote:
>>> In article >,
>>> *ChattyCathy > wrote:
>>
>>>> J. Clarke wrote:
>>
>>>> > Uh, why does a lack of desire to spend 110 dollars on a piece of
>>>> > paper that is likely to expire before one uses it indicative of a
>>>> > belief that "civilization stops at the USA's borders"?
>>
>>> It's not a piece of paper, IT'S A WHOLE BOOK!!!
>>
>>> :-)
>>
>>>> 110 *US* dollars?
>>
>>>> Heh. The cost of getting a passport in South Africa is the equivalent
>>>> of USD27.00 - and it's valid for 10 years from date of issue. So I'd
>>>> say you're either getting ripped off or exaggerating somewhat.
>>
>>> Here's the info:
>>
>>>http://travel.state.gov/passport/fees/fees_837.html
>>
>>> If I understand it correctly, it's US$165 for the whole works, good
>>> for ten years.
>>
>> That's much pricier than what we pay here - but on reflection, that's
>> only $16.50 per year. Some people spend (almost) that per month to
>> access Usenet, so I don't think it would exactly break the bank - and
>> at least if an urgent need arose to have a passport (death of a family
>> member elsewhere in the world, for example), one wouldn't have the
>> hassle (and extra expense) of applying for an emergency travel
>> document/passport.
>> --
>> Cheers
>> Chatty Cathy- Hide quoted text -
>>
>> - Show quoted text -
>
> I venture an opinion that your accusation that Americans don't think
> about anything beyond their borders, might equally apply to you ....
> you assume everyone has the same options as South Africans, and don't
> make allowances for things you have mistaken assumptions about. But
> then sweeping generalizations are easy.
>
> N.

frankly, i've never had that impression, nancy. c.c. is usually quite
explicit when things are RSA-specific.

your pal,
blake

On Sep 24, 10:59*am, "J. Clarke" > wrote:
> On 9/24/2010 9:17 AM, Cindy Hamilton wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> > On Sep 24, 4:58 am, (Steve Pope) wrote:
> >> Cindy > *wrote:
>
> >>> My husband has traveled to England once or twice on business,
> >>> and I never considered getting a passport. *If he had some
> >>> emergency, what good would I do? *I'm not a doctor or a nurse.
>
> >> It's possible for a traveler to have a medical emergency
> >> that prevents him traveling home for weeks, or even months.
> >> Say, they are in traction or somthing. *In such an event
> >> it might be advantageous for a loved one to go visit them.
>
> >> There are outfits that will get you a U.S. passport in as
> >> little as three days, if you pay them many hundreds of
> >> dollars. *I prefer to have a passport already on hand.
>
> >> Steve
>
> > Yep, if something like that had happened, I would have
> > paid the extra to get a passport quickly. *But in my
> > 53 years on the planet, I've never needed a passport.
> > Think of all the money I've saved by gambling that
> > I'll never need one.
>
> > Still, if I ever go back to Canada I'll need one now. *It
> > used to be so simple to cross the border. **sigh*
> > Just another reason to hate those assholes who
> > hijacked those planes.
>
> No, hate the damned politicians who used it as justification for making
> everyone's life miserable under the guise of Doing Something. *And the
> damned press that went along with it instead of cutting them to pieces
> over it.
>
> None of them entered the US on a US ID so what good does all this
> "improved" passport crap do?

Could I hate the terrorists and feel contempt for the politicians and
the
press? I'm not sure the latter have earned actual hate.

Cindy Hamilton

On Sep 24, 2:19*pm, blake murphy > wrote:
> On Thu, 23 Sep 2010 07:48:29 -0700 (PDT), Nancy2 wrote:
> > On Sep 23, 9:16*am, ChattyCathy > wrote:
> >> Dan Abel wrote:
> >>> In article >,
> >>> *ChattyCathy > wrote:
>
> >>>> J. Clarke wrote:
>
> >>>> > Uh, why does a lack of desire to spend 110 dollars on a piece of
> >>>> > paper that is likely to expire before one uses it indicative of a
> >>>> > belief that "civilization stops at the USA's borders"?
>
> >>> It's not a piece of paper, IT'S A WHOLE BOOK!!!
>
> >>> :-)
>
> >>>> 110 *US* dollars?
>
> >>>> Heh. The cost of getting a passport in South Africa is the equivalent
> >>>> of USD27.00 - and it's valid for 10 years from date of issue. So I'd
> >>>> say you're either getting ripped off or exaggerating somewhat.
>
> >>> Here's the info:
>
> >>>http://travel.state.gov/passport/fees/fees_837.html
>
> >>> If I understand it correctly, it's US$165 for the whole works, good
> >>> for ten years.
>
> >> That's much pricier than what we pay here - but on reflection, that's
> >> only $16.50 per year. Some people spend (almost) that per month to
> >> access Usenet, so I don't think it would exactly break the bank - and
> >> at least if an urgent need arose to have a passport (death of a family
> >> member elsewhere in the world, for example), one wouldn't have the
> >> hassle (and extra expense) of applying for an emergency travel
> >> document/passport.
> >> --
> >> Cheers
> >> Chatty Cathy- Hide quoted text -
>
> >> - Show quoted text -
>
> > I venture an opinion that your accusation that Americans don't think
> > about anything beyond their borders, might equally apply to you ....
> > you assume everyone has the same options as South Africans, and don't
> > make allowances for things you have mistaken assumptions about. *But
> > then sweeping generalizations are easy.
>
> > N.
>
> frankly, i've never had that impression, nancy. *c.c. is usually quite
> explicit when things are RSA-specific.
>
> your pal,
> blake- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

I didn't notice her original statement was qualified in any way as
being, "...here in RSA." However, I could be wrong about that. I'm
too lazy to look it up. My impression was that she thought people in
the US were foolish for not wanting to pay for a passport, just to
carry one around. That implies that her experience in paying for one
would be the same, hence her judgement.

Whatever, I'm over it.

N.

"ChattyCathy" > wrote in message
...
> Default User wrote:
>
>> "ChattyCathy" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>> Default User wrote:
>>
>>>> It was originally named "alumium" by Davys, then he later changed it
>>>> to aluminum. That's the spelling and pronounciation that became
>>>> established in the US and Canada. Still later, the British changed
>>>> it again to aluminium to make it more conforming to other names of
>>>> metals.
>>>
>>> Well, if the "British" you speak of founded the International Union
>>> of Pure and Applied Chemistry (nowadays known as IUPAC), I guess
>>> you'd be correct.
>>
>> They adopted that in 1990. Did you expect the US and Canada to change?
>
> Yes. They're democracies aren't they? After all they are still a
> minority in the global population.

I don't know what your point is. If left up to the people, then they
certainly wouldn't change the words they use on a daily basis, and have for
100 years, because some international organization adopted them as
standards. You seem to have very odd ideas about some things.



Brian
--
Day 597 of the "no grouchy usenet posts" project.

"J. Clarke" > wrote in
:

> On 9/24/2010 10:29 AM, Aussie wrote:

>>>
>>> Didn't know you were allowed to have Smith and Wessons in your car
>>> Down Under.
>>
>>
>> Some do, some don't.
>> Some are legal, some are not :-)
>>
>>
>> Personally, the S&W's lost their appeal to me back in the late 80's.
>> Why be arsed with speedloaders every 6 rounds when you can have a
>> Beretta with 16 rounds (if you keep one up the spout).
>
> S&W M&P 9mm holds 18. They don't just make revolvers you know.
>


Thanks for that. You get 'stuck' on one weapon for a long while and you
lose track of all others coming out.

Had a look at their website, nifty video they've got for the M&P issue.

And I see they're still trotting out a version of my S&W favourite, the
386.

*And* that they have even taken to ripping off the M16 design and
features!!

But......... I'll stick with my Beretta 92FS..... I know it inside out,
upside down, and back to front :-)


--
Peter Lucas
Hobart
Tasmania

The act of feeding someone is an act of beauty,
whether it's a full Sunday roast or a jam sandwich,
but only when done with love.

"sf" > wrote in message
...
> On Thu, 23 Sep 2010 21:42:35 -0400, "Paco" > wrote:
>
>>And the Green Mountains are in Vermont.
>
> Lake Ticonderoga, Fort Ticonderoga and Fort William Henry are in
> Vermont? Huh. I thought I was in New York state when I visited them.
> I didn't see a single sign telling me I was in Vermont or the
> Adirondacks and those mountains were definitely green... nothing like
> the Black Hills, which are also covered in pine. <shrug>
>
> --
> I love cooking with wine.
> Sometimes I even put it in the food.



Fort Ticonderoga and Fort William Henry are in NYS. I've never heard of
Lake Ticonderoga and Google Maps can find no reference; perhaps you meant
Lake Champlain (Fort Ticonderoga) or Lake George (Fort William Henry). But
the forts are definitely not in the Green Mountains. Why, you may ask?
Because... (get ready for this!) ... the GREEN MOUNTAINS ARE IN VERMONT!
You may have had views of the Green Mountains while visiting the forts, the
western shore of Lake Champlain is in NYS, where Fort Ti is located, but the
eastern shore is in VT. And looking easterly from Fort William Henry will
present views of the Green Mountains.

The Green Mountain National Forest about us page:

http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/forests/gree...in/g_about.htm

http://tinyurl.com/34qqjqp

And so ends today's geography lesson. Bonus trivia? Translate "Green
Mountains" into French. That's right! Les Monts Vert! Get it?

Paco
(born and raised in "THE GREEN MOUNTAIN STATE")

Cindy wrote:

>> when he discovered that there was no swimming pool in my Aunt's back yard
>> I thought he was going to have a heart attack. <laugh>
>
> He must be from some relatively warm part of America. Backyard pools are
> not that popular here where they can be used only from June through August
> or September.


Sounds like bragplaining to me:

http://www.urbandictionary.com/defin...m=bragplaining

Bragplaining: When you complain about something for the sole purpose of
bringing it up in conversation to brag about it.

"Man, I'm only getting 10MB/s download speed. Normally I get at least 15."

"Quit bragplaining. We all know you're just bitching to show off."


Bob

On 9/24/2010 11:44 AM, ChattyCathy wrote:
> J. Clarke wrote:
>
>> On 9/24/2010 9:10 AM, ChattyCathy wrote:
>>> J. Clarke wrote:
>>>
>>>>
>>>> Dunno what Canada is but the US is not a democracy.
>>>
>>> OMG, I see somebody posted that FB was down for 30 minutes yesterday
>>> - and now you tell me this. Now I know what those hoof beats I hear
>>> approaching must mean...
>>
>> Huh?
>
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_ho...the_apocalypse

Just don't see the revelation that the US is not and has never been a
democracy as being apocalyptic.

On Fri, 24 Sep 2010 14:24:23 +0200, ChattyCathy
> wrote:

> but the metaphor 'tunnel vision' still comes to mind here...

Assuming people travel because they have relatives in whatever
country/continent they are visiting is a form of tunnel vision too.
I also think the argument of having a passport for the sole purpose of
rushing to a sick relative's bedside is a preposterous European POV -
said by someone living where every country is the size of one of our
states.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Fri, 24 Sep 2010 10:40:20 +0200, ChattyCathy
> wrote:

>BTW, you might find my family tree quite interesting; plenty of (North)
>Americans in there and a bunch of Brits and Europeans too.

If your only reason to obtain a passport is to visit relatives, you
should refrain from criticizing those who do not know/have relatives
outside the USA and choose not to travel outside the country.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Fri, 24 Sep 2010 11:48:04 -0400, "Nancy Young"
> wrote:

>I would really like to know what the bathroom situation
>is where I'd go, at least to be prepared. Heh. What can I say.
>I was raised to have bathroom issues.

You're right. I like my creature comforts too. I HATE to squat over
a "toilet" and I do not want to settle for less than American style
bathrooms.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Fri, 24 Sep 2010 18:13:01 +0200, ChattyCathy
> wrote:

>Furthermore, there's no need to pack any
>TP, because I always keep plenty of it in stock ;-)


That's always a plus!

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Fri, 24 Sep 2010 20:51:49 -0400, "Paco" > wrote:

>And so ends today's geography lesson. Bonus trivia? Translate "Green
>Mountains" into French. That's right! Les Monts Vert! Get it?

OK, thanks... not that I cared. If I did, it would have been right
the first time.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

J. Clarke wrote:

> On 9/24/2010 11:44 AM, ChattyCathy wrote:
>> J. Clarke wrote:
>>
>>> On 9/24/2010 9:10 AM, ChattyCathy wrote:
>>>> J. Clarke wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Dunno what Canada is but the US is not a democracy.
>>>>
>>>> OMG, I see somebody posted that FB was down for 30 minutes
>>>> yesterday - and now you tell me this. Now I know what those hoof
>>>> beats I hear approaching must mean...
>>>
>>> Huh?
>>
>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_ho...the_apocalypse
>
> Just don't see the revelation that the US is not and has never been a
> democracy as being apocalyptic.

I was being facetious.

However, you think that the USA is not a democratic society? So "one
person, one vote" is not practiced there? Well, I nevah!
--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

Default User wrote:

> "ChattyCathy" > wrote in message
> ...

>> Yes. They're democracies aren't they? After all they are still a
>> minority in the global population.
>
> I don't know what your point is. If left up to the people, then they
> certainly wouldn't change the words they use on a daily basis, and
> have for 100 years, because some international organization adopted
> them as standards.


OK. I'll try to make my point clearer:

Not all people in the world can vote about every little detail - that is
why democratic countries have elected governments (as do both USA and
Canada), and why there are international organizations like the UN and
IUPAC (which is currently US-based BTW) to take care of the day-to-day
details. The citizens of various nations delegate authority to a
government or international standards organization, and abide by its
decisions. Some nations may be a bit slower than others in adopting
global standards, but we've come from many different measuring systems
(varying by country, monarch, etc). down to essentially two. It can
only be a matter of time until that is reduced to one; any bets which
one that will be?


> You seem to have very odd ideas about some things.

So because my ideas don't conform to yours about some things that makes
them "very odd"? I would've thought the word "different" was more
appropriate - but whatever floats your boat.

--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

On Sat, 25 Sep 2010 07:11:38 +0200, ChattyCathy
> wrote:

>However, you think that the USA is not a democratic society? So "one
>person, one vote" is not practiced there? Well, I nevah!

Correctly stated, we're a democracy within a republic. HTH

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

sf wrote:

> On Fri, 24 Sep 2010 10:40:20 +0200, ChattyCathy
> > wrote:
>
>>BTW, you might find my family tree quite interesting; plenty of
>>(North) Americans in there and a bunch of Brits and Europeans too.
>
> If your only reason to obtain a passport is to visit relatives, you
> should refrain from criticizing those who do not know/have relatives
> outside the USA and choose not to travel outside the country.


I don't recall saying that the *only* reason I have a passport is to
visit relatives; I have used it for that purpose certainly, but I've
also used it sometimes to go on vacation elsewhere in the world - where
I have no relatives whatsoever. And in my husband's case - he uses his
passport for business travel regularly. And if he is away somewhere and
thinks it would be a nice place to add a few days holiday to the trip,
the fact that both I and the kidlette have passports and can join him
at almost a moment's notice can be quite convenient.

Furthermore I was not criticizing anybody for not having relatives
outside of the USA, that's just a another figment of your overactive
imagination; I simply pointed out that having a passport might come in
handy for those who *do* have relatives outside of the USA if there
were a death of a family member and the funeral was being
held "overseas", for example.

Anyway, I'm pretty sure *you* have a passport (unless you've managed to
sneak in and out of places like Britain/Europe and China without one)
which would make you one of the 28% of USA citizens that chooses to
travel abroad sometimes. More power to you.

--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

Wayne Boatwright wrote:

>
> I don't have relatives outside of the US, but I have had a passport
> since I wasin my late teens. Over the years I travelled extensively,
> but we can't really afford that anymore. I maintain my passport
> because of our close proximity to Mexico and a driving trip to Canada
> is within reach. However, it wasn't until recently that one needed a
> US passport for the latter two.
>
So I've heard.
--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy