allison

Please let this thread die!

Greg, you being such a smart fellow, you must be able to see that the statewide Eyman inits have in fact shrunk budgets from the state level on down. Of course the parks funding has been impacted, just like the Metro funding that has changed my local bus line from something I used to be able to use to get to work sometimes, to something that is not reliable or frequent enough any more.

Right, Greg, that's an excellent idea. I'll get right on that.

*Grumpy* Guess you guys don't use the libraries or the parks much.....

My error then, I didn't realize Greg had the ability to nuance that much.

Greg, I must delicately point out to you that the Doctor was using a device known as sarcasm.

Greg, as much as I hate to throw down with you, I must point out that the Eyman initiatives have all been statewide, and have impacted governments from the state level all the way down. So even though, as you astutely point out, the County and the City are not the same thing, they have both suffered considerable losses of revenue in recent years.

I just got back from the library, and due to lack of funding, the entire Seattle Public Library system will be closed for a week next month. They had to do that in August of this year too. Yes, it would apprear that we as an electorate would rather have cheaper car tabs than parks and libraries.

Anyone know whare I can get some of these? Like maybe 2 x 4 inches.

Yes, you should bring the Megamid and sell it to me!

I don't know who is running to the store at 10:30 for ice cream down at Stef's place, but a couple of us took him on a short furlough last Friday, and homeboy was like a kid in a candy store at the video store. Didn't realize a guy who can't walk could get around so fast. Nice 5.4 move getting into the car too.

Excellent non-fiction work!

Age 2 Scar on nose, 2 x 1/4". Cause: being a little kid. Still remember Dr. Teays sewing me up sans anasthesia. Age 20 Surgery scar on left elbow, 3". First in a series of broken bones, my sort of version of performance art. Cause: wearing bowling shoes as fashion item. It was the 80s. Age 22: Jagged scar on right knee, 2". Cause: listening to roadie, and thinking he was not bullshitting me regarding contents of road box. Age 29 Surgery scar on left foot, 5" Cause: not cleaning bottom of rock shoes. Something about me and shoes.... Age 32 big nasty scar on left knee, 2 1/2 x 3/4. Cause: motorcycle picked up nail on way home from work, causing flat tire, exacerbated by sporty front braking into turns riding technique. Special thanks to the ER doc who did such a poor job of cleaning the wound, causing secondary infection. To be continued...

Scary.

Sounds like you might know this from, er, firsthand experience, Uncle.

First thing you want to do is get one of your friends to invest in a food dehydrator so you can borrow it whenever you want to. Then try drying and sampling, or rehydrating, depending on the food, to see what works best. Couple of my favorite dirtbag dehydrator things: dried watermelon (thanks DW and Sayjay for the tip), you eat it dried like fruit leather dehydrated ground beef, fry and drain, using the leanest cut of GB you can find, dry, then reconstitute in the backcountry. Can be seasoned. De-lish!

There is so much stuff you can make that tastes better, is cheaper, and weighs around the same, that I tend to avoid taking freeze-dried stuff. I suggest doing your research now in the off season, and then next year you will be eating like the king or queen you are with homemade stuff at a fraction of the cost.

The sling that Mike and Stef used to rap off of has not been recovered.

I have a very nice Goretex MEC jacket that I hardly ever wear. If money is a serious concern, I'd skip this puchase as well. MEC is an excellent place to get a good price on the stuff you have to buy from a real outdoor store. If you can sew at all, you can make little stuff like hats and stuff sack for a fraction of the cost. Malden Mills south of downtown Seattle has a ton of fabric on a big table that they sell by the pound. The REI Garage Sale can yield some great deals, but not everything there is a bargain. Know your prices. Use your imagination, and you can get outfitted with pretty decent gear (even light) for not too much $$.

Greg, you talking on the state level? Because at the national level the Rs control the Legislative and Executive Branches, and arguable the Judicial as well. I think we'll only see the typical R agenda put forward in an even bigger way for the next two years than in the last two with the Rs picking up solid control of the Senate on Tuesday. It ought to be interesting, to say the very least.

Goat, with all due respect, you are being simplistic. I don't think the transit thing has gone at all smooth since the voters approved it in 1998, but the fact of the matter is, the thing is going to cost more than initial projections. The same thing will happen with the Monorail.

Greg, the thing is, we already approved light rail. I'm not sure that the RTA/guv has any choice but to provide it unless we repeal. So, what's our next step? As far as you not being able to talk to me, I don't know what you are talking about. I just know that I asked you to lighten up on me a few times. We can discuss this more in PM if you like, but please don't send me a pm unless you unblock me so I can respond. Thx.

Ah, Greg, you're probably right about the health care issue. I am really frustrated by this right now....I'm in beweeen a rock and a hard place with my upcoming surgery, and scared to death about it. Obviously everyone else's HMO experiences have been just fine or this would be a topic of national discussion...oh wait...never mind.

My company? I'm afraid it doesn't work that way. We have this insurance by virtue of a Taft-Hartley Trust, which is managed by a board consisting of rank and file union members and employer reps. The money in the Trust is paid as a Health and Welfare benefit by the employers, at 8% above wages. The contribution on my behalf is around $300 a month. We have exactly what we can afford to have. PPO insurance is way out of our reach, and had been for a very long time.

And one more thing: I am a middle-class blue-collar worker with full benefits. Can someone tell me how we got to the point where a person like me has to put up with mediocre at best HMO health care? The quality of care that we all should have access to is only available to people with PPO insurance, and the poor in certain cases. I guess I think there should be some sort of health care revolt going on in this country. A lot of the middle class are getting seriously screwed by the HMO system. Oh, and Greg, please leave me out of your defense. Thanks. [ 11-06-2002, 03:10 PM: Message edited by: allison ]