Zombie

...out of the closet and into the cabinet

that's a bummer, Steve My home got flooded by a pipe burst some years ago and it took weeks to dry out. I was lucky, though, because I could continue living there and it was during a hot summer. I can't imagine it happening in winter and being homeless. Hope the condo people's insurance quickly confirms it will fund your relocation - the Condo Board have responsibility - and your employer eases off the pressure. Maybe you should see a community lawyer?

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technology's great! - when it all works tickety-boo One thing I'm loving at the moment is the Google Voice Search option - I'm constantly looking for tricky things to catch it out but "it" seems to understand pretty much everything *or should I be worried about that... *

I don't see how you can allow, never mind initiate, anything sexual with a subordinate And that's without addressing the fact that, as you say, he's straight...

that's some year All good wishes for 2015 to be kinder to you

Seems to me the point of life is the people we meet, know and love. But, if we live long enough, it must also mean loss. Someone has to go first and it's so cruel. The only consolation is you have all those happy memories, Jo Ann

Martha Reeves - you rock!

happy birthday Greg! present's on its way...

Happy Birthday big birdie! *you can close the snatch game now * .

"teen being the operative word" nuff said

street parking avoids the problem .

Good blog And you're right, unless you're commissioned to create something specific for someone else - nothing wrong with that - you should always do it "for yourself". If you earn your living from whatever you create all that matters is that you become skilled at what you do, and that you understand the difference between doing "a job" and being honest with yourself - which is why I never pay attention to the likes of Mr Leonard who want to impose "never do this" rules on creation

the Rule of Law must prevail. But that doesn't preclude laws and judicial processes being part of ongoing public discussion and being continually reformed. In fact, law reform, and judicial process reform, have been essential elements in Britain's story For example, England too once had the Grand Jury system, in fact the US's system evolved from this. But it was abandoned in favour of prosecution being decided for serious cases like this by what is now called the Crown Prosecution Service on a "is there a case to answer?" basis, with the testing of evidence and testimony being the exclusive function of trial by jury. As for the "r" word I prefer the "d" word because, whatever the reasons, if elected representatives and policing do not adequately reflect that society then they are in a state of failure. And if that remains unaddressed the future does not augur well

Excellent blog Daddy. This has been widely reported, and maybe seeing from a distance helps, but it seems pretty obvious that for democracy to be viable the majority have to feel they have a stake. A sense that "we're all in this together". But on the racial issue, I don't see how the citizens of Ferguson, and probably many other parts of the US, can feel that when two thirds, or thereabouts, are "black" [i assume this means "African American"?] yet they are governed and policed by an overwhelmingly "white" [i assume this means Northern European ethnic?] minority group of citizens - they simply cannot be considered to be representative of the people they govern and police. It is not representative democracy. You put it very well - the US has to address this, and urgently.

have a good one Addy

A horrific incident. But as Irri said you did a good thing that day and gave comfort to another human being in extreme distress. So you too should take comfort from that.

hmm, seem to recall when I was a teen life was all about pushing the envelope. No-one got killed, they got some free ice-cream and they got a life-lesson on boundaries thrown in for free too. All sounds good to me .

Sinéad O'Connor singing Prince's Nothing Compares 2 U her face throughout, and the genuine tears A Great Big World - Say Something I'm Giving Up On You when the old guy hugs the wife he's just lost

Here's a few more English slang terms scarper, leggit - run off, disappear slapped - hit innit - conversational padding e.g. "He was comin' at me - innit - so I slapped him one." a bad 'un - a criminal, ranging from petty theft to gangland killer scallywag / scally - a young criminal e.g. "the two of 'em, they're a couple of right scallies" dodgy - dubious transaction, probably illegal well dodgy - dubious transaction, definitely illegal quaff - to drink, usually beer ale - beer bladdered - the need to make frequent "rest room" visits after quaffing too many ales sharpish - quickly scoffing - gobbling food sharpish ringburner - physiological effects after getting bladdered and scoffing a Chicken Vindaloo done up like a kipper - ripped off, conned, hoodwinked spank the monkey - er, "self stimulation" by a guy tosser - a guy who habitually, er... see above shat it! - please be quiet [usually an irate male to an overly talkative female] slag - an "easy" woman / term of abuse e.g. typical BBC Eastenders TV show scene: "Shat it you slaaaag! You fat slaaaaag!" .

Sticking to the edited question [i didn't see the original] which is not would it be a good / bad thing, but simply: if it existed and was "safe and easy" would you use it? It's already been pointed out that being anything other than "straight" [if that is even a reality] has had and continues to have a bad impact on the individual quality of life lived by many, never mind those who live in the dozens of countries where homosexuals are discriminated against, imprisoned, or even murdered by the state. So I'm pretty sure a long queue would quickly form. As for me, before I accepted myself for who I am - and that took a long time - I too would have been in that queue.

No. Religious persecution swung both ways - Bloody Mary favoured burning Protestant "heretics". James I / VI was actually tolerant of Catholics. He just drew the line at regicide

I like to think of this thread as a Public Information Service, warning about the dangers of allowing dolls to infiltrate themselves into people's homes. But recently I've been having doubts. Is it possible I may be wrong? Could it be that the real risk is not from the dolls... ...but from their owners?

or not?