I saw the tenement museum on some tv documentary on (I think) the History Channel. It looks like it'd be an interesting place to see on my next trip to NYC.

Or part Siamese. They are very chatty and gossipy and never shut up.

Oh, so you've met my cat, Amarna? There are a few Buffistas who've met her and are familiar with her ability to not stay quiet. She even grumbles when she's getting a drink of water. She loves to wake me up by standing on top of my chest, looking down into my face, and with a very bossy expression on her face, "MRROW!" just as loud as she can.

Have any of you NY Buffistas ever heard of it, or been there?

I've been there. We went there on field trips from Hebrew school a few times, and once or twice with my family. I think the last time I was there was probably close to ten years ago, though.

The money/salary conversation is really interesting. I won't disclose Tom's numbers, because that's his business, but I am $5 away from making 40K a year, which is exciting, because I've been stuck in low-to-mid 30s for a long long time. In April, there'll be a raise. Even if it's the bare minimum that will still put me up over 40K.

My/our debt is only my student loan at this point, which is like 35K. Our rent is 14.2% of our combined income, which is pretty good for this area, and the size of the apartment.

My boss was pushing the higher-ups to cough up the extra $5 (annual) to make the salary an even 40K, just for psychological purposes, but they wouldn't. Their logic is not ours. But, whatever, I still get overtime and a very busy spring/summer ahead.

My money stuff is finally under control (knock wood) and I finally feel like I can actually start thinking about the future, instead of trying to pay off the past. More than anything I'm relieved that my sketchy financial past didn't drag Tom down into the sewers of debt and loathing.

I looked at my pay stub this week and I have something crazy like 106 hours of sick leave accumulated! Crazy!

Nora, your only debt is your student loan, now? That rocks! You must feel so great.

checks own timesheet

517 hours. Holy crow. (Practically the only thing that doesn't suck financially about working for UC is the benefits -- pension, good health coverage, generous vacation and absurd sick leave. Doesn't quite make up for the below-market pay scale, but it helps.)

And, ita, huh. I don't know what Ms. Zacharek was talking about. I can think of, like, ten Buffistas with asses that are not only better than hers, but exponentially better. And that's just ten off the top of my head; if I sat down and went through the F2F photo archives, I could probably come up with a score or so. Her costume designer in Hitch must be some kind of ass-enhancing genius, 'cause on its own it's very much nothing special.

Nonian, I swear we probably know people who know each other. A handful of friends we knew in NM through Meeting built hay bale houses.

I made good money (well, for a college student) being a parttime nanny through college (and then full time until I got this job) for a variety of the profs on campus. From what I understand from the parents' perspective, it can be a little crazy coordinating two or three college students' schedules and finding new people as they graduated, but for a lot of them it was less expensive than going the standard local daycare route. It was a small college so the profs could easily do informal background checks on the students.

Robin, WHAT KIND OF DOG?

lori, that's an awesome rent anywhere. I don't think you could comprable here. My $650 gets me roughly 700 or so sq ft and hot & cold water. And that is only because I've renewed the lease so many years, so the increases are piddly. Or none until management switches hands again and they are apparently bound to a certain rate. New rentals of this apartment would start near $800.

I can think of, like, ten Buffistas with asses that are not only better than hers, but exponentially better.

Heh. Ya mean like this Buffista?

OK, there is a commercial that includes the line "ventilated seats." I keep hearing "mentholated seats." Which strikes me as really freaky.

I mean ten BESIDES that one. I'm not totally craxy with the ego.

But, thanks. It's been a crap week here in hell the office. You get a big sloppy MWAH for that!

If you do straw bale, I totally want to come out and help you because I want to learn how this is done. I'm fascinated by it. Or in other words, I'd be free labor.

I would love to do that too, though it's probably not that realistic that I could.

the Whizzinator,

That is right out of Withnail and I

This is a device enabling the drunken driver to operate in absolute safety. You fill this with piss, take this pipe down the trouser and sellotape this valve to the end of the old chap. Then you get horrible drunk and they can't fucking touch you. According to these instructions, you refuse everything except a urine sample. You undo your valve, give them a dose of unadulterated child's piss and they have to give you your keys back. Danny's a genius. I'm going to have a doze.