I used a retractable leash with Mac. But it was always locked. I mostly used it because I couldn't let her run loose in the city (there were no nearby dog parks). So when we got to an empty field, she could at least get a run going.

When we bought the house the local ordinance for dog leashes specified no more than 6', so the retractable leashes were a nono.

In general, I am just really annoyed at generalizations.

Java, are there any exceptions to that rule?

In general, I am just really annoyed at generalizations.

I generally agree. (winky emoticon)

I desperately want a retractable leash for the dalmatian, because I'm too slow for her, and when we're not near people/other dogs, I could let it spool out so she could motor a little bit (and then yank my arm out of its socket when she reaches the end [she's completely unaware of her surroundings or the human on the other end of the leash; she is the Ferdinand the Bull of dogs]).

In general, I am confused by people that walk while talking on the cell phone. (pacing on the sidewalk doesn't quite count) You can't be paying attention to your surroundings. No way to know if a car, mugger, bike, or dog is coming up behind you. and often in front of you

ION, I meant to say -- askye, I totally understand how not getting enough sleep *wrecks* you. It magnifies teeny problems, and makes me slightly paranoid. Plus, if I have more than 1 night in a row of bad/not enough sleep, I start to believe I'll never sleep again.

One non-drug thing that works for me is to take a hot shower/bath before bed, because once you're in bed, as you cool down, you get sleepy. (The reverse is true; as your body temperature rises, you wake up. That's why sleep gurus recommend sleeping in a cool, not warm, room.)

ION, if you split a tablet of any drug with a pill splitter, you know how there's powder/teeny debris left in the bottom of the pill splitter? If it's flexiril, and you lick the powder (or just put it on your tongue, intending to go get water to wash it down, but then you take too long and it dissolves), your tongue will GET NUMB.

Learn from my experiment. Don't lick flexiril fragments.

now I am imagining Steph saying her post with a numb tongue.

The Boy pointed out that the tongue is a giant muscle, and I licked muscle *relaxer.*

Duh. Of course it's numb. Not *totally* numb, I should add, but just numb-ish, like when you suck a Cepacol lozenge.

I am confused by people that walk while talking on the cell phone

Well you can certainly pay attention enough to what is in front of you to not trip or run into anyone. I would not do it crossing the street. If it is an area you are unlikely to be mugged, then it seems OK to me. I mean I'm not a big cell phone user, and don't do it. If you are just walking on the sidewalk, and are walking fast enough to keep up with traffic, then surely it is the responsiblity of those behind you not to run into you, to control their enough so their dogs don't run into you, and to tap you on the shoulder and say "excuse me" if they need you to move so they can pass. I live in a small town, so am probably not visualizing crowded city sidewalks. Here a "crowded" sidewalk has a person or two every four feet. I'll admit that in NY or Boston or Downtown Portland or Downtown Seattle it is probably different. As I said, I don't walk and talk on a cellphone. But really it doesn't seem to me that it would take that much more concentration than walking and talking to the person next to you, or walking and worrying about your troubles, or walking and working up the courage to ask that attractive acquaintence you will see tomorrow out.

In general, I am confused by people that walk while talking on the cell phone. (pacing on the sidewalk doesn't quite count) You can't be paying attention to your surroundings. No way to know if a car, mugger, bike, or dog is coming up behind you. and often in front of you

I did this today, without falling down, getting run over or eaten by a pack of feral dogs. Peripheral vision is your friend. But I had to make a couple calls while on my lunch hour, and I needed to drop off my timecard.