I went to very good public schools in a healthily middle-class town. They're still solid, but I've watched even them bowing under pressure to teach to the endless tests. You know, for the 'standards'.

That's where my paranoia kicks in... Why are you messing with good schools? Which Bushie is making money off of this?

Well when you put it like that it sounds so simple.

I guess my college experience has left me fearful of retaliation - you know, that things will get worse instead of better. But my college wingmates were crazy people....

Heh. Yes. But now you have a landlord to complain to. I think it's fine to go to the guy downstairs first before mentioning it to the landlord, though.

I'm going to repost this down the thread.

I am not a teacher, but I'd say that along with the money in wealthier districts, you also are more likely to have parents who went to college and have the resources to be actively engaged in their childrens' education.

Yeah, I think under-performing school districts are an onion of a problem.

Is there like a standard time when loud music becomes unacceptable? I would think it should be 9:00 rather than 10:00, but in the last year or two I've been going to bed earlier than I used to... anyway I don't know what the norm is. Usually I turn my music or TV down at 9:00 and down some more at 10:00.

I said something to a coworker about how Peter Jennings was always my anchorman boyfriend. She said she hated him. Why? Because he was biased because he dated Hanan Ashrawi. In the 70s! She just automatically hates anything with any connection to Palestine, because she's Jewish.

Aw. I thought it was going to be because he's Canadian.

Brian Williams is my favorite anchorman because he's hilarious on The Daily Show.

I like him because we like the same bands (but I think he's more up on bands than I am): [link]

Be next week, I should have my last credit card paid off, and I will be totally debt-free for the first time in my adult life.

I finally achieved that about a month or so ago. (Except the mortgage.) It's really great. But I am sure it will go all to hell with upcoming trip and Xmas shopping.

Is there like a standard time when loud music becomes unacceptable? I would think it should be 9:00 rather than 10:00, but in the last year or two I've been going to bed earlier than I used to... anyway I don't know what the norm is. Usually I turn my music or TV down at 9:00 and down some more at 10:00.

I stay up late, so I would say 11.

Yeah, I think under-performing school districts are an onion of a problem.

I mostly believe this, I do.

But I also suspect that if you took any underperforming school and spent a big chunk of money on it so it had good facilities and equipment and well-supported well-trained teachers teaching small classes it would improve VASTLY and just about immediately.

There may well still be plenty to deal with, but I'm certain that the above is a really solid start. It would fix a lot right away. And its no mystery.

aurelia -- I got a Panasonic DVD player/recorder a few years back that I'm still happy with. See if this helps as a starting point-- they don't have too many recent reviews, but reading a few summaries might give you an idea of what to look for [link]

If you don't have cable, you'll want a built-in tuner. And if you want to be able to pause/rewind as it's recording, I think that may narrow your choices down slightly. If you're only using it to record stuff when you're not home, that may not matter as much (although I have to say, it is a handy option).

Do people know about Google's App Status Dashboard? It's information for when google stuff is down....