Shelley L

I am taking my Jack Russel/Chihuahua mix camping in the Sierra's for the first time, next month. The campsite is dog friendly and I think he'll have fun (although I worry about him barking at noises at night!), but we are near a creek and I am concerned about Giardia. Is there a vaccine? My vet said they aren't readily available anymore and to just keep him from drinking the creek water. Also, I have put him on Frontline Plus for fleas and ticks and will be starting the heart worm medicine today (Not that heart worms are a big problem here in California). Anything else I need to remember?

I'm hesitant to give my dog those drugs that supposedly keep away fleas and ticks. Are there any natural remedies that work?

I want to get back into sewing, but I can't afford an expensive machine. What is a good, inexpensive one I should look at? I'm not opposed to a used machine, either. Is this a good idea?

I can't ever watch videos on my laptop without them freezing up, buffering and going SUPER slow! How do I speed this up? I can watch them with ease on my Blackberry. Why not my computer?

Anyone else REALLY disappointed with this season? Last season had such promise - Vogue Italia! Back to modeling! High Fashion! No more stupid gimmicks and the top girls really did look like models you could imagine in the pages of Vogue! Now there is this season. The most promising ones are gone. The ones with good personalities are gone and the least photogenic one is the front runner. I don't get it.

My son is 15 and his best friend's ssiter asked him to Winter Formal. I know the girl, I know the parents and I thought it would all be smooth sailing. But, from day one, the mother didn't communicate ANYTHING to me. She didn't tell me when the dance was, never replied to my texts about what the plans were, didn't call when she told her son she would call me, didn't inform me of the transportation situation, the flower situation or what the kids were doing for dinner (she KNEW this was my first time planning a formal for my kid.). The final straw was the parents of this group (4 couples) apparently made plans to hang out, have appetizers at one of the parents' houses then getting pcitures of the kids before they left. My husband and I, however, weren't invited. I found out when this woman's ex hsuband - who provided the transportation - asked if he was going to see us later. I had NO idea what he was talking about. I ended up crashing because I wanted pictures of my kid and this mother looked surprised and nervous to see me. The other parents didn't know me and were prfectly nice, if not a bit confused by my presence so late - pictures had already been taken. I was completely hurt by this mother's treatment of me and I have no idea why she would do this! I provide ALL transportation for her son (at NO cost to her)! I thought we were friends and I seriously have no reason to believe I made her angry. She didn't seem angry at me - more nervous. Like she had just completely forgotten me or something! How wierd is this? I know she has some stuff happening in her life and I gave her the benefit of the doubt right up until I fould about about the parent get together. I felt completely disrespected by that slight. Plus, I go NO thank you for getting the flowers - from either mom OR daughter. Now, I wonder how I'll be able to deal with her. Should I say something or should I wait for her to do it? How wierd is this? Moms - how would you feel in my shoes? What would you do? I feel I'm owed an apology, frankly. Not to mention an explanation why she felt the need keep me away from this whole thing. I understand it's a bigger deal to the girls but this was my son's first Formal and she knew that. It was so hurtful and if she was a peron I never had to deal with again, I'd be able to get over it, but her son and my son are best friends. My son knows I'm angry but this isn't for the kids to be in the middle of. It's just so awkward.

I'm working with my 13 year-old on training his Lovebird. We got her from a pet store and it's obvious that she's never been handled. After a month, she still freaks out whenever we get close to her cage. Sometimes, she'll calm down and listen to our voices, although most of the time, she's hanging off the back of her cage, looking wary. A hand in the cage sends her over the edge. How do we work on calming her down and, eventually, getting her to step on a hand? I know... be patient, but I'm looking for real tips on working with her. I've had parakeets before and I know they weren't this difficult. This is my first experience with a Lovebird so any advice would be greatly appreciated.

My son's AT&T cell phone was stolen and I need to get him another one, but getting a new one is CRAZY expensive since we are not due for an upgrade for a while. I was just going to get a used one on eBay or something, but since his SIM card is, of course, missing too, can I do this? In all my years of having phones, I've never lost one, so I'm at a loss. Thanks!

Seriously, I'm going to time it tonight, but it seems more time is spent on commercials and Bob Costa's "human interest" stories than on the Olympic games themselves. I mean really - A polar bear segment last night?! Polar bears are cute and all but what do they have to do with the Olympics? Anyone else miss actually seeing SPORTS in their Olympic coverage?!

My husband seems to be turning less and less social as he gets older. He NEVER wants to go out with my friends and family. He has one close friend that he rarely sees and no interest in making new ones, even though I know there are people who would be friends with him if he would go out and get to know them. Unfortunately, he is always finding fault in people and never gives them a chance. He completely shuts people out for pretty minor things. It's making me crazy! I know men are different from women when it comes to making friends but this seems extreme. I get tired of turing down invitations or, worse, going without him and having to make excuses about where he is. I love him and enjoy being with him, but how do I get him out of his shell? I have no problem doing things myself, but I'm tired of being alone ALL the time! Any advice?

Who else is hoping Michael falls flat on his face soon? He's a good chef and all, but he's such an arrogant jerk. I was no fan of Robin or anything, but he was SO rude to her! I'm pulling for Bryan at this point, simply because Michael's head will explode if his brother wins!! haha! So, who are your picks for final 3? I'm thinking it will be Kevin, Bryan and Michael. Eli's hanging by a thread and Jennifer's nerves are too shot.

I just got back into running and I need some new shoes. Normally, I like New Balance. Unfortunately, I really don't have the money for the expensive shoes right now. Any suggestions on some good, cheaper brands?

I like this show but to hear the judges rag on Salome for not looking like a model - meaning she isn't under-nourished with jutting bones and a concave chest (like Jordan. ugh!) - was starting to annoy me. Now she's gone. The pictures are going to be so boring now. So, who do you think will win this show? My money is on Jonathan.

When I open Yahoo (my homepage) on my work computer, it looks totally different than it does on my home computer or on anyone else's computer. The logo is purple as opposed to the red it usually is and the layout is different. I assumed it was a website-wide change but it only seems to look like this on my work computer. I'm wondering why it changed. I did not authorize any changes and, worse, since this has happened, my computer is VERY slow. What's up? Any advice?

My friend is worried about hair loss lately. She's on medications for her thyroid, which might be a partial culprit, but I think she needs better nutrition. I know B vitamins are good for hair loss. Anything else? I was thinking prenatal vitamins, too. My hair was super thick when I was on those!

I specifically got a magnetic sticker for my car so I could remove it, which I have been able to do before. But, yesterday, when I went to wash my car, the magnetic sticker would not come off! I'm guessing it's stuck because I live in a hot, dry area and I have a black car! I'm wondering if anyone has experienced this and how you were able to remove the sticker without damaging your car's finish?

I'm looking at a Dell Inspiron. Is a 250GB hard drive okay or should I go for the 320? I'm pretty much only using the computer for writing and internet/e-mail. I plan to purchase an exterior hard drive to store my photos and I'm not a gamer. What do you think?

I'm thinking of getting some of those custom fit vampire fangs for Halloween this year. Has anyone else ever used them? How well did they work and look? Were they easy to get on and off?

This guy was CEO of Washington Mutual Bank, recently named the biggest US bank failure EVER, for THREE weeks and he gets to walk off with $19 million?! And the politicians wonder why American tax payers are against this bailout?! Please. The greedy CEOs and other executives in the ivory towers have already run these banks into the ground. Take the $700 billion and use it to help people get their homes back (a loan, mind you, not a give away). If the banks are so worried about failing, they should sue every CEO who walked away with unearned millions and demand that they have to return it. What do you think?

The victims of Hurricane Ike still don't have any power? Anyone else think this is completely wrong? Once again goes to show how little the Government cares about the average person. And it's Texas, for God's sake! Shouldn't Bush be all over that?