PassTheAmmunition

Hey, thanks Lerxt1990 - much appreciate your input here. We felt it was a calculated risk doing it to see if, like you mentioned, he learns to work his personality in his own way in a larger setting. Staying where he was was not going to afford him that chance to see if that could develop. A few weeks since we made that call now - and happy to report that he is "fine" with the decision. Ive actually heard him mention on a few occasions to different people that he's "going to a new school in the fall" and he sounds very excited about it. Over the course of the summer so far he has even met additional kids from that school while playing in the park near our house.....and had a few get-togethers with them at our house swimming in recent weeks... while they arent in his grade, they are a grade above as well as below, they are friendly faces he will see in the hallways and at recess, etc. Summer camp was another good decision (we feel) because this time around he is going to a local "summer rec" program offered in the same school that his younger brother attends. It gives him exposure to groups of about 10-15 kids doing all activities and trips ranging from swimming to bowling to crafts. So far, he seems to enjoy it. Overall, he seems ready to emerge from his shell. We're still guarded about September. Weve both taken off from work that week to hopefully assist in the transition in any way required.....but again, I want this to be something he does on his own. Theres plenty more of it awaiting him out there in life, and I dont intend to overly coddle him. Thanks again for the input

QUOTE (nettiesaur @ May 27 2011, 10:33 PM) From a teacher's standpoint here: A little tip: Let your son's second grade teacher know about the situation before school begins, if you can. He or She may be able to set up some good situations for him, or at least watch for bullying. I had 3 children this year who were new to the school. Now, at the end of the year, you wouldn't know that they had been new in the fall. I set them up with children who had similar personalities, and they bloomed(they were all very shy). Kudos on your decision to move him. Those classes are much too small. Thanks for this, Nettie. Great to have a teacher's perspective as well. As soon as we find out who is teacher is going to be, we plan to ask to meet with him/her to be able to provide some background, and hopefully some of the things they can do to steer him through the first year Much appreciate your comments PTA

QUOTE (ghostworks @ May 26 2011, 07:59 PM) Food for thought: As a young man who always felt comfortable and best alone or one on one, my 'forced' social interactions (Sunday school, summer camp, organized sports, public schools) taught me nothing but contempt for the human race. That has been exceedingly difficult to 'unlearn' as an adult. I'm positive that you're merely looking for perspectives here, and nothing like my experiences had been represented - that's the only reason I chimed in. It's not my intent to confuse or depress - so please take it at face value. Ghostworks, It is entirely possible that my son prefers solitude. If that is the case, it will bear itself out in due time. Your perspective is quite valid,and I appreciate your input here. All we can do is try, and see what plays out. We can always go back - if the school is still open. I would have zero qualms about having him be there if that is truly where he feels most comfortable and public school turns out to not suit him. We shall see in Sept.... PTA

QUOTE (MCM @ May 26 2011, 07:28 PM) I realize that you don't know me, and I will say that I don't have children, this would normally keep me from responding, but.. personal experience makes me want to give you my thoughts. I attended a small parochial school from 4th grade thru 10th grade. I made the decision to go back to public school for my jr. and sr. year and my parents supported me, but it was hard to go back into that environment. I was used to an entire school K-12 of about 30-35 people and it was overwhelming. By looking ahead and making this decision for your child at a young age you are doing them a great service. While young he will be better able to adjust and will become less solitary as he adjusts to being around larger groups. It may not be easy for him, but he's got parents who are aware of this and will be able to understand and help him get thru the adjustment period. Social skills and learning to "get along" with all kinds of people is as important as the book learning that you get in school. I had a lot of problems adjusting to the different environment and in retrospect I think it hindered me when I went away to college. It was still hard at that point to function in a larger group, all the new people, new places, it was very overwhelming. It sounds like you are aware of the difficulty he may have in adjusting to the new environment but it also looks like you are aware of the need to learn how to live in the larger world. He has thoughtful and involved parents who will help him to adjust and find his place in a new school. You're already on the way by trying to pursue friendships with other kids who may live nearby and will be in this new school. I say good for you for being a thoughtful and caring parent concerned about the bigger picture. Good Luck to you as parents and to him in his new school. MCM, I appreciate you taking the time to give me that point of view. And I also appreciate the kind words regarding my desire to want to be a good parent. :-) What you wrote about and lived is exactly the scenario we discussed, leading us to this decision. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the people in this school. In fact, they are some of the most generous and caring people we have met, and they all truly mean well. But we are talking indeed about a school of 50-65 kids at most, K-8. Actually, probablymore accurately like 45 kids with the recent transfers out. So we are faced with the inevitable reality of him needing to merge into a larger school, and with no experience here, we made the strong assumption sooner rather than later would be easier to overcome and adapt to. Thanks for helping us to rationalize this, and for being so generous in sharing your own experiences. PTA

QUOTE (nobodys hero @ May 26 2011, 01:25 PM) You need to put him in a public school. I know he's scared about making new friends.You could talk to the school ahead of time and express your concerns and maybe they could have the teacher pair him up with several kids she thinks will become friends with him. My son has been thru several schools due to bullying and I never wanted to put him at the school 5 doors from my home. I finally did last year and the teacher immediately matched him up with several boys to hang around with while he got to know the other kids. It worked wonderfully. Your son will adjust and find others who like to do the same things and great friendships will be made! Thank you, NH. Actually that is a great suggestion. I'm also reaching out to the parents of the two boys my son played with at the park who go to this school, as they apparently live a street or two over. It would be nice if he had something somewhat familiar going there in Sept. Cheers!

QUOTE (GhostGirl @ May 26 2011, 01:22 PM) PTA, let me add my agreement here. I personally went to a private religious school through 8th grade - very similar situation as your son's. In 4th grade there were 7 people. Me, one other girl and 5 boys. I can honestly tell you that I suffered because I never learned to get along in groups, and the cliquish nature of that school caused me a lot of psychological harm over the years. When my parents finally sent me to public school, I blossomed after an initial breaking-in period. There were tons of people, lots of interests, and not even close to the same kinds of "cliques." It'll seem hard, and your son will at first want what's familiar, but I believe with all my heart that he too will adjust and blossom. to you and your wife - parenting is HARD. Thanks GG - really appreciate your input here as well. Intellectually, I know this is the right decision. We are just preparing ourselves for a rough 'break-in' period because I can imagine he will be overwhelmed a bit at first. Very very comforting to have a sounding board from people here that I know and respect very much. Hope you all have a great memorial day weekend PTA

Thanks QoM, for the thoughtful post. Its now just down to *my* nature to second-guess important decisions that affect the lives of those I love. I tend to overthink, and often. My childhood was just so different from his. Open the door and go. Kids on every corner. You had no choice but to interact. Some didnt interact to the levels most of us did, but hardly any withdrew and became entirely solitary. I just want him to have opportunity to develop friendships, meet kids from his town, establish lifetime friendships. I just got back from a golf outing with my childhood buddy, of 43 years. Its like we never moved apart. I want that so much for him. I want him to gain confidence and not be bullied as well. You know what I'm saying. Thanks for the uplift. PTA

Ok, so I'm posting this in NWW specifically because I would like to get the opinions of Moms on here regarding an issue my wife and I have been agonizing over for almost 2 years. Would greatly appreciate the points of view of anyone who has gone through something similar My oldest son is in first grade, and he is a smart, adorable, well-behaved 7 year old on the verge of going into second grade. When he was 5, my wife and I made the decision to send him to a private school (religious affiliation, and also our church). The decision at that time was largely based on the simple fact that our town did not offer full-day kindergarten, and with both of us working, that didnt work. We enrolled him in this wonderful school with the idea that his kindergarten class would be around 10-15 children. After enrollment, we were a bit dismayed to find that only 4 kids had enrolled. It was my son, and three girls. Now, the attention and education he receives is outstanding. With only 4 kids, there was great one on one care given. He is an excellent reader, writer, speller and has a genuine thirst for knowledge. At the conclusion of kindergarten, we decided to leave him in this school hoping that in first grade, there may be new students enrolling. At the start of first grade last year however, no new children enrolled, and in fact, one girl left (moved to Texas) The class is down to my son and two girls. My son's only interaction with lots of kids is during gym, lunch and occasionally, after school activities. But that is very limited, and most of his interaction is with the two girls in his grade. Last summer, to help fill the void, and help my wife and I with our work schedules, we sent him to summer day camp. It was not inexpensive, and a major commitment for us, but he enjoyed the orientation and seemed to like camp, at first. As the summer wore on, we sadly realized camp was overwhelming our son. He was with all boys (groups of 15-25) and they were boisterous, well..boys. He would come home sad, and would make up stories about why camp was bad - it wasnt until after several trips to speak to the counselors that we realized he was just not adjusting to that many kids well. So we learned an expensive lesson, and as my son finishes up his final days of first grade, we recieved some additional bad news - another girl is transferring to a school in NY state, leaving second grade with my son and one other girl. The school overall has a declining student body; times are tough and many families (including ours) really are stretched to afford it. The thought of my son spending next year in a class with one other kid has caused us to reevaluate the situation. Our son, older now, and more capable of expressing himself, admits to making up reasons to avoid camp last summer. And he seems to be quite self-contained, but hasnt many friends. His younger brother is too young to be his "friend" at this stage, and it breaks our hearts to see him so solitary. We made a decision to take him to an open house at the public school last week. Dreading his rejection, we were surprised when he walked in and immediately saw two kids that live nearby that he has met and played with at the park not long ago. We were thrilled but cautious and guarded about his long term acceptance of changing schools. My thinking, and what I'm hoping you all will chime in on is as follows: The private school is simply too small, and indeed may even cease to be able to function in coming years. Either way, I cant see him staying there through 8th grade and cant foresee how they could afford to operate with such small student body for that length of time. I dont want him to be overwhelmed by groups of other kids. he will eventually if he joins another school system, so earlier is better than later, right? We enrolled him in public schools. He said "yay" (eagerly at first, half-heartedly most recently). He then said last night "I want to stay where I am at my school". Absolutely has my wife and I second guessing our gut instincts. I want him to be well-adjusted and not solitary. I cant tell if he wants to be solitary, or just is because he has no alternative. Am I going against his nature? Confused doesnt begin to cover it! PTA

QUOTE (Lost In Xanadu @ Apr 4 2011, 03:49 PM) bs chicken breast can be ok if marinated correctly.... hell, even if just slapping BBQ sauce on it - you should at least brine it to lock in some moisture. Made ribs this weekend. I always make them 1 of 2 ways, and they always turn out terrific.... First I cover with a dry rub and let that sit in the fridge for at least an hour. Then, depending on the weather... when temp below 60: I braise them in the oven. Wrap in HD foil and seal 3 sides (lay ribs in middle, wrap edges around the ribs and roll down to seal. Roll up one end, leaving other end open.) In open end, pour 1/2 cup each apple cider vinegar and apple cider. Cook at 225 for 2.5-3 hours. Drain liquid and let cool. Fire up the grill and slap on the BBQ sauce. When temp above 60: Throw them in the smoker and forget about them for 4-6 hours. Then slap on the BBQ btw this method in the oven reminds me very much of Alton Browns 'ribs in the oven' method and comes out great. a little acidity, a little sweetness, and the full benefit of steam to make them super tender Nice!

tangy & Lost - yeah nothing wrong with a little chicken breast on the grill provided you do a little something with it. the thing with the boneless chicken breasts is they tend to puff up and have little weight to them when the meat dries out even just alittle, making them prone to being overly dry before very long. brining is good, of course, but two things I do to avoid this is the use of a press, or skewers. Lets say you want to go with a real simple greek style souvlaki marinade - easiest thing to do and you dont need much to make chicken that tastes like authentic souvlaki. Zest a lemon with a zester, add the juice of one whole lemon to a mixing bowl, add kosher salt, 2 tbs of dried oregano, 1/4 olive oil and a lot of minced garlic and a dash of cumin. Mix and marinate for about an hour. Now, if you want to use the press, heat the grill (and the press) on the grill medium high. Use a high temp glove to habdle the cast iron press of course. Remove chicken from marinade lay on grill and put press on one side for about 3-4 minutes and then promptly flip and press on other side. Chicken will not dry out, and will have amazing grill marks. With the skewer method (my fave) you simply cut the chicken into 1" wide long strips and thread onto skewers afetr u remove from marinade. baste frequently while skewers are on grill and rotate constantly The skewer method will render chicken that is simply amazing and identical to greek souvlaki. Serve with rice, chilis, tatziki or whatever you want and its really phenomenal

How do you answer "All 3"? Different setups depending upon what is being grilled, and quite honestly, what sort of time I have. For me, it also depends upon what sort of experience I'm interested in at the moment. There are days that are quite simply 'Grillin' Days' where you want to be outside and tending to either a wood or charcoal kettle, smoker, or maybe even roasting something on the rotisserie using the gas grill. Theres no right or wrong way to do it if it makes you happy - all you have to do is love food and trying new things. Don't be afraid to try new things and new methods. Buy some books, theres lots of great ones out there. Join a barbeque forum or two, and ask people who are enthusiasts for opinions and feedback, you'll be surprised how into it and helpful people are. Before I went out and purchased my latest grill, thats just what i did - I talked to some moderators on a few forums, and did some research. Same with my smoker and kettle. Theres nothing wrong with a small, inexpensive kettle grill and you don't have to spend thousands to make delicious food on gas, charcoal or wood. Personally, I love Webers. My latest Weber is used 3 nights a week (easily) and everything from pizza to seafood to vegetables gets cooked on it. Heck, I even did a whole corned beef and cabbage meal out there for St Patty's (great if you don't want to stink up the house!). And how about rotisserie-cooking the Thanksgiving turkey on the grill? Why not? Comes out amazing if you brine it. Seafood / crab boils, lobster, steaks... Oddly enough, very rarely burgers and dogs... unless its for the kids. Ive only been smoking for about two years now. Bought a Weber smoker there as well - and its fantastic. A nice sunny Saturday with a couple few 5 hours to kill? How about smoking a few racks of baby back ribs...one of my personal favorites. I think a lot of people get the misconception that if youre grilling a lot, you're eating way too much red meat, etc. But the coolest thing about the versatility of a grill (even if it doesnt have side burners) is how many different types of food you can cook, eat healthy, and it couldnt be fresher or more delicious. Someone mentioned cooking on planks - all I can say is this is amazing and I usually do it about once a week with fish (in the summertime I go to a local seafood place and get some fantastic fresh fish that works great on the grill when planked - salmon, tuna, rainbow trout, red snapper, halibut, etc) Steven Raichlen's Barbeque Bible is a fantastic source for all kinds of wonderful ideas for grilling. And his products are the best Ive bought for outdoor cooking. I highly recommend just doing some research before buying any substantial grilling equipment as there are major differences in quality between the types of stuff typically sold in superstores and Ive gotten stuck with some real crap in the past. You want to take care of your grill or smoker as well if you want it to last. A decent grill that is maintained can last more than 10 years. My last Weber lasted 12. Thats longer than most marriages. :-) Man, now I'm hungry.

Damn how did I miss this thread????? Oh, probably because I was off watching Seasons 1-5 on DVD! lol. All I can really add here is that this is just a fantastic show. At a friend's recommendation, I started watching Season 1 on Netflix streaming. Two episodes in, I was being pulled into the Dexter vortex. At the conclusion of Season 4, I was bummed because I dont have Showtime, and had already missed the airing of Season 5.......but thankfully a geeky friend showed me how to grab the episodes online in HD and I just finished watching the 5th season after burning it to DVD. Without hesitation I will say that this is one of the finest shows I have watched; one that constantly keeps me engaged and wrapped up in his dark world, and is also very entertaining and witty. Some amazing acting from Michael C Hall and Jennifer Carpenter, as well as some really very very likeable characters (Battista, Masuka, Doakes) and others that you love to hate and then hate to love. The show has such a great delivery and presentation - alternating between the here-and-now, the voice of Dexter's conscience (via Dexter or via Harry) and some simply thrilling plotlines. I had read a bunch of 'downer' threads regarding Season 5 online before I had all the episodes downloaded, and I wished I hadnt read them actually, because it kept me waiting for the downfall. In all honesty, I enjoyed Season 5 and found the 48-52 minutes to fly by just as fast as previous seasons, leaving me wanting more. (Is there anything more depressing than being OUT of new episodes?). Hard to followup Season 4, I think its just natural to have a bit of an ebb as new storylines develop. This is the most Ive been hooked by any show since LOST.

Hey ILS - long overdue visit back to TRF for me and REALLY happy to read this. Congrats bro

The iPad will eventually support Flash, even if it ends up being in a roundabout way through an app like Skype or Adobe....but perhaps it makes more sense to invest a well-rounded video converter that would enable you to convert existing stuff you may have (movie files, etc) into a format that can be played on the iPad? Just a suggestion, but plenty such converters exist and some are free or very inexpensive.

Dear 225, This is a fine place Shining face to face Those bonfire lights in the mirror of sky The space between wonder and why Glad that you found us here. Sincerely, 207

We need more people to join. Come on, its fun

Oooh....I'm in, Testy! Looking for my two-peat!

no cancellation or any word yet. check the Time Machine Hot Tub thread for Holmdel NJ for more discussion on the show and Earl

QUOTE (Snowdog @ Aug 13 2010, 11:19 AM) QUOTE (PassTheAmmunition @ Aug 13 2010, 12:06 PM) The distributor for Captain Lawrence in New Jersey (Hunterdon) has stopped carrying CL beers, which means I can no longer find it in any of my beer stores in NJ. The only solution to this problem for me was to drive to the brewery and bring it home fresh, from Westchester. God damn, I'm resourceful! And when I get mad, I go on beer shopping sprees. Just picked up: Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale (3) Stone Ruination IPA (3) Stone Arrogant Bastard Stone Russian Imperial Stout (2) Stone Smoked Porter Stone 14th Anniversary Imperial IPA (3) Great Divide 16th Anniversary Wood Aged Double IPA Sierra Nevada Southern Hemisphere Wet Hop Harvest Ale (2) Dogfish Head 90-Minute IPA (4) Oskar Blues Ten-Fiddy Nice haul! The distributor for Stone in my area has stopped carrying Ruination And we have yet to see the Stone 14th Anniversary in my area and nobody call tell me if or when we are getting it Sorry to hear about the CL. That is good stuff! if u need a Ruination fix, I'm happy to ship some your way.

The distributor for Captain Lawrence in New Jersey (Hunterdon) has stopped carrying CL beers, which means I can no longer find it in any of my beer stores in NJ. The only solution to this problem for me was to drive to the brewery and bring it home fresh, from Westchester. God damn, I'm resourceful! And when I get mad, I go on beer shopping sprees. Just picked up: Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale (3) Stone Ruination IPA (3) Stone Arrogant Bastard Stone Russian Imperial Stout (2) Stone Smoked Porter Stone 14th Anniversary Imperial IPA (3) Great Divide 16th Anniversary Wood Aged Double IPA Sierra Nevada Southern Hemisphere Wet Hop Harvest Ale (2) Dogfish Head 90-Minute IPA (4) Oskar Blues Ten-Fiddy

QUOTE (Pags @ Jun 16 2010, 10:53 AM) QUOTE (hammerofthor @ Jun 16 2010, 10:43 AM) It would probably be a tricky tune for them to pull off every night, so I would say there is no chance of seeing it, but if they did play it, cool. What?!? And what will they stick to playing then, the easy stuff? I hope they play this song. It would be a dream come true, for me. x2 I think its a slim chance at best that 1/4th of the Fear Trilogy gets played this tour, much less Freeze. But I would love to hear it played live.

'59 Impala

QUOTE (rushlady23 @ Jun 4 2010, 10:08 AM) QUOTE (PhilCastro @ Apr 11 2010, 09:01 PM) I picked up a bottle this weekend to try it out... and damn!! this stuff kicks your ass I like it I saw this in the liquor store yesterday, and since everybody here raves above it, I picked up a bottle and plan on trying it this weekend. I guess I'm in trouble if it kicks your ass Take note on location of couch first. Then let 'er rip

QUOTE (metaldad @ May 13 2010, 01:13 PM) QUOTE (WIDE-ANGLE WATCHER @ May 10 2010, 11:57 PM) Here's my pantry.... well, my dream pantry anyway. Actually a German market not to far from my house. http://i815.photobucket.com/albums/zz77/tanhuntland/Beer.jpg Someday, i hope to have my "Man Room " look like this metaldad - found the stone russian imperial stout at Stew Leonard's in NJ.