Puppenstein

We don't bag the kibble and the compatability with the Mylar depends on the food. If you go to Dog Food Analysis - Reviews of kibble, the better the food, the higher the star rating for kibble. The higher the star rating, the more likely it will not work in Mylar because of the lack of grain. We just got dehydrated raw food for ours and put the boxes in the Mylar bag - Nature's Variety or Honest Kitchen have very nice shelf lives - one year which most kibble is questionable, and are great for dogs with allergies.

Wow! You are really passionate about this - but you are part of a Union to be completely honest. I mean no disrespect by this but you are in Canada which is Socialist and you have a Universal Healthcare Plan. Would you not say that is a union? If the government decided to get rid of it tomorrow you don't think that there would be rioting? I am not talking about history, I am talking about now. The unions had a purpose 100 years ago, they no longer do. They hinder those that want to excel and they elevate those that don't. It is hard to have a discussion about American Unions with you because you live in Canada. I agree to disagree with you. For me, the reward is doing my job well and that is what gratifies me, perhaps I am the exception rather than the rule because I don't equate happiness to money. No matter what, most people always feel that they are entitled to more money. Perhaps the word entitled needs to be taken out of the equation because it is what got the unions into the situation they are in today.

I think you are misunderstanding what I am saying...I am not blaming the people - but the union itself that has ridiculous requirements and whose goal is not the health of the companies they use. They don't care about the health of the company, they just care about their jobs (they don't seem to realize that the two depend on each other) Detroit and Michigan in general has been in a recession a lot longer than the rest of the U.S. The main industry happens to be the auto industry and if the relation between the unions and the auto industry was so great, jobs wouldn't be passed down to Mexico and other countries. The higher the quality the more money the companies get which shields them from the extra fees taken from the unions. I am never pro-union and it hasn't changed just because of the current situation. American cars need to be heavily discounted - I paid a lot more for my Honda, but I get exactly what I want. The definition of Quality is getting what you expect - sadly with a lot of American cars, that didn't ring true and I am sure that there are members of the unions that are great, but there are also those that aren't but the companies can't get rid of them. Business is all about making money - profit to be specific and sadly, American companies haven't been able to do that especially when you have to comply with union requirements. Sorry, but I have a business degree, my parents are entrepreneurs and so I don't have sympathy for unions or the car companies. I see it from the other side. If you work hard, you are rewarded. :)

Unfortunately, I doubt that is true. But hopefully, they will have less power. Too much power is never a good thing.

Toyota introduced Six Sigma and they are not unionized - they have incentives for their employees to come up with better ways of doing things. In fact, all managers have to work the assembly line so that they really know what is going on. There is a great article in the Harvard Business Review about this very thing. Six Sigma was about improving productivity - which would usually eliminate jobs but increase productivity and quality. Of course, the unions don't want any jobs eliminated. If they are, they go into a job pool which gives the worker the same pay but they do a different job (this could include much lower paying jobs) - To me, it is disturbing that there is no clause in a union contract for when the economy goes down - White Collar get cut, but Blue Collar do not? I am definitely against unions. Again, there is no incentive for members of unions to do a good job, improve things, improve productivity, etc. No way are you going to suggest something that could make a company more efficient. I think that the only people that are pro-union are those that are in a union.

There was no incentive to create cutting edge cars and high quality. None. You were getting paid regardless, what did it matter? There was no focus on efficiency, Quality Principles - doing things right the first time, and being competitive with foreign companies. It can be looked at this way - loyalty with sports teams. There are just some sports teams that no matter if they are horrible or are fantastic that people are loyal to. The car companies were turning into a fraternity. There was loyalty for the longest time and they took advantage of it. Buy American was the way they created a nice following among the car brands. But then lemon laws came along and Consumer Reports and consumers demanded high quality. They got it from the foreign car companies, not from Ford, Chrysler or GM. Saturn was the worst company that GM should have gotten involved with. I have a friend who had a Saturn that literally had the door fall off. So, after that, I am convinced that all Saturns are trash. It is great to have a sales philosophy that doesn't pressure you, but if a door falls off of your car and it has a ton of problems, who cares about the selling process? The people doing the work on the cars were members of unions and if they had cared about Six Sigma when Toyota introduced it, then would be even in Quality.

IMHO Unions are not good news and don't give anyone an incentive to do a good job. They really are the cause of the big three downturn. You don't see Honda and Toyota with Unions in the U.S. and they are in much better shape. I don't know about the significance in other countries, but they are a nightmare and I am so happy that I don't have to work with one and am not a member of one. To me, unions are just selfish.

"To laugh often and love much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better; whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded."--Ralph Waldo Emerson "The Puzzle to Success"

I am sure that they would love to visit!

We have Rupert B. Puppenstein (Boston Terrier) and Piper T. Dog (Beagle/Boxer Mix), and our seven cats: Alley, Mouse, Mickey, Tinkerbell, Jessie, Milo, and Scrappy. (Yes 7! - We used to foster sick cats for the humane society and failed miserably a few times at returning them) They are all cute, but the dogs deserve more attention. Photobucket is being a pain, so I apologize that these pictures are rather large. This is Rupert with our Wisteria: This is Piper with a dusting of snow - very rare in Atlanta!:

Skepticisms is the longest word that alternates hands when typing.

How long has it been since your last sleep study? Things can change and if your lack of sleep has been recent it is time to get it checked out again. Seeing a sleep specialist (not a general physician) will hopefully isolate what is going on and get you on more effective treatment - same goes with anyone who needs a prescription to fall asleep. It sounds like you get some sleep, but if it isn't REM cycle sleep, then forget about it. Doesn't count. I hope that you find what is going on and get some quality sleep!

I love all the smells from baking holiday treats and comfort foods, candles, a fire in the fireplace, and snow (when I lived where there was a lot of snow). Two months of cold, cloudy weather don't seem to count because I am preoccupied with all of that!

Curious

That is so nice! What a great memory and way to make your daughter's day!