My first adult purchase was a car. My father was overseas in Viet Nam and my mother hadn’t learned to drive at the time. It wasn’t an exciting vehicle just a small sedan that was practical. It woke me up to the responsibilities of adulthood with the cost of insurance and vehicle taxes.

I know that plenty of alcoholic drivers are on the road along with those on legal prescriptions that say "do not drive when you take this medicine." That is no excuse to add another layer of risky drivers to our highways.

It is true that anyone we deeply loved may live in our hearts forever. Once they are gone there is a void where these people have been in our lives. Moving on is a natural thing to do. It shows a more mature love to be able to reach out and rebuild our futures. For some it may mean marriage or another child or it could mean cultivating new friends and new interests.

Pot does impair people however: those under the influence do not recognize it. The rules for alcohol are not enforced in some areas. A drunk driver killed the child of one of my good friends. He walked away with a slap on the wrist with just a traffic citation. The child was not on the street he was in his own driveway. Industrial workers handle dangerous gases and substances daily. Many are fired or sent home for alcohol abuse but sometimes they make the headlines with their mistakes instead. I stand by my statement that if people policed themselves this would be a non-issue.

I haven’t heard any talk about how legalizing cannabis might affect our daily lives. Do you really want your child driven to school by an impaired bus driver or carpooling mom? How about taking a plane or public transit where the driver wasn’t all there? Let’s not forget the industrial workers who need their wits about them at all times for their safety and that of others. 

There is no way of stopping one sector of the public from being able to partake while barring others. I am not against legalizing for medical purposes under controlled conditions. I am not in favor of adding another layer of impairment on the highways or in situations where our children or the public could be at risk. I might feel different about this if I knew that people would take responsibility for their own actions. I don’t see that happening.

I don’t think we are immune at all. Some of these bombings do affect us even from afar. The soldiers that serve in that section of the world come home to us as a reminder. Our military and VA hospitals are scrambling to cope with the injuries from the suicide (let’s not forget the roadside) bombs.

The issues that prompt people into becoming human sacrifices range from religious ideology to fear that if they don’t cooperate their families may be executed. It may be easy for some of those bombers to make that choice because in some cases they have no hope for a better life with the present regimes in place. The only way to change that culture is through education and economic change. 

Jeannot it is wonderful to see you posting again.

You can check for those certifications with your state medical society.

Plastic surgery can be a huge boost for battered women giving them the chance to look and feel pretty again. It can be a boon for women competing in the workplace with younger colleagues.

I agree with Dr. Hirmand that it is important to talk with the patient to determine what her motivation for the surgery is. If a woman is getting reshaped for a man rather than herself she may feel as though she is losing her identity. It is my thought that many middle aged women would love to look fresher and less tired. There is nothing wrong with surgery to do just that.

We are the dedicated members of the pondering white umbrella society…

The last company that I worked for taught computer classes for anyone interested in expanding their knowledge. I signed up for every one of them from basic word programs to troubleshooting and repair. Computers and technology are here to stay and will become a greater part of our life in the future. I don’t see this as a generation divide just more of a transition from one media to another. If you learn to deal with the technology as it comes along you will function better in the future.

I give those that admitted their affairs credit for being honest. Does anyone really think that because it was openly admitted it hurt the wives less? These are all men in power using their position to get what they want from women. I’d bet some of the women went along because they knew they couldn’t get a comparable job for the pay elsewhere.

If there is doubt about a deduction, check with the Small Business Administration and a good business accountant. The IRS will give you conflicting advice at times. Keep accurate records of everything! Remember that the ink of receipts fades so copy them and write on the copy what used the purchase for. You should have a weekly file of expenses. Keep a daily log of your work to back up your receipts.

We had a cat that loved to wear scarves around his neck. He used to preen in the mirror when he got a new one. Any other accessory would have met with bared fangs. Our other cats were never warm to the idea of cat clothes either. This is something that you might have to train a compliant kitten to accept before it realizes there is a choice.

After factoring in cultural differences I would go for the way a person treats service people. In many countries the gratuity is added to the bill. Visitors and new immigrants may not realize that tipping is customary. In some countries looking directly at people can be taken as a challenge to authority. This country is an ever increasing melting pot of people raised in ways not familiar to us. It is the ability to recognize that we are all in this human gene pool together and we should treat others the way we want to be treated.