Letters to the Editor
Anesthete
Published Letters: 37 Editor's Choice: 7
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Reasons
[Read the article: My boyfriend won't give me his apartment key]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Cary didn't explore the possible reasons why did won't give you a key, but I shall.
1. He can't, for some reason (e.g. they're non-duplicateable, or he would need to get the apartment manager involved and it's against his lease). Unlikely, but not impossible. I think if this was the case, he'd tell you and you wouldn't be writing in.
2. He doesn't trust you not to steal his stuff. Maybe his last girl ripped off his CD collection or pills. He's got some issues to work through, and you're not the one who's going to be able to help him with these.
3. He doesn't trust you not to snoop through his stuff while he's gone, or to show up unannounced while he's home. And why not? Because he's got something to hide. What could it be? Hm. He's probably cheating on you.
4. He's doing it just because he likes, in an abstract sense, being in control of his apartment ("power"), and that's more important to him than being considerate of you. So he's a dick.
Assuming it's one of 2, 3, or 4, this is not a relationship that's going anywhere, so you might as well Dump The MotherFucker Already and get on with your life, lady.
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Flag
[Read the article: Would you please get out of my swimming pool!]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I thought I read this here, but I guess it was somewhere else. Someone had written in with a solution to a similar problem and it was this (I'm paraphrasing): I have a flagpole, and when I fly the yellow flag, then the neighbor's kids know it's okay to come and use the pool. When then flag is down, that means we are doing private things at home and it's not appropriate to come over.
This doesn't address the insurance liability problem, and it might not work if your husband's relatives have already loaded up the car and driven a substantial distance, but once you've established the rule and made it known to all, then it would give you a way to communicate "we're using our backyard right now, and we don't want guests" in a clear non-confrontational way.
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Micro/macro
[Read the article: I Like to Watch]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I've only seen one episode of the "Hell's Kitchen" (the first one of this season) and about four of "Top Chef," and one very important distinction I've noticed from the challenges so far is this one.
Top Chef -- "Make six servings of this dish, of your own design, all at once, working alone or in a small team."
Hell's Kitchen -- "Make dozens of copies of this dish, from the recipe book, timed to customer's order, in a restaurant kitchen, working just your station."
These seem like tests of very different skillsets at distinctly different scales. One might be tremendously talented at creating unique, nuanced combinations of flavors, and yet be totally incapable of, say, working the line at a hotel kitchen during the breakfast rush.
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Haven't seen this mentioned yet ...
[Read the article: The gas tax battle continues]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]But what happens at the end of the summer? Gas prices are going to suddenly jump up 18 cents when the tax gets re-applied? Imagine what'll lead the newscasts THAT evening.
Oh, there will be a collective amnesia, of course, and calls to make the "holiday" permanent. Those who oppose this, who insist on adhering to the schedule of this deal now under consideration, will be demonized as "voting to raise your taxes."
Collectively, Americans are stupid, greedy, selectively forgetful, and easily distracted by colorful lights and happy buzzwords. A "Gas Tax Holiday" is, hands-down, the absolute apotheosis of the borrow-now-pay-never mentality that's gotten us into most of the troubles we're in today.
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Chicken pox
[Read the article: The K Chronicles]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I had it when I was in fifth grade. After nearly three decades, I can still remember how excruciating it was, how nothing we tried -- calamine lotion, oatmeal baths -- could relieve the horrible itch.
The pox craters on my forehead will never go away, Keith, and I promise you that they're not attractive to look at.
I wish I had been vaccinated for that.
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No, no one is supposed to ask why
[Read the article: McCain bristles at Vietnam question]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Because the truth of the matter is that, for whatever combination of reasons, McCain never became a "great leader" of the military in the generally understood sense of the term -- and certainly not in any sort of way that would transfer itself to being a "great leader" of civil government.
He wants everyone to pretend that the time he spent in the military makes him Eisenhower, but it doesn't, and as soon as people stop blindly following his self-constructed narrative, then they'll realize that.
That's why nobody's allowed to breathe around his house of cards.
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Can't believe these didn't make the list
[Read the article: The ultimate family DVD list]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I too missed the original solicitation. These would definitely have been in my list:
Millions (2005)
Duma (2006)
Not One Less (2000)
Brain Donors (1992)
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Scam
[Read the article: McCain suggests longer gas tax holiday]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I said it before and I'll say it again: either you're planning for a day when you put the tax back on and gas suddenly jumps up eighteen cents a gallon overnight, or you're a liar and you have every intention of making the "holiday" permanent and eternal.
Which is it, Senator? If the former, then why won't you tell us now what you plan to be saying on TV that day?
This whole game plays on the already-established inability of America's SUV owners to foresee the inevitable, predictable consequences of their decisions.