I don't find these figures too surprising, and I'm not really bothered by them. There's one head football coach per school, and (ballparking here) maybe 50-75 teachers at those 4A and 5A schools. Scarcity increases value. Additionally, because so many people place such a high value on high school football in Texas, head football coach at a 4A or 5A school is a plum job, likely given to coaches who've worked for years at lower-paying positions. A better study would compare their salaries to those of the top teachers, not the average.

And, by all means, find a way to pay the teachers more.

It's only natural for people to show a little less patience for the problems of the advantaged. Hell, the LW probably knows this herself. It sounds like she's fully cognizant of the gifts she's been given. But the death of the father...the bestower of these gifts, now frozen in time as the flawless provider. I can't imagine it's easy to forge an identity in the shadow of successful parents, let alone a father who laid the golden path and then died. It would have been a surprise if she hadn't grown up self-absorbed.

Still, pain is pain, and I'll echo the previous posters who've recommended donations of time and money.

I know this is off-topic, but in the past two years, I've encountered four people who have harangued me about the virtues of the Fair Tax. During the course of these conversations, every single one of them has subsequently bragged about various methods they employ to hide income from the evil IRS. I'd like to say it hasn't occurred to them that, if everyone paid what they truly owed, income tax rates could be lowered for the vast majority of Americans.

I don't think that's the case, though. What good is arguing for a three to five percent rate cut with someone who shields half his income? So I'm left talking with a person who rails against the rules, doesn't follow them, and advocates a different set of rules that they might choose to follow.

I think that's the kind of thing that should occur to the trailing runner to say. Kent wouldn't have slowed down -- he's trying his damndest to score, and he knows there's a faster runner on base behind him. Drew is a reticent guy, though, and it cost him. I hate to admit this, but I'll bet Jeter would have said it.

The Pintos just backed the wrong horse (pun intended). I'll take the man's word for it that he had no idea about Foley's personal peccadillos. This story doesn't amount to a hill of beans (hey, another one) beyond the same old matter of influence peddling.

Why am I not worried?

Who would be an example of a baseball broadcaster you enjoy listening to?

Persevere. The loans mean you've committed to the decision, and now you have to find a way to make it work, even if "making it work" means nothing more than getting your degree and then paying off the debt however you can. The suggestion to change schools if possible is worth looking into -- if not, whatever mental/emotional/spiritual technique you can find that helps you through your present circumstances is worth exploring. I'll go ahead and say that Dan Millman's stuff helped me through a similar experience, but that's just me.

Don't believe those who say that life is short, if the phrase is only used an excuse to bail. Bailing will give you nothing more than a moment's exhilaration, followed by the long, hard question of how to pay off your loans.

What if you were able to have a conversation with yourself ten years down the road, and she related to you the story of her grad school experience? One version of the story ends:

"It sucked, and I'm so glad I got out of there."

And the other ends:

"It sucked, but it was my choice, and I did it."

Who would you respect more? Who would you think more capable of handling the adverse circumstances that every single one of us encounters?

It's an awkward play for the third baseman to make -- and the couple of steps that Pujols loses by being hurt is made up for by the fact that it was Pujols at bat, forcing the 3B to play deeper than he normally could in that situation. One of the reasons the play resulted in an error, IMO, is that Inge had to bust his ass so hard to cover the base that 1) Zumaya had a tougher target to hit, and 2) Inge's momentum made catching a throw just behind him impossible.

On the other hand, since the ball was hit right up the middle, the shortstop was naturally breaking to the second base bag. Easier for everyone. The run expectancy stuff is interesting, but the gap between the scenarios narrows if you've got a guy with a .187 BAA on the mound anyway, and is overwhelmed by the difference in difficulty of the respective plays that needed to have been made to set up the scenarios.

I don't think anyone disputes the fact that the throw was a worse offense than the decision. But unless there's a play at the plate, or the fielder's momentum makes the DP unlikely (i.e. a shortstop going into the hole), you've got to take the easy two there. You can't assume the ball is going to be thrown away in any circumstance (unless Ramon Ortiz is pitching). They drill this stuff.