<p>hugs zooser!!</p>
<p>Hey zooser! The accent is fabulous ;)</p>
<p>Sending {{{HUGS}}} for you to feel better. That “psycho” thing happens to the best of us!
Here’s to a better day as it progresses. :)</p>
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<p>Re: the drinking: I’m right there with you, except that I just fall asleep!</p>
<p>Stay 
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<p>ETA: DougBetsey: Another one here with the loving “Taz” nickname by my dear family! ;)</p>
<p>Good morning, all!</p>
<p>No evening cocktails here - at least not on a regular basis. Not that I object to them at all, but it seems I’m the one who’s always on call to drive if the kids need a ride somewhere. </p>
<p>Keil - welcome to the new thread. Tibet - very 
Enjoy the rest of your vacation!</p>
<p>YDS - loved that story! Hysterical!</p>
<p>Not as hot as the past few days, but very humid. Crossing my fingers for some rain - we need it!</p>
<p>I have explored the mini-fridge/micro issue, seems D cant have a micro unless it is part of a fridge/micro combo thingy. And guess what the local rental company does rent those. The price is not as high as previously mentioned- $139 with an option to buy. I have looked to see if there are any combos for sale but haven’t found any at a similar price. If anyone finds good prices for these online lmk. The microwave sounds convenient to me, as was said yeah we didn’t have them back in our day.</p>
<p>D is coming home this weekend and unbeknownst to her will be dragged to BBB/Target at least to look at stuff if not to buy. We also got the PB dorm catalog yesterday, but she is not one to go overboard so don’t think that would be a problem.</p>
<p>Congrats to those who have received their AP scores. </p>
<p>:cool: </p>
<p>I’ve got this THING with the microfridge. At one point I actually called D when she was making her decision to say “don’t worry Lamb (yes I call her that) Delaware has the microfridge!” as if this were some life-altering wonder of the world. She smiled and nodded. I don’t know why I’m so hung up on this, but I really am. Which is why I’d be happy to get our own.</p>
<p>Maybe I really should have that drink. Or maybe I should buy my own microfridge to keep at the house.</p>
<p>I’ve been wanting a pet.</p>
<p>zooser and KS, I have a problem after the third drink, the problem is after two, three always seems to feel like a marvelous idea. At parties I always instruct the bartender to just hand me a club soda if he sees me wandering up too often. All my friends and I use the same bartender at parties so Russ knows me way too well! H also knows to hand me a club soda no matter what I ask for. </p>
<p>Keil, your trip sounds wonderful.</p>
<p>zooser, I went psycho last week. I decided to blame PMS and of course H was wrong:).</p>
<p>DB, have a great time in NC, I was planning to head down there today, but decided to postpone a few days. S had a party last night at his BS roommate’ s house and stayed over, he has plans to work all weekend and I just want to make sure he is mostly ready for school before I go. There isn’t much shopping to do, and he doesn’t need me for it, but still I want to feel a part of things. I also have a meeting to resolve the rest of the Cancer Ball drama and since I am membership chair I really need to be there.</p>
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<p>I say do both!</p>
<p>I just checked and at S2’s school the microwave/refrig combo rents for $179.99 a year. I am also inclined to go ahead and rent, just to avoid the effort of buying, transporting, storing, etc. And since we are driving three+ hours to drop him, I’d want to be sure that the frig was actually available at WalMart/Target/wherever, when we needed it.</p>
<p>Upon threat of no more COD…S2 finally completed all thank-yous for scholarships, grad gifts, special teachers and coaches yesterday.</p>
<p>Altho it’s early…back to the cocktail discussion. Both DH and I have a family tradition of “sophisticated” drinking. It was a ritual for him to share a shot of Canadian Club and a beer with his grandfather, right up until the day he died. And almost all family gatherings with his side of the family begin with the same. For me, my grandparents were a part of that 1950s-1960s cocktail party set. They had a beautifully appointed finished basement with an extensive mirrored bar and entertained regularly. I remember my grandmother preparing Thanksgiving dinner in pearls with a Manhattan in one hand and a gravy ladle in the other. Those were the days.</p>
<p>Advice from a parent of a rising college senior - don’t SHARE the cost of items for the dorm room. Have one kid/family buy some large items, and the other buy the other large items. Only share the cost of things that are rented - ie the ubiquitous micro-fridges. Have one family buy the rug, and the other the printer. This way, if/when the roommates no longer live together, you avoid the very-sticky question of who gets the rug, and how much they should pay to buy the other person out. </p>
<p>Or do what my kids did - both of them seem to have ended up with rather wealthy roommates. 
S’s frosh roommate was an only child who had been to boarding school and already owned a fridge, tv, rug, ottomans, X-box, etc. D’s roommate for next year was given many items as grad gifts - TV, printer, etc. D has offered to purchase the futon they’ve both decided they want. If they go their separate ways, D will own the futon and roommie will own the rest. (Haven’t figured out the rug yet).</p>
<p>(Re the micro-fridges - I think it’s the same micro-fridge everywhere, and yet the price seems to vary widely! I think D’s school’s vendor wants $169/year. Must have to do with the vendor’s cost of storing & servicing the units, perhaps more costly in urban areas?)</p>
<p>Well, S’s former classmates got their AP scores in the mail yesterday but not him. So I guess he’ll wait on the mail since he can’t be bothered to check the NU website for same.</p>
<p>The residential life materials from NU indicate NO microwaves in the rooms, so I guess a micro/fridge combo isn’t in the offing. Microwaves are provided in the kitchenettes on each floor, though. I’m hoping he lands a residence that provided inside basement parking for the bicycles. We told him to plan on buying a used one anyway but I just can’t imagine a bike continually stored outside in a Chicago area winter will do well after a few years.</p>
<p>S is so funny. Yesterday afternoon, after he completed his work at the food bank, he played some pick up soccer with friends and arrived home shortly before dinner. He had plans to go bowling with friends in the evening so, a dinner was ready to be served he stated, “Okay, I’m here now in case you want to talk about anything.”</p>
<p>:cool: </p>
<p>just did a quick search on amazon…a small fridge.micro (1.3 cu ft fridge) can be bought for 139 made by a company called Haier? a larger fridge/micro by avanti seems to run about 325</p>
<p>The microfridge rental at D’s school is $240/year. They claim that you can’t purchase one and the only microwave they allow is this combo unit. It seems pretty steep to me.</p>
<p>Wanna know why Wake Forest costs $54,000/year? Every dorm room gets a microfridge and every student gets a laptop “for free.” :rolleyes: </p>
<p>Ya know, even tho Son’s scholarship will make our cost less than a community college, those “built-in” extras kinda irk me. :(</p>
<p>zooser, I love your idea for a pet – a mini fridge could make a great pet! Just keep it well “fed”. You and I would get along famously. :D</p>
<p>Let’s discuss rugs. Do we want one? Will it create a need for vaccuuming? If not vaccuumed, will it provoke allergies?</p>
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I can see why. It sends a bad message. Those things aren’t free, someone is paying, and in light of the state of our national economy, kids don’t need to continue to life in fantasyland. But it does save you some decisions.</p>
<p>zooser sent a rug the first year with son to bs… absolutely gross at end of year. even though sent a vacuum, it never met that rug…threw it out and didnt send another</p>
<p>parent56, that’s what I’m afraid of with my S, I think he’s allergic to vacuuming. We may buy a cheap one for the first year and see how it goes.</p>
<p>DB, same tuition for us but none of the “free” stuff, so don’t complain too much ;)</p>
<p>FAP- see if the combos are allowed, if you want. Here’s what our housing thing says “The following items are not allowed in the residence halls: … microwaves (unless part of a Microfridge unit)” Will also be looking into the bike storage…</p>
<p>The dorm D hopes to get does not have carpeting so she will get a rug. I assume 5x7 would be a good size.</p>
<p>parent56- yes those prices are similar to what I saw so we could rent then option to buy for cheaper, so we’ll probably start with the rent and then see what her plans would be for soph year.</p>
<p>DB…hope you find your spare tire/cover. I’m familiar with the “Life is Good” store and their yoga products. I’m actually a runner (7 miles 5 days a week), but one day a week I treat myself to a yoga class for relaxation. I love Bikram yoga – at first being locked in a 107 degree room for 90 mins intimidated me; now I look forward to walking out soaking wet. Massachist? Perhaps but I feel all stetched out afterward.</p>
<p>Keil…Tibet? Wow!!! How incredibly exciting! Would love to hear more. </p>
<p>ZM…</p>
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<p>I am learning daily how similar you and I are and how alike our daughters appear to be. 
I’m one if those perfectionist/control freaks as well. </p>
<p>Like psychmom and ZM, I’m not a huge drinker – a margarita/swirl once in a while when I go out for TexMex with friends but that’s about it. If I’m going to splurge onthe calories, point me in the direction to the nearest bakery or ice cream shop! Ben and Jerry’s Phish Food or Half Baked…yum! My real vice is Starbucks. My DH says we should have stock to recoup some of my daily habit. “Tall skinny vanilla latte, please.”</p>