Thanks all! 💕 Quick update: surgery went great, but the outcome was not what they hoped. He’s still struggling with crippling headaches and tinnitus, and still has severe balance issues. It’s going to be a long haul for them (as if it hasn’t been already).

Thanks Vic… I know he’ll appreciate it! The surgery went well, but doesn’t seem to be alleviating the symptoms like they hoped. He’s in pretty rough shape. 🫤

Hiya, crysk! 🤓

Hey Earthers! Some of you may remember Raistlin from SOL back in the day. He’s been diagnosed with a rare condition called Chiara, where his brain protrudes through the opening on the bottom of his skull (where it joins the spinal canal). He’s had a rough ride, waiting years for a diagnosis and then a couple of unsuccessful surgeries to mitigate his symptoms (severe balance issues, tinnitus, others I’m sure that I’m not aware of).

He had surgery again yesterday and is now in recovery (he sent a couple of messages last night about feeling ‘decently good’ and seemed in good spirits), but his journey is far from over. His wife is taking stellar care of him by all accounts, but she’s also the sole earner and his primary caregiver now, as well as virtually single-parenting their kids. Friends of theirs have set up a GoFundMe to help them survive until he can get back to work, and to buy the equipment he needs to function until they can figure this thing out.

If you can spare a few dollars, please consider sending them Jen’s way. Every little bit helps. 💕

https://gofund.me/e22f0222

And hahaha @ my old signature… I’d forgotten about that! 😂 Hello to anyone who remembers this old relic. 💕

Hey Earthers! Some of you may remember Raistlin from SOL back in the day. He’s been diagnosed with a rare condition called Chiara, where his brain protrudes through the opening on the bottom of his skull (where it joins the spinal canal). He’s had a rough ride, waiting years for a diagnosis and then a couple of unsuccessful surgeries to mitigate his symptoms (severe balance issues, tinnitus, others I’m sure that I’m not aware of).

He had surgery again yesterday and is now in recovery (he sent a couple of messages last night about feeling ‘decently good’ and seemed in good spirits), but his journey is far from over. His wife is taking stellar care of him by all accounts, but she’s also the sole earner and his primary caregiver now, as well as virtually single-parenting their kids. Friends of theirs have set up a GoFundMe to help them survive until he can get back to work, and to buy the equipment he needs to function until they can figure this thing out.

If you can spare a few dollars, please consider sending them Jen’s way. Every little bit helps. 💕

https://gofund.me/e22f0222

I'm still alive... Hi mom!!! Lol

Aww... and that's why I love ya. <3

*waves at everybody*. Long time no see!!!

Hahaha... Thanks Marshal! <3

I know, I know - I've been neglecting my favorite people for far too long! Been a pretty rough year for me, so the new year will be a welcome change. How is everybody? Any exciting news that I've missed in the past 6 months or so?

I miss 'em too. :( Those were the good old days!

ICKY! I picked a good time to pop back in - been AWOL for a while, parents were in a near-fatal crash in mid-June. Nice to see your smiling face!

Thanks all... see you when I see you!

Thanks all... I miss you guys!

Those of you who have me on Facebook may have read that my dad & stepmother were involved in a rollover accident in BC a couple of weeks ago. Originally we thought Dad escaped injury, although he was really battered and bruised - but it turns out he has a fractured thoracic vertebra and kidney problems caused by the amount of internal bleeding his kidneys had to process.

My stepmother wasn't so lucky - she broke her neck in two places (as well as 14 of her ribs) and spent almost 2 full weeks in ICU on a ventilator, after a full tracheotomy. She's recently been transferred to the spinal ward and is off the ventilator during the day, holding her own. She was originally unable to feel anything below the break, but has made some progress and can now feel all of her extremities, although she can't move much at all and what movement she has is completely uncontrolled (aside from the broken neck, she also suffered a series of mini-strokes in her cerebellum the night of the accident). She has no use of her hands, but can raise her arms a bit - although she's unable to press down and has to depend on gravity to lower them again. She can move one leg slightly, but can only wiggle the toes on the other foot. We're hoping she'll regain some control and mobility over time.

I'm heading to Vancouver on Friday and will be out there taking care of them for the foreseeable future, so I won't be online much. Try to behave while I'm away. And Grizzie, maybe we can meet up for coffee or drinks while I'm out there - I'd love to see you!

Clearly this does not apply to me, for a couple of reasons:

a) I don't really do anything mod-ly unless there's an outright war between posters that requires them to be figuratively doused in cold water.
b) I'm freakin' awesome.

So... DOWN WITH MOD TYRANNY! DOWN WITH DICTATORSHIP! THE PEOPLE WANT THE DOWNFALL OF THE REGIME!!!!

:p

I'll be 50 this year, which means I've been out of school for 33 years... but we always had a resource officer in high school. I live in Canada, where stuff like this rarely happens - but I can tell you that our SRO headed off a LOT of problems before they had a chance to become problems. He was a friend, not a cop. He'd give you a lecture if you needed one, but more often he was chaperoning trips, wandering the halls telling jokes, making sure kids felt valued and included, and generally keeping the peace by, well, keeping the damned peace. We never had an issue, largely because he was such a great presence at the school. He bridged the gap by being fair and just, and by just taking the time to notice things. I don't see how an SRO could be anything but an asset, but I don't think they should be placed specifically to combat school shooters. They should be there to head off the school shooter long before he/she gets to the point of pulling a trigger.

I also don't think having weapons of any kind in a school is a good idea. If an SRO is armed, I guess that's one thing as he/she is trained to handle the weapon in a combat situation. But it's still a weapon that can be grabbed and used by someone else. And allowing anyone other than an SRO to bring a weapon into a school is just sheer idiocy, IMHO.

GO, I didn't know you were back!

*scratches yer belly with my long purple nails*

*tacklehugs*

Hahaha... I'll be 50 in December. :p Quite a bit has changed, but you'll find that out soon enough. lol For one thing, the admins are active and actually make tweaks to the game. Yay!

What he said. This is the alliance server - if people want to play untagged, this is probably not the smartest place for them to play. lol

How did we go from 'who's that girl' to all this RD-hacker-fluff-slinging crap? BACK ON TRACK, PEOPLE! :p

Holy crap, Sniper... lol There's another blast from the past. Welcome back! <3

And on a related side note, I miss Khan.

I fixed it. :D

Hahaha... that was true Blade form, right there. :p

I would've voted for you in a NY minute. :p So there.

lol... If this weren't so damned enlightening, I'd smack fishy.

Oh, who am I kidding - it's just FUN to smack fishy. *smacks fishy* :p

*tacklehugs Goofy, bolty and Blade too*

lol *huggles DANGER* You guys slay me... in the GOOD way. :D

Oh. Em. Eff. Gee.

Are you really, seriously, honestly, at your ages, playing the 'my wang is bigger than your wang' game on a public forum.

*shakes head* Well, not anymore, you're not. :p

*tacklehugs Batty* 'Bout time you showed your little face around here!

Wait. I call shenanigans. That fact has absolutely NOTHING to do with Obama. :p

OMG... she could have at least TRIED to get a clue. If you're gonna be on camera, at least strum it with the right freakin' HAND. lol

lol Well, I do make it to Palm Springs occasionally - sometimes Vegas. Where are you again? LA?

I'm afraid to get out your way to party. I might break you. :p

Anytime you want, young pup. If you ever find yourself in the west, let me know. lol

(P.S. I think Marshal was just clarifying who DiamondDog was for those who had mentioned the name. lol)

*TACKLEHUGS*

Thread? What thread? lol *runs to look*

lol How are things, bad boy?

She's never MIA for long. ;) Just busy at work, so I'm not posting as much - but I still make time to check in and spank when necessary. *spanks Heston*

(from memory)

Chantilly lace has a pretty face
And a pony tail hanging down
A wiggle in her walk and giggle in her talk
Makes the world go round
There ain't nothing in the world like a big eyed girl
That makes me act so funny, make me spend my money
Make me feel real loose like a long necked goose
Like a girl, oh baby that's what I like

lol... And this is why I always leave my 6" headphone expander cable plugged into my laptop at work - just in case I've forgotten to mute. :p

lmao... Now THERE's a visual that made getting up today worthwhile. I don't suppose you have video??? :D

And OMG, SAM... you're killin' me. Seriously - I just peed myself a little bit. MARRY ME IMMEDIATELY!!! lol

On the upside, Mucho Burrito has ghost peppers...

The International Civil Aviation Organization (a division of the United Nations) mandated in 2008 that English be used for ALL international flights, with a recommendation that all pilots and ground controllers worldwide be tested and certified fluent in English and use it for domestic flights as well. In 2011, this recommendation was adopted to include domestic flights with one caveat: while it's still technically acceptable to communicate in a native tongue within country boundaries, BOTH THE PILOT AND GROUND CONTROLLER ARE REQUIRED TO SWITCH TO ENGLISH if either requests it.

Don't mess with me. :p

English is the official language of aviation. If you're flying to or from any airport in any airspace controlled by an air traffic control system, you must speak English during all communications - because not only are all ATCs certified in this language, but all conversations are recorded and it's a requirement that any radio communication be conducted in English. Can you imagine the chaos if this rule weren't in place? 'Hmmm... where am I again? What's the official language here?' Or worse yet... 'Wow, my wing just fell off. Which language should I pick to tell the ATC where I'm going down?' Sure, they're gonna get the message translated quite often (and to be honest, a lot of final crash communications are in the pilot's native tongue) - but there has to be a standard, and they chose English.

St. PADDY's Day. Patty is a girl. Paddy is a man (the Gaelic version of Patrick, basically). </PSA>

NM, my boss sucks. Hire me!

Okay, I officially suck. Suncrusher, sorry I ruined your joke:

[Insite message]

you killed my joke...i was waiting for a friend to post, "aren't you from toronto?"

then i would've said "who do you think told me?"

thanks for nothin!

----------------------------------------------

lol Dammit! I thought you were just another asshat. My bad! :D

lol... I haven't had a troll account dedicated to me in YEARS. You, sir (or madam), have just made my day. :D

Really? I heard trolls post irrelevant insults on threads because they have tiny penises. :D