On 17/10/2011 12:30 PM, notbob wrote:

> The other problem is, the last 2-3 generations don't even know what
> yer doing if you can count back change "the old fashioned way". They
> stand there dumbfounded and somewhat suspicious, like yer trying to
> pull a fast one.
>


I was in a store a few years back where the clerk was a good looking,
big busted blonde who was dumb as a post. She gave me back way too much
change. I told her she had given me too much. She tried again, still too
much. She tried a third time and asked me if that was the right change.
By golly... she was an attractive young lady.

On 16/10/2011 8:35 PM, Howard Brazee wrote:
> On Sun, 16 Oct 2011 23:03:01 +0000 (UTC), Jesper Lauridsen
> > wrote:
>
>>> Lots of people don't know how to calculate sales taxes, especially if
>>> they vary by county as well as by state.
>>
>> Wouldn't it be great if stores printed the prize after tax on the
>> label?
>
> I can see one big downside to this and other smaller downsides.
>
> The big downside is I like us to know what we are paying in taxes.
> Sure that doesn't happen - the companies we buy from are paying all
> sorts of taxes with money that is included in the price. At least
> we don't have VATs in the US (although 9-9-9 has what appears to be a
> VAT).

Where is the downside. If you live where they do that you already know
what rate of value added tax you are paying, and you know that it is
included in the price. The much bigger advantage is that you
automatically know that price is what you are going to pay. No more of
this $99.99 crap that leads you to think that it is under the magic
number of $100, but then you end up paying more than that because they
add the tax on later.

> And go buy a book with a price printed on its cover. Do we want a
> different printing for each tax district?

That would be easy enough to deal with.... just stop printing the prices
on the book jackets. I find it really annoying to see prices like that
on books and magazines here in Canada because they have the US price and
the Canadian price. For a few years our dollar was worth a lot less than
the US dollar, so it was understandable that a $4 US magazine might be
$5 in Canada, but now we are bouncing around par, so when I see that
price differential I will not pay it.

Jesper Lauridsen > wrote in
:

> On 2011-10-17, Howard Brazee > wrote:
>> On Sun, 16 Oct 2011 23:03:01 +0000 (UTC), Jesper Lauridsen
> wrote:
>>
>>>> Lots of people don't know how to calculate sales taxes,
>>>> especially if they vary by county as well as by state.
>>>
>>>Wouldn't it be great if stores printed the price after tax on
>>>the label?
>>
>> I can see one big downside to this and other smaller downsides.
>>
>> The big downside is I like us to know what we are paying in
>> taxes.
>
> I like knowing what this purchase is going to cost me, a lot
> more. If I want to know about taxes, I can just look at the
> receipt. Win-win.
>
> And it seems to me, if you need the pre-tax price to figure out
> what you're paying in taxes, then you don't know what you'll end
> paying at checkout.
>
>> And go buy a book with a price printed on its cover. Do we
>> want a different printing for each tax district?
>
> That's what price tags are for.

Be sure to add on the cost of labor to affix it.

--
Terry Austin

"Terry Austin: like the polio vaccine, only with more asshole."
-- David Bilek

Jesus forgives sinners, not criminals.

In article >,
Jesper Lauridsen > wrote:
>On 2011-10-17, Dorothy J Heydt > wrote:
>>
>> I sit corrected. Numbers, as all here know, are not my forte.
>
>Didn't you have a sideline helping people do their taxes? Or am
>I confusing you with someone else?

Holy Valar, you must be. I've worked as a secretary, briefly an
editor, and a writer off and on. Never as a tax arranger or
anything else to do with numbers. My husband does our taxes, and
if he predeceases me I'll have to find a professional.

--
Dorothy J. Heydt
Vallejo, California
djheydt at gmail dot com
Should you wish to email me, you'd better use the gmail edress.
Kithrup's all spammy and hotmail's been hacked.

In article >,
Derek Lyons > wrote:
(Dorothy J Heydt) wrote:
>
>>Very nice. I wish I had that much room for bookshelves; we
>>currently have about eighty-five boxes full of books making
>>stacks in one of the bookrooms; inherited from my late
>>sister-in-law who bought books faster than she could read them.
>>Trouble is, they're mostly computer books (with special emphasis
>>on computer graphics) and they're all between five and twenty
>>years old. In other words, they're all obsolete and getting more
>>so.
>
>Your problem isn't lack of bookshelves, it's an inability to get rid
>of books. There's a difference.

Heh. You are so right.

But it's my husband who won't get rid of them. And when I
suggest he should, he barks at me.

--
Dorothy J. Heydt
Vallejo, California
djheydt at gmail dot com
Should you wish to email me, you'd better use the gmail edress.
Kithrup's all spammy and hotmail's been hacked.

In article >,
Pico Rico > wrote:
>
>"Dorothy J Heydt" > wrote in message
...
>> In article >,
>> > wrote:
>>>On 10/17/2011 8:18 AM, Dorothy J Heydt wrote:
>>>> In >,
>>>> Derek > wrote:
>>>>> James > wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> My 9 year-old granddaughter in Marin County, CA seems to be being
>>>>>> systematically taught arithmetic but that may not take. I live in
>>>>>> Montgomery County, MD, which is reputed to have some of the best
>>>>>> schools
>>>>>> in the country. I was waiting in line at the pharmacy and a woman in
>>>>>> front of me sent her 14 year old (estimated) daughter to select a
>>>>>> couple
>>>>>> of pastries. Her mother asked her to go and pay for them. They were
>>>>>> $1.50 each and her mother asked the girl how much money she wanted:
>>>>>> "Aw,
>>>>>> Mom, I don't know!"
>>>>>
>>>>> And that proves... what exactly? I routinely told my mom I didn't
>>>>> know stuff I knew perfectly well because it's in the perverse nature
>>>>> of a teenager to do so.
>>>>
>>>> You may have hit the bull's-eye here.
>>>>
>>>
>>> I'll second it, I remember being a teenager. Far too well, dammit.
>>>
>>> Don't you?
>>
>> Yes, but I was an outlier even as a teenager. I was a science
>> fiction fan, I wasn't interested in boys, and I hung out with my
>> own little group (the "fast classes", where the material was
>> supposed to be a little more advanced 'cause we were all supposed
>> to be smart; we were, too). As a result, all the desperate
>> teenaged angst, the jibes of the other girls that everybody else
>> tells about --- if any of that happened, I didn't notice it.
>
>Just wait until you get to the retirement home . . .

God forbid that I should ever be dumped into a cage with a lot of
other people with whom I have NOTHING in common except that we're
all old.

Fortunately, we can't afford it.

--
Dorothy J. Heydt
Vallejo, California
djheydt at gmail dot com
Should you wish to email me, you'd better use the gmail edress.
Kithrup's all spammy and hotmail's been hacked.

In article >,
Pico Rico > wrote:
>
>"Brian M. Scott" > wrote in message
. ..
>> On Mon, 17 Oct 2011 15:18:31 GMT, Dorothy J Heydt
>> > wrote in
>> > in
>> rec.arts.sf.written,rec.food.cooking:
>>
>>> In article >,
>>> Derek Lyons > wrote:
>>
>>>>James Silverton > wrote:
>>
>>>>> My 9 year-old granddaughter in Marin County, CA seems to
>>>>> be being systematically taught arithmetic but that may
>>>>> not take. I live in Montgomery County, MD, which is
>>>>> reputed to have some of the best schools in the
>>>>> country. I was waiting in line at the pharmacy and a
>>>>> woman in front of me sent her 14 year old (estimated)
>>>>> daughter to select a couple of pastries. Her mother
>>>>> asked her to go and pay for them. They were $1.50 each
>>>>> and her mother asked the girl how much money she
>>>>> wanted: "Aw, Mom, I don't know!"
>>
>>>> And that proves... what exactly? I routinely told my mom
>>>> I didn't know stuff I knew perfectly well because it's
>>>> in the perverse nature of a teenager to do so.
>>
>>> You may have hit the bull's-eye here.
>>
>> However, not all teenagers are especially perverse, and in
>> any case the perversity need not take that particular form.
>> In this case I shouldn't be at all surprised if the girl
>> *didn't* know. On the other hand, I'd also not be surprised
>> if it turned out that she was perfectly capable of working
>> it out and didn't know merely because she couldn't be
>> bothered.
>>
> now that I am getting older, I am going to start pulling this stuff again.

There's a poem that begins "When I am old I shall wear purple,
and a red hat that doesn't go," and details all the other
eccentric things she plans to do when she's old and can get away
with it ... and maybe she'll start practicing now. It's not
supposed to be posted to the Web but it usually is. I don't see
why a man shouldn't do the same, modulo such eccentricities as
will please him and not get him arrested.

--
Dorothy J. Heydt
Vallejo, California
djheydt at gmail dot com
Should you wish to email me, you'd better use the gmail edress.
Kithrup's all spammy and hotmail's been hacked.

Derek Lyons > wrote:
(Dorothy J Heydt) wrote:
>>Very nice. I wish I had that much room for bookshelves; we
>>currently have about eighty-five boxes full of books making
>>stacks in one of the bookrooms; inherited from my late
>>sister-in-law who bought books faster than she could read them.
>>Trouble is, they're mostly computer books (with special emphasis
>>on computer graphics) and they're all between five and twenty
>>years old. In other words, they're all obsolete and getting more so.
>
>Your problem isn't lack of bookshelves, it's an inability to get rid
>of books. There's a difference.

Actually, her issue (I'm not sure calling it a 'problem' helps) is a husband
who's apparently being incredibly stubborn about NOT getting rid of ANY of
those books because he's SURE he's going to read them ALL. Some Day. Real
Soon Now. But he won't, he's just being a roadblock, and calling him out on
it apparently puts him deeper into denial. Plus they were his sister's so
nobody gets to decide when to get rid of them but him...

Combine this with having nowhere else to store them and nobody, it seems,
willing to volunteer storage space or sorting space, and she's stuck.

Dave
--
\/David DeLaney posting from "It's not the pot that grows the flower
It's not the clock that slows the hour The definition's plain for anyone to see
Love is all it takes to make a family" - R&P. VISUALIZE HAPPYNET VRbeable<BLINK>
http://www.vic.com/~dbd/ - net.legends FAQ & Magic / I WUV you in all CAPS! --K.

In article >,
Dorothy J Heydt > wrote:
>In article >,
>David Goldfarb > wrote:
>>I learned how to subtract numbers
>>from a multiple of 10 without conscious thought. E.g.: $12.37 from $20.00
>>is 7.63 -- don't need to actually do the sum in my head, it just pops
>>in there. This is a skill that has stayed with me.
>
>That's handy. Do you ever get to use it nowadays?

Oh, all the time. When I pay for something with cash, I'll work out
what the change will be, then add loose change and dollar bills so
as to consolidate what I'll have in my pockets. For example, if I'm
buying myself a pizza that costs $7.87, I'll figure that the change
from a 10 is $2.13, and if possible I'll pay $13.12 so that I can
get back $5.25.

(That one particular case led to one of those moments I have normally
only read about, where the high-school-age kid behind the register
looked at me and said "How did you do that?")

>> David Goldfarb |"English cuisine is the cuisine of fear."
|
| -- Andrew Conway
>
>What in the heck does Mr. Conway mean?

You know, I've been waiting over a decade for someone to ask me that.
He said it while hosting an Iron Chef party at his home in San Francisco.
He went on to explain that English cooks are deathly afraid their
food will taste of anything, so they boil it until all the flavor
is gone. He was an Englishman himself, so I take him as an expert.

--
David Goldfarb |"Poor dominoes. Your pretty empire took so long
| to build. Now, with a snap of history's fingers...
| down it goes."
| -- Alan Moore, _V for Vendetta_

In article >,
David DeLaney > wrote:
>Derek Lyons > wrote:
(Dorothy J Heydt) wrote:
>>>Very nice. I wish I had that much room for bookshelves; we
>>>currently have about eighty-five boxes full of books making
>>>stacks in one of the bookrooms; inherited from my late
>>>sister-in-law who bought books faster than she could read them.
>>>Trouble is, they're mostly computer books (with special emphasis
>>>on computer graphics) and they're all between five and twenty
>>>years old. In other words, they're all obsolete and getting more so.
>>
>>Your problem isn't lack of bookshelves, it's an inability to get rid
>>of books. There's a difference.
>
>Actually, her issue (I'm not sure calling it a 'problem' helps) is a husband
>who's apparently being incredibly stubborn about NOT getting rid of ANY of
>those books because he's SURE he's going to read them ALL. Some Day. Real
>Soon Now. But he won't, he's just being a roadblock, and calling him out on
>it apparently puts him deeper into denial. Plus they were his sister's so
>nobody gets to decide when to get rid of them but him...

Acu tetigisti. (Which is Latin for "You pegged it.")

>Combine this with having nowhere else to store them and nobody, it seems,
>willing to volunteer storage space or sorting space, and she's stuck.

Yup.

And I don't drive...

--
Dorothy J. Heydt
Vallejo, California
djheydt at gmail dot com
Should you wish to email me, you'd better use the gmail edress.
Kithrup's all spammy and hotmail's been hacked.

In article >,
(Dorothy J Heydt) wrote:

> God forbid that I should ever be dumped into a cage with a lot of
> other people with whom I have NOTHING in common except that we're
> all old.
>
> Fortunately, we can't afford it.

Then you get dumped into a box of the same type that is publicly funded.
If such exists, otherwise you just die for lack of care.

--
It is the nature of the human species to reject what is true but unpleasant
and to embrace what is obviously false but comforting. -- H. L. Mencken

On Mon, 17 Oct 2011 18:13:55 -0400, Dave Smith
> wrote:

>No more of
>this $99.99 crap that leads you to think that it is under the magic
>number of $100, but then you end up paying more than that because they
>add the tax on later.

It doesn't lead *me* to think that it is under any magic number of
$100.

But I do note that in one example where the tax *is* included does
this type of pricing - gasoline.

--
"In no part of the constitution is more wisdom to be found,
than in the clause which confides the question of war or peace
to the legislature, and not to the executive department."

- James Madison

On Mon, 17 Oct 2011 17:56:04 -0400, Dave Smith
> wrote:

>I was in a store a few years back where the clerk was a good looking,
>big busted blonde who was dumb as a post. She gave me back way too much
>change. I told her she had given me too much. She tried again, still too
>much. She tried a third time and asked me if that was the right change.
> By golly... she was an attractive young lady.

One way to attract people is to give away money.

But to be attracted to actually go out with someone, I'd rather have
brains.

--
"In no part of the constitution is more wisdom to be found,
than in the clause which confides the question of war or peace
to the legislature, and not to the executive department."

- James Madison

Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy wrote:

> I was involved in training cashiers for many, many years. The first
> thing you alaways do is teach them not how to do arithmetic, but how
> to _count_. Specifically, how to count money. Many, even most, don't
> really need formal training as such. But many *do*.
>
> Always did get surprised smiles from older customers, though, when
> I'd count change back the old fashioned way.
>
As God is my witness, I'd make a point of shopoing at a place that
required cashiers to count back the change the "old fashioned way" !! I
HATE the way the cashierbots just let the machine tell them what to give
and then they plop it all into my hand in the most annoying clumsy way.
It takes me a few seconds to separate the receipt from the wad-o'cash
and put the bills and coins into my wallet all the while they're already
moving on to the next customer. Tres annoying!

On Mon, 17 Oct 2011 23:35:52 GMT, (David
Goldfarb) wrote:

>In article >,
>Dorothy J Heydt > wrote:

>>> David Goldfarb |"English cuisine is the cuisine of fear."
|
| -- Andrew Conway
>>
>>What in the heck does Mr. Conway mean?
>
>You know, I've been waiting over a decade for someone to ask me that.
>He said it while hosting an Iron Chef party at his home in San Francisco.
>He went on to explain that English cooks are deathly afraid their
>food will taste of anything, so they boil it until all the flavor
>is gone. He was an Englishman himself, so I take him as an expert.

Bleah. Maybe in the 50s and early 60s, but the stigma lingers a lot
longer than the stench of over-boiled cabbage.

Cheers - Jaimie
--
There he saw Merry's feet still sticking out - the rest had already been
drawn further inside. Tom put his mouth to the crack and began singing
into it in a low voice. They could not catch the words, but evidently
Merry was aroused. -- J R R Tolkien

On 2011-10-18, Jaimie Vandenbergh > wrote:

> Bleah. Maybe in the 50s and early 60s, but the stigma lingers a lot
> longer than the stench of over-boiled cabbage.

Which is unfortunate.

I LOVE steamed cabbage. I've eaten it the last 2 nights. For a
single serving, I quarter a whole cabbage, remove the core and cross
cut one quarter into 3-4 smaller sections. I steam the qtr for
exactly 11 mins, add salt n' pepper, and enjoy. Mustard and
horseradish are also nice additions, but unnecessary. Very sweet and
flavorful, all by itself.

nb

In article >,
Walter Bushell > wrote:
>In article >,
> (Dorothy J Heydt) wrote:
>
>> God forbid that I should ever be dumped into a cage with a lot of
>> other people with whom I have NOTHING in common except that we're
>> all old.
>>
>> Fortunately, we can't afford it.
>
>Then you get dumped into a box of the same type that is publicly funded.
>If such exists, otherwise you just die for lack of care.

That might be preferable to living in an age-segregated warren.

At present we're living with our daughter and son-in-law ('cause
we're broke). That could continue for a while.

--
Dorothy J. Heydt
Vallejo, California
djheydt at gmail dot com
Should you wish to email me, you'd better use the gmail edress.
Kithrup's all spammy and hotmail's been hacked.

On 18 Oct 2011 00:36:44 GMT, notbob > wrote:

>On 2011-10-18, Jaimie Vandenbergh > wrote:
>
>> Bleah. Maybe in the 50s and early 60s, but the stigma lingers a lot
>> longer than the stench of over-boiled cabbage.
>
>Which is unfortunate.
>
>I LOVE steamed cabbage. I've eaten it the last 2 nights. For a
>single serving, I quarter a whole cabbage, remove the core and cross
>cut one quarter into 3-4 smaller sections. I steam the qtr for
>exactly 11 mins, add salt n' pepper, and enjoy. Mustard and
>horseradish are also nice additions, but unnecessary. Very sweet and
>flavorful, all by itself.

I'd only steam for 6 minutes, myself! Add a little beef stock, pepper,
job done. If you're really pushing the boat out, bacon bits.

Cheers - Jaimie
--
If you are not paying for it, you're not the customer; you're the product being sold.
-- blue_beetle

On 2011-10-18, Jaimie Vandenbergh > wrote:

> I'd only steam for 6 minutes, myself!

I live at 8,000ft elev, where water boils at about 197F. I suspect my
steam is not as hot.

nb

On 18 Oct 2011 00:54:11 GMT, notbob > wrote:

>On 2011-10-18, Jaimie Vandenbergh > wrote:
>
>> I'd only steam for 6 minutes, myself!
>
>I live at 8,000ft elev, where water boils at about 197F. I suspect my
>steam is not as hot.
>
>nb

An important detail! I'm at about 300ft, and that'll make a serious
difference.

Cheers - Jaimie
--
"I do not like the feel of the middle way; and I do not like the smell of
the left hand way" -- J R R Tolkien

In article >,
(Derek Lyons) wrote:


> >Wouldn't it be great if there were some way to know the base price of
> >an item *before* getting it scanned by the cashier?
>
> Here on my planet, we have this invention called "shelf tags". Maybe
> one day yours will catch up to the 19th century equivalent.

That's funny. We have those also. Usually the price on the shelf tag
matches the price on the equivalent item, which is not necessarily all
that close physically. But sometimes it doesn't.

--
Dan Abel
Petaluma, California USA

On 18/10/11 6:45 AM, Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy wrote:
> Jesper > wrote in
> :
>
>> On 2011-10-17, Howard > wrote:
>>> On Sun, 16 Oct 2011 23:03:01 +0000 (UTC), Jesper Lauridsen
>>> > wrote:
>>>
>>>>> Lots of people don't know how to calculate sales taxes,
>>>>> especially if they vary by county as well as by state.
>>>>
>>>> Wouldn't it be great if stores printed the price after tax on
>>>> the label?
>>>
>>> I can see one big downside to this and other smaller downsides.
>>>
>>> The big downside is I like us to know what we are paying in
>>> taxes.
>>
>> I like knowing what this purchase is going to cost me, a lot
>> more. If I want to know about taxes, I can just look at the
>> receipt. Win-win.
>>
>> And it seems to me, if you need the pre-tax price to figure out
>> what you're paying in taxes, then you don't know what you'll end
>> paying at checkout.
>>
>>> And go buy a book with a price printed on its cover. Do we
>>> want a different printing for each tax district?
>>
>> That's what price tags are for.
>
> Be sure to add on the cost of labor to affix it.
>

Surely all the items have price tags anyway. It's just that in the USA,
they give the pre-tax price. It would not cost the store any extra to
give the real price.

--
Robert Bannister

On Mon, 17 Oct 2011 23:39:57 GMT, (Dorothy J
Heydt) wrote:

>In article >,
>David DeLaney > wrote:
>>Derek Lyons > wrote:
(Dorothy J Heydt) wrote:
>>>>Very nice. I wish I had that much room for bookshelves; we
>>>>currently have about eighty-five boxes full of books making
>>>>stacks in one of the bookrooms; inherited from my late
>>>>sister-in-law who bought books faster than she could read them.
>>>>Trouble is, they're mostly computer books (with special emphasis
>>>>on computer graphics) and they're all between five and twenty
>>>>years old. In other words, they're all obsolete and getting more so.
>>>
>>>Your problem isn't lack of bookshelves, it's an inability to get rid
>>>of books. There's a difference.
>>
>>Actually, her issue (I'm not sure calling it a 'problem' helps) is a husband
>>who's apparently being incredibly stubborn about NOT getting rid of ANY of
>>those books because he's SURE he's going to read them ALL. Some Day. Real
>>Soon Now. But he won't, he's just being a roadblock, and calling him out on
>>it apparently puts him deeper into denial. Plus they were his sister's so
>>nobody gets to decide when to get rid of them but him...
>
>Acu tetigisti. (Which is Latin for "You pegged it.")

Dorothy said pointedly.

--
Bill Snyder [This space unintentionally left blank]

On 18/10/11 7:35 AM, David Goldfarb wrote:
> In >,
> Dorothy J > wrote:
>> In >,
>> David > wrote:
>>> I learned how to subtract numbers
>> >from a multiple of 10 without conscious thought. E.g.: $12.37 from $20.00
>>> is 7.63 -- don't need to actually do the sum in my head, it just pops
>>> in there. This is a skill that has stayed with me.
>>
>> That's handy. Do you ever get to use it nowadays?
>
> Oh, all the time. When I pay for something with cash, I'll work out
> what the change will be, then add loose change and dollar bills so
> as to consolidate what I'll have in my pockets. For example, if I'm
> buying myself a pizza that costs $7.87, I'll figure that the change
> from a 10 is $2.13, and if possible I'll pay $13.12 so that I can
> get back $5.25.
>
> (That one particular case led to one of those moments I have normally
> only read about, where the high-school-age kid behind the register
> looked at me and said "How did you do that?")
>
>>> David Goldfarb |"English cuisine is the cuisine of fear."
>>> |
>>> | -- Andrew Conway
>>
>> What in the heck does Mr. Conway mean?
>
> You know, I've been waiting over a decade for someone to ask me that.
> He said it while hosting an Iron Chef party at his home in San Francisco.
> He went on to explain that English cooks are deathly afraid their
> food will taste of anything, so they boil it until all the flavor
> is gone. He was an Englishman himself, so I take him as an expert.
>

Like most national stereotypes, I imagine this is severely out of date.
It would have been true of English cooking prior to about 1960, but
things were starting to change even then. On the other hand, in my old
age, I am slowly reverting to a preference for vegetables that are
cooked till they are rather softer than I used to like them.

--
Robert Bannister

On 18/10/11 8:09 AM, Goomba wrote:
> Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy wrote:
>
>> I was involved in training cashiers for many, many years. The first
>> thing you alaways do is teach them not how to do arithmetic, but how
>> to _count_. Specifically, how to count money. Many, even most, don't
>> really need formal training as such. But many *do*.
>>
>> Always did get surprised smiles from older customers, though, when I'd
>> count change back the old fashioned way.
>>
> As God is my witness, I'd make a point of shopoing at a place that
> required cashiers to count back the change the "old fashioned way" !! I
> HATE the way the cashierbots just let the machine tell them what to give
> and then they plop it all into my hand in the most annoying clumsy way.
> It takes me a few seconds to separate the receipt from the wad-o'cash
> and put the bills and coins into my wallet all the while they're already
> moving on to the next customer. Tres annoying!

I'll certainly agree with about the difficulty in dealing with a pile of
change, notes on the bottom, coins on top of that and receipt as a
crown, while you're trying to open your wallet and pick up your bags and
get out the way of the next customer.

If they could only give me the coins first, so I could slip them into my
pocket before I wrestle the notes into my wallet...

--
Robert Bannister

On Tue, 18 Oct 2011 09:02:19 +0800, Robert Bannister
> wrote:

>Surely all the items have price tags anyway. It's just that in the USA,
>they give the pre-tax price. It would not cost the store any extra to
>give the real price.

The "real price" can vary, as sales tax is calculated on the total
purchase, not on each individual, and there are rounding differences.

--
"In no part of the constitution is more wisdom to be found,
than in the clause which confides the question of war or peace
to the legislature, and not to the executive department."

- James Madison

On 18 Oct 2011 00:54:11 GMT, notbob > wrote:

>I live at 8,000ft elev, where water boils at about 197F. I suspect my
>steam is not as hot.

When I was a child, we moved to Mexico City for a couple of years, and
my folks complained about not having hot coffee. We bought some
USAmerican cake mixes which had stick-on labels with cooking
directions which were different from the English language directions.
The difference was to compensate for the altitude.

Now I live in Colorado - it's OK at a mile high, but the mountains are
a different story.

--
"In no part of the constitution is more wisdom to be found,
than in the clause which confides the question of war or peace
to the legislature, and not to the executive department."

- James Madison

On 17/10/11 11:21 AM, Howard Brazee wrote:
> On Mon, 17 Oct 2011 01:31:31 GMT, (Dorothy J
> Heydt) wrote:
>
>> There was a New Yorker cartoon once upon a time. Leasing agent
>> leading a man and woman through an empty apartment in the hopes
>> that they will rent it. Every wall is lined with (empty)
>> bookcases. Man, looking about him, says, "What the hell kind of
>> people lived here, anyway?"
>
> I know people who love such bookcases - for a wide variety of stuff
> other than books.
>

You can have sex on a bookshelf? Sounds uncomfortable.

--
Robert Bannister

In article >, says...
>
> In article >,
> Walter Bushell > wrote:
> >In article >,
> > (Dorothy J Heydt) wrote:
> >
> >> God forbid that I should ever be dumped into a cage with a lot of
> >> other people with whom I have NOTHING in common except that we're
> >> all old.
> >>
> >> Fortunately, we can't afford it.
> >
> >Then you get dumped into a box of the same type that is publicly funded.
> >If such exists, otherwise you just die for lack of care.
>
> That might be preferable to living in an age-segregated warren.
>
> At present we're living with our daughter and son-in-law ('cause
> we're broke). That could continue for a while.

Personally I'd rather roll my wheelchair in front of a train than live
in an old-folks' home.

On 17/10/11 1:10 PM, Dorothy J Heydt wrote:
> In omain.local>,
> J. > wrote:
>> In >,
>> says...
>>>
>>> On 16/10/11 9:53 AM, J. Clarke wrote:
>>>> In article<e690fe1b-512c-4b04-a3ab-c2fa3482dfa6
>>>> @f5g2000vbz.googlegroups.com>, says...
>>>>>
>>>>> On Oct 15, 1:34 pm, James >
>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>> My 9 year-old granddaughter in Marin County, CA seems to be being
>>>>>> systematically taught arithmetic but that may not take. I live in
>>>>>> Montgomery County, MD, which is reputed to have some of the best schools
>>>>>> in the country. I was waiting in line at the pharmacy and a woman in
>>>>>> front of me sent her 14 year old (estimated) daughter to select a couple
>>>>>> of pastries. Her mother asked her to go and pay for them. They were
>>>>>> $1.50 each and her mother asked the girl how much money she wanted: "Aw,
>>>>>> Mom, I don't know!"
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> A little off the arith beam but.......a local teacher asked kids to
>>>>> bring a book from home to discuss. Three kids toted in the phone
>>>>> book. Sad to think that that was the only book in the house. I'll
>>>>> bet there was plenty of beer and cigs around, tho.
>>>>
>>>> I am always taken aback when someone who sees me reading asks me why I'm
>>>> doing it.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>> People who see my book shelves always seem to ask me, "Have you read
>>> them all?". The incredulity on their faces when I tell them I have read
>>> most of them more than once is quite depressing.
>>
>> Why do they think you have them if not to read?
>
> They can't figure out why you have them, because they can't
> imagine you reading them.
>

Precisely. In fact, I don't think they can imagine reading for pleasure
at all. I suspect commercial television has created a population of
people who can't concentrate on anything for more than about 7 minutes
at a time.

--
Robert Bannister

On 17/10/11 9:12 AM, Howard Brazee wrote:
> On Mon, 17 Oct 2011 08:37:45 +0800, Robert Bannister
> > wrote:
>
>>> A little off the arith beam but.......a local teacher asked kids to
>>> bring a book from home to discuss. Three kids toted in the phone
>>> book.
>>
>> Our newest set of telephone directories has been reduced drastically in
>> size to save money, so that now only kids with young eyes can read the
>> damned things.
>
>
> I tried for a while to get the phone book companies to not deliver
> phone books, but they make their money by circulation. So now, I
> deliver mine to The Gabriel Society where they use them for orphaned
> pet birds. Phone books have been replaced by computers in my house.
>

It's funny. I know the white and yellow pages are available online, and
yet this morning when my internet connection was broken, I went
automatically to the book version to look the number up.


(For those interested: the breakdown was the common one of computers
demanding attention. I had previously checked that all the cables were
firmly plugged in to the right places, but the computer wanted its dear
little cables pulled out and reinserted so it would still feel loved)

--
Robert Bannister

In article >,
notbob > wrote:
>On 2011-10-18, Jaimie Vandenbergh > wrote:
>
>> I'd only steam for 6 minutes, myself!
>
>I live at 8,000ft elev, where water boils at about 197F. I suspect my
>steam is not as hot.

Wow. Colorado?

--
Dorothy J. Heydt
Vallejo, California
djheydt at gmail dot com
Should you wish to email me, you'd better use the gmail edress.
Kithrup's all spammy and hotmail's been hacked.

On 2011-10-18, Dorothy J Heydt > wrote:

> Wow. Colorado?

Yep. Late of Livermore.

nb


--
vi ....the heart of evil!

On 17/10/2011 9:18 PM, Robert Bannister wrote:
>> They can't figure out why you have them, because they can't
>> imagine you reading them.
>>
>
> Precisely. In fact, I don't think they can imagine reading for pleasure
> at all. I suspect commercial television has created a population of
> people who can't concentrate on anything for more than about 7 minutes
> at a time.
>

I have three brothers. My oldest brother surprised me a a few years ago
when he said that he had never read a book. The rest of us are avid
readers. My mother was an avid reader, but I can't remember my father
ever reading for pleasure. He was usually too busy to find time to read.
He rarely watched television either.

"Andy" > wrote in message ...
> "J. Clarke" > wrote:
>
>> Personally I'd rather roll my wheelchair in front of a train than live
>> in an old-folks' home.
>
>
> What fun is THAT?!?
>
> Freefall without a parachute!

at least that way you don't traumatize some poor train engineer. people are
so self absorbed!

In article >,
notbob > wrote:
>On 2011-10-18, Dorothy J Heydt > wrote:
>
>> Wow. Colorado?
>
>Yep. Late of Livermore.

Quite a move. Hope you're doing ok; I went to a con in Denver
once (a mere mile high) and by the end of the con I was just this
side of collapse. I couldn't do anything much but sit or lie
around and gasp till our train got down out of the Sierras into
the Valley. May that disability be far from you.

--
Dorothy J. Heydt
Vallejo, California
djheydt at gmail dot com
Should you wish to email me, you'd better use the gmail edress.
Kithrup's all spammy and hotmail's been hacked.

In article ocal>,
J. Clarke > wrote:
>In article >, says...
>>
>> In article >,
>> Walter Bushell > wrote:
>> >In article >,
>> > (Dorothy J Heydt) wrote:
>> >
>> >> God forbid that I should ever be dumped into a cage with a lot of
>> >> other people with whom I have NOTHING in common except that we're
>> >> all old.
>> >>
>> >> Fortunately, we can't afford it.
>> >
>> >Then you get dumped into a box of the same type that is publicly funded.
>> >If such exists, otherwise you just die for lack of care.
>>
>> That might be preferable to living in an age-segregated warren.
>>
>> At present we're living with our daughter and son-in-law ('cause
>> we're broke). That could continue for a while.
>
>Personally I'd rather roll my wheelchair in front of a train than live
>in an old-folks' home.

I've actually been in one, sort of. About fifteen years ago I
had a bout of pancreatitis, and after two weeks in the hospital I
was sent for another two weeks in a nursing home till they
decided it was safe to take me off the IV (actually a PICC line).
Half the facility catered mostly to middle-aged people recovering
from broken hip or similar heavy-duty surgery. The other half
was full of old people who mostly ... weren't there any more.
They'd sit in bed staring blankly at television or in wheelchairs
in the hall staring at nothing. It was sad. I do hope my heart
or lungs or something goes before my brain does.

And mind you, that was a *very good* nursing home. I was happy
there, because I had a double room to myself (most patients didn't
care for the street noise) and I had my computer. Everything was
very clean and the old people were scrupulously cared for. But
there was no there there.

--
Dorothy J. Heydt
Vallejo, California
djheydt at gmail dot com
Should you wish to email me, you'd better use the gmail edress.
Kithrup's all spammy and hotmail's been hacked.

In article >, Andy > wrote:
>"Pico Rico" > wrote:
>
>>
>> "Andy" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>> "J. Clarke" > wrote:
>>>
>>>> Personally I'd rather roll my wheelchair in front of a train than
>>>> live in an old-folks' home.
>>>
>>>
>>> What fun is THAT?!?
>>>
>>> Freefall without a parachute!
>>
>> at least that way you don't traumatize some poor train engineer.
>> people are so self absorbed!
>
>
>Myself? I'd wear a parachute!
>
>Old age isn't so bad when you consider the alternative!!!

Depends on the circumstances surrounding your old age. See
upthread.

--
Dorothy J. Heydt
Vallejo, California
djheydt at gmail dot com
Should you wish to email me, you'd better use the gmail edress.
Kithrup's all spammy and hotmail's been hacked.

On Oct 17, 10:14*am, (Dorothy J Heydt) wrote:
> In article >,
>
> David Goldfarb > wrote:
> >In article >,
> >Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy > wrote:
> >>I was involved in training cashiers for many, many years. The first
> >>thing you alaways do is teach them not how to do arithmetic, but how
> >>to _count_. Specifically, how to count money. Many, even most, don't
> >>really need formal training as such. But many *do*.
>
> >For a number of years I worked part time at "The Other Change of Hobbit",
> >an SF specialty bookstore in Berkeley. *They didn't (I think they still
> >don't) have a cash register, only an adding machine and a cash box.
> >I got proficient at doing 10-key, *and* I learned how to subtract numbers
> >from a multiple of 10 without conscious thought. E.g.: $12.37 from $20.00
> >is 7.63 -- don't need to actually do the sum in my head, it just pops
> >in there. *This is a skill that has stayed with me.
>
> That's handy. *Do you ever get to use it nowadays?
>
> A couple of years ago my son wandered by while I was pounding
> DunDraCon pre-registrations into the computer, and after watching
> for a while said, "Mom, how is it that you never use the numkey
> pad? *With all your years as a secretary, I should've thought
> you'd have picked up ten-key."
>
> I explained, "Tris, I learned to type on a TYPEWRITER. *A manual
> typewriter at that. *No numkey pad. *No function keys. *No CTRL
> or ALT keys. *In fact, you ought to remember when we were doing
> DDC input into the old Cadmus on ADM3As, which didn't have any of
> those keys either. *Back in the day, secretaries typed on
> typewriters; it was accountants who used ten-key."
>
> > * David Goldfarb * * * * *|"English cuisine is the cuisine of fear."
> *|
> | * * * * * * *-- Andrew Conway
>
> What in the heck does Mr. Conway mean? *English cuisine derives
> from the concept that good-quality food doesn't need any fancy
> touches. *If you have a hunk of good beef, you roast it and serve
> it forth surrounded by parsnips or potatoes. *If you're in
> France, on the other hand, all you have is a stringy shin of beef
> and you have to simmer it and spice it and wine it and so forth
> to make it edible at all. *While the English sneer at "French
> fancy kickshaws."
>
> I am speaking in the historical present, of course. *You remember
> the medieval Frenchman who, on returning from England, announced
> in amazement that no Englishman ever drank water except as a
> penance?
>
> I have no idea what English cookery is like now; the one time I
> was in England everything I found was either pizza or tandoori.
>
> --
> Dorothy J. Heydt
> Vallejo, California
> djheydt at gmail dot com
> Should you wish to email me, you'd better use the gmail edress.
> Kithrup's all spammy and hotmail's been hacked.

While my wife and I were studying in France, we heard of an American
couple who were making dinner--a real American dinner--for French
friends. Said French friends, watching the Americans simply cook up
and serve hamburgers, hovered around, puzzled and aghast at the
absence of sauces, spices, and . . . crême fraîche?

Doug

On Mon, 17 Oct 2011 21:17:46 -0400, "J. Clarke"
> wrote:

> Personally I'd rather roll my wheelchair in front of a train than live
> in an old-folks' home.

Don't. It's a horrible, horrible thing to do to the engine crew.

--
Joy Beeson
joy beeson at comcast dot net