SouthernMan

I don't know the answer to this. Did Sr. have a prosperous Detroit insurance business that put Jr in charge of the vault, or was is nothing more than a modest storefront insurance business that Jr took over and built into an empire with his own expertise and business savvy?

I guess since estate taxes have been around a long time, why change the policy of taxing twice for the same net income. You're a genius. I concede. And McBride...I always think of you as one of the better forum posters. You're not serious about Ralph doing nothing but being the beneficiary of his father's wealth - are you? My understanding is that Ralph paved his own path in the insurance biz and other endeavors. The whole football thing didn't happen because he had a horseshoe up his ass. (That would be the late Carroll Rosenbloom and Bob Irsay)

WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!?!?!?!?!? ARE YOU A COMMUNIST? "GIVE THE RICH SOME MORE MONEY"????? You think it's a good idea to take money from someone who has worked their arse off to earn a lot of dough and has already paid income tax on the same funds and for no sound reason, give it to Uncle Sam? You must be one of those people who feels slighted by or is envious of the "evil rich". These are the people who provide jobs, give to philanthropical causes, and keep the economy going you numbskull. Of course the tax breaks are going to the top earners. They're the ones paying something like 65% of all federal taxes - not the welfare mom with 7 kids. DUH

So really...what's the big deal? How will this change anyone's life? Except for Mel Gibson and maybe Hogboy, most catholics do whatever the hell they want anyway, regardless of church docterine. Divorce? No problem - just get an annullment. Abortion? No problem there either. Hey, liberal democratic party allegience trumps the catholic church - or so it seems. Murder and stealing? Aren't the Gotti's Catholic? Everyone knows the catholic chicks were the biggest sluts in school. So, what big changes will the new pope will bring? Probably not much. Are we gonna have - Vatican III? Hollywood could promote it like it was a Will Smith picture......V3 - bigger, badder, and scarier than ever! More incense, insects, and incest than ever before. Coming this summer!!!!

Maybe there are some windows and casings that are tricky, but for the most part, installing windows is reasonably easy. As long as everything is plumb and square, there shouldn't be any trouble. The process is basically the same as replacing a door. Probably will need some shims, wood filler putty, galvanized finishing nails for outside trim, paint, etc. ....Just not that big a deal. Who told you windows were difficult - the guy charging 5k to do it? How long did it take him to do it? Did that 5k include the windows? If that was labor alone (not including windows), you just took it up the ass. That would come out to more than $500/window. So, if it took 3 hours to install one window, the guy is making roughly $180/hr.*** PLEASE tell me that price included windows. A lot will depend on insulation quality, tints, hardware, size, etc., but it still sounds high. *** for a typical double hung standard sized window, it should take me less than a ½ hour to remove the old window and replace it, assuming I didn't have to fir in or expand the existing opening. If it required extensive framing, siding, and interior drywall patching & painting, it would take a good bit more time. But for replacement of the same sized window, it's not a complicated operation. pop one out, slap a new one in. A little caulk, a little paint, and back to the internet.

Most important - just relax and be yourself. Unless of course, you're a total a-hole, in which case it's alright to be someone else through the course of the interview process. This must happen a lot in job interviews as I have worked with some major a-holes throughout the years. Don't ramble or try to impress with big words and excess verbiage. Get to the point and by all means, be sincere. The interviewers aren't idiots and should be able to spot a phony a mile away. And if a barking spider sneaks out during a pause in the interview, have your shiney new expensive shoes positioned in a way that you can duplicate the fart sound with the toe against the floor surface. And don't forget to memorize all the bullsht parts of from your résumé. Don't let on that you're in any way associated with the twobillsdrive message board. They'll know that a good portion of your work day will be pissed away as you attempt to come up with clever comments and replies to off topic posts. Good luck. BTW - what part of Atlanta will you be located in when you land the new gig?

Unless you live a neighborhood with covenants that restrict the ignorant behavior of peckerheads, there's usually not much you can do. We've had similar problems. One of our big issues is dogs barking. We're about the only residents without a dog. We love animals, but don't want the responsibilty of dogs. Neither do the neighbors, but they get the pets anyway. Usually the trouble starts after the novelty of a puppy has worn off, or when babies replace the dogs as the new center of attention. At this point, the dogs are banished to a life of lonliness in their backyards. These people never walk the dogs or give them any attention. One of the more brilliant solutions is to get another dog to keep them company in the backyard, doubling our fun. The owners have learned to tune out the howling that comes at all hours of the night. With some of the neighbors, their logic is that the dog is giving them protection from burglars. First off, there's virtually no crime around us. Secondly, these are the very same people who often keep a full cache of firearms at the ready.... so why are they so a-scared of burglaries. Lastly, the damn mutts bark at everything from squirrels, deer, cats, walkers, etc. Do these owners recognize a special bark for prowlers!!!? Hell no. If there were a burglar causing the dogs to bark, the owners will either ignore the barking or yell for them to shutup. After 13 years, we're finally giving up. We love our home but can no longer fight the nitwits who live around us. Constant complaining to the sherriff and animal control is more of a hassle than it's worth. For this reason, we're moving to a more upscale neighborhood where we shouldn't have these problems, and if we do, we won't be alone in fighting the perpetrator. If you can't get satisfaction from law enforcement, or if you find it becomes more trouble than it's worth, you might want to think about moving to a different neighborhood, or get some land where it's not an issue. (although the price of multiple acreage is getting out of sight in your neck of the woods)

When it comes right down to it, why bother with divisions at all. Split it up into NFC and AFC and let each team play the other 15 teams in the conference. For the 16th game, they'd have to play against themselves with Nintendo Playstation­® having Scott Norwood as the replacement kicker.

I've said it before and I'll say it again .....Great rivalries could have been built with divisions that looked more like NCAA regional setups. The realligned divisions should have looked something like this: Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Cleveland (rust belt division) Jets, Giants, Philadelphia, New England (large atlantic coast cities where everyone drops the "r" at the end of words) Cincinatti, St Louis, Kansas City, Tennessee (bar-b-que/chili division) Minnesota, Green Bay, Chicago, Indianapolis (simple: midwest division) Washington, Baltimore, Carolina, Atlanta (southern plantation division) Houston, Dallas, Arizona, Denver (gaucho division) Tampa, Miami, Jacksonville, New Orleans (tropical division) San Francisco, Seattle, San Diego, Oakland (left coast division) They could have grouped the demographic population to establish incredible rivalries. Instead, we'll always have Dallas and the NY Giants in the same division. Too me, that's like having OSU and USC in the same NCAA division. How stupid would that be? Buffalo in a division with Pittsburgh and Cleveland would have been soooooo much better than the rivalry with the Jets, Patriots, or Dolphins.

A lot depends on the desireability of your location and home. We just sold our home fairly quickly through a realtor. Looking back, I should have attempted to sell it myself by putting a sign out for a couple of weeks and maybe getting lucky. It would have saved me thousands had I made a sale in that way. I didn't do that because I didn't want nosey neighbors and curiousity seekers wasting my time. At least through a realtor, there's some degree of commitment (prequalifying and so forth). BUT....considering how well our house shows, I should have tried at least for a week or two with an ad in the paper and a sign out front. When it came down to it, our realtor had little input, other than listing it on the MLS networks. She didn't show it once. I hooked up with her because of a house that I had found which she already had listed. I think I made some hasty decisions because of the fear and warning that "interest rates are going up". In hindsight, I should have realized that the small percentage that it might have gone up (it's actually gone down) would not have made up for thousands I may have compromised by acting too quickly. I won't look back with regrets, though I will remember not to panic. When it all comes down to it, interest rates area still fantastic and we got more house than we could have afforded a few years back. If you're not in too much of hurry, my advice would be to put an ad in some local papers, put a sign out, spread the word to friends, family, and co-workers, and see what happens. If it becomes a hassle or if there is not much interest, go ahead and contact a realtor. Chances are, they'll be contact you. Don't be afraid to play them against each other. You may be able to negotiate a lower commission. Good luck.

I think the real issue here is that you and the Mrs don't want to be seen as the parents of the kid who rides "the short bus". Look, it's your kid - either way you should love her and encourage her. Help with with the hockey helmet once in a while, but let her learn to snap the strap by herself. What's the worse thing that could happen? Just think how popular she'll be as the only kid in middle school with a driver's license. In high school, she's bound to be invited to every "cool kid" party - being the only one old enough to buy booze in her sophomore year.

I like to cook, so the Food Network is one of my default channels - the ones to flip on when you sit down to vedge and there's not much else on. NFL Channel is one of those too. Rachel grew up in the Lake George area. Her accent is very upstate NY and sounds a lot like she's from around Buffalo. I know she likes baseball and if she likes football, I'll bet she's a Bills fan. I like Rachel because it's hard to imagine her in a bad mood. She digs beer, spicy food and is always up for new experiences. Sure, she's got a little "junk in the trunk" (got that Italian bottom half) and her chest will never be confused with Pamela Anderson's, but I'll bet she'd be a lot of fun on a date. My wife calls her my fantasy chef. That's about right. BTW - Rachel is engaged. Alton Brown from Good Eats is a trip. He lives pretty close to me and a lot of the shows are shot in this general area at Kroger and local kitchen supply stores. I believe Bobby Flay has to work hard to be likeable and is probably a major dickwad ?

Old photo of Century Theatre http://imagesofwny.com/gallery/contributio...atre_on_Main_St

I saw Sparks at The Century Theatre somewhere around 1977-1978, but I don't remember who else was on the bill. It definitely wasn't Kraftwerk. I think it might have been Ambrosia or The Tubes. It would be great to be able to access a web site that listed dates, venues, and acts for all concerts from "back in the day". It's kind of hard at this point to put together a timeline. Where was the Century Theatre? As many times as I went there, I can't remember what street it was on. I also remember the neon Century sign from the marque being in some local bar after the theatre was closed. Don't remember what bar either. This must be my brain's way of deleting files. It's all beocming a big haze.

How is some stupid ticket stub proof that you were there? With all that photo software and MacIntosh crap you you own, I don't doubt that you print your own Comeback game stubs and sell them on Ebay. As for the Frank Reich autograph - who would know? I hear some of your bogus stubs were signed Frank "the 3rd" Reich and had a little silver sharpie swastika instead of the usual "# 14" thingy. Next thing you'll be selling autographed John Lennon CD's.

Sorry the world has become so depressing for you and that these media figures have become such a distraction during your daily frolic. Here's a cure for you.....just cease all eating and drinking. No more of all this misery. This country didn't become great by people sitting on their hands and being apathetic. You should be proud that Americans are such passionate individuals and that we're legally provided the freedoms to express ourselves. There are a lot of places in this world where free thinking outspoken voices are quickly silenced by the ruling powers. Regardless of your view on the Shiavo case or other matters, you should be proud that your voice can be heard if that is your choice. As far as the books go, well, a free market is dictated by supply and demand. If people choose to read them, why does it bother you that they're available?

You're missing one very important variable in the point award system. J.P.'s value should jump an additional 75-100 points when his voice changes. If he hits puberty in 2005, we'll finally get the last laugh on Dallas!

Since you asked, I'll answer honestly about this topic, since it hits a nerve everytime I think of it. My first supervisory position was over a small group of mostly minority women. They took full advantage of their untouchable, politically correct status by lying on time sheets, constantly on personal calls, coming in late, leaving early, using every second of sick time (for hair appointments), extended (shopping)lunches and became overly defensive over anything that that came into question. They practically dared me to call in to question anything they did that I perceived as misuse of time or lack of effort. Will this happen to you? Maybe not. But knowing you live in the Atlanta area and will be in the healthcare industry, I'd give pretty good odds you're going to run into a lot of the same kind of crap, especially if you're inheriting someone else's hires. If at all possible, assemble your own staff. If this sounds racist, sorry, but these are simply the facts from my experience. I've heard similar stories from others in this position. Unfortunately, it's case of a few bad apples. My advice would be to let the staff know where you stand on personnel issues, let them know what you expect from them, have an open door policy, be fair and consistent with rules and standards so that nobody can claim bias. And here's one of the most important things....document, document, document, and make sure if there is disciplinary action, have them sign off on it. If termination is necessary, you want to make sure you have more than enough evidence to justify the dismissal. Even then, you may have a tough time carrying it out. Pick your battles and don't let them drag you into verbal conflicts. You aren't obligated to provide reasons to your subordinates for your decisions. There should be a lot of reward and it will be a learning experience. Just make sure everyone knows who the boss is. You don't have to be their buddy but you should respect your people and listen to their concerns. Maybe this will serve as a guide....just think to yourself, "what would Marv do?".

True dat. Grover's does have great burgers! Used to have decent wings back when it was known as Knarf's. It may still. Nice summertime casual dining atmosphere. Best part is there's none of the Southtowns riff-raff - just the occasional Depewian attempting to "ex-cape" and try something besides Good Tymes on Main St. Yep, nothing but us rich Amherst northern 'burb patrons, often coming for a bite after a round of golf at the Buffalo CC or Transit Valley. Gotta love that! For a guy who's lived in Atlanta almost 20 years, I sure know a lot about Buffalo area dining, huh? I think I go back there just for the food.

You're absolutely correct. Anderson's is a nice, family oriented place with very reasonable prices. You won't have any concerns about some grungy looking barfly whose barstool has become a permanent fixture on his ass, eyeballing you, the wife, and kids while you enjoy a meal out. Previously, I gave a brief overview of the most popular Beef on Weck joints. Some are more dinner/beer places, Some are better Sunday afternoon after church with the kids places. I've had Anderson's Carl's Choice BoW as recently as last summer, and it was quite good. Every establishment offers slight differences in rolls, cut of beef or whatever, but bottom line - Anderson's tastes good. Comparing it to Arby's is like comparing La Nova to Pizza Hut. I'm sure some of the local favorites of the South Buffalo boys are very charming places. It must bring back a lot of great memories from the days when their alchoholic fathers used to babysit them at the corner gin mills all Saturday afternoon, supplying them with quarters to play pinball and that metal disk bowling game in the back room, while dad smoked a couple packs of Camels and downed boiler makers, totally unaware of where the kids were.

Charlie The Butcher is another one well known for their famous BOW. The Wegman's beef in weck is actually Charlie the Butcher selling their BOW through the grocery store. http://www.wegmans.com/about/pressRoom/pre...eTheButcher.asp Anderson's still has very good BOW, and is reasonably priced. Get the big one - Carl's Choice. http://www.andersonscustard.com/menu.html Haven't been to McPartland's in years, but they used to have very good Beef on Weck, but were better known for their Friday fish fry. Never heard of one in Lockport. The McPartland's that I know is on Wehrle Dr in Williamsville. Always crowded and you'll probably have a 60 year old waitress with a thick Buffalo accent and she'll call you "hon" about a dozen times. Not sure if I ever had the Eagle House BOW, but I sure had a lot of beer there before I was legal. One of the great things about Buffalo is tradition and continuity. Most of these places have been around forever and are or were family owned. The Eagle House has been on Main St in Williamsville since the mid 1800's. Don't know how long Schwabl's has been in business, but the column from the previous link said they moved to their current location in 1942. Anderson's has been in business as long as I can remember - I believe since the 40's or 50's. All these places are good and you can't go wrong. If you want a cozy old timey restaurant with checkered table cloths and a staff that can reminisce about the Buffalo Bills of the 60's, check out Schwabl's or even McPartland's. Both are places where you can relax, have a beer, and take in the genuine Buffalo atmosphere, and almost feel like you've stepped back in time. For something closer to a diner or soda fountain experience, Anderson's is a good choice. Much more modernized than the previously mentioned eateries. More of a fast food place suited more for lunches than dinners. No Alchohol, but for real Buffalo authenticity, you can get a Loganberry drink to go along with your Beef on Weck. Charlie the Butcher's restaurant (also on Wehrle Dr in Williamsville) is more of a deli or lunch type place. http://www.digitalcity.com/buffalo/enterta...e.adp?vid=69307 For quick take-out, I guess there's always Wegman's Charlie the Butcher BOW, but for the whole experience, try one of the above mentioned sit downs. If Beef on Weck is a new thing for you, don't forget to add generous amount of prepared horseradish to the sandwich. If you go to Anderson' you'll need to ask for some on the side. For me, adding ketchup is blasphemous, but a lot of people like it this way. The beef on weck goes best with steak fries and a dill pickle on the side, and served with a mug of ice cold beer. Man, I'm getting hungry thinking about this. KWE - Let us know how it all turned out.

Schawbl's is one of the area favorites and probably has one of the best reputations for their Beef on Weck. Even saw it featured on a Food Network show about regional favorites. Like anything else, some will have other favorite places they're familiar with, but Schwabl's is well known throughout Western New York for their high quality beef on weck. BTW - for anyone flying in to or out of the Buffalo Airport, there's a place in the main concourse, right next to the Airtran gate, that sells pretty good, freshly sliced, beef on weck. Here's a link for Schwabl's... http://buffalo.citysearch.com/profile/7751...k=cs_boc_lw_2_1

I used to drive to Buffalo a lot before airfares were so cheap, and always passed through Cincy. Seems like a nice place. Maybe it was just the feeling I used to get crossing the bridge from Kentucky that I was finally out of the South. It was almost exactly the halfway point to my Buffalo destination from Atlanta. The radio stations and everything else suddenly had that familiar northern flavor to it. Having "Stuck" in your name makes it sound like you'd rather be somewhere else. So what's the skinny on Cincinatti?

I don't know that you'll ever "fit in". Been here 11 years longer than you and I don't think it will ever feel like "home". Suburban Atlanta is in such a state of constant change and growth, you never feel like you have a solid foundation to get your emotional footing. Because of the stress from traffic and limited leisure time, we haven't established too many close friendships in the area. That's what is really missing in our lives. Buffalo was a very social and communal place. It ain't like that here. Anywhere in Buffalo, you could go into the local gin mill, strike up a conversation or two, and have 4 upside shot glasses sitting in front of you representing drinks bought by your new aquaintances. Around here, wveryone is too damned tired on Friday after a long work week, and after Saturday chores, you just want to kick back at night and watch a movie with the Mrs. Been in your shoes, having a desire to exit the area, but the question is always "so where we gonna go?" Buffalo will always feel like home, but I have to ask myself if that's only a nostalgic feeling of security from my carefree days growing up there. I have fond memories, BUT there was a reason I left. It's convenient to forget that the economy sucked 19 years ago, and it's probably even worse today. So where are you going? Colorado? California? Suburban DC? Florida? They all have their pros and cons. Most of the desireable areas in those states have outrageously high land and housing costs. Much of Atlanta is still relative low. If you drive around Marietta or Kennesaw, you don't often see a new subdivision with houses starting at under $500,000 anymore. I think it's because there are a lot of people who were living in the previously mentioned areas, and sold their 1,800 SF bungalows for half a million, and were able to move here and buy a damn mansion in the Atlanta 'burbs. That said, you can still buy a very nice home for under $200,000 in most areas of the Atlanta 'burbs. How much house could you get in Boulder, Co or McLean, VA? Not much compared to here. If money weren't an issue, I wouldn't mind being in the Buffalo area, but damn if it isn't depressing as all hell. Almost everytime you look at the Buffalo News it's bad news about the local economy. Have you ever noticed how negative people are there? Don't know that I blame them all that much. It just pisses me off when I think that I could own a home outright in the Amherst area, and still be paying in excess of $500/month in property and school taxes. Were I retired and on a fixed income, that would be a tremendous drain on my savings. On the other hand, I could be retired here in Cherokee County, GA, and pay something like $250 A friggin YEAR (due to the tax break you get at retirement age). Once all the post WWII couples in Buffalo are dead and/or gone, who's going to be there to maintain the tax base and economy? I often wonder what percentage of people who were born and raised in Buffalo since the mid 70-s have stayed. I'd be surprised if it's more than half. Everytime I speak with my parents' friends who are their age, they speak of their children in Georgia, Florida, etc. Few, if any, have all their kids still living in Buffalo. Too many with career aspirations move on. So Jeff - where are you going?