100 people. So you must literally know everybody! I used to live in a town of 8,000 and I thought that was tiny! Now I'm in a town of about 40-50,000 which is nicer, I mean, we have a mall with a Dillards and Sears, we have Target and Wal-Mart and 3 grocery stores (huh, my old town had 4. Figure it out), several fast food and sit-down places, 2 different cinemas, a Home Depot, and now just coming in, finally, a Lowes. Besides several churches, schoolas, a couple health food stores, and not to mention tourist stops within decent driving distance. Not a bad place to live in.

Jax, sounds like you're a do-it-yourself person, who likes a lot of physical work to earn your bread and meat.
As for me, I prefer "sprinking little minds with knowledge" as if I remember correctly Professor Umbridge says in the Order of the Phoenix ...or is it someone in Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry

Brings up another topic. Now that you're "gown up" you've probably "grown back into" some children's books (you know, as CS Lewis states to his goddaughter in the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Mine include complete Hans Christian Andersen, complete Grimms, complete 1001 Nights, Little House series, some GA Henty books, Hobbit, Mara Daughter of the Nile, besides the books I mentioned before and many others.

For me it's the same. I'm 19 years and 6 months old and I love to go shopping at Disney stores and similar shops as well. But unfortunately we don't have any Disney store in Germany, so I can't go there that often.

@Eä: My parents never spanked me and I can't imagine to spank my children one day. I mean there are other ways to teach a child what he or she is allowed to do and what not. Spanking is not necessary in my opinion.

@ Ea - I don't believe my parents have ever spanked me. I may have been slapped on the arm a couple of times, but not properly whacked or anything. Personally I don't agree with it, as it may start out being a punishment and the parents may be calm when they first start, but I've seen programmes where people are trying to find alternate ways to spanking, and when tempers flare up and even when the kids don't do anything that warrants spenking, the parents do end up spanking again. So I think there is always the danger that kids get smacked for little or no reason.

@ Jax - I don't like shopping either, especially clothes shopping. The only time I like shopping is before and after Christmas, especially when I have money to spend. [/color]

Hmm, I've been interested to read all of your guys' comments on spanking.
When I was a child, I was spanked a few times, I never associate it with anything bad. It really did teach me not to do whatever bad thing I did. Of course, I was a pretty good child, at least that's what my parents tell me, so they didn't have to spank me that much. And it gave them something to threaten me with "Don't do that unless...." I think I turned out pretty well
I think they used this method of punishment, because that's what their parents did to them. My Grandfather used to threaten my dad and his brothers with his belt. This of course led them not to do anything bad.
I think spanking only works on some people, and the method they choose to use it in......Of course I am in NO way advocating Spanking.