to hate Americans because of...

[SpeedyGonzalez]

this

Read the description. That's £246k for the lot.

ad infinitum.

Actually thumbwitch is 50% chocolate.

hahaha!

I've always wanted to see this happen - although I don't actually think it is possible, it still makes me :)

Me too Speedy they love my arse and legs and arms and ankles...

..tasty! @ link

lol speedy - no I think it's more like 70%

Oooh, dark chocolate, eh? You are a truly classy wench.

Chiggers and ticks - two different things

where we were last autumn was so lovely, south-west Florida and some lovely homes out there

a few too many alligators for my taste but otherwise very nice
best ice- cream I have ever tasted and I have eaten tons a fair bit

I could quite happily move to America but I spoke to a firend of mine last weekend whose dh is American. They decided (she decided...) to leave be cause she felt they would not be able to afford university fees for 3 dc when the time came, plus they were paying so much for health insurance for a family of 5 and working very long hours, yet not getting much out of it all. They did have a nice big home but now she works and he is a SAHD and she feels the move was good for them

Urgh - just looked chiggers up - feel a bit sick now.[blech]

It was bad enough having to pull a tiny tick out of my poor baby's arm (it had burrowed halfway in, gah) - those things look horrendous. Glad we haven't come across them (yet)...

"With Mozzies it's all about the blood type...they love O"

whaaaat?

is that true or are you going to turn round and say "ahahahah you gullible O types"

it's just it might explain 8 million bites over the years a lot

ZZZenAgain - Those are some of my biggest reasons for staying in the UK. I paid about the same in income tax and social security there as I do here with tax and NI. In the US I had to pay exorbitant health care costs. It was nearly 1/4 of my take home pay. As for university, it cost me $25000 for the first three years which was luckily paid for by a rich relative. I couldn't afford to finish and went into debt to a tune of $15000 for the last two years.

My standard of living was much better here (until I was made redundant) than in the US. We have a lovely, large 4 bed terraced street house that only cost us £72000 9 years ago. I really don't mind paying my tax here because you get so much more for it. My mum pays about $7000 a year in property (council) tax a year and still has to pay extra for them to pick up her rubbish!

When I lived in the US we had to haul our own trash to the dumpster.

That's just not a phrase we use in the UK, is it?

There are some great things about some parts of the US, but there's nothing like living there for a couple of years to make you appreciate things you take for granted here.