Born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was bizarre to watch it mold into what it is now, and it wasn't for the better. Their crime rate continues to climb the charts, and each visit back home yielded more buildings with wood covered windows and people on street corners selling things. I decided since my last trip back home that I will not return again. In a way, each visit took away from good memories, because now I remember the way it looks now.

I was able to see a bit of Ohio; Columbus, Cleveland (I happened to visit the 'bad' part, oy!), Toledo and a few other areas.

How is the area you live in? I always wondered what it was like in the other parts, after the riot our area just went downhill. Living in California is still a bit of a culture shock, and the prices here are something I will never adjust to. The home I live in now would be worth around 400,000 in Cincinnati and it is 1.2 million here. It should be paid off 20 years after we die. Haha.

I think the best part of moving to such opposite areas was going from sitting on a tree branch looking at the muddy river to sitting in the sand looking at the ocean. The smell and sounds of the ocean here bring me more comfort than words can explain. I don't get into the trendy hype here, I like 'home' and I like my yard. I like to read by the ocean. I know I was meant to be here, and thankfully I came here looking for 'home' and not to be a star. I've seen what happens to those people and it's not pretty most of the time!

If you ever visit southern California, come to Newport Beach. People watching is highly entertaining here. They wear mini skirts with snow boots! I'd have killed for those "Uggs" when I was scraping snow off of my windshield back home, lol.

I agree on Melody, too. I love, love, love reading her stories. It makes me smile every time.

I didn't have time to read this whole thread, but I did notice that Mel said she couldn't recall when she had last told a doc about her MVP. I wondered if you were aware that you need to premedicate with antibiotics with any dental procedure due to this? Even my Dermatologist makes me premedicate when he removes a growth, like a mole, due to my MVP.

You all probably already know this, but just in case...

Cathie

Don't worry about me telling a doc about my mitral valve prolapse. They all know it and my next visit is on December 18. And every time I go to the dentist I take the antibiotics.

NOW LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING FASINCATING THAT JUST HAPPENED TO ALAN AND ME!!!!!

We just came home from shopping and on the way home (right around the corner from my house is a little chinese furniture store. They opened up about 7 months ago. I would never have gone in but I spotted this chair thing in there about two weeks ago, I went in, took one look at the chair and said to myself: "Alan would die for this chair". So today was the day.

We are walking past the store and I drag Alan inside. Now he has been in massage chairs. He has been to The Sharper Image in NYC and Brookstone in NYC and he has sat in $4000 massage chairs where you lean back and put your feet in the bottom part and something in the chair goes up and down your back and Alan always goes nuts in these chairs because, as he puts it "it's like Dr. Theirl using the G5 machine on my back.

BUT NOTHING PREPARED ALAN FOR THE CHAIR HE SAT IN TODAY.

The name of the chair is CYBER-RELAX MassageChair SKS 1850.

I won't tell you the price until the end of my story.

the lady says to Alan. Take off your coat and your shoes. He did and then sat down. She advised him to sit all the way in and rest his head back and then she programmed the thing. By the way it's programmed to do 514 functions and it comes with heat and vibrators.

Well, as soon as she turns it on, some pillow thing on each side of Alan starts to inflate and the look on his face was priceless. He murmurs "oh my god". and then he made this OOHH sound with his mouth. I never laughed so hard in all my life. The pillow expander things on each of his side cushioned him and started to rock him back and forth (I kid you not). Then under his neck, something starts to expand and deflate and he went "oh, oh".

Then, (you know how at night, I massage him and thump his back up and down), well this chair starts to thump his back and the lady goes, "how hard do you want it, I don't want to hurt you". I shouted "THUMP HIM, THUMP HIM". He couldn't talk because I think he was in ecstasy!!!

He was just sitting there and dropping dead. He was in such heaven, well, you can't imagine. Oh, when you sit in this thing, you place your wrists inside it and if you have carpal tunnel, well it treats your carpal tunnel.

So now, Alan is getting his neck, his back, his waist, his calves and his feet, (all these pillow things are expanding and deflating and his back is going thump thump thump. He is just sitting there in ecstasy.

Then the chair starts to rock back and forth and I go "Alan, the chair is rocking back and forth". He never heard me because he never opened his eyes, he was smiling so hard. She let him sit in this thing for 20 minutes. I couldn't believe it.

Here's the link to this chair. They have all models but this one was the top of the line, the Model 1850.

How much does it cost???? $7800.00

Here's the link so you can see what it looks like.

http://www.massagechair.tv/index.asp...on=Custom&ID=7

Alan came home a very very happy camper.

He now wants to go on Deal or no Deal to get this chair.

Melody

Melody:

Checked out that chair and is sure is a serious looking contraption and also looks mighty comfortable even without the massage actions.

But the price is out of this world. Guess I won't be buying one soon. Sure wish you could win the lottery and get this chair for Alan.

Shirley H.

Hi Shirley,

Isn't this chair the most amazing thing you ever saw.?

I didn't try it out because I have scoliosis and I remember sitting and getting a pedicure once and they had this massage chair thing and she turned it on and it went up and down my spine AND I DIDN'T LIKE IT. Had to make her shut the dang thing off. Nice pedicure though,, lol


mel