Goalieman

It looks like my current DVD recorder stopped working. Is it worth buying a blu-ray player? Or would my money be better spent on another DVD recorder? Any recommendations as to what features to look for? Thanks!

The tension spring for my garage door broke, and I read on various sites to hire someone to repair it. How much should I expect to pay for such a repair?

I have been considering a career change for some time (I am an engineer in the automotive industry). While I would love to go to medical school, I don't see it to be an option because my wife and I cannot afford to go down to a single income because of house and children. Are there alternatives in the medical field to investigate and consider? If schooling is required, it would need to be something where I can work and go to school. Any advice?

For the last couple days, I have not been able to access my Yahoo Mail inbox. I would click on Inbox (or other mail folders). The system would tell me that the system is loading, but then stop. I have tried to clear my cookies and history, but no luck there either.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Does anyone know whether fertilizer (for example, the Scotts fertilizer used on grass) goes bad? That is, if you have a bag of fertilizer sitting in your garage, after how long should not use it and just dispose of it?

Do medal winners at the Olympics also get cash rewards along with their medals? For example, a gold medalist gets $25,000 or whatever, a silver medalist gets $10,000 or whatever, and so on.

I know that athletes can get endorsement, commercials, and so forth as a result of winning a medal. I have also heard examples of some governments giving rewards to winners. I am not talking about rewards like those.

I cannot take credit for thinking up this question, as I heard it on the radio this morning. The topic was words and phrases that are commonly misused that bother you.

For instance, the phrase that started the conversation was "I could care less," when the phrase should be "I couldn't care less". That is, the former suggests that you are care somewhat and are able to care less; the latter suggests that you do not care (which is your true intent by using the phrase). This is a minor thing, but was a pet peeve of the radio host.

One of my personal pet peeves is when people say "irregardless" (which only became a word because so many people use it) instead of "regardless".

What are some of your misspoken words and phrases that bother you?

I current work for a major automotive component supplier, but want a change in my life. I am considering a career change to something in the pharmaceutical or biotech industries (preferably something in research and development).

Does anyone have advice on how to does so, since this would be a radical change from what I am currenty doing? What are some career options? Where are the jobs out there (geographically speaking)? Would you recommend going back to school? I graduated with a Chemical Engineering degree 10 years ago, but my current job deals more with mechical/electrical engineering (so it does not help experience-wise).

Thanks for any advice that you can give!

I received a 1099-G statement (Michigan) from the city of Detroit, where my wife works. The amount was for the tax refund that we received from last year's taxes. She started working at that job in 2006, so last year (2007) was the first year we filed Detroit city taxes.

Is this something that we need to claim on our 1040? Granted, it is for only $22, but it is more about the priniciple of why we should or should not have to claim tax refund money. Is this what we should expect every year? Thanks!

I have a 17-mouth old boy who cries when people say words like "hooray" or "yay" (even if it is one of his toys). It started just before his first birthday. I thought that he would have outgrown it, but continues to be happen. It makes things difficult to give words of encouragement. Is this normal? What can I do to get his over this fear?