BobKat

We live in a rural community, in what had been a quiet valley. A couple months ago, a neighbor allowed his teenage son and his friends create a dirt bike track in an empty field behind his brother's house, which is less than a quarter mile from my house. The track is within a quarter mile of about 20 homes and within earshot of another dozen.

Now that school's out, there are typically 4-8 dirt bikes out there for up to 9 hours each day, revving their engines, backfiring, and kicking up dust. Occasionally they'll leave the track and race up and down the road. My husband and a few other neighbors work nights and have to sleep during the day, but the constant noise is keeping them awake. We can't hang laundry out to dry or open windows for fresh air because of the dust. We can't even walk through the yard without choking on dust.

One problem is that the neighbor who started this for his kid is a county cop, and he has a reputation for being vindictive. The track is on the brother's private property. They obviously know they are being obnoxious and annoying because they shut their bikes down when the little neighborhood church is in service, then resume immediately after services end.

What can we do - legally - to stop this? Selling our home and moving away is not an option.

My husband has his heart set on planting a redwood tree on our property, but the spot where he wants to plant it is within the dripline of two black walnut trees. Does anyone know if redwoods are tolerant to the juglone produced by black walnuts?

How much liquor or beer can I bring back into the US?

How about cheese and chocolate? Can I legally bring these edibles back with me in my checked luggage?

He leaves piles of mail and other stuff, papers mostly but also bills and records, on any flat surface in the house. The dining room table seems to be his favorite place to leave things, but he's also started a collection on the sofa, the coffee table, the floor next to the coffee table, and the basket next to the sofa. I eventually dump everything in a box, then he'll shuffle the box from one flat surface to another for a few months, all the while creating more accumulations.

It's not that he has no place to keep this stuff. Most things just need to be filed or thrown out. He just doesn't take the time to do it, then it piles up more and becomes an even bigger job, so it continues to grow and get put off. I've tried having a designated area for his mail, but that lasted one day. If I toss everything onto the floor, that's where it stays, he doesn't notice it and then I've got to pick up the mess. It's getting so bad I don't want to have guests coming over and seeing all the clutter.

I don't want to start fighting over this, but it's got to stop. I'm not going to just do it all myself - these are his personal or business items.

Any suggestions?

I was walking him on a leash and he stopped to dig at some leaves that had accumulated near the house. He disturbed an ant nest and all these very tiny ants came rushing out to find the culprit. My cat seemed to think this was pretty cool and he enjoyed watching the ants running to and fro. I moved him away from the ants, but a few had crawled onto him. He began grooming himself and no doubt ingested a few of the ants. Within a few minutes he was rolling around on the sidewalk like he had a good catnip buzz. Then he wanted to go get more ants!

So are there ants out there that cats will eat to get high? Catnip flavored ants, perhaps? I've had many cats over the years but have never seen this behavior before. Any ideas?

I'm from the Midwest, land of Lutherans and Methodists who don't talk much about their beliefs outside of church. It would be considered rude to ask someone what church they go to when first meeting them, and on the rare occasions when I have been asked where I attend church, I simply reply that it's not something I generally talk about with others. Only one persistent person continued to ask me why not. "None of your business", although true, may not be appropriate in my current situation.

Soon I'll be moving to the South, and friends who live there tell me that it's not unusual for first-time acquaintances to point-blank ask where I attend church. I may even get invited to attend church with them.

I do understand that these folks feel deeply about their beliefs and wish to share that with others. I can respect that. However, I don't share those beliefs and I don't attend any church. I'm not interested in attending anyone else's church either, and I don't want to get into conversations about it.

So how can I politely answer, without offending, the questions of "what church do you go to?" and "would you like to come to my church with me?" I'd like to have an response ready, one that will not provoke even more questions about religion.

My beer garden will include a bench where I can sit and enjoy a nice cold beer, of course. It will also have an arbor over the bench with hops growing on the arbor.

What other plants would be appropriate for a beer garden?

Specifically, Science Diet CD because he had bladder issues once a couple years ago. He will eat it and has had no problems since.

But is there another cat food I can feed him that will also have the balance he needs for bladder health? Prior to the bloody urine incident I had been buying Natural Balance cat food. I'd like to give him food that doesn't contain corn or other fillers. Surely there's a good brand of cat food out there that will meet his needs but not cost $32 for a 10-pound bag!

So that's why the check-engine light was on. My mechanic told me an aftermarket cat would be "a couple hundred less than factory" but sometimes certain cars are too particular for an aftermarket converter and only a factory part will do.

I don't have an estimate yet, but I know it's gonna be pricey. On this particular car is it okay to install an aftermarket catalytic converter or should I spring for the genuine Mazda cat?

Do I really need that new catalytic converter anyway? The car seems to be running fine and the mpg hasn't changed.

On this particular car,

I can't do lunges any longer because of a herniated disc that causes sciatica pain. Can't do squats either, and they work so well! What other glute exercises can I do that won't bother my lower back?

When I joined Curves & paid the fee, I wasn't told that it was a Christian-oriented company. I don't want someone else's religious views shoved down my throat every time I work out, no matter whether I share those views or not. Shouldn't they have to notify people that they'll be prosletyzed to when they join the program?

She blows up at family members over trivial matters, she seems to have her own version of reality these days. She can't hold a job for more than a year & relocates frequently, has very few friends and now is busily alienating family too. It's obvious she's off her meds but no one dares ask for fear of another of her tirades. She's irrational and hypersensitive, but accuses others of that. She needs help but feels everyone else in the extended family is toxic and that we should just leave her alone. How can we get through to her? She's already attempted suicide 3 times, but denies 2 of those attempts. At this point it seems another attempt is very possible.

What would it take to force her to get help?

I've tried removing the film with vinegar and a lime remover, neither had any effect.