CEO&LittleLeagueMom

We're smelling something burning here in Newport Beach (doesn't smell like the neighbor's BBQ) - Griffith Park seems too far away to be causing this - has anyone out there heard any news about a fire in Orange County tonight?

I have a shower made of unfinished travertine. Over the past several years, one section (near the edge) has grayed - the gray is gradually growing. I think mold has gotten in it.

The problem is that all the mold-killing bathroom products specifically state that they are NOT for use on unfinished stone like Travertine; that they will mar the stone.

How do I get the stone 'clean' and mold free without ruining it? Any ideas?

We live in a nice, family-oriented, although very expensive, neighborhood. Because of the land cost, yards are non-existent - kids play in the cul de sacs. On our little 'loop' are two families with boys the same age as my son. In the past, I've let him play with them. But over the past year, it's become apparent that both these families have real issues. In one case, the dad hit the mom - police came - big mess. She forgave him; now he's back. So I'm not comfortable with my son going over to their house. What if he goes postal with my son there? Meanwhile, yesterday, the single parent (divorcee) mom of the other family apparently ODed on pain medication. Again with the police coming etc. So I've told my son to stay home - don't play with either set of boys. But his next closest friends are blocks away - much harder to play with - while the boys of these 'problem' families are literally riding their bikes through our driveway. My son is in tears. Am I being too protective?

Over the past few days, I've noticed a dramatic increase in semi-disguised spam on the Travel>US section. At first a particular user just entered 'questions' which were actually ads (in the question description section). Now they have progressed to actually asking a question, but then having another user (the same one each time) answer it. You can go look at one - at the moment, they all follow the format "where to stay in .... city?" I've reported some of the questions but there are many, many of them, all the same. Is there some way to report a user, rather than just a question? how can we get these bogus questions offline faster? they're really annoying.

Recently I was at a conference in San Diego - I stayed at the Horton Grand (in gaslamp district) and walked to the meetings (at the Manchester Hyatt). On this route, I found a GREAT breakfast place - one specialty was 'dutch baby' pancakes. I think the restaurant had a man's name. Now I can't find it - does anybody know the name and where exactly it is?

I need to transfer my cellphone from my company's plan (Cingular) to a personal one. I also want to include a broadband card for my laptop - so this means it must be Cingular or Verizon. Cingular coverage is so-so particularly in Newport Coast, EastBluff and on the toll road. I've heard Verizon may be better. Anybody had any personal experience with this? Which one is better?

Heya! Has anybody out there tried this (apparently new?) function where you can 'rent' a movie from Amazon.com and it somehow gets delivered to your TIVO? Did it really work? Was it easy? How does the movie 'go away' after you've watched it (since it's a rental)?

The crows outside our home are going NUTS tonight - big groups are flying back and forth between trees on our street and a tree several blocks away - and making a LOT of noise. I'm wondering if there's a territory dispute going on... if, not we may be about to have an earthquake(?) because they're sure acting abnormally!

Anybody out there have a good recipe for oven fried oysters? I had one with cornmeal and now I can't find it.....

I need to book a private room in a restaurant for approximately 15-20 people. Needs to be near Fisherman's Wharf (yes, I know this is tourist heaven but this is where the group will be). Does anybody have any good ideas? It needs to be relatively quiet (it's for a meal after a memorial service)

I just read an amazing Yahoo news bit - ('Fatal Wildfire Brings Policy Questions'). Here's a clip from the article:

"More than 6 million homes in California stand in wildfire "red zones" — areas defined in part by their thick brush and steep slopes — and that number is expected to grow by 20 percent in the next decade, according to a recently released insurance report. "There is an expectation on the part of a lot of people that somebody better get in there and do or die for their house," Maclean said. "If you stop doing that and you stop taking reasonable risk to protect structures, you'd have a new governor in about five minutes." David Kassel, who rebuilt his San Diego home after it burned in 2003, said he would be shocked if firefighters started backing off structural protection."

If someone builds a new home in a highly risky 'red' zone, knowing that it IS highly risky - should the rest of us have to subsidize their choice? Is it fair to ask a firefighter to protect it?

With the current state of the freeway, how long will it take me to drive from Oakland airport to Pier 39 on a Sunday morning?

My family and I are doing a two week road trip around the great Northwest this summer. We're flying into Seattle and then driving/ferrying around. There are four large adults and one large ten year old boy, along with probably three large suitcases and five small duffels. I've remted us a Chevy Uplander - can anybody tell me - will this be large enough?