We went this route several years ago. We still use Comcast for internet because the only other option is old school DSL. I haven't done the math in a while but we cut ~$50 / month from the Comcast bill by not having cable. The biggest minus for me has been sports. ESPN's streaming app requires you to log in with your cable account. (same for many other streaming apps. e.g. NBC's streamed olympic coverage required a cable subscription) If the game's not on a broadcast channel and I just can't miss it I wind up sneaking down to the local pub (OK so that has it's pros but I miss a lot of games). On the other hand the handful of times a year I'm in a hotel for business and I turn on ESPN it's just a bunch of talk or some non-sport like poker which reinforces the decision to live with out it. Depending on where you live you may be able to pick up most over the air (OTA) channels. I hooked an over the air digital antenna (paddle type) up to an existing cable outlet in an upstairs bedroom then added signal boosters between the various other outlets and the tv tuners. This means I get the same full suite of OTA channels on the computer in the basement man cave as I do on the TV in the family room on the main floor. So anything on broadcast TV is not a problem. Also most broadcast TV shows wind up on Netflix/Amazon streaming once they are a year old. AMC shows: Either stay a season behind and stream from Netflix or buy at ~$30 per season (in SD) Amazon/iTunes and stream starting the next day. HBO shows: You're a season behind and either need DVD rental or have to buy ~$30 per season (in SD) Amazon/iTunes (i've heard rumors that old episodes are coming to Amazon Prime) Hulu: The free account is blocked from most set top boxes even ones running a "full-fledged" web server so to get that to your TV you need to connect a regular computer There are apps for Hulu Plus but we don't subscribe so I can't really comment. To wind this rambling up we have pretty much swapped out ~$600 / year to comcast for $96/ year to Netflix and another $100 to $150 per year in tv purchases & movie rentals from Amazon/iTunes so it's definitely cheaper.

This is exactly why I have a basic cell phone/plan and an iPod Touch.

If you want a bunch of employees who have zero loyalty to you and will jump ship at the first better offer, then go for it. Otherwise I'd suggest reevaluating your decision. The funny thing is I can't pick up a business rag without coming across an article/letter/ etc. discussing the inability to keep good people on staff and how much of a problem it can be. The solution is quite simple; it's stupid stuff like this that drives good people away. Sure making someone wait around for no reason will weed out prima-donnas, but even in this economy it will also weed out most people who are competent enough to get a job elsewhere.

Well we Yanks definitely call those "summer squash" ("zucchini" are by our definition green). A quick Google of "bitter summer squash" yielded this from the University of Purude "Zucchini and summer squash are usually slightly sweet. Flavor is not a major quality concern. Very rarely a squash fruit will be so bitter it is not edible and might cause medical problems. The bitter compounds are tetracyclic triterpenes called cucurbitacins. Although the reason for this occasional bitter squash is not definitely known, it has been proposed that it is due to rare cross-pollination with a bitter-fruited cucurbit during seed production, and subsequent planting and growth of a seed with the genes for bitterness. Contrary to what is sometimes thought, cross pollination of a zucchini or squash plant with a gourd plant will not cause the harvested zucchini or squash to be bitter." At the very least it looks like they should head straight for the compost bin.

" I find that after about 30 minutes on my bike, my mind starts drifting into problem solving mode and I actually get a lot of "work" done in the next 30 minutes." I'm with you on that one. I've been a bike commuter for years and aside from bringing me out of the stupor a day as my desk can induce, I've found that if I'm beating my head against a problem all day the solution will come to me on my ride home. "How do you do it mentally, getting back into the routine? I'm having a hell of a time with it." I read somewhere that it takes two weeks of repetition to generate a habit. I've found that it's a lot easier for me to focus on and remain disciplined at doing X for the next 2 weeks than to say starting now I'm going to do X forever. At least for me after two weeks it does feel like routine and doesn't take much discipline to keep it going. One thing for sure is the older you get the longer it takes to come back.