public function prepare($sql)
    {
        $this->_connect();
        $stmtClass = $this->_defaultStmtClass;
        if (!class_exists($stmtClass)) {
            // require_once 'Zend/Loader.php';
            Zend_Loader::loadClass($stmtClass);
        }
        $stmt = new $stmtClass($this, $sql);
        $stmt->setFetchMode($this->_fetchMode);
        return $stmt;
    }