As the time for kick-off approaches I started thinking about all "yearly" events I don't watch anymore.

(1) The Super-Bowl. I've watched one in my entire 36 years on the planet. It was back in the early 80's, the Bears and the "Fridge" were playing against I don't remember who. What do I remember? The Super-Bowl Shuffle. I cringe.

(2) The Academy Awards. I last watched this show when "The Color Purple" was nominated. Whoppi Goldberg didn't win. I was pissed. I stopped watching. Apparently people have parties and watch the show together? Is that like the Super Bowl for dorks?

(3) The Grammy Awards. When did I watch this last? Let's see, does anyone remember the year Jethro Tull beat Metallica? Yeah, that would be the last year I watched. Not because I was pissed that Metallica lost, but because it was about that time that they started adding in awards for music I couldn't stand and the live performances were by people I wouldn't watch on a street corner.

(4) The Miss America Pagent. Sadly enough, yes, I used to watch this show. I would get a snack, a pad of paper and a pencil and I would sit glued to the television tallying scores and praying for my favorite to win. I idolized these women. I thought they were beautiful and intelligent and I wanted to be them. But then, I also thought Barbie was cool and had a crush on the Prince from the Smurfs cartoon. I was nine. Then I grew up and got a body image and decided that I would rather eat razor blades than suffer through a show where grown women put Vaseline on their teeth and glued their bathing suits to their asses. Thank god!

(5) The Jerry Lewis Telethon. When I was in the first grade I actually got on the local broadcast because I went out and collected money for the telethon. Do they even have a telethon anymore? And if they do, who goes on it?

There are a TON of others, I'm sure. Let's just say that since I hit puberty I haven't watched, or cared about the results of an award show, sports tournament or pagent. Although I will admit to watching the Sci-fi award show that was on Spike a while back. Rob Zombie was on it. Who wouldn't watch that?

What's next, chastity belts?

Texas Governor Rick Perry has decided that he is the ultimate authority on what's good for the eleven and twelve year old girls of his state. In his ultimate wisdom, Supreme Leader Perry has issued a decree that all girls entering the sixth grade in the dictatorship of Texas must now be vaccinated with Gardisil.

Let's get something straight. I'm all for vaccinating your children. My kids were vaccinated by age two against all the childhood illnesses and I get them flu shots every year. What I'm against here is the forced use of a vaccine that is (1) the most costly and least insured vaccine to date and (2) is so new to the market that no one really knows what the long term side effects may actually be.

Gardisil is produced by Merck Pharmacuticals and according to the Gardisil website:
"GARDASIL may not fully protect everyone and does not prevent all types of cervical cancer, so it is important to continue regular cervical cancer screenings."

It also says: "GARDASIL is the only vaccine that may help guard against diseases that are caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) Types 6, 11, 16, and 18..."

Let's review shall we? Gardasil MAY help protect SOME people against SOME types of HPV.

Yes,oh ye who will jump on me and pound me with large blunt objects, I understand that SOME protection may be better than none. Yes, I realize that cancer kills people and that protecting against it, especially if there is a history of cervical cancer could be a wonderfull thing. I'm against the forced vaccination of ALL young girls with an unproven vaccine.

Before you start in with the "Well the FDA approved it..." speech, let's revisit the Fen-Phen dibocal and who can forget the Thalidomide babies? These are drugs the FDA approved for use, so they obviously aren't infalible. Some drugs do have side-effects that show up only after long-term use in the general population. Drug tests, while a good guard against bad side-effects, are not a promise that there are none.

As a grown woman, I have the ability to do research, ask questions, make an informed choice. As children, these girls don't...they are simply being forced to comply and their ability to get an education is hinged on that compliance. Their parents, who can help make an informed decision, aren't being given a choice. Merck, in my opinion is playing on a parents fear of losing their child. Even worse, playing on societies general fear of cancer as a whole.

They can't force women to take this vaccine. They would never be able to pass a law forcing women over the age of 18 to get vaccinated, so why force our chidren too?

If Merck were able to say 100% that anyone taking this vaccine would NEVER get cervical cancer, I might get on board. But they can't say that. They can't even say that it will protect against the four strains they have listed. It's a crap shoot at this point.

I can only hope that some parent in Texas will stand up and force the issue of legality in forcing this vaccine on the young girls in that state.

And we needed Harvard to tell us this?

A new study that was done by Harvard and McGill Universities shows that US companies are not family friendly. I have one thing to say to that: DUH!!!!

Anyone that has family and has worked ANYWHERE in this country knows that. There are a few companies that have taken it upon themselves to provide a more family friendly environment, but it's not required by law. We ranked right down there with countries like Swaziland and Liberia.

With two children, I can say that I have actually had to choose between my kids and my job on more than one occassion. When I was a single parent, it was worse. Companies expect that you will treat your job like it is the only really important thing in your life. "Madatory" overtime? No paid sick leave? Not allowing women breaks in order to breast feed?

My husband is a Type 1 diabetic. He has to get a note from his doctor stating that due to his condition he is likely to have to urinate more frequently than other employees. (No, I did not make that up.) Without that note, he faces being written up for excessive time away from the job floor.

This study is generating a lot of talk on Capital Hill where the debate is on about scaling back protections like the Family and Medical Leave Act. Well great. Because it isn't hard enough to support a family as it is.

I know the argument that comes right behind this one: "If you don't want to deal with the reality, don't have children." Should that really be the only choice? Men and women have the right to both, a career that they do well in and a family that they can be proud of. It's insane that people have to choose between the two.

I'm a Grown woman for cripes sake!

My son is watching Bambi. Where am I? I'm hiding in my room. I can't watch Bambi, it makes me cry. Not just cry a little, but cry as in, "Jeez, somebody get that woman a Kleenex!"

Everytime it comes to the scene where they shoot Bambi's mom? Yeah...I lose it.

You would think that by the age of 36 a cartoon wouldn't effect me so strongly, huh?

Forced Vaccines?

Last week, there was a big discussion about reproductive freeedom and what that means. This week, in the same vein, I give you this little gem.

They can't even force you to vaccinate your children against chicken pox and now they want to tell me that I have to get my 13 year old daughter a shot that may or may not protect her against SOME types of cervical cancer? I don't think so.

This is a prime example of why lobbyists need to be restricted. They are paying legislators in Texas to put this on the floor. Now who could possibly benefit from this? Oh yeah, the pharmacutical company. Funny thing is if you check up on Gardasil you find out that it MIGHT protect you against SOME kinds of HPV. Okay, so they want to force parents to give their children a vaccine that hasn't even been on the market a full year and that may or may not actually protect said child? Yeah, there's no bias involved there.

This idiocy ever makes it's way to Utah and you can damn well bet I'll be standing on the steps of the Capital Building with a sign in my hot little hands.

The Throw Away Children

As of the year 2003 there were over 500,000 children in foster care in the United States. The numbers have only continued to increase. An alarming number of the children currently in foster care will "age out" of the system on their 18th birthday. What this means is that once the child reaches the age of majority, the state basically pats them on the back, hands them a little cash and says, "Hope we taught you how to take care of yourself, have a nice life."

Recently there has been a growing trend to highlight the plight of children in foreign countries and a rise in the number of adoptions from these countries. Today, as I was flipping through the channels, looking for cartoons for my son, I stopped briefly on the Oprah Winfrey show. She was talking to a group of upper class southern families who had adopted older children from a Liberian orphanage.

First, I'm glad that these children will have the love and support of a family to help them develop into solid adults. Second, where were these people when children right here in this country needed that same love and attention?

It frightens me that it seems to be considered a great thing to do, generous and worthy of news attention, when someone adopts a child from a foreign country and yet no one seems to care that we are creating an entire generation of throw-away children.

The states remove these kids from abusive or neglectful homes and they spend the next years of their lives bouncing from place to place, never really knowing the love and support of a family. People are willing to adopt bright eyed babies, but these older children waste into the background of our society.

Where is the call for help for these children? Who will stand up for them and urge those who are financially able and emotionally willing to give them a home and parents to guide them? Why are there no news stories about celebrities adopting boys and girls who were beaten, neglected and overlooked right here at home? Is it just not "hip" enough? Are they not poor enough? Pitiful enough?

It angers me to think that simply because they were born in this country they will live their lives without someone to kiss their hurts away, tell them how proud they have made someone or hold their hands the first time love breaks their heart. I am saddened that we as a nation seem to have forgotten an entire generation of children.

If you read this and it makes you think, take a moment and write to your congressman or woman. Ask them to make finding adoptive families for these children a priority. Write a letter to your local paper asking why no one has taken the time to write about the children in your community who are in need. Call your local news station and ask why there are no stories about the eleven year old girl with no mother to love her. Take the time. Help bring these children out of the shadows.

For no other reason than it made me laugh....

"Nothing is as embarrassing as a homemade pussy accident."

That's it. Nothing else to say. That sentence is the funniest damn thing I've read all week.

(Please Note: I have linked to the blog from which it came! Do yourself a favor, visit.)

Come on!

My son is two. Anyone who reads here ever will know that. My son is also one of the cutest people I know.

He has had trouble speaking and has been slow to develop a full vocabulary. We aren't sure why, but there you have it. We've been working with him and it's finally paying off. Sentences are springing up out of nowhere...the latest in his little phrase book? "Come on!"

This phrase is used when he needs my attention, when he wants to play or when he's hungry. It is always accompanied by a tugging on my shirt sleeve or my hand and is usually said with some impatience. It makes me laugh EVERY time he does it!

I am proud to say that along with his new found enunnciation the words,"please" and "thank you" are making a debut. Does my heart good.

The only down side to his chattiness? On Saturday we went outside to play. He was upset when I made him come in. His response? A sad, slow sob under his breath, "Dumb Mama".

Something interesting I found...

It's amazing the things you can find inside of used books. I found this tonight. I especially like the little note on the back asking for suggestions on how they can imporve service. It makes me wonder about the person that owned this book before me.

Ahh...memories

The inspiration for this little walk down memory lane came from a post I read at CUSS.


Do you remember being twelve? I do. I remember turning twelve and thinking to myself, "Only six more years and I don't have to do anything I don't want to." It was a very liberating feeling.

I also remember it as the time of the roller rink. Friday nights. The smell of bad pizza and the sound of popular music and video games. From seven to nine on Friday nights I was free of my parents and able to do just about anything I wanted. Okay, so at the age of twelve this meant eating to much and failing to flirt with the boys I thought were cute, but still. It was a time and a place where I could taste the freedom I was dreaming of. My friends and I would meet up and spend two hours discussing all the really important things. Who had how many friendship rings. Who we liked and didn't like and most importantly which boys were looking at us and which boys were not. It was goundbreaking stuff.

As I got older, the rollerskating craze died out. We moved on to other entertainments. Innocent giggles and whispers behind our hands gave way to more adult talk and less innocent pursuits. The joy I felt at anticipating my 18th birthday began to fade as I learned what it really meant...a job, bills and less time to do the things I loved.

The memory of being twelve never left me though. I hung around in my mind like a friend you only see once or twice a year.


Two years ago, shortly after I had my son, my husband and I were at the local thrift store browsing. In the back room, hidden under old baseball gloves and dented bike helmets I found a pair of white ladies rollerskates. I got all kinds of nostalgic and excited and gladly laid out the $5.00. At home with my new found piece of childhood I put them on and after a couple of turns around the kitchen table, I went outside to bask in the feeling of the wind on my face and sun in my hair.

I realized two things almost instantly: (1) I hadn't rollerskated in twenty years and (2) I lived on a hill.

Now, these two things may not mean much by themselves, but combined with the wheels attached to my feet....well, you get the idea.

The little girl across the street stood in her driveway and watched me, a puzzled expression on her face. As I slammed into the tree at the end of my drive, she asked asked me what I was doing. When I said, "Rollerskating," she shook her head and said, "You aren't very good at it are you?" I laughed, clung to the tree and replied, "No. No I'm not very good at it."

And then I began to laugh. I had come outside to relive a part of my childhood and falied miserably, but the feeling of being twelve, of discovering myself and something new was clinging with me to that tree in that moment. I slid down to the sidewalk and took the skates off. I hadn't laughed that hard in years.

There are a surprising number of people talking about a subject that came up on the Today Show recently. They did a piece about drinking, mom's and whether or not it's a good idea to do it with your children present.

For me, this is a clear cut issue. It is not okay to drink around you children. As parents we are responsible for showing our children acceptable ways to communicate, deal with anger and stress and basically everything else it takes to be a grown-up. Just like you wouldn't smack someone around in front of your children and then say, "Don't hit.", you shouldn't drink in front of your children and then say , "Don't drink."

The host and the psychologist on the Today Show piece are being called to the mat over some of the issues they raised, in particular the difference between "social drinking" and "problem drinking" and comparing drinking at playdates with a babysitter who drinks. I come down on both sides of the fence here.

First, the difference between "problem" and "social" drinking is extremely thin. It can go from being one, to being the other very quickly. And who decides? Also, it leaves out the fact that people are using the alcohol to "relax" from what they feel has been a long a trying day of doing what women have been doing for centuries, taking care of their children. As crass as it sounds, and I know it sounds crass, if you have to drink to "unwind" because of your children? Maybe you shouldn't have children.

I get stressed out. I roll my eyes at the things my children do. Sometimes I sit in the bathtub and day dream about the jet-set lifestyle I could have "if only..." Yet somehow the idea of getting together with Jane and Mary from down the street to have a glass of wine and let the kids play has never popped into my head. Alcohol has become pervasive and still people wonder why more and more teenagers are becoming addicted.

On the second point: Mothers are not babysitters. While I can appreciate the point that was trying to be made, it was an altogether bad analogy. You pay a babysitter to do a specific job. The issue wouldn't be them having A drink while watching the kids, it would be them drinking on the JOB. As far as I know, unless you're three martini lunching it in a VERY expensive suit, this is never okay. The girl behind the cash register can't slip out at lunch have a couple of glasses of wine and not get in trouble for it, and THAT job is considerably more stressful than watching a two year old. A better way to make the point might have been to ask, " If you came home and your husband had his buddies over and they were drinking beer while watching the children, would THAT be okay?" This is a level playing field. It's a comparison between the parents and the behavior that is expected.

It all comes down to just one thing in the end, personal choice. I make decisions every day that I'm sure would make other mother's shudder. I made a personal choice not to allow alcohol around my children. That was my decision. Other parent's make different choices. I may not agree, but as long as the children aren't being endangered, I'm not going to cry foul on them either.

It's a topic that should be discussed, but not something these mom's should be called to the mat for.

What? A politician with something intelligent to say?

I read Neil Gaiman's blog and he usually has links to very cool things that I would never have found otherwise. Today, he posted this little piece from The Guardian Unlimited .

Usually politicians are just blowing smoke out their asses and don't really have anything useful to say. This gentleman has a lot useful to say. Even better it's all tempered with...COMMON SENSE!!!! I had thought it impossible that the words "common sense" and "politician" could be used in the same sentence without causing some sort of terrible tear in universe, but there you have it.

Give it a read, pass it on. Spread the common sense around.

"Blogging For Choice"

I have done the unforgivable. I expressed an opinion that upset feminists and called into question the issue of personal responsibility. How dare I? What was the hot button issue? Abortion. I am now being called ridiculous and reminded that no woman should be forced to raise a child. My feelings on this subject are not religiously based. I have had three unplanned pregnancies in my lifetime. None were convienent. None were well timed. I have made the choice to have the children and place them for adoption.

Let's look at a couple of things here, shall we?

Look, I'm just going to say it, I believe that abortion as a means of birth control is wrong. Anyone wishing to lambast me will please read the sentence again and notice I did not say we should all rush right out and make abortion illegal and strip women of the right thereby plunging us directly back into the dark ages (because we all know that limiting abortion would lead to women being stripped of the vote, the right to work and possibly even the right to wear pants in public.) ....but using it as a method of birth control because being pregnant isn't "convienent" is wrong. Rape, incest, cases of physical danger to the mother or a second child (twin births)? Totally different story. For me it comes down to personal responsibility. Birth control is readily available, even to low income persons...state Medicade programs will pay for most birth control methods, up to and including surgical sterilization. The 72 hour pill is readily available through doctor's offices and Family Planning clinics.

Using the 72 hour pill, you are preventing a pregnancy from taking place. Going to a clinic and having a pregnancy terminated means you are choosing to end another human life. Attach all the emotion you want to that statement, but the medical and scientific facts are that at two to three months the fetus is breathing, has fingers and toes forming, is moving and has started developing major organ systems. That's not just one or two cells, that's a person taking shape. Arguing that "a baby isn't really a baby during the first trimester" makes my stomach lurch. Within the first three months that little tiny being has started to develop organ systems and is moving. Again, this isn't based on anything other than hard science.


The argunment that, "It's my body and I should be able to do what I want with it" has never set well with me. If you don't want to get pregnant, don't have unprotected sex. And yes, it really is that simple.

I am astonished at how easily people are able to dismiss the fact that an abortion ends a human life and in place of that they have substituted concerns like weight gain and life-style change.


In my original comment about this issue, I simply asked the question, "When do we make people responsible for their choices?" I was told that choosing to have an abortion is being responsible. I disagree, choosing to have an abortion is simply the fastest method of dealing with an unwanted situation. Not only has the issue of ending a life been removed from the argument, but most people gloss over that fact that having an abortion has life-long psychological ramifications, just like adoption does. The difference? Women who have abortions tend not to seek professional counseling after having the procedure. They mostly seem to try and pretend they were never pregnant at all.

My feelings on this issue are definatly based on emotion. Having made the decision to carry children to term and place them for adoption has given me new perspective on it. Seeing the beauty that is a newborn child and seeing the equally beautiful look on the faces of a couple that thought they would never be able to experience the joy of being parents, I have a hard time understanding how anyone can remove the actual child in question from the decision. That makes me biased, I realize that. It's also the reason I don't attend Pro-Life rallies and scream for an end to abortion. Unlike the people who will attack me, I recognize that no matter what MY beliefs are, I don't have the right to force them on others.

I do, however, have the right to say them as loudly and as often as I want to.

Cocaine? No Problem! Nudie pictures? How Dare you!

Apparently Donald Trump thinks that underage drinking, public lewdness and an addiction to cocaine are A-Okay, but God forbid you should pose for pictures without your panties on.

Trump recently fired Miss Nevada, Katie Rees, because pictures of her " partying and posing in various stages of undress emerged on the Internet". What the hell?

Can you say double standard Don? How much do you want to bet the other chic gave The Don a little "incentive" to let her keep her crown.

I have recently begun discovering that I am hopelessly out of touch and more than a little un-cool. The un-cool thing is nothing new, I have never been "cool", but damn it, I used to keep up with things.

I was reading at jmadigan.net tonight and after commenting on a wonderful piece about his daughters that made me laugh I saw a little link in the top bar that said : Subscribe. I clicked on it, innocently believing I was about to get a name and a password and all that fun stuff that makes you feel like you belong to some kind of exclusive club.

This was NOT what happened. I was taken to a page that asked me to "Choose a reader". A what? What the hell is a reader? I can read just fine on my own thanks. I hear people talk about things like Google Reader and other such mythical beasts, but I have no idea what it means, it's like a foreign language.

I'm sure that if I took the time to investigate things I would figure it out in no time, but I'm not sure if this is knowledge I need. Is a "feed reader" something I need to live my life? Will my children be shunned if I don't have one? Am I hopelessly outdated if I simply add the websites I like to my favorites and visit them that way?

Why do I suddenly feel like I'm trapped in a bad soap opera? Tune in tomorrow and find out.

Blogging for Books Entry

I'm reposting this as an entry for "Blogging for Books" on The Zero Boss I don't usually enter contests, but the concept of time is something I spend a lot of time thinking about, so I decided, "What the hell."

This post was originally written in an old, beat up journal while sitting in damp grass waiting for a bus. I had just met someone new, was starting a new job...things were in a state of flux, and the damn bus was late. I kept wanting to know what time it was but everytime I pushed up my sleeve, I was reminded I didn't own a fucking watch. I still don't.


I need a watch.I hate not knowing what time it is. Sitting and staring. Wondering," Am I late, or am I early?" Not that I'm, particularly good at waiting to begin with, 'cuz I'm not. I suck at it. I shift. I pace. I get annoyed. And I seem to be in a perpetual state of waiting.Waiting for payday. Waiting for work to end. Waiting for him to call. Waiting for the bus. Waiting for sleep to come. Waiting..... always waiting. It's just so anti-climatic. Because finally payday does come. And work is over. And he does call. And the bus arrives. And sleep comes. And then what? Where are all the bells and whistles that reward us for the hours we wasted.....waiting. For the days, weeks, months....hell, even years of limitless patience and fortitude? Quietly sitting, not complaining. There are none. You pay the bills. You go home. You talk for a minute. You get on the bus. You dream for a moment. And then?Back to waiting.It's like waiting to die. Just moving through life with no real destination. I get tired of it. I step out of line.Do something new. Anything new. Never helps, doesn't change it. There's still more waiting.Waiting for the color to take. For the polish to dry. For the movie to start. For dinner to get done. For that new book to come in.Always waiting for something.Damn.......I really need a watch.

Tigger Gone Wild

I caught this story on my local news a few nights ago. A family from New Hampshire was was vacationing in Disney World when Tigger apparently "sucker punched" a fourteen year old boy. My local CBS affiliate has the video in their "Top Stories" sidebar.

I've watched the video. Tigger did turn and pop the kid, for which he should lose his job. If you can't deal with the public, don't be a character actor at Disney World. Right before he does it though, you can see the kid tug at the back of Tiggers outfit and say something to the guy in the Tigger costume. One has to wonder what he said. This is, after all, a fourteen year old boy we're talking about.

Now the dad has an attorney and they are suing Disney (anyone surprised by this?). In the interview that's posted on KUTV's website the father says he had to take his son to the hospital with "back pain" and the boy says that he still has pain, but he's on medication for it. Oh please. The guy in the Tigger costume did not hit that boy hard enough to do any damage, he couldn't even make a fist, for crying out loud. I have yet to hear of, or read, that the family reported the incident to the local police, or had the guy in the costume arressted for assault.

This is another example of why we need legistaltion at the Federal level providing penalties for frivolous lawsuits. I'm sure the parents went, "Yes, we can sue Disney!" and the attorney that caught the case told them, "Your son is in pain, right? wink wink nudge nudge."

The sad thing is, Disney will settle the lawsuit to make the bad publicity go away and this bozo and his family will make money of their kids bad behavior. Again, the guy should lose his job, maybe even have to pay a fine for simple assault, he did pop the kid, but suing Disney? You know what lesson this kid is going to learn? It's never really my fault, and if it is, I can always blame someone else.

Call me what you will, but I'm annoyed as hell at a story I read this morning. It seems that Toys R' Us was forced to reverse a decision it made regarding the award given to the first American baby born in 2007.

The first baby born on American soil was born to an illegal immigrant from China and so the company had decided that the baby was not the winner and awarded the prize to another child, born 19 seconds after midnight.

Chinese-American adovocate groups immediatley pitched a hissy fit, forcing the company to award the three babies in the grand prize pool $25,000 savings bonds each.

Now, before anyone goes running about calling me a racist, here's my point. The mother is not a legal citizen of this country and therefore WAS NOT ELIGIBLE TO ENTER THE SWEEPSTAKES IN THE FIRST PLACE. Contest rules state clearly that the person entering must be a U.S citizen.

Yes, I realize that the child is now a U.S citizen because she was born here. The fact remains that the mother was never eligible to enter in the first place, negating all other arguments.

It makes me angry that Toys R Us caved to the pressure. It makes me angry that any pressure was brought to bear in the first place. Where did common sense disappear to? There need to be consequences surrounding coming to this country illegally in order to make people stop doing it.

I've said it before, immigration is a wonderful way to improve the diversity and cultural pool that exists in this country, but it needs to be legal immigration. It takes time, but then allowing people to come into the country to live, work and be a part of our society should take time. If you think it takes to much time, help work on ways to make it more streamlined. Please spare me the "they take jobs American's don't want" and " everyone deserves a better life" speeches. The jobs illegal immigrants take are jobs that Americans demand higher pay for and rightly so. If anyone actually believes that illegal immigrants enjoy doing back breaking work for less than minimum wage, they are just plain ignorant. As legal US citizens, these men and women would be able to stand up for themselves and deman decent wages, there by actualy giving them a better life.

The whole "everyone deserves a better life" speech plays well for politicians, but in reality, we can not fix or save everyone on the planet. Opening our borders wide and allowing everyone who wants to to flood in will only overtax an already burdened social system. Work on fixing the problems where they are, not by simply bringing the people here and letting things continue to go downhill.

Surfing through the internet as I often do I came across Shoemoney.com. No biggie, right? Well I'm checking out the site and along the sidebar are random photos, one of which is a gentleman holding a check from Adsense for $132,994.97. No, I did not type that wrong.

How in the HELL do people do that? I may have to seriously rethink the whole "not a blogger" thing. Cause getting over $100,000.00 for doing nothing? Yeah, I can get behind that.

I knew you could get almost anything online, but coffins at a discount from Costco? That's just kind of weird.

What's that process like?

"Gee hun. Grandma kicked it last night, where should we get the coffin?"

"Well, I hear you can get a hell of a deal from Costco. And while I'm there, I can get that spa we've always wanted. Their having a sale."

It's just to fucked up for me, that's for sure. There are just something you don't "bargin hunt" for.

My son is the cutest person I know.

Yesterday after I made him lunch, his macaroni was to hot. He handed it to me, I blew on it to cool it and handed it back to me. He took a bite, smiled up at me and said, "You did it. High five!!!"

He has also decided that my Walkman belongs to him now. He fell asleep listening to Nickelback last night and this morning he was walking around with the headphones on, bobbing his head in time to the music. When he accidentally dropped it and the CD popped out he looked at me with huge eyes and said, " Momma, I cry."

My son is definitely the cutest person I know.

Yes, posting song lyrics is cheesy and something you would normally see a teenager do, but this song makes a good point and today another shooting occured in another highschool and someelse lost a child for no good reason.

If Everyone Cared
Nickleback

From underneath the trees, we watch the sky
Confusing stars for satellites
I never dreamed that you’d be mine
But here we are, we’re here tonight

Singing Amen, I’m alive
Singing Amen, I’m alive

If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
We’d see the day when nobody died
And I’m singing

Amen I, I’m alive
Amen I, I’m alive

And in the air the fireflies
Our only light in paradise
We’ll show the world they were wrong
And teach them all to sing along

Singing Amen I’m alive
Singing Amen I’m alive

If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
We’d see the day when nobody died
If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
We’d see the day when nobody died

And as we lie beneath the stars
We realize how small we are
If they could love like you and me
Imagine what the world could be

If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
We’d see the day when nobody died

We’d see the day, we’d see the day
When nobody died
We’d see the day, we’d see the day
When nobody died
We’d see the day when nobody died


Just take a moment out of your day to think about it.

After careful consideration I have decided that while I have a blog and I post to that blog, I am not a "blogger". I don't often spend hours pouring over other people's sites and posting links or trackbacks, I don't denounce my faith or reveal deep personal insights. I have, on occassion, done these things, but I do not do them on a daily basis.

I don't advertise or spend time trying to increase my readership. I don't have fancy banners, cute links or catchy phrases. I tend to write about things that only myself and a few people who know me will ever care about, much less take the time to respond to and yet I'm not upset when no one posts comments on my heart felt insights about the reasons "Darth Tater" and the Sock Monkey are the best damned toys EVER!

So why, you might ask, do I continue to post to this blog. This seemingly unread portion of the internet. I guess it's because I can. I get great satisfaction in knowing that I have said what I want to say, the way I want to say it. No apologies. No denouncements. Just me and my words.

And that's enough for me.

Over the past few weeks, I've noticed several postings on a blog I frequent which involved Christianity in some form or other. Usually I don't get involved in discussions about religion, as I think it is a deeply personal thing, but I've decided to throw my hat into the ring, because, well, because quite honestly I have something to say.

There is a lot of Christian bashing going on for people who claim to be open minded. Stories like this one have nothing to do with Christianity. The ignorant people in the story may CLAIM to be Christian, but that doesn't mean the predjudice they stand for comes from the religion. ( and...you don't have to be from the deep south to be a redneck idiot. I lived up North for most of my life and there are some dumb-ass, backwoods idiots living up there.) Just like with any religion, if you look hard enough , you will find the bad apples. The people that take the foundation of a faith and twist it to their own purposes. Over the years I've met people from all walks of life, from all religions, that are JUST as bigoted and just as ignorant.

Racisim, predjudice and intolerance are irrational and based in a life-time of learning. Someone in Chris Curtis's life TAUGHT him to hate, TAUGHT him to fear and now it is ingrained in his psyche. He could have been raised Jewish, Muslim, Hindu...it wouldn't matter.

How fast would you jump all over someone that said, " Who needs reality when you have the Koran?" or "Who needs reality when you have the Torah?" You can find fundementalism in in any religion, in any part of the country.

Does it sadden and anger me when I see people claiming to be Christians bashing minotities, calling the gay and lesbian community depraved or trying to ban books from our schools? It sure as hell does. Do I think that "fundementalism" is dangerous? You better believe it, any "ism" is bad for you...it means things have gone to far. Do I think ALL Christians are like that? No. I know they aren't.

Bashing the Christian religion is the same thing as bashing anything else. It's wrong. You can't claim to be open minded and tolerant of others while in the same breath you are calling people who believe in the Bible and attend church backwards and ignorant.

What makes belief in any religion better than in another? Where are all the articles denounsing Muslims because a fundementalist portion of their religion have been running about the planet blowing people up in the name of Allah? Where are all the postings crying out at how silly it is that fundementalist Jews are okay with the killing of Palestinians so that they can lay claim to a tiny peice of dirt in the middle of the desert in the name of God? I don't see any.

I got behind calling Laura Mallory an idiot. Not because she was a Christian, but because she IS an idiot. I pointed out that "Christians that talk like this are promoting “family values” and a return to “better times”. People of any other religion that talk the same way are “terrorists”. It’s like banging your head against a brick wall," making the point that individuals who use Christianity in one breath the defend themselves and in another to denounce someone behaving in EXACTLY the same manner, are hypocrites. The same applies to people that run about blaming ALL Christians for the bad behavior of a few.

People bash on the Bible, it's contents and the fact that people believe in it as a religious test. I've heard people talk about how original sin is a crock and how it doesn't actually say this or that in the pages of the Bible. I have yet to see a discussion talking about the "crazy" notion that starting a HOLY WAR and killing people to get yourself into heaven is a good idea. Or renouncing the belief that we all die and are reborn repeatedly until we reach a state of perfection ( For those of you that got lost there, that would be a Hindu thing)

I may not agree with all the things the Chritian religion teaches. I wouldn't teach some of them to my own children because I don't agree with them, but that doesn't mean that I'm going to run about bashing the entire religion.

Get off your high horses and take a look at what your really saying. Stop slinging accusations at a religion and start attacking the real problem...the teaching of hatred to children because their parents were taught to hate. Hiding behind God is a way to protect themselves from accountability, but that isn't unique to Christians, not by a long shot.

Explain to me where the confusion is

Apparently, airline workers in Chicago say they have seen a UFO. Now it's a news story. How does this continue to be newsworthy?

UFO literally means "Unidentified Flying Object". Seems simple enough to me. You see something flying, you can't indentify it, this makes it a UFO. It doesn't mean that it came from outer space filled with little green men dying to impregnate our women and take over the planet. ET has not landed. Martians are not about to eat your livestock.

If people want me to believe that they saw something that could not possibly have come from this planet, which I believe could be possible, then they need to come up with a different name for it. As it stands, whenever I hear someone say, "I saw a UFO." all I think is, "Well join the club, you wouldn't believe how many things I've seen miles above the earth and thought, 'Well what the hell is that?"

( Moving off to a HUGE side tangent: Would someone please look up the proper use of "a" and "an" in front of words and make sure that UFO isn't one of those weird exceptions to the rule about usage in front of words beginning with a vowel? "An UFO" just sounds weird and wrong and makes the little hairs on the back of my neck stand up, but all my reference books are currently packed for the move....Thanks!!!!)

(EDIT:01/03/06 THANKS STEPHANIE!!!!)

Bewildering Conversations with a Teenage Girl

This is the first installment in what I am sure will become a regular feature here at The Dead Letters. ( I'm borrowing this idea from Ken Jennings, who is often bewildered by his three year old...) This is a conversation I had with my thirteen year old last night:

"Mom, can I go over to Tasha's to wish her family a Happy New Year?"
"Yes, just don't be gone to long."

Three minutes later:

"Mom, can I stay over at Tasha's for about an hour or so?"
"Are her parents there? Will there be adult supervision?"
"I don't know I didn't see them, we were outside, I'll go check."

Three MORE minutes later:

"Her parents are drinking at a friends and getting ready to go to the bar, but there will be adult supervison."
"Who is there that will be supervising?"
"Tasha's brother and his friend."
(at this point my husband is sitting bolt upright on the couch, frowning.)
"And how old is her brother?"
"Fifteen."
"No. Two teenage boys does not qualify as adult supervision."

Frowning from the teenager, "But..."

"Your mother said no. You are not going to go spend a hour or longer in a house with two fifteen year old boys. It's not going to happen, get over it."

More frowning.

"Fine"

Door slamming......Fifteen minutes later:

"Russell go and get her and make her come home."

My husband goes outside and returns with the sullen teenager who promptly goes to her room, no doubt to write in her journal about how her parents "just don't get it." I wait ten minutes and go in to talk with her so she will understand why we said no."

" I know your upset because we wouldn't let you go to Tasha's, but your getting to that age where certain situations can be dangerous."

Raised eyebrow. "Like what?"
"Like being alone in a house with two fifteen year old boys."
"Why?"
"Well, as you get older (this conversation gets more uncomfortable by the second)... As you get older, boys start to see you differently."

Shake of the head, "Whatever." Long drawn out sigh." But mom, they have kittens over there."

At this point I laugh because I can't help myself and I stand up to leave the room.
"Well, it's nice that they have kittens, maybe you can go see them tomorrow afternoon."

I exit the room feeling confused and somehow relieved. My thirteen year old daughter wasn't irritated with me because I wouldn't let her hang out with her friend and the older brother, she was irritated because there were kittens she wanted to play with and I interfered.

It would appear I have been spared the horror of boys at least for now.

I couldn't sleep tonight, so I sat and watched my son as he slept safely in the arms of his father. And I cried. I looked at his little face, so peaceful and calm, and I thought of all the children who are cold, hungry and scared tonight. I thought about all the mothers sitting and crying because they have lost a child to hunger or violence. My heart aches for all the little ones with no mother or father to hold them, kiss them and tell them that tomorrow will be a better day.

I hope that in the coming year, not so many innocent lives will be destroyed by the ignorance and greed of the adults in charge.

Post #2...I've added men to my "Wow, he's hot" list

I have decided that I am adding Neil Gaiman and Wil Wheaton to my list of celebrities I think are HOT!!

Smart, sexy, funny......gotta love men that don't fit that horrifying mold of airbrushed BS you see everywhere. I guess I'm going to have to re-write the Top 10 list.

Art, thy name is Toddler.....

Tonight my family was enjoying a little down time, watching the Mythbusters (Like any good family would be) when the pitter patter of my sons little feet was heard coming down the hallway. He had a smile on his face that lit the room and something odd under his nose. Now, as any good mother will tell you, the appropriate response to this is, "What the hell is all over his face?" To this my husband responds, " I have no....wait, is that marker?"

I pull my son close and peer down at him, and sure enough, it is black marker. Great, my son now looks like a little tiny Hitler. I pull out a trusty wet wipe and begin to scrub at the offending mark while my husband runs to our room to find the marker in question. A few seconds later I hear, " Oh good God!" This is not a good thing.

I walk to our room, two year old close behind and find my husband staring at the computer screen which is now covered in black art work, courtesy of my son. I surpress a laugh and my husband says, "I knew it was too quiet back here." My son climbs up on his fathers lap, smiles widely, points to the computer and says, "Pretty colors." He is very proud.

We washed the screen, had a good laugh and learned that the Sharpies must now be kept on top of the refrigerator along with everything else the two year old shouldn't have. It was a good night.

Gwenyth Platrow "slams" America

So the big news of the day seems to be that Gwenyth Paltrow told a Portuguese magazine that she likes living in England because the British aren't as capitalistic as Americans and don't discuss money all the time...and that she fits in better there because she doesn't fit the "bad" side of American pyschology. Now she's catching crap for saying what she thinks.

Apparently free speech only applies if you're saying something NICE about the United States. Honestly? I agree with what she said. As a society we have become to capitalistic, to concerned with money. The stereotype of the "Ugly American" didn't just spring into being on its own people.

Just because she's a celebrity doesn't mean Ms. Paltrow should have to smile and eat shit to get us to go and see her movies. Can you say Tom Cruise?? I mean COME ON!! That man is off his rocker and people are obsessed with him and his numb headed bride. So it's okay to knock the mentally ill, but not say out loud what a lot of people are already thinking? Bullshit!!

I've said it before and I'll say it again: We all have the right to speak our minds. If you don't like what someone has to say, then change the situation that made them say it! I for one will be seriously disappointed is Gwenyth Paltrow issues any kind of apology for her statements.

This is what war looks like....

( the picture above would only save as a thumbnail, click the link attached to the title of this post and go to slide #14 in the slide show.)

This little girl lives in Afghanistan. She could be my child, she could be your child...or your niece or your sister or your grandchild. This is the face of war. After all the political rhetoric, after all the postering, it's people like this child that are left to try and put things back together. It breaks my heart.

What good is freedom if you don't live to enjoy it?

Shamu Attacks trainer....and we're surprised why???

Shamu the Killer Whale attacked one of his "trainers" (personally I prefer the word "jailer") during a show recently. The attack has apparently surprised everyone. I read the headline and my first thought was, "Well finally."

Shamu is not like a kitten that was bought from the local pet shop that just suddenly went feral attacking it's owner and shocking everyone around. Shamu is a KILLER WHALE!!! The operative word here being "killer", not to mention the fact that he's a wild animal. Why are people always surprised when a wild animal, kept in captivity, lashes out at a human being? Everyone acts like its a total shock.

Here's a thought, maybe we should stop putting animals in little boxes and amusing outselves by forcing them to do cute things to make our kids smile. Shamu shouldn't be forced to jump through hoops, toss balls with his tail or anything else degrading. It's bad enough that he's kept in a tank where all he gets to do is swim in circles until he dies.

Yes folks, that's right...I'm the one that roots for the bull and not the matador. I think it's funny as hell watching cowboys run away from angry bulls at the rodeo. I think all of the macho crap humans do to animals in the name of "fun" or "sport" should be tossed out the window. Call me crazy, but I don't think entertainment should be attached to the pain, suffering or degredation of any other species.

I hope the trainer is alright, but I say, "Rock on Shamu! Next time drag his ass through one of the hoops with you, maybe he'll get the point."

Turkey and Gravy.....Soda????

No, you didn't read that wrong.

Let's back up for a minute. My best friend, Stephanie, is an almost obsessive poster of those annoying little quizzess. On the odd occassion, I get sucked into taking one, mostly because I want to see how I stack up against her. (Yes, that is kind of sad and more than a little pathetic...)
This morning, my son woke me at the wonderful hour of 5:15 and with nothing else to do, I decided to check a few of my favorite blogs.

Stephanie, thankfully, had updated, giving me something to do. The third quiz posted was this one....

You Are Broccoli Casserole Soda

Vegetarians taste better!

What Jones Holiday Soda Are You?

Stephanie got "Pecan Pie Soda".... at least hers sounds like something you MIGHT want to drink.

Still awake and not wanting to be, I decided to check the Jones Soda site to see if the person who made this quiz was just really clever or if Jones did indeed make these flavors. No Broccoli Casserole Soda, BUT.......

They actually do make a Turkey and Gravy soda. You can buy it in the 2006 Holiday Pack. There's also a Dessert Pack. I sat for a moment, pondering this information. Turkey and Gravy soda??? What sick, demented mind would come up with such a thing? Then I noticed the "Why?" button. I clicked it, eager to learn more about the surely drug induced reasoning behind such awful flavors as "Dinner Roll" and "Sweet Pea".

It turns out that Jones released the flavors to benefit charity. The 2006 Holiday Pack benefits Toys for Tots and the Dessert Pack benefits St. Jude's Childrens Research Hospital. The Jones soda website has a locator that will allow you to find where the two products can be purchased in your area. Although I know we'll never drink them, I plan to purchase one of each. (Quick Note: For some reason, if you live in Utah, the store locator will default to Louisiana. Not sure why.)

I'm addicted to an online game. No it isn't Everquest or Worlds of Warcraft. Nothing quite so cool for me. I went and got myself addicted to Disney's Toontown Online. This is a game that was originally designed with children in mind, and here I am 35 years old and just trying to kill enough Cogs to get that next Laff Point.

Do you think they have a support group?

Apparently the reason I haven't been able to accomplish anything is because someone keeps beating me to it. According to The Onion, Someone has been acheiving my dreams.

Damn them!!! I can only hope that no one gets around to kicking my ex-husband in the balls before I do.

I was reading Wil Wheatons blog tonight and all I have to say is, "Thank God!"

Apparently Mr. Wheaton is feeling a bit like life, real life, you know all that crap they never told us about when we were kids? Yeah, real life, is taking up the time and energy that he used to channel into creative endeavors. It's nice to know that I'm not the only person who feels that way.

The way I look at it is this, if someone as obviously talented as Wil Wheaton can have the "Life is sucking me dry." moment, then I'm not going to stress mine. I know that it will pass, but waiting for it to happen is a pain in the ass. I suppose now I feel like I have a commrade in arms, someone else that sits and stares at something that they've started and goes, "Now what the Fuck do I do?"

Here's to writer's block, may it never strike any of you.

Every now and then....

Every now and then you come across something that's worth reading on the internet. I just link clicked myself to one such site. I recommend that anyone with a brain check out The Zero Boss.

I especially like the post about the recent nutcase in Georgia trying to get Harry Potter banned because it turns innocent children into cat killing Satanists.

Go on, give it a read! You know you want to.

I am inspired....

After browsing the internet for the first time in weeks and after flipping through random blogs, I feel inspired.

I am inspired to call me best friend and tell her I miss her. It's been too long.

I am inspired to write. To complete some of the random scribblings from months gone by.

I am inspired to try something new. To break out of the mold and try a new medium of expression.

I am inspired to hug my children and never forget how fragile or precious they really are.

I am inspired to buy a Poloroid camera and start taking pictures of interesting things again. Things I can glue into my journal and remember fondly when I am old.

I am inspired to have compassion for people I don't know, simply because they are people.

I am inspired to write letters. To speak up and tell people that it is not okay to trample on people simply because they have more money, more power or more celebrity.

What are you inspired to do?

Oprah, Schmoprah

I'm just going to say it, I don't really like Oprah Winfrey all that much. Am I the only person that feels this way?

Sure she's done good things for underprivledged children in America and in Africa, but she's not the only person who has.

I find her artificial and shallow. She tries to portray herself as this down-to-earth rich woman and it never quite rings true. I refuse to buy books that have been stamped with the Oprah Winfrey seal of approval...not that I think the book is not worth it, but because I don't feel the need to pander to the whims of a rich woman.

People get all excited about being on her show and I shudder at the thought. People would give a first born to be on the coveted "Favorite Things" show and bring home all that fancy, non-essential crap. Me, I'd rather have someone hand the money spent on that show to a charity for needy families or better yet to a school that doesn't have the resources it needs to properly educate our children. Imagine what they could do with the millions those products cost.

I think the capper for me was the recent "Gail and Oprah See America" episode I caught part of. I watched about five minutes and it made me sick. Crashing peoples weddings? That's just tacky. And they just smile and fawn over her like she didnt' just bust in on the biggest day of their lives and take over the spotligt. I would have asked her, polietly of course, to leave.

I think that Oprah Winfrey,or her television empire at the very least, represnt some of the worst characteristics of America today.

All right, I'm done whining now. Really...I feel much better

Oh God! I think they may actually give me a license.

Well folks, I took my first Driver's Ed class tonight. Yes, you heard me correctly, Driver's Ed. In a mere six weeks I will be licensed to operate a motor vehicle in the state of Utah.

And I'm terrified. Seriously, I got a little rash on my arms tonight from the stress. How sad is that? The instructor was talking about three point turns and highway driving and all of a sudden I'm all itchy and breaking out.

This is going to be a hell of a six weeks.

Today, not for the first time since the war started, I feel shame because I am an American. A Canadian citizen was falsly accused by members of his government, labled an al-Quida terrorist. Our government then jumped in, detained the man for 12 days without checking the story and then took him to Syria where he was tortured for ten months. Ten months.

Now he has been released and the Canadian Supreme Court has ruled that he is indeed an innocent man. Are the agents in the Canadian Intelligence Agency being held accountable? No. Are the people in our government being held responsible for the things that this man suffered? No.

Tell me this, if we allow this kind of behavior to continue in the name of "freedom", what exactly is our freedom worth. How are we any better than the people we claim to be fighting?

I suppose it all comes down to how long we're willing to turn a blind eye. People in this country grimace a bit and say things like,"Well, we are in a war." If we allow this kind of behavior from the officials elected to the highest places in our government where do you think it will stop?

I used to be proud of my country and what it stood for, now I wonder when we became the playground bully.

And your mother always told you that no one ever died from eating vegetables....

The FDA is warning consumers not to eat fresh, bagged spinach as it has been linked to a deadly outbreak of E.Coli. This does not make me feel confident in the recent changes I have made to my diet.

Remember when you were a child and you were slightly distrustful of anything that green and leafy being on your plate? I'm guessing that your mother, like mine, said something along the lines of,"Oh just eat your dinner. No one has ever died from eating vegetable."

Now children everywhere will be able to answer, "Oh yes they have!"

How ironic.

I couldn't sleep last night, so I was randomly clicking through blogs and searching for something interesting to read. I found a couple, but it seemed like everyother blog that popped up was either in a language I couldn't read (which can actually be kind of fun when your sleep deprived and feeling imaginative) or an advertisement for Viagra or Credit Counseling (neither of which is any fun, no matter how sleep deprived you are.)

After cruising the blogs for a bit I started reading people profiles, just for a change of pace. Does anyone else feel like they're signing someones yearbook or standing in front of some wierd support group meeting when they write those things?

"Hello, my name is Serena....and I'm a blogger. I'm 35 years old and still haven't accomplished most of the things I said I would when I was 16. I feel vaugely guilty about this, so I write about my sad little life in a way I hope is amusing."

Okay, my life isn't really sad...although I do sometimes, late at night, feel like I let the younger version of myself down by not acutally being able to become a multi-millionaire with houses on both coast while saving the rainforest, preventing global warming and adopting several underprivledged children. (Yes, those actually were the thing I dreamt of doing when I was 16)

I didn't become a multi-millionaire, but I did learn that money is only important enough to worry about when you can't pay the gas bill. I haven't saved the world, but I do support the people who are making a valiant effort and I'm vocal about not supporting the people who aren't. I haven't adopted any underprivledged children, but I have two beautiful children of my own that make me continue to want to make the world a better place.

I just noticed that it isn't even eight in the morning yet. Is that to early to be thinking about this kind of stuff?

Further Proof that People are just STUPID!

Here's a quote from an article I was reading today:

"SYDNEY, Australia - At least 10 stingrays have been slain since “Crocodile Hunter” Steve Irwin was killed by one of the fish, an official said Tuesday, prompting a spokesman for the late TV star’s animal charity to urge people not take revenge on the animals."

Now, what kind of MORON do you have to be to start killing stingrays because some man decided to go swimming with them and playing with them and got killed when one does what comes naturally to it. Steve Irwin knew the risks involved in his behavior. It shows that people really are THAT stupid.

It's about the same as if someone you know were mugged by a tall white guy with blond hair. Would you go out and start killing every tall white guy with blond hair you saw? No, of course not, and that person would have KNOWN what he was doing. Animals don't lie around thinking, "Hmmm, I'm just going to swim around for a while to day and KILL the first human that gets to close."

Save me from the idiots that populate this planet.

Sting....aging well

Mel Gibson....not aging well

Keanu Reeves....aging well

Cory Haim...not aging well

Add to the list. Give me at least four celebrities from your youth. This means you actually have passed OUT of your youth.

"Toothpaste for Dinner" with a name like that, how could you NOT want to read it?

I've been reading webcomics at Toothpaste for Dinner for the last few weeks. I think everyone should check this site out. It doesn't try to hard, it doesn't try to be overly political, it isn't full of women raging against the evils of men, or men whining about the evils of women.

It's just a good laugh....well if you have a sense of humor. If you don't laugh, seriously, seek help.

Remember when we had time?

Remember when we had time to stare idly out of windows and day dream about all the fun we were going to have when the bell rang?

Remember when we had time to spend four hours on the phone with our best friend, discussing nothing at all?

Remember when we had time to plan an entire afternoon around the mall and the people we were planning to see there?

Remember all the things we used to have time for?

Remember when you got your first job?

Remember the feeling of pride and euphoria that came with that first paycheck?

Remember the first time you got your own apartment, how exciting that was?

Remember suddently realizing that most of your paycheck was going to the bills?

Remember the first time you had to tell your best friend you couldn't do something because you had to work?

Remember when your parents told you that being a grown up would be full of routine, boredom and not enough time?

Yeah I don't remember that one either.

I used to be really good at customer service. There was a time when I could just smile through a rude customers behavior and forget about it five minutes later. Now I'm old and cantankerous and it makes me angry when people behave badly because they feel they have a "right" to it. People don't seem to understand that the person they are dealing with is a human being with feelings and that they deserve to be treated with respect.

Instead of calling or coming into the store and saying, "I have this problem. Can you please try to help me?" They call or come in stomping and screaming and cursing and demanding this or that. When you tell them you can only do so much, or can't do what they are asking at all, they cuss and scream and threaten to have you fired for it. Why? Because they are behaving like sleep deprived two year olds.

Yesterday at work I found myself looking at one customer who had been vicious and thinking, "You're a bitch." That's not a good thing. I think perhaps it is time for me to find a new job field. I need the money my job brings in, but I'm at a point now where I simply have no time or patience for people who behave badly because they feel they are "entitled" to it.

When did we become such a poorly behaved, ill-mannered society? Didn't any of these people have parents that taught them manners? And you know what, people with "money" are usually the worst. Why is that?

I'm going back to bed now.

How Pathetic

"Zhang Ziyi Mocked for Wearing Same Dress" This is one of the entertainment headlines on MSNBC today. I read the article and found that a Chinese actress, Zhang Ziyi is being ridiculed because she wore the same dress another actress wore earlier. All I could think was how pathetic. How sad that people cared more about what this lovely young woman was wearing and not her acting.

Who cares if she was wearing the same dress? I have a shirt, I bought it at Wal-Mart, I'm sure that about a thousand other people have the same shirt. If I show up somewhere and someone else is wearing it, all I think is "Hmm, they shop at Wal-Mart".

The reporter that started this should be ashamed. How hurt must this woman be? To have someone ridicule and shame her for buying a dress she thought was pretty and wearing it to a function.

That's all I have to say.

Let the blow-back begin....

And as I knew it would, my comments made someoen close to me angry. She felt I was attacking her personally, when I wasn't. I won't apologize for my beliefs, any more than she would for hers, but I will apologize, again, for the way it was perceived.

It should be noted here for everyone to see that I am a Pacifist. I have been most of my life. I believe violence in the name of ANY cause is wrong. It's one of the reasons I left membership in groups like PETA and GREENPEACE behind, they became almost militant and started throwing things at people, harming them, in the name of their "cause" I won't be a part of anything like that.

Now, I'm going to put the comment Stephanie wrote in this post, so anyone that comes here can read it. She has the right to her opinion and since she had so much to say, I want to be sure it gets read, and in the comments section, that's not likely.

Agree with her, disagree with her (like I did) but she has the right to her opinion. Just like I do. She and I will never agree on this topic, but that doesn't make me respect her any less.

Now, for your reading pleasure:

"I wasn't saying it as an absolute truth. And yes, I am pissed, and hurt about you basically attacking what me for what I wrote. Especially when you got it wrong.

I wasn't telling anyone that they have to believe anything that I believe. I don't care that you believe the opposite of what I believe. That has never bothered me. You should know that I believe in freedom of speech whole-heartedly and would never try and tell anyone what they should or shouldn't believe or say. I may not agree with it but that doesn't mean that I think they shouldn't be allowed to say it.

"Just now a guy that just got back from Iraq for the second time called up and made a good point. One that I happen to agree with for the most part. If you don't support the president and his policies then you don't support our troops." That is the main statement on my blog that pissed you off. Someone else made that statement and I said that I agree with it, for the most part. Not entirely. And one person's opinion, or the shared opinion of several or many, does not mean that everyone has to share it. Nowhere in there did I tell anyone that they HAVE to think that way too! I would never do such a thing. And if you had read the comments you would have gotten an even more clear idea that I don't expect anyone that I know, aside from family of mine, to share my view. It seems that the majority is against President Bush, pretty much all of his policies, and the war. That majority includes most, if not all, of my friends. I'm fine with that.

There are reason's that I don't talk politics with you. This is the biggest one, right here. You getting pissed off about my opinion and me getting angry about it. I purposely avoid talking politics with you and tend to not talk as much when the subject does come up and change the subject to something else if possible. I am not as well read on any situation political as you are and you would completely obliterate me in any kind of political conversation due to that. I don't think that a difference in political belief is worth getting into arguments with friends.

I didn't tell you that you don't support out troops either. I don't know what kinds of conversations you have had with veterans, family members or non-family members, and I'm sure that they have varying opinions about different things involving their service. My father-in-law was a veteran of the Korean war. I've seen the internal scars too.

I'm not naive about what goes on in a war. I know that innocent people die. I know that people turn into monsters and do all kinds of unimaginable things to other human beings. That happens outside of war as well as in. I'm not saying that war is a good idea, or that it ever was. Peace should always win out, but it doesn't. On the fault of many, many people on both sides of whatever battle it is.

I also didn't say that all men and women in the armed forces support the war. I was in no way that specific. I said the troops do. Followed by saying that the people in the military, or recently out, that I have talked to have told me as much. I'm not dumb enough to believe that every man and woman in the military absolutely follows the government blindly and doesn't have any kind of varying opinion about what they are doing. I'm sure that some of them hate it, they just do it because that's what they signed on for. They are essentially government property and have signed over their rights and lives to that government and they are just doing what they are told. I'm sure some of them had a great opinion of the government before they went in and now have an opinion to the contrary because of what they have seen and/or done. I made a broad generalization based on information that I have.

I was merely MOSTLY, not entirely, agreeing with a statement that someone else made. I'm sorry that it pissed you off and that you thought I was saying things that I wasn't saying.

My friend FreeDawg, to keep his anonymity going, made a comment that totally disagreed with my post. That was his right. I could have gotten pissed and deleted it, but I didn't. Why am I going to keep him from speaking his mind? I'm not. He's entitled to his opinion. I did, however, comment back. This is what I said:

"Disagree with me all you want. I'm not going to think less of you for it. You are entitled to your opinion and feelings as much as any other person on the planet is.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, I'm not politically minded and most likely never will be. My opinions are based on feelings, intuition and small personal experiences. I am in no position to force my views on anyone, nor would I try to because everyone is entitled to their own opinion.

I'm actually getting to the point that I'm wishing that Bush's term were up already. I'm tired of the controversy and the anger that everyone has over how he is running things and about the war. (Not that war controversy will ever end. No matter what war it is or who is in the White House.)"

I'm not pissed about you having a different opinion, I'm pissed that you attacked me for mine and that you did it with the wrong impression of what I was saying.

FreeDawg commented, you attacked.

You said that I was telling people what to think and feel and say. I never said that the people of this country should just "smile and nod and agree with everything that the president does." I never once said anything about people not being allowed to have their own opinion or not being allowed to state their own opinion.

And, yeah, I am pissed.

And I don't care whether you post this on your blog or not, but I wanted you to hear what I had to say to you after reading this. And you could have asked me for clarification first."

I'm most likely not going to visit this subject again, I don't want things to become contensious, but I thought people should read that.

Politics, the War and why I am vocal about not supporting it.

President Bush is in Salt Lake City today. He's here to speak to the American Legion Conference. I do not like President Bush...as a politician. I do not know the man personally, so I can't say anything about what kind of person he is. I simply do not like him as a President. I think the War is a bad thing. I do not believe we should be there, not at all.

These are all fairly simple statements, I've made them before, but today, after reading something posted on another blog, I felt the need to post about it again in a little more detail.

First, I have relatives that have served in all branches of the military. The last time a Bush went to war, three of my cousins were sent to serve. This time my brother was sent to Iraq. I know people who serve in the military and I have seen the pain on their faces when people direct unkind statements toward them because they fought in this war, or another. I know firsthand the lasting trauma men and women who serve our nation and end up in a War go through.

The comment that was made was basically this. If you don't support the President, you don't support the troops. Nothing could be farther from the truth and in fact I feel insulted by the sentiment behind it. The men and women in our Armed Forces make a choice to be there, and in making that choice they deserve our highest respect. This does not mean, however, that I or anyone else has to smile and nod and agree with everything our President does. To suggest that is an insult to the foundation of our country, the very thing these men and women are fighting for. We have Freedoms in this country. We may not like what a person has to say, but because of the First Ammendment, they have the right to say it. When you start telling people that they don't have the right to say what they want because it might upset someone else, you tread on dangerous ground.

A second sentiment in the comment was something to the effect that all men and women in the Armed Forces support the war. Having first hand knowledge to the contrary, I will say this: The men and women who choose to serve our country don't have a choice to support of not support decisions made by the President. They can be thrown in jail for LIFE for speaking out against the President while in uniform. They are trained to say things that support him. Why? Because they need to be able to present a united front in times of crisis. The exact words my cousin spoke to me when I asked him about this after coming home from Desert Strom were this, " It's not a matter of supporting or not supporting, you go where you're told and you don what you're told and you don't complain. That's what we signed on for."

I have spoken with many veterns, some related to me, others not and one thing is common, there is not one of them that thinks war is a good idea. They all carry lasting scars inside from the things they saw and the things they had to do to survive, and not a single one of them has ever said, "Yeah, the war? I supported that 100%" They always give very non-commital answers because they don't want to speak ill of the nation they served. But think about this, who, in their right mind WOULD think a war was a good idea? Who honestly believes that the deaths of innocent men, women and children is a good thing? Who can seriously support the ongoing slaughter and destruction of a people and a nation?

If we hide behind the argument that we are "bringing them freedom" the question must then be asked, Who's freedom? And we must also answer this question, "Do the people we are "freeing" even want us there?

It is egotistical and even worse, sometimes ignorant to hide behind, "I'm supporting my President." It allows people to not think about what might really be happening, and it allows us to divest ourselves of personal responsibility when our soldiers end up on trial for torture, rape, murder and other crimes. It allows us to bury our heads in the sand. There are no bombs dropping in our streets, our children are not being killed wholesale in the name of "freedom", and when I say children I am reffering to two year olds blown apart by mortar fire and elementary schools being ripped apart by car bombs. War is ugly. If people started dying in our own streets we would see support for the President drop off immediatley, but these are strangers dying, pictures on a television screen, so we tell ourselves it's okay as long as it's for a good cause. What cause could be that good?

Don't tell me I don't support our troops. Don't tell me I should feel shame for standing up for my beliefs. Don't tell me that the things I see in the news and read in the paper should be overlooked.

I know that this post is going to make someone I care about angry. I'm sorry about that. I'm sorry if I offended anyone, but this is how I feel and how I will always feel, and more importantly, as long as this is the United States of America and we have the freedom of speech, it's my right to say it outloud as often as I want.

I'm worth nothing....well MY BLOG is worth nothing, but still...

So it's a quarter to midnight and I can't sleep, no big surprise there. I'm catching up on reading Ken Jenning's Blog when I come across a link to Neil Gaiman's Blog, this is a great find for me, I love his writing.

I start reading and I find an interesting little link. How Much is Your Blog Worth? So I click and I type in my URL and this is what came back:

My blog is worth $0.00.
How much is your blog worth?

Just for the fun of it I typed in the link for Stephanie's Blog and this is going to make her smile and I'm NEVER going to hear the end of it:

My blog is worth $1,129.08.
How much is your blog worth?

I am seriously going to have to add my blog to search engines and become annoying and link myself to random pages, or whatever it is you do to get people to read what you write, because seriously, I'm never going to hear the end of it until I can post tha my blog is worth $1,030.00.

Hats off to Stephanie,who, until now thought no one read what she was writing. Ego Boost or what?

I shall now go pout petulantly in a corner, mutter to myself and think of ways to dethrone her!!!!

Because I'm at work and I'm bored....That's why!

Your Personality Profile

You are dignified, spiritual, and wise. Always unsatisfied, you constantly try to better yourself. You are also a seeker of knowledge and often buried in books. You tend to be philosophical, looking for the big picture in life. You dream of inner peace for yourself, your friends, and the world. A good friend, you always give of yourself first.

The World's Shortest Personality Test

You Are: 60% Dog, 40% Cat

You are a nice blend of cat and dog. You're playful but not too needy. And you're friendly but careful. And while you have your moody moments, you're too happy to stay upset for long.

Are You More Cat or Dog?

Arty Kid

Whether you were a drama freak or an emo poet, you definitely were expressive and unique. You're probably a little less weird these days - but even more talented!

Who Were You In High School?

Tired of this yet??? Well I'm still bored....

Okay, this one my husband is going to get a kick out of...

Your Stripper Song Is

Master and Servant by Depeche Mode "There?s a new game We like to play you see A game with added reality You treat me like a dog Get me down on my knees" Yawn, dancing is so boring without a little spice.

What Song Should You Strip To?

You Are the Very Gay Bert and Ernie!

Two grown puppets living together, sleeping in the same room? They've even got coordinating striped shirts!

What Gay Childhood Icon Are You?

Okay, I'll be done now.

Is there anyone left on the planet with MANNERS?

I work in an industry that requires face to face interaction with customers on a daily basis. Most of the time people are in and out so quickly you don't really have to worry about things. Other times, like today for instance, you get stuck dealing with people that treat you like it's your job to smile and eat whatever shit they hand you. Is there anyone teaching their children manners anymore? Or are all children growing up with this sense of instant entitlement?

Today a young woman walked into the store. I smiled and greeted her, asked how we could help her. She said she wanted to get a phone activated. Okay...used phone activation, usually takes five to ten minutes all total. IF the phone is able to be activated. Hers wasn't. I polietly told her that the phone still had account activity attached to it and that customer service or one of the corporate stores would have to take care of that before we could do anything. She snarls back at me "I was PROMISED by the store in Salt Lake that you would do this for me." Again, I try to explain that under normal circumstances it takes less than ten minutes to do, but that because the phone is still active on another account, we are unable to proceed. She snarls at me again, "Then call someone and fix it." I try to explain that calling customer service will lead to them telling me the same thing I just told her, but I call anyway, I even verify that the number I'm scanning is the one showing on the account. I have them check notes to be sure that there was no error, I have them check to see if it's only a matter of waiting a little longer....nothing. The phone is still showing active and therefore...you guessed it...I can't do anything.

At this point Miss Huffy-Puffy says, "Fine, then let me use your phone to call my mother in Salt Lake." Now I let her use a BUSINESS phone to make a long distance call and she dials about six numbers before she reaches her mother. She tells her mother that I won't LET her activate the phone, so I correct her by saying, "It's not that I won't let you, it's that I am unable to." She huffs into the phone and I say, "If you'd like I can speak with your mother to explain what needs to be done so we can activate the phone for you." She turns around and snarls at me, "You don't have to be a bitch to me." I say, "I'm not." She snipes back, "Yes, actually you are. You're rude." Then she snipes into the phone to her mother, (who I'm sure I'll be hearing from soon because heaven forbid I don't pander to her snippy little girl) "Yeah she's got a serious attitude problem, "(hand ove phone and talking to me) "What is your name?"

I tell her my name and then she starts bitching to her mother and at that point I ask her to please hang up the phone and leave the store.

Yeah..people like that annoy me. I can't wait to get the phone call, or even better, the visit, from the mother. Joy abounds!

Never again will I complain about the discomfort of giving birth!

I read an article today about a woman in Florida who was in labor and driving herself to the hospital. She had an accident and ended up giving birth while trapped in a partially submerged car.....WITH A BROKEN LEG!!!!

This woman has my undying respect. It's hard enough to have a baby in a hospital, with family support, doctor's and nurses standing by and medication to help control the pain. But to do it after having sustained injuries in a car crash? Alone? Come on people, that deserves a standing ovation.

Just my thoughts on the whole thing. I'm done now.

*fanfare* I have a new reader....

Okay, so I don't know if she's a "reader", but someone that doesn't know me visited my blog today and, wait for it......LEFT A COMMENT!!!! In honor of this momentous occasion I am recommending that everyone go and check out eyeAmelia

This is the first time I have left a random comment and received one back. I know that many of you are saying to yourselves," This is the dumbest thing I've ever heard someone get excited about."

It's obvious to me that you have never met Vernon.

"4 penguins perish in truck accident; octopus uninjured"

There was a news article on MSNBC about a freak truck accident involving a zoo transport which killed several exotic fish and a few penguins. This is sad. Death is sad. That being said....

The headline makes me want to giggle everytime I read it! I'm sorry, but it does. How can you read that and not think things like: "Was the octopus wearing his seatbelt?" "Which penguin was driving?" I would like to find out who wrote this headline and ask them if they read it first. Another fine example of why I believe that all headlines, signs, advertising etc. should be read by a panel of thirteen year old boys first, if any of them laugh, re-write it.

This was obviously a serious accident and involved human drivers and the loss of life, even though it was animal life....perhaps a better headline would have been, "Freak accident kills exotic wildlife." or "Zoo Transport Suffers Freak Accident"

It makes you wonder if the journalist that wrote this piece took it seriously, or if they sort of blew it off because none of the human occupants died. I believe that if one of the human occupants of the truck had been killed, the headline would have been far less cavalier.

Apparently I'm a Summer, and all these years I thought I was an autumn

I always pop in to Steph's blog and take these quizzes she posts, mostly because it amuses the hell out of me. Every now and then I find one I can't resist posting. Anyone who knows me well will be able to pick out the right and the wrong here....

The other one I just threw in because, well because it made me laugh until I almost peed myself.

Your True Birth Month Is July

Tactful Honest Friendly Secretive Homebody Sentimental Hardworking Approachable Fun to be with Has reputation Not revengeful Easily consoled Very emotional Wary and sharp Waits for friends Likes to be quiet Witty and snarky Caring and loving Loves to be alone Overly concerned Loves to be loved Treats others equally Puts in effort in work Takes pride in oneself Moody and easily hurt No difficulties in studying Strong sense of sympathy Forgiving but never forgets Quiet unless excited or tensed Not aggressive unless provoked Concerned about people's feelings Temperamental and unpredictable Judge people through observations Easily hurt but takes long to recover Guides others physically and mentally Dislikes the nonsensical and unnecessary Difficult to fathom and to be understood Sensitive and forms impressions carefully Always broods about the past and the old friends

What's Your True Birth Month?

Your Boobies' Names Are...

Tweedledum and Tweedledee

Boobie Name Generator

The Museum of Bad Art

A few days ago I was browsing around and came across an article about the ten weirdest museums in America. Now, I don't know about you, but I'm into weird. Weird is good. It keeps things from being boring, breaks the day up a bit. I read the list and my favorite turned out to be The Museum of Bad Art.

The Museum of Bad Art is in Dedham, Mass. and was founded in 1993. The collection is made up of things you would find on back shelves of thrift shops and pieces that would clutter up yard sales, desperately trying to find homes.

A couple of my favorite pieces? Peter the Kitty, How pissed off does that cat look? And Mama and Babe, Does that picture remind anyone else of "The Outer Limits"?

Take some time and browse the website. Of particular interest is the admission price and the location description. I plan to take a vacation to the East Coast specifically to take my daughter to this place. Better than the Giant Ball of Twine!