The House is Falling Down

Boy, I am so disappointed in my fellow citizens right now.  Rile em up, feed them garbage and send them screaming to their elected officials....yup, that's the way to do it.

Do any of you realize that BEFORE McCain pulled his "ride into Washington and be a Savior" antic this past week....the "bail out bill" was close to approval.  Now, after his grandstanding and letting the American public sweat on it for a few days...we have utter chaos.

Save me from heroes....

And no, I'm not for just handing money over to Wall Street willy nilly. However, if you look back at history we must step in.  In the great depression they waited years before they did anything that was constructive and those of my parents age who are still alive lived through some very harrowing times.  As seen by the reaction today of the market, the largest drop EVER. 

The SEC was put into place to guarantee that stockbrokers wouldn't "pad" the system by buying without any actual resources backing it up.  Brokerage houses have been heavily slapped in the past ..ie; EF Hutton's "float"...still can't figure out why they thought they would get around the SEC, once again pure greed and stupidity.

I don't like the bailout, I want as both McCain & Obama have said conditions placed on it that do not reward the exec's of the failed companies, it should be made clear that the funding will be paid back out of future profits. There needs to be a clear, concise accounting of where, to who and how the money is dispersed.   That being said, we NEED the bailout. 

Stop sending letters screaming at your representatives, you are frightening the poor dears, they think they will not get elected again if they vote for it....so, of course, they are going to do what is also good for them - not vote for what they know they should....heck, their jobs are being threatened. How many of us could throw our jobs to the wind to vote our minds? Not many.

Our world has become an incredible shrinking planet, sneeze here in the States and a butterfly loses it's wings in China...or so they say.  So just what do you think that this financial disaster is doing worldwide?  Nothing good, that's for sure.

Mark my words, we are on a downward spiral and we best apply the brakes in any which way we can...before it all comes to grinding thud.

Hey! Henny Penny The Sky is Falling!!!

 

Sometimes you do feel that the world is a weight on your shoulders. The news this week has been very depressing, worrisome and downright bad.  My folks lived through the depression and it changed their outlook on life as they grew up.  Will we learn the same lessons that they did as we perch on the precipice peering into a chasm of monetary turmoil?  I highly doubt it.  Their generation learned to "make do or do without"...from the baby boomers on up to our youngest generations we have never learned how to "just make do".  We want it ALL....and we want it easy to boot.

It's easy to understand how we arrived at this crossroad for our country.  Hey, do you need a house?  Forget about a down payment, we can scoot you in under such and such loop hole and you will pay nothing.  Just forget about that little ole balloon payment in five years...heck, alot can happen in five years.  You, my friend might win the lottery! So enjoy the low payments, low interest....suck it up, don't worry BE HAPPY...you deserve it!!

Save money? Not the typical American I know. As a nation we are a poor excuse for saving much of our income...we are in the SPEND, SPEND mode.  We see it, we want, we have to have it....oh, Lord don't let the neighbors get it before I do. Can you see a pattern here?  We have toddlers walking around with expensive gadgets that just a few years ago adults had to think twice about buying for themselves.  Our values are so screwed and twisted. 

Then we have a total idiot in the White House who believes in maximum spending to achieve what he feels is best for the country..err (Haliburton)??  Ten BILLION dollars a month spent in Iraq, what the hell are we doing?  Pumping up, protecting another countries interests - saying that it is OUR interest too? We have lost over 4,000 American soldiers, hero's every one of them.  Don't forget that more than 30,000 troops have come home injured and willsuffer the consequences of that for the rest of their lives. Yet we have a man who wants to be President....McCain..saying that even if it took another ten years we must stay in Iraq.  Why is Iraq key? Afghanistan is more important in the scheme of things.  If after so many years of our involvement the Iraqis can't manage to get along and control their country something is very wrong.

We cannot take on the ills of the whole wide world.  It is impractical to think that we can. It is one of the reasons that our way of life is in trouble right now.  We need to tend to our own borders, shore up our spending, develop new and exciting areas of energy.  All the money that has gone into death and destruction must stop.  Otherwise our country will go the way of all the other civilizations that have failed. 

We need a grass root movement taking us back to basics.  Do your part, save some money...shore up our banking systems.  Invest a bit in stocks, now is the time to get some good buys while things are low. I'm not saying drop a bundle, just do a little. Every little bit will help.  Especially investing in anything "green" will help our country in the long run.  Grow a garden, give back to nature and you may find that the benefits are great. Fresh food and lower blood pressure.

I watched the debate last night, wish I could of asked the questions.  I thought some of the questions asked were sort of redundant and not well thought out.  McCain comes across as old and tired, constantly trying to bring his listeners back to the sixties and his war years.  Unfortunately, we need to live in this century...it is a brave new world out there and we need someone young, not someone whose glory days were forty years ago. I don't think I'm prejudiced against his age, I'm old too....not quite as old as he is.  He constantly pulls out his 96 year old Mom, I guess showing longevity runs in his genes. So does mine...my Dad is 92 and my Mom is 87.  That doesn't mean that I will see that age...nor does it mean that McCain will either.

A heartbeat away is Sarah Palin....she has done nothing in the past two weeks to impress me.  She still insists that because Russia is in close proximity to Alaska that makes her a maven in dealing with foreign governments...huh?  With that regard, I should consider myself a great diplomat, having visited the American Embassy in Japan, being giving a private tour of the Ambassador's office...I think that should count too. Give me a break.

Please, think it over, be careful....vote for Obama

On a personal note, I just returned from a wonderful, relaxing visit to my sister & brother-in-law's home in beautiful Washington State.  I do believe that God must have smiled when he created that area of our country...just gorgeous.  Of course, leaving the oppressive humidity of Florida and arriving to sixty-five degrees felt really refreshing too.

Charlene & Bob are into a lot of "green" things. They have a lovely vegetable garden, grape arbor, fruit trees and they harvest quite a bit on a daily basis. That is a great way to live, taking just enough from the earth and giving back . I think it has a sense of poetry in action to that life style. 

I visited with my youngest son Joey, he's been out there now for about four months and is doing well.  But, it made this Mother's heart happy to actually see that he was okay.  I also appreciate the help that my sister and her husband have extended to him so he doesn't feel all alone out there.

Well, when I get my pictures downloaded I will post some...I think I got some really good shots of the Washington area.....take care for now....

 

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We Do Not Need Another Four Years Of Crap

Okay...this wolf I like. Reminds me of the Siberian Husky Zorro that we used to own. Loved that dog, he was such a love. Scared the hell out of everybody just with his looks but underneath it all...he was a big baby.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of our current she-wolf in sheep's clothing....dear homespun Sarah.  At first glimpse, I thought oh great at least one woman is getting on one of the tickets....you go girl.   Now, I want to say whoa, reign in those wild thoughts that she would be one to promote anything for women.  Just the opposite.  If she had her way, you my female compadre could be raped, impregnated by some low life and our resident she-wolf would want you to bring that child to term come hell or high water....only at the point of death of the mother does she relent.  Not only that, it seems in their little back water town she signed a budget codicil that would make any VICTIM have to pay for the cost of the rape kit, which you have to have in order to press charges against anyone.  Cute, huh....

I watched the interviews and I thought that Sarah came across very stiff, like a scripted speech instead of naturally speaking her mind.  I read an article that compared her to that movie where the English fellow took an uneducated girl and turned her into a perfect lady..."The rain in Spain falls mainly on the plain" keeps running through my head.  You betcha by gum! It's the way they do it up in the far North country.

Speaking of the far North country...my family has friends who have lived in Alaska for a while now and they do not think highly of the Governor either. Evidently, judging from the 1,500 protesters quite a few fellow Alaskans do not either.  I've seem comments from some of them they are horrified at the very idea that Palin would be a heartbeat away from the Presidency...it scares the hell out of them and it scares the hell out of me.

I am just praying that Obama will win, at least his choice for a Veep can step in as President and be as fully knowledgeable if not moreso than Obama.

I think McCain is nuts, first stages of something. I am not playing the age card here but we are on the brink of a brand new world...we need someone who is well attuned to this century not the last.  Ok, the story goes that because of his war injuries McCain could not learn how to do a computer...oh, really?  I have seen people with no arms use a pencil in their mouth to tap out commands to their computers, also given that his wife has more money than God...they do have computers that react to voice commands...McCain could afford it. Look at Stephen Hawkings, he can hardly move at all.  Obama was right and instead he got jumped on  like hey...McCain's a hero don't say anything bad about him... That doesn't fly well with me.  We need change, we deserve change...dam it I want change.

I would love to see a ground swell of our young voters, the ones who will gain the most from whatever is decided in October. So any of you have young adults that will listen to you...get them registered, get them to vote....tell them how important it is.  Our future really depends on this election....besides on my birthday JANUARY 20TH...I want to be singing Happy Days Are Here Again...and not paying homage to an old geezer and a she-wolf in disguise.

If I have insulted any Republicans, well this is how I feel....and it's my blog...

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Wow..Sometimes You Need To Wear Thigh High Boots

 Shades of the past come back to haunt us.  These photographs made me so mad! The city was so determined not to have anything go wrong with the Republican Convention that they practiced riot control for weeks...so it is not surprising that the police sprang into action even against teenagers just sitting quietly on the ground. Hey, they practiced and needed to show strength of purpose didn't they.  I look at these pictures and I am taken back to 1968 and the convention in Chicago (I lived through that). Of course, that was a combination of all sorts of factors and you had some really far out weird groups in the mix too. So that convention did get really violent on oh so many levels. Thousands were hurt, the spillover on the injured even made it to my neighborhood in Niles. Of course, as luck or Murphy's Law would have it...my little two year son climbed up on the toilet, over to the bathroom sink and into our medicine cabinet to find all the goodies! There were pills scattered everywhere...had no idea how many of what he ingested.  So in the middle of a riot I find myself heading to the hospital to have his stomach pumped! I have been in emergency rooms before but I was ill prepared for the chaos that I witnessed. The young people waiting for treatment looked like they had been through a bloody war.  Thankfully the nurses took us into the back away from it and got us out of there quickly.

Seeing these new photos, watching the video of it...just brought back such bad memories.  It's always the youth of our nation that fight injustice where they see it, they stand up against and more times than history has proven that they were correct in their fight.

It's funny Obama's speech here in St Petersburg got interrupted by several black youth holding a large banner...he asked them to sit down and that he would speak to them after his speech. And he did. 

Now, of course, I don't expect McCain to stop his acceptance speech because of someone holding up a banner against him...but what he said goes to show exactly what he thinks of the general public....he brushed it off telling folks "don't let static or background noise bother you".  Hmmmm

I hate to say this, as I love my country...but those pictures could of been taken in Beijing.  That's how they deal with protesters.

It also is very comical the way McCain is now trying to re-establish himself as a "maverick"...uhh...I don't think so.  He's older than I am and I feel older than dirt. Yes, he is a hero but that does not automatically convey the keys to the country. What about the fact that he has been part and parcel of what has gone on in the Senate and Congress for years....now he wants to be "new" again? Don't think so.

I just hope everyone votes from a good perspective on this race and do not just follow part rhetoric....for the love of our country.

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Jeeze who would of thunk it?

Well today's developments were not expected.  Emotionally I feel like I'm being played and I don't like it.

I really, really wanted Hillary to win...okay it didn't happen...get over it. Then I thought, okay Obama pick her as your running mate...good lord what a ticket!  Okay it didn't happen...get over it.

Now today I get up and discover that McClain has picked a woman to be his second in command! Talk about picking up leftovers at the table! Is this to appeal to all of us ladies out here in lala land who desperately wanted that glass ceiling to crash down in a testrone filled Washington?

The funny part is the news coverage I"ve seen so far is not making any big deal over the fact McClain chose a woman for the VP spot...why is that?

The powers that be that are behind McClain are pretty dam smart and determined to win.

Ironically, from what I've read about the Governor of Alaska I really like her....she sounds like one tough cookie.  Taking on the bad guys, yet managing to still keep her white hat clean.  Well, crap any woman who can manage a home, a husband, five kids, run a state - while pregnant and give birth during your term of office...has got my attention and respect.   I'm sure that is what John is counting on.  Pick up all those disgruntled Hillary backers with his female choice.

Her I would vote for....Him..not so much.  Well, anyway this whole race just got a lot more interesting...what a country!

 

Happy Days Are Here Again

I've been watching the Democratic Convention for the past several nights...actually enjoying the speeches.

I think Hillary delivered an excellent speech, filled with amazing grace.  I wanted her to win the nomination in the worst way, but it was not to be.  For the life of me, I cannot understand any woman who would not of voted for her.

Eighty some odd years ago our fore-mothers knew the power of togetherness.  They fought for and won a hard battle...they gave us the right to vote.  It wasn't easy for them, some of them were put into harm's way to achieve it. It disappoints me that young women of today do not respect what has gone one before in history.

When my grandmothers were born, they had few rights, little choices and certainly not allowed to vote.  Most men were of the accord that women did not possess a brain capable of thinking in the heavy realms of political bullshit.

There were a few brave men who stood by their valiant women in their struggles to achieve their rights. I'm quite sure they were looked down upon by their brethren.

Let me tell you something, the real power players in Washington don't respect women, certainly they do not want one in the Oval office.  Oh, yes, throw Conde at me..hell, if she were that smart she should be a democrat.

We are standing on the threshold of history, right here, right now...as a nation we must make the right choice.  For our children, our grandchildren...it's their future we are risking. America has during the last eight years been reduced in stature, finding itself stuck in a quagmire of a war that is draining our resources and killing the best of us.

Now is not the time to stand on party lines. I was a Republican for over 35 years...NOT ANY MORE.  The past eight years have been awful, let us not forget that the election itself was so totally in question. Of course, all that got blown away about the same time as the World Trade Centers.  Yes, we have to be armed, yes we need an army, yes we need to be able to protect ourselves our allied.

We do need protection from terrorists and we must have the ability to go after them wherever they are.

I am going to listen to Barack Obama tomorrow night when he makes his acceptance speech.  I hope America listens too, with an open heart.

Anyone out there that says they will not vote for him because they wanted Hillary is not thinking straight.  What Hillary said was so true....did you vote for her because who she was? Or did you vote because you knew she could bring change?   Obama will bring change.  Please vote.

 

 

 

Rain & More Rain

 

 

Well, it seems that Faye is not done with us yet.  Since early this morning we have been hit with one feeder band of rain after another. I can only imagine what the upper panhandle of Florida is going through right now.

This rain came down heavier than any rain I have ever been through, and that's saying a lot because I have lived through many a hurricane and cyclone too. 

The sky can't seem to make up it's mind weather to let the sun peek through or send us back into the deluge mode. Living in Florida yuck....

Anyway, ducks, frogs - wading birds looking for frogs...are going to be extremely happy. 

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J-Land Anniversary 5 Years Wow

Time marches on.  You can rant at it, try to hold back the clock,
till it makes a monkey out of you or you can flip it the bird and go about your business.

Eventually, it all come to nil anyway. No one has ever come out a winner against father time.

With reference to TIME....wow, it has been five great years since AOL started journal land. It has been a wonderful ride and I have met such great people along the way.  People who have shared their lives, their wants & needs...baring their souls for all to see.  I have stood and cheered their triumphs, especially when they overcome terrible odds, and have cried many a tear at the thought of their pain & anguish.  Even though some of the memories are painful, I still am glad that I had a chance to meet these wonderful people and that they thought enough of all of us to share their lives with us.

When I was a young girl I used to write in an old notebook making it sort of a journal, little did I know that I would be doing the same so many years later. I never saved the old journals, but my Mom saved my poetry that I had written when I was a teenager...some of it is posted in my poetry journal.

I've always felt that the written word is man's greatest creation, nothing else compares to it.  All learning comes from it, new growth emanates from it.

Happy Anniversary J Land....

 

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Life & Time Are Fragile Things

 

 Well, we seem to be losing more and more entertainers this week.  I can't believe Bernie Mack left so early, he had so many more years it would of seemed. Maybe the good lord needed a truly funny man so he called him home early. Then I sit back down at the computer and I see that the king of wail...Shaft gone too.  Great entertainers, wonderful talents.  I guess you just never know, when the time is, it just is......

I've been watching a little of the Olympics and am very impressed with the way China has pulled it all together. Oh, I know they have a terrible record on human rights...but it's easier to change someone when you are standing next them then to try to do it beyond an iron wall.  The little girls who do the gymnastics are so fabulous, it's amazing the moves they can do. Just watching makes my bones ache...lol.

We have so many hot spots all around the world, now we get to add Georgia and Russia into the mix. It appears to me that it's the ordinary people who get caught up in the fighting and lose everything, sometimes their lives...hope it stops soon.

I also read that Iraq wants us to make a date that we exit their country...errr...sure...how about tomorrow at noon? sounds good to me.

Well, got to go eat a very late dinner....

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"Grapeleaves"

This is an entry that I had done four years ago when I first started my journal....I made grapeleaves tonight for hubby & I it brought it all back....     Grapeleaves

Standing at the kitchen counter trying to open this darn old bottle of cured grape leaves I flash back about forty-five years ago and it almost seems like yesterday.  My Grandpa was from the isle of Crete, coming from a village high in the mountains...as tough as nails and yet the gentlest man I've ever met.

"Nick" came to this country at age 16..and when war broke out he joined the army at 17...of course, he was sent back to Europe with the cassons.  He never spoke greatly about the war years, just kept everything in.  He met and married my grandmom, a South Carolina belle, started a family and enjoyed an American way of life.

He was an excellent chef....no one ever went hungry in his house.  My grandparents house was the focal point of the family, all our vacations, holidays were spent there, drawing all fractions of the family like a magnet every year.

For some reason Grandpa decided to teach me how to cook and I will forever be grateful that he did.  One of my first lessons was making "grape leaves" filled with chopmeat, rice & cumin..rolled just so - so, add water, lemon juice and wait for the aroma to fill the kitchen.  Forty-five years later my husband is grateful that I'm a good cook and it's all due to someone that he never had a chance to meet.

It's funny, standing and rolling the leaves makes me feel a compelling connection to my past, I can hear "Nick" say "Don't forget to pinch the stem off if it looks tough" followed by "that's right..you are doing a good job".  Anyway I know that I learned the right things sitting at his kitchen table.

My Grandad & Grandmom used to "battle" with one another, playfully it would seem.  Grans would say "Nick!" What is that man doing now?"  Grandpa would counter with"Lee! What are you going on about?" "I'm just cooking"...then either side would enlist myself or one of my sisters to "tell" Nick this and he would do the same, as if they couldn't hear what each other was saying.  It was hilarious.

Oh, boy when everyone came for dinner the dinning room table creaked & groaned under the weight of the repast that Papoo would present to us mere mortals.  Grandma was allowed to set the table, with us helping, fix real ice tea and help bring the food in.....everything else was pure Grandpa.

Every time we would be leaving..they would be on the porch waving goodbye and Grandma saying "You'all come on back now yahear".

I spent almost every summer with them in Norfolk, loving the southern night air, humming birds and pink trees...but most of all them

Those Were The Days My Friends

Sorry the pictures I couldn't copy them but the words are really good.... Our Childhood in Black and White.  Go all the way to the bottom past the pictures. I think you'll enjoy it. Whomever wrote this, described childhood to a T.    Hope you enjoy it.  Black and White (Under age 40? You won't understand.)  You could hardly see for all the snow, Spread the rabbit ears as far as they go.  Pull a chair up to the TV set,  'Good Night, David. Good Night, Chet.'  My Mom used to cut chicken, chop eggs and spread mayo on the same cutting board with the same knife and no bleach, but we didn't seem to get food poisoning.  My Mom used to defrost hamburger on the counter AND I used to eat it raw sometimes, too. Our school sandwiches were wrapped in wax paper in a brown paper bag, not in ice-pack coolers, but I can't remember getting e-coli. Almost all of us would have rather gone swimming in the lake instead of a pristine pool (talk about boring), no beach closures then. The term cell phone would have conjured up a phone in a jail cell, and a pager was the school PA system.  We all took gym, not PE.. and risked permanent injury with a pair of high top Ked's (only worn in gym) instead of having cross-training athletic shoes with air cushion soles and built in light reflectors. I can't recall any injuries but they must have happened because they tell us how much safer we are now.  Flunking gym was not an option even for stupid kids! I guess PE must be much harder than gym. Speaking of school, we all said prayers and sang the national anthem, and staying in detention after school caught all sorts of negative attention.  We must have had horribly damaged psyches. What an archaic health system we had then. Remember school nurses? Ours wore a hat and everything.  I thought that I was supposed to accomplish something before I was allowed to be proud of myself.  I just can't recall how bored we were without computers, Play Station, Nintendo, X-box or 270 digital TV cable stations.  Oh yeah .. and where was the Benadryl and sterilization kit when I got that bee sting? I could have been killed!  We played 'king of the hill' on piles of gravel left on vacant construction sites, and when we got hurt, Mom pulled out the 48-cent bottle of Mercurochrome (kids liked it better because it didn't sting like iodine did) and then we got our butt spanked.  Now it's a trip to the emergency room, followed by a 10-day dose of a $49 bottle of antibiotics, and then Mom calls the attorney to sue the contractor for leaving a horribly vicious pile of gravel where it was such a threat.  We didn't act up at the neighbor's house either because if we did, we got our butt spanked there and then we got our butt spanked again when we got home. I recall Donny Reynolds from next door coming over and doing his tricks on the front stoop, just before he fell off. Little didhis Mom know that she could have owned our house. Instead, she picked him up and swatted him for being such a goof. It was a neighborhood run amuck.  To top it off, not a single person I knew had ever been told that they were from a dysfunctional family. How could we possibly have known that? We needed to get into group therapy and anger management classes? We were obviously so duped by so many societal ills that we didn't even notice that the entire country wasn't taking Prozac! How did we ever survive?  LOVE TO ALL OF US WHO SHARED THIS ERA, AND TO ALL WHO DIDN'T; SORRY FOR WHAT YOU MISSED. I WOULDN'T TRADE IT FOR ANYTHING.       Pass this to someone and remember that life's most simple pleasures are very often the best.

Computer Woes

 Oh, I found this on the net thought it was hysterical, because we are going through this crap right now. Somehow my husband opened up something and infected his laptop.  Nothing I could do to clear it up, it was beyond me...ran every program I could think of to get rid of the "bug".  I gave up.  We have a talented friend named Angie who was up for the task.  She managed to get rid of it, but she had to wipe his computer clean...so anything that was on there is gone.  I'm just glad that our computers were not linked, that all the family pictures are on my computer..grateful for small things. In the interim doing a search for cures I came across something funny and I want to share it with you....I just had to laugh....

New Computer Virus List

OPRAH WINFREY VIRUS: Your 200MB hard drive suddenly shrinks to 80MB, and then slowly expands back to 200MB.

AT&T VIRUS: Every three minutes it tells you what great service you are getting.

MCI VIRUS: Every three minutes it reminds you that you're paying too much for the AT&T virus.

PAUL REVERE VIRUS: This revolutionary virus does not horse around. It warns you of impending hard disk attack---once if by LAN, twice if by C:>.

POLITICALLY CORRECT VIRUS: Never calls itself a "virus", but instead refers to itself as an "electronic microorganism."

RIGHT TO LIFE VIRUS: Won't allow you to delete a file, regardless of how old it is. If you attempt to erase a file, it requires you to first see a counselor about possible alternatives.

ROSS PEROT VIRUS: Activates every component in your system, just before the whole darn thing quits.

MARIO CUOMO VIRUS: It would be a great virus, but it refuses to run.

TED TURNER VIRUS: Colorizes your monochrome monitor.

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER VIRUS: Terminates and stays resident. It'll be back.

DAN QUAYLE VIRUS #2: Their is sumthing rong wit your komputer, ewe jsut cant figyour out watt!

GOVERNMENT ECONOMIST VIRUS: Nothing works, but all your diagnostic software says everything is fine.

NEW WORLD ORDER VIRUS: Probably harmless, but it makes a lot of people really mad just thinking about it.

FEDERAL BUREAUCRAT VIRUS: Divides your hard disk into hundreds of little units, each of which does practically nothing, but all of which claim to be the most important part of your computer.

GALLUP VIRUS: Sixty percent of the PCs infected will lose 38 percent of their data 14 percent of the time. (plus or minus a 3.5 percent margin of error.)

TERRY RANDALL VIRUS: Prints "Oh no you don't" whenever you choose "Abort" from the "Abort" "Retry" "Fail" message.

TEXAS VIRUS: Makes sure that it's bigger than any other file.

ADAM AND EVE VIRUS: Takes a couple of bytes out of your Apple.

CONGRESSIONAL VIRUS: The computer locks up, screen splits erratically with a message appearing on each half blaming the other side for the problem.

AIRLINE VIRUS: You're in Dallas, but your data is in Singapore.

FREUDIAN VIRUS: Your computer becomes obsessed with marrying its own motherboard.

PBS VIRUS: Your programs stop every few minutes to ask for money.

ELVIS VIRUS: Your computer gets fat, slow and lazy, then self destructs; only to resurface at shopping malls and service stations across rural America.

OLLIE NORTH VIRUS: Causes your printer to become a paper shredder.

NIKE VIRUS: Just does it.

SEARS VIRUS: Your data won't appear unless you buy new cables, power supply and a set of shocks.

JIMMY HOFFA VIRUS: Your programs can never be found again.

CONGRESSIONAL VIRUS #2: Runs every program on the hard drive simultaneously, but doesn't allow the user to accomplish anything.

KEVORKIAN VIRUS: Helps your computer shut down as an act of mercy.

IMELDA MARCOS VIRUS: Sings you a song (slightly off key) on boot up, then subtracts money from your Quicken account and spends it all on expensive shoes it purchases through Prodigy.

STAR TREK VIRUS: Invades your system in places where no virus has gone before.

HEALTH CARE VIRUS: Tests your system for a day, finds nothing wrong, and sends you a bill for $4,500.

GEORGE BUSH VIRUS: It starts by boldly stating, "Read my docs....No new files!" on the screen. It proceeds to fill up all the free space on your hard drive with new files, then blames it on the Congressional Virus.

CLEVELAND INDIANS VIRUS: Makes your 486/50 machine perform like a 286/AT.

LAPD VIRUS: It claims it feels threatened by the other files on your PC and erases them in "self defense".

CHICAGO CUBS VIRUS: Your PC makes frequent mistakes and comes in last in the reviews, but you still love it.

ORAL ROBERTS VIRUS: Claims that if you don't send it a million dollars, it's programmer will take it back.

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Big Brother Version 2008

I'm still trying to assimilate what I just read on AOL's news clips.  It seems that there is a company that is producing little bracelets that have the capacity to record where you are, follow you wherever and then if you act up...knock you on your assets.  Seriously folks, Big Brother has definitely arrived!

These bracelets would be fitted on every passenger flying, from babies on up to your 90 year old Grandma....that way it's fair to the swarthy, beady-eyed nervous gentleman who keeps clutching his briefcase. Unbelievable.   I'm sorry if it walks like a duck, looks like a duck...dam it - it could definitely be a duck.  Do you walk up and say...Oh, are you a duck? I don't think so, just grab the sucker and look for feathers.

I can't imagine a world where little babies, children are subjected to wearing something like this. There has to be some reason for all this insanity.  I know the world is not safe, it hasn't been safe since it was created folks.  The tragedy that was 911 brought home to us just how unsafe we all are. 

When people of ill will, evil men plot to do dastardly deeds it shocks us at our core.  That's the reason they do it. To shock us, to make a statement...they don't care about life, theirs or ours. So why would we care how they are treated once caught? We do care because of the fact that we are human. 

The Federal Aviation Board is studying this bracelet to see if it would work onboard. Of course, it will.  It's main purpose is that it is a mini taser and can take down a 230 pound man in a heartbeat...disarming whatever he had in mind. Actually, that's a good thing....see they have me thinking about it too.  But, you have people with pacemakers, heart conditions, breathing problems what if it goes off by accident?

 Can you imagine all this, the future is coming... 

 

 

 

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Lazy Day

 

Wow, ever have one of those days where your thoughts just ramble on and on till you almost have no control as to what you are thinking of or where your mind takes you.  That's how my day was...

First I've made up my mind to lose some weight, that's why the scales are up on the page...figured visual positive thinking...heck if it's working for Oprah...why not me.  I still have to find a large piece of cardboard and cover it with all that I endeavour to accomplish. Some swear that it really works. I haven't cut wishes out of a magazine since I was a giddy teenager in love with Fabian and Sal Mineo...lol. Look at me, I'm going backwards!

The Monkey's are my favorite.   I had to use them. A couple of days ago I read the most ignorant blog and it was from a professional writer. He claimed that the 9.3 TRILLION dollars that we are in a hole for is largely being driven by rising Medicare and Social Security costs!

Oh, really! Not the little old war in Iraq? How about Afganistan? This is just another twist from a spin doctor to white the Republicans and in particular President Bush.  They are bankrupting this entire country, putting all of us in jeopardy and limiting our children's futures. It is heinous. Now to turn around and blame a system that did work, would work if they would keep their dam hands off of it.

I don't have that much memory loss and can recall a time that we were debt free, the future looked pretty good - we were respected around the world.  Not that long ago either...eight years ago. Then it ended. We need change and I hope everyone will vote for change not just the party that they always vote for either...we need to really get on the right page for this one folks.

The Star Wars Plates? Oh, well someone was talking about Star Wars and my mind went to the dishes that I put away somewhere.  I had been planning to find them and put them up in the Ebay Store...I loved Star Wars, as did my kids.

Now you have had a little peek into my mind complete with pictures!

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Happy Fourth Of July

Everybody have a wonderful, safe fourth of July....eat, enjoy - make merry. That wonderful fireworks display is a photo that my talented son Kenji shot off his balcony window in New Jersey....right across the river is Manhattan in all it's full glory.  What a sight!

The other picture is one of my mother and father in law at their own wedding. There is just something about this picture that is so touching, the way Jim is holding Anne's hand, as if to never let it go.  And he didn't.  I was going through old pictures and this one captured my eye.  They are both gone now, too early I believe.  There are so many times where I would love to pick up the phone and call Anne but the years have taken that course away from me.  It is uncanny the way my youngest son resembles his grandfather, you can definitely see the genes at work here.

Speaking of my youngest son, he is getting settled in at his new place in Portland Oregon.  He took off just about one month ago for the great west, looking for adventure I would guess...or maybe mountains? Anything but flat, hot, yucky Florida.   He found a great job, making double what he was here...a neat little apartment, an older small car to save gas...now comes the fun part of furnishing the whole place..lol.  My sister helped by giving him a bed as she is redoing her guestroom and taking him in for the first couple of weeks so he could get his act together and learn where everything was in Portland.   It is a grand adventure and he is doing well.    Still miss him..but that's Mommy talk.

Everybody enjoy the holiday.....

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Thirty-five years ago

The year was 1971, I was living back in the States right in my old neighborhood of Queens.  I had picked that area because my folks lived not too far from me, little did I know that they would soon be transferred by Air France to a little town called Humble in Texas.

My youngest sister Barbie had adjusted pretty well to the move to Texas, she was enrolled in a good high school and was making friends. 

All this was brought back home to me in full force tonight when I read AOL's story about the "cold case" of the missing boys in Texas.  How they have not identified three of the victims as yet.

Barbie had a friend named Beth who was dating a young man and very much in love with him.  He was about eighteen a little older that the girls.  One night he was supposed to show up for a date, he never showed up. They tried calling him, no answer. They went to his apartment and found his wallet, money and all his possessions there but not him. It's like he disappeared off the face of the earth.  So it stayed for several years...terrible fears, anxiety, anyone who knew him felt it.

Until August 8th,1973....Elmer Wayne Henly killed Dean Coril and confessed to the police about massive horrendous murders. They doubted him until he showed them where the bodies were.

There are some very evil people, filled with nothing but pure hatred for everyone...Henly, Coril and Brooks were such vermin.

Twenty-seven boys and young men all under the age of twenty-one.  The way they were slain is beyond brutal. There should be a special place in Hell for Henly, Coril and Brooks, I hope.

Unfortunately my sister and her friend had the answer to the whereabouts of their missing friend.  How they managed to entrap him is something that has never been answered. 

Shortly after all this my Dad was transferred back to Kennedy Airport and they bought a house not too far from me.  We all settled in, feeling safe in our old neighborhood....until..."The Son of Sam" arrived in town.  We had brunettes afraid to go out at night, some dyed their hair blond...men with long hair were targeted too.  I can remember the fear, we only lived a short distance from Kew Gardens one of his "strike zones". 

It's a helluva life if we all don't weaken folks.... 

Unwelcomed Surprise

 So much has changed since my last entry in this journal.

At the very last minute my son's girlfriend backed out of the plans to move to Portland, Oregon.  Evidently she is/was scared of traveling so far from her family, even to follow someone that she professed to love.  It was needlessly cruel to wait till the last moment to back out.  My son just walked away from everything, took his knapsack, laptop - a few personal items - bought a ticket and flew out by himself.

He was determined to follow his dream.  Florida has never suited him, he hated the heat, the humidity,  the boredom that besets most of the youth down here. There is no "living on the edge" in Saint Petersburg..most of the sidewalks are pulled in after 9 P.M.  Some of his happiest memories are of visiting his big sister in New York City, awestruck by the complexity of the "big City". 

He tells me he has given up on love and I know that he says that because he is hurting.  Love hurts.  He's a fine young man, no longer my baby...but he grew up well into a caring, wonderful human being who, I hope, one day will find his one true love, the forever love that never leaves.  I want that for him so much.

He seems to be adapting. My brother in law took him to the local union and believe it or not he wound up finding a terrific job, at almost double what he was making here!  I realize how hard it is to go from a committed relationship to being alone in a strange city...so my thoughts are with him throughout my day.

I know he will make friends out there and, of course, my sister and her husband have been wonderfully helpful. 

I still wish we had teleportation for real.  Zip...in...Zip out....I'd be a fast moving Momma......

 

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Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a day to reflect, remember, honor our present and past warriors.  We've come a long way since the sign above was posted on a Norfolk, Virginia lawn.  I can remember growing up and having my Grandma tell me stories of how rowdy the sailors were when they came into the port of Norfolk. In all my youthful innocence I just shook my head and agreed with her.  Grandma Lee had told me about the lawn signs and I had never seen one until a few months ago...one was for sale on of all things..Ebay!

But it made me stop and think.  Imagine being 18 or l9 full of piss and vinegar, taught how to fight, survive, knowing you are going into battle...and you are told to "stay off the damn grass?"  The temptation to run barefoot through that grass would of been all consuming till mission accomplished.  Imagine...you are to risk your life to preserve home, Mom and apple pie...but stay off the grass! Unbelievable.

Well, fast forward sixty-five years and at least our troops are getting the attention they deserve.  Our boys and girls are over there fighting for us, whether we agree with how they were sent, or who they were sent by.  Wishing they could all just be safe and out of harm's way till they plant their feet firmly on American soil once again.

Love and respect all you guys.......

 

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Dreams and such stuff that dreams are made of...

We just celebrated a small farewell dinner at my sister's new house to say goodbye to my youngest son and his girlfriend. They are going to be driving cross country, actually from the lowest part of the US to the upper Northwestern tip...heck throw a stone and I think you can hit Canada up there!

I have to make myself remember how I felt when I left the states for Japan, a totally radical adventure in those days. Yet, I was all for it - young, full of life and wanting to see everything, feel everything.  So, as I look my young son in his eyes I see the wanderlust there, I do know it well. A deep  yearning within for something different, a need to know what's over the horizon.  I guess that's what the pioneers felt too.

I looked at Joe and Holly so much ahead of them, so many adventures, roads to travel down...and I have to be happy for them.   Even though my heart is breaking.

My son's answer to me is "Move too...come on up there", easier said than done.  Yes, I'm playing the age card...it' s hard to start over in your mid sixties.  Although, it may come to that.

After all I really hate Florida, the humidity arrived yesterday with a bit of rain. The trick will be to get hubby to travel out west...I think once he got a look at the majestic mountains, the winding river, especially the Columbia and the good, dark, rich soil as a gardener he would probably freak.

My sister lives up near Portland so the kids will have someone there for moral support, which is great. She's letting them stay with her until they get an apartment. I appreciate it so much I would be a bit more frantic without her & her hubby's involvement. 

I think they are going to have fun getting out there, even with the high cost of gas. So many states to travel through and they are planning on taking their time. That way they can sight see too.   I think triple A is plotting a course for them.

It will be the first time in forty-three years that I haven't at least had a child of mine in the same state as I was. Oh, well I know I will adjust.....

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just testing

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Ode to Green

Green, so softly green does my garden grow
Dew drops in the morning mist appear to shimmer
captured exquisitely on a spider's spun web
Prisms of light dance in the sunlight that shows through
Sparkling diamond like across the lush growth as if
painted by glimmer.

Green, so softly green does my garden grow
Little gray green frogs playing hopscotch on
the fallen tree limbs
A baby Opposum has lost it's way...seeking
safe haven in my green heaven
Creatures big and small are drawn into my
little world of green only on a whim
Little green Lizards lie lazily in the sun's heat
As a little feral black cat tries to play cat and mouse
almost by my feet.

My friend the Peacock suddenly strolls by
causing the little cat to jump and fly
A Bluebird lands on a hanging basket, looking
for worms it seems.
Butterflies flit in and out - my little green haven
with life just teems.

I sit in meditation surrounded by nature's glorious beauty
Relaxed, refreshed beyond all imaginings....
Thank you Mother Earth.

 

Sandi/2008

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Super Delegates

We walk a fine line in defense of our country, yearning for peace but ready to fight.

The following is a letter that I sent to my State's non committed Super Delegates...

Dear Super Delegate,

 

I am writing to you with the hope that I can persuade you to cast your vote for Hillary Clinton.  I've been voting for forty-six years...as a Republican. But, not this year.  I'm going to be a cross over voter and I believe there are a lot of us out there. My own father, at 91, changed his registration from Republican to Democrat because he felt so strongly for Hillary.  Can you imagine how many disenfranchised Republicans are out there? This upcoming election is going to be one to watch.

 

 This year is different, our country needs determined, knowledgeable leadership. We face such awful economic problems something has to change. Too many good people are hurting we need someone who does care.  Someone who has been fine tuned and weathered the slings that politics can throw at one. That person is Hillary.

 

We need to regain the respect of the world and conduct ourselves with proper diplomacy, yet still showing our steely strength of resolve.  Hillary has been through the fire only to come out stronger.

 

I believe Senator Obama is a fine person and will be an excellent politician but he needs growth and experience in so many areas. Now is not the time to use an untried novice as our helmsman.  I personally would favor a Clinton/Obama ticket...if that could ever happen the election would be in the bag!

 

I know the race is close and it may come down to your vote being the one to make the difference.  Please consider what I have said today and I appreciate your time and effort in this race.

 

                                                  Sincerely,

                                                  

                                                   Sandra Lee Doscher

 

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Voting...what gives?

 

 

I am just so turned off by politics right now...disgusted actually.  Here we are in a country that fought for it's freedom only a short few hundred years ago, people died to give us the right to vote, to have a say, to keep the government for the people by the people.

So what happens today?  In a state that has over EIGHT MILLION people...guess how many voted.  Under 200,000, well under. Maybe we don't deserve to have out votes count anyway...we are giving out freedom away.  What is it that people are thinking? Oh, it's only the primary? I'll vote when it's the "real" election? Horsecrap people.

I can remember being 17 and not able to vote for Barry Goldwater...I campaigned for him anyway.  I wad thrilled when I got my first voters card, and the feeling of casting my first vote left a pit in my stomach that I can still recall today. Has that feeling gone from America?

If anyone has a right to feel jaded about elections it is "us" here in Florida.  We have been abused for the last eight years and it's still continuing to this day. Not allowing our votes to count in this primary is a smack in the face to every voter in my state.  Yes, I know the story that the Republication Party and our dear Governor actually prodded the vote for the earlier primary date knowing it would cause havoc within the Democratic Party for their nominations..  But, the Democratic Party COULD HAVE overlooked this whole fiasco and let the vote stand....but NO they are going right along and punishing our Dems here for something they really didn't push. 

I tell you what I never thought that I would ever be as disappointed in being an American as I am right now.  This whole debacle shows such a horrid face to the rest of the world, so then once again we are the laughing stock of the world. 

My family came to these shores in the early 1700's, my forefathers fought in the Revolution, The Civil War, World War I and World War II, some of my relatives made a career out of serving.  I think if they were here today, they would hand their heads and weep.

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Sad Day

 

 

 Horse racing has always meant a lot to my family. My Dad spent most of his life involved with horses, in one way or another.  He holds the distinction for being the only person to break both Seabiscuit and War Admiral. Of course, back then, he didn't realize that it was anything special .. he was just doing his job.

Derby Day was always special.  When we finally bought a small TV and were able to view the race on it...wow, you would of thought it was better than walking on the moon!

Some years we have placed bets, especially when there was an up and coming non favorite that we actually liked.

Eight Belles was such a horse.  The only filly in the bunch..last few races, ran so well she was lengths ahead of the rest of the "guys". I was impressed by her lineage...she was a granddaughter of Northern Dancer - genes do matter especially in racing.  She had a terrific post position.

I did not bet on her, but would of if I had been able to get to Derby Lane. 

Of all the days to do it, I lost track of time, got involved with working outside and the race was over before I knew it.

I turned to the internet and what to my horror did I see? Eight Belles humanely put down, breaks legs at end of race...OMG...and she placed second...she made it to the wire.

How awful, for her to come so far and have it end so suddenly. I know there is a place in Heaven for all God's creatures...rest well lovely beauty....

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Another May

Forty years? Heck try forty-three and it's never over.lol...If I wasn't someone's Mother I think I would melt like that old witch that Judy Garland threw the water on...."Help me, help me..I'm melting...melting..."

Anyway hope everyone has a great Mom's Day, everyone deserves that...

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Garden Photos....

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