You Are Cordially Invited To A Tea Party - April 15, 2009

There is an interesting phenomenon going on throughout our country today. In ways not seen on this scale since the war protests of the 70’s, people are showing our government that they are fed up. Americans young and old are sending the message loud and clear that we are tapped out as a nation and weary of yet more restrictions, bail-outs and tax burdens being heaped upon our shoulders and those of our future generations.

It is not a partisan effort, despite what the ultra-left wing branch of the Democratic party would lead you to believe. There are Republicans, Democrats and Independents alike participating in this show of outrage and frustration. We are exercising our Constitutional rights as Americans, whatever our political affiliations might be, to assembly and free speech. We are, as a people, sending a message that while we respect the office of the President, many of us grow increasingly unhappy with the direction the country is being guided or shoved down a path we do not want.

So, today we protest our frustration and convey our disagreement with policies and new taxes and programs that it are being presented as what “we” want. I for one, am tired of being told what is good for me and to just shut up, sit back and agree with those that do NOT represent my views, despite what they seem to believe. I’m angry with the bail-outs that were passed “for our own good” even though the public outrage and opinion showed that Americans were soundly against their passage.

Washington and those currently in office better pay attention to what is being expressed by the people that have elected them as our representatives. If they are smart, they will not put spin on it or tell us once again what they think we meant to say rather than listening to what we are actually SAYING to them. This is a warning shot for those coming up for re-election that we the people, are paying attention and are discontented with their actions and disregard for what we think.

So, exercise your right to be heard. Even if you believe no one is listening, it is a sure bet that you won’t be heard if you don’t even try. In the past few election cycles it has vividly been shown that even a few individual votes do indeed count. If you choose to sit on your backside, then don’t complain when you are not “bailed out” like the major corporations or fall through the cracks when you thought you’d be saved from your responsibilities and allowed a free pass.

Wake up and smell the tea brewing!

Washington, you are not doing a good job at hearing the people you represent and that elected you. This is not just a fluke or something that will go away if you put your fingers in your collective ears and cover your eyes. To even give the impression, whether accurate or not, that the views of your constituents are falling on deaf ears would be a mistake if you wish to continue to serve the people that elected you. Change is indeed brewing in this country, although I’m not sure that it’s quite the change the current administration envisioned. I beg you, do not make the mistake of dismissing or alienating what is becoming a larger and larger section of the American people clammering to be heard.


On another little, purely personal note, I know that the original Tea Party was located in Boston in 1773. However, we in the South know the TRUE value of tea. Look in any refrigerator in a true Southern household, and you will find a gallon or two (or four) of the best SWEET tea that you’ll ever taste. I know that the Yankees amongst us (hear that oh stoic one?), don’t recognize the simple indulgent pleasure in a glass of sweet tea and insist that having sugar on the table will somehow negate the fact that your restaurants don’t have it available on your menus up North. You just don’t know what you’re missing. Perhaps it’s why Southerners always have a smile on their face and something to say to everyone, even making actual eye contact as we do!! We’re just infused with sweetness from birth through our tea! ;)


Today in Atlanta, our tea party will have sweet tea flowing freely and our voices as proud Americans will be heard loud and clear. The only question is, will those in Washington be smart enough to pay attention and react by rethinking some of their proposed actions?

Time will tell. One thing is certain, ignoring it or making light of such a large group of Americans discontent would be foolish and ill-advised on their part.

“We in America do not have government by the majority. We have government by the
majority who participate.” Thomas Jefferson

**The DHS bulletin released or ”conveniently leaked” on April 7th is troubling in the fact that it seems to be a not so subtle hint that our freedom of speech is being threatened at least by threat of intimidation and at worst incrimination. We all need to pay attention and be vigilant of such veiled threats against our freedoms.

Stomping Our Feet & Pitching a Fit..Yeah, That'll Teach 'Em! - April 05, 2009

The world has watched for weeks as North Korea has done exactly as it said it was going to do. Thanks to the obtrusive capabilities that Google Earth now provides us all to spy on cheating spouses and now Communist countries, even Joe Schmo could peek in on all the activity on the launching pad halfway around the world. We all watched and our government kept drawing a line in the dirt that they continued to not only step over, but flat out leaped past.


They said they were going to send a “communication satellite” into space. They hauled out a rocket. They fueled it. The world watched and used their “serious” words to tell them not to do it. President Obama and Secretary Clinton shook their fingers and stomped their feet in our stead, promising all sorts of dire consequences if North Korea stood by their word and dared to actually do what they said they were going to do. We all watched and waited and whined. China stood by figuratively giggling at the comotion and impotent threats from the “super powers” and chose to do nothing to intervene.


Yet on Sunday morning, amidst all the tempest in a teapot, North Korea made good on their word. They did exactly what they said they were going to do and launched their new playtoy for all the world to see, effectively thumbing their nose at all the other kids on the playground. They provided the potential buyers for their wares, any potential future terrorists (oh, excuse me, the bringers of man-caused disasters), a wonderful demonstration of the viability of their product.
While the world watched and whined. Our President promised a STERN united international response. (What would that be, yet another visit to the UN’s dreaded “Time Out Chair?”)


A lot of good that did. Somehow I get the feeling that there was no shaking in their collective boots going on. The North Koreans proved once again today that they are better at playing chicken than we are.


Our President today got up in front of his teleprompter and fired off a very stern lecture toward the North Korean government. He raged and promised that the UN was going to hear about this!! (shouldn’t they already have known all about it?) He declared that this will not be tolerated. Of course that statement is like closing the barn door after the horse is running for the hills. It doesn’t have to be tolerated, it’s already done.


The North Koreans today put into practice what many people spout off as rhetoric. They showed in graphic form that it is easier to ask for forgiveness rather than permission. The only caveat to that is, of course, they don’t plan to ask for forgiveness. They simply intend to thumb their nose at the rest of the world and do as they please. A few more ineffective sanctions from the UN aren’t going to deter or even make them think twice the next time they plan to behave badly.
I will admit that one thing President Obama said today was very true. He declared as he did often on the campaign trail as well, that “Words matter”.


Indeed they do. North Korea took that phrase to heart and demonstrated it in no uncertain terms.


They said they were going to launch their rocket, and today, they did.


Who is standing by their words now? The North Koreans that did what they said they were going to do and carried through or the rest of the world issuing their stern warnings and impotent sanctions yet again?


Unfortunately for us all, the question is a no-brainer and the majority is proving to be the ones drawing the short stick.


Heaven forbid we hurt any feelings or actually take a stand.


That would denote strength of spirit and will. We can’t have that anymore, now can we?

Come One, Come All..The New Heights of Absurdity in Politics

Step right up, and don't be shy!! You won't believe your eyes! Let’s turn our side show into the main attraction!

Come one, come all to the greatest show on earth!

Much like the walking the midway at the county fair, the side show barkers in Washington are turning the government into what amounts to a three ring circus. There are bizarre shows and distractions aplenty as you wander down the midway that call out for attention on the way to the main attraction now beginning under the Big Top. The clowns are piling into the itty bitty car in preparation for the big show to come.

Between all the companies that are too big to fail, stimulus packages that are too urgent to read before passing, and senate committee hearings being held solely to point fingers for the cameras with pseudo outrage that is a day late and several billion (trillion) dollars short, the goings on in our government would be almost entertaining if it wasn't all so tragic in it's scope and the irreversible damage that is being done to our country.

The finger pointing and flailing financial free-for-all occurring right now is unprecedented, even by modern political standards. Anyone with half a brain knows, if you keep putting enough stress on a situation, something's gotta give and it's most likely not going to be pretty when it all explodes.

Yesterday I sat and watched with morbid fascination and a few choice words hurled at the television, the show being played out in the Senate committee hearings yesterday. Don't get me wrong, I'm furious with AIG and it's mode of operations that put it, and by default, the American taxpayer in a vice.

What makes me even MORE incensed however, is the posturing going on by the politicians that enabled the practices to operate in the first place. Then with lightning speed (something not seen in the Halls of Congress), passed a monster BAILOUT (NOT a recovery and reinvestment act) plan that they didn't take the time to even READ first and allowed the very payouts of bonuses they are now squealing like stuffed pigs over. The finger pointing and posturing would be a box office comedy winner if it wasn't all so tragic and devastating to our futures.

The bonuses themselves are not going to sink the economy of course. They are just a symbol of the greater problem and the flavor of the day. They represent the flailing going on at the highest levels in this new administration in a misguided attempt to win friends and influence enemies, all under the guise of "hope and change". Not a darned thing has changed other than it's now playing out in a macabre slow motion slide that is in turn, hurting Americans from coast to coast on every level.

What makes all of this so different for the politicians? Why are they now acting out of panic and running around like schoolgirls caught with their panties down? It's simple...


THE AMERICAN PEOPLE ARE PAYING ATTENTION NOW LIKE NEVER BEFORE.


The government has always been able to count on one thing, the inattentiveness and short attention span of the public for anything that has to do with the day to day operations in Washington. We as a people over the years have been lazy. We've sat on the sidelines, only coming off the benches when something directly affects us. Presidential elections will guilt some into becoming active in the course of our country for a little while every 4 years.

Occasionally a scandal involving sex, power or money will raise mild outrage and garner a bit of hoopla before it fades into obscurity. The attacks on 9/11 rallied us around the flag for a while, but our memories have dulled with time of the absolutely heart wrenching pain and heartache we lived through as a nation just a few years ago. Our national outrage has almost disappeared in favor of being fair and politically correct to even those that wish us mortal harm.

Right now however, the public is watching and is increasingly mad as hell. Protests and tea parties are starting to pop up like the spring bulbs emerging from the ground. One thing our new administration miscalculated gravely, is this...Americans may have a short attention span...but when they are directly being affected and feeling the pain of a situation...it's polarizing. It's impossible to do business as usual in the Nation's capital and operate like the Wizard in Oz. People are paying attention to the man behind the curtain and they don't like what they are seeing.

Washington is slowly getting a clue about the angst and anger in the ground swell chorus that is building. The voices are not silent anymore, they are instead, polarizing in their volume and intensity..and the developing verdict for the performance of those used to operating under the cloak of secrecy and platitudes isn't good.

The light is on and many of the roaches are scurrying for the protection of the darkness. The only problem is, the public is starting to employ spotlights to reach into the dark crevices.

It's time for Washington to wake up, quit pointing fingers and blame at each other like a demented 3 Stooges saga, and actually make progress without throwing money we don't have at the problem.

Before we all wake up and find out our country is now owned by the rest of the world.

The Best and The Worst of Times

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...

It was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness.

It was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity...

It was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness.

It was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair,

We had everything before us, we had nothing before us.

We were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way . . ."

"All going direct the other way." Somehow with the news of AIG's latest and greatest claim to fame this morning of it's plan to give out 165 Million dollars, the "other way" that Dickens speaks of seems to indicate the other way we are all going directly to is in fact, hell in a hand basket. Do not pass go, do not collect $200 (of course, unless you're entitled to a bailout), do NOT go directly to jail, even if you are well deserving of doing so, it seems.

I don' t know about you, but I'm one of the so called "little people" or middle class or what is quickly becoming the group falling through the cracks. I'm not entitled enough to skate through on my "last" couple of million bucks or downtrodden enough to qualify for free handouts from the government (yet). I'm simply in the group of trying to be responsible and pay our bills the best way we can amongst growing unemployment or shrinking salaries. The ones making do with what we have, rather than trying to find ways to work the system or have someone swoop in and rescue us or pay our way.

Granted, day to day living is not always a bunch of laughs. I seem to have missed the memo where I was promised that life would always be fun or easy. Silly me, I was raised to find ways to take care of things that were my responsibility. While I'd love to live high on the hog all the time with penthouses, expensive vacations and lots of "toys", I was taught that I was old enough for my wants not to hurt me. I learned that if I can't afford something, then I have to wait until I can and make do with dreams until I find a way to make it happen. In doing so, I learned to appreciate the good things even more when they arrived or were earned. I learned pride and perseverance. Qualities all that need we are going to have to find again and learn to teach those survival skills to our children..many of whom have never heard the word no or had to do without.

So news this morning of yet more stupidity on MY hard earned dime is purely starting to piss me off. It turns out the division that is receiving the "gift" of our tax payer money in the form of bonuses, is the division whose risky contracts caused massive losses to the insurer in the first place. Has the world lost all sense of reason? Am I the ONLY one that sees the irony and idiocy in all of this? The taxpayer funded bailout (I refuse to call it the Recovery and Reinvestment Act, what a load of manure...playing with semantics won't make it more palatable) is in effect being used to REWARD those that cause it to be needed in the first place. The vivid image of a cat chasing it's tail comes to mind.

I personally don't give a flying flip that AIG is "contractually" obligated to pay these bonuses...the game and world has changed and along with it the rules. The excuse that they would be sued if they didn't fork over the money doesn't hold water with me. Let the people that helped cause this mess sue to get their blood money, I double dog dare them. If they have the kahonas to file a public lawsuit and face the public outrage, I say, let them go for it...but do NOT just meekly hand them the money. Make them actually do some work for it. Lord knows, they didn't do work or practice due diligence to earn it in the first place. When are we going to start putting our collective feet down and say we're mad as hell and NOT going to take it anymore??

The government and our illustrious administration is all over the place on every single issue put in front of it. They manage to come down on both sides of every issue, sometimes within the confines of a single speech. First we're in a catastrophic crisis that is going to get hellaciously worse. Then as of last week, all of the sudden, maybe it's NOT as bad as we thought? HUH?? Excuse me??? It just all leaves you scratching your head and saying what in heavens are they all thinking? ARE they thinking at ALL or is everyone just throwing a dart at a big board of possible outcomes and using it as the message of the day? No wonder the stock market and consumers are totally devoid of direction or confidence. I have said many times in the past 4 to 5 months, that my head is going to literally explode one of these days as I listen to yet one more speech or lecture from our leaders. Maybe that's the grand master plan...To have as many of us stroke out from frustration over the mixed messages, ineptitude and confusion being spread by those we elected to higher power.

I'm here to say, just as many others more learned than I am..that life is going to get a lot worse before it gets better. You can bet your bottom dollar on it or take it to the bank (just make sure it's a solvent one). We have all enjoyed the decades of excesses and must now fall back to earth and our roots. Many of us in our 40's or 50's remember our parents teaching us right from wrong. Somehow that message got lost or ignored along the way in the name of profit or greed or keeping up with the neighbor next door. We allowed ourselves to make excuses or allowances for why we deserved to have more than we had actually earned. It's now costing us all.

It's going to be painful, but not fatal. We are capable of fixing this mess and finding a sensible middle ground on which to now live. Will our world ever be the same again? No, I personally don't think so. This is not just a localized problem in our nation, it's a worldwide meltdown. The world and all our ways of living are now changed. Given the scope of the mess we're fighting our way through, we never should have been living life the way we were in the first place. Moderation and common sense are going to have to prevail.

It's not as bad as it sounds to find new ways of doing things. There will be positives amongst the icky stuff to come. We'll find who we can depend on and rediscover or find in the first place ways to enjoy ourselves and families without the distraction of so much "stuff" getting in the way. We will learn if we're smart enough to pay attention, that there are more things important than getting a new car every year or going on several fancy vacations a year so we can compare pictures with our friends and have a contest to determine who had the best time or spent the most money. Who knows? Simple pleasures just may be rediscovered along with the joy they can bring. To learn appreciation for living life without so much pressure to always have more and the finding that even the more is never enough.

We have to stop the stupidity of letting the inmates rule the asylum. To continue to let executives or those so used to "playing the game" keep sliding things past us on the rails of excuses or reasons why things CAN'T be changed, has to stop. The government has to develop a backbone, stop trying to please everyone and start handing out consequences for bad behavior. Let the big boys fail...nothing is TOO big or TOO important to fail. Someone or a better organization will rise to take their place.

It's the American way. Now we all just need to remember what that way is and work to build a better more stable foundation that has some common sense...and learn to savor the good things before always needing more.

The lyrics of a Styx song, "The Best of Times" come to mind...

Tonight's the night well make history honey, you and I..
And I'll take any risk to tie back the hands of time
And stay with you here tonight.

I know you feel these are the worst of times..
I do believe its true
When people lock their doors and hide inside.

Rumor has it its the end of paradise
But I know, if the world just passed us by
Baby I know, you wouldn't have to cry.

The best of times are when I'm alone with you
Some rain, some shine, we'll make this a world for two..
Our memories of yesterday will last a lifetime.

We'll take the best, forget the rest
And someday well find these are the best of times
These are the best of times

The headlines read these are the worst of times,
I do believe its true.
I feel so helpless like a boat against the tide.

I wish the summer winds could bring back paradise
But I know, if the world turned upside down
Baby, I know you'd always be around.

The best of times are when I'm alone with you
Some rain, some shine, we'll make this a world for two..
Our memories of yesterday will last a lifetime.

We'll take the best, forget the rest
And someday we'll find these are the best of times..
These are the best of times.

And
So my friends we'll say goodnight..for time has claimed its prize.
But tonight will always last
As long as we keep alive memories of paradise...

Why Waste a Good Crisis...

...when you can create widespread comic relief and chaos instead??







Let's put aside for the moment the pure idiocy and symbolism of giving a button to push, much less a RED button to the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as her opening salvo into discussions of US-Russian relations. Ummmm..HELLO?? How in heaven's name do translators get the intended word "Reset" somehow confused with "Overcharge"??? Where were the proofreading skills that I make even my kindergarten students practice? Perhaps a Freudian slip.


Let's totally disregard the fact that just last week it was leaked, rumored, whatever..that President Obama sent a letter a few weeks ago offering to put the brakes on or totally abandon the missile shield program overseas if Russia would "help" us in persuading Iran to play nice and give up their dangerous toys (can't have them putting anyone's eye out, now can we??)


Then our illustrious Hope and Change administration also managed to alienate British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and in the process look cartoonish, when in an epic (can't do anything small, now can we?) thoughtless gesture, gave him plastic gift shop helicopters and a DVD collection of American movies in exchange for a few priceless "trinkets" that he and his country bestowed on our new best hope. I guess Walmart didn't have any of the "As Seen on TV" products in stock to sweeten the gift pot.


I know what you're thinking...obviously DVDs and plastic helicopters stack up SO well with an ornamental desk pen-holder made from the oak timbers of the Victorian anti-slaver HMS Gannet, once named HMS President for the Resolute desk in the Oval office...the framed commission for HMS Resolute, a vessel that came to symbolise Anglo-US peace when it was saved from ice packs by Americans and given to Queen Victoria...and a first edition set of the seven-volume classic biography of Churchill by Sir Martin Gilbert. They also brought thoughtful handpicked gifts for the first girls.


The Obamas in turn, managed to treat the Gordons like the relative you see once a year at Christmas and use the last pennies of your gift budget to grab something on clearance...and in the process snub one of our staunchest allies. Mission Accomplished, Mr. President!! Please keep making us proud! Why not just give them a gift card while you're at it. At least that might have stimulated the economy in some way if they redeemed it.


When the Obama administration touted the fact that they were going to boost our reputation on the world stage again, I didn't think they meant the comedy stage. The world is starting to snicker at the United States and beginning to fall off the adoration bandwagon. The pedestals are being put away in favor of feet of clay.


The resounding chorus coming from the top...starting with Rahm Emanuel and echoed by Hillary Clinton this week...

~“Never waste a good crisis,” Clinton told a hearing at the European Parliament.
“And when it comes to the economic crisis, don’t waste it when it can have a
very positive impact on climate change and energy security.” … “This is a
propitious time … we can actually begin to demonstrate our willingness to
confront this. We are making up the best we can for lost time,” she
added.~

...when in the middle of a worldwide economic meltdown is chilling if you pay attention. Focus is being absolutely lost on the important immediate economic domestic issues in favor of cramming every single piece of expensive pet agendas through on the coattails of each piece of legislation being considered. Heck, ignore the fact that we are hemorrhaging money, let's revamp health care and give everyone a pig in a poke while we're at it!! Oh wait, those pigs probably cause global warming and might be construed as pork or need lipstick...better make it tainted peanut butter instead!!! Yeah, that's the ticket! That will build respect for us around the world!


Hold on to your goodie bags, it appears to be Howdie Doodie Time again!


Bless their hearts.

"Obama inherited a disaster and has created a catastrophe." Ann Coulter

I'm Not Worried...

I’m not worried about what President Obama is going to do “for” me..I’m worried about what the current administration is going to do “TO” me..”TO” our country and “TO” our freedoms. I realize that my way of thinking is a big difference from the people waiting in line for all the ways that the country can relieve them of all personal responsibility and save them. I realize, to my dismay, that I’m fast becoming the minority in our country.

I was raised to believe that life isn’t meant to be a cakewalk and always easy. We seem to be quickly becoming a nation of those that expect no consequences for poor personal decisions. We are becoming a nation of people that don’t know how to fail and then pick themselves up and find ways to be better than before. We are quickly becoming a nation of people that expect something for nothing in a bottomless all-you-can eat buffet of handouts and bailouts.

Where does it all stop? I used to think that things would hit bottom and we’d recover and be stronger than ever. It’s always been the American way..the dogged determination to find ways to succeed. It’s what has made our country unique over the decades. Our country was founded by those that left a hard life with little to no possibility for personal freedoms or growth and left all that they knew for an uncertain future where they could be in control of their own destiny.

I’m now not so sure there is a bottom to find. I get up each morning and check the headlines. It’s like we are in some bizarre loop as was portrayed in “Groundhog Day” and events just keep repeating over and over again..with more and more desperate flailing to try and stop the freefall.

Here’s a concept. Just stop.

Breathe.

Slow down and think first before simply reacting blindly without a clear direction.

Know that we are all going to hurt and not live charmed lives for a while. Let the American spirit that I still believe to be present in a lot of the population, albeit undrawn upon in recent years..to rekindle and resurface. Realize that life has changed, deal with it, and find ways to make it better. Will it be easy? Of course not! So many have forgotten or never learned in the first place that easy things are seldom as precious as those we fight or work for.

We need to not be ruled by fear and desperation that would lead to making hasty ill-advised decisions without thinking first. We need to learn to once again stand up on our own two feet and improvise when things get tough. While thankfully it’s not the case right now…I have known personally and lived through the uncertainty and fear of being without a job and wondering how you will provide for a family and pay bills and at times even meet the basic needs of food or health care. It purely sucks. I have always known how to “make do” with what is available and when the times aren’t as good, how to find ways to survive.

It’s a lost art that is going to have to be relearned by some and learned for the first time by many others. So many need to learn to not count on the government to bail them out or rescue them..to instead learn again how to depend on themselves.

The times and era of overindulgence and excess are over..perhaps for good. The world has changed in fundamental ways which will effect our way of life in this country as well. We all profited and benefited in ways large and small during the bountiful years and we are all going to hurt to some degree in the years to come.

Life has changed as we know it. It’s up to all of us to find ways to make it an adventure and to succeed. It will be difficult and at times purely terrifying. That is part of living..as uncomfortable and unwanted as some parts of that life can be, there are always bright spots to be found and cherished if you take the time to look for them. If you stop expecting rescue and readjust your thinking to realize each day is a new opportunity. Every day is different. The next day may be just as lousy as the one before, but it will be different with different opportunities to make a change or a difference. The next day is rarely always just as bad. Sometimes the good might be minuscule in it’s scope, but it’s there if you look for it.

We are Americans. We are NOT due or promised a charmed life. We ARE promised our freedoms and the ability to make our own decisions as to what is best for our own families.

We need to remember that..find our courage and our bootstraps..and start pulling OURSELVES up.

I for one, don’t want to have to depend on the kindness of others for my day to day existence. While I’m not above asking for help if it’s a matter of survival or life and death, I’m also not afraid of struggle and hardship. It makes the good times sweeter when they come..and they will come eventually. Those good times may not be exactly as we envisioned…but savor them anyway.

Learn how to be proud Americans again and not a wimpy nation of those waiting and expecting to be taken care of by others. Learn to deal with hardship and be innovative and inventive. It’s the American way that has been lost.

Fight to get it back. Don’t wait for others to do the work and think that you can’t possibly make a difference. Learn to be the ONE person you can always count on. Trust yourself and realize that this too will all pass. The better times may not arrive on our schedule or be exactly what we imagined, but...

There ARE better days ahead for us all.

Reality, The Final Frontier...What a Concept!

In life, there will come a time when you have to admit a few things to yourself...if you dare. The sheer force of your will is not enough. You can only do what YOU can do in situations, both in your life or in events that concern you...but ultimately you cannot make anyone else do the things you think they should or the things you need for them to do for your peace of mind. You cannot control everything around you all the time. There will be situations in which you have to trust enough and go with your gut feeling or let someone else take the lead, even if you believe it's not the shortest path to where you need to go or you can't see the outcome from the start. You will fail from time to time, and if you don't...then you're not playing fair somewhere along the line.

Even someone that loves you or that you love with all your heart, will at times disappoint or hurt you. It's up to you to decide what you do about it and whether the hurt is a temporary and sometimes necessary curve in the journey, or whether it's a detour that won't ever lead to where you want to be. If the person is truly important to you and your life, weigh these choices carefully before you act. Some bridges can never be recrossed once they are traveled over. There will be times though, when enough is enough. Learn the difference.

Not every day will be a good one. Some days will swing from the highest highs to the lowest lows with remarkable speed simply because of an unexpected phrase or thoughtless comment expressed from someone you trust, love or depend on. These comments are probably not thought twice about, much less ever meant to upset you. Try to remember that hurt feelings are not fatal.

Remember when someone acts in ways that confound or confuse you out of the blue, that they might in fact be coming from a place of fear themselves and their behavior is a protective measure on their part. Don't always make it about yourself. Stop to consider what else may be going on beneath the surface and why. Also stop to remember why they are in your life in the first place and that you want them there for a reason.

Tell or show people how important they are to you often...just because, and don't expect it in return or be hurt if the people around you don't always do the same to you. Love and respect can't be mandated or scheduled for others by you. At times love is only a silent player much like the wind...some days it's a gale, some days a mere breeze. You can feel it in every fiber of your being without always having to have flashy demonstrations of it's existence. Learn to appreciate all the subtle nuances of it's presence as well..they are just as precious..at times more so.

People love and express love in their own unique, individual ways. None of these ways are perfect, nor can be judged as right or wrong. Just because someone doesn't love you exactly the way you want them to, doesn't mean they aren't giving you all they are capable of giving. If it's not enough for YOU, it is then your problem..not theirs. Only you can decide to walk away or not at that point. Don't get involved with someone expecting to change them or for them to change for you. We females are notorious for this.

Whether you consider yourself religious, spiritual or a freak of nature that is on this Earth by mere coincidence of atoms colliding...the Good Book still has some common sense rules of humanity to live by. Treat others as you'd like to be treated...don't always envy what someone else has and take for granted the good things in your own life...and karma or fate or destiny (whatever you choose to call it) will indeed come full circle if you choose to tempt it too many times. Don't cry over spilt milk and don't assume that getting said milk without ever any commitment to the cow will be without consequences.

Bottom line, growing up is not for the faint of heart. Courage, responsibility and honor are not givens in your character, but developed by the way you choose to live your life and treat others.
Try not to be trivial or sleaze your way through life..make a difference where you can, while you can. Make your mark on this world instead of being like gum on the bottom of someones shoe.

If these simple common sense concepts are too much for your meager brain to handle or for your corrupt soul to fathom, then trust me...you won't have many people eager to spend time with you. Playing dumb or trying to be "cute" all the time without ever being real, wears thin quickly. Have some substance and backbone in all that you do, even during play.
Learn to make a difference.

Begin with you.

The Good, The Sad and the Pissy

10 THINGS THAT ROYALLY PISS ME OFF

1. People online that only send those lazy mass messages to everyone on their friend's list, thinking that somehow "counts" as conversation or is appealing to be included in a mass cattle call with a generic message. One observation, the gender that does this the most is the male. Heaven forbid you actually send real messages to a specific person, rather than seeing who you might get to "bite" on the impersonal ones. At least if you choose to do that, have the sense to check the box to hide everyone else's name from each other. *rolling my eyes*

2. When friends are hurt or played by others using pretty words to get what they want from them, then the player moves on to the next person without any thought of the pain or doubt they've caused along the way.

3. Paying over 100 dollars a month for Cable or Satellite TV, and still not have anything to watch on hundreds of channels other than reruns of movies made back in the 80's that weren't very good to begin with.

4. People that don't even start to write their check or get their 1000's of coupons ready while in a long line...then stand there asking millions of stupid questions that should be common sense or make the poor bagboys go run endless price checks over a penny difference in price.

5. Drivers who stay in the wrong lane deliberately in hopes of getting a couple of cars ahead in traffic, then will sit and block BOTH lanes in an effort to force themselves into the lane they should have stayed in to begin with.

6. People that ask on your birthday...well, how does it feel to be "X" years older? Ummmm...about the same as it did this time yesterday.

7. Trying to get into just about ANY product these days without slashing a vein in the process from the packaging. When I have to haul out screwdrivers, wire cutters and other assorted power tools to get into things I've bought, it's a tad frustrating. Add to that, when I DO get into said purchase, I have to HUNT to find the instructions in ENGLISH. (do NOT even get me started on this..Can we say English IS our national language, learn it or leave?) Oh, and even when you've paid for something and you STILL set off the alarms leaving the store.

8. Having to show my ID, birth certificate, first born AND provide a DNA sample so I can buy decongestant so my nose doesn't run during a cold or allergy season. Heaven forbid, I try to take advantage of the sale price and buy TWO boxes within a week!! Lord knows, that is grounds to be fingerprinted and hauled off to jail!

9. Those little stickers they put on fruit and veggies. Trying to peel those suckers off is at times like trying to pry off something they've welded in place. I have an idea...how about the cashiers actually learn what the produce looks like?

10. Adults, who in middle age, still can't manage to handle a new relationship or full of passion with any common sense and without taking into account their partner's feelings. Ones that close off and take the easy route over taking a chance just because someone will challenge and make them grow, rather than stay in a rut that was unsatisfying in many ways for many years. Not even giving someone a true chance to see what might happen.

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10 THINGS THAT MAKE ME SAD

1. Goodbyes. Not the ones where you know you'll see or hear from that person again...but the ones that are final. (I'm not great at the temporary ones either, I'm too soft-hearted...but can handle those)

2. Seeing an unloved or neglected child. Some children live in big houses with everything they want...but attention and/or love from their parents.

3. Being lied to when I've let someone close. While I'm friendly, open and outspoken to just about everyone I meet...there are few that I truly trust completely enough with my entire being. If and when I take the time to let someone in and they turn their back or ignore out of fear of change all the things shared...it hurts and makes me withdraw inside myself again. Each time a little more of me dies and a little more of my faith in possibilities is gone. I become more closed off and jaded.

4. Seeing someone with an illness from which there is no cure. Bad things do indeed happen to good people at times and there is no rhyme or reason. Along with the sadness and frustration at not being able to "fix" it, is usually also such wonder and respect for the grace and charm and courage of those that live with the physical challenges and pain.

5. Lack of physical contact with someone special. No, not only sex...but that connection with someone that is not only your lover to laugh and joke with...but the connection with a best friend that literally knows you inside out and not being able to share that affection and intimacy of spirit anymore...passionate promises that don't have to have intent, but are merely to show love.

6. If my children are struggling or hurting...emotionally or physically. There is nothing worse than standing by and knowing you have to let them make their own mistakes and learn some lessons on their own, and seeing the pain that some of their choices can cause.

7. Cruelty just for the sake of meanness. There are an increasing number of people in the world that are out for number one and don't care what they have to do or who they have to hurt to get what they want. There has been a fair amount of this happening online lately.

8. Not having the time or means at times to do some of the things important to me or that I want immediately when I want them. I'm comfortable...have all the things I really need though...so this is mostly impatience or frustration. The sad passes quickly. Waiting builds character and things usually work out as they should...good or bad. Sometimes when I do get what I want, and then I wish I hadn't!

9. Lack of manners or class. Today's world is losing a vital component to life. Being polite or helping someone is becoming a lost art. Everyone is in such a hurry that it's easier to be inconsiderate and out for number one, than to take the time to smile and perhaps make someone else's day....to give a compliment for work well done or hold a door open. Manners and class are NOT dependant on income, they are dependant on being a good human being and having a heart and soul...on good upbringing. I know many people with wealth that have no soul or class, and many that struggle through life working more than one job that are a step above us all in the way they live their life.

10. Too much Political Correctness and the inability to accept responsibility for our own actions or just ignore what bugs you. We are not doing our society any favors by raising a generation of children that cannot just turn the other cheek without retaliation or retribution, even for the smallest offenses. We are quickly becoming a society of people that cannot or will not turn the other cheek or just simply let something pass without argument.

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Okay...NOW on to my Happy Things...

10 THINGS THAT MAKE ME SMILE, LAUGH, FEEL SUNSHINE IN MY SOUL...AND HAPPY

1. My family. Hands down, no question...number one. Growing up, I always KNEW I wanted to be a Mom. I never cared about a career, didn't need success or acclaim to validate me...I did know I needed and wanted children....and I got three great ones. Now granted, they make me nuts at times...but I NEVER wish my life had taken a different turn in this area. My family also includes my parents and sister and now her family. THEY are all the most important thing in my life and the ONLY thing I couldn't exist without.

2. Teaching. I adore making a difference in children's lives...and know that I do make that difference each and every day I'm in the classroom. When a child's face lights up even after you've taken 5 minutes away of their play time the day before, JUST to see you in the hall and they run up to hug you...you know you've done something right. To hear a child read a sentence or sound out a word for the first time and KNOW you turned that light bulb on...it's priceless.

3. Unexpected Friends. I've always been a bit of a loner. I love to have friends, but am also comfortable on my own if need be. As I said above, I don't let people close to me lightly or quickly...let people see me totally uncensored and unrestricted...but the past year I have found a several people that have surprised me and made my spirit smile. Some are on here, some at school...and all are very special and now my friends. I look forward to more unexpected surprises.

4. Life. It's amazing really...just the act of being alive...it's such a precious gift, each second is priceless. So many take it for granted as if it's guaranteed to each of us. It's not...and if you waste any of it...don't experience each and everything you can...the good and the bad, you haven't really lived.

5. Learning in any form. I crave knowledge and learning new things each day just makes me happy. It means that you're still growing and not merely existing and taking up space.

6. Naps. This is a new one in the past 2 or 3 years. I've finally come to appreciate the beauty of a good nap. I don't sleep well at night (I think because I don't like sleeping alone and can't turn my brain off), so a good nap is sometimes needed to recharge me for the rest of the day. Now...I'd prefer a SHARED naptime...even if it meant a lot less sleep..but then I'd REALLY be smiling!

7. A hot tub on the deck of an isolated cabin in the mountains with a great view. Spending a lazy week or weekend with no plans (and possibly no clothes), but plenty available to do if wanted...then retreating back to a private paradise. The Pigeon Forge/Wears Valley area up in TN is one of my favorite places in the world...along with the North Georgia mountains. It's been too long since I got away for a few days.

8. Summertime and all it entails. Fresh strawberries and whipped cream. Tomato sandwiches made with homegrown 'maters from my garden. Late nights and late mornings. Laying out in the pool under the stars. No schedule to speak of on many days.

9. Making someone smile that wasn't smiling when I first see them. Many of my long time friends on here have heard me say this before...I love to take the time to share a smile with people that I will never see again. To take the time to ask how their day is or how they are and really LISTEN to their answer and let them know I actually want to hear. To take the extra minute or two to give a compliment when someone has done a good job or been helpful. To listen to a child that no one else is even noticing and make them feel important. I will even track down managers in stores or restaurants if someone has really touched me with something they've done or their attitude. It costs nothing but my time, but means so much.

10. A song on the radio that brings back memories. To suddenly hear a song that takes you back to a time in your life, fun or painful...and you find yourself right back in the moment...the emotions, the feel, even the sights, smell or sounds. To hear a new song that you KNOW is going to be one of those future important songs that marks a time in your life one day and makes you feel alive and want to sing and dance along...although this can bring on sadness as well.

Where Are The Hair Clippers & Duct Tape When We Need Them?

Where Are The Hair Clippers & Duct Tape When We Need Them?

I was just watching an interview with the morons that closed down Boston yesterday. I'm using the word "morons" generously as I watch them "perform" for the cameras. They are flip, disrespectful and totally unrepentant that their idiocy put an entire city's emergency resources on high alert for the entire day...not to mention inconvienced and put in danger all the daily commuters as highways, mass transit and waterways were completely shut down. Trust me, the one with the dreadlocks better thank his lucky stars that I'm not his Mom..of course if I WERE his Mother, he wouldn't have gotten to this point and be so extreme in his actions, thoughts or looks. Heck, I threaten to cut my son's hair while he sleeps if he doesn't get regular haircuts that make him at least look human. Self-expression is one thing, while being totally irresponsible and looking like a throw rug, is another.

(If you missed their "perfomance", here is a link to the video...Click Here)

WHAT is wrong with some of the youth today? These are the people we are going to have to count on one day to keep us safe, to run our country. Now admittedly, some of our contemporaries at times drop the ball, BUT they often err on the side of trying to be too responsible, to do too much rather than doing nothing at all and leaving everything to fate and a Ouija board/Magic 8 ball.

I have great respect and hope for a lot of our youth. I see so many bright minds, so much potential in many bright faces going through the school systems. On the other hand however, I also see way too many that have absolutely no direction in life...no respect for anything or anyone. I grew up in the 60's and 70's so I know that many of our generation that began their lives as flower children or in a different era managed to pull it all together and grow into adults with purpose. What I'm seeing from a lot of young people today, is not the same. The world today is regrettably different. It's a more serious place..it's truthfully a meaner and more intense place. The dangers in the world today are more widespread and more focused.

I watched the events yesterday develop through the hours at a time in our lives where we have to be more vigilant for our safety, for the safety of our loved ones...and even though it started to unfold as someone thumbing their nose at the system....it still could not be ignored. The statement that we have to be right all the time, while a potential terrorist only has to be right once, is so true. I wish to holy hell it wasn't, but those are the cards we have been dealt and there is no going back. I'm sure that wrecks with injuries had to wait much longer for a response time as well as other valid 911 calls for people in need as the city was for the most part shutdown in the name of caution while safety was guaranteed in what turned out to thankfully be numerous cases of hoax and pretense.

Perhaps I'm a little more sensitive than most to some of this. Between being in the classroom and the training I've had to receive over the past few years to be in the air (and frankly courage somedays to board some of the planes), I will admit I have almost ZERO patience for pranks or flippancy where safety is concerned. I realized this morning that in some ways I'm turning into my parents, and at the same time also realized, I'm thanking my lucky stars they instilled a lot of this in me. The old fashioned qualities of responsibility, of country and self...all qualities I've tried to make sure that my children have. My children are far from perfect. They have mouths and opinions (and have inherited those qualities honestly from me)...BUT they have a love of country...a love of family...and manners and respect at their core, where it matters and will emerge fully one day.

So, these boys need to be put under a jail...not be on TV getting their 15 minutes of fame acting like fools. What they did was serious and dangerous, not to mention stupid and totally irresponsible. The youth of today needs to realize they have the complete and total freedom to act or say what they want...as long as they also accept the knowledge that by doing so, there are consequences...sometimes very severe ones that are not able to be wiggled out of by being cute and flip. Life carries responsibility for yourself and for others. It is not a world where the only one your actions impact is your own life. Life is like ripples in a pond...something small radiates out from the middle and sometimes, depending on the initial impact...can have a major effect in what occurs in the end.

On a day where a veteran from the Iraqi war that lost both legs is being recognized for his service and given a chance to run his own business due the the good heart of the Little Caesar's founder...this drivel takes over the news. Our priorities have gone to to hell in a handbasket.

My 10 Commandments of Blogging (Or Thou Shalt Not Be a Sleeze)

My 10 Commandments of Blogging

1. Thou shalt not whine, b*tch, gripe, complain or try to guilt "friends" into liking you or constantly complain about your general lack of attention in blogs, blasts and quick comments. It's reminicient of the old childhood ditty of "No one likes me, everyone hates me...I'm going to the garden to eat worms" and completely irritating. Mmmmmmmm'kay...go right ahead, protein is good for you.

2. Thou shalt not send private messages (even the very nice and humorous ones) and then leave people absolutely NO way to answer you. If your options are set to receive messages from people on your friend's list only, your quick comments on your page are not accessible for anyone but friends (and you only have one friend on your page in the first place), and/or your yahoo ID is not listed so that someone can send you an email or messenger answer...that's a HUGE problem and frustrating! You should not send message after message and then wonder why no one answers you. (BEAR!!! NO ONE CAN ANSWER YOU IF YOU DON'T CHANGE YOUR SETTINGS!! *wink*)

3. Thou shalt not have the right ("gentlemen") to fuss WHEN (not if) the combination of women you put on your page resembling the hoochie mama convention in Las Vegas start to turn on you and each other trying to compete in who will out-slut each other. Men, you reap what you sow. Try to remember that we females have absolutely no common sense at times and you will (read that, you WILL) have some females on your list that could have appeared in Fatal Attraction boiling bunnies. They will make your life miserable if you start to flirt with every single female online when they thought they were special. I know it's fun to attract 300 of your bestest naked buddies (even the ones with fake pics) so it looks like you're the Hugh Hefner of the internet...but just be ready when it starts to explode. (or when you catch something from sleeping around with everyone that will share you in real life for a "meaningful" one night stand)

4. Thou shalt not ("ladies") have the right to complain about, stalk, threaten to kill yourself, nor trash a man's reputation by going to every female on his page to "warn" his friends about him...if you've made a bad choice or been naive enough to fall in love with a total stranger "bad boy" online without ever meeting/dating him before you jump into bed with him. If you find the afore mentioned "bad boys" unbearly attractive, then also realize there is a reason they have that label and as in #3, you will get what you asked for. They WILL be bad with you and will earn that reputation by being scum with you too. Do not post endless blogs bemoaning the fact that you've been an idiot and how it's all his fault. Pull up the big girl panties already, learn and move on. There is such a thing as the high road.

5. Thou shalt not put thy full real name, social security number, phone number and address online for all the world to see...not even to get birthday presents or so that people can help you out in paying your electric bill. Not only is it a "tad" dangerous, it just means we'll have to all take up a collection to have the word "stupid" tattooed on your forehead. Privately sharing your personal information with people you have actually known for a while and form a connection with is perfectly acceptable if you have been tested and found to have common sense and a bit of intuition. If in real life, you constantly find yourself surrounded with people that disappoint or mistreat you, assume you have not passed the common sense test.

6. Thou shalt not change your blast every five minutes by moving a puncutation mark or adding a space, just to get people to notice you and perhaps visit your page. Chances are it will not have the desired effect and only label you as suffering from a severe case of LACK OF ATTENTION DISORDER.

7. Thou shalt not have a totally blank profile and expect to have everyone flock to be your friend. If you have no pictures (even an avatar), no information...not even a cheesy quote on your page, prepare to be pretty lonely. Even if you might be a hot babe or stud muffin man in real life (not likely, but it could happen)...having no personality or a personality that is only player-like in appearance, is pretty much a boring turn-off.

8. Thou shalt not proclaim regularly of having to clean your list up or have a count down to deletion. If you feel the need to trim your "friends" list of the deadwood, just go the heck ahead and do it, but quietly. If you feel the need to announce it ad nauseum...beg, plead, threaten or conjole your "friends" to flock to your page to announce their fidelity and everlasting loyalty to you, it defeats the purpose. To make a "friend" feel the need to apologize for not visiting your page on YOUR schedule and for letting their real life intrude on your online only friendship isn't very friend-like. This is online people. If you don't know someone in real life, you need to realize they have different priorities and things happening in their life that might intrude on this wonderful circus called cyberspace. Everyone here has a different commitment level or reason for being here...along with differing ways of interacting. None of them are right or wrong. If their way of interacting doesn't meet up with the highly unrealistic expectations you cook up in your thought process of how they should handle online interactions, that is your problem, not theirs. Just delete them without fanfare and find other minions that will kiss your butt the way you want them to.

9. Thou shalt not send friend requests simply consisting of the basic standard invitation or one that only includes your desire to cam. If you're only here to get your rocks or rockettes off (while still being totally in love with your spouse or significant other and always faithful...news alert, if you form emotional connections or vitually get naked with others on here, it's not fidelity, even with the spouse's "permission" *rolling my eyes*), more power to you...just don't expect that everyone you find attractive or throw an empty barrage of compliments at is going to immediately fall under your spell and want get nekkid for you. As for just sending the basic invitation, don't assume someone won't visit your page and discover your fetish for spanking, three-somes, and f*cking animals or that you are a total dork too lazy to do anything to your page BEFORE they click accept.

10. Thou shalt not repeatedly call attention to how many people have visited your page or act like a teenager in a high school popularity contest, crawling over others or figuratively screwing anyone you meet (without the benefit of lube) in an attempt to fuel your own ego. If you're getting tons of hits, that's a great thing. Hopefully, it's because you're an interesting, lovely or studly person that people want to be around and actually enjoy interacting with and reading what you have to say. If it's simply because you're an attention whore (male or female) pulling stunts, creating drama or acting like the town ride to order to gain the title of Mr. or Ms. Popularity that you do not enjoy in real life (usually for good reason), you will indeed get a reputation...just probably not the one you were aimming for. Here's a radical idea...try being yourself. You might be pleasantly surprised to find a lot of other people online that actually like you for yourself and not the caricature you hide behind.

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Bonus:

11. Thou shalt NOT send mass messages to everyone on your list either proclaiming your love for "me" and/or the demonic version of an online chain letter. Please don't hit me with the sexy truck, warn me to not add the latest rumored hacker that will erase my hard drive, or tell me how special I am (along with every other female on your list that you're trying to cam with). If you feel the need to send something around, at least have the ability to know how to hide the fact that it's not an exclusive message by checking the box on the messages to hide the other recipients ID's. If you are incapable of doing this, you will be quietly deleted from my list (see #8 above) if it occurs over and over again after I've asked you politely to knock it off. It's frustrating to have everyone that you sent it to, hit "reply all" and to get the same message (that was silly in the first place) 300 more times from total strangers.