Vote

After the last presidential debate, Bob Schieffer said “ As I always do at the end of these debates, I leave you with the words of my mom, who said, “ go vote it will make you feel big and strong.”  In many races, national, state and local, it is too close to call which means that every vote really does count. One week from today we will head to the polls to vote in the general election. WE are making ourselves heard for not only who our president should be,but also for U.S. senator, our governor, attorney general.  Also for local offices, judges, school boards and more.  I would not even try to tell you what candidate to vote for, there are enough TV ads, and news papers to tell you that. Besides I think most folks already have their minds made up. My point is much simpler than that. My point is ------ Vote Nov. 6. Be sure to do your homework then cast your vote, every vote does count. In todays tech world there is unlimited information about the candidates available at the click of your mouse.  But remember not everything on the net is truth.

Out my door

 

 
 

 

 
My kids from Australia thought it was great fun to rake leaves.  They don't have anything like this where they are from and it was very exciting for her. We have a leaf vacuum that comes around and sucks up the leaves each day.. another exciting thing.  Is funny how our every day can be so different to someone else. 

Abby Cadabby at the Childrens Zoo aka Morgan

5 on Friday

 
1. Think back to your years of Trick or Treating:  Which one of your past Halloween costumes are you most proud of?
 This one is easy. My favorite costume I was a gypsy! This was in the 60's and I had a flowing skirt made from scarves, very bright and colorful. My long hair had flowers in it. I wore lots of beads. LOL maybe I was a hippy but it was supposed to be a gypsy!
2. What is the format of your favorite radio station?  (In other words, what type of music does it play?)
My favorite radio station plays music from the fifties, sixties, seventies, and eighties.
3. What is the oldest thing in your medicine cabinet?
Oldest thing in my medicine cabinet is a box of band aids. It is metal, any one remember those? It is about 30 years old.
4. What kind of book do you most prefer:  e-book, hardback, paperback, audio or library?
Favorite type of book....hummmmm.....no way I can pick that. If it has words it is a favorite.
5. What is your favorite comfort food and when was the last time you felt bad enough that you needed a big helping of it?
Chocolate is my favorite comfort food. About 2 weeks ago life was bad for me and I bought some Milky Ways  and ate them all.

Conniving

 

I think I might need help. I recently found this bargain hunting website that I've maybe become addicted to. And I'm getting greedy. People go to this website to share helpful information on easy ways to get things really cheaply or for free. But these cheap/free things come with certain conditions, like maybe you have to fill out a short survey, or test a product, or it says something about one per household. Any I just sit here and rack my brain for ways to buck the system and maybe end up with two per household.
And the thing is that these aren't necessarily scamming internet companies that promise to pay you twelve cents every time you sign up and give your credit card number to some shady company. Or companies that secretly send spyware and viruses to your computer whilst you peruse their site. Generally it's just some honest company that, you know, wants you to try its product or its service and in turn offers the product free to a limited amount of people, or offers a reward for trying out the service. Or maybe it's just some company having a short-lived blow out sale.
So, here's my shameful story for today. A few months ago, I signed up for a  magazine, which I've never read before in my life, because it was free for a year.  I was tired of living in a periodical-free zone, so I figured, what the heck? A week or so ago, I got my first magazine, the Oct issue. I looked through it. Not too shabby for a free issue. No complaints. But. A couple days later, I got another magazine. The September issue. OK, kind of weird. Whatever. Then, today, I got the August issue. That annoyed me. Yeah, I didn’t pay for the subscription, but still. So, I called their subscription 800 number and complained that they sent me two back issues that I had already purchased from the news stand (which maybe wasn't necessarily true, but, in my opinion, no less shady than them sending me back issues in the first place). They happily extended my subscription for two months. It was a 45-second phone call.
You know, whenever I feel kind of bad about these sorts of things, I just think about the people from this website who will drive hundreds of miles armed with loads of coupons, just because some grocery store in Biloxi is having a triple coupon day, and they get like $400 dollars worth of stuff they might not have otherwise bought for $36. Or I think about the people who drive to every single Walgreens (for instance) in the tri-state area to purchase every available weird-ass item that's on some kind of super-duper-special sale. I'm not as bad as those people. Yet. But keep an eye on me, OK?

13 days

anticipation  \an-tih-suh-PAY-shun\  noun
What does it mean?
  1 : an earlier action that takes into account and deals
with or prevents a later action 
  2 : pleasurable expectation 
  3 : the act of preparing for an expected event or state


Mouse Print: Please if this offends you, or you disagree,  do NOT leave me a nasty mean comment,  Please do what I do and just move along. I am respectful of others views and I expect the same in return.  Thanks!

New American Dream?

 

How to write this post without offending anyone? Hmm. These are just my thoughts this week as a fixed income person trying to make ends meet. First off, it is not lost on me how lucky I am, so don't think I am whining because my thoughts do not stem from that but from my day to day life doing what we are all doing, trying to stretch a very thin dollar even thinner.
Everything that I need to buy is skyrocketing and it seems no one is going to do anything about it. Gas is so high that you really have to think before you drive anywhere. Now when gas prices raise like this guess what goes up next? Food, yes already sky high food prices are bound to climb again. If it costs more to ship food the higher prices will  follow.
When fuel prices adjust do the food prices and all the other goods we need go down? No they don't. So I ask is this the new normal? There is no way my fixed income will keep up with these rising costs. Living on less has become the norm for me and I do live a life where I  have enough to eat and a nice roof over my head and I know some do not. I know personally others who do not have  because of job loss and other reasons.
But I want to have hope in the future for my grandkids. I hear of graduates who cannot get jobs. How does  someone graduate top of class and find it hard to get a job? I know keeping at it is important and hopefully jobs will be found, but this is not what it looked like for me when I graduated from high school. It is not what it looked like even a few short years ago.
We are facing a point  in our country where we may not turn these things around. I will not get political on here as that is not my format but I will say it how it is for me as I see it and live it every day. No matter who wins this next election, I ask again is this the new normal? After a while I fear we will forget more of how it was and accept a new lower standard of the American Dream.

Small Print: Please if this offends you, or you disagree,  do NOT leave me a nasty mean comment,  Please do what I do and just move along. I am respectful of others views and I expect the same in return.  Thanks!

5 on Friday

1. You’re RICH! For a day, then it’s gone. What do you do?
Well, I never really have been one for cross dressing. But for one day I can be Richard (I prefer full names, no nicknames). I am pretty sure my people might get a little confused, but what the hay..it is really none of their business!
2. Why do all superheroes wear spandex?
To show off all the bulging body parts that really should be kept a secret. Who knew Batman's nipples were so big?
3. You can be anyone (dead, alive, past or present) for one day. Who would it be, and why?
I would have to be Princess Diana. Is the Queen really as much of a bore as she appears? Or does she, in complete secrecy, drink wine, swing from chandeliers, tell dirty jokes?
4. If you have chocolate, rope, a wood screw and a fish, what do you have?
Ooohh..fish fondue swinging from the chandelier in the Queen's private chambers. (see #3)
5. Who were you in a past life?
I was probably a cat. I really enjoy lazing about and pretending to look busy! Plus, I like to be groomed before I go anywhere!

Invisible Passenger?

 

While driving home the other day I noticed the passenger seat belt light blinking off and on.
Now, I knew I was alone in the car, but I had to glance over into the passenger seat anyway, just to be sure that someone hadn't snuck in while I wasn't looking.
Nope, no one there. But the darn light was still blinking. I look at the seat again, just a manila folder with 3 sheets of paper and my purse.
Hmm...my purse. Could it be? No, you have to weigh like a gazillion pounds to get the darn thing to blink, right?
Let's see, what is in my purse. It is rather smallish, only about 8 inches high by 8 inches wide. Made out of cotton by Vera Bradley. Inside, I have a couple of pens, an extra set of keys  What else,  lipstick, chap stick, a couple inhalers, tons of loose change, my glasses, my oxygen tank, cell phone and my wallet.
Holy $hit, do you have any idea the amount of change in my bag or how much that weighs?
Okay, I have now cleaned it out, let's see what happens next time I go out!

payback

An old man and woman were married for many years, even though they didn't like each other.
Whenever there was a confrontation, yelling could be heard deep into the night.
The old man would shout, "When I die, I will dig my way up and out of the grave and come back and haunt you for the rest of your life!"
Neighbors feared him. They believed he practiced magic because of the many strange occurrences that took place in their neighborhood.
The old man liked the fact that he was feared. To everyone's relief, he died of a heart attack when he was 98. His wife had a closed casket at the funeral.
After the burial, she went straight to the local bar and began to party as if there was no tomorrow.
Her neighbors, concerned for her safety, asked "Aren't you afraid that he may indeed be able to dig his way out of the grave and haunt you for the rest of your life?"
The wife put down her drink and said, "Let him dig. I had him buried upside down. And I know he won't ask for directions."

I remember

• Girls were not allowed to wear pants to school
• Cashiers in grocery stores entered the price of each item in your cart manually into the cash register
• Babies were laid across the mothers laps while the mother was driving .

Okay, I didn't say everything I remembered was okay!

• When schools actually had lockers for books to be kept in
• If you misbehaved in school, you got a "whack" with a paddle the size of Alaska
• You didn't misbehave in school a second time
• Spring Break was called Easter Break
• The only radio stations were AM
• Which you listened to on your Transistor Radio
• Your class all stood and repeated The Pledge of Allegiance and the Lord's Prayer each morning.
• Playing outside until Mom would yell your names throughout the neighborhood.
• Playing "Kick the Kan" in the street with all the neighborhood kids.
• If a girl was going out on a date, he had to meet her father first.
• Black and White TV
• An ashtray in a new car was not considered an option.
• 
  
• The A/C in our house was a "swamp cooler". Which consists of a box, fan, vents and the garden hose dripping cold water into the back of it. (yes it was purchased that way)
• Cloth Diapers (my sisters)
• When TV Dinners were first available!
• Friday and Saturday nights were "date night"

Okay, what do you remember?

R.I.P. Steve Brangan

Cancer is a killer.
I don't think there is one person out there who can say they have not been touched by cancer.
I truly believe that if you have not personally been diagnosed with some type of cancer, then you have had a family member who has been diagnosed; or you have a co-worker who has been diagnosed; or a friend who has been diagnosed; or you have had a friends family member diagnosed; or you have been in a store and seen one of those neighborhood jars asking for donations for someone fighting cancer.
If we are not personally touched, then we know someone who is.
We lost a great guy, Steve Brangan. He was my LinCare delivery man. Always up beat, smiling and bragging about his wife.  He passed away last month.  I will miss him.
Here is a link to part of his story. 
Steve and Andrea's Love story

Monday with Morgan

 

 

Morgan modeling some of my creations.. I asked her nicely to put the Santa hat on for me.. she looked at it.. looked at me.. and said “No thank you”  Her daddy coaxed her into it but I don’t think her heart was into it.

In other news my kids are on the way home. They are over the south pacific as I write this. After a very long flight they will land in L.A tomorrow and be in Indianapolis tomorrow night. 

5 on Friday

1. Do you have a dream you will always strive to achieve until your dying day?
I do have a goal, but it's one I'd like to achieve before my dying day.
 
2. Do you believe in fate or free will, or something else?
A little of both. Fate deals us the cards, we play the hand.

3. Marilyn Monroe. Conspiracy or tragic accident?
Conspiracy.
 
4. Favorite childhood sweets/candy?
I am more of a chocolate girl – Mounds 

5. Favorite cocktail (alcoholic or virgin) and it's ingredients?
Strawberry Daiquiri and I have no idea I just know it is goooood. 


I have been busy getting ready for another visit from my family who live in Australia. I am so excited and will probably not be on line much. They are staying a month this time.  It will be so nice to have my boy home again for a visit.. and his girl too! 

dirty politics

Wow only 4 more weeks to go till the election. I no longer enjoy the process. I hate the dirty part of politics.  I hate the name calling and the skewed “truth”.  I am ready to put the whole thing behind me.  I am pretty sure that by now there are not many who have not made up their minds one way or another on who they will vote for. Neither of the candidates are new faces. We have had plenty of time to see the best and worst of them both. There is a new poll every day and I have been called by a couple of them.  They start out asking questions and when you do not answer the way they want they tell me .. sorry you are not qualified to take this poll.  In other words I would not give them the results they wanted for their candidate.  I have never missed voting in an election.  I consider it my responsibility as a citizen to do so.  In Australia you are required to vote and if you do not you are fined.  Not sure I agree with that but it seems to work for them.  You have till Oct 9th to register to vote. Please do if you have not and please take time to vote this year.

Facebook

 

I have to confess that I tried it because, well, sometimes I can be nosy. I also had grand illusions of contacting and communicating with people that I hadn't heard from in years So far I'm not feeling this Facebook old friend thing. People that I can't even remember from my high school days or people that know someone else from my high school days are adding me as a friend. What do you say to a person that you have no idea who they are, where they live or why they want to be your friend.
Plus, some of the "mean girls" in high school have now forgotten that they were "mean" back then and are suddenly wanting to be nice. I really don't care that they now have four grandkids, three dogs and a husband that is in real estate. I just want to know why you were such a snob and so evil way back when?
There's nothing reminiscent or warm fuzzy about seeing classmates again after all these years. Yeah, I'm nosy so seeing what they look like now is kind of fun...BUT...I'm done with snowball fights, drink requests, a gift of a coach purse (internet, not real) and all of that. I don't care that one of the "mean girls" is tired and is drinking coffee. 
How about you?  How do you handle this on facebook?

Depends

A young couple moves into a new neighborhood.
The next morning while they are eating breakfast,
The young woman sees her neighbor hanging the
Wash outside. "That laundry is not very clean", she said.
"She doesn't know how to wash correctly. 
Perhaps she needs better laundry soap."

Her husband looked on, but remained silent.

Every time her neighbor would hang her wash to dry,
The young woman would make the same comments.

About one month later, the woman was surprised to see a
Nice clean wash on the line and said to her husband:

"Look, she has learned how to wash correctly.
I wonder who taught her this."

The husband said, "I got up early this morning and
Cleaned our windows."

And so it is with life. What we see when watching others
Depends on the purity of the window through which we look.

Policy

Monkey Experiment Proves Corporate Policy Process
Start with a cage containing five monkeys. Inside the cage, hang a banana on a string and place a set of stairs under it. Before long, a monkey will go to the stairs and start to climb towards the banana. As soon as he touches the stairs, spray all of the other monkeys with cold water. After a while, another monkey makes an attempt with the same result, and all the other monkeys are sprayed with cold water. Pretty soon the monkeys will try to prevent it.
Now, put away the cold water. Remove one monkey from the cage and replace it with a new one. The new monkey sees the banana and wants to climb the stairs. To his surprise and horror, all of the other monkeys attack him. After another attempt and attack, he knows that if he tries to climb the stairs, he will be assaulted.
Next, remove another of the original five monkeys and replace it with a new one. The newcomer goes to the stairs and is attacked. The previous newcomer takes part in the punishment with enthusiasm! Likewise, replace a third original monkey with a new one, then a fourth, then the fifth.
Every time the newest monkey takes to the stairs, he is attacked. Most of the monkeys that are beating him have no idea why they were not permitted to climb the stairs or why they are participating in the beating of the newest monkey. After replacing all the original monkeys, none of the remaining monkeys have ever been sprayed with cold water. Nevertheless, no monkey ever again approaches the stairs to try for the banana. Why not? Because as far as they know that’s the way it’s always been done around here.
And that, my friends, is how a company policy begins.
from an email.