A Special Guest is Coming!

And just who is the Special Guest....it is little Jacob Leyva! The happy dude from Emporia!! Full of fun...plenty of bounce to the ounce!! We are looking forward to entertaining and being entertained this weekend. Such a clever boy....I hope he does not outwit us too many times!! I'll keep you posted!
Ellen

A Special Guest is Coming!!

A Special Guest is Coming!!

bush ban on cheese

Here is a link to a story on MSN how the Bush administration in a parting shot at France put a 300% tariff on roquefort cheese in retaliation for the european ban on U.S. beef with hormones. Now granted we import a small amount of this luxury item, but for the small group of french farmers who raise the special sheep and call this their living it is unfair. Can we ruin anymore lives? Of course those who gave up french wine, french fries, french toast and french dressing(I never did understand any of that) believing that they were taking a stand against the evil french for not supporting the US led war in Iraq(once again the French were right)this probably seems fair and justified. French haters rejoice the evil roquefort is off the shelves.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28907462

This would seem trivial and funny, but it really once again underlines the prvious admin's "piss on you" philosophy and we are not going to play fair because we are the "big boys with the big guns" well the big boys have taken a big fall and taken the rest of the world with them "hail capitolism". I don't really want to eat beef with hormones and antibiotics either and while we always think of Europe as backward, they really are more progressive than us in many ways. They tend to recognize environmental and health issues before the US and act on them. Chaney said years ago that when it comes to the US "our standard of living would not be compromised." That may have been around the time of his secret closed door meetings with oil tycoons---look where oil futures went under this administration. Well guess what it has been compromised. In many ways our consumption abuse needed to be reigned in so it might be that the Bush administration will be recognized for that feat.

Category 5

Here is a poem I found by Brad Russell. It compares our chaotic financial times to the days of Noah, or if you like, a category 5 hurricane. People's lives are devastated by both. At the end of the poem there is a glimmer of hope.

noah's nightmare

category 5 swirl
abstract colors, stats on a map
come shrieking and deluge
blunt force trama battering a beautiful beach head
surging ocean, rain and tears wash into one
superdome ark
30,000 souls 2 x 2
rooftop pleas heavenward
whirling angels
funeral barges

who are the righteous?

affluent who flow and flee
any man doing what he can

who are the wicked?

poor with no place to go
oil company looters
posting record profits
politicos with no plan

rain falls on them all
we accept you don't stop these things
but please help us go forward
come together
get what can be gotten
raise one another up
resurrect the submerged good
swirl up category 5 compassion,
not priced-less pity
we will never stop believing you care

I like this poem. If we could have had category 5 compassion all along, maybe little children would not be crying themselves to sleep because they fear for the future. Maybe their parents would not be wondering how they are going to feed their kids. Never the less, we still believe. We have to, if we want to move forward.

Baby it's cold outside

It is another frigid night in the heartland. That makes me think of that saying "cold hands, warm heart". I am thinking we have cold hands and mother nature has a cold heart though. The days are getting longer though and that is a big help---hold that thought til spring. Katie, Sharon came up to Liberty today to get her haircut and we trudged our way to Los Compas in the bitter cold for mexican food. We found your birthday picture on the Wall of Fame. We then continued our trek down the road to the new bakery for some sweets. I bought a couple of slices of cake and Sharon bought a slice of cake and a mini chocolate pie. John enjoys their brownies and thinks their cheesecake is pretty good too. We are supporting our local bakery and our comfort food habit. A slice of cake or a brownie with our evening tea in the warm room....ahhhh
Well tomorrow is laundry and vaccuume day, maybe I will whip out the dust cloth too. The dishwasher is on the fritz. Last month we had to replace the soap dispenser. It wouldn't open and now it won't run at all. I guess the repairman is coming out this week. I told John we should just buy a new dishwasher, but he thinks not. I also told him I could do them the old fashioned way for a while---you know hands in the sink. We don't have any big family meals coming up for a few weeks, but he thinks not. Again we are stimulating the local economy. I think I might do some reading too. I am thinking of taking a course in how to teach meditation. You take a 20 hour workshop, then another 20 hour workshop. You have to then teach 5 classes and 1 workshop. It would hopefully give me a way to expand my business and perhaps in a couple of years have enough meditation business that I would not be as dependent on massage. A bonus is that right now you don't have a meditation therapist on every corner, like you do with massage. Anyway that is what I am thinking of doing. The course uses mindful meditiation methods, based on the book Full Catastrophe Living by Jon Kabat- Zinn. Well it is good to hear from a few of you bloggers. Carol, Sharon, Matthew, Beth and Jayhawker where are you?

Identity Theft

For Christmas Marshall and Katie shopped for a little money belt for me. It is the type joggers wear to contain valuable documents such as a driver's license or credit card in a secure hidden location. The belt was purchased to replace a contraption I was wearing to work (Katie called it my "bra purse") to keep track of my personal info while at work. You see, I don't have a space to lock up anything! Being the paranoid twit that I am I chose not to carry a purse and leave it unsecured. I carried my valuables 'close to my heart." The new belt is quite comfortable.

The jogger belt may sound nutty but wait....one of our pharmachy students described her recent experience ....she was robbed at gun point. The robber actually held a gun to her head. The student tossed her purse one way and the car keys the other way....the robber chose the purse. She lost her driver's license, credit cards, cell phone, and other personal info. Fortunately she was not injured physically but carries some psychological stress that flares at unexpected moments.

I suggest to you, my fair readers, that you may want to purchase such a belt for yourself....carry your purse or wallet as usual with only the needed items for shopping...one debit card at the most. Squirrel the rest of the personal info in a comfy pouch hidden under your clothing.

Marshall asked "won't a bulge show"....probably not; but if it does, just tell the robber it is your colostomy!!

Just an idea...
Love ya, Ellen

Catching Up

I thought I would let people know how things are going for me in the new year. I began January with a horrendous cold. Invest in Kleenex. If you work for Kleenex your job is secure. For 2 weeks my nose ran like a faucet. Invest in Mucinex. It really does help if you are afflicted. Now my cold is over. Thank God! My life, such as it is, has resumed. Doug and I joined Pound Plunge. This is a city wide weight loss program that lasts for 12 weeks. So far I have lost 4 pounds. We have to weigh in every week. There are cash prizes for the biggest loser. Don't ask me how much. I do not know. I am in it for my health. A sixty year old woman has to struggle to lose weight. It does not just fall off. I considered buying a weight loss product to speed me along. Then I learned about the side affects online. "Phooey!" I thought. I am not spending that kind of money just to suffer. But you must pay the piper. There is no free lunch. I have to eat only GOOD carbs. And I had to ramp up my exercise program. We have had warm weather lately so I have been able to get outside and walk. That is about to change so I will work out indoors this weekend. But weight loss is not the only thing on my mind.

I started volunteering at the Cancer Council of Ellis County one day a week. I like it a lot. I shuffle papers, mostly, but it is interesting. The reading program has resumed at the grade school and I have gotten to know my little lunch buddy a little better. Some of the small children whisper their fears and sorrows to me and I realize how fortunate I am. Sometimes children must face adult problems. Put another way, when one family member suffers, the whole family suffers.

At the moment, though, I am not suffering. I feel very good. I have no big plans for the weekend. I might attend a vegetarian meeting if the weather allows. Other than that, one more quiet weekend awaits. Quiet is good. Hope all my family is well, even though some of you have not blogged in quite awhile. You can write about anything you want to on this blog. We want to know all about our family. What is everyone doing, thinking, planning? What makes this family tick?!

Words Spiny or Smooth

I discovered a new web site I like called Watermark. It features poetry, commentary and a lot of descriptive writing about cats. The woman poet who started the site loves cats and publishes pictures of her own. The Watermark site published the inaugural poem written by Elizabeth Alexander. The Poem is titled Praise Song for the Day. When Alexander read it, I thought the poem sounded flat. When I read the printed word, the poem comes alive. The words sparkle. Why did I have 2 different reactions to the same poem? I do not know. Maybe I was too keyed up on inauguration day to let the words settle me down. In a way, this praise song the poet wrote also sounds like a lament. Many of the Psalms in the Bible also praise and lament. Some poems take time to absorb. Praise Song for the Day is one of them.

Here are a couple of my favorite lines from Praise Song.

In todays sharp sparkle, this winter air, anything can be made, any sentence begun.
AND
We encounter each other in words, words spiny or smooth, whispered or declaimed, words to consider, reconsider.

It occurred to me that, at the end of our life, we are the sum of our words. For me that is a frightening thought. I have said and thought a lot of hateful, spiny words. But each day, thank God, is a new beginning.
Here is a re-affirming Buddhist blessing to close this post.

May you be at peace
May you know the beauty of your own true nature;
May your heart remain open;
May you be healed.

Happy 2009!

Hello, family. Long time, no write. Sorry about that. From several of your blog posts, it sounds like all is well in the Midwest. Carol and Tom are showing their adventurous spirits while planning for clean get-aways as they trespass (??) on old missile bases. Margaret is fixing nutritious meals for her family and caring for Cujo and a pup with low self-esteem. And Honor has shared blessings with us for a fulfilling new year.

I just finished watching President Obama's swearing in. I caught the musical performance beforehand, Obama's speech, and Elizabeth's Alexander's poem afterward. It was pretty amazing, and I am filled with hope and courage.

As you know, Trent is home (flew in Jan. 7--exactly three months after he left), and I am so, so happy. This past weekend would have been his visit back to Atlanta (and he would have returned to NM yesterday), had he stayed for his training, and I'm thankful that he's here instead of there. His shoulder is still hurting, and he's jumping through government hoops in order to schedule an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon who will work with the federal government's workman's comp program. He's frustrated about that, but we're both happy to spend time together. We've been taking walks around the neighborhood, and yesterday we took a hike near Kennesaw Mountain.

Two weekends ago, Andy generously helped us replace the battery and alternator in the F150, which had been sitting immobile in the garage since Trent left in October. His expertise helped save us a few hundred dollars in labor, so we're hoping to repay him with some meals at Buckhead Burrito and a Saturday or Sunday at Stone Mountain Park.

In other news, I chopped off 10 inches of hair again to donate to Pantene Beautiful Lengths, which makes wigs for women with cancer. (Locks of Love makes wigs for people with alopecia) It's refreshing not to have my hair hanging all over the place; it doesn't get caught in my bag straps, and Sal doesn't sit on my pillow and try to eat it when I sleep at night.

It's cold here today, so I'm "working" from home. I know I'm blessed to have that kind of flexibility in my work.

Here's to a new year and new leadership for our country!

green beans & serious eats

Hello Everyone
Well yesterday was Shawn's birthday so we had the kids over for a birthday dinner. A day of shopping, cleaning and cooking then cleaning some more, but I think everyone had fun. The menu included the baked lemon/garlic/rosemary chicken with onions and carrots, steamed broccoli, roasted sweet potatoes, and a new recipe I found for sauteed green beans with garlic and herbs that was very good and easy. I am including the link.
http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2008/11/cooks-illustrated-sauteed-green-beans-recipe.html
I hope it works. We also had rolls and cheesecake for dessert.
Shawn brought their wii fit with them for everyone to try. I declined as I see no need to share my weight and body fat numbers with the world. If I wanted everyone to know them I would put an ad in the paper. John weighs 169 pounds and has perfect BMI, which he made sure he told me, anyway we were pondering purchasing one, but I think it might not be something I would do often enough to warrant buying one and John would probably never use it. It was good information to have. Scout the stray is at the vet as I write, getting neutered. We had a bit of a scare last night, John was bringing him in from outside and he ran up the basement stairs and there was Jack on the other side of the babygate getting ready to go cujo. Scout ran into the bathroom and didn't seem to eager to come out. He(Scout) does have some self esteem issues I think, but who doesn't. That is it from rural Clay County. You missing in action bloggers share some life stories with us.

the new year

well this year is zipping by.It's already the seventh day. One week gone poof just like that and nothing to show for it. Last week Tom and I went up to the farm and we decided (or I did I guess being curious) to investigate the old missile base that is on the way. It looked deserted but just to be safe Tom turned the truck around so we could make a quick get away incase we were wrong. We walked down this cement slope down in to a bunker area. the cement walls lining the walk way and inside the rooms had all kinds of satanic stuff spray painted on them. The most unnerving thing though was Toms' name was sprayed on the wall in black with the date of his death. October of this year. NO last name was there just Thomas died and the date. What is the probability of us going up there (just on a whim) in the first place and Toms named sprayed on the wall like that.
So I think we should do something to live life better. Not that I believe the prediction. But to come across your name on a wall with the date you died makes you think.

Joni's blog

This is our friend Joni's blog. It is on her wildlife art website. I thought I would share her blog as the writing is very good and the photos beautiful. A nice way to begin 2009.

http://www.jonijohnsongodsy.com/wordpress/?cat=16