I need to work through what possibly might be the start of a major depression....or perhaps the middle of it, who knows? Anyway, I need to vent. And, that is what this is for, venting.
My daughter starts working tonite, she had to get some sort of job to start paying her school loan, so, until she finds a job in medical billing, she will be waitressing at a local bar, 4 nights a week. So, I will be babysitting those nights, 2 until 9, 2 until 11. So, another change in my life that really has nothing to do with me. I used to have control over my life, but that seems to have gone out the door. I know, her fiancee could watch the kids, but nice a guy as he is, I can't see him watching her kids those nights without having a meltdown and rather rapidly resenting it. It also doesn't help that he's a bit moody, prone to constant nauseating migraines, and a little flightly, too. So, I'll be watching the kids. And listening to my husband grumble about it, and the fact that I don't have a job, even though he is busy spending his money on golf clubs, I don't care that it's with his weekly check pool winnings and that the clubs were purchased at a lowere price on ebay. And yes, I resent being reminded that the bills would be easier to pay if I was working again.
Yes, I wish I had a job. Any sort of human contact with people other than my family is more than welcome, not to mention having some segment of life that is my own. Right now, I am nothing more than a human appliance: I clean, do laundry, cook, shop for groceries, run errands and make sure everyone else's life runs smoothly. Other than going to the store, I haven't been anywhere, or done anything. I rarely get to see or talk to the few friends I have, as they also have lives, jobs, family to take care of. And yes, I realize that I am going into another of my mini-depressions.
Doesn't help either finding out that I am allergic to hairspray. That means my naturally lank straight hair is totally flat. It has no body, no shape, nothing, just hangs there. Won't hold a curl or even a wave. Any hair product that has even a hint of plastic in it I can't use. Oh, I do use a little spray, with the help of a face shield. But in the summer, it doesn't help much...and until my hair gets shoulder length, it's just hopeless. Add that to a round blob of a face. EW.
On the plus side, my eyelashes have stopped falling out, my eyelids are no longer swollen and red, my skin has cleared up, meaning the swelling around each pore is gone, as is the bright red color and my scalp doesn't itch any more. I no longer look like Quasimodo without the humpback. Oh, well, can't have everything. I just wish my doctor would understand that I don't care about my cholesteral, dead is easier to handle than being blind. Why doesn't he get it?
As for the mini-depression...it'll pass, it always does. I'll just do my usual, keep my thoughts in my head, listen to everyone else talk about their lives, and go through the motions of living. I do wonder, though, how many other people go through their lives just waiting for it to be over, not having the gall to commit suicide, that's just rude, and having just enough optimism and curiousity to want to see what happens next, all the while hating the prisons their lives have become. I find myself reverting to who I was as a teen, extremely quiet, terrified of people, and quite certain that how I look invokes ridicule and laughter, fearful enough that I hate walking out my front door, ever. People consider me a good listener, but that's more because I don't have anything to talk about that I consider interesting to others. I'm quite boring, actually, I even bore myself. Sometimes, I do wonder what happened to the young 20 yr old who was quite fearless, ready for the next adventure, who had friends, and where this old person came from , frumpy, plain, dull, fearful of the world, and envious of it at the same time.
I also wonder what happened to the words in my head, why can't they come out the way they are thought? And why am I, deep down, so angry all the time? What happened to the life I had planned, for when my kids grew up, where did it go? To hell with that, where did I go?
It's very hard to reconcile the people I am. No, I'm not schizophrenic. I am quite aware that a personality is simple a complex combination of different facets, like a gem. I am, for the most part, an extrovert. I love being around people, talking, having fun. However, it was brought to my attention at quite a young age that, 1, I don't meet the norm for beauty, or even vague attractiveness. My only good feature are my dark green eyes. And the criticism of my appearance continued all through my childhood and teenage years. Those were in the '70's...and hip I wasn't. Not in handmedowns, and with bad skin, and glasses. Between my mother constantly telling me how homely I was because I didn't look like her (mum was tiny, petite, and a freakin' stacked knockout, with her hourglass figure, long black hair, Katherine Hepburn features, and those great green eyes) and my stepfather constantly beating me for just looking at him the wrong way, it's no wonder I"m a mess. I quit wearing shorts at 13 the day he told me I had legs like a linebacker. I quit wearing dresses or skirts then too. In fact, that's probably the day I finally quit caring at all. Mum wouldn't let me wear makeup, ever, so, I was 18 before I even tried, and she was pretty much hairless, so, didn't see any need for shaving, so, that's another thing I learned to do at 18.
I realize now that she just didn't want any competition from any of her girls, that there was something inherently wrong with her, most likely stemming from her own abusive childhood. Still, understanding why only makes it easier to forgive; it doesn't make it easier to deal with ingrained protective behaviors. It certainly doesn't make it easier to tear down walls that were built as protective barriers to pain, mental, emotional, and physical. Lol...I could deal with the daily beatings, it was just pain. Harder to cope with were the 'whys'. WHY did my mother treat me like an enemy? WHY wasn't I good enough for her, or my father, who just went away before I was 2? WHY did he hate me, too? WHY was I so ugly, so hideous? And WHY wasn't I made too stupid to care about it? WHY did God hate me, and if he hated me, WHY did he allow me to exist, did he/ does he take some perverse pleasure in seeing things he hates hurt? I knew why my stepfather hated me, I wasn't his, therefore, I was just chattel, something to use. And less than that, once his kids were born.
I understand that it was a blow to him to learn that all the genius he wanted for his kids wasn't there while I was the one acing school. The older one was, is, emotionally twisted, to the point where she takes great pleasure in making fools of other people. The younger one, well, she's just lost, not bright, but a happy, cheerful, outgoing person who is so ditzy I can't stand her. I don't speak to either of them any more, not because of themselves for the most part, but because they don't realize that they treat me the same way their parents did, as something at their beck and call, a useful tool when it's needed, and negligible when it's not. They have yet to figure out that any tool needs care to remain useful, even a human one. And despite their questioning, I haven't told them everything they think they want to know about when we were kids. Let them keep their visions of their sainted parents. I know the truth, I was there, much older than they were. I know what my life was and what theirs wasn't. They didn't grow up being second best, the "other' daughter. They grew up belonging to a family, while I was a burden that knew it was a burden. It was made quite clear to me for 13 years that I was in all ways a burden.
Yes, I resent the fact that my sisters got everything while I got discards. I resent that they had a family while I didn't. No, I resent that they BELONGED while I didn't. I resent the fact that they inherited the 'good' genes, while I got the plain ones....good god, the older one not only was pretty, she had personality, too, so, she had lots of friends. The younger one agonized through school cause she was too pretty and other girls hated her for it. I remember going to their graduation parties. Mine? No one ever acknowledged that I graduated. I never went to graduation, because the idea of being 'seen' was appalling to me, and to be honest, I just wanted done with high school. Most people can't wait til their reunions, I never want to go, out of fear of being reminded of that person I was. I hate living in a town full of people that I did go to school with, I dread running into them. Oh, I am friends with a few, we got to know each other while I was coaching soccer, and we each see that we aren't who we were then, and that we have things in common, even though we were raised completely different. But I've also run into others who bring those days rushing back in tidal waves. I know it's because THEY haven't changed, that they can't deal with the idea that their hayday WAS high school, and that some of us actually improved since graduation. Still, that doesn't make the remembrance of those days easier to deal with. And in the long run, I'm no better than they are, worse, in fact, since I resent the idea that they have happy memories of school.
So...facets of people. I am loving, caring, and selfish. I hate and resent. I long to be with people, yet am terrified by them.Maybe 'faceted' is the wrong idea. Gems shine and shimmer. I don't. Perhaps, then, I am hemp. Strands, spun on different spindles of personality and experience and existence, need and desire and want, all badly twisted together on a splintered wheel so that the strands are frayed, pulling, some looped and tangled, coarse, some smooth, some long, some short, all creating warped threads that make a bad weave, so bad that it should be unraveled, perhaps re-woven into something at least coherent and useful.
How can one love being alive and hate it so much at the same time?
****************************************
In knitting...I've come up, all on my stupid little own, with a poncho pattern for little girls, well, it works for adults, too, that is quite easy, and my granddaughter gets compliments on hers all the time, and my daughter is constantly asked by other mothers where she got it, so, I am taking orders, and should have most of them filled by August. I will keep making them to sell on Etsy, so,I'll be opening a shop there in the fall. Let you know the name later.
My knitting is improving, and with summer here I will have time to learn knew techniques and stitches.
This one wasn't quite finished when I took the pic, I later added 3 cute buttons down the front for interest.
My daughter starts working tonite, she had to get some sort of job to start paying her school loan, so, until she finds a job in medical billing, she will be waitressing at a local bar, 4 nights a week. So, I will be babysitting those nights, 2 until 9, 2 until 11. So, another change in my life that really has nothing to do with me. I used to have control over my life, but that seems to have gone out the door. I know, her fiancee could watch the kids, but nice a guy as he is, I can't see him watching her kids those nights without having a meltdown and rather rapidly resenting it. It also doesn't help that he's a bit moody, prone to constant nauseating migraines, and a little flightly, too. So, I'll be watching the kids. And listening to my husband grumble about it, and the fact that I don't have a job, even though he is busy spending his money on golf clubs, I don't care that it's with his weekly check pool winnings and that the clubs were purchased at a lowere price on ebay. And yes, I resent being reminded that the bills would be easier to pay if I was working again.
Yes, I wish I had a job. Any sort of human contact with people other than my family is more than welcome, not to mention having some segment of life that is my own. Right now, I am nothing more than a human appliance: I clean, do laundry, cook, shop for groceries, run errands and make sure everyone else's life runs smoothly. Other than going to the store, I haven't been anywhere, or done anything. I rarely get to see or talk to the few friends I have, as they also have lives, jobs, family to take care of. And yes, I realize that I am going into another of my mini-depressions.
Doesn't help either finding out that I am allergic to hairspray. That means my naturally lank straight hair is totally flat. It has no body, no shape, nothing, just hangs there. Won't hold a curl or even a wave. Any hair product that has even a hint of plastic in it I can't use. Oh, I do use a little spray, with the help of a face shield. But in the summer, it doesn't help much...and until my hair gets shoulder length, it's just hopeless. Add that to a round blob of a face. EW.
On the plus side, my eyelashes have stopped falling out, my eyelids are no longer swollen and red, my skin has cleared up, meaning the swelling around each pore is gone, as is the bright red color and my scalp doesn't itch any more. I no longer look like Quasimodo without the humpback. Oh, well, can't have everything. I just wish my doctor would understand that I don't care about my cholesteral, dead is easier to handle than being blind. Why doesn't he get it?
As for the mini-depression...it'll pass, it always does. I'll just do my usual, keep my thoughts in my head, listen to everyone else talk about their lives, and go through the motions of living. I do wonder, though, how many other people go through their lives just waiting for it to be over, not having the gall to commit suicide, that's just rude, and having just enough optimism and curiousity to want to see what happens next, all the while hating the prisons their lives have become. I find myself reverting to who I was as a teen, extremely quiet, terrified of people, and quite certain that how I look invokes ridicule and laughter, fearful enough that I hate walking out my front door, ever. People consider me a good listener, but that's more because I don't have anything to talk about that I consider interesting to others. I'm quite boring, actually, I even bore myself. Sometimes, I do wonder what happened to the young 20 yr old who was quite fearless, ready for the next adventure, who had friends, and where this old person came from , frumpy, plain, dull, fearful of the world, and envious of it at the same time.
I also wonder what happened to the words in my head, why can't they come out the way they are thought? And why am I, deep down, so angry all the time? What happened to the life I had planned, for when my kids grew up, where did it go? To hell with that, where did I go?
It's very hard to reconcile the people I am. No, I'm not schizophrenic. I am quite aware that a personality is simple a complex combination of different facets, like a gem. I am, for the most part, an extrovert. I love being around people, talking, having fun. However, it was brought to my attention at quite a young age that, 1, I don't meet the norm for beauty, or even vague attractiveness. My only good feature are my dark green eyes. And the criticism of my appearance continued all through my childhood and teenage years. Those were in the '70's...and hip I wasn't. Not in handmedowns, and with bad skin, and glasses. Between my mother constantly telling me how homely I was because I didn't look like her (mum was tiny, petite, and a freakin' stacked knockout, with her hourglass figure, long black hair, Katherine Hepburn features, and those great green eyes) and my stepfather constantly beating me for just looking at him the wrong way, it's no wonder I"m a mess. I quit wearing shorts at 13 the day he told me I had legs like a linebacker. I quit wearing dresses or skirts then too. In fact, that's probably the day I finally quit caring at all. Mum wouldn't let me wear makeup, ever, so, I was 18 before I even tried, and she was pretty much hairless, so, didn't see any need for shaving, so, that's another thing I learned to do at 18.
I realize now that she just didn't want any competition from any of her girls, that there was something inherently wrong with her, most likely stemming from her own abusive childhood. Still, understanding why only makes it easier to forgive; it doesn't make it easier to deal with ingrained protective behaviors. It certainly doesn't make it easier to tear down walls that were built as protective barriers to pain, mental, emotional, and physical. Lol...I could deal with the daily beatings, it was just pain. Harder to cope with were the 'whys'. WHY did my mother treat me like an enemy? WHY wasn't I good enough for her, or my father, who just went away before I was 2? WHY did he hate me, too? WHY was I so ugly, so hideous? And WHY wasn't I made too stupid to care about it? WHY did God hate me, and if he hated me, WHY did he allow me to exist, did he/ does he take some perverse pleasure in seeing things he hates hurt? I knew why my stepfather hated me, I wasn't his, therefore, I was just chattel, something to use. And less than that, once his kids were born.
I understand that it was a blow to him to learn that all the genius he wanted for his kids wasn't there while I was the one acing school. The older one was, is, emotionally twisted, to the point where she takes great pleasure in making fools of other people. The younger one, well, she's just lost, not bright, but a happy, cheerful, outgoing person who is so ditzy I can't stand her. I don't speak to either of them any more, not because of themselves for the most part, but because they don't realize that they treat me the same way their parents did, as something at their beck and call, a useful tool when it's needed, and negligible when it's not. They have yet to figure out that any tool needs care to remain useful, even a human one. And despite their questioning, I haven't told them everything they think they want to know about when we were kids. Let them keep their visions of their sainted parents. I know the truth, I was there, much older than they were. I know what my life was and what theirs wasn't. They didn't grow up being second best, the "other' daughter. They grew up belonging to a family, while I was a burden that knew it was a burden. It was made quite clear to me for 13 years that I was in all ways a burden.
Yes, I resent the fact that my sisters got everything while I got discards. I resent that they had a family while I didn't. No, I resent that they BELONGED while I didn't. I resent the fact that they inherited the 'good' genes, while I got the plain ones....good god, the older one not only was pretty, she had personality, too, so, she had lots of friends. The younger one agonized through school cause she was too pretty and other girls hated her for it. I remember going to their graduation parties. Mine? No one ever acknowledged that I graduated. I never went to graduation, because the idea of being 'seen' was appalling to me, and to be honest, I just wanted done with high school. Most people can't wait til their reunions, I never want to go, out of fear of being reminded of that person I was. I hate living in a town full of people that I did go to school with, I dread running into them. Oh, I am friends with a few, we got to know each other while I was coaching soccer, and we each see that we aren't who we were then, and that we have things in common, even though we were raised completely different. But I've also run into others who bring those days rushing back in tidal waves. I know it's because THEY haven't changed, that they can't deal with the idea that their hayday WAS high school, and that some of us actually improved since graduation. Still, that doesn't make the remembrance of those days easier to deal with. And in the long run, I'm no better than they are, worse, in fact, since I resent the idea that they have happy memories of school.
So...facets of people. I am loving, caring, and selfish. I hate and resent. I long to be with people, yet am terrified by them.Maybe 'faceted' is the wrong idea. Gems shine and shimmer. I don't. Perhaps, then, I am hemp. Strands, spun on different spindles of personality and experience and existence, need and desire and want, all badly twisted together on a splintered wheel so that the strands are frayed, pulling, some looped and tangled, coarse, some smooth, some long, some short, all creating warped threads that make a bad weave, so bad that it should be unraveled, perhaps re-woven into something at least coherent and useful.
How can one love being alive and hate it so much at the same time?
****************************************
In knitting...I've come up, all on my stupid little own, with a poncho pattern for little girls, well, it works for adults, too, that is quite easy, and my granddaughter gets compliments on hers all the time, and my daughter is constantly asked by other mothers where she got it, so, I am taking orders, and should have most of them filled by August. I will keep making them to sell on Etsy, so,I'll be opening a shop there in the fall. Let you know the name later.
My knitting is improving, and with summer here I will have time to learn knew techniques and stitches.
This one wasn't quite finished when I took the pic, I later added 3 cute buttons down the front for interest.
- Mood:
morose
I just visited the www.change.org website. Oh, there are quite a few groups there advocating changes for everything from womens rights to peace in the Middle East to Big Business.
I also read where our government is handing out even more billions of dollars to the already supposedly bailed out groups.
Nowhere have I read where people are getting bailed out. No help for real people.
Here's a bailout I'd like to see, and I know it doesn't just apply to me, because I've spoken to too many other people in the same boat.
See, I have a daughter who got pregnant 5 months before she graduated high school. I was working at the time, and did so until the baby was nearly two years old. At that time, I injured my back, was on comp several times, and finally decided that spending my life on comp was not an option, so I finally quit the job that was causing me repeated problems.
That was at the same time my daughter finally had enough of her dead-beat husband and threw him out. She was pregnant with the second kid at the time, and after the child was born, moped around for several months until I told her that a local school was offering extensive training in massage therapy, and she had 2 weeks to get her ass to the school, get registered, and start attending. She did, and did well, being on the deans list, being a student ambassador, 4.0 gpa,etc, all the stuff she didn't care about in high school. For the first school, massage therapy training, welfare covered the cost of that. She then worked part time for a chiropractor, for 15 months, til they layed her off for no real reason.
So, not finding any decent job in that field, she went back to school. When she asked welfare about any support or funding other than food stamps, she was told that since the school she would be attending wasn't on their 'approved' list, they wouldn't cover any expenses at all, including day care, babysitting, bus fare, nothing.
So, since she couldn't afford day care on just the child support her husband only pays to keep out of jail, I babysit, and have done for the past 3 yrs. I get no compensation, other than what she purchases in the way of groceries now and then to help us out a little. Oh, I could put the kids in day care and get a job, but there are problems....the oldest attends pre-school 3 days a week, getting her there and back is an issue, and any money I would make would go towards paying for childcare.
And I know that I am not the only person doing this for their grandkids.
One of the changes I'd like to see is grandparents being compensated for the time they put into caring for their grandchuildren, when it would be better, financially for us to be working. I'd like to see tax breaks for us, too. Personally, I'm really disgusted with the fact that people who earn $20, 000 or less a year can get $8,000 back just because they have kids. Fact, people. It's why those who live in poverty like it there, the government does a VERY good job of rewarding them for being poor.
That brings up another point. I pay higher property taxes because I'm 3 blocks away from main street, yet people with newer houses and larger properties pay less than half what I do, even though they are only 2 blocks further away. No fair, nor right.
So, some changes, Mr Obama, sir?
*Compensation for those of us who, due to circumstances, have opted to take care of our own rather than work. Bail us out. We spend just as much caring for these kids as their parents do, and in some cases, much more. Let them claim them as dependents, just let the rest of us claim them for compensation on a monthly basis. (rather than bailing out companies that are going to abuse that money for their own benefit, how about paying me for the 47 hours a week that I am caregiver, rather than 'grandma'?
*Bigger tax refunds for those of us who care for our families. We pay more, shouldn't we get more back than those who shelter under the name of 'poverty'?
*Lower, fairer property taxes. Why should those who reside in residential areas closer to the business district pay more, when in actuality we are more at risk from crime, we put up with more strangers around because of that proximity, and we most of the time have smaller properties?
3 little changes that could have a big impact on just us, the little people who really make up this country. Besides, wouldn't that have more impact than this whole 'trickle-down' theory that we all know is making this country and it's government a huge joke?
In the meantime, I"m considering getting a job working weekends. It won't pay much, but it'll be something to add to the family kitty, and it'll get me out around humans again.
I also read where our government is handing out even more billions of dollars to the already supposedly bailed out groups.
Nowhere have I read where people are getting bailed out. No help for real people.
Here's a bailout I'd like to see, and I know it doesn't just apply to me, because I've spoken to too many other people in the same boat.
See, I have a daughter who got pregnant 5 months before she graduated high school. I was working at the time, and did so until the baby was nearly two years old. At that time, I injured my back, was on comp several times, and finally decided that spending my life on comp was not an option, so I finally quit the job that was causing me repeated problems.
That was at the same time my daughter finally had enough of her dead-beat husband and threw him out. She was pregnant with the second kid at the time, and after the child was born, moped around for several months until I told her that a local school was offering extensive training in massage therapy, and she had 2 weeks to get her ass to the school, get registered, and start attending. She did, and did well, being on the deans list, being a student ambassador, 4.0 gpa,etc, all the stuff she didn't care about in high school. For the first school, massage therapy training, welfare covered the cost of that. She then worked part time for a chiropractor, for 15 months, til they layed her off for no real reason.
So, not finding any decent job in that field, she went back to school. When she asked welfare about any support or funding other than food stamps, she was told that since the school she would be attending wasn't on their 'approved' list, they wouldn't cover any expenses at all, including day care, babysitting, bus fare, nothing.
So, since she couldn't afford day care on just the child support her husband only pays to keep out of jail, I babysit, and have done for the past 3 yrs. I get no compensation, other than what she purchases in the way of groceries now and then to help us out a little. Oh, I could put the kids in day care and get a job, but there are problems....the oldest attends pre-school 3 days a week, getting her there and back is an issue, and any money I would make would go towards paying for childcare.
And I know that I am not the only person doing this for their grandkids.
One of the changes I'd like to see is grandparents being compensated for the time they put into caring for their grandchuildren, when it would be better, financially for us to be working. I'd like to see tax breaks for us, too. Personally, I'm really disgusted with the fact that people who earn $20, 000 or less a year can get $8,000 back just because they have kids. Fact, people. It's why those who live in poverty like it there, the government does a VERY good job of rewarding them for being poor.
That brings up another point. I pay higher property taxes because I'm 3 blocks away from main street, yet people with newer houses and larger properties pay less than half what I do, even though they are only 2 blocks further away. No fair, nor right.
So, some changes, Mr Obama, sir?
*Compensation for those of us who, due to circumstances, have opted to take care of our own rather than work. Bail us out. We spend just as much caring for these kids as their parents do, and in some cases, much more. Let them claim them as dependents, just let the rest of us claim them for compensation on a monthly basis. (rather than bailing out companies that are going to abuse that money for their own benefit, how about paying me for the 47 hours a week that I am caregiver, rather than 'grandma'?
*Bigger tax refunds for those of us who care for our families. We pay more, shouldn't we get more back than those who shelter under the name of 'poverty'?
*Lower, fairer property taxes. Why should those who reside in residential areas closer to the business district pay more, when in actuality we are more at risk from crime, we put up with more strangers around because of that proximity, and we most of the time have smaller properties?
3 little changes that could have a big impact on just us, the little people who really make up this country. Besides, wouldn't that have more impact than this whole 'trickle-down' theory that we all know is making this country and it's government a huge joke?
In the meantime, I"m considering getting a job working weekends. It won't pay much, but it'll be something to add to the family kitty, and it'll get me out around humans again.
- Mood:
angry
Well, I assume we've all made it through the holidays in mostly one piece. I have to admit, that much as I like Christmas, I like seeing it end just as much. I'm not one for constantly running about hither and yon, and the holidays require that to a huge degree. Anyway, they're over, and life here can get back to normal.
What the hell is normal, anyway? Bills haven't gone down, especially the mortgage. Of course, that isn't going to happen, not with all the bailout money going to things like golden parachutes and the purchasing of banks going under by banks that would have gone under if our wonderful government hadn't decided to use OUR tax money to bail out the banks that would have gone under. Personally, I think we should have let them sink, along with Detroits Big Three auto makers. Gasp!!! What, let all of those people lose their jobs, and be on unemployment? Yes.
Look, all the bailout did was make things harder on everyone, and it just postponed the inevitable. We gave money to people who have proved they aren't capable of handling money. Of course, the people who handed out the money aren't any more capable of handling money, either, so, what else could we expect? Anyway, none of that money has gone to help the people it was meant to help, mainly the homeowners who were stupid enough and greedy enough to buy houses that they ultimately couldn't afford. So, all around, we have stupid people handing money to stupid people to help stupid people, and none of it is going the way it should. Of course, it was a bad idea to begin with. The banks should have collapsed. This is a free-market economy, and sink or swim is how it works. All the bailout has done is encouraged bad decision makers to continue making bad decisions. Yes, let people lose their homes. Let them lose everything they think they 'worked' for, and perhaps, just perhaps, they will learn to make better, more intelligent decisions based on reality, not dreams, or greed.
As for our government, well, let's hope Obama does some housecleaning, and sets some rules, and stops a lot of spending that doesn't need to be. Oh, things like spending on ridiculous things. Why is the government funding research that should be handled by private firms? Why are we sending so much money to countries that in reality, aren't really our problem? Let's stop sending so much money to third world countries, and take care of our own. In light of recent events, why don't we stop giving Israel money to wage war on civilians with? Let's make senators of this country pay for their own healthcare and retirement, rather than handing it to them just 'cause they got elected by a bunch of idiots who don't really care who runs the country? Uh, maybe it's time for the U.S. to start looking inward as well as outward, and take care of it's own, first, rather than others. We really need to stop being such sissy's, and become a world power again, rather than a planetary joke.
Maybe it's time for us to stop taking the bait we are handed, and start saying 'NO" to those we elected.
Come on, you don't really think things are going to get better, do you???
****************************************
I'm back on my diet, and am looking forward to completing another resolution this year, with a 25-40 lb weight loss over the next 12 months. Reached last years goal of dropping 2 sizes, and would like to drop another 2 this year, possibly 3. I know, it doesn't sound like much, but it's better for me to do that, rather than hop on a scale every day or so. I think that is so self-defeating. Much easier to reach those points where my pants are falling off, instead. LOL.
****************************************
The neighbors have been somewhat behaved lately, other than a few laughable instances of them being total idiots, as usual. Seems the trash around the corner has acquired a quad and a minibike. Oh, goody. They spent a day or two riding the unlicensed, not for the street things up and down the block, making as much noise as possible to annoy everyone. I was amused by their stupidity and carelessness, mostly, as the street I live on is level til you reach my house, then becomes a fairly steep hill , about a 45 degree drop from level, which ends in a cross street and a very high stone wall that holds up the ground there. There is also the fact that years ago, due to the number of kids that lived on this one block, (14 kids, 13 houses) a neighbor petitioned to have this one block made one way, and that's what it's been for nearly 20 years. The kids were part of the reason, traffic was the other,as people going down the hill couldn't see anyone coming up the hill, and vise versa, til it was too late, and BANG! So, it's a one way street, and these fools are riding a minibike and quad up it the wrong way, so, well, soon enough, someone is going to get hit by a car, and most likely killed. Doesn't help that the people riding these things are underage, middle school, for the most part.
Anyway...they haven't been riding the beastly things other than those 2 or 3 days, bacause it seems that one of them came close to clipping the neighbors car across the street, and he saw them, as he was hanging his Christmas decorations outside at the time, and oh, was there hell to pay, then!!! LOL!!! Haven't seen or heard the noisy machines since. I just wonder when those idiots will figure out that they keep hanging themselves with their attitude of being more entitled than anyone else??? I mean there is only one person left on the street they haven't pissed off so far.
As for the other neighbor a few doors down, well, she has her father living there with her now. I kinda feel for her, as he has Alzheimers, and apparently is rather violent. The police have been to her house 3 times in the 3 months he has been there, twice because he was found on her nextdoor neigbors porch once, once because he walked into their house, and once because, according to the grapevine, he tried to strangle his daughter. (to be honest, he'd be doing the world a favor, but, her son deserves to have a mother, I suppose, even if she does seem to suck at that, too). Just so, I think if the police have to deal with him much more, they will have him put in a home, rather than her taking care of him, since she apparently can't control him. I've had several people tell me about what goes on there, and warn me and other neighbors to keep our doors locked, because he does wander.
I'm not too worried about him, though. I just wonder how long everyone is going to put up with her letting her dog run loose all over the neighborhood, barking at everyone and crapping in our yards???
****************************************
Just two weeks and some days left of babysitting for this month. My daughter finishes her class schedule on the 25 of this month, then she has to find an externship, and do 300 hours of that, then she has to find a job. She only wants to work part-time, so, that won't be too bad. She just needs to find a position that is willing to hire her part-time, or let her do a lot of her work from home as a medical billing specialist.
Sigh. I can't wait, either way, because perhaps then I can plan some sort of future, like an education, and a decent job.
What the hell is normal, anyway? Bills haven't gone down, especially the mortgage. Of course, that isn't going to happen, not with all the bailout money going to things like golden parachutes and the purchasing of banks going under by banks that would have gone under if our wonderful government hadn't decided to use OUR tax money to bail out the banks that would have gone under. Personally, I think we should have let them sink, along with Detroits Big Three auto makers. Gasp!!! What, let all of those people lose their jobs, and be on unemployment? Yes.
Look, all the bailout did was make things harder on everyone, and it just postponed the inevitable. We gave money to people who have proved they aren't capable of handling money. Of course, the people who handed out the money aren't any more capable of handling money, either, so, what else could we expect? Anyway, none of that money has gone to help the people it was meant to help, mainly the homeowners who were stupid enough and greedy enough to buy houses that they ultimately couldn't afford. So, all around, we have stupid people handing money to stupid people to help stupid people, and none of it is going the way it should. Of course, it was a bad idea to begin with. The banks should have collapsed. This is a free-market economy, and sink or swim is how it works. All the bailout has done is encouraged bad decision makers to continue making bad decisions. Yes, let people lose their homes. Let them lose everything they think they 'worked' for, and perhaps, just perhaps, they will learn to make better, more intelligent decisions based on reality, not dreams, or greed.
As for our government, well, let's hope Obama does some housecleaning, and sets some rules, and stops a lot of spending that doesn't need to be. Oh, things like spending on ridiculous things. Why is the government funding research that should be handled by private firms? Why are we sending so much money to countries that in reality, aren't really our problem? Let's stop sending so much money to third world countries, and take care of our own. In light of recent events, why don't we stop giving Israel money to wage war on civilians with? Let's make senators of this country pay for their own healthcare and retirement, rather than handing it to them just 'cause they got elected by a bunch of idiots who don't really care who runs the country? Uh, maybe it's time for the U.S. to start looking inward as well as outward, and take care of it's own, first, rather than others. We really need to stop being such sissy's, and become a world power again, rather than a planetary joke.
Maybe it's time for us to stop taking the bait we are handed, and start saying 'NO" to those we elected.
Come on, you don't really think things are going to get better, do you???
****************************************
I'm back on my diet, and am looking forward to completing another resolution this year, with a 25-40 lb weight loss over the next 12 months. Reached last years goal of dropping 2 sizes, and would like to drop another 2 this year, possibly 3. I know, it doesn't sound like much, but it's better for me to do that, rather than hop on a scale every day or so. I think that is so self-defeating. Much easier to reach those points where my pants are falling off, instead. LOL.
****************************************
The neighbors have been somewhat behaved lately, other than a few laughable instances of them being total idiots, as usual. Seems the trash around the corner has acquired a quad and a minibike. Oh, goody. They spent a day or two riding the unlicensed, not for the street things up and down the block, making as much noise as possible to annoy everyone. I was amused by their stupidity and carelessness, mostly, as the street I live on is level til you reach my house, then becomes a fairly steep hill , about a 45 degree drop from level, which ends in a cross street and a very high stone wall that holds up the ground there. There is also the fact that years ago, due to the number of kids that lived on this one block, (14 kids, 13 houses) a neighbor petitioned to have this one block made one way, and that's what it's been for nearly 20 years. The kids were part of the reason, traffic was the other,as people going down the hill couldn't see anyone coming up the hill, and vise versa, til it was too late, and BANG! So, it's a one way street, and these fools are riding a minibike and quad up it the wrong way, so, well, soon enough, someone is going to get hit by a car, and most likely killed. Doesn't help that the people riding these things are underage, middle school, for the most part.
Anyway...they haven't been riding the beastly things other than those 2 or 3 days, bacause it seems that one of them came close to clipping the neighbors car across the street, and he saw them, as he was hanging his Christmas decorations outside at the time, and oh, was there hell to pay, then!!! LOL!!! Haven't seen or heard the noisy machines since. I just wonder when those idiots will figure out that they keep hanging themselves with their attitude of being more entitled than anyone else??? I mean there is only one person left on the street they haven't pissed off so far.
As for the other neighbor a few doors down, well, she has her father living there with her now. I kinda feel for her, as he has Alzheimers, and apparently is rather violent. The police have been to her house 3 times in the 3 months he has been there, twice because he was found on her nextdoor neigbors porch once, once because he walked into their house, and once because, according to the grapevine, he tried to strangle his daughter. (to be honest, he'd be doing the world a favor, but, her son deserves to have a mother, I suppose, even if she does seem to suck at that, too). Just so, I think if the police have to deal with him much more, they will have him put in a home, rather than her taking care of him, since she apparently can't control him. I've had several people tell me about what goes on there, and warn me and other neighbors to keep our doors locked, because he does wander.
I'm not too worried about him, though. I just wonder how long everyone is going to put up with her letting her dog run loose all over the neighborhood, barking at everyone and crapping in our yards???
****************************************
Just two weeks and some days left of babysitting for this month. My daughter finishes her class schedule on the 25 of this month, then she has to find an externship, and do 300 hours of that, then she has to find a job. She only wants to work part-time, so, that won't be too bad. She just needs to find a position that is willing to hire her part-time, or let her do a lot of her work from home as a medical billing specialist.
Sigh. I can't wait, either way, because perhaps then I can plan some sort of future, like an education, and a decent job.
- Mood: bitchy
Once again, Black Friday has come and gone. Not so many stories in national news about crazy people lining up and fighting over stupid stuff, this year. Only one story stands out, and that is from New York, about a Walmart employee being trampled to death while opening doors to hordes of greedy shoppers. Apparently shoppers were soooooo eager to get great deals, they actually trampled this poor guy to death, injured a pregnant woman, and then had the nerve to not care. When told to leave the store by police, it seems many shoppers got a bit um, vocal about it, saying they had been waiting too long in line outside to leave, and weren't leaving til they were done shopping.
Nice.
First of all, killing someone because you want a 'good deal' isn't really the way to start the holiday season, is it? I mean, if people would really think about it, there will be better deals the closer you get to Christmas, which is why I start most of my shopping around the second week of December.
Personally, I think it's time to put an end to 'Black Friday'. It's a day created by retailers, for retailers, to give them giant boosts in their year-end sales figures. It really has nothing to do with us, other than getting us in the stores looking for those 'great advertised deals' on high priced items that there are only 5 in stock of, anyway. Not exactly bait and switch, but close enough, and it keeps the stores just barely legal, while disappointing hundreds of people who then have to buy another similar item, usually at a much higher price than they intended to pay. Or the fights that break out over the last remaining advertised 'deal'.
It's that short-stocking practice that's lead us to where we are now...unsympathetic murderers in the spirit of Christmas and giving. Nice of those people at that Walmart to give that 19 yr olds family a death to celebrate this year. Nice of them to dole out death in their unthinking haste to make someone else happy.
To be honest, I hope the police find all the people responsible for killing one person and injuring another. I hope they find them, and that every one of them gets hit with, at the least, manslaughter charges and jail time. I think the families of those people, who probably think that they are nice, wonderful, compassionate people most of the time, get to see just exactly who their loved ones really are, and just how uncaring they are. I think their holidays should be just as happy as the holidays of the family of the young man who died just because he was opening a door for a bunch of idiots.
I hope that Walmart has to pay his family a nice, hefty sum of cash, and that other retailers will take heed, and hopefully do away with one of the worst ideas in marketing history....Black Friday.Stop the early bird sales, midnight sales, etc. Just do business as usual, and maybe those of us who shun that day will start shopping again in your store, rather than searching the web for deals that are better, anyway.
And not so many people will die.
****************************************
Another news item...it seems parents are sending letters to toy manufacturers asking them to ease up on the adverts for toys aimed at kids, because the kids are asking for everything they see and the parents can't handle it.
(laughing, long and hard) Parents these days are such f****ing idiots. We all grew up being bombarded with the same ads, and probably just as many, for toys. Remember Saturday morning cartoons, when you only had 3 channels to watch, and every damned one of them featured...toy ads! And for those of us who are older, we all had to deal with our kids asking for everything they saw!
And we all had to dissapoint our kids every year because they didn't get everything. Maybe just one special item, if it was available, and if it was reasonably within the budget.
You see, people, you are parents. And part of being a parent is deciding on what degree do you not only make your kid happy, but to what degree do you disappoint them, too.
My kids got one or two gifts that they had specifically asked for. . Again, within reason. You see, my kids were asked, long before Santa's arrival, if they would rather have ONE really special gift, or one that was pretty special, and several other gifts to go with it. Damn if they didn't, every time, opt for the lesser special gift + several others. And then, maybe the next year, or for their birthday, that really GREAT gift would be had for a birthday, or possibly Christmas. "Sometimes, they did get that extra special gift. And it never failed, that when that gift did make it's appearance, it was appreciated that much more.
Maybe it's time for parents to set aside THEIR egos, and deal with real life, and make some adult decisions. And maybe those greedy little shits will learn to appreciate what they do get, rather than whining about what they didn't get.
Stop blaming the manufacturers of toys for the 'I want' blitz, and stop your whining and bitching to them, they aren't the parents of your kids, you are. Stop expecting total strangers to take responsibility for what your kids are exposed to. That is your job. YOU opted to have kids, now step up and be responsible adults raising kids, and start teaching them how to deal with and sidestep the marketing onslaught,.start teaching them about all the crap that is being pushed on them, and start helping them learn to decide which toys they will really get the most benefit from.
Grow up, people.
Nice.
First of all, killing someone because you want a 'good deal' isn't really the way to start the holiday season, is it? I mean, if people would really think about it, there will be better deals the closer you get to Christmas, which is why I start most of my shopping around the second week of December.
Personally, I think it's time to put an end to 'Black Friday'. It's a day created by retailers, for retailers, to give them giant boosts in their year-end sales figures. It really has nothing to do with us, other than getting us in the stores looking for those 'great advertised deals' on high priced items that there are only 5 in stock of, anyway. Not exactly bait and switch, but close enough, and it keeps the stores just barely legal, while disappointing hundreds of people who then have to buy another similar item, usually at a much higher price than they intended to pay. Or the fights that break out over the last remaining advertised 'deal'.
It's that short-stocking practice that's lead us to where we are now...unsympathetic murderers in the spirit of Christmas and giving. Nice of those people at that Walmart to give that 19 yr olds family a death to celebrate this year. Nice of them to dole out death in their unthinking haste to make someone else happy.
To be honest, I hope the police find all the people responsible for killing one person and injuring another. I hope they find them, and that every one of them gets hit with, at the least, manslaughter charges and jail time. I think the families of those people, who probably think that they are nice, wonderful, compassionate people most of the time, get to see just exactly who their loved ones really are, and just how uncaring they are. I think their holidays should be just as happy as the holidays of the family of the young man who died just because he was opening a door for a bunch of idiots.
I hope that Walmart has to pay his family a nice, hefty sum of cash, and that other retailers will take heed, and hopefully do away with one of the worst ideas in marketing history....Black Friday.Stop the early bird sales, midnight sales, etc. Just do business as usual, and maybe those of us who shun that day will start shopping again in your store, rather than searching the web for deals that are better, anyway.
And not so many people will die.
****************************************
Another news item...it seems parents are sending letters to toy manufacturers asking them to ease up on the adverts for toys aimed at kids, because the kids are asking for everything they see and the parents can't handle it.
(laughing, long and hard) Parents these days are such f****ing idiots. We all grew up being bombarded with the same ads, and probably just as many, for toys. Remember Saturday morning cartoons, when you only had 3 channels to watch, and every damned one of them featured...toy ads! And for those of us who are older, we all had to deal with our kids asking for everything they saw!
And we all had to dissapoint our kids every year because they didn't get everything. Maybe just one special item, if it was available, and if it was reasonably within the budget.
You see, people, you are parents. And part of being a parent is deciding on what degree do you not only make your kid happy, but to what degree do you disappoint them, too.
My kids got one or two gifts that they had specifically asked for. . Again, within reason. You see, my kids were asked, long before Santa's arrival, if they would rather have ONE really special gift, or one that was pretty special, and several other gifts to go with it. Damn if they didn't, every time, opt for the lesser special gift + several others. And then, maybe the next year, or for their birthday, that really GREAT gift would be had for a birthday, or possibly Christmas. "Sometimes, they did get that extra special gift. And it never failed, that when that gift did make it's appearance, it was appreciated that much more.
Maybe it's time for parents to set aside THEIR egos, and deal with real life, and make some adult decisions. And maybe those greedy little shits will learn to appreciate what they do get, rather than whining about what they didn't get.
Stop blaming the manufacturers of toys for the 'I want' blitz, and stop your whining and bitching to them, they aren't the parents of your kids, you are. Stop expecting total strangers to take responsibility for what your kids are exposed to. That is your job. YOU opted to have kids, now step up and be responsible adults raising kids, and start teaching them how to deal with and sidestep the marketing onslaught,.start teaching them about all the crap that is being pushed on them, and start helping them learn to decide which toys they will really get the most benefit from.
Grow up, people.
Once again, Black Friday has come and gone. Not so many stories in national news about crazy people lining up and fighting over stupid stuff, this year. Only one story stands out, and that is from New York, about a Walmart employee being trampled to death while opening doors to hordes of greedy shoppers. Apparently shoppers were soooooo eager to get great deals, they actually trampled this poor guy to death, injured a pregnant woman, and then had the nerve to not care. When told to leave the store by police, it seems many shoppers got a bit um, vocal about it, saying they had been waiting too long in line outside to leave, and weren't leaving til they were done shopping.
Nice.
First of all, killing someone because you want a 'good deal' isn't really the way to start the holiday season, is it? I mean, if people would really think about it, there will be better deals the closer you get to Christmas, which is why I start most of my shopping around the second week of December.
Personally, I think it's time to put an end to 'Black Friday'. It's a day created by retailers, for retailers, to give them giant boosts in their year-end sales figures. It really has nothing to do with us, other than getting us in the stores looking for those 'great advertised deals' on high priced items that there are only 5 in stock of, anyway. Not exactly bait and switch, but close enough, and it keeps the stores just barely legal, while disappointing hundreds of people who then have to buy another similar item, usually at a much higher price than they intended to pay. Or the fights that break out over the last remaining advertised 'deal'.
It's that short-stocking practice that's lead us to where we are now...unsympathetic murderers in the spirit of Christmas and giving. Nice of those people at that Walmart to give that 19 yr old's family a death to celebrate this year. Nice of them to dole out death in their unthinking haste to make someone else happy.
To be honest, I hope the police find all the people responsible for killing one person and injuring another. I hope they find them, and that every one of them gets hit with, at the least, manslaughter charges and jail time. I think the families of those people, who probably think that they are nice, wonderful, compassionate people most of the time, get to see just exactly who their loved ones really are, and just how uncaring they are. I think their holidays should be just as happy as the holidays of the family of the young man who died just because he was opening a door for a bunch of idiots.
I hope that Walmart has to pay his family a nice, hefty sum of cash, and that other retailers will take heed, and hopefully do away with one of the worst ideas in marketing history....Black Friday.Stop the early bird sales, midnight sales, etc. Just do business as usual, and maybe those of us who shun that day will start shopping again in your store, rather than searching the web for deals that are better, anyway.
And not so many people will die.
****************************************
Another news item...it seems parents are sending letters to toy manufacturers asking them to ease up on the adverts for toys aimed at kids, because the kids are asking for everything they see and the parents can't handle it.
(laughing, long and hard) Parents these days are such f****ing idiots. We all grew up being bombarded with the same ads, and probably just as many, for toys. Remember Saturday morning cartoons, when you only had 3 channels to watch, and every damned one of them featured...toy ads! And for those of us who are older, we all had to deal with our kids asking for everything they saw!
And we all had to dissapoint our kids every year because they didn't get everything. Maybe just one special item, if it was available, and if it was reasonably within the budget.
Get real, folks. Anyone with anything to sell is going to target the market that is going to want that item, and that includes your kids. Watch Nick Jr for an hour, and you'll see more ads for toys, most based on the cartoons and programming the channel carries, than anywhere else.
Watch Disney, and you'll see ads for everything the Disney moneygrabbing machine has to offer, from toys to cruises, and those are aimed at 3-5 yr olds. Watch Saturday morning cartoons, and it's the same...ads, ads, ads!
Grow up, nothing has changed, we saw just as many ads when we were kids, get over it, and deal with it like adults.
You see, people, you are parents. And part of being a parent is deciding on what degree do you not only make your kid happy, but to what degree do you disappoint them, too.
Yes, I said it's part of our job as parents to not only make our kids happy, but to also teach them to deal with disappointment. Will that make you the worst parent in the world? No. It makes you a reasonable, rational adult who cares enough about your child to teach them to deal with life, the highs and the lows.
I guess that parents now need to learn, too, how to deal with the 'disappointment' of actually having to be parents, thinking, deciding, choosing, budgeting. It's time to put egos aside, and really concentrate on making your kids happy. Maybe that isn't so much buying gifts, as having a happy, meaningful morning together.
Maybe it's time for parents to learn that Christmas, and happiness, isn't about the latest hot toy or tech gadget, but about being together, and making the kids feel loved, and maybe learn to say that maybe 'next Christmans' wiill be a good time for the latest game console or Bratz doll. Then surprise the kid with it on their birthday.
****************************************
Toys that irk me....
Bratz dolls. Anything Dora. Dancing and singing everything. Karoake for kids. Ride-on dinosaurs. Dolls that actually poo in a potty. Wrestling action figures. Sex-specific toys. (my daughter and granddaughter both love(d) toy power tools, cars, trucks, and legos.
Any toy related to the Disney music business...can't stand Hannah Montana, personally, or the Cheetah girls.
Ain't it funny how we want our kids to remain kids for as long as possible, yet allow marketing to them at age 4 and up of toys and items that promote glamour and sex appeal?
Ugly baby dolls. You know, the ones that aren't sweet and cuddly?
Anything realistic. It's a toy, it isn't supposed to be real.
sigh.
Nice.
First of all, killing someone because you want a 'good deal' isn't really the way to start the holiday season, is it? I mean, if people would really think about it, there will be better deals the closer you get to Christmas, which is why I start most of my shopping around the second week of December.
Personally, I think it's time to put an end to 'Black Friday'. It's a day created by retailers, for retailers, to give them giant boosts in their year-end sales figures. It really has nothing to do with us, other than getting us in the stores looking for those 'great advertised deals' on high priced items that there are only 5 in stock of, anyway. Not exactly bait and switch, but close enough, and it keeps the stores just barely legal, while disappointing hundreds of people who then have to buy another similar item, usually at a much higher price than they intended to pay. Or the fights that break out over the last remaining advertised 'deal'.
It's that short-stocking practice that's lead us to where we are now...unsympathetic murderers in the spirit of Christmas and giving. Nice of those people at that Walmart to give that 19 yr old's family a death to celebrate this year. Nice of them to dole out death in their unthinking haste to make someone else happy.
To be honest, I hope the police find all the people responsible for killing one person and injuring another. I hope they find them, and that every one of them gets hit with, at the least, manslaughter charges and jail time. I think the families of those people, who probably think that they are nice, wonderful, compassionate people most of the time, get to see just exactly who their loved ones really are, and just how uncaring they are. I think their holidays should be just as happy as the holidays of the family of the young man who died just because he was opening a door for a bunch of idiots.
I hope that Walmart has to pay his family a nice, hefty sum of cash, and that other retailers will take heed, and hopefully do away with one of the worst ideas in marketing history....Black Friday.Stop the early bird sales, midnight sales, etc. Just do business as usual, and maybe those of us who shun that day will start shopping again in your store, rather than searching the web for deals that are better, anyway.
And not so many people will die.
****************************************
Another news item...it seems parents are sending letters to toy manufacturers asking them to ease up on the adverts for toys aimed at kids, because the kids are asking for everything they see and the parents can't handle it.
(laughing, long and hard) Parents these days are such f****ing idiots. We all grew up being bombarded with the same ads, and probably just as many, for toys. Remember Saturday morning cartoons, when you only had 3 channels to watch, and every damned one of them featured...toy ads! And for those of us who are older, we all had to deal with our kids asking for everything they saw!
And we all had to dissapoint our kids every year because they didn't get everything. Maybe just one special item, if it was available, and if it was reasonably within the budget.
Get real, folks. Anyone with anything to sell is going to target the market that is going to want that item, and that includes your kids. Watch Nick Jr for an hour, and you'll see more ads for toys, most based on the cartoons and programming the channel carries, than anywhere else.
Watch Disney, and you'll see ads for everything the Disney moneygrabbing machine has to offer, from toys to cruises, and those are aimed at 3-5 yr olds. Watch Saturday morning cartoons, and it's the same...ads, ads, ads!
Grow up, nothing has changed, we saw just as many ads when we were kids, get over it, and deal with it like adults.
You see, people, you are parents. And part of being a parent is deciding on what degree do you not only make your kid happy, but to what degree do you disappoint them, too.
Yes, I said it's part of our job as parents to not only make our kids happy, but to also teach them to deal with disappointment. Will that make you the worst parent in the world? No. It makes you a reasonable, rational adult who cares enough about your child to teach them to deal with life, the highs and the lows.
I guess that parents now need to learn, too, how to deal with the 'disappointment' of actually having to be parents, thinking, deciding, choosing, budgeting. It's time to put egos aside, and really concentrate on making your kids happy. Maybe that isn't so much buying gifts, as having a happy, meaningful morning together.
Maybe it's time for parents to learn that Christmas, and happiness, isn't about the latest hot toy or tech gadget, but about being together, and making the kids feel loved, and maybe learn to say that maybe 'next Christmans' wiill be a good time for the latest game console or Bratz doll. Then surprise the kid with it on their birthday.
****************************************
Toys that irk me....
Bratz dolls. Anything Dora. Dancing and singing everything. Karoake for kids. Ride-on dinosaurs. Dolls that actually poo in a potty. Wrestling action figures. Sex-specific toys. (my daughter and granddaughter both love(d) toy power tools, cars, trucks, and legos.
Any toy related to the Disney music business...can't stand Hannah Montana, personally, or the Cheetah girls.
Ain't it funny how we want our kids to remain kids for as long as possible, yet allow marketing to them at age 4 and up of toys and items that promote glamour and sex appeal?
Ugly baby dolls. You know, the ones that aren't sweet and cuddly?
Anything realistic. It's a toy, it isn't supposed to be real.
sigh.
Well, Obama has one the President's race. Good for him, McCain would have been a bad, pathetic choice for this country right now.
Somehow, I have the feeling that both political parties saw Obama as a good choice, or else why put a man for the office who doesn't know how many homes he owns, hasn't got a clue about anything going on in this country,and can't seem to think fast enough on his feet to answer the questions and problems plagueing this country now? sigh.
Right now, the only 'change' I've seen is in my spam filters. Obama is big with those who collect junk. By junk, I mean that my mail has been flooded with offers of 'special edition collectors' plates...coins...stamps....etc. JUNK. Junk that isn't going to be worth anything a few years from now. Right now, if we can't eat it or pay a bill with it, we don't want it.
It's winter here, officially. Got caught in the mini-blizzard on Saturday, it only lasted about 30 minutes, but was heavy and made the roads pretty damned bad. Watched a semi slide down the road sideways as I was making my way home from Kmart then, just at the beginning of the squall, and it took about 10 minutes for the roads to become slick. A 15 minutes trip took almost 30, and there were a lot of accidents, most of people who dont' know how to drive on good roads, and it apparently never occured to them that 4 wheel drives slide too, if you don't know what you're doing...lol. One small panic attack going down the looooong hill to the bridge, as the car started sliding for a minute, but got it straightened out and kept creeping along, well behind the vehicles in front of me. Those are the times I really hate highways, as there is no edge to the road, just a line and 10 ft of pavement before you get to grass, and there's no gravel or anything to get the passenger wheels on to assure a little traction. You'd think states that get snow would stop hiring engineers from places that don't get snow, and use a little sense and foresight whe building roads north of the Mason-Dixon line.
I read an article yesterday that had me chuckling a bit. It's about unions, and how the south has damned few of them, and some states are trying to push through something called Employee Choice or somesuch, that would allow employees of businesses to just sign a card and basically, as I understand it, with a majority, form a union in their workplace. Now, this had to do with the Auto Workers Union, and how they don't have members in, I believe it was Kentucky, I could be wrong about the state, and how people there would be better off with a union. The argument against the auto workers in Kentucky or where ever down south forming a union is that they are already well paid for their work, with decent benefits.
Sweetheart, whoever you are, listen up. Until our jobs come with all the perks of a CEO or excutive for one of the Big Three, or AIG, and 'golden parachutes' then freaking unionize!!!
Yes, I agree, some unions greeded themselves right out of jobs over the years...(check out the perks steelworkers were getting and see why we now buy our steel from Japan) But I'm really tired of hearing how union members want too much. My husband risks his life every day going to work, whether it be because he's working 200+ ft in the air, or a chemical line explodes, or a ditch wall caves in, he risks his life, far more than any CEO or suited excutive or shareholder. So, yes, I think he deserves not only the union wages he makes along with one of the best health care packages in the country, but more. See, he doesn't get paid holidays, like the Auto Workers do. And he doesn't get paid vacations. He brasses in, brasses out, and the time he holds that brass is the time he gets paid for. And that should apply to every damn job in this country, get rid of salaries, and you might have a more reliable workforce. Pay people for what they actually work, and you might see higher, better job performance. Less sick time. More care about the quality of work. Gee, do you think that if our Senators and Representatives had to actually show up for work and earn, say, $30 an hour, they might actually get something done? Oh, and let's not forget that out of that $30, they have to pay not only taxes, but union dues, health care, and pension? Yeah, it seems everyone thinks that the companies pay all that, but they don't. Union workers may earn better wages, but it's because we pay for everything we get out of that wage.The company doesn't pay it. Health care costs us around $17000.00 a year out of that paycheck. Then there are the annuities and pension that comes out of it. Union dues. And that's after taxes. No 401k. No severance deal. Just a paycheck that is earned. So, by the time that paycheck actually hits the bank account here, it's only worth maybe about $15 an hour. For a dangerous job. Much less than being an overpaid fraud who really does very little that's risky, or actually useful, really.
I'm really tired of people blaming unions for the economy, because for the most part, union members take very little from the businesses they work for. Get real people, it's the ones at the top that are responsible for the most greed and gluttony we've seen since Rome. And gee, aren't we headed down the same road??
And don't forget that without unions, those of you who don't belong to one sure as hell wouldn't be earning more than any chinese peasant right now. Hell, without unions to boost gov't mandated minimum wage (which is a joke in these times) we'd all be immigrants heading somewhere else, wouldn't we??? hmmmm.
Somehow, I have the feeling that both political parties saw Obama as a good choice, or else why put a man for the office who doesn't know how many homes he owns, hasn't got a clue about anything going on in this country,and can't seem to think fast enough on his feet to answer the questions and problems plagueing this country now? sigh.
Right now, the only 'change' I've seen is in my spam filters. Obama is big with those who collect junk. By junk, I mean that my mail has been flooded with offers of 'special edition collectors' plates...coins...stamps....etc. JUNK. Junk that isn't going to be worth anything a few years from now. Right now, if we can't eat it or pay a bill with it, we don't want it.
It's winter here, officially. Got caught in the mini-blizzard on Saturday, it only lasted about 30 minutes, but was heavy and made the roads pretty damned bad. Watched a semi slide down the road sideways as I was making my way home from Kmart then, just at the beginning of the squall, and it took about 10 minutes for the roads to become slick. A 15 minutes trip took almost 30, and there were a lot of accidents, most of people who dont' know how to drive on good roads, and it apparently never occured to them that 4 wheel drives slide too, if you don't know what you're doing...lol. One small panic attack going down the looooong hill to the bridge, as the car started sliding for a minute, but got it straightened out and kept creeping along, well behind the vehicles in front of me. Those are the times I really hate highways, as there is no edge to the road, just a line and 10 ft of pavement before you get to grass, and there's no gravel or anything to get the passenger wheels on to assure a little traction. You'd think states that get snow would stop hiring engineers from places that don't get snow, and use a little sense and foresight whe building roads north of the Mason-Dixon line.
I read an article yesterday that had me chuckling a bit. It's about unions, and how the south has damned few of them, and some states are trying to push through something called Employee Choice or somesuch, that would allow employees of businesses to just sign a card and basically, as I understand it, with a majority, form a union in their workplace. Now, this had to do with the Auto Workers Union, and how they don't have members in, I believe it was Kentucky, I could be wrong about the state, and how people there would be better off with a union. The argument against the auto workers in Kentucky or where ever down south forming a union is that they are already well paid for their work, with decent benefits.
Sweetheart, whoever you are, listen up. Until our jobs come with all the perks of a CEO or excutive for one of the Big Three, or AIG, and 'golden parachutes' then freaking unionize!!!
Yes, I agree, some unions greeded themselves right out of jobs over the years...(check out the perks steelworkers were getting and see why we now buy our steel from Japan) But I'm really tired of hearing how union members want too much. My husband risks his life every day going to work, whether it be because he's working 200+ ft in the air, or a chemical line explodes, or a ditch wall caves in, he risks his life, far more than any CEO or suited excutive or shareholder. So, yes, I think he deserves not only the union wages he makes along with one of the best health care packages in the country, but more. See, he doesn't get paid holidays, like the Auto Workers do. And he doesn't get paid vacations. He brasses in, brasses out, and the time he holds that brass is the time he gets paid for. And that should apply to every damn job in this country, get rid of salaries, and you might have a more reliable workforce. Pay people for what they actually work, and you might see higher, better job performance. Less sick time. More care about the quality of work. Gee, do you think that if our Senators and Representatives had to actually show up for work and earn, say, $30 an hour, they might actually get something done? Oh, and let's not forget that out of that $30, they have to pay not only taxes, but union dues, health care, and pension? Yeah, it seems everyone thinks that the companies pay all that, but they don't. Union workers may earn better wages, but it's because we pay for everything we get out of that wage.The company doesn't pay it. Health care costs us around $17000.00 a year out of that paycheck. Then there are the annuities and pension that comes out of it. Union dues. And that's after taxes. No 401k. No severance deal. Just a paycheck that is earned. So, by the time that paycheck actually hits the bank account here, it's only worth maybe about $15 an hour. For a dangerous job. Much less than being an overpaid fraud who really does very little that's risky, or actually useful, really.
I'm really tired of people blaming unions for the economy, because for the most part, union members take very little from the businesses they work for. Get real people, it's the ones at the top that are responsible for the most greed and gluttony we've seen since Rome. And gee, aren't we headed down the same road??
And don't forget that without unions, those of you who don't belong to one sure as hell wouldn't be earning more than any chinese peasant right now. Hell, without unions to boost gov't mandated minimum wage (which is a joke in these times) we'd all be immigrants heading somewhere else, wouldn't we??? hmmmm.
Just a few things that I find mildly irritating.
Logos on every channel. Just for the record, I usually know what channel I'm watching. Those logos constantly in the bottom right corner of my screen are more than a little annoying, and really unnecessary.
While on the topic, the most annoying thing about watching many channels, are the 'previews' and ads for other shows a channel carries that run at the bottom of the screen while a program is on. STOP IT!!!! All the damn things do is get in the way of whatever show is on, and often there is something going on that the stupid blurb for whatever stupid cop show/reality show is running blots out. Thanks so much for making television viewing ever so much more unpleasant!
Shoppers who apparently think they are the only ones in the store. Stop hogging the aisle pay attention and move your damn cart over so that those of us with a cart and two kids in tow can get through the same aisle without the aggravation of having to say 'pardon me' every ten seconds.
Main street is wide enough for cars parked on both sides and traffic in both directions. JUST wide enough. Don't open your freaking car door into moving traffic, try to wait a few seconds for a break in it, so that most of us don't have to either swerve into the other lane of oncoming traffic or slam our brakes on, which would cause the driver behind to hit us. Yes, we're only doing about 25, but still, the temptation is there to just take off your door, and possibly your leg, with our car. Pay attention!
Oh, and don't stand on the traffic side of someone's vehicle yakking and gabbing...your big ass jutting into a traffic lane is nothing but a huge target....either move to the sidewalk, or use a phone, for pete's sake.
It used to be you went to the grocery store and got one receipt. Now I get 4. One for my purchases, one for my fuel rewards, and two print out coupons based on what I've purchased, and now, it's five, because I get these lovely coupons for every $50 purchase that I can redeem for a $10 gift certificate once I"ve collected 5 of them. There's never any room in my wallet when I"m done. Sigh.
It's amazing, but I never seem to be able to find coupons for the basics that I usually purchase. Tomato sauce, bread, (not the fancy stuff, just BREAD) butter, cheese, basic frozen vegetables, cereal, etc. And the coupons I do find usually insist that I have to purchase 2 to 4 of said item to get a savings. I don't always want that many. How about a coupon for ONE item, please? Stop making coupons 'conditional'.
Speaking of frozen vegetables....I don't want nor like the 'steam in bag' variety that seem to have taken over the grocer's freezers. I like my vegetables cooked, steamed, yes, but that's what I have a steamer for. Doesn't take any longer than the damn plastic bag, and tastes better, and I don't have the hassle of getting steaming hot food out of an unwieldy plastic bad and into a bow. Then there is the fact that to feed 4 people, you need to buy 2 bags. (we LIKE veggies, here) I want my regular 16 oz bag of frozen veggies back, damn it.
Billy Mays. Stop screaming at me, I've had enough and am not going to buy your products. (he's hawking insurance now)
Sincere aging celebrities trying to convince me that I need whatever it is they are being paid to sell me.
Ads for medicines that are more likely to kill me than the condition they are supposed to treat.
Reality tv. Boring to a degree that doesn't even exist.
Katie Couric. I know, America's sweetheart and all. She seems to have given up her brain in exchange for a position. How sad.
Spell checker. Why can't someone program it to recognize that if a word begins with a capital, it just might be a proper name????????
And why doesn't it recognize contractions? Consistently?
Worst Week of My LIfe. Stolen from British tv, and sucked then, too. Maybe the U.S version would work if the lead actor didn't look like such a dishrag? I mean, the guy is, in appearance, basically the human version of a Cocker Spaniel puppy. Acts like one, too.
That's all for today, although I"m sure I can think of more, later.
****************************************
Took my granddaughter to school yesterday. Once we got in the building and got her coat off and hung in the main hall and were waiting for the door to the classroom hall to open, she was chatting to one of her little classmates. When the doors finally opened, this poor little girl's dear daddy kissed her goodbye in the main hall and sent her on her way to her classroom. The poor kid just looked lost, as protocol is that you escort your child to their classroom, just to make sure they know where it is, and that they made it. Now, keep in mind that to get to this girls classroom, (also my granddaughters) you have to pass 3 other rooms, other kids going to their rooms, and numerous parents and grandparents delivering those kids, many of us with younger siblings in tow, so, it gets pretty crowded and confusing. I just quietly told my granddaughter to hold the girls hand, and I managed to get them both to class in one piece.
To the dad....possibly you have some injury that kept your fat ass (he took up half the hallway, sorry) from walking the extra 15 yards to the kids classroom, or possibly your just an ass who couldn't wait to get back home to play WOW or 2nd Life, or just take in the internet porn. Whatever the reason, leaving the kid high and dry was just wrong.
Logos on every channel. Just for the record, I usually know what channel I'm watching. Those logos constantly in the bottom right corner of my screen are more than a little annoying, and really unnecessary.
While on the topic, the most annoying thing about watching many channels, are the 'previews' and ads for other shows a channel carries that run at the bottom of the screen while a program is on. STOP IT!!!! All the damn things do is get in the way of whatever show is on, and often there is something going on that the stupid blurb for whatever stupid cop show/reality show is running blots out. Thanks so much for making television viewing ever so much more unpleasant!
Shoppers who apparently think they are the only ones in the store. Stop hogging the aisle pay attention and move your damn cart over so that those of us with a cart and two kids in tow can get through the same aisle without the aggravation of having to say 'pardon me' every ten seconds.
Main street is wide enough for cars parked on both sides and traffic in both directions. JUST wide enough. Don't open your freaking car door into moving traffic, try to wait a few seconds for a break in it, so that most of us don't have to either swerve into the other lane of oncoming traffic or slam our brakes on, which would cause the driver behind to hit us. Yes, we're only doing about 25, but still, the temptation is there to just take off your door, and possibly your leg, with our car. Pay attention!
Oh, and don't stand on the traffic side of someone's vehicle yakking and gabbing...your big ass jutting into a traffic lane is nothing but a huge target....either move to the sidewalk, or use a phone, for pete's sake.
It used to be you went to the grocery store and got one receipt. Now I get 4. One for my purchases, one for my fuel rewards, and two print out coupons based on what I've purchased, and now, it's five, because I get these lovely coupons for every $50 purchase that I can redeem for a $10 gift certificate once I"ve collected 5 of them. There's never any room in my wallet when I"m done. Sigh.
It's amazing, but I never seem to be able to find coupons for the basics that I usually purchase. Tomato sauce, bread, (not the fancy stuff, just BREAD) butter, cheese, basic frozen vegetables, cereal, etc. And the coupons I do find usually insist that I have to purchase 2 to 4 of said item to get a savings. I don't always want that many. How about a coupon for ONE item, please? Stop making coupons 'conditional'.
Speaking of frozen vegetables....I don't want nor like the 'steam in bag' variety that seem to have taken over the grocer's freezers. I like my vegetables cooked, steamed, yes, but that's what I have a steamer for. Doesn't take any longer than the damn plastic bag, and tastes better, and I don't have the hassle of getting steaming hot food out of an unwieldy plastic bad and into a bow. Then there is the fact that to feed 4 people, you need to buy 2 bags. (we LIKE veggies, here) I want my regular 16 oz bag of frozen veggies back, damn it.
Billy Mays. Stop screaming at me, I've had enough and am not going to buy your products. (he's hawking insurance now)
Sincere aging celebrities trying to convince me that I need whatever it is they are being paid to sell me.
Ads for medicines that are more likely to kill me than the condition they are supposed to treat.
Reality tv. Boring to a degree that doesn't even exist.
Katie Couric. I know, America's sweetheart and all. She seems to have given up her brain in exchange for a position. How sad.
Spell checker. Why can't someone program it to recognize that if a word begins with a capital, it just might be a proper name????????
And why doesn't it recognize contractions? Consistently?
Worst Week of My LIfe. Stolen from British tv, and sucked then, too. Maybe the U.S version would work if the lead actor didn't look like such a dishrag? I mean, the guy is, in appearance, basically the human version of a Cocker Spaniel puppy. Acts like one, too.
That's all for today, although I"m sure I can think of more, later.
****************************************
Took my granddaughter to school yesterday. Once we got in the building and got her coat off and hung in the main hall and were waiting for the door to the classroom hall to open, she was chatting to one of her little classmates. When the doors finally opened, this poor little girl's dear daddy kissed her goodbye in the main hall and sent her on her way to her classroom. The poor kid just looked lost, as protocol is that you escort your child to their classroom, just to make sure they know where it is, and that they made it. Now, keep in mind that to get to this girls classroom, (also my granddaughters) you have to pass 3 other rooms, other kids going to their rooms, and numerous parents and grandparents delivering those kids, many of us with younger siblings in tow, so, it gets pretty crowded and confusing. I just quietly told my granddaughter to hold the girls hand, and I managed to get them both to class in one piece.
To the dad....possibly you have some injury that kept your fat ass (he took up half the hallway, sorry) from walking the extra 15 yards to the kids classroom, or possibly your just an ass who couldn't wait to get back home to play WOW or 2nd Life, or just take in the internet porn. Whatever the reason, leaving the kid high and dry was just wrong.
- Mood: grumpy
Well, we have a new president elect. Can't say that I'm happy about it other than it means we don't have another 4 years of Bush and his cronies doing everything they can to ruin this country. Just wish there were more options on who to vote for. I just have this feeling that we have been railroaded into electing Obama. See, I think we weren't given much choice at all on who to vote for. McCain made such a mess of his campaign that it isn't funny, even though it is. His campaigning was sloppy, slipshod, and had absolutely no coherency other than attacking his Democratic opponent constantly. Palin was the perfect choice for him, when it came to cutting off his nose to spite his face. She looks good and has a certain charisma, but...there is that lack of knowledge of rudimentary politics, not to mention that personally, I don't like being referred to as "Joe Six-pack'. To me, it just underlined even more pointedly how our elected representatives really feel about us, the people who actually make this country work, who actually pay the salaries and outrageous benefits and perks those WE elected receive.
Apparently his campaign chairman and advisors aren't too swift, or else they were paid to undermine his campaign in every way possible. They tried every dirty trick in the book, from outright lies to trying to pass an unlicensed plumber off as someone who would be hurt by Obama being elected, and I'm sure they knew full well that people would jump on the 'net and start googling this guy and find out the truth, which means they once again new they were, ultimately, hurting his credentials and believability. In the debates, you could just see that McCain had lost track of things and didn't really have a clear idea of what he wanted to do, or that he even was capable of thinking clearly, concisely, and intelligently. To be honest, his whole campaign seemed to emphasize the fact that he is so out of touch with everything that it appeared more and more that he should be in a home for Alzheimer's patients.
So, who do the Democrats put up against the Republicans piss poor choice of a candidate? Obama. Young, vibrant, intelligent, eager. Backed by people who have a clue, and an agenda to match the clue. He, and his family, are hip, young, educated, and aware of the immediate world. Charismatic as a speaker, he managed to speak on a level that didn't often belittle the ordinary working human in this country. They put up a candidate with a clean, slick campaign, who could give speeches that could, and did, influence millions. Whereas McCain's wife just stood around looking more like a cookie-cutter blonde who doesn't have a meaningful thought in her head, (I know what Cindy McCain, and the organizations she heads up, and admire her for it, she really isn't as bland as she seems, actually she should probably have been the Republicans choice for president, rather than her ersatz husband) Obama's wife is lively, intelligent, educated, and passionate, all with a class most young black women in this neck of the woods couldn't manage for love or money, nor would they even try.
What I'm saying is that I have a feeling this whole election has been carefully orchestrated over the past 2 years, and longer.
Despite what the Feds have said for the past 4 years, despite what the White House has repeatedly denied over the whole of Bush's financial reign of terror, there is no way in hell that anyone running this country could not have seen the meltdown coming. The rest of us did, nearly 8 years ago, so, why didn't they?
Okay, this is where I get a little weird, I guess. 'Conspiracy theorist' is something I expect to get thrown my way, but what the hell. A blind man could have seen this all coming. So, factor in two campaigns, one so pathetic in it's ignorance of real life in this country, the other so in touch with it. In one candidate we were for the most part all so disgusted that we felt we had no other choice but to vote for the one who shone the brightest.
Through this whole campaign, it has made me wonder why we were lead in that direction, and who wants us to go there, and why?
From there, a whole lot of questions come up, such as, if that is the case, and this is part of some other plan, then who is really running this country?
For myself, I'm just going to sit back and watch and see what happens. I have a feeling things are going to get a lot worse for a lot of people over the next few years. I see us heading even deeper into being a socialist country. I see more citizen surveilance happening. I see more homeless people, more drug abuse, more crime, and fewer viable solutions. I see fewer jobs, fewer homeowners. More of the things that drag us down as a nation.
Oh, well.
Apparently his campaign chairman and advisors aren't too swift, or else they were paid to undermine his campaign in every way possible. They tried every dirty trick in the book, from outright lies to trying to pass an unlicensed plumber off as someone who would be hurt by Obama being elected, and I'm sure they knew full well that people would jump on the 'net and start googling this guy and find out the truth, which means they once again new they were, ultimately, hurting his credentials and believability. In the debates, you could just see that McCain had lost track of things and didn't really have a clear idea of what he wanted to do, or that he even was capable of thinking clearly, concisely, and intelligently. To be honest, his whole campaign seemed to emphasize the fact that he is so out of touch with everything that it appeared more and more that he should be in a home for Alzheimer's patients.
So, who do the Democrats put up against the Republicans piss poor choice of a candidate? Obama. Young, vibrant, intelligent, eager. Backed by people who have a clue, and an agenda to match the clue. He, and his family, are hip, young, educated, and aware of the immediate world. Charismatic as a speaker, he managed to speak on a level that didn't often belittle the ordinary working human in this country. They put up a candidate with a clean, slick campaign, who could give speeches that could, and did, influence millions. Whereas McCain's wife just stood around looking more like a cookie-cutter blonde who doesn't have a meaningful thought in her head, (I know what Cindy McCain, and the organizations she heads up, and admire her for it, she really isn't as bland as she seems, actually she should probably have been the Republicans choice for president, rather than her ersatz husband) Obama's wife is lively, intelligent, educated, and passionate, all with a class most young black women in this neck of the woods couldn't manage for love or money, nor would they even try.
What I'm saying is that I have a feeling this whole election has been carefully orchestrated over the past 2 years, and longer.
Despite what the Feds have said for the past 4 years, despite what the White House has repeatedly denied over the whole of Bush's financial reign of terror, there is no way in hell that anyone running this country could not have seen the meltdown coming. The rest of us did, nearly 8 years ago, so, why didn't they?
Okay, this is where I get a little weird, I guess. 'Conspiracy theorist' is something I expect to get thrown my way, but what the hell. A blind man could have seen this all coming. So, factor in two campaigns, one so pathetic in it's ignorance of real life in this country, the other so in touch with it. In one candidate we were for the most part all so disgusted that we felt we had no other choice but to vote for the one who shone the brightest.
Through this whole campaign, it has made me wonder why we were lead in that direction, and who wants us to go there, and why?
From there, a whole lot of questions come up, such as, if that is the case, and this is part of some other plan, then who is really running this country?
For myself, I'm just going to sit back and watch and see what happens. I have a feeling things are going to get a lot worse for a lot of people over the next few years. I see us heading even deeper into being a socialist country. I see more citizen surveilance happening. I see more homeless people, more drug abuse, more crime, and fewer viable solutions. I see fewer jobs, fewer homeowners. More of the things that drag us down as a nation.
Oh, well.
- Mood:
amused
Halloween came and went. Big deal. Not a lot of people here, although I understand that a few blocks away, where there are no hills to climb, people got mobbed. Oh well, so it goes. Most of the evening was nice, lots of nice people, and the kids weren't too bad, either..lol.
The only problem I had with anyone was the trouble making blowsy blonde pregnant thing with the attitude that lives around the corner....her kids took off ahead of her, and she showed up 5 minutes later with another trashy mom, towing a wagon with two babies in it who probably had 3 teeth between them. All I got from her was a bag shoved in my face with the snarled remark that ' this is for the baby in the wagon', so, I dropped one box of candy in the bag, said happy halloween, and went on with life. My son, who was sitting outside with me at the time, thought that punching her in the face would be a good idea.
Personally, I absolutely hate it when idiots drag toothless babies out trick or treating, and haul bags around pretending that the candy they collect if for the baby. Who do they think they are kidding? We all know that baby is not getting that candy, it's just some parents 'legitimate' form of begging for themselves. As for blonde bimbo with four kids and one on the way....I wasn't surprised, as I didn't expect any better behavior from her.
Aside from that, it wasn't too bad a night. I was just glad when it was over.
****************************************
Taking my daughter for her drivers test today, hope she passes, as I'd like to get this over with, so she can start driving her own ass around and stop interrupting mine.
Apart from that, there are Halloween decorations to be taken down, meals to cook, laundry to do, a spare room to organize again so I can get the spare tv back into it (it resides outside in the summer, so we can watch whatever sport hubby wants to watch while we are outside..blllllththhh.....then there's the laundry which never seems to end, and dishes, vacuum needs run again, endless things that always seem to mean that those projects I want to do don't get done.
Maybe daughter dearest getting her license will allow me some of that time, hmmmm?
And a stress free weekend would be nice, once in a while, too. I"m pretty sure that if I don't soon get some time to myself FOR myself, I'm going to explode.
Oh, well. So it goes.
The only problem I had with anyone was the trouble making blowsy blonde pregnant thing with the attitude that lives around the corner....her kids took off ahead of her, and she showed up 5 minutes later with another trashy mom, towing a wagon with two babies in it who probably had 3 teeth between them. All I got from her was a bag shoved in my face with the snarled remark that ' this is for the baby in the wagon', so, I dropped one box of candy in the bag, said happy halloween, and went on with life. My son, who was sitting outside with me at the time, thought that punching her in the face would be a good idea.
Personally, I absolutely hate it when idiots drag toothless babies out trick or treating, and haul bags around pretending that the candy they collect if for the baby. Who do they think they are kidding? We all know that baby is not getting that candy, it's just some parents 'legitimate' form of begging for themselves. As for blonde bimbo with four kids and one on the way....I wasn't surprised, as I didn't expect any better behavior from her.
Aside from that, it wasn't too bad a night. I was just glad when it was over.
****************************************
Taking my daughter for her drivers test today, hope she passes, as I'd like to get this over with, so she can start driving her own ass around and stop interrupting mine.
Apart from that, there are Halloween decorations to be taken down, meals to cook, laundry to do, a spare room to organize again so I can get the spare tv back into it (it resides outside in the summer, so we can watch whatever sport hubby wants to watch while we are outside..blllllththhh.....then there's the laundry which never seems to end, and dishes, vacuum needs run again, endless things that always seem to mean that those projects I want to do don't get done.
Maybe daughter dearest getting her license will allow me some of that time, hmmmm?
And a stress free weekend would be nice, once in a while, too. I"m pretty sure that if I don't soon get some time to myself FOR myself, I'm going to explode.
Oh, well. So it goes.
Um... a correction to yesterday's blog....the article I cited was well written, and I had no complaint with the author or the article. My complaint was to a post about that article. My apologies to the Root and the author of the article. Thumbs down to the post, however.
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Hoping for a fairly quiet weeks, even with Halloween on Friday. Did get the Halloween spirit on Saturday, and got the yard decorated. Rather creatively, I may say. Since we had pulled out the shrubs that lined the front porch (blighted, and needed to go) there are just blank bricks there, so, my daughter found some old pieces of greyed, ugly lattice , and we set that up against the porch to frame the 'pumpkin patch' I create every year with a variety of plastic, painted wood, and real pumpkins. Shane also found some old dead branches, and we used those to add some dimension, strung some orange lights, spread some leaves, and it looks like it's been there forever. Just needs the pumpkins, which won't be put out till Friday. The grandkids found the tiny orange pumpkins, and remembered I used to hang them in the bushes, so, without being told, they hung them on the dead branches. Good Kids!
The shepherd hook plant holders do double duty for Halloween, being put in the yard to hold the Grim Reaper and various signs. I covered them with cheap garland leaves and berries, too, and they are pretty spooky, according to my friends 2 yr old granddaughter. She seemed to love it all.
From there, there's the 'haunted house, which is my front porch, and is hung with various dead things, skeletons and skulls. Cross the walk to the porch, and you are in the 'cemetary'. There is a post in the yard that holds various small skeletons,skulls, pumkins and other small scary trinkets, and my daughter named it the voodoo post, it brings the decorations out some, from the house. Tombstones are all handmade, just old bits of wood and some paint, but being placed around the lilac which has various bits of old skeletons hanging in it, and after stringing everything with spiderwebbing, all in all, it doesn't look too shabby....well, it doesn't look like walmart purged itself of every inflatable, cutesy decoration there is, anyway. (I've had several neighbors stop and ask when we were going to decorate, so I guess we do a good job.
LOL...I am amused that while asking me that, they are usually grinning and scowling at the Halloween mess just down the street. Just a word, people. If you are going to decorate for Halloween, (or Christmas, or any other holiday, either have a plan, or keep it simple. Don't just put stuff out and consider it spooky. I love this holiday, and I put a little effort into making it look good for the kids. Not a lot of money spent, most stuff is homemade, but in a 40x15 ft area, I have 3 separate scenes that have evolved over the years. Most stuff fits in one small box, and the wooden tombstones get stored in the loft of the garage the rest of the year. So, it doesn't take much to decorate, just a little planning.
Some of the best houses I've seen decorated have simple arrangements. One of my favorites is the tree of simple ghosts,(just a styrofoam ball covered with cheesecloth) hung in a circle around a small tree, all ghosts 'holding hands'. Simple, yet creative, and very different.
My goal is to provide a bit of 'spooky' for the evening trick or treaters. I recall being a kid, and loving the feeling the decorations gave to a house, and the scarier the better, but not so scary a 3 yr old is going to run from it. And, since I have the room, why not make it a little more special?
As for my own grandkids, we have told them that the scary stuff is to keep the boogeymen and ghosts away from the house on that night, and they seem okay with it, especially since they got to help put it all together.
Oh, and Dylan....that color changing blob that, years ago you insisted lives in my garage, the one we eventually had to tell you was there to protect the house and your house, too, so that you would sleep at night?....it's still there, waiting to be handed down to a new group of kids on future Halloweens, although now the 5 yr old calls it the 'fairy queen', and makes sure to say hello almost every day.
Thanks for starting a wonderful little tradition that we all recall and still enjoy!
Since the holiday is on a weekend this year, we are pretty much planning a laid back holiday that will last all weekend. Meals will pretty much be simple, based on autumns harvest, and probably sit around watching scary movies all weekend, too. Friends more than welcome to come join in!
****************************************
Hoping for a fairly quiet weeks, even with Halloween on Friday. Did get the Halloween spirit on Saturday, and got the yard decorated. Rather creatively, I may say. Since we had pulled out the shrubs that lined the front porch (blighted, and needed to go) there are just blank bricks there, so, my daughter found some old pieces of greyed, ugly lattice , and we set that up against the porch to frame the 'pumpkin patch' I create every year with a variety of plastic, painted wood, and real pumpkins. Shane also found some old dead branches, and we used those to add some dimension, strung some orange lights, spread some leaves, and it looks like it's been there forever. Just needs the pumpkins, which won't be put out till Friday. The grandkids found the tiny orange pumpkins, and remembered I used to hang them in the bushes, so, without being told, they hung them on the dead branches. Good Kids!
The shepherd hook plant holders do double duty for Halloween, being put in the yard to hold the Grim Reaper and various signs. I covered them with cheap garland leaves and berries, too, and they are pretty spooky, according to my friends 2 yr old granddaughter. She seemed to love it all.
From there, there's the 'haunted house, which is my front porch, and is hung with various dead things, skeletons and skulls. Cross the walk to the porch, and you are in the 'cemetary'. There is a post in the yard that holds various small skeletons,skulls, pumkins and other small scary trinkets, and my daughter named it the voodoo post, it brings the decorations out some, from the house. Tombstones are all handmade, just old bits of wood and some paint, but being placed around the lilac which has various bits of old skeletons hanging in it, and after stringing everything with spiderwebbing, all in all, it doesn't look too shabby....well, it doesn't look like walmart purged itself of every inflatable, cutesy decoration there is, anyway. (I've had several neighbors stop and ask when we were going to decorate, so I guess we do a good job.
LOL...I am amused that while asking me that, they are usually grinning and scowling at the Halloween mess just down the street. Just a word, people. If you are going to decorate for Halloween, (or Christmas, or any other holiday, either have a plan, or keep it simple. Don't just put stuff out and consider it spooky. I love this holiday, and I put a little effort into making it look good for the kids. Not a lot of money spent, most stuff is homemade, but in a 40x15 ft area, I have 3 separate scenes that have evolved over the years. Most stuff fits in one small box, and the wooden tombstones get stored in the loft of the garage the rest of the year. So, it doesn't take much to decorate, just a little planning.
Some of the best houses I've seen decorated have simple arrangements. One of my favorites is the tree of simple ghosts,(just a styrofoam ball covered with cheesecloth) hung in a circle around a small tree, all ghosts 'holding hands'. Simple, yet creative, and very different.
My goal is to provide a bit of 'spooky' for the evening trick or treaters. I recall being a kid, and loving the feeling the decorations gave to a house, and the scarier the better, but not so scary a 3 yr old is going to run from it. And, since I have the room, why not make it a little more special?
As for my own grandkids, we have told them that the scary stuff is to keep the boogeymen and ghosts away from the house on that night, and they seem okay with it, especially since they got to help put it all together.
Oh, and Dylan....that color changing blob that, years ago you insisted lives in my garage, the one we eventually had to tell you was there to protect the house and your house, too, so that you would sleep at night?....it's still there, waiting to be handed down to a new group of kids on future Halloweens, although now the 5 yr old calls it the 'fairy queen', and makes sure to say hello almost every day.
Thanks for starting a wonderful little tradition that we all recall and still enjoy!
Since the holiday is on a weekend this year, we are pretty much planning a laid back holiday that will last all weekend. Meals will pretty much be simple, based on autumns harvest, and probably sit around watching scary movies all weekend, too. Friends more than welcome to come join in!
So, Alabama is going to charge the fat people in the state $25 more for their health insurance if they don't go for an initial free health screening.
Supposedly, this is to help keep down health insurance costs for those people who aren't fat.
After reading the article, I also read a good many of the comments other readers left. I have to agree with one reader. Let's do start charging the healthy people skinny people who are in the ER at least once a month because they've sprained an ankle, blown out a knee, have tennis elbow, or just injured pretty much everything while skiing.
Let's tack on extra charges for those people who see a doctor every other week because they think they might have some disease they just heard about. Let's pile on charges for the alcoholic who is going to lose his liver eventually, or the drug addict who's company is paying for them to go to rehab several times a year, or the nutcase who is seeing a therapist because they have anger issues.
We don't hear about those people so much. Why? Because they aren't visible. We watch The Biggest Loser, and think, oh, those sad people, their health is so bad, and they don't seem to care. We see documentaries about people who haven't left their bed in decades, and are revolted.
And we think, well, then, every person who is overweight must have serious health issues.
Wrong. Read the reports, talk to fat people. You might be surprised to learn that many of us are rarely ill with anything more serious than a cold or the flu, that most of us are not only quite graceful, but highly active, too, and that many of us don't have high cholesteral or high blood pressure, and that our hearts are more than healthy. We are more flexible, for the most part...damn, we have to be, don't we?? LOL
The point is, don't just target fat people because they are fat. Target the people who really have health problems because of their lifestyle...and guess what? You may learn that a good many of the people being treated for hypertension and high cholesteral and heart disease and liver disease and ulcers and a load of other health issues aren't fat...they meet the standards for THIN and HEALTHY.
If you are going to hike rates on people for health issues, make sure they HAVE health issues. Basically, charging a higher rate because someone is fat is profiling, and that is illegal, isn't it???
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I read an article in the Root today, by an author who was asked at a rally if black people would riot if Obama isn't elected. The author went into what essentially seemed to be a snit, because a white man had asked what she considered an offensive question. To a point, it was. To assume that intelligent, educated blacks with good jobs and good lives would riot is offensive.
The author did state that what if she had asked if white people decided to riot if McCain didn't win, and then went on to state that most white people live in rural areas and that in itself would prevent rioting.
I took umbrage not at the subject of the article, but at the total ignorance (meaning lack of knowledge) of the woman who wrote the article. It is a good example of racism being practiced by the people who scream racism the most. To assume that most poor whites live in the woods or any rural area that is removed from general civilization is just as racist as thinking that all poor black people live in urban ghettos.
Just for the record, yes, some poor whites DO live in the country, in run down homes that should for the most part be condemned. Most live in these things we have called 'towns'. Not cities, too small for that, but large semi-urban clusters where there are conveniences like grocery stores, pharmacies, doctors offices, self-serve laundries, etc. Why? Because most have no cars and rely on either public transportation or friends to get where they need to go. Being poor and white doesn't consign them to haunted rural areas, just like being black doesn't mean that the only ghettos are in large urban areas.
The woman who wrote the article is just as boxed in and bigoted as any white supremacist. Yes, bigoted. She must never have ever gone beyond her little enclave, and seen any of the real world in this country, to believe what she wrote. And the shame is that in her ignorance, she will just perpetuate that bigotry.
And so goes the world.
Supposedly, this is to help keep down health insurance costs for those people who aren't fat.
After reading the article, I also read a good many of the comments other readers left. I have to agree with one reader. Let's do start charging the healthy people skinny people who are in the ER at least once a month because they've sprained an ankle, blown out a knee, have tennis elbow, or just injured pretty much everything while skiing.
Let's tack on extra charges for those people who see a doctor every other week because they think they might have some disease they just heard about. Let's pile on charges for the alcoholic who is going to lose his liver eventually, or the drug addict who's company is paying for them to go to rehab several times a year, or the nutcase who is seeing a therapist because they have anger issues.
We don't hear about those people so much. Why? Because they aren't visible. We watch The Biggest Loser, and think, oh, those sad people, their health is so bad, and they don't seem to care. We see documentaries about people who haven't left their bed in decades, and are revolted.
And we think, well, then, every person who is overweight must have serious health issues.
Wrong. Read the reports, talk to fat people. You might be surprised to learn that many of us are rarely ill with anything more serious than a cold or the flu, that most of us are not only quite graceful, but highly active, too, and that many of us don't have high cholesteral or high blood pressure, and that our hearts are more than healthy. We are more flexible, for the most part...damn, we have to be, don't we?? LOL
The point is, don't just target fat people because they are fat. Target the people who really have health problems because of their lifestyle...and guess what? You may learn that a good many of the people being treated for hypertension and high cholesteral and heart disease and liver disease and ulcers and a load of other health issues aren't fat...they meet the standards for THIN and HEALTHY.
If you are going to hike rates on people for health issues, make sure they HAVE health issues. Basically, charging a higher rate because someone is fat is profiling, and that is illegal, isn't it???
****************************************
I read an article in the Root today, by an author who was asked at a rally if black people would riot if Obama isn't elected. The author went into what essentially seemed to be a snit, because a white man had asked what she considered an offensive question. To a point, it was. To assume that intelligent, educated blacks with good jobs and good lives would riot is offensive.
The author did state that what if she had asked if white people decided to riot if McCain didn't win, and then went on to state that most white people live in rural areas and that in itself would prevent rioting.
I took umbrage not at the subject of the article, but at the total ignorance (meaning lack of knowledge) of the woman who wrote the article. It is a good example of racism being practiced by the people who scream racism the most. To assume that most poor whites live in the woods or any rural area that is removed from general civilization is just as racist as thinking that all poor black people live in urban ghettos.
Just for the record, yes, some poor whites DO live in the country, in run down homes that should for the most part be condemned. Most live in these things we have called 'towns'. Not cities, too small for that, but large semi-urban clusters where there are conveniences like grocery stores, pharmacies, doctors offices, self-serve laundries, etc. Why? Because most have no cars and rely on either public transportation or friends to get where they need to go. Being poor and white doesn't consign them to haunted rural areas, just like being black doesn't mean that the only ghettos are in large urban areas.
The woman who wrote the article is just as boxed in and bigoted as any white supremacist. Yes, bigoted. She must never have ever gone beyond her little enclave, and seen any of the real world in this country, to believe what she wrote. And the shame is that in her ignorance, she will just perpetuate that bigotry.
And so goes the world.
Just a little piece of my mind, on a saying that has always irritated the living hell outta me...
'to ASSUME makes an ASS of U and ME'
Um....no.
If YOU assume something, it only makes an ass out of you, no one else.
All 12 step programs that quote that phrase, take note, and correct it, please.
Why? Because it's true, you only make a complete ass of yourself. Anyone else who looks foolish because of it only benefits from the stupidity of the one doing the assuming, in the long run.
Don't assume anything, it's safer.
I know, there are many situations where we have to assume things. I have to assume that the idiot weaving all over the road is either drunk, high, or ill, therefore, I have to take precautions to not collide with them.
I have to assume that the old lady who kept ramming her cart into me in the grocery line will do so again, should the situation arise. (in that case, I call the manager and ask that the police be called, because she is toying with assault charges)
I have to assume that you are not familiar with my slightly off kilter sense of humor, and will not take offense at my opinions, although many do....lol...tough.
You have to assume that I don't often voice my opinions verbally in select groups, which is why I blog here about stupid little things that make day to day living..well....aggravating, but interesting.
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Nothing really all that interesting in the news, unless you are one to get all het up over celebrity doings. Mostly, I don't care about celebrities, they have all the same problems we do, just with more money and more cameras.
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I hate soap operas. Mindless drivel. I'd rather watch grass grow.
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Maybe it's time we switched to a 48 hour day with one night in the middle. There's be less days in the week, but more hours in a day.
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Gotta talk to the new neighbors below me....their back porch floodlights not only light up the hillside between our houses, but also my kitchen, dining room, bathroom, and bedroom. Brightly.
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I'd put in a cat door for the cats to come in and out without me having to get up every 5 minutes in the mornings, but I'd end up with at least 3 raccoons and 1 groundhog in the house, too. Not good.
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That's about it for today. It's still dark outside, and cold, but beautifully foggy, so, I think I"m going to make a nice hot cup of tea and go sit on the porch for a bit, and just watch the fog. Other than nighttime snowfalls, it's the only time this town is really lovely. Besides, watching the sun rise through the fog, and then burn the fog off revealing the river valley and the gorgeous fall foliage is rather serene, and I can't think of a much better way to start the day.
*shrug* Ok, so I have a strange sense of what's beautiful.
'to ASSUME makes an ASS of U and ME'
Um....no.
If YOU assume something, it only makes an ass out of you, no one else.
All 12 step programs that quote that phrase, take note, and correct it, please.
Why? Because it's true, you only make a complete ass of yourself. Anyone else who looks foolish because of it only benefits from the stupidity of the one doing the assuming, in the long run.
Don't assume anything, it's safer.
I know, there are many situations where we have to assume things. I have to assume that the idiot weaving all over the road is either drunk, high, or ill, therefore, I have to take precautions to not collide with them.
I have to assume that the old lady who kept ramming her cart into me in the grocery line will do so again, should the situation arise. (in that case, I call the manager and ask that the police be called, because she is toying with assault charges)
I have to assume that you are not familiar with my slightly off kilter sense of humor, and will not take offense at my opinions, although many do....lol...tough.
You have to assume that I don't often voice my opinions verbally in select groups, which is why I blog here about stupid little things that make day to day living..well....aggravating, but interesting.
****************************************
Nothing really all that interesting in the news, unless you are one to get all het up over celebrity doings. Mostly, I don't care about celebrities, they have all the same problems we do, just with more money and more cameras.
****************************************
I hate soap operas. Mindless drivel. I'd rather watch grass grow.
****************************************
Maybe it's time we switched to a 48 hour day with one night in the middle. There's be less days in the week, but more hours in a day.
****************************************
Gotta talk to the new neighbors below me....their back porch floodlights not only light up the hillside between our houses, but also my kitchen, dining room, bathroom, and bedroom. Brightly.
****************************************
I'd put in a cat door for the cats to come in and out without me having to get up every 5 minutes in the mornings, but I'd end up with at least 3 raccoons and 1 groundhog in the house, too. Not good.
****************************************
That's about it for today. It's still dark outside, and cold, but beautifully foggy, so, I think I"m going to make a nice hot cup of tea and go sit on the porch for a bit, and just watch the fog. Other than nighttime snowfalls, it's the only time this town is really lovely. Besides, watching the sun rise through the fog, and then burn the fog off revealing the river valley and the gorgeous fall foliage is rather serene, and I can't think of a much better way to start the day.
*shrug* Ok, so I have a strange sense of what's beautiful.
- Mood: calm
I just read an article this morning that had me chuckling. It was about parents in areas of this country fighting for their childrens' right to to free speech v. school dress codes.
Since when was getting dressed for school about anything more than getting a decent education?
Personally, I think uniforms in schools are a good idea. It just might send us back into the top of the educational lists. (last time I checked, we were 25th in the world in providing good educations for our kids. that ranking may be lower since Bush demanded that 'no child be left behind) Look at the countries rated tops in education, and I'm pretty sure you'll notice that school uniforms are pretty much a requirement...and damn...those kids still have the ability to express themselves in most countries...Japan, Great Britain, Denmark, Germany, etc....and! their kids are smarter than ours, for the most part. Smarter, or just better educated and better adjusted?
Look, swtiching to school uniforms is NOT going to keep sex or drugs out of school, it is NOT going to make stupid kids smarter, it is NOT going to do a damn thing to prevent gang members from identifying each other. (The biggest and oldest 'gang' in this country are the FreeMasons, and they don't wear much to let others know who they are)Banning a hoodie isn't going to stop a kid from taking a weapon to school. Banning specific colors is not going to stop gang activity. Banning age inappropriate clothing is NOT going to slow down teen pregnancies or stop kids from underage drinking or tormenting other kids just for the hell of it. Those measures are never going to work. Because once you start banning things in an effort to even out the playing field, kids will just focus on something else, like who has a REAL Coach bag and who has a knockoff and who is carrying some cheapo store purse, or who is wearing Nikes, or Vans, or Pumas, etc, or what designer shoes the girls are wearing. The list could get pretty long,and does, in some districts.
Uniforms are NOT going to even out the 'popularity' field, ever, and they are not going to prevent cliques from forming.
And less face it..the jocks will still be jocks, the nerds nerds, the skaters skaters, the posers posers, pick a group, they will still exist, and they will still be able to do what children do so well, which is categorize themselves, no matter if they all dress alike.
I'm not sure that it isn't so much the kids freedom of speech that's being defended so much as the PARENTS right to dress their kids how they see fit. I wonder how many of these few irate parents are actually saying "I don't care about your kids' right to an education, just as long as my kid is happy and uncomplaining.
Why?
Because I'm also sure that these same parents who are backing their kids rights to freedom of speech in school don't say a word when told how their kids have to dress and present themselves for anything else, be it dance class, gymnastics, football, basketball, the debate team, swimming, etc.
All those have DRESS CODES, yet no one complains about it. Why? Because the codes are activity appropriate. I'm pretty sure it's almost impossible to do gymnastics while wearing a football uniform, and who in hell is going to win a swim meet while dressed for ballet?
Yet when it comes to dressing appropriately for the activity of being educated, these same people start screaming about having their freedom of speech violated. They also don't complain when told that Little Johnny didn't get hired by Such&Such Investment firm because he showed up with blue hair, eyebrow piercings, in blue jeans and a T-shirt that spouted something about saving whales, no matter that he scored in the top 2 percentile of his class, or when Claudia shows up for her interview for a nursing position dressed like a cheap stripper, so what if she aced all her medical course? Waiters and waitresses are required to wear uniforms, and no one complains. Hell, even Walmart has a dress code, although they do seem to suspend it for the girls who work the jewelry counter.
Yet, a business suited artist can apply for a job in their field and get it, a dancer or actor can audition in a suit, if it pleases them, and still have a good chance of getting hired. A carpenter can show up at an interview in a suit, and get hired. Why? Presentation, and capability. Ability, not dress, still influences the arts. It still influences the building trades. Football players for most major league teams are required by contract to dress like gentlemen when traveling to other cities for games, not like they just left the streets. Why? Image. Most celebrities (Paris Hilton excluded, showing 'class' apparently isn't something she understands) dress for events like they are royalty. Again, why? Image.
We offer our kids a double standard. You can act like this while you are a kid, but once you graduate, you have to change immediately and be this, instead. We don't teach them that there is a time and place for everything, including how we dress and present ourselves, and when it is right to be dressed up, to be dressed down, and to just follow the rules. We also don't teach our kids that being an individual has nothing to do with how they dress, but how they think and act and oh, SPEAK. They have that freedom. They also have the freedom to accept the repercussions of speaking. But do they have the grace to do so? Judging by some of the parents reactions, I think not.
Since when was getting dressed for school about anything more than getting a decent education?
Personally, I think uniforms in schools are a good idea. It just might send us back into the top of the educational lists. (last time I checked, we were 25th in the world in providing good educations for our kids. that ranking may be lower since Bush demanded that 'no child be left behind) Look at the countries rated tops in education, and I'm pretty sure you'll notice that school uniforms are pretty much a requirement...and damn...those kids still have the ability to express themselves in most countries...Japan, Great Britain, Denmark, Germany, etc....and! their kids are smarter than ours, for the most part. Smarter, or just better educated and better adjusted?
Look, swtiching to school uniforms is NOT going to keep sex or drugs out of school, it is NOT going to make stupid kids smarter, it is NOT going to do a damn thing to prevent gang members from identifying each other. (The biggest and oldest 'gang' in this country are the FreeMasons, and they don't wear much to let others know who they are)Banning a hoodie isn't going to stop a kid from taking a weapon to school. Banning specific colors is not going to stop gang activity. Banning age inappropriate clothing is NOT going to slow down teen pregnancies or stop kids from underage drinking or tormenting other kids just for the hell of it. Those measures are never going to work. Because once you start banning things in an effort to even out the playing field, kids will just focus on something else, like who has a REAL Coach bag and who has a knockoff and who is carrying some cheapo store purse, or who is wearing Nikes, or Vans, or Pumas, etc, or what designer shoes the girls are wearing. The list could get pretty long,and does, in some districts.
Uniforms are NOT going to even out the 'popularity' field, ever, and they are not going to prevent cliques from forming.
And less face it..the jocks will still be jocks, the nerds nerds, the skaters skaters, the posers posers, pick a group, they will still exist, and they will still be able to do what children do so well, which is categorize themselves, no matter if they all dress alike.
I'm not sure that it isn't so much the kids freedom of speech that's being defended so much as the PARENTS right to dress their kids how they see fit. I wonder how many of these few irate parents are actually saying "I don't care about your kids' right to an education, just as long as my kid is happy and uncomplaining.
Why?
Because I'm also sure that these same parents who are backing their kids rights to freedom of speech in school don't say a word when told how their kids have to dress and present themselves for anything else, be it dance class, gymnastics, football, basketball, the debate team, swimming, etc.
All those have DRESS CODES, yet no one complains about it. Why? Because the codes are activity appropriate. I'm pretty sure it's almost impossible to do gymnastics while wearing a football uniform, and who in hell is going to win a swim meet while dressed for ballet?
Yet when it comes to dressing appropriately for the activity of being educated, these same people start screaming about having their freedom of speech violated. They also don't complain when told that Little Johnny didn't get hired by Such&Such Investment firm because he showed up with blue hair, eyebrow piercings, in blue jeans and a T-shirt that spouted something about saving whales, no matter that he scored in the top 2 percentile of his class, or when Claudia shows up for her interview for a nursing position dressed like a cheap stripper, so what if she aced all her medical course? Waiters and waitresses are required to wear uniforms, and no one complains. Hell, even Walmart has a dress code, although they do seem to suspend it for the girls who work the jewelry counter.
Yet, a business suited artist can apply for a job in their field and get it, a dancer or actor can audition in a suit, if it pleases them, and still have a good chance of getting hired. A carpenter can show up at an interview in a suit, and get hired. Why? Presentation, and capability. Ability, not dress, still influences the arts. It still influences the building trades. Football players for most major league teams are required by contract to dress like gentlemen when traveling to other cities for games, not like they just left the streets. Why? Image. Most celebrities (Paris Hilton excluded, showing 'class' apparently isn't something she understands) dress for events like they are royalty. Again, why? Image.
We offer our kids a double standard. You can act like this while you are a kid, but once you graduate, you have to change immediately and be this, instead. We don't teach them that there is a time and place for everything, including how we dress and present ourselves, and when it is right to be dressed up, to be dressed down, and to just follow the rules. We also don't teach our kids that being an individual has nothing to do with how they dress, but how they think and act and oh, SPEAK. They have that freedom. They also have the freedom to accept the repercussions of speaking. But do they have the grace to do so? Judging by some of the parents reactions, I think not.
- Mood: amused
- Music:Amy MacDonald
My son and I talk politics a lot. It's fun. In some ways, he's a lot sharper than I am, and it's nice to be able to chat with someone about something other than kids.
Anyway, when he got home from work yesterday we were talking about 'Joe the Plumber'. His conclusion, like mine, is that the guy was a plant.
We hit the internet, started finding out a bit more about Joe. Lots of stuff came up, and guaranteed, a good bit of it was wrong. The business Joe is interested in buying earns less than a 100,000 a year, so, he really doesn't have much to worry about as far as his taxes are concerned.
He does owe back taxes, probably property, to the tune of about 1,100.00. Not much, actually. He apparently only makes about $40,000.00 a year, somewhere around an average income. And, according to Keith Olberman, he isn't in anyway related to James Keating.
Turns out that he is pretty much a fraud, when it comes to what he said to Obama. He isn't even a licensed plumber.
I hope he enjoys his 15 minutes of fame....it's way more than he deserves.
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New Jersey has decided to step in and replace childrens parents. At least when it comes to deciding which shots they should have, and when. Seems that if a child is over the age of 6 months and attends either daycare or school, they are now required by state law to have a flu shot. That, my friends, is absolute bullshit. I think we require too many shots at too young an age, nowadays. My grandkids have gotten their shots, the ones required by PA law...and I personally think that preventative medicine is a good thing. However, I do strongly disagree with injecting small kids with 4 to six vaccines at a time is being completely careless of their health. Why can't they be spread out over a period of time, like when my kids were little? Why do they have to have them all at once? We all know that they DO react to those shots, even if only for a day or two. Why make it worse, when it doesn't have to be?
And why is any government deciding to step in for the judgement of parents? I mean, granted, there are a lot of parents who just don't bother. But, in the long run, what about kids who face potential reactions from flu shots, especially at an age where they haven't been exposed to many things that could cause a reaction? I mean, I can't get flu shots due to an egg allergy. What about 6 month olds who haven't eaten eggs yet, and it is unknown if they have that particular allergy? Nope, government knows best, right?
Wrong. I strongly support the parents protesting this law. It's stupid, and could possibly cause more harm than good.
And we all know that vaccines do not always prevent a disease, they can merely lessen the effects. And flu germs mutate. Often, so, these children would have to be subjected to new vaccines every year. That isn't preventative, that's torture.
If a state is worried about disease, perhaps it would be a better idea to require immigrants and visiting foreigners to have their vaccines in order, instead, seeing as how it is they, and their children who pose a greater risk to our communities. I know, profiling is illegal. Guess what, it takes one carrier with one weird-ass germ of hemmoragic fever (there's a new outbreak in Africa) to start a plague here.
I'd worry more about that than how many kids are going to get the flu, spread the flu, etc. Personally, we all stand a better chance of getting the flu from the change the cashier hands you at any store in this country, or from touching a credit card keypad, or a shopping cart. ( I noticed a few weeks ago that our local grocery store has a wipes dispenser next to the grocery carts now, which I think is an excellent idea)
****************************************
It's Friday. Yay! Will be getting Halloween decorations out, as one neighbor already has her 4 yr old grandson looking forward to it. Of course, while she was asking me and telling him how nice it was, being spooky without being scary, she was tilting her head at the Halloween disaster across the street and giggling...! It seems that the people across the street have purchased every tacky, tatty piece of Halloween ornamentation that Walmart sells, some in multiples. And, instead of having any rhyme or reason, they just tossed it all in the yard and where it lands, there it stands. Cutesy....can be it's own worst enemy sometimes. Every time, with the people across the street. It's more haphazard, and dangerous to trick or treaters, than scary.
For my own yard and house.... most of the decorations are home made. Now, I'm not a half-bad artist, so, most of what I do looks fairly decent. And I have a plan. lol...there's the pumpkin patch, for one thing....plastic pumpkins, wooden painted ones, real ones. With some spooky sign posts and such thrown in. This leads to my house, which is, of course, haunted. Nicely done, a few ghosts and skeletons and webs and spiders. Some of those nice, fireproof battery operated 'candles'. On the other side of the walk, a graveyard. All handmade tombstones. Most ghosts. There's also a large handpainted gargoyle, and a black cat. This year, I'm adding a ghastly bride and groom.
Halloween just happens to be my favorite holiday. It's the one time of year when you can be a little bit strange and no one says anything.
And no one has a problem with things not being disgustingly 'cutesy'. Yes, I know, cute is 'in'. But come on, it can be overdone, and some people take it beyond those limits....waaaay beyond.
So, this weekend, I will be doing some cutting and painting. Nice, and fairly easy, when you own a scroll saw....lol. Maybe I'll post a pic or two of my handiwork.
Anyway, when he got home from work yesterday we were talking about 'Joe the Plumber'. His conclusion, like mine, is that the guy was a plant.
We hit the internet, started finding out a bit more about Joe. Lots of stuff came up, and guaranteed, a good bit of it was wrong. The business Joe is interested in buying earns less than a 100,000 a year, so, he really doesn't have much to worry about as far as his taxes are concerned.
He does owe back taxes, probably property, to the tune of about 1,100.00. Not much, actually. He apparently only makes about $40,000.00 a year, somewhere around an average income. And, according to Keith Olberman, he isn't in anyway related to James Keating.
Turns out that he is pretty much a fraud, when it comes to what he said to Obama. He isn't even a licensed plumber.
I hope he enjoys his 15 minutes of fame....it's way more than he deserves.
****************************************
New Jersey has decided to step in and replace childrens parents. At least when it comes to deciding which shots they should have, and when. Seems that if a child is over the age of 6 months and attends either daycare or school, they are now required by state law to have a flu shot. That, my friends, is absolute bullshit. I think we require too many shots at too young an age, nowadays. My grandkids have gotten their shots, the ones required by PA law...and I personally think that preventative medicine is a good thing. However, I do strongly disagree with injecting small kids with 4 to six vaccines at a time is being completely careless of their health. Why can't they be spread out over a period of time, like when my kids were little? Why do they have to have them all at once? We all know that they DO react to those shots, even if only for a day or two. Why make it worse, when it doesn't have to be?
And why is any government deciding to step in for the judgement of parents? I mean, granted, there are a lot of parents who just don't bother. But, in the long run, what about kids who face potential reactions from flu shots, especially at an age where they haven't been exposed to many things that could cause a reaction? I mean, I can't get flu shots due to an egg allergy. What about 6 month olds who haven't eaten eggs yet, and it is unknown if they have that particular allergy? Nope, government knows best, right?
Wrong. I strongly support the parents protesting this law. It's stupid, and could possibly cause more harm than good.
And we all know that vaccines do not always prevent a disease, they can merely lessen the effects. And flu germs mutate. Often, so, these children would have to be subjected to new vaccines every year. That isn't preventative, that's torture.
If a state is worried about disease, perhaps it would be a better idea to require immigrants and visiting foreigners to have their vaccines in order, instead, seeing as how it is they, and their children who pose a greater risk to our communities. I know, profiling is illegal. Guess what, it takes one carrier with one weird-ass germ of hemmoragic fever (there's a new outbreak in Africa) to start a plague here.
I'd worry more about that than how many kids are going to get the flu, spread the flu, etc. Personally, we all stand a better chance of getting the flu from the change the cashier hands you at any store in this country, or from touching a credit card keypad, or a shopping cart. ( I noticed a few weeks ago that our local grocery store has a wipes dispenser next to the grocery carts now, which I think is an excellent idea)
****************************************
It's Friday. Yay! Will be getting Halloween decorations out, as one neighbor already has her 4 yr old grandson looking forward to it. Of course, while she was asking me and telling him how nice it was, being spooky without being scary, she was tilting her head at the Halloween disaster across the street and giggling...! It seems that the people across the street have purchased every tacky, tatty piece of Halloween ornamentation that Walmart sells, some in multiples. And, instead of having any rhyme or reason, they just tossed it all in the yard and where it lands, there it stands. Cutesy....can be it's own worst enemy sometimes. Every time, with the people across the street. It's more haphazard, and dangerous to trick or treaters, than scary.
For my own yard and house.... most of the decorations are home made. Now, I'm not a half-bad artist, so, most of what I do looks fairly decent. And I have a plan. lol...there's the pumpkin patch, for one thing....plastic pumpkins, wooden painted ones, real ones. With some spooky sign posts and such thrown in. This leads to my house, which is, of course, haunted. Nicely done, a few ghosts and skeletons and webs and spiders. Some of those nice, fireproof battery operated 'candles'. On the other side of the walk, a graveyard. All handmade tombstones. Most ghosts. There's also a large handpainted gargoyle, and a black cat. This year, I'm adding a ghastly bride and groom.
Halloween just happens to be my favorite holiday. It's the one time of year when you can be a little bit strange and no one says anything.
And no one has a problem with things not being disgustingly 'cutesy'. Yes, I know, cute is 'in'. But come on, it can be overdone, and some people take it beyond those limits....waaaay beyond.
So, this weekend, I will be doing some cutting and painting. Nice, and fairly easy, when you own a scroll saw....lol. Maybe I'll post a pic or two of my handiwork.
- Mood:
busy
To 'Joe the Plumber'...quit whining. So you worked 15 yrs to buy the business you worked for. The business earns 250,000 a yr. You will get every tax break possible as the owner of a viable business, and you have the nerve to whine about paying your fair share?
Hmmph. Just goes to show you that people who make money, even if they originally come from the overtaxed blue collar ranks, can't wait to jump on the ''let the middle class pay band wagon' when it comes to holding on to their money.
It's this way, Joe. You're putting yourself into a higher tax bracket. PAY MORE FREAKIN' TAXES.
Let's face it, our tax code is unreal. Taxes on stupid things, loopholes for anyone making over a certain amount. Those who can afford to use the loopholes pay far less than they should, leaving those of us who actually are just 'working Joe's' holding the bag. And this guy has the nerve to whine about a few extra dollars, when he will still be living what to most of us is a life of luxury?
No, I don't begrudge him his years of hard work, or that he has kept enough money to buy a business while still keeping his credit good enough to qualify for a loan. What I begrudge is he's going to see a payoff of for all that, and is complaining because he will have to pay a bit more while still retaining the means to keep a good bit of what he earns.
My daughter said it the other day...the only ones who have it good enough to enjoy living are the very rich or the very poor. The rest of us just work to pay their way.
****************************************
Apparently Denis Leary is being attacked by parents of autistic children. Not physically, but verbally. Why? Because he has an opinion about how many kids are being diagnosed as autistic. Too many. Personally, I agree with him. Too many kids are diagnosed with autism, ADHD, etc. Why? It's an easy out for parents and teachers.
Look, I know there are kids who are legitimately autistic. I know a few, and I feel for them, and their parents. The people I don't feel for are the ones who diagnose (meaning 'excuse') their kids bad behavior because they can't or won't admit to being lousy parents. Or to just being to busy to bother. We've all seen it.
I've listened to Denis Leary's standup act. I like it, for the most part. It is, like most standup, a commentary on life today, and how people
are constantly looking for those excuses.
And, considering the reports I read just about a month ago, he got it right. People decide there is something wrong with their kid, drag them to a doctor, and the doctor prescribes pills. Does this actually cure anything? No.
LOL....I found out years ago, and am reliving, through my grandkids, that there are things we do to actually CAUSE the kids rotten behavior.
Sure, sugar can get them a little wound up, but what I learned years ago, and my daughter is learning now, is that it isn't so much sugar that makes her kids start bouncing off the walls, but food coloring, especially anything with red dye in it. What, you say?
Yeah, red dye. My daughter couldn't drink anything with red food coloring in it...those 'little hug's drinks, nothing with red dye, including jello.
She threw it up. She has noticed that when her kids go to their dads, (figuratively, since he lives with his mommy and daddy still, and they buy the crap they feed the kids when they are there) that her kids tend to be more hyper and uncontrollable when they come home from there, cause the 'treat' they get before they leave is Nesquick strawberry milk. Whether it's the coloring, or the flavoring, or both, we don't know for sure, what we do know it that it makes them just a little nuts. Same with red jello.
I have a friend who for years couldn't figure out why her daughter got violent at times. Turns out, that when the girl was about 9, they noticed that she only got violent after eating peanuts or something cooked with peanut oil. They took her to an allergist and had her tested, and it turns out she is allegic to peanuts, and the violence is how the reaction manifested. Not all allergies show as hives or anaphylactic shock.
Some do alter the chemicals in the body enough to cause unusual behavior. So, it was fortunate that they were aware enough to put 2 and 2 together and find a solution to a problem.
So, maybe the autism and ADHD isn't alway something inherent, but something foreign to the child's physiology, and maybe the first thing parents, and doctors, should look at is diet.
Anyway, I happen to like Denis Leary, and will possibly buy his book, just cause I need a good laugh.
Hmmph. Just goes to show you that people who make money, even if they originally come from the overtaxed blue collar ranks, can't wait to jump on the ''let the middle class pay band wagon' when it comes to holding on to their money.
It's this way, Joe. You're putting yourself into a higher tax bracket. PAY MORE FREAKIN' TAXES.
Let's face it, our tax code is unreal. Taxes on stupid things, loopholes for anyone making over a certain amount. Those who can afford to use the loopholes pay far less than they should, leaving those of us who actually are just 'working Joe's' holding the bag. And this guy has the nerve to whine about a few extra dollars, when he will still be living what to most of us is a life of luxury?
No, I don't begrudge him his years of hard work, or that he has kept enough money to buy a business while still keeping his credit good enough to qualify for a loan. What I begrudge is he's going to see a payoff of for all that, and is complaining because he will have to pay a bit more while still retaining the means to keep a good bit of what he earns.
My daughter said it the other day...the only ones who have it good enough to enjoy living are the very rich or the very poor. The rest of us just work to pay their way.
****************************************
Apparently Denis Leary is being attacked by parents of autistic children. Not physically, but verbally. Why? Because he has an opinion about how many kids are being diagnosed as autistic. Too many. Personally, I agree with him. Too many kids are diagnosed with autism, ADHD, etc. Why? It's an easy out for parents and teachers.
Look, I know there are kids who are legitimately autistic. I know a few, and I feel for them, and their parents. The people I don't feel for are the ones who diagnose (meaning 'excuse') their kids bad behavior because they can't or won't admit to being lousy parents. Or to just being to busy to bother. We've all seen it.
I've listened to Denis Leary's standup act. I like it, for the most part. It is, like most standup, a commentary on life today, and how people
are constantly looking for those excuses.
And, considering the reports I read just about a month ago, he got it right. People decide there is something wrong with their kid, drag them to a doctor, and the doctor prescribes pills. Does this actually cure anything? No.
LOL....I found out years ago, and am reliving, through my grandkids, that there are things we do to actually CAUSE the kids rotten behavior.
Sure, sugar can get them a little wound up, but what I learned years ago, and my daughter is learning now, is that it isn't so much sugar that makes her kids start bouncing off the walls, but food coloring, especially anything with red dye in it. What, you say?
Yeah, red dye. My daughter couldn't drink anything with red food coloring in it...those 'little hug's drinks, nothing with red dye, including jello.
She threw it up. She has noticed that when her kids go to their dads, (figuratively, since he lives with his mommy and daddy still, and they buy the crap they feed the kids when they are there) that her kids tend to be more hyper and uncontrollable when they come home from there, cause the 'treat' they get before they leave is Nesquick strawberry milk. Whether it's the coloring, or the flavoring, or both, we don't know for sure, what we do know it that it makes them just a little nuts. Same with red jello.
I have a friend who for years couldn't figure out why her daughter got violent at times. Turns out, that when the girl was about 9, they noticed that she only got violent after eating peanuts or something cooked with peanut oil. They took her to an allergist and had her tested, and it turns out she is allegic to peanuts, and the violence is how the reaction manifested. Not all allergies show as hives or anaphylactic shock.
Some do alter the chemicals in the body enough to cause unusual behavior. So, it was fortunate that they were aware enough to put 2 and 2 together and find a solution to a problem.
So, maybe the autism and ADHD isn't alway something inherent, but something foreign to the child's physiology, and maybe the first thing parents, and doctors, should look at is diet.
Anyway, I happen to like Denis Leary, and will possibly buy his book, just cause I need a good laugh.
Ok, yesterday wasn't one of the best days I've had. Well, most of it was pretty decent. Two incedents stand out, though, that ruined what could have been a really good day.
See, my granddaughter slept over Wednesday night, and we left yesterday morning to go do some shopping. A lttle 'us' time, something we rarely get to do, even though I have them everyday, and those days are no different than being a parent is, I have chores to do, a home to run, etc, along with taking care of a 5 and 3 yr old, and there isn't always time to have fun with the grandkids, so, one morning every few weeks to be grandma and granddaughter is a treat for us both.
First stop, Kmart. Not the greatest store around, but preferable to going to Walmart across the street, as it's much less crowded. With people, that is. Thethe front of Kmart is packed with racks and the aisles there are barely able to fit 2 carts. I was in one such aisle with my granddaughter, looking at a cute little lightweight coat that had caught my eye. An older woman, older than I am, so, she was somewhere between 60 and 70 yrs old, decided to come up that aisle, forcing me to move my cart into the clothes racks, and forcing my granddaughter to move out of her way. Now, this woman could just as easily have used the next aisle over, and should have, as she wasn't looking at anything in the aisle we were in.
Annnnddd, she had the nerve after making us move, to actually be offended when I commented to my granddaughter that she had to watch out for selfish old women as they sure as hell weren't going to give a shit about a little 5 yr old getting hit with their carts.
Now, I made the comment loudly enough for the woman to hear, and yes, I fully intended her to hear it. This isn't the first time I've noticed that old women in stores don't give a shit about anyone but themselves, and I've watched them quite often bear down on aisles that were packed with people and little kids and not pay the least notice of anyone.
The second run-in was in a small grocery store parking lot that has maybe 75 spaces. I drove through most of the packed lot looking for an empty space, and when I finally came to one, it was to find another older woman releasing her cart in it, since she simply couldn't be bothered to walk to the cart return. Needless to say, I wasn't happy. Now, I considered that she may have health problems, or problems walking long distances, (anything over 10 feet, say), but hell, you know what, so do I, and I usually always park as far from the door as I can, regardless. And I would'nt have cared so much if she had, say, left the cart at the back of the parking space, I could probably still have gotten the car in, despite it being larger than most cars nowadays. Nope, she left it smack in the middle of the space, a bicycle couldn't have tried to park there.
So, yes, I went off a bit. Well, a lot. Of course, by then, I was tired, cranky, and in pain myself. I just wanted to park, do what I had to do, and go home, without having to deal with anyone other than a cashier.
I don't go out of my way to offend people, and I don't want to have run-ins with anyone. I just want to mind my own business and get through my day as pleasantly as possible. I normally go out of my way to avoid the general public, and to avoid confrontations with any member of the general public. (I am still trying to figure out how to reconcile abnormal shyness with aggressive menopausal tendencies, though, lol.)
It isn't unusual for me to watch what other people are doing in a store just so I can avoid situations like the first one, but what the hell do you do when you aren't in a position to make life easier for assholes???
I am really tired of watching out for old people, almost always of the female variety, who don't watch out for anyone else, and who think common courtesy is something only they deserve. I am tired of parents who let their kids run through a store like it's a playground, or treat restaurants in that way. I am tired of feeling like the only person in the world who is considerate of the fact that we are all busy and try to make things easier all the way around. It truly confuses me when others act in ways that are rude, inconsiderate, and selfish, then go to church on Sunday an act the good Christian. (which is probably why I don't go to church, people can really ruin God and what religion really is) How do they live with running small children down in stores, then paying lipservice to the Golden Rule?
And for you old women out there...just because you made it past age 60 doesn't mean that you automatically deserve respect. It only means that no one considers shooting you rude, selfish ass worth spending time in jail for.
My only recourse is to forgive the old women for my being inconvenient to them and their tired, busy lives. And to ask my children to shoot me if I ever start acting that way.
Oh, and to blow off steam in a blog, and hope that any old women reading it might consider that maybe, just maybe, it's their actions that initiated any disrespect that happens to come your way.
See, my granddaughter slept over Wednesday night, and we left yesterday morning to go do some shopping. A lttle 'us' time, something we rarely get to do, even though I have them everyday, and those days are no different than being a parent is, I have chores to do, a home to run, etc, along with taking care of a 5 and 3 yr old, and there isn't always time to have fun with the grandkids, so, one morning every few weeks to be grandma and granddaughter is a treat for us both.
First stop, Kmart. Not the greatest store around, but preferable to going to Walmart across the street, as it's much less crowded. With people, that is. Thethe front of Kmart is packed with racks and the aisles there are barely able to fit 2 carts. I was in one such aisle with my granddaughter, looking at a cute little lightweight coat that had caught my eye. An older woman, older than I am, so, she was somewhere between 60 and 70 yrs old, decided to come up that aisle, forcing me to move my cart into the clothes racks, and forcing my granddaughter to move out of her way. Now, this woman could just as easily have used the next aisle over, and should have, as she wasn't looking at anything in the aisle we were in.
Annnnddd, she had the nerve after making us move, to actually be offended when I commented to my granddaughter that she had to watch out for selfish old women as they sure as hell weren't going to give a shit about a little 5 yr old getting hit with their carts.
Now, I made the comment loudly enough for the woman to hear, and yes, I fully intended her to hear it. This isn't the first time I've noticed that old women in stores don't give a shit about anyone but themselves, and I've watched them quite often bear down on aisles that were packed with people and little kids and not pay the least notice of anyone.
The second run-in was in a small grocery store parking lot that has maybe 75 spaces. I drove through most of the packed lot looking for an empty space, and when I finally came to one, it was to find another older woman releasing her cart in it, since she simply couldn't be bothered to walk to the cart return. Needless to say, I wasn't happy. Now, I considered that she may have health problems, or problems walking long distances, (anything over 10 feet, say), but hell, you know what, so do I, and I usually always park as far from the door as I can, regardless. And I would'nt have cared so much if she had, say, left the cart at the back of the parking space, I could probably still have gotten the car in, despite it being larger than most cars nowadays. Nope, she left it smack in the middle of the space, a bicycle couldn't have tried to park there.
So, yes, I went off a bit. Well, a lot. Of course, by then, I was tired, cranky, and in pain myself. I just wanted to park, do what I had to do, and go home, without having to deal with anyone other than a cashier.
I don't go out of my way to offend people, and I don't want to have run-ins with anyone. I just want to mind my own business and get through my day as pleasantly as possible. I normally go out of my way to avoid the general public, and to avoid confrontations with any member of the general public. (I am still trying to figure out how to reconcile abnormal shyness with aggressive menopausal tendencies, though, lol.)
It isn't unusual for me to watch what other people are doing in a store just so I can avoid situations like the first one, but what the hell do you do when you aren't in a position to make life easier for assholes???
I am really tired of watching out for old people, almost always of the female variety, who don't watch out for anyone else, and who think common courtesy is something only they deserve. I am tired of parents who let their kids run through a store like it's a playground, or treat restaurants in that way. I am tired of feeling like the only person in the world who is considerate of the fact that we are all busy and try to make things easier all the way around. It truly confuses me when others act in ways that are rude, inconsiderate, and selfish, then go to church on Sunday an act the good Christian. (which is probably why I don't go to church, people can really ruin God and what religion really is) How do they live with running small children down in stores, then paying lipservice to the Golden Rule?
And for you old women out there...just because you made it past age 60 doesn't mean that you automatically deserve respect. It only means that no one considers shooting you rude, selfish ass worth spending time in jail for.
My only recourse is to forgive the old women for my being inconvenient to them and their tired, busy lives. And to ask my children to shoot me if I ever start acting that way.
Oh, and to blow off steam in a blog, and hope that any old women reading it might consider that maybe, just maybe, it's their actions that initiated any disrespect that happens to come your way.
- Music:The Peirces, 'KillKillKill'
Ok, I just have to vent a little. For the past month I've been taking my granddaughter to preschool several times a week, and picking her up.
I hate it. Not the kid, or the school. The other parents. Why?
Well, let's start with redwhiteandblue patriotic Durango-driving mom. She is loud, obnoxious, just a bit greasy, and is apparently incapable of taking her kid to school without a posse in tow. For the life of me, I can't figure out why it takes 6 people to take one 30 lb toddler to pre-school.
Then again, her little daughter is named....Princess.
Kill me.
Then there are the future PTA moms of America. The ones who stand around in the narrow hall reading the bulletin boards and yakyakyakking away to each other, totally ignoring the fact that the hall is only 5 feet wide, there are 4 classrooms, and about 100 people with various little kids in tow trying to get in, around, under, and through them whilst they carry on yakyakyakking, totally oblivious to the fact that most of the rest of us would like to rip their perfectly dyed blonde heads off and play croquet with them.
AND.....there are two doors at the end of the hallway leading to the classrooms....now, common sense would kinda tell most of us that going in, let's use the right hand door,and ditto for those coming out!!! NOPE. I would think that where a narrow hall is involved, driving rules might kick in, but then, these are some of the same people I've seen make left turns on a red light, pass on the right on Main Street, (not allowed, by law)drive on the sidewalk to get around people waiting to make a legal left turn, etc., so, why on earth would I even expect a little common courtesy in a hallway? I mean, honestly, their kids are the only ones attending, apparently.
Oh, and once your kid is in the classroom, GO AWAY! Don't stand in our way, gazing at your little angel who has his/her head tangled in their hooded sweatshirt and is caroming around the room like a missle cause they can't see. Once they are through that door, let the teacher deal with it, just move your ass on out and make room for someone to move through that insanely narrow hall.
There are a few nice people, though the bitch that left me 6 inches to get into my car isn't one of them. I knew there was a reason I park at the back of the lot and walk, and it obviously wasn't so that the members of the gym could park next to entrance rather than walk ten extra feet. sigh.
I also wonder about the people who seem to be unable to read. How did they get their licenses, who did they bribe? I mean, at the entrance to the school building, for about 30 feet, it says, in big YELLOW letters, NO PARKING.
How in the hell do you miss that? Yet, all these preppy, trendily clothed mannequins park there. I especially get a giggle out of the ones dressed in yoga and workout wear..what the hell, park at the end of the lot and get some extra exercise in. geez.
Save your gabbing and yakking for outside. There is a wide, covered porch, gossip there, plan your stupid little holiday parties, just get the hell out of the way of those of us who actually have things we'd like to accomplish before we have to go back and pick up the little dears.
Which I have to do in few minutes, so....
Feel better, so chances are pretty good I won't run MS. Perfect Blonde Mom of the Year Candidate over.....today.
I hate it. Not the kid, or the school. The other parents. Why?
Well, let's start with redwhiteandblue patriotic Durango-driving mom. She is loud, obnoxious, just a bit greasy, and is apparently incapable of taking her kid to school without a posse in tow. For the life of me, I can't figure out why it takes 6 people to take one 30 lb toddler to pre-school.
Then again, her little daughter is named....Princess.
Kill me.
Then there are the future PTA moms of America. The ones who stand around in the narrow hall reading the bulletin boards and yakyakyakking away to each other, totally ignoring the fact that the hall is only 5 feet wide, there are 4 classrooms, and about 100 people with various little kids in tow trying to get in, around, under, and through them whilst they carry on yakyakyakking, totally oblivious to the fact that most of the rest of us would like to rip their perfectly dyed blonde heads off and play croquet with them.
AND.....there are two doors at the end of the hallway leading to the classrooms....now, common sense would kinda tell most of us that going in, let's use the right hand door,and ditto for those coming out!!! NOPE. I would think that where a narrow hall is involved, driving rules might kick in, but then, these are some of the same people I've seen make left turns on a red light, pass on the right on Main Street, (not allowed, by law)drive on the sidewalk to get around people waiting to make a legal left turn, etc., so, why on earth would I even expect a little common courtesy in a hallway? I mean, honestly, their kids are the only ones attending, apparently.
Oh, and once your kid is in the classroom, GO AWAY! Don't stand in our way, gazing at your little angel who has his/her head tangled in their hooded sweatshirt and is caroming around the room like a missle cause they can't see. Once they are through that door, let the teacher deal with it, just move your ass on out and make room for someone to move through that insanely narrow hall.
There are a few nice people, though the bitch that left me 6 inches to get into my car isn't one of them. I knew there was a reason I park at the back of the lot and walk, and it obviously wasn't so that the members of the gym could park next to entrance rather than walk ten extra feet. sigh.
I also wonder about the people who seem to be unable to read. How did they get their licenses, who did they bribe? I mean, at the entrance to the school building, for about 30 feet, it says, in big YELLOW letters, NO PARKING.
How in the hell do you miss that? Yet, all these preppy, trendily clothed mannequins park there. I especially get a giggle out of the ones dressed in yoga and workout wear..what the hell, park at the end of the lot and get some extra exercise in. geez.
Save your gabbing and yakking for outside. There is a wide, covered porch, gossip there, plan your stupid little holiday parties, just get the hell out of the way of those of us who actually have things we'd like to accomplish before we have to go back and pick up the little dears.
Which I have to do in few minutes, so....
Feel better, so chances are pretty good I won't run MS. Perfect Blonde Mom of the Year Candidate over.....today.
Wow....we bail out AIG so that their execs can spend over $440,000 on a spa trip??? Must be really nice to use my money to go have a nice weekend holiday. Wish someone would hand all of us money to do that once in a while...lord knows most of us haven't had a vacation in years, let alone a weekend at a top resort. .But, that's what rich people do, isn't it, waste money that isn't theirs to begin with?
To be honest, I think the bailout is a big joke, and it's on us. We voted for the people who decided this was a good idea, and we let them stay in office. Well, yeah, if they aren't on any of the boards of the huge companies that we are bailing out, they know or are related to someone who is, not to mention that most of them probably have huge investments in those same companies, so, yeah, they are going to bail out their friends, who wouldn't?
Forget Wall Street, they are just a bunch of money shuffling monkeys who don't know what real work is, or what it entails, nor do they care. They seem to have seriously forgotten that we are the reason they are where they are, they were given a trust, and they abused that trust. These people not only don't deserve a bailout, they don't deserve jobs. Ditto for the idiots who thought a porkbarrel bailout was a good idea.
The people who need bailed out are those of us still struggling to maintain our homes and pay our mortgages. Those who lost their homes can go bankrupt and be back on their feet in less than two years, and no, I'm not making that up, I personally know people who have done just that, and got home loans, credit card loans, and car loans, at lower rates than I am paying now, in less than 24 months. So, those who have bailed on mortgages, just file for bankruptcy, you'll be ok, as long as you don't get another ridiculous mortgage.
Me? And the rest of us? We're the ones left holding the bag, because we can't currently refinance our mortgages because our credit ratings are not up to snuff because we have been struggling with all our bills, and we aren't quite strapped enough to default on our mortgages, although we are occasionally robbing Peter to pay Paul, while trying to have some semblance of life that doesn't bleakly, completely look like slavery.
We are your backbone, and you've put too much on us. We are going to give out, and where will this country be, then?So, find a way to help us.
****************************************
Next door neigbor came over last evening, wanted to know what the police had told us when we had them here a month or so ago, about the neighborhood kids running rampant. Seems that the ten or so that were hanging out on the street last night were all over his wifes car, sitting on it, laying on it, etc, and called her 'psycho' and denied being on the car, even as she stood there watching them. Told him to just quietly take pictures and call the police. We also need to have the police explain to the parents that, yes, cars are not allowed to hit pedestrians, but children aren't allowed to be blocking traffic, either. lol....it seems that everyone on this side of the street is ready to sell their homes and leave because these clowns can't/won't control their children. Leave it to white trash to ruin a good neighborhood.
To be honest, I think the bailout is a big joke, and it's on us. We voted for the people who decided this was a good idea, and we let them stay in office. Well, yeah, if they aren't on any of the boards of the huge companies that we are bailing out, they know or are related to someone who is, not to mention that most of them probably have huge investments in those same companies, so, yeah, they are going to bail out their friends, who wouldn't?
Forget Wall Street, they are just a bunch of money shuffling monkeys who don't know what real work is, or what it entails, nor do they care. They seem to have seriously forgotten that we are the reason they are where they are, they were given a trust, and they abused that trust. These people not only don't deserve a bailout, they don't deserve jobs. Ditto for the idiots who thought a porkbarrel bailout was a good idea.
The people who need bailed out are those of us still struggling to maintain our homes and pay our mortgages. Those who lost their homes can go bankrupt and be back on their feet in less than two years, and no, I'm not making that up, I personally know people who have done just that, and got home loans, credit card loans, and car loans, at lower rates than I am paying now, in less than 24 months. So, those who have bailed on mortgages, just file for bankruptcy, you'll be ok, as long as you don't get another ridiculous mortgage.
Me? And the rest of us? We're the ones left holding the bag, because we can't currently refinance our mortgages because our credit ratings are not up to snuff because we have been struggling with all our bills, and we aren't quite strapped enough to default on our mortgages, although we are occasionally robbing Peter to pay Paul, while trying to have some semblance of life that doesn't bleakly, completely look like slavery.
We are your backbone, and you've put too much on us. We are going to give out, and where will this country be, then?So, find a way to help us.
****************************************
Next door neigbor came over last evening, wanted to know what the police had told us when we had them here a month or so ago, about the neighborhood kids running rampant. Seems that the ten or so that were hanging out on the street last night were all over his wifes car, sitting on it, laying on it, etc, and called her 'psycho' and denied being on the car, even as she stood there watching them. Told him to just quietly take pictures and call the police. We also need to have the police explain to the parents that, yes, cars are not allowed to hit pedestrians, but children aren't allowed to be blocking traffic, either. lol....it seems that everyone on this side of the street is ready to sell their homes and leave because these clowns can't/won't control their children. Leave it to white trash to ruin a good neighborhood.
- Mood: angry
In my humble, uneducated opinion, the bailout plan isn't going to work for anyone except the selfish, over-educated nincompoops who caused this whole mess out of nothing but pure greed.
Let's face it, they have, over the years, become nothing but loan sharks, and the last time I checked, that was illegal. And this is nationwide, not just in small scale in neighborhoods here and there.
Anyone else doing what these people have done would be arrested, found guilty, and thrown in jail. But our government isn't interested in punishing these people, (start with Bernanke, please), nope, OUR government wants to reward them for being thieves, liars, cheats, etc. And to further add insult to injury, OUR government wants to use OUR money to do so. AND WE THE PEOPLE WILL LET THEM, all the while grumbling into our coffee about how unfair it is that we are doing without while the people who have cost us, at the least, our homes, are still living the life of Riley and laughing their asses off at us.
There will be no arrests, no trials, no fines, no punishment of any sort for all who hopped on the deregulation bandwagon. They will stay in positions of power. They will continue to find new ways to harvest our hard earned dollars while we sit around bleating and eating and wishing for the good ole days of Reagan and Clinton.
Personally, I want to see each and every one of the people responsible for this mess to pay. I want them to lose their jobs. I want them to be held accountable, now, not given candy and told not to be bad anymore. But that can't be done, can it? Not with the majority of our government leaders having some hand in every pie they can reach. C'mon, people, members of Congress and the House own stocks, are on Boards of Directors, have friends and family that are involved in these businesses. That's why they can't slap hands harder, because then their friends won't like them anymore, and give them campaign money, right? Why are the news media so afraid to come out and say these things? Why are we, as supposedly intelligent people, so afraid to think them, even though each and everyone of knows it's true? Oh, right, the media is biased, no matter which way you look at it, so, they can''t say anything, gee, they might piss off their bosses who rub shoulders with all the brass hats who might just start whatever trouble they can for the bosses.
Yes, I think the media is equally at fault for handing out placebos masquerading as news reports.
I think it's time we let the market crash, see how many of these worthless, selfish individuals jump out a window, (please help out the ones who can't jump on their own, ok?) Sound callous? Guess what America, it's what we all want, in the end. A new beginning for everyone, not just the big shots on Wall Street and the government.
Of the people, for the people, by the people? Not anymore, not for a long time.
And for those of you who think there is still a middle class in this country, get over the fairytale, people. Washington and Wall Street have done nothing over the past 10 years except do what they can to eliminate the middle class. MIddle class used to be anyone earning between 30 and 60 thou a year. At least that's the way most of us who ARE middle class see it. Now, those of us earning 70 thou are pushed to even consider ourselves middle class. We are, instead, the new poor. Except, we can't qualify for benefits like healthcare, food stamps, energy assistance. I wonder, since John McCain thinks middle class earns 150 thou a year, if he'll change the standards, and let the rest of reclaim in assistance what we pay out in taxes to support the worthless.
Oh, and the very wealthy.
Let's face it, they have, over the years, become nothing but loan sharks, and the last time I checked, that was illegal. And this is nationwide, not just in small scale in neighborhoods here and there.
Anyone else doing what these people have done would be arrested, found guilty, and thrown in jail. But our government isn't interested in punishing these people, (start with Bernanke, please), nope, OUR government wants to reward them for being thieves, liars, cheats, etc. And to further add insult to injury, OUR government wants to use OUR money to do so. AND WE THE PEOPLE WILL LET THEM, all the while grumbling into our coffee about how unfair it is that we are doing without while the people who have cost us, at the least, our homes, are still living the life of Riley and laughing their asses off at us.
There will be no arrests, no trials, no fines, no punishment of any sort for all who hopped on the deregulation bandwagon. They will stay in positions of power. They will continue to find new ways to harvest our hard earned dollars while we sit around bleating and eating and wishing for the good ole days of Reagan and Clinton.
Personally, I want to see each and every one of the people responsible for this mess to pay. I want them to lose their jobs. I want them to be held accountable, now, not given candy and told not to be bad anymore. But that can't be done, can it? Not with the majority of our government leaders having some hand in every pie they can reach. C'mon, people, members of Congress and the House own stocks, are on Boards of Directors, have friends and family that are involved in these businesses. That's why they can't slap hands harder, because then their friends won't like them anymore, and give them campaign money, right? Why are the news media so afraid to come out and say these things? Why are we, as supposedly intelligent people, so afraid to think them, even though each and everyone of knows it's true? Oh, right, the media is biased, no matter which way you look at it, so, they can''t say anything, gee, they might piss off their bosses who rub shoulders with all the brass hats who might just start whatever trouble they can for the bosses.
Yes, I think the media is equally at fault for handing out placebos masquerading as news reports.
I think it's time we let the market crash, see how many of these worthless, selfish individuals jump out a window, (please help out the ones who can't jump on their own, ok?) Sound callous? Guess what America, it's what we all want, in the end. A new beginning for everyone, not just the big shots on Wall Street and the government.
Of the people, for the people, by the people? Not anymore, not for a long time.
And for those of you who think there is still a middle class in this country, get over the fairytale, people. Washington and Wall Street have done nothing over the past 10 years except do what they can to eliminate the middle class. MIddle class used to be anyone earning between 30 and 60 thou a year. At least that's the way most of us who ARE middle class see it. Now, those of us earning 70 thou are pushed to even consider ourselves middle class. We are, instead, the new poor. Except, we can't qualify for benefits like healthcare, food stamps, energy assistance. I wonder, since John McCain thinks middle class earns 150 thou a year, if he'll change the standards, and let the rest of reclaim in assistance what we pay out in taxes to support the worthless.
Oh, and the very wealthy.
- Mood: sad
Been reading lots this morning about what Congresses failure to pass a bailout bill for the big banks is doing to not only our country, but the world. Yeah, life is tough everywhere, isn't it?
Why don't we just insist that all mortgages be restructured at much lower interest rates, go back twenty years, and apply the new figures to what principal is left? I know, this would devalue homes all over the country, but it would allow people to keep their homes, and make the companies that gave out those mortgages accountable for their actions. Lower those rates that apply to loans for businesses from agriculture to industry.
Let them pay the price for their greed. Don't use more of our money to bail them out, let them do it themselves in an honest way. They caused this, by encouraging people to buy more than they could afford, let them take the hit, not us.
It makes a weird kind of sense. Lower interest rates retroactively, and people will be able to make their mortgage payments, right? The companies are not losing the money they loaned, just the loan-shark rates they thought they could get. So what if they have to cut out bonuses and perks? I would rather see some ivory tower type have to take the bus or drive his own car to work rather than see thousands living homeless, wouldn't you? I'd rather see them live in a home they pay for, rather than one a company owns. So what if they can't afford to send little Mary Jane to a fancy private school, I can't afford to send mine there, either. Who really cares if a higher up has to pay for his own lunch rather than collect per diem on non work related meals?
Bailing out these companies is not going to make things easier for anyone, especially those of us struggling to make ends meet and not lose our own reallstically purchased homes. Bailing out AIG and Lehman is not going to put me a month ahead on my mortgage payment, nor is it going to lower my heating costs, or the cost of food. It is only doing the equivalent of rewarding them with a cookie for being bad. It isn't going to change their bad habits, or keep them from continually trying to take money they aren't entitled to. It isn't going to fix anything, no matter how sincerely our President speaks about it. (yes, I watched his little speech the other night,and I could hear worthless CEO's all over Wall Street cheering, since they will be able to keep their jobs with no repercussions)
Yes, I've thought about the effects of revaluing the dollar, making it actually worth a dollar, again. I've considered all the levels it would affect, and the ripples it would cause, and they are too many to list.
And the only people I see being hurt by it are those with too much money already.
Those of us who actually work and contribute consistently to this country's tax base would come out ahead, as would the country, eventually.
We've watched prices go up, values go down, investments lose money. At this rate, we will have to work until we are dead, and then some, just to make ends meet, while all the people responsible for this huge mess could retire tomorrow without thinking twice about it.
Does't seem fair, does it??
Why don't we just insist that all mortgages be restructured at much lower interest rates, go back twenty years, and apply the new figures to what principal is left? I know, this would devalue homes all over the country, but it would allow people to keep their homes, and make the companies that gave out those mortgages accountable for their actions. Lower those rates that apply to loans for businesses from agriculture to industry.
Let them pay the price for their greed. Don't use more of our money to bail them out, let them do it themselves in an honest way. They caused this, by encouraging people to buy more than they could afford, let them take the hit, not us.
It makes a weird kind of sense. Lower interest rates retroactively, and people will be able to make their mortgage payments, right? The companies are not losing the money they loaned, just the loan-shark rates they thought they could get. So what if they have to cut out bonuses and perks? I would rather see some ivory tower type have to take the bus or drive his own car to work rather than see thousands living homeless, wouldn't you? I'd rather see them live in a home they pay for, rather than one a company owns. So what if they can't afford to send little Mary Jane to a fancy private school, I can't afford to send mine there, either. Who really cares if a higher up has to pay for his own lunch rather than collect per diem on non work related meals?
Bailing out these companies is not going to make things easier for anyone, especially those of us struggling to make ends meet and not lose our own reallstically purchased homes. Bailing out AIG and Lehman is not going to put me a month ahead on my mortgage payment, nor is it going to lower my heating costs, or the cost of food. It is only doing the equivalent of rewarding them with a cookie for being bad. It isn't going to change their bad habits, or keep them from continually trying to take money they aren't entitled to. It isn't going to fix anything, no matter how sincerely our President speaks about it. (yes, I watched his little speech the other night,and I could hear worthless CEO's all over Wall Street cheering, since they will be able to keep their jobs with no repercussions)
Yes, I've thought about the effects of revaluing the dollar, making it actually worth a dollar, again. I've considered all the levels it would affect, and the ripples it would cause, and they are too many to list.
And the only people I see being hurt by it are those with too much money already.
Those of us who actually work and contribute consistently to this country's tax base would come out ahead, as would the country, eventually.
We've watched prices go up, values go down, investments lose money. At this rate, we will have to work until we are dead, and then some, just to make ends meet, while all the people responsible for this huge mess could retire tomorrow without thinking twice about it.
Does't seem fair, does it??
- Mood: bitchy
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