My latest project

Here are the pics of my box just before she was finished. The only thing left is the top trimming. I tried to mix it up a bit so that it would look totally different from the other two boxes I've done lately. Thus the red-white-blue alternating top left panel, and the alternating rows of alternating earth tones and patriotic colors of the bottom panel. The bottom left panel of diagonal stripes is the bottom, as seen from the inside. I'm really surprised that I got this one done as fast I did. I just have to figure out what color to do the top. Each of the joining sides is a different color, as I tried to ensure that the colors didn't blend into the patterns as much as possible. Now if only someone wanted this kind of stuff, it'd be nice to make some money doing this!

By the way, the pics are also on my picasa page solo under the "project photos" album

Harry Potter.......

Am I the only person in this world who doesn't get what the big deal is about Harry Potter? IMHO it's childish fantasy bullcrap. I can see why kids would like it, but grown adults? I don't get it. I understand the need/desire to get lost in another world in a book, but there's better thigns than Potter. Heck, even Sherlock Holmes! Nothing beats a good mystery! I don't know, I'll never claim to know, and I'll problably never understand it. I've got better things to do with my life than waste it on childrens' books.

Good news for my pda!

Oh my goodness I finally fixed my screen noise on my PDA!! I can't count how many headaches the thing has given me, because even though it's not loud, it's very high-pitched! Luckily I already had the programs set up to do it so that my VGA would work. It turns out that one of the preset toshiba screen settings is off - go figure on the setting I use!! I'm a lot happier tonight for sure!! One less thing driving my ears crazy LOL.

Writer's block and project idea?

You know I've hit a case of writer's block when I'm asking my chat friends what issue to tackle next... I've dried up as I've not really wanted to watch much news right now and the rest hasn't been very interesting. What's left to say?
Let's take a look at Atty. Gen. Gonzalez. Does anyone really think this is the first time a federal attorney got fired for political reasons? Uhm, I bet it's happened under just about every president in recent history, even Clinton. Not focusing enough on the president's issues is "lackluster job performance" or some other excuse. So why the focus all of a suddenly on what the media is referring to as "Gonzalezgate" now? Easy. His boss is extremely unpopular, and any chance to stick a thorn into the president's side is happily taken. Also, the democrats are in control, so things are easier to push through, and there are just enough disenfranchised republicans to go along with it to make it look bipartisan.
Uhm... What else is in the news I haven't already covered lately? How about all the sneezing, wheezing, and itchy eyes going around? Where's THAT in the news? Everyone I talk to is suffering. It can't be just my little pocket of the world. What's in the air this spring that's driving everyone crazy? Or is just the rapid temperature shifts? Just this week we're going from 80s to 70s to 60s to 50s back to the 60s with rain at least three days this week... NO MORE RAIN PLEASE! I don't care what the Weather Channel says about supposed heightened fire dangers. Have they not looked at the Delaware River? Or how about the rivers around NYC? HUH? We need a break!!
I guess I should cut off at least one rant early... I could vent for a few more WEEKS lol.
On a personal note before I go, I'm making good progress on my second big box. I got one section left (not sure if it's going to be my bottom yet but I think it is) and the lid. I'm going to try something I never have before. I'm going to try to an one-sided attachment and have a flip-lid instead of a removable one. Worst-case scenario, I pass on it and save the square for something else. Lol... So we'll see. I'm still trying to figure out what to do with this last square. I'm plum out of ideas, though I've been thinking of taking a pattern off my small box I made ages ago. I'm just hoping the camera picks up all the colors on my two multi-color squares, especially the alternating earth tones and patriotic rows square. I'm not sure if it's going to be able to distinguish the brown from a black or the dark blue either for that matter. If anyone has any ideas, let me know. I'm working with squares with 27 stitches available both horizontally and vertically (duh, it's a square *shakes the blondes that didn't get that* lol).
Alright, I'm shutting up!! Laters folks!

This is supposed to be a funny pic? I think not!

You know I don't know what's sadder... that this woman is so obviously overweight that she has to use a wheelchair to get up and take a few steps at least to get dinner or that she doesn't care and will eat at a restaurant that at best won't help her lose weight. Granted, there may be some reason she has to be this way, but for my general comment, let's assume she's only like this because of poor food choices and/or quantity. I feel for people like this because they have lost their mobility and cannot get enough motivation to get it back. I truly count myself lucky that I am not one of those people - I'd honestly like to have another 20 pounds on me to spare if I get sick. I can only hope in this particular case this woman is in contact with her doctor and is trying to lose the weight. And if it's because of medication she may be on (and a lot of medication can cause weight gain as a side effect), I hope that it's not a permanent thing and she's in contact with people who can help her counteract the effects of the medicine(s). However, eating at restaurants like McDonald's, Wendy's, or Burger King (and others) isn't going to help, even if you eat their "low-fat" salads. But please, spare me the line of BS - it's NOT the restaurant's fault. No one held a gun to your head and said "eat it" or otherwise laced the food so you had to eat it (like big tobacco does with their tobacco products). It's about personal responsibility!

Iraq

I'm so fed up with people trying to tell me that this current war in Iraq isn't another Vietnam. If it isn't, why is our government trying to tell the military what to do (just like Vietnam)? Did we not learn our lesson from previous wars? You let the military decide how to get from A to B. The government only states the objectives. This worked extremely well during the first Gulf War. That was "shock and awe" delivered right to Saddam's patio. Now, eh, "not so much" I hate to say.
If this isn't another Vietnam, explain to me why young men are dying and their parents are asking why they were even sent there (just like Vietnam). When the objectives and reasons are clear, no one asks why. Did our great-grandparents ask why their sons died when they went off to war in the 40s? Nope, they ALL understood why. We don't have that now.
I still don't understand why we went to war. It surely wasn't for democratic reasons - we still can't get the Iraqis on their own feet. I don't think it was for oil - our gas prices are going up and up and up... Nonstop it seems! I highly doubt it was to "find weapons of mass destruction" - anyone that thought Saddam would keep them when he knew we were coming isn't thinking logically in even the slightest. He probably gave or sold them to Iran thinking he could survive it like he did the first time around or Iran would get much more use out of them. That's supposing they EVER really existed. Which, even in my skeptical mind, is a possibility.
I don't know. The only thing that even comes close to making any sense as to why we went off to war is because either we wanted to get rid of a tyrant (which, Saddam definitely was) to prove we could do it since we failed in the case of Fidel Castro; or our president was itching to get back at Saddam for trying to assasinate his dad years ago. It has been reported that the current president had been planning a war in Iraq since before the terrorist attacks. So obviously this was something on Mr. Bush's mind at least since he was elected. I'm not trying to suggest that he allowed or hoped the terrorists would attack us, I'm only suggesting he used the situation as an excuse to start a "holy war" to help his poll numbers.
Whatever your views on whether this is another Vietnam or not, I think most of us Americans - and most citizens of Planet Earth - agree we need to get out of Iraq. We're not accomplishing nothing there; they've been fighting there amongst themselves for centuries. We need to pull out, let our soldiers get some time off, then send them back into Afghanistan and find Osama and all his friends! Let's fight the war where it should be fought, for the right reasons, until we truly achieve mission accomplishment.

Psychics etc

Psychics are something else... What, I don't know.
Do I believe the ability exists to perhaps sense what is coming and talk to the dead? Yes. But... I think anyone willing to use the "gift" (if you can call it that) to earn $$ is inherently crooked.
Look at Sylvia Browne. If you just watch her tv appearances, she looks authentic. But remember, you don't get to see what goes on behind the scenes. Even the Bible says a true prophet will not be caught wrong. Look at Sylvia's record. It's pathetic. I could probably do better than her.
Look at how much she charges - it's outrageous. She's profiting off of people's curiosity and desire to get some direction in life - and even worse off the pain of people grieving over the loss of a loved one. Granted, I think the belief that life on earth isn't the end of life is a comforting point. But to lie to give it is wrong.
If you believe your dead relatives can still see you and be with you, then live your life the way it should be lived. Be kind to others just because you can. Hold a door for an elder. Help carry their groceries if they'll let you. Thank a vet for serving their country - even if you disagree with the cause of the war. Stop to smell the flowers. Just be a good person. But don't look toward someone else to give you peace from your grief. The best medicine is remembering the good times and continuing life as best you can making someone else's day better.
And lets stop the posers like Sylvia Browne from preying on those going through the grieving. But lets not rule out the possibility that someone just MIGHT truly be a medium. Skepticism isn't a bad thing... just pessimism and constant doubting closes your mind to possibilities.

Some thoughts on WHY

What a week this has turned out to be. It just started out horrible. Now, after the Virginia Tech massacre, we're all left to wonder why it happened. We may find out why this apparent loner did his evil deed, but why as a society does this happen? It's a recent phenomenon; it used to never happen, and even a generation ago, it was a very rare occasion. Even my generation rarely saw school shootings - that's why Columbine caught us off guard. I was just out of high school when it happened, and it blew my mind that two children would even want to kill fellow classmates at the rate they did.
So why have we seemingly lost control of ourselves? The answers aren't simple, but they are out there. First of all, somewhere along the line we lost our coping skills. We have started to grey the area between right and wrong. Revenge has become ours. I think a lot of this comes from the lack of discipline at home. But a lot of it also is the over-burdening of our youth. The pressure is so great on kids to not only be smart but also involved that they fail at both so often and then feel horrible. Remember when you might have homework for the evening but your weekends were almost always yours? We've lost that. Kids now have sporting events during the evening, games on the weekend, part-time jobs, and on top of that are expected to give of themselves for nothing on a regular basis (volunteering). Now don't get me wrong. I have nothing against volunteering, it's something very precious especially in a free society. But kids should not be expected to during the school year. During the school year they need to be focused on schoolwork. If they have time, a part-time job isn't a bad idea for the older ones approaching adulthood.
Secondly, our society has become violence-hungry. We crave horror movies, shoot-em-up video games, and violent "sports" like boxing. We'e started to assimilate these into our lives and consciousness. This starts leading weaker minds to these extreme measures to seek resolution to their real or imagined grievances.
So where do we go from here? Let me pull from my experience and what I wish I'd had growing up as it seems its started in my generation.
1. Take the focus off sports and other extra-curricular activities. Friday night games need to go. High schools should play on Saturday morning so kids can go back home and relax and do homework afterwards. Use the extra time to focus more on academics. Have tutors available to students struggling with their studies.
2. Every student should have to attend a stress-management class periodically through their school years. They need to learn how to manage their time just as much as their money. They need to learn how to deal with stress. They need to be able to have someone they can truly call on when they're feeling overburdened. This requires taking the stigma away from counseling.
3. The community needs to support their youth instead of just painting them all "hoodlums" and trouble-makers. Give them opportunities to volunteer during the summer.
4. Parents need to re-learn how to "crack the whip" so to speak. We need to return discipline to the home and school - as long as it's not abused. Parents and teachers who abuse this need to be imprisoned and stripped of their rights to be around children. Kids need clear expectations, structure, discipline - and love. They need rewards and words of support just as much. Kids' self-esteem is in its fragile beginnings, and how we treat it while they're young determines how strong they will be as adults.
I hope somehow we figure out how to get back control of our society to the point where these shootings are no longer commonplace once again. I await that day!

Too much money, not enough heart?

There are many things I do not understand. Like why we pay our military so crappy and yet we pay those who work for companies that "help" the military so well. I'm not talking those who provide services to them on-base; they're paid even worse than their civilian counterparts, trust me. I'm talking companies like Halliburton. In Sunday's newspaper in the "Parade" insert, the front cover shows what appears to be a random list of people and how much they make. One person from Halliburton is in the millions of dollars yet a staff sergeant in the military doesn't even make $50,000. What the hell is up with that? That staff sergeant has probably been in for close to ten years and that's all we give him to say thank you? That, in my opinion, is bulls***!
There are quite a few professions I think are quite underpaid: teachers, good cops and firefighters, our fighting men and women, those in the retail industry (if you've ever worked at a grocery store, convenience store, or fast food restaurant, you know WHY I say that), and others. However, there are even more that are grossly overpaid: corporate CEO's (especially ones of failing companies), hollywood actors and actresses, sports players, politicians in most cases... I think anyone making over $2 million a year is probably being overpaid unless they've worked their rear end off for it. Kinda like Bill Gates. Like his stuff or not, he invented the stuff, marketed it, sold it, and then kept working on it. And now that he HAS all that money, instead of hogging all of it, he gives a LOT of it away. That's the way it should be. It's like my Mom said, "You can't take it with you when you go." So there's no sense in hogging it all.
So where do we go from here? Should we tax the heck out of the rich to give to the poor? I don't know; and even if we did, I'm not sure it would work. Maybe if enough of us stand up and demand accountability, something will change voluntarily. I'm not holding my breath though.

Positive Thinking

This was emailed to me & I wanted to share it.

In an episode of Star Trek that caught my attention - the crew landed on a planet where anything that was created; all they had to do is think about it, and it become a reality. The planet was a vacation destination for rest and relaxation. Naturally, they are in a good mood, when they arrive and their thoughts are all about having fun.
At the beginning, everyone is having a fantastic time. They're creating wonderful things and having the time of their life. This good time continues for a while, but after a time things start to change. As the crew gets tired, they start creating negative situations. They create things they do not desire. In this episode the villain becomes themselves or their own thoughts. The very thoughts that in the beginning created a wonderful life for them are now making their lives miserable.
What struck me is that "Star Trek" was analyzing real life, because this is exactly what we do in our lives everyday.
We start out in something new and have all this positive energy, in the beginning. Whether it's a new job, a new relationship, moving to a new area, or a new project, we start off with zeal and passion. After some time, we grow tired. Our positive energy turns negative and our thoughts begin to work against us. Before you know it – you start thinking negatively toward the situation.
Your thoughts created by your own mind create the things you don't really want. In the end, it is your negative, self- destructive thoughts that create the things you don't want in life.
By not controlling your thoughts, you stop having positive thoughts and most important of all - you stopped creating the things you want in life.

Current Events Ramblings...

Oh why does anyone even take Mr. Imus seriously anymore? It's like listening to Rush Limbaugh or Howard Stern or watching Rosie O'Donnell's or Jerry Springer's "shows" on tv. You don't listen to learn something or catch up on the news; most of us watch for laughs or to shake our heads and remind ourselves there are way more stupid people in this world. When I especially listen to Rush (for the approximately 5 minutes I can bear to), I want to play Carlos Mencia's "Dee Dee Dee" song for him and give him one of Bill Engvall's "I'm stupid" signs! So I'm kind of shocked by the sudden shock on Mr. Imus' latest comments on his radio show that is simulcast on MSNBC. I'm NOT condoning it; there's no excuse for his racist, sexist, male shauvinistic comments. However, to be surprised by it is a whole different story. It's not like he hasn't earned himself a reputation for being stupid! So am I glad he got suspended? I'm not sure. I don't think him being fired is true to our free market economy, however. I think the companies like Proctor and Gamble (and the others) who have pulled their commercial support for him have it right; hit him in the pocketbook. Don't fire him because he said something stupid. Fire him because he's killing the company, is no longer an asset, and is a distraction to the rest of the employees. That's how we work here in America. We have the right to say what we want... and the responsibility to accept the consequences thereof. I can only hope that after the dust has settled, we can lean back and wonder why so many people were so shocked and laugh at the stupidity that has become a LOT of the talk shows.
Look at Rosie O'Donnell. You know why she hasn't been fired from "The View"? It's not because they agree with her; they probably don't. They are probably not even talking to her barely behind the cameras. She's still on because she's drawing the ratings as people tune in to see what comes out of her mouth this time, knowing it'll probably be something insensitive, irresponsible, rude, inconsiderate, racist, or unpatriotic. And unlike the Imus show "Imus in the Morning", the advertisers haven't taken a stand against Rosie, so she's still seen as a profit to the company as well. She's productive on all the fronts that matter. So until the advertisers pull out, and/or the people start ignoring her, she's going to stay put... like it or not.
Now about the poor Duke Lacross players who were so villified in the media the last year. To steal a line from Anna Nicole Smith's baby's daddy, "I told you so!" I could've told you this was a case of reverse racism almost from the beginning. The MOMENT it came out that her story had changed, it should've been a dead giveaway that this woman was just seeking fame and probably money at the expense of three young men just trying to get through college. And what does a poor black person do to get money fast? Throw out the race card; it is an immediate pass to pity and compassion especially within their own community. And it worked - for a little while. But soon people started to see through this woman's lies. Yet the media was slow to catch on. The local news still hasn't caught on. Now these young mens' lives are RUINED because of this one woman's childish attempt at getting her hands on some money. I'm not buying the whole 'mental disability' thing either... it's the biggest excuse in our court and social systems. If you lie and get caught, you've got "issues." If you're rich and famous and make a stupid mistake, you quick rush into "rehab" to get "treatment" for your "alcohol (and/or drug) addiction(s)" to save face. WHAT A BUNCH OF B*******! You know what would happen to ordinary Joe or Jane like me and you if we crashed our car into a pole, kept driving and got arrested later? We wouldn't see the light of day from outside prison walls for a few years at least. But if you're rich and famous, you get to go into rehab, pay some money, maybe do some community service, and just MAYBE some "home incarceration" (which sounds pretty nice to me as long as I have someone delivering food)... THAT is punishment? GIVE ME A BREAK. Ya do the crime, do the time!!
So where does this leave us as a nation?
Maybe a little shell-shocked. Hopefully a little smarter. Maybe a little slower to judge. Someday we'll get it right. Probably the day we dissolve our political parties and heed George Washington's warnings about the destructions internal divisions cause.

Now and again...

I'm back... for now. My hiatus proves a point - I get writer's block quite often. Especially when things are smooth sailing - and/or I can't spell, and both are the case right now. Thank God for the backspace! I must got typoitis or something! hehe. So anyways, just letting the world know I'm back! Peace folks and hip hip horray for the release of the British sailors and marines!

Hooked up, set up, and ready to GO!

My joke of the day google group is up and running full steam! It took me a little while to get a groove going, and I've had to skip a day or two because of life just going chaotic. But you can find the group here. I have also set up a fatherless AND/OR motherless daughters group on google groups to be more inclusive. You can find it here. I invite anyone who would like to help someone else who's grieving out a little bit and anyone who could use a shoulder to lean on to join in, as we grow, so will the support network!