What's white with green splotches and red bumps?

Sitrep: 1x Lawn Mowing, Trimming, Edging

My legs after trimming/edging the lawn, that's what. They look like I was attacked with the blunt end of a pencil while being eaten alive by giant bugs. I've got little round bruises and red welts all over my legs from mid calf to mid thigh. Mostly around the knees/thigh area. Who knew trimming and edging the yard was so hazardous?

I admit to trimming only once last year...this year the quack grass has made it a necessity to trim just about weekly. This is the first day since I've had the trimmer/edger that it was warm enough to wear shorts. Actually, warm enough to require shorts. Too bad the stupid thing is so noisy, or I'd trim earlier in the morning before the heat gets too much for yard work in jeans...I guess I'd better get some light weight yard work pants.

But my yard looks nice. Mowed, trimmed, edged. Just don't look at the flower beds. Eeek. Gotta buy some weed killer and tackle that tomorrow. If it doesn't rain. It's already clouding up.

So I think I mighta upset my dad yesterday. Political stuff, naturally. [rolling eyes] I just never know when to shut up. It was about the political candidates and taxes and the housing crisis, and you know me. Run off at the mouth....or the email, in this case. ;) But I think all of 'em - Dems & Reps alike - have some stupid plans that will just waste money, and result in the taxpayer paying more. They might not officially raise taxes, but the end results will be the same....I was in a rush when I replied and referred him to one of my favorite sites - http://www.factcheck.org/ - and think I came across harsher than intended. :( I'm sorry Dad.

Well. Maybe I'll tackle the flower beds today...It's still lovely outside, and I'm actually feeling like being outside...even if the lilacs are blooming and the sky is clouding up. Maybe I'll get lucky and another team of fighter jets will fly over...that was spectacular this morning...there were 5 or 6 of them I think. Enough to have many of the neighbors coming outside to see what was up. An unusual sight and sound around here, even with the Fort. They were painted differently than I've seen before...maybe they were from the airshow up at Malmstrom last weekend. They definitely looked like an airshow team. And the way they were moving, the speed and maneuvers, coming from all different directions...Thrilled this AF Brat. :) It wasn't the Thun.derbirds or the Bl.ue An.gels. Maybe the Canadian team? The name escapes me momentarily, darn it, but they were at the airshow last weekend. I should make plans to take Shanni to it next year. That would be a blast!!

PS - Everyone repeat after me "Nat, you do NOT want a Pla.ystat.ion 3. NO YOU DON'T"

Triple Review

Sitrep: 1/2 Lawn Mowed (rain rain, go away...)

Three reviews today: My Arms, A Book & A Movie. I've been busy. [g]

My Arms

So I've done Boot Camp twice (with one weight each time) in the last two weeks. And the week before that I did arms & abs. I've also mowed each week, and weekend before last I used my new trimmer/edger on my back yard. That sucker is supposed to be light at 5.5 pounds (at least, in comparison to others.) Then there's all the lifting and carrying I've been doing the last few weeks at work. Last night I noticed that I can feel my biceps just rubbing my hand up and down my arm. I don't even have to do the muscle pose to see/feel them. How very cool is that?

A Book

Another good book recommendation from the bulletin board: Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen. Bought & read it in one day last weekend. :) I don't do that too often. It's a very good first book, I think. Different from my usual reads. Easy-going, a little enchanting.

SPOILER ALERT - SCROLL PAST THE NEXT BIT - YOU'VE BEEN WARNED
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While I really enjoyed this book, and there were several lines I found myself trying to remember because they were so funny, I was left feeling a little at loose ends when it finished. Things were developing quite nicely with all the characters. Then all of a sudden Claire's hero stopped getting fleshed out - there wasn't a lot of development there. Almost as if his falling for her was secondary to her falling for him, a given, so why write about it? There were several mentions made of him needing someone like Claire to keep him organized, grounded, etc. (He had to leave notes to remind himself to eat.) But not much was made of that...not sure Claire ever found out about that in the book. I was a little unsatisfied at how that was resolved. First 2/3+ of the book devoted to Claire pushing him away, then in a few pages, she changes? And we lost him about halfway through the book...his perspective, etc. Claire got together with her hero, and that was the end of them until the last pages - focus turned to other characters.

Then there was the later introduction and development of Fred & his partner (whom we saw once? twice?) And the way that was tied up...uh, wasn't too thrilled with that. Didn't have so much to do with the two main characters, who I thought were the sisters.

I liked the relationship with the sisters (Claire, Sydney) themselves. That was well written; combined with the magical aspect of the book, this was the best part for me. Funnily enough, I hadn't read any reviews about this book, just new the title and that several ladies on the BB really enjoyed it. The night before I found it at Wa.lmart, I dreamt in depth about my sister and I. Funny, huh?

The niece/daughter was "off" in tone for me. I liked her character, would like it if she had her own book (that would be a trick - she's 5 in this book). Her age is what was "off" for me. She read more like a nine year old to me.

Sometimes throughout the book I kept thinking about the movie "Practical Magic". Not a bad thing in and of itself, but I guess I was wanting more? I'm not sure the purpose of Fred, or Evanelle, the cousin who has to give things to people. Things could have been tied together without all of that, in my opinion, leaving more page time for the two sisters and their relationships - with each other, with the daughter/niece, with the love interests, with the one sister's past, with the town...

I just felt a bit at loose ends, slightly disappointed when I finished it, even though I felt it was a good read. After all, it kept me reading all day. And I'm going to get her next book, which has just been published.
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END SPOILER

A Movie

Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian

I loved the Chronicles of Narnia books when I was young. At least, the ones dealing with the Pevensie children. Loved Lucy. I've tried to get my little sister to read them, but she's not interested. She'd rather read the "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" series by Rick Riordan. That's cool. I'm not going to force books on her...just give her suggestions when she asks for them. But in 2005 we went to see the first one, The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe, when it came out. (Yes, it's the FIRST ONE. I'm a big believer in reading this series in the order it was written!!!) We had just gone to see one of the latest Har.ry P.o.tter movies the week before, and it was fun seeing her different reactions to the two. For HP, she enjoyed the movie, etc. In LW&W, she was literally on the edge of her seat. And when ***SPOILER*** one of the main characters died ***END SPOILER*** she sank back in her seat with a startled "Ohhhh".

It was the same for the 2nd one, Prince Caspian. After the first 10 minutes, she was enthralled. I think it's the way the stories are told, the slower pace. And the low amount of special effects, if you think about it. I haven't read the HP books, but they're much longer I think than the C of N series. And the HP movies I've seen are high paced, heavily loaded with special effects. There's no time for the story to sink in. She loves HP, yet she enjoyed the C of N more in the movie theater. I'm not sure why, other than the reduction of special effects. Or maybe it's the talking animals???

Anyway, I really enjoyed this movie. I'm actually going to get the first one and this one on DVD. A good addition to my miniscule DVD collection. Simple, fantastical, fun. And Good wins out over Evil. How can I not like that?

The "New" Math

Sitrep: 1/2 Yard Mowed.

I made the mistake of listening to NPR on the way home last night. No discs in the CD player, nothing good on the few music stations I can stand. So on went NPR. Should have just enjoyed the drive home in quiet!

The topic was, you guessed it, the housing market "crisis". They took this guy that buys/packages mortgages in those "CDO"s (they've interviewed him before) to go see some people that are having trouble making their payments. I believe they were in NYC somewhere. They get to this legal aid center where they're meeting, and start talking to this woman. From her voice, she sounded like she was in her 40's or 50's. But that's just my guess. Anyway. When she said they should have been requiring the 10-20% down in order to buy a house, the guy said "Even if that meant for a $300,000 house you'd have to have $30,000 or $60,000 to buy it?" She said yes, because then she'd "Know I couldn't afford it."

Ummm. Okay. Apparently, none of the following told her she couldn't afford to buy:

1) She was living in subsidized housing, paying $597/month in rent
2) In order to qualify for a loan her mortgage broker had her move money from one account to another multiple times (leaving it several weeks in each account) to make it look like she had more money than she did
3) Her mortgage is $2,000 per month, more than 3x her subsidized rent
4) Her annual income is $26,000

New Math:
$26,000 annual income
-24,000 annual mortgage payments
= 2,000 for remaining ANNUAL expenses = YES! I can afford this house.

WTF? And I'm going to pay to bail her out why? Because it is me. And you. We're the ones paying for this. Whether it's the tax money we pay or from not fully or properly funding teh VA or the schools or a zillion other things...Why should she get any kind of special aid or assistance? Why don't we require people to have common sense any more? There's no way in hell she should have gotten that house, and no way in hell she didn't know she couldn't afford that. I'd bet anything she thought she could do it for a few months, half a year, and then sell the house for a profit. She bought into the whole crazily rising prices and maina of flipping houses. Well tough. Lose your home, screw up your credit, and go back to renting. You probably still qualify for subsidized housing (if not more!). Then rebuild your life. I shouldn't have to bail you out.

Sorry, I know I'm harsh. But seriously. That is totally ridiculous! Whatever the mortgage broker put on paper, she didn't think "Huh...he has to lie about my income so I can get a loan?" That didn't set off warning bells? What is wrong with people? What is wrong with this country? When did owning a home change from being something you worked toward and become something you were owed? When did starting with a small fixer upper, a starter home and working your way up to your dream home change to buying your dream home (aka MANSION) as your first home?

And then I watched something on the local news last night about this couple that bought an RV in 2005 that gets 8 miles per gallon. They're all bummed because their plan to tour the USA in it has become too expensive. Even with the savings they get from staying at campgrounds, etc. And they still have to pay on it. Well, DUH. Prices have done nothing but climb and break records for years now. They seriously thought in 2005 this was a good idea? I have no pity for them. That thing was a monstrosity. They could have gotten one that was much smaller with better mileage - and probably for less money! A friend of mine has one. Or what about one that pulls behind your vehicle? Please. They can take their "oh, poor me" and...

Does NOBODY look forward when they do things? I know it might seem like I bought the new living room furniture on a whim, but I've been thinking and planning and budgeting for several months. I know exactly how much I can afford to spend on furniture over how long a period of time, and still be okay even with the rising prices. But ooops. That's right. I'm one of those home buyers that didn't listen to the mortgage company or loan officer or realtor that said I could get a house double the size for double the money on my income. I'm someone that actually {gasp}bought a house within their means.

[ducking and running for cover]

Settling In

Last Week's Sitrep: 1x Boot Camp, A whole lotta box & computer moving!
Goals: 2x Boot Camp, Lawn (Mowing/Trimming/Edging - if the grass dries)

We're finally settling in at work. For the past hour I've actually been able to stay at my desk and go through email from the past week. Thank goodness for Out of Office! That's the nicest feature we gained moving over to an Ex.change Ser.ver. I decided to wear jeans today, even though we're supposed to be back to our regular work rules. But I just had this feeling I'd still be crawling around under desks today, and hauling computers around. Which I did. Whoever wired this place did a bang up job with the numbering. Not! It took the tech and I hours today to figure out which lines went to which ports/jacks in the reception area. Which is where we added three cubicles. The actual offices were labeled okay, except one the wires for the data and phone ports were backwards. So he decided to switch them. Only he switched them on both ends when they were only backwards on one end. So all of a sudden that worker (the noisiest one!) was dropped off the network. [g] Oh, it's been a heck of a day so far!

Best thing - our boss - the executive director - came in today and gave each of us a gift card to Sta.rbucks as a thank you for all our hard work for the move. Wasn't that sweet of him? Too bad I no longer drive past Star.bucks on the way to work. I might just have to go the long way for a few days. ;)

Settling In

Last Week's Sitrep: 1x Boot Camp, A whole lotta box & computer moving! Goals: 2x Boot Camp, Lawn (Mowing/Trimming/Edging - if the grass dries)

We're finally settling in at work. For the past hour I've actually been able to stay at my desk and go through email from the past week. Thank goodness for Out of Office! That's the nicest feature we gained moving over to an Ex.change Ser.ver. I decided to wear jeans today, even though we're supposed to be back to our regular work rules. But I just had this feeling I'd still be crawling around under desks today, and hauling computers around. Which I did. Whoever wired this place did a bang up job with the numbering. Not! It took the tech and I hours today to figure out which lines went to which ports/jacks in the reception area. Which is where we added three cubicles. The actual offices were labeled okay, except one the wires for the data and phone ports were backwards. So he decided to switch them. Only he switched them on both ends when they were only backwards on one end. So all of a sudden that worker (the noisiest one!) was dropped off the network. [g] Oh, it's been a heck of a day so far! Best thing - our boss - the executive director - came in today and gave each of us a gift card to Sta.rbucks as a thank you for all our hard work for the move. Wasn't that sweet of him? Too bad I no longer drive past Star.bucks on the way to work. I might just have to go the long way for a few days. ;)

Instead of Building An Ark

Sitrep: 1x Bootcamp, 3 days moving (servers, computers, boxes - ughh)

I bought living room furniture. Makes loads of sense, doesn't it? [g] It has been raining steadily since Thursday morning. You'd think this was Seattle, not Montana. It's the most rain I've seen in the 7 years I've lived here. But I don't mind. I like the rain. And it's a good excuse not to do yard work!

Anyway. Back to the furniture. I've been wanting a new sofa for quite awhile. And additional seating. And a coffee table. And...well, you get the picture. What I have is all hand me down or put-together furniture from Walm.art. You know the kind I mean? Looks decent enough, but after a few years they start to fall apart. So I decided to go looking and see if there were any sales. I went to every furniture store in town, except one. But I've been there before and they have a limited selection of sofas, and no living room sets.

After visiting them all, I ended up back at the first store I went to. They were the only ones that had what I wanted. They were also offering 60 months interest free financing. Heh. Works for me! [Although I was almost seduced by a purple loveseat & sofa set at another place. But purple would require repainting my green living room as I just can't do purple & green. Can you say "bruise"?]

So I bought the sofa, arm chair (it reclines like you wouldn't believe!), two end tables (taller rectangle one) and the cocktail table. These pictures don't do it justice. The fabric doesn't look striped at all. Has more of a texture pattern; almost like leather. And the detail on the wood is hard to see. Anyway. I'll take better pictures when it gets delivered. They say June 17th, maybe earlier. But that works for me.

Yes, I realize I got brown. But it really is lovely, and works for the look I want. I'm all about those earth tones, nature, etc. Probably why I like the Arts & Crafts movement in the first place!

Also this week, we completed The Big Move into our new office building for work. Since I'm the IT for our company, it was up to me to develop the plan for moving the computers and technical equipment. They wanted us to be down the least amount of time. Furniture was being dismantled, taken to the new place and reassembled on Wednesday. So my plan was to move the server first thing Wednesday morning, set it up, then bring over the computers and set up each workstation as the desk went up. I got the ok from the bosses to do this, and it worked like a charm.

I had the network plus two workstations up and running by 1pm. The rest would have been up, except there were issues with the desks being set up. By end of day the majority of the computers were up and connected. No printers, however, because the boss neglected to include them in her instructions to the techs adding additional wiring, even though I'd pointed out to her where we needed Ethernet jacks for them. Ahh, such is life.

Everything else got moved in on Thursday in the pouring rain. I also spent a good portion of that day moving computers around because people kept moving their desks. Okay, two people did that. Moved one time each. But when you're crawling around on the floor 2 days after doing Alden's Boot Camp workout, and both of those days included hauling servers and computers and monitors and printers...Oh, the agony.

But at least it's over with. Just about everything was unpacked when they let us go at 3pm on Friday. The last of the wiring was still being finished. But holy cow was I exhausted. I was in bed by 7pm every night starting Wednesday. I didn't get up until 9am today. Well, I did stumble into the kitchen sometime before that to feed the dog, just to shut her up. I'm not sure what time it was. Knowing her, it was too early for breakfast. She tries that sometimes. Okay, every weekend. After getting up, I gamed for a bit, then rushed to shower so I could listen to "Says You" while getting ready for my planned Window Shopping that turned into a Major Purchase. :)

Petunias aren't Pansies

Although they may look similar. At least, they do to me. Do they to you?

Pansy - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pansy

Petunia - http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/horticulture/DG1120.html

They're both pretty, so why does it matter? Well, here's what happened.

Sunday I made another return trip to Wa.lmart to get yet more items I'd forgotten to buy on my grocery run last Thursday. I decided (inspired by the gorgeous weather we've been having) to plant some flowers in the two large pots either side of my front door.

I've been thinking of getting pansies, because I've grown them before without problems, and because they are fragrance free. Yes, I get non-fragrant flowers...otherwise it's heck on my allergies, not to mention migraine inducing.

Yet while I was there, all I could remember was that the name started with "P". When I saw the Petunias, I thought "Hey, those look like them!" I made my little sister and her sibling smell them for me, both of them swearing they didn't have a scent. Then after yet another discussion on why I didn't want pink flowers (or pink anything!!! My little is no longer allowed input on paint selection or anything else involving colors.) I selected the ones I thought looked the best and put them in the cart. The rest of the time in the store and in the car, I kept thinking I smelled flowers, but thought it was just my sensitivity to the ones I'd been around in the garden department. (Those places are as bad for me in spring as candle & perfume aisles are year round!).

So we get them planted and I said "I could swear these smell". Both girls said again they didn't smell a thing. [g] So that night I decided to sit outside in the quiet evening air on my front step and soak up the ambience. Just relax, you know? And what do you think comes wafting up from both sides of me? Flower pefume. Yep. Those darn petunias smell. A nice spicy scent. Yet not so nice for my head. Sigh. And my migraine meds are too pricey at $60 per nine pills (yes, that's with insurance!) to justify keeping the flowers. So I now have $15.00 worth of petunias I need to relocate. Sigh. Problem is, only people I know that would take them would have them in places I frequently visit. And I still have to buy the pansies. That is, if I want to take another chance on planting flowers by the front door.

I'm second guessing that decision. :)

"Put 'em up, Put 'em Up"*

I'm warning the world, okay? I'm in a seriously pugnacious, pugilistic, antagonistic, combative, contentious, hostile, quarrelsome, scrappy, truculent, warlike mood today. If that's not clear enough...

You've probably figured out I've waded into it on the BB again. But I'm tired of not posting or saying anything because I don't want to be lambasted again. Seems lately people on there are feeling like it's okay to call names if you don't agree with someones opinion or experience. Which has made me wary and, frankly, has me avoiding the BB. Which is now pissing me off because I've been part of that community for almost 7 years now, before quite a few of these people showed up. I hate feeling like I'm being chased off a BB I've enjoyed so much in the past. And maybe I'm being too self-conscious and haven't really waded into it. And maybe I'm coming across as mean or antagonistic or nasty or something. I don't know. I do know I get passionate when debating ideas...in a good way. I love to talk and debate and hear new ideas, etc. Maybe that just doesn't come across in this type of forum. Just seems like the last few times I've posted my opinion on a topic it becomes icky - at least for me.

Anyway. I'm about ready to bean one of my coworkers with a rubber band. [rolling my eyes] She's driving me crazy about the move. We're color-coding our boxes and putting the same color on our office door jambs so the movers know where to take each box...and to help us "guide" them as they come into the new office with the stuff without having to reach each individual box label. She now wants to use special round stickers, not the colored post it notes we already have. Because the little circles have glue all around them, the post its don't. I suggested she just tape the post it's on (like I've already done with mine). She doesn't have tape, hasn't had tape for nine months, etc, and so on. Okay. EVERY OTHER DESK IN THIS OFFICE HAS TAPE. It's not that hard to borrow, ya know?

She also was complaining yesterday because we packed up the front counter. Including the little file tray next to the printer that blank paper is usually stacked in. We left a little paper, after making sure the printer was full. She comes out there and starts on with "Can't we leave the tray?" I said just leave the paper on the counter. She comes back with the counter is dirty. (hah!) I pointed out that the wipes for the counter were literally right there at her elbow and she could wipe it off and put the paper down. Does she? NO. She puts the paper in the bypass tray and walks away. Stupid bitch. What the hell would it have hurt her to wipe the counter (which didn't need it) and put the paper down. This is also the one person in the office that's not helping pack anything but her own stuff.

Well, I'm sorry. The few of us that are making sure everything else gets packed will be moving computers to the new location tomorrow and setting those up, so we won't be around to pack. And they're breaking down the desks starting at 8am. Not sure what she doesn't understand about everything needing to be packed by 5pm TODAY.

Wow. I'm seriously being irritated by people lately. I think I need to find a cave to crawl into. I'm ready to yell at my neighbor because when she waters her lawn, she turns it on full force, puts it next to the fence, and waters half my front yard. Which is what killed the plants I put in the front flower bed on that side last year...(I deliberately select plants with low water needs to conserve) And it totally derailed my plans for trimming the front yard Sunday. By the time I realized what was happening, the grass was soaked. And then the guy 2 doors down decided to do some outside work around 9 pm last and use the stereo on his truck for music. My floors were rattling to the bass, and I could make out the words. Thank goodness he turned it off a half hour or so later...I was going insane. Couldn't hear my TV without blasting it; and I'd really been enjoying reading a book in the peace and quiet until then. I heard my neighbors kid wake up crying shortly after the music started. Heh. If I'd been her, I'd've been seriously ticked at that.

Argghhh. I need to let this stuff go. I've always said it's the little things in life that're gonna give me an ulcer. I need a time out. Online and in person!

*The Cowardly Lion in the Wizard of Oz.

Phaneromania It Might Be

Last Week's Sitrep: 1x Bootcamp, 1x Lawn (incl trimming/edging), 1x Hauling Boxes (63 15-20lb boxes to storage, onto shelves, etc.)

This Week's Goal: 2x Bootcamp, 1x Lawn

But at least I don't have Rhinotillexomania. Seriously. ;) I've discovered this show on NPR at 11:10 am (MST) Saturday mornings. It's called "Says You" and comes on right after "Car Talk". I enjoy both shows. But "Says You" has become something I'm starting to plan my Saturday mornings around. I've always been a wordsmith. Love words. Which is no surprise to many of you. But who knew words could be so darn amusing? This past week they had to define these two words:

Phaneromania (which I have) and Rhinotillexomania (which I don't!). The first being, here it comes, the habit of biting one's nails. [g] The second, compulsive nose picking. [giggle] I'm so glad I don't have that one!

Any wordies out there might want to check out this show. I actually sat in my car in the library parking lot for fifteen minutes one Saturday just so I could hear the end of the show. You can find a listing of radio stations and times on their website.

As for Car Talk. They're a hoot! I like listening to them just because they are so funny. I might not know what the heck they're talking about, but I might just learn through my smiles & giggles. :)

Quack, Quack, Quack

Sitrep: Umm, does using the PS2 controller for hours in a row count as arms??

And no, it's not because we keep getting moisture. Actually, the rain is nice. Rare for here, and very nice. And a pittance compared to what I was used to in "sunny" Florida.

No, it's all about the grass. I have finally come to a grudging acceptance of what the lady at the nursery told me last summer. My beautiful lawn has indeed been taken over by Quack Grass. Similar to Crab Grass, only not as easily dealt with.

From the research I've done, there's really only one way to deal with this little invader: spray liberally with rou.ndup, watch it ALL die, dig it out, till, make sure no roots survived, and reseed or sod.

Naturally that's not an option. Even if I had the money, time and energy to do this, it would be pointless. Both lawns on either side of me are in the same situation. One home is owned by a single mom with a toddler, the other is a rental. So. Odds are pretty low they'll be doing any of this. Appears I just have to bear it.

Can I just say that I really, really, really, hate quack grass? *&^%$ The stuff grows like you would not believe. I mowed on Saturday - even adjusted the blade to cut to the lowest height (1/2 inch) and by Tuesday the lawn was looking scraggly again! Rain, no rain, cold, warm, hot, whatever...this stuff thrives. My favorite description of it comes from this site, http://journeytoforever.org/edu_quackgrass.html, which terms it "garden terr.orism". Heh. About sums it up. Now that I'm cutting it so low, I can see where the nice lawn is dying still. Sigh.

From that website above, and others I found, it seems that it actually has some medicinal value. Which explains why the dog likes it so much. If I'd only known when I first spotted some of it rooting in the gravel drive and along the outer fence. If I'd only known when that weird patch of really tall grass sprang up last spring! I'd've gone out of my way to trim/edge the yard better, and spray the heck outta the stuff with whatever would kill it. I'd even have dug it out! Better that than what I now have: a lawn that requires weekly mowing in SPRING. Who can tell what summer will bring? Twice weekly mowing, I guess. Because if I don't, it gets too tall for my mower to handle. It's grown 2 inches since Saturday. And that's not an exaggeration.

Another unfortunate side effect: I find myself driving around town pointing and exclaiming "Quack grass" whenever I see any. So if in my final days I'm lying in a hospital bed mindlessly saying "quack, quack, quack"...no, I'm not thirsty. And I don't think I'm a duck.

It's All My Brother's Fault

...and my sister-in-law's...that I almost broke my foot Sunday night. Quite a feat for them, considering they live the other side of the country from me.

Having had this truly vivid dream that a blizzard had blown in my back door, I surfaced and, naturally, had to go make sure the back door was still firmly closed. I put my glasses on, but didn't switch on any lights. I mean, I make this trek to the kitchen just about every night because I wake up thirsty and have already drunk the glass of water on the nightstand. Anyway. I made it to the back door without any problems. It was on the way back to the bedroom I had issues. I stepped up into the kitchen and - WHAM

Slammed the toes of my left foot into the under-the-bed Ru.bber.maid container that I store wrapping paper in. Unfortunately, I was already stepping up and forward with my right foot, which came down squarely on top of the container. Which started to slide across the floor. FYI, it's really hard to regain your balance when the floor moves under you. I'm just saying. With lots of flailing of arms and very loud curses, I managed to control the fall without landing on a twisted ankle and without bashing my head on the floor. But for a few seconds there I was sure I'd broken my foot and was going to knock myself out (I was falling backwards down that stupid little step up in to the kitchen).

I limped into the bedroom, turned on the light, and gingerly determined my ankles, foot and toes were all fine. Except the tips of two toes (the nails) are a bit tender still. And my rear hurts from where I hit the floor.

But how was this my brother & SIL's fault, you ask?

Well, they're the ones that introduced me to the joys of the Pla.ystation system this past December. And helped me pick out a system of my own. Which is why I was able to spend all day Sunday gaming, instead of cleaning and putting things away. Which is why the wrapping paper container was still near the door leading from the kitchen to the sun porch, left there from it's use as door-blocker while I was dog sitting a friend's dog. Gotta keep the dogs separated while they eat, you know.

And this is why I got BK for dinner last night - for me AND the dog - instead of cooking like I had planned. Because I wanted to game. And this is why when a friend called around 8pm, I glanced at the phone (thank you caller ID) and thought "I'll call her back as soon as I finish this town" and why when she called again an hour - and another town - later, I merely picked up the phone with one hand, still punching the "shoot" button on the controller with the other, and said, not "hello" but "Hang on...gotta get someplace safe" and sat the phone down.

It's a good thing she called, or I might still be gaming...

Ahhh, Friends...

Sitrep: 30 mins Lawn

I'm listening to an older J.D. Robb story in the car, one I've already read before. This one, Betrayal, I think, has a theme of friendship in it. I love the scenes with Eve & Peabody, and Eve & Mavis. Then there's the friend pairing in this one of Roarke & an old friend from his past, the FBI agent & her friend. It's all about friendship. I laugh a lot at Eve's reluctance to get involved in her friend's lives on more than just a peripheral basis. (Can I say that??? Or is that bad grammar?) I'm such a loner I go through the same squirming in my seat sometimes. Although I'm not nearly as bad as Eve. [g]

Maybe those strings of friendship and being involved in someone's life cost, but as a whole, they're pretty cheap when you think about it. In most cases anyway. For without friends, my world would be much lonelier place. And loneliness is much different than being alone. :) The grins and giggles of friendship and the ludicrous things we do for our friends make life a heck of a lot funner.

I remember a few years back, when I had to work long days at our annual convention. That year it was held in the town I live in, so no traveling. (Yippee!). I knew I'd be home several hours late, so asked a friend (one that falls in the category of "Peabody" and who lived next door at the time) to let my dog out after she got home from work. I got home around 8pm, exhausted, and walked into an empty house. After anxiously calling Scully a few times, I noticed a piece of paper on the kitchen table. All it said was this

Can you say my heart skipped a beat? [g] Now, I know I love my dog to no end, but she's just not that valuable. In fact, she's a spoiled rotten PITA and no way anyone's gonna kidnap her for ransom. So I picked up the phone and called my friend. The conversation went something like this:

Me: Umm, hey. Is my dog over there?
Friend: Yeah. I left you a note.
Me: You didn't sign it.
Friend: [after a few seconds, and through lots of laughter.] I have a glass of wine over here for you...[me rolling my eyes]

When she let Scully out, my dog and her dog were having fun playing, so she took them both to her house. Halfway home she thought she'd better leave me a note, so she ran back and scribbled one hastily on a scrap piece of paper without thinking about what she was saying. [g] We still laugh about it to this day. One of these days she's going to come home to a note pinned to her front door

It's Never Easy

Goal (5/4-5/10): 2x Abs, 2x Arms, 30 minutes Miscellaneous
Sitrep: 1x Lawn Mowing - 30 min

Arghh. I've been trying to blog for several days now and never seem to get to the "publish post" part. :) Very busy at work right now, although it's tapering off, thank goodness. I like to be busy, not slammed.

And it's those darn little projects that kill me. What I thought would take just an hour yesterday, ended up requiring the better part of the afternoon, and multiple phone calls for quotes. What is this grand project? Getting us away from an actual fax machine and to Internet Faxing. Turns out if you want incoming faxes actually routed to people, it's more complicated than just signing up. Sigh. But I still think it'll be cheaper than having a fax machine, dedicated phone line, toner, maintenance on the machine and paper. We'll see what the higher ups decide.

I've managed to stir the waters at work...I asked in our staff meeting this morning if everyone can please send a staff email when they plan to take a different lunch than usual. Twice last week when I started to head to lunch I discovered I was the only one here. Delaying lunch isn't that big a deal. Being the only one here to answer calls for an hour is. And one of those days I had an appointment that I - luckily - could reschedule at the last minute. Literally. Good thing I walked to the back to let them know I was leaving for lunch, or I wouldn't have known and just blithely walked out the front door! Of course, now I'm getting snippy comments. Tough shit. There's such a thing as common courtesy.

Anyway. Sorry about the cursing. I'm in a cranky mood, frankly. Probably has something to do with the rainy day oustside. Or the constant headache I've had for days. Now I remember why I like Spring, yet dread it's arrival.

On a positive note

I used my heart rate monitor this weekend while mowing the yard. Turns out that little push reel mower is quite the workout. [g] No wonder I always feel like my head's going to explode when I get done...I'm working too hard...way over my target heart rate zone. So mowing my yard took 30 minutes. Twenty of them in my target heart rate zone. And I burned 465 calories. Nice. I might look at this as a workout instead of a chore from now on! Which is good, because that crazy grass that took over last year seems to thrive no matter the conditions. Hot, dry, cold, wet...it grows. Fast. I've mowed twice already this season, and there was snow on the ground just three weeks ago!

Round and Round the Mulberry Bush

It's been that kinda day, ya know? It all started when I woke up at 4 am and dozed off and on until 6am. Finally fell asleep only to have the alarm go off. At 6:52, which means I had to have been sleeping through it for 7 minutes. [g] No wonder the dog was antsy.

Then I put my pants on inside out and it took a few seconds for it to register why the zipper tab wasn't where it was supposed to be. Or the button. And this was after I'd showered and eaten breakfast.

It didn't get much better at work...silly me forgot to have the server in a different automatic updates schedule than the workstations and update server. So when the server shut itself down for a restart after installing those approved updates...I guess you could say it caught everyone unawares. That was fun. Not.

And since I feel like I've been in repetitive/backwards mode all day, here's something eerily similar to what I blogged about last week in Muddy Waters.

http://my.earthlink.net/article/nat?guid=20080430/4817eec0_3421_1334520080430803073911

I have to wonder at the timing of this. Did the events in TX give the person making the abuse report courage or the idea? Hard to say. I'm probably being paranoid, being as that's a pretty common state of being for me, but is this "open season" on non-mainstream faiths by local governments and/or religious opponents? Shades of the daycare child abuse scandal in the 1980's, perhaps.

At least I can end this post on a positive note a la Cranky Otter - I had a nice email chat with Dad this morning on Global Warming of all things. :) Just a sharing of ideas and info. That was very nice. :)

Miscellaneous Meanderings

Debrief: 1x Arms & Abs, Mowed Yard (push reel mower)
Goal (4/28-5/4): 2x Arms, 2x Abs

Well, I'm back home and still super exhausted from the trip out of town. In spite of the migraine, and a fill-in Ed Consultant driving me crazy with his last minute exam changes, I managed to make it to Mich.ael's Cr.afts (someone gave me a lovely 50% off coupon while I was browsing the aisles) and to Barnes & Noble. Twice. Okay, the second time was just for the Cafe Mocha to keep me going on the drive home. And oh, what a lovely drive. The weather had cleared and it was sunny. Beautiful, especially going through the canyons. It's just greening up thanks to the onset of Spring and the amount of snow/moisture we've had this winter. The Summer heat & dryness hasn't set in. Only pang that disturbed the beauty was the thought that if the moisture doesn't keep up through Spring, there's going to be plenty of fuel for the fires this Summer/Fall.

Stopped at Shanni's on the way into town to pick up the mutt. That was funny. I made it all the way into the living room and said her name several times in my normal voice before she heard me. She was sprawled across their couch sleeping the sleep of the just. (Or rather, the sleep of those who've just spent their days tormenting hapless dogs & people, and attempting to cow the cats - and then running for her life!) Once she realized I was there, she did the usual "oh, it's been horrible, I've been so abused since you abandoned me!" routine. Like I fell for that.

Spent the rest of the weekend cleaning house, doing laundry, and mowing the yard. Sigh. I really really want to tear out the lawn and re-sod it. Whatever grass moved in last year is still thriving. It grows so dang fast it's crowding out more and more of the nice grass. The kind that gives you that soft carpet. It's hardly spring-like weather and I've had to mow the backyard twice!!!! It was quite a workout...my arms hurt and I thought I was gonna die. It needed to be mowed last weekend, but since it started snowing that Saturday morning, that was kind of not an option. Yesterday was lawn day in my neighborhood. Every house on my block had someone in the yard fixing sprinklers, trimming, mowing, etc. I've already had the lawn service people out 2x - once for the aeration and last week for the first fertilizer/weed killer treatment of the year. Hopefully this will help the real grass take - and keep - root.

I put myself back on the Clar.itinD again. Hopefully that will help. Although so far I'm only doing so-so. The switch from snow last Friday to sunny & windows ope on Saturday is just killing my body.

Not much more to say. Lounged around yesterday, working in the house, spoiling the dog. I'm almost done with "The Birth Order" book by Kevin Leman. Not bad, although as a middle child I find it somewhat lacking. [g] He has very little to say about middle children. I also picked up the latest by Sandra Schwab. Can you believe our Wa.lMar.t got it before Hast.ings? They still don't even have it listed in their database. Stupid store. I can't wait until we get a Bo.rders or Ba.rnes & N.oble. Anyway. I'm saving that book for a few more days - must get the library books read first. I'm out of renewals. :)

Muddy Waters

Sitrep: 1x Abs#1, 1x Arms

Like everyone else, I've been seeing/hearing stories about the F.LDS church in Texas that the government recently raided. 437 children were removed, large-scale DNA testing is being done, and now it appears it was all done on the basis of phone calls from a woman in another state with a known history of false reports of sexual abuse. How much of this was known in advance by the officials I don't know. But before I heard that I was uneasy reading the articles.

What bothers me is the limited evidence (if it can be called that) that prompted the raid. And raid it was. The number of children torn from their families and placed in state custody and moved to foster care...How disastrous is this to them? How disastrous will it be to them in future? To make no attempt to keep these children with their mothers is startling to me. They could demand that the men move off the compound, leaving the children with at least one parent in the meantime. I don't know what "proof" they've found during/after the raid. The articles I've been reading say they have 20 women they think were/are underage. Think being the operative word. How easy is it to tell someones age? Did the FL.DS even keep records? Do they celebrate birthdays? And how old were they when they "married". Sixteen? Seventeen? Younger? It's all so murky. How does that compare with other state laws that allow parental consent to marriage at 16? I don't know TX law.

And the whole DNA thing is scary to me. Now the state has the DNA of all the members of a different religious group, whom many are calling a "cult". I might not agree with their way of life, but really. A "cult"? Go to http://www.dictionary.com/ and type in "cult". If you read those definitions, everything, every religion, can be considered a cult.

Would the authorities have moved this fast if this wasn't a group that kept itself outside the mainstream? What about the Amish? How young do they marry? Don't you think they have pressure in their society to conform, to marry as/when told? Many groups do. Now, I'm not even remotely trying to say the Amish practice child abuse. I don't know if the FL.DS does either. That's what concerns me. The heavy-handed state intervention.

I think the state may have overplayed their hand. Why not investigate? Get some facts, proof before hand. Instead of taking all these children in this dramatic fashion. Maybe my thinking is all muddled, maybe my writing it out is all muddled. I just have this sense of unease when I listen to or read stories on this case. I have from the first. To just go in there and take all these children away, to do the DNA testing on such a large number of citizens (and yes, they are citizens), to require it for them to get their kids back and then to not give the kids back...It frightens me. Our government can and has been zealous when it comes to groups it considers "bad". Ruby Ridge, anyone? But I don't mean to get into that.

How many cases are there of the state wrongly taking children from their parents on inaccurate information and outright lies? And it takes years and money and lawyers to get them back. In the meantime, the children are the ones that suffer. Then there's the plain and simple fact that the majority of states have horrible child welfare systems. Overworked, overburdened, understaffed and underpaid. How is adding this number of children into that system helpful to anyone? Least of all the children? And if it's the girls that are being subjected to child abuse, why take the boys? Are they being abused? They took boys, too, didn't they? Or did they leave them. See, I'm so confused this morning.

Where is the line between freedom of religion and secular law? It really is confusing, and not sharply drawn at all. Nor is it possible to do so, I guess. I don't agree with children being forced to marry. If they are sixteen and want to marry, and have parental consent...Well, I'm not super thrilled with that, but it's been found to be legal in our secular society. Why not in a religious society? I don't have a problem with polygamy, any more than I do with monogamy. It's personal choice, with choice being the operative word I suppose. I think wanting to be married to more than one person at the same time is as crazy as being involved (but not married) with multiple people at the same time. But I'm a loner. And possessive. I do not share well. And that's just my stuff. Forget about someone I'm in an emotional & physical relationship with. Hah. Anyway. I just wonder how young these children really are when marrying, & is that when they start having sex and children? And is there any harm to them if it is how they are raised, and how the society they are raised in functions? In their world it is normal. If it's normal, does it harm? I don't know.

I mean, look at many mainstream religions. Why isn't some of the stuff taught there considered mental abuse? I mean, it's as much indoctrination as anything else when children are raised from birth to believe one way and this is the only way and if you stray from this particular path you will burn in hell for all enternity and all sorts of bad stuff will happen to you, and everyone else is wrong and going to burn in hell, etc, and so on ad infinitum. How many people actually leave what they've been brought up with? Hmm. Looks like another research topic for me. (Why do I do this to myself?) I wonder what the numbers are on that. We can talk about freedom and choice all we want, but how much do we really have when you factor in peer, societal and familial pressure to toe the line and fit in? And when government interferes and makes actual laws or behaves in ways to reinforce a view over another? I understand there have to be laws or total chaos will reign. It's all well and good in theory, but what about the practice?

I know I've already said it, but it really is muddled water. I suppose morals and ethics usually are.

I did some messing around on the Internet (big surprise) and found a blog where posters are much more eloquent than I am. [g] http://daviddfriedman.blogspot.com/ I haven't read too much on this blog, just a couple of the posts on this issue, and the comments. It's interesting, at any rate.

When White is Bad, & Other Silent Dangers

Sitrep: Zero, much to my embarrassment

I never thought of "white" as a "bad" color. I still don't, but around here, it being April, many people hate white. At least, when it's falling out of the sky. This arctic front that came through last weekend has been dumping a lot of snow. We definitely need the moisture. The snow pack is back to normal levels this year, for the first time in something like a decade. (Or so I hear.) Unfortunately, the 10 inches received by GF and approximately 6-8 inches received in H/EH, isn't sticking around long. In town, that is. I'm assuming that's not the case higher up in the mountains. Since I came up to GF yesterday morning for work, it has pretty much been constantly snowing. A solid 4 hours yesterday and about an hours worth since I came downstairs this morning. Worst of it is it's the kind of snow that looks like rain, and melts on the ground. Best thing of it is the top half of my car is red again, not brown like the bottom half. ;)

Our faculty for this seminar is National and from out of state. One of them called me on Monday asking what to pack for MT in April, especially this week. Ummm, shorts and a parka? It's really that unpredictable. A few days before this front we were pushing 80*F. Yes, indeed, we were! Now we're back at highs in the 30's. Ahhh, such is life in the "far, far West". ;) I wouldn't change it for anything.

The best part of being on the road at these things is the food. We get to eat at the nicest restaurants, and I eat soooo much better than usual. "Better" meaning steak. Yes, this is me talking. I eat steak now. Oh, the things living in MT has done to me! (Actually, that started in Paraguay...MT just reinforced it!) But last night I was feeling "responsible" and thought since I'd eaten a burger & fries for lunch, I'd have the soup & salad bar for dinner. I skipped the lovely cream of tomato soup. whimper. Not that it did me any good. Something I selected took my mini-headache (the kind you get when you're dealing with 80 people at a conference complaining about the room being "too cold" and "too hot") and turned it into a migraine. Alas, guess who forgot to pack her migraine medication???? Yes, that would be me. I haven't had any in so long (not real migraines, just sinus headaches) I didn't even think to toss that little packet in my bag. It was not the funnest night. At least the pain got bad enough to make me throw up (get that poison out of my system!). Funny how once I throw up the pain eases. Finally got to sleep around 2 or 3 am. I've got a local pharmacy filling my prescription just in case. These true migraines usually stick around a few days.

I'm feeling better now, and plan to hit the fitness room in the hotel this evening. I should be feeling right as rain by that time. :) I'm just wondering what happened last night at dinner. I was pretty careful with what I selected. I think the 1000 Island dressing had more garlic in it than normal. It tasted different than what I'm used to...That's happened before, usually with store bought stuff, though. And usually not with such a harsh result. Maybe combined with the peanut butter cookie I had in the afternoon. I'll be skipping those today!!!!

I managed to get my car to the dealership today for the 60k mile maintenance. Funny how I picked the one large town in MT that not only doesn't have a Barnes & Noble, it also doesn't have a dealership for my car! They love me here today. They're letting me use 2 coupons at the same time because I'll be spending enough...Maintenance (a big one) plus All wheel alignment (desperately needed, to be sure!) plus Brake Inspection (also needed!) = $$$$$$$$$$$$$$. So the brake inspection is free, and I get 10% off the alignment. That's about $35.00. Hey, every little bit helps! Although I'm sure this will take care of the stimulus rebate I'm getting. [g] But that's okay. This needed to be done!

Everything's Coming Up Roses

Sitrep: zero

So Shanni got to meet the President & First Lady this morning. The awards ceremony was held in the Rose Garden at the White House. Pretty exciting for her! Here's a link to the video of the ceremony: http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2008/04/20080417.wm.v.html

It's about 14 minutes long, the first half is the Prez giving a speech, then the awards. Shanni & her group are the second to last. About 11 mins in. She's the one standing in front of the First Lady.

Afterward she called me, all excited. They were getting ready to go to the zoo, and after that the memorials. She's still more awed by the fancy hotel ("There's a LAKE in the middle of the hotel! We ate dinner on it!") than meeting the President, but it's going to be a fabulous memory for her. I'm glad she's having so much fun.

I'm having a great day myself. It's my 35th Birthday. Got some cool gifts - new camera battery, camera cleaning kit and a heart rate monitor watch. I think this new toy will help me get back on the exercise track. I'm such a geek. [g] I'm also hoping to take pictures this weekend. If the weather holds!

Got my hair cut at lunch today, and my hairdresser wouldn't let me pay since it's my birthday! Wasn't that sweet of her? Then I got my DL renewed...it took less than ten minutes, there was no one in line. To top it all off, they took a new picture...and I'd just come from the hairdresser. At least the hair looks good. [g] I'm sure my smile will be more of a grimace. Hah. ;)

It was tough not checking the BB today during work. Just about drove me crazy. But it doesn't look like too much went on. Coworkers are none too happy about the new time managment monitoring. They announced at our staff meeting today they will be implementing internet monitoring software. And we have to track what we are doing in 15 minute increments for the next few weeks. All I can say is as irritating as it is to track, I got a lot more done today! Which I expected.

And I killed the copier. LOL. At the end of the day, just over halfway through getting all the books printed for next week, it stopped and threw up a message "System Error. Call XXX-XXXX. C2550." And that was that. No copier. They'll be in tomorrow to coax it back to life. [g]

Well, I'm off to email the video to tons of people. I need to see if we can get a copy of it somehow. :)

Up My Mind - Again

Sitrep: Zero.

It's been a lackluster week and a half when it comes to the exercise front. And last week I had spaghetti for dinner every night. It's no wonder I feel like something the cat dragged in. Tomato is just not good for me. I'm getting better, though. Used to be I'd binge on the stuff for months...after just a week the thought of anything with tomato turns my stomach...

Shanni is in Washington D.C. now. She just called - they went swimming. [g] Tomorrow they're going to see all the memorials. She's promised to get her picture taken at the Lincoln Memorial, at my request. She's going to be there on my birthday. How cool is that?

Her flight out was an adventure. An hour delay getting out of here due to high winds. Then their connecting flight had mechanical probs and they sat on it for an hour. So by the time they got to D.C. and their hotel, they'd missed tonight's social event. They get to set up their display and present it tomorrow. Shanni is having a blast, she really is. Loved her first airplane trip, loves the fancy hotel...Her mother is having a nervous breakdown, however. [g] She was up all night crying. I was on the phone by 5:30am with Shanni, who was not too thrilled with her mom..."She's squeezing me to death!" I could hear her eyes rolling. lol. When I talked to M. this afternoon after they'd arrived in D.C., she sounded a bit put out that Shanni is having such a good time.

Anyway. It's been an exhausting day. Lots of meetings at work...they're cracking down on the, uh, lack of production in the office. So I'm blocked from the bulletin board and this blog during the day. Bummer. But not really...I'm in charge of IT and can change that setting as I wish...But I need to be more disciplined anyway, so...I'm bad enough, but not as bad as a few others that do nothing but surf the net all day. I don't know how they think no one notices...It's a small office. Oh well. I'll just have to blog on my own time. I will miss the BB though. I'll have to look at setting it up to allow access during lunch hour or something.

I'm dog-sitting for a friend, and somehow his dog is on the sofa next to me and my dog is curled up on his bed across the room sending us a very pathetic look. [lol]. She's met her match in this dog, my Scully has. ;)

I guess we did good at the fundraiser meet with U.nited W.ay yesterday for Big Brothers Big Sisters, because they (BBBS) called me today to see if I could speak again tomorrow. Ughh. Hate that, but willing to do it for this program. Only I've got tomorrow scheduled to get my driver's license renewed. I've put it off to the last minute naturally. It's $40.00. And fifty cents. Can't forget that fifty cents for the mailed postcard reminder. [rolling eyes] Oh well.

Going to be a crazy rest of the week so I don't now if I'll be blogging much. Big seminar next week for work, so I'm neck deep in preparations for that. I also need to get the car detailed (got a coupon for that, whoo-hoo!), get my license renewed, get my hair cut (got to look presentable at the seminar next week), get the car scheduled for maintenance next week, attend a gardening class on Saturday and maybe some Earth Day celebrations, meet Shanni at the airport at midnight (ughh) and then on Sunday is my birthday celebration at her house. German chocolate cake with this most delicious coconut pecan icing and vanilla ice cream.

And somehow I'm having a contractor in sometime in the next few weeks for an estimate on remodeling the bathroom. Ackkk. It's Morning Owl's dad, so he'll give me a good deal. Nothing fancy, just wanting to move some plumbing around (oh, that's easy!). I'll reuse the sink and toilet, but I want a new tub. Oh, not one of those jet tubs or anything. But one where the back at least slants. I have no idea who designed these bathtubs with straight backs. Whoever it was they oughta be shot!!! There's just no way to get a nice relaxing hot soak when your back is ramrod straight. [g] Anyway. This might just be a pipe dream...it might be a bit beyond my reach. But getting a quote is as good a place to start as any.

Choices, Choices

Sitrep: 0 No excuses, no explanations. Just ZERO. [hanging head in embarrassment]
Goal (4/14-20): 2x Arms, 2x Abs, 1x Bootcamp (as much as I can get through b4 collapsing)

So. It has been very difficult for me to make up my mind as to who I'm voting for in Montana's upcoming primary. To those who know me, it's pretty obvious I'm not picking McC.ain, and why. The next president is most likely going to have the opportunity to appoint one, if not two, Supreme Court justices. The court is already swinging to the conservative side, and that scares me. I don't want women to lose the right to free choice when it comes to our reproductive choices. Whether it's birth control or abo.rtion, I don't want Government mandating what I, my sister, my mother, my female cousins, my nieces or my little sister can do. It should be left as a personal decision. And whatever critics may say, McC.ain's record on these issues is conservative.

For me it's between Oba.ma and Cl.inton. If you look at their positions, they are pretty similar on just about everything. Having listened to the recent speeches in Montana, and watched them replayed on TV (on a local government access channel), I think I've made up my mind. Last night's "Compassion Forum" on C.NN helped affirm my choice.

I'm putting in for Oba.ma for this reason: His ability to inspire, his facility with words, his ability to relate to emotions that the not-so-rich are feeling. Both he & Clin.ton have the ability to be good presidents. I'm just not so sure that Clin.ton will be able to convince anybody to do anything. I don't think she'll be able to get Dems and Reps to work together, and might just be enough of a polarizing force as to make things worse. I worry that if she gets the nomination, that will mobilize many people that "hate" her (I don't get that, but ok) to vote Republican just to vote against her. (A bit of cut your nose off to spite your face if you ask me, but...)

I think Ob.ama doesn't have that negative baggage, and combined with the "freshness" of his "limited" years in D.C., his ability to inspire and talk well, he might have more of a chance to get things done. Domestically & internationally. He has experience, I like his background in Constitutional law, and I think he's smart enough to appoint a broad range of people to his cabinet. I think he's willing to listen to other voices than his own. It's a chance, but both of them are, if you ask me.

And frankly, I'm voting for him because he's half African American/half white, and because he spent some formative years overseas (Indonesia in particular). I believe that gives him a different view of the world. And in some cases, maybe a more realistic one. (I know, I'm making assumptions here.)

I'm ready for someone other than a middle-aged "WASP" (no offense intended, okay?) making decisions that affect me. IMO, a 60 year-old white male born & raised in the USA does not have much in common with me, or much of an understanding of what affects me as a single female in her mid-thirties. I just feel we need fresh ideas, fresh views of the world in the Wh.ite H.ouse.

Clin.ton in my opinion, fits too neatly into the "WASP" category. She comes closer than many others to understanding where I'm coming from, etc., but she still isn't that far out of the box. Especially when you factor in her husband's years in D.C.

Maybe I've seen the movie "Mr Smith Goes to Washington" (The James Stewart version, thanks) too many times. Maybe my idealistic side is coming out (that's how I ended up in the Peace Corps). Maybe I just want to believe in something other than the status quo.

But when I listen to Oba.ma speak, when I read his "blueprint", I want to believe he can get something done. He says thinks that I've been thinking. Puts to words what I've been feeling/wanting to express. Do I think it will be easy? That he'll get a lot done? That everything will be perfect once he's been in office? Nope. But I'm hoping they'll be better. And I think with Mc.Cain they'll be worse, with Cli.nton status quo.

So. I'm buying into the hype, buying into the "dream". And hoping that we'll get some decent leadership in Washing.ton DC come 2009.

And if that isn't enough food for thought, think of this (thank you CrankyOtter for pointing me in this direction):

1981-1989 Vice President = George HW Bush
1989-1993 President = George HW Bush
1993-2001 President = Bill Clinton
2001-2009 President = George W Bush

For the past twenty-eight years, there has been a Bush or a Clinton in the Wh.ite H.ouse. That is 80% of the time I've been alive. For twenty of those years a Bus.h or Clint.on has been President. I'm just saying.