Karen's Kafe

FREEDOM TOWER errr 1 WTC

2009-11-19T13:07:00.005-05:00

I was a little got in March when I heard they had dropped the name Freedom Tower and instead are calling it 1 World Trade Center, which is it's legal address. I just saw an iReport from sjunat55 on CNN, http://tinyurl.com/yz7wuaa showing what progress has been made on 1 WTC. What ever the name, we will never forget those who lost their lives that day in 2001! Check it out. It's a beginning... They already have the first renter signed up. A company from China...

Also, a week or so ago, I watched live on CNN as the USS New York (built with steel from WTC Towers) sailed up the Hudson. I was speechless.

Until next post....

CNN Heroes and Vacation

2009-10-02T13:57:00.012-04:00

I just added a link to the side bar where you can vote for the 2009 CNN Heroes. Their stories are amazing. You can vote as many times as you want. I watched the telecast last night announcing who the top 10 were this year and several of the stories had me in tears. It made me feel like my problems are just dust in the wind...

We just got back from a week in a Tennessee cabin. Weather wasn't great but it wasn't too bad either. Had some overcast skies but that helped keep the heat down so it was a fair trade. Besides, clouds didn't keep me out of the Hot Tub! Here's a picture I took of the view from the deck.

Our cabin was at the top of Bluff Mountain and very private. We had a couple deer that wandered up in to the yard but mostly it was just the squirrels trying to act like monkeys as they jumped from tree to tree. It was a little daunting when we discovered a pretty good size snake skin that was shed near the front of the cabin....creepy! Was glad the owner never paid a visit to us lol! We did some driving around and walked some of the trails. I love mountain streams and took a lot of pictures of the water and foliage. Here's a few of them...

This one is of a flower that was out in front of the cabin.

The next 2 are my favorites...

These both look better when enlarged as desktop wallpaper :) I got chills the first time a saw the larger print of the one with the sunlight. Hubby took it out the window of the truck. It was like God was reaching down to the water or at least an angel. It was nice to get away for a short time. It had been 6 years since our last vacation so we were overdue.

Have to go....don't forget to vote....until next post...

Busy, busy summer...

2009-08-12T09:56:00.003-04:00

I'm always amazed at how fast time can fly by. It's been a busy summer at the farm. In May our daughter and 2 kids moved back in with us. Although it's been busy, it's been fun seeing the world through their eyes too. The joy in the simple stuff that we, as adults, often miss.

In June we purchased a play set. Not just a slide and swings for our grandkids. LOL This one has 2 swings, trapeze (we switch this with a baby swing), rope ladder, rock wall, upper deck, picnic table, sandbox (we decided against putting sand in it because of all the cats we have), wave slide and a tunnel slide. Yeah, we pretty much bought the works. Putting it together was something else. We had my family over on a Saturday and got the base put together. Then Hubby and I finished it off a little at a time over the next couple weeks. It was fun to watch Jack and Maggie notice new things on it. Oh, I forgot the telescope! The kids really like that because they can look out over the open field. It's been great having somewhere for them to play when they get stir crazy inside. Jack is still learning how to swing himself and Maggie's a little daredevil so we have to keep an eye on her. Faith and Lilly have been over and they all play well together on it.

Hubby also got a new truck this summer. A blue 2009 GMC Sierra 1500. It has chrome bumpers and we think the peacock (now nicknamed Din-Din) has fallen in love with his own image. Every day when I get home the dumb bird is standing at one of the bumpers just admiring himself. Crazy bird!

I got my Mom, Dad, both sisters and one of my Aunts to go see Public Enemies with me on opening day! What a great movie! I wanted to make it back to see it again but things just didn't work out. It was interesting to watch because with this movie I saw so much of the making online and when I went to Crown Point. How they would be in a bank that was filmed in Madison Wisconsin and then step out the door and the streets would be from filming in Columbus, Wisconsin. Unless you followed the filming you wouldn't know this but I did watch for those things. Can't wait to get the DVD (I heard 12/15/09 release date) so Hubby can see it too. It's one I think he'll like. Now the wait is on for Alice in Wonderland....March 2010 seems a long way off.....but worth the wait if publicity has any truth to it.

Other than that it's just been the same old, same old...work, eat sleep....

Until next post.....

The promised Ruse' pictures

2009-04-20T09:53:00.006-04:00

I should explain the name I guess. Blogger won't let me use the accent marks but Ruse' is french for wily. Although she doesn't look very wily in these photos...believe me she is!! As well as sneaky, ornery, playful, obnoxious, curious, cute, adorable and very lovable.

The picture above is Ruse' when she was about 6 weeks old. We figure she was about 3-4 weeks old when her lazy Momma left her on our porch back on Halloween. It's not all her Mommas fault. She had come up to eat and Ruse' had followed her up to the porch, then we had some trick-or-treaters come by and it scared the Momma off and Ruse' was left there not even know what had happened lol. I brought her inside and later took her back to her Momma in the barn. Two days later, she followed Momma back to the porch but this time when I took her back to her Momma, the Momma didn't want to take her :( Here is a more current picture of her.

She has been getting spring fever and I know she will be outdoors soon. She is good with the Grandkids, letting them carry her around, but when she's done...she's done and you'd better let her go.

Have been keeping busy with the Grandkids and the kids got me on Facebook, so some time has been spent there. I'm constantly checking my volcano sites. I mostly watch Chaiten and Redoubt but there are several volcanoes that are actively erupting.

This post is short but it has been bugging me that I hadn't posted the promised pics of Ruse'. I'm not sure anyone even stops by here anymore since I can't seem to post daily...

Time to do some invoicing. Until next post...

More on Mt. Redoubt

2009-03-24T13:45:00.006-04:00

Photo courtesy of AVO/USGS from the Hut Webcam at 19:55:58 on 3-23-09

For some reason the web cam came back online late yesterday and we got to see the 6Th explosive event, yeah!! They also posted some pictures from the flyover they did yesterday.

The pictures above are courtesy of AVO/USGS and taken by Game McGimsey

The above pictures are of the Drift Valley where it's obvious there were some mud flows. After the 6 explosive events Mt. Redoubt quieted down for a few hours. I've been watching the webcorders and for the past 2-3 hours she has slowly started making noise again. Could be the beginning of more. For more information and pictures go to the AVO site here http://tinyurl.com/dd42l3

Also, one year ago today was the day I took off work and drove to Crown Point, Indiana to watch them shoot part of the movie Public Enemies. It's been 1 year since Johnny Depp said Hi to me. I posted about it at the time and if I can get it to work I'd like to re-post it here. You see, that's where all this Blogging started. First I was following Public Enemies on a blog and heard they were going to shoot the Crown Point jailbreak of Dillinger's at he real location. One thing led to another and before long I was Blogging. Here's the story of my day, one year ago.

March 24, 2008 - I was lucky enough to go to Crown Point on Monday. Left home at 7:30est and drove the 3 hours to get there listening to Vanessa's Bliss and Sweeney Todd CD's, over and over, so I was pumped when I arrived. When I first got there, around 10:30 the crowd wasn't thick but it did surround the blocked-off area. Thanks to SurferMom's info and Google I was parked just 1/2 block from the trailers. I hadn't been there 30 minutes and I got my first glimpse of Johnny as they took him the 2 blocks to the jail! He is so kind to his fans. I know this has been said before but it's just so true!! Any time he was out in public he always acknowledged the crowd by smiling and waving.

Luckily, I happened to be along the road they used to ferry him back-and-forth. The only bad thing was my camera was having battery issues!!! UGH!! I had a whole new pack of 6 batteries but it was the camera, evidently not the batteries! I should have bought a disposable one...hindsight! I didn't get many pictures of Johnny but I did take some of the set before it pooped out on me. I watched from the front of the jail for awhile and saw Mr. Mann come out and wave and bow to the crowd. I found it interesting how they would yell 'Rolling' and everyone (the whole crowd) would immediately hush until we heard 'Cut'. It left you with a feeling of participating in the movie.

After awhile I went back to the side street, since most everyone was up in front of the jail watching, so I would have time to get my camera ready for when they brought Johnny back. It seemed that if I took the batteries out and put them back in it would work ok for a few pics and them quit again. (cold draining the batteries?) When I heard the crowd screaming up front I quickly got into position. As his SUV rounded the corner I realize my camera wasn't going to work again. As his SUV got closer, I saw he had the window down and he was on my side! I said 'Hi Johnny!' and he looked me dead in the eye, said 'Hi' gave his signature little nod of the head and salute with that gorgeous smile of his. If I had reached out, and he had reached out, I could have 'high-five' him, he was THAT close to me!! And I will say right now...He is much better looking in real life than on screen! He made my day!

I floated around the rest of the day seeing him go back and forth to the set. Talked to a lot of the people in the crowd, some of the extras and one very nice lady doing security. I especially enjoyed talking to all the kids that were there. I talked to one little girl, around 9 years old, who was there with her Grandpa and 2 older sisters. She was asking everyone if they had Johnny's phone number. She was just precious! When she tried to tell me Johnny was her boyfriend I quickly told her "He can't be your boyfriend because my granddaughter says he's my boyfriend." She was just too cute and swore she had seen ALL his movies. The Grandpa and I had a laugh over that one because she isn't even old enough to have seen or get into half his movies.

Unfortunately I couldn't stick around to see if he would come out after everything was done to do autographs since I had such a long drive home. I had already stayed 2 hours longer than I had planned but I'm glad for the fans that could stay and did get to shake hands with him.

I may not have the photo of getting that close to Johnny but I will always have the memory of him smiling at me and saying Hi.

Now I have to find a way to wrap my head around work enough to finish up for the day and get the heck out of here. Until next post....

Mount Redoubt

2009-03-23T12:41:00.004-04:00

Hi Osh! Thanks for stopping by :)

I copied this picture above from the AVO-USGS site, http://tinyurl.com/dd42l3 , taken by Dennis Anderson of Homer AK on the morning of March 18Th. Last night Mt Redoubt had 4 explosive eruptions through the night and a 5Th one early this morning. AVO has reported that one seismic station and one web cam have stopped functioning. This could mean a lot of things but the volcano is fairly remote and they have a lot of darkness still this time of year so hard to get a handle on what's really going on visually. The one thing to keep in mind is that ash and electronics don't play well together. She is keeping things interesting. The poor vulcanologist's at AVO have to feel like yo-yo's about now. Redoubt would surge to activity and the warnings would go up. They began to staff the center 24/7 to keep a close eye on it. (I won't even mention a certain politicians remarks about 'something called volcano monitoring'...) Then she would quiet down and they would lower the warning only to have her rumble again and have to raise it...up, down, up...Well, last night I guess she got the last word...for now.

The latest wecorders show activity but not as strong as over night. Here's a couple links to the webcorders in case anyone wants to check them out. http://tinyurl.com/cxwypx and http://tinyurl.com/cww4tp I know the airlines have rescheduled and cancelled some flights in the area, schools are open and so far things seem to be under control. AVO is planning an over flight later today so hopefully I can get a glimpse or a picture or 2 when they post their findings. Will post more when I get an update.

Interesting Stories...

2009-03-19T14:18:00.003-04:00

Here's a couple stories my Dad sent me. I found them interesting because of the locations of the stories. The tie in with gangsters and I guess a 'six degrees of Dillinger' and the Dillinger Era.

Many years ago, Al Capone virtually owned Chicago ... Capone wasn't famous for anything heroic. He was notorious for enmeshing the windy city in everything from bootlegged booze and prostitution to murder.

Capone had a lawyer nicknamed 'Easy Eddie.' He was Capone's lawyer for a good reason. Eddie was very good! In fact, Eddie's skill at legal maneuvering kept Big Al out of jail for a long time.

To show his appreciation, Capone paid him very well. Not only was the money big, but Eddie got special dividends, as well. For instance, he and his family occupied a fenced-in mansion with live-in help and all of the conveniences of the day.. The estate was so large that it filled an entire Chicago City block.

Eddie lived the high life of the Chicago mob and gave little consideration to the atrocity that went on around him.

Eddie did have one soft spot, however. He had a son that he loved dearly. Eddie saw to it that his young son had clothes, cars, and a good education. Nothing was withheld. Price was no object.

And, despite his involvement with organized crime, Eddie even tried to teach him right from wrong. Eddie wanted his son to be a better man than he was.

Yet, with all his wealth and influence, there were two things he couldn't give his son; he couldn't pass on a good name or a good example.

One day, Easy Eddie reached a difficult decision. Easy Eddie wanted to rectify wrongs he had done. He decided he would go to the authorities and tell the truth about Al 'Scarface' Capone, clean up his tarnished name, and offer his son some semblance of integrity. To do this, he would have to testify against The Mob, and he knew that the cost would be great. So, he testified.

Within the year, Easy Eddie's life ended in a blaze of gunfire on a lonely Chicago Street . But in his eyes, he had given his son the greatest gift he had to offer, at the greatest price he could ever pay. Police removed from his pockets a rosary, a crucifix, a religious medallion, and a poem clipped from a magazine.

The poem read:

The clock of life is wound but once, and no man has the power to tell just when the hands will stop, at late or early hour. Now is the only time you own. Live, love, toil with a will. Place no faith in time. For the clock may soon be still.'

STORY NUMBER TWO:

World War II produced many heroes. One such man was Lieutenant Commander Butch O'Hare.

He was a fighter pilot assigned to the aircraft carrier Lexington in the South Pacific.

One day his entire squadron was sent on a mission. After he was airborne, he looked at his fuel gauge and realized that someone had forgotten to top off his fuel tank.

He would not have enough fuel to complete his mission and get back to his ship.

His flight leader told him to return to the carrier. Reluctantly, he dropped out of formation and headed back to the fleet.

As he was returning to the mother ship, he saw something that turned his blood cold; a squadron of Japanese aircraft was speeding its way toward the American fleet.

The American fighters were gone on a sortie, and the fleet was all but defenseless. He couldn't reach his squadron and bring them back in time to save the fleet. Nor could he warn the fleet of the approaching danger. There was only one thing to do. He must somehow divert them from the fleet.

Laying aside all thoughts of personal safety, he dove into the formation of Japanese planes. Wing-mounted 50 caliber's blazed as he charged in, attacking one surprised enemy plane and then another. Butch wove in and out of the now broken formation and fired at as many planes as possible until all his ammunition was finally spent.

Undaunted, he continued the assault. He dove at the planes, trying to clip a wing or tail in hopes of damaging as many enemy planes as possible, rendering them unfit to fly.

Finally, the exasperated Japanese squadron took off in another direction.

Deeply relieved, Butch O'Hare and his tattered fighter limped back to the carrier.

Upon arrival, he reported in and related the event surrounding his return. The film from the gun-camera mounted on his plane told the tale. It showed the extent of Butch's daring attempt to protect his fleet. He had, in fact, destroyed five enemy aircraft. This took place on February 20, 1942 , and for that action Butch became the Navy's first Ace of W.W.II, and the first Naval Aviator to win the Congressional Medal of Honor.

A year later Butch was killed in aerial combat at the age of 29. His home town would not allow the memory of this WW II hero to fade, and today, O'Hare Airport in Chicago is named in tribute to the courage of this great man.

So, the next time you find yourself at O'Hare International, give some thought to visiting Butch's memorial displaying his statue and his Medal of Honor. It's located between Terminals 1 and 2.

SO WHAT DO THESE TWO STORIES HAVE TO DO WITH EACH OTHER?

Butch O'Hare was 'Easy Eddie's' son.

Until next post...

Stick that in your pipe and smoke it!!

2009-03-16T14:12:00.014-04:00

The announcement that AIG is to give their executives over $165 million in bonus pay has me seeing red!!!! These are the same people who put the company in financial trouble to start with and who's poor business practices and immoral lending began the tumble of the US into a major economic crisis!! Oh sure, 25 of these people had said they will work for $1/year. Well, hell, so would I if I knew I was getting $6+ million bonus to tide me over....grrrrrrrrrrrrr If you or I caused our company to be in such financial straits, we wouldn't HAVE a job. These people need to be put on the unemployment line and see how the real people live! It will never happen but they should be forced to live on the street like they have forced so many others to have to do.

I would love to go on CNN when they are talking to these bozos just so I can harrumph and snicker to their faces!!! I still blame this on Bush and Cheney. Bush was so focused on killing the man who tried to kill his Daddy that he lost focus on the homeland and the real war we should have been fighting, al Qaeda! Remember when a reporter said something to Bush about the gas prices, back when it was over $3 and $4, and he didn't have a clue what the reporter was talking about? He had lost touch with 'his subjects' just as surely as King George III did back in 1776!

Ok, stepping off the soap box. Just had to let that out. Besides, this is my blog. Don't like what I say? Get your own blog LOL

How about a trip down memory lane? A friend sent me an email full of wonderfully old pictures when things were less hectic...

25¢ Gas anyone? (yea, I found out where to find the cent sign!)

Anyone remember these?

We actually still have this McDonald's sign in town. Granted it doesn't say 15¢ anymore....

Anyone know what this

or this?

Did you go to a school with Fire Escape Tubes?

This is what you saw late at night when TV wasn't 24/7.

Thanks Lynn!! I really enjoyed the trip down memory lane....

Until next post...

Daylight Savings Time...

2009-03-09T13:04:00.003-04:00

Spring forward....fall back. Indiana for the past couple years has observed the DST. Yesterday morning when I got up it didn't seem so bad to move the clocks up an hour. However, this morning was another day! Ugh, hate driving to work in the dark again. It's not that I don't like DST. I just don't understand why they can't start it later in the year. If they started it just a wee 3-4 weeks later then the sun would be starting up and at least the kids waiting for buses would be more visible. Yes, yes, you should always be careful and drive safely but we all know that things happen. I don't have kids at home any more but there are still quite a few that I see on my way to work that stand/play, in the dark, at the end of their driveway.

The local newspaper had an article yesterday by, what I can only assume, a pro-DST reporter. It stated the top argument from Hoosiers about DST is that their bodies have trouble adjusting. Let's get real here! It's only an hour, not jet lag!! I'm not a fan of DST but I adjust pretty quickly. My only problem is the darkness in the morning in early spring and the lightness at 10:00 at night in July-August. Hard to get to sleep with daylight peeking at you when your not used to it. That is one thing I guess I don't adjust to quickly. A long time ago, in another lifetime, I was a night owl. Thirty years of working 8-5 has completely converted me to a day person.

Grrrrr lost power here at work! Again!! Right in the middle of my train of thought! I was on a roll too. Or at least I thought I was lol...

Power went out this morning also for about 1-1/2 hours. This time it is was just a bleep. Just enough to have to restart everything. Can you imagine if you worked in a clock shop today? You would have had to reset clocks when you got to work only to have the power go out and have to set them again!! Ok, maybe I'm the only one who thinks that is hilarious...

Gotta go for now...until next post....

New Roof and Birthdays...

2009-03-05T15:29:00.004-05:00

Back at work after being off to have a new roof and some siding repair done on the house. I'll have to say I am impressed with our Insurance Company. Reported wind damage on the 2/19. Had estimate in hand on 2/22 (a Sunday!). Had check in hand on 2/25. Then had to wait for good weather to get the actual work done but from start to finish....in less than 2 weeks! After listening to the people who had flood damage last year I'll admit I was leery of getting everything settled quickly. We had to add some $$ to it so we could have the garage still match the house and we put guttering up and it looks great!

March birthdays have begun...Hubby started them off on the 3/2. He got the flu for his birthday, gee isn't that a fun one.

Happy Birthday!!

3/2 Hubby
3/4 Krista (niece)
3/18 Alicia (sis)
3/20 Tom (s-i-l)
3/24 Kay (sis)
3/29 Jeremy (son)
Many, many more if I count Aunts, Uncles, cousins, in-laws and out-laws... Ok, now for some...

This Day in History:

How many of you remember when these first came out???

March 5, 1963

Hula-Hoop patented

On this day in 1963, the Hula-Hoop, a hip-swiveling toy that became a huge fad across America when it was first marketed by Wham-O in 1958, is patented by the company's co-founder, Arthur "Spud" Melin. An estimated 25 million Hula-Hoops were sold in its first four months of production alone.

In 1948, friends Arthur Melin and Richard Knerr founded a company in California to sell a slingshot they created to shoot meat up to falcons they used for hunting. The company’s name, Wham-O, came from the sound the slingshots supposedly made. Wham-O eventually branched out from slingshots, selling boomerangs and other sporting goods. Its first hit toy, a flying plastic disc known as the Frisbee, debuted in 1957. The Frisbee was originally marketed under a different name, the Pluto Platter, in an effort to capitalize on America's fascination with UFOs.

Melina and Knerr were inspired to develop the Hula-Hoop after they saw a wooden hoop that Australian children twirled around their waists during gym class. Wham-O began producing a plastic version of the hoop, dubbed "Hula" after the hip-gyrating Hawaiian dance of the same name, and demonstrating it on Southern California playgrounds. Hula-Hoop mania took off from there.

The enormous popularity of the Hula-Hoop was short-lived and within a matter of months, the masses were on to the next big thing. However, the Hula-Hoop never faded away completely and still has its fans today. According to Ripley's Believe It or Not, in April 2004, a performer at the Big Apple Circus in Boston simultaneously spun 100 hoops around her body. Earlier that same year, in January, according to the Guinness World Records, two people in Tokyo, Japan, managed to spin the world's largest hoop--at 13 feet, 4 inches--around their waists at least three times each.

Following the Hula-Hoop, Wham-O continued to produce a steady stream of wacky and beloved novelty items, including the Superball, Water Wiggle, Silly String, Slip 'n' Slide and the Hacky Sack.

Those were the days. Leave a comment on what your favorite childhood toy was. Until next post....

Mom's

2009-02-24T15:36:00.004-05:00

Because I'm missing my Mommy who is out in AZ for the winter......and because I've been on BOTH sides of Mommy....

MOTHERS
(From Mommy to Mom to Mother)

Real Mothers don't eat quiche;
They don't have time to make it.

Real Mothers know that their kitchen utensils
Are probably in the sandbox.

Real Mothers often have sticky floors,
Filthy ovens and happy kids.

Real Mothers know that dried play dough
Doesn't come out of carpets.

Real Mothers don't want to know what
The vacuum just sucked up.

Real Mothers sometimes ask 'Why me?'
And get their answer when a little
Voice says, 'Because I love you best.'

Real Mothers know that a child's growth
Is not measured by height or years or grade...
It is marked by the progression of Mommy to Mom to Mother...

The Images of Mother

4 YEARS OF AGE - My Mommy can do anything!

8 YEARS OF AGE - My Mom knows a lot! A whole lot!

12 YEARS OF AGE - My Mother doesn't really know quite everything.

14 YEARS OF AGE - Naturally, Mother doesn't know that, either.

16 YEARS OF AGE - Mother? She's hopelessly old-fashioned.

18 YEARS OF AGE - That old woman? She's way out of date!

25 YEARS OF AGE - Well, she might know a little bit about it!

35 YEARS OF AGE - Before we decide, let's get Mom's opinion.

45 YEARS OF AGE - Wonder what Mom would have thought about it?

65 YEARS OF AGE - Wish I could talk it over with Mom.

The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure she carries, or the way she combs her hair.

The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes,
Because that is the doorway to her heart,
The place where love resides.
The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mole,
But true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul.

And the wheels of the Bus go round and round.

2009-02-23T09:25:00.004-05:00

Couldn't think of a title but this pretty much means life just keeps going. No matter the joys or sorrows in life, the wheels just keep turning.

Yesterday we had a birthday party for Faith who turned a big 6 on the 18Th. The party was at Chuck E. Cheese and the kids had a blast. I wasn't too bad at Skeet-ball :) Jack and Maggie liked it too since if you didn't get the ball all the way up to the holes it came back so they got to play for a long time on 1 token lol. That was until Maggie decided to climb up the board and try to PUT the ball in the hole. Then Jack thought it was a pretty good idea too so he started trying to climb up it...I'm sure you get the picture....we had to move on to another game lol.

Since last post my volcano watch has gone up a notch. Not only is Chaiten still puffing away and putting on quite a show but now Galeras in Colombia is active and also Mt Redoubt in Alaska is trying to get some attention.

NASCAR is back!! Jeff Gordon had a chance at Daytona. If it hadn't rained who know what may have happened. I still don't understand why they didn't re-start the race. Daytona has lighting for Pete's sake!! Yesterdays race was looking good and I was really hoping he'd get a win but it's not to be....yet. Heck, I'm just glad to see him running up front again!

Last week we purchased a new computer. It's a HP Elite. 750 hard drive, 8GB RAM and a 22" flat screen. It has Vista as the OS but we are getting used to it. It helps that our son is a computer guru, well, he's our computer guru lol...Spent most of last week transfering stuff from old comp. to new comp. Old computer was still working so we figured we'd put it upstairs for now.

And now some Today in History:

February 23, 1954

Children receive first polio vaccine

On this day in 1954, a group of children from Arsenal Elementary School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, receive the first injections of the new polio vaccine developed by Dr. Jonas Salk.

Though not as devastating as the plague or influenza, poliomyelitis was a highly contagious disease that emerged in terrifying outbreaks and seemed impossible to stop. Attacking the nerve cells and sometimes the central nervous system, polio caused muscle deterioration, paralysis and even death. Even as medicine vastly improved in the first half of the 20th century in the Western world, polio still struck, affecting mostly children but sometimes adults as well. The most famous victim of a 1921 outbreak in America was future President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, then a young politician. The disease spread quickly, leaving his legs permanently paralyzed.

After mass inoculations began in 1954, everyone marveled at the high success rate--some 60-70 percent--until the vaccine caused a sudden outbreak of some 200 cases. After it was determined that the cases were all caused by one faulty batch of the vaccine, production standards were improved, and by August 1955 some 4 million shots had been given. Cases of polio in the U.S. dropped from 14,647 in 1955 to 5,894 in 1956, and by 1959 some 90 other countries were using Salk’s vaccine.

A later version of the polio vaccine, developed by Albert Sabin, used a weakened form of the live virus and was swallowed instead of injected. It was licensed in 1962 and soon became more popular than Salk's vaccine, as it was cheaper to make and easier for people to take. There is still no cure for polio once it has been contracted, but the use of vaccines has virtually eliminated polio in the United States. Globally, there are now around 250,000 cases each year, mostly in developing countries. The World Health Organization has set a goal of eradicating polio from the entire world by 2010.

February 23, 1945

U.S. flag raised on Iwo Jima

During the bloody Battle for Iwo Jima, U.S. Marines from the 3rd Platoon, E Company, 2nd Battalion, 28th Division take the crest of Mount Suribachi, the island's highest peak and most strategic position, and raise the U.S. flag. Marine photographer Louis Lowery was with them and recorded the event. American soldiers fighting for control of Suribachi's slopes cheered the raising of the flag, and several hours later more Marines headed up to the crest with a larger flag. Joe Rosenthal, a photographer with the Associated Press, met them along the way and recorded the raising of the second flag along with a Marine still photographer and a motion-picture cameraman.

Rosenthal took three photographs atop Suribachi. The first, which showed five Marines and one Navy corpsman struggling to hoist the heavy flag pole, became the most reproduced photograph in history and won him a Pulitzer Prize. The accompanying motion-picture footage attests to the fact that the picture was not posed. Of the other two photos, the second was similar to the first but less affecting, and the third was a group picture of 18 soldiers smiling and waving for the camera. Many of these men, including three of the six soldiers seen raising the flag in the famous Rosenthal photo, were killed before the conclusion of the Battle for Iwo Jima in late March.

In early 1945, U.S. military command sought to gain control of the island of Iwo Jima in advance of the projected aerial campaign against the Japanese home islands. Iwo Jima, a tiny volcanic island located in the Pacific about 700 miles southeast of Japan, was to be a base for fighter aircraft and an emergency-landing site for bombers. On February 19, 1945, after three days of heavy naval and aerial bombardment, the first wave of U.S. Marines stormed onto Iwo Jima's inhospitable shores.

The Japanese garrison on the island numbered 22,000 heavily entrenched men. Their commander, General Tadamichi Kuribayashi, had been expecting an Allied invasion for months and used the time wisely to construct an intricate and deadly system of underground tunnels, fortifications, and artillery that withstood the initial Allied bombardment. By the evening of the first day, despite incessant mortar fire, 30,000 U.S. Marines commanded by General Holland Smith managed to establish a solid beachhead.

During the next few days, the Marines advanced inch by inch under heavy fire from Japanese artillery and suffered suicidal charges from the Japanese infantry. Many of the Japanese defenders were never seen and remained underground manning artillery until they were blown apart by a grenade or rocket, or incinerated by a flame thrower.

While Japanese kamikaze flyers slammed into the Allied naval fleet around Iwo Jima, the Marines on the island continued their bloody advance across the island, responding to Kuribayashi's lethal defenses with remarkable endurance. On February 23, the crest of 550-foot Mount Suribachi was taken, and the next day the slopes of the extinct volcano were secured.

By March 3, U.S. forces controlled all three airfields on the island, and on March 26 the last Japanese defenders on Iwo Jima were wiped out. Only 200 of the original 22,000 Japanese defenders were captured alive. More than 6,000 Americans died taking Iwo Jima, and some 17,000 were wounded.

Time to get to work. Until next post...

Chaiten volcano - more eruption

2009-01-19T13:24:00.008-05:00

taken at 10:30am 1/19/09

taken at 10:54am 1/19/09

taken at 11:04am 1/19/09

taken at 11: 20am 1/19/09

taken at 11:30am 1/19/09

This series of photos were saved from the webcam at Chaiten volcano this morning found here http://tinyurl.com/855sqx

It started out as a normal day with Chaiten puffing water vapor. Just before 11am local time she began puffing more than water vapor. According to what I've been able to keep up with the caldera is mostly filled in again from the on going eruption. It's hard to get good, solid information because of this area being so isolated. I haven't seen or heard anything yet on whether this mornings activities were from a rockfall (looks to large to be that)or possibly the collapse or partial collapse of a dome. Whatever it was it put on quite a show this morning!

Eye Candy!!

2009-01-02T09:22:00.005-05:00

New picture out from Public Enemies!! Come on, be honest...Don't you just want to play nurse? From what is being said this shot (no pun intended) is from the scenes at Little Bohemia. Entertainment Weekly has Johnny on the cover and a short interview. Interview can be found at Johnny Depp Reads in Today's News section.

http://johnnydeppreads.com/index.php?showtopic=6903

I'm so looking forward to seeing this movie!! The only question I have is how many times I will watch it on opening day!! LOL

Enjoy!!

Man, oh man!! Where DO the days go???

2008-12-29T16:03:00.006-05:00

I really apologize to those that check in here for not posting more often of late. Between work and the holidays I haven't made it here much lately. Will try to do a short re-cap. I see I did have people checking :) With that said:

Happy Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas!!

We had our Christmas on the 20th just to help with all the running. It was me, Hubby, our kids and their kids and my parents. Was great to have the house full. Christmas Day we split the families. We went to Hubby's side first then to my parents that evening. While at my parents, our grandson Jack (turned 3 on the 28th) dropped the 'F' bomb in front of everyone!!! Lord, we shouldn't have laughed but it was soooo unexpected!! My Dad and brother-in-law Wayne just about doubled over from laughing so hard. Kids!! LOL

I've been trying to keep up on my volcano news and movie news also. There has been on going activity at Chaiten, Bagana, Karymsky, Kilauea, Machin, Masaya, Rabaul, Shiveluch, Suwanose-jima, Kliuchevskoi, Llaina, Reunion, Santa Maria, Soufriere Hills, Tungurahua and Koryaksky just to name a few! I also hit my Depp sites for any news of a Public Enemies Trailer. Nothing so far, nada, nilch...zip!! :( Soon. I hope. Maybe one during Superbowl but then I heard one by Christmas too and nobody has seen one. Hard to wait for the movie but it will be sooo worth the wait!!

Then there are the French lessons. Peut-être je devrais dire la leçon française. Quelque jour je ferai des achats dans les marchés dans le sud de France. I love the french language and am slowly getting an understanding of it. I've made some flash cards that I use and I listen and translate songs from Vanessa Paradis' albums. A friend who works at the Univ. of Cinn. sent me some text books and CD's that have really helped. At least I feel I'm on my way to learning it.

In my last post, I mentioned a kitten that we had adopted. Weeeeeellllllllll, she is now Queen of the House!!! Or so she thinks. I call her Rusée, which is the french feminine spelling, meaning crafty, wily, tricky. Hubby calls her brat lol. The grandkids think I'm saying Rosie...so basically she has 3 names :P She plays with anything that moves or doesn't move. She chases the other cats around the house until they've had enough and jump up on something that she can't reach....yet. She literally plays until she just about flops over asleep wherever she stops. Kittens are just the cutest creatures. I promise to get pictures posted soon but their on my laptop at home and I'm sneaking a break here at work he he he...

Ok, time to get back to work. Until next post......

Has it really been that long....

2008-11-17T15:11:00.003-05:00

since I posted!!? Lots going on around here and it's only going to get busier...

Let me see if I can sum up what's been going on. Busy at work and at home pretty much takes care of that! :P I did some babysitting off and on for all 4 of the grandkids and got the 'mother of all colds' since they each had some symptoms of one kind or an other I don't know who to blame it on. So they all get and equal share. On top of that, the weather went from 74 one day to 42 the next a couple weeks back. That kind of drastic change will make you sick also so who knows.

I do know that our Momma Tiger cat had a litter of kittens 4-5 weeks ago. She keeps them hidden so not sure how many she had. I do know there is: 1 dark tiger (daughter saw it), 1 black with a small patch of white on it's chest (under the bush with Momma one day when I came home and gone before I could get ahold of it...grrr) and a gray tiger (saw it with the Momma) She must be trying to show them where their next food source is because she keeps bringing them up to porch one at a time. She ran off and left the baby on the porch so I brought it in the house and then watched for Momma to come back. She came back to get it and was having a hard time getting it to follow her. She finally left it up by porch so I went out and got the baby and carried it out to the barn where I'd seen the Momma go. Sure enough she was in the barn so I left the kitten and didn't see it again until last weds. night.

Last weds., after work, I agreed to babysit Faith and Lilly. It was getting dark out just as I got home but when I got out of the car I could hear a kitten crying. It was pouring down rain and temps. had dropped into the low 40's. I took a flashlight outside and started following the sound until I found the gray tiger kitten. (I'm positive this isn't where I picked up my cold lol) It was sopping wet and shivering with cold or fear or both. So I dried it off and kept a watch for 'her' Momma. There was too much going and coming from the house and the Momma cat never came back up. When I tried to take it to the barn, she wasn't to be found either. To make a long story short, the Momma cat never came up looking for the baby that I saw. Then I worked the next day and the next day... and before long it was the weekend and I knew enough time had passed that the Momma wasn't going to come looking and even if she did she may not take it back because it had be so long.

So, now we have a kitten in the house again. Thank goodness it was old enough to eat moist kitty food! And it held off going potty until I put her in the litterbox! What a smart kitty! I used this arguement on the Hubby. Once, long ago, when we first moved into our little farmhouse someone dumped a gray kitten off. I remember telling him at that time that 'all gray' cats were rare. He bought it and we kept the kitten, named Shadow. I'm sure he knew better but the kids really thought it was funny! When I left for work this morning, there was the Hubby and the kitty playing on the couch together! :) All's well that end's well! ;) I do have pictures but I haven't downloaded them from the camera yet. Will post them when I do.

Also, I'm a big fan of Dancing With the Stars. My sister Kay sent me an email with a picture of a couple that may or may not be contestants next season. What do you think?

I just thought this was hilarious!! And a damn good job of photo manipulation!! Off to think up kitty names....

Until next post...

President-Elect Obama

2008-11-05T09:19:00.004-05:00

The Next Residents of the White House:

What an amazing election this was! Whoever won was going to make history. I will admit that both McCan's concession speech and Obama's acceptance speech brought tears to my eyes. Even before the speeches, as the camera panned the crowd in Chicago, I was awed by the diversity of citizen's standing side-by-side, shoulder-to-shoulder sharing one goal i found myself reaching for a tissue. There was one camera shot that showed an elderly black male with awe on his face, a middle aged white woman with tears of joy, a young black mother hugging a small child tightly with huge smiles on both their faces and a older white man who looked to be on the upper side of middle class all in one frame! Now how awesome is that, I ask?!! This nation has come along way, baby!!

Here, in Indiana, history was made also. This election was the first time Indiana voted Democrat since 1964! I'm a registered Democrat but often vote for Republican candidates. I believe you should vote for WHO you think will do the better job not just vote your party. I agonized, studied, play devil's advocate for both sides and was still debating in my head as I stood in line to vote yesterday. They let me off work early because of reports of long lines. Man, were they right! From the time I got in line until I exited the poll, it was just over 2 hours!! I've never seen lines or turn outs so HUGE!!! And remember I live in the boonies here! LOL

I know things won't change overnight or even quickly, for that matter. I honestly believe that in the long run, things will get better. Beside, we're going to have kids in the White House again!! For some reason that just makes me smile!

Until next post....

Happy Halloween!!

2008-10-31T12:27:00.016-04:00

Hope everyone has a safe Halloween. If you're out there driving tonight, be careful of big and little ghosts and goblins running around....'tis the season!! LOL It's nice that it fell on a Friday this year! Weather is perfect for it here. Had been cold all week but today it's sunny and in the 60's so the kiddies should have a good time. Living out in nowhere-land we don't get any trick-or-treaters except family. I suspect we will get a visit from Spiderman and a Lady Bug. The other 2 live an hours drive away and last year Faith went around their big neighborhood and got a bucket full of candy....so doubt if they make it by tonight but maybe sometime over the weekend.

Here's some Halloween superstitions and bad luck omens:

According to Webster's dictionary, superstition is: n. any belief that is inconsistent with the known laws of science or with what is considered true and rational; esp., such a belief in omens, the supernatural, etc.

Halloween is traditionally the time when common superstitions, folklore, myths and omens carry more weight to those who believe. Superstition origins go back thousands of years ago. Beliefs include good luck charms, amulets, bad luck, fortunes, cures, portents, omens and predictions, fortunes and spells.

Bad fallacies far outweigh the good, especially around Halloween when myths run rampant. When it comes right down to it, many people still believe that omens can predict our destiny and misfortune -- particularly for the worse.

Superstitions & Bad Luck Omens

Black Cats-Black cats have long been believed to be a supernatural omen since the witch hunts of the middle ages when cats were thought to be connected to evil. Since then, it is considered bad luck if a black cat crosses your path.

Broken Mirrors-An ancient myth our ancestors believed was that the image in a mirror is our actual soul. A broken mirror represented the soul being astray from your body. To break the spell of misfortune, you must wait seven hours (one for each year of bad luck) before picking up the broken pieces, and bury them outside in the moonlight.

Ladders-In the days before the gallows, criminals were hung from the top rung of a ladder and their spirits were believed to linger underneath. Common folklore has it to be bad luck to walk beneath an open ladder and pass through the triangle of evil ghosts and spirits.

Owls-If an owl looks in your window or if you seeing one in the daylight bad luck and death will bestow you.

Salt-At one time salt was a rare commodity and thought to have magical powers. It was unfortunate to spill salt and said to foretell family disarray and death. To ward off bad luck, throw a pinch over your shoulder and all will be well.

Sparrows-Sparrows are thought to carry the souls of the dead and it is believed to bring bad luck if you kill one.

Unlucky Number #13-The fear of the number 13 is still common today, and avoided in many different ways. Some buildings still do not have an official 13th floor and many people avoid driving or going anywhere on Friday the 13th.

Good Luck Superstitions

Horseshoes-To bring good luck, the horseshoe must lost by a horse and be found by you, with the open end facing your way. You must hang it over the door with the open end up, so the good fortune doesn't spill out.

Another origin of the 'lucky horseshoe' is the belief that they ward off witches. Witches, it was once believed, were opposed to horses, which is why they rode brooms and pitchforks instead. By placing a horseshoe over a door, the witch would be reluctant to enter.

Four Leaf Clover-Clover is believed to protect humans and animals from evil spells and is thought to be good luck to find a four leaf clover, particularly for the Irish.

Rabbit's Foot-These lucky charms are thought to ward off bad luck and bring good luck. You mush carry the rabbit's foot on a chain around your neck, or in your left back pocket. The older it gets, the more good luck it brings.

Wishbones-Two people are to pull apart a dried breastbone of a turkey or chicken and the one who is left with the longer end will have their wish come true.

News Today...for real!!

2008-10-28T15:14:00.004-04:00

A couple samplings from around the Internet that caught my eye today:

This one just cracked me up. I could picture all these people running around chasing a poodle. For 17 hours!! Now where was Homeland Security?

Dog escapes at airport, eludes personnel for 17 hours

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS • October 28, 2008

BOSTON — Choochy the poodle is a “runway runaway.”

Boston’s Logan International Airport officials say Choochy escaped from her kennel as she was being unloaded after a flight from Detroit Saturday night and scampered across runways and taxiways.

Airport spokesman Phil Orlandella says the poodle evaded airport personnel for more than 17 hours and delayed at least eight flights.

About 15 state police, firefighters, operations personnel and even electricians chased Choochy late into the night, delaying flights for up 30 minutes.

Orlandella says the poodle was frightened, tired and hungry when she was finally lured to safety with food early Sunday afternoon.

The dog was treated for minor injuries at an animal hospital and returned to her family.

'Good Samaritan' saves crying woman's foreclosed home

(CNN) -- Tracy Orr sat in the back of the room and prepared to watch her foreclosed home go up for auction this past Saturday. That's when a pesky stranger sat down beside her and struck up a conversation.

Tracy Orr faced losing her home to foreclosure when Marilyn Mock, a stranger, stepped in to buy it.

"Are you here to buy a house?" Marilyn Mock said.

Orr couldn't hold it in. The tears flowed. She pointed to the auction brochure at a home that didn't have a picture. "That's my house," she said.

Within moments, the four-bedroom, two-bath home in Pottsboro, Texas, went up for sale. People up front began casting their bids. The home that Orr purchased in September 2004 was slipping away.

She stood and moved toward the crowd. Behind her, Mock got into the action.

"She didn't know I was doing it," Mock says. "I just kept asking her if [her home] was worth it, and she just kept crying. She probably thought I was crazy, 'Why does this woman keep asking me that?' "

Mock says she bought the home for about $30,000. That's when Mock did what most bidders at a foreclosure auction never do.

"She said, 'I did this for you. I'm doing this for you,' " Orr says. "When it was all done, I was just in shock."

"I thought maybe her and her husband do these types of things to buy them and turn them. She said, 'No, you just look like you needed a friend.' "

"All this happened within like 5 minutes. She never even asked me my name. She didn't ask me my financial situation. She had no idea what [the house] looked like. She just did it out of the graciousness of her heart, just a 'Good Samaritan,' " Orr says. "It's amazing."

Orr says she had taken out a mortgage of $80,000 in 2004 when she first bought the home. At the time, she says she worked for the U.S. Postal Service. But she lost her job a month after taking out the loan when she says the Post Office fired her over a DWI while off-duty. She says a wrongful termination lawsuit is pending.

Without a job, she fell behind on her home payments. She sold some property in 2006 for $12,000 and paid it to the mortgage company, thinking she had done enough to save herself from foreclosure -- but to no avail, she says.

"It's just been a bad deal," says Orr, who now works at All Saints Camp and Conference Center, a Christian group with ties to the Episcopal Diocese of Dallas, Texas.

With the foreclosure auction approaching, she planned to make the nearly 80-mile drive to Dallas this past Saturday with an investor friend. But she says he ditched her at the last-minute. She went to the auction with her family, and suddenly found herself in the back with Mock.

"I always talk to everyone around me," Mock says. "I mean you can always find out all kinds of interesting things when you talk to people around you. So I just asked her, 'Are you here to buy a house?' "

Mock, who is known as the "Rock Lady" for her small business selling flagstone and other rocks in Rockwall, Texas, says she went to the auction with her 27-year-old son to help him buy his first home. He bought his home, and soon afterward Mock came across Orr.

Mock says she's using one of her business dump trucks as collateral for the $30,000 sale price. "I can't afford to just give [the house] to her," she says.

As for Orr's payments, Mock says, "We'll just figure out however much she can pay on it. That way, she can have her house back."

Why be so generous?

"She was just so sad. You put yourself in their situation and you realize you just got to do something," says Mock, who says she has trouble walking by homeless people on the street and not helping them out.

"If it was you, you'd want somebody to stop and help you."

When she told her husband of 30 years that she'd just bought a home for a stranger, she says his reaction was: "Whatever."

"He's used to it," she says with a booming laugh.

Mock says she's excited for another reason too. Orr's house is located near a Texas fishing hot-spot. "She says I can come up there and fish, and I love to fish!"

Orr, who nearly lost her home, says her newfound friend has "given me back faith and hope to keep going and hold my head up."

"Things happen for a reason," Orr says.

I had to get the tissues after this one. Talk about your 'random acts of kindness'! I've bought the lunch of the person behind me at the drive-thru but $30,000.00 is beyond kindness!! You go 'Rock Lady' and God Bless you!.

Take care ....until next post....

Whew!

2008-10-20T13:35:00.004-04:00

For 2 weeks I've been covering for someone here that had back surgery. But, yeah!!, back to normal now!! Was so nice to come into work and have time to visit some sites on the Internet. My volcano blog and web cams still show the volcanoes. Apparently, the world does keep spinning whether I have time to browse it or not. Although the Chaiten volcano has been making itself known again for several days. The bulletins that have come out say the seismic activity shows no sign of more eruptions and the plumes are mostly water vapor but what a show they put on! :)

Last night we made it official. We took out the window air conditioners. :( Summer is officially over. Most of the soybean fields are harvested and the farmers are getting a start on the corn fields now. Bow deer season started and firearm season is just around the corner. Sure hate to see the end of summer. The older I get the less I like the cold weather. We spent most of Sunday morning checking out electric furnaces online. We currently have a fuel oil eater and with the prices going up, up, up we need to make a change.

When we moved in (1989) fuel oil was $.89/gal. I think the last time I got some (2 yrs ago since I'm stingy with it and we have alternate heat source) we paid almost $4/gal!! With grandkids around I don't want to use the heaters anymore for safety reasons but we don't want to pay $800 to fill the tank up. The tank only lasts us about 6-8 weeks and when it gets cold and very windy (lots of open area around us once the fields are down) it may only last 4 weeks. Have I said before how flat Indiana is where we live? lol As a pancake, I tell ya! At least gas prices are back down again. $2.73/gal here this morning!

Friday night I received this text message: Halloween Pumpkin Lilly

Is she a darling or what!!!?? I've got the greatest and cutest grandkids on the planet! And, yes, I'm partial LOL....very!

Today In History:

October 20, 1803

U.S. Senate ratifies the Louisiana Purchase

On this day in 1803, the U.S. Senate approves a treaty with France providing for the purchase of the territory of Louisiana, which would double the size of the United States.

At the end of 18th century, the Spanish technically owned Louisiana, the huge region west of the Mississippi that had once been claimed by France and named for its monarch, King Louis XIV. Despite Spanish ownership, American settlers in search of new land were already threatening to overrun the territory by the early 19th century. Recognizing it could not effectively maintain control of the region, Spain ceded Louisiana back to France in 1801, sparking intense anxieties in Washington, D.C. Under the leadership of Napoleon Bonaparte, France had become the most powerful nation in Europe, and unlike Spain, it had the military power and the ambition to establish a strong colony in Louisiana and keep out the Americans.

Realizing that it was essential that the U.S. at least maintain control of the mouth of the all-important Mississippi River, early in 1803 President Thomas Jefferson sent James Monroe to join the French foreign minister, Robert Livingston, in France to see if Napoleon might be persuaded to sell New Orleans and West Florida to the U.S. By that spring, the European situation had changed radically. Napoleon, who had previously envisioned creating a mighty new French empire in America, was now facing war with Great Britain. Rather than risk the strong possibility that Great Britain would quickly capture Louisiana and leave France with nothing, Napoleon decided to raise money for his war and simultaneously deny his enemy plum territory by offering to sell the entire territory to the U.S. for a mere $15 million. Flabbergasted, Monroe and Livingston decided that they couldn't pass up such a golden opportunity, and they wisely overstepped the powers delegated to them and accepted Napoleon's offer.

Despite his misgivings about the constitutionality of the purchase (the Constitution made no provision for the addition of territory by treaty), Jefferson finally agreed to send the treaty to the U.S. Senate for ratification, noting privately, "The less we say about constitutional difficulties the better." Despite his concerns, the treaty was ratified and the Louisiana Purchase now ranks as the greatest achievement of Jefferson's presidency.

October 20, 1944

Natural gas explosions rock Cleveland

Two liquid gas tanks explode in Cleveland, Ohio, killing 130 people, on this day in 1944. It took all of the city’s firefighters to bring the resulting industrial fire under control.

At 2:30 p.m., laboratory workers at the East Ohio Gas Company spotted white vapor leaking from the large natural gas tank at the company plant near Lake Erie. The circular tank had a diameter of 57 feet and could hold 90 million cubic feet of the highly flammable gas. Ten minutes later, a massive and violent explosion rocked the entire area. Flames went as high as 2,500 feet in the air. Everything in a half-mile vicinity of the explosion was completely destroyed.

Shortly afterwards, a smaller tank also exploded. The resulting out-of-control fire necessitated the evacuation of 10,000 people from the surrounding area. Every firefighting unit in Cleveland converged on the East Ohio Gas site. It still took nearly an entire day to bring the fire under control. When the flames went out, rescue workers found that 130 people had been killed by the blast and nearly half of the bodies were so badly burned that they could not be identified. Two hundred and fifteen people were injured and required hospitalization.

The explosion had destroyed two entire factories, 79 homes in the surrounding area and more than 200 vehicles. The total bill for damages exceeded $10 million. The cause of the blast had to do with the contraction of the metal tanks: The gas was stored at temperatures below negative 250 degrees and the resulting contraction of the metal had caused a steel plate to rupture.

Newer and safer techniques for storing gas and building tanks were developed in the wake of this disaster.

October 20, 1947

Congress investigates Reds in Hollywood

On October 20, 1947, the notorious Red Scare kicks into high gear in Washington, as a Congressional committee begins investigating Communist influence in one of the world's richest and most glamorous communities: Hollywood.

After World War II, the Cold War began to heat up between the world's two superpowers--the United States and the communist-controlled Soviet Union. In Washington, conservative watchdogs worked to out communists in government before setting their sights on alleged "Reds" in the famously liberal movie industry. In an investigation that began in October 1947, the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) grilled a number of prominent witnesses, asking bluntly "Are you or have you ever been a member of the Communist Party?" Whether out of patriotism or fear, some witnesses--including director Elia Kazan, actors Gary Cooper and Robert Taylor and studio honchos Walt Disney and Jack Warner--gave the committee names of colleagues they suspected of being communists.

A small group known as the "Hollywood Ten" resisted, complaining that the hearings were illegal and violated their First Amendment rights. They were all convicted of obstructing the investigation and served jail terms. Pressured by Congress, the Hollywood establishment started a blacklist policy, banning the work of about 325 screenwriters, actors and directors who had not been cleared by the committee. Those blacklisted included composer Aaron Copland, writers Dashiell Hammett, Lillian Hellman and Dorothy Parker, playwright Arthur Miller and actor and filmmaker Orson Welles.

Some of the blacklisted writers used pseudonyms to continue working, while others wrote scripts that were credited to other writer friends. Starting in the early 1960s, after the downfall of Senator Joseph McCarthy, the most public face of anti-communism, the ban began to lift slowly. In 1997, the Writers' Guild of America unanimously voted to change the writing credits of 23 films made during the blacklist period, reversing--but not erasing--some of the damage done during the Red Scare.

October 20, 1962

Kennedy press secretary misleads press

On this day in 1962, the White House press corps is told that President John F. Kennedy has a cold; in reality, he is holding secret meetings with advisors on the eve of ordering a blockade of Cuba.

Kennedy was in Seattle and scheduled to attend the Seattle Century 21 World’s Fair when his press secretary announced that he had contracted an "upper respiratory infection." The president then flew back to Washington, where he supposedly went to bed to recover from his cold.

Four days earlier, Kennedy had seen photographic proof that the Soviets were building 40 ballistic missile sites on the island of Cuba--within striking distance of the United States. Kennedy’s supposed bed rest was actually a marathon secret session with advisors to decide upon a response to the Soviet action. The group believed that Kennedy had three choices: to negotiate with the Russians to remove the missiles; to bomb the missile sites in Cuba; or implement a naval blockade of the island. Kennedy chose to blockade Cuba, deciding to bomb the missile sites only if further action proved necessary.

The blockade began October 21 and, the next day, Kennedy delivered a public address alerting Americans to the situation and calling on Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev to remove the missiles or face retaliation by the United States. Khrushchev responded by sending more ships—possibly carrying military cargo—toward Cuba and allowing construction at the sites to continue. Over the following six days, the Cuban Missile Crisis, as it is now known, brought the world to the brink of global nuclear war while the two leaders engaged in tense negotiations via telegram and letter.

By October 28, Kennedy and Khrushchev had reached a settlement and people on both sides of the conflict breathed a collective but wary sigh of relief. The Cuban missile sites were dismantled and, in return, Kennedy agreed to close U.S. missile sites in Turkey.

Until next post.....

Johnny Depp and the Indianapolis Colts!?!

2008-10-17T15:06:00.004-04:00

Life has been a whirlwind lately but I saw this posted at JDR and just had to share it on the blog. Two of my favorite things together! Isn't this picture just like Johnny and Hunter? Wonder what they were really up to lol!!! Gotta run....have a safe weekend all....until next post :)

From the Gonzo Photo book with intro by Johnny Depp. The picture credit reads: "Johnny Depp with football helmet".

The photo appears on a page of Polaroids in which Hunter also appears in drag. It is dated 18 July 1997 and appears to be taken at Owl Farm... the background is very dark but similar to others in the "series."

Credit and thanks to Cindy and Dharma Bum from The Zone and BuccaRoux at JDR

Championship Hopes Dashed and Investment Advice

2008-10-08T12:35:00.004-04:00

Well, the race last weekend was highly disappointing!! Gordon crashed while trying to avoid a spinning car and finished 38Th after running very well up to that point. Then several more championship chasers wrecked which minimized the points damage but probably not enough. One of the highlights of the weekend was the Colts game. Fourth quarter and 6+ minutes left in the game, score is 10-27 Texans. Colts fans say it all the time and last week proved, "It not over until it's over!". What a come back! Even we had said their 'done', right before they sacked the Texans quarterback, made him cough up the ball and ran it for a touchdown! Twice!! Sweet!! Colts win 31-27 :)

The state of the economy is still spiraling downward. Not just here but the world economy is failing. News is out that AIG took the $85 billion bailout and 4 days later treated their top executives to a Spa over the weekend for $440 thousand. Now lawmakers are thinking about making them pay them back the $440...ya think!?! Geesh!! The stocks keep falling and our 401K retirement is dwindling. It's beginning to look like those of us 50 or over can kiss retirement goodbye until we hit 90, if we live that long. Here's some valuable investment advice I came across that maybe we should have taken:

If you had purchased $1,000 of Delta Air Lines stock one year ago, you would have $49 left.

With Fannie Mae, you would have $2.50 left of the original $1,000.

With AIG, you would have less than $15 left.

But, if you had purchased $1,000 worth of beer one year ago, drank all of the beer, then turned in the cans for the aluminum recycling REFUND, you would have $214 cash. Based on the above, the best current investment advice is to drink heavily and recycle.

Here's an interesting story for you to read while I go drink beer to raise money to retire...

October 8, 1871

Fire rips through Chicago

The Great Chicago Fire begins on this day in 1871. It goes on to kill 250 people, leave 100,000 people homeless and destroy thousands of buildings. All told, the fire was responsible for an estimated $200 million in damages (more than $3 billion in today's money), approximately one-third of the city’s entire worth. At the time, slightly more than 300,000 people lived in Chicago, which was quickly becoming a transportation hub for goods and people traveling between the East Coast and the burgeoning frontier.

The fire began near the home of Patrick and Catherine O’Leary at 137 De Koven Street in southwest Chicago at about 9 p.m. Legend holds that the fire started when the family's cow knocked over a lantern, but it is unknown whether this is actually true. What is known is that within 90 minutes, the fire was completely out of control and rapidly moving toward the city center.

Blinding hot ash and dust swirled as the blaze grew—at its height, it was as much as a mile wide. The winds were so strong and unpredictable that firefighters found it virtually impossible to establish safe positions from which to battle the blaze. Lake Michigan proved to be the only thing that could halt the fire as it raced four miles west. The fire continued to burn wildly throughout the following day, finally coming under control on October 10, when rain gave a needed boost to firefighting efforts.

Of the 18,000 buildings that were destroyed by the fire, the most notable was the city’s courthouse, which had cost over $1 million to build. The Field and Leiter department store was also lost, with an estimated $2 million of merchandise inside.

The fire prompted an outbreak of looting and lawlessness. Five companies of soldiers stationed in Nebraska and Kansas were summoned to Chicago and martial law was declared on October 11, ending three days of chaos. The military stayed for two weeks restoring order. Meanwhile, refugees filled the beaches of Lake Michigan, waiting until they could safely return to the city.

The following month, Joseph Medill was elected mayor after promising to institute stricter building and fire codes, a pledge that may have helped him win the office. His victory might also be attributable to the fact that most of the city’s voting records were destroyed in the fire, so it was next to impossible to keep people from voting more than once.

Chug, chug...until next post...

FireStorm

2008-10-03T12:58:00.005-04:00

I've heard about this for several weeks, following the rumors and speculation with trepidation. Wasn't sure when the unveiling would be, this season or waiting for Speedweeks 2009, but the best kept secret in NASCAR is out! On the Today Show, Jeff Gordon revealed the new paint scheme for his car and crew for next season: FireStorm

I'm glad it stayed similar to what he's had the past 8 years but it's different enough that I will have to go out and buy some new souvenirs. The flames blend further back on car, the yellow graduating to orange on the front make it necessary for me to update my collection. Sigh, the trials and tribulations of a fan LOL. I actually like this paint scheme a lot. It was designed by Sam Bass, as all his cars have been. It's better than some of the specialty paint schemes he's used off and on. The Nicorette (green) car and some of the Pepsi cars are hard to see and keep track of during the race. I am used to looking for that bright orange/red so hopefully this car will stand out against the others next year.

Jeff still has a chance to win the championship this year as you can see from my "At A Glance" in the sidebar. I think it's a slim chance but at least he's not out of it yet. From the way it looks, his teammate Jimmie Johnson is going to steal the show again. But how cool would it be if Jimmie were to win 3 championships in a row?!

Notice how I didn't bring up anything political or the word debate? I'll save that for later...

Off to get some work done that I'm actually getting paid to do :P Have a safe weekend

Until next post....

Back to normal...blah

2008-10-01T08:37:00.005-04:00

Maybe it's a bad thing to take a vacation. I thoroughly enjoyed my time off. My first time taking a whole week in 5 years!! I got so many things done around the house. Not only did I get the playroom set up, I got a lot of cleaning done that you just don't have time to do when working 40 hours a week. The down side to that is I really don't want to work now. If last week was bliss....this week is hell. But, work is work and it's not going to change anytime soon.
On Saturday, we cleaned out the garage of all the summer stuff so we could put the vehicles in for winter. Then we tackled the woodshed that we have been cleaning out. All the wood is in the barn now and it's the first time in about 20 years that we've seen the whole cement floor in the woodshed!! We joked that the wood was the only thing that was holding it up. Guess we were wrong because it's still standing. It's coming down anyway because we have plans to take it down and put one of those wooden play sets there for the grandkids next spring. All the kitties aren't to happy with us, they stayed in the woodshed, since they had to find places to sleep in the other barns. That reminds me, Tiger Momma is expecting again....ugh!! I'm waiting for Hubby to explode about being infested with cats! Love me, love my cats....
I surprised myself by not even turning on the TV most days. No CNN, NASCAR! I did watch my Pirates DVDs one day and when the kids were there Jack watched Charlie and the Chocolate Factory over and over and over!! LOL I was so out of touch with the rest of the world. I didn't even know about hurricane Kyle until it was almost to land but I did hear about Paul Newman when I checked qualifying on Friday. He was a hell-of-a guy. I can't choose a favorite movie of his but it would be between Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid or The Sting. I just love those two together! Yesterday was the anniversary of the death of James Dean. It's big around here since we are less than an hour away from his birthplace. They have all kinds of festivals, car shows and such, around here for his birthday.
Once I was back at work I checked my news sites and saw that the Chaiten volcano is still making it's presence known. Check out this web cam from Chile...

http://teletrece.canal13.cl/t13/html/Chaiten/index.html

Also, Fournaise, in France, had an eruption. Check out the web cam here:

http://www.fournaise.info/webcam06.php

Just keep in mind the time difference. Daytime here is night time there ;)

How about a blast from the past? It's been awhile since I posted from the History site:

Today in History:

How many of you remember.. or ."One of these days, one of these days...POW! Right in the kisser!" or "To the moon, Alice!" No? Remember this one? "Har har, hardee har har!"

October 1, 1955

The Honeymooners debuts

The Honeymooners debuts on CBS. The TV comedy, which starred Jackie Gleason, enjoyed enduring popularity despite the fact that it aired only 39 episodes.

The show originated in 1951 as a sketch on Gleason's variety show Cavalcade of Stars. He continued the sketches when he launched a new program, The Jackie Gleason Show, in 1952. In these skits, Gleason played bus driver Ralph Kramden, and Audrey Meadows played his long-suffering wife, Alice, who deflated his get-rich-quick schemes but often saved the day. Art Carney played friend and sidekick Ed Norton, and Joyce Randolph played Ed's wife, Trixie.

By 1955, Gleason had tired of the hour-long variety-show format and wanted to try something new. He suggested creating two half-hour programs instead. One would be The Honeymooners, a sitcom, and the other would be Stage Show, a musical-variety show that Gleason would produce. Among Stage Show's many musical guests was first-time TV performer Elvis Presley, in January 1956.

In a departure from most TV shows at the time, The Honeymooners was filmed in front of a live audience and broadcast at a later date. To allow Gleason more time to pursue other producing projects, he taped two episodes a week, leaving him free for several months at the end of the season.

Unfortunately, the two shows did not do as well with audiences as Gleason had hoped, and only 39 episodes of the The Honeymooners aired. In 1956, Gleason returned to his hour-long variety format, occasionally including Honeymooners skits. In 1966, he began creating hour-long Honeymooners episodes, which he aired in lieu of his usual variety format. From 1966 to 1970, about half of Gleason's shows were these hour-long episodes. In 1971, the episodes were rebroadcast as their own series. On May 9, 1971, the final episode aired. Gleason died in 1987 at the age of 71.

October 1, 1890

Congress creates Yosemite National Park

On this day in 1890, the United States Congress decrees that about 1,500 square miles of public land in the California Sierra Nevada will be preserved forever as Yosemite National Park.

Once the home to Indians whose battle cry Yo-che-ma-te ("some among them are killers") gave the park its name, Anglo-Americans began to settle in Yosemite Valley as early as the 1850s, eventually driving out the native inhabitants. Early settlers quickly recognized the unique beauty of the narrow Yosemite Valley with the sheer-faced Half Dome Mountain looming nearly a mile above the valley floor and three stunning waterfalls. At that time other awe-inspiring natural wonders like Niagara Falls were already becoming popular American tourist destinations, and a few early settlers tried to profit from the wonders of the Yosemite Valley by charging tourists hefty fees. But thanks to the popular paintings of Albert Bierstadt and the photographs of Carlton Watkins, Americans who would never see the magnificent valley in person began to call for its preservation from crass commercial development. In June 1864, President Abraham Lincoln agreed, signing a bill that ceded the small Yosemite Valley area, along with the Mariposa Grove of giant sequoia trees, to the state of California with the requirement that it be held as a national public trust "for all time."

But in subsequent years, the state of California proved a less than vigilant caretaker of the Yosemite, inspiring the famous naturalist John Muir to publish several widely read articles exposing the destruction of the valley by large herds of sheep that Muir called "hoofed locusts." In 1890, Muir's efforts, as well as those of the newly founded Sierra Club, convinced Congress that Yosemite would be better protected as one part of a 1,500-square-mile national park. Though later reduced in size to 540 square miles, Yosemite National Park has ever since been one of the most popular nature preserves in the world. Today the park receives more than four million visitors annually.

(here's a link to the geyser web cam http://www.nps.gov/archive/yell/oldfaithfulcam.htm ) I've never made it that far west but hope to someday. I want to see the Grand Canyon too!

Ok, I better get busy here. Until next post.....

Vacation Day One

2008-09-22T15:09:00.003-04:00

This is officially day 1 of vacation. No Jacuzzi time with Johnny....YET!! lol I did get the upstairs cleaned up and organized. Yeah!! Now one room is just for grandkids sleeping over and the other bedroom is set up as a play room. I even put together a Barbie Doll House that had been handed down from my sister-in-law. Came in pieces with no instructions but I have it together. I'm sure it looks nothing like the original but what the heck, they'll play with it. Had to throw a lot of little pieces away since we still have 2 little ones but there was 2 Ken dolls and must be about 20 Barbies of all shapes and sizes. Plus a Barbie RV which I know Jack will like but he likes playing house too. Of course, his playing house can consist of Miltary men bombing, or dolls doing daredevil feats of jumping off the roof.
The upstairs has been a 'catch all' since our kids moved out and it's nice to have the rooms and landing cleaned up. There is actually absolutely nothing sitting on the stairs waiting to be taken up! I even got the laundry done and the downstairs swept. Amanda is due anytime to be here with her 2 to let them run in hopes of tiring them out so they go to bed tonight and sleep so Mommy and Daddy can watch HEROS tonight. Stuff like that never worked for me but she can try. LOL I told her she better have a tapes ready...
I'm looking forward to the kids seeing what I've done today. Hope all who stop by here are doing well and I will try to stop by and post when I can.

Until next post.....

Vacations

2008-09-18T13:25:00.006-04:00

Yikes!!! I'm going crazy!! I'm taking next week off of work because this place is driving me wacko! However, getting ready to take a week off is three times worse than just being here but it's not going to stop me from getting out!! Trying to make sure I don't forget things I have started. Making sure I leave notes on things that might come in while I'm off and everything in-between. A couple weeks ago I showed my face to the office manager regarding 'you know who' and how she sits around doing very little and even 'takes naps at her desk' while I'm covered up with work (some of it hers, in my humble opinion...) to the point that I was thinking about

....taking slow, even breaths........ in........ out........in........out........ any who, when all was said and done I pulled a card out from my sleeve (not literally) and violà

One more day and I'm outta here..... yippee!! I have no plans other than that's the week all the new shows start :) Dancing with the Stars is on 3 nights, Heroes starts again so..... The other night I spilled my Pepsi on the kitchen floor so I will probably mop the kitchen. I need to clean the carpet but I don't know if I'll get that done. I almost need Hubby's help moving the furniture anymore. It sucks to get old.
I'm sure I'll find time to watch some JD movies and/or soak in the Jacuzzi. I say and/or because one night the Hubby was watching TV (if you want to call it that, he has a habit of changing the channel every time a commercial comes on to the point that I don't even know WHAT he was watching originally) and my nerves were totally shot. I finally got up and started the water for a bath. Then I took a TV table into the bathroom and put my laptop on it. There I was, soaking in my Jacuzzi with 21 Jump Street DVD playing. I had to put the headphones on to hear it over the jets but what a way to spend a couple hours! Told ya I was crazy lol but it was 'quality time' for me. Okay, I need to get some more work done.

Until next post....

Ike and his visit to Indiana

2008-09-16T14:18:00.005-04:00

First, I want to post a short follow up on the events of 9/11/01. I've been trying to get back here and just haven't had time. One of the other things that stood out at that time was 5 or 6 days later. Each day after 9/11 was filled with watching TV and checking stories online. It seemed I couldn't get enough info to justify this horrendous act. One day, on the way home, I decide to just run through McDonald's and grab some fast food. I had placed my order and was sitting in the drive-thru line waiting for my turn when suddenly I realize I hear a plane! It was thousands of feet in the air but it was the first plane I had seen or heard since the attacks and I couldn't help leaning my head out the window and just staring at it. Then I looked around and everyone was looking up at the sky just watching that plane. It was a sign, a symbol, that America wasn't destroyed nor intimidated. Patriotic pride ran rampart in that small mid-American town as people smiled, talked to strangers and began to look toward the future again. It was another surreal moment that I will remember forever. On to Ike...Texas sure got hit bad. Death toll not near as bad as Katrina (Thank God) but lots of damage and some areas are completely destroyed. I hate that some residents in the danger zone didn't heed the warnings from the NWS and get out! Was amazed when Ike got to land-locked Indiana he was still throwing a powerful punch. We had gusts of 50-60 mph winds at our house and some areas reported 80-85 mph winds. Ike still had some rain but it was nothing compared to the wind. The house shook and rattled. The bedroom doors shifted back and forth from the pressure, we could hear the aluminum eaves popping but none were blown out. The wind went on and on for hours. There was twice when the gusts came through that I thought I was going to have to grab the grandkids and get to the basement. It was like a tornado was coming but it was just wind. We had one tree that got the top blown off of it. Unfortunately it wasn't one of them we need to take down but oh well! At least we had no damage.

Here's something I got in an email from my Dad:

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW, BUT PROBABLY DON'T:

1. Money isn't made out of paper; it's made out of cotton.

2. The Declaration of Independence was written on hemp (marijuana) paper.

3. The dot over the letter 'i' is called a 'tittle'.

4. A raisin dropped in a glass of fresh champagne will bounce up and down continuously from the bottom of the glass to the top.

5. Susan Lucci is the daughter of Phyllis Diller.

6. 40% of McDonald's profits come from the sales of Happy Meals.

7. 315 entries in Webster's 1996 Dictionary were misspelled.

8. The 'spot' on 7UP comes from its inventor, who had red eyes. He wa s albino.

9. On average, 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents, daily.

10. Warren Beatty and Shirley MacLaine are brother and sister.

11. Chocolate affects a dog's heart and nervous system; a few ounces will kill a small-sized dog

12. Orcas (killer whales) kill sharks by torpedoing up into the shark's stomach from underneath, causing the shark to explode.

13. Most lipstick contains fish scales (eeww).

14. Donald Duck comics were banned from Finland because he doesn't wear pants.

15. Ketchup was sold in the 1830's as medicine.

16. Upper- and lower-case letters are named 'upper' and 'lower' because in the time when all original print had to be set in individual letters, the Upper case' letters were stored in the case on top of the case that stored the smaller, 'lower case' letters.

17. Leonardo Da Vinci could write with one hand and draw with the other at the same time, hence, multi-tasking was invented.

18. Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood.

19. There are no clocks in Las Vegas gambling casinos.

20. The name Wendy was made up for the book Peter Pan; there was never a recorded Wendy before!

21. There are no words in the dictionary that rhyme with: orange, purple, and silver!

22. Leonardo Da Vinci invented scissors. Also, it took him 10 years to paint Mona Lisa's lips.

23. A tiny amount of liquor on a scorpion will make it instantly go mad and sting itself to death.

24. The mask used by Michael Myers in the original 'Halloween' was a Captain Kirk's mask painted white.

25. If you have three quarters, four dimes, and four pennies, you have $1.19. You also have the largest amount of money in coins without being able to make change for a dollar (good to know.)

26. By raising your legs slowly and lying on your back, you can't sink in quicksand (and you thought this list was completely useless.)

27. The phrase 'rule of thumb' is derived from an old English law, which stated that you couldn't beat your wife with anything wider than your thumb.

28. The first product Motorola started to develop was a record player for automobiles. At that time, the most known player on the market was the Victrola, so they called themselves Motorola.

29. Celery has negative calories! It takes more calories to eat a piece of celery than the celery has in it to begin with. It's the same with apples.

30. Chewing gum while peeling onions will keep you from crying!

31. The glue on Israeli postage stamps is certified kosher.

32. Guinness Book of Records holds the record for being the book most often stolen from Public Libraries.

33. Astronauts are not allowed to eat beans before they go into space because passing wind in a space suit damages it. I NEED TO REMEMBER THIS.

34. George Carlin said it best about Martha Stewart. 'Boy, I feel a lot safer now that she's behind bars. O. J. Simpson and Kobe Bryant are still walking around; Osama Bin Laden too, but they take the ONE woman in America willing to cook, clean, and work in the yard, and they haul her off to jail.'

Ok, some of this I did already know lol but some of it was new! :) It still doesn't say what happened to the Cent key on the keyboard!! :P

Until next post....

Remembering

2008-09-11T14:07:00.006-04:00

It's amazing how in the blink of an eye, your whole perception of the world can change. September 11, 2001 is a day when people all over the US will says, "I remember what I was doing when I heard about the attack."

For me I was at work. This was when the family printing business was still up and running. I heard it first on my radio. The announcer was saying something about an airplane hitting one of the twin towers but nothing in his voice sounded stressed. I was playing games online and some of the people in the chat area were saying the damage to the tower was very bad. About 5 minutes later he came back on with an update. You could begin to hear the stress in his voice. He was talking about it not being a small aircraft because you could see a huge fire going on. At this point I went online to CNN and was absorbed into what was happening on my computer screen.

When the second plane hit, my sister and I left work and went to a restaurant down the road that had a TV. When we walked in everyone was subdued Not a sound could be heard except the TV. A few of the women sitting at tables were crying and I distinctly remember one lade sitting at her table with her head bowed and praying. Every single person in there was focused on watching the TV. We were still there when the plane hit the Pentagon and couldn't force ourselves to leave as we watched them track a rogue plane that they thought was heading for the White House.

When the day came to an end, it all just seemed so surreal. I will never forget the images of the people in NYC covered in ash and debris. Nor will I forget the men and women who gave their lives that day. I pray for each man and woman that entered the Armed Services because of the events of this day.

Two years ago I buried my brother on 9/11 and today I got a phone call from my mom that Phil's best and treasured friend left this world today to join him. It will be a rough couple days but I want to be there for Eddie's wife, Jana, because Eddie was always there for Phil, through thick and thin. Jana was just telling us the other day how Phil would show up at their house at 3am. He played music in the bars so it was always late when his work was done. She said he would knock on the door and say, "Jana, can Eddie come out to play?" God, I miss him but I'm not the only one. Now he and Eddie can play as long as they want....

Apology and more Johnny Depp

2008-09-09T14:04:00.009-04:00

Sorry to all who have stopped by and I haven't posted anything new. First off, I got sick over Labor Day weekend. Jack managed to pass his strep throat off to his Mom and then me! Comes with the territory... I'm almost done with the antibiotics and the sore throat and ear ache are gone.

This is a rough time of year for me. I struggle through it but I'm always just a little bit down each day. Last Sunday, a few local bands got together and put on a Memorial Concert and Hog Roast in honor of my brother, Phil. This is the second year for it and I DID manage to go this year and have a decent time. I have been able to get out his Cd's and listen to his music without bawling my eyes out so there has been improvement. A lot of it is a false bravado but I'm working on it.

It's been hard to listen to his music and know that I'll never get to see or talk to him again. I miss his shenanigans, sense of humor and jokes. Most of the time I could tell myself he's just off doing what he does and it works until the holidays/birthdays come around and he doesn't show up. He played music all his life. For awhile he traveled with The Fortunes. Anyone remember that group? From the 60's & 70's. They were a UK group but Phil did the US tour with them in the 90's. A couple songs I always liked are 'Here Comes That Rainy Day Feeling Again' and everyone knows 'Seasons in the Sun'!
Here's a couple You Tube videos...keep in mind Phil played keyboard. (I should make it clear that it is NOT Phil in these videos.)

http://tinyurl.com/5q6ru3

http://tinyurl.com/6y9368

Ok, speaking of Memorials (smooth change, huh?) here's a couple new pictures from the Sheila Witkins Memorial Concert with The Kids:

Is the man having fun or what!?!? These pictures I picked up at JDR and a couple members went to the concert and reported back that the first night after the concert he did a meet-n-greet!!! How awesome is that? Wish I could have been there. Enjoy!! Today's post is all over the place but it's a post :)

Seasons In The Sun
The Fortunes

Goodbye Emil, my trusted friend
We've known each other since we were nine or ten
Together we climbed hills and trees
Learned of love and ABC's
Skinned our hearts and skinned our knees

Goodbye Emil, it's hard to die
When all the bird's are singing in the sky
Now that the spring is in the air
Pretty girls are everywhere
I wish we could both be there

We had joy, we had fun, we had seasons in the sun
But the hills we could climb were just seasons out of time

Goodbye Papa, please pray for me
I was the black sheep of the family
You tried to show me right from wrong
But too much wine and too much song
Wonder how I got along

Goodbye Papa, it's hard to die
When all the bird's are singing in the sky
Now that the spring is in the air
Little kids are everywhere
Think of me and I'll be there

We had joy, we had fun, we had seasons in the sun
But the wine and the song like the seasons have all gone

Goodbye Francoise, my trusted wife
Without you I'd had a lonely life
You cheated lots of times with them
But I forgave you in the end
Though your lover was my friend

Goodbye Francoise, it's hard to die
When all the birds are singing in the sky
Now that the spring is in the air
With your lovers everywhere
Just be careful, I'll be there

We had joy, we had fun, we had seasons in the sun
But the stars we could reach were just starfish on the beach

Goodbye Michelle, my little one
You gave me joy and helped me find the sun
And every time when I was down
You would always come around
And get my feet back on the ground

Until next post....

Things I should be doing...

2008-08-30T10:48:00.007-04:00

I should be running the sweeper, dusting, laundry or any number of things I don't get done through the week. The Hubby got a call early today from his hunting buddy to come over and help him. They lost power to part of the house and he can't track down the problem. So I have the house to myself for a time. Instead of getting stuff done around the house, here I am playing on the Internet and watching Gustav's progress. I uploaded new pics of grandkids to add to the 'Kafe' slide show, did up the dishes and started the tea syrup. So that's something! I also took some pics of our indoor cats:

Here's Samhein (Sami), the queen of the house. She was indoors first so I guess that's appropriate. Yesterday was her birthday but we didn't get her until almost Halloween, hence the name. Samhein Festival is what Halloween evolved from. I can't remember how old she is (bad mommy) but she's the youngest indoors. I think she's 5 today but it could be 6. She keeps trying to walk across my keyboard so she's looking for attention....again. When we want her to come to us she won't unless it's something she wants to do.

Next up is Natasha or we call her Momma. When I was leaving for work one day I heard a truck coming up the road and as it cleared the tree line I see this cat jump out from underneath it and roll in the road! I holler for it but it takes off into the corn field. A couple days later Hubby calls me outside and asks "Is that the cat you saw?" and there she is coming across the yard. I put out food and water and she makes herself at home. I tried a coupe times to find that truck parked at a house down the road but never did. I have no idea how long she road under the truck until it slowed down for the culvert. I wasn't long before she had 5 kittens and we got her fixed. A few years back a dog (the neighbors but we couldn't prove it) got a hold of her and practically ripped her left front leg off and we had to have it amputated and she became an indoor cat. It doesn't slow her down and she got the nickname Tripod. Not sure how old she was when she arrived on our doorstep but she's been here about 12 years.

Meet Nadia, she is one of Momma's kittens and stayed outside. In fact she loved it outdoors. Then a few years ago we had coyotes move into the area and animals were disappearing so we brought her in. Now she will look outside and snubs her nose at it. She knows where the easy life is. Yes, in this picture, she is laying on my kitchen table. Cats rule in this house or suffer the consequences. She is 10 years old now. She likes to sleep on Hubby's feet. Doesn't matter where he is, wherever he sits down that's where she goes.

This is the newest addition to the household and the easiest to take care of. My second puppet, Pearl Sock. She loves kids and loves to talk. I've yet to get her some arms made but the kids love her and the cats are afraid of her! LOL

Well, I've got the roast started while blogging and the tea finished up. Talked to my best friend, Linda, (Hi Linda and Jim!!) to let her know 'her' Jimmie is racing tonight in the Nationwide series race. Hubby is back home and the power trouble was the fault of the Electric Company. Seems they had a ground wire break off so it was an easy fix. As I said, lots to do today. We have a birthday party tomorrow for my Dad, 72, so the whole family will be together again. Have a fun weekend everyone and safe holiday! Until next post.....

Cookouts and holidays

2008-08-29T14:27:00.007-04:00

Wow, been a few days since I posted and I had to dust off the cobwebs and wipe down the tables. Meant to post this morning but the Controller here surprised us by planning a cookout for lunch so I had to get some of my work done early. Now I'm waiting on one of the girls to get back with our Dairy Queen Blizzards!!! Mmmmm I'm getting the Oreo :)
Hoping you all have a safe and fun holiday. Keep anyone in the path of Gustav and Hanna in your prayers. Not sure yet where either one of them is headed but prayers never hurt.
Jack and Maggie are recovering along with their Momma, who came down with a sore throat on Tuesday (surprise). The only thing we have planned this weekend is a birthday party for my Dad on Sunday.
Oh did you see the new photo with Johnny Depp. It's him and his band, The Kids, with Dan Marino. Johnny and the band are doing a concert and some of the benefits are going to promoter Sheila Wilkens and one of Dan's Charities.

I also added a new blog to my list, Organized Doodles. Blogger, Rick, had left a comment here and I followed him back. He's a great caricature artist and has a wicked sense of humor. Check it out when you can.
Mmmmm....my Blizzard is here!!!!!! This is delicious!! Ice cream + Oreo = heaven!!! I definitely won't be eating super tonight LOL
I've also been busy trying to catch up on some french lessons ou françaises leçons. I have slacked off ever since Public Enemies started shooting and need to get back into it. Imagine that!! So much to do...so little time.
Wowsa, I just got a system message tell us we could leave an hour early today. Hot damn, I need to finish stuff up so I can get the 'H' out of here. Have a safe holiday....until next post.

From yard sale to Birthday party...

2008-08-26T08:46:00.004-04:00

I'm back! Well, I was back yesterday but had too much catch up work to do....whew!! I finally got the slide show to load here. Geesh, that was an exercise in patience but don't those kids just make you smile? I've decided the Grandkids are my legacy. I may not have done much with my life here on earth but I did raise great kids and have the best Grandkids.
Thursday, I went and picked up Jack and Maggie and we played at my house all day. Surprisingly, Jack wanted to watch Cry Baby, LOL. Who am I to stop someone from watching a Johnny movie? He really liked all the singing. We also put together Pearl Sock. Pearl was made to be friends and play with Mr. Sock which Jack took home with him. Pearl, my second puppet made in many, many moons, has hair, red lips and a dress too. I got brave lol. I sacrificed a perfectly good pair of socks so Mr. Sock could have a friend but it was worth it for all the fun we had making her together. I started making Pearl talk to the cats and they totally freak out!! Poor Nadia and Sami are now scared for life because of puppets.
On Friday, I stayed over at their house to watch the kids. My mom and I helped Amanda out with her yard sale. The sale was a flop :( but we had some quality time and it was nice to have 4 generations sharing stories. Jack is still taking antibiotics for the strep throat so he was wound up. By 4:00 we were all hot, tired and hungry so we packed it up for the day. I picked up some McDonald's on my way home, hit the shower and promptly feel asleep on the couch watching the Nationwide race.
Saturday I met my parents, my younger sister Kay, Aunt Kathy and Ed and his wife Jana, old friends of my brother Phil, out at the cemetery. The 23rd would have been Phil's 59th birthday and it was the 2nd anniversary of his death. Ed had cancer of the larynx several years ago and used a voice box to talk but he found out a few months ago that he has cancer in his lungs and there is nothing they can do. He has gone from 160 lbs. to 112 lbs. in 2 months. This may be the last time he gets to celebrate birthdays with Phil. Mom, Dad, Kay and I went out afterwards for lunch then I met Bob, hubby, at Amanda and Tom's house and we took the kids over to the fair. Yes, I ate an Elephant Ear, well half of one, and mmmmm was it good!! I did resist the caramel apples though, so I was half good or half bad depending on how you want to look at it. :) Amanda is afraid of clowns and Ferris Wheels (don't ask me) so I took Jack on the Ferris Wheel and he was amazed that we could see his house. Then we hit the Fun House and the midway. After several tries to knock over a golf tee sitting between 2 pool balls to win a 14" Spiderman we gave up and the man running the trailer told Jack he could throw darts at balloons until he won. Have you ever tried to explain to a 2 year old how to throw a dart....straight? LOL He did finally burst 3 balloons and got a stuffed dog. He wasn't very happy cause he wanted the Spiderman but I guess it's just one of many lessons he will have to learn...you're not suppose to win big on the midway.
Sunday, we picked up Amanda and the kids and went to Richmond. Our first stop was to see Grandma Helen. She had been asking to see the kids for sometime and was so happy with our surprise visit. Then we were off to Lilly's birthday party. She is now 2 years old and loves her baby dolls. She got some new books to read and a couple new dolls, outfits to dress them up, doll diapers and bottles. Amanda got her a stroller for her dolls. She was one happy camper.
Now it's back to work for me. Jack had some kind of breathing attack Sunday night, so now he's on new antibiotics and breathing treatments. If his Dr. doesn't get a handle on what is going on with him soon I think we are going to have to go to Riley Hosp. to see if they can tell us more. He was sounding like me when I had bronchitis. With as much antibiotics as he has in his system I just don't think he should be getting anything and he should be tested better. We'll see how he does and then decide.
I saw this morning on the news that Gustav has been upgraded to a hurricane. Will keep you and the girls in my thoughts and prayers Shakes! I will be keeping an eye on this one. I better run and get some work done...stay safe.....until next post

Olympic judging

2008-08-19T09:08:00.007-04:00

I should first say that I am not a sports judge nor have I ever been a judge and don't want to be a judge. I did, however, judge a poster contest...twice, but I don't think that would count. Yes, I watched the Women's Uneven Bar competition last night. I feel like Nastia Luikin was robbed. He Kexin made a few mistakes during her performance. The handstand that wasn't vertical and held for too short a time should have been a good size deduction. Then the misstep on the landing. Nastia had a few mistakes also but they were smaller deductions and she nailed her landing. Had the scoring been correct at this point, then there would have been no tie! Thus, no tie-breaker controversy. Nastia should have got the gold. Of course, this is just my humble opinion. And that's not even getting into the age thing! If He Kexin is 16 then Shawn Johnson is 30! Stepping down from my soap box!! Enough said!

Wanted to send out a heads up on my blogging. I am taking Thursday and Friday off this week to help out Amanda with the kids. So there likely won't be any posting. The town she lives in has what they call Blue Bird Days. It's a small fair like event with rides and fair food. (Resist the elephant ears!) They also use it as an All Town Rummage sale (Resist the elephant ears!). I will go over in the mornings to help with rummage sale and then when the kids get tired I will take them to my house for naps and playtime. Was hoping to get a new puppet made before this but, alas, Sally Sock is still in the sewing bag. Will have to see if I can get to work on that project. In the mean time, here's some Indiana and World news history for you all.

This Day in History:

August 19, 1909

First race is held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

On this day in 1909, the first race is held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, now the home of the world's most famous motor racing competition, the Indianapolis 500.

Built on 328 acres of farmland five miles northwest of Indianapolis, Indiana, the speedway was started by local businessmen as a testing facility for Indiana's growing automobile industry. The idea was that occasional races at the track would pit cars from different manufacturers against each other. After seeing what these cars could do, spectators would presumably head down to the showroom of their choice to get a closer look.

The rectangular two-and-a-half-mile track linked four turns, each exactly 440 yards from start to finish, by two long and two short straight sections. In that first five-mile race on August 19, 1909, 12,000 spectators watched Austrian engineer Louis Schwitzer win with an average speed of 57.4 miles per hour. The track's surface of crushed rock and tar proved a disaster, breaking up in a number of places and causing the deaths of two drivers, two mechanics and two spectators.

The surface was soon replaced with 3.2 million paving bricks, laid in a bed of sand and fixed with mortar. Dubbed "The Brickyard," the speedway reopened in December 1909. In 1911, low attendance led the track's owners to make a crucial decision: Instead of shorter races, they resolved to focus on a single, longer event each year, for a much larger prize. That May 30 marked the debut of the Indy 500--a grueling 500-mile race that was an immediate hit with audiences and drew press attention from all over the country. Driver Ray Haroun won the purse of $14,250, with an average speed of 74.59 mph and a total time of 6 hours and 42 minutes.

Since 1911, the Indianapolis 500 has been held every year, with the exception of 1917-18 and 1942-45, when the United States was involved in the two world wars. With an average crowd of 400,000, the Indy 500 is the best-attended event in U.S. sports. In 1936, asphalt was used for the first time to cover the rougher parts of the track, and by 1941 most of the track was paved. The last of the speedway's original bricks were covered in 1961, except for a three-foot line of bricks left exposed at the start-finish line as a nostalgic reminder of the track's history.

Take care.....(Resist the elephant ears!) until next post...
he he he I crept back in and added some NASCAR to my sidebar :)

Fay and the Olympics

2008-08-18T14:11:00.004-04:00

Meant to post earlier but I got to watching my Key West camera at Sloppy Joe's and I lost track of time. If anyone wants to check it out go here. http://www.liveduvalstreet.com/ Once there you can also click the 'Crowd Cam' and it's a camera they put on the roof. (For as long as it last) Had been a long time since I checked out this website. I used to have it up everyday watching for my brother to pass by and wave :) When I first got to work today and started watching, it just look like it had been raining and quit. Just some of Fay's outer bands going through. Soon you could tell the wind had kicked up and the rain started. Now, in a matter of minutes, the water in the road is up over the sidewalk. I had some very, very good times in Key West!! I didn't get to attend any hurricane parties (Thank God!!) but people down there seem to take them in stride.

OMG! just in the time it took me to type this much, it's up over people's ankles now!! For any of you that don't know, Key West's highest (and I stress...highest) is only 24 inches above sea level!! I haven't heard how high the storm surge for Fay is. Or even if Key West is in the path of the storm surge. Check it out!

On the home front, Jack was back in the emergency room last night. I wish Amanda would have called me but she didn't want to drag us out at 2am :( He keeps getting these fevers that spike. Saturday his fever went up to 106.3. I was on my way to their house (we only live 5 miles from them) to watch Maggie so they could take him into ER because he had a 105 temp. When it hit 106 they put him in the tub and the fever broke. He hadn't eaten and when he did it didn't stay down so they could give him any meds. When I showed him 'MawMaw's Cheez-it's he wanted some and we gladly let him. He ate a pretty good handful so we got some Motrin down him. The fever stayed down until late last night/early morning. He has strep throat again!! They gave them a stronger antibiotic so hopefully it will get it cleared up and out of his system!!

In the midst of all that...WOW go Phelps!! What an amazing athlete. And I just love watching his Mom's reactions. I thought one of the American girls would take home gold in the final gymnastics then the Romanian girl did her floor event and man did she nail it!! She really deserves the gold. I really felt bad for the Chinese girl. She knows she could have done better but some days you're just off. Then again I can't stand to see someone cry.

Update on Key West camera view: rain has stopped for now and water has gone down. It's still over the sidewalk but not by much.

Ok, I gotta get some work done so it's a short post today. Take care! Until next post.....

Another week coming to a close

2008-08-15T14:05:00.005-04:00

Winding down here at work for the weekend and I wanted to pop over here and update. Lots of things going on. Checked the NASCAR page for practice times and saw Jeff Gordon was down in 11th position (sigh)! Running out of races before the Chase begins. Jeff had over a 500 point lead last year going into the Chase and it didn't do him any good. So, maybe, they are just playing it safe and making sure they are in the Chase and then hammer it down. Hopefully!!
The Olympics have been riveting so far. Phelps just might break Spitz's record of 7 gold-7 world records. I'll be watching that! And, yeah!!!, women's gym.!! They fought back and got some gold.

Metal Count (top ten)

US 46 (14 gold)
China 41 (26 gold)
Australia 20 (5 gold)
Russia 19 (3 gold)
S. Korea 18 (6 gold)
France 18 (3 gold)
Germany 14 (8 gold)
Italy 14 (6 gold)
Japan 13 (6 gold)
Great Britain 8 (3 gold)

Something else that caught my eye yesterday. On CNN they had an article about gas usage being down in June. DUH! Here's some numbers they threw out:

people traveled 12.2 billion less miles in June
used 400 million gallons less gas June
53.2 billion fewer miles overall from Nov. 2007 to June 2008

This is a larger decline than the whole decade of the 70's (49.3 Billion fewer miles) with gas embargo and gas lines!

People who were having a hard time making ends meet before all the gas increase sure isn't going to have the money to keep up with rising prices. Ours went as low as $3.61/gal until Tuesday when the British announced that they had shut off a pipe to-and-from Georgia (Russia invaded) due to the conflict. BAM ours went from $3.61 to $3.89!!!! It was either that or because the US women didn't win gold in team event. One of those 2 reason LOL I'm kidding!!

And just because I can and it always makes me smile....

I like to go boating! :)

This Day In History:

August 15, 1935

Will Rogers killed in plane crash

On this day in 1935, beloved actor and humorist Will Rogers dies in a plane crash in Alaska while flying with his friend, aviation pioneer Wiley Post.

August 15, 1945

Hirohito announces unconditional surrender

On this day in 1945, Emperor Hirohito of Japan announces the news of his country's unconditional surrender in World War II over a radio broadcast to the Japanese people.

August 15, 1969

Woodstock music festival

On this day in 1969, Woodstock begins. A massive rock festival in Bethel, New York, Woodstock drew vast crowds and served as a defining moment for baby boomers. Among the many performers were Joe Cocker, Jimi Hendrix, Santana, and Crosby, Stills and Nash.

On Aug. 12, 1994, the much-publicized Woodstock II music festival takes place in Saugerties, New York, near the site of the legendary Woodstock concert of 1969. An estimated 300,000 people attended the event, marked--as was the original--by bad weather and pervasive mud. Some 50 bands and singers performed, including the Neville Brothers, Nine Inch Nails, Bob Dylan, Green Day, Jimmy Cliff, and Crosby, Stills and Nash.

Johnny Depp on set photos

2008-08-13T09:44:00.005-04:00

Click on picture for bigger size. I found this over at JDR here: http://www.groovology.com/images/080501_koppa_Depp.jpg Johnny always did look good in a tux! This next one I found at JDR too. It from the ballroom scene but too far away to tell if it's actually Johnny and the stars or the stand ins. http://www.groovology.com/images/080501_Ko...FromBalcony.jpg

I also wanted to pass along a site my son-in-law had emailed to me. You can look up any date and find out what the #1 song was on that day. Could make for some interesting conversation at the next family get-together.

http://www.joshhosler.biz/NumberOneInHistory/SelectMonth.htm

Interesting stuff lol The number one song from July 4th 1957 was Teddy Bear by Elvis Presley :) No wonder I always liked that song!

Just a quick post. I have to get some work done. May add to it later. If I don't make it back, take care all.....until next post...

Grandma's Buttons

2008-08-11T18:12:00.009-04:00

I finally got to open that bottle of Merlot. Mmmmm :) As you can see I took a generous helping lol

I loaded up some pictures of Hubby's Grandma's button jars. They are blue tinted Ball Jars. There are all kinds of buttons in them. Some are pressed metal. Even more interesting is the things she used to keep sets together. Old safety pins and wires. I haven't even begun to look through them. Just think of the stories they could tell.

So many little treasures

and here's some close up's. The ones on the right say 1925 and they are 'Bluebird Domestic Pearl' buttons. The ones on the left are 'Chic' buttons from 1933. These buttons were around during the depression, prohibition and WWII...

I snapped a picture of the saw too. Nobody seems to know how old it is but it's very old. His Grandparents owned a 98 acres dairy farm. Hubby hung it above his work bench in the garage.

Off to finish my wine...have a safe evening...

Best laid plans....

2008-08-11T09:38:00.006-04:00

After the way the weekend went, I was starting to feel paranoid this morning. Came on line and was checking my usual blogs and sites. On one blog it wouldn't let me add comments (your comments aren't working Osh). Next I went to Rod's blog and saw he had dropped me from his blog list :( Then I saw others couldn't leave comments so hoping it's just a 'blog thing' and not me!?

Anyone seen Corpse Bride? The 'my time' didn't work out 'according to plan'! About 9am Saturday one of Hubby's hunting buddies showed up to get some wood from where we have been cutting down trees. Once loaded they were standing around talking so I ran to vet. for flea medication for the cats before one of them needed Prozac! Came back and friend was gone but Amanda, Tom and the kids were there. And it's not even NOON yet?! Needless to say, Hubby didn't go to Richmond to see his Mom, nor did the yard get mowed. Sat. night Hubby's Dad called and he sounded pretty much at his wits end.

When my Grandma had to be put in a nursing home for her last days the family pitched in and someone stayed with her 24/7 so she would have a familiar face around and to make sure the staff didn't ignore her needs. We had one of those dry-erase boards we kept our schedule on. Most times, even if we weren't needed to stay with her, we would go in anyway just to be therewith whoever was there because it's so hard to see a loved one like that. But his Dad doesn't have that support. It's unbelievable to me because Hubby has a sister and a brother that live in same town and they aren't helping at all. We even asked them to just stop by the house so Dad doesn't have an empty house all the time but they don't.

So, Sunday, Hubby went down to visit with his Mom at the nursing home and help his Dad out at the house. Basically he just spent time with his Dad and got his mind off things. And I finally got my 'me time'.....NOT ugh!! I got to mow the yard. The one day since forever that I get the house to myself and I have to mow. It takes about 4 hours to mow the yard, so that pretty much takes up the whole day. I didn't even get to watch the race! Blasphemy! I did take a quick break from mowing and checked the TV at one point. Saw where Jeff was back in 23rd place and Kyle Busch was leading and went back outside. Mowing didn't seems so bad after all. Tired of seeing that twerp, Kyle Busch, winning.

When hubby got home he was telling me how he and his Dad were messing around in the garage and his Dad came across these 2 Ball jars full on buttons. They were from Hubby's grandma and I couldn't wait to go through them! A few of the buttons were still on the cards! Some she had put together on old safety pins or wire. 2 of the cards had dates: 1925 and 1933! I took pictures of them but I didn't get them downloaded to the computer last night so hopefully I will be able to post them tomorrow. I just love old stuff! He also brought home an old saw that had been his Grandpa's. It's every bit of 5 feet long. I googled and found this one that is similar but will post some pics when I get them. This one isn't a very good picture.

The bottle of Merlot is still unopened but I doubt it stays that way for long.
Take care....until next post....

It's downhill to the weekend!!

2008-08-08T09:52:00.003-04:00

Now that I have my temper worked off my weekend is looking pretty good! lol The blog is all cleaned up. The house is cleaned up, dishes caught up and the laundry's done so there was some good that came out of Weds. anger! After work yesterday had to stop by the vet. to get some flea meds. for Natasha (Momma), Nadia and Sami (short for Samhein Esmerelda-we got her at Halloween). I think we carried the fleas into the house with us since none of these girls EVER go outside. All day long all I could think about was getting home to a glass of Merlot and a long soak in the tub.

I never did open the bottle of Merlot but while Hubby was eating I fill the Jacuzzi with hot water and grabbed a book :) The Merlot could wait for the weekend! Heaven!
Hubby was talking about going to visit his Mom on Sat. so I may take that day for a 'my time' day. I'm thinking, boot him out the door, get the Merlot and a stack of Johnny DVD's should just about do it! We'll see.

The 'boys' (nascar drivers) are at Watkins Glen this weekend. It's a road course and Jeff used to be the 'Road King' but the other drivers have caught up to him. I blame this on the computer games. The drivers have said this themselves. That they play to get familiar with the tracks. Does that mean I could go out there and be competitive with them? NOT! lol

High School Band Day was at the State Fair weds. The Southside Rebels won it. Here's a link to the local newspaper who has a video of their morning performance.

http://tinyurl.com/6azaxq

Believe me I KNOW how HARD these kids have worked. Not only from my own experience but because I drive by that school daily on my way home and have seen them practicing in this heat! There must be special guardian angels for band kids and their parents!

I got a call from Amanda at lunch. Seeee, I took a lunch break and you didn't even miss me! ha ha! She and her hubby were to go out to eat tonight for their anniversary but Maggie's babysitter had to back out. So, guess it's MawMaw to the rescue! I'll swing by and get her on my way home. Jack is staying with an Aunt on the other side of the family. At least she's the easy one to keep up with, for now.

Looking forward to the Olympics. I will definitely be watching the Opening Ceremonies. I'll fess up now and say I've already been checking out YouTube and it looks like it will be awesome. We have always followed the Olympics. Me, Hubby and the kids would always watch the ceremony together. The winter Olympics more than the summer. Was very surprised when Beijing won the bid for 2008. They have a lot of issues with other countries but hopefully everything will go smooth. So far the only problem has been the smog.

Ok, gotta get some work done. Take care......until next post

Cleaning House

2008-08-07T15:56:00.006-04:00

For anyone visiting here that knows me in the real life, you understand exactly what my new look here is about. For those of you that don't know me...I'm one of those people who cleans when they get mad. Several things happened over the last several weeks or so that had me feeling like, well, I can't explain it without sounding like a 'poor little me' saga. Probably a mix between depression, hormones and sleep deprivation! Then on top of it some things came down at work yesterday that just total pissed me off! Even after sleeping I was still pissed, hence the 'cleaning' today. This space is nothing! You should have seen me at home last night. Did dishes twice, 2 loads of laundry, fixed a spaghetti dinner and then washed those dishes. Hubby, smart man, just tried to stay out of my way LOL
I had a tropical layout loaded but it was a hassle to use for posting so I dumped it and went looking for French Cafe pictures and art. Not sure I like this layout so may tweak a few things yet. I saw this... or maybe this one I can use on the home page from time to time maybe. In the meantime, while I was playing with layouts, my counter hit 1000!! I figure the last 30-40 was probably me going back and forth.
Post a comment and let me know what you think of the new look.

Until next post....

Challenge reply

2008-08-05T08:58:00.005-04:00

This post is in reply to a challenge issued by Osh at http://thehousethatoshbuilt.blogspot.com/

Excerpt: Think back on the last 15 years of your life. What would you tell someone that you hadn't seen or talked to for 15 years? How would you sum up your life? You get 10 bullet points. A list of 10 things to summarize about you.

This was way harder than I thought it would be. First to try to remember time sequence and second, once I remembered stuff, trying to shorten it into 10 bullets! lol After glancing back at the last fifteen years I really have to say my life seems pretty normal. It didn't at the time going through it but any crisis' were met, joys were enjoyed and there was new life and death. It reminded me of a line in a country song 'Life's about changes...' but for the life of me I can think who sings it or from what song. I thought Reba and then I thought it was Terri Clark but I'm not finding it. If anyone out there knows which one it is please let me know. It's driving me nuts now!! lol

Ok, here goes...

15 years ago it would have been 1993.

We still had 2 teenage kids living with us. Most of our time for that year and the next few would have been filled with Band. You name it and my kids were in it. Concert band, jazz band and the never ending summer Band! In 1994 they placed 4th in state! In order to watch over the kids but not seem to be watching over the kids, I volunteered to help run the concession stands. Boy, was that work! But it gave me a legitimate reason to hang out at school. (wink)

Went west with my Mom and 2 sisters. We went through 11 states in 5 days!! Had a blast all the way too!

Our son got married in 1997

1998 our daughter graduated and at last we had no kids living with us LOL

1999 the family 'snuck' down to Key West and surprised my brother for his big 5 0 birthday.

2003 saw the birth of our first grandchild, Faith, and the end of a family business.

2004 We settled into new jobs after 26 years on the same job and our daughter got married. With the marriage came a 13 year old step-granddaughter.

Grandma passed away at 97 years young. 3 weeks before her passing she was still taking 100 steps every morning on her Step Master. Lord, I hope I have her genes! Our second (or would it be third?) grandchild, Jack.

2006 We gained a grandchild, Lillian, on Aug. 21st but I lost a brother on Aug. 23rd (his birthday).

2007 Started off with another new grandchild, Maggie, VIP passes which included getting into the garage and pit road areas to see the Brickyard race where I met Richard Childress and got to 'rub elbows' with many, many drivers. And meeting Johnny Depp in 2008

(Edited: got in a hurry and had meeting Johnny in 2007 when it was just this March!..haste makes waste as Grandma said)

So, now you can see why I said it reminded me of that song line....Life's about changes...and how we deal with them. Me and mine, we try to think positive even though some days it's very hard to do that. We are lucky that we are part of a big family so we have a huge support group. If anything happens we are all there to help. Not just 1 or 2 but mostly the whole family. They are there to support you and they are there to celebrate with you, either way, they are there! In that I'm very blessed. There's the old adage that 'life is full of up and downs' and looking at this I'd have to agree. You have to learn to take the bad with the good and hope that in the end it balances out. I better get this posted because I'm starting to sound like Forest Gump! :P

Thanks Osh!!

Take care and God Bless....Until next post....

Happy Birthday Jeff Gordon!!

2008-08-04T12:33:00.007-04:00

Man, I had so much fun over the weekend that today is a major bummer!! I really wanted to throw myself on the floor this morning and have a temper tantrum and scream 'I don't want to go to work!" but didn't figure anyone would listen. The cats would just run and take cover and the hubby would probably kiss me on the forehead and step over me on his way out the door! Wish I could stay home and play every day :( Of course it wouldn't take long before we would have no food or money for gas! But, gas was down to $3.67 today! woohoo! Still sad that those prices seem like a bargain... Was suppose to be a sunny day without too much humidity. Cracks me up as I sit here looking out the window at the rain. I used to tell my kids to be a psychiatrist or a weather anchor...no wrong answers! Did they listen to me? Ha!

We got to watch a decent race this week. Came down to fuel mileage. Carl Edwards won but a handful ran out of gas coming to the checkered flag. Jeff Gordon being one of them but he managed a 10Th place finish. Jimmie Johnson ran out too but he was closer to the line and finished 3rd with Dale Jr. coming in 12Th. Not too bad of a day but would have like Jeff to win one. He is listed today on the 'Today in History' site. Today is his birthday (along with my daughter-in-law ;) was the only way I could remember her birthday for a long time!) the funny thing is it's listed in Automotive and not Sports! NASCAR gets no respect as a sport. Happy Birthday Jeff!

The Nationwide race on Saturday was a hoot. Didn't get to watch it live as we were babysitting but I taped it and we watched it after the girls were in bed for the night. They were in Montreal on a road course and it began to rain. NASCAR had put in place several years ago that if it rained on the road course then the cars would have to put on rain tires. (tires with grooves) It was pretty hilarious to watch. Some went off-course but mostly they just drove slow. Some cars had windshield wipers and some didn't. Really felt for the ones without because it was raining pretty good. Officials finally called the race 26 laps early because of visibility.

Today in History:

August 4, 1892

Borden parents found dead

On this day in 1892, Andrew and Abby Borden are found hacked to death in their Fall River, Massachusetts, home. Andrew was discovered in a pool of blood on the living room couch, his face nearly split in two. Abby was upstairs, her head smashed to pieces; it was later determined that she was killed first. Suspicion soon fell on one of the Bordens' two daughters, Lizzie, age 32 and single, who lived with her wealthy father and stepmother and was the only other person besides their maid, Bridget Sullivan, who was home when the bodies were found. Lizzie Borden was arrested and charged with the double homicide. As a result of the crime's sensational nature, her trial attracted national attention.

Lizzie Andrew Borden was born on July 19, 1860. Her mother died when Lizzie was a young girl and her father, who became a bank president and successful businessman, married Abby Gray, who helped raise Lizzie and her older sister Emma. The sisters reportedly despised their stepmother and, as adults, argued with their father over money matters. Lizzie claimed she was in the barn at the time of the murders and entered the house later that morning to find her father dead in the living room.

The evidence that the prosecution presented against Borden was circumstantial. It was alleged that she tried to buy poison the day before the murders and that she burned one of her dresses several days afterward. And, although fingerprint testing was becoming commonplace in Europe at the time, the Fall River police were wary of its reliability, and refused to test for prints on the potential murder weapon--a hatchet--found in the Bordens' basement. The fact that no blood was found on Lizzie coupled with her well-bred Christian persona convinced the all-male jury that she was incapable of the gruesome crime and they quickly acquitted her.

Lizzie, who inherited a substantial sum after her father's death, moved from the murder site into a different home, where she lived until her death on June 1, 1927. Today, the house where the Borden murders occurred is a bed and breakfast. Despite Lizzie Borden's acquittal, the cloud of suspicion that hung over her never disappeared. She is immortalized in a famous rhyme:

Lizzie Borden took an axe, And gave her mother forty whacks; When she saw what she had done, She gave her father forty-one.

August 4, 1944

Anne Frank captured

Acting on tip from a Dutch informer, the Nazi Gestapo captures 15-year-old Jewish diarist Anne Frank and her family in a sealed-off area of an Amsterdam warehouse. The Franks had taken shelter there in 1942 out of fear of deportation to a Nazi concentration camp. They occupied the small space with another Jewish family and a single Jewish man, and were aided by Christian friends, who brought them food and supplies. Anne spent much of her time in the "secret annex" working on her diary. The diary survived the war, overlooked by the Gestapo that discovered the hiding place, but Anne and nearly all of the others perished in the Nazi death camps.

August 4, 1942

Holiday Inn premieres

Audiences around the country are introduced to a new holiday classic as Bing Crosby croons "White Christmas" in the film Holiday Inn, which opens on this day in 1942.

Crosby was born Harry Lillis Crosby in Tacoma, Washington, in 1903. As a child, he was such a fan of a cartoon character named Bing that the nickname was pinned on him. During college in Spokane, he began singing and playing the drums with a band and abandoned an interest in law to pursue a career in show business. He and a college friend, Al Rinker, moved to Los Angeles in 1925 and started a vaudeville act.

Impressed by the act, bandleader Paul Whiteman hired Crosby and Rinker to tour with his band in 1927. Three years later, Crosby made his film debut as part of the band. Meanwhile, he married a starlet named Dixie Lee, with whom he had four sons.

Crosby became one of the most beloved entertainers in history. In 1931, he landed his own radio show, which ran in various forms until the mid-1940s. Radio boosted his popularity, and before long he was a hit at the box office as well as on the radio.

Crosby signed with Paramount in 1932 and appeared in The Big Broadcast the same year. His comic flair surfaced in the 1940s with the Road movies that co-starred Bob Hope. During the same period, however, his dramatic work also gained attention: He won an Oscar for his performance as a priest in Going My Way (1944) and was nominated for his performances in The Bells of Saint Mary's (1945) and The Country Girl (1954). Widowed in 1952, he later married actress Kathryn Grant, who was 30 years his junior, and had three more children. He had a short-lived TV sitcom from 1964 to 1965 called The Bing Crosby Show, in which he played an aging singer trying to settle into domestic life. Years later, his daughter Mary Crosby played the girl who shot J.R. Ewing in the TV soap Dallas. Bing Crosby died on the golf course in 1977.

August 4, 1971

"The Kid" is born

Jeff Gordon, a stock-car driver known as "The Kid," was born on this day in 1971. Gordon raced onto the NASCAR scene in 1997 by winning the Winston Cup season points championship for a prestigious second time at the age of 26. "The Kid" was also the first driver to win the Southern 500, NASCAR's oldest race, three years in a row. His clean-cut California image was initially disliked by many racing fans, who tended to prefer the gritty personas of traditional stock-car drivers. However, Gordon had talent, an aggressive driving style, and a knack for publicity, which drew many new fans to the sport.

They didn't say on This Day in History that it was Dale Earnhardt that gave Jeff the nickname 'The Kid'. Some people did, and still do, think Dale and Jeff didn't get along but they were very close friends and business partners. They were also very competitive drivers. Which made for some reeeeeal good racing! :)
I gotta scoot...storm cell moving in (imagine that!)....until next post....

Weekend work and fun

2008-08-03T10:22:00.013-04:00

I don't ususally post on the weekend but I just had to share these pictures! It all started with taking down a tree. I had to get pictures of that event. You see, we planted 10 Poplar trees when we moved into the farm and by gosh I was sure going to watch them come down.

Once we cleaned that all up it was time for some fun in the pool. No, not an inground but big enough to have fun.

Jack and Maggie

Jack is go, go ,go all the time. The only time he stops is when he falls asleep.His favorite activity in the pool is splashing. Splashing Mommy and splashing Maggie.

Faith didn't like getting splashed so she went in on the couch.

But Jack just folllowed her saying "Come on Faith"

Lilly has a mind of her own. She knew I wanted a picture and wouldn't look at the camera. Soooo, I told her to look at MawMaw, smile and don't move. This is what I got LOL

Tom and Hubby put the tent up. Nope, we didn't all sleep in it. I'm not THAT crazy! LOL Then Jack wanted the camera and started chasing me.

But Faith got the camera and snapped this picture of me.

Then i baked brownies and chocolate chip cookies. All in all it was a great weekend and we had lots of fun! Until next post......

Dog Days of Summer

2008-08-01T13:25:00.004-04:00

What exactly is the 'Dog Days of Summer'? Everyone knows that the 'dog days of summer' occur during the hottest and muggiest part of the season. But where does the term come from? Why do we call the hot, sultry days of summer 'dog days'� Is it something that dogs everywhere got together 1000s of years ago and decided it was too hot to do anything so they made their own holiday?

Well, according to Google:
1 : the period between early July and early September when the hot sultry weather of summer usually occurs in the northern hemisphere
2 : a period of stagnation or inactivity

The Farmer's Almanac lists the traditional timing of the Dog Days as the 40 days beginning July 3rd and ending August 11th. If this is true, then we are about done with them. Does that mean on Aug. 12th the humidity will disperse, the earth (and us) will breath easier and all will be right in the world again? I think not.

A casual survey will usually find that many people believe the phrase is in reference to the conspicuous laziness of domesticated dogs (who are in danger of overheating with too much exercise) during the hottest days of the summer. When speaking of "Dog Days" there seems to be a connotation of lying or "dogging" around, or being "dog tired" on these hot and humid days. Although these meanings have nothing to do with the original source of the phrase, they may have been attached to the phrase in recent years due to common usage or misunderstanding of the origin of the phrase.

Here's how it all came about. In ancient times, when the night sky wasn't obscured by artificial lights and smog, different groups of peoples in different parts of the world drew images in the sky by 'connecting the dots' of stars. The images drawn were dependent upon the culture: The Chinese saw different images than the Native Americans, who saw different pictures than the Europeans. These star pictures are now called constellations, and the constellations that are now mapped out in the sky come from our European ancestors.

The brightest of the stars in Canis Major (the big dog) is Sirius, which also happens to be the brightest star in the night sky. In fact, it is so bright that the ancient Romans thought that the earth received heat from it. Look for it in the southern sky (viewed from northern latitudes) during January.

In the summer, however, Sirius, the 'dog star', rises and sets with the sun. During late July Sirius is in conjunction with the sun, and the ancients believed that its heat added to the heat of the sun, creating a stretch of hot and sultry weather. They named this period of time, from 20 days before the conjunction to 20 days after, 'dog days' after the dog star.

The conjunction of Sirius with the sun varies somewhat with latitude. And the 'precession of the equinoxes' (a gradual drifting of the constellations over time) means that the constellations today are not in exactly the same place in the sky as they were in ancient Rome. Today, dog days occur during the period between July 3 and August 11. Although it is certainly the warmest period of the summer, the heat is not due to the added radiation from a far-away star, regardless of its brightness. No, the heat of summer is a direct result of the earth's tilt.

So, my next question is are there Cat Days of Winter? :P You know, when it's to cold to chase mice and too much snow on the ground to keep their paws clean....Just a thought....

This Day in History:

August 1, 1942

Jerry Garcia is born

Grateful Dead singer Jerry Garcia is born in San Francisco. At age 15, he traded a birthday gift from his mother-an accordion-for an electric guitar and was soon playing in San Francisco coffeehouses. Along the way, he began playing in various groups with keyboardist Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, guitarist Bob Weir, bassist Phil Lesh, and drummer Bill Kreutzmann. They formed psychedelic rock phenomenon the Grateful Dead in 1965. The group toured for more than 30 years, acquiring an enormously devoted following. Although many of their songs are now classics, including "Dark Star," "Uncle John's Band," and "Truckin'," their only Top 10 hit was "Touch of Grey" in 1987. Garcia, who reportedly struggled with heroin addiction, died of a heart attack on August 9, 1995.

August 1, 1972

Bush is suspended from flying with the Air National Guard

On this day in 1972, future President George Walker Bush, son of former president George Herbert Walker Bush, is suspended from flying with the Texas Air National Guard for missing an annual medical examination.

Bush’s military-service record became a source of controversy during the 2000 and 2004 elections, and underwent further scrutiny when he launched a controversial war in Iraq in 2003. Although Bush served in the National Guard, many opponents of the war, including veterans, criticized the president for a sketchy military record, which, it was alleged, contained extended and inexplicable absences of six months to a year at a time. Bush defended his military record by saying he satisfactorily completed all of his military obligations.

Bush was given an honorable discharge from the Air National Guard in 1973 to attend Harvard Business School. Still, some veterans and war opponents equated Bush’s stint in the National Guard and his subsequent Harvard attendance as tantamount to a Vietnam War draft deferment procured by his politically influential father. Bush’s harshest critics went even further, claiming that Bush’s military records may have been tampered with or forged to create a positive military-service record. According to analyses by historians and investigators, however, Bush’s military records do not substantiate this or some critics’ claims that Bush ever went AWOL (absent without leave).

Time for me to check out NASCAR practice times. Hopefully this weekend there will be an actual race. Getting anxious for football to start too. Go colts!!

Take care....until next post....

Earthquake, Arctic melting...The sky is falling!!

2008-07-30T09:19:00.003-04:00

Been a little crazy around the Kafe and haven't had time to post. Just about the time I was going to post yesterday, California was hit with an earthquake. I did some checking at my normal spots and saw that CA got a good shake but thankfully no major damage or injuries. I saw this morning that a 7 square mile chunk of ice broke off an Arctic ice shelf near Edmonton, Alberta. It stated that a crack was first noticed in 2002. It's not the first chunk of ice to break off and Greenland has had major melting for several years now. I really believe Mother Nature is trying to tell us 'she's had enough, already!' We have abused our planet and resources. I mean, think about it, floods, droughts, unusual weather, earthquakes, polar melting...she's trying to tell us something, cause and effect. I know, I know, I sound like Chicken Little, "The sky is falling!"

Hubby got to go home early yesterday (work is slow) which made me jealous. I would love to not have to work but again....cause and effect...if we want to eat, we better earn some money. As I'm driving home and get near the house I see our pine tree is gone! Not only did he get another dead tree down but the last of the brush is burning in the fire pit. What a good boy, huh? No sign of Hubby, though. I get into the house and there he is in the bathroom with my baster?! He gets 'swimmer ear' from time to time so we keep ear drops and the little 'squirting thing' (it's like the thing they give you at the hospital after having a baby to suction their nose out) on hand. Seems his ear clogged up and he couldn't find the 'little squirting thing' so he was TRYING to use my baster! Good grief, he had water everywhere but his ear LOL I went and got the squirter and soon things were fine again. Just an other day in the life....
Oh, one more thing! Our gas prices have dropped dramatically! Highest was $4.19 a couple weeks ago and today it's $3.72!! It's sad that $3.72 seems like a bargain!

This Day in History:

July 30, 1932

Disney's first color cartoon

Walt Disney releases his first cartoon in color. The cartoon, Flowers and Trees, was made in three-color Technicolor; Disney was the only studio that used the process for the next three years, because of an exclusive contract.

July 30, 1945

USS Indianapolis bombed

On this day in 1945, the USS Indianapolis is torpedoed by a Japanese submarine and sinks within minutes in shark-infested waters. Only 317 of the 1,196 men on board survived. However, the Indianapolis had already completed its major mission: the delivery of key components of the atomic bomb that would be dropped a week later at Hiroshima to Tinian Island in the South Pacific.

The Indianapolis made its delivery to Tinian Island on July 26, 1945. The mission was top secret and the ship's crew was unaware of its cargo. After leaving Tinian, the Indianapolis sailed to the U.S. military Pacific headquarters at Guam and was given orders to meet the battleship USS Idaho at Leyte Gulf in the Philippines to prepare for the invasion of Japan.

Shortly after midnight on July 30, halfway between Guam and Leyte Gulf, a Japanese sub blasted the Indianapolis, sparking an explosion that split the ship and caused it to sink in approximately 12 minutes, with about 300 men trapped inside. Another 900 went into the water, where many died from drowning, shark attacks, dehydration or injuries from the explosion. Help did not arrive until four days later, on August 2, when an anti-submarine plane on routine patrol happened upon the men and radioed for assistance.

On August 6, 1945, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, inflicting nearly 130,000 casualties and destroying more than 60 percent of the city. On August 9, a second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, where casualties were estimated at over 66,000. Meanwhile, the U.S. government kept quiet about the Indianapolis tragedy until August 15 in order to guarantee that the news would be overshadowed by President Harry Truman's announcement that Japan had surrendered.

In the aftermath of the events involving the Indianapolis, the ship's commander, Captain Charles McVay, was court-martialed in November 1945 for failing to sail a zigzag course that would have helped the ship to evade enemy submarines in the area. McVay, the only Navy captain court-martialed for losing a ship during the war, committed suicide in 1968. Many of his surviving crewmen believed the military had made him a scapegoat. In 2000, 55 years after the Indianapolis went down, Congress cleared McVay's name.

July 30, 2003

Last classic "Bug" rolls off the line

The last “classic” Volkswagen Beetle rolled off the production line at VW’s Puebla, Mexico, plant on this day in 2003. The car, part of the 3,000-unit final edition, was sent to a museum in Wolfsburg, Germany, where Volkswagen is headquartered.

Ironically, the car that became a symbol of flower-power Hippies in the 1960s and inspired Disney’s Herbie the Love Bug has its roots in Nazi Germany. In the 1930s, Adolf Hitler commissioned a design from Ferdinand Porsche for an affordable, efficient “people’s car.” After World War II, the Beetle’s popularity began to grow internationally and by 2002 over 21 million cars had been produced.

In 1977, however, the Beetle, with its rear-mounted, air-cooled-engine, was banned in America for failing to meet safety and emission standards. Worldwide sales of the car shrank by the late 1970s and by 1988, the classic Beetle was sold only in Mexico. Volkswagen decided to discontinue production of the classic bug in 2003 due to increased competition from other manufacturers of inexpensive compact cars. However, this event did not mark the end of the Beetle. In 1998, Volkswagen introduced a redesigned “new” Beetle, which resembles the classic version but is based on the VW Golf; the car is popular in the U.S. and abroad.

Take care...until next post...

Brickyard Debacle

2008-07-28T14:21:00.003-04:00

Sunday was a travesty to racing!! From my view this was Goodyear's fault but many are blaming the track, Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The track hasn't been changed since 2005 and they had drivers at the track earlier in the year to do tire tests and no problem showed up then. Last Saturday was an eye opener. Dale Jr. was the first to say anything. He went and got a news crew with camera and asked them to follow him. He had something to show them, that's how bad he felt like the situation was. After 7 laps around the track his tires were showing cords!

Even though NASCAR had flown in tires from Pocono overnight, most teams stayed with the Brickyard tires because the harder Pocono tire had the potential to cause other problems resulting in blown engines, So, NASCAR made the decision to throw a caution every 10-20 laps which took all pit strategy and racing out of the game.

I'm very thankful my trip to the Brickyard was last year. Would hate to spend that kind of time and money and not see a race. It was pitiful!! Even I quit watching!! Most drivers issued apologies last night and this morning to their fans for such a poor excuse of a race. Now how sad it that? Ok, I could go on and on once I'm on my Soap Box so I'll step down and move on...but grrrrr anyway :P

This Day in History:

July 28, 1929

Future first lady Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy is born

On this day in 1929, President John F. Kennedy’s beautiful and popular wife, Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, is born into a prominent New York family.

Jacqueline, or “Jackie” as she was called, grew up an avid horsewoman and reader. In 1951, after graduating from George Washington University, Jackie toured Europe with her sister. That fall, she returned to the U.S. to begin her first job as the Washington Times-Herald’s "Inquiring Camera Girl.” Her assignment was to roam the streets of Washington, D.C. asking strangers “man on the street” questions and then snapping their picture for publication. Shortly after her return to the capital, at a dinner party in Georgetown, she met a young, handsome senator from Massachusetts named John F. Kennedy. They dated over the next two years, and in May 1953, Kennedy proposed. Jackie accepted and the couple married on September 12, 1953, at St. Mary’s Church in Newport, Rhode Island. The Kennedys then settled in Washington, D.C., where Kennedy embarked on a meteoric political career. He served as a senator from Massachusetts from 1953 until he was elected president of the United States in 1961. At the time, he and Jackie were the youngest couple ever to reside in the White House.

The couple presented a public facade of a happy marriage--the general public did not know of Kennedy’s affairs with other women—and Jackie was a dedicated wife and civic-minded first lady. She raised two children in the White House and restored the building to historic specifications. She was a popular celebrity and style icon for women around the world. On a trip to France in 1961, President Kennedy once quipped “I’m the man who accompanied Jacqueline Kennedy to Paris.”

The most memorable and tragic images of Jackie Kennedy were captured on film on November 22, 1963, immediately after her husband was shot while the couple was riding in an open-car motorcade through the city of Dallas, Texas. A home-movie camera caught a frantic Jackie scrambling over the back seat of the car and onto the trunk, where it appeared that she tried to retrieve a portion of Kennedy’s brain. Later that day, the press photographers snapped Jackie as she stood--shocked, stoic and solemn in a blood-stained suit—next to Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson as he took the oath of office en route to Washington on Air Force One.

July 28, 1945

Plane crashes into Empire State Building

A United States military plane crashes into the Empire State Building on this day in 1945, killing 14 people. The freak accident was caused by heavy fog.

The B-25 Mitchell bomber, with two pilots and one passenger aboard, was flying from New Bedford, Massachusetts, to LaGuardia Airport in New York City. As it came into the metropolitan area on that Saturday morning, the fog was particularly thick. Air-traffic controllers instructed the plane to fly to Newark Airport instead.

This new flight plan took the plane over Manhattan; the crew was specifically warned that the Empire State Building, the tallest building in the city at the time, was not visible. The bomber was flying relatively slowly and quite low, seeking better visibility, when it came upon the Chrysler Building in midtown. It swerved to avoid the building but the move sent it straight into the north side of the Empire State Building, near the 79th floor.

July 28, 1973

Bonnie & Clyde's Ford V-8 sold at auction

Bonnie and Clyde's bullet-riddled 1934 Ford V-8 sedan was sold at auction for $175,000 to Peter Simon of Jean, Nevada. The Ford V-8 model succeeded the new Model A, and it was well received due to its speed and power--perhaps this is why it seemed most popular among the criminal element. Henry Ford first received a personal letter congratulating him on the car's performance from famed outlaw gunman John Dillinger. Dillinger wrote, "Hello Old Pal. You have a wonderful car. It's a treat to drive. Your slogan should be Drive a Ford and Watch The Other Cars Fall Behind You. I can make any other car eat a Ford's dust. Bye-bye." Later, Clyde Barrow wrote a similarly laudatory note to Henry Ford: "Dear Sir, While I still have breath in my lungs I will tell you what a dandy car you make. I have drove Fords exclusively when I could get away with one. For sustained speed and freedom from trouble the Ford has got every other car skinned and even if my business hasn't been strictly legal it don't hurt to tell you what a fine car you got in the V8." Almost enough to make you think Ford hired both high-profile criminals for an ad campaign, but alas, Ford made no use of either personal endorsement.

Until next post...

more volcano erutions, perceptions

2008-07-24T15:23:00.007-04:00

More volcanoes erupting and on US soil at that. There are now 2 erupting volcanoes in Alaska's Aleutian Islands in less than a months time, Okmok and Mount Cleveland. Here's what Reuters had to say:

By Yereth Rosen

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) - A second volcano (Okmok pictured to left) in Alaska's Aleutian Islands has erupted in less than a month, shooting steam and ash as high as 20,000 feet into the air, officials said on Tuesday.

The eruption on Mount Cleveland on Chuginadak Island took place 90 miles west of Okmok Volcano where ongoing eruptions since July 12 have captured the attention of scientists and forced nearby residents to evacuate.

The initial eruption on Mount Cleveland, a volcano about 940 miles southwest of Anchorage, occurred on Monday, showering ash on nearby fishing vessels, according to the Alaska Volcano Observatory, a joint federal-state office that monitors Alaska's plentiful volcanoes.

Mount Cleveland, (pictured at left) one of Alaska's most restless volcanoes, has continued to spew clouds comprised mostly of steam and there is what appears to be a small lava flow trickling from the vent, the monitoring group said.

"It erupts so frequently that it's not a surprise when it erupts," said Peter Cervelli, research geophysicist for the Alaska Volcano Observatory, noting that Mount Cleveland, which rises to 5,676 feet, erupted last year.

Cervelli called the proximity of the two eruptions a coincidence and said the two events are unrelated.

The events at Okmok, a 3,520-foot (1,073-metre) volcano on Umnak Island, have been more dramatic, prompting the Alaska Volcano Observatory to keep staff at work around the clock.

Explosions from Okmok have recurred regularly since the initial eruption on July 12, sending steam and ash up to 30,000 feet in the air and keeping the remote island's 10 evacuees from returning home.

If Okmok remains true to historical patterns, eruptions there are likely to continue for weeks or even months, according to projections from the Alaska Volcano Observatory.

In the fishing hub of Unalaska/Dutch Harbor, located 65 miles northeast of Okmok, ash has turned skies hazy and prompted air-quality advisories from the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation.

Airline pilots and mariners passing through the area are also under advisories to avoid the ash.

They make it sound so normal! Kind of like...in other news today, a volcano erupted and we had to evacuate the island that was quickly taken over by martians...Ok, I guess that's a little exaggerated.

Weird fact of the day: 'Dreamt' is the only English word that ends in the letters 'mt'.

Ohhhh....here's a good one LOL:
Couple make burglar clean their home at gunpoint An American couple turned the tables on a burglar they caught ransacking their home by dispensing their own summary justice.

Without waiting for the law to arrive, the pair doled out their own punishment to the surprised criminal - they made him clean up the house at gunpoint!

The unlucky burglar was caught red-handed when Adrian and Tiffany McKinnon returned to their house near Montgomery, Alabama, after a week away.

To their dismay they discovered their home had been plundered.
"Tears just rolled down my face as I walked in and saw everything gone and piles of trash all over my home," Mrs. McKinnon told her local newspaper the Montgomery Advertiser.

When her husband walked into another room to check what was missing he came face to face with the burglar, who was wearing one of Mr. McKinnon's hats.

"My husband Adrian caught the thief red-handed in our home. And what is even crazier, the man even had my husband's hat sitting right on his head," Mrs. McKinnon said.

Mr. McKinnon held suspect Tajuan Bullock at gunpoint and made him sit down until he decided what to do.

"We made this man clean up all the mess he made, piles of stuff, he had thrown out of my drawers and cabinets onto the floor," Mrs. McKinnon said.

When the police arrived the work-shy burglar had the cheek to complain to them - about having to clean up his mess at gunpoint.

"This man had the nerve to raise sand about us making him clean up the mess he made in my house," said Mrs McKinnon.

But the police officer laughed at Bullock when he complained and told him that anybody else would have shot him dead.

Bullock was arrested on burglary and theft charges and was held in Montgomery County Detention Facility.

A police spokesman said the victims were lucky to be able to catch the suspect in the act and hold him until police arrived. It was an unusual case because usually burglars struck while the homeowner was away and were in and out fast so they could quickly sell the stolen items, the spokesman added.

More strange facts:

Blue whale babies weigh up to 7 tonnes at birth. (Glad I'm not a whale mommy!)

A female cod can lay up to 9 million eggs. (You go girl!)

Snakes can see through their eyelids. (creepy!)

Elephants spend 23 hours a day eating. (oink, oink!)

Vultures sometimes eat so much they can't take off again. (Shoot them while they can't move!)

The Amazon 'Jesus Christ lizard' can run across water. (Jesus!)

Time for me to finish up and get out of here, yippee! Have a safe evening all....until next post...

The way it was in 1934...abbreviated :P

2008-07-22T09:04:00.007-04:00

Here I sit each day with a sweater on and my heater going to keep my feet warm. Where I work wastes so much money on AC! They keep it a toasty 65degrees!!! Brrrrr winter in July!! and I wonder why I have nasal drip and a cold I can't get rid of!! Going from 65 in the morning to 90 for lunch then back to 65 until 5pm.....grrrrr There's only 2 of us that complain lol so it's not going to change any time soon but 65!!!???
On the home front...Yea! We sold the old Allis-Chalmers tractor. The guy came and picked it up last night. He's a very nice man and he and his wife raise beef cows. He told us to let him know if we want to buy some and he'd give us a nice deal. We're thinking about getting a half a beef later on closer to winter. With the tractor out of the big barn it really opens up some space. Sunday we took out one of the stall walls (well, Hubby did ;)..) so we could put firewood in the barn and begin emptying the woodshed. We will get a newer tractor at some point but will look around for awhile. We need one with a front loader and a finish mower wouldn't be turned down. The plan is to empty the woodshed and chicken coup and tear them down. In their place put up a pole barn about the size of a 3-car garage. At that point we would tear down the current 2-car garage leaving the cement floor as it is. Then we would like to add a deck off the back of the house and use the old garage floor as a patio. Sounds like a plan, huh? It will be a work in progress for years but we will get it done. Would rather do it a little at a time and do it ourselves if only to save money. Well, that's the long-term and short-term plan. Want to get some things ready for when we are finally able to retire!
Anyone who has been stopping by here or following Johnny Depp's movie roles will know that today is the 74th anniversary of Dillinger being killed. Here's some other things that happened in 1934:

"Li'l Abner" by New Haven, Conn.-born comic-strip cartoonist Al Capp (Alfred Gerald Caplin), 35, is set in the fictitious hamlet of Dogpatch, Ky. Capp has been ghost-drawing "Joe Palooka" for Ham Fisher, whose eyesight has begun to fail owing to diabetes; the new strip will soon be syndicated to hundreds of papers.

"Flash Gordon" by New Rochelle, N.Y.-born King Features comic-strip cartoonist Alex (Alexander Gillespie) Raymond, 24, is a world-of-tomorrow adventure strip that competes with the popular 25th-century strip "Buck Rogers."

Shirley Temple makes her first full-length film at age 6 and follows Hamilton McFadden's Stand Up and Cheer (in which she steals the show by singing "Baby Take a Bow") with Alexander Hall's Little Miss Marker and David Butler's Bright Eyes (in which she sings "The Good Ship Lollypop"). Born at Santa Monica and now all dimples and curly hair, Temple will go on to star in half a dozen other Hollywood films in the next 4 years.

"The Beer Barrel Polka" ("Skoda Lasky") by Czech songwriters Jaromir Vejvoda, Wiadimir A. Timm, and Vasek Zeman (English lyrics by Lew Brown will appear in 1939).

The Hammond organ patented by Chicago clock maker Laurens Hammond, 39, is the world's first pipeless organ. The 275-pound instrument has a two-manual console with pedal clavier and power cabinet but no reeds, pipes, or vibrating parts; it costs less than 1¢ per hour to operate and will lead to a whole generation of electrically-amplified instruments.

The board game Sorry introduced by Parker Brothers of Salem, Mass., frustrates players under age 8 who cannot bear to have their pieces sent back by rivals. Based in part on pahcheesi, the game will remain popular into the next century.

U.S. men's underwear sales slump after moviegoers see Clark Gable remove his shirt in the film It Happened One Night to reveal that he wears no undershirt. Sales of men's caps have declined because of their association with hoodlums in gangster movies.

The Washeteria that opens April 18 at Fort Worth, Texas, is the first launderette. Proprietor J. F. Cantrell has installed four washing machines and charges by the hour.

And check out these pictures from a Sears Catalog! Love the prices! What a hoot! Open in new window for larger pictures.

On the left, are ladies cotton dresses. I think they look pretty good now-a-days. Yet some things haven't changed all that much. The lounge wear (right) looks pretty much like today's stuff. The Chiffons (bottom) I avoid like the plague! As low as $.20 a pair! (Still can't believe they took the 'cent' key off the keyboard!!)

Working between the rain drops...

2008-07-21T15:11:00.003-04:00

Back from the weekend. It almost feels like a vacation to come back to work! Saturday we planned to take down 2-4 trees of the 7 trees that were killed off in the Ice Storm of 2005. The excessive heat caused pop up storms so we didn't get as much done as we planned. Here's a video that was on You Tube of the Ice Storm if anyone wants to check it out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kC59LwSs2zw

BUT it's kind of misleading at the end when it says 'finally help arrived' from out of town. We had help from all over starting on day 2. There wasn't a whole lot anyone could do until the freezing rain stopped. We live out in the country so we had a lot of damage and small trees down. The ones left standing and dead are the 7 we need to take down now. We had no power for 5 1/2 days. The first 3 days we couldn't even get out. All roads had trees/wires down across them. Lost all our freezer meat and most things in frig. I was on my way home on day 6 and saw lights at neighboring farms and when I got to my driveway and saw we had power I just started crying. My hubby thought I was nuts but I was just so happy to have it over with. I was tired of cooking on the camping stove and eating by Coleman Lanterns and constantly feeding the fire to keep the house warm. I was just soooo done!!! lol
Any-who, back to the weekend...Saturday, Hubby cut 2 of the trees down while I was cleaning house. Then we were going to load both in truck and stack in woodshed but Mother Nature was playing with us. Rain moved in and drenched everything. We didn't get anything more done outside that day! I was kind of glad because the rain just made the humidity worse.
Sunday we began picking up the mess. We had decided overnight that we would be better off putting wood in big barn (we have 2 barns, chicken coup and the wood shed) since the cats and kittens had taken over the woodshed. Once we had the burnable sizes in truck, Hubby drove it over to the barn and began to make a space for it while I raked the little stuff up for the burn pile. God, it was hot. After only 15 minutes outside I went in to get a bandanna. My eyes were burning so bad from the sweat running down into them! I was drenched in no time. Any wind we had just felt like you were standing in front of a dryer vent! I got the last of the brush onto the fire as the rain started again. Of course by then I had more laundry to do because we kept taking showers. In the end we only got the 2 trees down and cleaned up so, yippee, still more to do later. I'm thinking early winter sounds good for the job but Hubby goes hunting then....
It's been so hot that the Momma cats have moved the kittens down to the wooded area near the creek. It's close to our small barn so they have shelter available. I try to keep the water bowl full of fresh water even though I know they can get drinks out of the creek but have you thought about how healthy the creek water is now days? Eeeewwww!! God alone knows what is put into it upstream! I tell the cats that but do they listen? :P

This Day In History:

July 21, 365

Tsunami hits Alexandria, Egypt

On this day in the year 365, a powerful earthquake off the coast of Greece causes a tsunami that devastates the city of Alexandria, Egypt. Although there were no measuring tools at the time, scientists now estimate that the quake was actually two tremors in succession, the largest of which is thought to have had a magnitude of 8.0.

The quake was centered near the plate boundary called the Hellenic Arc and quickly sent a wall of water across the Mediterranean Sea toward the Egyptian coast. Ships in the harbor at Alexandria were overturned as the water near the coast receded suddenly. Reports indicate that many people rushed out to loot the hapless ships. The tsunami wave then rushed in and carried the ships over the sea walls, landing many on top of buildings. In Alexandria, approximately 5,000 people lost their lives and 50,000 homes were destroyed.

July 21, 1925

Monkey Trial ends

In Dayton, Tennessee, the so-called "Monkey Trial" ends with John Thomas Scopes being convicted of teaching evolution in violation of Tennessee law. Scopes was ordered to pay a fine of $100, the minimum the law allowed.

In March 1925, the Tennessee legislature had passed the anti-evolution law, making it a misdemeanor punishable by fine to "teach any theory that denies the story of the Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible, and to teach instead that man has descended from a lower order of animals." With local businessman George Rappalyea, Scopes had conspired to get charged with this violation, and after his arrest the pair enlisted the aid of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) to organize a defense. Hearing of this coordinated attack on Christian fundamentalism, William Jennings Bryan, the three-time Democratic presidential candidate and a fundamentalist hero, volunteered to assist the prosecution. Soon after, the great attorney Clarence Darrow agreed to join the ACLU in the defense, and the stage was set for one of the most famous trials in U.S. history.

July 21, 1944

Hitler to Germany: "I'm still alive."

On this day in 1944, Adolf Hitler takes to the airwaves to announce that the attempt on his life has failed and that "accounts will be settled."

Hitler had survived the bomb blast that was meant to take his life. He had suffered punctured eardrums, some burns and minor wounds, but nothing that would keep him from regaining control of the government and finding the rebels. In fact, the coup d'etat that was to accompany the assassination of Hitler was put down in a mere 11 1/2 hours. In Berlin, Army Major Otto Remer, believed to be apolitical by the conspirators and willing to carry out any orders given him, was told that the Fuhrer was dead and that he, Remer, was to arrest Joseph Goebbels, Minister of Propaganda. But Goebbels had other news for Remer-Hitler was alive. And he proved it, by getting the leader on the phone (the rebels had forgotten to cut the phone lines). Hitler then gave Remer direct orders to put down any army rebellion and to follow only his orders or those of Goebbels or Himmler. Remer let Goebbels go. The SS then snapped into action, arriving in Berlin, now in chaos, just in time to convince many high German officers to remain loyal to Hitler.

Arrests, torture sessions, executions, and suicides followed. Count Claus von Stauffenberg, the man who actually planted the explosive in the room with Hitler and who had insisted to his co-conspirators that "the explosion was as if a 15-millimeter shell had hit. No one in that room can still be alive." But it was Stauffenberg who would not be alive for much longer; he was shot dead the very day of the attempt by a pro-Hitler officer. The plot was completely undone.

Now Hitler had to restore calm and confidence to the German civilian population. At 1 a.m., July 21, Hitler's voice broke through the radio airwaves: "I am unhurt and well.... A very small clique of ambitious, irresponsible...and stupid officers had concocted a plot to eliminate me.... It is a gang of criminal elements which will be destroyed without mercy. I therefore give orders now that no military authority...is to obey orders from this crew of usurpers.... This time we shall settle account with them in the manner to which we National Socialists are accustomed."

Take care....Until next post....

Grandkids and puppets

2008-07-18T12:10:00.004-04:00

I got a call at work yesterday afternoon from Amanda to see if we could babysit. She isn't one to ask at the last minute but where Tom works was having a company dinner/meeting. They hadn't realized until the last minute that he didn't know about it. He delivers oxygen to home-patients and is on the road most of the days. Well, of course, I said sure. What kind of Maw-maw would I be if I said no!?

Boy did we have a blast!! We had gotten Faith a Sponge Bob tent when she was little and Tiffany was handing it down to Jack but it never made it past our house. Jack and Maggie had a lot of fun playing in and out of it. Jack saw one of Paw-paw's socks with a thin heel that I had laid over for the rag drawer and asked me 'What's that?' So I told him and then I slipped it on my hand and began talking to him with it like a puppet.

The look on his face was priceless but nothing compared to the look he got when Maw-maw went and got the button jar! We picked out buttons for the 'eyes' and nose', red for the eyes and blue for the nose and I started stitching them on. I don't even have the time to tell you the conversation on why Maw-maw was poking the sock with a needle! While I'm sewing I ask him what the socks name is? Charlie, Andy or Sally, but he says it Sock. So, the socks name is Sock lol! Once Sock has his eyes and nose Jack and I begin to play. I think Jack has a new best friend. Eventually, Jack wants Sock on his hand and watching him play just cracked me up! He and Sock are talking very seriously and then Jack would throw his head back and just laugh and laugh. I laughed so hard at him I thought I'd wet my pants!! What an imagination! When it came time for him to go home I could tell he didn't want to leave Sock. He finally asked if Sock could go to his house and I agreed. I'm still floating around today on last night's happiness...

Why is it that you can spent lots and lots of money on toys and then see them having so much fun with something you had around the house that cost nothing but a little time!? It's kind of like at Christmas, you buy them the toys they ask for and then they play with the box it came in!

Looking forward to the weekend. Nothing much planned so will probably work on house. We need some re-arranging done upstairs but will probably wait for cooler weather for that. The upstairs has no air-conditioning! Any breeze we get up there feels like your standing in front of a dryer vent.

Happy Birthday Hunter S. Thompson wherever you are! July 18, 1929 - February 20, 2005

This Day in History:

July 18, 1939

Sneak previews of The Wizard of Oz

MGM screens a sneak preview of The Wizard of Oz. After the screening, producers debate about removing what will later become the movie's signature song, "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." When the film was released in August, it contained the song. Some 15,000 people waited in line at the box office for the New York opening at the Loew's Capitol: 37,000 tickets were sold to seven shows on the first day. Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney performed onstage at the premiere, and Garland continued to perform a live stage show for the next several weeks.

Although MGM mogul Samuel Goldwyn had intended the role of Dorothy for Shirley Temple when he bought the film rights in 1934, Temple's appeal was fading fast by the late 1930s, and the role went to up-and-comer Garland instead. The film made the 17-year-old actress and singer an international star and earned her a special Oscar that year for Best Juvenile Performer.

The 101-minute-long film remained a classic for decades. In 1956, an estimated 45 million people tuned in to watch the movie debut on television as part of the Ford Star Jubilee. The movie spawned two sequels, including Journey Back to Oz (1974), an animated film featuring the voice of Liza Minnelli, Judy Garland's daughter, and Return to Oz (1985). A remake with an African American cast, The Wiz, starring Diana Ross and Michael Jackson, was released in 1978 with music arranged and conducted by Quincy Jones.

The movie is still one of America's top-selling videocassettes and one of the first 25 films to be put on the National Film Registry, which is reserved for culturally or historically significant movies. It ranked sixth in the American Film Institute's 1998 poll of America's 100 Greatest Movies.

Guess that's it for now. Take care until next post....

Weather, Johnny Depp Poll

2008-07-16T12:31:00.006-04:00

It's a beautiful summer day here. Forecast is calling for 90's the rest of the week and into the weekend. 90's + humidity = hot! I will take that over freezing any day!! The older I get the more I don't like winter. Now that my friend 'Arthur Ritis' is with me everywhere I go it just makes me ache all over.
Monday the hubby had to stay home to meet the John Deere repair man to get our lawn mower running again. It was running along just fine and then died. Come to find out it was the battery, duh, don't we feel stupid! Anyway, when I get home from work I about had a heart attack!. Hubby had the yard done, dishes washed, coffee set for next day and house picked up!! Let me tell you that hasn't happened very often. Or not as often as I would like it too :P

I also added a poll to the right---> Feel free to vote ;)

Flashing back to the 70's yesterday was fun so I checked out my birth year, 1957...

Soviet Union inaugurates the "Space Age" by launching Sputnik I, the world's first artificial satellite. A month later Sputnik II carries a dog into orbit, making that dog the first living being to enter space.
Federal troops ordered to enforce integration of schools in Little Rock, Arkansas
Teamsters union expelled from the AFL-CIO for failing to deal with organized crime
New York Giants move to San Francisco; Brooklyn Dodgers move to Los Angeles
Movies: The Bridge on the River Kwai, The Prince and the Showgirl, Twelve Angry Men, Love in the Afternoon
Songs: Young Love, Tonight, Wake Up Little Susie, That'll Be the Day, Jailhouse Rock
Books: On the Road, Jack Kerouac; Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand; The Cat in the Hat, Dr. Seuss
Theater: West Side Story and The Music Man open in New York
"Beatnik" enters the vernacular as a description of the emerging "Beat Generation" counterculture movement
An earthquake in the Soviet Union June 27 leaves 1,200 dead; an equal number die in a quake that rocks part of Iran 5 days later, registering 7.4 on the Richter scale; an Iranian quake that registers 7.3 kills 1,130 December 13.

Here's an interesting article about the Frisbee.

The Frisbee is introduced by the Wham-O Manufacturing Co. of San Gabriel, Calif., which has been licensed by Los Angeles inventor Walter Frederick Morrison to produce the plastic "Pluto Platter" devised by Morrison in 1948. New England college students have tossed metal pie tins produced since 1871 by the Frisbie Baking Co. of Bridgeport, Conn. (the company will go out of business next year), Morrison will obtain a patent next year for his faster, more accurate flying disc, Wham-O's Rich Knerr will come up with the registered trademark Frisbee, and his company will sell upwards of 100 million units before Mattel Corp. acquires the toy. The Frisbee launches a new sport whose first world champion will be crowned in 1968.

This Day in History:

July 16, 1951

Catcher in the Rye is published

J.D. Salinger's only novel, The Catcher in the Rye, is published by Little, Brown on this day in 1951. The book, about a confused teenager disillusioned by the adult world, is an instant hit and will be taught in high schools for half a century.

The 31-year-old Salinger had worked on the novel for a decade. His stories had already started appearing in the 1940s, many in the New Yorker.

The book took the country by storm, selling out and becoming a Book of the Month Club selection. Fame did not agree with Salinger, who retreated to a hilltop cabin in Cornish, New York, but he continued to publish stories in the New Yorker periodically. He published Franny and Zooey in 1963, based on two combined New Yorker stories.

Salinger stopped publishing work in 1965, the same year he divorced his wife of 12 years, whom he had married when he was 32. In 1999, journalist Joyce Maynard published a book about her affair with Salinger, which had taken place more than two decades earlier.

July 16, 1969

Apollo 11 departs Earth

At 9:32 a.m. EDT, Apollo 11, the first U.S. lunar landing mission, is launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on a historic journey to the surface of the moon. After traveling 240,000 miles in 76 hours, Apollo 11 entered into a lunar orbit on July 19.

The next day, at 1:46 p.m., the lunar module Eagle, manned by astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, separated from the command module, where a third astronaut, Michael Collins, remained. Two hours later, the Eagle began its descent to the lunar surface, and at 4:18 p.m. the craft touched down on the southwestern edge of the Sea of Tranquility. Armstrong immediately radioed to Mission Control in Houston a famous message, "The Eagle has landed." At 10:39 p.m., five hours ahead of the original schedule, Armstrong opened the hatch of the lunar module. Seventeen minutes later, at 10:56 p.m., Armstrong spoke the following words to millions listening at home: "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." A moment later, he stepped off the lunar module's ladder, becoming the first human to walk on the surface of the moon.

Aldrin joined him on the moon's surface at 11:11 p.m., and together they took photographs of the terrain, planted a U.S. flag, ran a few simple scientific tests, and spoke with President Richard M. Nixon via Houston. By 1:11 a.m. on July 21, both astronauts were back in the lunar module, and the hatch was closed. The two men slept that night on the surface of the moon, and at 1:54 p.m. the Eagle began its ascent back to the command module. Among the items left on the surface of the moon was a plaque that read: "Here men from the planet Earth first set foot on the moon--July 1969 A.D.--We came in peace for all mankind." At 5:35 p.m., Armstrong and Aldrin successfully docked and rejoined Collins, and at 12:56 a.m. on July 22 Apollo 11 began its journey home, safely splashing down in the Pacific Ocean at 12:51 p.m. on July 24.

There would be five more successful lunar landing missions, and one unplanned lunar swing-by, Apollo 13. The last men to walk on the moon, astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt of the Apollo 17 mission, left the lunar surface on December 14, 1972. The Apollo program was a costly and labor intensive endeavor, involving an estimated 400,000 engineers, technicians, and scientists, and costing $24 billion (close to $100 billion in today's dollars). The expense was justified by President John F. Kennedy's 1961 mandate to beat the Soviets to the moon, and after the feat was accomplished, ongoing missions lost their viability.

July 16, 1999

JFK Jr. killed in plane crash

On July 16, 1999, John F. Kennedy, Jr.; his wife, Carolyn Bessette Kennedy; and her sister, Lauren Bessette, die when the single-engine plane that Kennedy was piloting crashes into the Atlantic Ocean near Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy, Jr., was born on November 25, 1960, just a few weeks after his father and namesake was elected the 35th president of the United States. On his third birthday, "John-John" attended the funeral of his assassinated father and was photographed saluting his father's coffin in a famous and searing image. Along with his sister, Caroline, he was raised in Manhattan by his mother, Jacqueline. After graduating from Brown University and a very brief acting stint, he attended New York University Law School. He passed the bar on his third try and worked in New York as an assistant district attorney, winning all six of his cases. In 1995, he founded the political magazine George, which grew to have a circulation of more than 400,000. Unlike many others in his famous family, he never sought public office himself.

Always in the media spotlight, he was celebrated for the good looks that he inherited from his parents. In 1988, he was named the "Sexiest Man Alive" by People magazine. He was linked romantically with several celebrities, including the actress Daryl Hannah, whom he dated for five years. In September 1996, he married girlfriend Carolyn Bessette, a fashion publicist. The two shared an apartment in New York City, where Kennedy was often seen inline skating in public. Known for his adventurous nature, he nonetheless took pains to separate himself from the more self-destructive behavior of some of the other men in the Kennedy clan.

On July 16, 1999, however, with about 300 hours of flying experience, Kennedy took off from Essex County airport in New Jersey and flew his single-engine plane into a hazy, moonless night. He had turned down an offer by one of his flight instructors to accompany him, saying he "wanted to do it alone." To reach his destination of Martha's Vineyard, he would have to fly 200 miles--the final phase over a dark, hazy ocean--and inexperienced pilots can lose sight of the horizon under such conditions. Unable to see shore lights or other landmarks, Kennedy would have to depend on his instruments, but he had not qualified for a license to fly with instruments only. In addition, he was recovering from a broken ankle, which might have affected his ability to pilot his plane.

At Martha's Vineyard, Kennedy was to drop off his sister-in-law Lauren Bessette, one of his two passengers. From there, Kennedy and his wife, Carolyn, were to fly on to the Kennedy compound on Cape Cod's Hyannis Port for the marriage of Rory Kennedy, the youngest child of the late Robert F. Kennedy. The Piper Saratoga aircraft never made it to Martha's Vineyard. Radar data examined later showed the plane plummeting from 2,200 feet to 1,100 feet in a span of 14 seconds, a rate far beyond the aircraft's safe maximum. It then disappeared from the radar screen.

Kennedy's plane was reported missing by friends and family members, and an intensive rescue operation was launched by the Coast Guard, the navy, the air force, and civilians. After two days of searching, the thousands of people involved gave up hope of finding survivors and turned their efforts to recovering the wreckage of the aircraft and the bodies. Americans mourned the loss of the "crown prince" of one of the country's most admired families, a sadness that was especially poignant given the relentless string of tragedies that have haunted the Kennedy family over the years.

On July 21, navy divers recovered the bodies of JFK Jr., his wife, and sister-in-law from the wreckage of the plane, which was lying under 116 feet of water about eight miles off the Vineyard's shores. The next day, the cremated remains of the three were buried at sea during a ceremony on the USS Briscoe, a navy destroyer. A private mass for JFK Jr. and Carolyn was held on July 23 at the Church of St. Thomas More in Manhattan, where the late Jackie Kennedy Onassis worshipped. President Bill Clinton and his wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton, were among the 300 invited guests. The Kennedy family's surviving patriarch, Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts, delivered a moving eulogy: "From the first day of his life, John seemed to belong not only to our family, but to the American family. He had a legacy, and he learned to treasure it. He was part of a legend, and he learned to live with it."

Investigators studying the wreckage of the Piper Saratoga found no problems with its mechanical or navigational systems. In their final report released in 2000, the National Transportation Safety Board concluded that the crash was caused by an inexperienced pilot who became disoriented in the dark and lost control.

Take care.....until next post...

Weekend review, gas prices

2008-07-15T15:10:00.004-04:00

I'm finally caught up on work and thought I'd sneak over here for a quick post. Can't believe how far behind everything gets in 1 day!! It wouldn't have to but the other 2 won't do my work while I'm off even though they did it before I was hired.
The rummage sale went pretty good. We sold a total of about $400.00. My share of that was quite small since all I put in this year was books. Most of which went to Goodwill :( Oh well, at least someone else will enjoy them instead of just sitting in my basement. We did sign a pact to never have another rummage sale again! It's just too much work for so little return. Sat. it stormed all morning and into the afternoon. We had decided to close it down for the day about 8am but 'lo and behold, we had customers!! I don't like shopping and there's no way I'd be out rummaging in the rain. Evidently I'm in a small minority! lol Overall, it was a good weekend. Had a lot of quality time with Mom and sisters. Amanda and the kids were there 2 of the days. Some Aunts and Uncles stopped by to say 'Hi' so, like I said, a good weekend.
Kitties are well and growing. The peacock only has about 4 feathers left. Lately he has been sitting atop our 2 story house a plucking the heck out of himself. Have collected a lot of them and took a handful to my sister so she can give them to a friend of hers that makes floral arrangements to use. (Note to self: stick a few in some arrangements I have!) He really looks pretty pathetic and we can't help laughing at how scrawny he looks without the train.
On the news front: I saw 2 more earthquakes occurred. One in Taiwan and one in Greece. I'm afraid I've slacked off my earthquake and volcano watching this weekend. Due to the rummage sale, I don't have a clue as to what all has been going on in the rest of the world. I did see on my way in to work yesterday that gas prices are all over the place here. Of the stations I drove by their prices were: $4.03, $4.19, $4.11 and $4.09.....Today they are $4.02, $4.06, $4.09 and $4.18.
The station that yesterday had $4.03 went up to $4.18....the station that had $4.06 went down to $4.02!?! Tell me someone isn't gouging the prices!!! Normally, they are all about the same price, maybe a penny or 2 difference but today it's crazy!! When I started driving gas was around $.55 cents a gallon! My how times change!! Of course, that was 1974! That's the year Nixon resigns as President. The National speed limit was set at 55 MPH, US Postage rate rose to $.10 and 'Streaking' became popular...them were the days....

This Day in History:

July 15, 1888

Volcano buries victims in fiery mud

The Bandai volcano erupts on the Japanese island of Honshu on this day in 1888, killing hundreds and burying many nearby villages in ash.

Honshu, the main island of the Japanese archipelago, is in an area of intense geological activity, where earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are relatively common. The Bandai volcano is a mountain in northern Honshu with a very steep slope. It had erupted four times in the 1,000 years prior to the 1888 eruption, but none of these had been particularly deadly.

At just after 7 a.m. on July 15, rumblings were heard from Bandai. Only 30 minutes after that, an explosion on the north side of the mountain caused powerful tremors. Fifteen minutes later, there was another explosion and, in the next two hours, dozens followed. The explosive eruptions sent debris thousands of feet into the air. The resulting cloud of ash and steam was estimated at 21,000 feet wide.

The giant cloud sent a dangerous rain of burning mud down over the area. Several villages in the Bandai area were buried by a combination of the fiery mud and landslides caused by the tremors. At the Kawakami spa, 100-foot-deep debris covered the ground. Although 100 bodies were recovered there, many were never found.

The best estimate is that 461 people were killed and hundreds more were seriously injured, suffering broken bones and skulls from the rain or flying debris, as a result of the eruption. More than one hundred people were critically burned. The eruption left an 8,000-foot crater in the earth. In the aftermath, the ash from Bandai dimmed the sun slightly worldwide for months.

July 15, 1941

Garbo makes an appearance

On this day in 1941, master spy Juan Pujol Garcia, nicknamed "Garbo," sends his first communique to Germany from Britain. The question was: Who was he spying for?

Juan Garcia, a Spaniard, ran an elaborate multi ethnic spy network that included a Dutch airline steward, a British censor for the Ministry of Information, a Cabinet office clerk, a U.S. soldier in England, and a Welshman sympathetic to fascism. All were engaged in gathering secret information on the British-Allied war effort, which was then transmitted back to Berlin. Garcia was in the pay of the Nazis. The Germans knew him as "Arabel," whereas the English knew him as Garbo. The English knew a lot more about him, in fact, than the Germans, as Garcia was a British double agent.

None of Garcia's spies were real, and the disinformation he transmitted to Germany was fabricated--phony military "secrets" that the British wanted planted with the Germans to divert them from genuine military preparations and plans.

Among the most effective of Garcia's deceptions took place in June 1944, when he managed to convince Hitler that the D-Day invasion of Normandy was just a "diversionary maneuver designed to draw off enemy reserves in order to make a decisive attack in another place"--playing right into the mindset of German intelligence, which had already suspected that this might be the case. (Of course, it wasn't.) Among the "agents" that Garcia employed in gathering this "intelligence" was Donny, leader of the World Aryan Order; Dick, an "Indian fanatic"; and Dorick, a civilian who lived at a North Sea port. All these men were inventions of Garcia's imagination, but they lent authenticity to his reports back to Berlin--so much so that Hitler, while visiting occupied France, awarded Garcia the Iron Cross for his service to the fatherland.

That same year, 1944, Garcia received his true reward, the title of MBE—Member of the British Empire--for his service to the England and the Allied cause. This ingenious Spaniard had proved to be one of the Allies' most successful counterintelligence tools.

That's all the time I have today. Take care...until next post.

Kitty pictures

2008-07-09T21:46:00.012-04:00

I'm going to double post today :) Couldn't resist, mate! ;) After work I grabbed the camera and went out to see if I could coax some kitties to play. One was sleeping under the bush by the porch the other 5 were asleep in the woodshed. The gray one hid the minute she saw me but with the help of a peacock feather, I got 3 of them to play and let me pet them. This little fella just watched for awhile.

This boy wasn't shy.

These 2 slept the whole time.

They got it rough, huh?

This is a picture of one of the kittens from the previous litter and the peacock with his thinning tail.

Have a good night all...

Kittens...the only way to start the day!

2008-07-09T12:29:00.002-04:00

Maybe I should have named my blog Karen's Kitty Korner of Karen's Kat House! Then again after reading Rob's Blog today maybe not. I don't want his neighbor or someone similar coming after me!! LOL. This morning I got up a little late. I hate to wake up and the first thing that comes to my mind, and/or out of my mouth is "Shit!". I stumble to the kitchen and pour 2 cups of coffee (1 for me and 1 for DH) and grab the cat food. When I open the back door there's all my little babies waiting for me. What the heck, I decide, it's to late to wash my hair but that gave me time to play with the kittens :) I wanna be a stay-at-home cat mom!!

First off, the older cats and the kittens know our feeding routine down to the minute. This morning I saw that Big Bird, the peacock, had left a wing feather on the back porch steps. As I was filling up the food bowls (almost 1 bowl per cat and remember I have a lot of cats!) there where a couple of the kittens checking out the feather. So I calmly reach over and grab the stalk of the feather and start wiggling it back and forth. One little daredevil kitty grabs it and we play tug-of-war for a few seconds when it's momma comes up and starts rubbing against my legs and talking to the kitty. The kitty hesitates as if trying to choose between momma and playing and then grabs the feather again.

Soon it's playing without keeping it's eye on me and having a fun time so I sneakily reach down and pet it. It kind of looks around at my hand like "What the...?" and then continues playing and starts to purr! For the next minute or two I wiggle the feather with one hand and pet him/her with the other. (Can you rub your tummy and pat your head at the same time? LOL Thank God the neighbors didn't go by with me outside in my jammies playing with the kittens!) Two more kitties see the one having so much fun that they join in. Jumping out of the bush to grab the feather or one of the other kittens, they don't care which they get as long as they get something. The 2 new ones aren't to sure about me touching them even though they were watching me pet their litter mate so I back off and just let them play with the feather. It won't be long before they will let me hold and pet them, I think. Besides, I needed to get busy getting ready for work. Will try again when I get home. So far I've had 1 let me pick it up and the 1 this morning let me play and pet it. That's progress.

Everything else is running along smoothly. Work stinks but whats new! Jack is doing better now that we know he had strep throat and he's on meds. Had a big storm go through late last night. Lots of lightning but didn't lose power. Only lost Internet and TV signal off and on.

The big news today is that Tony Stewart is leaving Gibbs Racing! He is going to Haas Racing and will have ownership. Haas team is currently being run by the Gen. Manager because the current owner is serving 2 years in prison for tax evasion! Was so afraid Tony was going to go to the #5 car and that would make him a team mate to Jeff!!! Yuck!! Was so happy when they announced last weekend that Mark Martin is going to drive the #5 car next year! I just can't see myself cheering for Tony...won't happen!

I need to get some work done so I'll quit jabbering and post some the only thing I found interesting in today's history. Again, it's from a time period I love to read and research on:

Today in History:

July 9, 1850

President Taylor dies of cholera

Zachary Taylor, the 12th president of the United States, dies suddenly from an attack of cholera morbus. He was succeeded by Millard Fillmore.

Raised in Kentucky with little formal schooling, Zachary Taylor received a U.S. Army commission in 1808. He became a captain in 1810 and was promoted to major during the War of 1812 in recognition of his defense of Fort Harrison (named for William Henry Harrison who would become President one day.) against attack by Shawnee chief Tecumseh. In 1832, he became a colonel and served in the Black Hawk War and in the campaigns against the Seminole Indians in Florida, winning the nickname of "Old Rough and Ready" for his informal attire and indifference to physical adversity.

Sent to the Southwest to command the U.S. Army at the Texas border, Taylor crossed the Rio Grande with the outbreak of the Mexican-American War in 1846. In May, Taylor defeated the Mexicans at the battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma, and in September he captured the city of Monterrey. In February 1847, he achieved his crowning military victory at the Battle of Buena Vista, where his force triumphed despite being outnumbered three to one. This victory firmly established Taylor as a popular hero, and in 1848, despite his lack of a clear political platform, he was nominated the Whig presidential candidate.

Elected in November, Taylor soon fell under the influence of William H. Seward, a powerful Whig senator, and in 1849 he supported the Wilmot Proviso, which would exclude slavery from all the territory acquired as a result of the Mexican War. His inflexible responses to Southern criticisms of this policy aggravated the nation's North-South conflict and revealed his political inexperience. Matters were at a stalemate when he died suddenly on July 9, 1850.

Hope to get some pictures of the kitties and get them posted. Have a wonderful evening all! Until next post....

Current news, peacock and kittens

2008-07-08T15:02:00.007-04:00

I have most of my work done so figured I'd check in here. Of course, there's only 2 hours of work left and it will be an hour at least until I get the daily invoices to sort and mail. Looking out the window, it looks like we have a storm coming in.
I work on the south side of Muncie but my house is close to the North-eastern county line. I can hear the rumble but the larger radar in motion shows the line of storms reaching from Muncie to Detroit. We are just getting the tip of the tail of it. Doesn't look like it will last long.
I was to cover for one of the women here at work but she decided not to take it off so, I asked if I could have Friday off to help with the family rummage sale and it's a go! Yea!! (Doing anything is better than working!)
Not a very interesting Today in History. Only thing that grabbed my attention was that Paris is celebrating it's 2057th birthday so here's some headlines from today with clickable links:

Magnitude 6 quake startles southern Peru

AREQUIPA, Peru, July 8, 2008 (Reuters) — A magnitude 6.0 earthquake rattled southern Peru early on Tuesday, startling residents in the Andean country's second-largest city, Arequipa, who ran out of their homes into the streets.

The epicenter of the quake was located 33 miles north-northwest of Arequipa, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It was recorded at a depth of 46 miles.

Peru's police and civil defense agency said there were no immediate reports of injuries or damage, but magnitude 6 quakes are capable of causing severe damage.

NEW YORK, July 7, 2008 (Reuters) — Hurricane Bertha strengthened over the central Atlantic Ocean Monday morning and could reach Category 2 strength later in the day, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said in an advisory.

DENVER, June 12, 2008 (Reuters) — A lightning-sparked wildfire has blackened 20,000 acres in southeastern Colorado, and was threatening archaeological sites in a national forest, officials said on Thursday.

Indonesian firm denies drilling caused mud volcano

JAKARTA, June 12, 2008 (Reuters) — A volcano that started spewing hot mud in Indonesia two years ago displacing more than 50,000 people was triggered by tectonic activity, experts working for the energy firm blamed by some for the disaster said on Thursday.

Drilling caused Indonesian mud volcano

WASHINGTON, June 9, 2008 (Reuters) — Drilling of a gas exploration well, and not an earthquake, set off a volcano that has been spewing boiling mud for two years and has displaced more than 50,000 people on the Indonesian island of Java, experts said on Monday.

I feel like I'm cheating on a test with so little to blogged about today lol. The peacock is still loosing feathers. We have gathered up about 18 or so. Abby, one of Amanda's friends from high school who is going to art school, said if we get any she would be glad to make something out of them for us. She is very good and very creative. Will be interesting to see what she does with them. I know so little about peacocks. I didn't know they shed their tail feathers. Yikes! Maybe they aren't suppose to? I'd better do some googling tonight! My luck it's the kittens stressing him out LOL That's all we need! A peacock with issues!
Last evening I saw all 3 momma cats lying on the back porch. There were kittens all over the porch steps and a bush we have next to the steps. The bush we had trimmed back so it looks a bit like an over-grown Bonsai tree. There were kittens climbing up from the branches and poking their heads out the top. Other kittens on the porch grabbing their heads as they popped up. It was just hilarious! And the whole time the Mommas just laid there, their tails tapping a slow beat, keeping an eye on the little ones. I still have no clue if it was all the kittens. I know the original 6 from 'old momma' were playing. There were a couple more that were just a little smaller that I think were either from 'Sissy momma' or 'Tiger momma' but I know Tiger momma has another tiger baby and I didn't see that one. There are just sooo many black ones it's hard to tell them apart!
Later, after the kittens had wore themselves out, the old momma laid down and let them nurse but there was 1 black one that had to check out the peacock. To our surprise, the peacock somehow laid down on it's side, kind of, and was trying to play with the kitten, who decided it was time for a dirt bath.
Last weekend, Saturday I think, the old momma came walking up the middle of the horseshoe drive being followed by a doe. Wish I'd had my camera ready. Seriously, the deer followed her through the yard to the woodshed and then got spooked.
See, I just learned something new. I went and googled peacock feathers and found out that the feathers without 'eyes' are called swords.

I didn't see any pricing on that page but I did see an ad for 10 Cut eye feathers for $7.95, doesn't sound like we'll be rich anytime soon. Ok, I gotta get busy and finish up work. Take care....until next blog.....

4th of July weekend!!

2008-07-07T08:21:00.007-04:00

Was a different weekend for sure. After burying Baby, the kitty, I wasn't in much of a mood to celebrate a birthday but as with everything, time moves on...Bob did go into town and get us McDonald's for supper that night. I was a mess and knew if I went to town with my red eyes and nose from crying I would probably run into someone I know and I just wasn't ready to do that. I wonder now if her Momma had brought her up to the house to see if we could help Baby. Maybe she had tried everything she knew and was trying to help Baby the only way she knew how. I'll never know but that's what I've wondered.
Birthday day started out quiet. I slept in until 8:30 then about 10 the family began calling to wish me a happy birthday. I had celebrated the weekend before and then Thurs. I met Mom, Dad and Kay for lunch. Between the two days I already had my presents:
Alicia got me a 'sisters' candle, a 3 book series and a huge glass mug with Jeff Gordon 24 on it filled with beef jerky.
Kay got me 3 pairs of sandals...(she's the sis that can never decide LOL) and a book.
Mom and Dad got me a Red, White and Blue stars shirts and a Jeff Gordon wind chime that I hung on my back porch.
My kids had gotten me cards, kisses and hugs and kisses and hugs from grand kids. The kisses and hugs from grand kids are priceless!!
Talked to Amanda and Tom about a cookout on sat. so Bob and I went to town late Friday afternoon (I didn't even get out of my pajama's until 2pm!! LOL) and got some fixings for b-b-q chicken, corn of the cob, potatoes, watermelon and chips. Amanda was going to make dessert and a pasta salad.
At 10pm the phone rang, it was Amanda but I couldn't understand what she was saying. The heart-stopping, brain numbing fear that grips you when you hear your own child in a full-out panic can't be described!! She finally slowed down enough for me to understand that Jack had had a seizure and an ambulance was on the way. I didn't ask a lot of particulars, I just said we would meet them at the hospital. They had been at Tom's Mom's (Juanita) house to watch fireworks which is out by the reservoir. Bob and I were out the door, he drove, mainly because he was afraid for me to drive, it seemed he was driving in slow motion. Nothing would have been fast enough to get me to the hospital. It was just getting dark as we drove west into town and we could see the various firework displays across the horizon of town.
I don't want to offend any readers but, you see, God and I have been having an on-going difference of opinion lately. He wants things His way and I want to know why. Sometimes He tells me but most times He don't. So I didn't think I needed to tell Him how bad I wanted Jack taken care of because I figure He knew. But I told Him anyway. That's just the kind of relationship I have with Him, untraditional.
10:10pm - On the way to town I saw I had missed a call from Kay earlier so I called her back and told her what was going on and asked her to call Mom and Dad. I promised to let her know what was going on and we hung up. 10:20pm - Amanda called back and the ambulance was just leaving Juanita's house. She told me that for 2-3 minutes Jack had been convulsing. When the convulsions stopped his eyes were still rolled back in his head and he felt like he was on fire and he sweat so much that his clothes were soaked like he had been swimming. When they got him in the ambulance he seemed to come to and started fighting the EMT's and yelling no so she knew he was conscience. Tom rode in the ambulance with Jack. Amanda and Juanita rode with an in-law following them in a van. I hung up from her and called Mom and Dad's house to let them know what I had found out so far but no one answered the house phone. I called Mom's cell and they were already at Riggin Road (halfway to hospital!). I thanked God for cell phones and supportive parents. We beat the ambulance to the hospital.
When I first saw Jack he was curled up, almost in a fetal position, on this huge hospital bed looking so tired. He was yawning a lot and his cheeks were fire red. His whole body was shaking, I suppose from shock, but when he saw us he perked up a little bit and said "Mawmaw, Pawpaw" it was music to my ears and I had to fight more tears. I hugged Tom as he let me around him to give Jack a small squeeze, then gave Amanda a hug and a couple Kleenex.
There was a lot of waiting around, of course, and he needed a new diaper but the hospital wasn't getting one very fast so me and Bob ran over to Walgreen's to get some and some wipes. We also picked up some fruit bars and Pawpaw grabbed a little Spiderman truck to keep Jack occupied. The truck was the hit of the night! After tests and a few hours of waiting to hear results they said the seizure was caused by a spike in fever, even though Amanda and Juanita both said they had just checked him for fever because he had said he was cold.The only thing they said to do was alternate between Tylenol and Motrin every 2 hours. It just didn't seem right that they had just checked him and less than 30 seconds later he's having a seizure! She is going to call his regular Dr. today to have him looked at so here I sit....wondering.....waiting...and I'm not good with either one of those things!!! We got home and to bed around 4am
Saturday was much calmer. We had a lazy start since we were up late. I put food out for the cats outside and messed around the house for a while then I went outside, determined to win over some of the kitties. The peacock is shedding his tail feathers and the rest of the kittens play with the ones that fall out. So, I grabbed one of the feathers and was out in the woodshed playing with them. They are pretty skittish around us humans and I am hoping that if I play with them, they will get used to me and we can get them to come up to eat when called. Of course, cats have a mind of their own...but I was able to get 4 of them to play with me :) Bob mowed around the house (It has been too wet to mow for 3 days!)and I prepared food for the cookout while we waited for Amanda, Tom and the kids arrived. We had plenty of food despite Amanda not getting stuff made the night before and no one went away hungry. We had to put one package of drumsticks in the freezer, we had so much. The best thing was Jack ate good, which he hadn't been. He had 2 drumsticks, 2 helpings of Mac & cheese, potatoes and corn of the cob.
Sunday was even calmer, Bob finished the yard and then messed with the tractor. We sold it to a guy from the next own over and he was going to pick it up this week so Bob wanted to get a few things done on it. I spent the day in the basement doing laundry and going through box after box of books. Our yearly family rummage sale is next weekend so I had to get some things done. I had...ahem have... a habit of saving the ones I really, really liked and would re-read them from time to time but it's time they go. It was like visiting with old friends but it's time to let them go to bring memories others. I ended up with 11 boxes of books to sell. I probably won't sell them all but any I do will help and those that don't we can donate to nursing homes or take to the lady that runs our small town video store. She puts them out to sell and all money goes to cancer research.
Well, it's about time for my lunch. I will add more later if I hear anything from Amanda on Jack.
Take care.....until next post

EDIT 4:30 - I just heard from Amanda and Jack has Strep Throat!! I can't believe the hospital didn't see this knowing his white blood count was double!! grrrrrr. So we have all been exposed!! Poor little fella!! The Dr. was trying not to upset him, I suppose, because he didn't really take a good look into his throat, now I wish he had so we could have 2 days of antibiotics in him!!

Ok, I saw this story on the This Day in History and wanted to add it too. My husband's Grandfather and Grandmother went west to work on this project. Harold worked on the Dam and Eloise worked on the cooking, as did most wives that were there. She wrote a journal about her life before she passed away and it was completely fascinating!!

This Day In History:

July 7, 1930

Building of Hoover Dam begins

On this day in 1930, construction of the Hoover Dam begins. Over the next five years, a total of 21,000 men would work ceaselessly to produce what would be the largest dam of its time, as well as one of the largest man-made structures in the world.

Although the dam would take only five years to build, its construction was nearly 30 years in the making. Arthur Powell Davis, an engineer from the Bureau of Reclamation, originally had his vision for the Hoover Dam back in 1902, and his engineering report on the topic became the guiding document when plans were finally made to begin the dam in 1922.

Herbert Hoover, the 31st president of the United States and a committed conservationist, played a crucial role in making Davis’ vision a reality. As secretary of commerce in 1921, Hoover devoted himself to the erection of a high dam in Boulder Canyon, Colorado. The dam would provide essential flood control, which would prevent damage to downstream farming communities that suffered each year when snow from the Rocky Mountains melted and joined the Colorado River. Further, the dam would allow the expansion of irrigated farming in the desert, and would provide a dependable supply of water for Los Angeles and other southern California communities.

Even with Hoover's exuberant backing and a regional consensus around the need to build the dam, Congressional approval and individual state cooperation were slow in coming. For many years, water rights had been a source of contention among the western states that had claims on the Colorado River. To address this issue, Hoover negotiated the Colorado River Compact, which broke the river basin into two regions with the water divided between them. Hoover then had to introduce and re-introduce the bill to build the dam several times over the next few years before the House and Senate finally approved the bill in 1928.

In 1929, Hoover, now president, signed the Colorado River Compact into law, claiming it was "the most extensive action ever taken by a group of states under the provisions of the Constitution permitting compacts between states."

Once preparations were made, the Hoover Dam's construction sprinted forward: The contractors finished their work two years ahead of schedule and millions of dollars under budget. Today, the Hoover Dam is the second highest dam in the country and the 18th highest in the world. It generates enough energy each year to serve over a million people, and stands, in Hoover Dam artist Oskar Hansen's words, as "a monument to collective genius exerting itself in community efforts around a common need or ideal."

Have a great evening all!!

More on the sick kitty

2008-07-03T08:46:00.005-04:00

Thanks Movie Star Wife, I did get some formula but now she's not eating. She ate very good Saturday through Tuesday but now I'm using the syringe to dribble some in her mouth and she will swallow it. Last night was a turning point I think. It may have been too little, too late. She did NOT do good last night! She is the runt of the litter and her momma turned her back on her so maybe she knew something we didn't. They say animals know when things aren't right but I'm trying to get her to hang in there. Around 4am she started meowing so I got up to feed her but she wouldn't eat and seemed to only settle down because I was holding her. At 5am I just snuggled her up and went back to bed with her. So afraid she will be gone by the time I get home from work. She's very weak and isn't trying to stand up or eat at all this morning. I don't want to be here at work and I can't quit tearing up :( My mascara is in ruins. It's a 30 minute drive home so I can't even go check on her at lunch....even though I know I'm going to be useless here at work.

Between the Momma cats (3) and all the babies we must have almost 20 cats but this 1 little girl is breaking my heart. I can't stand to see anything suffer although she doesn't appear to be in pain, just weak and dehydrated. Plenty for you to chose from, Shakes (wink). Almost all of them are black. There's one gray, one charcoal, a tiger momma that had 2 tiger and 1 black. The sick girl is one of her tiger babies.

I planned to post pictures last night of the kitty and Maggie's birthday party but I ended up spending most of the evening with the kitty. I will get them posted soon. My Mom just called and she and my younger sister, Kay, want to take me to lunch for my birthday, 51 yikes! I'm a firecracker so I have always gotten my birthday off work :) Hubby asked me last night what I wanted for my birthday but I really have nothing in mind. He said, "Well, I can't get you tickets for the Brickyard for this year." I laughed and said, "Well, that was a once in a life time thing." My parents got me Suite tickets to the Brickyard race last year for my big 5 0 and found a lot 1-1/2 blocks from the Indianapolis Speedway to park their motor home (condo on wheels) for 4 days. Was absolutely heaven for a NASCAR fan!

Hopefully with tomorrow being a holiday they will let us leave work early today! Tomorrow will be bittersweet as it is. It will be 2 years tomorrow since I heard my brother's voice. He had called to wish me happy birthday. Seven weeks later, on his birthday, he suffered an aneurysm. He was 57.
Geesh, I'm maudlin today! Guess that's what happens when menopause hits Depp depression and exhaustion! A train wreck!! I need hormones or sleep lol either or both! Time to wipe off my sad face and get to work. I'll go surf the Johnny Depp sites, that always cheers me up. I do want to put some shortcuts up for a poll that Johnny and Vanessa are in at Hello!

Most Attractive Man/Monthly Poll on Hello! To vote for Johnny go here:
http://www.hellomagazine.com/vote/mostattractiveman/month/index.html
Also, Vanessa is up for Most Attractive Female/Monthly. Go here to vote:
http://www.hellomagazine.com/vote/mostattractivewoman/month/index.html

Both are leading so keep voting! No interesting This Day in History today so I'll skip that. No major earthquakes and the volcanoes I keep an eye on are still doing about the same.

Will try to post over weekend and I will update on the kitty. Have a great weekend everyone and a safe Holiday!

EDIT:

I just called her Baby but she didn't make it through the day. We buried her under the pine tree where we saw her with her momma a couple weeks ago.

Sick kitty, co-workers vacations, more storms

2008-07-02T14:52:00.002-04:00

When I got home from Kentucky (sat.) one of the smaller kittens was under my car, tucked back behind the tire. I needed to move it so hubby could mow but it wouldn't move. I went and got the broom out of the garage but still it didn't move. Warning signals were going off in my head...'this isn't normal'. I finally get it out and the reason it wasn't moving is because it's eyes are matted completely shut! I spend the next hour or 2 soaking and cleaning and I finally get them open only to have lots of puss come out of it's eyes! I'm about in tears due to my soft heart and being tired and it's so tiny and weak. I look all around for something to feed it because it was still nursing and not sure if it knew how to eat yet. I finally grabbed some shaved ham out the frig. and tore it into tiny pieces and literally put it in it's mouth. It got the hint and began eating the ham on it's own. I had a syringe from some other cats trip to the vet and fed it some water. It seemed to be doing better so I took it back to the wood shed to find it's momma but she wasn't around. One of it's litter mates was there and they took off together to nap in the wood. Sunday, same thing only it's on the back porch. I think it follows momma up but when it fall s asleep it's eyes dry shut and when it wakes up it can't see so it just stays put and cries. So, this time I take some chicken noodle soup and mash it up. Man, did she (at this point I checked) scarf it down :) after a little milk, which she drank from a bowl, I put her back in the wood shed and she headed to the back to sleep. Well, Monday after work it became apparent that the momma was leaving it to survive or not soooo back in the house we go and she had a dinner of chicken noodle soup, chicken in gravy cat food, milk and water. By now I have a box lined with towels ready for her. If her momma isn't going take care of her I guess it's up to me, poor little thing. I took 1 picture of her last night and will edit post later to add it. It ended up she slept in the box in our bedroom for the night. This morning she opened her eyes on her own. Not all the way but the corners were open enough to see out of so I'm hoping that's a good sign. Sure hope she's alright. I'm babysitting at my daughters after work tonight so hubby gets the chore to feed her.
For the past 3 weeks I've been covering for someone at work and between that and Linda's moving...I'm pooped! Next week is same story, covering different person. Will try to get picture posted whenever I get home, it's on my laptop. More storms to move in later tonight but will try to do that before they hit.

Today in History: This first story is close to my heart. I did a lot of research into Tecumseh and his life for a book I wanted to write around this time period. There is a lot this article doesn't say but from what I gathered Chief Tecumseh's failure to unite the Indian tribes and the loss of the Battle of Tippecanoe was due more to the antics of his brother, The Prophet, than anything else.

July 2, 1809

Chief Tecumseh urges Indians to unite against whites

Alarmed by the growing encroachment of whites squatting on Native American lands, the Shawnee Chief Tecumseh calls on all Indians to unite and resist.

Born around 1768 near Springfield, Ohio, Tecumseh early won notice as a brave warrior. He fought in battles between the Shawnee and the white Kentuckians, who were invading the Ohio River Valley territory. After the Americans won several important battles in the mid-1790s, Tecumseh reluctantly relocated westward but remained an implacable foe of the white men and their ways.

By the early 19th century, many Shawnee and other Ohio Valley Indians were becoming increasingly dependent on trading with the Americans for guns, cloth, and metal goods. Tecumseh spoke out against such dependence and called for a return to traditional Indian ways. He was even more alarmed by the continuing encroachment of white settlers illegally settling on the already diminished government-recognized land holdings of the Shawnee and other tribes. The American government, however, was reluctant to take action against its own citizens to protect the rights of the Ohio Valley Indians.

On this day in 1809, Tecumseh began a concerted campaign to persuade the Indians of the Old Northwest and Deep South to unite and resist. Together, Tecumseh argued, the various tribes had enough strength to stop the whites from taking further land. Heartened by this message of hope, Indians from as far away as Florida and Minnesota heeded Tecumseh's call. By 1810, he had organized the Ohio Valley Confederacy, which united Indians from the Shawnee, Potawatomi, Kickapoo, Winnebago, Menominee, Ottawa, and Wyandot nations.

For several years, Tecumseh's Indian Confederacy successfully delayed further white settlement in the region. In 1811, however, the future president William Henry Harrison led an attack on the confederacy's base on the Tippecanoe River. At the time, Tecumseh was in the South attempting to convince more tribes to join his movement. Although the battle of Tippecanoe was close, Harrison finally won out and destroyed much of Tecumseh's army.

When the War of 1812 began the following year, Tecumseh immediately marshaled what remained of his army to aid the British. Commissioned a brigadier general, he proved an effective ally and played a key role in the British capture of Detroit and other battles. When the tide of war turned in the American favor, Tecumseh's fortunes went down with those of the British. On October 5, 1813, he was killed during Battle of the Thames. His Ohio Valley Confederacy and vision of Indian unity died with him.

July 2, 1881

President Garfield shot

Only four months into his administration, President James A. Garfield is shot as he walks through a railroad waiting room in Washington, D.C. His assailant, Charles J. Guiteau, was a disgruntled and perhaps insane office seeker who had unsuccessfully sought an appointment to the U.S. consul in Paris. The president was shot in the back and the arm, and Guiteau was arrested.

Garfield, mortally ill, was treated in Washington and then taken to the seashore at Elberon, New Jersey, where he attempted to recuperate with his family. During this time, Vice President Chester A. Arthur served as acting president. On September 19, 1881, after 80 days, President Garfield died of blood poisoning. The following day, Arthur was inaugurated as the 21st president of the United States.

July 2, 1934

Fox signs Shirley Temple

On this day in 1934, Fox Film Corp. strikes a new contract with child star Shirley Temple. Temple was six years old at the time. Starting at age four, Temple starred in a series of shorts spoofing current movies, called Baby Burlesks, and appeared in bit parts. Her song and dance number "Baby Take a Bow" in the 1934 movie Stand Up and Cheer brought her wide acclaim. Her new contract with Fox raised her salary from $150 a week to $1,000 a week, plus a $35,000 bonus for each film she made. The contract also paid her mother $250 a week.

Under the new contract, Temple quickly became one of the most popular actresses of the day. From 1935 to 1938, she was Hollywood's top box office draw. By 1936, she was earning $50,000 per film. Her films included Little Miss Marker (1934), The Little Colonel (1935), and Heidi (1937).

Temple made more than 40 films by the time she reached her teens. However, her box office magic wore off as she aged, and by her late teens her career was petering out. She married actor John Agar in 1946, at age 17. The marriage ended by 1949, the same year she made her last film, A Kiss for Corliss.

She remarried in 1950, to TV executive Charles Black, and changed her name to Shirley Temple Black. Two attempts in the 1950s to launch her own TV shows failed. In the late 1960s, the former actress entered politics, running unsuccessfully for Congress. In 1968, President Nixon appointed her U.S. representative to the United Nations. She served as ambassador to Ghana from 1974 to 1976 and later as chief of protocol for President Ford. She became ambassador to Czechoslovakia in 1989 and served until 1992.

July 2, 1937

Amelia Earhart disappears

On July 2, 1937, the Lockheed aircraft carrying American aviator Amelia Earhart and navigator Frederick Noonan is reported missing near Howland Island in the Pacific. The pair were attempting to fly around the world when they lost their bearings during the most challenging leg of the global journey: Lae, New Guinea, to Howland Island, a tiny island 2,227 nautical miles away, in the center of the Pacific Ocean. The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Itasca was in sporadic radio contact with Earhart as she approached Howland Island and received messages that she was lost and running low on fuel. Soon after, she probably tried to ditch the Lockheed in the ocean. No trace of Earhart or Noonan was ever found.

Ok, I gotta go for now but will be back to add kitty picture....stay safe....until next post...

Helping a friend and birthdays

2008-07-01T08:58:00.005-04:00

I'm back!! Was an interesting drive south. The area around Columbus and Edinburgh Indiana still showed signs of the devastation from the flooding. Field pipes once buried now visible. Large areas of fields with big swashes ripped out by flowing water. The rivers were still high but not overflowing their banks. It's just amazing what Mother Nature can do.
The trip to Kentucky and back went well. I have some new bruises and I'm minus a few fingernails lol! Boy, was that some busy days!! I ended up leaving on Weds. morning and arrived at Linda's around noon. Her daughter, Tina, had an appointment with a lawyer in a few hours so first thing we did was get her on the road. Lawyers office was an hour and a half drive. Then we headed upstairs to organized what she had already packed up. Neither of them are in good health so I put myself to good use and packed...and moved boxes...and packed...and moved boxes...and packed...and moved boxes... As you can guess, Linda had a lot of calls to make so while she was on phone I would hold up items and she would point to which suitcase or box. Before you knew it we had the bed cleared! Then we would start on a different area and fill the bed up again. Then clear it again. Little by little we got everything packed and had 1 suitcase for her to 'live out of' for a few days and 1 suitcase for medicines. She had a friend come in by bus from PA to drive her truck and the U-haul to New Jersey and he was to arrive at 2:30 but called at noon to let us know that a levee had broke in Columbus, OH (what's with the Columbus flooding?...Columbus, IN and Columbus, WI!?) and bus had to detour and it would be close to 7pm before he arrived! Poor Carl was on that bus for almost 24 hours!! Only to turn around and leave by truck the next morning. What a friend!
We pulled out of Bowling Green, KY at 10:30am. I followed behind them until the Blue Grass Parkway exit. I pulled up along side them and blew Linda a kiss. As I headed north, they exited to go east and that's when I started to cry. I stayed tough until then because I knew Linda was trying so very hard not to break down. I talked to her Sunday and she said something about feeling like she stepped off a cliff into the unknown when we parted ways on the Interstate. I told her she hadn't stepped into the unknown but she had been standing on a threshold with 1 foot in today and 1 foot in the future and now she had just lifted that foot from today and stepped into a new beginning. She sounded happier on Sunday than I had heard her in a longggg time :)
Sunday afternoon was reserved for the birthday girl, Maggie!! We had quite the crowd over to celebrate her big day with her. With all the sickness, broken leg and injuries in the family lately we haven't been able to celebrate everything so the cake had Graduation for Jeremy and Faith, and birthday for Maggie and me. I have pictures and will post them when I can get them downloaded from the camera. Maggie got lots and clothes and toys, of course, and we just put the cake on the highchair tray and let her go!! When the party was over, Amanda, Tom and the kids and one of Amanda's friends from high school stayed and we had pizza and wings for dinner. It was a good day :)
Now it's back to work....blah! No more mentioning 'nookie' Son-in-law visited blog last week and was grossed out that his mother-in-law mentioned it...Sorry Tom! LOL :P

Here's a word of the day:
trichotillomania

\trick-uh-till-uh-MAY-nee-uh\
noun

Meaning

: an abnormal desire to pull out one's hair

Example Sentence

Connie’s trichotillomania left her with an unfortunate array of bald spots along the crown of her head.

Now this I have experienced! Although not to the point of having bald spots but there is usually a point (or two, or three) in each day that I just want to pull my hair out!! Thank God my insanity is normal. It is normal isn't it? I was told it was but maybe the person who told me that was crazy too! Yikes!

Today in History:

July 1, 1863

The Battle of Gettysburg begins

The largest military conflict in North American history begins this day when Union and Confederate forces collide at Gettysburg. The epic battle lasted three days and resulted in a retreat to Virginia by Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.

Two months prior to Gettysburg, Lee had dealt a stunning defeat to the Army of the Potomac at Chancellorsville. He then made plans for a Northern invasion in order to relieve pressure on war-weary Virginia and to seize the initiative from the Yankees. His army, numbering about 80,000, began moving on June 3. The Army of the Potomac, commanded by Joseph Hooker and numbering just under 100,000, began moving shortly thereafter, staying between Lee and Washington, D.C. But on June 28, frustrated by the Lincoln administration's restrictions on his autonomy as commander, Hooker resigned and was replaced by George G. Meade.

Meade took command of the Army of the Potomac as Lee's army moved into Pennsylvania. On the morning of July 1, advance units of the forces came into contact with one another just outside of Gettysburg. The sound of battle attracted other units, and by noon the conflict was raging. During the first hours of battle, Union General John Reynolds was killed, and the Yankees found that they were outnumbered. The battle lines ran around the northwestern rim of Gettysburg. The Confederates applied pressure all along the Union front, and they slowly drove the Yankees through the town.

By evening, the Federal troops rallied on high ground on the southeastern edge of Gettysburg. As more troops arrived, Meade's army formed a three-mile long, fishhook-shaped line running from Culp's Hill on the right flank, along Cemetery Hill and Cemetery Ridge, to the base of Little Round Top. The Confederates held Gettysburg, and stretched along a six-mile arc around the Union position. For the next two days, Lee would batter each end of the Union position, and on July 3, he would launch Pickett's charge against the Union center.

For my Canadian friends...

July 1, 1867

Canadian Independence Day

The autonomous Dominion of Canada, a confederation of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and the future provinces of Ontario and Quebec, is officially recognized by Great Britain with the passage of the British North America Act.

On July 1, 1867, with passage of the British North America Act, the Dominion of Canada was officially established as a self-governing entity within the British Empire. Two years later, Canada acquired the vast possessions of the Hudson's Bay Company, and within a decade the provinces of Manitoba and Prince Edward Island had joined the Canadian federation. In 1885, the Canadian Pacific Railway was completed, making mass settlement across the vast territory of Canada possible.

I saw yesterday that primary filming for PE is done. That's sad and I will miss the updates and pictures. Only thing to do is wait for the movie to come out. And I think it will be an awesome movie!! Not just because Johnny Depp is in it but from what I've seen in the making of it.
Ok, I've got to get some work done. Until next post.....take care