Quest classes started today. The kids are involved in several classes. Zach is in a Kingdom series that is a really in depth study of medieval history with biblical allegories. The teacher is nice women who has her own children in the class. Zach, got a paper cut in the middle of class and that was the end of learning for him. My live in moment child turned his attention from the class discussion to his paper cut that stung. His easily distracted attention is not new to his teacher since she had him last semester for her Viking history class. We have worked out a system that I get his assignments instead of handing them to Zach. I know millions of parents have their own opinions on how to handle Zach and frankly, I don't care. They were not sitting in that class room. I was, and I was shocked at the high level of expectation required and the discussions going on with those homeschooled kids ranging from 9 to 14. These kids were excitedly discussing the allegoric representation of the fictional characters in these series of Books called "The Kingdom". At their age and I didn't even know what an allegory was, let alone know how to recognize it and apply it to the story I was reading. They also have to do worksheets, projects, finish a book in the series, then do a book report on it all before each Monday. Oh and of course, there are the extra reading material that is handed out each week about the history, culture and times of the middle ages. Looking it all over I felt overwhelmed for Zach. Of course, then I realized; hey, we homeschool. This one class takes care of English, history, writing, Bible study and even art! Phew! I think a few college kids would glean a great deal from this course, HA!
This semester I am teaching an ASL class using a curriculum that I got online (with permission) and teaching a group of kids ranging in age from 6 to 14. I have the younger kids and newbies doing more of the basics like ABC's, numbers, vocab and short sentences. the older, more experienced, and frankly more gifted students are doing stories. I gave each student a VHS tape of me signing the vocab and stories that they are required to learn. At the end of the semester I will be giving each of them an "I Love You" cookie cutter as a reward for all their hard work. Sam is in Phy Ed while Zach is in his Kingdom history class then Zach is in Phy Ed while Sam is in Spanish. Sam is also in choir but Zach uses that time to work on his Kingdom History class. We even eat lunch there between classes and when the day is all done, the kids play board games while the parents clean the church that so graciously allows us to use their facility. I am luck enough to be in charge of cleaning the bathrooms, yippee.
So that is our Mondays for the next 10 weeks.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Myspace blogs: 3/27/2007-9/15/2008
I was blogging on Myspace, but I decided to transfer to here because I don't like going to Myspace with all of the ads and its sometimes inappropriate images. Which means I needed to transfer all of the blogs on to here. So, here are my past blogs:
Monday, June 25, 2007
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
| Just an update on little ol' me. I have never blogged before so I thought, what the hell, give it a try. I should be doing work around the house but, I don't feel like it. Anyway, I just got back from Wausau. I was there for a week because my grandfather had heart surgery so I was helping take care of him and going through all the crap, I mean treasures my grandmother had collected over the years. While I was there Laura (my sis) called and said they are moving to Wausau and need help finding a place. So then Mom and I started house hunting for them. We didn't get very far. Saw a lot of crappy places and then I had to go back home to my responsibilities. Mom called tonight because she has pixes of places she found that were really nice and wanted to send the pixes to Laura but was having trouble with the computer and needed my help. It is really hard to help when you can't see the computer. Blind leading the blind, ha ha. Well, now I am waiting for Mom to call me back and tell me if she got it to work yet. In other news, I should be interpreting this Sunday for church now that I am back. I plan to attend college this summer to reach my goal of certified Sign Language Interpreter. But first I need to buy a car. Can't really get to college without a car. Hopefully after we get our tax return I will be cruzin' around in a van. Wow, I'm so stylish. |
blah Monday, June 25, 2007
| Ginny Owens comes for a visit As most of you know I am the Sign Language Interpreter for my church, Faith Community. Normally by Wednesday I get the itinerary for the up coming services so I know what songs I might need to interpret for, if there are any movie clips or video I will need for familiarize myself with etc... Well, last Monday I get the itinerary e-mailed to me and it says "special guest" but they won't tell me who and and they fail to list any song that will be done; Oh, and my contact person will be out of town that week until Saturday so I can't e-mail or call her to find out what is going on. So I wait. I went to services on Saturday hoping to get an idea of what will be going on since I was really in the dark. As an interpreter that is a very nerve racking because songs are kinda tough with all the alliterations and symbolism goin' on! Anyway, I get there take notes and what not, and then Pastor Jeff announces that Ginny Owens (christian singer) will be at church on Sunday preforming for all 3 services (I interpret for 9:30 AM service only). I am floored, she is a great singer, in fact she has a my space page http://www.myspace.com/ginnyowens one of my favorite songs she sings is I Am. However, the interpreter in me is scrambling to familiarize myself with her songs because she will be singing some of her songs for special music but no one know which ones! I send a little prayer upward and off to church I go. Well, the deaf couple I usually interpret for, were not there! As much as I hate to say it, I was relieved. Plus, I got to sit and enjoy Ginny Owens preform! |
Sunday, September 16, 2007
| Funny 911 story Okay I have to set up the scene first before I dive in to this story. My daughter Samantha loves to play on our TTY (that is a phone device for the deaf). She love typing on it because of the beeping sounds it makes and loves watching the letter go by as she tries to type words. Now she has been allowed to play on this TTY because it is not connected directly to the phone line (you have to put the receiver on top of it in order for the signal to travel through the phone line). Well our TTY was getting very old and the plug was starting to fray so we got a new one (well not brand new my brother-in-law gave us his that he doesn't use any more) Anyway, after we got it I told the kids that they can't play on this new one, because it is connected directly to the phone line and out going calls can be made. So I plugged in it and after my little speech I forgot about it. Last week, I got a call from a 911 operator who said she was returning a call they received from my house. I told her that no one could have called because both phones are up high and out of reach of the kids. I was baffled and then I saw the TTY. I turned to the kids and asked if anyone had played with the TTY Sam piped up with a very innocent "I was playing on it." Humbly I had to tell the 911 operator that my daughter must have made the call by mistake on our TTY. She said an officer would be there in a few minutes because it is protocol for all 911 calls to be check out. I told Samantha what she had done and that she needed to apologize when the officer got here; she was mortified! She ran to the bathroom and hide the whole time the officer was here. The officer didn't have time to stick around for me to drag Samantha out of the bathroom. The little stinker was off the hook! I don't think she will ever do that again. Plus I now keep the TTY unplugged. Ah kids, ya gotta love 'em! |
embarrassed Friday, September 28, 2007
| Had a bit of a scare This past Wednesday Sam slipped on the kitchen floor and gashed her chin open. It was pretty bad so I got Kiki and she drove us the emergency room (Since I don't have a car) Thank God she was there! Anyway, after we got there and checked in (around 9 pm) we waited for 45 min before they finally registered us. The lady who did the registration wasn't too bright. She ask Sam how it happened and Sam starts to go in to this story about Zach asked her to get the musical card so she ran to the kitchen, slipped and fell. The woman then says to Sam so your brother was chasing you and you fell? Umm no, that is not what she said idiot. Sam looked at her kind of perplexed and said "no, I was running to the the musical card he ask me to get." But it didn't matter the nurse decided it was Zach's fault and proceeds to tell the other nurse that Sam injury is due to her brother chasing her! Okay whatever just get my kid's chin fix is all I could think. Then that same nurse kinda freaked Sam out by telling her she would need stitches. Sam started to cry and says "my brother said stitches use a black thread and needle." The nurse said, "No, I will show you what they use." So she takes us back and shows Sam black thread and a hook-like needle! Sam looks at the woman and says "my brother was right!" And now she is even more freaked out! Thanks lady  . So they send us back out to the waiting room. Matt shows up a few minutes later on his way home from work. Kiki goes home since she had a screaming headache and had to work the next day. Sam is finally called back to an examining room. Matt stays with Zach in the waiting room while I go with Sam. And we wait for the doctor. After a while he shows up. Really nice guy, he was awesome with Sam. Made her feel relaxed and told her she was not going to have stitches but they would glue it together instead. So much less painful and faster healing time! She was a trooper as they put the glue on and promised she wouldn't pick at it. So after a few instructions on care, getting some stickers and suckers we were out of there. Sam waved good-bye to the registration nurse and says "I got stickers and 2 suckers. One is for my brother." The nurse says "After what he did to you?!" I couldn't believe it. Sam was confused and said "yeah" but by then Matt and Zach arrived by our side and Sam was happily telling Zach that she got him stickers and suckers and I was busy telling Matt about what happened. I was glad that the nurse saw my kids showing concern, love, & generosity toward one another. Hopefully it sunk in that not all siblings hate each other! |
Sunday, November 18, 2007
| Another ER trip It's almost midnight and I am here in my room with Samantha as we wait for Matt and Zach to come back from the Emergency Room. Here is what happened. Zach likes to read in bed alot. Anyway, he hung a mag flash light between the bars of the top bunk while he read. Well, the flash light fell and bonked him on the head pretty good. I heard the crack of the flash light hitting him on the head and then his screams. I ran in his room to find him bleeding from the head really bad. I mean it was pouring down his head! I put my hand on his head to catch the blood as we rushed to the bathroom. With all the blood mashed with his hair we couldn't see how bad it was so we turned the shower on him. It worked. We were able to see the nickel size wound and sizeable lump now forming on his scalp. Matt and I were concerned that with the amount of bleeding, the size of the lump, and possible damage than we could not see. So, Matt and Zach went off to the hospital and Sam and I are sitting here waiting and praying that everything will be alright. Will update when I find out more. *Update* Okay, it's a little after 1 am. Zach and my husband just got back from the hospital. Zach got 3 staples in his head! I got sick looking at it. Anyway, Matt says Zach did great at the hospital and was a real trooper. I am just so relieved that he is otherwise ok. So, I am off to bed for some much needed sleep. Praise God!! |
Thursday, February 07, 2008
| Mary Beth in Kenya & Luke in iraq. dangerous situations update praying for Mary Beth aka Mabe, in Kenya.  She is one of the many deaf volunteers that are working for the Peace Corp to help educated deaf children and teachers in that region. However, the situation has now become very dangerous. There is political unrest due to the recent elections. There has been major fighting after a political leader was murdered. Hundreds have been killed and it doesn't look like it's going to stop anytime soon. For her safty I can't even blog about some of the details regarding her situation. When I am able, I will update about what is going on with her. *UPDATE 2/7/2008* Peace Corp has offically announced they are pulling out of Kenya. Mabe is expected to come home (to the U.S.) on Saturday. However, in order to evacuate she will have to travel through very dangerous areas. Please pray she gets back to the United States safely. Now on to Luke in Iraq.  The Baierl Grape-Vine has informed us via Kiki that, Luke (Matt's brother) who is serving our country in Iraq, is in danger too. Not just because of the war but because they found IED's on his base. IED's are basically bombs disguised as well anything. It could be a cell phone or even a dead camel. So we are adding him to our prayers too. My stomach is in a knot because of these two. I just want them to come home, but I know they are serving a higher purpose and are sacrificing more than I will ever know. I am swelling with pride for the both of them. |
Thursday, February 28, 2008
| Ender’s Game - our home made trailer Okay so I have to brag! My husband and son finished reading Ender's Game a few months ago. Matt read it to Zach so he could censoring some of the age-inappropriate content. Well, they both love the book so much (so do I) they decided to make a movie trailer just for fun. Zach fits the age and charater of Ender so perfectly! So here it is; |
pleased Wednesday, March 05, 2008
| What the heck did I do to myself?! Okay so I am totally laid up in bed as I am writing this because I injuried my neck. "Gee Brenda, how did that happen?" you may be asking. Well I wish I knew so I would never do it again! I have been suffering like this for 4 days; I can bearly move. The pain get so bad sometimes my eyes start to water. Zach has been doing some of the dishes, helping with lunch, and running up and down the stairs to warm up my neck pillow thing in the microwave- bless his heart. Sam has been cleaning up for me (alittle, I mean really, she is only 6) but her prayers for me to heal are so heart warming. I have such great kids! I just wish I could be healed and done with this so I can be the mom they need. Ugh this sucks! |
miserable Saturday, April 05, 2008
| Update on stuff that’s happened My mother-in-law just called me wondering what happened to my neck. Oops I forgot to update about that. So here is the update people so pay attention! My neck has healed slowly over time. They are pretty sure this is from an old neck injury I received when I was in a car accident in my teens. The doc says these kind of injuries can hide for years and then rear their ugly heads when we get older. Getting old sucks! Speaking of car accidents: Matt was just in one. Luckily he is okay and no one else was involved. He slide into a curb hard during our last horrible snow storm which caused the wheel to be bent inward. So after much back and forth with the insurance company and body shop it has been decided that that car will be scraped. We received a very measly check from the insurance company which is in no way enough to buy another car. So far we have bought a van which were where planning to do anyway, and after we get our tax returns we will be on the hunt for a car for Matt to tot back and forth to work. So that is the basic update on us. We are otherwise doing well. |
sleepy Sunday, April 20, 2008
| Twins! and yet another ER trip Whoa woo my sister is having twins! I am so excited! I am concerned though, she is having some issues with the pregnancy that has us all on alert. So, please keep her in your prayers that the pregnancy will go smoothly and she will not have any more problems. |
Monday, June 09, 2008
| Caution some migraine meds can make you fat! HI all interested in what I got to say, |
enlightened Wednesday, July 02, 2008
| Homeschooling is easier than tying your shoes! At least that is what my son thinks. We were listening to the radio and he heard about California's ruling about parents who want to homeschool need to get a teacher's degree. Zach asked what this meant. I told him that parents would have to go back to college and study to become a teacher if they wanted to homeschool. He looked all flabbergasted and said, "What.. ah... teaching is easier than tying your shoes! Why would you have to go to college for that?!" I laughed sooo hard! I love how our children can enlighten us with their simplistic view on life. Yes, I agree with him that homeschooling parents have been teaching their children for years and proving to the world that it works without a teaching degree. I guess I make it look easy. Our children are not anti-social or have lower test scores. Usually it's quite the opposite. Heck, President's Lincoln's mom is a pretty good example! There are always bad apples out there, but the same goes for public, private or charter schools. However, I did have to disagree with him on the easy part. Some days we will have what I call a "cage match" (stole that one from The Office). On those days I have to let him out of the "cage" and run around the outside of the house a few times to rearrange his perspective. For some reason it works...well, most of the time anyway. PS: I don't hate public school or think it is the worst thing for our children. There are many many dedicated wonderful teachers out there. We have a pretty good school system where I live too. I do think the public school system needs a major overhaul before it can be categorized as great but I don't see that happening anytime soon. Homeschooling is just what works for us right now. |
thoughtful Sunday, August 10, 2008
| Bats Bats everywhere I should have written this a few days ago but, I have a life. Anyway, Wednesday Aug 5th was Matt's birthday. Kiki watched Sam as Matt and I went to see the Newest Batman movie The Dark Knight - Awesome movie. The only thing I wish was that the sound was better. There were many times I missed what was said because the music or other loud sounds muffled the conversations. Oh well, when we buy the movies I can watch it with the subtitles on. |
drained Monday, September 15, 2008
| Testing Times Hello my friends and random people who are snooping. Orson Scott Card - On Obama
Orson Scott Card - Sept 7, 2008 Barack Obama, Spinmeister So on Wednesday, the local Democratic Party newspaper, the Greensboro News & Record, put on its front page, above the fold, an "analysis" piece whose message was that there was less to President Bush's announced troop withdrawals than met the eye. There was no way that it was news; its purpose was to try to paint the success of the surge, and the resulting ability to shorten tours of duty in Iraq and move more troops to Afghanistan, as a failure, or at least to throw a little mud on the success. The word "analysis" was supposed to take the curse off a front-page editorial. But "analysis" in relatively small type does not convey to most readers what the piece really was: pure opinion. It would be different if they ever ran such an "analysis" that was not anti-Bush. But let's face it. It has been a terrible week for Democrats. Obama's rock-star tour of Europe and his choice of one of the biggest establishment creeps in the Senate as his running mate did nothing to boost his numbers -- no significant convention bounce for him. Meanwhile, McCain's running mate choice gave him a huge boost, as did the obvious success of the surge, highlighted by President Bush's announcement of troop stand-downs and shifts. The pro-Democratic media in our country -- all of it except Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, and talk radio (which is why the Democrats want to shut down conservative talk radio but leave all the liberal media alone) -- has been reduced to comparing Palin's inexperience with Obama's. "Obama is less inexperienced than Palin," their message is; editorials in Newsweek called Palin "unqualified" as if that were a fact. They seem not to realize that when they have to compare their presidential candidate with the opposing vice-presidential candidate, they have already lost. But the news media's desperation doesn't really compare to Obama's. His response to President Bush's announcement was disingenuous, to say the least. He cannot admit that the troop surge worked. Why? Because that surge was John McCain's idea, not even President Bush's. Bush gets full points for instituting it and supporting Petraeus and the troops in making it work. But McCain was the maverick -- the guy who called, not for defeat, but for change that would lead to victory. Bush made the change McCain asked for, and the victory came. But Obama's response was to say, in effect, "Bush is finally doing what I called for a year ago." No sir, Mr. Obama. What you called for a year ago was to begin a brigade-a-month withdrawal from Iraq right then. With no surge. When Al Qaeda dominated in several regions and Shi'ite warlords in others. When many tribal leaders were still ambivalent or supportive of the enemy. If we had done what Mr. Obama called for, when he called for it, our troop withdrawals would have been seen -- correctly -- as defeat. Al Qaeda would have trumpeted their victory; their funding would have increased, as would the number of volunteers coming to fight with them to kill more Americans and butcher their way to rule in Iraq. Osama bin Laden would have been completely vindicated in his claim that if you kill a few Americans, they give up and go away. He would be, thanks to Obama's plan, well on the way to achieving his goal of being Caliph, if not Mahdi, of the Islamic world. Instead, President Bush -- correctly -- did the opposite of Obama's declare-defeat-and-go-home plan. He followed McCain's strategy of strength. Neighborhoods were cleared of Al Qaeda terrorists and then were held, giving the people there the security they craved. This show of real strength and determination was something the tribal leaders understood -- they got off the fence and took action against the terrorists who had been ruining the lives of the people wherever they had control. Corrupt and inept as it is (you know, like probable bribe-takers Ted Stevens and Hillary Clinton), the democratically chosen Iraqi government was given real strength. The Iraqi military was also vastly heartened -- the enemy was on the run. After all these changes, after the casualty rate dropped radically, after the Iraqi military was able to take over more of the security duties in their own country, then President Bush was able to bring back some of the surge forces and shorten the tours of duty in Iraq. Is Obama really so stupid that he believes that Bush is merely doing what Obama called for a year ago? Of course he's not stupid. He's lying. He's pretending that there's no difference between his position then and Bush's (and McCain's) achievement now. He thinks that the American people are so dumb that they will take his obviously-false claims at face value. Obama's plan allowed no possibility of American victory. Now that we're achieving that victory because his plan was ignored, he wants to claim credit for thinking it up? For being prescient? Puh-lease. That's way beyond spin, folks. If the situation were reversed, if it was the Republican candidate falsely claiming that the present troop withdrawals were what he called for a year ago, that "analysis" essay on the front page of the News & Record would have been a sharp exposure of the dishonesty of such a claim. But since the only daily paper in Greensboro is a partisan rag, they can get away with attacking the President for not telling the whole story (though in fact the President told the whole story), while ignoring the offensive falsehood of the opposing party's candidate's claim. Meanwhile, the rest of the mainstream media are coming out with a similar double-standard. Sarah Palin is called "unqualified" when she has far more executive experience than Obama -- more, in fact, than McCain. Not foreign policy experience. Not Washington political mill experience. But she has actually governed something. Obama ludicrously claimed that running his campaign for the past year is somehow comparable to governing a state. What a laugh! In the campaign, everybody serves at the candidate's pleasure. In the executive branch, most of the employees are under civil service regulations and can't be fired. If Obama doesn't understand the difference, he really is unqualified to be President, because he clearly doesn't have a clue. It's like when Dan Marriott was running for Congress in Utah. He was asked by a reporter what committees he wants to serve on in Congress, and he answered famously that he didn't care, because committees never did any real work. Thus making it plain that he hadn't even studied the legislative branch of the U.S. government, since all the work of Congress is done in committees. If Obama really thinks that running a campaign, where you can fire anybody, and only people who totally believe in your cause even apply for a job, is like governing a state, where there is an entrenched bureaucracy and an old-boy network determined to keep you from accomplishing anything -- boy, is he in for a few surprises if he actually wins this thing. Alaska isn't a big state, but its politicians were at least as corrupt as North Carolina's state government, where a Republican was openly finagled into betraying his party to keep the Democrats in control of the House. Sarah Palin came into office and even though the corruption was in her own party, she took it on and made a good start at rooting it out. Where and when has Obama taken anybody on in his own party? Where is his vote that flew in the face of his party's discipline, like many of McCain's? Obama liked to claim that McCain voted with President Bush ninety percent of the time. But that means McCain voted against a President from his own party ten percent of the time. Meanwhile, Obama has voted with the extreme left of his party, right in line with the party leadership, one hundred percent of the time. That ten percent of McCain's votes that went against his party is actually a remarkable record of independence. One that Obama has never even attempted. Yet the media don't hold Obama's feet to the fire. He makes these outrageously false or misleading claims, and only the openly partisan conservative media -- talk radio, blogs, and the Rhino Times -- even seem to notice the self-serving falsity of the claims. Welcome to American politics. An editorial in the News & Record mocked McCain for running against the establishment when the Republicans have "run Washington" for most of the past seven years. What a laugh! The overwhelming majority of the entrenched can't-be-fired establishment in Washington is of the Left. Almost all of the media are of the Left. When Republicans hold high office in Washington, they're treated like a thin layer of invaders who will soon be driven out. Then comes the report from an "independent" commission condemning Bush for not doing enough to block the acquisition of weapons of mass destruction by terrorists. The report essentially says that all these years without a foreign terrorist incident in the U.S. were in spite of the Bush administration's incompetence. The report could not have been more biased and partisan. But the writer of the story in the News & Record used the words "independent report" without quotation marks, asserting it as a fact that the report was not partisan, when in fact it obviously was. The fact is that the single most effective tool the government has had in fighting foreign terrorism is precisely the tapping-without-warrant of phone calls between noncitizens that the Democrats -- and the leftist media -- have so savagely and absurdly attacked, as if Americans should be willing to die to protect the nonexistent constitutional rights of noncitizens. And here's another huge reason why terrorism has not returned to our shores during these years since 9/11: The war in Iraq. If we had invaded only Afghanistan, then Al Qaeda could claim to be martyrs, who bravely attacked the Great Satan and now were paying the penalty, along with the brave Taliban who supported them. But when we invaded terrorist sponsoring, WMD-using Iraq -- an Arab country and a major player in the Middle East -- Al Qaeda's situation changed completely. Here was America, goaded into action by Al Qaeda, attacking and toppling a vicious dictator in the heart of the Arab world. As I wrote at the time, this was exactly the way to make Al Qaeda hated by Muslims in the Middle East. "Look what you brought down on us by attacking America!" Admittedly, I think Iraq was not the target we should have struck. (Terrorist-haven Iranian-puppet Syria was the right target, and Hamas and Hezbollah would not be thriving now if we had done so; and since Saddam Hussein would certainly have entered such a war on Syria's side, we would have ended up toppling him anyway, and without Syria's vicious terrorist government as a conduit for Iranian money, arms, and malevolence, the occupation of both countries would have been far less complicated.) But it almost didn't matter which major terrorist sponsor we took on. Whoever it was, Al Qaeda had no choice but to commit itself to attacking American troops in order to drive us out. Guerrillas and terrorists thrive on not attacking the enemy's forces head on. It's simply too dangerous. Yet Al Qaeda had no choice but to do it -- along with filmed beheadings of Americans and other kidnaped foreigners -- because their prophet, Osama bin Laden, had told them that if you killed Americans gruesomely and abused their bodies, as happened in Somalia, the Americans would give up and go away. But that only worked under a pusillanimous Democratic president. It did not work with Bush -- or with McCain -- who understood that strength and courage and determination were the only way to stop terrorists. It wasn't America in a quagmire in Iraq. It was Al Qaeda. And the more the Iraqi people saw of Al Qaeda, the more they hated the terrorists. They came to see them for the fanatical murderous fascists that they are. Al Qaeda taught the Iraqi people to be grateful for Americans. They saw the difference between civilized soldiers and barbarians. Obama wanted to surrender to those barbarians and bring our troops home. But then, flush with victory, do you think Al Qaeda would have left us alone? They attacked Americans on our own soil when we were not attacking them anywhere! When they thought they had us on the run, do you think they would have magnanimously declared peace? Or would they instead have flooded the world with more terrorism, convinced that their method had worked? Of course, now that they have essentially lost in Iraq, how can they save face? Only by mounting new attacks against Western targets -- preferably on American soil. Previously, they went for the big showy attack. But that is far harder to bring off today. They may be reduced to multiple attacks by lone suicide bombers or gunmen in fast food restaurants, shopping malls, or schools. That is precisely the kind of attack that truly can't be prevented. America is a nation of soft targets. So we may very well see new terrorist attacks here on our soil before the election. At the same time, Al Qaeda may have lost so much credibility worldwide because of the failure of Osama's predictions about American behavior that there are too few volunteers to bring off suicide attacks here. I don't think so, though. Remember that the South's most devastating terror attack -- the assassination of Abraham Lincoln -- took place after the South was defeated. We are, at this moment, in our position of maximum vulnerability. And if there is an attack on American soil before the election, what will Barack Obama say? If his current statements are any indication, then after a few pieties about how deplorable it all is and how our enemies are to be condemned, he will proceed to blame President Bush for (incredibly enough) not doing enough to prevent such attacks -- even though Obama's own party has been savage in attacking President Bush for doing too much! Obama will claim that these new terrorist attacks are proof of the failure of Bush's policies, even though Obama has never offered even a hint of what he would do to protect American soil that Bush is not already doing. Obama's great plan to deal with terrorists is to meet with them without preconditions -- or at least that was his plan until he and his advisers saw that it sounded to most Americans as idiotic as it was, at which point Obama started claiming that he never said any such thing, even though we all saw him say it. Obama is the typical cynical politician, putting negative spin on everything his opponent does and denying his own past statements and actions. If Obama were a Republican, he would quickly learn that any such hypocrisy would be nailed by the media and harped on endlessly. But because the mainstream media are relentlessly partisan on Obama's behalf, he is always surprised and shocked when his deceptions and stupidities are exposed. How dare those nasty conservative talk radio hosts and bloggers interfere with his coronation! Can't they see that Obama is the one anointed by the leftist media establishment? Here's the problem, Mr. Obama. Back when you were still saying nothing, you looked very promising to people like me, who thought of you as what you claimed to be -- a great conciliator. But since Hillary took the gloves off and bloodied you at the end of the primary season, you have been forced to take firm positions on issues and to defend yourself against criticism -- you have been forced to let us see who you are. And who are you? When you are caught saying something stupid or wrong, you simply deny saying it and accuse those who quote you of taking your words out of context or misrepresenting you. You claim you "always" held the positions you recently switched to. You claim to be a conciliator, bringing people together, even though you have the most uncompromisingly radical voting record in the Senate and you have openly sneered at people who don't support your radical leftist program. And when you are flat wrong, as you were on Iraq and the surge, and your opponent was right, you don't have the grace to say, "Congratulations, President Bush and Senator McCain on this great achievement that has saved American lives and brought us victory." Instead you are churlish and deceptive, claiming that they followed your program only "too late," which is the opposite of the truth -- and you know it. If we wanted to elect a man who yearns for America's defeat and can never admit to making a mistake, we could have elected John Kerry four years ago. A lot of us really wanted to elect you as America's first African-American president. But there are things more important to our future than mere tokenism. You should only be our President if you are the best person for the job, and you clearly are not. We don't need a president who hasn't the courage to admit that his previous policy failed and openly change his mind -- the way President Bush did when he determined to change strategy and execute the surge. We saw your true colors when you sneered at white middle-class voters who cling to guns and religion because they're bitter, as if an entire class of "those people" can be analyzed and dismissed in a sentence. McCain was not my choice for President at the beginning of the campaign a couple of years ago, Mr. Obama. You were. I rooted for you. I voted for you as recently as the North Carolina primary. Obviously, I have changed my mind. Why? I learned a little more about McCain. I learned a lot more about you. |
argumentative Saturday, January 17, 2009
Marriage bliss
I love my marriage. Not just my hubby but the whole package. Just when I'm starting to take it for granted. I witness a marriage fall apart. I feel kind of guilty that while others are in turmoil I'm thinking, "Wow, sooo glad I have the marriage that I do!" Of course, I feel really bad and wish I could do something for them. I'm not totally heartless. It's just interesting that it take a troubled or failing marriage to remind me to be thankful. Well, that's not completely true. When I chat with any couple that is deeply in love with each other, I am reminded then too. But, this blog's focus is on a particular marriage that fell apart. It happened to a someone I deeply care about. He was not only devastated by his wife asking for a divorce but, found out later that she was cheating on him before and during their marriage. His world collapsed. The family was utterly astonished by this woman betrayal. Yes, I will admit I was angry and shocked. But then a strange thing happened. I felt sorry for her. She is searching for happiness and love in relationships that are destructive! This is her 2nd or 3rd guy she has been with that started in secret. It seems she needs to feel that excitement of a taboo relationship and also enables her drinking problem.
While still married, her husband believed in the "hands off" approach. She went out a lot without him. Drank so much she was an embarrassment and openly flirted with other men. Her husband didn't want to be an over-bearing controlling husband so, he stayed quiet. She is an adult, after all, she can make her own decisions, right. Unfortunately, her decisions are based on what feels good at the moment. I doubt she or her lover full comprehended the consequences of their actions.
The 'other' man involved in this story was also married with a new baby, when he decided to commit adultery. I can't help but feel heartbroken for his wife. She has a new little baby, she isn't getting a lot of sleep, she feels ugly because her body has yet to recover from being pregnant and her husband hops in bed with a young, beautiful, athletic woman. His excuse: "My wife isn't giving me enough sex!" WHAT?! She just had a baby, your child! Several colorful expletives come to mind every time I think about this statement.
This man embodies how immoral, do-what-feels-good attitudes are ruining families, communities, and unraveling the very fabric of our society. Sadly, this man took the wide road. Instead of working on his marriage, and building a relationship with his wife and child; he went outside of his marriage, looking for easy 'feel-good' happiness. I wonder how long it will be before this new relationship he left his wife for, falls apart. He sure has shown that when things get hard, he runs.
This little soap opera gets even more complicated since they all work in the same building (with the exception of the cheating husband's wife) So, yeah, that's not uncomfortable at all! The news of the affair spread like wild fire and most people obviously sided with the husband of the cheating wife. And, in this poor economy I don't know if any of them will quit. I bet they are actively looking though! Again, more guilty feelings of relief that I am not in that kind of situation.
As I pray for each member involved I find that I am praying the same basic thing. That they will find healing in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on their knees before the Throne of Heaven. When you boil it all down, that is the common denominator that is missing in all of their lives. Once He is allowed to come in and take control of the situation, that is when true healing and peace can begin.
While still married, her husband believed in the "hands off" approach. She went out a lot without him. Drank so much she was an embarrassment and openly flirted with other men. Her husband didn't want to be an over-bearing controlling husband so, he stayed quiet. She is an adult, after all, she can make her own decisions, right. Unfortunately, her decisions are based on what feels good at the moment. I doubt she or her lover full comprehended the consequences of their actions.
The 'other' man involved in this story was also married with a new baby, when he decided to commit adultery. I can't help but feel heartbroken for his wife. She has a new little baby, she isn't getting a lot of sleep, she feels ugly because her body has yet to recover from being pregnant and her husband hops in bed with a young, beautiful, athletic woman. His excuse: "My wife isn't giving me enough sex!" WHAT?! She just had a baby, your child! Several colorful expletives come to mind every time I think about this statement.
This man embodies how immoral, do-what-feels-good attitudes are ruining families, communities, and unraveling the very fabric of our society. Sadly, this man took the wide road. Instead of working on his marriage, and building a relationship with his wife and child; he went outside of his marriage, looking for easy 'feel-good' happiness. I wonder how long it will be before this new relationship he left his wife for, falls apart. He sure has shown that when things get hard, he runs.
This little soap opera gets even more complicated since they all work in the same building (with the exception of the cheating husband's wife) So, yeah, that's not uncomfortable at all! The news of the affair spread like wild fire and most people obviously sided with the husband of the cheating wife. And, in this poor economy I don't know if any of them will quit. I bet they are actively looking though! Again, more guilty feelings of relief that I am not in that kind of situation.
As I pray for each member involved I find that I am praying the same basic thing. That they will find healing in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on their knees before the Throne of Heaven. When you boil it all down, that is the common denominator that is missing in all of their lives. Once He is allowed to come in and take control of the situation, that is when true healing and peace can begin.
Gray matters
I have a crappy memory! So to combat this I'm writing down my memories, random thoughts, and interesting stuff I wish to remember; before my brain decides to erase them. It really sucks sometimes having a memory like an Alzheimer's patient. Games like Trivial Pursuit are totally out of the question! On the other hand, (yes, I have actually found a silver lining) I easily forget why I was mad at someone or about something so, I rarely hold grudges. It has to be pretty serious for me to have animosity towards a person. I am really forgiving of others memory lapses since odds are I will forget something they wish I hadn't. I pretty much live off my cell phone's calendar. My motto is "if it isn't on the calendar, it doesn't exist!"
Now the downside to a bad memory, ha! Do I really need to write down that list! I pretty much always had a bad memory. My mom would say "you'd loose your head if it wasn't attached!" Which is totally true. Although her memory has really gone down hill in the past few years. So now, I like to mock her right back. Tongue and check of course.
I always feel so bad when I don't remember people's names. I mean most people can forgive forgetting once or perhaps twice but I have probably set the world forgetting record. My kids have been friends with this one child, Cassie, for over 2 years now and I still either say the wrong name or forget completely. Oh and Sandi, (a woman at my church) I actually got irritated with her because she never wears a name tag (That is something our church asks us to do.). Now if only I could remember her friend's name.
I remember people's names better if they have a "name sign". That's like a little clue for me, he he. Sometimes, I am surprise I can remember sign language at all. I wonder why that is? Must be a different part of the brain.
Migraines suck! What do they have to do with this blog? Well, for me they are not only painful, but they also do a little damage if they are bad enough. I can actually say I have brain damage (My sister-in-law gets a kick out of that. Says it explains a lot.). So, when I have a massive migraine I sometimes have speech problems. Strangely, sometimes I can sign my thoughts when I can't verbalize them. That's fine around family; not so helpful around the general public. My speech does slowly recover, but it is unnerving when it happens to say the least. So, I am on meds and am suppose to meet with the headache specialist doc soon. Now, if I could only remember to fill out the paperwork and send it in so they can schedule an appointment.
Now the downside to a bad memory, ha! Do I really need to write down that list! I pretty much always had a bad memory. My mom would say "you'd loose your head if it wasn't attached!" Which is totally true. Although her memory has really gone down hill in the past few years. So now, I like to mock her right back. Tongue and check of course.
I always feel so bad when I don't remember people's names. I mean most people can forgive forgetting once or perhaps twice but I have probably set the world forgetting record. My kids have been friends with this one child, Cassie, for over 2 years now and I still either say the wrong name or forget completely. Oh and Sandi, (a woman at my church) I actually got irritated with her because she never wears a name tag (That is something our church asks us to do.). Now if only I could remember her friend's name.
I remember people's names better if they have a "name sign". That's like a little clue for me, he he. Sometimes, I am surprise I can remember sign language at all. I wonder why that is? Must be a different part of the brain.
Migraines suck! What do they have to do with this blog? Well, for me they are not only painful, but they also do a little damage if they are bad enough. I can actually say I have brain damage (My sister-in-law gets a kick out of that. Says it explains a lot.). So, when I have a massive migraine I sometimes have speech problems. Strangely, sometimes I can sign my thoughts when I can't verbalize them. That's fine around family; not so helpful around the general public. My speech does slowly recover, but it is unnerving when it happens to say the least. So, I am on meds and am suppose to meet with the headache specialist doc soon. Now, if I could only remember to fill out the paperwork and send it in so they can schedule an appointment.
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