OK, I know you want to know what this page is about. This is where I plan to put all of the new and old stuff I want to share with you. Since I am just starting this web site, there is not much here yet.

After Christmas

'Twas the week after Christmas, and all through the house Nothing would fit me, not even a blouse.
The cookies I'd nibbled, the eggnog I'd taste At the holiday parties had gone to my waist.

When I got on the scales there arose such a number! When I walked to the store (less a walk than a lumber).

I'd remember the marvelous meals I'd prepared; The gravies and sauces and beef nicely rared,

The wine and the rum balls, the bread and the cheese And the way I'd never said, "No thank you, please."

As I dressed myself in my husband's old shirt And prepared once again to do battle with dirt

I said to myself, as I only can "You can't spend a winter disguised as a man!"

So away with the last of the sour cream dip, Get rid of the fruit cake, every cracker and chip

Every last bit of food that I like must be banished "Till all the additional ounces have vanished.

I won't have a cookie - not even a lick. I'll want only to chew on a long celery stick.

I won't have hot biscuits, or corn bread, or pie, I'll munch on a carrot and quietly cry.

I'm hungry, I'm lonesome, and life is a bore But isn't that what January is for?

Unable to giggle, no longer a riot. Happy New Year to all and to all a good diet!

~Author Unknown~

Judge Rules Mandatory Insurance is Unconstitutional

December 14, 2010

Here is the link to the article in the Wall Street Journal.

Insurance reform should start with healthcare providers and insurance companies.

If I go to the doctor, the charge may be $150. If I have insurance, they negotiated a price and now the charge is $65. After I pay my co-pay of $25, the insurance company only paid $40.

Meantime, the poor guy, that couldn't afford insurance in the first place still has to pay $150.

What is wrong with this picture. Obviously the doctor was overcharging in the first place. I know... If you ask the doctor why he does this, he will tell you it is to make up for the people who don't pay at all. So you penalize people that already can't afford it.

In my opinion, this is discrimination. Fix the problem where it starts.

November 9, 2010

This is the best email I have seen in a while. THIS IS HOW YOU FIX CONGRESS!!!!!

Congressional Reform Act of 2010

1. Term Limits. 12 years only, one of the possible options below.. A. Two Six-year Senate terms
B. Six Two-year House terms
C. One Six-year Senate term and three Two-Year House terms

2. No Tenure / No Pension.

A Congressman collects a salary while in office and receives no pay when they are out of office.

3. Congress (past, present & future) participates in Social Security. All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into the Social Security system, and Congress participates with the American people.

4. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan, just as all Americans do.

5. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise. Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%.

6. Congress loses their current health care system and participates in the same health care system as the American people.

7. Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose on the American people.

8. All contracts with past and present Congressmen are void effective 1/1/11. The American people did not make this contract with Congressmen. Congressmen made all these contracts for themselves.

Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, serve your term(S), then go home and back to work. If you agree with the above, pass it on.

July 26, 2010

Someone sent this to me in an email and I thought it was funny.

Picture taken this past Saturday in front of El Arroyo in Austin on 5th Street.

Facts about the Bible and Iraq

I was going through some old emails when I came across this one.

VERY INTERESTING

1. The Garden of Eden was in Iraq

2. Mesopotamia, which is now Iraq, was the cradle of civilization!

3. Noah built the ark in Iraq

4. The Tower of Babel was in Iraq

5. Abraham was from Ur, which is in Southern Iraq !

6. Isaac's wife Rebekah is from Nahor, which is in Iraq !

7. Jacob met Rachel in Iraq

8. Jonah preached in Nineveh - which is in Iraq

9. Assyria, which is in Iraq, conquered the ten tribes of Israel

10. Amos cried out in Iraq !

11 Babylon , which is in Iraq , destroyed Jerusalem

12. Daniel was in the lion's den in Iraq !

13. The three Hebrew children were in the fire in Iraq (Jesus had been in Iraq also as the fourth person in the Fiery Furnace!)

14. Belshazzar, the King of Babylon saw the "writing on the wall" in Iraq

15. Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, carried the Jews captive into Iraq

16. Ezekiel preached in Iraq ..

17. The wise men were from Iraq ...

18. Peter preached in Iraq .

19. The "Empire of Man" described in Revelation is called Babylon, which was a city in Iraq !

And you have probably seen this one: Israel is the nation most often mentioned in the Bible.

But do you know which nation is second? It is Iraq ! However, that is not the name that is used in the Bible. The names used in the Bible are Babylon , Land of Shinar , and Mesopotamia ... The word Mesopotamia means between the two rivers, more exactly between the Tigris And Euphrates Rivers .. The name Iraq , means country with deep roots. Indeed Iraq is a country with deep roots and is a very significant country in the Bible. No other nation, except Israel, has more history and prophecy associated With it than Iraq

And also, This is something to think about: Since America is typically represented by an eagle. Saddam should have read up on his Muslim passages ... The following verse is from the Koran, (the Islamic Bible)

Koran ( 9:11 ) - For it is written that a son of Arabia would awaken a fearsome Eagle. The wrath of the Eagle would be felt throughout the lands of Allah and lo, while some of the people trembled in despair still more rejoiced; for the wrath of the Eagle cleansed the lands of Allah; And there was peace. (Note the verse number!) Hmmmmmmm?!

Healthy Information

A bannana a day can keep depression away. Eating a banana every day facilitates both cross talk among your brain and the effect of certain neurotransmitters (like serotonin and its precursors). Coffee & bannanas are the largest source of anti-oxidants. Dr. Michael Roizen

Omega-3 fatty acids help your brain. This is found in salmon and mahi-mahi. You should eat 13-oz a week or take 2 grams of fish oil (metabolically distilled) supplements a day. Also, any kind of vegetables slow cognitive decline even more than fruits. You should eat 2 or more servings of vegetables a day.

Cocoa is good for your skin. Drink hot chocolate every day. It helps the skin become thicker and moist. It also acts as UV blocker. Health professionals recommend consuming chocolate in forms that are high in cocoa solids while low in cocoa butter, such as hot cocoa.

I put some funny videos on the links page. You should check them out.

Yay... I completed my taxes in record time (11:45 p.m.). Next year, I think I will shoot for 11:30 p.m.

Yes, I made it to Daytona for Bike Week. It was cold the whole time we were there. I have been too busy to put pictures out here. I had to catch up with missed school work and take final exams for school.

I took tons of pictures and wanted to post them as soon as possible; however, my laptop got a virus. I tried to clean it. I don't trust using it after being infected. I decided to reformat and re-install everything. I am still in the process of installing software. I will definately make an image of the hard drive after I get everything installed. If I am infected again, I will just reformat and install the image.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Never, never, never turn your antivirus software off. Even for a few minutes.

I wasn't sure if I wanted to go back to school this spring. I waited until the last minute and signed up for classes. Of course, I had to pay a late registration fee.

Now I need to get busy doing taxes. Those of you who know me well, know that this is always a last minute thing for me.

I updated a few pages and put some new pictures out here. I added new pages for Cupcake, Jade & Floyd.

More Obama Controversy I received this email today from a friend. It is worth reading. It raises many questions that should be answered, rather you are Republican or Democrat.

Sent: Thursday, February 04, 2010 9:05 PM
Subject: Fw: VERY QUIETLY OBAMA'S CITIZENSHIP CASE REACHES THE SUPREME COURT
                                           
AP- WASHINGTON D.C. - In a move certain to fuel the debate over Obama's qualifications for the presidency, the group "Americans for Freedom of Information" has Released copies of President Obama's college transcripts from Occidental College . Released today, the transcript school indicates that Obama, under the name Barry Soetoro, received financial aid as a foreign student from Indonesia as an undergraduate at the The transcript was released by Occidental College in compliance with a court order in a suit brought by the group in the Superior Court of California.  The transcript shows that Obama (Soetoro) applied for financial aid and was awarded a fellowship for foreign students from the Fulbright Foundation Scholarship program. To qualify, for the scholarship, a student must claim foreign citizenship. This document would seem to provide the smoking gun that many of Obama's detractors have been seeking.

Along with the evidence that he was first born in Kenya and there is no record of him ever applying for US citizenship, this is looking pretty grim. The news has created a firestorm at the White House as the release casts increasing doubt about Obama's legitimacy and qualification to serve as President. When reached for comment in London, where he has been in meetings with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Obama smiled but refused comment on the issue.  Britain 's Daily Mail has also carried the story in a front-page article titled, "Obama Eligibility Questioned," leading some to speculate that the story may overshadow economic issues on Obama's first official visit to the U.K.

In a related matter, under growing pressure from several groups, Justice Antonin Scalia announced that the Supreme Court agreed on Tuesday to hear arguments concerning Obama's legal eligibility to serve as President in a case brought by Leo Donofrio of New Jersey. This lawsuit claims Obama's dual citizenship disqualified him from serving as president.  Donofrio's case is just one of 18 suits brought by citizens demanding proof of Obama's citizenship or qualification to serve as president.

Gary Kreep of the United States Justice Foundation has released the results of their investigation of Obama's campaign spending. This study estimates that Obama has spent upwards of $950,000 in campaign funds in the past year with eleven law firms in 12 states for legal resources to block disclosure of any of his personal records. Mr. Kreep indicated that the investigation is still ongoing but that the final report will be provided to the U.S. attorney general, Eric Holder. Mr. Holder has refused to comment on the matter.

LET OTHER FOLKS KNOW THIS NEWS, THE MEDIA WON'T !

Subject: RE: Issue of Passport?
While I've little interest in getting in the middle of the Obama birth issue, Paul Hollrah over at FSM did so yesterday and believes the issue can be resolved by Obama answering one simple question:  What passport did he use when he was shuttling between New York, Jakarta, and Karachi ?

So how did a young man who arrived in New York in early June 1981, without the price of a hotel room in his pocket, suddenly come up with the price of a round-the-world trip just a month later?

And once he was on a plane, shuttling between New York, Jakarta, and Karachi, what passport was he offering when he passed through Customs and Immigration?

The American people not only deserve to have answers to these questions, they must have answers.  It makes the debate over Obama's citizenship a rather short and simple one.

Q: Did he travel to Pakistan in 1981, at age 20?
A : Yes, by his own admission.

Q: What passport did he travel under?
A: There are only three possibilities:

1) He traveled with a U.S. Passport

2) He traveled with a British passport or

3) He traveled with an Indonesia passport.

Q: Is it possible that Obama traveled with a U.S. Passport in 1981?
A: No.. It is not possible... Pakistan was on the U.S. State Department's "no travel" list in 1981..

Conclusion: When Obama went to Pakistan in 1981 he was traveling either with a British passport or an Indonesian passport.

If he were traveling with a British passport that would provide proof that he was born in Kenya on August 4, 1961, not in Hawaii as he claims.  And if he were traveling with an Indonesian passport that would tend to prove that he relinquished whatever previous citizenship he held, British or American, prior to being adopted by his Indonesian step-father in 1967.

Whatever the truth of the matter, the American people need to know how he managed to become a "natural born" American citizen between 1981 and 2008..

Given the destructive nature of his plans for America, as illustrated by his speech before Congress and the disastrous spending plan he has presented to Congress, the sooner we learn the truth of all this, the better..

If you Don't care that Your President is not a natural born Citizen and in Violation of the Constitution, then Delete this and put your head back in the hole..

If you do care then Forward this!

The Vatican Reviews Avatar & The Simpson's

OK, here is something that blows my mind. The Vatican does movie reviews. I heard on the news today that the Vatican gave the movie Avatar two thumbs down.

L'Osservatore Romano and Vatican Radio have called the film "simplistic" and criticized it for flirting with modern doctrines that promote the worship of nature as a substitute for religion.

It is just a movie! It's entertainment. It is not meant to be a teaching tool to structure our life by. If that were the case, I could find fault with all movies.

Last month an editorial congratulated The Simpsons on the TV series’ 20th anniversary, even going so far as to praise its often irreverent take on religion. Homer's religious confusion and ignorance were "a mirror of the indifference and the need that modern man feels toward faith," said the article, entitled "Aristotle's Virtues and Homer's Doughnut."

I guess I understand now... They are trying to be controversial to get attention. It worked. Pope Benedict XVI wanted to explore new ways of spreading the Church’s message. I have to admit, I talked about this to quite a few people today. Most people never even knew that the Vatican had a web site. In case you were wondering, here is the link.

No Heat!

February 14, 2010

Wouldn't you know it! The furnace is not working. When I stepped on the tile floor in the kitchen, I thought it was exceptionally cold this morning. I checked the thermostat and it was only 49 degrees in here.

I turned the thermostat off and on a couple times and played around with it. I went to the basement and I could smell gas. Ray got up and looked at it. He figured out what was wrong with it and Donny looked on the internet and found a replacement part for $59. Actually, it was two for that price. The only problem is, it was in California and would take two days to get here.

I got on the phone and called local places and found someone that would sell us the part. I guess it was a deal. He sold it to us for $85. We only got one for that price. He told us if he had of come to the house to replace it that he would have charged us $225.

Weird Dream

January 29, 2010

I had the weirdest dream.

I was with a bunch of people and we were rock climbing.  This is a weird because I am afraid of heights, but in the dream I was doing fine.  There wasn’t any fear.  We had climbed this huge cliff.  Once we were at the top there was no place to go except to another cliff.  I didn’t actually see how the other people got to the other cliff.  It wasn’t like a secret or anything; they were just on the other cliff.

I am the last one left.  I had a hold on this rope.  Next thing I know, I am on the other side.  I can’t remember now if I did it on my own will or if I slipped.  I think the rope was just stretched between the two cliffs.  Something happened and the rope broke.  I am dangling on the edge of the cliff holding on to a railing with one hand and the rope in the other hand.  Although the rope reached the other side it wasn’t long enough to tie to the railing; and, I didn’t feel like I had a good enough hold on it to swing back to the other side either. 

I stood there paralyzed with fear.  What do I do?  The other people were extremely concerned and kept telling me to let go of the rope and climb over the railing.  I was too scared.  I kept looking down and looking back.  It seemed like it should be easy to let go of the rope.  I was off balance leaning more towards the rope than the rail.  What if I let go and fell?  What if I let go of the rail and tried to swing back?  I might still fall.  I couldn’t listen to what anyone said to do. 

Finally, someone realized they had a cell phone and they could call for help.  I was going to be saved by a fireman with a latter.  That seemed like the best idea to me.  I stood there for over an hour or so waiting.  I was exhausted.  Where were they at?  I am going to lose my balance and fall before anyone could save me.  I realized I had to do this myself.  My heart was racing as I finally let go of the rope and watched it slowly fall against the cliff on the other side.  I leaned forward and slumped over the railing.  The wind was blowing and the railing wasn’t stable.  Again I stood there paralyzed with fear.  I knew that in order to climb over I would have to lean back to throw one leg over the side.  I couldn’t do it. 

The people on the other side of the rail were still trying to convince me to continue.  I had to do this in my own time.  I needed to build up the courage to move on.  Eventually, I started to move.  Holding onto the rail and trying to keep my balance so as not to put any stress on the rail.  I inched my way to the right.  The rail was attached to stairs over there.  I would still have to climb over, but maybe it was more stable there. 

I moved as far as I could go.  The next thing I know, there is a woman on the same side of the rail as me.  She starts dancing and shaking the rail.  I scream for her to stop.  She was going to break the rail or make me lose my balance.  She wouldn’t stop and there was only one thing to do.  My anger at this woman gave me the courage to climb to the other side. 

As I was climbing to the other side, I could see the fire trucks pulling up.  Everything moved in slow motion.  They rushed out of the trucks and to the spot where we were all sitting.  They asked where the person was that they needed to save.  When they realized it was me and I made it on my own, they were relieved.  A younger fireman walked over to where I had been standing on the ledge and asked what was the big deal? He said that wasn’t even a big drop.  This angered and humiliated me.  Maybe what he said was true.  I replied by saying “You stand in that spot and look back, down, and forward and ask yourself.  Do I let go of the safety of where I came from or do I move forward to where I am going.  Each decision is terrifying and you tell me if you are not scared.”

I wrote this dream down exactly as I remembered it. After I finished, I read it and thought the following things.

Doesn't this seem like some kind of Chinese proverb or something?

For those of you who know me well. Doesn't this seem like my real life. Guess who I think the dancing woman is! You know someone made me mad is why I started going to school.

Why did I even have this dream?

Today makes a year!

January 23, 2010

I can't believe it has been a year today. It doesn't seem like it has been that long. I have stayed very busy with school this year. I worked a lot of fireworks shows. I did some traveling. Most of all, I enjoyed some time off.

I would like to say I saved money by not driving 35 miles each way to work and back. However, in order for me to collect unemployment, I either had to look for a job or go to school full time. I chose school since I was already taking classes at Sinclair. Well, guess what. That is 45 miles each way, plus $1 a day to park. I go to school four days a week. Sometimes I am there five days a week.

I had to file for an extension for unemployment benefits. When my extension is over, I will not be qualified for another extension like other people will be. The automatic extension deadline occurs before my first extension ends; therefore, I am not eligible. That might suck. (depends on if I get a job or not)

The only way I made it through this whole time is cutting back on spending. I had taken a large amount of money out of my investments right before the layoff. I was going to pay off my car, but I am using it to pay bills instead.

I am still waiting to win the lottery. Yes, I do play every now and then.

Disaster in Haiti

January 18, 2010

Today is the first day that I have watched TV and have seen any news on Haiti. This is awful. I can't believe the disorganization of the UN and other aid agencies. Not only has aid to the country came about slowly, they still do not have a police influence there. Doctor Sanjay Gupta talked with Anderson Cooper and said that doctors were evacuated at night leaving patients to die, due to lack of security.

I got on the Internet and read some articles. Can you believe that some countries are complaining that there is too much U.S. occupancy in Haiti? This is not a competition of who has more people there or who can do more. These are human lives at stake. Every available person, equipment and supplies that can be sent there to help them should be sent. If this were your country and your family that needed help, you wouldn't care who came to help you. You would just be grateful that someone came to help.

The best thing I've heard so far is the adoption process for children that were already in the process of being adopted has been expedited. These children will be sent to their new families immediately.

This should be a wake up call to all of us. We as families, cities, states and a country are not prepared to deal with massive disasters. New Orleans was a perfect example of that. It is true that natural disasters of this magnitude are not as likely in the U.S., but they do happen.

The U.S. is very arrogant by not planning and believing that a massive disaster will strike us. The disasters we are likely to face will probably not be natural. I believe our biggest threats are terrorist and war. Most people think that it is unlikely that war will reach us. That is why we are so unprepared.

H1N1 Vaccine Information

I received an email from a friend that included this link to information about the H1N1 vaccine. Everyone should find out as much about the things the government is pushing. After all.... they are all motivated by greed for power and money. Of course the government pushes this stuff. They get most of their campaign funds and kick backs from pharmaceutical companies and their executives. These companies flood congress with lobbyist ensuring that the rules and regulations they want are enacted. They breed fear by advertising and promoting intimidating commercials about illnesses and diseases.

Yes, more people are dying from this flu than a normal yearly flu, but is that any reason to try something that has never been tested? I would rather try homeopathic preventive medicine than automatically have myself injected with "known" chemicals to cause problems.

I highly recommend you read this article. There is also a link on that page to a pdf version of the information.

When I get time, I will post some information about homeopathic preventitive measures for staying safe and healthy.

Daytona Bikeweek 2010

Bike week is February 26, 2010 through March 7, 2010. I'm not sure if this is going to work out with my school schedule. School isn't over until March 21st. That means I would have to miss a whole week of school. Considering I am taking 17 credit hours this quarter and these are extremely hard classes, I don't know if I can afford to miss. We will see what happens.

Official Bikeweek web

Daytona Camping

Tampa, Fl for Thanksgiving

I went to Tampa for Thanksgiving. It was warmer than it was at home, but it wasn't that great. Tia said I must have brought the cold weather with me. Cold weather to her was high 60's.

Wouldn't you know I got a migraine. I had my RX with me so I was able to manage, but I moved slow for the next two days. Tia and I cooked. She marinated the turkey in a special solution that her boss told her about. The turkey was good! I made gravy out of the juices in the pan. I didn't like the gravy, I thought it was too sweat, but the guys liked it. I don't really like sweat foods though.

We didn't bother to get up early and go shopping. I didn't really want to spend any money; and, after getting on the internet, I didn't see that great of deals on anything I wanted. The stores only had 3-5 of the good items. We saw people lining up two days early. I figured there was no sense in trying to fight the crowds to get something. We could have got in line at 5:00 am and it wouldn't have made a difference.

We watched the sun set on the beach. It was great. This is the first time I have ever been on the west coast for a sunset. Cupcake loved the beach. She ran around like a maniac! I think she was trying to kick the sand up.

Tampa is nice for the weather, but I would rather be in Kentucky or the hills somewhere. I like Florida's east coast better than the west cost. Give me Miami any day.

Here are some pictures.

Biketoberfest

October 15-18, 2009

I went to Biketoberfest in Daytona. I took my sister-in-law Trish with me. We had a great time. We were there October 14th - 19th getting home on the 20th.

The drive there wasn't as bad as the drive coming home. We were exhausted by the time we came home.

Here are some pictures from that weekend.

Today's Lunch

October 9, 2009

It was great seeing everyone together. I wish we had more time to sit and talk. Next time we will do a late lunch on Friday so you girls can just take the rest of the day off. We will make it a drinking lunch/happy-hour.

Rowena, your friend seemed nice. I am afraid she didn't get a chance to say much with the way we were all caring on.