No kidding!

Must be a slow news day. I just watched a story on the local news about a man who was attacked by a goat. After he struggled with the goat, he got to his house, grabbed a gun and shot the goat. It wasn't even our local story (Florida maybe?), so this must be a nationwide media feed, some of the fallout from the Cheney shooting story. If insignificant hunting accidents can tie up the press for days, let's see what we can do with a nobody-type guy shooting a goat!

2201 The port story

Has the port security story finally bumped the Cheney non-story off the front pages? Even Rush has found something else to talk about, and his "mind-numbed robots" aren't falling in line, which means they weren't such robots, were they?

"If there was any chance that this transaction would jeopardize the security of the United States, it would not go forward." - President Bush, on Tuesday.

"In regards to selling American ports to the United Arab Emirates, not just 'no' but 'hell no!'" - Rep. Sue Myrick, R-N.C., in a letter to Bush on Wednesday.

Lincoln's first assassination attempt

Tomorrow is the 145th anniversary of the first assassination attempt on President Lincoln. Most people don't know that it was an Ohio librarian who saved his life.

I blogged about Colonel Coggeshell and how he saved the President's life last year, so you can read it there.

2199 Unintended consequences will help fill nursing homes

The Wall Street Journal today has an article on the cost of a short or long term nursing home stay. The government is tightening the rules, and it will be harder to shift your medical costs to your neighbor by giving your assets to your children. Many people in my parents' generation were able to "impoverish" themselves to qualify for Medicaid, but now that is out of control in many states. We were very fortunate in that neither of my parents required nursing home care before they died. My in-laws both had relatively short stays, well under the average. My paternal grandparents, however, one of whom was blind and the other who had Alzheimer's, did need nursing home care. Actually, only Grandpa needed it, but my grandmother who could have lived with her children didn't want to be separated from her husband of nearly 70 years.

We've purchased long-term care insurance which costs about $3,000 a year. That's a lot of money (and the rates are rising), but think of the auto and home insurance you've paid for over the years and (hopefully) rarely had to use. Or, if you are a smoker, think of the Social Security you've paid for that you might not live long enough to ever collect! One year's premiums for two of us is the cost of half a month for one of us in a nursing home. Or a one week vacation in Florida in February.

One of the unintended consequences of better health care and miracle drugs and technology is that people are now living well into their 90s, although the actual years of frailty probably isn't that different than a century ago--we've just changed the time line. I'm arranging a retrospective quilt show at our church for a woman who died at 102, and was out walking and quilting just a few weeks before she died.

WSJ says 11% of 65 year old men and 28% of women will need 5 years of care of more. Men don't live as long as women, marry younger women the first time, and also they tend to remarry younger women when widowed or divorced who become their care givers (WSJ didn't say that, I do.) Nursing home care and costs are very much a critical women's issue. Good nursing care actually extends the life and huge amounts of money go into the final years.

What's going to be different for boomers and busters and gamers in 20, 30 or 40 years is that because of all the abortions since the 1970s and reduced family size, they'll have fewer or no off-spring to look after them so they can avoid the nursing home either by living with their children, or having a daughter look after them as they stay in their own homes. A strong family network is still the best guarantee of love, care and community in your final years. But for some, that net was cut years ago.

2198 In my church

This is why making lists doesn't work for me. Yesterday, I wrote down: clean office, or at least desk. I threw away a few newspapers and some gum wrappers (but I did make the rhubarb pie, which was also on the list and absolutely fabulous). So today, I made the mistake of opening a notebook that wasn't labeled, and found the printed out entries for 2004 from one of my other blogs. I've discovered it is much cheaper to spiral bind them than to put them into notebooks, and more space saving. Anyway, I sat down to read it. Huge, huge mistake. Now I have to repost some of the really good ones.

In my church. . .December 7, 2004, Church of the Acronym

"George W. Bush has freed those women [from the Taliban]. He has done more for women than any American president in history. He freed more people than Lincoln. Millions of women in Afghanistan can again have jobs, education and civil rights because of him. And the Left (who would all claim to be feminists) in this country and Europe won’t even mention it except to castigate him.

That said, what about gender in Christian circles, churches, and countries? It’s certainly not the reign of the Taliban, but there are men deathly afraid of women usurping their power. They push women to the background and keep them covered (some literally, like Anabaptists and conservative Catholics).

In my church, a daughter of the congregation who was lovingly and patiently (and at great expense) brought up through the Sunday School and Youth groups, cannot be ordained in her home church if she hears God‘s call to be a pastor, a church supported for maybe 20 years by her parents’ tithes.

In my church, no woman preaches from the pulpit (although for some odd reason she is allowed to read Scripture, sing hymns and pray in front of the males of the congregation).

In my church, no woman teaches an adult Sunday School class or a week-night class where men might be in the audience, unless she has a male co-teacher as her “covering.”

In my church, which has a huge staff (about 60), there are no women administrators, and most of the women on staff are part-timers in clerical positions.

In my church, the board president is almost always a man (I can recall 2 women presidents in the past 35 years, but there may have been one or two I don't remember).

In my church, the hands down, most successful programming is run by women for women, completely independent of the male pastoral hierarchy; they select their own material, manage their own expenses, schedule their own meetings and have an outreach far beyond our local church and denomination. Historically, this is true in most conservative Christian churches.

In my church, the largest and most successful Vacation Bible School in the city, and perhaps all of Ohio, is run primarily by women, with only modest pastoral oversight.

In my church, the exercise/aerobics program was developed well over a decade ago and staffed by women who sweated and shouted and stayed healthy for the Lord, 7-9 times a week in two locations. They enrolled many hundreds of women (and 2 or 3 men) from all over the community who in turn began attending and brought in their spouse and children to become members.

In my church, a very promising urban/suburban ministry has come about primarily through the efforts of one woman who was able to rally the pastors, staff, volunteers and congregation to see the possibilities in linking a suburban church to a city school.

In my church, the women are not stupid or submissive. They are lawyers, accountants, teachers, professors, homemakers, business owners, homeschoolers, computer programmers, entertainers, nannies, musicians, secretaries, retirees and janitors. We know what is going on, but accept it, because we don’t want a church without men. And that’s what happens to a congregation that tries to be gender inclusive in power--the men will leave or sit back and let the women run everything. Look around you. Name a large evangelical church with female pastoral or board leadership."

Comments are welcome. Particularly on the final sentence.

2197 The 4 things Meme

Joan at Daddy's Roses has tagged me with this one. You can stop by her place and read hers, or read mine, or read both!

4 jobs I've had
corn detasseller (in high school)
drug store clerk (high school and college)
librarian, Slavic studies (started here, University of Illinois)
librarian, veterinary medicine (finished here, Ohio State)

4 movies I can watch over and over (not that I would, but have seen these more than twice)
Overboard
Sleepless in Seattle
Gone with the Wind
Casablanca

4 places I've lived
Alameda, California
Mt. Morris, Illinois
Champaign-Urbana Illinois
Columbus, OH

4 TV shows I love
The Cosby Show
Family Ties
Frazier
Murphy Brown

4 places I've vacationed (I’d gladly return to)
SeattleWA/Vancouver Canada
Hawaii
Alaska
Germany/Austria

4 of my favorite dishes
Apple sour cream pie
My mother-in-law’s spaghetti, tossed salad with garlic bread
Tapioca made by my mom
Peanut butter kisses (cookies)

4 blogs I visit daily
Joan’s family--there’s a bunch of ‘em, sibs, mom and cuz
Neo-neocon and a lot of really smart ladies
Vox Lauri and a gaggle of other librarians
Belmont Club and a clutch of other well thought-out and meticulously researched political commentary blogs

4 places I'd rather be right now
Actually, I like it right here in central Ohio. I’ve got lots of things going on. Could have been in Florida, but we’re saving our pennies for a trip to Finland in the summer.

4 people I tag
Just jump in if you're are interested. It's a fun meme.

2196 Me and Him

My husband gave me a ring for Valentine's Day, but it needed to be smaller, so I took it back to the jewelry store this morning. The lady assisting me was very pleasant and helpful but had a problem with the computer (a new ring would need to be ordered). She called the manager (who had helped my husband with the purchase) up front to her computer, who looked at the record, and said to me, "So me and him picked the wrong one for you?" The salesperson then corrected her saying, "He and I." The manager glared at her and said, "You're doing it again."

I felt like I'd been caught in the cross fire. Yes, the manager's grammar was poor, but the other clerk violated a few rules of good manners, salesmanship, and getting along with the boss! I wonder if she'll still be there when I go back to pick it up?

Bullying

This morning I was reading a woman's account of bullying--it had happened to her throughout her grade school years in the late 1960s and 1970s. She says she was fat and grouped with the slow kids. Pretty painful reading. Even those of us who weren't bullied remember how awful the other kids could be--especially the girls. Sorry, but I didn't note the blog name, or I'd refer you to it. You hear a lot about it these days.

There's a pretty, plump girl about 10 or 11 who sits near me at the coffee shop. As her mother was picking up their order this morning I said to her, "I was reading an article about bullying in schools. Do you think that's a problem at your school?"

She thought for a moment. "No."

"Would the teachers stop it, do you think, or are there just really nice kids there?" I asked, although I wasn't sure she knew the meaning of the word I was using.

"Everyone's really nice at my school," she replied.

"What school do you attend?"

"Winterset" (Columbus Public Schools, northwest suburbs).

"I think my husband may have been an architect for that school."

"Cool," she said.

What's the story on bullying? Overblown by the media? It's always been a part of the pecking order of schools? Every kid thinks everyone else is more popular?

2194 George Clooney

I just heard him described as a slimmer, better looking Michael Moore. And I thought maybe he was taking on this new political persona because he was losing his looks!

2193 Colds, flu and the general crud

Because I've been participating in Thursday Thirteen and Monday Memories, I've been reading all about sick mommies, sick babies, missed work, and sleepless nights. I'm guessing in the last 2 days, I've read 20 blogs on that topic. So, I've got two things to say:

1. Throw away the toothbrush of anyone who's been sick in the family, including the blogging mommy, so you don't get reinfected.

2. Put your soap dishes in the dishwasher to clean them. They probably have more germs than your toilet.

Now, go take an aspirin and a nap and call me in the morning.

2192 Is scrapbooking too complicated for you?

Or maybe you just aren't crafty, or don't have the time to keep up on the latest paper colors and cute stickers. Try this--childhood in a jar--a great memento, and you probably already have one started.

Monday Memories: Did I ever tell you about MY HUSBAND'S LADY FRIENDS? In 1994 when my husband took a buy-out from the downtown Columbus architectural firm where he was an owner, he was also leaving the exercise class at the Y where he was an instructor. I suggested an aerobics class meeting at our suburban church just 2 miles from our home where he established his new office. He was a bit reluctant since it was an all female and much younger group, but he tried the two classes, strength and aerobics, taught by a variety of instructors who were formidable, powerful and funny. He was hooked. Control and discipline are needed both for sustained attendance in exercise class and for working at home. Although he is now in the process of retiring as a sole practitioner architect, his work day these past 12 years was always as disciplined as if he had to show up at a downtown office. He always dressed appropriately to be on the job, allowed himself one hour for lunch, and worked various lunch time gatherings or breakfast groups into his schedule so that he was not isolated from male friends and colleagues. The benefits of these exercise classes reached far beyond cardiovascular fitness. He overheard the young mothers talking about the need for teachers for Vacation Bible School and before he knew it, he had been signed up to teach first graders for two weeks. He loved teaching the children and has participated now for 12 years. He has made many new friends and has found he has a real gift for working with children. He now mentors young boys at an urban school. He is also enormously popular with the ladies because he is thoughtful, respectful and courtly (I‘m not jealous because I know what he looks like in exercise clothes). Their husbands or family may forget a special day, but not my husband. One year he hired an artist/caricaturist to come to the class to draw the instructors. The artist stayed after class to do caricatures of class members and their children. That year each woman got a balloon tied to a banana with a ribbon from him. Other years, each woman has received flowers on Valentine's day. A few years ago a woman told me she was a new widow when my husband gave her the only flowers she got for Valentine’s Day. He has had T-shirts screened that say, "I work out with [his name]--someone has to do it" which many of the women wear in class. His own shirts proclaim, "I work out with 50 women; my mom didn't raise any dummies." He remembers birthdays and gives the discouraged a hug or a funny card. A few special friends have even received T-shirts screened with one of his paintings. I'm sure there would be more men in the class (he's still the only one) if they only knew how much fun my husband has and how much the ladies love him. As I write this, he is at aerobics class filling in for an injured instructor. P.S. Just so you know: when I retired in 2000 I joined the class too. However, the exercise area (fellowship hall) is slab-on-grade, and not a forgiving surface for impact exercises, so after two years I left (and have gained 14 pounds). Links to other Monday Memories 1. Pet 2. Shelli, 3. Kimmy, 4. Courtney, 5. Kdubs, 6. Melanie, 7. Joan, who is writing about her mom and it happens to be Monday, 8. Rowan, 9. Jen, 10. Amy 11. Renee, 12. OceanLady (If you participate, leave your link in the comments and I'll post it here) Click here for the Monday Memories code Click here for Shelli's blog Trackbacks, pings, and comment links are accepted and encouraged! View More Monday Memories Participants Post in the comments if you want to be on the MM blogroll!

2190 Girls Rule

While dropping off four shopping bags of magazines for the Friends of the Library book sale, I noticed "Literary Cavalcade," Vol. 55, no.5, published by Scholastic's Monthly, Feb. 2003. It is billed as a magazine of literature and writing. All the editors (associate, picture, production, media, copy, etc.) are females. But even so, I'm guessing if there were a cover "BOYS RULE" like the "GIRLS RULE" cover on this issue, they'd be out of a job. These ladies are victims of a time warp. They think girls still need to be encouraged at the expense of boys.

There have been significant academic and economic consequences (many unintended) from Title 9. The legislation was set up when college demographics were 43% female and 57% male. Now they are reversed, and in one state, Maine, college enrollment is 60% female. Aside from setting girls up for a lousy social life in college, it's going to make it tough for them to find educated male peers to marry. And marriage is the biggest predictor of how well off your children will be.

It doesn't bode well for our country either. Boys have traditionally been the largest pool for engineering and science, but that is shrinking. American businesses are turning to foreigners to fill technical jobs, because even as our young men avoid the tougher cognitive fields, women aren't choosing them either.

So wouldn't you think it is time to stop propping up the girls with fluff and nonsense like "girls rule" covers on Scholastic Magazine and holding back the boys with touchy-feely gibberish and Ritalin--you know, for the good of the country and your future grandchildren?

Mothers of sons, it may be time to storm the principal's office and demand equal time and effort for the boys.

2189 Why do you blog?

On my first visit to a blog site, I usually look for some biographical and blogographical information. Some people are very specific with their reasons, others just sort of fall into it and like it. Here's the reason from a craft blogger who has really adorable things on her site, at least I almost got up and started looking for a needle and thread:

"My blog is the one thing in my life that is within my control. It is mine to do with as I please. If I arrange it just so, no one is going to come behind and dismantle it, or perch a Lego tower on top, or doodle in the margins. In a life that often feels governed by the whims of others, little birds is my whimsy. If all my corners look pretty to you, it's because those are the corners I chose to show. Would you like to see the stack of drywall that has been leaning against the wall for a year? The holes in the floor that I duct-taped closed? The exposed lath and plaster? The cobwebby wires hanging down from the ceiling? The half-painted trim? The shower mildew that won't go away? The drawers overflowing with the clutter I tried to hide away? I see those things every time I walk into my house. This blog challenges me to see the things that are not so obvious - our little efforts at beauty - the collections and assemblages that make it a home. I do not mean to misrepresent things; I do mean to notice things, the things that often go unnoticed in the chaos of our lives."

And a few days later she announced she's giving up blogging. The clutter must have gotten to her.

2188 Housing reruns

In the late 1960s, my brother bought the two bedroom house my parents purchased (their second, I think) in the 1940s. It's the first home I remember--where I kept falling down the stairs, where I sat on the front porch waiting for the mailman, where I made tents out of blankets and the dining room furniture. After her parents died in the 1960s my mother converted their farm home into a retreat center for small church groups and family reunions. My children have many happy memories of the big house and yard and vistas of cornfields and soybeans because we vacationed there during their growing up years. After my mother died in 2000, my father bought the small Lustron that his parents had built in 1950, and so we were all able enjoy that home a second time too. I almost expected to see grandma, who died in 1983, walking around the corner when I visited him. I never actually lived in the little 1950s home my parents lived in the longest (38 years), and when they sold it before moving to a retirement complex, they turned it over to my cousin's son. My grandparents' farm home near Franklin Grove that Mom remodeled in the 1960s is now owned by my brother, and his son lives there. But a bachelor's tastes are very different, and he likes bare floors and rustic antiques. When I visited there last fall, I really missed Mom because all traces of her are gone.

2187 Speaking of athletics

which I rarely do, but I'm about to retire this notebook for a fresh one and need to clean out unblogged stories, Ohio State University is number one in revenue from sports teams. OSU got $89.7 million from ticket sales, royalties, advertising, broadcast agreements and other cources in 2004-05 (Columbus Dispatch, Jan. 4, 2006, version from USAToday). OSU also has the most athletes and teams in Division I NCAA--900 in 36 sports. The program receives NO money from the government or university and it paid $12 million to the university to cover athletes tuition and other expenses.

The Jerome Schottenstein Center revenue, $18 million, is not included in the nearly $90 million. $51.8 is from football. The women's basketball program is a money loser for OSU, in fact, I'm assuming the men's sports are carrying all the women's programs, but I didn't make a specific note.

2186 Where do vacated banners go when they disappear?

Some go to the library, according to David Niven of the Columbus "Other Paper." If your team or coach is found to have had violations during a season, your tournament appearances are "vacated." Then the disgraced school must remove all displays, references, awards, and banners about the wins.

So what happens to those Final Four or Elite Eight banners? Michigan's went to Bentley Historical Library where librarian Greg Kinney, archivist, keeps them under lock and key. It would seem that all the University of Michigan Athletics memorabilia goes to Bentley, but even clicking around the site, I couldn't find any mention of vacated banners.

Other schools hide them in closets.

2185 Dude, what have you done with my library funds?

When I asked at Upper Arlington Public Library why we couldn't have more Christian magazines and books (one evangelical Christian magazine), I was given the librarian closed loop explanation: 1) they aren't in standard reviewing publications, 2) they aren't in the standard index databases, 3) they are too specialized for a public library (i.e., according to WorldCat other libraries our size don't carry this material), and 4) no one has ever asked or complained about our collection of Christian magazines and books.

Christians do have a view of our culture that encompasses art, entertainment, values, politics, commerce, law, finances, science, family structure, sexuality, and even library collections, but if evangelical authors and publishers are ignored by librarians and their review tools, then these books are not purchased. This is called censorship.

Although I think UAPL has just about the most difficult on-line catalog I've ever used, I did go into it and looked up Michael Moore. Now, I'm not saying he's the antithesis of what Christians want to read just because I don't read him, nor is he the anti-Christ (he's just not that important), I'm just saying here's an example of what we are getting instead of a more varied, reasonable, balanced, evangelical view of what our nation and culture is all about. For this collection, it is "How do I love thee Michael Moore, let me count the copies and formats."

The awful truth. 4 DVD

The big one. 2 VHS, 3 DVD

Bowling for Columbine. 7 VHS, 5 DVD

Canadian bacon. 1 VHS

The corporation. 4 DVD

Down size this. 1 print

Down size this, rev. ed. 1 print

Dude where is my country? 5 print, 1 audio tape, e-book download available, 1 large print, 1 book on CD

Fahrenheit 911. 8 DVD, 5 VHS, 2 paperback

Orwell rolls in his grave. 2 DVD

Roger and me. 4 VHS, 4 DVD

Stupid white men. 5 print, 1 large print, 3 audio books on CD, 1 audio tape

TV nation. 2 VHS

Will they ever trust us again? 3 print

The Yes men. 2 DVD

Someone in the media department is totally out of control or owns stock in Michael Moore productions!

(Disclaimer: it is possible that some of these may be replacement copies--as I said the record is very tedious and difficult to read, but why would you even need a replacement copy with this overload of MM?)

(Historical note: In the early 1970s, I complained that "Little Black Sambo" was being read at the children's story hour, and I was told no one else had ever complained and the children loved it.)

public libraries
Michael Moore
Upper Arlington, Ohio

2184 Middle East Peace

When Shlomo Ben-Ami, author of Scars of war, wounds of peace was introduced on C-Span Book TV today (recorded earlier this week), I think the woman said more Nobel Peace Prizes have been awarded to authors of books on peace in the middle east (ala Jimmy Carter) than any other topic, and yet in the past month, the news has been exploding with happenings in that area. So much for the influence of books. Or peace prizes. Or Jimmy Carter.

2183 The problem with advice

You never know if anyone took it. Ladies, can we talk?

Hillary Clinton

2182 Blogging notebook

My spiral bound notebook that I take to the coffeeshop in the morning is about 1" thick, spiral bound, hard cover with an angel pasted on the cover (each one is different, so not all look like this). Today it was used to prop up our glass Frigidaire cooktop (ca. 1990) so my husband could measure the cut out so we can replace it. It has four burners, and one over heats and three underheat. When I cook supper, I start on the super hot one, then move the pan to also-ran, and start something else. The notebook was just about the right size since we couldn't get the back of the cooktop off the counter. Whew. It's really yucky under there. Fifteen years of crumbs and spilled-whatever.

A few weeks ago on Thursday Thirteen I wrote: "5. The built-in kitchen appliance that matches the cabinets will not be available in that style or color when it starts taking occasional naps." Now we can add, "the hole will be 1/2" too small to install it, and you'll need to hire someone to recut it."

If I didn't have a blog, and a blogging notebook, this fascinating piece of information would be lost forever among our other housekeeping details, such as we turned the mattress today, I washed all the bedding, cleaned out the kitty litter, filled the van with gas and mailed a letter to Lynne.

2181 Good people, good results

If he wrote the book on hiring, it wouldn't be very long. He tells me the new hires (bakers) start at $12/hour and get 2 raises a year. He just had an awards banquet honoring his bakers for step-up longevity, one year, five years, seven years, etc. He told me the industry turn over is 90%, but for his people it is 35%. They have to be self-starters, able to work without supervision (work at night), and hard workers. Good people. Good results. It's so simple, isn't it?

hiring
human resources

2180 Today's effort

Last week, actually the last two weeks, I was working on a hockey painting in my Friday workshop that really didn't work out. Looked like a paint-by-number by a 5 year old. Today I tried "Duckling," copying an oil painting by Jay Johnson in the book "Keys to painting fur and feathers." This book has many nice animal studies. But I've often wondered when I use these books why so few cats and dogs and so many parrots and deer and grizzlies? I mean, which are we more like to have around us to enjoy and study? I would love to find a really good "How to paint cats" book with studies that didn't look like cartoons or lab specimens.



My husband has done some beautiful watercolors this week. Because he is an architect he's particularly good with barns, but likes to stretch a bit, and did a nice study of our son fishing off the dock at Lakeside.

watercolor
painting animals

2179 Friday Feast

This is a re-run, according to the list owner, but I haven't done one for awhile.

Appetizer
If you were a color, which color would you be, and why?
Alizarin Crimson. It's bright and transparent.

Soup
When was the last time you went to the doctor, and what was your reason for going?
Yesterday. Annual check up. I'm very healthy, but broad band internet is broadening more than just my horizons.

Salad
What do you collect?
I collect premiere issues of magazines, and write about it at In the Beginning. It is very hard for me to pass a magazine stand.

Main Course
What were you like in high school? Name one thing you miss and one thing you don't miss about those days. (If you're still there, imagine how you'll remember it in the future.)
I haven't changed much since kindergarten. Social. Opinionated. Very good student with A grades. Avoided joining lots of activities, but I played 1st chair trombone and sang in various choruses. Worked during afterschool hours. Dated a lot. Active in church. There is nothing I miss about high school, although it was not terrible, I much prefer being an adult.

Dessert
Pretend you're standing in front of your home, with your back towards your home. Describe the view - what can you see? Trees? Cars? A zoo? Wal-Mart?
I see the other units in our condo complex, which in the beginning all looked alike to me, but now I see wide variations. No matter where I've lived in the last 40 years, there are always repair, service or remodeling trucks parked on the streets or in the drive-ways.

Friday Feast

2178 Redevelopment Trifecta

It's tough to bring jobs to a poor neighborhood. Eric Stevenson's new Wendy's on Columbus' east side hasn't opened yet and he has 300 applicants for 45 positions. It has taken three years and $80,000 in legal fees, according to today's Mike Harden column to get to the March 5 opening.

He had to meet the standards of

• The Long Street Business Association
  
• Mount Vernon Business District Association
  
• King-Lincoln Group
  
• Near-East Area Commission
  
• Olde Town East Neighborhood Association

Snobbery because it's fast food?
Prejudice because Stevenson is a black entrepreneur?
Classism because most of his customers and employees will be from households making less than $20,000.

Imagine if someone was trying to bring a Wal-Mart to a poor neighborhood to provide inexpensive, accessible merchandise within walking distance and new jobs.

Thursday Thirteen Posts

Here are links to my Thursday Thirteen posts.

The last 5 days The first Thursday of 2006, and what I’d done since New Year’s Day.
Parenting Hind sight is always 20-20, isn’t it?
National Popcorn Day Thirteen places or events where I’ve eaten popcorn.
Appliances and equipment Thirteen things that will go wrong.
Prayer job jar It’s on the kitchen table.
13 magazine subscriptions It’s not all of them, but most.
13 cookbooks on my shelves There’s more where these came from, but these have family ties.
13 things I blog about
13 illnesses and conditions
Singing in the choir It's so much fun
My date to the St. Pat's Ball
Thirteen Poems on my blog
Thirteen things about librarians
Thirteen things to write for Monday Memories
13 things about my cat
13 things I absolutely know
13 enjoyable things since last week
Exercises and Excuses
13 things about DaVinci Code
13 numbers about illegal immigration
13 things about our cars
13 things for Thursday night dinner
13 things that puzzle me
13 things we did when the budget was tight
13 things to make the world better
13 Medical studies
13 places we visited in July 2006
13 food and health myths
13 food triggers
13 points about women and finances
13 thoughts and proverbs about money and finances
How to become a sweet old lady
May 3rd 13--painting the master bedroom
Thirteen items on the Thanksgiving Menus
13 American attitudes and beliefs
13 discussion starters
13 phrases I could do without
13 ways to save money for gas

Thursday Thirteen

2176 The Left's Love for Islam

It's a puzzle isn't it, considering that if they were in power, their heads would go first. Open minds often have holes you can drive a small hybrid car through.

"Western journalists and intellectuals' reaction to what the columnist Charles Krauthammer has called the "studied frenzy over the Danish Muhammed cartoons" in the Muslim world is by no means an isolated event, nor should it be a puzzling one. In fact, the Western Left has had a remarkably consistent and predictable set of attitudes toward religion in recent decades. The contrasting treatment of Muslims on the one hand, and of Christians and Jews on the other, reveals the real priorities of the Western Left and their most immediate political concerns." Pieties and Piss Christs

2175 Mashups

It's a good article, well written, beautifully paced, but I still don't get it.

"Indeed, this is one of the paradoxes of the mashup: as the mashup artist busily deconstructs pop’s history, plundering beats and verses from hither and yon, somehow he is putting that history together. After you listen to a few mashups you start to feel not so much that the music has been stolen from its original place as reunited with its story, rescued from the atomized world of pop singles and the segregated landscape of decades-based radio ("Oldies of the ’50s and ’60s!” “Today’s hot hits!”). The Beatles and the Beastie Boys get to play together. How cool is that?"
Culture Makers, "Let's do the mash."

mashups

2174 America's Drug Problem

My husband's high school friend Mickey sent this to us. I think it's going around, but may be worth repeating. He's our age, so your mileage will vary.

"The other day, someone at a store in our town read that a methamphetamine lab had been found in an old farmhouse in the adjoining county and he asked me a rhetorical question, ''Why didn't we have a drug problem when you and I were growing up?''

I replied: "I had a drug problem when I was young":

I was drug to church on Sunday morning.

I was drug to church for weddings and funerals.

I was drug to family reunions and community socials no matter the weather.

I was drug by my ears when I was disrespectful to adults.

I was also drug to the woodshed when I disobeyed my parents, told a lie, brought home a bad report card, did not speak with respect, spoke ill of the teacher or the preacher, or if I didn't put forth my best effort in everything that was asked of me.

I was drug to the kitchen sink to have my mouth washed out with soap if I uttered a profane four-letter word.

I was drug out to pull weeds in mom's garden and flower beds and cockleburs out of dad's fields.

I was drug to the homes of family, friends, and neighbors to help out some poor soul who had no one to mow the yard, repair the clothesline, or chop some firewood; and, if my mother had ever known that I took a single dime as a tip for this kindness, she would have drug me back to the woodshed.

Those drugs are still in my veins; and they affect my behavior in everything I do, say, and think. They are stronger than cocaine, crack, or heroin; and, if today's children had this kind of drug problem, America would be a better place."
~author unknown~

Our kids (raised in the 70s and 80s) were "drug" to church, family gatherings, community events, concerts and art shows, but I don't recall they were required to do any service projects for others, but they know how to volunteer when needed. When I was a child, if I was at a friend's house when it was time for chores, I had to pitch in or go home. I never did much in Mom's garden, but I sure did in the Masterson's.

Oops. Blogging is fattening

I had my annual physical this morning (actually it was for 2005, but I never made it in), and the doctor says everything looks good (he had to take my blood pressure several times though because we got started our public library that is totally unresponsive to community needs and wishes). I usually have really low blood pressure, so when it's high he knows to either change the topic or do it over. HOWEVER, since 2002 I've gained 14 pounds, and 12 of that is since September 2003. I started blogging in October 2003. But also, I think that's the date the rec center where I walked in the morning closed for early morning walkers. Still, keeping your weight under control isn't rocket science as I've said maybe a hundred times: eat less, move more.

bloggers

2172 Podium as a verb

If you've been watching the Olympics you may have noticed that 'podium' has been used as a verb, and that has some language lovers upset. Benjamin says that using podium to mean making it to the medals podium has been around for about a decade. He has the story here. Actually, I noticed the snowboarders, but missed the verb.

2170 What will you be doing in 4 years?

There is a quiz in the February 15 JAMA based on data from 11,701 Americans, 50 or older who took part in a 1998 national health survey. It determines your death-risk. It's like golf--you want a very LOW score. I think if you're reasonably careful, and have chosen the right grandparents (my paternal: 88 and 92; my maternal: 87 and 94) you're probably in good shape, if that shape isn't an apple, and if you're not a smoker, and if you exercise.

Later, I found the quiz in the Columbus Dispatch, but don't know if it was complete. I scored 2.

Link to quiz which is free on the JAMA site.

2169 Timeline for the Cheney shooting accident

The Wall Street Journal has published a timeline to help you figure out who knew what when and how outraged you should be. I, on the other hand, have already reported on why and how these things happen. Maleness. Not politics.

2168 Australia will be Muslim in 50 years?

"AUSTRALIA could become a Muslim nation within 50 years because "we are aborting ourselves almost out of existence", a Government backbencher says. . . "There are 250,000 children born each year," she said. "There are 100,000 abortions and 70 adoptions. Termination is more acceptable than adoption." " Story here.

2168 Turn down the volume

At my other blog today I write about the noise level in churches. We've got 10 services, so I can pick and choose by noise level that isn't painful, but what about the children? Read it here.

2167 Jesse Jackson's Worst Nightmare--Ohio's Ken Blackwell

"Right now, Ken Blackwell stands at a pivotal point in American politics. He’s taken an early lead in the race for governor of a state that was key to reelecting George W. Bush and that may well be even more crucial in picking the next American president. Moreover, Blackwell has built his early lead not by tacking toward the center of this swing state but by running on an uncompromisingly conservative platform that’s won him grassroots support from both Christian groups and taxpayer organizations—a novel coalition that makes the old-boy network in his own Ohio GOP as uneasy as it makes the state’s Democrats, who have begun a “stop Blackwell” campaign.

Ken Blackwell has so many people worried because he represents a new political calculus with the power to shake up American politics. For Blackwell is a fiscal and cultural conservative, a true heir of the Reagan revolution, who happens to be black, with the proven power to attract votes from across a startlingly wide spectrum of the electorate. Born in the projects of Cincinnati to a meat-packer who preached the work ethic and a nurse who read to him from the Bible every evening, Blackwell has rejected the victimology of many black activists and opted for a different path, championing school choice, opposing abortion, and staunchly advocating low taxes as a road to prosperity. The 57-year-old is equally comfortable preaching that platform to the black urban voters of Cincinnati as to the white German Americans in Ohio’s rural counties or to the state’s business community." City Journal

Thomas Sowell recently wrote about Blackwell in his column which appears in the WSJ and other papers.Read it here.

Ken Blackwell
Blackwell for Governor

Prison sentences

are a mystery to me. Yesterday we attended the funeral of a 47 year old man who had been murdered last week. It's a gut wrenching thing to see the grief of his son and sisters, nieces and nephews. And there are other families somewhere here in town who will soon lose their son or sons to prison. If the perps are all apprehended, they'll probably get a stiff sentence. If they don't get them for 24 years, maybe not.

Today's Dispatch reported on a Columbus woman who in 1982 conspired with her boyfriend to kill her first husband. She was a suspect at the time, but they didn't have proof. In a cold case investigation a year ago she was interviewed and her stories didn't match (it's very hard to remember a lie). After sitting in jail for awhile in Kansas declaring her innocence, she agreed to testify against the co-defendant. I think the reason is pretty limp--her church didn't approve of divorce, so they murdered him. Both of the murderers will face prison terms of 10 to 20 years and could be eligible for parole after 6 years. She didn't do the deed, but let the boyfriend in the house at night when the husband was sleeping so that it looked like a break-in. Story here.

Am I the only one who thinks this is a screwy system? If the body has turned to dust and the family members have died, the seriousness of infidelity and murder just sort of peters out? I feel very sorry for her [current] husband and children, but six years!

2165 A touching Valentine's tribute

The Columbus Dispatch publishes a full page of Valentine's tributes, memorials and dedications. This guy's heart is definitely in the right place, even if his spelling isn't. The photo of the happy couple shows him with a baseball cap and dark glasses, so I don't know what he looks like or how old they are. I would guess 40-50's.

"Happy 16th Valentine's Day together. I thank God the "wish I could-a", "wanna-be" loser chicks that wanted to get their dirty rotten mitts into me didn't git to 'cause I couldn't bear not being available to you when our stars crossed. So thank you Jesus! thank you Lord! thank you for my little Palma & me. I love you, Honey. Your Valentine, Pat-Eye.
P.S. Go ahead and pick out that dream house of your choice, any house not to exceed a fillion dillion dollars and an MP3 Player of your choosing.

2164 In first light

I've suggested before that I just drag the box out from under the bed, and we start reusing old Valentine, St. Patrick's and birthday cards, and after spending a lot of time at the card counter, he's decided it is time. "They are all so huge, or they are terribly mushy," he reported. He commented that he's never seen me "in first light" because I get up so much earlier than he does. We may not see each other until about 11 a.m. some days because I go to the coffee shop early and when I get home, he's off leading an exercise class for 15 sweaty women.



However, the ring is really nice and I love it. Blue sapphires and little diamonds.

2163 Dog and baby pics

Since I'm not a grandmother, I can't bore you with photos of the grandkids, but I can refer you to one of the funniest posts I've read in a long time that includes BOTH a dog and adorable children. Oh sure, your dog is cute and does outrageous things, but Jesse Jane with one eye that looks like a marble used to be top dog and has adjusted to Tired Tunia's two tots nicely. If you thought librarians were--well, like me--you've got to read her. That reminds me, I haven't visited Jinky for awhile, another shelter dog.

2162 The Marriage Gap

What did we get "liberating" all those women from marriage and husbands 30-40 years ago? Poor children, that's what we got. Read the whole story, in City Journal, "Marriage and Caste."

"When Americans began their family revolution four decades ago, they didn’t tend to talk very much about its effect on children. That oversight now haunts the country, as it becomes increasingly clear that the Marriage Gap results in a yawning social divide. If you want to discuss why childhood poverty numbers have remained stubbornly high through the years that the nation was aggressively trying to lower them, begin with the Marriage Gap. Thirty-six percent of female-headed families are below the poverty line. Compare that with the 6 percent of married-couple families in poverty—a good portion of whom are recent, low-skilled immigrants, whose poverty, if history is any guide, is temporary. The same goes if you want to analyze the inequality problem—start with the Marriage Gap. Virtually all—92 percent—of children whose families make over $75,000 are living with both parents. On the other end of the income scale, the situation is reversed: only about 20 percent of kids in families earning under $15,000 live with both parents."

". . . married, low-income, low-educated women enjoyed significantly higher living standards than comparable single mothers. Joe Sixpack may not be Mr. Darcy, but financially, at any rate, he’s a lot better than no husband at all."

"Children of single mothers have lower grades and educational attainment than kids who grow up with married parents, even after controlling for race, family background, and IQ. Children of divorce are also less likely to graduate and attend college, and when they do go for a B.A., they tend to go to less elite schools. . . Children who did not grow up with their two biological parents . . . were only half as likely to go to a selective college. As adults, they also earned less and had lower occupational status."

Two parents are better than one, it seems. But not if they are step parents and not if they are nonmarried cohabiting parents. Read the whole article. Marriage matters. Marriage isn't perfect, but for children, it's better than the alternative.

Much of the data in the City Journal report comes from the US DHHS.

poverty
marriage
women

2161 The Break-out Meme

Although I'd never heard of the "break-out meme" (the myth that Fahrenheit 911 did better in red states and Brokeback Mountain was doing the same), there's an interesting analysis of it, and the myth seems to only hurt Democrats.

"Remember when Democrats actually believed that Fahrenheit would help push Bush out of office? It didn't work out that way. Moore's film didn't change many minds in part because, as York puts it, it "never reached audiences that had the power to defeat the president at the polls." Despite all the "heartland" hype, it was a blue-state movie. York notes that Mel Gibson's Passion of Christ--a mirror-image "red state" movie that did well where Fahrenheit did badly, badly where Fahrenheit did well--prefigured the 2004 results, in that it attracted an audience roughly roughly three times the size of Farhenheit's (or six times Brokeback's!). kausfiles

2160 Wealth Distribution

The chart is missing from this on-line article in USA Today about the distribution of wealth in the United States, but it looked an awful lot like the intelligence bell curve lying on its side, except it's a bit lop sided for greater wealth than lesser wealth. I don't think the intelligence curve does that.

The mid-range of assets is 22% of the population falls between $25,000-$100,000. 31% is below that and 47% is above. 6.9% are at the bottom, and 7% are at the top. I'd say it looks pretty good, and I don't know why there are people who think it should be leveled or how that would help the poor.

"Financial assets — savings, checking or retirement accounts, stocks and bonds — and non-financial assets — a car, home or business — can spell the difference between security and drift. Assets mean access to college education, the ability to open a business, buy a house, have a secure retirement and a hedge against job loss."

The push is for Individual Development Accounts (IDAs), offering a one-to-one, two-to-one or better match for every dollar saved. It's the program I mentioned a few weeks ago written up in the WSJ where some women found money to save toward homes and businesses (matched by gov't funds) by giving up their cable, cell phones and manicures.

Wealth distribution
Financial assets

2159 Now that was a big deal

A hunter carelessly getting in the way of another hunter. It's unfortunate, but I don't consider that a big deal. People get careless, particularly when they are older and have done something hundreds of times. Or when they are very young. Or just being a guy will do it.

When I was 13, I had a really cute, tall boyfriend--small town, you know. He had a number of brothers. One of them found a gun their father had hidden under the bed, the kids were goofing off as kids will do, and the one brother accidentally shot and killed the other. Now, that was a big deal. If I remember it after all these years, I'm sure the family does too.

When I was about 14 I used to babysit for a poor family that had a number of runny nose children. Having sausage for supper was a big deal for them--the mother would spend a lot of time talking about it because I don't think they had meat very often (at that time sausage was much cheaper than hamburger, although it isn't now, and it was also much fatter). One of the boys had only one arm because the other had been severed by a corn picker. Now that was a big deal.

When I was about 15, my girl friend's 17 year old brother was killed in an auto accident a few miles out of town. Now that was a big deal.

Accidents. Youth. Testosterone. It's a volatile, sometimes leathal combination.

Anyone trying to make political hay out of V.P. Cheney's gun accident, doesn't know much about the accident rate for young boys and men.

Monday Memories

Monday Memories

Did I ever tell you about my green thumb?

On one of my parents’ visits (they lived in Illinois and we live in Ohio) when our children were about 4 and 5, my mother gave them each a small potted houseplant. I think they may have been starts from her kitchen window collection. I'm absolutely terrible with plants, but these two little things (I never took them out of their original pots and have no idea what they are called) managed to survive on my window sill at our house for over 30 years. They always looked just awful, but they were alive, and I admired their spunk.

People who knew about plants would pause at the window and try to snip off a few dead leaves and make suggestions like, "Why are you binding up their poor little feet in those small pots," or "Have you thought about fertilizer, moving them, trimming them, etc." But the two little plants just kept on keeping on, year after year, through pre-school, grade school, high school, birthday parties, prom dates, family crises, the kids moving out and finally moving on to their own marriages and homes and coming back to visit. In fact, those poor little scruffy, pitiful, limp plants sat on the window sill through two wedding brunches, in 1993 and 1998 (one described last week).

Before we moved to the condo in 2002 I gave one plant to my son, who seems to know about how to encourage green things. He even has a cactus collection; flowers bloom around his mailbox. The other one I put in the stairwell for a bit of greenery that wasn't artificial. Every now and then I'd bring it to the kitchen so it could look out the window, but there really is no place for plants in this kitchen. In general, condos are a bit light-deprived. Our house had 34 windows; the condo has maybe 10.

In mid-May of 2002 the remaining stunted, deprived plant started to falter. When I returned home from my parents' burial (Mom died in 2000 and Dad in 2002, but they were interred together) in late May I thought maybe it needed more sun since it had been accustomed to an east window at our house. So I put it outside in the covered entry area--you know--fresh air, sunshine. It works for people.

It continued to wilt, obviously in the throes of a death struggle. One little vine was left with green leaves among some sticks. After 32 years, I actually bought a bag of potting soil--something I'd never done when the little twig still had a chance. I moved it to a larger pot and put it on the deck on the north side to see if I could encourage it. But I think it knew its job was over.

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2157 When the children are tucked in their beds

Family Man Librarian gets out a good book to read. And he keeps track of his reading and posts the titles on his blog with LibraryThing, which he'll explain here.

2156 No, we do not need to see this film

Or read the book, for that matter.

"I just read a ludicrous statement by some Christian pastor, calling for all Christians to go to see The Da Vinci Code when it opens. His statement was something to the effect of "Every Christian needs to see this film!" I beg to differ.

No. We don't need to see this film. We all know what is in it. (Especially me, as I have read the screenplay.) It is a movie which begins from the point that Jesus was a fraud. He was not only not Divine, he was less than a man. And His Church is a sham association of meglomaniacal conspirators whose unifying principles are in the oppression of women." Barb at Church of the Masses.

Just say no. Vote with your non-ticket. Check out one of the 105 movies recommended by Sherri and stay home.

2155 Politics from the pulpit in black churches

is a given. We've got a black newspaper in town, and if you've ever looked at it, there are politicians in the pulpit all the time. In a black church in Columbus, OH you can find a John Edwards or a John Kerry or an Al Gore or a Jesse Jackson, and they aren't up there directing the choir or praying for healing of the sick. Civic involvement is the 11th commandment at a black church, and I say Amen, sisters. So why have a group of Columbus pastors and rabbis joined forces to file a complaint with the IRS against World Harvest and Rod Parsley? Yes, World Harvest had a voter registration drive and I think they probably signed up more voters than liberals did, but they also passed out food to the poor, more than the liberals did, and distributing food has become a government job, too. What is this? Pulpit envy?

I've never been to World Harvest, and have only glanced at Parsley on TV, but his organization is HUGE. His is the Wal-Mart Superstore of Pentecostal, crying, hollaring, gospel singing, tell-it-like-it-is churches.
John Kedwards getting blessings from the black pastors in the 2004 campaign

Line between church and state, my foot. This really stinks. Next thing you know they'll say churches can't speak about marriage, or abortion, or gambling because those areas belong to the government and not the Lord. I wonder how many of these 30+ pastors and rabbis contribute to the ACLU?

2154 And I thought our income tax was complicated!

A law passed in Congress in 1994 called the Victims of Nazi Persecution Act of 1994 creates a special right for survivors of the Holocaust. When they apply for federally funded benefits or services that are based on financial need, the payments they have received based on their status as a victim of Nazi persecution are not counted in determining their financial eligibility for these federally funded benefits. This is an exception to the usual rule that counts all income and assets when determining eligibility for programs based on need. Part A of this brochure explains these rules. Part B explains how to find out how much restitution you have received over the years, in order to show how much of your savings do not count in determining your financial need.

This is taken from Selfhelp pamphlet, but the 12 pages of instruction are not legal advice so it might be necessary to contact the specific agency and this group isn't responsible for incorrect information.

Again, can we all say it together through April 15? Why does the government make taking our money so difficult?

2153 Can't you sit like a lady?

One of the Thursday Thirteens I have in mind to write is proverbs, sayings and comments from my parents that have stayed with me over the years. We all have them, even if Mom and Dad died years ago. Oh, maybe it wasn't your parents; maybe grandma, or a friend you admired who sort of mentored you. But they are there, little phrases and sayings speaking out when you need them. Or don't need them and wish they'd go away.

Sometimes I can hear Daddy calling across the living room, "Can't you sit like a lady," but yesterday he was saying it from my memory bank to the lovely young mother talking to me via the video screen/DVD at church. She has movie star good looks, a fabulous voice (I think she said she was a communications and voice major in college), a great sense of humor, wisdom and a presence before an audience that must be natural, because she couldn't be old enough to have developed it from experience or training.

In the final session she is not in front of a studio audience, but supposedly is in her own family room for a wrap up and review. With her Bible, she sits down on her couch, tucks one leg under her bottom, and brings one bare foot up and immediately hikes her knee (she's wearing jeans) up in front of her chest. Sort of casual for talking to a couple of million ladies in Bible study, wouldn't you say? And I think that was the point. . . Ladies, let's get real and personal here was the idea her director and writer wanted to convey.

But I've seen women do that on national television. On Oprah. On David Letterman. Usually they are in jeans, occasionally in slacks, and I've never seen anyone do it in a dress, even if the dress would cover the exposed legs and bottom. Why do women sit that way? My mother's generation didn't (b. 1912). Nor did my grandmother's (b.1876). Sloppy posture and ungainly poses only started when women began wearing jeans and slacks in public (farm women and factory women wore them much earlier than urban women) in the 1940s. They aren't imitating men, because usually only gay guys sit that awkwardly, and I assume they are imitating women.

So from my daddy's lips to your ears and hips:
Can't you sit like a lady?

2152 The ACLU is after the Scouts again

They've got some blogging milmoms they'll have to fight. Blue Star Chronicles for one.

"So, while the ACLU defends NAMBLA they wage war against the Boy Scouts. They maintain NAMBLA is not harmful to our children. The Boy Scouts, on the other hand, are 'bigots' espousing values such as honor, integrity, discipline, self-reliance, participating in the community and helping others."

2151 Olympic thoughts

Badaunt is a New Zealander living in Japan teaching English and she had some thoughts on the Olympic skaters with the fire of passion in their helmets during the opening (truly the weirdest thing I've ever seen and I fully expect some kid to try it). She drifted into her fright from a bacon fire on her stove and some thoughts on teaching English:

"I have become very good at suppressing the occasional urge to shout obscenities. It is a side effect of working in a language classroom, where students who refuse to learn the most basic English will pick up rude language at lightening speed EVEN IF YOU ONLY WHISPER IT, and will repeat it back at you at every opportunity." Badaunt

Another thing children will imitate.

2150 If you film it they will come

Average rate of return on investment by film rating


from interview with Christian film maker Ralph Winter at Religion and Liberty

You vote with your entertainment dollars, not your protests.

2149 How not to marry a high maintenance woman

Since I wrote on How not to marry a jerk, I thought I should give women equal time. A female jerk is a "high maintenance woman," and we're not talking just money here, but time, energy and emotions. They wear you out and exhaust you with their games, chatter, nagging, gossip and whining. Again, I don't have personal experience with this, but I have friends and family who do. I even checked the internet on this one, and when guys talk about this, they usually mean $$$$. Women have a different interpretation, so I had to do some interviewing to write this one.

She might be high maintenance if

• every crisis is about her. When 9/11 happened, she was worried about her trip to NY, not about the victims or the country.
  
• she's never available to help. She wants you and your buddies to help her move, but she can't even hang a towel or run the vacuum at your house.
  
• she only calls when she needs something. You might as well say, "Hello, what do you need now?" when you see her number come up.
  
• she can't save money. Can't be bothered with learning the magic alphabet from 403-b to 401-k.
  
• she's paying off credit card debt at the minimum, and should have that entertainment center paid for in 2035.
  
• she still depends on daddy to bail her out of messes. He and not she has furnished that nice house and bought the expensive clothes, and he's hoping to unload her.
  
• she interacts very differently with others than she does when it's just the two of you.

She's definitely high maintenance, so just cut and run because it is hopeless if

• You've set the date and she's turned into Bridezilla.
  
• the ring isn't big enough, the right color, yada, yada.
  
• she can't rearrange her schedule because of her hair, her make-up, doesn't have the right clothes, etc.
  
• her clothes take up all the closets in the apartment, and yours are in a box in the basement, but you shouldn't be living together anyway, so you're a putz too.
  
• she is always on a diet, or says she is, but you suspect an eating disorder. Food is missing, or she spends a lot of time in the bathroom after a meal. This will only get worse and you'll be paying for hospitals and therapists.
  
• you've never seen her without make-up. Her bathroom looks like a cosmetic counter at Macy's. If she gets a zit, the world is ending.
  
• she speaks in psycho-babble. "You're never there for me!" "We need to talk" is a prelude to torture.
  
• Narcissis could be her middle name, or her favorite flower, but it's always all about her.
  
• she lies, particularly about her ex-, former jobs, sexual harrassment, what things cost, or even the time and temperature if it brings her the attention she craves.
  
• there are many signs that she is overusing alcohol or doing drugs, but you keep making excuses for her behavior, her tardiness, her missed days at work, her damaged relationships because you like feeling like a hero. If you couldn't rescue her, what would you do with your time?
  
• she can't say no to people, particularly her parents.
  
• she is so overcommitted on activities you have to both get out your PDAs to even have a coffee date.
  
• she won't consider your church--its too liturgical or too informal or too big or too small, or too Catholic or too Pentecostal, but she never attends her own.
  
• she doesn't have custody of her children, and misses her child support payments.
  
• she ridicules people who have disabilities, or who are different than she, or who are a different race or ethnic group.
  
• she's a potty mouth. She knows more bad words and dirty jokes than you do. It might be funny now, but think about your future children and the board of directors if you ever go that high.
  
• you are looking for someone to fix, or someone to fix you.

2148 Looking for a good movie

to check out from the library for the week-end, or maybe for Valentine's Day? Semicolon has a list of 105 with a brief review. I'm guessing she's seen every one of them, too.

17. Chariots of Fire (1981)
Chariots is absolutely the most inspiring movie about standing firm for what one believes that I've ever seen.
Eric Liddell: I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure

21. Driving Miss Daisy (1989)
This movie won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1989, and Jessica Tandy won Best Actress. It's about the friendship between an elderly Southern Jewish lady and her black chauffer. Organizer Daughter says it's extremely boring, but I like old people and relationship movies.

25. Father of the Bride (1950)
Spencer Tracy makes a better father than Steve Martin, more twinkle-in-the-eye. And Elizabeth Taylor is beautiful as usual.

32. Gone with the Wind (1939)
Classic. "I'll think about that tomorrow. Tomorrow is another day." "I don't know nothing about birthin' no babies, Miz Scarlett." "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn." You just have to get the accent right.

40.It Happened One Night (1934)
Clark Gable is a reporter in this romantic comedy about a run-away rich girl.

55. The Miracle Worker (1962)
Anne Bancroft plays Teacher Annie Sullivan, and a young Patty Duke plays Helen Keller. The scene in which Helen recognizes her first words at the water pump is classic-worth the whole movie.

Well, just look at the whole list. It's fun.

2147 Dianne's so relieved!

"Iraq war protester Cindy Sheehan announced Thursday that she would not run against U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, sparing the Democratic incumbent a high-profile challenger in the June primary.

At a news conference in San Francisco, Sheehan sharply criticized Feinstein for voting to authorize President Bush to invade Iraq." (LAtimes.com)

Like she had a chance. Democrats are not stupid.

2146 Well Dressed Librarian

There aren't very many. And this one is taking a "sebatical" and may not be back! I don't link to him, but have always enjoyed his posts. He's funny, observant, endearingly gay, Jewish and extremely fashion conscious, but is he spelling-challenged? So I checked Google, and over 16,000 hits come up for "sebatical" instead of "sabbatical," which had over 17 million. It comes from the Hebrew word for rest, and the Sabbath is the seventh, or day of rest. Maybe he's not that observant?

2145 Wafting

". . .an odd bread-like, sweet, yeasty smell wafted through the room. Every student in the room involuntarily smiled wryly and said...mmmmm that’s the distillery." (Smithie, an AZ blogger living in KY). Wafting is a sweet old fashioned word that means "a slight or gentle movement of air" and often I associate it with smells, don't you? It is also used with sounds.

Wafting--as I move. I just got out of the shower and am ready for our Friday night date. I'm wearing black slacks and a red velour top with black, shiny spangles (it's Valentine's week-end, you know), and low black heels. And I'm wafting. I smell like a perfume factory, and haven't so much as sprayed a drop of cologne or perfume.

1) My bath soap is a green deodorant bar.

2) I also used a vanilla scented body wash--it smells lovely, but I think it undoes whatever the magic the soap did and it makes the shower very slippery.

3) My shampoo and moisturizer is Aveda which has a very distinctive smell.

4) I used a body lotion after the shower for dry skin (caused by the soap and hot water) and it is perfumed.

5) I brushed my teeth with Crest, minty flavor.

6) I applied an anti-perspirant, also scented.

7) My lingerie smells like a well-known laundry detergent under my elegant outfit.

8) I slathered Merle Norman moisturizer on my face and it is delicately scented.

9) I followed that with Merle Norman foundation (I'm very pale) which has a much stronger smell.

10) I brushed my cheeks lightly with some Merle Norman color, which I'm sure has a scent, but by now my nose was waving a white flag and my eyes were bleeding.

But I'm not wearing cologne. It would be overkill.

odors
fragrances
smells
cosmetics

2144 Long ago and far away

when I worked for the Ohio Department of Aging (1982) I learned that the AARP is really a front for insurance, not a lobby group for the retired. They aren't really representing anyone, 55+ or even liberals, although the organization does lean to the left on political and social issues.

There is an organization for conservative retirees, however, called Sixty Plus Association, and Pat Boone, yes, old love letters in the sand, is one of their representatives. I remember attending one of his shows at Lakeside--a few years before he did that black leather and jewelry routine, which I think he grew out of (or it was all a joke). His voice was unbelieveable.

60+ seems to be against the "Death Tax." "Make no mistake, repeal of the death tax is not, I repeat, not a tax cut for the “wealthiest of the wealthy” as Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) describes it, or as her husband called it, a “windfall for the wealthy.” Both Clintons know their position is a con job of the first order. Both know the “wealthiest of the wealthy” don’t pay this confiscatory tax. Either that or they’re both stupid." Abolish death tax

Yes, this is true. Whenever you hear liberals whining that the rich aren't paying their share, but they will if we just increase taxes (like Friedman talking about raising gasoline taxes to reduce driving, which would probably hurt the poor the most), they ignore that the very wealthy can hire legions of accountants to protect them with all the loopholes Congress writes into the tax law, loopholes none of the the rest of us can qualify for or afford accountants and lawyers to interpret.

For all I know, 60+ Association might be selling something just like AARP. But keep your eye on them. Afterall, do you want the federal government or your grandchildren to get the results of your labor? A bridge to nowhere in Alaska, or a little nest egg for their college?

2142 Do you have hair on your toes?

Well, you should if you've got a good blood supply. If you don't, you might have PAD, Peripheral Arterial Disease. "PAD is a problem with blood flow in the arteries. Arteries carry blood to the muscles and organs in your body. When you have diseased arteries, they become narrow or blocked. The most common cause of narrow or blocked arteries is the buildup of fatty deposits. This is called atherosclerosis. The most common complaint of people who have PAD is claudication."

"Claudication is pain in the calf or thigh muscle that occurs after you have walked a certain distance, such as a block or two. The pain stops after you rest for a while. Each time the pain occurs, it takes about the same amount of time for the pain to go away after you stop walking."

Not everyone who has PAD has symptoms. But look for hair on your toes.

There are two articles about PAD in the Feb. 1 issue of JAMA, "Does the clinical examination predict lower extremity peripheral arterial disease," and "Medical treatment of peripheral arterial disease." Many public libraries carry JAMA. And that's its real title, despite the constant misuse of its old title in all the media (Journal of the American Medical Association).

2142 If you disgrace yourself you can always write another book

"It was sad watching [former President] Jimmy Carter making a fool of himself at the funeral of Coretta Scott King." Larry Zin, reader, USAToday, 2-10-06.

2141 Ashes in the bedroom

A woman wrote Dear Abby (today's Columbus Dispatch) that her widower boyfriend keeps his wife's ashes in his bedroom (which she's obviously using, too). How did I miss that one in my blog about How Not to Marry a Jerk.

Although there's not much chance of marriage here, is there? This guy is such a limp, spineless noodle that he's letting his dead wife give her the message that they have no future together. Maybe he's looking for someone who is smarter?

Some women! Makes me embarrassed. Truly.

2140 Comparing disasters

Perhaps you saw the article in the USAToday (2-10-06) comparing the desire and speed for rebuilding after historic disasters, the Chicago fire (1871), The Galveston hurricane (1900), the San Francisco earthquake (1906), and Katrina (2005). Sometimes I talk back to the TV; sometimes I write the story under the headlines. For this one, I answered before I read it.

It's the government, stupid.

Government aid, dispensed with government incompetency first at the local (mayor Nagin), then state (governor Blanco), then federal level (FEMA), government bureaucracy and red tape at all levels (zillions of pages of laws, rules, regulations, guidelines, codicils, codes, zoning), floating in the muck of a city that should have never been built so low but propped up by government engineers and local levee boards, peopled by a citizenry held hostage through dependency on the government for housing and jobs and medical care, having all their initiative, skills and energy drained dry by the government.

Unintended consequences
Hurricane Katrina
Natural disasters
government policy failures

2139 Don't play with your food

Have you ever said that to your kids? Maybe you're setting a bad example trying to get a free breakfast? I have in front of me a handsome, slick insert from the newspaper that conjoins Holiday Inn, Visa, Home Depot, the lure of a gift card, a coupon, a voucher, four luscious breakfast entrees for "free" and a night in a hotel. And although I haven't figured this part out, the models in the ad would get the worst-dressed retro-1970s award. At least I think that's the last time I saw a guy wearing tight-fitting, brown stripe pants with a lime green floral shirt.

Here's the game plan. In order to get a free breakfast you have to

1) stay at a Holiday Inn--one that is participating in the game, and one that isn't a Holiday-Express

2) you have to book at least one standard room

3) which qualifies you for a coupon redeemable for breakfast (none of which look healthy to me) in the hotel's restaurant

4) but only in the amount of $20.00

5) and only if you've put the room on your VISA card (but that's a bit fuzzy in the wording)

6) and saved a voucher you get only at check-in

7) which is useable if you mail it and the hotel receipt and allow 4-6 weeks for delivery for a $10 gift card to be used at the Home Depot

8) which location must be participating in the bed and breakfast game

9) at which only one of you in that standard room in the non-Express Holiday Inn gets a coupon for breakfast, but the children eat free, if they are under 12 years old

10) and all of which is void where prohibited.

Ohio prisoners may have to do without my Snickerdoodles

Today I decided to bake cookies for the Kairos Ministry for prisoners at the Ross Correctional Institution. The guys going in from the church need 660 dozen cookies. I'll let that sink in. That's probably end-to-end from here to Cleveland in cookies. So I decided on snickerdoodles and found a recipe in my mother-in-law's 1950 Betty Crocker Cookbook. When I was finished mixing I noticed they needed to chill before baking, so I put them in a bowl, and I made a cherry pie for my husband while the dough chilled out.

Later I formed the little balls of dough, rolled them in a sugar/cinnamon mix and put them in the oven. I didn't think I was making them too big, but did only get 25 instead of 5 dozen, like the recipe said. Oh well.

After about 5 minutes I smelled something burning, so I opened the oven, and they were melting! And falling over the side of the cookie sheet, splatting on the bottom of the oven set at 400 degrees. It looked like a disaster of major proportions, so I left them in a few more minutes to firm up a bit and pulled them out, with minimal dough falling on the floor of the kitchen. By this time, I had one huge piece of cookie dough. I kept about 5, and dumped the rest in the trash. They actually taste wonderful, but I would eat every last one. (My husband eats sugar free cookies, and these weren't).

Rechecking the recipe I'll just say I think I didn't notice that last cup of flour. Or it was the ghost of my mother-in-law who really didn't like to cook.

2137 I'm not sure I've ever seen one

I took one of those "which sports car are you?" I was a Mazda RX-8--but the photo image was too wide for my space, and there was no way to narrow it, so I took it down.

"You're sporty, yet practical, and you have a style of your own. You like to have fun, and you like to bring friends along for the ride, but when it comes time for everyday chores, you're willing to do your part."

2136 Let's go to a carnival

I don't participate in any of the carnivals, but I do occasionally take a peek, because you can find all of a kind at one site and click and read. Carol, the Median Sib (her whole family blogs) mentioned the Carnival of Education. I'm pretty much out of that loop, but still like to check in on the teacher blogs. When my children were in school, I was a holy terror. Not only did I expect my kids to do their job, I thought the school should too!

Yesterday I had coffee with a friend who retired from teaching last year. Now she teaches every day as a substitute, because she says it's fun. She doesn't have to do the paper work, and can even be choosy about what classes she'll teach. But she still does have to look at them--studs in their noses, lips, eyebrows, tongues and died pink hair. All the research is in--students learn better in schools that require uniforms, and even same sex classrooms, but school administrations don't seem to have a backbone when it comes to improvements in education that by-pass learning theory to get there.

For some reason, yesterday was a school holiday so my friend didn't teach and was free to have coffee like a real retired person. We have a number of friends who are retired, but stay regularly employed in warmer climates as subs while living on their pensions in vacation communities. They've had no education courses, weren't teachers by profession and one probably only had one year of college.

2135 Doctors who become nurses

Drop this one in the "unintended consequences" category. Immigration to the United States for nurses is much simpler than it is for physicians. Consequently, since 2000, more than 3500 Filipino physicians have taken accelerated nursing courses and have left for nursing jobs abroad. More than 4000 physicians are now in nursing school, not just new physicians, but internists, surgeons, anesthesiologists, family practitioners, and subspecialists. Now, the U.S. recruits nurses from abroad, creating crises in those countries, and depresses wages here at home. Sometimes it seems the more laws you make to protect one labor group, the worse you make it for someone else. (Story from New England Journal of Medicine, v. 354:5;529.)

Brain drain
Filipino nurses
Unintended consequences

2134 Thank your fairy blog mother week

While reading Uisce this morning, I learned it was Thank your fairy blog mother week. Like a lot of holidays, it has gotten out of hand. It used to be one day, now it is a whole week, which allows those of us who clicked in late to participate.

My fairy blog mother is PJ, a very talented and pretty professional writer I met on Usenet. It's possible she considers me her out-of-weblink, rather-forget-you bundle of grief whose daddy was the article in the Wall Street Journal which rated five blogging hosts. She's liberal and I'm conservative, and she sends me you did good love pats if I write sweet, endearing memories, but she defintely doesn't like my political/social/cultural take on the day to day things that matter.

Things were getting mighty nasty in the Miscellaneouswritingville (MWville) neighborhood back in 2003 and 2004. Gangs of thugs patrolled the streets. A Brit particularly was harrassing me. I had to block his e-mail--still do. So I tried blogging where I'd have the control, but had a few hitches in my get-along when I started and e-mailed PJ for help. She graciously threw a few hints my way and I was off and running, or blogging. Now I have seven blogs, but this is the one that gets most of my attention.

2133 My public library

has one title (1964) on the Lutheran church, but has The Complete annotated Grateful Dead lyrics. I don't know how many dead heads there are in Upper Arlington, but there are several thousand Lutherans.

Lutherans
Grateful Dead
Upper Arlington, Ohio
Librarianship