So much for tea bags

On March 23 I wrote my representative, Mary Jo Kilroy, and sent her a tea bag (used):

"The behavior last week of Congress, particularly your Democratic colleagues, was outrageous. I was never so embarrassed to be a voting American. That Congress would propose a special tax to punish people with whom they signed a contract is beyond belief and beyond the Constitution. I suggest you all start reading all documents that affect our future and our economy. There is going to be a voter revolt."

Hmm. She's so scared of the voters, she completely spinned it and promptly replied on July 1 (probably too busy reading that 1200 page cap and trade bill) that she appreciated me reaching out to her and that she shares my "outrage over irresponsible compensation practices for executives. . ." Huh? Did I say that?

She then started her own spin on executive pay--but I wasn‘t outraged about that, I was outraged about Congress' behavior in whipping up a frenzy over executive compensation. . . .

the gap between what an executive earns versus his or her employees is out of control. . . Lavish executive pay reinforces the notion that executives and their boards of directors often act self-servingly and not in the interests of their workers and shareholders. Reforms are needed to encourage sound risk management, long-term growth and value creation - not only at individual firms, but for our financial system and the economy as a whole.

This summer, Congress will begin efforts to reform executive compensation. As a member of the House Committee on Financial Services, I will work to bring compensation practices more tightly in line with the interests of shareholders and reinforce the stability of firms and the financial system.

Gee, it's no wonder that Obama has turned everything over to the Czars instead of our elected representatives. They can probably read!

Glenn Beck on our incompetent government

I won't imbed them all, but he is addressing California's budget, the cap and trade, ACORN, Al Franken the comedian is now a senator, etc. A number of clips at the RBO blog (tracks Obama's stupid stuff). We don't get Glenn up here. His new book on common sense is selling like hot cakes. See a bunch of them here, including the suppressed EPA report. An additional $3,000 per household per year? No, he's only going to tax the rich. Yeah.

Common Sense, by Glenn Beck

Saving Freedom, by Jim DeMint

Leading the way to. . . ?

President Obama’s EPA yesterday allowed California to impose the toughest emission standards on vehicles in the nation, which will form the basis of new nationwide rules.

In a major reversal of Bush administration policy, the Environmental Protection Agency's ruling was hailed by California politicians and national environmental groups as a breakthrough in curbing carbon dioxide - a leading contributor to global warming.

Tuesday's waiver highlights the state's decades-long tradition of environmental leadership, said Roland Hwang, transportation program director for the Natural Resources Defense Council. SFGate via Heritage.org

Oh goody. More wonderful economic news. We get to be like California. Let's see. Is it 30 days before it's bankrupt, or has that already happened?

EPA's approved transportation--a Bamabike

New colors on our street

Not much could be done about the ugly 80s wood panel siding that had enveloped this late 19th century cottage. So the new owners gave her a new, pretty pinafore. I think this is the happiest red house paint I've ever seen. And the new landlord is lucky too--he found a renter for the entire summer, and having been there, let me tell you, that sure saves wear and tear on your newly decorated home! It's a little hard to tell after multiple remodelings, but at some time this home probably had an open porch on both levels. But before that, it might have been a "wooden tent," with walls and roof erected over what began as a platform for a summer tent. Oak is in the "old" part of town, or the original camp ground. Many cottage owners filled the porches in years ago to use as bedrooms or living space. In the 19th c. the lake air was the only air conditioning around here. But storms make it tough to maintain, and this cottage is just half a block from the lake.



Next door is a "camp cottage" and these owners have spruced up the lower porch with purple and lavender and some brightly painted adirondock chairs. The rest of the cottage is gray. The lower porch still has screens and the sleeping porch above it is now enclosed.

Further down the street on the lakefront, our neighbors have donated hours of time, labor and bulbs to give all of us a beautiful flower garden. Their payment must be the pleasure of others. These are Asian lilies, I think, but are tastefully arranged with many other types and sizes of blooms.

Nothing worse than kiss and tell

Governor Sanford needs to apply some duct tape to his mouth and stop embarrassing his wife and children.

"This was a whole lot more than a simple affair, this was a love story," Sanford said. "A forbidden one, a tragic one, but a love story at the end of the day."

Oh. Gag.

Bird Walk at Lakeside

Can you believe it? I left my binoculars at the cottage! Oh well, it was still a great event. Our leader: "Bill Thompson III is the editor of Bird Watcher's Digest by day. He's also a keen birder, the author of many books, a dad, a field trip leader, an ecotourism consultant, a guitar player, the host of the "This Birding Life" podcast, a regular speaker/performer on the birding festival circuit, a gentleman farmer, and a fungi to be around. His North American life list is somewhere between 667 and 669. His favorite bird is the red-headed woodpecker. His "spark bird" was a snowy owl. He has watched birds in 25 countries and 44 states. But his favorite place to watch birds is on the 80-acre farm he shares with his wife, artist/writer Julie Zickefoose. Some kind person once called Bill "The Pied Piper of Birding" and he has been trying to live up to that moniker ever since."

What I knew about birds could be written on my little fingernail, so I'm a whole lot smarter than I was at 7:30 a.m. We saw sea gulls, of course, which Bill told us are misnamed--they live mainly on lakes, and he told us the many names; a Caspian Tern, which lives all over the world but is named for the Caspian Sea; a male House Finch, a descendant of the 40 some that were illegally let loose in NYC and are now everywhere in the US and southern Canada; a Cormorant; Great Blue Heron; a Grackle and Starling; some Bank Swallows lined up on a wire; and finally, we gathered around our 5 Purple Martin houses, one of which had been invaded by a sparrow family. Bill told us funny stories about Purple Martin "landlords" which are a special class of bird watchers.

Now this is the way to see a bird!
She's been on lots of bird events
The Midwest Birding Symposium will be at Lakeside, September 17-20 with wonderful programs and performances by leading bird watchers, vendors, a boat cruise and other fun stuff. There will even be events for beginners like me, like a "bird sit." Based on the vast knowledge I picked up today, I think that's a Caspian Tern on the poster.

Lakeside Lovers

Along the lakefront, lovers have walked for over 130 years. Some stop to record it. A century ago they might have carved on trees; then on the flat rocks now covered up. More recently, chalk on asphalt. We hope David and Michelle will do as well as Shirley and Frank.

Week two at Lakeside

This morning we're supposed to have a bird walk, but it's very cloudy and cool. This is one of five purple martin houses on the lakefront. Usually I see many flying around. I only saw the sun briefly during my 6 a.m. walk along the lake. If you're unfamiliar with the area, that's Kelley's Island in the distance. Lakeside has a private dock that extends into Lake Erie, but no beach except that created by the association for children.





Today is also the farmers market. Last week's raspberries looked fabulous--I might look for those today. I sat next to a woman in a lecture who was eating hers out of the box. Although the sweet cherries looked great, too.

Twenty eight billboards saving lives in Columbus, Ohio

Pregnancy Decision Health Centers are using bright pink billboards to save babies. They have already documented stories of calls to their hotline from this message being on billboards, business cards, yard signs and bumper magnets that will result in babies being saved at PDHC. The billboards originally put up in April and May are staying up for much longer than anticipated because the space has not been taken by another organization.

Part of my stimulus check went to PDHC for the unborn children, and part to the food pantry for the children already here. I am most saddened by Christians who support pro-abortion laws and causes--usually because they sincerely think the child will grow up in poverty or an abusive situation and therefore will be better off dead. That's a really odd death sentence, don't you think? Not even Bernie Madoff got the death penalty, and think of the lives he destroyed.

Bush and the Axis of Evil

With North Korea threatening to wipe the U.S. off the globe, do you still think Bush was hasty in lumping together Iran, Iraq and North Korea both for what they do to their own citizens and how they threaten other nations? "I wonder what the 2002 critics of President Bush’s phrase think when they watch the YouTube footage of bloodied women in the streets of Tehran or when they read about China and Russia taking the lead in sanctioning North Korea? Read more of Anthony Bradley’s “Yes, friends, axis of evil

We're safe, of course; President Obama plans to use strong words against the missiles and bombs--or will just continue to call them silly threats to make them go away.

"North Korea has been busy, busy, busy since the election of our weak President. This week, they have sharply increased their war rhetoric. On Wednesday they issued this threat: "If the U.S. imperialists start another war, the army and people of Korea will ... wipe out the aggressors on the globe once and for all." And on Thursday they promised a "fire shower of nuclear retaliation" if the U.S. attacked them. The media is pretending that it isn't happening, whistling in the dark, but how can anyone avoid noticing that since Obama's failed policies have been introduced, the evil forces of the world have been unleashed?" Pamela Geller North Korea’s March to War

The Gangster Government

We're used to cronyism in government and the workplace. But this is much worse. Now we've got 20 czars who report only to Obama running the government instead of elected officials. Czar is the Russian word for Caesar, and the former General Motors, The Government Motors, is now Gangster Motors. Folks, Obama is a marxist; until recently I thought he was too smart to go the Russian route, but this all looks awfully familiar if you've ever studied the Soviet Union.



HT Murray.

New trees for the campus

My high school friend and favorite Democrat, Lynne, tells me that four new trees have been planted on the former campus of Mt. Morris College (where my parents and grandparents attended and which closed in 1932 after a fire in 1931). There was a terrible storm in August 2008, and a large number of magnificent trees were lost--many were diseased and frail, but still beautiful and providing wonderful shade and respite. However, trees are not “natural” to this little mound in northern Illinois. According to the Mt. Morris Past and Present of 1900

"The present site of Mount Morris, as stated before, was an open prairie, with not a tree or a shrub to be found. What is now the college campus was then the crest of a hill of considerable size, the country sloping from it in all directions. The early settlers say that before the view was obstructed by buildings and trees, the altitude of the hill was very perceptible. The prairie grass was very rank. In fact, in some places it grew so luxuriantly that it was almost impassable. Most of the ravines and hollows were in a wet, boggy state; and the streams and ponds retained the water from rains much longer than now, because of the absence of tiling in the lowlands. There abounded hundreds of springs, which have long since ceased to flow, owing to the rapid drainage now effected by the work of tiling and the development of the soil."

So, I don't know what the soil in mid-town Mt. Morris is like now, but I'm guessing it's well drained. (The local cemetery where most of my family--parents, great grandparents, sister, cousins, aunts and uncles, etc.--awaits the resurrection used to be called "burial at sea" just to give you an idea of how boggy it was.) However, last week I attended a program on the trees here at Lakeside, a totally different type of soil--very rocky, as this is called the Marblehead Penninsula on Lake Erie (a body of water that has changed shape and size many times since the glaciers passed through here). Our speaker said that for every inch of trunk, the newly planted tree needs 5 gallons of water a week, plus 5 gallons. So if the tree is 2 inches, it needs 15 gallons of water a week to get a good start. There is no way those new trees can get that much naturally. But he told about a wonderful contraption called a tree gator--looks like an ugly green bag attached to the trunk. It holds 5 gallons, and you move it from tree to tree each day, and start over the next week. It's drip irrigation and won't drown the tree the way an impatient employee or volunteer might.

Newly planted trees are under severe water stress right after transplanting. And they will remain under water stress for the first several years after planting. Maintaining soil moisture is especially important during the first three years following transplanting. So how do you prevent transplant shock and avoid water stress on new trees? The answer is simple, Treegator® slow release watering system for trees. Treegator delivers a high volume of water directly to the root system of a newly planted tree.

Maybe this could be a project for the reunion committee.

TV pitch man Billy Mays dies

Every time he came on I’d turn to my husband and say, “Why does he always shout?” But he was the best known TV pitch man, and after a head bump on a rough landing, he later died. He was 50. We don’t know yet what happened, but those type of head injuries can be dangerous.

Ohio HB 176--protection for pedophiles?

Yesterday I received an email alerting me to Ohio HB 176, which makes a number of changes in the Ohio Revised Code specific to sexual orientation or gender identity. One definition that caught his attention was that pedophilia was listed with homosexuality, or bisexuality, transvestism, etc. If you take into account that pedophilia is listed with gender orientation, which is added to the sections in the revised code, it seems like the Democrats have opened the door to public schools for the pedophiles.

What’s your take on the wording? In the current Code, the wording is "physical or mental impairment” includes any of the following" . . . and homosexuality, etc. is listed. In the new wording the specific phrase included under definitions in 16(a) on what doesn't constitute an impairment:

(b) "Physical or mental impairment" does not include any of the following:
(i) Homosexuality and bisexuality;
(ii) Transvestism, transsexualism, pedophilia, exhibitionism, voyeurism, gender identity disorders not resulting from physical impairments, or other sexual behavior disorders;
(iii) Compulsive gambling, kleptomania, or pyromania;
(iv) Psychoactive substance use disorders resulting from the current illegal use of a controlled substance or the current use of alcoholic beverages.

The wording is nothing if not strange and confusing since this part of the code involves housing and employment. If you support GLBT rights, then read it: "Physical or mental impairment does not include pyromania." Or. "Physical or mental impairment does not include illegal use of a controlled substance."

This HB 176 is presented to the people by its sponsors and advocates as necessary protection for the GLBT group, a group that conservatives say don’t meet the Supreme Court criteria for a protected class (economically disadvantaged, immutable characteristics, politically powerless). There are church officials, companies covering all their bases (or remove the b and add an a--the advocates are anything but politically powerless), state offices and community organizations supporting this bill who are probably out of touch with the people in the pew and on the street where you live and work: Cardinal Health, the Cleveland Clinic, Bishop Ough of the West Ohio Methodist Conference, the Ohio Civil Rights Commission and the Mayor of the city of Springfield. My church and mayor never say boo about this sort of thing on either side, so without people who actually read the bills (which wouldn’t be the legislators) and pay attention to loopholes large enough through which to drive a Hummer-dinger, I wouldn’t usually know about these laws.

“On Tuesday, May 12, 2009, House Bill 176, also known as the Equal Housing and Employment Act was introduced in the Ohio House of Representatives. When passed and enacted, the legislation will add sexual orientation and gender identity to the list of reasons for which a person may not be discriminated against in Ohio in employment, housing and public accommodations. Governor Ted Strickland has pledged his support to the bill and has promised to sign it into law when it reaches his desk. When enacted, this will be the first statewide law protecting or recognizing Ohioans based on sexual orientation and gender identity.” from Do what‘s right Ohio

Ice cream, you scream. . .

"In honor of the 44th President of the United States, Baskin-Robbins Ice Cream has introduced a new flavor: “Barocky Road.”

Barocky Road is a blend of half vanilla, half chocolate, and surrounded by nuts and flakes. The vanilla portion of the mix is not openly advertised and usually denied as an ingredient. The nuts and flakes are all very bitter and hard to swallow.

The cost is $100.00 per scoop. When purchased it will be presented to you in a large beautiful cone, but then the ice cream is taken away and given to the person in line behind you. You are left with an empty wallet and no change, holding an empty cone with no hope of getting any ice cream.

Are you stimulated?"
Seen at Common Folk

The Honeymoon of 2009

Although I don't agree that Obama is Bush-redux, I do think the honeymoon is over.

"Mark it on your calendars. It was in June 2009 that Barack Obama's honeymoon officially ended. And to be more specific, it was this past week. Through some mysterious alchemy, this was the week that Bush's economy became Obama's, Bush's wars became Obama's, and the ups and downs of a real workaday relationship with the press also introduced Obama to a more accurate sense of what life was like for Bush and for all his other modern predecessors." A run through of the links

Obama is NOT politics as usual, and the press hasn't even come close to putting his feet to the fire.

What's going on in New Jersey?

With Obama attempting to bring down the government with so much poorly thought out legislation that neither Congress nor the voters can read them [can and trade bill was 1200 pages] or keep up, it's hard to follow the money trail. Here's a poster of the 8 RINOs that voted for the Crap and Trade-it bill.

HT Stop the Liberals Now

Newsmax: "Friday's vote was 219-212. The legislation was supported by 211 Democrats and eight aisle-crossing GOP members: Reps. Mary Bono (Calif.), Michael Castle (Del.), Mark Kirk (Ill.), Leonard Lance (N.J.), Frank LoBiondo (N.J.), John McHugh (N.Y.), David Reichert (Wash.) and Christopher Smith (N.J.). Forty-four Democrats voted against the bill, making the eight GOP votes all the more crucial.


“This is the biggest job-killing bill that’s ever been on the floor of the House of Representatives. Right here, this bill,” House Minority Leader John Boehner said after the vote. “And I don’t think that’s what the American people want.”

Also, we have a creek (Turkey Run) in our back yard; on Abington we had one too (called Evans Ditch by the old timers, but don't know if that's official). We also have a pot hole near one of the condo drains. Now all the water, standing or flowing, will belong to the Federal government if S. 787 passes, I guess because it takes such good care of everything.



HT Some Have Hats

Week two at Lakeside has some great seminars

Week One was terrific; and week two promises a lot. Monday through Wednesday mornings at 10:30 is Kerry Dumbaugh, a specialist in Asian Affairs with the Congressional Research Service since 1984, speaking on "China's Future," and at 1:30 on Monday there is a documentary, "China Rises; getting rich--the economic boom." Then in the afternoons Tuesday through Friday there is an astronomy series in recognition of Galileo's 400th anniversary of the development of the telescope. It begins with a film "Galileo's Battle for the Heavens" at 1:30 on Tuesday and is based on Dava Sobel's book Galileo's Daughter, which my book club read a few years ago. The Wed-Fri astronomy lectures at 1:30 are by Dr. Thomas Statler, Prof. of Physics and Astronomy at OU and who writes for the Columbus Dispatch, and Dr. Mangala Sharma, adjunct professor of Physics and Astronomy at OU. There will also be presentations at 10:30 on Thurs. and Fri. but I'll be in the China class.

If my brain is still able to function, at 3:30 I could attend Managing your Nest Egg Monday on "The Psychology of Money," with Carol Craigie, Wellness Tuesday for optimal food choices for seniors with Wendy Stuhldreher; Meet the Author Wednesday with Jason Barger Step back from the baggage claim, and Environmental Thursday on Lake Erie algae. And of course, I'll want to try Jan Hilty's gerb garden class on herbal teas at 8:30 Wednesday. She's going to distributerecipes for herbal teas.

On Monday evening, instead of a movie, we'll have Karen Vuranch, a storyteller from Fayetteville, VA presenting a program on Pearl Buck in Orchestra Hall (the movie theater). This is a tie in to the morning China series. Buck, you may recall, was raised in China and wrote many novels about it. The Good Earth won a Pulitzer Prize in 1932. Thirty plus years after she was denied a Visa to return to China and was vilified by that government, she is now honored as portraying Chinese life and customs accurately and with compassion. Link.

New shoes for walking

I bought a pair of Danskin athletic shoes at Wal-Mart yesterday called Lindsey (also the name of the granddaughter we lost in the divorce). I doubt that having the closers (shoe laces?) of elastic and Velcro is a good idea. Too much stretch and not enough support. But we'll see. I broke them in yesterday with a two mile walk along the lake front. Because I have a narrow foot, buying any shoe these days is tricky. The obesity problem seems to have spread to the foot, so the manufacturers design and sell for the consumer with a wider foot. Occasionally I can find a New Balance in a narrow, but not often. These are $22 at Wal-Mart and $17 on e-Bay with a shipping charge. I would never buy shoes I couldn' try on first because every manufacturer seems to use a different template for toes, arch and heel. I love the Nikes I bought right before our Middle East cruise in March, but I can't wear them every day, or even for every walk. Now that we're at Lakeside, I'm getting 5-6 miles a day in, 4 planned, and 1-2 just walking to lectures and programs. At home I like to do bare foot walking on the condo grounds, but here, there are just too many dogs and too few careful dog walkers with baggies.

Yes and Yes

Why do they need to waste more money on an investigation? His salary comes from the taxes of the people of South Carolina, so he used taxpayer money because it was on their time. If the lieutenant governor knew where he was, then he lied, and he should go too. Any money Sanford uses to "pay it back" also belongs to his wife, who helped get him where he is today--the governor's mansion. If I were her I'd clamp that bank account, safe deposit box, automobile, real estate, stock ownership and house shut like yesterday. She and the children should not have to pay for his catting around and it's expensive to raise children through college when you've just lost your job. She should learn from Mrs. Edwards' example.

"Democratic leaders want an investigation into Sanford's use of state money to help pay for an earlier South America trip. Others are questioning whether the governor broke laws by leaving without giving the lieutenant governor control." AP report