Melissa uses Paris Hilton's recipe for brinning a turkey

This year, I did a dry brine for the first time. Usually, I soak the bird in salt water and some other things. Instead, I pulled a recipe from Paris Hilton's cooking show. Yes, she has one. No, she cannot cook. That's the premise. A rich girl who has always been fed learns to cook. Anyway, I'm sharing the recipe with you here because it turned out so great that it's going to be my new go-to:

Salt 1/2 Cup

Sugar 1/2 Cup

Ground black pepper 1/4 Cup

Garlic Powder 1/4 Cup

Dried Thyme 1/4 Cup

Dried Oregano 1/4 Cup

Dried Sage 2 TBSP

Dried Rosemary 2 TBSP

Paprika 2 TBSP

Rub this all over, in and out, place in fridge uncovered, overnight.

Next day, take a soft stick of butter and grease down the skin, under the skin.

Cut 1 apple, 1 lemon, 1/2 onion and put in the bird.

Pour 1 1/2 cup of white wine (I used red) into the bottom of the pan.

NOTE: The thing that scared me is that it seemed like all the fluid came out of the turkey came out after the brine and that I'd end up with Chevy Chase's turkey from Christmas Vacation. I went with it, though. Turkey turned out fine and flavorful. Loved it and it produced a spicy gravy that was also excellent. Highly recommend!

Critical Race Theory where you don't expect it--the county extension agent

CRT by any other name is still CRT. And it's in places I didn't expect. This blog essay is about County Extension (your tax dollars flowing from Washington DC to Ohio State to Extension). This is Marion County, Ohio, population ca. 65,000. 90% white, 6% black.

"Since 2017, Marion County has redefined what it means to be a Family and Consumer Sciences Educator. Traditionally focused on building healthy people, residents have called on FCS in Marion County to respond to the conditions that underpin health inequity: racism, ableism, sexism and other forms of injustice that presently and historically exist in the community. The most significant part of my job is to redistribute material and financial resources from the university to support community-led initiatives and programs. For example, most recently I mobilized activists, community residents, artists and community-accountable scholars to participate in collaborative and emergent dreaming, writing and drafting of a new program, Marion Dreamkeepers. The program and research study elevated youth of color as leaders for racial justice and exemplified community responsive, collaborative, creative work in Extension. I (Whitney Gherman) offered a critical and reflexive understanding of theory and young people led the way of implementation, providing insight to their lived realities and perceptions as well as new ways of facilitating Extension programs."

 There's more of this DIE--diversity, inclusion and equity at the OSU extension website, but let's look a bit further.

This grant and proposal is based on a program and theory of Gloria Ladson Billings. I looked her up and . . . "Gloria Ladson-Billings is a Jewish-American teacher and pedagogical theorist who is known for her teachings of diversity and critical race theory."

 
There are 15x more poor whites in that county than poor blacks. I wonder just how inclusive Ms. Whitney Gherman is or if she only sees skin color. Before Whitney worked as an anti-racist and intersectionality specialist (she uses the pronouns she/her/hers), she worked for University of Michigan. In her OSU bio she is identified as a critical race theorist.

What concerns me is, "health equity" is the new buzz word. Public health and behavioral health are related. Smoking, drug use, obesity, lack of exercise and sexual behavior are the big issues in health care costs. They are also related to poverty, and most poor US citizens are white. Who is ever reminded of that when told of "racial and ethnic health disparities?" These problems show up as early as age 2 according to CDC. But with government bureaucrats and racialists chasing racism, where is the concern for the economically disadvantaged white rural or city child? Also, due to the epidemic of drugs (aggravated by our border policies), I believe that is now a bigger problem for whites than blacks. If Extension is looking for problems to solve, perhaps they could do better than telling blacks they are victims, and whites they are oppressors. "Mobilizing activists," unless they are snatching alcohol and cigs out of the hands of obese children, really won't do much for Marion, Ohio, or your city.

All universities engage in research and teaching, and our more than 100 land-grant colleges and universities have a third mission — extension. It was created by the USDA in 1914.

There are thousands, maybe millions, of Whitneys in our education system from kindergarten up. What's in your county system?

Saying good-bye to my old address book

I've updated my Christmas address book. The paper one, bought in 2008. I had so many cross outs and referrals and scribbles, it was unreadable. I know I bought a few extra at the time because they were only .99 cents, but I can't find the others. Some of the younger folk are just e-mails--not even a phone number. My first and second degree living relatives are much harder to track than my 6th cousin twice removed in my genealogy--those folks from the 1800s stay put!

First, I ran a copy of my 2021 x-mas labels for our Christmas cards. Then I ran a 2nd copy for 2022 because I'm changing computers in a few days and doubt this very old database program will work on Windows 11. Then I ran a 3rd copy for a new address book. I put those in a new notebook, neon pink so I can see it. However, many of the old scribbles were important, like phone numbers and e-mails, so then I hand wrote those in. At one point, spread out on the dining room table, I had my old address book, our condo address list, our Lakeside directory, and the old UALC directory (which is now on line and very inconvenient).  Then I went through the old one and counted those I've crossed off due to death. 65. Then I was sad.

No one in the Q's or X's on my list, but the S's are bursting their seams. Should have allowed more pages for S--is your address book like that?

Columbus' 180th murder, 2021

 One of the news gathering services when I opened my computer this morning told of a 30 year old black man shot during a fight, taken to Grant hospital where he died.  A woman, Judith Tatum, has been arrested and bond is set at $1 million. From his photo, he's been in trouble before and has a rap sheet (I'm guessing).  According to an earlier TV report on crime in the city (big increase in the last year), 2/3 of the murders are black on black crimes, and many go unsolved because the community doesn't "snitch" and distrusts the police.  According to data demographic sources, 54% of Columbus is white, and 29% black. Yet the media would be exploding at this moment if the young man had been killed by police.  Black on black crime is ignored by media. It just doesn't sell.  And a female killing a male in a fight should get it buried even deeper.   Consequently, in many cases, the perps are still on the street and the crime continues. I don't know if Columbus is plagued by the loosey-goosey white DA's like they have in Wisconsin when a racist career criminal who had posted his hate on social media was left to roam the streets and killed 6 and injured 60 during the Christmas parade.  That seems to be the liberal obsession these days--to turn as many blacks to crime and failure as possible.  What worse form of racism is there?

Uncovering 2020 voter fraud

Meet the Technology That's Uncovering 2020's Voter Fraud | American Thinker

Phantom voters, the definition, is morphing from fake voters hiding in UPS boxes to people who advanced computer models predict will not vote.

Don't get me wrong — there are thousands of phantom voters living in churches, R.V. parks, cemeteries, homeless shelters, hotels, and virtual mailboxes. It's just that there are as many, perhaps more, who live active, healthy, honest lives on voter rolls. They just don't know they voted.

You've heard the stories, denied by the mainstream press and almost every secretary of state: there is no significant voter fraud. Why not say that? There is no way you can check.

Now there is.

After the 2020 election results stopped in the middle of night and vote trajectories magically changed when they fired up again, thousands of people, just like you, didn't buy it. They formed armies of canvassers in 35 or more states. They did something that has not been done at scale in the history of the country: they started checking voter rolls.

They did more. They filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests at unprecedented levels. Secretary of state offices, once a murky sinecure, had to answer real questions about what was going on.

 
Here's what popped out.

Leftists are different from you and me. Unlike us, they care that every vote is cast, and if you do not cast your vote, they will do it for you. And they did. At scale.

In one midwestern state, voter rolls costing tens of thousands of dollars were bought by a billionaire leftist every month for over a year. Why would someone buy a list that doesn't change much?
Voter lists show people who move. They show people who never or seldom vote.

 
The white hat canvassing team built a query for one state: "voters who voted in 2020 who never voted before." Guess what! 265,000.

Witness statements are being gathered, lots of them, that in the largest city, election officials were trading cell calls about how many votes were needed, and someone was then providing the phantoms to meet the quota.

They knew the names of the phantoms — they had direct access to who voted, who didn't, and who was likely to never show up.

These canvassing organizations are the Minutemen of this generation. They come from every background, organize with no central leadership. They blindly figured out how phantom voting was happening, and they are forcing states to audit their voter rolls.

They aren't blind anymore. They are organized. They have resources and technology, and things are about to change in a big way for phantoms.

Read more  American Thinker  Meet the Technology That's Uncovering 2020's Voter Fraud - American Thinker

The failures of fighting this virus

The lockdowns failed, the masks failed, the social distancing failed--the mandates have caused ruined careers, open rebellion among unions and trades, a lost 2 years of schooling for the most vulnerable, terrible supply chain problems, and we have more Covid deaths than in 2020 when we had no vaccine. Treatments with inexpensive and safe products have been ridiculed and kept off the market, Big Pharma and Big Tech are acting like departments of government, censoring us. Dr. Fauci is still acting like the mini-god of SCIENCE and Biden walks around mumbling conflicting advice and demands. What a way to ruin a country. Almost like it has central planning like Russia or Venezuela or Cuba.

Home safe after my accident on Black Friday

We had a lovely Thanksgiving.  Beautiful church service and then dinner at the home of our daughter and son-in-law.  We spent some time trying to load our Christmas card, but gave up on that.  On Friday, "Black Friday," I had my hair cut and styled, and Bob and Mark headed for Lakeside for a final leaf raking.  Bob needed more lights for our deck, so on my way home I decided I'd go to Lowe's which is across the river.  As I turned on to the bridge I hit some black ice (it was snowing) and Bob's little SUV began to spin, and I swung around into the oncoming traffic (wasn't hit) and slammed into the concrete wall on the north side. I knew the river was far below and was afraid the car might be thrown over the rail into the cold water. The air bags went off, as did the front bumper.  I could feel pain in both knees, which I first thought might be broken (I was wrong).  A woman pulled her car over, called the squad which had a station about a mile west, and then came to my door to see if I was OK.  I don't carry a cell-phone, so she retrieved my purse and I gave her my daughter's number.  She told her she had called the squad and would stay with me.  The squad at first told me they'd take me to an urgent care, but when they saw my arm (large hematoma) then changed it to Riverside Hospital, very close to our home.  The ER checked me over pretty carefully, I had a nice nurse named Brian who had interesting stories to tell and loved his job as a nurse.  I had a full body scan and nothing was broken.  Visiting in ER is more generous than the regular hospital, so we soon had the whole family there.  My daughter had called Bob and Mark who were about to Bucyrus, and they turned around and drove to the hospital. By 10:30 p.m. there was finally an available room and I was transferred and made as comfortable as my bruises would allow.  I was finally home about 3:30 on Saturday. On Monday Bob and Mark went to the impound lot to retrieve items from the car.  It was sad--Bob loved that car--it was 21 years old and only had 115,000 miles, and never had any mechanical troubles--got good mileage, too.  I'm safe, sore and bruised, but nothing broken. The scans did show some structural problems I didn't know about, which I'll check out with my doctor.

Update with photos:

  

Friday

  

 

Wednesday

Biden says Delta is "broken"

What a joke this man is. More people have died of Covid under Biden than under Trump. And he had the head start with the vaccines and months of research. More people have had Covid in the highest mitigation areas than in the mask free areas. HCQ and IVM have saved many lives despite Fauci's trashing them. Now they are hyping Omicron. The Left wing media are in full swing again, pumping up the sales from Big Pharma.

Catholics off the rails--the Pew Study and USCCB

John 6:66 "From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him."  

 Bishop Robert Barron addresses the problem that 70% of Roman Catholics believe the real presence is symbolic.  This problem was also addressed at the recent gathering (November 15-18) of U.S. Bishops. Many had hoped there would be condemnation or at least mention of Catholic politicians who push abortion, support same sex marriage and gender confusion. That didn't happen. This speech is from 2020, and lays the ground work.

https://youtu.be/UzCPu_lEhe8

One-third of U.S. Catholics believe in transubstantiation | Pew Research Center

"BALTIMORE — The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops voted overwhelmingly to approve a teaching document on the Eucharist Wednesday that caused a great deal of controversy in its June meeting due to concerns that its section on worthiness to receive Communion would be perceived as aimed at prominent pro-abortion Catholic politicians like U.S. President Joe Biden.

The document did include a section on worthiness to receive Communion, reminding the faithful that “if a Catholic in his or her personal or professional life were knowingly and obstinately to reject the defined doctrines of the Church, or knowingly and obstinately to repudiate her definitive teaching on moral issues” they “should refrain” from Communion, but contained no references to specific politicians. Compared to the three hours of heated debate its drafting spurred, there was only about a half-hour of comments from bishops before its passage by a vote of 222-8, with three abstentions."

It seems the document leaves it up to the local bishop, so Biden and Pelosi will continue to thumb their noses at the church and Jesus.

US Bishops Try to Keep Focus on Eucharist, Not Politicians, in New Document| National Catholic Register (ncregister.com)

The document "The Mystery of the Eucharist in the Life of the Church" was developed by the Committee on Doctrine of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). It was approved by the full body of the USCCB at its November 2021 General Meeting and has been authorized for publication by the undersigned.

The Mystery of the Eucharist in the Life of the Church | USCCB

The Mystery of the Eucharist in the Life of the Church.pdf (usccb.org)

Should Biden get Communion given his abortion views? Catholics split by party | Pew Research Center

THOMAS AQUINAS - SACRAMENT OF THE EUCHARIST - Quotes (crossroadsinitiative.com)

Spinal Health for Thanksgiving

Dr. Ken Hansraj, spinal surgeon 

1. Maintain good posture the entire time. Proper digestion only occurs when we are sitting up straight. Good posture is defined as ears aligned with the shoulders and the “angel wings,” or the shoulder blades, retracted. In proper alignment, spinal stress is diminished. Recent studies show that gastric emptying is significantly delayed in the supine position when compared to a sitting position.

Furthermore, “If you’re slouched over your plate, food cannot travel to the stomach in time for your body to tell your brain it’s getting full; it can take twice as long; thus, causing you to eat twice as much leaving you full and tired.

2. A brief family meditation for peace and happiness. Coming back together as a family means leaving many personal worlds of happiness, sadness and development behind. Take time out to honor and recognize this transition. Sit quietly together, hold hands and briefly recognize the personal worlds. Then state an intention to have a great family get together.

3. Deep Belly Breathing: Deep belly breathing helps with digestion of food by enhancing motion of the belly and its food contents. Deeper yet though it serves to improve the motion of the spinal segments, spinal cord and nerve roots, and it increases the cerebrospinal fluid motion and distribution. Deep breathing might also decrease the swelling of the deranged spine joints and the nerve roots causing less pain. Deep belly breathing in itself will help you to feel better.

Dr. Ken Says” A deep breath of clean fresh air is as soothing to the body as a large glass of cool water on a hot summer day” so place your hands on your belly and breathe deeply to feel your belly move. Repeat this all day.

4. Small bites and small breaks will allow you to enjoy a steady-paced meal without needing to slow down or stop eating entirely. Take small bites of the highly caloric sides like mashed potatoes, stuffing and cheesy casseroles, but load up your fork with Turkey and string beans. Take a 5-minute break between each helping to allow your stomach to catch up with your eyes.

5. Chat, “Take time out to engage in and enjoy the conversations around the table. When you are actively engaged and fully involved in a fulfilling conversation then you spend less time eating and more time feeling externally better. The craving for food and internal satisfaction diminishes” Ask each person how they are doing. Find out about their little inner workings in life. Your family will manifest happiness, and then you become happier leaving you with less of a desire to binge.

6. Savor your desserts. Use a demitasse spoon to eat. This spoon is diminutive, smaller than a teaspoon. Allow the dessert to sit on your tongue for a minute. Allow the two to 8 thousand taste buds on your tongue to delight in the vanilla or chocolate, cinnamon, and other contents. Feel the texture and temperature of each bite. Train your taste buds to enjoy and delight in the taste and textures. Otherwise you become involved in volume consumption. This is where you eat so much to feel that your belly is full.

Dr. Ken says, “Evening out the trajectory of a meal that can last 3-4 hours takes some purposeful technique. On average, it takes between 12-14 minutes for our bodies to recognize we’re full. Keeping this in mind, begin your dinner with small thoughtful fork-full and pay attention to your body’s signals. It will tell you when to take a break, so you can save room for dessert!

7. Mini Chair Exercises (bends and twists) help you keep your blood pumping and metabolism working. Bending to the right or left (as if you were picking up a fork you dropped) and sideways twists (like you’re greeting a guest behind you) are two small, but effective ways to help your body digest.

Dr. Ken says, “Small range-of-motion exercises help ensure your body’s digestive functions keep up with your food in-take and your blood pressure remains stable. This will help ward off headaches, cramps and gas at the dinner table.

8. After Dinner Walk. Schedule a family walk after dinner. Walking helps digestion of food and builds a togetherness of the tribe. It is a great family routine to build. People start to feel better because the spine joints and the spinal nerves start moving with walking. One of the fastest ways to develop back or neck pain is to remain stagnant. When the spine joints and the spinal nerves do not move, then they can cause pain.

Dr. Ken Hansraj is a New York based spinal surgeon who has dedicated more than 20 years of his life to helping people in every country improve their spinal health. Dr. Ken’s LIFT: Meditations to Boost Back Health releases January 1, 2022 wherever songs are sold.

How far is it to Bethlehem?

Start the day with a poem. "G.K. Chesterton’s beloved wife, Frances, had a special devotion to the Nativity. It was Frances, not Gilbert, who wrote the original poems for the Christmas cards they would send to their friends each year. Her lovely poem, “How Far Is It to Bethlehem?” has been set to music by several different composers."

How far is it to Bethlehem? Not very far.
Shall we find the stable room lit by a star?
Can we see the little child, is he within?
If we lift the wooden latch may we go in?
May we stroke the creatures there, ox, ass, or sheep?
May we peep like them and see Jesus asleep?
Great kings have precious gifts, and we have naught,
Little smiles and tears are all we brought.
For all weary children Mary must weep,
Then here, on his bed of straw, sleep, children, sleep.
God in his mother’s arms, babes in the byre,
They sleep as they sleep who find their heart’s desire.

The cost of Thanksgiving dinner

There's a lot of discussion about inflation and the cost of Thanksgiving dinner. Farm Bureau tracks this and my figures are from that website. The 2020 dinner for 10 was $46.90, a decrease from 2019 which was $48.91.

The 2021 dinner for 10 is $53.31, up 14% over 2020, which was the Covid year, and a decrease from 2019. However, the 2017 cost was $49.12, or 23.1% cheaper that 1986 ($63.87 in 2017 dollars).

I'm math challenged, so will some genius tell me if the 2021 dinner is cheaper than 1986? No matter how you slice it, it's still a good deal.

Greetings from the Lakeside Women's Club President

 Happy Thanksgiving!

We have so much for which to be be thankful, not the least of which is Lakeside! Thank God that 4 Methodist ministers bought a square mile that we now know as Lakeside. We are so blessed to be able to come to "this little piece of heaven on earth" each summer and enjoy all it has to offer. Another blessing is all the wonderful women who make up the Lakeside Women's Club. Sometimes I am asked, "Why join the Lakeside Women's Club?" My answer would be that you can make the most amazing friendships, enjoy the wonderful educational programs, participate in the Bible Studies and Book Discussions, and access the library. You belong to a very special organization that gives to others by knitting blankets for the Salvation Army and sewing doll clothes for the Ronald McDonald Houses. The Lakeside Women's Club created a wonderful "Cottage Cooking" cookbook and held a Quilt Exposition for all to enjoy last summer. Next summer we hope to be able to have our annual Cottage Tour! Your LWC Board is meeting in December to approve our budget for 2022. Having sold almost 900 cookbooks, we are doing well financially now! We will be discussing how the Lakeside Women's Club can celebrate Lakeside's Sesquicentennial. If you have any ideas, please let us know. We want to make 2023 a special year!

In the meantime, we are planning for the 2022 Season. 

 The Afternoon Book Club has chosen:

Hamnet by Maggie O'Ferrell

A Single Thread by Tracey Clevalier

This Tender Land by William Kent Kriueger

The Paris Library by Janet Skelsien Charles

The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah

The Breakfast Book Club will be discussing:

The Stars are Fire by Anita Shreve

The Road to Bittersweet by Donna Everhart

Travel Light, Move Fast by Alexandra Fuller

The Sweetness of Water by Nathan Harris

The Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc by Mark Twain

I am reading my way through these lists of books so that I will be able to go to the discussions next summer. Frankly, my summers are so busy at Lakeside, I don't have a lot of time to read, so I try to read the book discussion books during the winter. Then I skim them right before the discussions.

The "Reading the Bible in a Year" group will be discussing: 2 Samuel, 2 Corinthians, 1 and 2 Kinds, 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Psalms 42-66. Again, I read these "books" during the winter and take notes, so I will be able to join the discussion next summer. Jeri and Jane do a fabulous job leading those discussions!

Thank you all so much for contributing your various talents to make the Lakeside Women's Club such a wonderful organization. You all are a blessing to me and the Lakeside community!

Kyle Rittenhouse trial

Jurors deliberated for a total of 26 hours and found Rittenhouse not guilty on five counts including first-degree reckless homicide, two counts of first-degree intentional homicide and two counts of first-degree reckless endangerment. Judge Bruce Schroeder had previously dismissed two additional counts related to his weapon.

Kyle Rittenhouse found not guilty on all counts in Kenosha trial | Fox News

My friend Bonnie, a retired police officer, posted this on Facebook:

For those saying justice was served, I strongly disagree.

We have a standard in this country that no one is charged without probable cause: facts or circumstances that would lead a reasonable person to believe a CRIME has been, or is going to be committed, and that the person being charged committed, or was going to commit, that crime.

These prosecutors went forward with charges knowing all evidence supported self defense. Self defense is not a crime. Justifiable homicide is not a crime. You do not take away the liberty of a citizen and make them prove their innocence and ruin them financially when you know from the evidence there was no crime committed. This one wasn’t even close. This was self defense on trial. And this was malicious prosecution.

I have many examples of self defense cases with far less threat to the person using that self defense, and no charges were brought. The law didn’t change in the past couple of years, no matter how many riots!
Justice will be served when prosecutors like these are disbarred!

Reading about the mother of 7 sons

This morning I was reading 2 Mac: 7:20-31 

"Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox use the Septuagint(s) as the source of their “Old Testament” … Hebrew Scriptures. –Roman Catholics accept/ include 1, 2 Maccabees –Most Eastern Orthodox accept/ include 1,2,3 Maccabees –Some Non-Chalcedonian churches (e.g., Coptic, Syriac) accept/ include 1,2,3,4 Maccabees Protestants generally use the Palestinian Canon as the source of their “Old Testament” … Hebrew Scriptures. –The 39 books of the Protestant “Old Testament” represent the 24 books of the Hebrew Scriptures."  The Protestant Bible doesn't include this book or story.  It's gruesome, but the mother's heart and courage are wonderful.  (1603-602-OLLIMacc1HO.pdf (gmu.edu)

22 I do not know how you came into being in my womb. It was not I who gave you life and breath, nor I who set in order the elements within each of you. 23 Therefore the Creator of the world, who shaped the beginning of humankind and devised the origin of all things, will in his mercy give life and breath back to you again, since you now forget yourselves for the sake of his laws.” (2 Mac. 7:22–23; NRSV)

Christ has no body but yours

Christ has no body but yours

No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
Compassion on this world,
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,
Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.
Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,
Yours are the eyes, you are his body.

Christ has no body now but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
compassion on this world.
Christ has no body now on earth but yours.

Teresa of Avila (1515–1582)

Steve Bannon in hand cuffs and shackles

Steve Bannon is put in shackles for a misdemeanor charge--which Obama's buddy Eric Holder ignored when he was charged with contempt of Congress. It's a much more serious offense to be a friend of Trump than Obama. The media really needs to get Trump back in the news in order to shore up their sinking profits. I briefly looked back about 40 years and it only seems to affect Republicans. Democrats just thumb their noses, and we all know what stern taskmasters the Republicans are.

Bannon indictment defies history of Congress' contempt power (wsls.com)

A doctor's advice on monoclonal antibody infusion for Covid

"To all my friends who are over 65 and those with high-risk health conditions, including hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, lung disease, kidney disease, and/or BMI>25. If you test positive for Covid, call your doctor immediately, even if you don't feel like you have a severe case. Ask your doctor to refer you for a monoclonal antibody infusion. It is a one-hour intravenous infusion, one time only, given in the ER or in an outpatient infusion center. It must be given in the first 10 days after symptoms develop, and cannot be given once your oxygen levels drop or you become sick enough to be admitted to the hospital. It will decrease your risk of hospitalization or death by at least 75%. Likewise, if you are high risk and someone in your household tests positive, a monoclonal antibody infusion can protect you from getting the disease. It's crazy how many people I am encountering who have no idea that this is available. The current administration has barely mentioned the one treatment that can actually HELP SAVE LIVES, so please spread the word! 

The Biden Administration is doing a horrible job of publicizing a lifesaving treatment. Among the several doctors I know, I have not heard a single one report that this treatment made things worse or did not make things better. Obviously, since it does not prevent hospitalization or death 100%, there must be some cases where it did not help, but I have not heard of any."

Houston Methodist: "Monoclonal antibody (mAb) therapy, also called monoclonal antibody infusion treatment, is a way of treating COVID-19. The goal of this therapy is to help prevent hospitalizations, reduce viral loads and lessen symptom severity.

This type of therapy relies on monoclonal antibodies. These are antibodies that are similar to the ones your body would naturally make in response to infection. However, monoclonal antibodies are mass-produced in a laboratory and are designed to recognize a specific component of this virus — the spike protein on its outer shell.

By targeting the spike protein, these specific antibodies interfere with the virus' ability to attach and gain entry into human cells. They give the immune system a leg up until it can mount its own response.

This therapy can be extremely effective, but it's not a replacement for vaccination. The community still needs to step up and get vaccinated to break the virus' chain of transmission."What Is Monoclonal Antibody Therapy & Who Is Eligible to Receive It? | Houston Methodist On Health

Monoclonal antibody infusion Ohio Health locations
for central Ohio

OhioHealth Mansfield Hospital
335 Glessner Ave
Mansfield, OH 44903

OhioHealth Marion Infusion Services
1000 McKinley Park Dr
Marion, OH 43302

OhioHealth Hardin Memorial Hospital
921 E Franklin St
Kenton, OH 43326

OhioHealth at Home Infusion Center
800 McConnell Dr
Columbus, OH 43214

OhioHealth Grant Medical Center
290 East Town St
Columbus, OH 43215

OhioHealth O'Bleness Hospital
30 Herrold Ave
Athens, OH 45701

OhioHealth Grove City Methodist Hospital
1375 Stringtown Rd
Grove City, OH 43123

OhioHealth Westerville Medical Campus
260 Polaris Parkway
Westerville, OH 43082

OhioHealth Lewis Center Health Center
7853 Pacer Dr
Delaware, OH 43015

J.D. Vance campaign for senate

I've heard the anti-JD Vance political ads using his comments about Trump during the 2016 election. Hey, my comments about Trump during the primaries when I supported Cruz were just the same as his. Trump's accomplishments in 4 years turned me around. Also Glenn Beck was a huge critic as was Dennis Prager--before they saw the results. Read about the Walk Away movement--thousands of Democrats are now awake to Marxism, not woke loving it. Or, look at Biden's accomplishments since January 20. He's turned the U.S. into the nation that runs, the nation that gave up energy independence to return to begging OPEC, the nation that has no borders and wants to reward illegal behavior, and the nation of weak citizens who submit to government mandates about children that aren't necessary. What Biden has "accomplished" in 10 months is frightening, and both parties in Congress have enabled it.

 Vance is the author of the best selling Hillbilly Elegy.  Issues - JD Vance for Senate Inc.   From here on out, you'll probably not be able to believe anything you hear about Vance--either because there are probably 5 other candidates who will only talk trash and because of the Left because he's an American success story and they hate that.

"J.D. Vance’s life was rife with drug abuse, childhood trauma, and self-destruction. For example, his mother was a drug addict, his community was falling apart spiritually and financially, and he had a distant relationship with his father. Although his grandparents were a light in his life, they too were abusive, flawed, and broken people.

Despite his upbringing, J.D. broke the cycle of violence and abuse. He joined the military, settled down, grappled with his trauma, and achieved financial success. As with all remarkable individuals, he overcame the hell he was borne into. Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance | The Five Powerful Lessons I Learned (becomeanindividual.com)"  This review is overly dramatic--read the book.  He was fortunate to have the love of his grandparents and some good mentors along the way.  The military service was a turn around for him.

Also read my blog about Vance from 2017. Collecting My Thoughts: Family support vs. public policy

The eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month--Veterans' Day

As we were driving back from the lake today, I apologized to my husband for telling him a story I've told many times. When I finished he said he'd never heard it. Here it is from my blog, November 11, 2009:

"I didn't hear about WWI memories [from my parents] until sometime in the early 1990s. I had interviewed my father for an oral history to include in a family recipe collection for a reunion of the descendants of his parents who had died in 1983. I had interviewed my mother about her parents' personal library for two articles I wrote. Both recalled in their 80s the first Armistice Day (now called Veterans' Day) even though they were 5 and 6 years old. I imagine they listened in on adult conversations and caught the fear and dread that gripped their communities. My mother's father who was 44 was registered for the draft. And although I haven't seen the record, I would assume my father's father, who was a much younger man (25), did too.

There were no radios or television, and newspapers would have been too slow. So the plan was to ring bells when word came to the nearest town that the armistice had been signed. The church bells would be rung; then each farmer would begin to ring the bells they used on the farm; then the next farmer a few miles further away would hear and begin ringing his bells. Both my parents had exactly the same memory of that first Armistice Day--hearing bells tolling throughout the countryside from all sides. The war was over."

First they came for Mike Flynn

November 5, 2021
First they came for Mike Flynn, but I said nothing...(at American Thinker)
By Andrew W. Coy

– They came after President Trump, but I said nothing because I did not like his tweets.
– They came after the J-6 protesters who have been locked up as political prisoners, but I said nothing because they seemed a little too "unwashed."
– They came after the Founding Fathers, but I said nothing because they're from an age a very long time ago.
– They came after soccer moms at school board meetings, but I said nothing because my kids are already out of school.
– They came after MAGA Nation, but I said nothing because I considered myself a college-educated moderate.
– They came after the Christians/constitutionalists/conservatives in the military, but I said nothing because I never served in uniform.
– They came after the citizens who carry 2A, but I said nothing because guns scare me.
– They came after the police, but I said nothing because none of my family wears blue.
– They came after the EMS/firefighters/nurses, but I said nothing because I was already vaccinated.
– They came after Christian white heterosexual men, but I said nothing because I'm not a Christian white heterosexual man.
– They came after the Evangelicals, but I said nothing because I don't think of myself as that devout.
– They came after Israel's right to exist, but I said nothing because I'm not Jewish.
– They came after the patriots who said the 2020 election was stolen, but I said nothing because I was scared and intimidated.
– They came after writers, authors, .coms, but I said nothing because I don't read negative news that much anymore.
– They came after the blue-collar workers who actually make things and build things, but I said nothing because the slave-labor goods from China were cheaper.
– They came after the farmers, but I said nothing because I thought "climate change" was real.
– They came after Steve Bannon, Mike Flynn, and Roger Stone, but I said nothing because they can afford their own attorneys.
They came after Governor DeSantis, but I said nothing because I live in Michigan.
– They came after Tucker Carlson, but I said nothing because I don't watch FOX News anymore.
– They came after Coach Jon Gruden, but I said nothing because I don't watch the NFL anymore.
– They came after the unvaccinated, but I said nothing because I had already taken the vaccine (but really a therapeutic).
– They came after the pastors, the priests, and the rabbis (they came after God ), but I still said nothing. Nothing at all. Not one word.

Now they are coming after me. But there's no one left to speak for me, fight for me, and stand with me. I wish I had stood up, spoken up, and fought when this all first started. Now it's too late. Some lessons of history we never learn. Or we learn too late, again.

I've used most of these "best words," saving for later

 And lately I use Thingamyjig and Whatchamacallit a lot.  Useful at my age. Don't believe I've ever used skewwiff--meaning askew.

Our Twentieth Anniversary of the fall condo meeting

 Last night the residents of our condo association had its fall business meeting.  It was our 20th anniversary of our first business meeting with our new neighbors (complex of 30 units was built in mid- to late 70s). That first meeting was in the Fishinger Road school and was a potluck.  Some of the people I remember meeting that night who are no longer with us or have moved to a retirement community are Tom Fitzpatrick (and wife), Ohmer and Pat Crowell, Barbara Stradley, Mary and Dan Dunbar, Tom and Judy Wessel, Mac and Marilyn Campbell, Dick Smith, Herb and Ruth Abrams, Kate Haddox, Bill and Jean Baskwell, the Herrolds, Al Gallucci, Dee Cole and her parents.  On September 11, 2001, we all remember what happened, so the bottom also fell out of the real estate market, and our home on Abington was not moving.  We were about to put the condo up for sale, and take our chances.  Fortunately, at Christmas, the daughter and son-in-law of one of the realtors who had shown our home, made and offer, and in January 2002 we were able to move.

This past year, 2021, there were significant changes and repairs--the roofs were replaced with a black shingle (also replaced the first year we were here, so apparently something wasn't done right), the shutters were removed, cleaned, painted and replaced (at about half the cost of buying new), downspouts were replaced, new solar attic fans were installed to replace the old ones, and that all went with the color scheme of the new garage doors that were replaced in 2020. Other years we had all the driveways and the street replaced, or the stone wall along the creek replaced (needs another repair--perhaps next year).  Trees are a huge asset, but a huge cost to maintain to keep them healthy. The refurbishing and new roofs cost about $350,000, and each owner was assessed a share based on their percentage figure.  Some condo associations use an annual upkeep fund where each owner pays in to cover repairs, but ours uses an assessment system. Both systems are legal in Ohio and each year we have to vote to continue our choice.  Most of our neighbors would rather keep their money in investments rather than lose it if they move after 5 years of contributing to the fund if they move out. With our new roofs, clean and painted shutters, new garage doors, and some very close attention by our landscape committee, the place is looking very good. 

William Studer, OSUL director, 1977-1999

William J. “Bill” Studer, Director of The Ohio State University Libraries for 22 years, passed away on Thursday, October 14, 2021. Bill left an indelible mark on both University Libraries and the larger library profession and will be remembered for his vision and leadership.

Bill earned his bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees at Indiana University and launched his career at the Library of Congress before returning to IU as Associate Dean of Libraries. While there, he conducted research focused on improving service for students and scholars through computer technology. His work garnered him invitations to lead seminars at other universities and informed many of the initiatives he undertook throughout his career.

Bill’s success as Associate Dean of Libraries for IU led to his appointment as Director of Libraries for The Ohio State University Libraries in 1977. Throughout his tenure at Ohio State, Bill championed the growth and development of the Libraries. Under his leadership, University Archives, the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum, the Byrd Polar Research Center Archival Program, Hilandar Research Library, and the Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute became part of Libraries’ special collections. He oversaw the addition of more than 600 folios to the Rare Books and Manuscripts Library’s medieval manuscript fragment collection, which students and researchers actively use.

Bill championed the idea that active and public use of special collections was at the heart of knowledge creation and sought to promote these unique resources as a way of living Ohio State’s land grant mission.

As a founder of the network of academic libraries that became OhioLINK, Bill continued to push the idea of opening access to knowledge. This statewide consortium provides access to valuable print and digital research collections for students, faculty, researchers, and staff. The model attracted interest from library leaders across the globe.

While he was director, Bill passionately advocated for the renovation of Thompson Library. At his retirement, the University committed to the project. In 2009, the three-year, $109 million renovation was complete and Thompson had been returned to its previous grandeur.

Bill is survived by his children Joshua (Margaret) Studer and Rachel Studer; sisters in law Carol Millsom, Peggy Studer, and Margaret Lippie; numerous nieces and nephews; and faithful feline companions Gigi and Charlie. He was preceded in death by his wife Rosemary (nee Lippie); parents, Victor and Sarah Studer (nee Hammersley); and brothers, Victor Studer and Arnold Studer. Friends and family will be invited to a memorial to celebrate Bill’s life and legacy at a later date. (from OSUL website)

Two shoe salesmen

The difference between a Biden presidency and a Trump presidency:

There is a story about two shoe salesmen who were sent to a primitive island to determine business potential. The first salesman wired back, "Coming home immediately. No one here wears shoes." The second man responded, "Send a boatload of shoes immediately. The possibilities for selling shoes here are unlimited."

Trump sees possibilities, not only for our country, but for all who will put shoulder to the wheel, and take advantage of capitalism, competition and merit to lift their country out of poverty. Biden is a defeatist, sees only emptiness and hopelessness (on which he can build his power base through lies and deception.) He's an old style, old failure, socialist using a system pushed by the squad and others in Congress that has failed in Russia, China, and many Latin American countries. Even Nazi Germany was a socialist base.

I think it is Dennis Prager who reminds us that the Left destroys everything it touches. Biden has destroyed our energy independence, energy that could have been sold to countries having shortages, like Europe this winter. Biden has destroyed our supply chain, and is hoping for shortages. This puts a burden on our small businesses, plus the economy of all those countries with which the U.S. trades. 99.9% of all U.S. businesses are small businesses and employ 60.6 million people or 47.1% of the U.S. private workforce. In the US. Biden is working on destroying the morale and independent spirit of essential workers, many who have unions, in transportation, distribution, medicine, education, entertainment/sports through mandates that are not necessary. Many of these same people gave their all and their own health in the early stages of the pandemic, and now they've been tossed aside like a mouse caught in a trap.

Back to the mythical shoe salesmen. The lie the Left would tell you is that these were indigenous people living in paradise and those nasty capitalists came and spoiled it. Not so. Terrible diseases can be transmitted not only from the Left, but physically from what bare feet pick up. Even in the U.S., . .

https://www.iheart.com/content/2021-11-05-deadly-parasite-that-enters-body-through-bare-feet-is-spreading-in-america/?

Dr. Syed Haider on Off label use of drugs

Dr. Syed Haider has his own website where you can ask questions. https://drsyedhaider.com/covid-19/covid-19-the-frontline-online? Definitely don't take FB warnings at face value. Big Tech, Big Pharma, and Big Government seem to be glued together in a very sticky snowball rolling down hill.

From his website discussing "off label" use.

"Many in the media and medical establishment have played up the fact that ivermectin (and earlier hydroxychloroquine) are unproven, off-label and therefore dangerous therapies.

So what is off-label use anyway?

It just means that the FDA has approved a medication for one use and it is being used for another.
Off-label prescribing is very common, reason being it costs a lot to fund clinical trials to “prove” a drug is effective for an indication, but if a drug is reasonably safe and there is good reason to believe it might work for a problem (e.g. test tube studies or just general physiological plausibility) physicians try it out on patients, especially when no other medications work.

Common examples of off-label use include all the following:

Aspirin for primary prevention of cardiovascular disease, carotid artery atherosclerosis, carotid artery stenting, primary prevention of colorectal cancer; acute migraine, PCI for stable ischemic heart disease, pericarditis, peripheral vascular disease, polycythemia vera, prevention of preeclampsia, prevention of thrombosis in: surgical prosthetic heart valve replacement, transcatheter aortic valve replacement and transcatheter mitral valve repair with MitraClip device; and the prevention of DVT after total hip or knee arthroplasty.

Ivermectin itself for ascariasis, demodicosis, gnathostomiasis, hookworm-related cutaneous larva migrans, lice, mansonella ozzardi infection, mansonella streptocerca infection, scabies, trichuriasis, and wucheria bancrofti infection (try telling someone with lice or scabies they can’t use a curative course of IVM because it’s off-label and thus unproven and too dangerous).

Ibuprofen for gout and pericarditis (if you’ve had gout you don’t need the FDA telling you high dose ibuprofen works – it’s rather obvious).
Wellbutrin/Bupropion for smoking cessation.
Neurontin/Gabapentin for bipolar, essential tremor, hot flashes, migraine prevention, neuropathic pain, phantom limb syndrome, and restless leg syndrome.
Magnesium sulfate for premature labor and preeclampsia.
Seroquel for insomnia.
Zoloft for premature ejaculation.
None of these would be used if, above all, practical experience, and after that many small, underpowered and somewhat flawed studies, did not show they worked.

(And from me for a public service) Modafinil for people with no thyroid so they can stay awake.

Advice for cancer patients

 Yesterday I decided to repack some of Phil's things in nicer boxes, and then to put the sympathy, get well, and thinking of you cards, notes and letters inside the boxes. There were well over 200 of those.  Of course, then I had to pause and reread them, which is sort of kick in the stomach, but I remember the comfort they brought us in the Spring of 2020 and when he died in April.  One is particularly worth sharing because it's good advice for cancer patients.  It's from his cousin who is 12 years older and was a great help to us in filing the paper work for social security disability (although the first check didn't arrive until after he died).

"I was hoping to be able to find words of strength and encouragement that I could share as you deal with all your health challenges.  But it's hard to find anything profound and helpful to say, though I wish I could.  I had cancer five years ago and it's a long, lonely journey in many respects--no one else can really understand what you're going through, even when someone has had cancer themselves. So I mostly just wanted to tell you to hang in there, keep fighting, and don't shut people out.  I wanted to do everything alone, and just be alone, and in retrospect I wish I'd let more people in and had been able to be more welcoming of the support.  At least more welcoming of the food people offered that we kept turning down!

My one cancer survival tip is to tell you to laugh every chance you can get--not an easy task on the days when it's hard to even get out of bed but it's worth creating every possible opportunity to do so.  For months I watched only comedies and comedy specials on TV.  I rented ridiculous movies, watched every stand-up comedian I could find, and went to every funny movie I could go to.  I was the only thing I enjoyed while going through treatment.  I'm sure the endorphins that laughter produces helped--but mostly it just felt like an escape and respite from doctors and hospitals and all the people hovering over me and all the cancer talk.

Completely unrelated but I also, for some reason, enjoyed putting together jigsaw puzzles--although not sure that's something you'd like.  I sounds pretty old-fashioned and dull (although as the most elderly of the Corbett cousins I'm sure it's my duty to share old-fashioned ideas), but I found it very soothing.  I was such a concrete and orderly thing to do, when everything else seem chaotic and out of control--I knew how to start with the edges, how to organize the colors, how to finish, how to rip it up when I was done.  And best of all I could do it even when my brain was foggy."

And she included Rolling Stone's list of the 25 funniest movies of all time.

CRT in the schools, and the Democrats' denial

Democrat talking heads on news TV are denying that CRT is being taught in schools [defending Democrats who lost Tuesday around the nation on school issues], which is ridiculous.

Let me explain. You'll find no courses described as "Critical Race Theory" in the curriculum description in public schools. That's probably the extent of the producers' research, if they've done any. It is a full system to assure that every child learns he is either a victim or an oppressor and skin color is the defining quality. Racism is not "systemic," but teaching about it certainly is from math to English to cooking (if any schools still teach that).

 
Every university and college has a DIE department (diversity inclusion equity) and it is bloated. If you don't believe me search any university with which you are familiar, and count noses. At Ohio State, these are just a few that fall under that umbrella: 

African and African American Studies
American Indian Studies
American Sign Language
Americans with Disabilities Act Coordinator's Office
Asian American Studies
Bias Assessment and Response Team (BART)
Office for Disability Services
Disability Studies
Diversity and Identity Studies Collective at OSU
Council of Graduate Students Diversity Committee
Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity
Latino/a Studies
Multicultural Center
President and Provost's Diversity Lecture and Cultural Arts Series
Sexuality Studies
Undergraduate Student Government Diversity Committee
University Senate Diversity Committee
Office of Military and Veterans Services
The Women's Place
Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies

The Buckeye football and basketball teams are not scrutinized for racial balance and equity.

The Wexner Medical Center at OSU has it's own list. I counted 27 people on its Advisory Council on DIE, and 2 vice chairs. Recent offerings are:

 
"Approaches to Reducing Racial Disparities in Breast Cancer Mortality: Improved Risk Prediction for Black Women"
"Clinical Trials and Underrepresented Minorities: Mistrust, Misconceptions, Missed Opportunities and Moving Forward to Enhance Diversity"
"Black people from under-resourced neighborhoods are significantly more likely to die within five years of surviving a heart attack than Black people from wealthier neighborhoods and white people of all socioeconomic backgrounds."

And yet, reading through Wexner's own data, there are fewer minority males in medicine today than in 1978! I was in academe then, and I know there were many recruitment and special programs to bring in minorities.

 
Women are usually included in DIE departments, even if white and wealthy. Over 25 years ago I remember seeing posted in the building where I worked (Sisson Hall, veterinary medicine) a list of over 50 organizations and groups to help college female students! Must have worked for women because now females outnumber males in college--60% to 40%--and single, childless women have been earning higher wages than single, childless men upon graduation for over 15 years.

Each academic department in these schools of "higher learning" also have their own DIE departments and the universities also have departments of DIE that teach courses, usually in the humanities, leading to degrees. There must be jobs out there waiting for them in textbook companies, HR departments of businesses large and small, all levels of k-12 schooling, churches, marketing for TV commercials and magazines, etc. They definitely are NOT learning of the amazing achievements and progress of the past 50 years and the trillions the government has spent in establishing laws and regulations to assure that even the less than .1% trans-woman-disabled black has a good job and a fair deal.

The term POC, People of Color, keeps expanding and is frequently used in place of the term minority, which is why Dublin, Ohio (wealthiest suburb in Columbus area) politicians can claim the schools are 41% POC. Dublin is only 2.3% black, but almost 17% Asian, because so many executive and academic families choose to live there. Ohio's population is 12.3% black and 1.94% Asian. POC has become a marketing tool.

 
And DIE has become a necessity for every business, school, hospital, church, and club. But it's never enough. It must become an election issue because it is disguised racism and grievance policies for every group defined by color, ethnicity, ability level and sex. Oh, and fat has now joined in. Their word, not mine.

Update: "Defenders of CRT-inspired curricula and training programs often insist that these initiatives are aimed at teaching both the good and the bad in our nation’s history, and that opponents of racialized education are racists and neo-segregationists. In fact, these initiatives seek to advance a deeply divisive ideology of race essentialism, offering a distorted account of American life to promote a set of radical political ideas. That’s why the opposition to CRT has been so widespread and diverse, as evidenced by new data from Manhattan Institute and Echelon Insights. In a survey of 20 of America’s fastest-growing cities, parents oppose critical race theory in the public school curriculum by a massive 42-point margin, and a majority of black and Hispanic parents oppose CRT and support removing contentious “concepts such as white privilege and systemic racism” from the curriculum." Christopher F. Ruffo

Psalm 15, reflections from 1938 and 2021

This morning in my Magnificat (journal) reading for November 4, Psalm 15 was suggested. When I read it,  immediately my thoughts turned to the recent election and all politicians and candidates, issues and levies from city council to governor all over the nation. To me it said our leaders need to honor God in order to be successful.  So I turned to my favorite source on the Psalms, "Meditations in the Book of Psalms" by Erling C. Olsen which is based on his Sunday radio broadcasts during the Great Depression in the 1930s. Much to my surprise, I see I wasn't the only one who thought of politicians with this Psalm--so did President Franklin D. Roosevelt who was elected to 4 terms during the Depression and WWII. At the time of this telling, FDR was not yet a war time president, but a president who had been unable to keep his promise to get the country out of the Depression, in fact, his policies had deepened it as the federal government grabbed more and more power. In 1937 there had been another depression inside the Great Depression.

Olsen tells the following story: On the 5th anniversary of FDR's inauguration [1938] at a special church service at which this Psalm was read. . .it is reported that he suggested that this 15th Psalm of David was an appropriate lead for any story [reporters].  "The next morning the New York Herald Tribune obliged the President by printing the Psalm upon its front page.  This caused some controversy in the press (just like today) and Dorothy Thompson (very popular and influential columnist married to Sinclair Lewis) declared that it is extremely dangerous to quote the Bible in support of one's prejudices because the other side can always find just as appropriate a quotation. She even went so far, and correctly so, as to suggest that the devil can also quote Scripture.  Olsen goes on to say that it is unfortunate that the Bible is used this way (I don't think he was a fan of Roosevelt, nor am I) and that the Bible was never intended to be handled in a partisan way and can only be used by a spiritual man as he is guided by the Spirit of God.  Perhaps it was Roosevelt's speech that day in a church using scripture that Olsen disapproved of, but when I read it this morning, I immediately thought of November 2 and the election.

Psalm 15

1O Lord, who may abide in your tent? Who may dwell on your holy hill?

2Those who walk blamelessly, and do what is right, and speak the truth from their heart;

3who do not slander with their tongue, and do no evil to their friends, nor take up a reproach against their neighbors;

4in whose eyes the wicked are despised, but who honor those who fear the Lord; who stand by their oath even to their hurt;

5who do not lend money at interest, and do not take a bribe against the innocent.

 Those who do these things shall never be moved.

Thoughts by Mike on the Virginia victory--and I agree

Mike, a commenter at the NeoCon blog pointed out what we should all remember about the Virginia victory:

"Not to pull a black cloud out of a silver lining but it is important to remember that in order to get last night’s results, we literally had to have the top Democrat in Virginia say out loud in front of cameras “I don’t think parents should be telling schools what they should teach” AND we had to have a story break in the closing weeks of the campaign of a Virginia school literally covering up for a rapist, seemingly out of fear of offending the transgender community.

And even with all THAT, NBC News exit polls showed 62% of college-educated white women STILL voted for McAullife.

There’s a long fight ahead of us.
Mike"

Being a white, college-educated suburban woman myself, I sometimes suspect woman suffrage was a terrible mistake. They just seem to want to be taken care of, and the Democrat party promises that, but never delivers.

Our Joan is home, finally

"After a 10 day hospital stay; I am thankful to know the great Physician, for God’s healing and for all the prayers that were and still being lifted up for me. I praise God for His love, healing and mercy on me. I thank the Lord for the wisdom he gave to the medical doctors and for each nurse and tech, that cared for me. Thank you, Lord, for bringing me home."

In the past two weeks, we've had 10 relatives diagnosed with Covid, and five have been hospitalized (none in our city).  All are at home now, recovering.  Still quite sick. We'll continue the prayers and God's protection.

Virginia isn't for lovers this week

I see Associated Press is reporting that the GOP has politicized school board races. HA! During the lockdown, the parents found out how education has become very lopsided, kids are being force fed race based learning in all fields at the expense of real math, science, English and social studies, and merit and achievement are no longer valued. So maybe it's too late to fight fire with fire, but the awake are now fighting the woke.

I heard two views on the Virginia election which has become about education. 1) It will first appear that Youngkin wins, then in the middle of the night, votes for McAuliffe will pour in because Covid-era election rules are still in play. 2) The Democrats won't try that trick again, willing to sacrifice one governor because it will look too suspicious. But it will be tried again.

Did you see that FEMA is providing funeral assistance for families of those who died of the virus? But only those who died early in the pandemic--during the Trump administration. More people have died of the virus under Biden who had a 12 month head start on figuring out what to do and has a cozy relationship with China which started this mess. The policy was amended in late June 2021.
Shhhh.

On being a conservative in 2021

When I left the liberal left (i.e., the Democrat party) in 2000 I only knew about the one issue that mattered most to me: abortion. Democrats supported it, wanted it, lusted after it, used my tax money to support it, and campaigned on it. So I left the left--the party that said they cared about the workers and the little guys, but lied about it for years.

At the time, I didn't know much about Republicans except what I'd been told by academics and the media. They were bad I was told. I had to find out about "conservative" ideas and values on my own, because Republicans were sort of . . . spineless, and weak, and weren't good at selling their ideas. So here's what I'd like to see from Republicans--perhaps the impossible dream.

Attitudes/sentiments/beliefs for Conservatism

Family (I include pro-life protections in this)
Faith (freedom of religion for all faiths)
Fair (opportunities for all)
Patriotism (respect and honor for the country's history, values, laws)
Security (strong, but not corrupt or bloated, military)
Free markets (as little gov't interference as possible)
Safety net (for the unborn, the weakest, the elderly)
Practical, prudent policies (no more 2000 page bills no one reads)
Fiscally wise, low taxes (capitalism, but not oligarchs like Bezos owning Washington Post or Big Tech controlling the presidency)
Separation of the 3 branches of government as intended
Merit, intelligence, ambition and ability rewarded
Natural and built environment protected, but not worshipped
Local control where possible, national direction where necessary

and I'll add more as I think (or sleep) on it.