October 2004 | Main | December 2004
November 30, 2004
Spirit of America Blog War!
Oh, gosh, John needs blogs and commenters to sign up for the newest Spirit of America challenge - click the poster to join:
It's late. The blogwar has started and we're behind - but what the heck, every little bit helps! (Yes, I am quoting verbatim from my spouse's blog)
Donate here:
Posted by Beth at 6:06 AM | Comments (1)
November 29, 2004
Wow!
I actually lost 2 1/2 pounds over the Thanksgiving Holiday! I was trying hard to be careful not to eat too much, and I certainly had enough good food. If I keep this up, I'll be down a size or two by Christmas!
Posted by Beth at 9:10 AM | Comments (12)
Poor Pathetic Man
If you have been reading me for a long time, you might remember that on occasion a guy that I dated for an extremely short time before I met John sometimes leaves vile comments on my blog.
This guy is so pathetically lonely, apparently, that he spent the Thanksgiving Weekend leaving rude and lewd comments here. (I have deleted them)
I dated this jerk 11 years ago. 11 fricken years.
I have banned every IP address he has shown up on, but I suspect that he has a dialup account (he was not what you might call 'computer savvy'), so they are seldom the same.
Anyway, Don, if you are out there - John and I feel very sorry for your poor pathetic life. We suspect that you have never had the comfort of a loving home. We know that you are a liar of epic proportions (much like John Kerry), and like him, you have apparently convinced yourself that you are a man of some kind of worth. You are wrong. You need help, mental health assistance. Your maturity level is below that of a 5 year old child.
You are not welcome commenting here, Don. You are not welcome within 100 miles of me or my family, Don. Stay the hell away.
Posted by Beth at 6:39 AM | Comments (3)
November 28, 2004
Roadtrip
John and I are taking Andy back to Kansas State today. Andy is currently is packing the car with food and other stuff he is wants to take back with him - the semester ends on December 18th, so it's not like he'll be gone a really long time!
So, see y'all later. Gotta go on this roadtrip to Manhattan before the few flakes of snow I see falling start piling up.
Posted by Beth at 10:12 AM
Wizbang has added a Milblog Category
Kevin is a nice guy and takes suggestions ever so well! He has added a Best Military Blog category to the 2004 Weblog Awards.
Naturally, I am nominating the very best Milblog around.
The nominations close this afternoon, so go quickely and nominate the best Military blog you can think of!
Posted by Beth at 7:01 AM
November 27, 2004
Carnival of the Recipes is UP!
I am so out of it on Holiday weekends that I totally forgot to post that Marybeth has the 15th Carnival of the Recipes up. I did remember to send the info to the regular suspects, and they posted it.
Anyway, there are some really good ones this week. Go, seek and bake!
Posted by Beth at 11:23 AM
November 26, 2004
If anyone is interested ..
I have 6 GMAIL accounts to give away. Let me know, I'll be happy to give you one.
Update: They are all gone now!
Posted by Beth at 4:55 PM | Comments (5)
Underwire Bras and Airplanes
MSM is just now catching up with the fact that women with underwire bras are getting felt up at airports.
Yes, I know that the rules are stricter now, and even more women are getting felt up now then 6 months or 1 year or 2 years ago - but this is not new news.
Personally, I would prefer that the screening equipment that can see through clothing be used. It would not be nearly as invasive as the body searches the cretins at TSA are doing now.
I have made two complaints to the TSA. They were answered with form letters.
I suppose it is time to start calling my congressman and senators.
Posted by Beth at 7:32 AM | Comments (10)
November 25, 2004
Happy Thanksgiving
John said it all for both of us.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
Posted by Beth at 12:57 PM
Important Announcement
After careful consideration and a few drinks and the input of Andy and August and John, we have decided to name the new kitty - Hal.
Homebru is the winner. Here is the reason he suggested that we name Hal - Hal.
You may recall that Hal has a bullseye pattern on his side.
Posted by Beth at 11:56 AM | Comments (4)
November 24, 2004
First snow of the season!
Our power went out around 2:00 am and woke me up. (The lack of noise wakes me as easily as too much noise). I looked out the window, and a beautiful, wet snow was falling.
We got nearly 7 inches of snow - it will all be gone by tomorrow, probably, but it is just beautiful today - all the trees are white lacy borders along the streets. It's warm enough that the streets were mostly clear as I drove into work.
Wish I had the day off - I would go for a horseback ride in the woods at Ft. Leavenworth and listen to the quiet.
I'm at work, though, so I'll just daydream about being not here.
And we have still not decided on a name for the new kittie.
Posted by Beth at 9:41 AM | Comments (7)
Thanksgiving Things
David at the Glittering Eye has put together a selection of different Thanksgiving prayers and practices. Thanksgiving resources.
Posted by Beth at 7:26 AM
November 23, 2004
Got to get moving
I have to drive out to Manhattan, Kansas (The Little Apple) and pick Andy up for the Thanksgiving Holiday. His last class is over at 9:30. I guess he'll have to wait a little, I'm still in my robe.
Too bad I don't have that XM radio for the drive!
Posted by Beth at 7:16 AM
Well, darn
I had to return my Sattelite Radio. The guy who sold it to me on Sunday assured me that if I brought it in during the week, it would be a two hour wait until the job was finished - max.
Liar.
They told me to expect at least 6 hours because of the holidays. Wow, I thought I was being proactive, buying it before Thanksgiving.
If I could have made an appointment with them, I would have, but they don't do appointments, and I definitely don't have what would probably be an entire day to sit in their dingy waiting room (no bathroom, no coffee).
So I'll take my business elsewhere. My hope is that some smart shop will make appointments for customers who don't have the luxury of hanging around for 6 or more hours for an installation - the actual install is about 45 minutes.
And if no one in the Kansas City Metro area will take appointments, well, I'll look around when I'm in Oklahoma City for the week of December 5th. And if no one there will do it, then I'll survive just fine without Sattelite Radio.
Posted by Beth at 6:41 AM
November 22, 2004
Carnival of the Recipes
Time to get your recipes into for the Carnival of the Recipes! Send them to recipe.carnival(at)gmail.com.
I'm thinking we could use some recipes for leftover turkey and Christmas cookies and other holiday goodness.
This week, our hostess is MaryBeth of Random Thoughts
Here are our hosts and hostesses rest of the year:
December 3rd - Angela of Fresh as a Daisy
December 17th - The brave SarahK of Mountaineer Musings (Sarah is brave because she has never done this and is offering to do it *twice*!)
December 24th - Trudy of Food Basics has ever so graciously volunteered to host the Carnival on Christmas Eve.
And for New Year's Eve - Amy of Prochien Amy has volunteered to host the Carnival on New Year's Eve!
Don't forget to send your recipes to recipe.carnival(at)gmail(dot)com!
Posted by Beth at 9:52 PM
Got my Christmas gift a little early
I have close to a one hour commute each way when I'm not traveling. Local radio, be it AM or FM, pretty much sucks. There is one station that does play the alternative music I like, but after this past election season, I can't stomach their DJ's who spent more time shilling for Kerry then they did playing music.
The AM talk radio stations are not a lot better.
I do have a cd player in our new vehicle, but I don't have a huge cd collection, and I don't particularly want to hear an entire album at a time.
So, we bought an XM Sattelite Radio receiver. I will get it installed today (at lunch if things at the office are not too crazy) and I will have my choice of non-interrupted music or talk radio or weather. Unfortunately, there is no traffic report for the Kansas City metro area available on sattelite radio. This is both bad and good. Bad for the obvious - I'll have to turn to AM to check traffic - good because the metro area is not humongous. I never want to live in a humongous metro area.
Hmmm. Maybe I should name the new cat XM? No.
Posted by Beth at 6:15 AM | Comments (8)
November 21, 2004
Cat Blogging
Posted by Beth at 7:10 PM
November 20, 2004
More stories
When I was in high school, our next door neighbors were Mr. and Mrs. Steele.
Mr. Steele was actually a tugboat captain on the Mississippi. They had a son, David, who was in college, and something of a long haired hippy freak back in the late 60's, early 70's. David had a waterbed. The first waterbed in our neighborhood. All of us kids went over to see it. David didn't have a frame for his waterbed - or a heater. I'm not sure they even made those back then - and it was a big rubber thing full of water that apparently seeked the lowest part of the house, for it was in the Steele's basement.
The Steeles had a dog named Falstaff - a beautiful dog - must have been a good part border collie. They named their dog Falstaff in honor of my dad, who was a VP at Falstaff.
Blitzen loved the Steeles, as did our entire family. We all spent a lot time at their house or ours. Those were happy times. If Blitzen was not at home, he was over at the Steeles, watching TV with Falstaff and Mr. Steele (he worked something like 30 days on, 30 days off).
Every Saturday night, Daddy cooked steaks out on the grill - t-bone steaks. Blitzen and Falstaff conspired together to steal one of those steaks every Saturday. Falstaff, being the larger dog, could jump up, and while still in midair, snitch a steak. He would then share it with Blitzen.
Boy, did my dad get mad at those two dogs. My mom, Mrs. Steele, Mr. Steele, my sister and I would laugh and laugh and laugh because Daddy would chase those two dogs around our yard with the barbecue tongs in his hands. He never caught them. Eventually, he just cooked the two dogs their own steak - but *not* a t-bone!
Posted by Beth at 6:40 PM | Comments (3)
Dog Stories
Pam has a wonderful story of a short meeting she had with Standard French Poodle. I bet most of us have memorable dog stories. Thought I'd share one of mine.
When I was 5 years old, all I wanted for Christmas was a puppy. I was thrilled when Blitzen, a 6 month old dachshund, was under the tree in his little dog bed. I know, it's supposedly not cool to give children puppies for Christmas, but I think that responsible parents can present their children with a dog on a holiday without any horror stories occurring.
Blitzen came from a lovely breeder - she showed dachshunds all over the country and insisted on personally approving the families interested in one of her dogs. This was not a puppy mill. Mom and Dad had taken my sister and I out to Brentwald Kennels in the fall. Mrs. Patrick, the owner, had a special kennel area just for puppies in training for show, or in the case of Blitzen (not a good show dog - born with a kink in his tail), puppies that were available for adoption. There were 3 or 4 puppies in each run, and she put my sister and I in a run to observe how we treated the puppies. We must have passed, since she allowed us to have Blitzen, but I didn't know about it until Christmas.
Unfortunately, my mom and dad asked a neighbor to take care of Blitzen for a few days before Christmas. This was unfortunate, because they had also recently bought a puppy, who had distemper. A couple of days after Christmas, Blitzen came down with distemper (he was not done with all his puppy shots). My mom, who was *not* an animal lover, brought him through the illness and he survived to live to 16.
Blitzen considered himself a great hunter. Our house backed up to a large wooded area and a creek (the backside of an all boys high school, Chaminade).
There were critters back in those woods. Blitzen found and delivered to us at least 10 different box turtles during his life (all alive and scared to death) and one huge snapping turtle. (I have no idea how Blitzen got him to the back patio, but he did).
Blitzen also collected beer cans. There were a few wild teenage parties back in those woods, and he would search out any beer cans and carry them proudly up to my dad. Daddy didn't mind if they were Falstaff Beer cans (that is where he worked), but if it was any other brand, Blitzen didn't get to keep them.
One year, at Easter, some friends of my parents (I'm sure mom and dad thought them very evil), brought my sister and I a pair of ducklings. Yankee and Doodle. They imprinted on Blitzen, and followed him everywhere. Amazingly, Blitzen let them live. He was a good hearted dog, and never killed any critter that I'm aware of.
In the summertime, my dad would come home from work, he and mom would have a cocktail (they called it toddy time) and then the whole family would go for a walk around the neighborhood. Mom, Dad, my sister, me, Blitzen and Yankee and Doodle. More then a few neighborhood men put their after work cocktails down the first time they saw the Healy ducks following the Healy dog and family.
Blitzen was a great dog. Dachshunds are great dogs, at least the full size ones! I'm not much of a fan of miniaturized sized dogs.
I'd love to read your dog stories, too.
Posted by Beth at 11:43 AM | Comments (6)
I've been avoiding politics of late
But I thought I should chime in on Condoleeza Rice's nomination to Secretary of State. I think it's great. She is a strong, brilliant woman. She speaks many languages, she has incredible gravitas. If I had a daughter, I would point to Ms. Rice as a role model.
I am disgusted by the ugly, racist cartoons that leftists have drawn - and the big newspapers have printed.
It's disgusting. It's rascist. It is sexist. There is no excuse for such behaviour.
Posted by Beth at 7:48 AM | Comments (2)
November 19, 2004
Carnival of the Recipes is UP!
Boudicca did a super fantastic job! I think I'll call her and see if we can't put together a year end Carnival Extra in the same format she did this week's carnival - something that puts all the recipes into one.
Yeah, that will keep us busy. After all, Boudicca, a mother of three boys has nothing else to do, and I certainly have a ton of time on my hands. Heh.
Thanks Bou - you do good work!
Posted by Beth at 7:55 PM | Comments (3)
And we still can't decide
What to name the new cat. I try out different names on him, and nothing seems to fit him yet. Ideas. I have no ideas!
Posted by Beth at 7:50 AM | Comments (16)
Crazy day already
I woke up at 3:00 am because Houdini's bladder was causing him to jump up and down like a cartoon dog. When I returned to bed after letting the little bugger and Shadow out to pee, I had a hard time falling back to sleep.
Eventually, I did sleep - only with weird scary dreams of ghosts looking at me in the mirror instead of myself. I had dreams of water pipes shooting water into the bedroom and not being able to stop the water, even after turning off the water main. I had dreams of a little girl being kind of mean to our 'special' (somewhat retarded) cat, Orphan Annie - I had to rescue Annie from a tree this little girl was trying to drop her from.
Finally, I woke up enough to snuggle next to John. That always makes me feel better!
Needless to say, we got out of bed late. Between us, we had about 150 comment spams that I had to despam. I'm still in my robe, and I should be walking out the door to work about now.
Oh well. I'll get there. Thank goodness I don't have a time card to punch!
Posted by Beth at 7:48 AM | Comments (2)
Ladies, it's time to laugh.
You must read Helen's story about a jerk she works with and how he got his comeuppance. You'll laugh so hard that tears will fall from your eyes.
I know I have said this many times before, Helen is one of the best story tellers anywhere.
Thanks to Ilyka for the tip.
Posted by Beth at 7:17 AM
November 18, 2004
Last Call for Recipes
It is time to get those Thanksgiving and other recipes in - email them to recipe.carnival(at)gmail(dot)com.
Boudicca may be busy between guest blogging for people and taking care of her boys, but she better put all her energies into the 14th Carnival of the Recipes tomorrow! ( :
Posted by Beth at 6:17 PM | Comments (1)
Let's discuss airlines
American Airlines believes it will save enough money to incur the discontent of even more of their beleaguered passengers by removing pillows from the planes.
This lovely man at the Washington Post thinks airlines should weigh all passengers in public and charge them accordingly for their seat. He has a thing against anyone who is overweight, apparently. And, apparently, he is perfection personified.
Flight Attendants threaten to strike 26 airlines if a bankruptcy judge doesn't do what they want in regards to US Airways bankruptcy.
Delta Airlines is trying to avoid bankruptcy court.
Travelers in frequent flier programs might lose their miles as airlines go to bankruptcy court.
Well, as a frequent flier, I do not fly on any airline in bankruptcy court. Why? Because they have a huge incentive to cut costs on maintenance of their airplanes. They are more likely to have incidents.
American Airlines lost my business some years ago. Delta lost mine more recently, as did Northwest. I never flew ATA or US Airways.
I fly Southwest whenever possible - they are nice people to fly with.
Delta and American flight attendants are downright cranky. The Northwest Airlines gate people are snotty.
I will also fly Continental and Frontier Airlines - they have nice people working for them. They are not in bankruptcy - in fact Frontier has lovely new planes with TV sets for each seat. You may have to pay to watch, but heck, it is better than no choice at all.
While American gets rid of pillows, low cost Frontier adds Television - which airline do you think wants my business?
There is no advantage to flying the big airlines. Their people are arrogant and rude from gate to gate.
That is why they are in financial trouble - they do not know the meaning of service. As a frequent flier, I want to be treated kindly, not rudely.
The big airlines will fail until they have management that understands competition and customer service.
Discuss.
Posted by Beth at 6:38 AM | Comments (2)
How can I close comments after 5 days?
Even though we have MT Blacklist, this damn comment spam is taking me more time to deal with than I want.
I have heard that there is a way to close comments after a certain length of time - does anyone know how to do that?
Posted by Beth at 6:34 AM | Comments (4)
November 17, 2004
Keep those Kitty Names Coming
Nothing quite fits the kitty yet. Target would be cute, except that he was a target (that bb the vet dug out) and that makes the name seem somehow - wrong.
The new cat slept on our headboard last night (we have a bookcase headboard, he was not balanced on one inch of wood), and the other cats are being a little nicer. Except for RestStop. He growls every time he sees or hears or smells the new cat. Even at 3:00 am. Yes, I'm tired and very grumpy!
So, more names, please - I have no imagination left - and to Pete with 12 cats and 4 dogs and 1 bird - gee, you are crazier than we are!
Posted by Beth at 6:07 AM | Comments (19)
Carnival of the Recipes - Get your recipes in!
This week, Boudicca is our hostess for the Carnival of the Recipes. It looks like there will be quite a few Thanksgiving recipes, so far.
Be sure to get your recipe in - email it to Recipe(dot)Carnival(at)gmail(dot)com.
Posted by Beth at 5:28 AM
November 16, 2004
A Happy Day
Happy Anniversary to Boudicca and her one true love.
Posted by Beth at 6:48 AM | Comments (3)
Name That Cat Contest
A few weeks ago, a lovely young cat was dumped at the Ft. Leavenworth Stable. We were actually pleased, because he is a true mouser and really reduced the number of very brazen mice that our official Army Mascot cats were just ignoring (one of the ladies at the barn insists on feeding them cat food, and lots of it, so the cats have no incentive to kill mice - which is why we are allowed to have official Army Mascot cats in the first place!).
Well, one of the other barn ladies, Kathy, took this new cat to the vet to be neutered and to get his shots and be checked for feline leukemia. He also had surgery on what she thought might be a tumor on his chest. When Kathy picked him up at the vet, they told her that the tumor was a beebee - this cat had been shot :(
She brought him back to the barn, and happened to notice that he was declawed in front - some total asshole had dumped into the wild a declawed housecat. We can't have a declawed kitty at the stable - there are foxes and possums and other critters he may have to defend against, not to mention Snowflake, Patches and Peanut Butter (the other stable cats).
So he needed a home. I called John, John came to the barn with a cat carrier, but another woman said, "No, I want the cat, I'm taking the cat home with me". Since we already have 7 kitties, John and I thought, good, we don't have to worry about this guy.
However, as soon as John got home from work yesterday, the lady who had to have the cat was on the phone. He had not worked out at her house (as if 24 hours is a long enough time for a kitty to acclimate). So John met her at the barn and brought home another addition to the Donovan family. He is a very nice cat, and is being quite polite to the other kitties in the family (who are hissing at him, but nothing more).
He is an orange tabby with a bullseye pattern on his side. He walks around the house chirping at everything. So far, I can't think of a name. John usually names our critters, but he has yet to come with something for this guy.
I need your help in naming our new cat. Our other cats are named Little Girl, RestStop, Merriwether, Barnacle, Orphan Annie, Cleo and Gandalf the Grey. Our dogs are named Shadow, Whiskey and Houdini. The horses are Willie and Petey. So, those names are taken.
The winner will get great fame for naming a nameless critter. You will be known as the Great Namer of Dumped Cats.
Here is his picture:
And another view:
Please make suggestions in the comments.
Posted by Beth at 6:25 AM | Comments (43)
This n That
I think the interview went well. If I get into this program, I will likely be doing something that is very process oriented (at least the interviewers seemed to think I'd be a good fit for that kind of thing). The very smart young people who interviewed didn't hold it against me that I'm old - and they thought it was kinda funny that I've done so many things in my life - from social work to managing a small appliance repair shop (yes, I can fix that vaccuum cleaner, toaster, electric razor, blender, etc.) to managing an engraving shop to having the coolest title ever, Knowledge Engineer, when I was at Sprint.
I have had some awful jobs, and some great ones. My current is by far the best.
If I get it, I'll be pleased. If not, I'll still be fine - my boss has promised me some training on some really cool techie things if I don't make it. So either way, I win.
Posted by Beth at 6:02 AM | Comments (4)
November 15, 2004
A link
This says it all.
Posted by Beth at 6:19 AM
Wish me luck
I have an interview this afternoon to see if I will be accepted into a special program at work that would let me rotate through several different positions over the course of a year or two in totally different parts of the company.
This would increase my knowledge of how everything works, and hopefully make me more likely to be promoted.
But, the call this program something along the lines of the next generation - and I am not the typical nominee since I'm over 50. So I will not hold my breath.
I had at least one project manager tell me that it might not be good for me (but he had an ulterior motive to keep me in the position I'm in).
I have absolutely nothing to wear for this damn interview, it is raining out, so my hair will be as flat and as straight as it can be and the people interviewing me are in their twenties.
Sigh.
Hope they have a sense of humor!
Posted by Beth at 6:11 AM | Comments (4)
November 14, 2004
I love weekends!
Yesterday, John and I went horseback riding together. I was a whiney scaredy cat because I rode Petey, the sometimes bucking bronco, but John put up with my nervousness quite well.
Petey was really well-behaved. I used his Bitless Bridle on a trail ride for the first time, and he was much more comfortable and happy with that than any bridle with a bit that I have ever tried on him (there have been many). I highly recommend this bridle for anyone with a horse that tosses his head or prances or just doesn't feel comfortable. I bought the leather bridle - it's pretty pricey, but it is a beautiful bridle. I'll take a picture of it on Petey this afternoon, if I get a chance.
Anyway, I'm busy, I have work to do, I'm going to ride again this afternoon, and I have to go grocery shopping.
Oh, and the Incredibles is very much worth seeing.
Posted by Beth at 10:03 AM | Comments (6)
November 13, 2004
I finally got some points!
I'm still hundreds of points behind most other people, but Arafat was on my Dead Pool Roster, and now I have 51 points!
I will choose more wisely next year.
Posted by Beth at 11:34 AM | Comments (1)
Carnival of the Recipes #13 is UP!
Go there. Good recipes for good food!
Posted by Beth at 8:20 AM | Comments (1)
November 12, 2004
Suggestions for Commenters
I welcome anyone to comment unless they are abusive or are spammers.
May I suggest that writing a long treatise about the ignorance of 'people on this blog' might be better presented if you had some white space in your comment. Paragraphs make things easier to read and understand.
That said, President Bush is our President. You do not have to love him, but as an American (assuming you are a citizen), you really ought to respect the office.
Going on about how big a liar he is will not help your blood pressure or your political point of view.
I am very well aware of the fact that Osama Bin Laden was operating out of Afghanistan. I know that Saddam Hussein did not cause 9/11. However, Hussein backed terrorists in many places. For example, he gave thousands of dollars to Palestinian parents of suicide bombers as an award. Hell, the man terrorized his own people - attacked them with chemicals, raped them, cut off body parts, buried women and their babies in mass graves.
President Bush said we would go after terrorists and their supporters - and that is exactly what we are doing.
The world has put up with terrorism for far too long. It is way past time to do what we can to stamp it out. I support President Bush in the Global War on Terror - the Iraq War is just one part of it.
I don't really understand why so many leftists pretend that if you ignore terrorism it will go away - that is what we (the USA) did since the Palestinians kidnapped Olympic Atheletes way back probably before some of you were born.
Terrorists, seeing that there were few repercussions, got more and more daring until we ended up with September 11th, 2001.
It is well past time we stop as many terrorists as possible.
See, isn't it easier to read this with white space in it then if it was one huge block of words?
Live and learn, lefties, live and learn.
Posted by Beth at 5:27 AM | Comments (8)
November 11, 2004
Arafat is dead
Finally. He should have been tried for his crimes and executed. His victims never had the pleasure of living into their 70s.
The fricking MSM is talking about how great this murderer, this terrorist, this antisemite was.
With the exception of Australia's John Howard most world leaders claim to be saddened by the S.O.B.'s death.
Would they have been such fans of Hitler and Mussolini?
It's shameful. And what's worse - there will probably more innocent lives sacrificed in honor of his death - by more terrorists, following in his filthy footsteps.
Posted by Beth at 7:02 PM
Don't Forget!
Get your recipes in for this week's Carnival - send them to recipe.carnival(at)gmail(dot)com.
By Midnight.
Tonight.
Posted by Beth at 5:54 AM | Comments (1)
It is Veteran's Day
John is going to be in the Veteran's Day Parade in Atlanta, Georgia today. Wish I could go with him!
Today is the day we honor our Veterans. John says it all much better than I can, so go over to Argghhh!!! and honor a Veteran today.
Posted by Beth at 5:15 AM | Comments (2)
November 9, 2004
Some days ....
I gotta tell ya, sometimes no matter how well prepared you are to do everything right at a client site, everything goes kaka. One of my deliveries this week was to get this client, a wonderful client, up to date on the software they are using for monitoring stuff. I have upgraded this same software at least 3 times (remotely even) without one problem.
Damn. Today, of the 5 upgrades we did, 3 of them were problems - big problems! We got all the upgrades to finally work, but only after about 4 re-installs. Thank God my client is such a patient guy!
I hope tomorrow goes a lot better! I have a lot to do between now and Friday at noon!
Posted by Beth at 8:05 PM | Comments (3)
Recipe Reminder!
This week's host for the Carnival of the Recipes is Michael of the Common Virtue
Hosts through the end of the year are:
November 19th - The busy mom of a bunch of boys, Boudicca of Boudicca's Voice
November 26th - MaryBeth of Random Thoughts
December 3rd - Angela of Fresh as a Daisy
December 17th - The brave SarahK of Mountaineer Musings (Sarah is brave because she has never done this and is offering to do it *twice*!)
December 24th - Trudy of Food Basics has ever so graciously volunteered to host the Carnival on Christmas Eve.
And for New Year's Eve - Amy of Prochien Amy has volunteered to host the Carnival on New Year's Eve!
Don't forget to send your recipes to recipe.carnival(at)gmail(dot)com!
Posted by Beth at 5:12 AM | Comments (2)
Traveling again
Flew into Detroit yesterday. It was a very busy day, so didn't have time to write anything, not that I had anything much to say, really.
Imsomnia struck hard last night. Seems I tossed and turned all night long, so I finally just gave up at 4:00 am and turned on the light and did some work.
I'll be back later, hopefully with something interesting to day. (:
Posted by Beth at 4:17 AM
November 7, 2004
I don't think this is entirely accurate
You are a silly English Knnnnnniggit! Brave, loyal,
and (somewhat) chaste, you follow your leader
without question...even though you're not
really that smart.
Which Monty Python & the Holy Grail Character are you REALLY?
brought to you by Quizilla
Posted by Beth at 7:31 AM | Comments (7)
November 6, 2004
Update on Kitty Cats
I'm happy to report that 5 of the cats have figured out how to use the cat door.
Only Cleo and Little Girl remain stubborn.
Took dogs to the vet to be kenneled until Friday - John is still in Georgia, and I'm doing a last minute trip to Detroit on Monday. Work, you know how those things go.
With a bit of luck, I'll get a chance to see Rosemary sometime next week. She is really a sweetie!
Gotta run - time to ride the horses - it's a gorgeous day - can't believe it is November!
Posted by Beth at 12:18 PM
November 5, 2004
Kitty Cats and Puppy Dogs
Most of you know that we have managed to collect an assortment of lost dogs and stray cats - apparently our house has a sign visible only to furry creatures that says "all unloved critters welcome here".
Currently, I have a bit of an issue with our little dog, Houdini (yes, I know you are all surprised at this revelation). He has figured out that he can squeeze his little body through the cat door and run free throughout the house when I'm asleep, taking a bath or at work.
This is not a good thing.
Houdini is about 18 months old or so, and still chews things, and sometimes can't hold his bladder for as long as the bigger, older dogs. We want him to stay in that part of the house where there is tile covered with puppy training pads in case he can't make it until I wake up, get out of the bathtub or get home from work. But apparently, he has been squeezing his chubby little tummy thru the cat door.
So this morning, when I realized he was in the living room whilst I was in the bathtub, I decided to put the actual door on the cat door - it has extremely strong magnets on it, and only a kitty with a very strong magnet on his collar can open it.
Chasing down 7 cats to put collars on them was an interesting experience. RestStop is still not talking to me, he is pissed. But that is nothing compared to trying to teach all the cats how to go through the cat door now that it is closed.
I gently pushed Gandalf and RestStop and Cleo through the door, but they still don't get it and are all in the kitchen sitting outside the door waiting for me to open it so they can hang out with me here in the computer room. Annie, Little Girl and Meriwether have not come near me since I wrestled the collars on them, but they did watch the others, and show no interest whatsoever in getting to the other side of the door.
Only one of the kitties has figured out that she just has to butt her head on the door and it opens, and that is Barnacle, my constant companion kitty. Here is a picture of Barney - isn't she purty?
Anyway, they will have to learn, and if one kitty can manage to figure it out, I have to think the others will too.
Posted by Beth at 8:40 PM | Comments (6)
Carnival of the Recipes!!!!
The 12th Carnival of the Recipes is up!!!
Thanks, David!!
Posted by Beth at 9:31 AM | Comments (1)
November 4, 2004
Now that W has won
Why are all the left-leaning politicos and commentators demanding that President Bush needs to bend to their wishes? Good lord, people, more Americans voted for President Bush than any other American President in history! President Bush reached across to Democrats way too often in his first term, and it did him and the country little good. He even got Ted Kennedy, of all people, involved in writing the No Child Left Behind Act. He has increased social spending way more then I think he should have - all to reach out to the liberals. But you know, all that compromise and reaching out and the Dems still refused to give judicial appointments even a vote. It does not matter how hard President Bush works to make nice nice with liberals, they are not going to like him, mostly because he believes in God, I suppose.
Conservatives have a mandate - look at the make up of Congress now - and it is time to make the Bush tax breaks permanent and redouble our efforts in Iraq.
Europe, too, thinks that disagreements on the War in Iraq and the UN are all President Bush's fault. Balderdash. I have said this many times before, but I'll say it again anyway. The great majority of Americans do not want to be Europeans - we don't want to live in tiny little houses in countries that have rules about what names you can give your children. We don't want to live in a socialist "paradise". I believe that Europeans are very jealous of us, but are too fricking lazy to emulate our so-called 'puritan' work habits to be as prosperous as America. It's time for our troops to come home ... from Europe -let Germany defend itself with its own money. Why on earth do European countries think they have a say in how our government is run anyway? Feh.
As far as the deficit goes - I don't know where people upset about the deficit went to school, but when I took economics 101 I learned that the government should spend lots of money to keep the country from going into a depression in times of crisis (terrorists, war, recession).
I see no need for a President with an actual majority of votes (not a just plurality like Clinton had) to reach across to those who are going to kick him in the ass anyway. The heck with Europe and the far left. They are wrong about the Global War on Terror and they are wrong about the US economy, and I'm not even going to bring morality into the discussion.
Posted by Beth at 6:14 AM | Comments (9)
November 3, 2004
Deep Thoughts
I have been more than neglectful in posting anything much of value the closer we got to Election Day.
I was nervous, I was frightened, I was angry.
Bloggers who I used to admire for their intelligence and fairness decided I must be a moron because I believe in God, even if they did support George Bush. (No, they did not pick on me personally, I"m a pretty puny blogger, but I do think that those of us with faith should get as much respect as those atheists out there).
Other bloggers, equally intelligent, but overly emotional, took offense at any anti-Kerry comment I or anyone else made. To those bloggers, it was bad, bad, bad to take one side or another. I can only say that I'm old enough, experienced enough and yes, smart enough, to be able to take sides.
Folks, I'm over 50. That doesn't mean shit in this day and age, but believe me, I have lived through more than those of you under 40. I lived through duck and cover and Vietnam and the end of the Cold War. My viewpoints have changed with age, wisdom and experience - I used to be a bleeding heart liberal - in fact I was a social worker - until the day I quit becaues a client picked up a carving knife and chased me out of her apartment.
I have a very strong belief in a Higher Being - that does not mean that I'm a right-wing nut case. Why does Atheism make one better than those of us who believe that God exists? Why does that make atheists smarter?
I dare you to show me an atheist professor in any college who is smarter than any Jesuit professor in Catholic universities!
I really despise the network newsfolk who claim that all people who believe in God are necessarily on the far right side of politics, especially while denying that they are on the left.
I bet those same people would not say that about Buddhists or Hindus - really, it is a Christian prejudice. These days, it is evil to be Christian. And since I'm Catholic, it is even worse. Many of those Christians who *are* on the far right think I'm evil and will go to hell, and all most everyone else hates the Catholic Church with a strange, strange passion.
I do not believe that there should be prayer in public school, but I do think that Americans should have the option of sending their children to religious schools without additional cost - just like many European countries.
Yes, I do believe that abortion is a tremendous miscarriage of justice - for the child (it's not a potential human, folks, take a biology class). (and yes, pun was intended). That belief does not mean that I am an idiot. It does not mean that I am an uneducated rube. It means that I, as a human being, understand that human life is very valuable and should be protected as much as possible.
And yes, I am consistent - I am against capital punishment (but there are far, far fewer executions then there are abortions!). I am completely against any form of euthenasia - are any of you old enough to remember the movie, "Soylent Green?
I strongly believe in the entire Bill of Rights - and the 2nd Ammendment pretty much guarantees that the government will continue to allow us to have the other ammendments.
So that's me.
I am happy George Bush won.
Ecstatic.
Posted by Beth at 7:51 PM | Comments (10)
Buy a Gun because George won!
I've decided that The Armorer, my beloved, sexy husband, needs a new gun in the collection to celebrate George Bush's election. (I'm pretty sure the President is the winner)
The purchase will have to wait until we are both at home at the same time, though - need to check and see if there are any gun shows coming up!
I think everyone should go out and buy a gun to honor the President's victory!
Posted by Beth at 7:25 AM | Comments (4)
In all the excitement
I almost forgot about the Carnival of the Recipes!
Get your recipes in by midnight Thursday - send them to recipe.carnival(at)gmail(dot)com.
This week's host is The very smart David Schuler of The Glittering Eye
Hosts through the end of the year are:
November 12th - Erudite Michael of the Common Virtue
November 19th - The busy mom of a bunch of boys, Boudicca of Boudicca's Voice
November 26th - MaryBeth of Random Thoughts
December 3rd - Angela of Fresh as a Daisy
December 17th - The brave SarahK of Mountaineer Musings (Sarah is brave because she has never done this and is offering to do it *twice*!)
December 24th - Trudy of Food Basics has ever so graciously volunteered to host the Carnival on Christmas Eve.
And for New Year's Eve - Amy of Prochien Amy has volunteered to host the Carnival on New Year's Eve!
Posted by Beth at 6:19 AM | Comments (1)
November 2, 2004
Well, hmmmm
The Internet is very slow tonight. Funny, that would indicate that people trust the web more then they do Major Mass Media, don't you think?
I have not turned on the TV, but I did listen to the radio when I was driving home earlier.
It's very close, again, dammit! Apparently organizations like moveon.org have managed to scare people with lies about a non-existent draft, etc.
It's too bad there is no truth in labeling laws that apply to groups like that and people like Michael Moore.
Geeze, I can just see Michael Moose Moore being appointed as ambassador to France or something or other if Kerry is elected.
Posted by Beth at 8:12 PM | Comments (2)
This Just In!
SarahK was privy to a debate last night - between the heiress and Mrs. Bush. Very exciting stuff!
Posted by Beth at 9:26 AM | Comments (3)
November 1, 2004
Tomorrow is the big day
If you have not yet voted, please, think about September 11th, 2001 before you do vote.
Think about the Global War on Terror that we are waging - Iraq is just one front in that war. It took the USA many years to finally fight back against terrorism, and we are succeeding.
George Bush is the Commander in Chief. "The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States." That is the first duty of the President - Commander in Chief.
President Bush is doing an admirable job as Commander in Chief, leading our country in a war against terrorism. We have freed over 50 million people in Afghanistan and Iraq from horrible tyranny with minimum loss of human life.
And we are giving those countries back to the people of those countries - we are not exploiting them for oil, as knuckleheads like Michael Moore insist.
John Kerry cannot begin to fill President Bush's shoes. I fear that a Kerry Presidency would sell the soul of the United States into United Nations slavery.
The man is a menance to freedom loving people. He wants to be president only to assuage his great and awful ego. Ugh.
So, think of these things - these are the important things - and vote for George W. Bush tomorrow.
All of these bloggers support President Bush are are proud of it!
Posted by Beth at 7:53 PM | Comments (1)
An Interview with Steve Gardner
Dean Esmay interviewed Steve Gardner, a Swift Boat Vet who served under John Kerry for about 2 1/2 months. The transcript of the interview is on Dean's World.
MSM should be ashamed that they have not bothered to seek out the Swift Boat Vets and get their stories - without bloggers like Dean, their story would not get out.
Posted by Beth at 6:30 PM
Yet another reason to vote for Bush!
From Bloomberg:
U.S. employers probably added 175,000 workers to payrolls in October, the most in five months, while the unemployment rate held at a three-year low of 5.4 percent, the median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey of economists shows.
Posted by Beth at 6:22 AM | Comments (1)
Another Monday
The day started rather inauspiciously when I was awakened by Houdini playing with his squeaky toy. The little shit managed to squirm his way through the cat door to the kitchen and dump the trash (I forgot to put the wastebasket on the kitchen counter where he can't reach).
There was 1/2 a pound of raw bacon in that trash - now it is in Houdini's tummy - yet he still wanted to be fed with the big dogs!
You know all that bacon has to go somewhere soon, so Houdini is going to be stuck out in the rain all day while I am at work. It's not as bad as it sounds - he has shelter. Boy, that little dog knows he is in big doo doo! Actually, I suppose he is going to have some big doo doo.
The cat door has an actual door to it that is magnetized, only we have not put that part up because we didn't think we needed it since it is an indoor cat door. But I guess I'm going to have to fit all seven cats with little magnet collars so that they are the only ones who can use the door.
Of course, if Houdini eats much more bacon, he will be too fat to fit through the door.
I'm off to fix some coffee. Hope everyone has a good day, and if you have not yet decided who to vote for by now, perhaps you should sit this election out!
Posted by Beth at 6:06 AM | Comments (3)