Tuesday, September 30, 2008

And so the Market has the power to rebound to 3/4 time in one day without any help?

Yes, over 485 plus points so I guess we can happily say that the Market has recovered today.
Whew, what a relief, from a heck of an enormous scare yesterday.
I also understand many got great buy deals earlier today.
Hmmm……I would say not too bad for a days worth of profits for those panic sellers?
The Market was said to have lost one trillion in one day, only three hundred billion more than the shot down bailout proposal, hmmm.
But triumphantly recouped ¾ today, what’s that, about 700 billion?
Amazingly the same amount that was shot down in the bailout bill just yesterday, coincidence, perhaps, or not; who believes what’s what anymore.
If you ask me I think some of this theater is nothing more than smoke and mirrors brought to us by the powers that be consisting of both political parties as well as the current White House resident.
But that’s just an assumption on my part, and I’m not that smart.

Right now it is sunny and speckled with blue in our Florida sky at this hour, but most of today it was quite dreary and drizzly, consequently not a walking day; ironically now that I’m pooped its gorgeous out.
It’s just as well I was experimenting with not using my cane, but I do have enough furniture and walls to grab onto for balance to suffice. Outside there would be nothing.

I’m not really ready to wean myself off totally anyway, since my balance is still quite unsure, and a nasty fall with anything breaking would definitely set me way back.
But I tried it to see if the cane I use has anything to do with my shoulder problems.
It could, but the pain was not relieved that noticeably, so as I write this the cane is back by my side. I have been using Tylenol, and moist heat, but nothing seems to help.
I have a history of stomach ulcers as well as bleeding once, so anything stronger is out.
Cortisone shots used to help, but where I go for medical care is for people with smaller incomes, and treats all people from all walks of life people and so they do not keep pain meds, or prescribe any.
Some days I feel like I’m up a creek without a paddle as far as my pain treatment goes.
Besides my hip hurting most days and nights too with both shoulders also it’s so hard for me to get a good nights sleep, and now I found a swelling on my collar bone above my right shoulder that concerns me. I will be going back to the doctor on Thursday to have it checked out.
The good news is that I did not break it, I think. I have broken bones before, even a leg that I walked on for 24 hours so anything is possible.

Stay tuned we have so many things going on.
The most importantly the bailout finale!

Good night to all and sleep well,and I will try to.

Monday, September 29, 2008

Snippets of potpourri and horrors of the financial kind

Well, sometimes no news is good news? I’m seriously waiting on that one.
The deal fell through again, but when broken down we now know who is really not for us little guys; and that his name just so happens to rhyme with pain. Get back to work guys and gals, we need you to help the majority of the populace not just those upper 5% wealthy ones.

The market was not at all happy with or without this outcome, and made sure we were all aware by plunging 778+ unhappy points! It started to go down when it thought they voted for it, but went up when they didn’t and then again finally spiraling to its all time bottom.
Perhaps, a shocker, but not for everyone.
This seems to be par for our course since we are on a second generational round of it's the ECONOMY STUPID life and times in America brought to you ridiculously by Bush 2. We are counting those 36 days until real reform.

On the more ludicrous and somewhat weird side: Plastic surgeons must be having a difficult time too financially since we heard a local commercial just this morning about offering free laser hair removal with breast augmentation. I suspect the concept is to prevent that awful hairy chest syndrome that can come with all surgeries of this type?

I picked up walking again this morning, although it appears to be marginally going up in degrees daily at my 7:30 A.M. self imposed scheduled walk time, today it was 72, Saturday it had been 70, and Friday it was 67.
Fall has not truly arrived here I suspect, deductive reasoning again.
It does amaze me though how I do not mentally chronicle when it actually arrives each year, but I suppose it’s because it is never the same, in all these twenty-two years of living here.
This proves nearly everything in life is unpredictable, but weather is the most understandable.
We can only hope that people will be more so predictable; at least our voted upon officials.
There is something to be said for tried and true, but we Americans need a positive in that realm; somebody who is really out for our welfare not just theirs.
Life is a crap shoot someone once said, probably a line in a movie, but truer words were never spoken.

On the sentimental lighter side, a quote from the Hollywood legend Paul Newman, and all of us women can only hope that our mates will say something as loving and dear about us when asked about going astray, “Why go out for hamburger when you have steak at home?”
So eloquently said; the man was more than a handsome face he had depth, love, humor and philanthropy all through those bones.

On that note let me say good night to all.

Sunday, September 28, 2008

The bailout for 700B has been drafted and will be made public

And it includes conditions added by lawmakers.
So that is where it stands at this writing.

Today was a gloomy nasty not pretty day.
Rainy mist fell a good part of the time.

Hurricane Kyle is now brushing the coast of Maine, and caused the first hurricane watch in years in that area.

Sadly Paul Newman died Friday from his fairly short bout with cancer at age 83, and he will sorely be missed by all. I cannot get those blue eyes out of my old young thinking head and heart, wow, what a dreamboat, and a great actor. Our deepest sympathy and respects are going out to Joanne Woodward, and their four daughters.

Had a lovely surprise from my friend B. that I have mentioned many times in the past Blogs; she stopped by unexpectedly for a visit. Let me refresh your memory she had, had that major surgery, her 30th, to put rods in her body to prevent her overstressed neck, head and spine from carrying the job that they can no longer handle due to her 40 plus years of Rheumatoid Arthritis and Osteoporosis.
She drove here herself, and now has a backup camera since she cannot turn her head while driving, and at 70 and recuperating from that surgery she has gone back to work.
As the most important volunteer commander of programs and fund raising for the Arthritis Foundation that she has been with for over 35 years.
Amazing what the human spirit can do when the desire is there and pluck, and determination!
She is my hero, and has always passed every test that the almighty has given her, or could give anyone. Anyway, I truly believe that she's passed them for all of us humans on the planet! This woman is remarkable, and that is an understatement.

Please be aware that I am not the sharpest tack in the pack, while she visited I complained about my own misfortune, mainly my weight and how I felt I looked at my fattest, and that I was not happy at all with me.
It didn’t take me too long after she left to realize that me talking about my own downfalls was a cover-up to not dwell on her horrors of her reality that I suppose I didn’t know how to handle or react to appropriately.
Not that she looked grotesque, which she definitely did not!
Her neck is broader now, and stiffer in the way she holds it; otherwise she looks still like my petite very competent friend that I have known for these entire last nearly 12 years. But she did admit she is in a tremendous amount of pain.
I guess I just felt so bad and so helpless to help her, and knew that there is nothing that I could really do and it led me to head into the wrong line of conversation. I really do hope that she forgives me and knows that I was just being my stupid self, because on occasion we all are. Me more than most though.
And she does know it, I’m sure, because she has insight and understanding for others and that is what makes her so good at what she does, teaching her self help courses and all the rest.

Good night to all and take care be well and call someone that you might have been thing of. You might be pleasantly surprised by their reaction.

Saturday, September 27, 2008

And the bill was passed...

The Arthritis Bill, HR 1283, that is.
Success is so sweet. This means so much for research and all of the 46M of us adults and nearly 300,000 children with arthritis, which there are over 100 different types that will now be helped.
See how just 250 people can make a difference, that's how many Arthritis Ambassadors there are in this country.

We all should realize our possibilities.
That's why I truly believe we must all vote on November 4th, although, some places are starting early voting on October 20th.

How did you like the first presidential debate? Personally, I thought it appeared as a free for all with not a lot of structure.
Both Senators kept interrupting each other, but at the end, in the final analysis by the pundits it was never ever mentioned; just how they handled their questions. OK that’s fair. And it does seem a toss up on who actually won.
But I unfortunately was distracted by that, and my concentration on each topic went astray at times. I’m not really a night person though. There will be another in nine more days in Tennessee.
When Senator Biden was interviewed for his take on how his running mate did he was front and center right there for his assertive opinion. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for McCain’s running-mate, Governor Palin, she was not available for comment, which seems extremely odd to me, actually very much the Governor’s status quo to date as far as personal appearances go.
We can only hope she will show and speak at the vice-presidential debate scheduled this Thursday in St. Louis, MO.

Today I did walk again; it was 70 degrees when I left early this morning at 7:30 A.M. now I can say that’s another half hour under my belt.
It could take a week or more to build up to my hour.
My hip is getting a work out and my shoulders too from switching off with the cane.
When I got back I was quite stiff.
But I will be patient, and continue to try.
The pool is still in the high 80’s so I do still have that as a safe exercise option although it is more for range of motion than weight loss.

The veggie garden is showing growth with seedlings sprouting daily, and the other day we actually used some of our own basil in our recipe for dinner and that was nice.
Soon, who knows we will be able to say that about tomatoes and lettuce!

Good night to all and to all have a pleasant rest of the weekend.

Friday, September 26, 2008

And the deal is a no go...

The buyout we were all concerned about is still under discussion nothing conclusive has been resolved that is since the Republicans have taken a second look. I understand that they had quite a screaming match going on, on what to do.

To his good Senator McCain who didn't want to debate until it was all settled, sat in on the meeting with Senator Obama, and didn't say a word. Best not to talk when you don't know what you’re talking about I always say; at least since I became older and wiser. Senator Obama did offer some good pearls of his economic wisdom I was also told. He has been for the debate the whole time, and everyone realizes that a President has to be able to do more than one thing at a time, and so Senator McCain will be there too in Oxford, Mississippi tonight at 9 P.M.

PS Mr. Senator Mc Cain the problem still isn’t resolved, nice of you to give in to your practical constituent’s desires to hear both sides of the issues from both candidates! Crazy as it seems taxpayers still would like to make an educated decision on November 4th.
Meanwhile a few more banks have been going under, and we Americans are all united on calling foul!

New topic: I started walking again this morning for my first time since April. The summers here are way too humid for my MS, and since I started this walking exercise here for the last two years I’ve had to quit for the summer. I did do a half an hour, and gradually I will get that up to an hour. Six days a week is what I finally succeed in doing when the weather co-operates. This morning it was 67 degrees at 7:30 A.M., just lovely for a walk.
The problem will arise when daylight savings kicks in next month and it’s dark when it’s cool so that’s why the first month or so when I start back up it’s an erratic beginning, but soon in November it will be smooth sailing with weather you can count on temperature wise, that is.

I do love to walk, and when we lived on the other coast of Florida I was a speed walker accomplishing 3 miles in 40 minutes on the beach with millionaire homes and the ocean for a view. Now at this age and physical condition, and terrain, a street with empty or falling apart hurricane remnant houses and foreclosed homes, much, much different and somewhat depressing. There for the grace of the almighty could go me. But when up to my best I do, do 2 miles in an hour six days a week. It does sadden me slightly, heck more than slightly thinking about all those differences, but at least I am still walking!

Life goes on. Thank heaven everyday that we can go on with it.

Good night to all and to all hug those loved ones a little tighter.

Thursday, September 25, 2008

And the deal is...

250B now, later 100B, and after we are sure everything is OK you get the last 350B.
Interesting negotiations, after meetings all day, to hold us over and keep us from going too far under, but still leaving half of the original asking amount to verify it's a legit deal? HUH? The tally is still the same 700B in the hole for us all now or later what’s the difference?

I got to play Ambassador today; Arthritis Ambassador that is, actually all week had to call our Representative and Senators, about asking them to please vote YES on our Arthritis Bill HR 1283, which is actually the Arthritis Prevention, Control and Cure Act. It’s the first bi-partisan legislation in nearly 30 years. If the bill is enacted it will improve research and public health for adults and children with arthritis. The bill still requires House passage which is not guaranteed due to the limited days Congress is in session. Today was my first conference call, and I did pretty well I think since I didn't say a word, I listened. Most of the questions I was about to ask were asked by my fellow Ambassadors anyway.
The vote keeps getting pushed back I suppose due to the bail out of our financial mess that has been front and center in the priority arena.

Did you hear the one about Governor Palin going to New York, and visiting the UN, and some International Woman’s organization, just dropping by, and not saying anything there candidate like?
She appears to be appearing without substance if that makes sense?
Governor Palin now is setting the trend of popular opinion that her biggest critics seem to feel and appear to be vindicated that without a script that she has proven to be unable to think on her toes, which speaks volumes for her capability of taking over if necessary as President.
Whoa! What a surprise with all her political experience?
What’s she had a term as a Mayor of Wasilla Alaska a city of 6,500 population and nearly 2 years as Governor of Alaska our least populace state?
True some have had less, but her degree is in journalism, and I would think that would make her more capable to write things like news articles, perhaps a book or even a BLOG or even report a sporting event more so than govern a country?
But that’s just me.
It seems to me that our country has done the best when intellect ruled our country, not near do wells.
Deficit down, jobs up, housing market up those good old days… the Clinton years!

Rhodes Scholar, intelligence was not a bad idea and to have the most important job in the land filled by a person with the brains to know what to do no matter what arose, simplicity.

I want that again, so guess who this non partisan person is voting for… someone who is way smarter than me!
Dumb may be fun but it sure can’t keep this country running smooth and clean.

Good night to all and find the right words to describe your perfect protector, a war monger with a hair trigger temper or an intelligent person with calm reasoning?

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Aha the wolves have been watching the hen house, the truth comes out...

So that is why the financial market was doomed, and now the truth will be finally investigated to see if FRAUD may be involved! Whew... happy to hear that before I gave up my 700 billion dollars! Now it's time for the humans in government to get involved in this revelation, and make sure that there were legitimate reasons for all down turns and that they were unavoidable, and no funny business was actually going on.
And that the CEO salary packages are not out of sight causing more negative numbers for innocent share holders! 200M is not too over the top to retire on when your company is on the verge of going belly-up? WHAT?

They are having second thoughts on what to actually do…hmm…

All I can say… with an exaggerated sigh, ahhhhh …it’s about time!
My $2300 needs to know where and why it’s going where it will be going.
Let’s face it until I get my stimulus package they are not getting theirs!
Oh no, we personally haven’t gotten one yet, and are we really going to get another?
So now they will admit that these last several months have been a recession?
And we are all feeling that it is soon to be a depression?
And that we Americans are already depressed?
Whoa… will they agree or not?
That is the biggest question at this time about our economy, yes, and for them to admit that we have a MAJOR problem.

That is all I can say at this time… stay tuned…I’m sure much more will unravel and be revealed.

New topic: I never told you that our veggie garden survived that major pummeling of rainfall the other night.
Apparently, the edging and plantings were stronger than we first thought. Although, peas had to be replanted after found that they had rolled away, but small seedlings are emerging beautifully of lettuce, carrots, parsley and chives. Tomato plants were just fine once the soil was washed from their leaves, all is well in our garden, and we even added an oregano plant that we purchased from the grocery produce department to our herb urn.

Good night to all and to all… plan what to do with that stimulus check, HA!

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Getting back to basics...

Before the financial mess, housing foreclosures, gas prices skyrocketing, grocery pricing caused us to think about trading in our first born for a gallon of milk... we had a national crisis called OBESITY!
So today I did some research, since most all nutritionist will say that as we get older our metabolism slows, and this can occur as early as our thirties.
So I GOOGLED: "What foods REV Up Your Metabolism". Let's face it food cannot be our enemy we need it to survive and thrive. So since we do I felt food is not the problem our slowed metabolism is! (And of course portion control)
Deductive reasoning, you can probably tell I used to write mysteries.

Anyway, the information is voluminous and mighty, also redundant since more than once I found the same stories, which indicates to me that they must be truthful. Exercise, green tea, hot soup, drink plenty of water so as not to become dehydrated, eat lean meats like turkey, and don't forget antioxidant super foods like broccoli, vitamin supplements of magnesium, and the B complex and vitamins B12 etc, are also helpful long as you stay within the recommended daily dosage. Snacks are permittable when healthy and portioned apples or pears, wedges of cheese, grapefruit halved and such. The best part was that three healthful meals were suggested with also three smart snack-times.

Exercise is the usual, which is also suggested by the CDC, Center for Disease Control; walking, bicycling, and swimming, all three are the least harmful to your joints, but most helpful to your heart. All exercise should be daily when possible for at least half an hour, minimum three days a week; and should or could build to an hour or more, mornings were suggested as the best time.

It seems that the main concerns are where the weight accumulates, and the belly area is the worst for our internal organs since they gather there too. Bulgy hips and thighs are not health risks and are considered OK, but we women don’t like that and neither do our men!
Women should try to make sure that their waistline never goes above 35 inches and for men 40 inches is max; beyond those numbers you are at risk for all the major diseases heart, diabetes, arthritis of hips and knees etc.

Sounds like a plan to me, which I have already started since I somehow gained three more unwanted pounds to my overweight slight frame.
And no I am not big boned, I am tiny bone-wise and this blubber on me is causing me too much grief!
Motivation is always hard to start, but somehow a full length mirror might be healthful, a scale, and a tape measurer will help and do not lie.

Good luck to all and find something necessary to do in your life to improve that quality.

Monday, September 22, 2008

The Veggie Garden is Getting Nature's Moisture

This evening it is raining, and I guess we are now officially experiencing our 22nd fall in Florida, welcome to all who dare to come!
The temperatures have gone way down, right this minute it is a rain cooled 77!
To be fair we did stay in the low 90's most of today, although I did not miss my chance to swim in a chilly 87 degree pool.
Of course I'm kidding; it really was just delightful as usual.

How soon we do forget swimming in the Atlantic Ocean off of the Jersey Shore in mid summer as children and young adults, when the water temperature was a balmy 70, if lucky!
But even there the air temperature could climb to 90 or beyond in late summer; that is, and we used to say how refreshing those contrasted temperatures were.
Now it would just seem frosty to my Florida thin-skin without any blood, since these last 22 years that we have adapted to warmth and moisture in all forms.

After the fall and when the Hurricane Season ends on November 30th, still don’t know how it knows how to stop right on that day; anyway then we go into our Dry Season.
Who says Florida doesn’t have seasons!

This just in: Our veggie garden is getting too much moisture, and being inundated with massive rain drops, and is floating away!
Sad as this seems to me... with all that is going on in the world this is a minuscule detail for us that we can fix, and we will!
The best part of this rainfall is... that it is not a hurricane or even a tropical storm; just generic rain. That realization means a lot in this neck of the woods as you can well imagine.

The world of Wall Street is still in upheaval; hopefully the powers that be will do something or have already have, who knows. We can only pray at this point that somebody does!

Barrels of Petrol have gone up again, big surprise there.

Yankee Stadium has been retired and will be replaced next spring with a younger version of itself, seems even inanimate objects have to suffer age discrimination!
Personally I do have a Yankee Stadium connection, at the age of ten way back in 1960, I got to see a game played there due to me being a member of my Ridge Ranch Elementary Schools fifth grade Safety Patrol. The next summer I had the privilege of going to Penner's Lake Day Camp in Upper Saddle River NJ where Roger Maris and Moose Scarron had their baseball camp. Both of their sons road the camp bus with me and I led the songs all the way home! Roger Maris broke a record I think that year; a little known fact (LOL); of 61 home runs!

Good night to all and to all stay dry!

Sunday, September 21, 2008

As I think I understand it...

We are now in over an 11 Trillion dollar debt from our national deficit, and that is due to our government paying out over 700 Billion dollars to get the housing market out of the hole that they dug for themselves?

Don’t you worry your pretty/ handsome little heads Americans, since all is well, because our payback piece of this massive pie is only 2K for each and every tax payer in out of pocket expenses! So we really do have to pay for their mess?
That's like making a big sister cleanup after her little brother's messed up his room! Totally unfair! But Mom or Dad might claim the age old reality, but we are a family; as reasoning that we cannot argue with and your brother is sick, and then they will probably even say that they will pitch in, and yes, we are all in one country together. I do hope the BIG GUYS will pitch in too! OH NO, they can’t! Nothing is left for them to do that!

Scary and confusing but we are assured that this may be the last time that this will ever happen, so be comforted that you can breath easier now, HUH? That little brother of hers will be up to no good again, I'm very sure as sure as the day is long or at least until the winter solstice, which is the shortest day of the year, December 21st. And that should hold us all until well after the election! Hmm…
Please tell me who is giving me the 2k I need for me to buy into this pie?

Now in a more disconcerting issue Texans are being allowed to return home, but for most in Galveston sadly there is no home to go home to. I don't get that, why are they going where there is nothingness?
To verify that nothing is left?
I speak from experience when I say this will be shocking and quite disturbing and sure to cause nightmares to more than just a few for years to come.
It’s not really such a good idea.

Change of topic: Today we watered our new mini veggie garden, and I swum, again and then we went to our neighboring town after lunch to a street festival, nice but rather hot.
I did buy one thing, a little khaki colored clay fired name pendent that was promised to be made at that last festival by the artist, and it was there, so I had to. It set me back $4 bucks but a promise is a promise, and he said he would do one in my unusual name and he did.

Good night to all and to all find out what makes fun for you!

Saturday, September 20, 2008

Gardening, Mom's, and other family

Good evening once again!
Today was a good for me type day.

I took my responsibilities of chores to my old self limits.
Although, I did wake slightly later than my usual 6-6:30 A.M., it was nearly 8 when I finally poured my cup of coffee and went to the computer to turn it back on. My usual routine was changed since after I watched a few minutes of news I found out that a sporting event was beginning so I decided to get dressed and have a second cup out on the patio, after I fed the wild birds and our pond fish.
Soon, Skipper our Bichon came to the back door while I was sitting watching the birds and asked to come out, and I let him.

My hubby was still asleep.
And so I decided that I would start the root and grass removal left in the now contained edging for the VEGGIE garden.

I went back out to the shed and got out our rolling cart that is also a seat for gardening, in fact it is called the garden buddy with even a holder for my cane, it more than likely is for some long tool but my cane fits perfectly!
Tools fit in it, and there are other compartments for other things that I still have not figured out what to add to it.
Right now it only contains a hand held spade and rake.
I diligently went down the whole fifteen square feet of contained earth and pulled anything green or hairy-rooted repeating the process three times back and fourth with much care and as little messiness as possible.
Even this sub dirt was looking very healthy and black, and turned my hands and nails that color, a sensation I had not had in quite some time and oddly enough I did miss.
When I felt I had cleaned or cleared the bottom earth, since the super mix would be going on top of this floor of soil, and knowing from experience that the more I removed now that later on weeding would not be as massive a job, hopefully.
Nearly six inches of new material would be going over my pre-weeding work.

Before I realized it my husband was calling me in for breakfast, we take turns since he has been retired.
The time had gone so fast it was nearly 9:30 A.M. by then.
After our fried eggs and toast breakfast my husband was anxious to get back to our garden, and thanked me for getting the garden bed ready for our super mix of soils.
He shoveled it from the wheel barrel into the edging in three separate trips the amount was just right and that was good because it was all gone anyway!

By now it was nearly ten and I reminded him that he said he was going to call his Mom, and so he did and it was good thing too.
That poor nearly 88 year old woman had been trying for weeks to reach us and she thought that we had been killed by the hurricanes!
She kept dialing our number but could not get through, even asked her neighbor to help!
Unfortunately, dear sweet Mom did not remember us telling her that she shouldn’t call our house phone because it was a dedicated computer line, and was always being used that way except when we turned it off at bedtime.
Of course many times we had given her our two cell phone numbers, but she couldn’t find them or even remember that we had, we have been using them for nearly ten years now.
She was crying with joy to know that we were all right!

Mom lives in Pennsylvania just 5 miles from her daughter, my husband’s kid sister, five years his junior, but sometimes they have silly disagreements, and don’t talk for months, as of today she said it had been two months, and I can only assume that is one of the reasons she had no other options in her mind on how to reach us.
Oh well, I keep reminding my husband how she is getting on in age, and that memory lapses are more frequent so we should check on her more often.
His older brother, five years his senior, lives in Washington State, we are all very far from everyone.

After that call he finished the garden even planting and seeding while I played hooky in the pool, and swum.
I got out for a rest period and decided to call our eldest son to let him know what had happened and that we gave his grandma both his house and cell numbers again, and that he too should call her.

Next I decided to call my cousins, the retired teachers that moved here from NJ, who were on their way out and we agreed that they would call back tomorrow.

I made lunch and dinner; we take turns with those too.
Then we watched some PBS garden and how to shows that we both enjoy, to cool down out of the heat and sun.
Compromise is more than just ideas.

Good night to all, and to all see how your family is doing.

Friday, September 19, 2008

A Vacation From Weather and Politics! The Veggie Project is Now A Reality!

YES! Today was the day!
We started our project, but with only the beginning of our vegetable count.

So far today we bought three tomato plants, 2 Roma's and one would you believe actually called Heat wave? All call for full sun, which is perfect in our southern exposure location. Roma is my favorite because it is used in Italian cooking for sauces as well as salads so it is versatile. Heat wave is new to us, but our winters are very dry, and hopefully this type will continue to produce through then.

Our starter plants also included seeds of peas a dwarf variety called Little Marvel only climbing to 18” (we already have a few pieces of plastic lattice left from our Gazebo that was destroyed by Hurricane Charley they will serve as a trellis), carrots Nantes coreless and Mesclun gourmet greens, speak for themselves.

A Khaki colored lightweight plastic urn has been planted with basil and mint plants, and seeded with dill and parsley. After a hole was drilled into the bottom, and also shards of old clay pots were put in the bottom for drainage. The soil used was a mixture of moisture control potting soil with Miracle Gro, as well as a Jungle mix, and top soil.
Our edging blocks are connected upright log shaped in a tan colored earth tone, 16" in length.
They were leveled and installed after the sod had been removed and placed into our composter. And the whole form for planting will be filled with a combination of the above soils as well as peat, and then the planting will begin.
We purchased a zinc Y connector, $2 more than the plastic but will last longer, it is for the spicket to attach to our only 10 foot long soaker hose. And that is where the project has gotten to as of now.

Expenses to date: $111.00 would you believe?
And that is why I said to my husband to wait on the rest.
Even though that is not anywhere close to our previous projected amount that is an expense for us that we must always think about on our now very fixed income, which we are still adapting to since it is only going on two years since my husband’s retirement.
We must be frugal when additional monies will not be coming in until the beginning of the next month; pension and SSI; not unlike many Americans.

But all in all I do think we have a great start to this project, and it will not be overwhelming to maintain.

Good night to all and to all good eats!

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Up, down and all around; try to catch me if you can!

The Stock Market has been having a bumpy ride this week.
Every other day it is bullish or bearish, down 500, up 400, down, up, I'm getting dizzy! We have just one more day to go this week and at this rate it should be a downer.

All these helpful government buyouts are really something, don't you think?
Where's our money? Nothing, bupkis, nada is backing it anymore.

Just print whatever you need, but if we did that we would get arrested!
The US government seems to have found the illusive "Money Tree".
Where's ours? I'm sure I could fit one or more in our backyard I would even give up my veggie project wishes just to make some room for a small forest of those things!

Frightening what the young are learning from our elder statesmen and women.
When you get in a tight spot financially, just whimper a little bit and Daddy Warbucks will come to the rescue! Make bad deals, loans, in the housing market, offer to help with the war effort, lose what you had going in for a century or more, and bye, bye monies.
The sad part is that some of the candidates are calling this the trickle up theory of needing to tighten your wallet for the major money players.
But those BIG GUYS are already trickling it right back down to us little guys with higher taxes and utility bills, and grocery prices… you name it we are at the bottom of the doo doo pile for all those Major Players!!!! Us so-called TAX PAYERS!!!!

Those stimulus checks that by the way, we haven’t received yet have been long gone, mostly used for bills like gas, food, and housing, and that’s a stretch for way more than those would actually go.
Gonna send another one to us little people to keep up with those higher prices on everything they keep taxing, and now not only has gas gone up… it has gone!
Yep, we are waiting, barrel prices were going down, and now we don’t have that Texas T that we have been waiting on.
Of course we all know that a major hurricane hit, and so did the government know it was coming.
Go with me here…then why didn’t we stockpile some gas in a safer location?????
Everyone swore that this would not happen, but GUYS… it has!

Now we Americans can’t even get out using any of the small change that we carry!

Who’s elitist now?
Soon no one.

It always amazes me whenever there is a Telethon for a worthy cause monies can be raised in short order, millions, but where is the common man’s telethon, because we are bleeding to death!
Be it from nature’s wrath, foreclosures, job loses; trying to feed your family, gas up the car…you can see where I’m going with this.
The Americans who are in the majority are in toughest shape ever and they need a TELETHON!

Good night to all, and to all try to get fired up too, just imagine the heat we will cause up there in D.C. land!

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Updates, and some other things

We have come to the conclusion on the veggie project...elaborate is not necessary.
Why were we considering such a magnificent and complex production seems silly now.

Let me explain the original concept that included a lattice fence enclosure, cottage design, of our side yard, and having a yard of top soil delivered and lumber of the non toxic kind, but weather resistant and wide enough to make a few raised bed gardens in different fanciful shapes. Our main problem after set up cost was the enormous amount of types of vegetables we were going to grow. Each of us has our favorites, which we found out to be way too many! And of course the costs of the lovely fence, just two sides alone were over $500; and that’s broken down, building it.

It's not like we are feeding an entire family with these veggies, there is just the two of us.
And so we have downsized the actual project, and with that logical resolve we have gotten the cost down as well, to a fifth of the original cost, which now appears to be doable.

Our newest concept is considerably smaller just a fourteen foot by 14”, the width of the edging, a decorative block that we decided on, it’s actually 16” but 14” with the 2” overlap. This will be situated under our back windows that faces the south; just right for a fall garden in Florida with enough sun exposure for our crops.

We will purchase bags of topsoil, and a bail of peat, and the appropriate fertilizer.
A separate container, large urn design will be used for herbs with basil, thyme, dill, mint, parsley and the like. A drip hose will also be purchased for irrigation, but not too often since we are still in our rainy season. We would love to make a cistern someday.
We have been composting for months, and that too will be useful.
Now about the veggies, we agree on six tomato plants so far, we both would like onions, and I would like garlic, and my husband would like potatoes, peas, and for me, some bib lettuce for the tomatoes, carrots, cauliflower, and broccoli too. You can see our dilemma now, we have a small space.

It would be so much easier if we had a blank slate, but we are quite elaborate gardeners, and our yard comprises of several small gardens throughout already.
We have fruit trees, lemon, tangerine, grapefruit, Key lime, banana, Muscadine grapevine and even an Avocado tree. Not to mention our other tropical garden around our fishpond and vines of Alamanda, Plumbagos, Bougainvilleas, and clusters of Hibiscus along our fences, and here and there this and that, as well as the mixed species including palms under or near our front windows and an island garden of Gardenia with Crotons in the front center where before there was a mighty oak that was lost from Hurricane Charley, and quite a bit more I could go on for days with our list of flora.
And we had, had a Florida vegetable garden years ago when our boys were young on the other coast in a different cooler planting zone. We have been here in Florida for 22 years respectfully, on this coast the longest, nearly 14 of those years.

So far all of this is just in the planning stages, and I do know that in the cooler areas of the country they are planting pumpkin, other types of squashes, lettuces, etc. We did live in New Jersey for over 36 years, and have gardens there as well, after all that is called the GARDEN STATE! LOL
As everyone knows though each climate is different, and what grows well in one locale doesn’t necessarily grow well in another.

Our motives are good, so we want to err on the side of caution since we see this project as healthful by the shear reasoning of growing these vegetables ourselves without chemicals, and the exercise value, and don’t forget some of our choices are considered the super veggies that are considered preventative and curative for what ails you.

Change of topic: the pool filter that very next day was fixed by my amazing husband and has been working just fine since Monday. The best part is that the pool supply place took one part off another instead of ordering it, and since it was just a part of a part the price was less than half what we thought it would be by our research online!

Our tropics are quiet, thankfully.
The weatherman said that we may be lucky enough to stay this way for about 10 days…whoopee!

Good night to all.

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Emails that are very one sided, and tell only half a tale

Today I received a disturbing email from one of my four nieces, the eldest, and the one I always thought was somewhat of a free thinker, nearly Bohemian in nature.
She was an excellent student, straight A's, and was offered a scholarship to become an aeronautical engineer, but opted out due to falling in love.
She married at 19 and soon became the Mom of three gorgeous blue-eyed blond daughters each 2 years apart, and she had them at home with the assistance of a mid-wife in the tub under water, so I was told. Free spirit … free thinker!
She and her family are vegans.
And she also home schooled the girls and then mainstreamed them into the public school system where they were several grade levels above their peers. Made sure they learned musical instruments and played sports, winter and summer. They are all well rounded young ladies.
I love this child, and if I had a daughter I would want her to be just like her.
Now the problem is that she lives all the way across the country in Washington State, and we haven't seen or spoken face to face in years. Well, once, a few years ago she and her husband and girls popped in from visiting with their church at Disney World in Orlando. We are 3 hours from there, but they just magically appeared without warning, and I was delighted, and begged them to stay but they visited for just a few hours and then left. I think we showed them a good time in that short period that they were here, at least I hope so.
We are a diverse family, as most are today, and our immediate extended family consists of three common religions, Catholicism, Judaism, and Lutheran.
Which is not at all unusual today? Which also allows us to celebrate all holidays if we so desire!

But for some reason this email disturbed me because for some crazy reason I think she thinks that we are Atheists, not there is anything wrong with that.
I believe that everyone has the right to believe or not believe whatever they want to as long as it isn’t going to hurt anyone else or isn’t considered illegal.
Isn’t that what America is about; the home of the free and the brave.
Our ancestors, many of them came here to be allowed to go to the church or temple, mosque, or synagogue of their choice without people telling them they cannot worship where or when the wanted to.
Religious persecution was the reason many of our grandparents escaped to the land of the free.

With that said, I also believe what has been going on in the country has nothing to do with taking God out of the schools, and questioning public displays of holidays that to me have actually lost what their religious content was and have become way too commercial an entity.
Today ask any pre-schooler, even the ones that more than likely went to Sunday school, as I did. What’s the best part of Christmas or Hanukkah?
And I just bet they say …PRESENTS!
Not saying that Christmas is the celebration of Jesus Christ’s birth, and that Hanukkah is the celebration of the 8 days that the miracle of the oil lasting when the Jews escaped from persecution.
If parents have done their jobs right children would still be going to after school programs like in our day when they went to religious classes after school and were incorporated into their schedules with soccer, hockey, tee-ball, football, etc.
But more and more two parent homes both parents are working, and no one has the time or ability to keep up with everyone’s schedules.
We both worked raising our sons who didn’t get involve with drugs or the cops, both are college grads, and making good livings today at 32 and 36 years of age.
They too had extra curricular activities that we made sure they went to some how some way, it takes a village comes to mind. Grandparents, knowing their friends and their friend’s parents helped to stay on target, and helping one another. They also rode their bikes or walked in some cases. Where there is a will there is a way.
And they were the generation before this one without prayer in the schools just like my niece who is now 37.
And she is also great!
Except for her concerns that she can’t do the same for her kids because of no God in her schools, or religious displays at government buildings during the holidays?
I think she doesn’t know that it has always been in the parent’s realm to teach what they want their children to know, and that we all have that power within our souls as human beings.

No one but us is responsible for how we think and how we live our lives.
I keep hearing over and over in my head what I was told as a small child in my own religious Sunday school classes along with the Ten Commandments and the Golden Rule that God helps those who help themselves. Why has this changed?

Please dear niece that I think so highly of, do not think less of me because I DO believe in separation of church and state, and will not be brainwashed to thinking that excluding it from our government including the public schools that we will all go to hell in a hand basket!
We have many parochial schools available to those who so desire that complete daily training and that is why they have been around forever. Public buildings are for everyone not just Christians, but Jews, Muslims, Catholics, Protestants Baha’i, Baptists… you get the point.
In order to be fair, to all at these public places, all religions would have to be represented not just a few select ones, and I am sure that when you really think about that you will understand where I am coming from.
I believe in everyone’s right to believe or not believe in anything they care to, and let me close by saying that I do believe that you have the right to believe whatever you so desire, but not the right to try to recruit others to your beliefs.
We must all learn to accept each others differences.
And that is all I am saying.
Good night to all.

Monday, September 15, 2008

Calamity 2, the Sequel

Wall Street had the biggest down-turn, a Tsunami, not seen since 1987, over 504 points today, and it is being compared by most as not being this bad or more nicely said this is considered the biggest reshaping of the market since the Great Depression!
The horror of all this is not just the fact that Lehman Brothers a nearly 150 year old company went belly up due to 613B in debt, and that Merrill Lynch, circa 1914 needed the buyout of 50B from Bank of America to survive, but that AIG, one of the biggest in the global market is struggling, all attributed from the housing crisis, but our President went on the tube today to tell us all again that we are OK, that all this is just a minor adjustment occurring or words of a similar nature. Has he moved to Pluto, I take it he has?
Because he sure isn't living here on earth in the US of A like the rest of us Americans or maybe he is just living in that state we euphemistically …call …the state of DENIAL!!!!
Yep that's it; it’s got to be it.
Heaven help him and all of us, but just 127 more days of this baloney and incompetence, thankfully, January 20, 2009 Inauguration day.
Or... four more years, please almighty or whoever NO, NO, NO I pray to thee to not allow this travesty to occur!!!! NOT FOUR MORE YEARS!
We Americans have the power to make that final beneficial changes that we know will make the biggest difference! Just mark that right location on your ballot on November 4th. Please no hanging chads or other nasty mistakes this is a very close election again, no repeats of the 2000 fiasco!
All I can beg of my co-Americans is to weigh your judgment and read everything you can get your hands on to make that educated decision on Election Day.
We need to be running this country from our voting machines with intellect and deep interest; not with just assuming the big boys and girls know what they are doing…we must guide them and vote accordingly!
If we have nothing else, and many do have nothing left financially… some haven’t even their home… we have our freedom and the capability to vote.

Texas and Louisiana have found more dead from those who did not leave.
Katrina, I thought had taught us all better than anything else why we must evacuate if told to do so.
So sad, this devastation of property is unavoidable and just things, but lives being taken could have been prevented if people just would listen to the authorities.
Another horrible frustration for all of the rest of us to hear that this is what has happened again!

I'm speechless, today was confounding and amazing to me. Mostly in part the way our President has handled these distressing news bites.

Good night to all, and try to find some mindless entertainment on the TV or play a game with the family to divert your attention from these problems and to gain some temporary sanity.
Posted by TOBI at Monday, September 15, 2008 0 comments Links to this post

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Calamity major and minor

Below is the definition of the word calamity from Merriam Webster Dictionary, which tonight explains how things are in the world:
Main Entry: ca•lam•i•ty
Pronunciation: \kə-ˈla-mə-tē\
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural ca•lam•i•ties
Etymology: Middle English calamytey, from Latin calamitat-, calamitas; perhaps akin to Latin clades destruction
Date: 15th century
1 : a state of deep distress or misery caused by major misfortune or loss
2 : a disastrous event marked by great loss and lasting distress and suffering

Chatsworth California, Chicago Illinois, Houston, Galveston Texas et al. Louisiana this is the best or most useful explanation of what is happening in this part of our world.

Chatsworth CA is where that horrible train crash occurred, now 25 dead, 34 in critical condition the remaining 100 or so injured passengers are still in the hospital.
Chicago IL. is where they are having a historical flooding event.
Houston and Galveston, as well as many in Louisiana are beginning the cleanup from that devastation of Hurricane Ike.

And we all go on, no matter what.
We human beings are strong and will go on no matter what the adversity.

Gas prices are being gouged in our state due to the possibility of waiting on more production. Some stations have really run out of gas! People are panicking.
Many of the Gulf drilling equipment were destroyed by Ike, but not the refineries.
Causing a dollar a gallon increases at some of our pumps this is not right, and our Governor Crist knows this and will be taking care of it, I do hope!



Our own mini disaster today under-shadows the worlds by infinite degrees, but still is a problem in our immediate world… our pool pump blew, and it flooded our little shed where it is housed. The cost of the repair is dear for us but must be done or we will have a chemical waste tub in our own backyard if unable to be filtered and chlorine added at regular intervals, but fortunately labor is not any problem with my husband’s natural ability to fix things, although, the part is expensive.

Oh well, another set back on the veggie project.
Although, my hubby has come up with somewhat of a compromising solution… we will see. Personally it does sound like a solid good idea.

On the brighter side… not much is going on in the tropics weather wise now.
Let’s hope it stays that way!
Less than 3 months to go in this hurricane season and counting.

I must say that today I was sent an email that was rather tantalizing, yes that is how I would describe it … it was about Governor Palin, not at all flattering and written by Eve Enslor the famous author of the play the Vagina Chronicles. The ramblings appeared quite well researched and informative background on Governor Sarah Palin, it was fascinating and frightening at the same time.

I receive many politically biased pieces frequently, and I have gotten in trouble many times for forwarding them on. But this source, the author; I tend to believe because she is known for her intellect, and thoroughness of checking on information so this time I feel I will err on the side of believing what I read. Perhaps you too will receive the email that I did. All I can say is to enjoy it, and take it for what it is.

Good night to all.

Saturday, September 13, 2008

Natural and unnatural disasters...some more snippets

Gargantuan monster that was over 600 miles across had been the infamous Ike the former hurricane, but no longer ... now just a mellow tropical storm with his wind blowing out of his blustery presence, and watery surging no more.
What a massive flooding mess he has left in his wake with much debris, but fortunately not too much destruction of life or limb. The count so far is four that is way too many deaths attributed to Ike, here in our US of A.

Texans are brave and strong and have much work ahead for their cleanup, which will be helped by many states including Florida, which has a standing agreement with them, and if we need them they will return the favor.

While human error, a train engineer was guilty of not stopping for a stop sign, and he confessed that he was responsible for the death of 23 so far in the head-on collision of the passenger and freight trains in California, just horrendous!

On a much lighter note, now onto other topics: Michael Phelps will be hosting the new season premier of Saturday Night Live tonight. I believe it’s the start of their 33 year. If I am correct they first premiered in 1975.

And this incredible athlete, Michael Phelps who’s a 23 year old swimming phenom, winner of an unprecedented 8 Gold Medals (threw that in for any possible people who read this that may be space aliens or had been living under a rock during the Beijing Olympics), this summer breaking too many records to count is going to do shtick?
I’m laughing out loud already!
Not to mention that his possible co-stars for the evening may be Senator Barack Obama, as himself, and possibly a cameo appearance by Tina Fey as you guessed it, Governor Sarah Palin, but this is only supposition, rumor and innuendo.
Gosh that sounds an awful lot like these last two years of political campaigning, déjà vu!
Which means you gotta watch to find out!
Should be a great time for all!

But sadly my body clock doe not always allow me to adhere to my entertainment needs or choices when they appear at 11:30 P.M. or even sometimes much earlier.

Ah the joys of old age, whoever said that old age was not for sissies didn’t know me at all. LOL
I’m a sissy and proud of it!
Gotta get that beauty sleep, or at least try real hard to.
Heaven knows I need all the help I can get.

Always be thankful to your family… for they made you who you are.
Which brings up another interesting point…so don’t criticize them because you are part of them, and you would be finding fault with yourself!
What do you think vicious cycle or pure nonsense?



Good night to all!

Friday, September 12, 2008

Another milestone, Galveston, and our veggies project

Well, today marks my eightieth day of the writing of my Blog!
Who knew I would be such a prolific writer of nonsense, actually I suppose most would believe that.
But oddly enough I do believe or hope that some substance has also been projected from my arsenal of interests and opinions.
As I've repeatedly said I'm not just another pretty face; there is much more to me, and what I have to say.
Confessions: I think I use that pretty face metaphor because I no longer have a face that is pretty or nice looking otherwise since I received a dog bite on it a few years back.
Oh no, I'm not some monstrously distorted figure by any means I did have a plastic surgeon repair the damage at the time, 40 minuscule stitches did the job, but it still did change my face, and the way I remember me when I look in the mirror.
Now don't start feeling bad about or for me... it just looks like my past smoking of cigarettes caused wrinkles there above my upper lip or now oddly enough they are also blaming water bottles for the same appearance, which I also am guilty of using. So either way I was doomed for those upper lip wrinkles.

Galveston Texas is being pummeled by winds and a wall of water at this writing and Hurricane Ike is still 6 to 8 hours from landfall there.
Nearly 10K residents refused to leave, and now their lives are in jeopardy, and they are now being told, which is hard for me to think about, it is also obscenely unrelatable to me that they should write their names and social security numbers on their arms for identification for when their bodies are found, horrible is an understatement!
Whoever you believe has any power over nature or weather’s wrath please ask them to go easy on our co-Americans in Texas and nearby states to halt this devastation diminish its power and to leave the land of the free and the home of the brave as soon as possible with as little as possible devastation, and loss of life as nil.
And be brave you mighty Texans, careful and smart too! Do whatever it takes to save yourselves.
Any who believe in a superior being pray to him/her for their safety.

Today we did go for prices for the home grown veggie project, but I am extremely discouraged since the projected cost is far more than I thought. And I am concerned that it may not be doable. Oh well, we still have some time to rethink the way we will do it, and perhaps there will be another method for us to consider.

Good night to all, and hope our friends to the west are kept safe.

Thursday, September 11, 2008

9/11 the 7th Anniversary, and raised bed vegetable gardening

Do any of you remember where you were when the first plane hit the first tower on 9/11? Of course you do. I was home recuperating from hand surgery watching the Today Show with Katie Couric, at first it looked like it was such a small plane, and that the damage would be minimal. We all learned too soon it was just the beginning of something, which would be considered much more despicable and devastating to the entire world.
We personally learned later on many friends and family that we knew distantly or people we knew through somebody else had perished that day.

I also remember where I was when JFK got shot as I'm sure you do too. I was in my 8th grade math class when a voice came over the PA system. At first we all thought that it was a program on the Lincoln assassination. Soon we were all shocked and crying when the realization of what had actually transpired took affect.

Living through history is what everybody does, if lucky enough to survive.
The other day I received in an email color photos of the depression era that were quite amazing, memories of another very sad time in the world's and America's past, but beautiful at the same time. It was also a true remembrance to my cousins that I forwarded on to them and they did say that they appreciated seeing them.

As you have heard me say before, and as anyone who is over what they consider the age of maturity, be it 12 or 92 or anywhere in between, must know that these times in one's life make us stronger to endure all that comes to us as the human species, whether personally touched or just humanly touched.

Sadly, too many more have died since September 11.2001, and I am not saying that those who are responsible for this horrible deed should not be punished. I am just wondering why wars must be the answer for us to feel closure; by killing more.
Childhood sayings are running through my brain... if blankety, blank jumps off the bridge, why do you think that you have to do it too?
Do two wrongs make a right?

Anyway, that's where this old time peace nick is coming from.
And believe me I am all for our military with much love and respect for everything that they do.
My own brother was in the Air Force, and our youngest son was in the Navy.
I just know that they are someone’s son or daughter, Mom or Dad, aunt or uncle, brother or sister, and I just wish that there were some other way to fix these wrongs that we as AMERICANS feel that we must right, without putting their lives on the line.
After all this is the 21st Century!!!!

History was taught all these years in our public schools systems with the theory that with this knowledge we would learn not to repeat our mistakes, but alas we continue to do so.
Perhaps, ignorance could be bliss when it comes to wars?
Nah, GENOCIDE is something we must pull apart and teach consistently and constantly so all will continue to know the horrors of such behavior, and to hopefully to stop it, although it exists today, right now…

We need answers!
Oh what a slippery slope we climb, and what a damned if you do and damned if you don't situation we have in our laps.

Poignant thoughts to ponder.

Enormous change of topic: Vegetable gardening, my hubby and I have been discussing this probability as a bargain buster, healthful, and energetic concept.
And tomorrow we will be gathering information for this project from our local stores.
So far we have surfed the net for vegetables that we enjoy and that should also grow well in our Florida climate and we also received information from our college county agricultural extension.
Expenses to date are: $O.

Good night to all.

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

The Lipstick Wars, and its unusual uses of the product

Never before in my life have I ever heard of so much use in metaphors utilizing the word lipstick with an outrageous image of it on pigs and or on hockey Moms.
What has lipstick done to our men in the world that they seem to think that putting it on a pig expresses that things remain the status quo with or without such a decorative measure, although I do see their point.
Or those comparisons to humans using or also referring to the use on the above pig. None of those hoofed critters would care to be compared to anything human, please forgive; hockey Mom's were NOT included in that. I do know they do not have hooves.
Better images to present may be wearing a dress or frilly undergarments perhaps?
All of these possibilities are just as silly, and therefore I declare that from now on that plain speak is how candidates should express themselves.
They should all be decisive in how they talk to us their constituents.
After all we have been getting garbage mouths and double talk from Washington politics for years so now is the time to come clean and speak distinctly! (Ha! Don't hold your breath.)

Please candidates we need to know where you really stand not how your competition stands.
We need solutions and realistic ways of dealing with everything you are promising.

Please be honest!
This is not committing political blasphemy.
We need answers that will help.
You are not accomplishing your goals by insulting one another or misinterpreting the others resolve.
As an adult voting for this very important position in our government I demand that you all play fair, and tell us the truth of where you stand.
And I also need for the hijinks of distasteful display of behavior to stop immediately!
You are, after all, all vying for the most important job in the nation, now behave, and carry on.
Or you may find out on November 5.2008 the day after the election that most responsible Americans have written in a candidate, and that it wasn’t you!

Good night to all, and to all be selective.

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Interpretations of life in a nano second

I'm not really old enough to make a realistic comment on life, since I hopefully have quite a few years left of it.
If you have been following this Blog you would know that, that won't stop me from trying.
And so thus far it has been complicated.
It had started out pretty good.
Who can complain about growing up in suburban New Jersey, just outside of New York City with all those Broadway shows and Museums within fifteen minutes of your home?
My teen years were mostly fun, but harsh at times...I never really felt like I really belonged to any cliques, I was more of a loner. I would hang out with only one or two good friends.
Sometimes I was too old a soul, being like a Mom to everyone, and at other times I needed reassurance of my self worth from whoever would cooperate and take the time to allow that self indulgence.
Married when not quite 21, and stayed that way all these years.
And with that bond we brought into the world two wonderful sons.

I lost both my parents while still in my thirties.
My Mom was a week from her 71st Birthday when she died from a massive stroke in 11 and ½ hours, when I was 31 years old, 4 ½ months from my 32 birthday.
My Dad was 79 when he died from a brain stem thrombosis, and he hung in miraculously for 5 and a half weeks. I was 35 years old and less than 2 months from my 36th birthday.
Mom was a worrier, and Dad wasn’t.
Mom never smoked, but Dad had.
Mom never had the chance to discuss any regrets.
Dad did have that chance and confessed beautifully with his loving eyes that he had not one single one. Can anyone imagine that?
WOW what a life he led!
And he did.
He had a wonderful sense of humor, and during the depression or from just before in 1926 until after the war he had a little neighborhood grocery.
When the depression was going on and people didn't have enough money for food he would give it away to them.
As I understand it he also gave loans to people that eventually became gifts of money since they couldn't pay it back.
He never told me any of this.
It wasn't until after he died back in 1986, at his funeral that people came up to me to tell me little anecdotes about him, how they loved and respected him and what he had done for them.
What a legacy!
What A MAN!
While I was growing up to me he was the daddy who couldn't be around for my recitals, because he was working, but donated the snacks and drinks for the neighborhood block parties in the summer held at my elementary school.
He would tease me when I would get angry, and make me laugh at my silliness.
Never would he or could he put a bicycle together so I had to teach myself to do it, and I did.
Mom had to hire boys in the neighborhood to mow the lawn or shovel the snow, because Dad was always working, and besides he didn't know how to do those things. My cousins would fix little things around the house; one from each side of the family had that gift.
He would send us to the country for holidays and summer, or to Florida for the winter, but he couldn't come, because he was working.
My father finally sold his last business when I was just 15, and he was 58, oddly enough the same age that I am now.
He tried to retire, and that first summer he took Mom and me on an 8 week trip driving back and forth across the United States of America!
It was wonderful!
And that did make some great memories that I cherish till this day.
But then we were home, and Dad got antsy, he had worked since a young boy, and had his own business since the age of 19. He had put his brother through law school.
His unsettledness led to him bugging Mom, so he went to a temp agency, and took different jobs.
This man delivered false teeth, messages, and then finally settled on a job that eventually became his own, a toll taker on the New Jersey Parkway, which he loved, and again loved him!
He only worked 25 hours a week, which left him time to take care of Mom, and to drive his neighbors to the doctor or grocery or whatever.
That job he held until the year before he died.
Now thinking back and recording this blip in his life, a piece of his time on this planet, now I do realize what he meant and why he said what he did about having no regrets.
It's been 22 years now since he's been gone, and it is my fondest wish to be one smidgen of him.
I do see him in my eldest son with his easy-goingness non perturbed attitude, but neither son has his sense of humor, no one does.
Too bad that is lost.

Sorry for this melancholy time; it must be related to the barometric pressure!
And yes, Hurricane Ike is still heading away from Southwest Florida, unfortunately towards Texas, but is stuck over Cuba at this writing.
That nasty weather is causing us tornado warnings to our south, rain bands, and some winds in the 30 to 50 MPH range.
But my husband with my blessings removed all our window protection today just in time to open the blinds and shades on this dreary day!

Good night to all. Memories are something no one or nothing can take away from you, even a storm.
Have a very pleasant one.

Monday, September 8, 2008

Life without weather

I just had an OMG experience...I decided on the topic for tonight, and pushed the enter key...and I was told that I had published my Blog for tonight!
Oops...all I did was write the title, nothing else, but it brought me to, and fortunately to the editing choice of my post, so I chose it. I had apparently NOT done that before, since it threw me and was foreign to me, and also, I must admit very slightly frightening to me.

So here I am writing about that.
Over the last nearly 80 days of this Blog I haven't learned too much about the act of blogging from my fellow Bloggers.
But I've had offers to look at there's, I really should, and they always know they can examine mine.
After all I'm an open book, LOL!

Anyway, back to my chosen topic: Life without weather.

Imagine it never being too hot, never too cold, never too wet or never too dry.
No wind to be measured, and then ask yourself; how would the air/space feel?
Nothing at all, would be my answer; why would there be anything to get a sensation from? I said nothing was in it.
Maybe, it would be like living in a bubble perhaps?

I personally think it would be like in that old movie with that very young John Travolta.
He portrayed that teen that was too sensitive to be exposed to our polluted air to breathe or live in it.
That child could have actually died from exposure, and I do understand that is an actual disease or disorder.
Though, we humans, most of us, are very tough.
Supposedly, our air is not healthy to breathe in many areas of this country, but we do breathe it. Some do get sick and can die from it, but most don’t thankfully.
Some even jog, swim, ski, and play in it.

Breathing is a given for most of us when it comes to air.
Boy we are brave souls!
Temperatures fluctuate constantly, in reality.
Moisture content too.
We are so adaptive to all this.
Amazing really how we deal on a daily basis with such contrasts.
Resilient and flexible come to mind when thinking about our human abilities, and sensibilities.
Most of the things that I mentioned are not tangible.
You really can't touch air or moisture in it, unless it semi-solidifies like in rain or snow.
But then why does some air feel so heavy?
Air can be smelled, but that is usually when it is aromatic or stinky, and that is still not being touched.
Wind can be felt, but not really touched either, interesting.

If anyone has any ideas about doing away with our weather since it appears to misbehave so often.
I still think it would be a terrible mistake like living in outer space, but with gravity.
We would need so many contraptions added to our everyday lives that would be attached to us or to the ground, to balance our body contents due to us not having it come naturally through air or water, etc.
No water out of the sky… the ultimate drought, we would die! But I did say it would NOT be too dry.
Or we could possibly get moisture from our vegetable crops, but how would they be able to grow without water? The air would answer the needs of the crops by doing whatever they needed at anytime they needed it.
No air with any odor sounds nice.
Our air temperature would never be too hot or too cold just perfect, but everyone’s idea of perfect temperatures are different.
That could start wars, OMG!
That’s much worse than the first problem in this writing.

Or could everything and everyone just learn to adapt like we have already with having weather?

Good night to all.
Hope my silliness didn’t turn you off, but I had fun, and I hope you did too.

Sunday, September 7, 2008

Missing makes it so; sorry that's wishing makes it so, but we will be missed too! And all about me!

First of all happy news for south west Florida... Hurricane Ike is heading due west of us and we are no longer in the cone of uncertainty or anywhere near those spaghetti plots! Hurray!

Now about me, I thought with this newest free non weather space I would describe how my days/nights really are.
Friends and family do occasionally ask, and so here goes...
Pain is not a constant but a daily presence, and yes I have a few complaints from not being able to find a comfortable position to sleep in.
I do use a cane, not because it is fashionable, although that hasn't been since the turn of the century, the one before last I think. I do have four in different colors and designs to match different outfits; but they're use is really due to my MS. I have what is a symptom of the disease MS it is called Ataxia, a balance disorder.
It can be all on its own or in cahoots with the MS, and I drop things periodically as well.
Used to drop my cigarettes, and that's one of the reasons I quit two years ago nearly burnt the house down, an exaggeration, actually I put another distressed mark on our distressed table, and most of the glasses I use are actually plastic, but on occasion I have broken even them.
My bodily plumbing is not working at all right so I have to wear special undergarments. The nicest way that I thought I could put it.
I have what I fondly call the nummies, where parts of my body, mostly my legs go numb periodically, arms do it too on occasion, sometimes my face.
And then there is the muscle spasms which occur in all different locations, my back, stomach, thighs, arms or any major muscle group, at the most inopportune times, while swimming, sitting, walking or whatever. Fun, fun, fun!
That takes care of the MS.

Now for the seven types of arthritis that I have out of the 100 that exist...Fibromyalgia, a total pain and muscle disorder that is systemic, but seems to be helped with regular exercise. I was a guinea pig at one time for docs at the university, and was on many different types of meds. Everything from El dopa used in Parkinson's, to Prozac an anti-depressive to Ritalin used for hyper activity, even Magnesium shots, etc. Now I take nothing for it and it works fine.
Then there is my Sojourn’s Syndrome which causes dry eye, and other dryness in different parts of the body, I guess that’s the nicest way to describe that.
My eyes were the worst, actually I need drops to maintain proper tear balance, but really I need eye surgery. I backed off of it years ago. Since you are awake for it and you can see the doctor coming at you with the instruments. It helped me to stop wearing my contact lenses, but boy was that hard beauty wise. I had been wearing them on and off for over forty years.
And I have already had 13 surgeries, but they gave anesthesia for them.
Next I guess is Osteoarthritis of my back, which I guess can also be called Spondylosis, or degenerative spine disease. It is a normal part of aging.
Then I have basilar joint disease of the hands/thumbs, one was fixed but the other needs to be. It is small joint replacement and takes four months from surgery, splint (until incision heals), and cast (six weeks) to occupational therapy (two months) onto complete healing. I have already had the left thumb done, but the right needs it, and I am right handed, thus my reasoning for the delay.
Another type is cervical stenosis, which is a narrowing in the spinal neck region, and if severe enough can cause quadriplegia.
I also have osteopenia the pre cursor to osteoporosis.
Last but not least is the most common, bursitis in my shoulders and hips.
That’s the one that seems to be interfering with my sleep and any exercise program I need to accomplish.
Listen to your body is what I was taught to teach, and unfortunately mine’s been yelling STOP!
But I did make it into the pool today, and it was delightful.
Walking will be on the agenda at the end of this month I do hope that the cooler weather will cooperate.
None of any of these problems will kill me in the near future, but I must confess are annoying just the same.

Thanks for letting me vent and clear any questions anyone out there may have since I do mention my ills on occasion.
I hope that was informative.

Good night to all and to all sleep tight, nah relax those muscles; too tight will hurt! LOL

PS Happy 10th Birthday today GOOGLE!

Saturday, September 6, 2008

And then there was one... But boy what a BIG one!

Hurricane Ike cannot seem to make up his mind on just how BIG he really wants to become. He was, at one time just one of the crowd of 4, with his cohorts Hanna, Josephine and 99.
At this writing he is now back to a Category 4 status hurricane at 135 MPH winds, and takes up quite a large area.
Predictors have him shifting his cone of uncertainty, and spaghetti plots a little more towards our west, out into the Gulf of Mexico off of our south west Florida coast, by about 150 miles. Actually, our meteorologists did that, but he's following what they are saying to the letter. Keep going, I say! But I would also like him to get plenty of wind shear on his way too, and disintegrate to nothing, to go on to harm no one.

But unfortunately, at that distance he will still cause us grief we are told from possible storm surge, training rain bands, and the fringe winds will be higher than Gustav’s that were only in the 30-60 mile an hour range when he passed out there, but he was much further away at 250 miles into the Gulf. Gustav was only a Cat 2 at that time and he was a wet windy problem for all of us.

Ike promises to be either a Cat 3 or 4 in approximately the same location as Gustav was off of our coast, but closer by nearly 100 miles, and so we can expect more rain and gustier winds that are more than likely what could happen at the least right now.

My wishing dilemma is if he doesn’t come here, where will he go?

My husband went out today to do the last minute errands alone.
I was exhausted I did not sleep well last night.
He returned the library books, topped off the gas tank and got some cash, also 2 more cases of water, things that we will use or do even if all is well.
I asked him if it was busy with others doing the same, and he said no it was rather quiet.

I thought others must be waiting for more proof of the danger, but then I heard on the news that Broward, and Dade counties were evacuating along with Monroe, the Keys.
But the Keys were under mandatory guest evacuations, because it does definitely look like a direct hit there.
But Dade and Broward are where Miami and Palm Beach are on the east coast, and they aren't even in the cone of uncertainty or targets of the infamous spaghetti plots????
What's going on?
Are we the California Chilin types... on the laid back coast, and they... the in a NYC minute ...worry warts?
I truly think not, I'm from NJ, and I'm worried, what gives????
Perhaps I'm just on info overload, and they have been busy watching the tennis matches, but they were delayed and then rained out by remnants of Hanna!

Oh well... one never knows does one.
I will definitely be here to keep whoever wishes to be posted with what we have happening here, you can be sure of that. As sure as my name is... oh well, let's just say you can call me Tobi.
As long as I know anything you will have my word that I will let you know too!

Good night to all, and tell me what you know, we could share TMI on many different topics other than weather, please.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Just Call me Lady Ambassador, or weather girl...

Hello everyone!
Today I was honored with the request for me to become an Ambassador for Arthritis, and I said yes.
Sounds important, huh?
It was created by the Arthritis Foundation to establish contacts between important members of Congress and the constituents, who care the most and know the most about arthritis, and that's me, so I've been told! My recruiter letter was from the main office in Florida and a woman who is in D.C. and the one in charge of the Arthritis Foundation Ambassadors.
I suppose it could be considered a very important job, but it is strictly a volunteer position, and entails very little actual time involvement a one hour conference call a month for briefings from the staff in Washington D.C., and a monthly advocacy assignment of one hour that helps build recognition.
My immediate thought is why don't more people do this? They really should.
After this month I will be able to tell you more. So far I am excited and praying that I don't let anyone down.
This was all a very positive and welcomed distraction from our weather situation.

Updates: Tropical Storm Hanna is hugging the east coast from the Carolinas all the way to New England with a lot of rain, winds in the 65-75 MPH range with much higher gusts; tidal surge is in their concern, as well as flash flooding.

Hurricane Ike is a monster still out in the Atlantic, but heading towards our Florida west coast, and is predicted to be a Category 4 with 135 MPH winds by then Tuesday through Wednesday afternoon. We are preparing for the worst even our local meteorologist is shuttering up his home this weekend. By Monday we will be informed on whether they will be evacuating any of us. My fear is to where???
The majority of the state is in the cone of uncertainty!
My anxiety is extremely high... wind shear is our only hope for the likes of Ike to be diminished. He is suffering a minimal amount now. I want him to suffer more.
What exactly is wind shear?
Hmm...Wind shear is the change in wind speed or direction with height in the atmosphere. Okay, now that was perfectly clear. All I really care about is that Ike gets a massive dose of it!
Stay tuned we will be in hyper mode for this info all weekend!

Good night to all, sleep tight while you can, and so will I.

Thursday, September 4, 2008

Pit Bulls don't wear lipstick, but Hockey Mom's do

That's what I learned last night watching Governor Sarah Palin speak.
Sarah Palin did it and boy she proved what a dazzling speaker she is!

She took the interest and negativity off her daughter's teen pregnancy, and put it back on herself where it rightfully belongs.
Her children were bright spots in the booth with Dad, Todd and Cindy McCain,also John McCain's Mom, along with Trac, Bristol, Willow, Piper, and baby, Tres the Palin kids. Hysterical laughter is what was caused when the cutie youngin Piper licked her own hand to flatten her new baby brother's doo. Levi, Bristol's baby’s daddy did look handsome but out of his element, definitely showed that he was a fish out of water. I think Whoopee Goldberg may have said it best that he looked so bewildered like he was thinking all I did was take the governor's daughter Bristol out on a date one time, and here I am. He was whirlwinded. Other View hosts also noticed about the amount of African Americans at the GOP convention… they counted only two that the camera kept in their sight as Governor Palin tore apart Senator Obama, and I noticed it too, and that was interesting.

So much was going on that I didn't realize until much later when Joe Biden and other Democrats reminded me that she didn't answer any questions or concerns we all had about the economy or foreign policy etc.
She did have answers for her home state to beef up oil drilling production, but why can't they do that now? Alaska is part of the United States, isn't it?

She played down too much the reality of any knowledge of the suffering of Senators Barack Obama and Joe Biden. Give me a break Sarah, play fair. We all know that Senator McCain was a POW during Viet Nam, and that he was a miraculous brilliant survivor of that. But they both did not just magically appear without living their lives with quite a bit of sadness and hard times, and picking themselves up after. It was definitely not all laughter and light to get where they are at this point.
And they have both well paid their dues in the game of life.Evident in their bios, which apparently she neglected to read.

The evening was definitely interesting.
And hearing what Governor Palin had to say was good to know so I could be that better informed.

Update on Tropical Storm Hanna: she has her destination planned now as the Carolinas, and will be possibly a Category 1 on her arrival this weekend.
From what I saw the Carolinians seem to have it also under control with their preparations from experience too.

Update on Hurricane Ike: he is massive, and one reporter compared him to Hurricane Andrew that was off the scale back in 1992 when it hit south Florida.
Scary, we helped after that devastation, and lived through Charley since not even as strong, but horrendous just the same.
If Ike is half as bad, and heading this way we are very much on guard for what may be coming at us as early as next Tuesday.
All we know so far is that we are still in that cone of uncertainty for Hurricane Ike, but not even the pros know for sure where he will be going!
So we are glued to the TV and weather sites so we will know what to do and when to do it.

Good night to all... the future is looking very tumultuous, stay tuned, it could be rocky ride.

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Hanna is no longer a threat to SW Florida

We are out of Hanna's cone of uncertainty! The presumed trajectory is for north Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas to watch out!
But Ike is now a hurricane and looks like we may have him in our radar by this coming Tuesday.

Anyway, in other news, Governor Sarah Palin, Republican Presumptive VP nominee will be speaking tonight.
I would hope that I will be able to stay awake.
One never knows does one?

All day I have been a bit under the weather.
Yesterday, when I got out of the pool I noticed an itchy rash brewing on either forearm, which looks like a mass of mini insect bites.
At first I though it might be rubbing from bathing suit along with the high Chlorine we keep in the pool due to all the rain.
This time instead of rushing to the phone to speak to a nurse who would just tell me to see the doctor I waited until we got the grocery for our normal shopping and I then asked the pharmacist about it.
No answer was given about what it could be, but I was told my assumption to take Benedryl was correct. The pharmacist also said to use cortisone cream, which I thought we still had at home, and we did. I did take the Benedryl and it made me sleepy enough to take an hour nap.
I suppose the 2 pill initial dose of Benedryl that I took at 1:30 P.M. is still working on me causing an unfortunate drowsy feeling. I did take the adult dose, and with this weight on me I don't think this should have had such an ill effect, but I am so tired right now I feel like I could go right back to bed.
When I was a skinny bilink I was very easily overdosed by adult recommended dosages even as an adult.
That is extremely important for parents to remember with children medicine works by weight, not just age.

I think I will say good night to all now...and maybe try somehow to wake myself up to see the convention later on.
In reality I would like to be very well informed before I make that final decision on November 4th.

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Enough is enough!

Gustav is nothing more than a tropical depression inland, and evacuees are still on hold on when they can go home.
Hope for their sakes it is soon, but electric is still out for nearly 1.5 million homes in the area of where the storm hit.
Miraculously the levees held!
Even though the actual date of completion of their fortification is 2011, and they were only 20% where they eventually will be.

Hanna is a tropical storm once again and is still supposedly heading to our east coast waters, and we should only be on the rim of her. More than likely her trail will be left from Thursday and Friday of this week. Ike is looking like the one for us south west coast dwellers to be watching, so far no one knows just where he may decide to go, possibly a Saturday landfall.

Josephine is way away at this writing and we are told not to be concerned with her at this time.

What do any of us make of this newest information about Governor Palin's 17 year old daughter Bristol?
We all know that Mom does NOT believe in SEX education in the schools, only abstaining, but why didn't she inform her daughter of this?
Kids will be kids, and that is why they should be taught how to deal with sex in a safe way, abstaining should be the first consideration of all youngsters, but if they do want to experiment they should have all the know how of what their responsibility is in doing an adult act, and should know how to prevent diseases like: STDS, AIDS, etc., and of course pregnancy!
Come on Mom, what are you living in the 1950's?
Even in the wild 1960's we were opening up the discussion on the S-E-X word.
They were called the Sexy Sixties!

I still think that this woman Sarah Palin is fascinating with a compelling history, and admirable attitude about loving her family.

Also in the news right now, which does concern me is the Casey Anthony case whose 3 year old daughter Calee has been missing since June, and the Mom, Casey only reported her missing in July.
The toddler is now presumed dead, evidence in the mother's car was tested for DNA and decaying tissue seems to make the authorities believe this is the case.

Casey was just 19 when she had her daughter, and her Mom, the grandmother was responsible for her keeping her daughter and not giving her up for adoption or even terminating the pregnancy although Calee's father was killed in an automobile accident prior to her birth.
Add in post partum depression, and would think you have the makings for disaster not unlike what the authorities are assuming.
NO wonder Grandma and Grandpa are hoping and praying THEIR grandchild has not perished at the hands of that Mother, their daughter just another unprepared teenage Mom not emotionally ready for what motherhood entails.
After the deed is done, children want to win back their parents respect and will more than likely do whatever those parents tell them to do whether they are ready or not.

Is this not something profound to think about?

Good night to all, and my mind is spinning from all this.

Monday, September 1, 2008

Fay, Gustav, Hanna, Ike and 99, oh my!

And a BIG, oh NO!!!!
We are in for it BIG TIME!
The cone of uncertainty is on high alert for us in Florida.

Thank heavens the disaster in New Orleans, and surrounding areas was not as severe as it might have been.

But now, again, we are under the fire of nature’s wrath.
By the end of this week two more weather systems are arrogantly showing their ugly sides.
And we may very well, more than likely be in their path.
Cones of uncertainty and spaghetti plots don't lie? Do they?
Hopefully they will be wrong.
Hurricane Hanna has become a category 1 today, and may soon be a 2.
Ike is still just a tropical storm, but could have a little bit of Hanna envy, and grow much larger by Saturday from non shearing winds.

And Invest 99 is named after that famed Get Smart agent so I am sure she will have aspirations to break that glass ceiling in the storm game!

We are in deep… you know what.
Sorry, but my Blog is rated PG.

Anyway, we are still ready.
But boy are we getting cabin fever.
Not much is going on.
Most are staying close to home and information.

On the upside, today was a pool day for me, and the days will be drier for the next few. So were a few last week. Taking advantage of that is why we live in Florida.
Boating is hazardous though due to the storms, but we don't go much with the high gas prices, although we have a boat with a four stroke engine, which is more economical.
The fall is best for boating and fishing, calmer waters and cooler temperatures then.

Tomorrow with no storms close I will try to discuss something else.

Good night to all, be well, stay dry, and be thankful for whatever you can think of.

Speaking My Mind: Which way will the war go?

Speaking My Mind: Which way will the war go? :   My eyesight is going again... in case you missed it... Netanyahu snaps back against growing...