Why I'm Talking Today

I wanted to talk when our children were mowed down.  I wanted to talk when the uneducated and immovable objects in the congress wouldn't move.  I would like to say I wanted to talk when my mother went into the emergency room again during the holidays but it's become more of a hobby for her than an event in our lives.  I wanted to send out my Christmas letters and they're still on my desktop because I'm going there for the duration.

I'm so fucking sick of the word dysfunction. Is it because it sounds so clinical?  It's not clinical, it's a fundamental breakdown. I have too many friends from Canada and Europe to believe the lies about how we can't provide health care for everyone without the concessions our president has had to make in the face of so many obstacles.

My parents were teachers, my mother never taught full time.  She was the parent of 6 children.  My father was a teacher, coach and athletic director and worked up to three jobs to make sure we had what we needed and, when he could gather the funds, what we dearly wanted every once in a while.

They're elderly, I'm going to help care for them because I love them.  It's also the right thing to do.  That's what pisses me off about all this crap.  I don't have to run for re-election as a daughter.  But I treat my citizenship in that fashion.  That's why I'm a PCP (look it up, Lazies) and work my butt off for my causes.  I donate more than my husband would like to charity and progressive causes.  But try to find out the options available to your aging parents.  You'd better quit your job and make it a full time career.

This is sick. As sick as assault weapons and magazines that hold that can cut children in half. Sick as the fact that if our family lived just north of where they live now, we would be having family holidays and all the care my mother needed.  She would also be healthier because she would not have been allowed to have all the stupid and unnecessary procedures that she got because she could here in the good old U.S. of A.  Because old people are cash cows.

I'm also going home to try to inject some reason into this insanity.  It's beyond reason.  We need to sensibly care for our elderly and give them dignity and kindness.  We also need to allow them to escape life of pain, emergency rooms and the prospect of abject poverty to grasp at the last sucking breaths of life.  Enough.  With love and sorrow and loss and pain.  Enough.

THANK YOU, BOB COSTAS

I've long considered Bob Costas to be the poet of Sportscasting. I actually prefer listening to him during the months that entertain the boys of summer.  He describes my favorite sport with lyrical brilliance and when I hear his voice I know it's time to "play ball."

Many years ago I was at County Stadium in Milwaukee (now a parking lot that serves "Miller Park")  As I strolled through the crowd I passed someone with a face so familiar I just lit up with joy and said "Hey, how ya doing?"  I was struggling to come up with his name but couldn't.  He, in turn, grinned as if he'd known me forever and said, "Great!  Beautiful day."  I walked about 10 feet and stopped dead in my tracks.  I'd just said hello to Bob Costas.

Yes, he's an icon and has long been on my list of highest favor. But never have I been so impressed with a sportscaster as I was Sunday night, December 2nd, during halftime.  Knowing full well the blow-back that would ensue, Bob Costas spoke out about the tragedy of the Jovan Belcher murder/ suicide.  He stated the triteness of the "bringing it all into perspective" commentary and showed no fear in expressing what he knew was going to be a very controversial opinion.  (Why this opinion is controversial will always be beyond my grasp of reason and common sense.)

True to form, the right slammed him, misquoted him and even called for his immediate termination.  What's ironic is that Bob Costas, while expressing an opinion, was actually quoting a Kansas City Fox Sports writer - Jason Whitlock - whose commentary went much further than Costas' and whose article deserves a read.  http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/jovan-belcher-kansas-city-chiefs-murder-suicide-tragedy-girlfriend-self-leave-orphan-daughter-why-still-playing-sunday-120112

We need to make a serious assessment of our priorities and our attitudes.  Greed, misplaced hero worship, compassion deprivation, and our overall lack of sensitivity to violence is beyond disturbing.  We need to stand for something more.  We need to stand for one another.  And that's precisely what Bob Costas did last night. Yes, it takes courage to go out there and face those defenders on the football field.  It takes a lot more courage to take a stand, knowing full well that the repercussions could last for years to come and may well affect your career.

I'm proud of Bob Costas. I'm proud of Jason Whitlock. Seems to me that maybe these are the guys we should be emulating.

TOLD YA SO!!!

For all of you who thought I was over reacting to the absolute distraction and circus that the presence of Tim Tebow brings to any team stupid enough to sign him, please read the following editorial from “Fireman Ed.”  In case you don’t know who he is, he’s been a NY Fire Fighter for decades and has been a Jets fan and led the stadium in the J-E-T-S- JETS-JETS-JETS chant since 1975. 

Don’t get me wrong.  I’m not crazy about “Papa” John Schnatter and his “Obamacare” nonsense talk coming out after he teamed up with my quarterback, Peyton Manning (OH THANK YOU, JESUS) to sell pizza.  However, if it ever came down to it and somewhere down the road there was a controversy as to whether Brock Osweiler or Peyton Manning should be the quarterback of the Broncos, I will bet not only my life but the life of my parents, my son, my three dogs, three cats, and my pristine collection of Frank Sinatra LP’s that have only been played once (and that was to dub them onto cassette…yeah, that long ago) that if I wore a Brock Osweiler jersey to the stadium pizza fanatics would not make it impossible for me to enjoy the game.  They would belch.  Some of them would, sadly, undo their belts, and even more of them would eat another slice. But they would not cause me to leave the stadium, though I might have to move over a seat or two, if you get my drift.  Cause I’d be getting theirs.

However, when Josh McAsshole drafted Tebow, any Broncos fan who dared to support Kyle Orton or wanted any quarterback other than Jesus Pants...like one who could actually throw a pass...was met with everything from outright confrontation to biblical quotes that somehow showed that God designated the righteous place Tebow owned as the leader of our team. For Christ's sake, Pat Robertson went so far as to predict that God might even want Peyton to have another neck injury!  REALLY???  It was a three ring circus with a Te-bot who spouted platitudes, all to the elation of dogmatic idiots when it was supposed to be about FOOTBALL!!! 

So, I completely understand and sympathize with Ed Anzalone  I had to live with this crap in Denver... endless shit that was supported by the wacko religious right from Colorado Springs just chanting and churning.  Believe me, I feel your pain.  I know what you mean about loving your team but reaching a point where you just can’t take it anymore.  It’s a load of garbage.  By the way, Ed…Mark Sanchez is a good quarterback. I wish that the Jacksonville/Tebow trade rumor had been true - or even the hints about that tight end or running back stuff - it would have been the best thing that could have happened for everyone and it's actually what should have happened in the first place. 

So, after all this time, I am facing some of the biggest decisions I'll make in my life...real things to blog about... and what do I choose?  Football.  I know it's total avoidance.  However, when I read Ed's editorial I just felt so VINDICATED!!!  I think it’s because I took a whole lot of crap last year about not being a good fan, and not supporting my team and “bringing politics into it” when I WASN’T THE ONE DOING IT!!  

So as Ed - whom I've never met, but with whom I've sadly shared the Tebow experience - and I will attest, here's the absolute truth:  if you show up at a stadium that happens to house Tebow, God ain’t gonna getcha but the loonies will.  Here’s the link to his editorial.

http://www.metro.us/newyork/sports/article/1156831--guest-column-fireman-ed-steps-away-but-not-as-fan 

Timmy might continue to Tebow, but I Manninged and God ANSWERED!

JESUS LOVES YOU, THIS I KNOW

Well, I guess Tom was Bradying harder than Tim was Tebowing.  If we use the thought process that's been recently applied to Denver Broncos football, the results would dictate that on Saturday, January  14, 2012 Jesus liked Tom Brady a whole lot more than he liked Timmy.

See how silly this is?  Perhaps we can all get back to reality now.  God loves us all, Jesus loves us all, Buddha loves us all, Allah loves us all, and the Great Spirit loves us all.  None of them care who wins a football game.

Now let's watch the playoffs and the Superbowl and wait for Baseball season to start.

Why I Detest Tim Tebow

People are having a difficult time understanding why I didn't enjoy seeing the Broncos defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers yesterday.  Well, it all has to do with the Bronco's illustrious quarterback.

These are portions of an article actually written by another very right wing, Southern Baptist preacher who has a blog - so it's not some liberal I'm quoting here.

"The problem Tom Krattenmaker, the writer of the article, has with Tebow is the staunchly conservative brand of Christianity that Tebow promotes. He points out that Tebow takes off-season missionary trips to Asia under the auspices of his father’s organization, The Bob Tebow Evangelistic Association. According to Krattenmaker, the bottom line of that organization is: “Only those who assent to its version of Christianity will avoid eternal punishment.” He then cites two examples of the concerns he has with the organization. First, the ministry boldly states, “We reject the modern ecumenical movement.” Second, the ministry’s literature estimates that 75% of the inhabitants of the Philippines “have never once heard the gospel of Christ,” even though more than 80% of Philippine citizens identify themselves as Roman Catholic."

In another passage, he discusses athletes and thanking Jesus.  These are the points I keep trying to make.  What kills me about this guy is that he then reiterates his agreement with the bigotry of fundamentalism and  gets in another dig at Catholics not being Christian:

"Tebow can talk all he wants about the power of the Lord, but when it came time for him to choose a college team to play for, this home-schooled son of a missionary didn’t pick a small, Christian, ultra conservative, non-ecumenical school that barely had a football team. He picked one of the most secular ”football factories” in the United States. Think about that. There’s the power of the Lord, and then there’s the power of incredibly gifted teammates. It’s easy to shine for Jesus when the greatest disappointment you have to face in a season is the gap between winning a national championship or having to settle for finishing second in your conference and in the top five nationally.

"My son Ryan is a Christian. His belief in Christ is real and he is a great kid. He’s also a good athlete whose best sport might very well be football. However, through no fault of his own, he suffers from attending a school system that rates very low in sports. He never won a football game during his 5th-grade season. Likewise for his 6th. That 6th-grade team scored three touchdowns total. Ryan ran for two and threw for the other one. This season was his middle-school, 7th-grade season. He made all-conference, but his team won one game.

"Since Ryan and Tim Tebow both claim the same Savior, why does that Savior work so hard to get Tebow his wins and acclaim but allows Ryan to get gang-tackled season after season? I submit that Tebow’s natural ability and otherworldly teammates have much more to do with his athletic success than Jesus. I say that Jesus isn’t nearly as personally involved in the outcome of sporting events as Christian athletes want to believe. Put a batter up against a pitcher and the outcome will depend much more upon how good the pitcher’s stuff is than how often the batter prays.

"Please understand that I’m not trying to completely eliminate Jesus from sports. After all, His sovereignty knows no limits. And let’s face it, any Savior who knows the number of hairs on a person’s head has to be interested in all of life, right down to the minutest details. But we need to get back into the realm of reality on this subject. If an athlete wants to thank Jesus for allowing him the health to compete, that’s fine. If He wants to give Him praise for dying on the cross for his sins, that’s a form of witnessing. When it comes to final scores, though, he needs to keep his mouth shut about Jesus. If Jesus was really that actively involved in that department, Notre Dame would never lose a game. Remember, that’s the school with the famous “Touchdown Jesus” shrine. Oh, wait, scratch what I just said. I forgot, they’re Catholics."

Now you know that I'm not someone who is exactly "Rah, rah Catholicism" but the audacity of any fundamentalist who proselytizes on a belief system that picks and chooses who gets to go to Heaven just frosts my ass. You can go online to research a complete list of those they find unworthy for Heaven but why get yourself as worked up as I am?  I find these people to be evil and dangerous. My 85 year old Mother has been a devout Catholic from birth.  I sincerely doubt that Tim Tebow gets to go to Heaven and my tiny Catholic mother is going to Hell.


I also wanted to make clear why Tebow's presence in Denver does not bring me any joy. I will use my own faith to pray for the day when he and his Jesus Pants head back to Florida. Jacksonville can have him, I'm sure he'd be happy there.

GO KYLE

I've loved the Broncos for so long, I can't remember.  Being an old broad, I remember when teams remained the same.  Bart Starr, Max McGee, Paul Hornung, and Ray Nitschke were the Packers.  Jane screamed into a pillow.  We drove to Milwaukee to watch the game.  I grew up and moved around and lived in many places.  I paid attention to and, of course, became a fan of the Broncos when I finally realized that I really did live in Colorado and not Wisconsin.  HOWEVER...after what that little dipshit Josh McDaniels did to our Broncos and then walked out leaving us with "Jesus Pants" in the first draft...thank CHRIST for the Packers because right now I'm so over all of it.  Except this.  Kyle Orton has been disrespected and totally screwed by every one of his alleged teams.  Team.  That means you work together and you know this guy's talent.  But what do we do.  Cave in to nutwad religious freak fans.

Tebow.  He's allowed to be perpetually in remedial quarterback school.  Oh, goodie, he was asked to throw 9 times and he completed 5 of those passes, some of which looked like they'd been shot from a T-shirt gun.  His nutjob followers want to get Bill Maher removed from the air because he made fun of Timmy.  For Christ's sake...literally...don't you think God and Jesus (Father and Son Team) have more important issues to deal with that are a bit more important than if Timmy actually throws a spiral?  I used to mourn the end of Football season.  Now I can't wait.  Especially if the Packers repeat.  Packer Superbowl, Come on Rockies and Brewers.

My sister, who lives in Appleton, Wisconsin, said she kinda likes Tebow.  I told her that I'd be glad to trade. She wasn't enthusiastic about that prospect.  It's almost Midnight.  I don't want Tebow to be my last thought of the year.  There are myriads of more important subjects.  Good night, 2011 and last year's crap.  Here's to 2012, health, love, a Walker recall, and a better year for us all.  Good night and good luck.

Well, I was right.  All that had to happen was for the Broncos to meet an elite team that watched college football and had a mediocre defense and so much for Tebow magic.  Good Lord...pun intended, Tesus...Kyle Orton, who got traded in lieu of Jesus Pants just helped the pathetic Kansas City Chiefs screw up Green Bay's perfect season.  I've seen Kyle Orton throw a football.  He's a quarterback.  I'm just happy that it came to fruition before we got to much further into the "playoff hunt."

Really...Tebow is allowed to screw up at least three quarters and run around like a crazy person to make up for the fact that he can't throw.  Timmy, Mommy and Daddy can't move you to another district any more so that they'll let you play the position you want to play.  You're a freakin' tight end.  Go get some joy and success and glory and quit trying to be the one thing you are not.  You're not John Elway and you're sure as Hell not Bart Starr.  Does the name Shannon Sharpe come to mind? Game over.

WELL, WE'RE WINNING

Nobody seems to understand why I'm not mesmerized by fucking Tebow Magic.  We're winning.  That's all that matters.  Really.  The fact that we have the Focus on Other People's Families wingnuts doing ad buys and Timmy Boy doing book promotions on Hannity's show shouldn't piss me off?  Add to that Underpants Jesus' response to Jake Plummer's observation that more people might be inclined to enjoy his accomplishments if he weren't doing ad-nauseum shout outs to Jesus.  Jesus Pants' response was that if you married a woman you wouldn't just tell her you loved once a day but every moment possible and that's his relationship with Jesus.  My response to you, Jesus Pants, is that I respect that but tell it to Jesus and not all of us!!

I'd like to see what would happen if one of the many NFL athletes who are black Muslims would say: "I just want to thank Allah for all His blessings."  The guy would receive death threats!  I would have said for Christ's sake but it's too ridiculous!

I don't freaking care if we're winning. Even if the brainwashed tight end wanna-be quarterback could actually complete even 30% of his passes, the crap he brings with him to this part of the world when we have to deal with Dobson's crew in Colorado Springs is intolerable.  I will never be a Tebow fan until he's one of two things:  1:A tight end or half back and not the face of the Bronco's; 2: Gone.

I don't care if we're winning.  His crew hurts people. They're  dangerous, right wing nut cases and they already have too much power. I shudder to think of the ad buys if the Broncos actually get to the playoffs.

Something I've wanted to say for over 12 years

FUCK DICK CHENEY.

WISDOM AND POLLS

Well...I go to play trivia with Jimmy (my son) every Wednesday.  It's a lot of fun and gets the old broad out of the house.  One of the weekly categories is "the weekly news."  This time the question was "In a nationwide poll, which entity, higher than the President, polled only 52% in popularity?"

Jimmy stabbed at an answer.  Nobody got it.  The answer was "God."  Of course, in my inimitable fashion, I responded "OH MY 48%!!!"

However, that tells you exactly what polls can tell you. NOTHING!!

Any poll that says "The American people care about the deficit" is complete crap.  We did this crap before...during the administration of Franklin D. Roosevelt.  We listened to the deficit hawks.  Hoover did this before Roosevelt.  Remember Hoovervilles?  If you're too young, read about it.

We need some balls and some deficit spending.  Yup.  Spend, spend, spend.  Get people to work building roads, high speed rails and high speed internet in rural areas of this country.  We need our President and our administration to counter the idiots in the Tea Party and put some real macro economics into place.  Fix the roads and the bridges and the tunnels and the phones...put people to work with good wages.  I'll bet that would poll pretty well.

Every real economist will tell you it's what is needed.  Even the conservatives if they freaking wake up.  Because even when the rich people and the corporations get everything they want, if people who are supposed to buy their shit don't buy their shit, THEY WON'T BUY THEIR SHIT AND THEY WON'T GET RICHER.

DUH.  POLL THAT.

Politics of conservatism is a bunch of lies.  Put people to work.  Poll that!!

AND SO IT GOES AGAIN

This will be short and bittersweet.

I was just in Wisconsin for 10 days to spend time with my family.  I would trade everything I have to be with my parents.  They are aging and they need someone who wants to be with them.  It's not possible right now and the rest is just sad.  I miss being there and I don't know how to fix it...YET.

I miss talking nonsense with my Dad and sharing political views with my Mom. I miss petting the head of their old, sweet dog, Honey and feeling her happiness when I touch her.

I miss everything about my sister, Jane.

My brother Andy and his family, Jennifer and Taylor took me in and treated me like royalty.  Oh...and let us not forget the ever fantastic Wally...who I understand still looks for me at the top of the stairs.

I am here and I am there.  I hope that they just know that there is nothing in this world that I cherish above them.  If there is a way, I will get back to them.  My family. My first and forever love.

IN KEEPING WITH THE THEME

You know what really makes me tired?  Republicans that get to screw their brains out and keep their Senate positions (Like Vitter from Louisiana) and then Anthony Weiner has to resign because he acted like a dumb-ass with twitter and other social media. Never touched anyone, by the way.

Newt Gingrich is running for President again, even though he has screwed over more women than a moneybags businessman in a red light district.

Why is it that when Democrats screw up they may as well lie down and wait for the bus while Republicans do tap dances in Minnesota bathrooms, solicit underage pages, and pay off their victims with money from their freaking parents but we don't hear about that ad nauseum.  But Anthony Weiner, a champion for the disenfranchised and the elderly and those who don't have a voice gets hosed because he exercised crappy self control.

I'm tired of the double standard.  Tom DeLay is indicted and gets to appear on "Dancing with the Stars" and is convicted and still does interviews as though he's a credible pundit on ANYTHING.  Sara Palin quits halfway through her governorship because she's not getting all the attention she wants and she's a media get!  Out of wedlock grandchild, manipulation scandals...all that stuff is forgiven again and agian.

I'm so tired of giving a shit when nobody else does.  I'm so tired and I'm not yet ready to say that the Reagan plan of destroying education and dumbing down this country so that it could be convinced to be ignorant and afraid has come to fruition and it's too late.  I fear this but I'm not yet willing to concede.  But, BOY, am I tired.  Add to that corporate personhood and it's just overwhelming.  I have health issues.  It's tough enough for me to keep up with recycling and now I have all this crap to take on plus it's an election year.  And I've never had a vacation.

Multiply me by all the people who still read, pay attention and care.  Just think how tired we are - while the ignorant just worry about crossing against traffic in the median and getting to Walmart.  Just like the Neo-Cons hoped they would, so long ago.

"Good night and good luck."  Two of my heroes used that sign off.  And then my favorite from Kurt Vonnegut:  "And so it goes."

TIRED, TIRED, TIRED

I am one of the most positive people in the world.  Ask anyone who knows me.

I'm just tired.  Tired of bucking everyone else up. Tired of being so exhausted that my couch hates my ass.  Tired of the mean world we live in and the same medium that allows me to have this blog relentlessly pursues every nasty thing they can find about anyone who dares to show their face in this new cyberspace.  And you wonder why the only pictures on my facebook page are one photo of me with my friend's dog and other than that, photos of Miss Piggy and Jabba the Hut.

I'm tired of getting tagged as anti-American because I'm a liberal.  But by God, I am.  Just so ya know, Freaking Abraham Lincoln would have been annihilated in this day and age.  And he was a REPUBLICAN.  For that matter, Dwight D. Eisenhower and, for that matter, even Richard Freaking Nixon could not pass the muster of modern day conservatives.

I have a quote for you and then I'm going to bed because, if you haven't gotten the gist by the header, I'm freaking tired.  So here...I wish I'd have said it:

"The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness." -- John Kenneth Galbraith

AMEN.  I'm going to bed because, in case you didn't figure it out, I'm tired.

NOT A HYPOCHONDRIAC

Well, if anything ever convinced me that I am NOT a hypochondriac and I do NOT like the attention of medical people it was a sleep study I did about a week ago.  Now I won't complain about the people at this place because they are top notch, professional and kind.

However, anyone who can endure more than 15 minutes in a CPAP is a stronger person than I.  If I could be even stronger against torture (water-boarding) that experience did it for me.  I would have been willing to confess to dancing naked last year in Times Square if it meant they wouldn't continue trying to put that thing across my face.  My panic attack and subsequent discussion with the facility made it clear that I would not ever be using that device.

So, I'm on oxygen at night.  We'll see if it helps.  Also lots of other crazy stuff.  Getting old so sucks.

However, I'm here, the flowers are blooming, Jimmy has a great job and the babies are fine.  So I have another day, yard work, dogs, cats and the Colorado Rockies in a day game.  20 minutes at a time.  That has become my life.  And so it goes...

HAPPY NEW LIFE

I am a great aunt.  That goes without saying, but I am also truly a great aunt.  My nephew, Ben, was proudly witness to his beautiful wife, Kathy, doing all the work in bringing Kimberly into the world.  That's the only way I can put this because, I'm sorry, guys walk around all proud while the women just begin their journey.  I love them all and I am proud and happy.  I haven't missed the honor that I believe Ben bestowed upon Grampa (my Dad) in his daughter's name.  If I'm reading too much into it, I'm still happy for everyone. I have a great love for the name Kimberly for many reasons.  Perhaps the stuff of future blogs.

I wish that beautiful new life the hope of a beautiful new world. I will leave it at that for now.  

VICARIOUS JOY

I have long known that my son was exceptional.  How I had to fight for that is another story for another time.

He has lived through Hell for the past several years and now is shining through at a career that not only honors his talent but his joy.

When he was a kid, I took him to as many big amusement parks and rode the bestest and newest roller coasters with him.  We had such a time.

Now he's promoting an amusement park in downtown Denver that has existed for over 100 years.  121 to be exact.

He's working with and within a quality organization and he is doing what he knows best...taking initiative and driving it home.

I'm as proud as I can be and I remember well being his age and living your joy.

I can survive anything when I know my son is happy.  He has earned his stripes and gets to ride a roller coaster any time he wants.  As the younger people say..."Sweet."

I'M MADELINE KAHN

I'm tired.  Some friends and I were laughing about that absolute genius scene in "Blazing Saddles"...that's how I've approached life.  Find a way to make it funny.

I'm truly tired.  I've never gone on a trip that hasn't involved work.  I've had one "vacation" where I stayed home for 2 weeks during the Christmas holidays back in the late 80's when I worked for the county court.  I spent the time working on music for my other job and cleaning.  That was my big vacation of a lifetime.

I will demand vacation time this year but I don't know what I'm going to do with it.  I wish I had a lot of followers because then I'd do some sort of contest with great ideas.

I hate Vegas, I don't gamble, I am too fat to appear in public in a swimming suit so anything on a beach is out of the question and then, my husband is on location somewhere between Louisiana and Texas.  I'm too embarrassed about how fat I am to go to a spa because I know fucking well that those people talk amongst themselves after and I can only imagine how they laugh at how disgusting some of the clients are and I would definitely be one of the points of ridicule.

I would like to go somewhere and disappear.  Fade into the life of the people in some distant place and not worry about anything else.  But how in the world could I do that?  Who will take care of things?  I'm the go to person for everything.

I'm tired.  Since so very few people read this, I can safely say that if you happen upon this post, chalk it up to the fact that I have nowhere else to go with my bitching.  Nowhere to rant so I send it out to the universe.  If any of you have a great idea, all you out there in the netherlands, send it to me.   In the meantime, I'm painting the front door tomorrow for Mother's Day.  My gift to me.  Somebody's got to do it, it looks like crap.

OUR AMAZING WORLD

Sunday night, "The Celebrity Apprentice" was interrupted by the news that our incredible Special Ops Navy Seals had eliminated Osama Bin Laden.  I sent messages to both my son and my sister, Jane, who were otherwise occupied and both were astonished.

I have had so many vacillating feelings...to celebrate the death of another seems somehow so macabre.  However, the peace in knowing that this person whose demented bastardization of the Muslim faith can no longer spread his hate is tangible.

So I honor the incredible military who executed this necessary mission.  I honor our brave President who chose to attempt something that, if it failed, could end his chances of a second term and forever mar his record.

Today was poignant and clarifying for me.  President Obama's visit with the 9-11 families and the stories that I heard from them throughout the day gave such merit to the mission.  The death of Bin Laden opened up a wound again...in a very important way.  It was the first step to true healing.  It was as if a poisonous hornet had been allowed to fly free and sting people again and again and again and nobody would do anything about it.  Finally, a President and an incredibly brave force took a giant fly swatter and killed it.  The evil insect was dead and could never again sting or wound or kill another soul.

I don't celebrate his death but I celebrate his demise.  I am so very happy that he is gone.  By the way, the President who got him was an allegedly "soft on defense" Democrat.  "W" said "I don't know where he is...frankly, I don't think about him..."
Well, Obama was still thinking about him.  He got him.

And now, being my Father's daughter, I was watching my Colorado Rockies play tonight and Todd Helton, who has spent his entire career as a Rocky, surpassed Lou Gehrig's record for all time doubles.  I cried again.

Both sets of tears were real and valid.  Tonight, as I lay down my head I'm proud... Proud of my Country, Proud of my President, Proud of my kids out there fighting to protect us, and proud of my baseball team.  It doesn't get much better than that!

SPRING

I found out recently that my pal, McCurry had suffered a fall.  His steadfast and loving partner, Margie, sent out an after email.  I sent a reply to her to also share with him...yes, himself the elf...my partner in crime for so many years back when I could hop a hedge or hide behind a truck to watch the results of a practical joke.  What a time.  Since McCurry remarked (upon his release from the Hospital on Easter, about noon-time) "I rose a little later than Christ," I thought I should share with all of you my feelings about my now octogenarian friend and his always beautiful and loving partner.  So...a dissertation on friendship and spring to my beloved friends:

So you are home and so you will heal.  Healing, I might add, in the appropriate season for such things...a plant that I believe is gone and one day I sigh and walk out with a trowel only to find that it has suddenly shown green shoots. 

 

A rose that withered in the late autumn begs one tiny red sprig that says "cull me back and I'll rise agin' fer ye."  I decided to "Irish" that line especially for the two of you...you two perennials of my life. You live in me and dwell in my heart every day. 

 

My love for you is not the tiny sprig but the deep root that reaches through the dry soil to a well far beneath.  New plants can't find it.  Only we old established thorny buggers can survive rain, sleet, drought, ice and wind.  We have weathered the storms of sparse and abandonment, hunger, fear and emptiness.  We have also reveled in the warmth of sun, the healing rain, abundance and joy. 

 

We need no churches for they are the houses of the pretty annuals.  Not undeserving of our love, I give them home and house every year and they bless and adorn my life for a while.  They are flirtatious and more than pretty...they capture jealous eyes with their glorious but temporary beauty. 

 

But then we come to you.  The perennials...crocus that rise through the snow.  Daffodils that bust out when they should be shivering and Viola (Johnny Jump Ups) that just pepper the place with their tenacity and determination to bring one more bloom, one more burst of color into my life.  Not to mention big fat tulips that holler to the bees to get over here and take care of my apple trees while you're at it.  That is you.  You, you, you, my perennial forever friends. 

 

In this glorious season of life, take slow and tender breaths, let your nose lead the way so that the scent of spring will lead you into one more summer of joy.  I love you beyond any words that I could write.  You have given me more than you will ever know.  I love you.

May we all have friends to love as I love mine.  A day late but not a bit short:  Joyous and Happy Easter, Glorious spring to us all.