persecution

I knew it would, in time. The way things have been going lately I figured something from history would repeat itself and sure enough there's short stumpy fatass over there in NORK getting ready to execute Christians. About the only thing different than them and Daniel in the lion's den is that they don't even get a chance to fight. Just be done with you! POOF! Because you believe that Jesus Christ was and is the son of God you are dead to me and a threat to my mighty powers of intimidation. And this dude has a woman even! There is something particularly ironic to me about the British wife of Syria's hit man. As I understand it (and I could be wrong) most of the troubles in the middle east are based on war between different sects or tribes all based on their picky set of rules. And of course they believe that heaven's just a suicide bomb away. Lack of respect for differing spiritual beliefs is the cause of a whole lot of conflict when, if we could figure out how to blend, as they say...we'd have it made. You don't have to believe what I do, and your opinions are your own. As long as I'm treated with respect and not yelled at by someone who's doing a bad impression of an even worse Fox news anchor, we're good. To Rush and all the other loudmouth grandstanders out there who have given an entire generation reason to distrust each other so that there is no true crossing the aisle Shut the eff up. That means you two girls as well. To believe in one god who is good and kind and loving is what sustains me. I am a Christian but I certainly understand why a lot of people aren't. That's their thing, not mine.

If the shoe fits, I say wear it and I'm all about being up front with what I believe. I've had so many tongue lashings by conservatives when trying to carry on an intelligent conversation that I can't begin to count the times. That is persecution as well. I believe that "the church" meaning any and all faiths and the state shall not mingle not even on abortion rights or other stuff. I believe that the majority of the wealth in this country is controlled by an elite few, much like a monarachy where the class system exists. A good many of them have made more money than Big ernie by hurting the environment and our world society as a whole. When our labor went overseas, that was our downfall. First was Mexico, then China. Hire people on the cheap and make bigger profits on Wall Street.

I believe that a justice system that has as many opportunities for corruption remains in place, the death penalty should be put on the top shelf. I have never understood how it's okay to kill somebody but we have to save a zygote. The death penalty does not deter crime, it encourages it as a way of life behind bars in privatized prisons. See what I mean? Nobody's in charge here but corporate. I do however believe and pray that once Holly Bobo's accused killer has gone through trial that he will be locked up for LIFE not just for her death but for his history of random violence and drug use. This piece of shit left jail just 9 days before he kidnapped her. Life in solitary. Forget about letting him off easy by putting him to sleep. The recent malfunctions with drug administration are pretty scary and gruesome even if they are guilty.

I believe that ever person, man woman or child, deserves to be loved for who they are, unconditionally just because. That's the kind of friends who will help you hide the bodies in the kudzu if it all gets to be too much. Ya'll better watch it or I might take up target practice from the water tower because we all know how easy it is to get a weapon these days. Thank you very much NRA. Oh, and Mitch McConnell? Two words. TERM LIMITS. So as I predicted the GOP has chosen the least of all their evils, a man who has moderated quite a bit lately to try and save his poor ass state. We shall see how that whole thing plays out because I remember horror stories from Kentucky about healthcare prior to the ACA. It's also where the land has been extensively damaged in the quest for coal. See corporate was in charge even then.

The difference between then and now is that we had the dream that someday life would be better and easier than our parents had it and for a while we did. The pace of change in our society over the 58 years since I was born has been phenomenal, largely because of better technology. Wouldn't it be a shame if we let our lust for power and $$ be our legacy.

Peace~

one for the road

Since I've learned my lesson on slushy driveways and the problems therein, I parked the Camry out by the road for a quick exit this morning at 6. All I had was my purse as I crept carefully through the mud and ice to the driveway (which also happens to be full of ruts and potholes. About halfway to the mailbox, my feet went out from under me but this time I landed on my knees and shook a couple of teeth loose I imagine. As I was driving home I remembered back to when we had a 15 inch snow in March when I was a kid. It was even too cold for me to wear my new sleeveless Easter dress up to the United Methodist church at Main and McGaughey. Several generations of my family have gone there for worship and fellowship and I am still a member, though not an active one. I take a lot of heat from folks who think regular church visits are what makes life complete and I beg to be different and worship Big Ernie in my own way. I was what you can call regular to a fault for all but about 10 years of my life until I decided that God would like it if I just slept in when I could and enjoy brunch with my parents because YOU KNOW I'll hear all about it from them. I've seen a conversation about who was sitting next to who last the entire ride home.

I'm seriously glad to see how little press is being given to Putin because frankly, now that the Olympics are over we have no business there. My friend Shannon posted a funny up in the middle of a heated discussion about his leadership and I knew then that it's the kinship that we get from connectivity that helps us to be more tolerant of others because we see so many other lives and their side of things. One of the maddest and saddest times of my life was when peaceful Muslims in our country were being harassed post 9/11. That's kind of like saying that because I'm a woman I can be "handled". In case you haven't noticed, I'm very obedient to a point but it doesn't take long for me to get there.

I'm going through House of Cards again at my leisure and picking up something different each time I re-watch a chapter. It has been said that this series is on the same level as Breaking Bad in acting excellence and I agree. Frank totally makes me want to kick ass and take names of corrupt government representatives. Russo breaks my heart because I've seen that story so many times in my life. Claire is hot and cold in a mixture that makes me want to scream cuss words. When I get tired of them I just go back to Nurse Jackie and Mr. White. Lionsgate has mad talent,yo.

I miss my BG and I know that we'll be hugging sooner rather than later so that's a good thing. Her absence has given me a clear picture of how BigE figures things out for us even when we can't begin to imagine that it's all okay. One of the things I ask myself now is "In ten years will this matter?" It kind of puts things in perspective for an obsessive worrier like myself. Personally I think we'll all be dead then or at the very least in zombie states because I'm not far from it right now and the evil Mr. Putin might attack us at any time. Or Michelle Bachmann could be president! Nah..the tea party has nobody to run because more and more republicans are choosing to be progressive and cross party lines. If they did? I'd probably see things in a whole different light.

Tomorrow is the first morning of DST and I don't know if my phone/alarm will fix itself so I've asked my friends at work to call me when it's time to drag my ass jump joyfully out of my warm bed with four dogs in it. Crazy dog lady? Ayep..it's me.

Keep the faith ^j^

blue on black

I was all looking forward to not having to do snow/car work this morning and I'll be damned if I didn't get stuck in the freakin' driveway. Austin drove the Camry up the hill for me yesterday when it was slushy but this morning at 5 was a different story. I had to get Shannah up out of the bed to push me with her Subaru and I wish I had been a fly on the wall with all that tire squealing and praying for traction. The Cadillac is still nose down in a mud puddle so I hope we don't need it anytime soon. I've been parking away from the entrances at work because I'm obedient like that (hush) and of course we don't have breakfast anymore and everybody wanted some biscuits so I headed out to my car for a run to the gas station and *bam* there I went on my ass on the ice, like really hard. That's my second fall for this particular 5 day period and third for the entire winter. My arm is killing me in a way that naproxen won't touch and I'm on a streak at work. TGIF means nothing to this old girl today.

Even the kids are bored and ready to go see their friends, kind of like they get during the month of July when the novelty has worn off and it's too hot to think about doing anything outside unless you have a pool. Bound for me, this has been the biggest ice storm in the history of our area and damn near shut the place down for about three days. Folks who didn't have a way to go were just screwed unless there was a taxi run by somebody who was equipped. It wasn't until I saw the pavement on day three under the bumpy slush tracks that we had made that I understood how really bad it was for a place that's not accustomed to dealing with that sort of thing. We ran out of salt, which wouldn't have helped anyway because the stuff was over 5 inches thick. I'm enough of a survivalist/conspiracy theorist to believe that the downfall of this country will be a collapse of the infrastructure that was so carefully built until money ran out was diverted to other "important" things like wars and CEO salaries.

My aunt is still in the ICU following hip surgery I presume. Another thing that really struck me about this week of dicey weather is how patient transfer is affected for area hospitals. EMS can't take a chance in iced over roads and the choppers aren't very safe either. When that happens it's hunker down and take care of the job at home. It's kind of ironic that she and Mo got stuck there which is where they used to live. Full circle ya'll.

the snice chronicles~day three

It did warm up just enough yesterday to cause, though not a total thaw by any means, some melting which should be cause for joy but Nooooooo. Six inches of snow and ice or snice as my friend Meredith named it, is a whole bunch of muck to drive through on bald tires. Which is how today's drama began with my "almost" stuckedness in the driveway to go to work. Yesterday was no prob...nice snow packed ice rink and the traffic was light. Our CEO was being Mr. Responsible and going around to pick up folks who either couldn't get there or were scared to try. One of them was our third shifter who lives in the Tatumville area where the Forked Deer river bottoms paint a picture of the real south. I'm sure there's kudzu around there somewhere as well. It took him several hours to get to her and back to the sawmill which is normally a much shorter trip. She was headed home from her other graveyard shift job only to find herself unable to go farther than a little church parking lot a bit away from the house. She called her son to come rescue her and left the vehicle there. Which is precisely what I did this afternoon.

By some odd stroke of spiritual intervention I rocked the Camry out of the driveway and got there with time to spare. One stop shopping at the drug/beer/everything else store on the corner and I was on a mission to get to my house after work. This is how that whole deal went...When I turned left from the road that was kinda' sorta' clear because the county maintains it onto Calcutt Farms Lane, aka Pecan Lane, the bald tires decided to teach me a lesson and refused to budge that car. At all. Stuck as a goose again! The Cadillac is mired in snowy mud now so it will have to dry out and oh my goodness. Thank God for roommates who are home when you call because Shannah came and rescued me in her all wheel drive Subaru and I said a silent prayer thanking the Japanese for that particular car. She and Boogers came to fetch grandma and we all got settled in the house when I couldn't find my phone anywhere. I called it with hers several times and remembered that I had dropped it in the snow a couple of times so I moved it to my coat pocket from my scrubs.

So, here I go with her phone in her car down the road calling my phone and praying to sweet baby Jesus that I don't get in that big ditch by the kudzu bank. Lord ya'll, they wouldn't find me 'til spring! Of course I found it safe and sound in MY car and all was well with that little fiasco. Probably the reason the whole day has seemed like a marathon is that I threw an F bomb this morning and the devil had his due with me. Or it could just because shit happens.

^j^

don't stop now

The commute to work this morning was uneventful because there was no traffic and the snow was still packed over ice for traction. On the way home was a WHOLE 'nother story. Most city streets had one lane clean in the center but everything else is a big mess. Plows are out now trying to scoop up what they can from today's slight thaw. It's a big fat honking goldarn mess as Doris would say. I wheeled into the parking lot of the bank and eased toward the drive through window as far as I could until I got stuck. Not to be outdone, I promptly left my car, walked up to the window with a check and almost scared the poor teller to death. I reckon she figured I was gonna' pull out a gun or something. She kindly said "You know we're open inside today" to which I tiredly replied "but my car's back there blocking the lane." Bless her little heart is what the lady surely thought. I managed to back most of the way out and get some speed up for a slushy exit.

The farm is beautiful when covered in the white stuff, especially near the river. The turkeys and deer get flushed out by rising flood water in the spring which is also a sight to behold. Crops don't get fully laid out until about June when the low lying fields dry up. I love driving down those dusty field roads to the river bed just to sit and reflect. Even as a child I did that, fascinated by the flow of water and how it can change over time. The Corp came through in the sixties and did some channels around the property which helped to keep us from getting flooded out EVERY year. Mom reminded me the other day of a spell when there was no electricity and they cooked on an outdoor grill in the snow! She may be old but she remembers everything and more. Just ask her who's kin to whose daddy'n'them.

My friend just stopped in for a visit on his way to work and we chatted about his lady and kids. He's a hard working guy who overcame a lot of childhood crap to grow into a man. Shannah's at work but will be off soon and scoop up the Gerber baby on her way home. After fits and starts and not many adjustments, we've blended the family quite nicely. Boundaries had to be set and options discussed. I talked to BG yesterday and she's dedicated to doing what's best for herself which is always good. That's all I ever really wanted for her because it took me many years to get there and I'm still not on some days. It is what it is and it was what it was. Move on ^j^

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snowbound

I should have known better than to leave the trusty old Camry under those oak trees in the side yard. Mid-afternoon yesterday it started icing like no tomorrow and when I got up this morning at 5 the snow was still falling. Problem number 1 was that all the doors were iced shut and I had no de-icer. Yeah, I know it was in the forecast but I forgot. After two phone calls to work to report my lack of progress and another fall which re-injured the shoulder that took the hit in December, I finally got the windshield clean enough to see so I put it in drive and...nada. Stuck as a goose. By this time I was figuring that it was Big Ernie's way of telling me to just say to hell with it and call in...which I did. It was the first time ever that I remember calling in because of the weather but I was truly stuck right here on this hill, much like when the big floods came. Only much MUCH colder. And I smell like vinegar because that's the only thing I had for the locks...that plus WD40.

Thank the lord I have roommates because it took three of us to get even one vehicle road worthy. At times like this I fantasize about having a garage or even carport. I've spent a lot of winter mornings scraping and freezing my ass off to report to work when all the teachers were sleeping in and drinking hot chocolate. I rarely carry an umbrella so I'm always dripping in the rain..you know that kind of Girl Scout gone bad in the "be prepared" department. Hey, I try but a significant icing event like this is enough to shut down entire cities. The western windows are all covered with ice as well and all the trees are gorgeous, especially when the sun comes out. Redbirds are looking around hungrily for the sunflower seed I neglected to buy.

My cousin called early today letting me know that my auntie has fallen and her hip is broken and requires surgery which can't be done today because of the weather. If I know morphine, it will keep her out of pain until the whole deal can be arranged. That's what it's about, peeps..do no harm. Mama told me that the mail would run because they do regardless of rain, sleet or snow. These teenage kids behind me in the middle room are doing their best to aggravate both their mother and baby brother. I suppose they're too old to be thrilled with a day off from school. Not!

I'm watching House of Cards for the second time and paying more attention. Those little side chats of Frank's with the viewer are kinda' creepy but a good indicator of what he's really thinking while he shovels the bullshit that is politics today. Nurse Jackie went to rehab and her recovery is interesting to watch, particularly in a healthcare setting where availability was questionable prior to computerized dispensing devices. There are counts at the beginning and end of every shift and every time something's missing there is a paper trail that leads from the machine to HR. I read the other day about a super dooper opioid being pushed by the big fat manufacturer in spite of objections by pain control specialists and others. We don't need something more powerful, just accountability. Benzos and opiates are freely dispensed by foreign doctors who are running money mills and sending the $$ back home for jihad. My least favorite of them all looks like a bad terrorist, smells like a French whore and has dropped the door on my face more times than I care to remember. Not.A.Gentleman.

Wherever you are I hope you're happy with being stuck there. My brother just barely escaped to the Bahamas through a 12 hour window before the St. Louis airport closed and is presently more than likely having an adult beverage and playing poker or blackjack. And then of course there's the concert with Kid Rock. Mama said I should have gone with him...next time I think I will! Knowing me I'd be too wound up to let loose and have fun. I reckon that's age creeping up on me. Anybody who works on my shouldr will get some free pecans, I promise. They're finally through falling now that it's March and there's snow on the ground. Jesus, what a long winter!

as the world turns

Oh.my.Jesus it's STILL winter and the ice is beginning to coat trees and bushes. I feel like a mole who's been burrowing around in the dark. Me and mama both hate to sweat and we reminded each other not to bitch when it turns off hot and humid. Which we totally will, of course. Because we can. Brunch today was at Mary Lou's where the dressing is almost as good as my mother's and the rest is great too. Real homemade pie ya'll. She's been in the restaurant business all her life and her two sons and grandson help run the show. Family tradition, so to speak. Mama wanted her strawberries over ice cream and they fixed her up in no time. My brother and his wife smile out from one of the pictures under the glass that includes generations of pilots. Mary Lou's b'friend Neal is quite a talented artist and his creations adorn the walls of the small cafe.

My ethereal friend Lorna has been in the keys for about six months an recently returned home because her mama's sick. It's really cool how two old gals from different west tennessee counties found that farming and pecans was something we had in common. I grew up knowing about everything that happens on one, not realizing at the time how much of the whole thing depends on the weather. Mama said she will never remember the crop where daddy gazed out the windows of our log cabin day after day watching it rot.You've never smelled stink unless you've been around a bunch of soybeans that got flooded. Ick and meh.


Got a call from brother today in Miami as he gets ready to board the cruise ship. His cabinmates are having a big time and there will most likely be lots of pics with Kid Rock et.al. Happy trails Bubba! Other brother of the younger sibling variety is bracing for several more inches of snow as that big winter storm marches across the map. Here's my theory: The Arctic areas are melting at such a fast pace that it's created a cooling effect as the vapor drifts around. Hey..it could be right, you know? Not until you try, will you know. I do know that we have no business getting all up in Russia's or Ukraine's or anybody's government disruptions. Our duty to the ones living now and those who are to come is to at least leave it better than we found it, trashed and burning. Meanwhile the bonehead Congress we've got is intent on cutting services to those who have served their country in the military and returned as a broken mass of PTSD. It was bad, ya'll. My friend Steven found himself and his partner on a search and rescue mission and they switched positions. Sean died as he watched the hatred of zealots rained down on people with western ways. Tell me again how it wasn't all about oil.

On the flip side there are various opportunities to be distracted and forget about it all and one of those for me is writing. I rarely plan a subject and try to work around it to the meaning of the title. Which brings me around to my grandma Lottie who used to watch her "stories" on BandW TV and get off on other folks and their drama. I suppose we still do that today only with reality shows instead of fictional bored housewives. As the World Turns was her show and Days of Our Lives was mine. At some point, I decided that reality can be what you make it and decided to say how I feel, when I feel it and sorry if you can't deal with it, but. Umm. Hyper-obedience was once a flaw in my character. As in "i went to therapy for that". Now I don't care who you are even if you're the mighty Putin, I WILL call you out if I see mistreatment of others in any form or fashion of you step on my last nerve. In that case it depends on how annoying you are.

Booger has had a great birthday weekend being passed around and patted like the seriously cute Gerber baby that he is. He is pretty enough to eat and giggles like the baby that he is when tickled or played with. Little dude stayed here in the office the other day climbing the bookcase while I listened to music and tapped away. I can tell that my vision is failing so this desktop will need to be replaced with something easier to maneuver. I mean it's a 6 year old overloaded Dell with my mother's vision assistance keyboard. All yellow keys!

The buttercup buds right outside my bathroom window will likely get bit tomorrow night but there's always more. I'm listening to inspirational music today mixed with blues, rock'n'roll and classical. Some country. Lots of classic rock. Music is a mosaic of what life has been to me, much like the stained glass windows that I mentioned in the forward for my book.

Peace ^j^