Mistletoe! ::snicker::

This Christmas I'm putting mistletoe in my back pocket so that all the people who hate me can kiss my ass! ::smile::

BIGOTRY makes me SO SICK!

In 2007, Ryan Skipper was stabbed to death in Central Florida because he was gay . In 2009, two men were found guilty in separate trials of butchering Ryan, and were sentenced to life terms in state prison. Prosecutor Cass Castillo and Circuit Judge J. Michael Hunter powerfully and explicitly stated in a Bartow courtroom that Ryan Skipper was murdered because he was gay. (Produced by Vicki Nantz; more info at www.RyanSkipperDocumentary.com.)

STAND UP AGAINST HATE! Rest in Peace dear Ryan! You're now in HEAVEN where there is NO HATE!

A Man as Big as a Barn...

The man who is "big as a barn" (starting at around 3:23) is one of my best friends (we've been friends for more than a decade). Scottie is a doll (and isn't even close to being as scary as he looks in this video ~ just don't piss him off.. hahaha). Great song too!

Can you say 6'6" Gentle GIANT? LOL
Who needs a big stick when you Scottie as your friend? ::snicker::

There's the Door....

The way I see it is, anyone who doesn't respect OUR President (Our Commander and Chief), and doesn't like the way OUR Country is being run, is welcome to leave. No one is keeping you here, are they? I'm sure you'll find another Country better to your liking! ::big toothy grin::

Ya know, folks fuss about immigrants. They preach that if they don't want to Pledge Allegiance to OUR Flag, and they don't want to learn OUR language, then there's the door, don't let it hit your hiney on the way out. Well, isn't the disrespect that some of our natural born citizens showing the same thing?

After all, if you're so gosh darn unhappy, why stay? Life is way too short!!!

Just my opinion. ::smile::

The Conservative Mind

I saw this on another blog and felt it was worthy of reposting! No truer words ever spoken. The author, New England Indy, says that it belongs to us all and to feel free to pass it around. :-)

THE CONSERVATIVE MIND

I came to ponder one day on reflection
The conservative mind and their lack of direction
I wondered how people that should be united
Would need to have guns to intimidate and frighten
It came to me quickly and so very clear
That the conservative mind is too full of fear
They fear terrorist and Marxist and socialist and such
They fear liberals who fought for their right to be nuts
They fear black men and brown men and red men and yellow
They fear gay men and lesbians who are gentle and mellow
They fear progress that will better the life of us all
They fear truth cause the truth only leads to their fall
They fear teaching the public the power of knowledge
They fear all the people that made it through college
They fear that a brown girl is now in the SCOTUS
And that SCOTUS could not keep a black man from POTUS
They fear Randi and Keith and Ms. Rachel Maddow
These conservatives are even afraid of their shadow
It must be a bummer to live in such fear
To be such a coward that the truth can't show clear
They promote war and death as they claim they're pro life
Yet they won’t volunteer to fight in such strife
They're wrapped in a flag with a bible for show
But will never adhere to the words that bestow
They will claim that they worship the word of the Lord
While defending the need to apply waterboard
How could we wander within eight short years
From a beacon of freedom to a cauldron of tears
Conservatives need to go back to their mantra
Before Rush and Beck and Fox propaganda
It isn’t to late for the right to repent
For the lies that they spew and their hateful intent
Conservatives seem to care more for their pets
Than the strife of our homeless or the health of our vets
They protest government intrusion in life
Unless your a lesbian in love with your wife
Or a gay man who just wants to be with his lover
Or a woman too weak to give birth to another
Compassion is void in the conservative mind
Where women don't speak, they just stand behind
Their husbands that stray from their marriage vow
While claiming that they are holier than thou
So, What can be said to the conservative mind
Where logic and reason has been left behind
There’s one biblical saying that will always hold true
Do unto others as they would do unto you.

–By New England Indy

NOTE:

New England Indy says:
Awhile back I posted a poem in progress... I have to go but I will leave you with the finished product. Take it as your own... post it... pass it around... It belongs to us all.

Obamacare!

::chuckle::

All NAY votes came from REPUBLICANS!

UNBELIEVABLE!
30 male Republican Senators defend huge corporations against the plague of gang-rape victims... JUST SICKENING!

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Rape-Nuts
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Ron Paul Interview

Hurricane Hazel

Super Hero ::chuckle::

When there's a big event, the nation watches CNN over FOX

The right wingers have been so pumped up over the ratings FOX News has been getting ever since President Obama took office. It's as if America immediately became winguts in their minds, but the numbers don't bear that out.

Let's forget the primaries and speeches during the campaign season, when CNN and MSNBC completely trounced FOX. All we have to do is look at the huge ratings Michael Jackson's memorial garnered. Over 31 million Americans tuned in, so let's take a look at the breakdowns:

Nielsen did not break out averages for the broadcast networks, but CNN was top dog among cablers, averaging 5.3 million viewers -- more than Fox News (2.23 million), MSNBC (1.39m) and HLN (377,000) combined.

Once again, CNN cleaned their clock on cable when a major television event has taken place. (The MJM might not have been your cup of tea) If Americans were so in love with FOX, then why didn't they dominate the MJ ratings? FOX had as much coverage as any other network. Answer: Because average working families aren't as into politics as heavily after a general election and when they do dial in, it's not to FOX.

The wingnuts and teabaggers are tuning in to see the Becks of FOX in greater numbers than normal because it's a freak show/hate-fest, but it's not representative of America. They can shout as loud as they want about ratings, but the numbers don't lie.

Amen to Standing TOGETHER As ONE!!!! Rest in Peace dear Michael!!!

"Heal the World, make it a better place for you and for me, and entire human race!" Maybe if FOX, and people like Limbaugh and Beck , spent less time on their hate-fest and more time trying promote the positive, maybe our world would be a better place.

Miss California ~ Carrie 'the Hypocrite' Prejean

Irony is a funny thing. The wingnuts jumped on the 'biblically correct' Carrie Prejean's bandwagon in support of this 'good little Christian girl' and her views on same sex marriage. They preached about her morals and her values and how the 'immoral liberal left' shouldn't condemn her right to free speech. That of course was regardless of the FACT that Miss USA is supposed to UNITE, not DIVIDE... and the ending of her response to Perez's question in the Miss USA pageant definitely caused a strong division.

Heck, the right even lifted her to icon level right along side Sarah Palin.

I wonder if the uber conservative holier than thou right are now eating their words.

Little Miss Morals posed half naked just a year ago! Now she claims she did it when she was 17 (a MINOR I might add). Regardless of when she did it, she failed to disclose this to the pageant. Big No No!!

Morally righteous Christian girl my hiney!!! I'd say hypocrite is more befitting.

Rush Roasting!

RL can dish it out, but I seriously doubt he and his cult followers are going to take this well!!!
LOL
Priceless!!

Now this is what I call a PEACEFUL Gathering

Black/White
Gay/Straight
Muslim/Christian
Young/Old

No Intolerance. No Hatred. No Bigotry.

Just Beauty, Peace, Happiness, and Fellowship. Life IS for Sharing!

Wouldn't it be a glorious sight to behold if the next mass gathering of individuals that is held within our Country was one that promotes LOVE and PEACE?

This next video is the public reaction from T-Mobile Sing-along when 13,500 people with 2,000 microphones descended on Trafalgar Square at 6pm on April 30th, 2009.

BIGOTRY

Bigotry by definition:

Random House Dictionary: Stubborn and complete intolerance of any creed, belief, or opinion that differs from one's own.

Webster's Unabridged Dictionary: The state of mind of a bigot; obstinate and unreasoning attachment of one's own belief and opinions, with narrow-minded intolerance of beliefs opposed to them.

I grew up rather sheltered home, the proverbial Leave it to Beaver household if you will. Mom stayed at home and tended to the house and children. Dad worked to put food on the table and keep a roof over our heads. I truly didn't know that there was bad in our world since all I had ever experienced was love. I didn't know that women were beaten; that children were neglected and abused; that bigotry existed for anything other than race.

I wasn't raised to see color, religion, sexual orientation, or political affiliation. I was raised to see the beauty that radiates from within. After all, that is all that truly ever matters. Our shells grow older, our beliefs are redefined, our lives take varying paths, but one thing remains a constant, and that's how we treat our fellow man.

My personal quote is, and will always be: How you treat others at their most vulnerable defines you!

People have the right to voice their opinions without the fear of condemnation. Unfortunately, when bigotry is thrown into the equation, people are condemned for their opinions. Sure, I've been just as guilty as anyone when it comes to using disparaging words towards another human being. More often than not, it's in self defense though. Call me immoral, I'll lash out. Call me faithless if you choose, but you don't have that right! Stone and condemn me for my political affiliation, that's your right, as a bigot, but I shall not do the same to you. You have the right to disagree, after all, that's what makes a great debate. But you don't have the right to spew a cesspool of hatred towards me because of my beliefs!

The veil of bigotry is comprised of many layers, none of which are attractive!

I may have grown up naive and oblivious to all that is ugly within our country, but my eyes have been opened. I can now clearly see what has always existed. The picture may be marred now, but its beauty is still there... I just have to look towards it, turning away from that which is vile!

A good friend of mine recently taught me about toxic friendships. She gave me the tools necessary to make educated choices as to who my healthy relationships were, and who were those who contained toxins. Just like the flu will kick you in the butt, the incessant spewing of evil will also knock you off your feet. Why would one continually, and knowingly, expose themselves to a virus?

Real life can take a huge toll on a person, but when you've got supportive friends and family, it makes a difficult journey a little more tolerable. The flip side of that comes from those with narrow-minded intolerance for any viewpoint differing from their own. They'll beat you down and gain pleasure in doing so! It's difficult to cleanse your system of toxins, but it's necessary for your over all well being. For me, the cleansing process has already begun, and I'm feeling much better because of it.

Sometimes you've got to pull a few weeds to expose a gorgeous landscape! To all who read this, rid yourself of any hatred you may have inside, and open up to the beauty that surrounds you. We're all truly blessed!!!

FOOTNOTE: I wrote this a while ago and toyed with ever even posting it. I'm not delusional enough to think it will change one darn thing, nor do I think it will open anyone's eyes. It's just something I decided that I needed to post.

A Little Something for Aunt Sue

*snicker*

The Promotion & Hypocrisy of Teabagging

Happy Easter and Many Blessings!!

This video gave me goose bumps and even brought a tear to my eye. Sharing it with each of you is my Easter gift! There is a lesson to be learned....

Happy Easter to each of you and many, many beautiful blessings!!
Much love and respect! ~Angie ^i^

UPDATE: Unfortunately they have disabled ALL embedding of the videos showing Susan Boyle singing. Here's the link so you can watch and enjoy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY

My Worst Nightmare!!

One day, about 2 years ago, I hear my son calling my name from his bedroom. It's rather faint, but he's still hollering for me. Mind you, my kids NEVER yell for me, it's rude, so I knew something must be up.

"Mommmm"
"Mommmmmmmmmmm"
"There's a SNAKE in my room"
"Mommmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm"

I get close, but not too close, to his bedroom door and ask him what he said.

"There's a SNAKE in my room"

I feel the freak out starting. I grab a phone.. look at it.. wonder who to call! I start doing the "I'm TERRIFIED of SNAKES dance" in the kitchen (it kinda looks like I'm jogging in place but my knees are going way up and my arms are shaking frantically). Then I run outside, look around, trying to see if there is some human life form out there who can rescue us from this dismal situation!!! There's no one in sight! I run back into the house for a second, then I run back outside. I look across the street at the neighbors house. Jim and Connie lived there until about two weeks prior to the SNAKE day. Jim ALWAYS rescued me when things happened, but they sold their house to these new folks. Folks I didn't know. I run to the house of rescue anyway, thinking... well... maybe they're like Connie and Jim!

KNOCK KNOCK 'DOORBELL RING' KNOCK KNOCK

This man answers the door and before he can say a word, I, speaking a million words a minute, blurt out:

"I know you don't know me but ARE YOU SCARED OF SNAKES??? I live across the street and Connie and Jim used to save me but they're gone now and you're here and I need your help! There's a SNAKE in my son's bedroom, HELP ME PLEASEEEEEEEEEEEEEE????"

Keep in mind, I'm still doing this psychotic "I'm TERRFIED of SNAKES dance" while I'm talking to this man who I had NEVER met. He must have thought I was nuts!!! He told me he wasn't afraid of snakes and to just let him put on a pair of shoes and he'd be right over. I told him to let himself into the house.

I run back home to see if my son (who is trapped) is still alive!!! Not only is he alive, but he made it out of his bedroom. YAY!!!! The snake was in a shoe behind his bedroom door. It had been hissing at him for a while before I heard his faint YELLS for me!!

My neighbor comes in the house, goes into my sons room to access the situation, then comes back out...

"Do you have a flashlight? I want to see what type it is before I reach my hand down to pick it up."

I gave him a flashlight.

He comes back out a minute later with the SNAKE in his BARE hands!!! It's a FREAKIN MONSTER... must have been at LEAST 20 FEET LONG (slight exaggeration.. it was really only like 3 feet long..but to me it looked 20). I'm in the kitchen.. STILL doing the DANCE... and he starts talking to me!!!!! WAS HE NUTS??? I'm like..

"GET THAT THING OUT OF HERE PLEASEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!"

He takes it outside and lets it go. I thank him profusely!!

Now, what does the little f*cker do??? He goes around to the back of my house, to the glass doors, and starts rubbing up against them! It seems he WANTS BACK IN! Was he KIDDING??????

You may wonder how the snake got into my house in the first place. Well, I USED to leave my glass doors cracked about a foot so the dogs could come in and go out as they pleased. I kept the vertical blinds shut so not too much of the heat got in, or air conditioning got out. I never in a million years thought something ELSE would come in! Something I did NOT give PERMISSION to!!! How DARE that snake!!! Needless to say, I no longer keep those doors open!!!

I bought my neighbor across the street a huge cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory as a gift for his kindness! I still don't know his name, I think I'll just call him Jim.

Our Owlet

With the exception of the birth of my children, this is the most amazing thing I've ever seen.

Up against the bathroom window there are several bamboo shoots. My daughter was taking a shower today and noticed this rather large, odd shaped "bird" up against the window on one of the dead shoots. After her shower she came and got me. I then looked out the window with her (which is the type of glass you can't see clearly through) and couldn't figure out what type of bird it was. Sarah told me she thought maybe it was a baby owl. I was like.. no way.. it couldn't be... Needless to say, I went to investigate. Sure enough, it was a precious little owlet.

I tried to capture a picture of it with the digital camera (without getting too close to the baby), but the zoom wouldn't bring me in as far as I needed it to. I then got the 35 mm camera (which is professional quality with a great lense), but the battery was dead. That's when I asked my son to film the baby. Which he did.

The above video is what he posted on his YT channel and the "pictures" are still shots from that video.

I saw a miracle today. Something I hear is so incredibly rare. Had my daughter not put the "owl" bug in my ear, I don't think I would have ever given it a second thought. I was given a gift today... I'm still totally wow'd!!!

I of course got a little worried because it was all by itself, so I did a little research on the net. Based on its size (about 6 inches tall and covered with what I think is called down), the owlet is between 7 and 8 weeks old. It advised to not get too close (which we didn't), but to keep an eye on it. It also stated that if it was moving well, and plump, that it more than likely wandered off and that chances are the "orphaned" owlet's Mother would find it around dusk. Sure enough, baby is now safely home with Mom.

NOTE: Never plant bamboo. One of my neighbors did, but he didn't do it properly, thus it has taken over the neighborhood. It's a menus to society!!!

Jim??? Is this you???

I could totally see Jim doing this!! For some reason I think Jim wakes up each day and greets the world with a smile and a Brady Bunch song!!! hahaha

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate...

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.

We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

Marianne Williamson in Return to Love, 1992

Politics! *chuckle*

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Obama Closing Gitmo

Barack Obama Interview
John McCain Interview

Sarah Palin Video
Funny Election Video

Change.. VP vs VP
The Look... We've all seen it before.. hahaha
Diplomatic Excitement!
Guantanamo.. synchronized dance squad?

To Puff or not to Puff?

October 3rd, 1993

The day after anniversary of my Father's birthday and the day before the anniversary of his death. Needless to say, that's a very emotional time for me. To add insult to injury, my husband (who is my one and only exhusband), decided to share with me some emotionally devastating news on that third day of October. It shattered me so much that I proceeded to hyperventilate to the point of almost passing out. I excused myself from the room and proceeded to spend the next several hours sitting on the bathroom floor crying. For some reason when I cried, laying my head against the cold porcelain of the tub made me feel better.

October 4th, 1993

I awoke to the laughter of my children. I knew I had to be strong for them, but every inch me felt like dying. Eating, well, that's something that the mere thought of made me want to vomit. So what did I do? I stopped eating and I started smoking. I still cooked, after all my husband and my children had to eat, right? I myself survived on coffee (which I've drank since I was five years old), coca-cola (which I had never drank before), and cigarette's (which I abhorred). Smoking to me was disgusting, unladylike, and something that I knew would dramatically reduce my life. Maybe I wanted my shell to die as I had already felt as though my soul was gone.

December 24th, 1993

From the lack of food, my body shook uncontrollably. I still couldn't imagine eating, but my body could no longer survive without some sort of nourishment. My family and I were due to visit my Mom in a few days and my husband knew he couldn't take me there in the condition I was in. So he took me to the doctor. The Doctor prescribed anti-depressants, muscle relaxers, and some type of medicine to soothe and relax my stomach. The medications seemed to calm my quivering, which was a blessing in itself. The next day I was able to eat a few bites of food, but not much.

It took me several months before I could tolerate eating a full meal again. Unfortunately, I didn't stop the smoking.

Yes, Angie's a smoker!

Yes, Angie is VERY ashamed of this fact and hid it from many.

January 1st, 2009

2008 wasn't a good year for me. Heck, it hadn't been very good to many of us. But here we are in 2009 with a renewed sense of hope. Hope for a better economy, hope for better health, and hope for a brighter future.

I called the Florida Stop Smoking hotline to get some help to kick my habit. They've provided me with phone counseling and nicotine replacement therapy. All free of charge. The only thing I had to do was quit! So I did. Sure, I'll still call myself a smoker for quite some time now because I'm a long way from kicking the addiction. I've started the process... I plan to continue it! I can succeed!

I'm also going to be joining Martha in her choice to live by taking off this excess weight that seems to love me way too much! By the way Martha, CONGRATULATIONS on your 6+ pound loss so far!! I'm so proud of you!! In another week, I'll be joining Jim on his runs. I used to run 10 miles a day and loved it! So, I'll be replacing the cigarette's with running! Seems like a good trade off to me! *smile* Jim, congratulations on your weight loss thus far this year too! It seems y'all are already ahead of me! But I'll catch up, just watch me!

January 12, 2009

The mail ran. In the mail today was not one, not two, but THREE "letters" from Marlboro. All three included coupons for cigarettes. I thought about offering them on freecycle.org, so I laid them on the counter. I told my daughter about them and told her my intent for them. Now, I'm honest in telling you that I HIGHLY considered using those coupons... I thought, what's the big deal... I'll use the coupons, smoke for the next several months then quit again. Somehow my daughter NEW I had this inner struggle. It was then that she asked me for the coupons. I gave them to her but told her to not throw them out, that I was going to give them to someone on freecycle. She looked at me, then grinned, as she took a pair of scissors and proceeded to cut each coupon into a million tiny little pieces. I'm like what are you doing... I'm smiling... face clenched... tiny tears coming out of the corner of my eyes... pleading with her to not waste them. She proceeded to tell me that I don't need to help someone else kill themselves! Later on she came up to me and asked me if I was mad at her for destroying the coupons. I of course told her I wasn't. Then she told me that she was afraid I might be tempted to use them for myself so she had to make them disappear. She told me that she knew me being upset was a risk, but it was the chance she was willing to take. The alternative, in her mind, was that I'd cause myself more harm if they still existed. So she did the only thing she could. She did the RIGHT thing! I'm glad they're gone!

Many years ago, when my son was still in elementary school, he came up to me after school one day and started shaking his hands really fast. I was like, what are you doing? He said: "Mommy, this is what your heart does every time you smoke". Why didn't I quit then?

Huckabee Praises Apple

Mike Huckabee talks about the poor customer service with his airline and phone company and then praises Apple for great customer service.

We've all had really positive, and really negative, experiences with customer service! I'd like to hear about yours (tell me about them, not Mike.. he'll just exploit your views and use them to increase his own ratings). *smile*

As for Apple, my son and I have spent countless hours at the Apple store and dealt with them on the phone. It's ALWAYS been a wonderful experience!

To Switch or Not to Switch?

My son had a project to do at the end of last semester. The project was to make a 30 second video advertisement for a product of their own choosing. Well, anyone who knows my son would know that he'd pick something Apple related. LOL

Each student was to do everything from filming, to script writing, lighting, editing, and voice overs.. you name it, it was part of that project.

He used my daughter (Sarah) as the actress in the video. Sarah is really shy so for her to even allow this to be posted on a web site is a BIG deal! She doesn't like her image out there at all.

A few things to note on the video.
Blue Screen of Death: This was photo shopped in along with Sarah's 'reflection' in the blue screen. William filmed a blank/black monitor.
The blue hue you see on the keyboard, and on Sarah, from the Blue Screen of Death, was also photo shopped in.
He also used an older MAC laptop in the advertisement because Apple no longer uses the "switch" ads.. thus using his new one would have seemed out of place for anyone who is familiar with Apple.

I know the hours he spent filming this, and editing it. It was a great deal of work. But, in my opinion, he achieved very professional results.

Grade on the project: A (99% ~ I'm not sure what he got marked off on).

Now, before y'all fuss at me for bragging on my kids again.. I'm sorry, I can't help myself!! Biased me thinks he did an excellent job, and she was wonderful in her acting and voice overs.

If y'all would like to see any of his other work here's his NEW YT channel:

http://www.youtube.com/user/wbokunic

Below is his old channel that he no longer uploads new videos on. If you don't do anything else on his channels, check out his new introduction which is featured on the below channel ~ I think it's cool:

http://www.youtube.com/user/MacintechStudios

Sarah's Channel.. it's secret! Like I said, she's shy! =)

I hope all y'all have a GREAT week!!! *big hugs*

Special Note: Always remember, squirrels have feelings too!!! =)~~

A New Years Day Lesson

I couldn't help myself, here's a third video.



A few of you have written me over this past week. I did get your emails and they were very much appreciated. I'm a little behind on writing back though, I promise to catch up in the next few days.

I'm also WAY behind on the blogs... I'll be catching up on these too. I'm sorry that I've been less than attentive to each of you. I'm a better friend that I've exhibited recently and I sincerely apologize for failing to show that!!!

The video attached to this blog.. well.. it was a much needed slap across my face! That young man, he's amazing! What an incredible inspiration!! I got the video in an email today, I think God knew I desperately needed to see it!!

Happy New Year y'all! We will ALL succeed in 2009 because we WILL make it happen!! Many blessings, much love, and the utmost of respect to each of you! ~Angie