Spammers have renewed their efforts and we're getting spammed here pretty regularly again. I know, for sure, that one of Laura's entries was spammed. One other one was also but I don't know whose.
If you get an email notification with a curious or obnoxious response to one of your entries (Usually an older entry), please forward that email to me and we'll never be bothered with them again.
This appears in today's edition of the New York Times. Go Gov!!!
Louisiana's WetlandsPublished: February 28, 2004
To the Editor:
Having just returned from a trip to Iraq, I can attest to the critical needs of that country. The destruction of Iraq's wetlands is certainly worthy of the United States help you chronicled (front page, Feb. 21).
Ironically, however, the Bush administration and the Republican-led Senate will not demand the same urgency of action to save coastal wetlands at home. Each year, Louisiana loses 25 to 35 square miles of coastal marsh, largely because of federal activities. And yet in their rewrite of the energy bill, Senate Republicans killed spending provisions addressing Louisiana's coastal loss, while our residents have done just the opposite — dedicating state dollars to a federal-state restoration effort.
Congress has begun restoring the Chesapeake Bay and the Florida Everglades, and now we're restoring Iraq's wetlands. National leaders should address an environmental and economic crisis more significant than any of these: the loss of "America's Wetland" in coastal Louisiana.
KATHLEEN BABINEAUX BLANCO
Governor
Baton Rouge, La., Feb. 23, 2004
Isn't it about time for some new pictures of Murphy? She is approaching her 2 month mark in a few days. I would love to see pictures of her and Mairin. That sounds like a very nice ceremony, their baptism by Jessie's uncle. What goes in an Irish Kiss? Don't anybody tell me two puckered lips either.
If I had a digital camera, I'd ... Why, I'd... Oh never mind.
I am getting a new wood floor, though. We are going to be tearing up this carpet and putting in a shiny new floor. Yee ha. We bought and then watched the video of "How to install Laminate Floors" at Lowe's last night. Of course we did. We were on a date after all. The kids spent the night out and Michael had to work today. I was asleep before 9. These action-packed dates of ours are exhausting. We did have a nice Chinese dinner before our trip to Lowe's. I had shrimp and scallp teriyaki and some crab delights as an appetizer. Michael had Kung Pao Shrimp and didn't love it.
It is pouring still. Tonight is a special meeting at city council's chamber to discuss the doggone sewage treatment plant that will be put on the lot next door to me. I am going to get some fresh video footage of what my wetlands look like right now and then ask them politely where the extra 80,000 gallons per day is going to go. They are so stupid. I must contain my frustration over their idiocy and WAY ignorant plans so that I may articulate without emotions. I have been giving them the benefit, though. I think- surely when I explain the problem with their plan they will see and go "Oh, we are so sorry. We haven't considered that this will totally be a problem for you and yours." What goes around comes around. I am trying to spare them future problems. Yeah, me and my thoughtfulness, huh? Wish me luck. I think they are going to move it. Or they will have to buy me out. And not market value either. I need more than that to compensate for my loss. I love my woods.
One of the hazards of our recliner is illustrated below.
If you read or watch TV in this chair, you are very likely to fall asleep. When you do, the cats (And some clown with a digital camera) will probably come. These are not little bitty kitties. Casey and Crispin are both 17-pounders. Very hard on the bladder. At night, they like to sleep on me or up against me and hem me in. Patsy tosses and turns too much for them.
Hope the weather clears for Fat Tuesday; I see on the news you are having a very wet time. Though I'd dearly love to be there celebrating with all of you, I wouldn't want to do it in the rain(and be chilled besides). Have a piece of King cake, a po'boy and a hurricane for me. I have many fond memories of my/our trips to New Orleans for Mardi Gras(still have some beads, cups, and doubloons too!).
I wanted to enter this earlier but my week hasn't calmed down until now. That's not really true 'cause I should be writing a paper instead of this blog. Haytham and I had a wonderful visit with Carol at her house on Wednesday. As always she was the hostess with the mostest! She served me a piece of her famous Red Velvet cake that was really delicious. She also had a plate of assorted breads that she and her neighbor had baked. I wasn't able to indulge in the breads or I would have exploded. Haytham thoroughly enjoyed his visit and still talks about playing with cars at Auntie Carol's! Thanks Carol for a lovely visit.
I was suppose to bring pictures of Haytham and Hamzah's room that I recently painted but forgot, so i thought I would share them with everyone.
What you see here is my Valentine’s Day gift from Patsy next to my birthday gift from Katie. I hope to plant both today.
The red and white tulips are gorgeous. Tulips are my favorite flowers since I was a kid. I remember Grandma Tompkins tulips as well as Mr Magee’s next door but Mom will have to help me understand that. When do they bloom in Minneapolis? I don’t ever remember being in Minneapolis in the spring. This picture might have been better a couple of days ago but I prefer sunshine for some pictures. I only see sunshine during the week at work.
The big leaf magnolia is also a treat. A friend of mine up the highway from me has one. They’re also known as calcumber trees here. They have big long leaves almost as big as banana tree leaves and their white blossoms are gigantic. What I mean by gigantic is they are almost “punch bowl sized”.
The weather outside is gorgeous. It is sunny with blue skies, 60 degrees and low humidity. We get maybe three days a year like this. After I post this entry, I am out in it!
It's Kevin's turn today.
Happy Birthday, Janine!
You share the day with Michael Jordan. Some day, he'll be famous, too.
Have fun today!
Hi to everyone! Sorry its taken so long to get to this Blog. Either we're slow Or working too much. Everyone's doing well, the weather is warming up and we haven't had snow for a few days now.
I was up north to the lake this weekend - hadn't been there for a couple of weeks. So I got to blow a lot of snow from the driveway & sidewalk. I checked the thermometer memory and found I'd missed a cold day. It got to -33.7°. This weekend wasn't bad, -20° with plenty of sun. Nice to be out & enjoy.
Mom & Pops are doing well. Mom will miss church if it really gets too cool; usually below 0°. They made it to David's hockey tournament in Grand Rapids last weekend (about 40 miles north of their place). They saw all 3 games which ended with a championship for David. Steve's the coach so he can brag too.
Sarah's working a lot of hours as the asst mgr for Holiday Store. Sometimes it's a 4am start to open, other times it's stay to close at 11pm.
Pat is enjoying St Cloud State (it is 60 miles northwest of the Twin Cities). He's taken a heavy class load this semester. He also is working at the National Ice Center on campus part time as an usher, rink guard for public skating, concessions and anything else they assign him. He got some good roommates and they plan to stay together next.
Sally's working part time until we win the lottery. She has missed a couple of trips to the lake because she's keeping an eye on Laura at home.
Laura's 14 going on 18 with way too much social activity for these 2 chauffers.
Hey that's enough for now. Back to the grind stone. Besides this is begiining to look like a Christmas card letter. See Ya later.
I can't believe that wasn't the first thing I did this morning; to wish you a happy, happy birthday. And many more, of course. I should sing you a song.
Okay, I will do it in private. But hey, be on guard, I have just started conversations with a voice teacher. I will be taking lessons in the very near future. I have a decent singing voice in private. I squeak and lose it when it comes to sharing it with the public. I want to see if he can fix that about me. I would love to overcome that.
Remember when I delivered singing telegrams for Eastern Onion back in 1980 or '81 for three weeks? I got $10 per song. Once, I got a $2 tip. I had knees a-wobblin' and lips a-quiverin' when I sang in public. The worst delivery was in a crowded restaurant, middle of the day, a new National Secretary's week song just learned an hour before the engagement. All ears and eyes were on me. The attention almost had me combust, it was so intense. I forgot lyrics to a verse, so I improvised and started playing the kazoo and had the monkey on my arm do it's thing. I don't know that anyone was aware that I was freaking out on the inside. I have good improv skills when forced to use them. That incident may have been the deciding factor in my decision to quit that business and doing any kind of performing for the next 17 years.
Even though I still have stage fright like crazy, I am compelled to get out there anyway. I tried to cure it. Maybe it has to do with being a middle child and needing attention. Maybe I shouldn't care why I need to, I just have to follow my bliss. And if that means acting a fool, so be it.
Happy Birthday, brother dear. May your day be full of pleasant synchronicities.
Love,
Janine
I have always been one that could take or leave going to a parade. I have been there and done that. This year, I have made the first two parades of the season.
Friday night, Julia and I stood in the rain next to the Soules as we waited for Jimmy to come by in his Junior high band. We never did see him and I haven't heard from Elizabeth whether we missed him or they didn't march for some last minute reason. We must have missed him, though we don't know how. We scrutinized all the bands, even one that Scott had to point out to my sister and I had no anglo-saxon people at all in it. Julia wouldn't take no for an answer about going. We had warm clothes on, an umbrella, and bags for the trash we were going to catch. I called the Soule's at least three times on the way to tell them we weren't coming. My windshield wipers never stopped on the way there. Not a good sign. Julia persisted and the alternative was being at home watching people watch tv and I can do that anytime. How often does Jim march in a parade? Elizabeth and I established that we were leaving after Jim's band passed so that is how we stayed for the whole thing. It was such fun. I am glad I stayed. I love the marching bands.
So, last night, once again the weather was looking ominous. Julia had a friend over and they wanted to go to the parade. There were so many things working against us getting out the door. I packed a bag with water, cups, and banana bread. We had a couple of step ladders, which also serve as seats. Aaron came with us this time. Michael still was too old and sensible to come with. So were a great many people, which is why there was nobody in our vacinity. We practically had the block to ourselves. No lie. We made out like bandits. It was such fun. Synchronously, all the bands, except one, were playing when they passed. I felt very regal watching the procession.
Well, almost. I couldn't stand still. I have to move and clap with the music and I am pretty sure the queen wouldn't do that. Julia is getting to that delicate age where I can embarass her very easily. I am so much more like my own dear mother these days and know just how to yank her chain.
It was 1973 or 1974. Mom might have to help with some of the details. Aunt Catherine, Uncle Dick, and some of the Bye kids came down for Mardi Gras in a Winnebago. All motor homes were Winnebagos then. Jeff was the oldest one that made the trip and he helped with the drive. Uncle Dick drove the Winnebago downtown on the night before Mardi Gras and parked it in a parking lot near or on the spot where the One Shell Square building is now. You could never do that these days. That is prime Mardi Gras real estate. Those kinds of spots are expensive now and are gobbled up months and years in advance.
Uncle Dick, Dad, Jeff, and I spent the night in the Winnebago downtown. Notice I didn’t use the word “sleep”. I don’t think Jeff or I slept at all. We wandered the streets of the French Quarter that night. Wandering those streets at night is also something most parents wouldn’t allow their teenagers to do these days. That was a different time. We ate Krystal hamburgers and just had a blast. Krystal hamburgers are White Castle hamburgers now and I don’t think Jeff had ever had one before. I think they were 10 cents then and we probably ate a dozen each. They weren’t big nationally yet and you certainly couldn’t get them at the grocery store. There was a Krystal restaurant at St Charles and Common that was open all night.
Jeff had this mask that we took turns wearing on Mardi Gras day. It was hideous. It had something like an elephant trunk on it but I don’t remember anything else about it. We walked up and down Bourbon Street with it and were stopped by just about everyone.
My students and I have been stuck inside all week and the forecast doesn't show sun anytime soon! It is going to be very hard to be sweet tomorrow as we pass out Valentines. I might eat all of the chocolate I receive before I get home. This week is wearing me out!
What is everybody doing for that over-commercialized holiday on Saturday? I'm making chocolate-covered strawberries and brownies for Joey. You know what they say, "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach!" He's been working late because of Mardi Gras business so he probably won't get home until 8 or 9 on Saturday. I called a few restaurants tonight to see if we could get reservations. One restaurant, Gabrielle's (don't go there), actually had the nerve to laugh at me and tell me "If I had a quarter for every person who called here tonight for reservations on Valentine's Day..." I guess I'll be cooking my own romantic dinner for two. Maybe lasagna.
We're going to the Endymion Extravaganza next week. We'll be sitting in Emeril's VIP section (whooty-who). We went last year when we got tickets at the last minute on the morning of the ball. Good thing I had an adequate bridesmaid's dress and Joey had access to a tux. This year we bought tickets and will sit with some friends (and Emeril). I got a new gown that I just love- mostly because the price was so good. Our food (from Emeril's) and drinks are included. I'm not sure who the entertainment is this year, but last year we had such a good time with Earth, Wind and Fire. We're looking forward to it. I'll miss my chauffer this year! Daddy drove us there last year so we wouldn't have to deal with the traffic and parking. He was always agreeable to driving people into town and dropping them off during Mardi Gras. I guess we'll take a cab this year.
I don't know how I'm going to get through the day.
We all knew this, right?
I will eat M&M Peanuts until they are gone or I will get sick trying. Sorry, Mom.
While the New Orleans community will be celebrating Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday on February 24, the rest of the Catholic world will be celebrating "Shrove Tuesday". I have never heard of it but it looks like we'll all be celebrating the same thing, only differently.
Janine's comment containing
I went to an Actor's workshop last night at the Contemporary Art Center.......
is Comment # 1000
WOW!!!
Been on a movie kick the last few days. Over the weekend, I watched Dancing at the Blue Iguana, Below, and Daredevil. Last night, we started to watch Crush but I couldn’t stay up for it. Set the UltimateTV to record it at a later time because that one looked like fun. Andie Macdowell is a terrific actress but she definitely makes some curious film choices. Is the term "actress" still correct? I see "actor" applied to men and women these days.
Dancing at the Blue Iguana was about something although I’m not sure what. It was difficult to get through and there was no payoff that I could discern other than life is messy. That was probably intentional and may be the reason I had never heard of this movie. It has a stellar cast. Maybe someone else can make more of this movie than I did.
Below is a submarine movie with supernatural elements and a story beneath a story. A bit contrived but not a total waste of time.
Daredevil seemed like a sequel. In the comic book genre, the sequels have more than one villain and more than one super hero. That’s what we have here. OK, but not great.
I've removed all of the travel maps for now because the site that hosts them just cannot handle the traffic. What that does is slow down this site. You may notice that the blog is now loading faster. They are not gone forever. I just changed their status until a later date when that site gets a little less busy. They'll be reinstated in a week or so.
Update (February 14, 2004): I've moved all of the maps to this server and reinstated the entries.
What do you do when 6 dogs surround you and want to eat you up? I swung my hard purse at them and bared my teeth and yelled at them. My friend, the dogs' owner, said they smelled fear and that's why they attacked me. I sure did start getting afraid after one of them bit my calf and tore my skirt. It was the ripping noise that got my adrenaline going. I was just as angry as I was scared and I was doing some Clint Eastwood (mixed with a little Jack Nicholson for effect) with my non-negotiable purse - "come on, make my day."
What do I do next time that happens? Ignore them? I was thinking about the man who was attacked by the mountain lion in california and how he stayed facing the attacker and wouldn't turn around the whole way down the mountain to safety.
The skirt is history. The external wound will heal. I live to fight another day.
Learned some tricks this morning after a bug was put in my ear yesterday. Run your mouse over the images for a description. There are three images here but there are more in the extended entry. The link at the bottom. Enjoy.
This is a double exposure picture I took many years ago when I was in my experimental stage with my camera.
This exercise is tripling as showing Katie how to upload pictures and do links.
This is a picture Katie and I were looking at today.
Showing off when I was done with my map!
I've had mediocrity thrust upon me. Well, geez, I could have told them that. Try it, yourself.
If you're wondering why those maps disappear from time to time, it's because that site can't handle the traffic. Besides the several people here who filled them out, just about every personal blog on the internet did, too.
Scott Soule's maps. I think he might be showing off.
Countries:
States:
It says here:
New England Patriots 21 - Carolina Panthers 13
Let's hear yours!!!
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