OUCH!!!!! That hurt!

My husband has hundreds and hundreds of vhs movies and even though we've given boxes full to goodwill we still have way too many. As they are replaced with dvd's we pass the vhs tapes on. But, we also don't have enough wood bookcases to hold them all, so some were stacked on metal utility shelves. So, picture this....

In the room where I pay bills, etc, I have a table in the middle of the room. On the wall to the right was (not the word was) a metal shelving unit with vhs tapes 3 deep on each of the four shelves. Behind my chair was another metal utility shelf also with vhs tapes 3 deep on each shelf. So, I sit down at the table to pay bills yesterday and our 25 pound cat follows me. Not paying attention to what he is doing I am not able to stop him when he decides he needs to get up on the shelf to the left of me.

Creak!!!! Rumble!!!! Crash!!!! It falls over partially on me and I am buried in video tapes, but it also manages to crash into the one behind me and it is now skewed to the left. The only thing holding it up right now are the boxes of videos I have stacked next to it.

To say I was a bit sore is an understatement, but I did survive. Today I went out looking for sturdy wooden bookcases. Yikes! the prices! None at the thrift stores, so after a break I will be boxing up more tapes and finding homes for them until I can replace the old shelving units. Needless to say the metal utility shelves will not be on the list.

One of those days!

Last night my plans for today were to go do laundry and then since it was to be a nice day outside take a nice walk! Yep! those were my plans. When I got up this morning I found water on the back bathroom floor. Thought nothing of it and wiped it up. Went back later and dang! more water! Well, the kitchen sink was clogging up which meant I would have to call our favorite plumber and I do mean favorite. This guy is the sweetest old guy who loves his work!

My day went like this. Did laundry but got a call from Keith that he had left his cell phone at home. Would I look for it and would I mind bringing it to the school for him. Nope! no problem. Did that and then came back home and called the plumber. Left a message with his wife and two hours later he was at the door! Fixed the leak in the bathroom, unplugged the kitchen sink and checked out why the garbage disposal never worked to see if he could fix it today, too. Had to leave to pick up Keith, but plumber was gone when we got back. He called to check to make sure we got in because he had locked the door when he left. And yes, we do trust this guy alone in the house. He also informed us the garbage disposal unit didn't work because it was rusted out. He can either replace it or exchange it out for a regular pipe and drain. Probably should ask the landlady about that one!

In the meantime we've been here four years without a garbage disposal so probably don't need it.

Somehow I did manage to get a lot of housework done as well so the day wasn't entirely wasted.

Tomorrow - I get that walk!!

You never know what you're going to get!

Last weekend I told my mom I was making meatloaf this weekend. The first thing she said was don't forget the egg. My mom is 88! You'd think she would forget my meatloaf fiasco of 40 some years ago when I made my first one and it fell apart as I took it out of the pan. I had followed the recipe exactly! I knew I had. Until we found the egg still sitting on the kitchen counter. It was the egg, my mother informed me, that kept the meatloaf together. So, today, I did not forget the egg.

But, it did bring to mind another meatloaf fiasco for me. I was in the middle of making one when I realized I didn't have any tomato paste of ketchup. Well, I did have a can of tomato soup and figured that would be the same. Wrong! But I did invent meatloaf soup!

While talking with my current husband about these mishaps he commented on my experimenting with cooking and said, 'yes, sometimes you invent some real gems and other times you come up with entirely new life forms.' He's such a sweetheart.

Husband number 2 used to say he knew dinner was ready when the smoke alarm went off. So, I have never been a great cook, but I do get industrious every once in awhile amd come up with some really good concoctions. Some husband number 3 names Zephry goop. He likes my goop experiments! But as he says sometimes ... well, you just never know what you're going to get.

Poor Joe Wilson!

When (p)Resident Obama was giving his fairy tale story of how the health care plan would work, our representative, Joe Wilson (R), did the dumbest thing he could have done. He stood up and spoke the truth and said Obama lied when he said the health care plan would not cover illegal aliens. Should he have done it? NO! But to call him a racist for saying Obama lied is just as stupid as him breaking protocol and calling Obama a liar in a public forum.

I ask, where are the racist remarks here? Did he use the 'N" word? Did he make any reference to race, color or religion? Let's listen and hear.


One of the teachers at the college where my husband works went as far as to say Joe Wilson proved he was a Ku Klux Klan member with his racist remarks. Again, I ask where are the racist remarks. It is one man calling another man a liar. So, every time a white person questions the integrity of another who is black, regardless of the legitimacy of the charge, then that person is a racist? Then why doesn't it work the other way around? If you ask a black person why Joe Wilson's remark is considered racist the only answer I get is because he's white and he called a black man a liar. So, if he had called Bush a liar, which happened many times during his (P)residency then what would we call the white people who called him a liar? And better yet, wouldn't that make all the black people who called Bush a liar racists? Interesting concept and if you think about it at all to call a man a racist for calling another man a liar is ridiculous. The word racist is used so liberally these days it is losing it's power and it's meaning.

So, let's see how the dictionary defines racist.

One online dictionary gives this definition: racist: a person with a prejudiced belief that one race is superior to others.

Answers.com gives this definition:
1. The belief that race accounts for differences in human character or ability and that a particular race is superior to others.
2. Discrimination or prejudice based on race.

The urban dictionary has a great definition and really goes into depth of how ridiculous it is to call someone a racist just because they are white. Here is the first paragraph but it is really worth going to the link and reading it all.

If you're a white man, this is what you are. It doesn't even matter if your wife is black and you have an adopted child from India, or how many black friends you have, somehow you're going to end up being a racist according to how the media portrays the white man as "racist whities".

Gone 500 Miles

Yesterday another important person from my coming of age period passed away. Mary Travers, of Peter Paul and Mary left this world, but left it a better place for having been here. She may not have left on a Jet Plane and is more than 500 miles away from home, but her leaving left a big hole in my heart.

Peter Paul and Mary were very politically active. They performed If I Had a Hammer in 1963 during the march on Washington. They were big promoters of Bob Dylan and one of their biggest hits was his Blowin' in the Wind. They also performed other songs of his including The Times They Are a Changin' and Don't Think Twice.

Don't think twice it's alright, Mary. You did a lot of good with your time on this earth, touched a lot of lives, and you made a difference.

So, now we must say goodbye to another great person who made more than a small impact on the world around her. Good bye Mary Travers. Sing Autumn to May sing tarrry-o-day.

The facts ma'm, just the facts

New York Times, June 18, 2009

Each day, the New York Police Department announces major crimes, including most homicides, in the five boroughs. This data is compiled from those reports, in addition to news accounts, court records and additional reporting. The map will be updated as new information becomes available.



And per the U.S. Census bureau the races break down to:

Whites make up 73.4% of NYC population
Blacks 17.3%
Asians 7%
Hispanic 16.7%

Serena Williams acts out at the U.S. Open

It’s time for me to put my two cents in on the Serena Williams outburst during the U.S. Open semi-finals. There are those who compare her to John McEnroe and claim he was never fined or penalized so why should Serena pay a fine. First, of all, that’s like comparing apples to oranges. As angry as John McEnroe got he never threatened a line judge with bodily harm. And yes, indeed! He was penalized, fined, and lost games, sets, and even matches due to penalties.

But, Serena went too far. When a 5’10”. 185 pound woman charges at a line judge, waving her racquet at her and shoving a ball out at her with her other hand screaming, “swear to God I’m f*cking going to shove this f*cking ball down your f*cking throat, that my friends is a threat to do bodily harm. To give the line judge credit she sat there and said nothing to instigate the situation further. (BTW this was all because the line judge called her on a foot fault, which if Serena truly believed she didn’t do she could have issued a player challenge). Serena then walked back to serve her second serve and then suddenly turned and charged at the line judge again screaming obscenities at her. This caught the attention of the chair umpire who called the line judge over and asked what Serena was saying to her. When she heard what had transpired she called out the tournament referee. Serena lost one point for the foot fault and then lost the match point on a penalty for her abusive language. She found nothing wrong with what she did and later stated she didn’t understand why the woman felt threatened. As one news person stated, did Serena watch the tape and still have to ask that question? It was a scary moment for those of us watching as it did look as if she was going to go after the line judge physically.

There have been many arguments on both sides, but my all time favorite in defense of Serena was on a discussion site. The person stated we were all racists for expecting Serena to act white. That the f-word is a part of the black culture and is used liberally and accepted and anyone who thought she was wrong is a racist. Hmmmmm…..

Okay, personally, I have no issues with the use of the word, but when you play a sport you abide by the rules of that sport, tournament, etc. and Serena knew the rules before she started the match. Yes, she should have been fined and yes, she should be suspended. So far all she got was a $10,000 fine and when compared to the $250,000 she got for making it to the semi-finals that’s chicken feed. She and Venus were allowed to play in the doubles and by the tournament rules they could have suspended her from playing.

My take on this is that this woman who when she loses always has an excuse – I sprained my ankle, hurt my back, broke a fingernail…. Knew she was losing and losing badly and rather than allow Kim Clisters the victory she took that away and put the attention on herself. As Kim said later she never got to experience the thrill you get when you serve that final ball for the win. So, Serena, got what she wanted. Even though she lost in the semi-finals she denied Kim her victory. But, Kim Clisters did go on to win the finals and take home the U.S. Open trophy.

Where have I been?

I was reminded today that I haven't posted here for awhile. There is really no excuse except I've been busy on gotpoetry.com, bookcrossing.com and various other sites that take the little time I have to be online. Scrabble calls me and entices me away from my duties to my blog. So, I am hereby making an announcement and pronouncement and whatever else you may call it that I will loyally come here and post once a week even if I have nothing say. Oh heck, especially if I have nothing to say.

The problem is lately I have had too much to say but am trying to be good and not post my opinions on what is happening in Washington, DC these days. It's too scary for one thing and more than ever I fear for the future of our once great country.

But, I won't go there... in fact I have to leave in a few minutes to pick up my husband at work and bring him home. We will watch more of the U.S. Open. For me all other news is moot right now anyway.

Good luck and good night.