inching it's way to Babylon.....edited

Washington Post, the Ball is in your court, Mr. President

George Papadopoulos    Link to article in Washington post.

Surely, everyone should be able to tell how extreme this is getting.

What I worry about now is that the Supreme Court will have been compromised.  Have they been?
 To add this

The collapse of The New Rome?

"We all know the story about Julius Caesar and the fall of the Republic, but jumping into the story at that point is like jumping into a movie in the third act. It's exciting, and clearly big, important things are happening, but you have no context for how everyone got to this point. So I wanted to pull back two generations and ask, “What was it that opened the cracks in the foundation of the Republic?” I also do think that if there is any period in the thousand-odd-year history of Rome that Americans in the 21st century can look to for an analogous historical setting, it's right here.

Once you zoom into this period there are a lot of familiar problems: growing economic inequality, intransigent elites more focused on petty political one-upmanship than addressing the needs of their citizens, endemic social and ethnic prejudice, the breakdown of unspoken political norms — very fertile ground if you want to study how it could all go horribly awry if we're not careful."

From this News Analysis.  I hope you will read this and also join the podcast...

Sunday Stealing: Halloween Screams...

Monster Mash

Welcome back to Sunday 

Stealing which originated on WTIT: The Blog authored by Bud Weiser. Here we will steal all

types of questions from every corner of the blogosphere. Our promise to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and intelligent questions. You may have heard the expression, “honor among thieves”. In that age-old tradition, we try to credit the blog that we stole it from, if possible. We also provide a link to the victim's questions in our "Previous Victims" widget. (It's our way of saying "Thanks!") Sometimes we edit the original meme, to make it more relevant to our global players, to challenge our players, to select the best questions, or simply to make it less repetitive from recently asked questions from a previously post. Cheers to all of us thieves!

In honor of the appoaching Halloween, I found this weirdly formatted set on a question meme site.  

I'd like to say this turned out a lot more somber than I thought it was going to but I've tried to be honest. And I'd also like to say a great big THANK YOU to Bev.  

   ghost: what would you like on your tombstone?
I won't have one.  I'd like to be remembered as Compassionate and Kind.

   dracula: are you afraid of aging? or death?
Nope.  I'm only afraid of the pain, and of not being brave enough to face it with stoicism.

    nosferatu: what, as a child, did you imagine went bump in the night?
To be honest, the first time I can remember being scared out of my wits was when I was three.  My Grandpa had let the Aunties' senior Girl Scout troop have their sleep over in the barn, and my two young Aunties decided that I got to stay with them until bed time.  They started telling Ghost Stories.  I started screaming so loudly that Grandpa and my aunts thought it would be best if I didn't stay. I was also afraid to death of skeletons for quite awhile after that. lol

    godzilla: what do you do when you are angry? are you ever destructive?
I used to get really angry when I was a teen.  But the most destructive thing I've ever done is to kick a wall, and, to my surprise, I actually kicked a hole in it.  Usually I don't destroy anything because you only scare the dog and ruin your own stuff.  I've written a lot of angry letters to so called "public servants", so that's basically what I do now.  I write!

    the blob: do you collect anything? if so, what & why?
I don't collect anything anymore, but I did collect old sewing machines for awhile.  And this was so because I think sewing machines changed the world for women.

    zombie: when was the last time you trusted your gut? was it successful?
My intuition is something that would have made us a lot of money.  Well, it was nixed, and didn't happen so nothing came of it.  So, No. 

    mothra: what is something dangerous that attracts or fascinates you?
Nothing dangerous attracts me, anymore, in that way.  I used to really love to go into old mines and caves.  That's a dangerous attraction.

    king kong: what are some questionable choices you've made lately?
I've decided to go ahead and try some new medicine.  Medicines and I do not have a good working relationship.  I'm thinking this stuff may be next to useless, but what the heck.  At least it isn't experimental.

    alien: what is your strangest feature?
I recently discovered that I have a very small bit of a web in between my two toes, called syndactyly .  Strange it may be, but it doesn't hurt so I'm ok with it?  This may help me swim faster, actually as it serves as a partial fin. 

Not my feet but about the size of mine.
Melanie, are you listening? 

Which is a perfect segue into this next question:

    cthulhu: do you like the ocean? why or why not?
I love the ocean.  If the Oceans were any better off than the Land, I'd like to be a fish.  Anyway, the Ocean: I like being near it.  I love to swim in it, and it actually helps my skin to be healthier.  I wish we were rich enough to have a Salt Water pool.

    nessie: have you ever felt invisible to people -- the feeling of not existing?
Yes, and I like being invisible.  There's a certain freedom in being really nondescript, and not existing on anyone's radar.  Want to know something weird?  Lately I've had the feeling I'm floating up off the bed.  I know it's not real, but mental,  but it feels like weighlessness.

    mutant spider: what is one of your biggest fears?
I haven't got one left.  I've lived it.  I don't really fear anything anymore except more of the same, which, unfortunately can still happen.  As I said, I just pray to be brave.

    werewolf: if you could change into any nonhuman animal and back at will, what animal        would you change into and why?
I'd probably not pick a bear anymore, because some ass hat would probably shoot me.  So, I'll just say a Golden Eagle or a Raven.  Why?  because they are smart, and are sometimes also messengers of The Great Spirit.  I'd like to have that job.

     golem: if you could make up an imaginary friend, what would they be like and why?
My imaginary friend would have blond, curly hair, be 9'9" tall, and have blue eyes.  Why?  Because, I can imagine just the perfect spirit guardian to be this way.

    leprechaun: what is your "pot of gold" (or white whale, if you'd rather)
My obsession (White Whale) is to finally have  the little children be able to live in a world without war.  

    sharktopus: what is something you've done that was ridiculous or a bad decision?
I've lived long enough to have quite a record of bad or ridiculous decisions.  Let me cherry pick one.  It was a bad decision to not go back to college even after the twins were born.  I just should have done it.  We would have had the money to properly educate all our youngsters.  I'm really sorry I didn't do it.

     robot: what is a habit you do without thinking?

Well, I open my eyes to light.  You may think that qualifies as a reflex, but all the rest of auto pilot life is ruled by involuntary muscles, too.  I'm pretty much a robotic machine while driving a car.  Is that a sort of habit you mean?    

Saturday 9: Monster Mash....

Welcome to Saturday: 9. What we've committed to our readers is that we will post 9 questions
every Saturday. Sometimes the post will have a theme, and at other times the questions will be totally unrelated. Those weeks we do "random questions," so-to-speak. We encourage you to visit other participants posts and leave a comment. Because we don't have any rules, it is your choice. We hate rules. We love memes, however, and here is today's meme!

Like to play along?  Go HERE  for the linkie link.


Saturday 9: Monster Mash (1962)

Unfamiliar with this week's featured song? To Hear it go HERE

1) In your younger days, did you ever trick or treat while dressed as a monster or ghoul? 
No, but my little brother dressed as a ghost or a pirate.  I can't remember any of my own costumes.  

2) Do you enjoy being frightened by celluloid boys-gone-bad, like Michael Myers (Halloween) or Jason (Friday the 13th)? 
Never have I watched Human Horror.  It's not my thing.  My favorite Halloween movies are E.T. , The Addams Family movies, Aliens, and also The Nightmare before Christmas.  Otherwise real life is horrid enough.  Just ask any Fireman.  So, I leave myself some breathing space as far as the entertainment goes.

3) When you were a kid, did you ever TP a neighbor's house or indulge in any other Halloween acts of vandalism? (Don't worry, the statute of limitations is up.)
No.  But when we first moved here there was kid stuff going on in the neighborhood, and so we don't put out reachable decorations anymore.  Inside I used to carve  teeny tiny squash that look like pumpkins and used battery operated lights inside. I lined them all up on the three outward facing window sills.  They were adorable.

4) Will you be attending any Halloween parties this year? If so, will you dress up?
No party or dressing up for me.  Sometimes I'll put on a witch hat to hand out candy but probably not this year.  

5) Can you see any Halloween decorations as you answer these 9 questions?
No.  I don't decorate for any holiday like I used to.  So, decorate all you can, because most people my age that I talk to don't either.  Enjoy these things while you are young enough to do it.

6) While Halloween is most popular in the United States and Canada, and isn't really celebrated at all in Japan or South Korea. How would you explain our Halloween customs to a visitor from another land?
Another land.. Hmmmm...  I think I'd say that Halloween is a bad imitation of the Day of the Dead, but that kids love it, and it's fun to help them dress up and take them to carnivals.  It's also fun to hand out candy at the door one night a year, and to see all the kids in their amazing and amusing costumes. 

7) "Monster Mash" is one of Halloween's most played songs. Are you happy to hear it every year? Or does it set your teeth on edge?  
Actually I almost never hear that song anymore and I still think it's pretty cute.  Thriller is my favorite Halloween song though it's now been hacked to death by Vevo and a thousand other knives.

8) This week's featured artist, Bobby "Boris" Pickett, started as a stand-up comedian who incorporated his imitations of Boris Karlof and Bela Lugosi into his act. Can you impersonate anyone?  
No, but I can do a Hen's little clucking calls (the ones she makes to her chicks), her Breeek sound, and her Begock! ("Red alert" ) sound pretty well.

9) Dick Clark was an impossibly young looking 33 in this week's featured clip. Are you often told you look good for your age?
Well, dears, not anymore I don't.  There was a time that I was carded, at 28, because I did look younger than my age.  Those times are gone, gone, gone.... 
I make a VERY good witch though!

Here I am with two of my friends.  We were on the way to a Late Night video store and spotted George Clooney.  We quickly cast a spell on him to make him fall in love with Kwizgiver.  Only she can say if it worked.  Oh, I'm the one in the middle.

Thanks so much for joining us again at Saturday: 9. As always, feel free to come back, see who has participated and comment on their posts. In fact sometimes, if you want to read & comment on everyone's responses, you might want to check back again tomorrow. But it is not a rule. We haven’t any rules here. Join us on next Saturday for another version of Saturday: 9, "Just A Silly Meme on a Saturday!" Enjoy your weekend!

The Moral Majority.. Circa 1964.

When I was expecting our first child, we lived across the street from a minister and his lovely wife.  She could take a soap box and make a doll closet with it that was a rival for the Barbie ones that were selling in the stores.  But that's an aside..

One day they invited me to a rally, where they said that there was to be speakers from the Moral Majority, which was gathering strength.  It didn't become incorporated until 1978, when the money they were pulling in had to be protected, it was starting to look like a PAC which of course a religious organization can not be.  It was a new Pentecostal movement.  So, I accompanied them.  We heard many speakers that evening, not the least of which was Oral Roberts.  He gave a speech that brought the house down but literally made me sick.  Since I was very pregnant, I told them I needed air.  So I went outside and talked to God.  I knew in my heart of hearts where this sort of thing ends up.  It ends up as an extremist movement that can take hold and kill a democracy.

It's shape shifted a little, but the same rock bottom Vision, if you can call it that, still prevails to this day.  It is aberrant in a free Society where religion is not EVER supposed to run a government.  It is unconstitutional.

That evening is when I was first introduced to a group of very dedicated people, who should have known better, but who eventually spawned something that threatens freedom of religion, and wants to rewrite the constitution.  Their purpose and aims are the same as the Moral Majority, of whom some one said that they were neither Moral nor were they the Majority.

They and their offspring have been Forcing Armageddon since that time, and as far as I know, I'm the first person to ever use that term, from back in 1964 when I told God I would never think that this was right.  I got pretty vocal about it.  I love the Constitution.  I want us to remain free.  God GAVE us free wills.  It's no one's business to make sure we toe any line other than what we ALL agree on.  You can't run the country with a minority of the popular vote.  You get in to big trouble that way.

If we want a free country, we can't have any religious group running it, or trying to roll back the calendar to make the more humane society we have built in spite of them, into their version of what God wants on Earth.  

A lot of fun....Kezzella's Thursday Thirteen

I didn't do a Thursday 13.  Mostly because I've been busy.  Today is our 54th Anniversary, and I needed to do other things..However, if you like insanely funny things, go to Kezzela's Thursday Thirteen, HERE  You will crack up laughing!

See you in a couple of days.  

Sunday Stealing: "Ah, to Sleep, perchance to dream...."

Sleepy Rambles... zzzzz

Welcome back to Sunday Stealing which originated on WTIT: The Blog authored by Bud Weiser. Here we will steal all types of questions from every corner of the blogosphere. Our promise to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and intelligent questions. You may have heard the expression, “honor among thieves”. In that age-old tradition, we try to credit the blog that we stole it from, if possible. We also provide a link to the victim's questions in our "Previous Victims" widget. (It's our way of saying "Thanks!") Sometimes we edit the original meme, to make it more relevant to our global players, to challenge our players, to select the best questions, or simply to make it less repetitive from recently asked questions from a previously post. 

Cheers to all of us thieves!

zippi note:  If you want to play along on this fun meme, or see other players responses, 

Go HERE

Bud stole a meme from Sleepy Rambles several years ago.  I checked the site out and found a lot more. (Someone complained it took a long time to answer these memes, so I only chose 15 questions this time!)

1. Have you ever eaten at restaurant and you realized you forgot your money?

No, because we usually are prepared but there is always a charge card.  If it's a place that doesn't take a charge card, then we might be washing their dishes!

2. True or false-you can pat your head and rub your tummy at the same time.

True.  It's taken years of strenuous practice but I can do it.

3.Do you prefer to drink out of cans or bottles?

I like bottles.  Actually, I like a glass but definitely a bottle is the next best glass thinga.

From this site, but I'd beware the Ad load you are stepping into.
Very fun!

4. Do your socks match today?

What socks?  I only wear socks in the winter, and so far, it looks like we might not even get a winter.  

5. What was the last book you read? Would you recommend it?

The last one I read was The Hidden Village, A Story of Survival in WW2 Holland by Imogen Mathews.  Though it chronicles the lives of many young people, kids really, it is so well written that any adult would like the cadences and word choices.  I would recommend it highly. 

6. Are you currently borrowing something from someone?

I have a book that belongs to Bee that I was supposed to send back when I finished it.  I'd better get that puppy in the mail!

From the onsizzle.com meme generator.  Ads.. be warned

7. Write an extremely random statement.

I'm so bushed sometimes that my up is down and my down is outside climbing the phone tree.

8. Are there any major holidays you don’t celebrate?

There are ones we don't go do anything for anymore, like the Fourth of July.  Neither of us can stand the fireworks show (old ears), and we cannot leave Wolfie alone because of all the "gunfire".  He would be a little pile of froth and fur by the time we got home again.

9. What is one thing you will never understand?

I just can't fathom how any Christians can be arrogant, discourteous, covetous or warlike.  It boggles my mind.  I know what's going on.  They are doing what I call, Forcing Armageddon, and you can really see it, of late, in full operation.  Sorry, you can make a lot of people miserable, but you can't force it, so stop already!

10. Have you ever stepped on a bee?

I've stepped on a bumblebee. Neither of us had any fun after that.

IMAGE from HERE

11. What helps you wake up in the morning?

I wake up on my own since I can no longer have coffee. 

Before that I used to have a nice, hot cup of black coffee to wake up fully.

12. What did you have for breakfast this morning?

A Clif bar, a banana and a cup of Lady Grey.

13. What is your favorite thing in your room?

The color of the walls.  They are a deep, deep leaf green.  Gorgeous color! Not Hunter as I thought, but that would be a lovely color, too.

The one on the left.....

14. Who was your first kiss with?

Mr. Z. when I was 19 and he was 20.  

It was lots more fun than this...

15. Do you worry about small things?

No.  I have too many BIG, MONSTER things to worry about.  Why sweat the small stuff?

I came across this funny thing while finding stuff, and think it's hilarious!  And, it's sadly true.

Good Luck with that All you Cowboys out there.

Saturday 9: Watch your mouth... Voices Carry... the Group..

Voices Carry: 

Welcome to Saturday: 9. What we've committed to our readers is that we will post 9 questions every Saturday. Sometimes the post will have a theme, and at other times the questions will be totally unrelated. Those weeks we do "random questions," so-to-speak. We encourage you to visit other participants posts and leave a comment. Because we don't have any rules, it is your choice. We hate rules. We love memes, however, and here is today's meme!

Saturday 9: Voices Carry (1985)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.  

Want to join in or see more answers?  Please Go HERE

This song was chosen because October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Please share this link to The National Domestic Violence Hotline. Let's spread the word that there's help out there.

1) In this song, a woman is "hushed" by her lover. When were you last told to "keep it down?" 

Except for this blog, I am a quiet person.  I think it might have been a long time ago, if ever, that I was told to pipe down about something.  

2) Her lover tells her tears are something to hide. Researchers tell us that crying can be good for us, because by releasing emotional stress, it lessens physical stress on the cardiovascular system. Are you comfortable crying in front of other people?

I can't help crying in front of people. It just happens and no, I'm not uncomfortable except around my in laws who don't cry over much at all.  They made me feel that I was strange because I was emotional.  I just don't cry around them anymore, not even when my daughter died, I fought it off.  

3) In this video, the woman makes a scene by speaking up in a theater. Today theater goers are more likely to be disturbed by a cell phone ringing or its screen illuminating. Are you careful to turn your phone off in the theater, church, etc.? 

I turn mine off when I go to the doctors or the clinic. I don't go to any church, or even a theater.  But IF that's where I was, I would put the phone on Airplane Mode. 

4) When this group, Til Tuesday, was still struggling, Cyndi Lauper was already a star. Cyndi offered to record this song, which would have brought the group some fast cash, but only if they agreed not to record it themselves. Obviously they didn't take the deal. Tell us about a time you took a risk on yourself, and it paid off.

When I started my craft business, new rules were put into place, in 63 was it?  It didn't take long for all the trolls and thieves to come through the craft venues, and blatantly steal original designs and ideas to send to China to be copied.  They took the heart right out of many small craft businesses- The Cabbage Patch Dolls, for instance-  and that just put paid to many small craft businesses, from this coast to the east coast.  I took a risk, but didn't know that one of the untold risks was that the ruthless here would send ideas there, and they would come back as " Americana".  See, kids, I have my reasons.

Thanks Nixon!  And the "Favored Nation" Status you gave them saying it was "Good for Big Business".. and would "bring them out of Communism", that sort of Paid.  So, the answer is, "Never"?  I'm an Economics ranter, too.  In fact I don't believe in Politics.  It's all Economics.

5) Til Tuesday's lead singer, Aimee Mann, went to Open High School in Richmond, Virginia. This charter high school is dedicated to helping students become "self-determined thinkers and learners." Do you recall your high school as permissive or regimented?

Both were regimented.  We wore DRESSES to school.  This was before Mini skirts where even a twinkling in any Mod's Eye.

6) Aimee has been on the road through 2017 and, like most artists, sells tour merchandise. Her line includes reusable tote bags. Do you bring your own bag to the grocery store?

Yes.  All the time.  

7) Aimee has tried her hand at acting and appeared on Buffy, The Vampire Slayer. From Dracula to Barnabas Collins to Lestat, vampires are a popular culture staple (especially in October). What do you suppose accounts for their enduring popularity?

I have no idea.  I've never seen the attraction of Vampires except for comedies, like "Shaun of the Dead".  Now that, my friends, was hilarious!  

8) In 1985, when this song was popular, Bruce Springsteen was at the top of the charts with Born in the USA. A massive commercial success, Born in the USA has sold more than 15,000,000 copies in the United States alone. Is it in your collection?

I like Bruce Springsteen and have always liked this song, but it's not in my collection.  I don't like the videos of it Live.  Who ever made them should get their act together.  Boy, is it an angry song.  

  

9) Random question: In which race would you do better -- the Iditarod, with sled dogs in Nome, or speeding in a car at 200+ mph at the Indianapolis 500?
There is not a shadow of a doubt in my mind that I would die in either one, but I like Huskeys, so I'll pick that.  Speed is for young people.

Thanks, Sam!  Thanks for everything!

Thursday 13 is gone.

I’ve done something I’ve never thought I’d do, delete a blog post.  I apologize to my readers, and the two bloggers who commented on that post.
I’m not letting politicians take over this space, no matter how bad they are, and we now have a very bad situation in Washington.  Surely you all read about it, and form your own opinions based on what you read, or experience, first hand.

Americans ignore this rise of an ultra Right wing take over of one party, at their peril.  It’s the same as if they were to ignore a Communist upstart taking over and running our country.  Both extremes are not good for our special form of Democracy, and we should not be fooled.

The danger is real.  We don’t need another Nazi regime alive and well.  This ultra right religious Nazi enterprise, battening in Washington, cannot be allowed to lead us into the future.  For the sake of our children, we can’t let our Democracy fall to extremists. 

Sunday Stealing: What's a crush.

What's a Crush?

Welcome back to Sunday Stealing which originated on  
WTIT: The Blog authored by Bud Weiser. Here we will steal all types of questions from every corner of the blogosphere. Our promise to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and intelligent questions. You may have heard the expression, “honor among thieves”. In that age-old tradition, we try to credit the blog that we stole it from, if possible. We also provide a link to the victim's questions in our "Previous Victims" widget. (It's our way of saying "Thanks!") Sometimes we edit the original meme, to make it more relevant to our global players, to challenge our players, to select the best questions, or simply to make it less repetitive from recently asked questions from a previously post. Cheers to all of us thieves!

Note:  If you want to join in, go HERE.  And, Bev, thank you so much for doing this meme every week.  

This set of questions is called "Questions to ask Your Crush" but it seems like a regular old set of questions to me!

1. What do you find hilarious, but most people don’t find funny?
Satire.  Especially Political and Religious Ironic satire.

2. What was the best year of your life so far?
I don't see life that way.  I never have.  Life is a "put your head down and get it done" thing to me.  I'm happiest when I go to bed at night and know I've done my level best to get through a day and have succeeded in staying loving no matter what the challenges.  

3. What’s your favorite thing to do on the Internet?
I love the memes that I do.  Instagram is a huge but fun  time sink but it's something I can do when I can't be on the PC.

4. What fad have you held on to even tho it isn’t popular any more?
I don't know.  I never cared whether anything I did was popular or not. I am first and foremost an eccentric.

5. What do you spend most of your time doing?
Breathing in and out.  I find that doing that keeps everything else working.

6. What do you spend way too much money on?
Prescriptions?  Anyway, nowadays I'm too frugal to waste money.  In the past I bought a lot of yarn and fabric, knowing that I wouldn't be able to afford it in my old age.  I'm glad I have it.

7. What event, large or small, has changed the course of your life most?
Getting Married to my Hubby.  It put my feet on a wonderful new path of learning to be a real Human Being. It brought motherhood, and family, and a lot of joy into a life that was the very model of stress and turmoil before that.

8. Who do you have a hard time taking seriously?
The Ignoble Republican Party, which has changed so much as to be unrecognizable from the one I first paid attention to, mostly because of IKE.  It now has never stopped harping on Health Care, even though they singlehandedly created the big problems that exist today within the Affordable Health Care Act.  They did it.  Just read back it it was They!

9. What do you judge people for most often?
Mostly for Kindness.  Mean, Greedy People suck!

10. What was the most beautiful view you have ever experienced?
The Coast of California above Santa Barbara and clear on up to, and probably beyond, Oregon.  

11. What is something you read or heard that has stuck with you for a long time?
Joseph Conrad's book, Heart of Darkness.

12. What’s your favorite thing to shop for.  Why?
I like to shop for baked Goods, from bread to cakes.  Why?  Because Bakeries are very special places, the smells in them are divine, and they make me very happy.

13. What’s the best compliment someone can receive?
"You just did a very kind thing.  Not many people would have done something like that."

14. What’s something people go on and on about and you just can’t stand sitting through?
I really can no longer tolerate Bigots or Racists.  They seem to have NO sense at all about how wrong they are about being a so called Christian, and having NO compassion to speak of for anyone but their own subset of creatures, they behave the way we now see them doing.  Where is the honor that was theirs when Ike was President.  I'm not talking about personal because he was unfaithful, but I'm talking about National Honor. 

15. What’s something you can do that most people can’t?
I can pretty much draw, or paint, anything at all.

16. When was the last time you tried to look cool and ended in embarrassment?
Well, since I never TRY to look cool, I've never had the experience you ask about.

17. What is the most ridiculous rule you have to follow?
We are thieves.  Do you mean there are rules?  Anyway, I'm trying to think about rules I have to follow that I think are ridiculous.  As I said before, I'm eccentric enough to not follow society, and that's where all the stupid rules reside.  

18. What country do you not know the location of, even though you should?
I'm 75 years old and have always known were all the countries in the world are, even after the Soviet Union fell.  I know of no country that I SHOULD know and do not. Sorry. can't think of one.

19. What do you have a hard time with but most people find quite easy?
I'm slightly dyslexic, so I have to think about which is the right or the left eye when Wolfie is facing towards me.  He gets a special eye drop twice a day.  He is wiggly so I hold him.

20. What’s the most impressive skill you have?
See answer #15.  I am in awe of  that Muse thing myself.  I have no idea why it is my talent.  But, "Every child has it's talent", and that one is mine.  
I get this quote from a remarkable woman who raised a foster child who could not see, but he could hear a piece of piano music ONE time and repeat it note for note on the piano she bought for him.  Kindest of people, this lady, and completely an Angel.  An Angel!

Please forgive any run on sentences.  I've spent some time at Urgent Care.  Now I have antibiotics, topical and pills, and those things are always NOT fun.  That's my excuse for brain farts, and there you are.   
Be happy Thieves!  Get out there and steal something from the rich and give to the poor!  They are always stealing from the Poor!

Saturday 9: Chattanooga Choo Choo....

Chattanooga Choo-Choo

Welcome to Saturday: 9. What we've committed to our readers is that we will post 9 questions every Saturday. Sometimes the post will have a theme, and at other times the questions will be totally unrelated. Those weeks we do "random questions," so-to-speak. We encourage you to visit other participants posts and leave a comment. Because we don't have any rules, it is your choice. We hate rules. We love memes, however, and here is today's meme!

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.  Want to join in or see other entries?  Go HERE

Sam, I love this song.  I've sung it since I was very small. Thank you for featuring it, my favorite Ear worm!

1)  Chattanooga is Tennessee's fourth largest city. Have you ever visited Tennessee? If so, where did you go and what did you see?  
I haven't.  Even though we did take a trip to somewhere in Kentucky when I was very small and I don't know if it was to visit one of my grandparents' siblings or not.  

Since Glenn Miller's recording of "Chattanooga Choo-Choo" was awarded the first-ever gold record, we're going to devote the next questions to your firsts.

2) What was the first award or accolade you ever won?
I was in the third grade, and sang a solo of a couple of Christmas carols at the grade school Christmas concert.  I just remember getting loads of attention after the show, from lots of adults.  I had sung with my Grandpa and cousins since I was a toddler, and well, I am shy, too.  I was overcome.

3) We know about your blog. But which was the first social media site that you posted to? (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, MySpace ...)
I just joined Instagram about a month ago, and my blog pretty much predates most other social media.  Facebook was started in February of 2004, and I started my blog in June of that year. Facebook for me has never even gotten off the ground.  I used to play farmville on it but that's about it.
   
4) Where did you go on your first plane ride?
Wow, I just told someone about this.  It was to answer a comment I think.  Can't remember at the moment.  Anyway......  my first plane ride was at an Airshow.  It was in a beautiful, vintage biplane flown by a Pacific Southwest pilot.  It was such a wonderful experience.    

5) Tell us about your first cell phone.
It was a Motorola.  It's called out and received calls.  This Phone was just a little hand held and small and light, with a dial that lighted.   The only cell phone I had that I've ever missed was my flip phone.  It took fantastic pictures.  It was a Casio.  It took this blog header photo.


6) Tell us about your first tattoo: Where is it on your body? Where did you have it done? What does it depict?
My first tattoo was my small pox vaccination.  Mother didn't want it on my arm because she thought it would be unattractive. So, I got it on my upper thigh, and have been explaining ever since just what that thing that looks like a Cigar burn is from on my leg. 

7) How old were you when you had your first piercing? 
I was 16 and my aunt pierced my ears.  Psycho Dad had a cat, and my auntie, his sister, through it right back at him.  He shut up.

8) What had you been drinking the first time you suffered a hangover?
I'm being completely honest here.  I don't think I've ever HAD a hangover.

9) Was your first ticket for parking or was it a moving violation?

I was about 23 and I was upset by the woman in the car ahead of me who was making very rude hand signals at me in her rear view mirror.  She had short hair.  I had just had all my own mane cut off short, and was feeling a little vulnerable.  So, when she went though the stop, I failed to come to a full stop (probably not even the world famous "California stop" one) and got a moving violation.  I've never had another one.  Mr. Z teased me when I said I had just wanted to get away from her!  He said it seems more like you were in a hurry to stay with her!  lol

Thursday 13: 13 words...

I do not rage about living indoors, internal behaviors temporized, paralytical,  unresponsive, Abyssopelagic.

1. I
2 do
3 not
4 rage
5 about
6 living
7 indoors;
8 internal
9 behaviors
10 temporized,
11 paralytical,
12  unresponsive,

13 Abyssopelagic.

my new "Strawberry Statement".

See the Linkie HERE

Tuesday Tails: Wolfie and Me, PLUS, a tail of reindeer and a Native People. Nat Geo

My New Model for Reality

A little bit of Wolfie:  He's slowing down a lot.  And he's lost a pound.  But he seems to have the energy to do his two walks a day with Papa.  And help around the house.  He keeps the floors clean of crumbs, and helps me out.....

Wolfie still helps me with the crossword puzzles

Treat Time!  He checks the floor constantly
 for any which may have escaped him

 As for me, this is just about how I handle the days now.  I'll just ride my Unicorn.

I'm even going to make some very colorful cookies one of these days from This Page.   though.. there be more than....

........Unicorns on that Page...

BEWARE! Fair readers..... that page (Above) has been monetized out the ying yang.)

I read this with interest, and thought you also might like it.  I hope there aren't any big ads on it.  I won't do many Tails on my own anymore.  I'm just absolutely flummelled.  But, I've learned to take Naps!  From NatGeo......

Here's the LINK to National Geographic's Home page.

Hope you have a sweet and happy week, overcoming any of the things that keep you DOWN.  May you be UP all week.

This image is on the page below....

Habits of Supremely Happy People Page

Sunday Stealing: Getting to know you, getting to know all about you...

Getting to like you, hoping that you like me.....
And since I love this song so much, here's Julie!



If you would like to see other participant's posts, or join in yourself, Go HERE.

Our promise to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and intelligent questions. You may have heard the expression, “honor among thieves”. In that age-old tradition, we try to credit the blog that we stole it from, if possible. We also provide a link to the victim's questions in our "Previous Victims" widget. (It's our way of saying "Thanks!") Sometimes we edit the original meme, to make it more relevant to our global players, to challenge our players, to select the best questions, or simply to make it less repetitive from recently asked questions from a previously post. Cheers to all of us thieves!

We can all use some help sometimes with conversation starters, so I found this at a conversation starters site.  There are 100 of them, but I'm only using a few!  (I'll save the rest to ask sometimes in the future!)

Sorry I didn't play last week; I was out of town!


If you didn’t have to sleep, what would you do with the extra time?
I'd clean up all my stufffffff.  Since I only sleep ( if I'm lucky) 6 hours a day, that is a lot of time to get things done!

What’s your favorite piece of clothing you own / owned?
Back in the day, it was my Navy Issue Swabby Bell Bottoms. In fact, because of the fit, they'd still my favorite item.  

What hobby would you get into if time and money weren’t an issue?
Time and money aren't the issue for the ones that I enjoy now, and as those are the ones I would choose, it's being a broken body buddy,  I'd still choose to knit and quilt and to work with rocks and rough, and to carve or facet those into stones to wire wrap or to cast findings for.  I could do that for the next hundred years.

What would your perfect room look like?
It would be a garden room, and would extend a view out across a beautiful garden.  There would be big windows and a high ceiling, and the garden would seem like it came right into the house.

How often do you play sports?
Not ever anymore.  

What fictional place would you most like to go?
Eden
What job would you be terrible at?
I can't really deal with money.  I would hate that so wouldn't do a good job at handling financial things.  

When was the last time you climbed a tree?
When I was in my 30's.

If you could turn any activity into an Olympic sport, what would you have a good chance at winning medal for?  
Nothing.  I'm not that good at most activities, not even ones I could once do well.  Everything I've thought of so far that I'm pretty good at, I am far from the best at.  Enjoy, yes, but that's not winning a Gold Medal.

What skill would you like to master?
Flying.

What would be the most amazing adventure to go on?

If you had unlimited funds to build a house that you would live in for the rest of your life, what would the finished house be like?
It would be a big craftsman style house.  There's one on the way to the Harbor at Santa Cruz that I would shamelessly copy.  That would be my dream house.  It would be built just above Santa Cruz a little ways, maybe in Half Moon Bay, on a three quarter of an acre lot.  It would be furnished with Mission Style furniture, and have views of the wide, Blue Pacific.  

What state or country do you never want to go back to?
I will never go back to Mexico, even for a few days down along the coast.  It's just too dangerous now.  

What songs have you completely memorized?
Almost all the Christmas Carols, the discography of a few singers I like a lot, some religious hymns, some Spanish flamenco songs that were popularized by Charo.  idk, a bunch.  I'd say this is probably my best talent, the memorization of poetry and songs.  But it's rapidly leaving me, falling out my ear.  I won't really miss it.  I hope to sing in the "Upstairs Choir", and all the songs there will be new and infinitesimally more spectacular. 

What do you consider to be your best find?
Well, the best thing was my husband at just the right time.  And then there is finding Wolfie on the San Diego Pound's page.  But there are Two lovely vases in the Korean style, at thrift stores over the years.  Those were pretty thrilling in a material possessions way.

Are you usually early or late?
I'm usually on time. But that's changing fast.  It depends.  I am not in a hurry to get to Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve, though I am starting to think I could enjoy them again now.  I think trying to be on time is a variety of common courtesy.

What pets did you have while you were growing up?
I had a lot of pets, some of them ended up being eaten.  I don't like talking about pets because so many of them "disappeared", even when they weren't edible.  You all know about my Psycho Dad.  He liked to hurt creatures.  I'll say no more.  I'm done with black moods over that disgusting person.

When people come to you for help, what do they usually want help with?
Well, once upon a time they came to me for sewing advice and then lately it's been a few odd dead birds, wanting to know what I can do for them.  Duh!

What takes up too much of your time?
It's probably Instagram that will get the blame for now.  But really, if I could be more active, Instagram would not even be in the running.  I want to WORK!

What do you wish you knew more about?
Linguistics.  For instance, the Hopi people speak a derivative language to Aztecan. It's in the Aztecan family of languages.  I'd like to know, or at least be able to trace, the origins of the Hopi as it related to the Aztecs.  My grandmother told me that there was an Aztecan line in hers.  That jibes with what I've studied over the years.  Because the Hopi traveled in a sort of Swastika pattern, the whole of two continents in their origin, or wandering stories.  And, the USA put a stop to the cross border passage of Native Americans of MANY tribes when they imposed a border where it is.  But Linguistics could sort out an amazing amount of information.  That's the reason I admire the work of Dr. Noam Chomsky so much.  He has preserved these connections for future students of Linguistics. 

What would be your first question after waking up from being cryogenically frozen for 100 years?  
First of all, I would never have this done.  You are talking about some future 100 years, right?  I'd probably say , "Is this still Earth?" 

About Bees: The Miracle of Pollination: A Ted talk. Field Day Friday

Pina sent this to me a week ago and I just had the chance to see it.  Thank you Darling Pina!!  You are a doll!



We have three of these Huge cacti,  three different species, and one is in the back yard,  and two are in the front yard, and all of which these tiny bats pollinate.

Opuntia in the back yard last year

Pachycereus, and yes the Moon and a planet Venus
Night flowering- Pink or maybe red.??  iffy

Prickly Pear, not ours but ours is bigger.

Right now, as I was watching the YouTube above, I turned to Mr. Z. and told him this.  He told me that, last night, when he took Wolfie for his before bedtime walk a bat swooped down into the area in the front yard where these two cacti are.

I was going to tell him about hearing bats in the yard again.  I haven't heard them since we had rabbits.  And yes, I am one of the people who have hearing that can detect bats.

BUT, now I know why!  And, I'm so excited about all this.
HERE is the link to the YouTube above (in case it doesn't play for you)  from a Ted-talk about pollinators.

We cannot survive without these creatures being healthy and alive and working.

Monsanto.  You really are the Devil.  You have put us into a very bad and dark place, and your marketing and lawsuits against farmers were just the last straw.  Shame on you! 

Thursday 13: "List of the day" worries...mundane, profane, and sometimes whiny.

1.  I worry that this is going to be late because things are moving too quickly for me.  Everything seems to be chaotic, and strange these days.  I don't long for the presidency of Bush at all, but I wouldn't mind having a few competent and sane people in the White House.  Thank God for Obama, despite the things he couldn't get changed because of entrenchments in a couple of other "wings".  He was a decent, intelligent man who did a good job of helping us all to heal.  Boy, did the crazies ever come out of the woodwork......

2.  We are going to see me sister today.  This always puts me in a tizzy.  Loving someone and not being able to do anything for them is a clash between Anxiety and Energy, the latter of which has no sane or effective outlet outside of eating too much.  I'm not willing to do that just yet, but it's getting THIS close.

3.  I'm worried about the insane gun culture that seems to rule the heart and mind of the average American.  I think about Europe and Canada.  Even Tasmania.   How do they manage to live without a plethora of firearms?  Is it because they have been through two full out land wars engulfing them after centuries of other bloody conflicts?

4.  I worry that the strange electric signals from my spine down my leg are telling me even more things I don't want to hear.

5.  I worry about my twins, who are having to move after 17 years calling one place their home.  I worry about their hearts and souls.  The house is being sold.

6.  I worry about America.  And, weirdly, the flip side is that Native Americans predicted this;Jesus, actually did, too.  He wasn't as specific as the First Nation Peoples, but pretty spot on just the same.

7.  I worry that my hairbrush is telling me that it's a lost cause trying to hang onto my hair.  And, now I know why almost every little old lady I know has a shortish, perky little hairstyle.

8.  I've had to quit eating chocolate, and this is because of a resurgence of what I hope isn't an ulcer.  I'm going to miss Chocolate if it's a cause.  But no storm cloud is without a silver lining, yes, that old saw... I'm also losing weight. Worry column or Glad?  *thinking about it*  And, Please, could you make that a chocolate apple?

SOURCE

9. The roof is done, but I refuse to not worry about it until it has survived the first real rainstorm without a leak.  Oh, did I say that it's beautiful!  It's straight as a die, and completely perfect.  Now we can see what the rain will do with it.  Living with that faulty roof (almost just as expensive and lasting only 6.5 years) has made me a "I'll believe it when I see" person.
I also knew that the old roof was bad in at least one area that I could see.  I just couldn't get up there to inspect it.  The other leaking parts left their own indelible marks on my retinas, the ceilings, and the nervous system.

10.  I wish I'd taken up the offer of a free (of course nothing is every completely free unless Warren Buffet is giving it to you) camera drone.  I worried that I'd never find a use for it in my lifestyle.  Now, I wish I had taken it as it would be handy to keep an eye on the new roof.

11.  Mr.Z thinks I'm crazy, but I am worried about the one pound weight loss in Wolfie, and how narrow his face looks.  It's taken about six months for him to lose this pound. 

12.  I'm worried about Gal.  If her Cubbies don't win the pennant, she may be inconsolable.  But, no, this is a false worry.  She'd love and cheer them on anyway.

SOURCE

13.  I worry about the new Juvenile Mockingbird who took over his parent's territory.  He hasn't got that "fire engine siren" infected and complex song of an adult, yet, and so he still sounds sweet.  He's taken to fighting with his image in all the big windows.  I hope he doesn't bean himself some day.  I hope he can attract a mate.  I love him so much already.

Hero.....

Tweet by Heather Long, Washington Post.

This is a photo of Jonathan Smith.  He saved lives at the massacre.  Thank you Jonathan!  Good Man!

Well it's Sunday and I've been thinking of this a lot due to a Question in Sunday Stealing.....Edited to make more sense.

These are my own thoughts about the persecution of Charismatics by the early Ministerial Bloc of the Church, and the "why" of it.  I've thought about this a lot over the years.

This is why I think that the early church was a lot more pure.  All the power wasn't yet drawn up into the hands of those who saw all the possibility of this developing cash cow.  They were tasked with ministering to the Charismatics, or Prophets if you will, and instead, the ministers fell in love, with the do-ray-me.

Charismatics, like, Saint Teresa of Avila, were routinely charged with Heresy.  She wasn't, because she had some powerful protectors, who hadn't quite sold out to the Inquisition.  These were Protectors who remembered that Jesus himself said to his early disciples that they would do even greater things because He had come.

What happened was sad, and a free for all as the recognition that power and wealth were building within this new social dynamic.  And, they chose, "a way to make money".  This is the Navajo saying about the definition of Evil, echoing, perhaps, the scripture in Timothy about love of money being the root of all evil.

From Timothy:

"For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows."

I started trying to piece my argument together after a question in Sunday Stealing this week reactivated an almost life long search for truth about what had happened.  This is just one of the pages I've found today, and I'll share it:

http://www.christianitytoday.com/history/2009/january/signs-and-wonders-charismatic-power-of-early-christianity.html

Oddly, some of Charismatic Churches, or the Evangelicals, are caught up in this, too.

We are living with that early betrayal, and suffer sorrow from it to this day.

And, Dr. Preston Sprinkle weighs in.

https://relevantmagazine.com/god/church/4-ways-modern-church-looks-nothing-early-church