I know it's typical for people to think that it's GOOD that someone won't be slowed down by ill health, but in Dick Cheney's case, I have to disagree. Illness is a message we give ourselves. We can ignore the message by fixing the symptom but the message is still there and will get more and more drastic to get our attention. Now that Cheney has that heart regulator implanted, I wonder if his body will try ANOTHER way of getting the message across? In any case, I don't really expect him to listen, but those are my thoughts on the matter. And while it's common to put such 'self-sacrificing' individuals on a pedestal, it's a little too machiavellian or short-sighted for my tastes.
posted:12:51 PM | link |

Wouldn't it be cool to simply plug your computer into a wall outlet and have it be able to communicate with other plugged-in computers in the house? Or even the refrigerator? Looks like some of that future technology is finally starting to arrive! (As Homer Simpson would say, "Hmmm. Looks like they have the internet on computer now!") *grin*
posted:10:04 AM | link |

Well, there's a first time for everything! Let me first remind everyone that we live in a town of population 100, 12 miles away from our general store and post office, and at least 30 miles away from anything resembling a grocery store. It's COUNTRY. The only noise we really hear from the road (which is a few thousand feet away from our house as well) are the rumble of motorcycles (usually on weekends) and trucks of all kinds. But today I stopped dead when I heard, get this, an actual POLICE/EMERGENCY siren - this is the FIRST EVER time I've heard one. Oh sure, local authorities busted a meth lab run by intruders on some nearby ranchers property recently, but they didn't use sirens. And we've seen suspicious looking black SUVs with satellite dishes on top parked on the side of the road when officials were looking for dead bodies or suspects (where else to hide evidence but out in nowhere?), but no wailing noises. I can't even imagine that if a cop were out here he'd BOTHER to bust someone for speeding - no speed limit signs on the road anywhere either. In fact, just a little past us, there are 'free range cattle' signs with many a bullet hole in them. (They probably read "we are cow, hear us moo" in braille.) So now all I have is some imaginative speculation - until our local weekly newspaper comes out again. Hey man, that siren's GOT to be BIG NEWS!!! *grin*
posted:4:04 PM | link |

When we first moved into our little converted schoolhouse out in ranch country, about three and a half years ago, we found a horseshoe and put it on one of the windowsills for good luck. And it's still there. Today I was hovering under a live oak tree by the fence, watching the dogs run around, when I looked down and found, you guessed it, another horseshoe! I'm sure I've walked over that spot a zillion times before and this horseshoe was as plain as day - LOL. But I could always do with some extra 'luck' and it's going up on the same window ledge with the other one - they make a nice balanced set.
posted:11:25 AM | link |

Stop by Tomato Nation and have a few laughs. "It's funny cuz it's true." I loved the ones about food and shoes. Of course, I haven't read the other ones yet, and I'll probably like those too. Er... gotta go! ;-)
posted:8:28 AM | link |

I love this kind of news piece *grin* - BANGKOK (Reuters) - Residents of a Thai town are flocking to the home of a bereaved mother to touch and see a five-foot monitor lizard she says is a reincarnation of her 13-year-old son and a bringer of good fortune. The lizard followed her home after her son's June 17 cremation, slept on his mattress in the house and loves his favorite beverage -- fresh milk and drinking yogurt. Crowds of up to 200 people have been thronging outside the house in Nonthaburi, 20 miles north of the capital Bangkok, offering their respects and showering the creature with gifts. Some scratch the lizard's back and stomach and hunt for numbers for Thailand's state lottery on its skin. Chamlong, 51, says that her son turned into the lizard and she and her neighbors say that the creature had not been previously seen in the area. Neighbor Pranom Chamchuen, 64, said she did not believe the lizard was the dead boy at first but changed her mind after seeing its response to hearing the boy's name.
Just like the boy, the lizard is very polite, she added. ``When the reptile wants to use the toilet, it crawls from its bed to a lavatory outside the house.''
posted:2:21 PM | link |

I never really announced this, just put up a link in the left column, but John now has his own weblog, Parabolic Mirror - his latest entries are about this solar cooker he constructed out of cardboard and aluminum foil, and the terrific halibut he cooked in it. Mmmmmm..... fishalicious.

And me? I've been trying to write an article (for the CCJ) for like three months now. Everytime I think I have a topic or idea, it turned out to be just a small piece of something ELSE I didn't have yet. I think I'm starting to get a handle on the 'big picture' that all the pieces fit into though, so hopefully I'll be able to write something coherent, cohesive, and relevant soon.
posted:10:13 AM | link |

For some reason, I was shocked to discover that some people still believe that unless it's 'bad' or 'negative' it's not 'news' or 'newsworthy'. When you grow up believing something but then gradually shift away from that POV, you sometimes forget what it was like that 'old' way. And the remembering can really illustrate the CONTRAST, and how much you've changed.
posted:10:07 AM | link |

The girls killed during the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 might just have been on bad 'LSD' trips!
posted:5:21 PM | link |

The daughter of friends of mine from North Carolina is Senator Edwards' (NC) Patient of the Day today. (Shoirdae Henderson) Her parents and she are telling her story to help bring attention to making the Patient Protection Act into a law, to stop other incidences of HMO negligence. I admire their courage in sharing this challenging situation and wish them all great healing.
posted:10:26 AM | link |

John, tom, and I went to the Big Sur area last Friday, and I took lots of cool photos, but I haven't written anything up yet or made a photo page or anything. tom has a few of his photos up though, so if you're curious you can pop over there. :-) Now I'm off to do some domestic tasks - woo hoo!
posted:8:10 AM | link |