Rejection Hurts...

...particularly when it comes at you from out of the blue and from places you least expect it. I know I can be very sensitive and emotional which maybe helps to explain the hurt, but understanding that doesn't make it less painful. Hopefully this too shall pass, but right now the wound is deep and it's barely scabbed over. I pray that eventually the wound will heal and leave only a small scar. But one thing I know is that my life has been changed because of the situation and I fear I am going to have a difficult time re-establishing trust. Right now I am just avoiding because it hurts less that way.

Obama Controversy

"In the first two weeks since the election, President-elect Barack Obama has broken with a tradition established over the past eight years through his controversial use of complete sentences, political observers say.

Millions of Americans who watched Mr. Obama's appearance on CBS's 60 Minutes on Sunday witnessed the president-elect's unorthodox verbal tic, which had Mr. Obama employing grammatically correct sentences virtually every time he opened his mouth.

But Mr. Obama's decision to use complete sentences in his public pronouncements carries with it certain risks, since after the last eight years many Americans may find his odd speaking style jarring.

According to presidential historian Davis Logsdon of the University of Minnesota, some Americans might find it "alienating" to have a president who speaks English as if it were his first language.

"Every time Obama opens his mouth, his subjects and verbs are in agreement," says Mr. Logsdon. "If he keeps it up, he is running the risk of sounding like an elitist."

The historian said that if Mr. Obama insists on using complete sentences in his speeches, the public may find itself saying, "Okay, subject, predicate, subject predicate -- we get it, stop showing off."

The president-elect's stubborn insistence on using complete sentences has already attracted a rebuke from one of his harshest critics, Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska.

"Talking with complete sentences there and also too talking in a way that ordinary Americans like Joe the Plumber and Tito the Builder can't really do there, I think needing to do that isn't tapping into what Americans are needing also," she said."

Andy Borowitz is a comedian and writer whose work appears in The New Yorker and The New York Times, and at his award-winning humor site, BorowitzReport.com.

I Heart Keith Olbermann!

I have been very disturbed by Prop 8 in California and the fact that it strips people of rights they already had as well as denies them the vry basic human right of creating a family unit. Keith Olbermann's Special Comment last night on MSNBC brought tears to my eyes. He put it all so simply.



It makes me cry to think that there are people in this nation whose are so filled with hate (or is it fear?) that they feel the need to keep people surpressed.

I Just Don't Understand

Today should be a very happy, joyous day in this country, but the ugliness of hate continues to rear its head. Barack Obama has been elected 44th President of the United States. His election brings such hope to a country where we have even been denying we are American. I now feel I can proudly hold my head high and admit I am American. There were no boos from the crowd when he mentioned McCain in his acceptance speech, unlike all the boos in McCain's concession speech. The smiles and tears running down the faces of the people in the crowd said it all. I was so moved by emotion and hope, something that I have not experienced in the last 8 years.

But, sadly, the hate spewed by McCain and Palin throughout the campaign continues to hurt. The brother of one of my oldest and dearest friends posted the following on my Facebook page:

"you should invest in a 55 gallon barrel of vaseline. . .enjoy your delusional state of mind, while you are able to. now you'll have another new kid to chase around the block. i'm sure youre right, as your messiah has arrived. good luck, but keep the barrel nearby."

This has bothered me all day. To me it's offensive and hateful and is a continuation of all the crap thrown around by Sarah Palin and John McCain. I just want to wash my hands. Needless to say, I've removed him as a friend on Facebook.

A New Day Has Begun!

Goodbye Joe the Plumber! Go home and pay your taxes.

Why Is This Man Not Being Prosecuted?

WHAT IF.....

....Michelle and Barack Obama came out on stage at the Democratic Convention with 5 children, one a special needs infant and a pregnant teenager?

...Barack Obama graduated 894 out of a class of 899 from the Naval Academy?

...Barack Obama faced expulsion from college on more than one occasion because of insubordination and excessive demerits?

...John McCain graduated with a BA in political science specializing in internal relations, and magna cum laude from Harvard with a JD?

...Joe Biden went to 5 colleges before graduating with a BA in journalism (hoping to be a sportscaster)?

....Sarah Palin graduated with a BA in history and a BA in political science from University of Delaware and a JD from Syracuse University?

...Barack Obama crashed 3 planes because of recklessness?

...John McCain had only been married once?

...Barack Obama abandoned his first wife after she was horribly disfigured in an auto accident?

...Barack Obama met his second wife in a bar, had a long term affair with her, and took out a marriage license before his divorce was final?

...Barack Obama has been found to have exercised "poor judgment" by the Senate Ethics Committee?

...Michelle Obama had an addiction to drugs and had entered into a hush-hush plea bargain and court-imposed rehab?

...Michelle Obama stole drugs from a charity?

...Barack and Michelle Obama had 9 homes and 13 cars?

...John and Cindy McCain had 1 home and 1 car?

...Barack Obama referred to his wife as a cunt?

HOW WOULD THIS ELECTION BE DIFFERENT?
RACISM AT ITS BEST.

A Message for Sarah Palin

I am....

Which Twilight Character Are You?

Jasper Hale You're Most Like:Jasper Hale You tend to be off to the side, you are soft-spoken, But you get the job done, not to mention you never fail to cheer a Friend!

How do you compare? Take this test! | Tests from Testriffic

Will the Real John McCain Please Stand Up?

OMG!!

Can Sarah Palin be any less informed? I'll get back to you???



I think the McCain camp is really trying to play political games. McCain says he's suspending his campaign and wants to delay the first debate. So...they need to get 4 debates in during the next 19 days...3 presidential and 1 vice presidential. If they have to delay the first presidential debate, they will most likely have to cancel another. Now....which debate do you think they will cancel?? Obviously not a presidential debate!

DO NOT BLINK BARACK!!!

Mr. Risk

Does anyone find it a wee bit terrifying that the man who wants complete and total control of almost a billion dollars of our money with no oversight was known as MR RISK while he was at Goldman?? That he increased their debt ceiling from $20 million to $100 million? That he walked away in 1996 with over $50 million in salary and bonuses? And this is who we want to trust?

I Can Honestly Say I'm Scared and Depressed

I find that in recent days I am always close to tears when it comes to the continual news of the economic collapse of our country and the class warfare that is going on. I used to laugh about it but I can't anymore. I'm sad and depressed, and feel totally and completely helpless. This country is being completely looted by the rich and hyper rich. There will be NOTHING left when George W. Bush and his criminal cronies leave office. And, the prospect of McCain and Palin stepping into those shoes and continuing the policies that have brought this entire country to the brink of bankruptcy terrifies me. We don't need to be concerned about foreign terrorism...we have homegrown terrorists in the shape and form of our elected government officials. We are being asked to trust those very people who have brought us to the brink of total destruction.

The Constitution has been completely gutted and We, the People, have had our rights taken from us. We are supposedly fighting a war to establish a democratic government in a country that has no desire for and/or knowledge of a democratic government, but at the same time our rights have been spat on.

My assets are diminshing in value and I am going to be asked to pay to put money in the pockets of the hyper wealthy and lobbyists. This country cannot afford to fund education and health care for everyone, but we can afford to bail out these financial institutions.

And, once this bail out is completed and we are all line up to file bankruptcy, will the Republicans turn around and spin this to say look how we saved Wall Street? When we all line up to file bankruptcy, and discover that under the Bankruptcy REFORM Act we can't get out from under our debts, who can we look to to bail us out? Isn't it ironic that Wall Street can make all kinds of bad investments, huge bonuses and gold parachutes to CEOs, and walk away scott free, but those of us funding the bail out cannot get out from under our debts.

Where is the help for all the students who are burdened with student loans? For the people living on social security disability who cannot afford to rent an apartment, buy medications, etc. For the elderly living on fixed incomes? For children whose schools are failing? Where is the help for 99.9% of all Americans?

And how can anyone in this country say they are undecided????

Thank You John McCain

This was made by a friend of Aimee's. Pass it on!

PBS Poll

PBS has a poll on their website of whether Sarah Palin is qualified to be Vice President. What is scary is that right now "yes" is winning. I really want someone running the country who, after attending 5 different colleges, finally got a BA in journalism. Wow..that will impress world leaders, won't it?

http://www.pbs.org/now/polls/poll-435.html

Is This A Nightmare?

So today Sarah Palin and John McCain were in Cedar Rapids, IA. Sarah was a little confused geographically since she thought she was in Grand Rapids. Nevertheless, she was enthusiastically telling everyone what a Palin-McCain Administration would accomplish. Did I miss something? When did she become the Presidential nominee?

If this is a nightmare, someone PLEASE wake me up!

Sarah Palin's Impressive Education

Hawaii Pacific University - 1 semester
North Idaho College - 2 semesters - general study
University of Idaho - 2 semesters - journalism
Matanuska-Susitna College - 1 semester
University of Idaho - 3 semesters - B.A. in journalism

Definitely the educational experience I want running my country!

Who's An Elitist?

The Republicans love to call Barack Obama an elitist. Vanity Fair has now figured out the cost of the outfits that Laura Bush and Cindy McCain wore at the Republican convention:

Laura Bush:
Oscar de la Renta suit: $2,500
Stuart Weitzman heels: $325
Pearl stud earrings: $600–$1,500
Total: Between $3,425 and $4,325


Cindy McCain:
Oscar de la Renta dress: $3,000
Chanel J12 White Ceramic Watch: $4,500
Three-carat diamond earrings: $280,000
Four-strand pearl necklace: $11,000–$25,000
Shoes, designer unknown: $600
Total: Between $299,100 and $313,100

ONE OUTFIT VALUED AT MORE THAN MOST PEOPLE EARN IN A YEAR!!

A Week of Relaxation and Creation

Last week Deb and I attended the annual Needlework Guild of Minnesota retreat in Buffalo, MN. It's a week we always look forward to anxiously and bemoan when it's over. This year we went a day earlier so we could have time to settle in and make more than a quick trip to the local yarn shop. We again had the Garden Room as our independent study room. We weren't happy about that because we had a bad experience there our first year. But this year it was just fine; I can actually say I enjoyed it. The light during the day is wonderful because of all the skylights and glass wall overlooking the lake, but in the evening it's not so ideal. Still, we both had our Ott lights and that helped. We staked our claim to a table and remained there the entire week. I was busy working on knitting a pair of socks for Aimee as part of Ravelympics and Deb was working on one of the most gorgeous Quaker samplers I've ever seen.

I took 3 classes from Lauren Sauer (Forget-Me-Not In Stitches). This is one of my favorites. It's called Key to My Heart. The heart is stitched in wonderful silks. When it is opened, it contains an antique key. On the inside, the heart design is simply back stitched; on the back the heart design has some color; and the front is in full color. It's very easy and so very pretty.



One of the things the Guild did for a fundraiser this year is have a silent auction for 18 handmade aprons the Guild used in the past for something or other (I can't remember the original purpose of them). When the Guild moved about a year ago, they were going through all they had accumulated and ran across the box of aprons. They were going to simply throw them out until someone thought of auctioning them off. The aprons were displayed on a clothes line stretched over the stairs going from the entrance of the retreat center to the lower level. Some of those aprons went for BIG bucks! One woman also took all the aprons and photographed them individually and made them into an extremely beautiful calendar, which they also sold as a fundraiser. Of course, I had to get one!



During Show and Tell at the annual meeting, 9 Guild members brought the neighborhood round robin they had worked on for the past 2 years. They were SO beautiful! This was my favorite, done by the "infamous" Kathe Lyndsley...stitcher extraordinare.



One of the things that I love most about this retreat, besides the opportunity to do nothing but stitch, eat and sleep, is the peacefulness of the retreat itself. We saw some of the most spectacular sunsets this year. I'm already anxious for next August to roll around!

The Big Read

Let’s see how many you have read from this list. This is what you do:

1) Look at the list and bold those you have read.
2) Italicize those you intend to read.
3) Underline the books you LOVE.
4) Reprint this list in your own Blog



1. The Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkien
2. Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
3. His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman
4. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
5. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, JK Rowling
6. To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
7. Winnie the Pooh, AA Milne
8. Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell
9. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, CS Lewis
10. Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë
11. Catch-22, Joseph Heller
12. Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë
13. Birdsong, Sebastian Faulks
14. Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier
15. The Catcher in the Rye, JD Salinger
16. The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame
17. Great Expectations, Charles Dickens
18. Little Women, Louisa May Alcott
19. Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Louis de Bernieres
20. War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy
21. Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell
22. Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone, JK Rowling
23. Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets, JK Rowling
24. Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban, JK Rowling
25. The Hobbit, JRR Tolkien
26. Tess Of The D'Urbervilles, Thomas Hardy
27. Middlemarch, George Eliot
28. A Prayer For Owen Meany, John Irving
29. The Grapes Of Wrath, John Steinbeck
30. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
31. The Story Of Tracy Beaker, Jacqueline Wilson
32. One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Gabriel García Márquez
33. The Pillars Of The Earth, Ken Follett
34. David Copperfield, Charles Dickens
35. Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl
36. Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson
37. A Town Like Alice, Nevil Shute
38. Persuasion, Jane Austen
39. Dune, Frank Herbert
40. Emma, Jane Austen
41. Anne Of Green Gables, LM Montgomery
42. Watership Down, Richard Adams
43. The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald
44. The Count Of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas
45. Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh
46. Animal Farm, George Orwell
47. A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens
48. Far From The Madding Crowd, Thomas Hardy
49. Goodnight Mister Tom, Michelle Magorian
50. The Shell Seekers, Rosamunde Pilcher
51. The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett
52. Of Mice And Men, John Steinbeck
53. The Stand, Stephen King
54. Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy
55. A Suitable Boy, Vikram Seth
56. The BFG, Roald Dahl
57. Swallows And Amazons, Arthur Ransome
58. Black Beauty, Anna Sewell
59. Artemis Fowl, Eoin Colfer
60. Crime And Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky
61. Noughts And Crosses, Malorie Blackman
62. Memoirs Of A Geisha, Arthur Golden
63. A Tale Of Two Cities, Charles Dickens
64. The Thorn Birds, Colleen McCollough
65. Mort, Terry Pratchett
66. The Magic Faraway Tree, Enid Blyton
67. The Magus, John Fowles
68. Good Omens, Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
69. Guards! Guards!, Terry Pratchett
70. Lord Of The Flies, William Golding
71. Perfume, Patrick Süskind
72. The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, Robert Tressell
73. Night Watch, Terry Pratchett
74. Matilda, Roald Dahl
75. Bridget Jones's Diary, Helen Fielding
76. The Secret History, Donna Tartt
77. The Woman In White, Wilkie Collins
78. Ulysses, James Joyce
79. Bleak House, Charles Dickens
80. Double Act, Jacqueline Wilson
81. The Twits, Roald Dahl
82. I Capture The Castle, Dodie Smith
83. Holes, Louis Sachar
84. Gormenghast, Mervyn Peake
85. The God Of Small Things, Arundhati Roy
86. Vicky Angel, Jacqueline Wilson
87. Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
88. Cold Comfort Farm, Stella Gibbons
89. Magician, Raymond E Feist
90. On The Road, Jack Kerouac
91. The Godfather, Mario Puzo
92. The Clan Of The Cave Bear, Jean M Auel
93. The Colour Of Magic, Terry Pratchett
94. The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho
95. Katherine, Anya Seton **my all-time favorite book!**
96. Kane And Abel, Jeffrey Archer
97. Love In The Time Of Cholera, Gabriel García Márquez
98. Girls In Love, Jacqueline Wilson
99. The Princess Diaries, Meg Cabot
100. Midnight's Children, Salman Rushdie