Fishing for Kitty

I've been trying to get Ms Kitty to warm up to me.  She sits under the lounge chair and watches me.  She will run up to the back door when she needs me to fill her food bowl.

Turkey left overs have proved useful in getting her to come closer.  This may take a while and I'll probably have to cook another turkey.  She sees the turkey I put out for her.  I put it just a few feet in front of me. She stops for a little drink of water.

 She's trying to play it cool, pretending that she doesn't really notice the pieces of turkey.

 She's getting closer.

 Closer.

 Bingo!

 These are the baby kitties.

No, not a kitty.  It's my Tuxedo Mousse cake.  Not mouse cake and not for kitty.

My Thanksgiving

The highlight of my Thanksgiving was seeing all 4 of my great grandkids.  The 2 from Colo were here with the 2 that live here.  There are 3 boys and 1 girl.  Both sets of parents tell me they don't plan any more children.  It was fun seeing all of them.  The oldest 2 will be 3 years old this Dec. and Jan. The 3rd will be 1 year old in Jan. and the youngest is 3 months old. 

Giving Thanks

 

A perfect time to stop and give thanks...

 

for moments wih family and friends, both near and far away...

 

and for all things around us....

 

So Happy Thanksgiving!!..

WWEWD? What would Elizabeth Warren do?

I’ve mentioned that I’m starting to feel better about America.  I think we are all starting to wake up and smell the coffee.  This election brought in some good people and knocked out a few not so good.  I mentioned the other day that I thought with Elizabeth Warren, the Senate now has a conscience.  Only problem is that she is only one person is a sea of many other politicians who I don’t think have a conscience. 

I believe in my heart and soul that Elizabeth Warren does have the best interest of most of us in this country in what she is planning to do.  There are so many issues that I’m not sure I understand what the best way to go is.  When I feel that way from now on, I’ll go check to see….WWEWD?  She may be only one voice but she’s going to be a voice that many of the rest of us will be listening to.  When we find out what Elizabeth would do, we can help by contacting our senators and representatives to ask them to help her.  Remember they do work for us.  We can fire them!

Even though I live in the swampy flatlands of Louisiana, I heard we will all be facing a cliff.  They call it the fiscal cliff.  I'm not sure what will happen there and I'm worried.  I'll be waiting to find out...WWEWD.  

Veteran's Day

When I think of Veteran’s Day or Memorial Day, I feel ambivalent.  I am so proud of those men and women who were willing to sacrifice their lives for our country but at the same time I feel guilty that they were asked to. 

They are told that they serve to protect the rest of us here at home. These recent wars just seem to me like a way to make tons of money for a very few and a way to waste tons of money for the rest of us.  And the waste of money doesn't hold a candle to the waste of human lives that results. That's the real sin!  And we’re told not to question it because if we do, we are being unpatriotic.  Some who tried hard to enlighten us that these wars are unnecessary are paying the price for it many years later.

 

To thank our veterans for their service we must do everything we can to make sure their lives are not permanently affected by their having made that sacrifice even though there are many things we can’t make better.  We can make sure they have the chance for an education or the training needed to get a good job.  Make sure they have help in dealing with any physical or mental conditions that having been involved in war caused and that should include anything and everything.  We should make sure they don’t have to continue to sacrifice for the rest of their lives.

 

Like so many others in this country, I don’t know anyone who served in one of the recent wars.  I wasn’t personally affected by their sacrifices.  When it’s not in our face, it’s easy to ignore or forget about the problems that war has caused.

 

In one way, I did see some.  Providing medical care in a correctional facility, I did meet veterans who I thought were victims of their service.  Some were in for violent crimes that I thought were very likely the result of being taught to be a warrior.  Many more were in for drug or alcohol abuse that I was pretty dang sure was the result of the mental strains of their war experience. 

There were times when I felt I could use help from the VA but when I asked a veteran, who I knew was very knowledgeable about the VA, I was told that the VA won’t help when a veteran is incarcerated.  I couldn’t believe that but I checked it out and he was correct.  It’s not like a person stops being a veteran when he/she goes to jail, and it’s especially heinous when the veteran’s incarceration and/or medical/psychological issues was most likely the result of their service. 

So veterans…it’s your day today.  We are very proud of your service and I hope when we all say that today, we are willing to put our money where our mouths are.  When this country goes to war, we all should have to pay a price for it.  And I pray that we all do everything we can to see to it that there are less people who are called to make that sacrifice.   

You go girl!

I’ve been proud because I’m assuming that women came out in this election and said…enough is enough.  I’m giving our gender the credit for booting out some of those who are trying to enslave us again. It’s about time.  I just couldn’t believe some of the stuff that came out of some of these politician’s mouths and they thought it was OK.  The stuff about rape, abortion and family planning. I sometimes had to check my calendar to make sure it really was 2012.  Then I’d do a quick mental status exam on myself to make sure my switch hasn’t snapped. Not easy to do on myself.  I might be a bit biased scoring that test. 

Women often disappoint me, seriously disappoint me.  They too often kick their sister’s in the face to stand by their man.  Not even their man, just any old man.  This country wouldn’t put up with some of the awful things that are said about women if it were said about any other minority and we aren’t even a minority.  I think we may even be a tad over half of the population.  The fact that Rush L still has his fat A on the radio proves that.  We have the power but don’t recognize it and we don’t use it. 

I saw little Malala on TV this morning.  She’s the little girl in Pakistan who was shot in the head trying to stand up for the right of girls to get an education. That’s true courage.  That’s what got me pondering on this subject.  She’s recovering, thank God.  She is certainly one of our powerful teachers.  You go girl!  Now, it’s time for the rest of us to get moving.  

Making a good gravy

Mama had a rule of thumb that she used to make gravy.  If the dripping from the meat were just fat, she added flour, stirred and slowly thinned it with meat stock or other liquids.  She sometimes used the water she poured off after steaming vegetables if the vegetable flavor wasn’t too strong and would alter the flavor of the gravy.  She was trying to recapture some of the nutrients lost in the vegetable water. 

If the meat drippings have water in them, she made a paste with flour and water and then slowly added it to the meat drippings.  You will still need to thin it with the things mentioned above.  It’s really easy to make a good gravy and it’s one of my favorite parts of a meal. 

My favorite gravies are turkey, pork roast and lamb.  Nothing better on mashed potatoes, rice or corn bread stuffing than a good gravy.  Warning, do not use those packets included with your turkey.  In MHO, they are nasty tasting.  

As you can see, I'm pondering food today.  It's my favorite thing about the holidays but then...as I've told you before, I don't eat to live, I live to eat!

Rocky Mountain High, Colorado... How did he know way back then?

Well, well, well.  I think I’m happy.  My flavor, not exactly my favorite, won.  Man, can he give a speech and we’re praying that this time the hope and change will show up a lot sooner than it did last time.  Since things are starting to stabilize and he’s not starting his term standing on the edge of a cliff, I’m expecting some really good change this time or I promise....I’ll never vote for him again, for president.  Oh…I can’t anyway, huh.

I woke up to some change I CAN believe in.  MORE women in the senate.  Is it now 20 or 21?    Not anywhere close to gender parity but I really do think that women did wake up for this election and start realizing that we do have the power. It’s a start. Those candidates who felt that there’s such a thing as a “legitimate rape” or one that God endorsed, LOST.  Thank God. More states approve of marriage equality. And now we see how the conservatives really stand on family values and abortion, that dude won. I knew it.  The issue of abortion is just a red herring.  It's one of the ways they try to suck in the religious right.    

What makes me the most excited is…. that Elizabeth Warren won!  The senate now has a conscience!  

What's your flavor?

When you reach in the bowl of Dum Dum pops today, what flavor are you going to choose?  Will it be your favorite flavor, one you can tolerate but not your favorite, or the one with the ?. 

Who’s really in charge of the outcome of this election?  Is it us?  Is it big power and money?  Is it an even higher power?  That would be an easy choice for me.  I’d vote for a higher power but I really think that would be the least likely. 

I do think a higher power does give us signs but leaves it up to us to ponder them and use them to help us with our decisions.  I think this storm, right before the election, was a powerful hint. 

No matter what the outcome, we will survive and thrive.  That’s what humans do.  We are a tough and resilient species.  

This is the t-shirt I will wear to go vote today.  I'm still grieving over that loss.  I'm sure here in Louisiana that I'll get some strange looks.  There's a new gun law constitutional amendment on the ballot today.  I do hope that bringing one to the polls is still illegal!

Canned air for sale

I often ponder the fact that you can sell humans anything and they’ll buy it. 

I have a great idea for a business.  Anyone want in?  If I include you, you can’t tell anyone about it yet and I might be too late with this idea.  My idea is to sell “canned air”.  Yes, “canned air”.   Not just any air, it’s fortified with extra oxygen, vitamins and minerals.  Feeling puny, spritz our “canned air” in your face.  You’ll feel better in no time.  If you’re far away from home and feeling lonely we also have “regional air” for sale,  air from your home town…Houston Air, New York Air, Los Angeles Air…  Air with just a hint of the right mixture of toxins and fumes.  From my experience I wouldn’t recommend the air from Los Angeles or Houston.  Just not my preference.  I felt a little short of breath breathing both.  Of course what I think of as the feeling of shortness of breath, others may see as an interesting buzz.  Just think of all the things that some people will huff for a buzz.

We also have “Rocky Mountain air” or air with a hint of sea salt.  The possibilities are endless. 

If you think that this “canned air” is a dumb idea, that’s how I kinda felt about bottle water, those individual bottles of water, when they first started selling it.  From the get go I thought...this is just not right.  

We don’t have to pay much for water from the house.  If you’re not home you can get it just about anywhere else for free.  You can filter it.  If you want it portable, get a travel mug or glass.   How much power or natural resources do we squander to bottle water?  Now it’s going to be available in a can??  How much trash do we generate with all this plastic and cans?  How much money do you waste on it? I do understand that some water must be available in containers for emergencies.  

I want to thank and praise the NYC marathon runners who even though they couldn't participate in what they trained to do, used their extraordinary stamina and skills to help out the victims of the super storm.  

No Time here

Did you remember to set your clocks back…or was it forward?  Spring back and fall forward??  Is that it?  Or is it spring forward and fall back?  Both would actually work unless you have to go to work today and you made the wrong choice.  If not, you have 24 hours to make a correction.

When I got up this morning, I was pondering that I forgot to turn my clocks forward, backward..whatever.  Then I realized I don’t even have a clock that I need to set here.  I haven’t moved any clocks back here from the camp yet.  That’s because the two clocks I depend on, my iPhone and my satellite, set themselves.  My iPhone is my calendar, my clock, my watch, my alarm to get up or to do whatever I need to do, whenever I need to do it.  It has taken over a large portion of what my brain used to do.  They say what we don’t use we lose.  Hope not because that brain does require power at some point to recharge it and there are probably a lot of people up in the northeast sections of the country, after the super storm, walking around with part of their brains missing. 

I had no excuse not to remember to set anything last night.  My friend, TW, reminded several times yesterday to set my clocks.  She has appointed herself my personal reminder to do things and that task covers a lot.  Every time I drive over to visit with her she tells me that my tires are getting thin and it’s time for some new ones.  No iPhone app for that, at least not one that I’m aware of. I still see a few milliliters of tread before I hit the rims so I have time.  

Get out the vote...REALLY? Undecided voter....REALLY?

I wake up every morning with some ponder on my mind.  This morning it was about voting.  Most of us have watched Dancing with the Stars or American Idol or one of the shows where the viewing audience is asked to vote for who they think is the best dancer or singer.  IMO, it usually isn’t the best who wins.  People vote for who they like, who looks best, who is the most popular and sometimes who’s the worst just to screw it up.  It’s not really that important who wins these contests.  It’s not a big deal but voting for the leader of the free world is pretty important. 

There’s such an effort to get people out to vote for the presidential election.  Do we really want someone who isn’t interested, out there picking someone for the most important job in the world?  I was pondering that this morning.  There are already too many people choosing a president using much of the same criteria they use to choose who is going to be the American Idol or who will get the mirror ball.  Some make their selection based on who mom or dad voted for.  Some couldn’t tell you what their candidate believes.  We can’t change that but…..if a person isn’t really interested in voting, LEAVE THEM ALONE.  I’d rather see only those who really care, selecting our next leader.  Call me nuts.  

Who's your daddy?

It’s a good time to ponder if you think that the federal government should be available to help out in these kinds of disasters.  Depending on the outcome of this election, it may not be next time.

People are screaming…where’s the help?  Some didn't learn from what they saw in Katrina.  Maybe they didn't want to pay attention to something horrible that was happening to someone else.  Some probably even thought that those southerner’s were sooo dumb not to leave New Orleans when they were warned to leave.  It’s just human nature to want to protect all that you have.  It’s human nature to think…it probably won’t be as bad as they are trying to make it out.  Nothing wrong or abnormal about that. 

Things are unfolding exactly as they usual do after this kind of disaster.  It takes a good week for the federal government and other resources to get in to start to help.  Even though I bitched about being stuck at the jail for 8 days, I was effing lucky that I had that option because it would have been impossible to have what I needed before that time.  Of course I would have been a good distance out of town if I wasn't required to stay behind for my job.  Most everyone did leave when they called for the evacuation for Rita but that was because we had the advantage of just having watched what happened in Katrina. 

I'll just bet that there will be some who think they did it all alone and never got any help from the government who will be happy to get some help from "big daddy".