Beating A Dead Horse

Two recent reasons why I don't watch the news:

--I am sick to death hearing about Barack, the professor, and the cop sitting down and having a beer together. The entire story just went on way too long, but STFU already about the damn beer! Am I supposed to think that this makes Barack a 'common' man? This whole thing would NEVER have been such a big deal--and I'm talking from the beginning of the 'story'--if the MSM hadn't kept at it like they have. This never should have been more than a one day story, at most.


--And come on already, how the f***ing hell much longer do we have to be subjected to the Michael Jackson 'story?' I'm waiting for the big news to be the inventory of his underwear drawer! ENOUGH!!! I'm crying 'uncle!' It can stop.

LOLCats

Links

I've seen some pure awesomeness online this past week--and here are the links.

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--3-D Murals. I can't tell what is real and what is a painting in some of these pictures. Unbelievably amazing! If you like the pic shown, go here to see more.




The ENTIRE side of this building is a mural--including the person shown. What a talent this artist is!

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--Creative grave markers. Okay, so you die and get buried. Usually, a headstone is placed on the grave so that your family can find you again. Not often do you actually find a headstone that is very interesting--until you find one of these.


I DO like the one that says: I told you I was sick! ;)

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--Simon's Cat. Anyone who has EVER been owned by a cat, will be able to appreciate these videos. Here is one of my favorites.

CLASSIC!!

Randomness

For the last couple of days it has been a bit on the cool side. We're talking around 70 degrees or less. YAY!!! However, the humidity has been in the 4962% range. BOO!!! We are experiencing cool, damp conditions--DUH!!!--and it is getting a bit old. EVERYTHING is wilted and clammy--including me. The humidity in our bedroom is over 75% and I'm afraid I'm going to start seeing moss growing on the walls one of these days. Uncomfortable doesn't quite cover the way things are.

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Early Saturday morning there was an apartment fire 'back home.' Four people were killed. Arson is suspected.

I hope the person who did this is caught and strung up by the balls. Out in the middle of the woods. Where the mosquitoes, black flies, coyotes, bears, and other wildlife live. Till he screams for mercy. And no one listens.

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The Youngest--my animal lover--has a sick cat. He is one of her oldest and will undergo tests--including an ultrasound--tomorrow. She is just devastated. I feel so terribly useless. I wish I could help her. :(

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Our local Junior A hockey team has set its roster and put out the schedule for this year. Seven of last year's players are off to college, so there will be a very different look to the team. The team seemed to be in some trouble--financially--but is still here for the year. They did so much better last season and hopefully will do better this year. It is very good for the area and local hockey to have a Junior team here.

Once again, there will be a 'Paint The Rink Pink' game for breast cancer awareness. I want to attend, as we did last year. I'm hoping that this year they will have a teddy bear toss again. I was sick all of December, so wasn't able to go last year. I have two bears to contribute, so really SHOULD get there. The season starts on 25 September, so I only have two months before hockey begins!!!

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Celebrity sightings!!

Apolo Anton Ohlo and Mark Spitz have been seen in our town recently. But NOT by me. :)

Our local university is an Olympics training center, so people come here to train or tryout for Olympic teams. The speed-skating training was held here earlier this month and the trials will be here in September. Apolo Anton Ohno was one of the skaters here. He has won five medals in previous Olympics.


Every year there is a charity swim for diabetes that takes place on one of our local lakes. This year, Mark Spitz came here for the event. (NOT to swim, just to speak.) He was a winner of nine gold medals in the Olympics. Before Phelps won HIS medals, Spitz had the most gold won in a single Olympics. He won 7 in 1972.

WOW!! We are getting to be a hot-bed of celebrity activity around here. ;)

Saturday Funnies

From I Has A Hot Dog:



Mother Goose & Grimm:

Look In A Mirror!!

I have said before that I have the body of a goddess--unfortunately, it is a fertility goddess, like the one there-----> ;)

I suffer from no illusions--I KNOW my body isn't what it once was, but whose is? Age, two pregnancies, breast-feeding two kids, a hysterectomy, thyroid problems, stress eating, boredom eating, being sedentary, and genetics have all taken their toll on me. I could have a better body if I tried, but I haven't. What I look like is mostly my own fault and I don't try to fool myself into thinking it is anything BUT my own fault.

All that being said, when I leave the house, I try to fix myself up to the point where I won't scare small children who might come in contact with me. I do an okay job of cleaning up, I guess. At least MOST kids don't run screaming when they see me. That's a positive. I check myself out in the mirror before I leave the house just to make sure everything is in place as it should be. Unfortunately, all people don't do the same.

Tuesday evening, K and I went to our neighborhood pub to have something to eat and play a little trivia. Things were going well--we were getting our usual number of questions correct (which means we weren't going to win a thing ;)), I was enjoying my stingers and the nachos we ordered, and between questions we were watching the Tigers beat the Mariners. As I said, things were going well. And then I saw it. THE woman. Wow. She was a few years older than me and was dressed well enough. The problem was, she forgot to put a bra on before she left home. Now, MY boobs hang low, but this woman was something else. I SWEAR her nipples and navel were having a three-way conversation! And to top it all off, the only person I had to talk to about this, was my husband. Who didn't see a damn thing! Where, oh where, is my youngest when I need her? She is the ONLY one that could appreciate this situation with me. Anyway, that was something that I will not forget seeing for a long, long time. And I really wish I could.

Insurance

Don't get me wrong, we have wonderful health insurance--and we are blessed with prescription insurance, as well. If it wasn't for insurance, I would not be using Enbrel, as it costs WAY too much. For the three months I have been using Enbrel, the regular cost is about $10,000--I only paid $30. Now that I am on maintenance, this year's cost will be about $25,000 (total) and I will pay $120 out-of-pocket (total.) As I said, wonderful insurance. However... (you KNEW there was going to be a 'however,' didn't you?)

The day before I saw the dermatologist, the insurance company called the dr's office and asked if my prescription would be refilled. The dr's office called me and asked for any pertinent info, but we put the refill request on hold till I saw the dr. Yesterday, the nurse faxed my prescription in--as per the preferred method. Today, I got a call (pre-recorded) from the company asking if I wanted them to get in touch with my dr in order to get a new scrip. BUT, before this, they had sent me an email saying that they received the fax from the dr's office, yesterday, and were working on filling it. So, to sum up: the company calls and tells me they don't have a new prescription for me, but they send me an email saying they DO have one. Obviously, the right hand doesn't know what the left is doing. And this goes on ALL. OF. THE. TIME. We'll get reminder emails AND phone calls about needing to refill a prescription one time, but have to remember on our own the next week. Sometimes we get MULTIPLY reminders about something and sometimes, NOTHING. No rhyme or reason behind what is happening. This bureaucratic bullshit drives me absolutely crazy, but there is nothing that I can do about it--except come on here and piss and moan. ;)

LOLCats

I Can Has Cheezburger today.

About The Bear

One of our neighbors told K that a bear was caught the other day, two blocks from us. Is it our visitor? Who knows, but it makes sense that it probably is. I hope so. It would be nice to close this out.

Three Month Check-up

I had my three month visit with the dermatologist today and I have 'graduated.' As of the first week in August, I will be doing only one injection per week of Enbrel. She was very pleased with my progress--as am I--and thinks there will continue to be improvement. I am keeping my fingers crossed.

So, how exactly do I feel about the Enbrel therapy? As I told the doctor: Things are better than I imagined, but not as good as I hoped. All in all, I will take what I have and hope it all gets better.

Ducks

In the infinite wisdom of the powers that be, wetlands are being constructed everywhere. We have at least two within a couple of blocks of us--one borders the local medical center. Not only do these swamps bring TONS of mosquitoes and other bugs, but ducks make them their home. Tonight we went to feed the ones at the medical center. Sadly, the young ones are almost as big as the parents already. We saw at least a dozen ducks, but I could only get a picture of five in a group.

Construction

The work on our street is almost done. The other half of our street still isn't done to the point where the paving will begin, but we were told that the work will be finished by the end of the month. We can only hope.

K took this picture from the upstairs bedroom window--this was when they were replacing our sewer line.



Our front yard after the work was completed.



The driveway after it was prepped for paving.



The new driveway. Our first! YIPPEE!!!

And Now I'm Titled

If you haven't read Meleah's blog yet, you should find the time to do so. She is a funny, wonderful lady who I have gotten to be friends with through our respective blogs. With all that she has had to go through, she is an inspiration with the way she keeps her sense of humor. Anyway, she has a lot of good stuff over at her blog and you will be glad to know her.

You know how people will give others nicknames? Well, Meleah gives people 'titles'--long, descriptive, unwieldy paragraphs that are 'spot on' when it comes to showing what said person is all about. She honored me by giving me a title. Here it is. (All pictures, graphics, and red colored words are MINE--NOT part of the title.)



A woman Whose Hockey Obsession Stretches Far Beyond Unhealthy,









And Lives For The Red Wings,






And Has A Totally Super Inappropriate Crush On A Particular Hockey Player That Happens To Be Younger Than Her Youngest Child [Who She Often Refers To As Her 'Baby Boy'--The Hockey Player, Not Her Child.] (He is just TOO adorable for words! And he can play hockey well, too.)

And Suffers Serious Hockey Withdrawal During The 'Off Season' And Literally Counts The Days Until The New Season Starts, (check out the side ----->)


Who Answers To The Initials CMK,


And Writes The Blog: Out Of My Mind, (AND Out Of My Mind Over Hockey :)) Which Includes The Funniest 'Police Logs' In The History Of The World,


Who Is Positive She Would Get A Divorce If They Ever Tried To Build A House, (Facebook update)


And If She Ever Moved Would Take Her Toilet Bowl With Her,


Who Is Not A Big Fan Of 'Hall And Oates' Unless They Are Coupled With A 'Keyboard Cat,'

And Could Only Handle Watching Five Minutes Of Jon & Kate,


Who Has Issues With Chipmunks,


And Loves The Show Eureka on The Sci-fi Channel (NOW known as Syfy. {gag}) Because It's Smart And Funny, Made For Geeks And Non-Geeks Alike,

Who Prefers Toaster Strudel Over Pop-Tarts,

Who Enjoys The Security Of Onstar,




And Has A Crush On Michael Westen. (From the series Burn Notice on the USA network.)

Otherwise Known As Christine.


I laughed till I cried when I read this! Thank you, thank you, thank you Meleah. Love you, my dear! xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Bear Update

Around 6:00 PM on Wednesday, we received a call saying the bear was wandering around a neighbor's yard. Our block is bordered on two sides by a thick stand of trees/woods, so that is where the bear probably has been hiding. K went out to sit with one of our neighbors with the hopes of getting a picture of the bear--didn't happen. And the number one reason it didn't happen was what K was afraid: people wandering around looking for the bear. I guess the word went out and the 'woods' were crawling with people--there even was a woman pushing/pulling a baby stroller out there. I can't believe people.

So far, we have heard no word on whether or not a trap has been called for. I guess if the bear becomes a nuisance, or enough people call the city, the DNR--or whoever--will come out. Just what I'm waiting for.

Very Interesting

I finished reading Mark R Levin's book Liberty and Tyranny and must say that I would recommend it to anyone. It made me think, see some things differently, and supported a lot of my beliefs with factual evidence. Unfortunately, the people who most need to read this would rather burn it than open the cover. Hopefully this country will stop the decline it is in before we reach bottom. With my pessimistic personality, I don't know if we CAN turn it around in time.

Not Always Right

A couple of good ones today from Not Always Right.


I COMPLETELY understand this woman--I would be upset if a Wings' game was interrupted! ;)

Customer: *on the phone and angry* “HOW DARE YOU RUN AN EMERGENCY ALERT DURING THE RED SOX GAME?! BASES LOADED!”

Me: “Ma’am, I’m sorry for the inconvenience. We have no control over the emergency alerts.”

Customer: “CAN’T THEY DO IT AT NIGHT?! I’M TRYING TO WATCH THE GAME! BASES ARE LOADED!”

Me: “Again, ma’am, unfortunately the emergency alert will broadcast during an emergency situation; we have no control over when that will happen.

Customer: “WELL YOU BETTER GET SOME CONTROL OVER IT!” *click*

And from the 'please don't let her reproduce' file:

Me: “Hi, welcome to **** Music, how can I help you?”

Customer: “Yes, I’m having a little trouble with this CD.” *holds up a Carrie Underwood CD*

Me: “All right, what’s the problem with it?”

Customer: “Well, I was listening to that song, you know, ‘Before He Cheats’.”

Me: “Yes?”

Customer: “Well, the lyrics don’t really make sense in one part.”

Me: “Excuse me?”

Customer: “Well, you see, she says, ‘I may have saved a little trouble for the next girl, because the next time that he cheats, you know it won’t be on me’.”

Me: “…”

Customer: “You see, she hasn’t really helped the next girl at all. She’s saying he’ll cheat again, and that it won’t be on her, so it’ll be on the next girl! That next girl isn’t being helped at all!”

Me: “…so there’s nothing wrong with the CD itself?”

Customer: “The lyrics don’t make any sense at all!”

Me: “Ma’am, if the CD itself plays correctly, then…”

Customer: “Well, I’m saying it DOESN’T play correctly! The words are wrong!”

Me: “Ma’am, there’s nothing I can do to change the lyrics of a song.”

Customer: “Can’t you just call her up, and make her change them? I mean, really, it’s in her best interest, since her song would make more sense, and more people would buy it that way!”

Me: “Ma’am, let me be sure I’m understanding you. You want me to somehow call Carrie Underwood, and have her change the lyrics to her song, which has sold millions of copies, because you don’t approve.”

Customer: “Exactly! I knew someone would understand. The other store I went to didn’t help at all!”

Me: “Ma’am, are you saying that, not only is the actual CD playing without skips, and the disk is not scratched, but that you bought it somewhere else?”

Customer: “Well, yes. So, can you call her?”

Me: “No, ma’am. I can not.”

(The customer refused to understand that I could not, in fact, change the lyrics, and spent another 10 minutes trying to explain why she was upset.)

Where We Live

Along with hunting and fishing, there are those here who trap regularly. As you can see from this picture, they will trap ANYTHING here in the UP! :D




If you can't tell, that is a snowmobile caught in an ENORMOUS bear trap. This is outside of an ironworks business up north from us.

Adventures With Wildlife

We took a ride up north this evening to bring our grandson his birthday gift. Surprisingly, we didn't get to see too much in the way of wildlife, but I was impressed with what we DID see. We saw a total of five deer--not a lot, for sure--a bald eagle sitting in a tree--absolutely breathtaking!--and a coyote--which looked very healthy. I'm not sure if the dryness of the area is what kept the critters in the woods, but they were not active tonight.

That being said, we did have activity in our neighborhood this morning. K looked out of the front window around 6:00 AM and watched a black bear wandering in and out of the yards on our street and finally made its way onto the bike path and took off. I REALLY was not happy to hear this. Now I will have to take care when I go out in the evening--DON'T want to meet up with a 150 pound bear!

I Just Don't Understand

Shortly after Barack took office, I was walking through a store and saw some tabloid headlines saying that George W Bush was "depressed and suicidal." I overheard someone tell her companion, "He SHOULD think about killing himself after what he did to this country."

WOW.

Just WOW.

How mean, petty, and just plain UGLY is that remark.

If I said that Barack should think about killing himself, I wouldn't be surprised if Blogger closed this blog. I could just about guarantee that Facebook or Twitter WOULD suspend my account if I said that on either of those sites.

I just don't understand some people.

Mother Goose & Grimm