Category: Life

Day-By-Day

Day-by-Day

Karen

The small, insignificant, day-by-day things that happen in my life.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Leroy had his 40th birthday party at Incredible Pizza, complete with Limo ride and everything. A bunch of people from his church rode over with him. He got an iPod Shuffle and will need to come over here so we can help him load music on it.

Dude played Ms. PacMan at Incredible Pizza and I was quite impressed with his hand/eye coordination. Now, if we could only find a way for him to make money off that impressive skill.

Kevin played with his band, Midnite Thunder, last night and he ROCKED the house. It was amazing to see him on stage and playing as if his accident never even happened. Fifteen short weeks ago, the man was immobile. God is so GREAT!!

Our air conditioner is working really well, and the temps are in the 90’s (with real feel in the low 100’s). Again, God is so GREAT!!

Talked to sister-in-law about the differences between public school and home schooling – this was the first time we’ve openly discussed it. The conversation was civil and interesting. In some ways, I wish I had home schooled, in a lot of ways, I’m happy we didn’t.

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Monday, August 2, 2010

Kevin and I watched “The Green Mile.” I should have known it was a Stephen King story. It was fascinating, but in a weird and (a bit) disturbing way. The story was tight and there was a reason for everything, which all made sense at the end. I’d give it a five out of five stars, though Kevin will likely give it a four because it was nearly four hours long! That’s about 3 1/2 hours too long for Kevin. He doesn’t like to sit that long for movies.

Our temperature got up to 100 today. It’s supposed to be up that high tomorrow, too. We have a heat advisory until Wednesday night. The heat is so bad right now that the Ozark Empire Fair has postponed running their rides until 4:00 in the afternoon on account of being afraid people will suffer a heat stroke. We don’t plan on going to the fair this year, and it has nothing to do with the heat.

Kevin and I made a trip to Lowe’s. We had planned on buying a new water cooler (the coolant doesn’t work on the one we have anymore), but once we got to talking about it, we decided against it. Our cooler still heats water, it just doesn’t cool. Since we have an ice maker now, we can use the ice to cool our water. Not to mention there’s a water spigot in the fridge now, which the boys use exclusively and well, we just couldn’t justify forking over the cash. I think we’re going to apply the money we would have spent on the cooler and put it toward a new BBQ grill. That makes so much more sense, doesn’t it. *snort*

I couldn’t find the motivation to do much today. I sent an email out to all of the schools and I immediately received some emails back. I still plan on writing some flash fiction before I go to bed (it’s 11:13 p.m. right now), just so I can concentrate on getting some work done tomorrow. It’s all about priorities, you see. (Blog before work. How sick is that??)

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Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Kevin and I left the comfort of our cool-(ish) house and went to vote today. (Temps climbed all the way to 100). We actually researched what was on the ballot, weighed the candidates (well, not literally), and decided who we thought might be the better choice. Though the candidates are important (and should be important, I think way too many people don’t think about the candidates as much as they should), the most important issue on this ballot for me, was Proposition C. If passed, Missouri will be exempt from the federal government penalizing us if we choose our own health insurance as opposed to the insurance the government will try to cram down our throats in 2014.

I’ve been vocal on this issue, both here on my blog and on Twitter. The whole country is also watching to see what happens with this as we’re the first to vote on anything like this. I daresay, other states will be following suit. As of 8:46 p.m., Prop C is well on its way to passing. I’m not only thrilled because people are finally beginning to understand the danger of having our choices taken away from us, but because it’s a clear cut message to the Obama administration that just because you have the power NOW and are passing laws that the American people DO NOT WANT, it won’t last.

I smell a fight brewing just over the horizon. People are angry and I daresay it will become more than apparent when November rolls around – this is just a preview of what’s to come.

I helped Kevin stretch tonight. He’s been laying on a blanket on the floor at night while watching TV (as opposed to sitting in his recliner), and stretching his muscles. I’ve been pushing his legs to the limit and then forcing him to hold the position – his muscles are indeed becoming more pliant. It really bothers him that he can’t put his sock on his left foot, and he still can’t lift his left ankle, but we’re working on it. We don’t want to admit that he might have sustained permanent damage from his accident, but it would be unrealistic to think that there might not be long-term repercussions.

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I’ve been using Oh Life to record my daily events. I love it because they send you an email at 8:00 p.m. every night asking you how your day went. You reply to the email and it automatically posts to your Oh Life account. I’ve been wanting to record the day-to-day happenings in my life because, well, I forget this stuff. I realize it may be pretty boring and worthless to you all out there, but to me? They’re precious moments.

These entries are raw, immediate and from the heart. You can expect to see these updates every Wednesday and Sunday (or thereabouts)

Thanks for reading.

Politics

Missourians for Health Care Freedom – Vote YES August 3rd

Karen

This post is to my fellow Missourians, though this certainly applies to the rest of the country as well for I daresay your states may be trying something similar in November.

It’s concerning the debacle that is Obamacare.

The vast majority of us don’t want it. We don’t want to be forced into buying something we do not want. We don’t appreciate how this administration is trying to take our freedom of choice away from us – we are intelligent beings, only WE know what is good for us, we don’t need no stinkin’ government jamming their ideology down our throats and running our lives for us – we are exercising our freedom of DISAGREEING with our federal government.

On August 3rd, (as in THIS TUESDAY!!) Missourians have a chance to take some of our health care control back. At the very least, if passed, Prop C will hinder our federal government from penalizing Missourians if we opt out of purchasing health care insurance.

From the Missourians for Health Care Freedom website:

What does the Health Care Freedom Act do?
The Health Care Freedom Act will preserve and protect the rights of individuals to make their own health care and health insurance choices. Specifically, it would protect the rights of patients to pay directly for medical services, and it would prohibit any individual or employer from being penalized for not purchasing government-defined health insurance.

Why should Missouri protect the right of patients to pay directly for medical care?
Single-payer systems, like in Canada, make it illegal for citizens to go outside of the government’s health care plan and contract for their own medical services. The Health Care Freedom Act would make this fundamental provision of single-payer health care unlawful.

Why does Missouri need the Health Care Freedom Act?
Efforts within the Federal Government threaten to put complete control over individual’s health care in the hands of government bureaucrats, partisan politicians, and appointed “experts.” Government control means you will have less freedom to make the health care choices that are best for you and your family. Patients should have the right to pay directly for medical services with their own money. That’s because when consumers control the dollars, the patient makes the medical treatment decisions. When the government controls the dollars, they make treatment decisions based on what’s best for the government, not what’s best for the patient.

Preserving the rights of patients to pay directly for medical care ensures that patients–not government bureaucrats–decide which doctor to see or what medical treatment to choose.

Does supporting the Health Care Freedom Act mean that I am against health reform?
Absolutely not! The Health Care Freedom Act simply states that the cornerstone of any future health care reform must be the preservation and protection of the right of individuals to make their own health care choices without fear of penalty and/or fines.

You can read more about Prop C here.

The country will be watching to see how this pans out. If you do nothing, then you’re part of the problem.

Life, Life-condensed

I’m a Proud Daughter

Karen

My mother is so crafty – and I mean that in the actual arts and craft sense.

She can take an ordinary object and create something beautiful out of it. Take this rock for example:

Seriously. How cute is that?!?

She entered it in a special contest at our county fair and won 3rd place!

In fact, she entered 20 items total and won 18 ribbons! She astounds me because my mom does this every year and every year, she virtually OWNS the fair with her talent.

(Yes. I’m bragging. She’s awesome, okay?)

And even though she walks away from the fair every year with a pocket full of ribbons, she’s never won the big, purple Champion ribbon. (The Champion ribbons are the “Best-of-the-Best”).

Until this year.

Congratulations on your Champion ribbon, mom!!

Here’s what my mom said about her Champion-winning shawl:

But my proudest moment was when I saw the purple shawl I knitted. It not only had a first place blue ribbon on it, but it also had a Champion ribbon AND a Sponsors Choice Award attached to it. In all the years that I’ve entered my projects in the Fair, this is the first Champion ribbon I’ve ever gotten! And it’s the first Sponsors Choice Award too. Wow!

A lady that works at the Fair said that she was there when it was being judged, and the judge said that it was “perfect”! I won the Champion ribbon over all the knitted items in the whole section. That made me feel really proud.

That makes me really proud, too.

Congratulations mom!

Relationships

Put Your Energies into People Who Deserve It

Karen

I really don’t care what people think about me.

Well, I care, but mostly I don’t.

Let me rephrase that: I care to a point.

After that? *shrug* Meh.

I mean, it bothers me when loved ones are upset with me, the closer to my heart they are, the more it tears me up. But I think we all have to reach a point where we say, “Enough.” A heart can only take so much.

I’ve had this conversation with both of my boys.

The “being TOO nice” conversation.

My boys are gentle creatures. I have no idea what I’ve done to turn them into such creatures but I thank God that whatever happened, happened. (Too bad I’m not smart enough to know what that was).

And they’re nice. They’re nice to everyone. They are loathe to hurt anyone’s feelings.

On the surface, this is a good thing. Truly. But there are times it’s not such a good thing.

Dude will agree to do something simply because he thinks disagreeing will hurt the person’s feelings. Or, Dude will search for the answer you want to hear because he doesn’t want to disappoint you.

Jazz will defend underdogs because he feels sorry for them. Even if defending the person puts him in the cross hairs, even if his stepping in means other kids will make fun of him, then so be it. I can’t tell you the number of times Jazz has come home to tell me about how some kid was being bullied and he swooped in to save the day. Or, the times he’s gotten upset because a “friend” suddenly began giving him the cold shoulder.

Life lessons are so hard to learn. And even harder to teach, I think.

In a nutshell, I’ve taught my boys that though it’s great to be nice, that you should always give nice a chance first, sometimes you have to stop being nice.

It’s human nature to take advantage of other people. I mean, if we’re constantly given something and then given the option of working for it, which option do you think the majority of people will choose?

If you’re continuously nice to people and expect very little, if anything in return, then most of the time, those same people will continue to take advantage of your good nature. They will suck you dry. And most won’t think twice about it.

There has to come a time when you have to put your foot down and say NO MORE.

You can do it nicely, you can do it tactfully, but ultimately, you have to do it. You only have so much to give before your reserves are tapped out and if your generosity, your willingness to understand and be patient is draining so much life out of you so that you don’t have the time, energy, or wherewithal to live your own life and take care of the people who depend on you, then it’s time to cut the dependency ties.

The challenge, of course, is knowing WHEN to do that.

And that’s what I’ve tried to teach the boys. Knowing when to stop being so nice (and by that, I don’t necessarily mean start being mean but to know when it’s time to move on) is hard. There is no cut and dried answer. It depends. It depends on the person, the situation, the circumstance. It depends on how much you’re emotionally invested in the person (though again, be careful, loved ones can sometimes be the worse when it comes to taking advantage of your good nature).

But I’ve seen too many people, I’ve heard too many sad stories from people I’ve worked with, about how they’re so tired of being taken advantage of and yet, they continue their behavior and continue to be taken advantage of. At some point, the cycle has to end, doesn’t it?

Most people are great and getting to know them can be a huge reward, but then there are some people who are poison to your mental health and to your quality of life in general.

The challenge is being honest enough with yourself to first SEE it, and then having the strength to do something about it.

Move on and concentrate your energies on the people in your life who love and respect you.

Not everyone will like you. And that’s okay.

Politics

Mama Grizzlies – Don’t Mess with Our Children

Karen

It’s no secret that I stand on the conservative side of the politic fence.

And make no mistake, there IS a fence. Because this country is absolutely divided and this country’s foundation has been shaken to the core.

All thanks to our commander in chief. (*golf clap*)

Don’t even pretend that it’s not true.

This president has seriously messed this country up.

But this post is not about my intense dislike for our president – what’s done is done, (hellllllllooooo November 2010 AND 2012!!), no, this post is about my thoughts on Sarah Palin’s new political tactic.

Watch….

Let’s move past her annoying voice, her hokey delivery and her desperate attempt to show people that’s she’s just a gun-toting, bear killing, Alaskan-surviving regular jane like the rest of us.

She comes across as a dweeb – I won’t argue on that one.

And just because I’m a conservative doesn’t mean I automatically like Sarah Palin. She gets on my nerves for much the same reasons she bugs other people. I don’t care for her tactics, or even her personality, but I do appreciate her willingness to take a strong stand in this politically correct circus we have going on now.

Put all of your pre-conceived opinions about Palin aside and focus on the message. She’s doing something different, she’s pulling out the MOM card.

I actually laughed out loud when I first watched this video. I sort of thought it was a joke, but then I started thinking about it and wow, whoever came up with this idea is a genius.

The mom card?! What mom out there doesn’t want to protect her children? What mom out there doesn’t get defensive and downright vicious when her children are threatened – either physically and/or figuratively?

And who can deny that with Obama’s brilliant new programs our children’s futures are not now figuratively threatened? Our poor kids, and grandkids, are going to have to pay for this administrations power-hungry decisions.

If that thought DOESN’T bring out the mama grizzly in you, then honestly, I don’t know what will.

I’m rather shocked the “mom-o-sphere” isn’t up in arms about Palin’s ad today. (Maybe they are and I’m just missing it. I purposefully don’t follow the “popular” mom bloggers because they get on my nerves so bad).

I also think it’s interesting she’s not trying to persuade any one person to join the conservative movement based on conservative ideals, but rather, is calling to action all the moms out there, regardless of party affiliation, to DO something about this whacked out administration in order to protect our children. Which, I’m not saying is not important, of course, but this Rhetoric mastery is quite impressive to watch. I mean, so you’re not a conservative, fine. But if you don’t step up and make changes all in the name of your child, does that mean you’re a bad mother?

Have I mentioned how much I dig rhetorical language and techniques? It plays on your logic, your emotions, and your empathy. All powerful emotions that often time, if tapped correctly, will compel people to step out of their comfort zones and DO something out of character all because their passions have been aroused.

Interesting.

People are so FED UP with the same-ole-same-ole political rhetoric, the empty promises, the same bullsh*t we’ve heard over and over these past years and that really doesn’t mean anything.

But calling on the mom instinct, making people care by hitting them close to the heart …well, I’m impressed.

I’ll be curious to see how effective this mom card tactic really is.

Life-condensed

Back in a Flash

Karen

I noticed my dad posted this on his Flickr account last night.


It’s my sister, with her pacifier, about 40 some odd years ago.

Is she is the epitome of cuteness or what!

And I don’t think I’ve ever seen this picture. Hhmm….

I’m taking the day off from blogging, (sort of). I have a ton of work to do and I seriously need to focus. So, I’m shutting you down Internet, please don’t take it personally.

I shall return shortly.