Opinions are just like a--holes; everyone has one.

 and most of them stink!  I just turned off the news.  I have turned everything off and it will stay that way the rest of the day.  Today is election day.  Normally I am all a twitter and anxious to see who will rule over me for the next four years, but this year is different.  For most of my life I was a registered Independent and mostly voted Republican.  That all changed way back when Amendment 2 was up for adoption in the state of Colorado.

Normally when I see the words "Shall there be an amendment to the constitution...." it incites something in me to say yes.  Not so with this one.  A yes vote basically removed any protections that my gay friends were allowed to enjoy.  It cleared the way for open discrimination against them for job security, rental of a place to live, marriage and any protection in anything and everything that you and I take for granted.  In order for my fiends to have any basic protection for anything, I had to vote "no."  Sadly there were a lot of people who voted yes and some of them knew what they were voting at the time.  To make a long story short, it passed with a very strong yes vote.  To make it even shorter, we went to the supreme court and it was declared unconstitutional and we all lived happily ever after. (Well, not really, but at least that part was removed.)

But so began my journey into the arena of politics and the need to have my vote mean something.  Today when some one brings up politics, my first question is "Are you registered and do you vote?" If the answer is "No, because my one vote will not make a difference", then we have the talk about one drop of rain in a bucket is nothing, but 6 million drops will flood your ass!"  You register your car.  You register (hopefully ) your gun.  You need to register your wants and desires with the state and federal government.

Voting, to me, is a sacred right.  With my vote I sent the first man of color to be my president.  With my vote, I overturned gay discrimination.  And with my vote I can raise or lower my taxes.   I can require that you have insurance on your car and that your dog has a license.  I can change the county, state, and federal laws.  I can put the man in the White House to rule over my country.  But if I don't vote, I am screwed!

If I don't vote I have no right to bitch about how the rest of the country voted.  So I do.  It may not be much and it may not be the man (or woman) that I wanted, but it is the one the majority of the people chose and I can live with that.  Or at least I think I can.  We will see.

I may not agree with the choices you make, but I will defend to the death your right to make them.

Peace to all.

I am loving this pandemic!

 It suddenly dawned on me that this pandemic could not have come at a better time!  My whole life has been spent socializing in one way or another, but now I am forced to stay home alone and I gotta' tell you, I am loving this shit and I am going to tell you why.  It is an election year and our country is in the shitter and we are going to vote.  

It used to be the election was just a contest and the man who promised us the most usually walked away with the prize, but this year is different.  I have set here for the last 3 years and 9 months and watched a "business man" run this country like he runs his businesses.  Sadly, most of his businesses are teetering on bankruptcy, he is facing rape charges, nepotism is rampant in the white house, and if that were not enough, his wife had the Rose Garden ripped out and replaced with sod so said president could hold a rally on the front lawn of the white house.  Every country in the world has turned its back on us with the exception of Russia.  Putin is loving us.  We are a laughing stock in the eyes of the world and this does not seem to bother the upper echelon!

The confederate flag seems to be a symbol of pride.  Nancy Pelosi is a joke.  Ruth Bader Ginsberg tried to out live him and failed.  Old people are the butt of jokes and women are being sterilized on the southern border.  The government operates as an independent arm of something that we keep pouring money into with no hope of ever getting anything back.  The saddest part of all is that "my friends" can not see what is happening.  The Russian Government handed Donald Trump the last election and if you think it can not happen again, you are sadly mistaken.  

My friend, Nancy, who has since gone to her reward had a picture of Union Avenue taken at a rally 13 years ago for Barack  Obama.    There were people every where.  It was a picture of unity and happy faces.  There was hope in peoples eyes.  It was followed by 8 years of hope, unity, fellowship and a feeling of living in the greatest country on earth.  Check out our last 4 years.  If you can look at that period and tell me you are better off now, then I am the fool!

I do not visit my Republican friends any more.  I have dealings with them, but not on a social basis.  If circumstances arise where I have to deal with them, it is just in and out and do not throw that orange haired bully in my face and try to convince me that he gives a big rats ass about any of us. Sad that it has to be that way, but it is.  I find any number of reasons to avoid human contact with all but a chosen few.  

Today is Sunday.  Our church is closed.  I have not attended church since last March.  Supposedly we will meet the first Sunday in October.  We will see.  In the interim, I will just set here and wonder what day it is since I have no benchmark.  And I will watch the news and I will curse trump and all his cult following for what has become the most violent time in my memory.  I lived through school integration, demonstrations during Vietnam conflict, but this time there is no hiding from it.  Our government is out of control and headed for a collapse like none we have ever seen.  And you want to know the saddest part?

When this is all over and the smoke has cleared away, this will be the darkest time in American history.  This "regime" will go down as the one that bankrupted America, caused the most derision, and it was all orchestrated by a morally bankrupt business man supported by religious organizations marching in the name of God and financed by the NRA under the banner of the confederate flag.

And with that, I bid you adieu and like I  used to say when I was interviewing a job applicant, "Don't call me, I'll call you!"

Cory Gardner? I think not.

 Looking back over my voting history it has come to my attention that I may very well be a Republican!  While I am a registered Democrat, I say this because I have voted for a lot of Republicans.  Ronald Reagan, the two Bushes.  I was too young to vote for Eisehhower.  On the state level, I voted for Cory Gardner.  Actually met him several years back and conversed with him briefly about the railroad from La Junta to here and up the front range.  This man turned out to be one of my biggest disappointments to date.  Why?  Let me tell you.

I have had several occasions to want to voice my opinion on something that is coming up for a vote.  "Call Gardner's office and make your wishes known."  That is simple enough.  He has a recording you can leave your message on, but that gives me little room for talking points.  Have you tried to contact him?  That is what is known as an exercise in futility.  I can leave my phone number all day long and there is not one shred of hope that there will ever be a human voice contact me.

Several years ago we began carrying a cardboard cut out of Cary and we called it "Cardboard Cary" because we did not see him.  It was a full size image of him and it looked just like him standing and waving.  He appears in several pictures in my scrapbook with his "Clint Eastwood smile and Robert Redford eyes."  He was always a "no show" at any rally we had because he was never around.  He likes to take vacations and I am thinking he should be given more time to do just that.

So election time is coming up and we will be voting by mail as we have done for many years.  I am not involved like I used to be, but I do vote.  I am happy with the mail in ballots and secure when I drop mine down the slot into the steel box behind the building at 8th and Main.  Bo Ortiz will gather up my ballot and count it.  I trust the mail in ballots more than the one where we used to vote at a ballot box.  While I do miss the actual voting place and the people who ran it, that is just a personal preference.  Mail in is more secure and I have time to actually study my ballot.  

So, I have not paid much attention to the candidates, but I have made up my mind that I am voting for who ever is running against Gardner.  Well actually, I would vote for Godzilla.  This year it is a straight shot down the Democratic side.  Trump and his Mitch McConnell puppets have soured me on the Republican Party.  I am very sad at the state our our country is in today and the ballot box is the only way to change that!

So rest assured, I am voting a straight Democratic ticket this year. I do not feel good about this, but I have seen what having the Republicans in complete control has done to my United States of America.  And contrary to popular opinion, it is still my country.  "My country tis of thee, sweet land of liberty."

Never forget that! 

My friend, the Republican is alive and well in Kansas!!

I have a friend in Kansas who is a Representative in the Kansas Legislature.  He is a Republican.  Joe Seiwert and I have been friends for a very long time.  Not sure how I met him, but I do know that the highlight of any trip to Kansas is meeting Joe at Skaets Steak Shop on the corner of  23rd and Main right in front of the fairgrounds.  Rarely do I ever meet a man that has the same sense of humor that I have, but Joe is one of them!  And we laugh and laugh!

He is a farmer or was.  I think he has now turned his farm over to his kids and I assume he is still a Representative, and I am sure he is still a Republican.  (They never seem to change!)  I do know that when I know I am going to Kansas, I put the word out and Joe and I will meet for coffee!  We actually discuss things like wind farms, state of the union, economy and the upcoming election.  Every cell phone I have had sports a picture of Joe and I at Skaets right up until the one I carry now.  I have not been back to Kansas for several years.  I do miss those trips, but life seems to be holding me here.

What I can not get straight about this whole Democrat/Republican snarling is why it has to be that way.  I have a list of friends and family that I have unfriended on facebook because they tend to want to shove their beliefs down my throat and it just isn't going to happen.  Joe seems to understand and be able to see both sides of the argument.  He never turns red and calls me stupid, which I sure appreciate!

But this is not about politics, it is about a strange friendship between an old woman who is a Democrat and a very stalwart Republican that have enjoyed a 10+ year friendship even without speaking for years at a time.  I had fallen heir to a bunch of cheap jewelry several years back and in it was a little golden tie tac which is an elephant.  I immediately thought of Joe.  It rolled around the desk a while.  Then I put it in a cubby hole on the desk.  The little grandson found it and wanted to play with it, so I decided it is time to mail it to Joe Seiwert, my Republican friend.    There really is no story to tell, it just is what it is.

So, Joe, every time you wear this, think of me!  I will be in Hutch this summer come hell or high water and I will be most happy for you to buy my lunch!  And until we meet again, 

May the road rise to meet you and the wind be ever at your back!  I love you, my friend!

Shades of Jim Jones

The following is my opinion and only my opinion.  I think I still have the right to state my opinion.  Maybe not.

How many years ago was it that Jim Jones and his 909 followers drank the Koolaid in Jonestown, Guyana?  I was still living on McClelland so it must have been in about 1978.  I recall that  when I told my kids about it they thought I had made it all up, just to scare them.  I was trying to instill in them the need to think for themselves and not just be  followers.  As I watched the Senate vote against  the impeachment of the Donald Trump, I could not help but remember Jonestown.  The Senate drank the Koolaid.  I refuse to do that.  Donald Trump is the very epitome of evil.  He is a bully.  He is a selfish narcissist. He set about destroying anything Obama did, simply because he is a racist.

My mother was a Republican.  I think my whole family was.  Kansas is Republican country and I think when I registered it was as a Republican.  After coming to Colorado, I registered Independent.  I am now Democrat.  I loved Obama, but I also loved the older George Bush.  I did not vote for Bill Clinton. but I did vote for Hillary because I felt evil coming from Trump.  I was right.

I do not know how any person in their right mind can condone what is going on at our borders with the children taken away for their parents.  Our school system is in shambles.  Medical costs and insurance continue to skyrocket.  I could go on with all the crap that this administration has caused, but I will just cut to the heart of the matter.

Trump has his whole family working in government.  That is nepotism.  He uses Marlargo  to pad his coffers while still not showing a tax return.  You try that!  While I set here in my house trying to keep warm and still pay the gas bill, he revels in his warmth and is surrounded by body guards that are paid with my money to keep him safe.

Life is not fair.  There are the haves and the have nots and we are the have nots.  I see the smirking face of Mitch McConnell and it makes me sick.  He said before the impeachment vote that the Republican Senators would NOT convict no matter what the evidence said.  Doesn't that tell you something?  I am proud of Nancy Pelosi for trying and I am proud of Mitt Romney for voting yes.  I am disappointed that the rest of the Republicans caved to a thug who calls himself our leader.  If this is the mark of a leader we are all in trouble.

So, rest assured, I will still do all I can to survive.  It is sad that he does not have to pay taxes and I set here with my social security in jeopardy.  These are my golden years.  These are the years I should be taking a cruise.  Instead I plan my grocery list with prudence and eat the cheaper foods because that is what I can afford.

In closing, I want to say if you are offended by this blog, hit the block button, or if on facebook, unfriend me.  I will not argue with you about right and wrong on this matter.  Keep it to yourself.  I do not need Trump followers telling me how good I have it.  Screw you!

Never let your right hand know....

"Never let your right hand know what your left hand is doing", was something my mother always said when she was imparting her wisdom to my tender ears.  She was referring to acts of kindness or charity.  We should never brag of our work.  Or at least that is what I took it to mean.

But it also applies to our world outside of the church and I never really understood what that meant until I started paying attention to our politicians and public leaders.  What brought this to my attention was a headline I just saw over on my news feed.  "Unnamed prominent person fights to keep Epstein records sealed."  Now I know what she meant!

I am pretty sure I can guess who it is, but then again, maybe not.  Oh, wait!  Do I care?  Not really.  Our politicians today are all so screwed up that it is just a matter of whose sins are bigger and how many bodies are hidden.  And all of those things are covered up and if not covered, then buried in public view.  Does anyone remember Chappaquiddick?  Watergate?  Clarence Thomas and the infamous Coke can?  Did any of that change history?  Nope.  Not one iota.  More importantly, do the participants remember what they did?  Hell no!  It is old news.

Our nation is in crisis and we are bombarded with news of pedophiles, sexual assaults, disrespect and anything to keep our minds off of what is really going on in our nation.  Our government is spending money like it was free and the upper echelon does not even pay taxes.  But we do!  We set here like a bunch of ducks in a barrel waiting to be harvested by bigger guns than our military carries, because we have our second amendment rights!  Give me an effen break!

Now I am not here to give you a lesson in morality because most of you should be old enough to know right from wrong, but it seems a lot of our leaders in this tumultuous times are keeping a lot of secrets and on an almost daily basis we read of one of our reputable leaders falling from grace.  Oh, trust me, there are a few things I did back in my wicked past that could come back to haunt me, but this would mean somebody has a way better memory than I do because I have pretty much forgotten my dark days.  That, coupled with the fact that I have out lived most of my cronies, allows me to sleep soundly at night.

Washington is a hot bed of corruption and we turn our backs and walk away.  It used to be we could "vote the rascals out", but with Russia in charge of our ballot box,  we stand little chance on that front.  But you know what I think?  I really feel that some where in this hot bed of filth that is now our government, there are a few decent people who really care.

My mother was a Republican and she was a good person, so I am sure that not all of them are bad.  But we have to research our candidates from the township election clear up to the presidential ballot.  From the city, to the county, to the state, to the federal.  Every damned one of them.  Vote like your life depended on it, because with our environment in the shape it is in, it does!

Another one my daughter pulled out of her hat was  "What doesn't kill you, will make you strong."  That one pretty well puts it all in prospective for me.

Climate change or somebody's butt sucking air?

I watch very little news on the national level any more.  When Trump was elected I made up my mind that I would give the man a chance and let a business man handle the finances of my country.  I do still call it "my" country although my fore fathers came here only 119 years ago.  I still have pictures of the Haas family clearing land to farm.  They are very grainy pictures and were not taken on a cell phone, but they show the progress.

I am proud of my roots.  My grandfather was 9 years old then.  My great grandfather brought the whole family a little at a time.  They settled in the Reno County area, but have since spread out across the country.  They cleared river bottom land and began farming.  Back then, there were no King Soopers, or Walmart and mostly people depended on each other.  My great, great grandmother was a person who took care of people when they were sick.  Great, great grandfather raised turkeys and geese and did custom farming.  I forget what they grew, but it seems like it was sorghum and they made molasses out of it.

I diverse.  Back to the subject at hand, which is the environment.  For years steel mills belched black smoke and there was no concern for the air we breathed, but then the powers that be woke up to the fact that we were killing each other by not protecting the air we breathe.  Thus was born the EPA and it became a world wide concern that we were polluting our environment and we only have one world.  So we passed laws and then we held summits and passed rules for protecting our earth.  It became a global concern.

And then someone elected Donald Trump and his ilk.  He does not believe in Global Warming.  He sets in his air conditioned office, rides in an air conditioned car from one place to another.  And or storms get more violent and more frequent.  We keep cutting down our rain forests and not replacing the trees that clean our air.  We pull out of the global community that is trying to save our world and hide our heads in the sand.

I do not profess to being an intelligent woman.  I hide from things that scare me, like global warming, genocide and anything that upsets my little apple cart.  I do not watch the national news because I am standing over here with my head in the sand.  I can not abide with racism and ignorance.  There are no gun laws.  We just settle our differences with an AK-47.  For God's sake, people, we are sending our children to "active shooter training" in our schools.  Where are the day's of sand and shovels?

Last night I talked to a friend in New Zealand.  Telephones are our link to any where in the world.  But now cell phones have replaced communication in person.  Send me a text.  What happened to coffee klatches?  What happened to a walk in the park?  What happened to a moonlight stroll?  What happened to honesty?  Integrity?  What happened to helping an old lady across the street?  Where is our common decency when we could carry on a conversation with someone and not tell them to go back where they came from?

We play follow the leader here in America.  It is now right and just to lock people in cages because they want to escape genocide in their country.  We build walls when we should be building bridges.  I never dreamed two short years ago that our country could be so divided and that Republican and Democrat could be dirty words.  But here we are.

I am going to church in a few hours and pray for my country.  It is my country too, you know.  I will first post this and then read the comments to my thoughts on facebook.  My friends will be supportive, but there will also be the negative comments calling me "an effin liberal."  Such is life.  I am proud to be who I am and where I came from, but then God made us all and he made us in his image.....or did he?

So now the shock has worn off and reality sets in on us.

It has been almost a year since Donald Trump took office and not a day has gone by without a new upheaval and new ways to shock us.  His approval rating hovers right around the sewer pipe  as we express our disgust at his latest hate filled statements.  We are shocked.  We are offended.  We shake our heads and go back to whatever we were doing.  Is my assessment of the situation correct?  Sure it is.

Well, after a year of down hill maybe we need to rethink this little fiasco we are involved in.  In order to not sound confrontational I will say "We elected a mad man to the white house and we need to do something about that."  I want to go on record as saying I did NOT vote for that man, but by saying that I would appear condescending and that is not the point I want to make.  But we have to think about this logically.  He was voted into office.  I was not worried because I know we have a system of checks and balances and the Senate and the House of Representatives should keep him in check.  We elected those people on promises they made to us, so we should be safe, right?  Uh oh.  It ain't happening is it?

His cabinet is a joke.  He has hired and fired more helpers than Walmart and all the retailers combined and still has people operating from positions of power that are incapable of tying their own shoes.  Betsy DeVos is a prime example of what not to do to advance education.  Schools are operating with ice cycles hanging in bathrooms and kids wearing coats in the class rooms, but thank God the private schools get their tax breaks.  And speaking of tax breaks, I am so happy that they got that tax bill passed.  How long did it take for Walmart to declare they were giving a $1000 bonus to employees while slamming the door shut on 63 Sam's clubs to idle how many employees?  And they are raising the pay to $11.  Holy Mother of God!  That is just a few dollars more than I make on Social Security which does not stretch to cover my bills and there is only one of me.

What is it going to take to wake you people up anyway?  Now here is the deal, Trump is in bed with the Republican controlled congress.  Or they are in bed with him.  Six of one and half a dozen of the other.  Same thing.  For some reason the word Republican seems to loose a legion of demons and we Democrats do not stand a chance.  You want to know why?  Because we are honest, we have feelings for the under dog, and we live in a polly anna world where right will always triumph.  Sorry guys.  The other side plays dirty.  So here is what we have to do. We have to vote and get our friends to vote.  And we have to vote Democrat.  See we are so sure that good will triumph that we are setting here on the back of the wagon singing our song and the bandwagon is headed for one helluva cliff.

See the dipwad at the helm is spewing his filth and signing his executive orders and congress does nothing to stop him.  Republican Congress.  Luckily most of the shit he pulls can be undone by the court system, but it should not even be happening that way.  The man is not fit to pull latrine duty let alone hold the highest office of the land, so if Congress won't stop him, we have to replace Congress.  For now, stay on top of the news.  Call your Senator and Representatives and tell them what you want.  Vote in you local elections.  If it says Republican after the name, that is not the one you want.  Democrat. Bleeding heart Liberal Democrat.

Vote early and vote often!

A sad state of affairs.

I woke up early this morning and peeked out the bedroom window and there were a million stars twinkling in the sky.  It made me so happy to just be alive.  Since it was still before 5:00 AM I decided to just lay there and reflect.  You know, I have seen a lot of "firsts" in my lifetime.  Now, I do not mean in my personal life, but more in the political arena. 

1.  First President to serve 4 terms (also the last!)
2.  First President with only an initial for a middle name.
3.  First President that was a 5 star General.
4.  First President to publicly admit wrong doing and resign from the Presidency.
5.  First Catholic President.  And also my first public assassination.  And my first public     
     assassination of the assassinator. 
6.  First divorced President.
7.  First Black President.

As it now stands, the primaries are in full swing and we will have an election in November.  I will once more witness a first no matter who wins.
1.  Bernie Sanders, Jewish and of Polish descent. 
2.  Hillary Clinton, Former First Lady and a Woman. 
3.  Donald Trump, Racist, Bigot, married 3 times, divorced twice, bankrupt 4 times, not his fault.

Now, I ask you, is this any way to start my day?  How can I let go and let God with this mess on the news all day long?  Right there is reason enough to not even get out of bed in the morning!  And it is not just the political arena that has me dancing around on my back legs.  We are living in a world of the have's and the have not's.  While millions of dollars are being spent on this race for the white house people are starving.  Drive past the soup kitchen down town before 11:00 AM.  The lot is full of people with their worldly possessions in a box or sack or a shopping cart they have commandeered from some place.  Some do not have anything but the clothes on their back.  They have absolutely nothing.  We live in a world where you either have it or you don't.
   
If you have it; you have it.  If you don't; you aren't going to get it.  The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.  It was designed that way.  It is set up that way.  And it works that way.  Way back when I started school, I was taught if I worked hard and was honest, I would succeed in life.  Later in the Baptist church I was taught that if I gave my 10% God would reward me.  I did not even really need to go to church, just make sure I got the 10% there. 

Now many years later, with a lot of lessons well learned and deserved or undeserved hard knocks under my belt, I look back down the road that was my life.  I have a big house full of possessions.  I have a car.  I have bank accounts and bills and a social security check that helps me maintain a certain lifestyle.  Will I ever go on that cruise?  Probably not.  Will I ever have more money than I will ever need?  Probably not.  Do I thank the good Lord every night for getting me through the day and every morning for waking me up?  I sure do. 

Would I want to me the President?  No way in Hell.  That is one of those damned if you do and damned if you don't jobs.  I would rather set here on my little acre and listen to my geese honk, with a cat on my lap and dogs at my feet and watch the sun come up in the east and go down in the west and wonder what I can cook today that I haven't cooked before.  Sure was not the soufflé!

Just some of my ramblings that nobody really understands or cares about, but this keeps me sane!

Forgot to do the Monsanto thing!

Well, I did not forget to do it, but I did forget to do the blog!  Man I am so far behind that I may catch myself coming.  Did not do the one on Beulah either.  This slide show was taken on October 12 which is a week ago yesterday.  This was the nationwide march against Monsanto who is altering our food supply.  We want our food labeled so we know what it has been through, but Monsanto and our government has seen fit not to do that.  Consequently our cancer rate goes up, our food allergies go up, and cost of medical for this goes up.  Now I shall go into this further at a later date and I will give you statistics that will curl your hair, but for now I just want to tell you about this march and a very nice man I met there who is the counter part of my Favorite Republican in Kansas only this man is my Favorite Republican in Colorado!
So I showed up early and did a little shopping at the Natural Foods and then drifted outside to wait for someone I knew to show up and eventually they did, but in the meantime I met a little fellow in a red coat sporting a name tag that read, well, here it is.

Let me introduce you.  This is Jerry Denney, vice chairman of the Pueblo County Republican Party.  Now, you remember that my friend, Joe is my Favorite Republican holding office in Kansas, so now I have one a little closer to home.  Had a little trouble keeping his sign right side up, but once we got that mastered  we were good to go.  He drew my sign for me.  Unfortunately I do not have a picture of it.  I do have the sign.  When he drew the skull on the sign I almost jumped out of my skin.  He drew free handed and it was symmetrical!  I was right!  He was a draftsman!  They have a way of doing that.
We visited a little while and the subject of old motocycles came up and the Matchless of Sherman's was a subject he was excited about.  I promised to email him a picture of that when I got home and I did that.  I also sent him the video of the Matchless running that Dana had posted on youtube.  I just love it when I run into someone that I have something in common with even if he is a Republican!
And it just goes to show that we as people of the human race probably have a lot more in common then we think.  We did agree that if a worm is eating one end of the corn and dying, that we are not going to eat the other end of that ear.
Oh, then I found my friend Janet! And her Idle No More group.   And  Leslie.  And Paulette.  Cindy.  Sandy.  We all marched from Natural Foods on 29th to the highway waving our little signs.  Shades of Kent State, the Viet Nam War, Segregation and Gay Rights.  Seems like I have always been on the winning side!   Sure need to be on the winning side in this one.
So enjoy the little slide show.   I will post this as soon as Jerry says it is alright to use his name.  If he doesn't get back to me soonly I will just edit the little fellow out!  In the meantime, you should type GMO into a search engine and start reading.  We are one of a handful of countries that allows our food supply to be altered and we are paying for it big time!  It has to stop!  Just trust me!

Did I watch the debate last night?

Well, yes I did!  I was a little late getting into the house so I missed part of it.  My first few moments were spent watching Mitt Romney and the moderator parrying about whether his time was up and should Barack Obama be allowed to make his point.  Sorry.  I very quickly decided that this was too much chaos for my little mind.  Two minutes is 2 minutes any way you look at it.  Aren't there rules?  Something like you get 2 mnutes and then he gets two minutes and then you each get one miunte for rebuttal.  That is what I want to see.  Yeah, order out of chaos would have been good.  After that is it down hill. 
And something else that bugs me is this Mr. Obama and Barack Obama.  It is President Obama and Candidate Romney.  President.  I was taught way back when I was barely big enough to pee hard on the ground, a little thing called "respect."  Whether it war President Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, Richard Nixon, or Clinton, they were always prefaced with "President."  I remember mom and dad listening to the radio which was a precursor to television.  They would stare intently at that little box and await words from our leader.  Vaguely I can remember the one announcement that announced the end of World War II.  "The war is over.  The allies have prevailed. The world is at peace."  It was my president speaking.  I had no idea what he looked like at the time, nor if those were his exact word, but he was the leader of this United States, and he was speaking to me.
We have come a long ways to end up on such familiar ground with Barack and Mitt.  The respect is gone.  They stood before me last night two men, debating or argueing, what ever, and I was saddened that the world has come to this.  Not only did I grow up with President Harry Truman and President Dwight Eisenhower, but the principal at Nickerson Elementary School was Mr. Houston.  My music teacher was Miss Barkiss.  The man next door was Mr. Rienke.  That was how it was.  Anyone who was our elder was called by something that showed respect.  Well, almost everyone.  The exceptions were Whittlin' Joe and Johnny Carson over on the highway and Hank Windiate, the old guy up the street.  Those guys were characters.  So does that mean that the President of our United States and the man opposing him in the election are now relegated to become "characters?"
Now follow my train of thought here for just a moment.  Could it be that this is one of the reasons our great country is in the shape it is in?  The man who is head of our country today was elected by the people of this fair land.  Doesn't he deserve any respect for that?  I was in court yesterday and we had to stand up when the judge came in.  She was referred to as the Honorable Judge of such and such.  Then we could set down.  The plaintiff called her "Your Honor."  Slap that fellow with contempt if he doesn't.  Just goes to show that we know the terms, we just don't use them.  I think we need to get back to some of the basics and I rather suspect we should teach our children this little thing called "respect".
So this is my rant for the day.  I shall get ready for the next debate between President Obama and Candidate Romney.  Maybe Washington has turned our leaders into objects of ridicule and that is sad.  I just wonder if we will ever be able to return to any semblance of what was long ago normal?

 

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This is the novel I have for sale.   Do not be confused by the title. Chapter One simply means this is my first book. There may never be another, or there may be many more. I am very proud of this endeavor and guarantee you will enjoy the book in it's enirety. Lou Mercer

From the back cover

Chapter One...Loose Ends
Lou Mercer

Meg Parker led a simple life.  She was a widow of three years and lived on a chicken farm at the foot of the mighty Rockie Mountains.  Life was good and her little store on eBay made her extra spending money.  But snow and wildlife were not the only things lurking in the forest above her house.  Nor did it stay in the forest for long.

Marshall Purcell came home a wounded veteran from vietnam.  He still had his dreams, but they were of an incestuous past that threatened to consume him.

When Meg and Marshall met it seemed an inconsequential meeting, but it changed both their lives forever.  And change is not always a good thing.

This is adult fiction at its best without all the sex.  Well, maybe just a little bit. 

About the author.  Lou Mercer was born in Nickerson, Kansas. She came to Pueblo, Colorado in 1977 and is now a product of the majestic Rockie Mountains

Oh, we are the battleground state aren't we?

Ok, I went to town early this morning to take the dog to the beauty shop.  I knew President Obama was in town and expected lots of traffic.  As it turned out traffic was light, but my route had to be altered slightly since all around the Marriot was barricaded.  So I dropped her off at 7:30 and came home.  He called at 9:30 and said she was ready.  Great!  I knew he would be at the Ag building at 10:45 so I thought I was home free. 
As I passed Romero's I happened to notice several men in dark suits talking up their sleeve.  Ah ha!  I knew where he was going to eat breakfast.  I was confident that I would be able to grab the dog and get home before traffic got clogged up.  Now bear in mind that the city end of Santa Fe was securely blockaded causing me to go up Grand to Main, over to Union, then to fourth and out Fourth to the groomer. 
Now you need to know one thing here.  There are 3 ways to get to the Mesa.  The first way is East on Santa Fe Drive.  The second is out Fourth, down Stockyards, under the Bridge, through Salt Creek and via Aspen and then East on South Road.  That is inconvenient, but not as far as out Fourth to 50 Highway to Baxter Road, across to business highway 50 and back West to Blende and then South to South Road and then to my house.  The first is direct and the one everyone uses.  The second is rather tricky and not much fun and the third is about 20 miles out of my way.
So I grabbed the dog and started out Santa Fe.  Road closed.  No signs, no nothing just a giant traffic backup.  After 20 minutes of this grid lock, I made a u-turn and headed back to town.  I grabbed the Interstate (since that end of Santa Fe was blockaded) and got off on First Street.  Then to fourth, out Joplin, under the bridge, East on Roselawn, through Salt Creek since I needed eggs, to the Mexican store, who did not have eggs and then home.
Now you should know I am a devoted Obama fan.  Love the man and did not go to the rally cause I wanted to leave my ticket for someone who might need swayed.  I would dearly love to see him up close and personal, but me and crowds just aren't a happening thing.
So now that the frustration of fighting the police at every turn is behind me and I am safe in my little home once more, I have a few things I want to say to President Obama.  I hope he reads this because I mean it all in a very nice way.
"Mr. President, I am so happy that you were able to spend a night and day in our fair city.  I know you like Mexican Food and I am in complete agreement with you there, but next time, could you just have those guys run out and pick it up for you?  It would make my life a lot easier.  See there is only one road onto the Mesa and it makes it really hard on us who have to go there.  Or maybe you could eat a little faster? 
Any way, you have my vote, whatever and where ever you eat, I am in it for the long haul.  Oh, and give my regards to Michelle."
There, that being said I am off to watch the news.  I just love it when he waves at me and flashes his pearly whites my way.

Class? Me? No, I don't think so.

Some one told me one time that I had class.  Well, did not so much tell me as mentioned it to someone else and I over heard it being said.  So now yesterday I had  hours alone with myself in the car and I had occasion to think about class.  There seems to be more than one kind of class, as near as I can tell.
If  an older woman walks by, dressed in a sedate outfit, maybe a hat, rings on her fingers and smiling sweetly, one might say "That is one classy lady." 
If a younger woman with an hour glass figure, short skirt and lots of bling sashays by, one might say "That is one classy broad!"
If we are entertained by an act that gives us pleasure, we say "That was a real class act!"
When some one responds well under pressure, they are said to have "class".
Well, I would like to tell you what I perceive as "class".  That would be saying and doing the correct thing at all times when in a public setting.  And what brought this on?  Well, SWM (Single White Male) that I see on a more regular basis than any other SM (Single Male) wrangled an invitation to Thanksgiving Dinner at some one's house.  Now, granted had I been cooking I would have probably invited him and he probably would have eaten with me, but I did not, so neither did he.
So, he talks to himself a lot and I am privy to his conversations.  "I will take a bottle of white wine, since that goes with poultry.  I will wear my black slacks, a white shirt, my camel hair jacket, the gray, I think.  The black loafers.  No tie.  What will you be taking?"
"The car."
"What will you be wearing?"
"My green fatigues, if they are clean.  The white and green tennies.  An obnoxious tee shirt and the corduroy coat.  I will snack on a bag of Clementines and tortilla chips with Black Olive Hummus!  And Willie and Charley will serenade me all the way."  Love that country stuff.
The man is over 6 feet tall and so he definitely has the height advantage going there. And  his nose always seems to look longer when he looks down it at me!  He listens to Classical music in his garage for crying out loud!  He knows the origin of every painting on his walls.  One is to be donated to the museum in St. Louis when he goes for his final dirt nap.  (There is another one.  He prefers to think of it as his demise.)
So, to make a long story short, I am here to tell you that class is here to stay.  I am the working class, the blue collar class, the common every day country western lovin' hick or hillbilly class.  My bumper sticker reads, "If it feels good, do it!"  When I wake up on the wrong side of the sod I will be cremated and my ashes thrown to the wind.  That way I do not have to lay in a dress on a satin bed and have anyone look down on me.   But I do want to clarify something before I leave.  I have a lot of classy friends. They know which fork to use and when to not cuss and all kinds of things.  And most importantly , I know they love me just like I am and that makes the whole class thing a matter of perception on the part of the beholder.  SWM considers me a unique individual.
"Gonna' take me to St. Louis?"
"Oh, hell no!"  :)