Revenge

I'm getting the other half of this conversation second hand but the story goes like this:

Oldest Daughter  (hereafter refered to as OD because augh is hard to type) and Belle were emailing and texting earlier today about what the Grandchildren wanted for Christmas. Scooter is 6ish, Alley Cat is 3, Little Man is so young he doesn't know he's on the planet yet.

OD's FIL is getting the girls Nintendo DS game players. ( I neither confirm nor deny that I know what those are... specifically)

Belle had asked for a wish list from OD. OD texted to get them games for the DS. Belle explained that their side of the family was getting together for Christmas...a week before Christmas ** and the girls would know what was upwitdat.

Belle and OD got into a short but heated discussion. Belle swears it was because OD was too lazy to bother with writing an email listing said wish list.

Do not mess with the Zohan Belle.

Belle looked at me after ending the call.

Momentarily, I thought I was in trouble. Much to my relief Belle simply stated that she was going to buy a drum set for both the girls.





** Holidays are complicated for those of us with multiple divorces, remarriages, extended families,  and kids. For the adults it is a logistics nightmare. For the kids it is boon where gifts are concerned.

Ham n Beans

Depression era dirt farmer food.
My first exposure was as a child at my Grandmother's house.  She made it with a ham hock that had damn near been scraped clean. If you found a morsel of ham in your bowl, it was a bonus.  She made it with Great Northerns.  God Almighty it was good.

My mother carried on the tradition, with a bit more ham.  Groodles after Thanksgiving or Christmas always included a massive pot of Ham and Beans, with the back half of a pigosaurus ham in it.

Around the Holidays, I buy hams on sale for the sole purpose of making a washtub pot full.

Bought a cured ham around Thanksgiving with that thought in mind.  Work has been insane for the past two months. Dinner planning nonexistent.

Yesterday I got past the deadline.

Left work early today and after settling in I thought "Ya know, I'm going to cook that pot of beans".
I'm tired of being too busy, too rushed, too tired.

It might be 1am before those Great Northerns and that Ham are ready to eat, but wtf, ya know?
I've got enough in that pot to last at least through Tuesday.


As a footnote: I am blessed in that I do not have the usual digestive reaction to eating copious amounts of beans.  Granny Smith Apples are another issue.

God did not make Women Equal with Men

Physically.
Second oldest Daughter empowers herself with the equalizer.
Her first time to shoot pistols.
Not bad groups at all.  By the end of the session she was loading mags by herself.


























As a footnote, I am not short.  She is that tall.

What She Said

"There’s a reason for the weak arguments and hypocrisy. These activists aren’t actually interested in reducing crime, they want more government control over our lives. That’s precisely why the Founding Fathers enshrined our right to keep and bear arms in the Constitution."

Emily Miller - Washington Times

"Obama said he wants more laws restricting firearms ownership because, in his hometown of Chicago, “there’s an awful lot of violence, and they’re not using AK-47s, they’re using cheap handguns.”

Well duh. I mean who would use an AK 47?

Oh. Wait. Uhm, never mind

More from Ms. Miller on Bob Costas and Illinois State Senator Trotter attempting to board a plane with his loaded training bra  .25 cal.

If I actually had a ten gallon hat, I'd tip it to you Ms. Miller

hey, aren't guns illegal in Illinois?

And, What is Bob Costas' area of expertise?

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The Four Seasons

Early Summer
Summer
Late Summer
Christmas

Late Summer is running a little long this year. Usually we are in the Christmas Season shortly after Thanksgiving.  The Christmas Season will officially start shortly when I navigate to Amazon to shop gifts for the Grandchildren.

I bought two new winter coats a short while back, something a bit more stylish and urban than my traffic yellow ski parka.  Obviously wishful thinking.

The ski parka? That's so the ski resort rescue team can more easily find me.

No, it is not global worming. It was like this in the 70's when the doom and gloomers were telling us we were headed into another ice age.

tears my heart out

"A man's handgun went off while he was holding it..."

From an AP news story - not sure who wrote it, but that statement is all kinds of wrong. The gun didn't just "go off". He failed to keep his freaking finger off the trigger.

In fact he breached each of the four rules in sequence as if running a checklist to ensure catastrophic failure.

He will live in his own personal Hell for the rest of his days after shooting his own 7 year old son.


7 years old. The word "tragic" just isn't sufficient.

.

Truth in advertising

Friday sucked

Saturday and Sunday will be good.
Shooting both days.  Sunday with one of my daughters. She's stoked and so am I.
Her first time. 

Anniversaries............

As well all know, today is Pearl Harbor Day.

December 7th 1941 the Empire of Japan awakened a sleeping giant and quickly learned that as a Nation, though at times we are divided within, we always will come together to beat back a common enemy.

Those were the days of the Greatest Generation.  People didn't think twice about sacrificing and rationing for the war.  They were asked to do it, and they did.  They banded together and old, young, male or female, everyone worked together.

Survivors of the Great Depression, their generation had gumption.  I was fortunate enough to have been the grandchild of 4 such people.  Survivors...    my grandparents all had grit and knew what it was like to struggle.

After 911, we as a country were able to pull together and rise to preserve our freedom, our way of life.  The difference is...  it didn't last long.  Soon after, when the next election rolled around, the country became divided once again.....   Now, we have a group in Washington that want nothing more than to bring down our way of lives.  To take away as much of our freedom as they can get away with.  They want us disarmed.  They want us to be subjects not citizens.

All I have to say to them is 'screw you!'  I will NOT just bend over and take it simply because you think you know what is best for me.  I will NOT allow you to destroy that in which my grandparents sacrificed and fought to preserve.  I a law abiding citizen will NOT be disarmed simply because some scumbag, in some city, some where might use a firearm for evil.  I will NOT allow my country to succumb to complete control over our lives, I will NOT allow my rights to be taken away when there are men and women out there who fight so hard to defend those very rights, families who continue to sacrifice every single day to preserve that freedom.

So today, remember Pearl Harbor and if you see a veteran, shake their hand and thank them for their sacrifice to preserve our way of life.  I do that frequently no matter what day it is, but I know that they always appreciate hearing that simple 'thank you'.

On a second note....   On this day, 14 years ago, Kx and I got married.  Today is our wedding anniversary so to my darling other half, thank you for all the years.

I may have mentioned this before, but the Justice of the Peace who married us said, "This isn't the first war that's started on this day!"

I guess sometimes, like any marriage, it's been like war.  You make sacrifices, you fight, you struggle, but all in all, I think that we have done pretty okay.

I love you my husband, happy anniversary!
 

This is hilarious!!!

Remember the good old Candid Camera tv show?

This prank is from a Brazillian show and it's hilarious.....