in the news – Page 6 – This Old House 2

Cups in the Cupboard * Taking your ball home

Since there is not heat at the cottage other than a propane stove I don’t know how to use yet, I spent yesterday inches from hypothermia as I wiped down cupboard interiors, draws, furniture, etc and unpacked the boxes I brought with me. Lysol wipes and Pledge wipes work wonders when there is also no running water. The real cleaning of things like the bathroom and the kitchen sink and mopping of the floors will happen around April 15th when the water is turned on for the season. I also wore slip on loafers with no socks, dumb. T’is true we have indeed entered SPRING according to the calendar… however Spring has not entered our actual atmosphere yet. I did just open the mudroom door to let the dogs out and I smell a hint of it in the air…

So we got a lot done at the cottage this week and today we go furniture shopping for a few more pieces to make it all work. We’ve got dishes in the cupboard, pots in the cabinet, cleaning supplies in the cleaning supply closet, hangers in the one clothes closet only we still need a poll to hang then on. Somehow we forgot that little detail. The other detail we somehow missed is … those awesome stools I got at the Trove?.. the Western Union Operator stools from many moons ago?… they’re too short for the bar area my Mr. built. Actually, MOST bar stools will be too short for the breakfast bar area the Mr. built. There’s that.

Regardless, I am giddy. She is perfect. Just the right little space with much of her old charm retained for my family and I to enjoy hopefully for generations to come. I’ll give you a sneak peek… with a full tour once she is complete.

Meanwhile, in other news…

I believe the Affordable Care Act is flawed and needs revision. My family is one of those whose premiums went up $400 per month at the beginning and went up again last year. The ACA .. or Obamacare- was not intended to punish. It was intended to give all Americans healthcare- we are the only major country left who does not have this. It wasn’t a perfect plan, it needs fixing.

Republicans had seven years to come up with an alternative plan. Even DT said some parts of the ACA were necessary and he wanted them kept in. Even DT said our rates were going to go down. Sadly, Republicans couldn’t get their sh*t together to get their new bill passed because it was more flawed than the current ACA – those who would have paid more or lost coverage completely were anyone 50 and older and the middle class, the sick and poor.

What’s tragic is that DT pointed fingers once again where the blame did not lie. This was not a Democratic failure, it was a Republican failure. Even Paul Ryan admitted that in his speech. They didn’t need Dem votes to get their bill passed- it was their own party that couldn’t agree. So what does a President do in this situation? Logic would tell you he’d vow to work on the current issues regardless, because many of his people are suffering through those issues….. instead of saying- Good, let it explode, I’m taking my ball home.

That’s not what a leader does. A Leader digs in and looks for solutions that will work. That’s the Art of the Presidential Deal.

New Chick Hut and holy twitter storm, Batman

Today I ran around like-a-chicken-without-it’s-head looking for a new box to house the chicks in on our summer porch. They’re growing like weeds!… First I stopped in the local hardware store – nothing big enough but they let me look through the dumpster anyway. Much appreciated. Then I headed over to Stop and Shop and asked the grocery store clerk if they might have a box from old deliveries I could buy or take off their hands. Turns out they recycle all boxes at 7 a.m. every morning, where they are all crushed in a compactor. So, If I want to get there at 6:30-ish a.m. tomorrow I could get a big box from them. I appreciated the tip, put that feather under my cap and moved on. Next was Ocean State Job Lot. Now.. have you ever been to one of those? Everywhere you look, and I mean everywhere you LOOK!!!… are a hundred boxes of varying sizes, mostly filled with “stuff” they are trying to sell, and some others that are randomly scattered and waiting for a purpose .. or something. I thought – cinch! I can get one here for sure, right?

So I tap on the shoulder of one salesperson and ask politely if I could have one of their many thousands of boxes for chick rearing purposes.

She said “oh nooo, we don’t sell our boxes, we recycle them.”

Me- Oh, that’s great! and my purpose would be a recycling of sorts, no? Plus, I am more than happy to PAY you for a big box, I don’t care how beat up it is. Can I do that? PAY you for one of the ones I see sitting around?”

“No”… she says… “We really don’t give them to anyone, ever.”

“What about that one over there, it’s really beat up and looks like you’ll be throwing it out soon, I can tape it back together and use it, would that one be OK?”.

“No. We use them all”.

Can I talk to your manager? Maybe He or she would be OK with me buying just one.. for my chicks.

Manager is called – but doesn’t come to see me. The message is relayed.. “We recycle our boxes, we don’t give them away or sell them.. to anyone for any reason.”

Now it might appear right here that I think I’m something special and for ME they should make the exception. I’m really not thinking along those lines, honestly. No.. as I’m standing in that Job Lot looking at about 1,000 boxes, some full, some half empty, a whole f*ing stack of them in the middle isle EMPTY – I’m thinking it’s overkill to stick to your guns and not let a person buy a F-ING USED UP BOX for her baby chicks.

But.. sometimes you just gotta let it go.. so I went.

Next stop was our trusty Appliance salesman who only had top and bottomless boxes last time I stopped in. This time he had one that was indeed bottomless, BUT.. at this point I am more than willing to improvise.

And Improvise I did…

My old Egg Plant sign has withered away, so I put a new one up yesterday… just some stuff I found on sale at Michaels. (love that store). Now I may be crafty, but patient I am not. So this will need to be touched up a bit.. letters crooked, splattered paint around the edges. A job for another day…

That about covers my egg-sellent adventures for the day…

Meanwhile.. back in The House… Agent Orange is twittering so fast as the FBI discusses lack of wire tap findings and possible R*ssia connections I’m surprised his fingers haven’t fallen off yet.

Can we all agree it’s really childish and very un-world leader like to tweet horrific accusations with no evidence to back them because you saw it on Fox News?

Can we all agree Russia wants: our relationship with our allies compromised…check
NATO undermined…check
Our world wide respect shaken…check …..

I will say it again- I love my country. I want to respect our leader. I think respect is earned and I think respect for the powerful office he holds is his responsibility first and foremost. I honestly believe not one single person on my friend list would conduct themselves the way 45 does if placed in that position, not one. Forget the news, forget policy, what does your conscience tell you. .. what does the decency you were raised with tell you.

*sigh

Bring Coffee

Come, sit.. and let’s talk about a few things. Yes, this is a political post, …oh, there you go.. did you run away? I don’t blame you. Boy what a sh*tstorm it is, huh?

If you dared to stay – tell me what you’re feeling now that we’re in to this new administration a few months. I’m not asking you to agree with me, I’m curious. Some of you visit here but you don’t feel comfortable voicing your opinion. Maybe you are afraid of the backlash. (Nasty comments will be deleted) Maybe you avoid confrontation and we all know politics leans toward the confrontational.. daily. Someone close to me said recently – why do you put yourself out there, people are rude, and what difference does it make anyway, it’s just your opinion. Here’s how I see it – I doubt voicing my opinion here or on FB or anywhere else is going to have a significant impact. BUT.. sitting silently and saying nothing when I see some real ills will absolutely have ZERO impact. Perhaps by voicing my concerns someone will take another look and it just might spur some positive action.

I still have friends and family who are cheering on Agent Orange. That’s a really hard pill to swallow for those of us who are offended by the lying, the spin, the arrogance, the conflicts of interest. For a man who said he wanted to unite the country – he’s done nothing to reach out to the half of us who didn’t vote him in. He tweets lies, his mouthpieces reiterate and spin his lies (Obama wiretapping?) and half of us are eating it up, cheering him on. I don’t get it. If this had been any other politician EVERYONE would be screaming. Why does this guy get a free pass? If you’re a *T* supporter, I’m not scolding you although I realize my tone would suggest it. I actually want to know what it is about this guy that makes someone want to applaud him. What redeeming qualities do you see that say he’s worth the storm he’s created? If you’re sole answer is F*ck the government – well he did just that, I’ll give it to you. But he F*cks us all by making the highest office in our land, the most powerful position in the universe as far as we know.. a fool’s circus. One of mocking and lies and false accusations with no evidence other than twittering rants in the dead of the night.. and there’s the GREED. Because so far, he is enpowering corporate America – not -those who have been forgotten- one of his favorite lines.

His new budget is not a humane budget, the new health bill does the same.. further punishes the old, the poor, women, the sick, people who are not white and wealthy. All who feel good about denying seniors Meals on Wheels service( govt funded but run by volunteers, and fees indeed paid by the elderly recipients who can afford the $3 cost), denying lower income women affordable women’s health screening and BC ( not free and not abortions) – allowing more pollution and lifting clean water laws, and killing wild animals inhumanely, selling off national park lands, trashing arts funding, raise your hand………

I guess the answer to these questions lies in what kind of a society we want to be. Until now I always believed we were at our very heart a good and decent and caring nation, evolved, enlightened. The removal of our decency should not be the price paid for stronger military might. Until now at the very least we have managed both.

Sad day. I wanted change in this next election because the issues before us are real. Throwing out the baby with the bath water was not the answer. I don’t know how anyone can honestly feel good about that. And please..Please don’t say we’ve put God back in the WH. Kinda hypocritical, wouldn’t you say?

Chairs and Chicks and Checks and Balances

I must confess I did not have a personal caning experience with the Western Union Operator stools we picked up recently. Nope. I chickened out. When we took a closer look, it was possible I could really screw up the wood when trying to get the old embedded caning out of the seat . We found a furniture doctor in a nearby town that does caning and he did a great job. I just need to use some sort of treatment oil to keep the caning supple – tung oil is recommended or a furniture polish with high oil content.

Have you ever marveled at how birds develop so quickly from egg to flyaway? The typical wild bird takes about 21 days from the time the egg is laid in the nest till they are feathered enough to fly away from the nest. That time period does vary among species, but it’s an insane growth rate, don’t you think?

That’s K discussing Domestic Policy with Emmeline.

As for chickens – they are considered mature between the ages of 16 and 20 weeks. If you’ve experienced raising chicks, you know that their growth rate is amazing. The changes are witnessed daily. When they were day old chicks they had no wing feathers – if you look closely, just five days later, look at their wings –

I’m happy to report that Nora, Florence, Emmeline, Elizabeth, Rosa and Coco are doing well. I give them one mashed egg yolk daily with a little grit mixed in, plus they get medicated chick feed and plenty of clean water. A Heat lamp is necessary at this stage but as they mature the heat source is slowly raised and then removed before they move out to the coop.

I’m safely guessing that whether you are a supporter of the current administration or as offended as I am by them, you’re as disgusted with all the turmoil in the news regardless. When Washington is in total chaos, we all look like fools and I really, really hate that. We as a nation are collectively so much more than that circus. It does not represent We The People and yet we all will be held accountable.

Here’s a thought – All this Russia-gate crap, the denials, the accusations, all of it from both sides of the proverbial isle….. I don’t know if it holds any water. But…. why initially omit or lie about meetings, why deny Russian interference in our election process which was proven and even Agent Orange admits occurred now… Why not just release your damned tax returns so that all those who are using that as a reason they don’t trust you and believe you have Russian ties can be set to rights by your proven innocence? Isn’t that what Obama did for the Orange Scream when he accused him of not being born in America? When you are accused, you provide proof of innocence. When you refuse… who wouldn’t draw the conclusion you’re hiding something?..only natural, and so easy to set the record straight.

As for accusing the previous POTUS for illegally wiretapping your private residence before your election ON YOUR TWITTER ACCOUNT, and without providing any evidence, well.. that kind of behavior is dangerous, reckless. This man is everyone’s President – at the very least he owes the larger half that did not vote for him behavior and actions that will give us some sort of ability to be able to trust him. So far, he’s done nothing, has not provided a thread we can swing from in an effort to weave a fabric we can all respect regardless of policy views. Any man in the Presidential position owes that to all the people of this country. Ain’t happen’n from what I can see.

I have friends who voted for Agent Orange and for varying reasons. I still respect them, regardless because I understand and commiserate with their gripes about our government. The ones I don’t respect are those who will defend absolutely every single action of this new administration, no matter how intolerable it would be if it were anyone else. First, lets kill all the hypocrisy.

Finds for Stella

When we bought the cottage, for a small additional price, some of her “stuff” came with. After purchase we discovered most of it needed to go in the dumpster as mice had taken up residence. A few pieces were reworked. The dining table and chairs were well worn but still in good shape other than refinishing. We know a woodworking guy who has a nifty machine that -sprays- a refinish on furniture, cabinets, etc. The finish is beautiful, better than I could have done with a bucket of paint and a brush. We figured the cost to have him do it would be cheaper than buying a new table and chairs, although indeed more money than if I had done it myself.

Well. That’s not exactly how it went. While it looks terrific!… turns out the cost was the same as if I had gone out and bought a new table and chairs. One would think the person doing the work would let you in on that before you commit to it…as the whole purpose was to save money. Live and learn. At least it’s one less bulk of furniture clogging a landfill, right?

Now that we’ve got both bedrooms squared away except for mattress purchase, we still need a couch and chair for the sitting area. Do you call it a living room when the whole cottage could fit in a living room? I am loving this tiny house nation we have joined, really loving it. Right now progress is at a halt until the weather warms. That’s when we’ll get to finish varnishing walls and sanding and restaining floors. With the water shut off for the season, I can’t even wash down the bathroom and kitchen. So…..

I love Homegoods – always find something unique and cool and usually for a very good price. A few days ago I needed some retail therapy even though the wallet would beg to differ. Why not go scrounge around for a few ‘house warmers’ for the old girl. My goal is to not have much clutter, and most things should be functional. Also, if they can have meaning, even better.

Find No. 1 – the bedding is going to be ivory and neutrals with a navy bedskirt. My mom and I are born and raised (Staten Island) New Yorkers, even though we moved to CT long ago. She will be spending much time at Stella too – I was looking for a nautical pillow or two, but this one is even better – It’s a good size, so no need for more. Meaning, functional, attractive – score!

I got this big blanket basket and soft seafoam colored blanket for under $40. Who can’t use a little cozy now and then.

I’ve tried, but can’t seem to close this post without chirping about that insane rant by the President yesterday. Holy cow, he’s come undone. If you don’t think so, I got nothing. This is way beyond differences in policy ideas, tightening the security belt, swinging over to the right. For anyone to think it’s OK to behave and speak and slander and lie in the ways that he does as PRESIDENT OF THESE UNITED STATES, that’s just not digestible no matter how you try to spin it. I’m not even gonna bother getting into the details. I’ve learned it just doesn’t matter – if you choose to turn a blind eye, you will be blind. Me? I will keep my eyes wide open.

*sigh

Snow and Thunder

Last night’s sky…. just beautiful…

No sooner did I brag about the mild winter we were having when a good ole nor’easter blew in. I woke up this morning, fed the dogs, sat down to read e-mails with nothing happening outside my windows. Half hour later there was an inch on the ground already as I went out to feed the animals.

The flood light is on in the henhouse, it throws enough heat to keep them cozy and the water from freezing.

The horses were fed, watered and given plenty of hay to keep them busy, they’re closed in while

the wind is blowing. And boy is it blowing.

This was 6 am-ish. The scene is much different already….

I’ve got a call in to the bird feeder repairman….. half the roof is sitting in the snow.

He’s out plowing and wasn’t amused.

We are actually experiencing thunder during this storm. Such a bizarre thing to occur with snow – sounds like someone’s bowling upstairs. Say a little prayer for my boys to come home safe. Oh and don’t I know the hypocrisy of someone asking for prayer when they aren’t religious. I believe being spiritual and being religious don’t have to occupy the same space to be valid, how’s that for an answer.

I drafted a letter to the President and made it a public post on FB just incase – here’s what I would love for him to read.

Dear Mr. President (and mouthpiece Spicer)

Your daughter knows the truth – ask her! Nordstrom notified her last January that her lines weren’t performing well. It’s a smart business move to cut losses, won’t you agree? Her products are still available in their stores though, she wasn’t Banned. Believe it or not, it’s not about you. As the so-called “Jobs President”, you are contradicting yourself by maligning and attempting to topple a large American company for your own purposes.

I want to stand by my President. I have respect for the highest office in the land. I believe in America and I love my Country. If you want to stop seeing fake news, if you want the larger half of the Country to stop the negativity and rally on your behalf and ours – you really have to stop the daily lies – the little lies, the big lies, the fake news you and your cohorts perpetuate daily. I’m tired of the political angst, the upheaval of everything, the frustrated posts on FB and blogs. I’ve been looking for the clearing in the storm, a reason to have hope… but you keep lying and tweeting ridiculous rants. So juvenile for the leader of this great nation.

Please – stop the lies and the tantrums and the unethical behavior. Do that if there’s an ounce of you that gives a damn about the rest of us. You work for us now, we don’t work for you. I’m really trying to find a reason to believe in the President of My United States, won’t you please rise to the integrity of the office you were elected so that we ALL can move on.

Sincerely –

Heading back out into the tundra to shovel the dog run for the second time. Till soon, friends…

Be Like Brady

How about that Superbowl!! I’m a Patriots fan, so the win was particularly sweet, but if the Falcons had pulled it off I would have been very happy for their owner – The Falcons have never won a Superbowl and their longtime owner deserved a win. The young team worked damned hard to get where they were and they don’t typically play dirty, something I admire. Brady does his best work when under fire, and boy did he and his team pull it off at the end. Unfortunately when it looked like they had definitely lost the game, I went to sleep. Missed the best part! Fun fact – our neighbor just down the road’s daughter was a patriots cheerleader until recently, when she and Gronk fell in love. They’ve been dating for a few years now and I love seeing photos of them on instagram and occasionally in news articles – wishing them the best. What we have heard through their experience is that the Patriots owner and team are truly a family, that’s how they treat and respect each other – love to hear it.

Tom Brady is amazing when his team is in a rut – how many times have we seen them pull it out at the last minute for a win. My husband is not a Pats or Brady fan but even he admits TB is one hell of a QB.

For those of us who are rattled by the Orange Scream’s increasingly divisive, narcissistic behavior and all the alarm bells he setting off, like, EVERYWHERE… I hope he finds some solid ground that we all can stand on .. sooner rather than later. Just look at all the headlines.. everywhere, real news let alone fake.. and you have to know it’s true. Because I care about our country more than my own need to be right, I hope he can be like Brady and pull it out for a win for all of us. That will require checking his ego at the door.

Conflict of Interest

*The definition of a Conflict of Interest is a situation in which the concerns or aims of two different parties are incompatible.

If your current residence isn’t the underside of a rock, you’ve noticed social media and news sources have become a battleground in recent months. On this I bet we all can agree – it’s really sad and extremely unsettling to witness a country so divided. There will always be issues we can’t all agree on, but this level of divisiveness and anger is alarming.

Remember the Civil War? – North vs. South right here in these United States of America. Up until recently, for me the idea of such a thing seemed pretty far out there and certainly not repeatable. My limited understanding of that period of time was that the war was fought over the moral issue of slavery but in truth, economics and political control played just as big a part. Interesting side note here – Both the North and the South brought God into the equation, both believing their views were supported by God, that he was on their side and some went as far as to say God would determine the length and outcome of the war itself. Ultimately, morality won.. not because a God inserted himself or that all involved parties finally saw the obvious inhumanity in the practice of slavery. The North had more muscle, it was that simple.

I often hear “God is finally back in the White House!” I wish we’d keep God out of it. First of all… whose God – yours? or Joe’s across the street? There are many religions and yet we all got here the same way, however that turns out to be. There’s the hypocrisy that tends to keep company with religion and so for that reason I wish we could keep our own sense of religion or God in our hearts, but leave it out of our government. I’m convinced when the Orange Scream heard the call for God to return to the White House, he thought they were referring to him.

So who has more muscle in this day and age? Right now I’m feeling pretty helpless as I watch the newly elected President of the United States and his cohorts run roughshod over our government. I am not a sore-loser lefty or whining Democrat. My views run pretty much down the middle so those labels don’t apply to someone like me. I’m feeling pretty helpless as I see friends and colleagues willfully ignore some pretty awful practices in favor of what they believe is the promise of a Better America, for which they have seen zero evidence to suggest that’s what they’ll get. The hypocrisies pile up, the daily lies are consumed, I mean he lies about stupid little things just for ramblings’ sake. The GOP seems giddy with their new power and for all those who cheer them on I ask… how do you accept the obvious ills?

Supporters were thrilled with the mantra – Drain the Swamp. What you’re looking at in the new White house are the wealthy elite who have been tending the swamp for decades. Hell, the Education Secretary pick is a billionairess, inexperienced in the field, who’s family has donated 200 million to the republican party. She failed the hearings miserably.. and yet. The fact that a radical person like Bannon is at the right hand of the President speaks volumes. That’s swamp muck right there, the very thing Orange Scream supporters were railing against just months ago.

The GOP just lifted a ban on dumping coal debri in streams. A friend argued with me that the jobs are more important than the clean water. Not fake news: If we don’t protect our clean water resources it won’t matter how many jobs were available in the coal industry if we’re dead. Our natural resources are limited and we abuse them daily. We all live in the same camp, we all need to protect it because it won’t last forever, this is not rocket science. House republicans are writing a bill to abolish the EPA – which was created to protect human health and the environment by enforcing regulations based on laws passed by congress. Why would we want to abolish such a thing?

They’re back to taking away land from the Indians for pipelines because the more affluent people around them don’t want the pipelines in their backyard. We all know that history, right? Where is our humanity?

Many who voted for him hoped the President would somehow become more “Presidential” once he took office. Not a chance. He used the National Prayer Breakfast, standing before religious leaders and diplomats, to talk about Arnold schwarzenegger and Apprentice ratings… direct quote…

We had tremendous success on The Apprentice and, when I ran for president, I had to leave the show,” “And they hired a big, big movie star, Arnold Schwarzenegger to take my place. And we know how that turned out. The ratings went right down the tubes. It’s been a total disaster,” said Trump, who remains a producer on the NBC series. “Mark will never, ever bet against Trump again. And I want to just pray for Arnold, if we can. For those ratings. Okay?”

The Orange Scream’s Black History Month Remarks…

Last month, we celebrated the life of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., whose incredible example is unique in American history. You read all about Dr. Martin Luther King a week ago when somebody said I took the statue out of my office. It turned out that that was fake news. Fake news. The statue is cherished, it’s one of the favorite things in the—and we have some good ones. We have Lincoln, and we have Jefferson, and we have Dr. Martin Luther King. But they said the statue, the bust of Martin Luther King, was taken out of the office. And it was never even touched. So I think it was a disgrace, but that’s the way the press is. Very unfortunate.

This is the face of America. This is the man we elected to the highest office in the land.

A friend of mine who desperately wants to believe in this man because he is a dyed in the wool republican said ” Why is all this surprising, he’s doing what he did during his campaign, it’s nothing new”. Actually, his behavior is not surprising, What’s surprising is… I didn’t think he would actually get away with it. I didn’t think the GOP would bow to his ego so willingly, overstep and overreach so grandly and so completely. I had HOPED… once the Orange Scream came to the office and felt the gravity, the full weight of his position, that he would indeed.. become more “Presidential”. Surely those around him would rein him in at the very least.

It has become abundantly clear, it’s not happening. For this American in these United States, I am embarrassed for all of us and I worry for our children’s future. There should be no great conflicts of interest among us, we should all feel that we are on the same team. We should all be getting that vibe from our government, certainly our leader. That should be the message above all. Don’t we all want job opportunities, decent education for our youth, affordable health care, legal immigration, a strong military, fair trade, equality for all, justice and liberty for all?

Someone tell me how we have become.. so .. incompatible.

Be the Light

Yesterday after spending hours at the computer editing for our local publication, I called the Mr. and said – What do we need for Stella, I want to get out of the house for a while. As it happens, we need light fixtures. Not my favorite chore. Why? Because THE VOLLEY. You see.. even though I’m left with the relatively simple instructions to get a single sconce bathroom light for over the sink, a work area light for over that whole kitchen area that has no light needs five foot chain, and get a cheap paddle fan with light kit… and he clearly states pick whatever you think will look good there….. it never happens that way.

Having been married to a builder for roughly 29 years, and he’ll agree with me the word roughly applies, we’ve traveled down this road many times, whether it was our own house or someone elses. (where is the comma there, I’m not even gonna look it up, and I call myself an editor).

I go to the shop and take a look around. I see what I think will be perfect and sit down with the shop owner to discuss price and suitability for the space that will require the light. I even bring pictures of the work spaces because I’m that kind of special. We get most of the way through, and then of course….. there’s a question I can’t answer knowing for certain I gave the right information. I have to make the call into the powers that be. That would be He.

He provides the answer.. and then says the words I knew were coming….

but what is this for exactly.. let me see what you’re picking.

My nose starts to twitch as I send the requested photo from my phone. The texting ensues…

Him: No. Too contemporary.

Me: What? This is an antique replica.

Him: It probably cost more than the entire cottage! Too nice! What else…

Me: Ok how about this…

Him: That’s an exterior light fixture, this is for inside.

Me: Yes I know, it’s also for interior use and I think it would be perfect for that spot. Mr. X says so too…

Him: No. What else..

And so it goes. Suddenly, Mr. X seeing my frustration, points up into a corner of the showroom and says – you know.. THAT one would work but I don’t know how you feel about the look.

Ah, we have a winner. And the price was just right.

This fixture will hang from the ceiling (which is the peak of the roof) of

Stellas “kitchen” area.

Meanwhile.. back at the ranch…we’ve had some very soggy weather lately. I’m not complaining one bit, soggy is better than heavy snowfall and bitter cold. I did some cleaning of the barn, coop and hutch yesterday morning and it felt good to tidy up.

Ruby thought it might be fun to tag along in the gator but actual motion changed her mind.

My 94 year old neighbor stopped by for a visit – She still lives in the home she raised her five boys in, just across the street. Her son pictured here is such a good man – lives hours away and comes weekly to check up on mom and get things done around the house. He cooks for her friends on occasion too. When weather permits, she loves to take rides around the woods on his quad.

When I grow up I want to be like Margaret.

I’ve been a little dismayed at the bitterness I have seen on the internet lately between women who didn’t approve of the Women’s March on Washington and those who attended or supported it. A good friend of mine said she was really offended and didn’t need anyone marching for her rights. She felt women are damned lucky in this country, we have many rights that women of other countries don’t have and we don’t need to be “like men”. *sigh. She felt I was stuck on myself because I have opinions and I express them openly. Those particular words admittedly stung. I thought about it for a while – am I a conceited idiot who thinks her views are the only way? The answer to that is no. Are my intentions always good regardless of the topic? I can say whole heartedly YES. I’m not one to shut up, and I won’t apologize for caring and having a big mouth that expresses it.

As for the March – I’ll tell you what – If women didn’t march in our recent history, we wouldn’t be voting, we wouldn’t have our own credit cards, we wouldn’t be able to take out our own mortgage, we wouldn’t have access to affordable womens health care, and a myriad of other freedoms we now take for granted. There are still issues we face, and this March in particular was about many different things. I have no problem with women who don’t want to get involved – we all have to choose our battles. What I don’t understand is the offense taken. I truly believe if you know in your heart you are doing whatever you’re doing in the hopes of improving things for all, you’re on the right track in life. I’m not going to apologize for it.

Till soon, friends –

Proud

I am so proud to be an American Woman today…. amazed at the turnout of both women AND MEN at the Women’s March on Washington, across the country and all over the world

Several of my friends are marching in DC and others in our state capitol. I’m hearing that it is very peaceful, respectful, an inspirational gathering of folks who are alarmed and concerned about the protection of human rights, of healthcare issues, of womens right to govern their own body, of not tolerating the pussy grabber mentality we all witnessed and some dismissed.

The turnout is bigger than the crowds for the inauguration – wow! Hopefully, Washington will heed the warning that we are paying attention and won’t tolerate injustice. The Orange Scream said yesterday he was giving back the government TO THE PEOPLE… well let’s see if he’ll walk the talk.

Women are nurturers, bread winners, doctors, lawyers, we are politicians, innovators, healers, we are military, we are law enforcement, educators, homemakers, we are three quarters of the existence of life itself because we are it’s vessel. What our bodies have to go through to bring forth life is a miracle. That we are still, in this day and age, not treated by some of the powers that be as equal is just wrong.

Interesting… the World is making a statement today, and there is no comment from the President. Oh he’s been on twitter.. only to praise himself. Not a mention of what’s going on right outside his new front door. What was it he said just yesterday?… Your voice, your hopes, your dreams will define our American destiny. … only if they align with his.

I keep hearing from the GOP and it’s faithful that they want smaller government, less regulation… well that doesn’t fly if you’re trying to regulate a woman’s

reproductive rights…

My friends are in the photo below, my name is on those signs… kinda wishing I had gotten on that bus yesterday. I’m with them in spirit and so darn proud and grateful for their courage. Proud that millions of people showed up and demonstrate what peaceful protest means. Amen and Amen again.

You Go Girls!

UPDATE: All those millions of people gathered, Not one arrest was made in DC yesterday – Bravo.