Heads Up!

"The word is spreading! A month before Thank a Soldier Week officially launches, hundreds are already doing their part to thank American soldiers for their work around the world. It's just too easy. You can send a quick email of support to the troops. You can donate to an organization that's watching their backs. You can even just say thanks to the soldier who passes you at the mall. Too many in America are trying to politicize the sacrifice of our troops. Let's make sure we're on the soldiers' side."
Go here, to find out how YOU can say thanks to a soldier or two. Anyone can do this. I sent my postal code from here in the U.K. and they accepted it. So it doesn't matter if you are not in the
US of A. So, go for it!

Another one bites the dust.

Rocket jet plot is foiled

"A SUSPECTED terrorist plot to stage a Christmas murder blitz in Britain was smashed yesterday by police and MI5.

A 28-year-old Asian man was snared as he allegedly tried to buy a rocket launcher near the M25 South Mimms services.

It is feared he planned to blast a holiday flight at a major UK airport.

The British-born Muslim was kept under surveillance for weeks by Met chief Sir Ian Blair’s anti-terror cops and MI5 agents.

He was lured to a road near the service station in Hertfordshire, where it is believed he intended to buy the rocket launcher and a cache of other weapons.

The suspect, believed to have been in contact with al-Qaeda sympathisers, was ordered to hit the ground by Scotland Yard’s elite CO19 firearms unit." more here...

Bravo! and thank you to all the MI-5 agents and Sir Ian Blair's anti-terror cops for an early Christmas present of arresting yet another SUSPECTED British Muslim terrorist that decided to crawl out from under some rock and help destroy this beautiful country and her inhabitants because he was angry as something or another.

Free Bird

Well, lookee here! Lyndard Skynard is finally being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I have to admit, Free Bird is one of my all time favorite songs. Glad to see it finally happened.

Other groups being inducted next year are Blondie, Black Sabbath, Miles Davis and the Sex Pistols.

I nicked this little gem from Poosh, who nicked it from this little naughty blonde, who nicked it from......

Why do we get it, and they don't.

What a great piece by Mary Laney called Our accomplishments in Iraq make for long list in the Chicago Sun Times. She writes what a lot of people are thinking about and writing about on blogs.

"But here we get all the static, all the talking heads, and all the theories of what's happening over there. We hear politics instead of facts. We get editorials in place of reports. We have Congress tied up with some politicians making threats and insisting that we set a date to withdraw our troops or withdraw our troops immediately. We hear them making accusations that President Bush lied when he said Saddam had weapons of mass destruction -- even though former President Bill Clinton said the same thing when he was in office, as did others in his party who now seem to be suffering from an acute case of amnesia regarding the recent past.

The supreme ayatollah of Iran is urging a speedy pullout of foreign troops from Iraq. Now, if former President Jimmy Carter were still in the White House, perhaps that would happen. Carter was the president, you'll recall, who wrote a nice letter to the Ayatollah Khomeni in Iran after his country took over the American Embassy and was holding Americans hostage inside. But there's a different president in the White House today. President Bush is not backing down in the war on terror -- despite all the noise and all the chatter and talking heads who are criticizing him.

The noise is so loud about the war, yet we're not hearing what we need to hear. We're not hearing from the soldiers, the generals, the boots on the ground. Why is this?

The soldiers are putting their lives on the line daily, yet we don't hear from them or about them in the myriad reports coming out of Baghdad. The Marines are making certain schools are free of bombs and children can go inside to learn. Yet we don't hear from them. We only hear of the fatalities of the war -- not the victories of the war. We see pictures of the soldiers who have given their lives, but no pictures of the heroes who are, daily, making progress over there.

There are those who would like to set a date by which we will withdraw American troops. That's like playing poker and telling which cards you have and when you intend to play them. It doesn't work in war.

There are politicians who are using the war to try to tilt Americans to change their minds. They continually refer to Iraq as another Vietnam. It is not Vietnam. Vietnam was a black eye for America. It was a time where America pulled out due to public opinion and then watched the slaughter of the South Vietnamese people after we left. Iraq is not Vietnam. If we pull out of Iraq, al-Qaida will follow us right back home -- to New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago. Doubt it? Then you have forgotten 9/11 and just what happened after America failed to respond to the first World Trade Center bombing in 1993 and failed to act when our Marine barracks, our Navy ship, and other American targets were attacked by al-Qaida.

There's too much static noise out there regarding the war. It's filling a vacuum caused by the administration's failure to keep us regularly updated on what is happening throughout Iraq. It's time for the Bush administration to step up and tell us what is going on -- with regular reports, weekly updates, fireside chats, talks with soldiers -- through the entire country of Iraq.

We're getting our reports from hotel rooms in Baghdad.

It's time for the whole story from over there."

Gosh, doesn't Ms. Laney just nail it in the first paragraph. And why can't the idiots on Capitol Hill or within the press understand that the terrorists will not slink away and destroy each other, but boldly come again to America's shores.

Talk about hittin' the jackpot.

Woman Becomes Sex Billionaire
"She began by selling phone sex, raked in millions of dollars, moved on to Internet gambling – and today Ruth Parasol is worth almost $2 billion. With a keen understanding of the power of the Internet to transform viewers' daily lives, Parosol has exploited two of mankind's basic urges – sex and the desire to gain sudden wealth by gambling – to build of fortune of $1.8 billion, putting her 164th on Forbes list of the richest Americans." more here and here

Damn, that's a lot of money, and it appears to be basically tax-free. Doesn't look like she will ever be able to go back to the States. But Gibraltar?

Remembering.

So yesterday was Thanksgiving Day and yes, I was a bit blue throughout the day. It wasn't the food or the football games that I missed, but family. Funny though, it's not the family, excluding my kids of course, that is left that I missed, but my Grandma and Granddaddy who came to mind.

I remember as a kid going to their home for Thanksgiving. I loved spending time with them. I think that my grandparents were some of the coolest people on earth. Nothing that I talked with them about ever shocked them. If I could have a real conversation with them today, I don't think anything that I would talk about now would ever shock them. I wasn't the black sheep of the family with them. I was special in their eyes, especially my Granddaddy. Just before we would leave, he used to slip say, five or ten dollars in my hand, as he was pretending to shake it. And I knew it was coming because he would get a certain twinkle in his eyes after leaning over to give me a kiss and hug and would whisper in my ear, "You will be okay kid," then quickly put out his hand and say, "Wanna shake on that?"

I haven't thought about this in a very long time. Lordy, so many years have gone by. It seems like a lifetime ago.

So, like the thoughtful man he is, Krip brought me home a lovely bunch of flowers yesterday, wishing me a Happy Thanksgiving and asked me how I was getting on, and I told him everything was fine.

And it is. I think my Granddaddy was just about ready to shake my hand when Krip walked through that door.

Why, it's Thanksgiving tomorrow.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day in America. Here in England, I won't be doing up a Thanksgiving meal. Krip, while he says turkey is "okay," he isn't into sweet potatoes, rice and giblet gravy, nor pumpkin and pecan pies; and when I mentioned various "dressings" (such as oyster), he just looked at me like I was from another planet. So I do believe I will skip cooking up a meal. At any rate, since to me Thanksgiving is more with being with family and since my kids ARE my family and they are in the States, I tend to use tomorrow as a countdown day until my youngest gets over here for Christmas. What I lacked on Thanksgiving, I will more than make up on Christmas.

So, what I am trying to say to all my American blogger-friends, have a wonderful Thanksgiving Day. And if you should have an extra piece of dark meat left over, or a slice of pumpkin or pecan pie, can you just kinda slip it in the mail for me?

Heh.

Hey, it's Friday, wha' you expect.

Rohirrim


To which race of Middle Earth do you belong?
brought to you by Quizilla

Got this via Mike, whom I call "lowcountry."

An arm and a leg.

Oh. My. God. We took our box down to the post office last night to mail to the kids and grandkids for Christmas. I'd say it costs nearly as much to ship the damn thing as the presents inside. On top of this, you have to list everything that's in it for customs purposes. Why in the hell then did I even bother to wrap the presents, since everything is itemized on the outside so that the whole world, including the kids will see what they are getting for Christmas before they even get put under the tree?

Grrrrrr.

Just a bit of fun.

Found a cute test to see what part of the U.S. one might be from. It's called "Are you a Yankee or a Rebel." I found out that I am 100% Dixie, how about you?

If you're not from the States, take it anyway, be interesting to see how much you know of phrases used, slang used, etc.

Bless the little children.

Army Lt. Col. Lynne Westlake talks with the mother of a little girl who just received a new pair of shoes in Haswa, Iraq, on Nov. 10, 2005. Westlake and her fellow soldiers of Bravo Company, 490th Civil Affairs Battalion, 155th Brigade Combat Team passed out donated shoes, toys and candy to the villagers near Haswa Firm Base.
DoD photo by Lance Cpl. Michael J O'Brien, U.S. Marine Corps.


BAGHDAD, IRAQ— Cpt. Robert Duchaine, B Company Commander, 1st Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment, visits with children at a Kindergarten school in the Khadamiyah area of western Baghdad. He took this opportunity when his unit conducted a joint mission with Iraqi Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 1st Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division to hand out toys and school supplies.
(U.S. Army photo by 1st Lt. Bob Miller).


U.S. Army Spc. Melanie Williams, Charlie Company, 173rd Support Battalion (Airborne), explains proper dental hygiene techniques to an Afghan girl during a Village Medical Outreach mission in Atghar, Zabul Province, Afghanistan, Oct. 21, 2005.
U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Jacob Caldwell

Slap. Slap. Slap.

So have you ever had a box all ready to go to the post office, and well you know, all the Christmas gifts placed carefully in it so as not tear the wrapping paper; all the gaps filled in with styrofoam "popcorn/peanuts" to guarantee no breakage can occur; the address written on said package so that any dork at the post office will be able read it; and have you made sure that the box was totally sealed with tape so that nothing (and I mean nothing) can get in it. So, I repeat, have you ever made sure that was all done ~ everything all ready to go; signed, sealed, to be delivered?

Yep, me too.

So, where in the hell did that present next to me come from.

Aarrgghhhhhh...

It won't be long now.

Hooray! I just received through an e-mail my youngest daughter's iternary for coming here for Christmas! She is leaving the States on the 20th of December and will arrive at Gatwick on the 21st, and doesn't have to go back until the 2nd of January.

I am just so thrilled, or as Krip would say "I am chuffed to bits."

From our house to theirs.

Friday, Krip and I had a wonderful day out shopping in London. We went to Camden Lock Market looking for Christmas presents for the kids. Found some really unique things for my oldest daughter and son-in-law. It was very relaxing going during the week. Didn't have the tremendous crowds that descend on the weekend. They would absolutely, positively love The Market. Hmmm, gotta win the Lotto!

Later that day, we went over to Hamley's Toy Store. Even that was a pretty enjoyable shopping experience. Krip spent quite a bit of time up in the section with all the cars and their kits. Found some great Christmas toys for two of my grandsons.

Now I have to wrap and ship all these presents to the States tomorrow. Considering my daughter paid $11 (dollars) to send a box that only weighed in at one pound, we're going to be paying an arm and a leg for this shipment of Christmas goodies. Glad it only happens once a year.

Just keep humming "Tra-la-la...."

Giving thanks to those you deserve it most.

Today is the 60th Anniversary of the ending of World War II. It is Veterans' Day in the United States and Rememberance Day in the United Kingdom. Please take a moment and give thanks to those who served our two countries honorably, and in some cases, gave their lives in order for us to live in societies that do give us the chance to express ourselves freely.
We owe them our undying gratitude. Don't forget to say a silent prayer during the 11th hour on this 11th day of November.

Definitely deserves an "awww."

Wow! What a cool article. It's all about the Senior Crowd blogging. One of the reasons I found this so amazing is, if you mention you have a blog to many friends, they'll say "Wha??" They appear to have no idea what blogging is. Perhaps they should be asking their parents or grandparents what blogging is.

"Forget shuffleboard, needlepoint and bingo. Web logs, more often the domain of alienated adolescents and home to screeds by middle-aged pundits, are gaining a foothold as a new leisure-time option for senior citizens.

There's Dad's Tomato Garden Journal, Dogwalk Musings, and, of course, the Oldest Living Blogger."

You go Seniors!!

Yes, we're here too.

U.S. Army 1st Lt. Tory Marcon helps Riaz Sharif drink a powdered milkshake from a Meal, Ready to Eat, in Muzaffarabad, Pakistan, on Nov. 1, 2005. The milkshake is the only food tetanus patients at the 212th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital can manage to swallow because of muscle spasms. The Department of Defense is supporting the State Department by providing disaster relief supplies and services following the massive earthquake that struck Pakistan and parts of India and Afghanistan.
DoD photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Eric S. Powell, U.S. Navy.


Army 2nd Lt. Miah Kwiatkowski removes gauze from a Pakistani woman's foot to check for swelling at the 212th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital in Muzaffarabad, Pakistan, on Nov. 1, 2005. The Pakistani woman is a victim of the devastating earthquake that struck the region Oct. 8, 2005. The Department of Defense is supporting the State Department by providing disaster relief supplies and services following the massive earthquake that struck Pakistan and parts of India and Afghanistan.
DoD photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Eric S. Powell, U.S. Navy.

It's Friday. Time for a test.

Are You a Democrat, Republican or Southern Republican? Here is a little test that will help you decide:

You're walking down a deserted street with your wife and two small children. Suddenly, an Islamic Terrorist with a huge knife comes around the corner, locks eyes with you, screams obscenities, praises Allah, raises the knife, and charges. You are carrying a Glock 40, and you are an expert shot. You have mere seconds before he reaches you and your family. What do you do?

Democrat's Answer: Well, that's not enough information to answer the question! Does the man look poor? Or oppressed? Have I ever done anything to him that would inspire him to attack? Could we run away? What does my wife think? What about the kids? Could I possibly swing the gun like a club and knock the knife out of his hand? What does the law say about this situation? Does the Glock have appropriate safety built into it? Why am I carrying a loaded gun anyway, and what kind of message does this send to society and to my children? Is it possible he'd be happy with just killing me? Does he definitely want to kill me, or would he be content just to wound me? If I were to grab his knees and hold on, could my family get away while he was stabbing me? Should I call 9-1-1? Why is this street so deserted? We need to raise taxes, have a paint and weed day and make this happier, healthier street that would discourage such behavior. This is all so confusing! I need to debate this with some friends for few days and try to come to a consensus.

Republican's Answer: BANG!

Southern Republican's Answer: BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! click.....(sounds of reloading). BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! click
Daughter: "Nice grouping, Daddy! Were those the Winchester Hollow Points?"

Thanks so much from Blondage over at Perverted Republican for this wonderful analogy.

Let's see Barney at eight dog years, is 56 our age. No wonder.

Barney, our mutt, has been driving me crazy of late. We always go for a walk around 11:30 a.m. It's that particular time because I wait until after I hear from my youngest, who calls around that time, or 6:30 a.m. her time. I have a shadow for almost three and a half hours before such time ~ Barney waiting for his walk. I mean, it's not like he hasn't already had one walk in the a.m. After all, Krip takes him out around 6 a.m. for a walk, so he isn't keeping his legs crossed or anything having to hold it all in for such a long period of time. The mutt just wants a walk NOW.

And God help us all if it is pouring outside! Barney acts as if it's all my fault that we are having a deluge of rain. No amount of me telling him that I can't help if it's raining, and there is no way in hell I'm gonna walk him in the pouring rain ~ I get the Barney glare.

When we get back, I continue to get the glares from Barney from about 12:30 p.m. onward until 4:15 p.m. That's dinnertime for Barney. I mean, it's not like he doesn't eat beforehand. He has his breakfast which he nibbles on all morning long. It's just that he wants his dinner NOW.

The rest of the day, when not putting up with Barney glaring at me or tripping over him because he makes sure he is right there; I mean, right under me, is having to put up with his toots. Now these aren't ordinary toots. These are get down greasy, garlicy-type of smelling toots. Krip thinks I'm making up the smell of these toots, but then Krip can't smell, which in this case is a real blessing.

Oh. My. God. Barney is tooting right now. I'm having to type with one hand while holding my nose with the other. I suppose I'd better stop now and get his sorry tooting ass out there on our walk. Those two holes in my back are starting to hurt a bit.

"Stop glaring at me Barney! We're going...right NOW!"

"Charlie, does this dress make me look fat?"

Well, Bonny Prince Charlie and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall have finally arrived on the other side of the pond.

They arrive in Washington today loaded down with a wardrobe of 50 dresses (for her) and double-breasted tweeds, ties and tux (for him); 20 servants; makeup artists; and an entourage of 50 members of the British press at an estimated cost of close to a half-million dollars.

Now the royals showing us how royal royals can be with their servants, make-up artists, and the press isn't what impresses me because many from the actors' guild and songsters travel everywhere with their entourage of servants, nannies, make-up artists, and the paparazzi ~ so, no, that's not what is impressing me. However, the Duchess bringing fifty dresses, that's 50 DRESSES ~ that does impress me enormously.

I'm trying to picture Camilla, THE Duchess of Cornwall standing and peering into the closet and muttering, "Oh damn! CHARLIE!!! I have nothing to wear."

Wha? Is that two v's or a w.

You know those freaky looking letters that we have to copy when commenting on some posts here at Blogger that is set up to keep those damn spammers at bay? Word Verification ~ that's what it's called...Word Verification.

Anyway, it's pretty bad when even the author of said blog; namely moi can't even figure out what some of those letters/characters are for fuckssake!!

The "rubbing off" affect.

Yesterday I was writing a comment over at someone else's blog, and I realized right in the middle of writing said comment that I wrote the word...whilst.

WHILST!!

Never thought a true "English" word would ever trip off my tongue, er, flow through my fingers via the keys on the computer. I'm shaking my head in true wonderment. What's next for me? Maybe I'll actually start thinking "firstly" instead of "first of all."

And no, that doesn't mean Marmite has even a fighting chance to start to grow on me.

Blaaaa.