Vice Presidents Matter

Watching the vice presidential debate was frustrating for me. Joe Biden, really? Was it not possible to engage in dialogue without the fourth grade mentality, the laughing, the smirks, the interruptions? If something were to happen to the President of the United States - Joe would be our PRESIDENT. Now if you are thinking I am a dyed-in-the-wool republican and I am only picking on poor little Joe, not so.
Paul presented a more mature personality but possibly less experienced political persona. Let's face it - he does have less experience and it seemed he was reticent to show any passion for his beliefs (and yet I know he has them).
So while I wanted to put Joe in 'time-out' - I wanted to shake Paul and say leave the script.
Too inexperienced or to immature - which guy gets the vote? Vice Presidents matter. Remember Lyndon Johnson?

Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs has past away. 56 years old, all of his money, all of his fame held no sway against cancer.
Odd, I really did not know who he was before news of his passing and now after reading about the highs and lows of his life, I believe I *liked* him. At least the him, he was after he developed a terminal cancer diagnosis.
I wonder about where he is now and what his soul is experiencing. Are there higher levels of intellect in the next life or do we all acquire the same level of knowledge once we transition? Of course these questions are not exclusive to Steve but the news of his passing stirred them anew.

Happy Mother's Day

Today is Mother's Day.
What about *Mother Earth* is she wondering where she went wrong, why her kids don't respect her any more?
Ok, not all of the kids are disrespectful but a goodly share of us (or so it seems).
Maybe because there was so much in the beginning we thought there would always be enough but just as it is when any family grows so quickly - there is less to go around. There are just less resources. Mom doesn't have enough time and energy to keep us all satisfied.
It seems to me she is stressed out and going through some sort of *menopause*. I guess you could equate the Climate Change phenomena to hot flashes. Although I don't fully subscribe to the Global Warming theory, I can't deny the temperature fluctuations. Mom is hot then cold, calm and then in a fury - something is going on!

Simplify

Simplify...articles abound...shoulda, coulda, woulda. I believe in the concept but today it really hit home with me. There are some papers that I need - really need - some discrepancies exist that could be explained easily with the papers that are somewhere at someplace. I know they haven't been thrown out. I know this because I never throw anything away. The thing is I never know where anything is. I have papers stacked in baskets, stacked in shopping bags, stacked in boxes, stacked in stacks, no labels, no segregation. This keeping of stuff doesn't just apply to papers, I have clothes stacked in baskets, in shopping bags, in luggage, some even in drawers. Not just the clothes that fit me and I wear frequently, clothes that still have tags attached, clothes that are too small, clothes that are too big, clothes that I'm going to do something with some day. I have dishes and kitchen utensils packed away in the garage, many sets of dishes in the cabinets and drawers and there are only two of us and never more than 8 of us and yet I have 3 or 4 times that. (I could supply a restaurant).
I would give anything away to people who need it - I really would - but I can't bring myself to give it to a charity that will turn around and sell it. Maybe I should have a yard sale and make everything free.
The thing with simplifying is where do you start? The task seems overwhelming. I know that simplifying will help me find things more easily and stay organized hence ease my mind and lower my stress level.
My mother was a hoarder, I am terrified I will end up like her.

Review The Last Station

Watched The Last Station this evening, a wonderful film about Leo Tolstoy's last days and his relationships most notably with his wife. Helen Mirren and Christopher Plummer were excellent in there roles. Makes me want to read more - dig deeper into their history. I have no idea what the critics had to say about this movie but I will give it a *high five*.

Not Spring Yet but I Can See It From Here

It was a beautiful sunshine day. The snow is melting at just the right rate or so it seems to me. We are expecting snow again the first of next week. The water levels are already at 130% of average in some areas. This is good news. I am ready to start planning for a small garden this year. I am in a new area and have not attempted a garden here. There may be more shade than is optimal for tomatoes and peppers. I may end up with a container garden on the deck to be able to have enough sunlight for long enough to actually grow my produce. I have this urge to get back to basics and there is nothing like growing food to help us do that. The taste of fresh tomatoes, peas, corn and bell peppers is amazing. If you only have a small space you can still have the experience by growing cherry tomatoes in a flower planter. You can grow lettuce and peppers in a small planter as well. If you start soon enough you can start your plants from seed in the house. There are kits at your local stores to help you get started. If you don't want to start out from *square one* there are always starter plants at your local home and garden stores or grocery stores.
If you are absolutely unable to grow your own garden, try to find a Farmer's Market. Usually at city parks once a week, a wonderful community experience.

Curiouser and Curiouser

The Tim DeChristopher story just got curiouser. It seems that now young Tim just got *caught up* in the moment and never really intended to defraud any one. He only went to the auction to observe the proceedings but once there believed the only way to get in was to be a bidder. He was totally surprised when he won the first bid and just kept on going for the next 13.
So what is it - premeditated extremist environmental folk hero or naive kid? Seems to me that young Tim's story changed when he realized 10 years is a very long time. Tim, if you really believe in the cause - then do the deed and suffer the consequences.