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Freedom to Sip Coffee

As I sit here sipping my coffee, thank you Irishman for that, I ponder my freedom to do so, my freedom to sit and browse the internet, read Dear Abby and scan the funnies. I thank God everyday that I was born in a country where I am free to not only sip coffee, but work any job I want to, freedom to vote, freedom to drive, freedom to go shopping without a male escort. Freedom from persecution simply because I am a woman, a Christian woman to boot.
Although that last freedom, freedom of religion, the primary reason the Pilgrims came here (thank you pilgrims) seems to be fading. Well, let’s be honest, freedom to be a Christian, we are asked time and time again to water down our belief system, it is only a matter of time before it becomes a mandate and not a request.

I read recently that the Duck Dynasty family, during contract negotiations, was asked to lessen the talk of God and guns, the head of the family, Phil, reportedly looked at the executives and said no. Power packed two letters, he said if you want us to water down our Christianity and not talk guns then we don’t need to be on television. You see Phil and his family don’t need the money, they have enough, so it wasn’t an issue for them to walk away. A&E backed down, rather quickly from what I read in the news, and signed the crew up for another season.

I am thinking I really need to watch this show, we need more Phil’s in this world, people who stand up for what they believe in, people who don’t care if they are  famous. I admit, fame lures me, it teases me, I so would love to be on the radio every day. I have to warn you, I don’t water down my belief system either, God, family, career, that is the way it is supposed to be. If it is any other way, it doesn’t work, as we see with divorce rates, cheating spouses, killings. It is a sad world, it is a world that has forgotten who to put first, I am hopeful though. Hopeful that, we as a country, can not only recognize our freedom of religion roots, but go back to it. No one should have to water down what they think for fear of offending someone else. Yes, there are tactful ways of sharing ones faith without being belligerent, I don’t think that is the way to go either.

In this country, one that was founded by Christians, please don’t use the Thomas Jefferson reference, when one does my eyes glaze over, this is not a great example of a non christian, he fathered children with his slave and then kept them all slaves until he died. Yes, let’s tout him as a great non-christian founding father, seriously, brilliant man, questionable morales. Hmmmm, makes one think, doesn’t it.

I am Baptist, FreeWill Baptist, I am not provincial, nor backwater white trash, I am a simple woman from Owasso, Oklahoma, who loves Jesus, loves coffee, loves shoes and will not be watering down any of those loves.

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Rain=Renewal

It’s raining, it’s pouring, the old man is snoring, we all know that children’s’ song, I love singing it when it is raining, which it is right now. I love it, what a great way to spend my lunch hour, outside, sitting in the car, listening to amazing ‘70’s music while the rain comes down. I feel revived, renewed, ready to take on whatever this day brings.
Rain brings renewal, hope, cleansing, it brings us green grass, flowers and for a moment in time the earth is renewed. I love the rain almost as much as I love the snow.
There is so much going on in the world that has all at once disheartened me and given me hope all at the same time. Of course I am referring to the Cleveland horror show right now, those poor women and the child born in captivity. What gives me hope is these souls that were believed dead by many were found alive, and have their freedom. What also gives me hope, for human kind, is the neighbor that helped the screaming woman.
He heard a scream and responded, in today’s society I don’t hold out hope that many would do that, but he did. He even kicked in his neighbor’s door to find out what was wrong with this woman; once again I believe a lot of people would hesitate to do something of that nature. He has turned down monetary rewards, saying that the money needs to go be distributed between the victims of the crime. He even allowed his place of employment put his likeness on a t-shirt, where all of the proceeds go to the victims.
I have heard there are memes and even an auto tuned video of this man, making fun of his vernacular, I don’t even know how one can do that with a clear conscience. This situation is so horrendous, and his actions so honorable I don’t know how anyone can even make fun of this man. Sure he is a simple man, living a simple life, filled with poverty and struggles, does that give us the right to make fun of him? No, it does not, I don’t care what he did in his past, that he was arrested, even arrested for domestic violence. He paid his dues and even his ex-wife says he is a changed man and I do believe his actions prove that.
I say we celebrate this man’s selflessness, honor it, and replicate it, not that all of us can rescue people held in captivity. However, showing kindness to our neighbors, respond when we hear a young woman’s plaintive cries for help. Most of us, in our lifetime, will not be faced with the decision that Mr. Ramsey was faced with. However, we can live the kind of life that is open and honest and helpful, if we all just do one nice thing for someone this week, I believe that will honor the spirit in which Mr. Ramsey lives.

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Surprise

A few weeks back I bought an armoire, I ordered it online so when it arrived it had to be put together, I waited and waited. Three weeks, the Irishman never put it together, well he had Friday off, I asked him to do it then since he wasn’t doing anything else. I called on my way home and asked if he had put it together he said “well I moved it from the front entryway”. Needless to say I was not happy, all the way home I fumed, I thought “seriously, three weeks, he can’t find time in 3 weeks.”
I got home and sure enough it was out of the front entryway, he then said come here I want to show you something. I thought uh huh. I walked into the bedroom and there it was, my armoire! He had put it together!! I was so happy!
And he is alive, I believe that says it all.
Today I have done nothing but hung out in my bedroom, organizing the new armoire and watching Gilmore Girls. I love that show, I think I always will. I think anyone who watches it wishes they had a mother/daughter relationship like Lorelai and Rory had. The quick wits, the coffee addictions, the ability to eat whatever they wanted. A perfect relationship. But real life isn’t like the Gilmore Girls, teen pregnancy usually doesn’t end so well, with the daughter going to a private high school and then off to Yale.
Single parenting period isn’t like it was portrayed on the show, it is way harder, with financial struggles and emotional turmoil. Am I doing a good enough job? Am I doing the right thing?
You have to be able to discipline your children, to make sure they are under control and not screaming like wild animals when they don’t get their own way. Of course you must have the ability to be an adult and put your own needs on the back-burner and the needs of your children first. You have to make sure all the laundry is done and children have clean clothes to wear. You have to be able to get up on time and make sure your children are at school on time. Those are the simple things that have to be done. If one cannot do those things, then how do they handle the bigger things? These are things that people should be pondering, should be considering when deciding the become a parent.
On the upside of the weekend, I have an armoire and am enjoying it.

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Quick Thoughts

So, next month, The Real Housewives of New Jersey starts back up, which is what has me thinking. Teresa Guidice troubles me, last season we saw her life disintegrating, her friends finally tired of her manipulations and sometimes outright lies left her side. She alienated her family by being nasty to her sister in law and trying to start trouble in their marriage.
But the thing that bothers me the most is her husband’s treatment of her; he called her the C word on national television. He was caught, on the phone, with what can only be another woman, calling his wife the most heinous word in the male vocabulary. She then goes on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, who asks her about the incident, she tells him that her husband bought her jewelry to make it up to her.
Even Andy Cohen looked at her like she was insane, really Teresa, jewelry, to make up for calling you a name that is so vulgar, so hurtful, setting women back 100 years. I can see wanting to stay with your husband, I mean she has 4 daughters with him. Daughters. So years from now, when they see this episode, will they hate their father or their mother? Will they grow up to be with men who treat them the same as their father treats their mother? These are questions Teresa really needs to ask herself, I could see if she had gone on television and said, yes, it was horrible, but for me, marriage is for life, so we went to counseling, we worked it out. But no, she said he bought her presents to make up for that.
This infuriates me as a woman, as a mother of a daughter; this whole episode makes me angry, angry with Teresa Guidice for not doing the right thing. She did a stupid thing, she sold her dignity for jewelry, at least that is what she told the world. I wonder how they could afford jewelry, with Joe not having a job, having legal issues and with Teresa being the only one bringing in money. She was probably not being honest about that either, she didn’t look like she was being honest in telling that to Andy Cohen.
I hope this season is a better one for all of the ladies, I hope Teresa and her husband sought some much needed help in resolving their issues. Like I said they have four daughters to consider, and I do hope Teresa considers them, that she has to be an example to them and their father has to be an example of how they are to be treated all of their lives.

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No Sleep Angie

Today will be No Sleep Angie, Nocona kept me awake all night, she wanted out to eat grass, apparently her tummy was not feeling that great. I suppose that is what happens when one knocks the trash over and eats it. Let that be a lesson to all, do not eat garbage.
On an up note today is Thursday which means tomorrow is Friday, which means I can sleep Saturday, whew, did you follow all of that?
Wednesday is recording day, then after that a date with an Irishman to see an Ironman, so excited!
That’s all I have for now, I foresee a ton of coffee in my immediate future! Happy Coffee Day!

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Controversy

Recently, on the internet, there was an article slamming an Oklahoma City Thunder cheerleader for being chunky. I understand the blogger who wrote the article was fired for her mean spiritedness toward the cheerleader in question. I read the article and wanted to see the cheerleader for myself, to, of course, judge, she is not skinny, however I wish I was chunky like her.
Recently the tide has been turning, skinny is becoming synonymous with sickly, women are revolting, the “average” size woman wants to be represented in ads, modeling and acting.
Women who are truly average size are not obese, they are not, let’s be honest, fat, they are a size 8 to 10, that is average, a normal average. and then it depends on ones height, if you are 5 foot tall you should not weigh 200 pounds, not even 150, that is not healthy. I am overweight, I fully admit it, I try and try and stumble, but always get back on the wagon. I would love to be a size 0, just once in my life to experience what “skinny” girls go through.
My best friend, Tammi, is skinny, always has been, always will be, I am going to be honest it was always frustrating for me to grow up with someone who had the perfect physique. Especially for the era we grew up in. Twiggy was all the rage, I was never in that category, I was always round, round face, round body, round everything. Even my feet were fat, I know this because my grandmother commented on it once.
Oh to be thin, oh to be even the size this cheerleader is, I dream of it, I write about it, I talk about it, yes, I obsess about it.
I did manage to have a daughter that is blessed with a high metabolism, she gets that from her dad, I am happy for her, I hope this means she will never know the struggle I have had since childhood.
One of these days I am going to be skinny, I am going to be so skinny people will say eat a burger to me. That is my goal.
As for the cheerleader, my opinion is that she is beautiful and confident, and if she could not dance and do the other things the cheerleaders do, then they would not have chosen her. She is not obese by any stretch of the imagination, however, neither is she skinny. Perhaps she is one of the “average” women that seem so elusive.

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Revelations

I am a Trekker, there I said it, and I know you are all shocked, what, she’s a nerd? Ha! Live long and prosper, and yes, I stopped typing to do the Vulcan sign. I have been a Trekker since I was 4 years old, Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock captured my imagination, and Lieutenant Uhura let me know I could be anything, even on the bridge of a Starship all the while wearing a great outfit and boots. Reach for the moon, land among the stars, they traveled the universe meeting new races, some didn’t have human form. They taught us to respect life, all life, not just the ones we are comfortable with.
When it was announced that J.J. Abrams was going to direct a reboot, not the same storyline, but a completely different look at the whole thing, well I was apprehensive at best. I love J.J. Abrams, every television show he has done I have watched. But this was my beloved Star Trek, what was he going to do with the characters I have loved almost my entire life.
What he did was nothing short of amazing, he respected the fans, he gave us a plausible cause for an entirely different timeline and he gave us a fond look at our own beloved Spock before making us fall in love with the new one. To say I am once again hooked is an understatement, I look forward to the new one, and I will go back and watch the first one in his reboot to get ready for this one. Captain Kirk was a renegade, a cowboy; he has kept the same rebel spirit in this Kirk, so happy to see he is not towing the Federation line.
There you have it, all of my nerd glory, I wear it like a badge of honor, I am proud of my Science Fiction roots, I am happy I was left to my own devices to discover my own loves, my own passions. Art, literature, history, television and science fiction, what a combination.

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Good News

I hate weighing myself; however it is a necessary evil when engaging in a weight loss program. Since starting back with Weight Watchers I have lost a total of 12 pounds. Not easy my friends, I am tempted all of the time with sweets, that is my real downfall. I can control everything else, but the sweets, man oh man, is that hard.
I have also given up Diet Coke, all soda really, so this time around I have made even more changes, not an easy thing. I do love Diet Coke; however I have decided all of those chemicals are not good for me. If I can clean my car battery with it I don’t think I should be putting it into my body. So there you have it folks, I am doing my best to clean up my food act. I have definite addictions that I am doing my best to address, I figure if I can get a handle on the food thing then the rest should be easier to deal with.
This evening will be particularly difficult as I will be making cookies for Elizabeth Anne; she has a craving for the no bake oatmeal cookies. She is insistent that her mother make them for her, so make them I will. I know what you are thinking, why can’t she do this herself, after all she is 24, well let me tell you, I will continue to make her cookies as long as I am able to. As a mother I consider it my solemn duty to do the things for my children that I can. And this is a simple thing that she takes so much joy in, as do I, the funny thing is, before she picks up the cookies she is going to the dentist. Perhaps I should call them and tell them of her sugar addiction, now that would be funny.
She is skinny she can afford a sugar addiction, I have never been skinny, I could never afford a sugar addiction, even though I have one.
I will never give up my television addiction, even if some shows irritate me, I love television and movies. Speaking of movies, this coming weekend kicks off a long summer of greatness, Ironman 3 is coming out, and I am so excited! I love superhero movies and I love Robert Downey Jr and I love Tony Stark. The trifecta of movie watching! Tonight is Bones, How I Met Your Mother, Defiance, Revolution and Castle; it takes two days to watch one evening of television for me.

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Television

Ok, so, yesterday was spent recording Conversations, can’t wait for the shows to air, had a great time as usual with Shanon J. The topics are timely and the conversation is fantastic, can’t wait for you all to hear them!
I have exciting news that once again I cannot share yet, so excited though!! You will all just have to wait this one out. I hope to be able to announce it soon.
It is coming up on season finale time for all of my television shows, this is my second favorite time of year, I love to see where the shows are going and what I have to look forward to in the new television season. I love television, scripted television, I cannot stress that enough, I might have a shameful secret in the fact that I watch the Real Housewives of New Jersey, however if it comes to that or a scripted show, I will forego the reality for the scripted.
Yesterday I had lunch with Alex, very enjoyable at the Genghis Grill; love the food and the company. We have the most interesting conversations about history, politics and even math. I have to brag, I have the most intelligent children, they are all articulate, thought provoking and well informed. I don’t know how these particular children were given to me, I am just glad God gave me the ones he did.

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Never Changing Obsessions

Things I am obsessed with all of the time:
Weather, I am obsessed with weather, all kinds of weather, except for the dry hot summer weather. I like storms, clouds, cold fronts and above all snow. I like tornado season as well, and yes I know I will get some flack for that, I know it causes damage, but to see this thing, this force, that man cannot control, that does what it wants. It is an amazing thing to witness, and yes I have been through plenty of storms and tornado seasons. I grew up in tornado alley perhaps that is why I find them so fascinating.
Aliens, space aliens that is, I am completely fascinated with the thought that we are not alone; I do not believe that we are God’s only creation. I fully believe that there is other life out there; I also think that there is intelligent life out there. I am fascinated with the thought that they could come find us, visit us, and hopefully not see us as food. Since I was very young I have been obsessed with anything that has to do with something more out there. It started with Star Trek and has continued to this day with, really all programs, movies, documentaries, books, anything at all. We are not alone and one day we will see the proof.
Coffee, I am obsessed with coffee, which also started at a young age, my grandma used to give me coffee milk, it started then, I was hooked. I love coffee, the smell, the taste, the way it envelopes me and comforts me. I will never give it up, I will never switch to decaffeinated either, that is worthless, for me at least. I need the caffeine, I revel in it, it gives me comfort, I am convinced when I die and they do an autopsy they will find caffeine flowing in my veins.
Television, I am obsessed with television, I always have been, I always will be, I love it. Not reality shows, but scripted, well written, well acted television. Campy television is good as well; escapism at its best, television is one of the best inventions ever. In my opinion it is up there with the printing press, yes it is that important in my life.
The written word, I am obsessed with books, real books, written on paper, not electronic ones, those are nice as well, I have an tablet and have downloaded books, however there is no replacement for holding a book, turning the pages, it is an experience that should never be lost. With the world turning more to electronic devices I hope books do not go the way of newspapers, they are a dying form. I love the smell of the paper, the ink, everything. I love book stores, especially used book stores. There is something about them that just makes me happy.
Superheroes, I have always been obsessed with them, from the Greek mythologies to comic books, there is something about them that appeals to me. Especially the flawed ones, no one does a flawed superhero better than Stan Lee. His are exceptional, the Marvel universe is simply awe inspiring, I love them. Superman is my number one hero of all time though, I mean seriously, he is an alien who can fly and he wants to save the world. That appeals to me on many levels.
These are just a few things that never change about me, my obsessions, I many, and some change, but these do not.