Friday, February 27, 2009

Fun With Sitemeter

I haven't looked at my Sitemeter account recently, so I decided to check it out tonight. I love looking at how people get to my site. Sometimes it's Google searches for things I wrote about, or maybe a referral from The Castle. Sometimes it makes my head spin.

WHY IN THE HELL WOULD ANYONE GET TO MY SITE BY GOOGLING "SQUIRTING PANTIES"????
(which also begs the question- why would anyone Google "squirting panties" in the first place. heh.)

I've had almost 1,500 hits through Google searches. My next highest referral site? The Castle, at 144. I've had twice as many hits from my ex-husband's website (some through his ex-employer's server, which is really weird) than my new fiance's.

At one point, my highest ranking word searches were about horrible local stories- Brenda Nesselroad-Slaby killing her baby by leaving her in a hot car all day, and Katie Haumesser, the mother of a little girl at my son's old school who was killed by a drunk driver. Now my highest ranking word search is "ebonics phrases", but right behind that are "sere training", "boy raped", and "raped boy". It makes me sad that so many people get to my site by looking for information on sad stories.

Some though, like "squirting panties", make me laugh. People have gotten to my site looking for information on "fuck fuck fuckity fuck", "boys have weiners", "ice in ass", "yeah toast", "free's ass", and "pfffft". LMAO...

I love Sitemeter.


Stupid Politician Tricks

Los Alamitos, California Mayor Dean Grose is stepping down on Monday, only a few months after being elected as the mayor for this small California town.

Why?

BECAUSE HE'S A FREAKIN' RACIST IDIOT....

A couple of weeks ago the mayor thought it would be funny to pass along an email joke he received. It's a picture of the White House lawn, planted with watermelons, and the caption "No Easter egg hunt this year". He sent it to a "small group of friends"... one of which was a local BLACK businesswoman.

Needless to say, she was not amused. Grose said he was "unaware" of the racial stereotype that black people like watermelons.

I swear. Some people are just too stupid to vote... and then they manage to get themselves elected.


Sunday, February 22, 2009

A Journal for Jordan

Last week I had the pleasure of participating in an extremely emotional Blogger's Roundtable discussion with Dana Canedy. Dana's fiance, 1SG Charles King was killed in action in Iraq on October 14, 2006. At the timeof his death, Dana was busy raising their 6 month old son, Jordan, anxiously awaiting the end of his tour, and writing for the New York Times. The book, "A Journal for Jordan", is a combination of her memories of her childhood and her time with Charles plus excerpts from the journal that Charles wrote to their son. It is, in a word, mesmerizing.

I am just over half way through the book, and managed to get about a third of the way through it before I cried. I'm pretty proud of that record, by the way, considering that I was in tears within about 15 minutes of the Roundtable. Dana was incredibly open with us about topics ranging from parenthood to racism, and I will never forget our conversation.

Lindy Kyzer, moderator of the Roundtables, arranged a half-hour interview session with Dana during her February 18 visit to the Pentagon. Lindy always makes sure that every blogger on the call gets to ask at least one question. Sometimes I have a hard time coming up with an intelligent question. (For instance, when I asked an Army scientist which biological weapon poses the biggest threat to the US. Her answer made me want to shut up for a VERY long time... "Considering how many there are, I have no way of answering that question." Um. Yeah. That was sorta like asking why we haven't found bin Laden yet- "BECAUSE WE DON'T KNOW WHERE HE IS, DIP$SHIT... DUH!" Ignorance is *not* bliss.) But fortunately, most of the time I ask half-way intelligent questions and I always learn a lot from the calls.

When it was my turn, Dana had already answered questions about how, and when, she would introduce the journal and the book to Jordan (she's already reading the journal to him but won't give the book to him until he's much older), racial discrimination (she will teach Jordan to recognize differences and attributes of every person, regardless of race), and whether or not she thought the advice given in the book is meant just for Jordan, or all young men (yes, absolutely). My question was this: Being a member of what we bloggers call the MSM, has she ever felt that her peers have unfairly judged our military and misrepresented the war in general. She said "No. I tell you, I truly haven't." She went on to tell us how incredibly supportive the New York Times was during her period of mourning, and how it was her peers who encouraged her to write the book. It wasn't her idea, but rather co-workers who felt that she could put a face to the war, and the Times gave her the space and time to write it. I was relieved and encouraged to hear her answer, knowing that the media may put on an anti-war, anti-military public face, but in private, they show support and respect. She also announced that a movie is in the works, with her as an advisor and Denzel Washington portraying her Charles. Interestingly, she never mentioned who would play her. My money's on the curvaceous, lovely and multi-talented Jennifer Hudson. Oh, she would be a perfect "Dana"... But I digress.

FbL asked my other question, one that is dear to my heart: Since you are unmarried, how do you feel the Army dealt with you with regards to Charles' death? Is there anything you feel should be done that isn't currently being done for couples in your situation? Her answer was surprising to me- she said "It's a tough position to be in because you're, sort of, the "unofficial widow," is how I would describe myself. And I think that it's a difficult position for the military too because what are you to do in a situation where it's not an official family?" She went on to say that a Pentagon official asked her the very same question today, and that ultimately, she needs to give it more thought before answering. Her answer was surprising to me, because knowing how "official widows" are often treated, I figured she would have a more immediate answer.

No matter what the question, Dana's answers were quick, thoughtful, and insightful. The one answer that brought me to tears though was when Beth from Homefront in Focus asked her what she's told Jordan about his Dad, and where he is. I knew I was in trouble when Dana asked us to "hold on while I get Jordan out of the room". *gulp* All throughout the call we could hear his almost 3-year-old babble in the background. After he left, she told us this:

"...about a week or two that he just was asking me all day long about his dad. So finally I said, "Well, where do you think Daddy is?" And he said, "Well, he lives with God and he got a boo-boo." And I said, "Well, Jordan, it's not like when you skin your knee or you hurt yourself. Daddy's body got really, really hurt, and the doctors tried to fix him and they couldn't." And he said, "Well, Mommy, but I can help. I can give God some band-aids."

And it just broke my heart. I was depressed for the rest of the day, literally. I didn't want to get out of bed. And he woke me up that night and he said, "Mommy, I think Daddy's feeling better." "


An audible gulping cry came pouring out of my body at that point. Band-aids for Daddy, in heaven. Precious. Sad... but precious. Several other questions were asked, and then our time with Dana was over. We all left the call knowing more about life, and death, than we did 30 short minutes ago. And we all left the call knowing that buying a copy of "A Journal for Jordan" was in our immediate future.

I'm about half-way through, and Jordan was just born. Throughout the book I'm finding a lot of similarities between Dana and myself, and Charles and Keith. Both Keith and Charles can be quoted saying "crazy woman" when affectionately referring to funny little things Dana and I both do. Charles put his soldiers first many times, at the risk of damaging- if not ending- his relationship with Dana. As a 1SG, he, like Keith, put his soldiers' first. As a fellow independent woman, Dana also found it hard to allow Charles to do things for her, knowing full well that she could do it herself. She said "In time I realized that accepting his overtures was not a threat to my independence but rather confirmation of how secure I was with it." It's a lesson I won't forget.

I won't continue to quote the book. If I do, you won't have a reason to read it yourself. But I will say this: This is a must-read for all potential families, military or not. Both Dana and Charles offer sage advice on relationships, parenting, military life, and.. ultimately... death. I will leave you with some of Charles' journal entries- one on being a good father, and one about being a virtuous man.

To be a good father I think you have to be a good provider. That's not all. You should be a good communicator who has open views, accepts changing times. Be around for significant events. Be there to encourage you in whatever endeavors you desire. A good father always makes himself available. (emphasis mine)

Listen to your first thought. You will figure this out on your own. Never second-guess yourself. When your heart is in the right place, always go with your first thought. Work hard at things and follow your instinct. Since you were born, you have always been alert. That means you will be very perceptive about things. Believe God and trust yourself. Keep the faith, Jordan. You will be fine.

Yes, Jordan, I believe you will be fine. After all, with parents like Charles and Dana, how can you go wrong?


One (little) person, making a difference

Sometimes, one person really can make a difference.
You have to want it. You have to be dedicated and passionate. You must be able to motivate and energize others to rally around your cause. And from what I’ve seen, it helps if your first name is Taylor.

One of my many “internet buddies”, Cathy, is the mother to an amazing young lady. Over the past couple of years that I’ve known Cathy, she’s often written to us about Taylor’s commitment to our military, and how proud she is of her “little Gunny”. Taylor is also sick. She has a chromosome disorder that makes her life painful, but it doesn’t hold her back. She’s been to the National Naval Medical Center at Bethesda several times for special tests and treatments that are exhausting and painful, but it doesn’t stop her from visiting with the wounded while she’s there.

In addition to the everyday heroes she’s visited with, she’s also met, either in person or over the phone, some very well known men including bloggers Major Pain (click to read his post about meeting Taylor for the first time) and Taco Bell, Sgt. Maj. Brad Kasal (yes, *that* Brad Kasal), and LTC. Tim Maxwell, founder of the Wounded Warrior Barracks program. Taylor has organized fundraisers and card campaigns supporting our wounded, and she’s met dozens, if not hundreds, of those wounded warriors. About a year ago, Taylor was back at NNMC for more tests. In Cathy’s report to all of us, she related the story of Taylor’s visit with the wounded. In it, she wrote about how respectful and unafraid Taylor was to meet these men. They had horrific injuries that would make adults shy away, but not Taylor. She didn’t force herself on the men, but rather respectfully and artfully made her way from room to room, encouraging them in her own special way.
She went into a room of an amputee. I could feel the unease in the room. I don't think he wanted us in there and I can't say that I didn't blame him. He was polite to Taylor, but in a very distant way and in a way to make his displeasure known. He was pretty straight forward with her. I am not sure what made him do it, but all of the sudden, he threw back the covers and lifted what very little was left of his leg. I got upset, as this is the one thing Taylor told me she didn't want to see. The man stared at his leg, then stared at Taylor. I can't say what he was thinking, but his face was speaking clearly. He was angry. Taylor stood there for a few seconds looking at it, then looked up at him and just as defiant as he was being with her, she said to him, 'well you know what? It could have been a heck of a lot worse'. I was ready to throw up and thought to myself.........this is NOT good. He glared at Taylor and then, then.....he broke out into the most beautiful smile I have ever seen. It filled his whole face, heck, it filled the whole room! He said to her in a completely different tone he had been using, 'You know what little lady? You are right, it could have been a heck of a lot worse'. Again, there are just no words to ever describe the feeling. When we walked out of the room, I was told that was one of the few times that young man had smiled. As we walked by the door, she looked back and he was still smiling. She stopped and sent of a perfectly executed salute to him, and he did the same back. AMAZING!
I consider myself a military supporter, as do all of us who read this blog. But nothing I have done even comes close to what this little girl has accomplished in her short life. She never ceases to amaze me. A couple of days ago, I got another “Taylor Update” from Cathy. Walking through her high school, she paused to look at the trophy case. Every school has one, or two.. or three… depending on how many championship sports trophies they have to display. Taylor was discouraged to see that, amongst the awards, there was nothing to honor the true heroes of her school: those who graduated and served our country in the military.

In typical Taylor fashion, she went right to the school board and passionately made her case. How could they refuse? It’s been a year, but the memorial was finally unveiled last week.
One of Taylor’s wounded warrior buddies, Sgt. Dean Cugliotta, is a graduate of her school, so naturally, Taylor wanted him there for the unveiling. What Cugliotta didn’t know is that against all odds, Taylor arranged to have his cousin, Thomas, a fellow Marine stationed in California, present for the ceremony. The following is rough video Cathy shot of the event.


Taylor, I salute you. Thank you for your dedication to our country and the men and women who defend her. You’re an incredible young lady, and patriotism personified. If you, like me, want to continue following Taylor and her passionate support of our military, please check out her blog, Proud Young American.

*cross-posted at The Castle ARGGHHH!*


Saturday, February 14, 2009

I am apparently influential and skilled




You Are Influential and Skilled



You are balanced, orderly, and organized. You like your ducks in a row.

You are powerful and competent, especially in the workplace.

People can see you as stubborn and headstrong. You definitely have a dominant personality.



You are full of energy. You are spirited and boisterous.

You are bold and daring. You are willing to do some pretty outrageous things.

Your high energy sometimes gets you in trouble. You can have a pretty bad temper at times.



You tend to be pretty tightly wound. It's easy to get you excited... which can be a good or bad thing.

You have a lot of enthusiasm, but it fades rather quickly. You don't stick with any one thing for very long.

You have the drive to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. Your biggest problem is making sure you finish the projects you start.



You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone.

You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together.

At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible. But for the important things, you pull it together.



Interesting, considering that my name is made up and I agree with a lot of this. Interesting, indeed.


Thursday, February 12, 2009

Too bad we can't get a do-over on the election...

... because, as this editorial cartoon notes, the nation is FINALLY realizing that Obama was a big OOPS.



And don't even get me started on that monster "stimulus" bill, laden with so much crap pork belly futures are sure to go through the roof on the CME. Maybe I can stomach writing about it later this weekend.


Monday, February 09, 2009

Roger Barnett... I applaud you!

Roger Barnett, rancher from Arizona, has been fighting illegal immigration for a decade by rounding up the illegals as they cross his land and turning them over to the Border Patrol.

Over the past 10 years, his house has been broken into, his cattle has been killed, and his property has been vandalized by illegal immigrants crossing over from Mexico. He's a one-man INS agency, turning over 12,000 illegals over to the Border Patrol due to his efforts to protect his property.

He's had cattle killed both by the illegals and because they ingested garbage left behind by the illegals, damaged his water tank, stole trucks, broke into his house, destroyed fences and gates, and left trails of garbage and human waste all over his property. Sure, he threatened them- he was armed with a gun and was often accompanied by his dogs... but he was protecting his property! And now, a group of 16 of these illegal asswipes are SUING HIM FOR $32 MILLION FOR VIOLATING THEIR CIVIL RIGHTS!

They don't HAVE civil rights- they're ILLEGAL. They're CRIMINAL. They were rounded up and handed over to the authorities who sent them back across the border. And now, four years later, they're crying in their cerveza about the guy who caught them! I say... GOOD FOR YOU, MR. BARNETT! Give 'em hell, my friend... because it would seem that you're doing more to protect our borders than our government is, and now they're turning their backs on you.

Not only are they turning their back on you, Mr. Barnett... but the governor of Arizona has been picked by President Obama to lead the Homeland Security Department. OH JOY! HAPPY DAY! The head of the department supposedly in charge of keeping us safe and securing our borders will not support a man who has single-handedly caught and turned over 12,000 illegal immigrants!??
Of course, why should I be surprised? This is the same president who is allowing a tax evader to run the IRS.

Doomed. DOOMED, I tell ya!


Friday, February 06, 2009

I blame Wendy

She posted this meme.... so I had to try it, just to see what popped up for the first question.

Go to urbandictionary.com, type in the words below, and write down the first answer you get.

1. Your Name. "Dbie isn't defined yet"
Oh? Really? Well then why did it post a picture of a monkey, with the question, "Are you DUMB!??" when I hit "enter". *sigh*

2. Your Age. 41.
A good looking or HOT, female. Used as a code so others will not know what you are talking about.
uh.. Yeah! 41. It's the new "10"! *not*

3. A friend. Karen
Karen is the perfect woman. She has no flaw. She's funny, sweet, smart as hell, and above all, she is extremely gorgeous. She doesn't let anyone push her around and she has a great personality. She has some awesome goals set and always wins my heart. Has great taste in guys. Don't listen to what the other jack-off put. Everybody loves Karen.
NO FAIR. How are you supposed to measure up when your friend is the PERFECT WOMAN??? No wonder my self-esteem is so low. It's all her fault. ;-)

4. What should you be doing right now? Laundry
Laundry can and is often used as a code name for sex, for discussion around people in public, or for people who are uncomfortable with the term "having sex" or "intercourse."
HOT DAMN! I *knew* I should be doing "laundry" tonight.. !!

5. Favorite color: Red
Flavor of kool-aid to a black person.
I guess that means that over half of this country has a red mustache right now, after drinking all that Obama Red. *groan*

6. Birthplace: Wright Patterson Air Force Base
An alien is living at a hangar at Wright - Patterson Air Force Base
Nu uh. My brother moved out of there a LONG time ago....

7. Nickname: Kitty
Soft, cute, playful with fangs and claws.
I am an itteh, bitteh, kitteh....

8. Birth Month: September
a month with a nice temperature and everything but its when school starts :(
Lots of babies are born in September... it's nine months after Christmas. Santa apparently fills more than just stockings.