Isn't She Lovely?

I just caught the end of Michelle Obama's speech at the Democratic National Convention and I only have one word for the part I heard.


WOW!


She is amazing.

I am looking forward to having a classy, beautiful woman with a brain as First Lady again.

Absolutely soaked today!

I guess all the rain we were expecting over the weekend managed to hold off and make it a very wet Monday.

Thank you to all of you who sent me kind thoughts. Fallenmonk, I am glad you are getting some rain up there, what's good for North Georgia is good for NorthWest Florida.

I am ready for some sunshine, though and it doesn't look like it is going to happen for a few days.

And Gustav is lurking.

Not Even Soggy!

For some reason Fay decided to almost completely bypass us with her flooding rains. We may have gotten two inches over the last 48 hours, but I don't think so. Poor Tallahassee was deluged with over 2 feet and seemed (on last night's news) to be on the verge of washing away. It was definitely strange to see it and realize that those poor people were only 2 hours away and we were sitting here wondering why we dumped water out of the pool yesterday morning.

Today the sun is shining very brightly, there is barely a breeze and it is HOT! Normal, post storm weather.

We were very lucky and we are very thankful for it.

Our thoughts are with those who weren't us lucky and those who desparately needed the rain and didn't get it.

News from the Eye!

Last check of The Weather Channel had us sitting in the middle of Fay's somewhat disorganized eye, the weather completely calm outside with no wind. We received a little over an inch of rain last night, but nothing much has happened today.

The wind seems to be trying to pick up out there now, but the sun also appears to be trying to breakthrough occassionally. There is allegedly many, many more inches of rain to come (Tallahassee received over 7 inches in the past 24 hours), but right now it seems to be just another slightly cloudy Saturday.

Hope your weekend is going well.

And, just FYI, if future President Obama had picked Satan as his VP, I was still voting for him.

Where's Waldo?

Well, who cares? I mean, really!

But I care where I am and in yesterday's comments Carl mentioned that he thought I was on the east coast of Florida. Maybe near Daytona. I then realized that not everyone in the Universe knows where the Redneck Riviera is. Shocking!

So I thought I would do a quick post on the RR and my actual location.

I am not positive where the nickname came from, but apparently Tom T Hall was either the originator or he caught on quickly.

Gulf Shores up through Apalachicola
They got beaches of the whitest sand
Nobody cares if gramma's got a tattoo
Or Bubba's got a hot wing in his hand.
From the song "Redneck Riviera"

So, I can be found right in the middle of this area. This write-up is all about it, but it was written in 2001 and is slightly out of date. We are slightly more upscale now, trying hard to mimic South Beach and falling short. Very short.

So, in case you still have no idea what I am talking about, I thought a little visual would help. I had a nice PDF of this picture, with a cute arrow and a "I am here," but for some reason blogger will not let me upload a PDF. But this is the area typically known as the Redneck Riviera, at least along the coast. And if you look at Bay County, I am about two miles off the coast.

And this is Fay's projected path as of 0800EDT.

At least she is up to 6mph and isn't supposed to linger as she has the last couple of days. Of course, she was going to be downgraded to a depression before she got close to me. And, really, doesn't North Georgia NEED this rain? Wouldn't Lake Lanier be better off?

So it is going to be long weekend. Bay County will flood. We have horrible drainage on our streets and there are some streets that flood if there is more than an inch at a time. Last time we received a lot of rain (March maybe?) the Emergency Management Office flooded.

Keep in mind, with the new puppy, I am going to have to get out in this mess periodically. And do the laundry* all weekend for all the towels we will use to dry her before letting her back in the house, and the various outfits we will change into after she jumps on us all wet. :-)

And it couldn't even come on a weekday so that I could get an extra day off!

*We do not normally lose power (knock on wood). We didn't during Ivan 2004 or Dennis 2005. I think it is because we are on the same power grid as the police dept, city hall and the fire dept. Something to keep in mind when you are househunting.

I Don't Need This in My Business

While I am certain we in the Panhandle will have an easier time than central and eastern Florida did, I heard a possible 20 inches of rain this weekend. While it will just make my life miserable, it will cause numerous problems for the city, the county & those who live on lower ground than I do.

Fay, Fay, Go AWAY.

Support Tyson Foods!

I have been staring at the computer screen off and on for about 3 hours, trying to figure out how to get everything I want to say into a coherant post; praise for Tyson Foods and disgust with some of the crazy people in this country.

The Tyson Foods plant in Shelbyville, TN has exchanged the traditional Labor Day holiday for Id al-Fitr, the last day of Ramadan, at the behest of their labor union. The New York Times story does not give numbers, but some other article I read said that over 700 of the 1200 employees at this particular plant are Muslim. The employees did not gain an extra holiday, they just exchanged one for the other.

I say Good for Tyson, Good for the Labor Unions and Good for the Employees. This is what America (at least the one in my head) is supposed to be all about, freedom. Religious Freedom. The union spoke, the company listened and everyone is happy.

Well, not EVERYONE.

“You are a union that is proud of achieving a Muslim holiday and prayer room?” one person wrote the union. “A union in the U.S.A., a country based on Christianity. You call yourselves Americans? Have you forgotten 9/11?”

Because there will always be some crazy who has no concept of what those pesky little amendments REALLY mean and who want to push their values and beliefs on the rest of the world.

Was this country based on Christianity? Were the Founding Fathers Christians?* Maybe, but what they chose to put in the First Amendment was, " Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." To those of us with a brain, that means we get to choose our religious path, or lack thereof. To those of us with a brain, that means we applaud Tyson Foods for working with their employees to provide them with their chosen religious holidays off.

Hey Mom, what's for dinner?

* I read recently (and, of course, can't remember where) that the Founding Fathers were Deists. Deist is defined by Websters as : "One who believes in the existence of a God or supreme being but denies revealed religion, basing his belief on the light of nature and reason." I am pretty sure this is where I fall in the religious order of things, although, after my religion class, I am considering conversion to Islam.

Little Bits of This and That

* I am thoroughly enjoying the Olympics. I didn't expect to. I figured I would be bored, but I spent hours Saturday morning trying to understand this sport called Handball and I have been glued to the TV most evenings.

* My followup at the doctor's last week gave me a clean bill of health. No more problems. Now, I just get to wait patiently for the next 2 weeks until my ablation. But I have plenty of leftover drugs, so I am not really worried about having any pain.

* The situation with Georgia and Russia confuses me. I know my understanding of foreign affairs is slim. I don't take the time I probably should to understand. But, didn't Georgia attack last week? And isn't Russia fighting them to stop the attack? Then why is our government (Dubya) fussing at Georgia? How is this different from what we did in 1990 with Kuwait and Iraq? How is this our business? If Central America attacked Mexico, wouldn't we help? And tell anyone who blasted us for it to butt out?

* Why was Dubya able to take the weekend off to hang out in China with the Olympic athletes? Didn't he have anything better to do? Aren't we at war? Isn't our economoy in the toilet? And, yet, ol' dipshit has time to hang out with the beach volleyball team?

* And, isn't it tacky to go to China for the Olympics, blast them on Human rights issues (like we have any room to talk) and then STAY? Probably taking advantage of the poor people who now have to feed you and clean your room. I made DSD turn the channel every time that asshole was on my TV.

* I love my job, but, frankly, I am sick and tired of the territorial BS that comes from working with women.
Ok, that's not fair. While I do find it easier to work with men (not so catty), one of the women I work with is not very bright, not very organized and guards her work with some sort of weird secrecy like I may take over her job also. I have plenty to do, thanks, I don't need hers also.

* Lola has been wonderful. I just wish I had some idea how to make her sleep past 6 on weekend mornings!

More Help Needed

I just received this email from Hillary Clinton

Together, you and I are standing up for the health of American women, and we're making a difference.

For years, President Bush and the Republicans have done everything in their power to reverse decades of progress. Now, new rules are under consideration by the administration that would restrict access to birth control. They are the latest example and I am so glad that you joined the fight to help stop it.

Thank you so much for signing on to our letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt. More than 55,000 of you have urged him not to move forward with these restrictive new regulations. That's an amazing start, and I urge you to ask your friends and family to get involved. Forward this message and tell them to sign on to the letter at:

http://www.hillpac.com/action/hhspetition/

Let me tell you more about the progress we're making. I have been working with my colleague Senator Patty Murray of Washington in the Senate and Congresswoman Nita Lowey of New York -- and many Senators and House Representatives who have joined in writing to Mike Leavitt, also demanding that he not move forward with these regulations. We are also working closely with women's rights and health organizations to put pressure on the administration and their Republican allies in Congress.

Secretary Leavitt stated on the HHS website just recently that he was still considering whether to go forward with these new rules and acknowledged concerns about limiting access to birth control. This means we are making a difference but we can't stop now! So long as these regulations are under consideration, there is a danger to women's health. I am going to continue to monitor this situation very closely and I need your continued support. Your help is vital, so be sure to tell your friends and family to join this fight.

Thank you so much for joining this important effort.

Sincerely,
Hillary Rodham Clinton

I posted about this issue already, but it is worth it to post on it again. If you have not signed this petition, please do so now. The future is at stake. Maybe that sounds melodramatic, but I honestly do not feel that it is . I have felt for years that Dubya and his cronies hate women and think they should be kept barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen. This would go a long way toward that end. Think of yourself, your wives, daughters, granddaughters, sons and grandsons. Sign this petition in honor of those who fought so hard for the equality of women and our right to choose. Sign this petition for those who are trying to make a better life for themselves and the children they already have. Women should have access to birth control. Insurance pays for Viagra! It should pay for birth control.

I have already sent this to everyone on my email list. Many of them are right wing nutjobs and they still signed this petition.

Do this for the future.

And feel free to copy the link into your blog. Feel free to copy and paste it into an email to everyone you know.

We can make a difference.

Meet Lola!

Look at that face. She is so sweet and loving. Super curious and (so far) very smart. She understands No and is learning Treat. She gets in her bed easily, I just toss a toy in and she follows. It only took her three trips outside to figure out how to get in the pool.

Not the best picture, because it is way too dark, but isn't she a cutie?

DSD is not as unhappy as he looks. He just doesn't like having his picture taken. Everytime my back is turned, he crawls onto the floor to play with her.

I will try to get some of her in the pool, but the weather is supposed to stink today and tomorrow.

Feeling Good And Did I Mention that My Husband Rocks?

Yesterday the lady who normally answers the phones for the entire place was out sick and it is in our contract that somebody from our company will cover if she is out. I get here early, so I went to the desk at the correct time until someone else showed up to relieve me. While there I got my hands on the local paper. It is mostly crap, but there was a big article on my Gators, so I read it.

I then perused the Classifieds, because, well, I want a puppy. Our pal, Chance, died on Jan 2, 2005. We have grieved for him. But now it is time for a new family member. I have felt this way since last summer, but DSD was not ready to commit. Plus, we were in the middle of wedding planning, honeymoon planning, etc, so the timing didn't feel right. I hinted this would be a wonderful Christmas gift, then a wonderful birthday gift, but no dice.

So I was reading the Pets for Sale section. I have considered numerous breeds, but had not settled on one. The family was against what I call 'purse dogs,' maltese, yorkie, poodle, and they call 'rats.' But I did not want another 85 pounder either. (Chance was a mutt, but he looked like a Bull Mastiff. We were really lucky he was only 80-85 pounds.) So I spotted an add for a Labradoodle, 12 weeks old. I don't know a lot about this hybrid, but I called anyway and got all the information.

She is actually 13 weeks old as of Monday. The Mom's owner was planning to keep her, but now she (the owner) has gotten a promotion and will be moving and she can't take both dogs with her. She (the puppy) is already crate trained, leash trained and will sit upon command. She was the runt and the vet estimated the largest of the litter will be about 50 lbs, so she should be smaller, but still big enough to wrestle with. I almost fainted, she sounded so perfect.

I called DSD who was shopping for televisions for work (not a bad job if you can get it) with the boss, who happens to be his best friend. DSD told Jack (with an eye roll, I am certain) that I wanted a labradoo-something or other. Jack said, "Those are fantastic dogs!" DSD was a little annoyed.

So I rushed home after work, cleaned up the house that was neglected over the weekend, fixed some weird cheesy pasta thing for dinner that he had been wanting to try (third pasta meal in a row, because DSD LOVES pasta) and had a drink waiting for him when he walked in the door. (The first 2 pasta meals were to thank him for taking such good care of me, this one was blatant ass kissing). And then I (and BabyBoy) threw the sad eyes at him. And brought up pictures of adorable labradoodle puppies and talked about how smart they are and how funny they are and how they either don't shed or they shed much much less than other dogs.

And he caved like a house of cards.

Of course, BabyBoy and I got the "this is not my dog and you have to take care of it" speech. Which was justified, because I babysat a friend's 2 dogs for a month last summer and DSD got stuck doing most of the work.

So I am picking her up this afternoon, after a trip to the store to pick up all those wonderful things that a new puppy needs!

Her name is Lola.

And my behind is feeling almost normal. I go for a follow up tomorrow.

This Has More TMI Than the Post About my Lady Parts

Really, no kidding.

On Friday 25 July, there was a very long meeting, where everyone was required to sit for an extended period of time without a lot of moving. On top of that, I had an upset stomach and made many trips to the ladies that day. So, by the time I got home, my behind was a little chafed.

No problem. I spend most weekend running around the house in men's boxer shorts. (Yes, I dress if people are coming over or if we leave the house.) So I had no issues over the weekend.

On Monday (28 July) I noticed a bump on my bum. In between the cheeks. Again, no problem. A zit, an ingrown/infected hair? Whatever. I came to work and didn't even think about stopping after work for a pedicure, just because I wanted one.

Tuesday (I think it was morning) I noticed this was a little less comfortable. I asked DSD (who, just for the record, is the World's Best Husband!) to take a look. "Looks like a zit, but it doesn't have a head." So I'll wait. Right? Did I have a choice?

But I looked up homepathic remedies for zits, boils, ingrown hairs and stopped by the drugstore on the way home. I tried warm compresses, epson salt and other various things on Tuesday night, Wednesday and Wednesday night. What happened? It grew. Exponentially.

So that by Thursday morning it. was. the. size. of. an. EGG! And. it. hurt.

Sitting was not easy. Standing was not easy. Going from sitting to standing or the other way around was not easy. And, honestly, the only reason I called my doctor was because he was closed on Friday and I didn't want to suffer through the weekend. I figured he could give me something that would cause this stupid thing to come to a head so that I could get the gunk out. (Medical term for the day: gunk!)

I didn't expect him to tell me that I was going to need to see a surgeon. I didn't expect him to tell me that NONE of the homepathic remedies were ever going to work. I certainly didn't want to hear that the longer I left it, the more likely I was to get REALLY sick. (In my defense, I was watching for any flu-like symptoms, because that would have been a sign of a more serious infection.)

The diagnosis? Perirectal Abscess.

A perirectal abscess is a collection of pus in the deep tissues surrounding the anus. By contrast, a perianal abscess is a shallower collection of pus under the skin surrounding the anus. Both types of abscesses need immediate attention. A delay in treatment may cause serious worsening of the condition and unnecessary complications.

Ok, maybe it was perianal, but both doctors said rectal and really, who cares in the end?

You may not have stitches. Infected wounds such as abscesses are left open to drain. If they were stitched shut, they would just fill with pus again. There may be packing left in your wound, which will be removed by your doctor after a few days.
You may need to take an antibiotic for several days, depending on your condition. You should be given strong pain medication if you need it.

The problem is that my doctor said the packing had to be changed every day. Twice a day. And who do you think gets this absolutely fun-filled job? Why, my poor beleaguered husband*, of course.

And, yes, antibiotics. And, yes, nice pain drugs. I am not a big believer in narcotics (they scare me) so I have only taken 3 or 4 of the 30 I was prescribed. All they really did was make me loopy anyway. It still hurt like the dickens when the packing was changed.

This is all still going on. The packing changed twice a day. Warm baths twice a day. Antibiotics once a day. And a repeat trip to the surgeon on Thursday.

But I can sit (normally) and I can stand and I can walk (mostly normally as long as I don't over do it), so I am doing much better than I was Thursday and Friday. Have you ever tried eating dinner laying on your stomach? I really don't recommend it.

So, while I am still a big believer in homeopathic remedies, I may (just may) be less hesitant to go to the doctor in the future. But, just once, do you think I can do see him WITHOUT taking my pants off?

*He is honestly the absolute BEST husband in the world. I can not say enough good things about him. I have hit the jackpot this time.