A Most Depressing Friday

BabyBoy was, of course, at the midnight premiere last night of "The Dark Knight Rises." He is a huge Batman/Dark Knight/Nightwing fan. Probably my fault for allowing his obsession to grow at age 4 and ensuring he had all of the latest toys. And the sheets, comforter, and curtains. He is now 23 and has different ones, but still sleeps on Batman sheets and has a Batman blanky. And my heart hurts for those others, half a continent away, who were probably just like him - counting down the days until the release of this movie, dressed up in costume to attend, talking about it for the last 6 month - who are now gone. Whose obsession has been cut down just like their lives.

What the fuck?

Is there anything to be said that has not? Anything that was not said after the rash of school shootings in the 90s? Anything that was not said after Ms. Gabrielle Giffords was shot in the head and others surrounding her killed?

How does some kid in his early 20s have possession of an AK47?

AN AK47!

I am certain that representatives of the NRA are Aurora bound already. I am certain that someone will speak eloquently about the 2nd Amendment and the nation's right to bear arms. When does someone speak eloquently of the nation's right to attend a freaking movie in the middle of the night and come home safe? When does someone speak about a parent's right to take or allow their child to attend a movie and know that the child will leave the theater alive?

I fear drunk drives, or BabyBoy falling asleep at the wheel at 3 am (he was less than 5 miles from the house), or, CHRIST, an earthquake - really. Who imagines your child, spouse, sibling, parent being shot while watching a movie?

A friend from my hometown lives in Aurora, CO. Her 17 year old daughter did not attend last night's premiere, although I am not certain why not, because she had tickets.

Her friends attended though. And all survived. So far.

Must we fight gunfire with gunfire? Are we destined to return to the violent time when everyone was armed? Because I am considering buying a nice little pink handled gun and applying for a concealed weapons permit. ME! And I am anti-gun! I am PRO GUN CONTROL.

But I am also sick of the senseless violence.

Twelve Days (Or Less) To Go!

Just popping really quickly, instead of reading about St. Thomas Aquinas, because WOW! Boring!

I am taking "International Conflicts" and "Medieval Europe" this term. I am enjoying conflicts, although the textbook author is a bit, shall we say, Pompous? But the other students are great and we have had some very interesting discussions. I have ONE more discussion board post in that class and I am DONE!

"Medieval Europe"? NOT my favorite class ever. I just don't care. All sorts of Catholic... stuff. I mean really, it wasn't like the average joe had books written about him in the 3rd through 13th centuries, just the Kings and the Popes. I think it would be a decent class if I took it in a real classroom with real discussion with other students, but I am not. So... I am struggling! I have a paper due Sunday, 2 more discussion board posts AND the final.

I am so READY!

In other news, BabyBoy and I (with another friend) marched in Tallahassee on 28 April in the Unite Women March against the War on Women. There were some really great speakers there and BabyBoy came home with a better understanding of what we are facing. (Because he tunes me out when I try to talk to him. He knew there were issues but not how widespread they are!)

Two days before that I turned 45!

We had a lovely visit with DSD's daughter in mid-April and the precious grandson and I am hoping that they will be back in July.

And we have a 10 day vacation planned to California in June where we may or may not see the LittleMan graduate... another entire post!

But George Zimmerman was arrested (step 1) although I am not a lawyer (wish I played one on TV), I am not completely comfortable with the Murder 2 charge. I think manslaughter would almost guarantee a conviction. It will be quite a while, of course, before it comes to trial.

My garden is covered with weeds, but my parents' is producing and we are hoping to pickle some green beans over Memorial Day weekend (when I will be relaxing without worrrying about HOMEWORK!) and pick, shell, and freeze black-eyed peas!

I cannot comment on your lovely posts due to the fact that here at work I still have Internet Explorer 7. Sigh. But I will be around to see how everyone is!

The Death of a Child....

Is there anything more horrific than the thought of burying your child? I cannot even breathe at the thought as I sit here putting off icing the cupcakes I have lovingly prepared for BabyBoy's 23rd birthday tomorrow. (How did that happen so FAST?)

DSD and I went to visit his parents last weekend - about an hour from Sanford, FL. We arrived on Thursday afternoon and there was a large rally being held requesting justice for Trayvon Martin. Thousands were shown on the news. Thousands of mostly black people. (Y'all know I really wanted to be there, right?) I was dumbfounded by the comments of my completely non-racist in-laws. Things like "There's going to be trouble there." "That is so not a good idea." "They are just asking for trouble." WHAT?!?!? A child is dead. Justice should be sought!

Then there is the girl who I befriended when we were in class together about a year and a half ago, who seems to think it is her duty to remind us all that jumping to conclusions is not a good idea. She has gone from someone I thought was a card carrying Democrat to some crazy gun-toting, planning to vote for any Republican who runs because she hates Mexicans. (I have Republican friends, I just like to know what I am getting myself into.) The thing that makes me the MOST nuts (and she is a blog post all by herself) is that she keeps telling ME that she understands these things because she is majoring in Political Science. HELLOOOO! She is also more than a year away from graduation. I am (in case I forgot to mention it today) 6 weeks and 6 days away!

Trayvon Martin was a typical 17 year old - obsessed with girls and getting by. But also by the overwhelming thought of college, the future, and life. And all of that is now gone. Justice has NOT been done in this case. A child is dead and someone should be charged in that death. Preferably the man who followed him and then pulled the trigger.

I have more... but I have cupcakes to ice. I am very thankful that I can celebrate my child's birthday tomorrow. RIP Trayvon.

Happy Independence Day!

This is me standing outside the National Archives last October. No pictures may be taken inside, of course, because the flash is not a good idea for the precious documents stored there. It was a pretty thrilling day for me, seeing the Delcaration of Independence, the Magna Carta, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights... handwritten by those who are long gone, but who did so much for this country, and who have inspired me for years!

It's going to be a quiet day here in the LeftLeaning house since both DSD and BabyBoy have to work. I am going to work on my book review and continue to prepare for the company due in next weekend.

I hope your day is wonderful and blessed with laughter, love, and some great food!

The Rapture Deserves a New Harley!

My plan for tomorrow 21 May 2011 is to station DSD outside of the Harley dealership at 5:45 CDT and BabyBoy at the local Publix while I stand outside of a ritzy jewelry store! Plenty of food, a new bike, and JEWELS.. for free!!

Ok not really. I actually believe that there may be a Rapture one day with ~ 12 - 14 people disappearing and no one noticing. If anyone does notice though THAT will cause the end of the world because the 'alleged' Christians will their minds and destroy.

How many will kill themselves tomorrow because they've quit their jobs, lost their houses, spent their money on stupid in the run up to this BS? There was a Facebook link where a woman tried to kill herself and her children today because of it. (I didn't read the story).

How much more insanity do we need?


On another note, R.I.P. Randy "Macho Man" Savage. DSD says his heart attack was steroid induced, but he made me laugh when I was younger.

Oh By the Way

My rally/protest was OK. People showed up & not JUST people I had threatened... STRANGERS.
And there was a nice write-up in the paper that made me seem intelligent... until the last line. Still it was nice.

And for some reason, I can't get this Comedy Central video to embed, so be brave and click the link. It's The Daily Show where Jon Stewart explains how stupid most of the new governors are.

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-march-24-2011/gov-hurts?xrs=synd_facebook

And BabyBoy's friend will be fine, although not going to Universal this month.

Little Bits of This and That

I am stuck at work for another half hour, because I went to the going away luncheon of someone I didn't really like and it took TWO hours. It doesn't make a lot of sense for me to be here when the docs are not, but there is so much that does not make sense already, that I do not have time to concern myself with this one.

Coming to the end of Week 2 of Term IV. I am taking my introductary Political Science class, because, I still have one more to go... class that is. And I have to have a certain number of classes actually taken at Troy, so I decided a History minor would go well for me. And I am considering getting the Master's in History instead of Poli Sci, but who knows? I only know that the politics of the world make no sense, and I feel like I need to DO something. But what? With history, people should have DONE something, but I can't change it now.

Why are we bombing the snot out of Libya? It has nothing to do with the people of Libya, because there is mass slaughter all over the globe every day and we do nothing.  Couldn't that money be spent on helping Japan? Or Haiti? Or New Jersey? (That was a joke!)

Did you know that the lungs of healthy, tall, skinny people can just COLLAPSE? Wow. BabyBoy was leaving after work this afternoon to go spend a couple of days visiting Hogwarts (where I was supposed to take him in January, but we went to DC in October instead) and he isn't going because his buddy's lung just collapsed this morning. The friend is at the hospital and will be for a bit. The MDs and PhDs explained it to me but what I retained is that the lining of the lungs of tall, skinny people are very very thin & they always have extra liquid in and around their organs. I've never been tall and skinny, and now I am neither, but that is a little disconcerting.

Why can't Congress pass a budget? Why are they so concerned about women's uteruses? What the hell happened to my precious state? Attempting to get rid of all the teachers, not paying the ones that are left, drug testing welfare recipients? WTF?

My half hour is up. I have to read about 75 pages tonight on how technology has made the world flat.

OH! And DSD is now EMPLOYED! Thank you for all of your happy thoughts! I think he may be working for the same company, in the same department where Fallenmonk works!

Are You Spreading Love or Hate?

I have been very annoyed by the fact that Blogger lost my really awesome post about hate, and I have not had much time to do anything except get through last week's mid-terms (I know this is college and all, but don't you think 2 quizzes, a mid-term, a discussion board post, and a project rough draft due all on the same day.. which was Super Bowl Sunday.. was a bit much for ONE stinking class?).

But several weeks ago, my ex-husband's new wife (who is a Facebook friend, and someone I normally enjoy IRL) posted a link to a free book written by Dr. James Dobson.  It was titled, "Daddys and Daughters" and she is ordering this for her little girls, or maybe for their father, and, trust me, he could use the help with his parenting skills. I mentioned that I was pretty certain that Dr. Dobson spreads hatred about homosexuals and that he was the one who want after that poor Teletubby (I was wrong, it was Spongebob he didn't like), and that I was not certain that she wanted that sort of information around her girls. (BabyBoy's 2nd little sister was born Thanksgiving weekend, so there is now a 3 year old and a 2 month old).

The conversation did not go well from there. She asked for proof, I provided links. A friend of hers told me that I didn't know what I was talking about, and she (BabyBoy's step mother) explained that she had been raised reading Dr. Dobson, and that he didn't HATE gays, he LOVES everyone, he just believes that homosexuality is a sin. Then came the $64,000 question, "I believe that homosexuality is a sin," she typed, "do you believe that I am spreading hate?"

I admit it. I chickened out and just didn't answer her.

Because yes, telling others, especially young children, that homosexuality is a sin IS SPREADING HATE. While the Bible tells us that we should hate the sin, but love the sinner, most of us are a little too human for that. So being told that a person's lifestyle (one that I believe is NOT CHOSEN) is something that God disagrees with gives others the right to disagree with it. Being told that homosexuals are going to hell is spreading hate. And if the person that you are explaining all of this to just happens to realize that she is gay one day, now you have spread fear.

I don't believe there is a parent in any land who has a child and looks down into its sleeping face and prays that that child will be gay. I would almost bet that homosexuals do not pray that their children will be gay. It is a difficult life fraught with uncertainty, and, sadly, at times danger.

We have come a long way in this country toward accepting homosexuality as normal, but not far enough. And will never be truly equal, or truly free, if people continue to raise their children to hate and the hatred is continuously being spread.

Even if that hatred is as innocuous as labeling a person's lifestyle as a sin.

The Rally

BabyBoy, my friend, Em, and I left our hotel on Saturday 30 October about 8:30 am.  We quickly made our way to the Foggy-Bottom/GWU metro stop.  There weren't a lot of people milling about on the platform.. but, WOW, that first train was packed. PACKED.  We looked at each other and moved closer to the place where the first car of the next train would be (just a note... in DC, no one seems to want to move all the way to the front, so it is the car that will be the least full) and we waited a little nervously.  A man showed up with an ENORMOUS paper mache' head of his own head with a look of fear on its face. We were a little nervous for him. But the next train was not packed and the first car was almost empty and he and his big head were safe.  As we were. We even managed to sit... which was a good thing.

A few stops later, we emerged at the Smithsonian stop, into the sun, with what appeared to be quite a few others. We meandered. We shopped. We got FREE stuff! We took pictures of signs. And of BabyBoy with QuailMan. We wandered as far up to the stage as we could.  Em wanted to shove our way into the front group, but I am not into shoving if I can help it. So we turned around a found a nice spot close to some port-a-potties and a jumbotron where we could still see the stage.  We spread our free Rally towels out to sit on (I only forgot a couple of things but a large sheet and/or blanket was the one I missed the most!) and made ourselves comfortable. This was about 10:30ish.  We had a beautiful day and a lot of space and a great spot. Em and BabyBoy decided they wanted to walk some more, so I got comfortable, and I visited with many around me. And I waited. And waited. And waited. As the crowd got closer and closer and closer.

I started texting the other 2 members of my group about 11. I wasn't worried yet, but I was concerned that they would not be able to find me by the time they returned, because the demographics had changed. Text. Text. No replies. Then I had to go potty. And I didn't want to leave our STUFF. Text. Text. No replies. Who knew the overwhelming crowd would make Verizon virtually worthless?

They did finally make it back about 11:30, with a pretty warm Diet Pepsi. And wasn't I the hit of the group surrounding us? Guess who remembered the hand sanitizer? It sure came it handy after using the Port - A - Potties!

Then! It was time!

The Rally to Restore Sanity.

The Roots. For 40 minutes. The Roots. And some guy. Wow. Wow. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Really? I got up off the ground, where I was in danger of being trampled, for this? Not my bag, baby. What if this is all there is? Ok music and sore feet?

Wait, ok, it's 12:40 and Look! It's Adam and the.. other.. guy.. from "The Mythbusters." And they want us to.. WHAT??

Ok, the Wave was fun. The rest of the stuff (cry, laugh, jump) was pretty lame.

Finally at approximately 1:00 pm Eastern Daylight Time, with the Capital Building in the background and a crowd of OMG! in the front, Jon Stewart took the stage. And the crowd went wild. It felt right to stand with 200,000 of  my closest friends to sing the National Anthem. And it felt right to yell for Stephen Colbert (stuck 2,000 feet under us in his bunker, because he was afraid no one would show up) to come out and join us.

There was a lot of silliness, which was a lot of fun. BabyBoy is still not sure if his favorite part was seeing Ozzy in person.. or R2D2.

The people around us were great; we shared cough drops and napkins and someone's airplane bottle of vodka. And I'm also certain we all shared at least one contact high. What's a rally without a little pot?

Then the silliness ended and Jon Stewart gave a great speech on how Americans work together every single day to accomplish things that we probably never wanted to do in the first place. It's all over YouTube, but if you can't find it, give me a shout and I will post it here.

It was the best of times and I am so glad that I was able to be there. I wish I had managed to meet up with the other bloggers who were there, but maybe next time.

I will be starting a post soon about the blogger I DID manage to meet on Sunday and the rest of my DC trip. But school must come first.

Poor, Pitiful Me

I'm feeling a little overwhelmed, and underappreciated. While discussing this weekend's planned trip to the Mississippi St @ Florida game, DSD and I had words. He said he was joking.. about having biscuits and sausage gravy for breakfast... fried chicken for lunch... ribeyes for dinner. He probably was, because he has been fabulous about what he is actually eating, but it is stressing me out.

I work full time. I am taking 9 hours of classes this semester (3 hours each term and 3 hours over the semester).  Any way you count it, I am getting 9 hours between August and December (down from the 13 that I took last year this time), I am trying to function working for a %#@@! who barely speaks English (Arkansas) and can NOT write it, but ended up as the boss. I am trying my best to take food with little or no flavor and make it delicious (and doing and excellent job, I might add!!) and I am not sleeping well at night.

I really want a week in a tropical setting with fresh grown food and my Kindle!

Which is not going to happen. I tried that this summer (five days in Destin) and that turned into a nightmare of drunken, crying crap to the point where I no longer speak to the person I thought was my best friend.

DSD's health. Babyboy's lovelife. (He got dumped last week and is sad). Many of my family are exhausting.

I'm just tired. And whining.

Or whining and tired, take your pick.

But, hey, I am going to DC in 17 days. And I am going to be even MORE exhausted when I get home.

But it will so be worth it!!

A Note About Life

BabyBoy has been out of town since the day after Labor Day. His girl friend began classes at the University of South Florida in August and he went down there to visit with her, sleeping double in a single bed for several nights and then venturing over to the east coast of Florida to spend time with his father.  He has not had fun there and went back to Tampa for a few days then went back to his father's, girlfriend in tow, this evening. We have spoken every few days, including today, then via text at other times.

About 15 minutes ago (via text) he said, "For real, I think I am going to marry this girl."

And I DID know that was in his head. He has been different toward her/about her/in his tone when speaking of her, BUT...

I want him to be happy, more than anything. And I do not think he means in 2010 OR 2011, but, WOW, mommy has been weeping since the message came in. He's my baby. My only baby. And this seems different from other girlfriends.

Please, please, let him be happy. And let him produce a girl.. so I can pass that doll on.

I AM GOING TO DC!! JOIN ME AND JON STEWART!!

Really. I am rational. I am sane. Most days. And The Daily Show's Jon Stewart wants all of us rational and sane people to join him in the "Rally to Restore Sanity" in Washington, D.C. on the Mall Saturday 30 Oct, 2010.

This is the sort of thing that I always WANT to do, but never do. I always think of the cost and the time off work and blah, blah, blah. This time I mentioned it to a friend who thought she may want to go and then I came home AND BOUGHT PLANE TICKETS!! My friend is going to meet me and BabyBoy there. We will be staying at the Washington Marriott thanks to points from my Visa/Check Card.

I am in total shock that I have done this. Can any of you attend also?? Can we meet? Mauigirl may be there! Who else?!?

Let's all go to DC and show the crazies that Rational wins!!!

And, because we (BabyBoy & I) have never been to the capital of our great nation, we are going to stay for several days and see a few of the sights!

What Have I Been Doing?

You may ask! Or, if you aren't going to ask, I am going to tell you anyway.

Over the 9 months starting August 2009 and ending May 2010, I managed to accrue 25 more college credit hours. And I did not go insane. That was a lovely bonus. I don't have any idea what my GPA is, but it is above a 3.0 and I can live with that. I did take the summer off from school, but it starts again in less than a week. I am not taking 13 credit hours over the next 18 weeks though. I do want to get my degree, but I do not want everything else in my life to suffer for it. I am taking 9 credit hours. 3 during Term I (August 9 - October). 3 during Term II (October - mid December) and 3 at Gulf Coast Community College over their traditional semester. If that is too much to be able to enjoy my life (at least a little), I will drop the number back to 6 in the Spring. I don't want to do that. I would like to graduate one day. But it may be necessary. OH. And I am adding History as either a 2nd Major or a Minor. My advisor was out last week when I went to register, so I haven't spoken with her about it.

I finally started walking the walk I have been talking.
Composting - Check.
Recycling more than just cans - Check.
Enough reuseable shopping bags to never have to use plastic again - Check.
Growing my own vegetables in the dirt - Check. Weeeell. I am trying. I hope that practice will help. I do have vegetables growing, but they aren't producing much. Except the basil. WOW. Do you need some basil?
Cooking more from scratch - Check.
Buying products that are more natural with less preservatives - Check.
Buying local, organic, grass fed meats - Have you seen the prices of those? I am working up to this one.

All in all, I do feel like I have made some progress toward being more responsible to myself, my family (even when they fight me) and the world. I still have a long way to go, but every journey starts with the first step.

I will try to do an entire post about my gardening, what I have accomplished so far (which just includes spending money, sweating and getting dirty, but not much actual food production) and where I hope to go next year (out of the containers and into the actual ground!).

DSD is still out of work. He looks for a while, then he gets discouraged. But I like the fact that the I don't have to touch the vacuum or clean the bathroom. He does a lot of the cooking (although little of the planning) and most of the cleaning. He does 95% of all errands; quick shopping trips, dry cleaners, oil changes, bank runs, etc. And Lola has her Daddy at home to play most days. Financially we are doing okay and we are very thankful for it. So many are losing everything and we are in no danger of that.

Lola is great. Almost 100 pounds (she is getting fat), but on a diet.

The kids (my 1, his 3) are doing well. BabyBoy moved out, but he is back at home. Working now. We will see about school for the fall. He is without medical insurance. The health care reform does not force Tricare to cover children who are 21, but not in school full time. Nice, huh?

I have suffered from what I believe was an incorrect diagnosis of Lupus and 4-6 pills a day to an actual diagnosis of Plantar Faciitis that is 95% better with physical therapy. I am now drug free, except for the occasional alcoholic beverage and/or Tylenol. And I am dealing with the early stages of Menopause. Yes, I am only 43, but it is common in my family.

There is so much more. I hope that I am energized enough to continue to post. About DSD's daugher's upcoming wedding and why I am dreading it. About my parents' and the fact that they are loving retired life. About the oil spill and how its effects have been felt locally and how the media has taken a horrifying situation and made it so much worse.

Enjoy your Wednesday and keep checking back. I hope to be here.

Rats and Brats and the End of Summer

On June 1, we were a happy, healthy family of 3. DSD, Lola and I had our routine down whether it included taking the baby girl for a walk or cooking dinner. Then my son moved back home. I have missed him and am glad he is there, but it changed things up a bit. Then DSD's ex moved to California leaving LittleMan with us until the middle of August. LittleMan AND Henry, a 5 year old, anti-social West Highland Terrier.


So our family of 3 became a family of 6 and I am not dealing well with it. I love LittleMan, but that does not mean that I LIKE him. He is incredibly socially awkward. He may actually be slightly mentally challenged he is just that awkward. DSD and I had a discussion yesterday afternoon, about Henry, with LittleMan standing between us and when DSD asked him a question LittleMan looked around like he was coming out of a trance. This was in the kitchen, so he wasn't watching TV.


On top of that, Henry is not well behaved at all. He is house broken, but he has NO doggy manners. He does not sit, he does not stay, he does not come, he.does.not.listen. And Lola thinks he is her brand new chew toy. She wants to squeak him. She will cease and desist once you get her attention, but she really is still a puppy. An 80 pound puppy. I spend a lot of time hearing, "Lola stop. Lola quit. Lola leave him alone." And it pisses me off.

And the ex 'forgot' to check whether Henry could fly out with LittleMan. And she 'forgot' to find out what paperwork would be required to let him on the plane. And, so far, she has 'forgotten' to make Henry reservations.

So DSD decided it would be swell for us to go visit his parents before the LittleMan leaves the state. They are six hours away. Frankly, it makes me want to kick something to think of my lost weekend. I actually love my in-laws, but they EXHAUST me. Did I mention that I was completely mentally exhausted already? And I am supposed to start back to school in 13 days?

Maybe I will run away instead.

Movie Review: "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince"

I normally do not like movies made from books. There are a few exceptions, as there are to every rule, "The DaVinci Code" and "Jaws" to name 2, but they are few and far between. I have seen every Potter movie so far, in the theater. I have seen most of them on opening day and I reviewed the last one, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" on this blog. It wasn't exactly complimentary. I was expecting to leave "Half-Blood Prince" as angry and annoyed as I left "Order of the Phoenix."

BabyBoy and I had planned to go to the midnight premiere. I bought tickets online, but, due to the fact that everyone I work with and my entire family laughed at the fact that we were going at midnight, I didn't expect anyone else to be there. Silly me. We arrived at 11:15 for a 12:01 showing. All four theaters were sold out and there were A LOT of people standing in the lobby. BabyBoy worked at this particular theater for almost a year and informed me, later, that each theater held over 300 people. So, at a guess, there were about 1,000 people in that lobby.

We had a brief discussion about whether or not to stay or go back the next day. I picked up my prepurchased tickets and handed them to the nice man patiently waiting (and politely begging) next to the ticket window. He paid for the tickets and BabyBoy and I went home!

We arrived back at the theater the next day at 12:30pm for a 1:00pm show. We had no problems buying tickets or popcorn or finding seats. By the time the previews were over the theater was pretty well packed, but we didn't care. Again, I prepared myself for upset, anger and disappointment.

And was pleasantly surprised that I had very little of all three. Even better, I laughed out loud on several occasions. This movie was the one I had been waiting for. This movie showed us the characters and made us care about them.

*****WARNING: POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD*********

There was Harry, obviously carrying a torch for Ginny, but not sure what to do about it.
There was Ron and Hermione, carrying a torch for each other but not sure what to do about it.
There was Ron, accidently consuming a love potion meant for Harry and falling all over himself
(Sue me, I enjoy a little slapstick humor)
There was Draco, sobbing alone in the bathroom.
There was Hermione showing what an awesome witch she really is.

There were parts which were left out:
Memories of the Gaunts and other Riddle memories.
Harry's detentions.
The battle at the end.
The funeral.
The Dursleys.
Kreacher and Sirius' will.
Dobby.. again?

There were parts which were added:
The Burrow BURNED?
Tonks and Lupin together? Already?
Ginny and Harry together in the Room of Requirement

Those were all odd or strange, but the parts that made me nuts were the parts which were changed:
Harry standing quietly while someone he loved is threatened? Right!
Exactly where the potions book is now.
A better explanation of what other Horcruxes could be out there.

DSD took LittleMan a week after BabyBoy and I had seen the movie. DSD enjoyed it, LittleMan, not so much, but the reasoning behind that is another post that will, hopefully, be up soon. DSD, who has never read the books, understood about Horcruxes (and even figured out one not mentioned in the movie) but had many questions about other things that the movie did not explain, including Fenrir Greyback, because he had no idea who he was or why he looked so funny.

All in all, this was a much better movie than Prisoner of Azkaban, Goblet of Fire or Order of the Phoenix. As a book adaptation it was lousy, but, just as a movie on its own, it was pretty good.

There will be two movies made out of the last book. Hopefully, between the two of them, they will answer all the questions, those of the book readers and the non-book readers. If not, I hope they are at least entertaining, as this movie was.

Babbling About Everything And Nothing

Last week I was at a seminar in Jacksonville without my computer. Since I have a desktop, it would have been a little difficult to take it with me. I meant to make a quick post mentioning that I was going to be away, but time got away from me.

The seminar was interesting, for the most part, and informative, for the most part, but Jacksonville was as hot as Hades. 95 degrees F with 100% humidity every day. Stepping outside felt like trying to breathe underwater. We get that here in Bay County, but not until mid-August. I am so glad I do not live in Jacksonville.

I returned home to new soffit (sp?) and facia (sp?) around the top of my house. I shall return home from work today to some new windows (Energy Star! Lower the Electric Bill! Tax Rebates 2009 only!) I spoke to DSD about an hour ago and the installers seems to be averaging a window an hour so they should be mostly finished by the time I get home, except for the big bay window in the dining room which will most likely take all day tomorrow. It is built to 1985 code so has to be updated to 2009 code. That window alone is costing as much as the other 8 combined. But it is going to look so great when they are finished and should save us a fortune in heating and cooling since we are pretty sure that window is where most of the energy waste is.

Next week the vinyl siding will be placed around the new windows. I am going to have a completely new exterior. Unfortunately, I am also going to be out of money so the interior is going to have to wait!

I have an appointment with the Rheumotologist on Jun 23 which will probably include more blood work and still no answers, but my rash is looking so much better. Honestly, unless you know what you are looking for it is almost gone. Except for the scar from the punch biopsy. I'm pretty sure she should have used more than two stitches.

It looks like BabyBoy will be moving home before the end of the month. He has discovered that living paycheck to paycheck while saving nothing and not having much money to spend on fun is not where he wants to be. So we will be spending this weekend painting his room because I want it done before he moves back in there!

I am slowly catching up on all my blog reading, but I am not taking a lot of time to comment. I don't have that much time! I will be back to daily reading, eventually.

I Like Sharing Good News!

Even when it proves that I can be wrong occassionally.

BabyBoy has been looking for work just like the rest of the country. He is 20 with very little experience outside of fast food, but he called a couple of weeks ago and asked me to help him with his resume. He and one of his roommates had created one for him. Could I look it over and print it for him? (They don't have a printer)

It sucked. I fixed it and the entire time I was thinking, "How is having a resume going to help him? Fill out an application, get a job! What a waste of time!" But I did it for him, changing things in it from "cleaning" to "ensuring area met all sanitary guidelines" because it sounds better.

I also added all of his theatre work, 2 roles and 4 times as a technician to show that he HAS been busy even when he hasn't been employed.

He called yesterday! He has a job! Full time. Ok, seasonal, but still.

And that blasted resume is what got it for him. He went to a local 'resort' (I like to call it a hotel, but whatever) and was filling out an application for a desk clerk or something and he handed his resume to the HR person. Well, I guess this particular resort has a kids camp and would BabyBoy like to spend his summer dressing up like a pirate or a parrot and entertaining the little darlings? And when he isn't doing that, would he like to arrange Rock Band competitions for the teenagers? And, since this is a brand new game, would he like to PLAY the game, ON THE CLOCK, to open up the songs which are not yet opened?

Of course he would. He starts tomorrow!

So, I was wrong about the resume. AND all those times I told him, "Playing video games is not going to help you in your future!"

I'm okay with being wrong. Just.This.Once.

The Baby is Twenty!

I am speechless with amazement that BabyBoy, darling son of mine, is turning 20 today. It couldn't have been more than 3 or 4 months ago that he was a screaming, red-faced infant who refused to sleep for more than an hour at the time.

Or maybe he was just a chubby cheeked, laughing, cuddling toddler.

So while it feels like he just started kindergarten maybe a month ago, he has actually been out of high school for almost 2 years.

So, I want to tell my beloved son Happy Birthday. I love you. You really are the best thing I have ever done in my entire life.

Children Grow up And Move Out

We have spent the last several days packing up BabyBoy's room and attempting to organize him into general disorganization instead of utter chaos. Shortly, when the sprinkling stops, we will load his bed, chest of drawers, nightstand and entertainment center into the back of DSD's truck and help him move into his new house.

I am not dealing well with this.

I know he is less than 3 months shy of his 20th birthday. I know it is time. But that doesn't make it easier to know that he won't be across the hall tonight.

I am trying to tell myself that I have done a good job raising him and that it is the natural order of things that children move out at some point in their lives. But who will remind him to brush his teeth? Who will ensure he has plenty to eat? Who will buy his allergy medicine when he needs it?

I am completely overreacting. He is only going to be a couple of miles away and there is a chance I will not see him much less than I do now. He really isn't here much. He is with friends, or at work, or at school, or at rehearsal.

But he has still slept here 6 out of 7 nights a week. And I could always peep in his room as I was leaving in the mornings to go to work.

But now he will be sleeping elsewhere and I am having a hard time with that knowledge.

The Beginning of 2009

I managed to spend the entire first three days of 2009 either playing video games on my pc or watching college football. How lovely to just let my brain and body rest and relax and rejuvinate.

After reading the news and the blogs, maybe I just wanted to stay with my head in the sand, though. I've come out of my self-induced news coma to discover that Israel has started a ground war in the Gaza and over 400 Palestinians are dead. And the White House is supporting Israel or, at least, not condemning them. And I still don't understand why the Israelis are so pissed off.

On the homefront, however, things are not bad. BabyBoy has managed to secure very, very part time work and has friends who want him to move in rent free. He says he will be out of here in a week. While the thought of him living somewhere else makes me want to throw up in my mouth a little, he is almost 20 and it will probably be good for him. I am hoping that this dose of the Real World (the real one, not the TV show) will wake him up some and he will focus more on school in the upcoming semesters. I am guessing he will move out for 2 - 3 months and then return home for a while. But that gives us time to remodel the main bathroom while he is out of the house. (Us being DSD with me making runs to and from the hardware store.)

And (knock on wood) I may in the money for the end of year Bowl football pool. While the weekly pool has 10 games with a $5.00 entry fee, the Bowl pool has 20 with a $10 entry fee. Our friends who run the pool are out of town and have been since about Dec 20, so they asked DSD if he would collect money and papers from those who had not had a chance to enter before they left. I went through the ones he had gathered on Friday night and there is no chance that any of them can beat me, even if I lose the last 2 games (Ohio State & Texas, Florida & Oklahoma). So far I am 14-4, thanks to the SEC's Vanderbilt and Ole Miss pulling out amazing wins. I won the entire thing two years ago to the tune of $320.00. That would be a nice New Year's bonus this year!