Smart?

Remember the other day when I said that I thought Americans were fairly smart?
I may need to re-think that comment.


I'm just saying...

not for the faint hearted!

Once in awhile,something occurs in my life that I'm sure is unique to me.
Today, one such thing happened.
See, the sun is shining (finally!) and the air is fallish-warm and I thought that today would be a perfect time to clean up the living room windows and hang the insulated drapes in preparation for winter.
So far..so good...
SO, I remove the summer drapes and put them away. Then I take down the sheers to wash because I use the same ones for all seasons.
Now I run into my issue.
In the rod pocket; the deal that the curtain rod goes through, are... gawd this is weird..
a bunch of dead ants. Well maybe not a WHOLE bunch, but 8 or 10 I suppose. Little sugar ants like I do war with in the kitchen every spring.
How in the heck did these blasted ants get in there?
OK ... my ceilings are high. Ten foot probably, so the top of the sheers is w a y up there. What on earth would possess these tiny little ants to climb so high?! There's no sugar up there. Even Richard and Ricky can't manage to spill soda on the TOP of the drapes... I don't get it.
Then these poor little buggers maneuvered their way into the rod pocket to ultimately die... of starvation I suppose.
Now really.. is this a normal thing? Has Heloise addressed this in her column? I seriously doubt it.
I think it's one of those weird things ( that I normally don't bring up by the way) that happen only to me.

I Think It's Going To Be Alright

Like many Americans,I spent a few moments, now and again through out the day, thinking about terrorism. What it is and how it has affected my life. I came to some rather dismal conclusions.
See, terrorism isn't about killing people per se. Rather, it is about making people afraid. Killing people is just a pleasant side effect for the terrorist.

This is how wikipedia defines terrorism:

Terrorism is "the systematic use of terror especially as a means of coercion."[1] There is no internationally agreed definition of terrorism.[2][3] Most common definitions of terrorism include only those acts which are intended to create fear (terror), are perpetrated for an ideological goal (as opposed to a lone attack), and deliberately target or disregard the safety of non-combatants. Some definitions also include acts of unlawful violence and war. A common misperception of terrorist groups, especially after the 'Global War on Terror' began in 2001, is that they are solely Islamic-extremists or radical religious groups with religious motives.

Terrorism is also a form of unconventional warfare and psychological warfare. The word is politically and emotionally charged,[4] and this greatly compounds the difficulty of providing a precise definition. One 1988 study by the US Army found that over 100 definitions of the word "terrorism" have been used.[5] A person who practices terrorism is a terrorist.

Seven years ago today the most horrendous act of terrorism to ever be targeted at US citizens was carried out before our very eyes. The goal: To make America afraid.
My biggest concern is that to some extent it was successful and I find that very sad.

I miss the days when America was viewed as just a young pup with maybe too much bravado and swagger, yet always there to lend a hand when her friends and allies needed her. Sort of like best friends on the playground. Now we seem to have entered into the uncertain and difficult society of "high school" Where alliances are made and broken between 2nd and 3rd hour. Where rumors and fabrication are used to propel an individual to his or her desired status.

But what I believe, because I simply have to, is that when a society's comfort zone becomes disrupted, as it certainly did seven years ago, some of the uglier aspects of human nature are brought forward and in this case played out on a world wide stage. Additionally I believe that Americans are not stupid people on the whole; that Americans are basically kind and thoughtful and fairly smart. I think that the over zealous nuttiness of these years following 9/11 are soon to be drawn to a close, because we the people will require it to be done. It's run it's course and it's time to move on to a more mature mode. To think about our future after high school so to speak.

I think it's going to be alright.

Ira Glass Replaced My Mom

So , some months back , my daughter, knowing that one of my keen interests in life is the stories of my fellow human beings, sent me a CD of several such stories. My first exposure to This American Life . If you've not heard of it, it is a radio ( and now TV ..on Showtime apparently. ) program broadcast by Public Radio International and recorded in Chicago. The host of the show is Ira Glass.

Well after listening to the three stories on that CD, I was pretty much hooked. The perfect blend of human interest, slight sarcasm at times and plenty of humor. The kind of thought provoking humor that I like and a bit of touching or sometimes just plain sad moments that cause real tears to well up..

While in Montana my son-in-law ( first time saying that! ) burned me a CD of about 20 podcasts of the program.. and Ira Glass began his non violent takeover in my life.
See, I have this old Bose radio/CD player next to my bed, and I have discovered that instead of reading when I went to bed at night, I could put a CD in and Ira Glass would soothe me to sleep. Sort of like my mother reading to me or telling me stories at night when I was a child.
The only downside is that it takes me a real l o n g time to hear a whole program. Because , well, I fall asleep! Just like when Mom would tell me stories . Typically I eventually put the CD in my car and finish listening while I drive.
(Fortunately I don't fall asleep at those times!)
Now I subscribe to the podcast myself.

So Ira, if you find this little story on an rss feed or something. Know that a middle aged lady in Kansas, with a love for the stories of my fellow earthlings, is soothed to sleep each night with your presentation.

Oh... and also Ira, don't quit singing along with the theme song of The OC ! That's exactly the kind of human interest story that makes humans interesting!

J-E-T-S jetsjetsjets! or B-R-E-T-T brettbrettbrett!

Okay, so I know it's popular to be down on Brett Favre.... but honestly who on earth makes football more fun to watch?! Secretly ( or maybe not that secretly) I'm hoping that Green Bay rues the day they cut him loose to the Jets. Not that I have anything particularly against Green Bay, just that I'm pulling for Favre to go out in a true blaze of glory!
Gawd I love football...

Heh-heh!

You Are 85% Tortured Genius

You totally fit the profile of a tortured genius. You're uniquely brilliant - and completely misunderstood. Not like you really want anyone to understand you anyway. You're pretty happy being an island.

Are You a Tortured Genius?