happy new year!

vote for the 2010 darwin award

here

elderly funnies

An older couple, who were both widowed, had been going out with each other for a long time.
Urged on by their friends, they decided it was finally time to get married.
Before the wedding, they went out to dinner and had a long conversation regarding how their marriage might work.
They discussed finances, living arrangements and so on.
Finally, the elderly gentleman decided it was time to broach the subject of their physical relationship.
'How do you feel about sex?' he asked, rather tentatively.
'I would like it infrequently,' she replied.
The old gentleman sat quietly for a moment, adjusted his glasses, leaned over towards her and whispered, 'Is that one word or two?'

a christmas to recover from

it has been quite a week. first my daughter suffered a burn when the server in the restaurant spilled the soup on her hand. what surprised me is that she, and everyone else who worked there, just froze and i had to bark out orders for cold water and a something to wipe the burning soup off her hand. and ... they didn't offer a discount on the food!! the upside - sliced tomatoes work wonders on a burn. at the end of 5 hours, there was not a mark nor blister.
we arrived at my parent's after a 5 hour trip down 95 - normally a 2 and a half hour trip. the cat was unusually quiet during that time. my mother was mildly ill and still remains so. the cat was not eating and we had to force her to eat.
i had to take my daughter to the shops on christmas eve to buy me a gift because she couldn't find anything at all in georgetown despite spending all day wednesday there (and numerous hints at what i would like.) found something for herself though. but that's me just kevetching.
my parent's dear neighbour announced after christmas dinner that he has been told he has 4-6 months to live. his cancer has metastized everywhere.
the snow was beautiful on boxing day.
instead of driving home on monday, we stayed another day. it was nice to enjoy the snow without having to shovel or drive. i got mild food poisoning. i swear my mother has been trying to kill me with food for years.
after 15 years of love and companionship, our beloved kitty, neve, died in my arms at 5.30 am. we picked her up from the crematorium today. i miss her bugging me.

stuck in williamsburg

we had a great white christmas in williamsburg, va. i hope to be able to go home tomorrow

merry christmas to each and everyone of you

may the love of our Lord bless you abundantly

(Luke 1:5-9) "In the days of King Herod of Judea, there was a priest named
Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly order of Abijah. His wife was a
descendant of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. Both of them were righteous
before God, living blamelessly according to all the commandments and
regulations of the Lord. But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren,
and both were getting on in years. Once when he was serving as priest before
God and his section was on duty, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom
of the priesthood, to enter the sanctuary of the Lord and offer incense.""
(Luke 1:10-17) "Now at the time of the incense offering, the whole assembly of the
people was praying outside. Then there appeared to him an angel of the Lord,
standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was
terrified; and fear overwhelmed him. But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid,
Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a
son, and you will name him John. You will have joy and gladness, and many will
rejoice at his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He must never
drink wine or strong drink; even before his birth he will be filled with the Holy
Spirit. He will turn many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. With the
spirit and power of Elijah he will go before him, to turn the hearts of parents to
their children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to make ready
a people prepared for the Lord."
(Luke 1:18-23) "Zechariah said to the angel, "How will I know that this is so? For I
am an old man, and my wife is getting on in years." The angel replied, "I am
Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and
to bring you this good news. But now, because you did not believe my words,
which will be fulfilled in their time, you will become mute, unable to speak, until
the day these things occur." Meanwhile the people were waiting for Zechariah,
and wondered at his delay in the sanctuary. When he did come out, he could not
speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary. He
kept motioning to them and remained unable to speak. When his time of service
was ended, he went to his home."
(Luke 1:24-25) "After those days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months
she remained in seclusion. She said, "This is what the Lord has done for me
when he looked favorably on me and took away the disgrace I have endured
among my people."
"In the sixth month the angel
Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee
called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man
whose name was Joseph, of the house of David.
The virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her
and said, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is
with you." But she was much perplexed by his
words and pondered what sort of greeting this
might be. The angel said to her, "Do not be
afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
And now, you will conceive in your womb and
bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will
be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will
reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end."
Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?" The angel said to
her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will
overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son
of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son;
and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be
impossible with God. Then Mary said, "Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be
with me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her.""
(Luke 1:39-56) "In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town
in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted
Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the child leaped in her womb.
And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry,
"Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why
has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon
as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And
blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken
to her by the Lord." And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit
rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his
servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty
One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. His mercy is for those
who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down
the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry
with good things, and sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy, according to the promise he made to our
ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever." And Mary remained with
her about three months and then returned to her home."
(Luke 1:56-80) "Now the time came for
Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son.
Her neighbors and relatives heard that the
Lord had shown his great mercy to her, and
they rejoiced with her. On the eighth day they
came to circumcise the child, and they were
going to name him Zechariah after his father.
But his mother said, "No; he is to be called
John." They said to her, "None of your
relatives has this name." Then they began
motioning to his father to find out what name
he wanted to give him. He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, "His name is
John." And all of them were amazed. Immediately his mouth was opened and
his tongue freed, and he began to speak, praising God. Fear came over all their
neighbors, and all these things were talked about throughout the entire hill
country of Judea. All who heard them pondered them and said, "What then will
this child become?" For, indeed, the hand of the Lord was with him. Then his
father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy:
"Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has looked favorably on his people
and redeemed them. He has raised up a mighty savior for us in the house of his
servant David, as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.
Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors, and has remembered
his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham, to grant us
that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies, might serve him without
fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. And you, child, will
be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare
his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their
sins. By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us,
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our
feet into the way of peace." The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he
was in the wilderness until the day he appeared publicly to Israel."
(Luke 2:1-5) "In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the
world should be registered. This was the first registration and was taken while
Quirinius was governor of Syria. All went to their own towns to be registered.
Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of
David called Bethlehem, because he was descended
from the house and family of David. He went to be
registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and
who was expecting a child."
(Luke 2:6-7) "While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child.
And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and
laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn."
(Luke 2:8-20) "In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping
watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and
the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel
said to them, "Do not be afraid; for see--I am bringing you good news of great joy
for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the
Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in
bands of cloth and lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a
multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the
highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!" When the
angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another,
"Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the
Lord has made known to us." So they went with haste and found Mary and
Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known
what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at
what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered
them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all
they had heard and seen, as it had been told them."

just a few more things i need to do

before christmas, so i leave you with this eye candy

excellent!

persona non grata

and there is no reason they should be invited! well done, wills and kate. by the time william becomes king, the Os will be written in history as a disgrace to this nation.

i think this is an incredible read

i read this on fox comments. in my opinion he nails it: its a long read but worth it
Satguy08
Number one, give the president the line item veto, he than can remove earmarks without having to dump the whole bill.

Congress, make them part time legislators; since it is a privilege to serve, take the profit and power out of it. Put them on a time limit to get the business of the country done, maybe just maybe than they will stop fighting with each other and work together. Remember Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; politicians seem to have forgotten this one.

Entitlements and earmarks, it’s the difference between what the federal government should provide according to the constitution and what the current government provides due to many years of special interest groups. Entitlements and earmarks are not all bad some we feel as a society we should provide. But they need to worth there price and are not meant to help or be needed by everyone for all time. No business, No household, No government can live beyond their means for very long and remain healthy. The simple fact is the deficits that we are running cannot be continued. Run the country as a business or face default it’s that simple. Work together stop fighting with each other and be part of the solution. This is not about Bush, nor about Obama, it’s about us, you and me “we the people”.

Deficits, The modern dollar, one of the historically strongest of all currencies has lost over 90% of its purchasing power since going off the gold standard in 1971. Its value is based solely on faith, and is decided by the debt load of the government, public, along with the amount of money in circulation. Why would a government want to increase debt load which only devalues the dollar? The dollar has value because our government has declared it to be legal tender, despite the fact that it has no intrinsic value, and is not backed by any reserves; every government in the world is this way, and they all run debt loads, many large. How is that going for the world? Lately country after country seems to be in trouble. A devalued dollar is good if we where a large exporting country, but we gave that up to China and other country’s years ago. The real problem is large deficits created by a big government, with currency that’s not backed by any commodity. Sorry to tell you this, the government is not a contributor to the economy; large governments cannot be sustained for long periods of time, if anything the Government is overhead or an additional cost, because by definition everything it “creates” is a debt owed by the taxpayer, and thus is a liability. If I understand this why can’t the politicians?


Funding, I will say this again around 50% of the people in this country do not pay income tax, they end up with a zero balance, many get back more than they pay in. so half of the people in this country support 100% of the government. This is not fair, right or just. It is time to for a real change; this is the fairest thing I can think of, a 3% federal sales tax. Do away with all payroll taxes, no personal deductions, no income tax of any kind, except social security and disability. Some will say it is not enough; yes it is. We the people are putting the government on a diet. This is all the government gets which means we are forcing them all to get rid of the bloat, and I have been looking into it, and there are huge amounts of it (billions). Tax everything and everybody, except fresh food. (The people who want to do away with fast food will like this, it gets taxed) Everybody pays, than it’s even. Those that spend more i.e. the better off pay more. Some people say that as a percentage of income, what the rich will pay is less because they have more to spend. I say who cares; there always have been the rich and poor among us. This way those that spend more, pay more. God bless the well off, because of one, I have a job along with 200 others. And I have never gotten a paycheck or even a job as a kid mowing lawns from a poor person. People talk about monetary equality. Wherever it has been tried it failed. The big communist experiment in the Soviet Union went bust. Where most everybody was equal (except those in the government) and everybody was poor (except those in the government) and nobody had anything, (except those in the government) which is what equality gets you, everybody ends up with nothing (except those in the government) Unlike capitalism, in communism, why do more than the least that is expected? There is no reward for it, because it all goes back to the state. And socialism is a great thing for the poor and lazy, until the well off run out of money. This is about everybody paying their share. This is a consumption tax; those that consume the most pay the most. No returns to file, no income tax to pay, this is for everyone. To me this makes it fair.

People keep bring up the life-long poor; let’s look at a few of the things that cause people to be life-long poor.

In this country we all can, through hard work, perseverance or personality become well off. Throughout time we as a people have worked hard to leave a legacy for the next generation. People talk about monetary equality, like it is the holly grail. I hate to be the one to break it to you but it is a pipe dream. A percentage of the population of any society will deviate to the bottom end, wither its drugs, crime, or slough. Avoiding long-term poverty takes some simple steps. First, graduate from high school, than enroll in a community college part time. Many school districts from around the US report a 50% drop out rate. In virtually every case it was an individual’s choice to quit. Remember freedoms can be taken away, knowledge is forever.

Second, get married before you have children, stay married and don't have kids right away. Please don’t become someone working at a big box store with seven kids.

Third, work at any kind of job, even one that starts out paying the minimum wage. Most full time jobs nowadays provide some type of heath care and a 401k program avail yourself of it. Most jobs start with wages higher than the minimum wage, a man and his wife, even earning the minimum wage, is above the poverty threshold in most states. So long as there are no children. Taking a minimum-wage job is not the best job, but it produces an income higher than the poverty threshold. Plus, having a job in the first place increases one's prospects for a better job. Finally, avoid engaging in criminal behavior. Criminal behavior of any type is not a job.

A few steps early in life, a little discipline and you will not be counted among the lifelong poor. Since it was an individual’s choice, why should this become mine or society’s problem? I did these things; I lived by the rules, people are now demanding I give of mine, to those that didn’t!! Because they where lazy. Having done these things for my family, achieving all that we have, makes a portion of my estate subject to seizure by the government, and given to those that did not. How is this justified as anything but greed, much less fair or even right?


Make sure the people we elect can run the country.

Don’t elect a president, who has never run a state or large business. Show me that they can do that, than we can talk.

Demand real common sense change from the other one’s that serves us.

If we start doing these things, maybe we can save this country.

the christmas contest

inspired by mini capt i have decided to conduct a contest of your favourite little drummer boy rendition

pretty thing, i'nit

as we journey through life

Walk with me by the water… worth the read.
I really think you will enjoy this, it is so… it's just hard to put it into words,
A BEAUTIFUL MESSAGE ABOUT GROWING OLDER:

Crap ...
I forgot what it was....

elliot carver call home

when you mess with the world the world messes with you
julian assange

Carver is ultimately killed by Bond

what fun