Veterans’ Day 2009

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Who Do You Know? Who Do  You Love?

Who in your life has served in the United States Military? I think we all have had family members who have served.

Thank You

Thank you to people who voluntarily put themselves in harm’s way with the goal and desire of keeping the rest of us safe.

Offer a Tribute

Please feel free to use the comments to offer thanks or praise for someone you know or love who is currently serving, or has served, in the U.S. Military. (Feel free also to offer generic thanks to any or all who wear the uniform)

Remember

On this day we remember all those who have lost their lives while in the service of this country.

Peace

On this day, I wish for peace in this world: peace within families, peace between tribes, peace between nations, peace between ethic groups, peace between races, peace between people of all religions and beliefs. I wish for a world where there is no longer a reason for people to go to war. I wish for all who fight to be able to return safely to their loved ones and their homes.

Happy 40th, Sesame Street! :)

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Google’s Great Logos

I love to go to google.com and see a special logo. This week, all week, the logos have been about Sesame Street’s 40th birthday.

Where Were You 40 Years Ago (and, years since then)?

Did you watch Sesame Street when you were growing up? I did not. I wonder if I watched TV when I was a toddler and preschool age. I doubt it.

Sesame Street Logos All Week

Here’s the one from today:

Pumpkin Mushrooms

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Pumpkin-Colored Mushrooms

I saw them one day before I photographed them. The color was beautiful. They were a bright orange, just like pumpkins.

Too Late!

I only waited one day, but it was too late.   The color had already begun to fade.

What is it about my yard?

Is it soggy? What makes an entire town of mushrooms pop up overnight?

Photos

Health Insurance Reform Passed 220-215

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I’m Glad Someone Finally Called It Health INSURANCE Reform

This debate has been going on for far too long. People have been arguing about changing the health CARE system. But, it really is about how people can PAY for health care. It is all about ACCESS to affordable health care.

Why Do People Want to Protect Unethical Entities from Ethical Legislation?

I’ve been watching people get out-of-control about politics for a long time. And, I still do not understand why any working class or middle class American responds with fury to any attempt to do something that would benefit them and hold insurance companies accountable for their business decisions.

Why Would You Cut Your Own Throat To Put Money In A Rich Man’s Pocket?

That’s what people are doing when they oppose “health care reform”. This is not about health CARE reform. It is about reforming the less-than-ethical practices of too many insurance companies, and providing a way for ALL (almost all) people in this country to have access to health care.

What About Religious Beliefs?

So many people who are intensely opposed to “health care reform” claim to be devoted Christians. How is withholding access to health care ‘Christian’ (or Muslim? or Jewish?). Are we not our brothers’ keepers? Are we not to care for the sick? Are we not to love others as God loves us? Why would we oppose legislation that will allow all of us to have access to health-promoting wellness visits and basic health care?

The Debate Moves to the Senate

Now the debate will move to the Senate. I’m sure things will stay lively. Read more  here and here.

Green Space In The City

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Walking With A Friend

I went for a long walk with a friend. We walked on a sidewalk beside a green space.

Green Space

The green space was made of large scooped out areas filled with vegetation. The scooped out areas were water basins to catch rain runoff. There were small birds in the grasses in the basins. I’m sure there were other small animals  I could not see.

Flood Plain

The green space was created by the city after it demolished 50 or 60 homes that had been flooded over the years. There are photos along the  walking path that show the flood waters covering cars and parts of houses.

Photos of the Green Space

I did not take a lot of photos, but here is what I have.

This little plant is used to attract certain birds. That’s all I know about it. If you know what it is, please comment.

Nathan Pacheco * Latin Grammys * November 5, 2009

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Nathan Pacheco Sings TONIGHT on the Latin Grammys!!!!

How cool is this!?!?  I am really excited about this.

Through the Grapevine

I heard it through the grapevine that Nathan would be singing at the Latin Grammys! Woohoo! 

I Hoped It Was True (and it IS!)

This is so great! Now the Spanish-speaking people of the world will know Nathan Pacheco and his amazing voice and his magnificent presentation.

Watch Nathan Pacheco Tonight On Univision

See the Latin Grammys tonight on your local Univision channel.

Here is the LatinGrammys post on Twitter (from last week)

Mas artistas a celebrar “De Fiesta con Juan Gabriel,” Bienvenidos JAS DEVAEL, NATHAN PACHECO y LAURA PAUSINI!9:18 AM Oct 29th from web

Latin GRAMMYs is less than a week away! If you can’t make it to Las Vegas watch it on your local Univision chan, Nov 5, 8pm ET/PT, 7pm CT/MT10:11 AM Oct 30th from web.

Will Someone PLEASE Record His Performance?

I don’t have access to Univision, so I won’t get to see  him perform. If anyone has information about where the performance is posted online (after the show), please leave comments with directions. Thanks!

What Will I Do With All These Triangular Bevels?

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Drawing Designs

I have been drawing designs for the better part of a year. I could not find anything that was exactly what I wanted to do. So, I did not make anything with the triangular bevels.

Voila! Simplicity

All of a sudden, an idea came to me that was just so perfect. It is so simple, yet so nice. I used a red leaf from a dried arrangement, and a sprig of evergreen.

Drying flowers and leaves

I’m still new at making these suncatchers with things inside. I still have a lot to learn. I still need to learn how to dry flowers and plants. But, I think I’m on the right track.

Triangular Beveled Glass With Fall Foliage

Back to Bevels

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Three Hours Sorting

We spent three hours sorting bevels by size and shape and putting them in stacks. The hardest ones were the many differently sized rectangles.

Triangles Are Fun

The most fun bevels are the triangles. Why? They’re easy! There were two or three sizes of triangles, but they were very easy to sort.

Who Cares About Bevels?

I do!   And, maybe you will two. Come back in a couple of days to see what I recently mad e from two bevels and a leaf and a sprig of evergreen.

Photos of  Stacks of Bevels

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Leaves By The Highway

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On The Road

I was on the road one afternoon last week. The sun was about to set. The colors were really nice. I was fortunate enough to be able to take a few shots through the windshield.

Leaves By The Highway

Halloween Night

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Decorations

Decorations at my house? No. For whatever reason, I have never been one to decorate. I don’t know why. I just don’t do it.

Trick-or-Treat

Well, when you don’t decorate and you don’t present an inviting decorated face to the neighborhood, you don’t get many rings at the door bell.

Historically Speaking …

Add to that the fact that I have never had any trick-or-treaters come to my door, and I’ve been in this place for two Halloweens prior to this one.

What Would You Expect?

I don’t expect anyone to come to my house. I say “don’t expect” because even though it’s already 7:20pm and the little ghosts and goblins and ballerinas and whatever-else-kids-are-for-Halloween-these-days are probably home sorting through their take, my little light is still burning, and my bowl of bags of microwave popcorn is still waiting.

Paper Bag Jack-O-Lantern and Microwave Popcorn

More Leaves

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Autumn Leaves In My Neighborhood

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Equinox

The official change of the seasons was over a month ago on September 21st, but the visuals this week are what really say fall is here.

Concert

The leaves have turned. The autumn leaves, in concert with cooler temperatures, clouds and rain, say that fall has most certainly arrived.

Trees I See Every Day

The trees I see every day have put away their summer green and dressed themselves in bright yellows, oranges and reds.

From My Back Yard … Same Tree, Different Days

I can see this tree from my back yard.

Autumn Leaves

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Yes, Fall Is Really Here

I’ve been taking pictures of trees whose leaves have turned from green to gold and red. I told my friend I was going to post some of the photos to my blog. Before I knew it, he was working on his fall project, gathering leaves, so he could make an arrangement I could post.

Leaves

This image is a scan of leaves he gathered and arranged. He selected the leaves, arranged them on the scanner, scanned them, saved the image, and emailed the image to me.

Autumn Leaves

God Speed

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Travelers

This is for all the travelers far and near, for those whose travels take them towards the ones they love, and those whose travels take them away.

Aging Parents

This is for all the aging parents whose children and grandchildren no longer live close enough to stop by for a visit or a meal or a hug.

Older Adult Children

This is for all the adult children whose lives and jobs and economic circumstances keep them too far away to be able to care for their parents when they can no longer care for themselves.

Far From Loved Ones

This is for all who must be far from the ones they love, for whatever reason, for however long.

Blessings

God Be With You.

God Bless You.

God Speed.

The Cost of Being Gay (and, coupled)

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The Cost of Being Straight

I don’t know that there is a cost associated with being straight, unless you count the cost of buying a home and bringing up children. But, gay people do that, too.

The Cost of Trying to Be Straight

The cost here would be emotional, psychological and spiritual. What toll is taken when a person spends a lifetime, or part of a lifetime, trying to deny something that is part of the essence of who he or she is?

Perks for Straight, Married Couples

Everyone knows that married people get perks that unmarried people do not get.  Visitation rights and decision-making rights for partners are a given when the couple is straight and married. Too many gay couples are kept apart when they most need to be together.

So Much Has Changed. So Much Is Still the Same.

As much as we see people who are famous and ‘out’, and people who are ‘out and proud’, there are at least as many people still living quiet lives under the radar of public opinion. I have never lived in a place where I thought that most gay people were openly gay. It just is not prudent in some parts of the country. Who wants to be made a target or lose a job, or be discriminated against at school, at church or in the neighborhood? God help you if you are famous and gay and your former work was within the organized church.

What About Financial Benefits for Being Straight?

The inequalities between straight couples and gay couples have been written about many times. But, even in this day of legal marriage between two partners who are of the same sex, the benefits that are given to straight married couples do not always apply to gay married couples.

“The High Price of Being a Gay Couple”

Here is another article that looks at the legalized inequalities that gay couples must live with. A straight couple can be married on a whim, after a whirlwind courtship, or during a wild weekend in Las Vegas, and they are automatically given a wide array of financial incentives and benefits. A gay couple can be stable, devoted and committed to each other for a lifetime, and the law never sees them as worthy of the benefits offered to straight couples.

Your Money

The article is in the Your Money section of The New York Times. Read it here: The High Price of Being a Gay Couple