Facebook Ruined For Me Now

Wow. I can't believe it's been so long since I've been here to write anything!

 

I've been on Facebook all this time. I enjoyed being on it too despite many, many annoying aspects....such as every time I turned around I had to go and check on my privacy setting and make sure what I wanted visible was visibile and what I wanted private remained private.

 

I had tons of friends and almost all my family members. It was a quick, painless way to see photos and jokes and risque posts as well as clean out my own political spleen when it got to me to see what a clown we have for a prez.

 

I know that Facebook is free and as such we should be grateful for any little social crumb they scatter our way, but no one I know likes the Timeline look. It is as amateurish and sophomoric as MySpace ever thought about being. My daughter Elaine says they don't want adults on it, they want kids. I guess kids are easier to deal with that mad as hell old ladies like me.

 

OMG, I've completely forgotten how to write HTML. Thank goodness for the free online HTML editors!

 

Anyway, I'm most upset with Facebook because I'm genetically programed to resist change on every level and once I've made up my mind it's a done deal. I can't begin to tell you how many mistakes I've made along the way, but if you can't stand up for your own personal code of standards and practices, then what good are they?

 

I'm going to miss Mafia Wars and my “family” both in the game and in real life. Mafia Wars basically sucks, but I'm so darn competitive that I took to it like a duck to a pond.

I Got Kicked Off Of Facebook!!

It's true.

I was having such a good time on Facebook doing the social thing. Hooking up. Hanging out. Having funny as only us old gals can. Had me a SuperPoke Pet named Elvis and a RockYou Pet named Precious. Had just attained Level 218 and earned a Golden Throne in Mafia Wars. Beginning to get really bored with My Farm, but still visiting it every day and giving gifts to folks.

I went to Louisiana to gamble and took my laptop so I could bank my over 20k hourly earnings in Mafia Wars and keep up with all the other things that need daily attention. First night I fired up via the inroom hookup and got the message that my account had been disabled.

They say I violated the Terms of Service. They don't offer any real explanation of what crime I allegedly committed, but they did offer a link to their TOS and supposedly a way to appeal my "conviction".

I sent them email right away and said I was pretty sure I hadn't done ANYTHING wrong. Actually I wrote nicely TWICE, and I'm still waiting to be reinstated or at least an explanation for My Crime(s).

I've done a lot of pondering during the past 7 days of forced Facebook inactivity trying to figure out what happened.



I've come up with a couple of possibilities and one is that I was getting too good in Mafia Wars. I had 3737 family members and didn't see nearly as many RED notations on my player stats as I had in the beginning. I was dumping ineffective weapons on my SIL's account as he never used it anyway. Since I'd earned the Golden Throne I was generating energy faster and would of been able to complete jobs quicker to level up.

I also got crosswise with one of the "groups" of pompous little pissants that cling together ostensibly to help one another from attacks by "bullies", when they in fact become bullies in their own right. When it dawned on me what I was involved in and the constant barrage of unsolicited emails advising us to attack so-and-so, I bowed out of the group. I thought they'd have no hard feelings about my choice, but now I'm not so sure. Let me be clear, I have no proof, but all a person has to do is accuse someone of something and you can get kicked off!

There was also the matter of The Photo. My daughter thinks the photo(s) of myself with GUNS (oh, the horror of it all!) might of been what had me tossed. If that is the case with "face", I'm beyond stunned. You'd of thought they'd give me a warning on something like that, but then again, it's their game, their rules and their power. Might makes right just about any where on the planet.

I'm probably going to end up rejoining under another email address. I'll have to start over in Mafia Wars and I'm not happy about that, but at least THIS time I'll know what NOT to do in order to advance quickly and painlessly through the ranks. I'll never trust them though to not just pull the plug when and if they see fit. I'll never buy anything ever again to improve my character and that goes double for My Farm and any of the pets or other applications. I'm hanging my head in shame to admit that I ever did spend money on this crap. What was I thinking!!

Mafia Wars is fun. It's a great stress buster too. I'm going back in just to keep playing.

Facebook is two faced. On the one face they say they are a social network and they encourage you to invite everyone you know to join you there. The truer face though says you can't send out email to people you don't know, you can't send out more email than XX, you can't write too much on your wall or anyone else's. You don't know you are in "trouble" until a pink box pops up and then they don't tell you that you should cease and desist for days if not weeks in order to appease the godnobs.



I'm too old for this shit.

For awhile there I thought I'd have a T-shirt made. It would be, of course, RED and on the front would be:

I'm 66 years old and I got kicked off of Facebook!

And on the back...

....and I don't even know why!

I decided it was foolish to spend the money for the shirt. So I've appeased my hurt feelings by blogging about it here instead.

I feel better now after regurgitating it all in the blog too. At least here I've never had a worry about getting in trouble for being myself.

Dell Computers: Why Are They Still In Business?

I ordered a new laptop computer April 7th because my old Dell laptop is so slow it's getting to be only good for playing solitaire.

Dell had sent out a postcard with a laptop on sale that caught my fancy. I went online as I love to do and picked out what I wanted and didn't want on it.

I was getting Win XP with an option for Vista. I never intended to use that option as I'll wait for something better and I've heard nothing good about Vista unless one buys all new hardware and software, etc.

So I waited and checked the link Dell had provided in the same email that said my order was being processed and that my preferred financial account would happily allow payments. There was no charge for shipping, the only charge was for taxes. It was a good deal for a laptop equipped like I wanted.

Obviously it was too good of a deal. The next time I checked the link it said the one with THAT order numbered had been cancelled!

WTF?

There was another order number listed and it was for the exact same computer so I did a "phew" and then noticed that the new delivery date was for May 14th. The new ordered date was April 16. I was irritated, but at least it was going to be on its way THIS YEAR...

I checked a couple more times and everything seemed to be "in the works". I got no other emails. Nothing telling me the first one was canceled, no problems with my financing, and no problems with the SECOND ORDER that was ALSO canceled.

Surprise, surprise. Dell hell is now open for bizness.

I just spent the last 33 minutes talking to every Tom, Dick and Harriet in India. I finally demanded to speak to an English speaking supervisor and it became clear that they were going to keep me on hold until the sacred cows came home.

No mas. It would of been my FIFTH Dell computer purchase. Now I'm not buying another system from them and I'll urge everyone I know to do the same.

I do not know what's keeping them in business. They are soooo painfully polite. I finally told the last gal to stop apologizing because it was beginning to make me mad. The very first person I spoke too about the cancellation said "there was a problem with my financing" and an email was sent telling me to contact Dell Financial. I got nothing from them. The financial folks checked and said there was no problem with financing.

*I* think the problem was with Win XP. They didn't want to build what I wanted to buy. I was taking it pretty much straight up, not a lot of extras, no software, etc. It was supposed to be an Inspiron 1545, Intel Pentium Dual Core T4200, 2.0 GHz 800Mhz, 1M L2 Cache with "Genuine Windows Vista Business Bonus". It was supposed to have a 320GB Sata Hard Drive.

The 5th person I talked to was going to reorder the "exact same" computer, but she was in financial and couldn't do that so I'd have to go BACK to sales or customer service or whatever where, of course, they'd want all my information for the 6th time. She got rid of me by giving me a phone number that she said would get me where I needed to be and THEN I could ask for a supervisor.

Which leads me back around to the beginning of this saga.

Never again.

I have a Dell printer so I have to buy their ink, but that's it.

Dell Computer and Comcast must of been separated at birth because they are both I-don't-give-a-shit companies.

Connie Sue Needs YOU!

Give a gal a buck or two, please!

The gal is Connie and her mom is my best friend and if you can believe it, Connie is doing a walk for breast cancer research that will cost HER $1800 at the completion of the walk! She needs all the pledges she can raise to help pay for that tab!

TIA for any help you send her way!

Have a great, safe day!

WaaWhoo! It's Good Being OLD!

I received my annual "bill" for renewal of my Harris County (home burglar) Alarm permit yesterday and noticed a box to check for EXEMPTIONS if 65 or over. So I called 'em up for clarification and GUESS WHAT?! I don't have to pay the ten bucks 'cause I'm OLD! Life is good.

'Course I'm sure some other government agency will STILL suck that ten bucks out of my pocketbook, but that's THEN and this is NOW.... let me enjoy the thrill!

Date Nut Cake - My Christmas Tradition

One of the good things about having your own blog is that you can decide what goes into it. I like to use it as sort of a giant notepad sometimes.

This time I'm going to part with a closely guarded secret recipe for my momma's Date Nut Cake. She always made one or more at Christmas time and it's my favorite holiday cake. It brings back only good memories for me.

I learned how to make the cake like my momma used to by trial and error and this is the delicious result:

1 package dates, I like them already chopped
1 cup raisins, you probably don't have to add this if you don't like them, but then don't complain to me if the cake doesn't taste like mine!
1 c brown sugar
1/2 c Crisco (I'm Southern so it's GOT to be Crisco shortening)
2 c flour
2 eggs
1 c pecans (Again don't add them if you don't want to, but it's not going to be like mine!)
1 tsp soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon (For some reason you HAVE TO have this ingredient)

I think it's better to use a stand mixer, but if you don't have one, I guess you can beat the livin' poop out of it by hand.

First you put the dates and the raisins in a bowl and sprinkle the tsp of soda over them and then add 2 cups of boiling water. Let this mixture cool before continuing.

Preheat over to 350 degrees
Grease and flour a 13x9 pan or if you want it to be like my momma's, use a large Pyrex oblong

In a small bowl, mix together flour, salt and cinnamon
In a large bowl beat sugar and shortening until well blended, adding eggs one at a time. Start adding flour mixture by large spoonfuls and equal amounts of the date mixture until both are combined and mixed well. Add the nuts and blend in. I like to use coarsely chopped pecans, as one of the comfort part of this recipe is the way pecans taste when they are cooked! I reckon you could use walnuts too, but, again, being Southern it's pecans for me always.

Pour into the pan and bake until done. If you need a hint, it's approximately 45-50 minutes in the metal pan or 40-45 in the Pyrex. It's important that you cook it until it's really, really well done or it's kinda strange in the middle....not bad, just not normal. The one I made before Christmas was not done quite enough even though I'd poked a toothpick in the middle and it came out clean. I should of let it cook a few more minutes. You're the best judge of how long though because you know your own oven and such.

If you want to get fancy you could cool that puppy down and put some powdered sugar on it or do something with whipped cream, etc. Me, I like to cut it into nice size pieces and store it in an air tight container. After a day or so you'll most likely want to keep it in the refrigerator just in case as it's not loaded with preservatives like store bought stuff!

I've got one cooking in the oven even as I type and I'm so looking forward to enjoying it one more time before my Christmas kitchen is officially closed for the season!

Sex, Drugs & Rock 'n Roll, Baby!

And what pray tell does the title have to do with ME or this post?

Nothing.

I was just baiting the hook!

I've been quiet lately. Licking my political wounds, if it were. Firmly convinced we are going to hell in a hand-basket.

Or maybe not.

I never claim to be a seer.

I do know that the accession to the throne by the one (note no capital letters to signify my utter and total disgust), was not the unification of many young folks eager for a hand in the political process at all. Rather it was New Coke version 2. If you're not remembering New Coke and the way it was thrust upon us let me refresh your memory.....

The makers of Coke wanted to change the formula and get rid of the "real deal" (sugar, Sugar) and replace it with high fructose corn syrup. They did just that with the launch of New Coke. You can read all about it if you follow the link, but the main point I'm trying to make is that New Coke was a smoke screen brilliantly designed to make the CHANGE, sell it to the public by letting the public think it had "won" the fight to restore Old Coke to the sugar regime. When, in fact, due to some powerful shell game slight of hand with a dash of underhand thrown in, New Coke was withdrawn and Classic Coke was hailed The One! (See capitals letter NOW signify extreme sarcasm, my forte!). Classic Coke didn't have the real deal, it had the "new, improved" high fructose corn syrup, that was the goal all along. You make the people think they are getting what they want by using clever catch phrases and massive brain washing. Such as....

If it doesn't fit, you must acquit.

Change you can believe in.

Etc. You do the work.

So now even before the Accession, it appears that the one is like the Wizard of Oz. He's hiding behind a screen, reading from the script that the Clinton's and THEIR handlers have devised. Only time will tell, to be sure, but smarter people than me have figured out that Hill and Company knew they couldn't win so they made a deal to gain that prize no matter what and the one wanted to move on up to that big house on the hill, so naturally he was thrilled to be high fructose corn syrup!

Hang on, it's going to be a bumpy ride! I hope to see you on the other side!

My View - Miller High Live Commercial

If you haven't seen the commercial...... go here.

As I rule I don't watch commercials if I can avoid them. The joy of DVR!

But I'm forced fed this commercial because I watch baseball games in real time during the playoffs, etc. and I have to take a deep breath before I continue because I'm probably the only viewer in 'Merica that thinks these commercials suck and I'm going to tell you why....

Ok, first off, I'm from East Texas and that wins me a redneck from the get-go. I have to work at it to some extent because on the one side is the East Texas background and the other side is my belief in the Golden Rule. And my distaste for judging whole groups of anything such as 'all cops are', 'all blacks are', 'all whites are', 'all fat people'...... I know, I do it too, but I really would rather go one-on-one with folks and get to know them as individuals before I go off on them.

Or maybe I don't, maybe I just think I do and I'm really just a racist, but if I am, so are the folks producing this commercial. Clearly they are using the political sign of the times to bring about the change that is so sought.....that change being the black man rising above the white one and paying us back.

IMHO this commercial is reverse discrimination. It's bigoted. Its message is that if you can afford the good seats, you aren't worthy of the brew. The actor Windell Middlebrooks is a very talented black. His job is acting, he doesn't write the commercials and maybe because he's black and very believable it's (ahem) coloring my view, but from where I sit it's not possible for me to watch the thing and not feel uncomfortable wondering if I'm the only one of the globe that thinks this is anti-white-rich-folk?

If you look carefully you'll see token black actors in the back, background of all the commercials, I guess that's supposed to be where my argument falls apart, but that doesn't work for me any more than token black in the background have worked for THEM in the white bread world.

I'm Baaacccckkkkk! ByeBye Ike!

It was bad. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be and it certainly wasn't as bad as it could of been. The final figures of $destruction$ and loss of human life have not been compilled, but this is, of course, more about ME and MY experiences.

First, I decided to evacuate to my daughter's and that was a good thing as we mostly played cards by candle light and THAT helped to take our minds off what was going on outside. Her house is better insulated than mine I guess because the wind was loud, but it wasn't as loud as I remember Hurricane Alicia being.

My house lost power at midnight Friday, September 12th and it was just restored about an hour ago! That's almost 62 hours (if my math is right...I'm working on a quart low of sleep these days) and since I moved in here in 1976, this is by far the longest power loss EVER. Usually it's a few hours, a day if that when it's a bad storm. The area wide devastation is horrific. Everyone I know lost power...some won't get theirs back for WEEKS. Some still didn't have power from Hurrican Edwardo!

So, the theme of this post is THANK YOU! Thank you Reliant/Centerpoint/Dynowatt or whoever else restored me to my former comfort level! Yea! It's the little things that you appreciate....like opening your closet door and actually being able to see without going for a flashlight! Or the bliss of air conditioning! The good part was it wasn't unbearable even in the 90 plus humidity because I didn't do anything. There was nothing to do except play cards or read or watch my tiny bat operated TVs.

I swear I'd of given the light truck a standing ovation if I'd of seen it. My best friend did see it and she and her neighbor told them THANKS!

More on the storm later, but right now I've got to put away 9000 candles, batteries, radios, TVs, ice chest, etc. .......oh and my .38 that was by my side last night just in case.

Centerpoint:

70 Year Old Male Looking For Love Or Something

I was bored and so I went to Craigslist to see what there was to read...

After checking out the Photography and Electronics and Collectibles, I selected a category called: Strictly Platonic M4F. This is what I found:

The Lady I am Looking For;

She would be loving

She would want to hold me every night

She might go to work but be excited to come home

She would be understanding

She would eat right, exercise and take care of her body like I do so we could enjoy a long healthy life together

She would be adventurous

She would truly want me...just me

She would have a healthy view of money and not let it rule her

She would make me her #1

She would see the dream of growing older together and “smile”

She would let me know how crazy She is about me

She would “get me” or work very hard on "getting" me

She would accept and appreciate my quirkiness

She would miss me when I am gone

She would take care of me

She would treat others as she would want to be treated

She would encourage me in all things

She would never feel as if she settled for second best

She would try to some times live out side of the box with me

She would love to rub my feet, run her fingers through my hair, rub my back, etc.

She would be excited to see my face first thing in the morning

She would allow me to have friends of my own

She would encourage me to do things I enjoy doing

She would always be there for my family and allow me to be there for her’s

She would never want to go away...for long

She would help me build a “new” past together

She would treat me as a person of substance

She would respect my opinion

She would try new things that I like to do...without regret

She would speak her mind

She would never hold back

She would touch my hand, and give me a look...so everyone in the room would know we are together

She would argue with respect and know how to voice an opinion with out shaming or degrading to anyone

She would have a love for quiet times with me

She would need me

She would want a new “Best Friend” in me

She would want me to know her family, friends, and children

She would help me in this new phase of life, new friends, old family, new family, and become my new love

She would want to know my family and friends and help me blend both of ours together

She would help me create new memories

She would be excited about getting to know me...just me

Most of all...She would love me no matter what!!!

----------

My first thought is that this guy isn't looking for a realistic woman, he wants a dog!

My 2nd thought was: platonic? What part of that didn't he get?
I guess to be fair I should note that his last line was...

If you feel the same as I do about what I have written above...Change the She to he, and know in your heart and mind this is the type of person I am. I’ve been looking for you...

Too late, the damage was done well before the last line. He probably married and lookin' to cheat..... that "live outside the box" thing was a dead giveaway.

I think I'll just keeping my options open for another 12 years or so....

Scary Nut Case!

Long time no write! Mostly been busy...got some auctions going on E-bay and trying to keep cool in this Texas blast furnace. Also in an effort to keep from being TOO political I choose to just lie in wait. And there in lies the story...

I figure it's my right to support the candidate that I think best for 'Merica and I make no secret of the fact that there is only ONE viable candidate and that's Senator McCain so I bought a bumper sticker and put it in the back window of my car. It looks a lot like this one....



Well yesterday I came out of Kroger's in broad daylight and put my groceries into the trunk of my car, then I put the cart inside another cart and became aware of some guy hollering. I made eye contact with a man in a nice newer pickup truck as he was driving around me. He was just a ranting about something and I figured it was to another man in yet another pickup truck so I blew it off. Then he drove down the isle in front of my car, circled around and pulled into a parking spot on the isle I'd parked in, got out of his truck and started walking my way. The whole time this was going on he was looking at me whether I was returning the look or not! I decided to wait in the car and keep an eye on him in my rear view mirror, etc. When he got right behind my car he pointed at it and said something again. I didn't hear what he was saying, I just know he wasn't smiling and he was loud.

After he was in the store I backed out and puzzled all the way home what it was that I had done to hack this guy off. But BEFORE I drove off I wrote down his license number and I could reproduce it here, but that's not why I wrote it down. I looked him up and I know his name and where he lives. I thought he was making note or perhaps pointing to MY license plate as if to say he knew how to find me.

The more I pondered on his dementia the more I was convinced he was upset with my McCain sticker! I *think* I heard "Obama" at least once when he was driving around. All I can say is "FIGURES"! Only a bona fide nut case would support a candidate with no experience and nothing going for himself but Oprah's endorsement.

I will admit that it made me very uncomfortable to be singled out by a nut. This was a white male, probably in his middle 40's, driving a nice truck. He looked like Mr. Average American. He acted like he needed some adjustments to his meds!

When I wrote down his license number I didn't notice if he had any stickers or not...I was in a hurry to jot it down and get the hell out of Dodge! But even if he'd of had Obama stickers plastered all over the thing *I* would of never told him off for his political leanings! That's because I'm only a nut case in limited family related incidences, I reckon....

Vote, I don't care who you vote for, but VOTE! If you are voting for The Other, keep it to yourself, I got enough to worry about!

Don't Read This!

(This is just for me).





Jim is dying. Jim and Mercer are taking it well. They are all accepting and grownup and facing the elephant in the room head-on. Hell they aren’t just facing it, they’ve invited it in for dinner and drinks! They are fine. That’s what they say if you ask them how they are. Fine. Accepting. Realists.

Well I’m not fine.

I’m sad. And mad. And upset. I’m not liking that goddamn elephant one bit. I don’t like its shifty little eyes or its big old butt or the fact that it’s gray. I don’t like not being able to push it outside where it belongs. Who the hell wants an elephant in the living room or ANY room in the house? Elephants belong in the wild, or a zoo or the circus or the elephant store. NOT in the house. Scat, damn pachyderm!

I’ve never liked it and I can’t imagine a time that I ever will.

Soon Mercer will be a widow just like me except for the penis thing.

And except that he has a chance to pamper and be kind to and make love with Jim before it’s too late. He won’t have anything to feel guilty about AFTER.

So I guess he won’t be like me after all because I didn’t see that my split apart was dying.

I should have seen it. He told me often enough by his actions and innuendoes.

I don’t know why I didn’t see it. Did I not want to see death coming in the door? Did I think that everything would be as we planned forever? Did I do the final disservice by not recognizing that death is the great divider?

Shame on me for making this about me.

But how can we not acknowledge the elephant without it opening the wounds of sorrow for other times when the huge creature invaded our world? If elephants never forget then is it so farfetched to think that humans might also remember? And to remember is to open the wound again and again. It never heals. There is no closure when you love someone and then lose them.

I wish I had an elephant gun.

Kelsey Seybold Sucks! - Medicare Part Two

And I was hoping there wouldn't be a Part Two.... sigh....

I don't know what I'm whining about. Some people don't even have medical insurance. Some people don't even have Medicare. Some people don't even have supplemental Medicare coverage through the employer that their dead husband gave his life for.

BUT it's MY blog and I can whine if I want to.

I've been going to a dermatologist at Kelsey-Seybold for years and years. I recently went to a Family doctor and thought I'd be using him for years and years. I'm waiting for my appointment next week with a OB/GYN also with Kelsey-Seybold.

Yesterday I get a call from some clown representing Kelsey-Seybold and he tells me that he's just following up on the letter(s) I've gotten telling me that KS will soon no longer accept "regular Medicare"...they'll only accept the Kelsey-Seybold version.

I figured him for a salesman or a con.

For Christ's sake he was calling me on his cell phone and we lost connection!

Today I did some checking and sure as shootin', KS will no longer take "regular Medicare" after 1/1/09. I either have to join one of THEIR plans or take my poor old bones elsewhere knowing full well that it's not easy finding ANY doctor that will accept "regular Medicare".

WTF?

I CAN join KelseyCare Advantage Standard Option and STILL retain my retiree/widow supplement, but if I choose to go that route I can't go to my beloved cardiologist any longer. ONLY KS's docs are included in The Plan and they are all subject to change at any given moment. (To wit: KelseyCare Advantage has formed a network of doctors, specialists and hospitals. You can only use doctors who are part of our network. The health providers in our network can change at any time.)

It's a monopoly. Or a conspiracy. Or a private company in it for the dough and perfectly capable of calling all the shots and you can either like it or lump it. Don't let the double sliding glass doors hit you in the rump on the way out, sucker.

I don't recall if I've mention that you get more mail as you approach your Golden Years than ever before in your life. Everyone wants a piece of your Medicare pie. Everybody and his brother want to sell you their plan. After awhile you just toss them all away in disgust. Obviously ONE of those I tossed unopened was the one from KS telling me I was fixin' to be screwed and to just lean back and enjoy it. No cig after though because that's bad for your health.

I'm keeping that appointment next week and the one scheduled for August 20th with the dermatologist (it takes THAT long to see her) and come 12/31/08 I'm bidding them all adieu at Kelsey-Seybold. Next time I need medical assistance other than from Dr. DeBauche I'll just book a flight to Lourdes.

Medicare and Me - Part One

Hopefully there won't be a Part Two!

I turned 65 on April 1, 2008.

I had a couple of doctor's visits in March.

My insurance company keeps bumping back my cardiologist's claim saying it needed a requested explanation from Medicare.

My brand new, crisp clean Medicare card says my Part A and Part B became effective on March 1, 2008.

I thought....figures...it's the government and they got it rong!

Well after 2 months of being jacked around I finally found out today that when one turns 65 on the 1st of the month it becomes effective the month before.

Huuh, sure, that makes perfect sense.

So easy-squeezey, my doctor has to file a claim with Medicare. No problemo. Except for the other doctor who doesn't accept Medicare. She's yet to even bill me or file with my insurance company, but she will. And then I'll have to pay each and every red cent!

I thought I was doing good to book an appointment with her the day before I turned 65 so my insurance would still be in effect. They even asked me when I made the appointment if I wanted to go ahead and find a doctor that would take Medicare, but I said NO.

It's not a big deal until you step back and look at the big picture.

I'm 45 days in my 65th year and they are killing me!

Bureaucratic fine print.

It's too soon to tell and I'm NOT giving in without a serious fight, but I'm beginning to wonder if this sort of thing isn't why people die. They just get tired of fighting the bullshit.

Grumble, grumble.

OMG I'm On YOUTUBE!

One of the hottest, young studlies on the planet asked *ME* if I'd make a music video with him. Once I quit laughing, I said SURE.

I'll admit to some trepidation, thinking he most likely would make me look really, really bad so he'd look really, really good.... but guess what? He looks really, really good and I don't look THAT bad. In fact I think it came out very nicely done. He did a great job of editing because Lord knows I kept cracking up on pretty much every scene.

He's a genius....which would be the whole beauty AND brains thing! I just hope when he's made it BIG he remembers the little people! Go get 'em Travis!

I can't thank Travis AKA TdashDub enough for absolutely making my day if not my entire YEAR!

Check it out - Love Me Down!

New Car Bug - Chill Pill

I had the new car bug bad.

My car is 11 years old and in very good condition, but it IS eleven years old. So I convinced myself that it was time to get something newer.

I thought I wanted an SUV. Not because I needed either the 'sports' or the 'utility' part, but just the 'vehicle' and thought it'd be nice to have a place in the back to set up my dog's crate so she'd be safe and out of my way.

I was torn between the Toyota RAV4 and the Hyundai Santa Fe. I drove a 4 cylinder RAV4 and wasn't impressed with the get-up-and-go. I drove the Santa Fe in a 6 cylinder and it was okay, but it horrified me when I saw the BLUE lights on the dashboard. Now granted that was in board daylight and it's probably swell in the dark, but my God in Heaven it's UGLY! I won't say what I said about the color when I was describing it to a friend because it's horribly politically incorrect and I could probably be sued just for thinking it these days. But UGLY, just butt UGLY! Heck, hairy old men's butts are prettier than that blue is!

So I went back to thinking the RAV4 was the way to go but I needed to drive a 6 to be sure. Me and a pal went to the dealership and I whipped out the business card of the salesperson I'd already dealt with and, as luck would have it, he was either off or run off that day. I also tried to hand over my driver's license and insurance card. I told The Other what I wanted and that I wanted to drive it alone with just my bud for company and he said okay. He ran off and did Lord knows what and I waited and waited some more. He'd said he was going to start one up and let it cool down the insides, etc. Now I wasn't about to start thinking: WHAT? How efficient is that A/C if he has to go to all that trouble. This is after all TEXAS and it was spiking 80-something which is pert near balmy by Texas standards...but I digress....

He pops back in the door and again I hand him my insurance card and driver's license. He takes both and goes running off AGAIN and we wait some more. Finally here he comes and he's got a clipboard in his hands.....he shoves the clipboard at me and says SIGN THIS. I said THIS WHAT? He says it's a standard paper blah, blah, blah that'll keep the cops from stopping us or some such B.S. I say I didn't have to sign that with the other two new vehicles I've driven alone, one of them from this very dealership and he says something like WELL YOU SHOULD OF. Well, sir, 'bout then my cranky pants got bunched up good and tight and I said NO, I'll just go to another dealership. I turned and hauled butt back to my car with my buddy tagging along behind probably thinking WOMEN!

I will admit that later....MUCH later I got to thinking that the first car guy did throw a paper tag up on the dash and said something about COPS, but it wasn't a big deal....he just said it along with and this is how to adjust the seat and this is how to adjust the mirrors, etc. Sooooo .... maybe the cops are just sitting around waiting for me to take a car off the lot so they can pounce on me and make my life a living hell, but I DON'T THINK SO.....

We ended up going to CarMax and looking at used and there wasn't anything there that grabbed my attention, but I did get my car appraised and the number they came back with is not the point....the point was they'd checked off everything they check off to the good. My car has a few little problems, but they didn't even note them..... so I got to thinking why am I going to get rid of a car about which I know every bolt and nut and how often those have been serviced? I took two Tylenol and killed the new car bug.....at least for the time being......

Anyone that knows me knows I'm just the type to have taken The Other's treatment as vindication to say TO HELL WITH IT, I'll walk before I deal with jerks like him. They need my money a lot more than I need their shit.

Oh, did I mention that my car has 54,600 miles on it and that when I bought it there was 245 miles on the odometer. Not bad for a little old lady from near Pasadena, huh?

I guess the whole point of this little ditty is that there are lines and when someone crosses one of them you gotta do what you gotta do and I come from a long line of folks that would rather cut off our own noses to spite our own faces that put up with crap when the crap line has been crossed. It's the principle of the thing. You have to stand up to honor your own principles. It's a rule.

OMG I'm OLD!

I don't know how, but overnight my life flashed before my eyes and when I woke up I was OLD!

Today is my birthday. No foolin'. I'm six five. I wish I waz foolin'!

Sixty five years of age.

Ouch.

Medicare.

Depends.

Social Security.

Old lady jokes.

Cobweb coochie.

Wrinkles getting wrinkled!

Gray hair covered with harsh red highlit chemicals.

Okay, enough of that. That's the bad.... NOW for the good...

I woke up this morning!!!

The first thing I saw was NOT, repeat NOT, a white satin lining!

I got nine birthday cards and NOT one said anything about my age. Most were about how sex would be a distant memory, but, hey, I'm used to that kind of talk. I STILL own the key to the candy store even if the lock is rusty! But enough about that, don't want to gross anyone out.

Another good thing about six five is....

Wait. Don't tell me...I'll think of something...

I don't have to worry about getting pregnant.

NOW I get my senior citizen discount without asking.

I can flip people off and be rude and they chalk it up to senility.

I can get some cats.

I can get cool handles on either side of my toilet.

I can get one of those Help I've Fallen buttons.

Gosh now that I think about it. The possibilities are endless. If 40 is the new 30 and 50 is the new 40 then surely sixty five is the new 55 which as I recall didn't suck overly much.

AND if I look ahead I can see where 75 is probably the new 65 and so on and so on.

When all else fails I remember that....

Getting old is not for sissies.
Bette Davis
US movie actress (1908 - 1989)

Hugs...

NCL Pride Of Aloha Cruise Pictures Online

I'm hard at work uploading my vacation photos to....

http://picasaweb.google.com/TxGoodie

I ended up having to buy more space! Google is just too cool though. They don't want an arm and a leg for 40 gigs like you'd expect them to. I use and prefer my Picasa account even though I like SmugMug a lot. Picasa allows for the entire album to be downloaded with the original size and that's not only a great way to backup, it's a great way for my family and other interested parties to get the pictures they want.

SmugMug lets you change the theme of the albums and do other cool stuff, but you can only download full size photos from them one at a painful time.

If *I* was a webgod I'd have something called PiUg that would combine the best of both! Or CasaMug. Or SmugPic. Or...well.... it'd be great, honest!

I Need A Vacation After My Vacation!

I'm baaaaack. Did you miss me?

I've been cruisin'. My sister-in-law and I went on a 2 week vacation to HAWAII! I know, it's a thankless job but someone has to do it. We took it upon ourselves to try and help the economy in the islands. Lord knows there's a gift/souvenir shop every 6 yards every where we went and we hit 'em all and did a fair to partly cloudy job of helping to get Hawaii out of their financial slump!

We flew to Oahu first and stayed a couple of days with my cousin and her husband. They were the best host/hostess imaginable! As a rule I go out of my way to keep from "bothering" friends or family....I prefer to get a room so as not to impose. It was pointed out to me recently that sometimes people might really want to show you a good time and you should allow them to do so. I told them the day that we left that they might never get rid of me now they were so gracious!

Both my cousins (I have two cousins that make their home on Oahu) made sure we went everywhere on Oahu that we wanted to go. They also keep hydrating me so I wouldn't have a "Vegas" episode and end up in one of their hospitals.

We boarded the NCL's Pride Of Aloha on the 15th and sailed on the 16th until the 27th. More about the boat later. During that 11-day cruise we visited Honolulu, Hilo, Lahaina (Maui), Kona, Kahului (Maui) and Nawiliwili (Kauai). We had two day of cruising where we saw the islands of Molokai and Oahu's Napali coasts. We had an excursion to the island of Lanai. During the cruise days we were all onboard and fought for every available deck chair and crust of bread! More about THAT later too!

We had a wonderful time. We expected to have a wonderful time. We had some speedbumps along the way, but how could anyone be upset for long when you're in Hawaii!? We saw Kilauea's active lava flow at night from the deck of the ship and our own balcony. It was truly the highlight of the trip. All your school life you read about volcanoes and see pictures, but it's not the same as seeing it with your own eyes. Nature and Madame Pele showing off for the tourists... it just doesn't get any more exciting than that!

I'm in the process of 1) getting my laundry done, 2) getting 10 GIGS of pictures sorted, 3) trying to catch up with my e-mail and blog reading and 4) trying to get used to being back in my rut with the five hour difference in sleep and appetite. I managed to lose weight on the trip and that wasn't from not having an oppourtunity to eat non-stop for 24 hours a day....it was from walking and climbing every day and burning up those extra calories.

I'll be back with more on the cruise and provide the link to my photos.

For now, it's good to be home. I love to travel. I love the Hawaiian islands. I love my sister-in-law and my cousins, but I sure did miss my own bed and my kids and my little dog.

Hugs.....

More Tests Thanks To My Vegas Episode!

I made a trip to my cardiologist Wednesday and he had me go to the lab and give 5 vials of blood and a cup 'o piss for tests. I also got to go home with a Holter Monitoring device.

Today I was in his office from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. for a bunch more tests. I had a Carotid Ultrasound, an Abdominal Aortic Ultrasound, an Echocardiogram and a Nuclear Stress Test. They might of slipped another one or two tests in while I wasn't paying attention. I did get to scarf down TWO Dixie cups of Blue Bell vanilla ice cream for testing purposes and a package of peanut butter crackers from Dr. DeBauche's private stash because my blood sugar got low.

Monday I'll see him and hear what he thinks is the State of My Union, so to speak.

I made it nine minutes on the stress treadmill and that's up a minute from last year. I called a halt just short of the "having to run" speed....I'm not into running unless it's to catch the ice cream truck.




I've said it before and I'll say it again: I HEART my cardiologist! His name is Dr. Thomas DeBauche, M.D. and his office number is 281-890-8588.

He told me that when his name is Googled MY BLOG article on him comes up. Tickled me to death that he even knew that! He thanked me for my kind words, etc. and I muttered something about being kind of fond of him and how he saved my life.

Now I know good and proper that it wasn't JUST him that saved my life...it was HIM and GOD, but give me credit for knowing they are two separate entities. One being a deity and the One that gave my healer his strength and his incredible talent. I figure God's kind of busy and it's not easy to get in to see him, but Dr. DeBauche has never said he didn't have time to see me.

I like it that I've been going to his office since December 1996 and most of the staff is still the same. It's warm and comforting to been seen naked by people that know your name and that you have a history with. That means a lot to me. I quit a very good doctor one time solely because her staff got changed as much as her lab coats and after awhile it bugged me when they'd say "and have you been here before" every time I darkened the door. I'm on a first name basis with Cheryl, Ruby, Karen, Connie, Kathy & Donna. The newer staff will become familiar in time.

The other greatest part about going to my doctor is that even though he's got an impressive array of credentials and tons of education he made it through with a sense of humor and a delightful wit. He knows how to communicate with his patients and he explains anything that needs explaining. He's not shy about scratching his head and saying he doesn't know if he doesn't know and first and foremost he treats his women patients' conditions every bit as aggressively as he does his males. ALL of his patients love him too...I know because we talk among ourselves in the waiting room!

We are all so glad that he's OUR doctor, located in easy-to-get-to NW Houston and that we don't have to travel to the Medical Center, etc. He's going to build his own building too and that'll be cool for all concerned. He promised me that he won't retire before *I* do. Only in my case it'd be EXPIRE! I like to think he considers me his friend too.



How I Spent My Vegas Vacation
Dogs & Hearts - My Own Story