Scam of the Day : Contact Mr. Benson Smack

Every day, My email inbox receives several emails very similar to this one. Almost with melancholy repetition each day I delete them. Click...Click...Click...Yet, occasionally curiosity gets the best of me, just to see what is out there. Does it really ever work? I mean it has to right? Why would people do it? For the Scammers they should be eternally shamed for tapping into the sympathies of people...but really who is to blame...the greed of the Scammer or the Scammee...

I don't understand the psychology of someone who would fall for emails like this. Money is not free! You can't win lotteries if you don't buy tickets! Money doesn't fall from the sky into your pocket! IF someone asks you to cash a check of large amount of money for them...don't do it...it has to be illegal! Rich eccentric relatives don't leave you millions? Most importantly, people who are dying of cancer...or any fatal disease don't pick some total stranger to inherit all there money!

Right away one should ask three questions: 1. Who is sending me this email...do I know them...is it reputable? 2. How was I picked to receive this email? 3. How much money is involved? All of these emails are bad grammatically, thematically and logically. They contain several misspellings, common mistakes of English is your second language speakers, foreign nationalities and weird stories.

Now, to convince me that I had won millions I would expect phone calls, professional emails and correct spellings....How about you? Would you fall for this?----Scam of the Day

My Dear Friend:

Due to your effort, sincerity, courage and trust worthiness you showed at the course of the Uk Online Lotto winning cheque shipment to your location,I want to compensate you and show my gratitude to you with the sum of$750,000USD (Seven Hundred and Fifty Thousand United States Dollars) I have authorized the finance house where I deposited the money to issue you international certified bank draft cashable at your bank.My dear winner,I will like you to contact the CEO in charge of the finance house for the collection of this international certified bank draft.

The name of the Person with your Cheque is MR. BENSON SMACK COMPENSATION AND FINANCE HOUSE HEAD OFFICE CONTACT AGENT MR. BENSON SMACK

CONTACT TELEPHONE NO: +234-708-858-2922

E-MAIL: rev.benson33@sbcglobal.net

EMAIL: rev.benson44@sbcglobal.net

At the moment, I am very busy in Sydney because of the investment projects which myself and my new partner Mr. Peter Hills of CTL Express Delivery Company are having at hand. Finally, remember that I have forwarded instruction to MR. BENSON SMACK at the finance house on your behalf to end the bank draft to you as soon as you contact him without delay.Please I will like you to accept this token with good faith as this is from the bottom of my heart. Thanks and God bless you and your family.

Hope to hear from you soon.My sincere advice to you as a christian is that you should endeavour to pay your tithe to a bible believing church when you get the money because noticed it as a fudiciary agent that you were skeptical about your winnings when you ere been ask by the Uk lotto Agency Inc to file out aclaim for your prize. And now the current policy of the Lotto organiser is that if an emerged winner fails to claim up his/her winning cheque of any amount it's now mandatory that this fund can be remitted or forfeited to the fudiciary agent in charge of this winners file.However, I want you to contact him immediately as soon as you receive this information because he is leaving for the US by the end of this month and this might cost a delayment for you to receive this draft.

Yours Sincerely,

Mr Agric Michael

Holiday Fever!

Is it just me or have all the American people become more selfish. The economy is in a downturn but all I hear about is people complaining that they can't give their children ipods and Wii's for Christmas. When the money is short, we used to give gifts like loaves of banana nut bread wrapped in colorful paper, plates of persimmon cookies and knitted pot holders. I mean, I don't even know if we were poor back then...I don't know If I realized there was a difference...I have very fond memories of childhood Christmases and I don't believe my parents ever spent more than 50 dollars on me once. Why is it that as a nation we have come to equate wealth, bling and status with success. Its charming, flashy and sexy...I suppose, but what about what really matters. All of that success eventually becomes meaningless.

Why have the days of caroling been replaced with downloads of The first Noel and Silent night...I mean, I love my ipod as much as the next individual, but it will never replace going and listening to a Christmas choir in person. Every year, I go to at least 6 church Christmas programs they are free and lovely. Not that you have to attend church...its just there is so much in life that can bring joy and holiday cheer that doesn't cost thousands of dollars...All I am really trying to say is...can't we teach our children to look past the dollar signs...

So to ease my conscience a bit, I have developed a list of low cost and free holiday cheer, help me add to it:

1. Homemade Hot cocoa...not Starbucks
2. Homemade Sugar cookies
3. Strings of cranberries and popcorn for the Christmas tree
4. Christmas Cards made on the Home computer (tons less than buying in the store)
5. Listening to the Radio Station with Christmas tunes rather than buying new CDs
6. Reuse wrapping paper and Christmas bags for presents
7. Use Funnies to wrap gifts
8. Bring out the China for holiday dinners instead of the Dixie cups and plates
9. Use the old ornaments from the closet rather than buying new ones this year
10. ...still to come

I can't believe it!

Is it really possible these are wedding cakes? To each their own...but to some who raised you? These are some of the most tasteless...pun intended...wedding cakes, I have ever seen. People have no shame...


Is this really the image you want of each other for the rest of your lives?


Its one thing to like black, bats, bugs and scary things...but it becomes a bit of a fetish to have them on your wedding cake...this gives me indigestion.


This images makes me wonder about the husband, he wants to eat his wife symbolically? This screams cannibalism, control and spooky.


Be afraid ver afraid...if your wife wants this cake, have a ironclad prenup...in case of murder, arson, or mysterious death wife gets zero....

Ditto!

Wow...What is this? I can't even guess...what they were thinking...

Confidence, at its best?

I've been watching the presidential debates, intermixed rather depressingly with the reports from numerous media stations about the downtrodden economy. Both candidates claim to have a plan, a concrete way to fix the economy and save everyone concerned. Yet, neither one can at least to my level of satisfaction explain how they plan to do it. Obama, I must say though, seem to be at least more in touch with what is really going on in our world. Unlike, Mr. McCain that has yet, to really bridge that important gap yet. Don't get me wrong, I am greatly disappointed with both candidates plans for the future. The Dow Jones dropping hundreds of points every day, Unemployment rates increasing exponentially in some areas. In my area...there just are no jobs, including the one, I was hoping to get....

Yet, there is a bit of cynical humor out there...Personally, I find the idea hilarious...but very distasteful. Artist Laura Gilberts whose subject is Money, Men and Mischief distributed 10,000 of the fake bills in front of the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday, Oct. 7th to protest and call 'real' attention to the economic crisis gripping our nation. Gilberts' print is called 'The Zero Dollar'. Visit her gallery at http://www.glibertgallery.org/ .

Spark!

Just when the darkness seems to be at its peak it gets darker,
Just as I believe that I can bear it no longer,
Light appears,
How dare that light appear and give me hope,
When I know it will fade away into the darkness once again,
Leaving me,
I,
Alone,
How dare it!
As if it in its haughty hope holds the answers men have sought after for years,
Why fight the despair,
Isn’t it what makes sense,
No,
Each time that light appears,
I realize just once more,
How much I want to see it again.

Criminal Law 101

Which one of these would be result in a go to jail now card?

1. Rape comitted while sleepwalking (or)

2. Driving your friends car, with his stash of Mary Jane under the seat

The answer was unbelievable to me. I think the Criminal Justice System needs a little schooling from Dr. Freud.

(Answer 2)

New Year...during the Year?

There are so many news in my life right now...it could be only newer if , it was the new year. Interestingly, none of them involve the news I thought I would have at this point in my life. Instead, it seems I am still on the long journey I started 4 years ago of self study, University, and just surviving. I thought by now at 21, I would be in my own place, with a new car and romance. Yet, I am not...I have been stuck in a dark cloud this summer, only increased by this realization...its really very sad, I use to enjoy summer so much.

Yet, I am not going to let that dark cloud take me under, I am returning to University with a new lease on life. New classes, New degree, New clothes...New pencils, New pens....New Job...or at least I hope...new job...I had interviews to become the new Houchin Blood Band Blood Donor Recruiter...I sure hope it pans out. With a little more money, I think I might find my way out of the Summertime blues.

The Holidays are only a skip and a jump away and they loom like vultures on my new attitude. The Holidays always seem to break me down. I love getting together with family, but I never seem to have the money I plan on to buy gifts, plan meals. For me I always do...Big Thanksgiving and Christmas meals that cost hundreds of dollars. That usually is my gift to the whole family...but I just don't know if I am going to have the funds this year...we will see.

Someone once said, "Being happy doesn't mean that everything is perfect. It means that you've decided to look beyond the imperfections." So that is what I am going to try an do...for my New Year...Renewal......I am going to let the excitement is building about the News in my life and forget the bad.
Goodnight Cyberspace, Keep your heads up, Smile, and Say kind Things...always...

Something New...Something Old...Secondhand

I was walking past the window of a Salvation army thrift store a few days ago and paused in front of the display window. On display were 6 gorgeous wedding gowns, covered in sequins, ribbons and silks. It was impossible not to look and wonder what stories and memories were held in the the depths and folds of that fabric. Possibly a whiff of rose petals, a hint of perfume, images of love, devotion and new life. The thought hit me...is wearing a secondhand wedding gown stigmatized? I hope to someday wear my Mothers wedding gown as my own. My Grandmother made it...she even made the lace herself...

If I ever get married...which right now...I am unsure of...since I have not been in a truly serious relationship as of yet...Would that though be the same as wearing the wedding dress of stranger? In a world such as ours where we are taught to buy new, buy expensive and buy much...could a woman buy a secondhand wedding dress with her head held high?

I would say yes, I believe in making your own destiny even that of your clothing be it Kmart or Kevin Klein...or Goodwill...Wedding dresses are very expensive...and if you could find one of the right size, style and age...why not? Life is too short to quibble over wedding dresses...Although I have been told its the only dress it will take you weeks maybe even months to pick out...that you only wear once...is it then a waste, a memory or an heirloom?

My uncle works as a Goodwill donation man, he takes in all the donations people bring to the Goodwill drop of centers and boxes them up to be taken to the stores...He told me that one afternoon an older gentleman brought in a newly purchased wedding dress with tags and box still intact. My uncle being too nosey for his own good questioned the man...as the story goes, his daughter found a better one...Can you imagine...purchasing two wedding gowns...what waste...I endorse Secondhand wedding gowns...Hey...you could call your wedding a green wedding...

Goodnight cyberspace...stay kind, happy and healthy...

Impact of Professionalism on the Olympics?

I believe 1988 was the first Olympics that professional athletes were allowed to compete in certain events. But, 1998 was the last nail in the Amateur spirit of Olympics ended, the distinction between "amateur" and "professional" was deleted from the Olympic charter. Personally, I feel that the inclusion of professional athletes has sadly had a bad impact on the overall spirit of the Olympics. France's Pierre de Coubertin the Renaissancer of the modern Olympics envisioned a clean, pure, apolitical arena where "amateur" athletes compete for the betterment of human kind at the heights of human achievement. He created a vision that allowed anyone and everyone to compete, rich or poor. You didn't need to be professional or have endorsements. For me, this was a beautiful vision I wish was still continued today. Now...what is the Olympics Nike, Reebok, Wheaties or True Althletism? I can hear the complaints now. Trust me, I know this is not a popular view point. I'd love to hear any and all opinions concerning this issue.

PS...Billy Nelson a competitor in the Hurtles competition is from my home town...Taft, CA!!!!

Any Emu Fans Out There?

They are so big now...nearly taller than me...WOW...Is it really possible that in less than 5 months those little buggers have grown from the size of a small cat to the my height? Yes, it must me because I can see them. Interestingly, they've become so tame they will eat lettuce out of the palm of my hand and drink out of the hose. Have you ever seen a sparrow take a bath in a fountain? Picture a Big Bird bathing in a wading pool...and you can't help but laugh. These gentle giants go through a wading pool every few months. With their raptor claws they puncture holes in the plastic pools as they flick water on each other.

Beyond loving water, they are curious. So curious, I have to becareful with what they do, They will stick their heads through the fence and peck our German Shepard. I'm hoping someday she doesn't decide to have Emu for lunch.They chase anything that moves, peck anything that looks edible and pluck feathers from their roomate Turkeys. They are ravenous eaters consuming the occasional bug, lizard, leaf, and numerous mushy fruits. Yet, No livestock dealors in my area carry the Emu food...so I have to mix my own... here is the recipe...

Emu Chow

2 bags Turkey Finisher

2 bags Chicken Scratch

1 bag Dog Food

Pour together, mix well...and Enjoy...

And Trust me they enjoy it along with 2 Turkeys, 20 Chickens, half a dozen dove and a few blackbirds...what a manegerie...I have...The expense is the worst....50 dollars a month...ugh! But I believe its worth it...Goodnight Cyberspace, Keep Happy, Healthy and Friendly

To UCLA...I Go

Did You know that The Copts are a group of Christian Eygptians? How about this...had you any idea that their are two Popes? The Roman Catholic Pope Benedict XVI and Coptic Orthodox Pope Shenouda III.

The joy in life is really to just give life a chance. To learn something new and to challenge yourself with new activities. For me the recent challenge was to present at a conference at UCLA. I am not a good public speaker...my hands shake and my eyes loose focus, my breath comes slowly and I speed talk. Giving the speech to my graduating class in High School I swore that would be it...no more speechs and no more public speaking engagements. WELL I LIED! I was honored...and terrified at the prospect of being invited to present a paper at the 10th Annual UCLA St. Shenouda Coptic Conference. Honor:To be one of only a few special speakers amongst famous men such as Prof. James Robinson and Dr. Mark Swansen. Terror: Standing in front of 50 people and presenting a paper in front of Doctors, Scholars and Preists. I managed to be terrified and still give my presentation without stumbling or forgeting the words.

Walking to the podium, I tried hard to breath and remember all the hints I had been given like "look over the crowd" "smile" "Just take your time everything will be ok" but I knew that it wasn't going to be ok. I step onto the stage plant my hands firmly onto the podium and set down my paper. Starting with "Its an Honor to be here to present..." and ending with "Thank you". I thought, wow...that wasn't so bad. Until the questions began. Question one...a cinch...Question two...oh geez...breath...ok...done, applause...Step off the stage, walked back to my seat. I believe in luck and that might have just been my lucky day. I had two offers to publish my paper in scholarly references i.e. peer reviewed works and I didn't trip getting off the stage. All I have to say is I came, I saw, and I conquered...My challenge for the summer is over...Thank you Dr. Vivian, Hany Takla and the St. Shenouda Coptic Society for giving me this chance.
Goodnight Cyberspace...Stay softhearted..

A Building that Shouldn't have been

I believe this is one of the ugliest pieces of history and architecture that I have had the pleasure to read about and see on TV. I was watching an episode of Ghost Hunters International and this Hall was featured. One of the managers of the Hall referred to it as the most haunted building in Great Britain. The ghost hunters although found no evidence of a haunting. Personally, I don't believe in ghosts. I chalk all paranormal activity up to psychology, anxiety, the power of the mind, and the devil. For me ghosts are a way to draw humans away from what really matters. Yet, for some odd reason I enjoy watching the so-called scientific investigation of ghosts. Go ahead call me a hypocrite...I deserve it. Samlesbury Hall interests me more for its odd Tudor design. Situated in Great Britain this house sits like an enigma in the landscape. Its decorated in black and white gingerbread and clubs. It makes me dizzy.

Take a Personal Online Tour with courtesy of http://www.guide-to-castles-of-europe.com/samlesbury-hall-tours.html.

A little history: Samlesbury Hall was built in the 14th century by the D'Ewyas family and situated on the bank of the river Ribble. The Hall was destroyed by Robert the Bruce, after the Battle of Bannockburn, where the Scots attacked homes along the banks of the river, from Preston to Clitheroe. Gilbert de Southworth from Warrington married Alice D'Ewyas in the early 1320's, and five years later built the Hall, at least the oldest part of the building. Mr. John Cooper bought the Hall in 1850. In 1862, Joseph Harrison bought the Hall and restored much of what stands today. The renovations nearly bankrupt Harrison causing him to commit sucide.

A Post for an Amazing Poster

I've been gone for a long time, not posting or reading bI am writting at the request of a dear friend. I would like to send a prayer and a good word to a Post to Poster Sandy Kessler. Sandy is ill and needs support and strength. Sandy we are all here for you.

Here is a few sweet words for you strength, from an unlikely source...GET WELL SOON SANDY!!!:

Sick
'I cannot go to school today, 'Said little Peggy Ann McKay.'

I have the measles and the mumps,

A gash, a rash and purple bumps.

My mouth is wet, my throat is dry,

I'm going blind in my right eye.

My tonsils are as big as rocks,

I've counted sixteen chicken pox

And there's one more-that's seventeen,

And don't you think my face looks green?

My leg is cut-my eyes are blue-It might be instamatic flu.

I cough and sneeze and gasp and choke,

I'm sure that my left leg is broke-My hip hurts when I move my chin,

My belly button's caving in,

My back is wrenched,

my ankle's sprained,

My 'pendix pains each time it rains.

My nose is cold, my toes are numb.

I have a sliver in my thumb.

My neck is stiff, my voice is weak,

I hardly whisper when I speak.

My tongue is filling up my mouth,

I think my hair is falling out.

My elbow's bent, my spine ain't straight,

My temperature is one-o-eight.

My brain is shrunk,

I cannot hear,

There is a hole inside my ear.

I have a hangnail, and my heart is-what?

What's that? What's that you say?

You say today is...Saturday?

G'bye, I'm going out to play! '

---Shel Silverstein

From Kat...A little about myself

Here is a survey...I copied and pasted from My dear friend Poetikat's blog...

Format:
1. Name? (First name or nickname is good)
2. Age? (approximate is okay)
3. Favorite book? Poem? Song?
4. Top band in your iPod? (or if you're like me, on your cd player)
5. Favorite blog? (besides mine, of course)
6. Starbucks/Tim Hortons (for Canadians) Drink?
7. Anything Random?

Heres me:
1. Courtney...Court for short...
2. 21...um...almost 22 in a few years
3. Some many...but only one... "I Thou"
4. I have an I Pod...so I guess...that would be...I don't know...I don't really only collect one...but A-ha is a favorite
5. Stark Files
6. Venti Cafe Americano
7. I love to color in colorbooks!

Goodnight Cyberspace!

No Offense!

My saying of the day:
"I hate flies...Didn't you know...The devil made flies, chocolate, men and size 0"
--Shay Montesnique

Unbelievable

Is it really almost summer time? Land of graduates...children running the streets...summer vacations and swimming pools? It can't be....I am too tired, too broke, and too busy for it really to be summer time already. It seems like just yesterday that it was Winter. I seriously can't believe it. I have finals next week...and my Senior thesis is due....I can't believe it...unbelievable

Avon....From a Softhearted Hardhead

Check this out! I am going to do a little personal promotion today. I am an Avon representative. I have an e-business selling avon. Please Visit my website: http://www.youravon.com/courtneymorris
You can all buy avon online, from me...and have it sent directly to you! I will post specials on my blog frequently, to try and convince people to drop by...so keep an eye out...if you get a chance.

Why buy Avon?
By the end of 2006, total Avon philanthropy worldwide will have raised and awarded more than $500 million for initiatives and organizations of vital importance to women. Voted "a most trusted brand" on three continents, Avon was also selected by Businessweek as one of "The Top 100 global Brands" and honored as one of Fortune magazine's "50 Best companies for Minorities."

Further, Avon was one of the first cosmetic and personal hygeine companies to pledge a no "animal' testing policy. None of Avon's products are ever tested on any of our animal friends.

The Avon Foundation is an accredited 501(c)(3) public charity in the US that was founded in 1955 to improve the lives of women and their families. Now past the half century mark, the Avon Foundation brings this mission to life through two key areas of focus: the fight against breast cancer and support for women's empowerment, including economic advancement and the issue of domestic violence, and more than 300 grants area awarded each year for these important causes.

The flagship programs are the Avon Breast Cancer Crusade, which works to advance access to care and finding a cure; and Speak Out Against Domestic Violence, focused on ending the cycle of domestic violence, with a special focus on children. Avon is proudly the largest corporate supporter of the breast cancer cause, with programs in 50 countries, and the commitment to domestic violence is growing.

Avon and the Avon Foundation also respond quickly to national and international emergencies, raising funds and providing support for women and famiiles affected by incidents such as the attacks of September 11, 2001; the tsunami in Southeast Asia; Hurricanes Rita and Katrina; and the military conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Funds are raised through a variety of events, such as the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer series, and the sale of special fundraising products by Avon Sales Representatives. In 2006, the combined global philanthropy of Avon and the Avon Foundation reached an extraordinary milestone: more the $500 million raised and awarded.
More information is available at www.foundation.org.

Why buy Avon from me?
I am a new representative. I am a University student...trying the self-empolyed thing in order to help out with high gas prices and school costs. I will do whatever I can to make sure everything works out for you. Trust me when I say Avon brand is one of the best from cosmetics, clothes and cologne to tools, toys and trifles.

Is there a difference?

Is being lonely and alone the same thing? Have you ever really been alone....in the depths of solitude and heard the sound of the air seeping in and out of your lungs? The sound of the hair brushing your cheek? Or maybe your stuck in the brush of cellphones, TVs and car alarms.

Yet, one can be so lonely in the middle of a crowd. You can be talking and the life of a party and yet, in your heart, you fill as though the room is empty and your sitting in the center. I've battled bouts of loneliness my entire life. Not depression really, but I feel as though at times I am trapped between two worlds and belong in neither one. My family and friends have a hard time really grasping the significance of such an oddity. They say "your not alone," but they really don't understand the distinction between the terms.

Being alone is fine, actually at times I believe the human person craves aloneness to clear the mind and reinvigorate the soul....Loneliness on the other hand is toxic....it leads one down roads of darkness. Loneliness leads to bitterness, pain and sorrow...How do you cultivate aloneness and do away with loneliness...I'm in process...but here are my thoughts:

You learn about yourself....Therefore...I guess you could call my life a soul journey...My University education, my jobs, the books I read, the religions I investigate...my own personal relation with God...all a soul journey to discover the root of loneliness so that I can embrace aloneness.....serving others...I learn to better appreciate the self I was dealt....I walk the line...the line between alone and lonely...I may walk alone....but beside each and everyone of you out there...I am not lonely although there are times when this illusion rises to the surface...walk through the dark...you are the light...I walk through the darkness and embrace the light....for me...loneliness has become a muse for discovering my negatives and positives...although I travel through the valley of the shadows I shall fear no evil...for before me stands my soul...and it is....

Loneliness may actually be a blessing in disguise that has taught me more than any other teacher...but it took aloneness to learn that loneliness isn't as terrible as it seems.

Goodnight Cyberspace....Be good to your fellow human...remember he or she must wear the same skin...metaphorically speaking of course?

Literary Tag...

This is a first for me too...Dragonraid. Here goes:

The rules
1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people

My first go:
Nearest Book: I and Thou

5th sentence: "The innate You is actualized each time without ever being perfected."

3 next sentences: "It attains perfection solely in the immediate relationship to the You that in accordance with its nature cannot become an It. Men have addressed their eternal You by many names. When they sang out what they had thus named, they still meant You: the first myths were hymns of praise."

Lets give it another try:
2nd Nearest Book: Miss Marple The Complete Short Stories...by my favorite author Dame Agatha Christie...mmmm

5th sentence: "Yes, it was rather tough luck on Miss Barton-or Miss Amy Durant-whatever you like to call her.

3 next sentences: I became a ship's doctor for a while, and landing in Melbourne, the first person I saw as I walked down the street was the lady I thought had been drowned in Cornwall. Shew saw the game was up as far as I was concerned, and she did the bold thing-took me into her confidence. A curious woman, completely lacking, I suppose, in some moral sense."

Tag your it:
Poetitkat
Mr. Stark
Maxxo
Shemley
...to be continued

Check out my links list to find their blogs...they are well worth the read...all very entertaining personalities.

The Truth..Through Relation

Martin Buber was an “Austrian-Jewish theologian and philosopher” influenced by Hasidism (a Jewish mystical movement) in Eastern Europe. Buber went through this scenario, having a vision he originally interpreted as a mystical union with God. Buber later reinterprets his vision to be more in line with traditional Jewish understandings of relation with God. From Buber’s experiences he wrote “I and Thou” to ruminate his theological and philosophical ethic of relation and dialogue (a product of his reflection on his experience). Through experience with this religion Buber forms a relational ethic towards God and Human relations. Buber views God and Human’s as being in a mutual dialogue of I-thou relation. This I-thou relation helps complete creation. Maurice Friedman clarifies Buber’s ideas: “If God did not need man, if man were simply dependent and nothing else, there would be no meaning to man’s life or to the world. ‘The world is not divine sport, it is divine destiny.’”

The Eternal Thou needs humans for relation and existence. For Buber all human I-Thou relation culminates in the Eternal Thou. The Eternal Thou instills grace through which all other I-Thou relation is possible. Buber insists “extended lines of relations meet in the eternal Thou.” Buber characterizes all relational I-thous between humans are in one sense fodder for the fire of divine relation. With each I-thou relation we get “a glimpse through to the eternal Thou.” Therefore, humans may access the divine by entering into the relational I-thous where “the primary word addresses the eternal Thou.” Buber sees God in every human being and the ultimate gift of God is a mutuality of dialogue in I-thou relation where the eternal Thou allows the “inborn Thou” to be realized. The “inborn Thou” is God’s presence inside of humanity allowing man to use the primary world I-thou and rise above the I-It world.

Martin Buber utilizes dialogue symbolism to highlight the inherent important of I-Thou relation to expose God’s need of humanity to fulfill existence. The I-Thou relation creates a conversation between God and people. Think of God speech as happening “solely alongside or above the everyday.” Yet, God’s speech “penetrates” all of the world, life, history and present. God’s speech transforms all importance into “instruction, message, demand” for humanity. Buber insists all life and events is a confrontation urging man to make a choice in the world of how to relate. Thereby all life and events are “enabled and empowered by the personal speech of God to demand of the human person that he take his stand and make his decision.” This demand on the human person to make a decision deals with the complex need of God for humanity. As Buber continually asserts all real existence is relation. God’s existence is contingent upon the relation of humanity. True existence and relation is fulfilled by God and given by God to the mutual benefit of both parties. Such a need of God is not arbitrary or limiting. God self-imposes this need on himself to allow for mutuality, relation and existence. Buber passionately insists I-Thou relation fulfils Human existence, calling humans to share mutuality with God to “speak of it, bears witness[to], and calls to witness him to whom he speaks—whether that witness is now or in the future” of God’s existence.

Just a recipe for all those Cheesecake Lovers...

Extremely Delicious...give it a shot. Make it let it set over night have a piece for breakfast the next morning with a deep dark cup of strong coffee. MMMMM...Que Magnific!

Sicilian Ricotta Cheesecake
INGREDIENTS
2 pounds whole milk ricotta cheese , drain in cheesecake
2/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
6 eggs
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons orange zest or lemon zest
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt or instead of cinnamon, orange zest and vanilla use 1/3 cup amaretto

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Set rack in the middle of the oven. Butter and flour a 9 1/2 inch springform pan, and tap out excess flour.
Place the ricotta in a large mixing bowl, and stir it as smooth as possible with a rubber spatula. Stir the sugar and flour together thoroughly into the ricotta. Stir in the eggs 1 at a time. Blend in the vanilla, cinnamon, orange zest, and salt. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
Bake in the center of the oven for about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours, until a light golden color. Make sure the center is fairly firm, and the point of a sharp knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. It will sink slightly as it cools. Cover, and chill till serving time.

#1 on my list of things I'd like to see before I die...

Wieliczka Salt Mine

These polish salt mines are on my list of places to see before I die. They are completely fascinating. I first heard of the Wieliczka mine on a history channel special about odd places in the world. Its funny that places so capture a persons interest.

Wieliczka is in the town of Krokaw in southern Poland. Polish people began to mine salt since the late 13th century. The mine is a vast labriynth of over 200 km of underground passages, connecting more than 2000 excavation chambers on 9 underground levels extending down to 327m.

Miners spent most of their lives down in the mines. Spending all waking hours in the caverounous mines, they began to carve sculptures, chapels, religious icons...etc out of the salt deposits. Consequently, the mine contains numerous underground churches, altars, reliefs, and life-size or larger statues. The quality of this art is amazing. They are gorgeus like they are from the Cathedrals in rome.

It also houses an underground museum a sanatorium for people suffering from respiratory ailments, a soccer field, dance hall, huge dinning hall and other special rooms. The largest of the chapels is call ed the Chapel of the Blessed Kinga. The Chapel is 101 meters below the surface... over 50 meters long, 15 meters wide, 12 meters high, with a volume of 10,000 cubic meters.

I just hope, I can see it before I die....its on my BUCKET LIST...

The French...Well....Of Course...

Who would have guessed? I had no idea...I wouldn't have guessed any type of glass could be modeled after this...it can't be true can it? I mean champagne glass are not shaped like that....if they were I am afraid lots more people would be getting tipsy on the bubbly. Its not all that plausible...but isn't Marie-Antointette the queen who said "if there isn't enough bread...Let them eat cake?" Now remember next time your sipping champagne...wine or sparkling cider...and ask, Who modeled for these? Just think of the American glass choices...Madonna? Beyonce? Speares? I may have to give up drinking wine from beautiful crystal goblets...maybe start using dixie cups...

The Champagne Glass and the Breast Diane de Poitiers'? Marie-Antoinette's? Lee Miller's?
By Tony Perrottet

How best to worship the perfect breast? Men have long dreamed of sipping fine wine from their lovers’ busts cast in glittering crystal. In antiquity, a temple on the island of Rhodes displayed a goblet believed to have been modeled on the breasts of Helen of Troy by her paramour Paris. In the Middle Ages, love-besotted French king Henry II had his wine cups fashioned on the “apple-like” breasts of Diane de Poitiers. And in the late 1700s, the legend sprang up that Queen Marie-Antoinette’s breasts were the model for the shallow, broad-rimmed champagne coupes that are still often used today. (Although the modern fashion is more for the tall, thin and very un-breast-like champagne flutes).

There is no evidence at all that this is true of Marie-Antoinette, although the Queen did have a passion for bubbly. If nothing else, her ample figure, admired by her letch of a father-in-law King Louis XV and others, would have provided a higher-volume glass than the shallow coupes. But the royal breast-stemware connection may have begun with another, slightly more plausible story: Marie-Antoinette definitely did have a set of breast-shaped porcelain milk bowls created for her by the French porcelain factory, Sèvres – and tradition holds that they were modeled on her own. Known as the jattes tetons, the creamy white gourds balance on a tripod base that is decorated with carved goat’s heads.

Marie-Antoinette was a devotee of the “back-to-Nature” movement that brought breast-feeding back into fashion in France, and she had ordered the cups for use at her fairy-tale dairy Rambouillet, where the queen liked to dress up as a shepherdess and frolic with her children and ladies-in-waiting. The shamefully expensive service was delivered during the troubled year of 1788, the year before the Revolution exploded.

If the story is true, the cast of the Queen’s breast would probably have been made from wax under the control of one Jean-Jacques Lagrenée, the factory’s co-artistic director. The four original bowls survive in the Musée National de Céramique de Sèvres in Paris, and the porcelain company still makes reproductions for connoisseurs.

SOURCE/FURTHER READING: Yalom, Marilyn, History of the Breast, (New York, Knopf 1997); Caroline C Yung, “Marie-Antoinette’s Dairy at Rambouillet,” Antiques Magazine, (October, 2000); Antonia Fraser, Marie Antoinette: The Journey, (New York, Doubleday 2002).

A New Contender

The most recent breasts supposed to have inspired champagne coupes belong to the American model and photographer Lee Miller. As she cut a swathe through 1930s Paris as the lover of surrealist artist Man Ray, Miller was widely regarded to have the most beautiful breasts in the city – thus, it’s said, inspiring a French glass company to model a new coupe on her form. Miller’s lovely figure appeared in many Man Ray images, but was discreetly hidden when, as a war photographer in 1945, she posed nude in Hitler’s bathtub in liberated Munich.

Emu Update!

They are so darling...it a prehistoric way....they remind me of those PBS and BBC specials on prehistoric life forms. They are geniunely from another variety than that of your average everyday pets. In the first couple of days of their life with me...they both tried to hange themselves in the fence....in response anothor roll of fencing went up to save them from an untimely death. A few days later one tried to jump out and broke a claw...they have sharp little claws...they have real rippers. Now....the little darlings have quadrupled in size since they were hatchlings. They are about 3 feet tall now....about 1/3 of the size of their parents.

Now for all you terribly interested people...especially....Maxxo...Here are a few quick Emu facts:

• Emu's are part of the Ratite family
• Their scientific name: Dromaius novaehollandiae
• Reach an adult height of 6 to 6' 3" (1.9 metres)
• An Adult wait of 85lbs(55kg)
• Run close to 40 mph in adulthood
• Can jump nearly sixty feet in maturity
• Lay eggs and sexually mature at 3 to 4 years of age
• Each egg contains about 3 cups of goo...yolk ant whites
• Drink like a duck
• Love to roll in mud and play in sprinklers
• Have a 3 hour digestive system
• Eats almost anything: nearly 1 to 2 lbs a piece...even as chicks!

What do they eat?
Alfalfa, Weeds, Apples, Dog food, Chicken mash, corn, bread, rolled oats, greens, peas...just about anything including shiny things if they get the chance...bugs, lizards, small snakes...but not usually. My little darlings like Turkey finisher, bread, Weeds, and Cabbage. They especially go nuts for leafy veggies.

Where do you get Emu Chicks?
That all depends where you live. I bought mine from an old man who lived in the country. His Emu's raised the chicks. I paid $25 a piece.

How can you tell if they are male or female?
I don't know...you need to be a lot more experience than me to tell...you can't just ask.

They grow up so fast!

Money, Money, Money

My words exactly....Well sort of...even if it was recorded by Abba in 1976 and sung beautifully by the beautiful Anni-Frid Lyngstad. Maybe I am a swede at heart? Nah...great minds think alike...that is me and the writers of the song Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus.

I work all night,
I work all day,
to pay the bills I have to pay,
Aint it sad,
And still there never seems to be a single penny left for me,
Thats too bad,
In my dreams I have a plan,
If I got me a wealthy manI wouldnt have to work at all,
Id fool around and have a ball...

Money, money, money,
Must be funny,
In the rich mans world,
Money, money, money,
Always sunny,
In the rich mans world,
Aha-ahaaa,
All the things,
I could do,
If I had a little money,
Its a rich mans world,

A man like that is hard to find but I cant get him off my mind,
Aint it sad,
And if he happens to be free I bet he wouldnt fancy me,
Thats too bad,
So I must leave,
Ill have to go,
To las vegas or monaco,
And win a fortune in a game,
my life will never be the same...

Money, money, money,
Must be funny,
In the rich mans world,
Money, money, money,
Always sunny,
In the rich mans world,
Aha-ahaaa,
All the things I could do,
If I had a little money,
Its a rich mans world,

Money, money, money,
Must be funnyIn the rich mans world,
Money, money, money,
Always sunny,
In the rich mans world,
Aha-ahaaa,
All the things I could doIf I had a little money,
Its a rich mans world,
Its a rich mans world.

What A World....How True!

As if my life really needed the excitement...

Why did I do it? I haven't quite analyzed my psyche long enough to actually divine the answer. I bought two Emu chicks. Is it a leftover of some childhood sadness over not getting a Easter chick? No...I don't think so...because Emu's are like Chickens on steroids in Texas. That can't be the reason. I believe I would classify it as more of one of those oddities that approach us in life. I chose to embrace the idea. No I am the proud surrogate parent of two Emu chicks. They are very cute...and they already can out run me in only 3 weeks. I named them Aussie and Sydney. Real original...My concern is not over them now...but what I am I going to do when they are 6 feet tall...and literally almost bullet proof. I have enough room...I know how to take care of them...but if I move...what will I do...I don't believe they allow Emu's as apartment pets. What a web we spin for ourselves? Most people when they fill the need for a little difference in their life...get their hair cut...dyed or go on vacation...I bought an two Emu chick...what does that say about me?

Don't answer that!
Goodnight Cyberspace...May life leave you well, happy and with out too much trouble.

Ever Wonder Why...

Ever wonder why you can never get something back into the package it came out of ? I can never get all of Christmas lights back in the box. No matter how hard I try. Well, guess what it's science, well...physics that is(sort of). If you carefully stack equal-sized marbles in a box, they will fill about 74% of its volume. Yet, if you dump them willy nilly into the box, they won't fill up more than about 64%. Honestly, no joke, no matter how much you shake the box or pound on it. Researchers have studied and measured this "random close packing" limit. No one for years could explain the phenomenon. Recently, a Russian team of researchers reports in the June Physical Review Letters that the "random close packing" limit is met each time all the marbles form tiny pyramid shapes. These pyramid shapes take up more space than the stacking does. The Russian study, many scientist postulate is a good starting point for describing the random, close-packed state mathematically, and may even help to explain why disordered solids called glasses freeze in a liquid-like state instead of forming a crystal. Modern researchers are not the first to explore this reasoning in 1611, Johannes Kepler estimated that crystalline objects couldn't be packed more densely than 74%. It took the next hundred years or so for scientists to discover and understand why. (http://focus.aps.org/story/v19/st18)

Diversity, True Beauty

Without the differences inherent in religion and culture, we would be a much more empty people. Here are a few interesting examples of interesting news stories that highlight cultural diversity, I found interesting.

New Japanese parents receiving a gift traditionally give a lesser one in return. Similar to the American custom of handing out cigars in the U.S...except they are not trying to give family members lung cancer. The Yoshimiya rice shop in Fukuoka recently created an traditional return gift: small bags of rice in the weight of the newborn, printed with a picture of its face and name, so that original gift-givers (relatives, friends) can experience cuddling, holding and loving on the newborn. This gift is quite practical because after cuddling the baby rice bag, the relatives can then set down to a nice meal of baby rice. The Yoshimiya's owner admitts some people might have a problem with that. [Reuters, 1-8-07]

"We sleep with the snakes (i.e. cobras), we eat with the snakes, we live with the snakes (but) we are not scared," said a 14-year-old girl in a rural village outside Calcutta, India. The village leader insists, "Whenever I lie down in my bed, a cobra will just slide on top of me, without hurting me." Its estimated more than 3,000 cobras live in these small villages, largely in peace. Very few bite victims (though a cobra bite is often fatal because villagers initially trust the gods and spirit doctors to treat them)are reported. Many villages so revere Cobras that they view bites as attacks by bad vipers or "nonresident" cobras [Wall Street Journal, 11-26-07]

I Tried it!

Diet Cherry Chocolate Dr. Pepper tastes like a cherry tootsie roll pop...mmm....I don't think it should be a soda...but it is truly interesting. On the Crosby show...Dr. Crosby...loved chocolate soda...now...I know what a hybrid of chocolate soda tastes like. I question the whole reasoning behind creating a soda that is suppose to taste like a chocolate covered cherry...Why? It must be part of the Valentine Conspiracy....

Have you Seen this?......I Have To Try It!

Have you seen this anywhere? WANTED: At least a bottle...to try. I am a die hard Diet Dr. Pepper fan. I tease that when they embalm me for the coffin...they will drain pure Diet Dr. Pepper from my veins. I loved Diet Cherry Vanilla and Berry Cream....but this I have to try. I am willing to pay someone to send me a bottle...Ha Ha...A friend said they were selling it on ebay...will it really come to that...will I have to purchase a bottle from ebay...I am not sure that is safe...buying soda from a person of ebay. That would definitely be a low. I can't find it anywhere in my area...how sad the day...when American capitalism fails to bring a fashionable soda to a willing customer...

Childhood Fears...Adult Nonesense!

There is a new show on the History channel called UFO hunters. I am watching it while I post. I can't believe the seriousness people show towards UFOs. Personally, I am not a believer in little green men or white beings with bulbous heads and huge black pearly eyes. But that wasn't always the case.

As a small child I was terribly afraid of them. I had nightmares of aliens that would rival the horrer movies on television. I had a very vivid imagination. I blame it all on my parents for watching X files and other alien movies. Can you believe my Dad told me about his own UFO experience....of seeing a fireball in the sky? Not to mention my Uncle who like all crazy Uncle's that are cross-country truck drivers had a few stories.

It got so bad....that when my My cousin bought me a little glow in the dark alien with blue sparkly eyes .... I kept it locked securely in a box in my dressor, because it frightened me. Oh how the tables have turned! Now I am a critical skeptic...that would find it hard to believe even if I saw one myself. Yet...am I truly honest with my self...to date the only three alien movies I have seen are Tommyknockers...Signs...and The War of the Worlds....

Do you think visiting a new blog every....

I mean the saying goes an apple a day keeps the docter away. Do you think visiting a new blog everyday and leaving a comment will increase traffic to my blog? Or maybe its a doomed operation? It could be subject matter. I do write about or post my own interests and ideas. It could be that others don't find it interesting...Oh well...this is mainly for my own enjoyment.

10 of the Worst Works of Art : Warning Some of this should be censored

1. Chris Ofili's "Holy Virgin Mary"

2."Piss Christ" by Andres Serrano

3. "Loose Lips Sink Ships" by Peter Langenbach

4. Renée Cox's "Yo Mama's Last Supper"

Operation 10

Stolen from the darling poet closest to my heart Poetikat...I offer from the realm of Mc Kittrick, straight from the halls of Morris Manor...via the fingers of a Softhearted Hardhead....Operation 10. Which for all of you that can not read my mind is my quest to find out why the number 10 is so important. I mean everyone wants to know 10 facts about you, 10 most used words, 10 biggest errors...how to loose a guy in 10 days....Or why Pearl Jam named an album Ten....or why there is a Big Ten Conference instead of a Big Six...or my personal favorite...On a scale from one to ten...so here is the profile of 10:

The number systems of important ancient cultures such as the Greeks and Hebrews were built on successive orders of 10. Ten is seen as the completion of all the other numbers before it or the culmination of those before it. Ten is built into the basic anatomy of our bodies: ten fingers and ten toes. Thus, ten is seen as the completeness of order. Ten for most implies completeness of order, no missing pieces and no leftovers. Ten for Biblical scholars and believes represents the perfection of divine order(10 commandments, 10 righteous, 10 generations...etc).

And for any Fans of Monk...we know its true. For him there is no greater good than 10 and its brothers 100, 1000, and in the case of his current season finale...1,000,000.

In addition for any numerologist fans (or Sylvia Brown addicts): Ten has the primary meanings of fulfillment, the conscious mind, the logical mind.

So if any of you are like me and wonder why we don't say 8 favorite things, 11 best movies, or 9 spectacular sayings....this may clear it up!

Delusion

I am no stranger to envy or jealousy, although I have grown to manage these impulses with intelligence, empathy and common sense. Yet, the one impulse I have yet to handle is my ability to judge harshly those in places of prominence such as pastors, teachers, police officers, Presidents, Judges, and Celebrities.

I had an epiphany while reading a post from the Stark Files...I am often very critical of Celebrities....for the obvious examples: Nicole Richie, Paris Hilton, Britney Speares...etc. My message usually is that money, power, influence, beauty and tele-identity make people idols for worship and they aren't worthy. Some people vote, dress, eat and think like celebrities out of worship for a Hollywood ethic that they can't truly understand and that doesn't really exist. I bash the mindless drones for their worship and often all celebrities are trampled in my messages of fire and brimstone.

Today, I realized that their are stars out there like:
Oprah,
Alyssa Milano,
Bono,
Sandra Bullock,
Nicholas Cage,
Jackie Chan,
Celine Dion and many others

They all deserve a round of applause. These many stars actively support with funds, time and sincerity foundations and causes for the betterment of humankind. I should be careful, most College students don't think twice about shrugging off charitable actions or wasting extra cash of themselves. How many regular people do you know that would donate over 3 dollars to a charity? Here lies the rub...why then am I so quick to judge prominent figures by a criterion...I won't judge the rest of the world by? Hypocrisy? I donate...but do I do enough? All that I could? I shouldn't be so quick to lump all celebrities according to the seemingly idiotic behaviors of a few.

Goodnight Cyberspace, Be weary of Celebrities for advice on how to live, but recognize that idolship comes great responsibility.

I have always questioned the authority of this holiday. My main complaints are:
1. Its about buying presents for a sweetheart
2. Its alienating to those of us without a sweetheart
3. Its named after St. Valentine, to celebrate his martyrdom.
4. The Valentine's day Massacre...(this needs no clarification).

Yet, I still make homemade Valentines and give them out to my Grandma, who gives me a small box of sweethearts...Am I a hyprocrite? If I am, I enjoy it. I may not be successful in romance. Goodnight Cyberspace! Love is such a precarious thing. Be careful in love, be righteous in love, and most of all never give up.

St. Valentine's Day

Here's a little history on a nasty holiday:
February 15th,the Feast of Lupercalia: The lives of young boys and girls were strictly separate, during the conservative years of Rome. However, one of the customs of the young people was love lotteries. On the eve of the festival of Lupercalia the names of Roman girls wrote their names on slips of paper and placed them into jars. Each guy would draw a girl's name from the jar. Then they would then be partners for the festival.

The Emperor Claudius II having a difficult time at filling the ranks of his military leagues. He believed that the reason was roman men did not want to leave their loves or families. Therefore, Claudius II cancelled all marriages and engagements in Rome to increase the numbers in the leagues. St. Valentine was a priest at Rome in these days . He and Saint Marius aided the Christian martyrs and secretly married couples.

For his part in aiding Christians and disobeying the decree of the Emperor, St. Valentine was captured and brought before the Prefect of Rome. He was charged and condemned to be beaten to death with and to have his head cut off. He suffered martyrdom on February 14, 269 A.D. Legend has it: that St. Valentine left a farewell note for the jailer's daughter, who had become his friend. The letter was signed "From Your Valentine".

In 496 A.D. Pope Gelasius set aside February 14 to honour St. Valentine’s matyrdom. Overtime, St. Valentine became the patron saint of lovers and modern day exchange of love notes. Have we really came that far? Its still a game of chance (HA HA).

Why Do We Suffer?

Theodicy....

"Is God dead?" in the immortal words of Nietzsche (I know a little out of context...but still valid)...Can God exist with an Evil world were innocents suffer? How many times have we heard the story of the righteous man that suffers. OR the great examples: Genocide, Rape, Murder...

Or the religious man who claims suffering is punishment for sin and blessing a reward for righteousness...What about Job? He did nothing wrong, yet he suffers. Job losses his family, wealth, credibility, ending up in the ashes. Why?

If we suffer for soul making, to build better character, then why doesn't it end there? Besides that why can't we be taught bravery, compassion and sensitivity through good rather than pain?
If the Problem of Evil stems from Free will, then why didn't God give man free will with a preference for good, instead of a sinful nature?

If instead the world is ruled by Karma and we suffer because of past misdeeds? Then why strive for good in this life?...you won't remember in the next life anyway....there is no help for the sufferer of Karma. Does the existence of evil and suffering mean there is no God?

Try answering this in a 3 page essay! Its impossible...Paradox exists within God and within our suffering for a purpose. Personally, I believe these issues are meant to be contradictory and paradoxical. This paradoxical nature proves that God’s Nature is beyond human conception. God is always beyond what we make of him...once we create a notion of God, suffering, pain, and injustice shattering this image of God. The problem of Evil has no satisfactory answer.

P.S. Offer any opinion on the subject! I'd love to know any ideas about theodicy, or God!

Do you think this says I love you?

"I would walk you to your car...but that is not the way I am headed," Sorry to all you guys out there who try to pick up girls this way...but it doesn't work. I just don't get it...to me it says lazy for one and for two it says....your only important enough to walk to your car in the dark if...its close to mine. A nice young man said this to me. I was told later he was trying to pick up on me. Yet, I would never have guessed. Maybe, my reciever is screwed up.

Voting day or Dia de Votante?

The polls closed at 8, we weren't finished counting ballots and cleaning up the poll site till 11:30. That is crazy....Wow. If only you were there you would understand. Have pity on your poll clerks next time you go to the polls. We are just regular people following the orders of the federal government. Some of us not even by our own choice!

Here is an example of the craziness. I was a poll clerk in a small community with 410 registered voters. Of the 410 over 75% are Spanish speaking individuals. Of the 4 poll workers only one of us signed that we were bilingual. I never sign bilingual, because I am not fluent and have grammatical construction problems. But our bilingual clerk...was a nightmare she was confusing the voters with weird words that don't even exist. So I had to take over translations. Yet, How do you do you explain to an illiterate Spanish speaking individual how to use an audio touch screen ballot machine with 4 years of conversational High School Spanish?

Or even more confusing how do you say what Republican and Democrat or American Independent political parties are? They don't translate straight across. I take my hat of to all of you that have the golden tongue of language…bilinguals, trilinguals, English 2nd language speakers...etc. But don't worry your votes are safe...I think…just because I started the day not know how to say “Would you like to vote in Spanish?” doesn’t mean I can’t count…uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco, seis,….Goodnight Cyberspace…Good dreams, Good Health and Good Hearts!

Vote, Obama!

Don't Forget to Vote! Especially you Californians out there! Our primary is Tomorrow Feb. the 5th. Even if its not for my candidate.

Hint for Bloggers Wanting to get noticed!

As if they weren't noticeable before....Not that I know anything about increasing traffic....because I don't....According to studies, the two most noticeable colors together are school bus yellow and black. This is the reason, these two colors are the makeup of school buses and most taxis...To get noticed...interesting...it was to me...

Age Really is in the Eye of the Beholder

Here is a bit of weird news for you. Have you ever wondered how a true master of disguise can do it? Portray themselves as 10 different people. Some of the best I ever saw was on a stupid reality TV episode of Top Model. The models were made up into other ethnic races. They were completely believable. I often wondered how the great masters Sherlock Holmes and others could have possibly lived for months even years in disguise (Fiction or not). I guess the trick is to find one that works and stick to it. Ms. Barbora Skrlova, 33, tricked the Norwegian police, classmates, child care workers and teachers for four months into believing she was a 13 year old teenage boy named "Adam". She went to school, spoke, played and interacted with students and teachers. The kids in "his" classroom thought the boy was a "little strange", yet chalked it up to cultural differences. Barbora claims she was trying to escape witnessing in a child abuse scandal in the Czech Republic.

If this seems hard to believe just wait....the plot thickens Barbora was found at a house in the Czech Republic a year ago during a raid by police investigating the child sex abuse case. That time she quite successfully posed as a 13-year-old girl called Anicka. Can you believe it...this is insane. At this time they adults in the house were found to be members of the The The Grail Movement. To think she could get away with it twice....spooky especially since she is involved in child abuse and was biding time in a school....Ewww. Tolerant or Ambivalent or Oblivious? That is the question!

Most Common Dreams...Do you agree?

Some of us would love to blame Freud and Jung for dream interpretations and psychoanalysis...but really its our ancestors fault. The Lakota Sioux believe that dreams are important modes of the communication between the spiritworld and the present world. The Aborigines believe dreamtime...the Dreaming is at once both the ancient time of creation and the present day reality of Dreaming. So we are only the happy recipients of a long history of Dream interpretation.So Here is a little of the Psycho babble of modern day Freudians, Jungians and Courtney. Concerning the Common Dreams of today:

1. Falling through space or jumping off a cliff. (I have this one...alot of the time)
Expert: could be a body reaction to "falling asleep" especially in light sleep - legs may jerk in a reflex action may indicate loss of control in a situation
My Opinion: In mid air...you feel as light as a feather...therefore its a weight loss dream

2. Large waves and water. (Use to dream about this once in awhile)
Expert: tidal waves can represent strong feelings or emotions, or a sense of being swamped
My Opinion: The Beach is dangerous...Water...is more dangerous...Water at the Beach Very Dangerous, repressed childhood memory...from when a wave knocked you over at the beach and drug you under...been there.

3. Chased by monsters. (Never)
Experts: events are catching up with you trying to run away from something
My Opinion: Don't be afraid of the dark...only what is in the dark

4. Going to toilet. (Never again)
Experts: might need to go! getting rid of old attitudes
My Opinion: Weird!

5. Fully or partially naked. (I have an attachment to always been clothed...so never)
Experts: feeling exposed or vulnerable
My Opinion: Time to buy a new wardrobe or go to the laundry

6. Flying (Never)
Experts: rising above daily problems seeing things in a new way
My Opinion: You watched too many superhero television shows or you need to think about a career in piloting or birdwatching.

7. Sex (Never...I am far too...vanilla for this)
Experts: release of sexual feelings integration of new/different ideas or characteristics represented by the partner
My Opinion: Humans are dirty fleshly creatures....

8. In a house with rooms and doors. (Several times)
Experts: rooms represent different aspects of the dreamer doors represent opportunities
My Opinion: You need a smaller house...or you got lost as a child in a large house...repressed childhood memory.

9. Traveling. (Frequently)
Experts: current direction or path in life
My Opinion: Travel...you need to

10. Death. (Never...life is just too much fun)
Experts: new beginnings out with the old - in with the new
My Opinion: Either a premonition of your own death or your looking for a change

(Source: Dee, Nerys (1990) Discover Dreams: A Complete Guide to Understanding and Interpreting Dreams London: Harper Collins)

10 things you don't know about me...

Lets call it 10 for 10. I charge Mr. Stark, Kathleen and Maxxo with having to tell all of the Blogging cyberspace 10 things about them. I find them to have 3 of the most incredible blogs out there. Here are 10 things about me you didn't know....and maybe you didn't want to know:

1. I drop everything to listen to NPR The Thistle and Shamrock radio Show
2. I have 3 parrot cichlids in an aquarium in my bedroom
3. I respect my grandfather more than any man on earth
4. My biggest fear is loosing my teeth and then going bald
5. I walk a different route back to my car every night after dark (when at college)
6. I use antibacterial hand gel every after I wash my hands every time
7. I write to a 73 year old pen pal in Florida
8. My Favorite soda is Diet Doctor Pepper
9. My favorite fresh squeezed juice is Grapefruit
10. I despise the movie Laura....who falls in love with a woman in a Portrait

My, My What a weird person I am....Goodnight Cyberspace

Have you ever felt...Have you ever...wait

I sometimes feel as though I live in a constant state of deja vu...and not the good kind. Each day I live seems to resemble the one before...until they mesh into an intricate pattern of mediocrity. I use to question why people spent weekend after weekend getting drunk or high even more I wondered why they got tattoos, piercings or dyed their hair wild colors. Yet, not anymore, I find I understand in some remote fashion it might be an attempt to break the endless cycle of mediocre life hood. We are on a journey in life. With the same end death...yet where we can be creative is in life. So we seek out options of creativity changing our bodies, minds and consciousness to find something other than the daily grind. The cheapest ways to elevate the self away from our box lives of ant machinery is to tattoo, dye, pierce, drink, smoke, and shop. Although they tend to be quite expensively materially and eventually there is no more space to tattoo, no more areas to wear jewelry and no more space in the closet. The Hardest and Most Expensive ways are through making friendships, helping others, and discovering the world. I wonder, how far am I willing to go so that I can look back on my life and say each day I learned something new, I did something different and I am an individual because I lived.
Goodnight Cyberspace, Be Kind, Be Gentle, and Be Softhearted!

A Blessing in Disguise?

Stress made me do it....Instead of screaming...I feel terrible for posting this...because it shows how selfish even a softhearted individual can be sometimes. This weekend...or I mean last weekend I had 5 Essays due Wed. the 23rd for my University classes...I spent all weekend writing the essays, pouring forth bitter gaul, blood, soul and spirit...metaphorically speaking. Yet, even in my many depressions, epiphanies, and brain itchings I still could not finish all 5. I tried chocolate to boost my mental capacity, I tried caffeine to stay awake...yet I still failed...the story of my life...the story of a writer...ha ha.

Yet, providence had other ideas. I open my email at 11 tonight and what do I find? An email from the professor of the RS 301 class. He is sick with a 103 fever. He canceled class....The 5th essay is postponed till Friday! Can you imagine? Me...a blessing in disguise.....yet...at what cost. The poor man is sick and barely hanging on. Forgive me...Ora pro mei nunc et ad horan mortis mei. ("Pray for me now and at the hour of my death," a Roman Catholic prayer.) This I offer to you Dr. Vivian...I will pray for you...and I will take what providence offers...

P.S...I wonder if this means I will get sick...for being so selfish and self-interested....maybe this will help me out: AVE MARIA, gratia plena, Dominus tecum. Benedicta tu in mulieribus, et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus. Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc, et in hora mortis nostrae. Amen. (Hail Mary, Full of Grace, The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women,and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now,and at the hour of death. Amen.)

*No offense intended--to any one with other religious beliefs...or someone who might take this as poking fun at a truly serious issue*

Give The Man His Due Props...

No need to introduce or bolster with commentary...Let him and his words stand alone!
It may be long...but its well worth the reading time...always and forever!
Thank God, he had a dream !

Martin Luther King, Jr :

"I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation. Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity. But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free.

One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition. In a sense we've come to our nation's capital to cash a check.

When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the "unalienable Rights" of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned.

Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds." But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so, we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now.

This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy....Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends. And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers. I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."² This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with. With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood.

With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day. And this will be the day -- this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning: My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride, From every mountainside, let freedom ring! And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.

And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania. Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado. Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California. But not only that: Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.

Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee. Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring. And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!³"

Read all of the best speech in history at (
http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm)