Just a Quick Update On My Dad & Thanks!

This is going to be short and sweet because I'm exhausted and still have a lot do get done. I just wanted to let you all know that my dad is doing well. His surgery was yesterday at 7:15am and he came through it beautifully. We were able to see him yesterday early afternoon. He was in quite a bit of pain (to be expected), but was managing. He even was able to crack a joke and give the nurse a hard time, which if you know him is also expected :) I'm heading back to the hospital later today to spend some time. I'm working off about 6 hours sleep over the past 2 nights, so I'm dragging a bit. I'll try to keep updates on here as I'm able.

Thank you all for your support and prayers. I have no doubt that your prayers were heard. I appreciate it more than I can say.

Charlie's Animal Sounds

My kid LOVES animals and knows a ton of sounds. Unfortunately, my phone only takes 17 second videos, so this is all I could get at one time.


Here she is busting a move!


And here are two videos of her riding her bouncy horse. I think I've created a monster!!




Okay...I'll quit boring you all with my kid now! Thanks for stopping by!

Screw Accuracy...These Are Great!

I received an email today with a bunch of quotes that beg to be shared. I don't know if they are accurate or not. I was going to check them all out, but I'm too lazy. Besides, they are great thoughts regardless. Have a great weekend everyone!

'If you don't read the newspaper you are
uninformed, if you do read the newspaper you are misinformed.'
-Mark Twain


Suppose you were an idiot.
And suppose you were a member of Congress....
But then I repeat myself.
-Mark Twain


I contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into
prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle.
-Winston Churchill


A government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend
on the support of Paul.
-George Bernard Shaw


Democracy must be something more than two wolves and a
sheep voting on what to have for dinner.
-James Bovard, Civil Libertarian (1994)

Foreign aid might be defined as a transfer of money from
poor people in rich countries to rich people in poor countries.
-Douglas Casey, Classmate of Bill Clinton at Georgetown University

Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys
to teenage boys.
-P.J. O'Rourke, Civil Libertarian

Government is the great fiction, through which everybody endeavors to
live at the expense of everybody else.
-Frederic Bastiat, Economist (1801-1850)

Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short
phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it
stops moving, subsidize it.
-Ronald Reagan (1986)

I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts.
-Will Rogers

If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it
costs when it's free!
-P.J. O'Rourke?

In general, the art of government consists of taking as much money
as possible from one party of the citizens to give to the other.
-Voltaire (1764)

Just because you do not take an interest in politics doesn't mean politics won't take an interest in you!
-Pericles (430 B.C.)

No man's life, liberty, or property is safe while the legislature is in session.
-Mark Twain (1866)

Talk is cheap...except when Congress does it.
-Unknown


The government is like a baby's alimentary canal, with a happy appetite
at one end and no responsibility at the other.
-Ronald Reagan


There is no distinctly Native American criminal class...save Congress.
-Mark Twain


What this country needs are more unemployed politicians.
-Edward Langley, Artist (1928 - 1995)

A government big enough to give you everything you want, is strong
enough to take everything you have.
-Thomas Jefferson?

My Wallet & The Financial Crisis...Someone Educate Me, Please!

I've been thinking about this alot lately, and while I usually claim to know about everything, I'm going to have to humble myself to ask for more information. Maybe I'm just too poor to feel it. Maybe it hasn't "trickled down" to me yet. All I know is that there has been a whole lot of panic going on about Wall Street. I just haven't felt it yet. I'm sure that if the situation wasn't attented to, it would EVENTUALLY affect me. The problem I'm am having trouble wrapping head around is this. How many Americans are genuinely panicked about this? I'm certainly not. The media and Washington seems to want to throw us all into a panic. OH NO...I WON'T BE ABLE TO GET A LOAN OR CREDIT. I just got approved for yet another credit card. I'm just not seeing it yet. I'm not saying there isn't a serious problem here. I'm just wondering if this really needs to be called a CRISIS. Is it? The canidates keep talking about how "Main Street America" is so stressed and worried about this crisis. I'm freaking as "Main Street American" as it gets, and I'm not sitting here biting my nails over this. I'm frankly sick of hearing about it. Call me when it's fixed b/c I probably won't notice. So I as all of you (you know, my four faithful readers); Do you really think that "Main Street Americans" are panicked? Do you think the Presidential Canidates are hitting this issue too hard? If they are out there to appeal to the "working class" do you think this is the main issue on that group's minds? Just askin.

Troubles On My Mind

You may have noticed that I haven't been keeping up on my posting as much as usual lately. I have been having some trouble concentrating lately. A few weeks ago my dad had some tightness is his chest. Because of the history of heart trouble on his side of the family, he thankfully got checked out right away. To make a long story short(er), the results of numerous tests determined that he has a bad heart valve and needs a single by-pass. He is scheduled for open heart surgery on Monday, October 27th at 7:15am.
Everyone assures us that this surgery is fairly routine (as far as heart surgery goes) and that he has everything going for him. I know they are right. He's fairly young (63) and in excellent shape. He lives on a small horse farm and is always working outside. When it's too cold to do too much outside, he runs two miles a day on the treadmill. Still, all that said, I'm beside myself with worry. Regardless of all the reassurances, I can't ignore the fact that they are going to crack open my dad's chest. The possibility that I could lose my dad, however small, grips my heart with fear.
I'm extremely close to my dad (to both my parents, actually) and we spend an enormous amount of time together. My dad owns a small insurance agency and I've worked there with him for the past eight years. My family lives next door to my parents. We all have horses and work in the barn, go riding and go camping together. We have dinners together. Many nights you can find us at my parent's house playing cards.
This whole thing has really made me think; What will I do without my dad? How will I go to the office everyday and not have him there? How will I go to the barn or go riding without him by my side? What has really hit me hard is the realization that even if all goes well, as expected, I'm going to have to face this stark reality at some point in the future. I've been blessed in my life and have not experienced much loss in my life. The closest relative I've ever lost was my grandfather when I was pretty young. How do you handle grief? It's my biggest fear in my life.
I'll end this with a request I'd don't usually make. Please take a moment out of your day on Oct 27th and pray for my family. Pray for my father. Pray for the surgeon who will hold my dad's life in his hands. Pray for my mom (who is a mess) and pray for me. My endless thanks and gratitude!!

The Sad Truth No One Will Tell

I'm going to voice what is most likely a very unpopular and un-politically correct opinion. I'll probably offend many people, but sometimes that is the bi product of the truth. I've been battling frustration over this year's election and the polls thus far. This election shouldn't even be close. McCain should be winning by a landslide, yet he is slipping in the polls. What the hell is going on? I've come to the conclusion that Obama supporters generally fall in one of two camps.

Camp number one: the voters who truly believe that we should become a socialist country. I can't tell those voters how to believe...that is why we have elections. I strongly disagree with socialist theory for America. My brother will argue this with me until he is blue in the face. He's been to Denmark(and all over Europe) and thinks it's the perfect model country. I agree that it works well for them, but would fail in a country as large as ours with such deep roots is capitalism(not a dirty word). But I digress. To this camp, I say "to each his own". This group of voters doesn't scare me. There just aren't enough of them to make a difference.

Camp number two: this is the big one. The UNEDUCATED. So this is what no one will say for fear of offending: Do you know why Obama is targeting the lower class (and middle class) as his key voters? Do you? Because the majority are uneducated. They don't normally follow politics. They don't research it. They hear the ads on tv, they listen to the biased media and they blindly believe what they are told. This is the group that scares me... there are so many of them out there.

So what can be done? I'm not sure at this point. I watched the debate and there were blatant lies from Obama. He changes he opinion, his rhetoric and his "friends" depending on who he is talking to and what will benefit him the most. It's obvious to anyone who has done a little research that he is DANGEROUS to America. I don't know what can be done to get the truth out there to the masses. The task is especially daunting with the media being on his side. McCain is going to have to get tough and go after Obama and call him on his bullshit. I don't know if he will do it, but the outcome of the election and the fate of our future is at stake.

A Must Read!

I just found this and you guys HAVE to go check it out! It's just brilliant!

Diesel's Post


Let me know what you think!!