What We Need is More Unwanted Pregnancies

"Drugged, raped, and pregnant? Too bad. Republicans are pushing to limit rape and incest cases eligible for government abortion funding."

"Rape is only really rape if it involves force. So says the new House Republican majority as it now moves to change abortion law."

You have got to be kidding me!! Seriously, this is just what is needed, especially when the economy is this bad and there are no jobs, is for young woman (or any woman) to have an unwanted child and no way to care for it. Worse yet to be FORCED to have the child!

Why , oh why, do these Republicans continue to make this their fight? Why do they continue, with so many other things going on in the world, to make this the highlight of their party platform? That dog just don't hunt! How long, if ever, is it going to take them to realize that they might have more appeal if they updated their battle cries. Maybe they should stick with some current issues rather than pulling this old rabbit out of their hat.

Misc. & Bitch Session

I am both excited and nervous about getting my carpal tunnel surgery. I am looking forward to having six weeks off to read and have lunch with friends. I am not looking to being handicapped with one hand always in stitches and rehab. I am not sure how excited I will be to get back to work in March. Probably not so much, but at least I will get rid of these pain in the ass wrist braces that I have to wear to bed every night. The Velcro sticks to the sheets and everything in or near my bed and pajamas!

I am growing so weary of the rude ass people who never once stop talking or their cell phones as they order, or try to order their coffee/drink. I have started to openly skip them. Well that gets their attention pretty damn quick! They do not even speak to you. They sort of just hand you a card or money as they talk and never make eye contact. Sometime I should drop their card on the floor, in front of them, and see if they realize it.

Watched "RED" last night, with my mom, and it was a fun romp. Nice to see an action/comedy with great adult actors/characters! Nothing too intellectual or anything like that, but a fun, mindless romp. One to watch with the hubby when he gets home.

Last night I had a wine & cheese night out with the "Sisterhood of the Traveling Wine Glass" otherwise known as the Corkscrew Girls. Starting off with a delicious, antioxidant filled Pinot Noir. Six cheeses that also included a warm, melty Brie! Followed that with a dry, crisp Pinot Grigio from Italy. The next gathering is going to be a fondue party at one girls house. Sleep over in jammies!! It is so important to have a good group of female friends.

Yawn

"OK, you've got Palin fatigue. Not to worry. So does much of the country: The latest CNN poll shows that 56 percent of Americans view her unfavorably."

Never having been a fan I grew tired hearing about her a long time ago, but I am happy to see that others are finally growing tired as well. I was never impressed and never could figure out she was able to become a governor. Seriously, how did that happen?

The article points out that her popularity has dropped greatly with women. That is good news since we all know what an important voting block women are. The evangelical women were some of her most ardent supporters.

As for me, it has nothing to do with all of her faux paux during the recent shootings in Arizona, but everything that she says and stands for. Personally I think that she is a big fake. She found a nerve that she could work and she jumped on full tilt!

Instead of being seen as a serious political contender she became a reality TV personality. She became a larger than life joke.

Asshole....... No, Fucking Asshole!

I do not think that I have ever been as pissed off that I have wanted to sceam and type a title that might really offend. I may have been, but nothing comes to mind at present quite as disturbing as this. Asshole.

The new governor of Alabama, Robert Bentley, has decided to bring all of his God fearing B.S. to the statehouse with him. You can't tell me that this is the first that any of these people have heard this sort of rhetoric from this man. I would find it very difficult to believe that there were not a few people who knew that he is/was a religious whackadoo!

"Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley told a church crowd just moments into his new administration that those who have not accepted Jesus as their savior are not his brothers and sisters, shocking some critics who questioned Tuesday whether he can be fair to non-Christians.

"Anybody here today who has not accepted Jesus Christ as their savior, I'm telling you, you're not my brother and you're not my sister, and I want to be your brother," Bentley said Monday, his inauguration day, according to The Birmingham News."

These are exactly the type of people I fear getting elected to public office! These are the people who take their personal religious views and directly impose them on others. Others who do not necessarily want anything to do with such religious crap.

"After his speech, Bentley said he did not mean to insult anyone."

Bullshit!! There is no way in hell that I believe that for one minute. You don't say shit like that, especially in such a public forum, if you do not want to make an impact. He thoroughly believes what he said and I am sure that he lives his life in accordance with those exact views.

He needs to shut up about his "God" and concentrate on the things that the people elected him to do, but after hearing all of this I am afraid that he has a different agenda.

Aran Sweater & Acessories

Hubby just got home from a week in Ireland. For my birthday he bought me a beautiful traditional Aran sweater, some fingerless gloves and scarf.

He had a rental car and spent 2 hours driving, lots of traffic, and spent three hours walking trying to find the exact sweater I had showed him before he left. I can still not believe that he was able to find the exact one.

It was in a very highly populated shopping area in Dublin. It was in The Donegal Shop which was owned by a delightful older couple that he said were very traditional Irish. Prior to finding them he had been 6-7 other shops. They offered him a matching hat as well, but he told them that his wife had big hair and they found that quite amusing. With several months of cold weather remaining and I am anxious to get lots of use out of all these items!!

Mental Health

"The mental-health-care ‘system’ in America is a broken system,” says Michael Fitzpatrick, executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). “The system was already in crisis, and has become even less accessible over the last three years as state budgets for mental health—psychiatric beds [in hospitals], counseling, and other services—have been cut by $2 billion. States have eliminated 4,000 in-patient psychiatric beds.” NAMI’s Katrina Gay adds, “In many cases you can’t even get an evaluation for two to three months—and that’s assuming you know how to get one in the first place.”

As someone who has had a small brush with the mental health system I think I can safely say that it is not all that it could/can be. Lucky for me, and the rest of society, I am a strong person and my situation was not at a critical level. I was not hearing voices telling me to do really bad things. Things had just gotten hairy and I found it in my best interest to call a help line.

I could not have been more dismayed. Now I can find it amusing, but at the time it wasn't. I was pacing in my basement when I called, feeling edgy and a bit urgent, and the person who answered could not have been less helpful and pissed me off more. So much so that I HUNG UP!! In my state I hung up on the help line. I tried again a few days later and the same thing happened. Astounding. This is a help line? I got a better response, late one night, from the Internet and a counselor on the Boys Town help line.

If this is the experience that I had how many people are having even worse? How many are not getting the help they need? If I had taken drugs or even been in a worse state who knows what might have happened.

I don't know all the answers, but I do credit an excellent medical doctor for getting me on the track to recovery, and I think that our system needs to be looked at and given an overhaul. My medical doctor recognized the signs and got me on the correct medication and in to see a wonderful counselor, but how many people do not have these ready options? The services that are out there, for the less fortunate, need to be revamped and all the safety nets need to be fixed and put into place.

Coming Attractions

Next week may not be looking so good.