Tuesday, April 29, 2003

A Plan for Peace



Leave it to Robin Williams to come up with the perfect plan... What we need now is for our UN Ambassador to stand up and repeat this message. Robin Williams' Plan...(Hard to argue with this logic!)

I see a lot of people yelling for peace but I have not heard of a plan for peace. So, here's one plan:

1) The US will apologize to the world for our "interference" in their affairs, past & present. We will promise never to "interfere" again

2) We will withdraw our troops from all over the world, starting with Germany, South Korea and the Philippines. They don't want us there. We would station troops at our borders. No more sneaking through holes in the fence.

3) All illegal aliens have 90 days to get their affairs together and leave. We'll give them a free trip home. After 90 days the remainder will be gathered up and deported immediately, regardless of who or where they are. France would welcome them.

4) All future visitors will be thoroughly checked and limited to 90 day visits unless given a special permit. No one from a terrorist nation would be allowed in. If you don't like it there, change it yourself, don't hide here. Asylum would not ever be available to anyone. We don't need any more cab drivers.

5) No "students" over age 21. The older ones are the bombers. If they don't attend classes, they get a "D" and it's back home, baby.

6) The US will make a strong effort to become self sufficient energy wise. This will include developing non polluting sources of energy but will require a temporary drilling of oil in the Alaskan wilderness. The caribou will have to cope for a while.

7) Offer Saudi Arabia and other oil producing countries $10 a barrel for their oil. If they don't like it, we go someplace else.

8) If there is a famine or other natural catastrophe in the world, we will not "interfere". They can pray to Allah or whomever, for seeds, rain, cement or whatever they need. Besides, most of what we give them gets "lost" or is taken by their army. The people who need it most get very little, anyway.

9) Ship the UN Headquarters to an island some place. We don't need the spies and fair weather friends here. Besides, it would make a good homeless shelter or lockup for illegal aliens.

9b) Use the buildings as replacement for the twin towers.

10) All Americans must go to charm and beauty school. That way, no one can call us "Ugly Americans" any longer.

Now, ain't that a winner of a plan. "The Statue of Liberty is no longer saying 'Give me your poor, your tired, your huddled masses.' She's got a baseball bat and she's yelling, 'You want a piece of me?'"

- Robin Williams

Monday, April 28, 2003

particle by particle she slowly changes


What a weekend. Aside from working an extra 27 hours in less than 3 days, nothing much happened besides more fighting with the in-laws.

In my previous post I mentioned I wanted to have some additional people added to the guest list. Yesterday Kevin's parents gave us their final decision on the issue, which was an emphatic No Way. I was pissed, so Kevin and I talked about moving the whole wedding to my church in order to accommodate everyone, which is really important to me. Sensing my frustration with the whole matter, one of my choir members even offered her house to us, which I thought was a very lovely gesture. However, when Kevin told his parents we may change the location, they exploded. They said not only would they not attend the wedding if we moved the location, but they would also tell all their relatives and friends not to attend as well.

Good grief. Should we call their bluff? My parents think so.

Tonight, Kevin and I will probably go to his parents' house and get the stuff we purchased already, including our 15 bottles of booze, and bring it home, in order to send the message that we're serious about this. We will offer to have a discussion with them. We will offer a compromise - we will have the actual wedding at the church. The reception can either be at their house, or there will be no reception. What we would do instead is have a small cook out/ get together at our house for immediate family and the closest of friends. However, if anyone raises her voice, we will leave. If any certain mother-in-law feels inclined to make a snide remark or an unkind comment, we will leave and the decision will have been made for us.

Friday, April 25, 2003

the week/weekend blur


So, I can forget about enjoying the warm weather we're supposed to have this weekend. I will be working an extra 25 hours on top of my normal routine, which I think totally blows. This is where company loyalty will get you - long, thankless hours with no dinner but peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. That's ok, though, I guess. Even though Kevin has been working for the last couple of weeks, we are still playing a fair amount of catch up, so the overtime will make it worthwhile. I'm just a little disappointed I won't be able to do anything else this weekend, really.

I have to get my wedding invitations in the mail next week, but we are still fighting over the guest list. I very much want to invite everyone in my choir yet Kevin's Mom is completely against it. I'm not sure why, actually. Is it the financial burden? Nope, because that's covered by my parents. Is it the extra people wandering around her property? Maybe, but I think that's a cop out. She refuses to communicate with me about anything, yet whenever I have to go ahead and make a decision, she flips out and starts screaming. I think she's crazy.

Wednesday, April 23, 2003

it's all coming together


Whew. Now that Easter is finallly over I can breathe again. I was so busy with services, rehearsals, and performances, I didn't do too much that didn't involve church. I can pretty much coast now till September.

With the wedding about 2 1/2 months away, we are really pulling together all the details. The party favors have been started and are about 45%finished. We made some major purchases last weekend for paper goods. The booze is purchased. (Ironic that's the first thing to be finished. Heh heh.) This past weekend Kevin and I spent hours upon hours registering- a concept I find archaic, but one on which my mother insisted. The bridal party flowers have been ordered (despite Kevin's Mom's fear they would attract too many bees).

One of the last things we still need to do is find a cake. We checked out a few bakeries over the weekend, but we are still having an issue about that. I wanted strawberry shortcake, but strawberries won't be in season in July, not to mention Kevin hates strawberries. And all fruit, for that matter. I hate traditional whitey-white tiered, layered, gobbed-up-on-frosting cakes. I still want wedding pie, but Kevin is against that because he cannot envision smooshing a piece of pie all over my face. There will be no smooshing, as far as I'm concerned. I was thinking about a cake that's made up of a mass of cupcakes........

Tuesday, April 15, 2003

We do the best with what we are given


An old man lived alone in Idaho. He wanted to spade his potato garden,
but it was very hard work. His only son, Bubba, who used to help him, was
in prison. The old man wrote a letter to his son and described his
predicament.

"Dear Bubba,
I am feeling pretty bad because it looks like I won't be able to plant
my potato garden this year. I'm just getting too old to be digging up a
garden plot. If you were here, all my troubles would be over. I know you
would dig the plot for me.
Love, Dad"

A few days later he received a letter from his son.

"Dear Dad
For heaven's sake, dad, don't dig up that garden, that's where I Buried
the BODIES.
Love, Bubba"

At 4A.M. the next morning, F.B.I. agents and local police showed up and
dug up the entire area without finding any bodies. They apologized to the
old man and left. That same day the old man received another letter from
his son.

"Dear Dad
Go ahead and plant the potatoes now. It's the best I could do under the
circumstances
Love Bubba."

Friday, April 11, 2003

Another thought


The last two nights I have been sleeping rather strangely. I wonder of Kevin working third shift is disrupting my sleeping patterns. Last night I had some very screwed up dreams involving a certain ex boyfriend in a petting zoo. Disturbing. Then, I woke up at about 3am with a touch of vertigo that lasted until about 20 minutes ago. I had a very difficult time trying to apply my mascara this morning.

This reminds me of something a former college friend said to me once, in reference to her old boyfriend: "He's like a work of art, but I don't know whether I should admire him, or nail him to a wall."

A busy weekend ahead...


Just because it's Friday doesn't mean I'll get to slow down any. Tonight my parents will be coming into town for their annual "Spring Break". This means that after work tonight, Kevin and I will be scrambling to straighten up the house, get rid of all traces of cigarette smoke, and make sure they'll have clean sheets to sleep on.

Tomorrow morning I have a dress rehearsal for my choir's performance of our Easter cantata, followed by an Easter Egg Hunt for the little ones. I'm only going to stick around for that to see grown men wearing pink bunny suits. Afterward, my Mom and I are headed to Countryside Florist to order the bridal party flowers.

The rest of the weekend will include putting together my way cute wedding favors, addressing invitations, and maybe doing a little shopping just for me. I can't remember the last time I got new shoes.

Wednesday, April 09, 2003

Let's catch up...


1. I'm totally excited that Syracuse won the NCAA Championship. There was much partying at my house that night.
2. I was supposed to head to Rochester this past Friday for another dress fitting, except that their massive ice storm kept me in Cleveland for yet another weekend.
3. Kevin was finally hired by the warehouse at Pat Catan's. He starts work there tomorrow, on 3rd shift. I will hate this, since he will be going to work as I m going to bed. That blows. He says, however, that it's only temporary until he can get hired by Swagelok so he can start working his "dream job". This also means that this weekend I can go shopping again. Huzzah for that!

Friday, April 04, 2003

Did you know that...


...people working at computers in an office with plants were 12% more productive and less stressed than people doing the same job in an office without plants? I wonder if I would really freak out if I took all my plants from my office home.

I wish this weather would break soon. Nice, high 70's temps one day, and then we get days like today where it's a miserable 40 degrees and rainy. I just have to remember April showers bring May flowers. I am just aching to get out in the yard and start my garden. My kitchen is packed with seedlings, waiting to be planted.

Wednesday, April 02, 2003

YOu see the world in Neutral
Neutral:
Harmony and balance is key. You don't look at the
world in a negative or positive way and you'll
never judge or assume a situation- you just
look at the facts. People like you are peaceful
and accepting.


What color do you see the world in?
brought to you by Quizilla

she got me


I wasn't really in the whole April Fool's spirit yesterday, but Julia really got me good. So much so, that I forgot all about my problems and nearly freaked out about hers. Heh heh. Good one, Julia.