Creative Photography Contest #15 Week 2

I came across this beautiful Thistle on a recent walk. I just love the way the purple looks like a crown or a punk hair-do.


For more photos go to Creative Photography.

SkyWatch Friday #17

This is my first SkyWatch Friday. I picked this picture that was taken at Bosque del Apache Wildlife Refuge near San Antonio, NM in early September of this year.

To see more sky photos visit SkyWatch Friday.

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

44th President
United States of America

Election Day - November 4, 2008

Well I made my way to the polls this morning. I have been torn throughout this election and frankly I am glad that it is over. Tomorrow we can all move on and all those ads, phone calls and door-to-door campaigners will be history. I don't think I have ever put this much time and energy into researching an election. But I am glad I did - I feel like I made a very informed decision and I have an extremely strong feeling that things will change - and for the better. Obama wasn't my first choice in the primaries and when he won I wasn't sure if he would be the person I voted for today. Here is where all the research came in. I am not absolutely sure he is the right man for the job but with all the problems we have had for the past eight years I knew there was no way I could vote Republican. And after researching I came to the conclusion that with all the choices we had today (meaning all the Independents and Green Party candidates as well as the Democrat and Republican candidates) - he would be our best HOPE! Whatever the outcome is on November 4, 2008 it will make history! No matter what your opinion or political affiliation is I just hope that everyone gets out there and votes.

Good-night, sweet prince . . .

. . . And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.

Horatio, act v, scene ii

Boudreaux
November 5, 1996
November 3, 2008

For over a week now Thomas and I have been dealing with some health issues with Boudreaux. He had several visits to the vet and he even stayed a couple of nights. He had a large growth on his right front leg that the vet called a nerve sheath tumor. They checked him for other tumors and didn't find any. So we were given the options to deal with the tumor and we gave them a lot of thought. Not only did we weigh our options we looked at Boudreaux's overall quality of life. For a little over a year now we have been noticing quite a few changes with him. His eyesight and hearing had deteriorated considerably, he had no ligaments in his hind legs and he was also becoming incontinent. With all these problems it was hard for us to make a decision with the options given us by the vet. Here were our options: 1) surgery to remove the tumor [with the understanding that there were considerable nerves and blood vessels in the area and there was no guarantee that they could remove the tumor]; 2) leg amputation or 3) euthanasia. Obviously, we chose option 3. We felt that with all the other things going on that he would have had a hard time with the amputation and even if they could of removed the tumor it would have probably returned in six months. After talking to the vet and to each other and spending time with Boudreaux we chose to make him comfortable and to let him go. It wasn't easy, but as I watched my Sweet Prince drift off to sleep I knew he was in a better place. Thomas and I have been concerned for over a year now that he wasn't the energetic, happy dog we had raised. He slept most of the time and rarely left his kennel. Even though he has only been gone a few hours the house and our hearts already feel empty. We already miss his scent, grunts, groans and snorts. He was a wonderful companion and was a big part of our family for twelve years. He will be greatly missed. Good-night, sweet prince. And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.

Detached Retina (Update #6)

Well I saw my Retina Specialist (Dr. Wyant) on Monday, October 27, 2008. Things look good! My retina is attached and has healed well. We talked about removing the silicone oil and replacing the lens. He had photos of my eye taken and measurements for the new lens were also recorded. For the vitectomy surgeries I was really apprehensive. At this point I am relieved that this ordeal is almost at an end. We have scheduled what I hope to be the final surgery for November 18, 2008 at 6:00am. I am actually looking forward to it. My surgeries have been at the Albuquerque Ambulatory Eye Surgery Center. I feel confident about this next surgery because I have a lot of faith in my doctor and the staff at AAESC. Hopefully the next time I journal about this I will have pretty normal vision in my left eye - the doctor is confident that my eyesight will be pretty close to what it was before the retina detached. Wish me luck and I'll write about the surgery as soon as I am able.

Detached Retina (Part IV)

An Important Thought

This was emailed to me today by a friend of mine. This is pretty much how I have been feeling and I think very appropriate since we have a very big decision to make coming up soon!

THE 545 PEOPLE
RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL
OF AMERICA'S WOES

BY CHARLEY REESE

Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.

Have you ever wondered why, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, we have deficits? Have you ever wondered why, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, we have inflation and high taxes?

You and I don't propose a federal budget. The president does. You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of Representatives does. You and I don't write the tax code. Congress does. You and I don't set fiscal policy. Congress does. You and I don't control monetary policy. The Federal Reserve Bank does.

One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one president and nine Supreme Court justices - 545 human beings out of the 235 million - are directly, legally, morally and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered but private central bank.

I excluded all but the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman or a president to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the power to accept or reject it.

No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislation's responsibility to determine how he votes.

A CONFIDENCE CONSPIRACY

Don't you see how the con game that is played on the people by the politicians? Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.

What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of Tip O'Neill, who stood up and criticized Ronald Reagan for creating deficits.

The president can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it. The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating appropriations and taxes.

O'neill is the speaker of the House. He is the leader of the majority party. He and his fellow Democrats, not the president, can approve any budget they want. If the president vetos it, they can pass it over his veto.

REPLACE SCOUNDRELS

It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 235 million cannot replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts - of incompetence and irresponsibility.

I can't think of a single domestic problem, from an unfair tax code to defense overruns, that is not traceable directly to those 545 people.

When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair. If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red. If the Marines are in Lebanon, it's because they want them in Lebanon.

There are no insoluble government problems. Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take it.

Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exist disembodied mystical forces like "the economy," "inflation" or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

Those 545 people and they alone are responsible. They and they alone have the power. They and they alone should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses - provided they have the gumption to manage their own employees.

This article was taken from the Orlando Sentinel Star newspaper.