A few of my thoughts.... Sometimes we just need some time to ourself. I will be leaving Pulaski today going home for the weekend. Tony and I are off next week. I will not be going back to work until July 9. So, I've made an executive decision not to blog next week. I'm going to take the time and spend with the family, especially Matt. Speaking of Matt, he will be leaving July 7th going to South Padre Island, Texas to visit my younger brother and will return home on the 14th. What am I going to do with my time off. Well ... I'm going to enjoy my pool that will be fully ready no later than Saturday. I am going to shampoo carpet and rearrange furniture in the living room. Of course, there will be laundry to do and meals to cook. I think I remember how to cook... ;-)~ I will be taking notes while I'm off and hope that I have some stories to tell and some pictures to post. Hope y'all don't forget me. I'm gonna miss y'all like crazy. I could possibly sneak on late at night and post so check back... you just never know about old Dixie here. "I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. On July 4, 1776, we claimed our independence from Britian and Democracy was born. Everyday thousands leave their homeland to come the "the land of the free and the home of the brave" so they can begin their American dream. The United States is truly a diverse nation. Each year we Americans celebrate that freedom and independence with bar-b-ques, family gatherings, picnics and a display of fireworks. Happy Birthday America! So what ever your plans are for this July 4th, please have a safe and happy one. IF MY BODY WERE A CAR If my body were a car, this is the time I would be thinking about trading it in for a newer model. I've got bumps and dents and scratches in my finish and my paint job is getting a little dull, but that's not the worst of it. My headlights are out of focus and it's especially hard to see things up close. My traction is not as graceful as it once was. I slip and slide and skid and bump into things even in the best of weather. My whitewalls are stained with varicose veins. It takes me hours to reach my maximum speed. My fuel rate burns inefficiently. But here's the worst of it -- Almost every time I sneeze, cough or sputter.....either my radiator leaks or my exhaust backfires! SMOOCHES!

Oh to be a kid again!!!!! I have given you a very brief description of life during ginning season. How we played in the cotton wagons, either empty or full... how I would take the cotton samples to my Mother as the scale house... how I drove "Old Blue" into the HUGE Cherry Tree in the front yard only to have my butt hurt much worse than the tree could ever be hurt or the truck for that matter. How Daddy would open the store early, wait for the employees to come in and off to the shoe factory he would go...... Ginning season would usually end sometime in November. So from November to March, it was pretty much free reign around home. Mother was back working in the store, Mamaw and Papaw were vacationing in the mountains, which was always Mamaw's idea to go... or just doing whatever life threw at them. Papaw usually hung around the store.. making sure Mother had everything she needed... he was a jewel of a man.... there aren't many men like Papaw and Daddy that exist in today's world. I had an older brother, Kim, who was 9 years older than me and 12 years older than my younger brother, Chris. He was our babysitter as we got older... until he went off to college. It was December... a cold, cold, cold Saturday morning... one of the coldest winters I can remember in Tennessee. My Mother had put a load of cloths in to wash before she left for the store and had given Kim instructions to have them dried and folded before she got back home for lunch. Chris and I were sitting in the living room watching cartoons... on one of the 3 channels we could get when Kim hollers for me to come help him. So, I get up, go into the kitchen where the washing machine was and he says "Hold your arms out, I'll lay the cloths, which were towels, across your arms and you can put them in the dryer." Being 7 years old, I thought.. ok.. no problem.. I can handle this. So, he lays the towels across my arms and when he's finished, he follows me on the back porch, where the dryer is, opens the dryer door and tells me to put in the towels. I bent over to put the towels in the dryer ... WELL....... not ONLY did the towels go in the dryer... SO DID I!!!!!!!!! Yes, you read it right... I went into the dryer with the towels... screaming my head off every inch of the way. Now Chris, being the baby of the family, was so involved in the cartoons that he just totally tuned it out. I cried, screamed and kicked and god knows what else... Kim almost got the dryer door closed... almost... but didn't quiet make it...... FINALLY.... Chris comes out on the back porch and ask me what's wrong... I told him that Kim almost put me in the dryer... Kim and Chris laughed, laughed and laughed... and I CRIED, CRIED and CRIED!!!! Mother came home a few hours later.... I TOLD HER! Ummmmmmm.... Kim didn't try to put me in the dryer again!!!! But I wasn't the only one terrorized. I was also the terrorizee(I don't think that's a word, but oh well... anyway... HOLLYWOOD - HERE WE COME ...... hehehehehehehehehe - bwhahahahahahahahaha - ;-) So, I told you how my older brother put me in the dryer and how Chris just laughed and laughed. Well.... I knew that sometime in the not to far distant future, I would get him back. And that's exactly what I did.... with a little help from Kim. I was about 7 at the time, so that made Chris 4... Chris is the baby of the family. I was 3 -4 years old when Mother and Daddy adopted him. Now don't get me wrong, I love my little brother but that's just it... he was my "LITTLE BROTHER." I wanted a little sister... but no....... I got a stinky little brother who would give me coodies.... Chris had the most beautiful head of hair ever to have been given to a male. It was so soft and naturally curly... he was too pretty to be a boy..... He should have been a girl.... and we would always tease him about how pretty he was... we went so far as to call him "Christy Love". Now Christy Love was a show in 1974 about a black policewoman. We loved watching that show. That's where we came up with the nickname for our little brother. I had the most brillant idea ever.... well... not exactly me, but Kim and me did.... we put our heads together and plotted the tortue for Chris. Now when I say "tortue", I don't mean any physical tortue... I'll let you be the judge...... One day, while Kim was babysitting us, we told Chris that a big movie producer was coming to Milledgeville to cast parts for "Get Christy Love". To our surprise... HE BELIEVED US!!!!!!! WOOOOOOOO At last, I was going to get my revenge... So, he let us curl his hair, put makeup on him, paint his nails, put on one of my girlie girl dresses and a pair of Mother's high heels. Let me tell you, he thought he was SOMETHING HOT! He would prance around the living room say "Your under arrest, Sugah!" all the time pretending to slap the cuffs on one of my baby dolls. We laughed till we hurt. Oh god how we laughed. This went on for a couple of hours... then Mother came home for lunch. We thought that we were in big trouble... but all she did was make up clean him up.... She didn't show it, but I know she was laughing too. But that wasn't then end of it......... not by far......Oh no... I wasn't finished just yet..... After Mother went back to the store, Kim and I once again pulled out our mischevious hats... this time we told him that instead of the producer for "Get Christy Love", it was a producer that was going to make an Aunt Jemima commercial. Poor little fellow believed us on this one too. And we were off...... I went and found a bandana. We tied his head up in the bandana, put tan makeup on his face, with red dots, put him on an old shirt of Daddy's that came down to his knees and one of Mother's aprons. Handed him a broom - and SNAP.... yep, we took a picture.... oh how we were laughing..... the kid finally wised up and he figured out that there was NOT any type of movie producers coming to Milledgeville. That we had lied to him all day long. Oh how he cried and cried and cried.... Oh how sweet it was!!!!!!!! He called Mother at the store.... she came home.............. WE WERE IN T.R.O.U.B.L.E.! We still to this day have the Aunt Jemima picture of Chris with the biggest grin I have ever seen on a child. See life was always simple when we were kids. Why can't life be simple like this again? I look at my own kids and wonder if they too will have stories to tell when then get older. Stories that they will be able to tell their kids.... Stories of how they tortued each other... stories like we have? Will they, I don't know.. but somehow I wish that I could take my kids and go back in the past to when I grew up and show them how simple it all was and how we had so much fun. Even though Kim is not with us anymore, Chris and I still find the time to laugh at the same old stuff every time we are together. Of course, Mother remembers everything oh so well. SMOOCHES!

27 Days until Matt leaves for Parris Island... It was the summer of 1993. Matt was 4 years old. His favorite show was Power Rangers. It was a karate kick here and a karate kick there. He had every imaginable Power Ranger toy on the market in 1993. His favorite was the Black Power Ranger. He was the one who a practical joker, he used dance moves and martial arts to fight. Just right down Matt's alley. My mother was my babysitter when Matt was small as well as my grandfather. My parents owned a local Mom & Pop grocery/gas station in our small town. Every day when I went to work I would drop Matt off at mother's. Mother, Matt and Papaw would eat breakfast and then they were off to the store. There was a chair that mother had at the front of the store for Papaw to sit in. We knew everyone who came in the store. It was the local hangout for the retired farmers. No, there wasn't any domino playing just a lot of conversations. Matt was in his Power Ranger mode. One day after lunch, Papaw decided he wanted a banana. He was sitting there in his chair, had the banana half peeled and had taken one bite. For some strange reason he kinda nodded off to sleep. Matt saw the opportunity and took it! He took off running, sword in hand screaming "GO, GO POWER RANGERS" ... just as he said "rangers" he took that plastic sword, swung and cut off the rest of Papaw's banana all the time running and yelling "GO, GO POWER RANGERS. Needless to say it startled Papaw. He hadn't a clue as to what happened to his banana until he saw it laying in the floor... then he knew. No, Matt didn't get in too much trouble. He just had to pick the banana off the floor, throw is away and promise to never do it again. Yes, Matt was and still is spoiled. He is the only grandson. My mother, daddy and grandfather thought he was the grandest thing since sliced bread. Anything that child wanted he got. This past Saturday we were driving down the road and I looked over at him. We were talking about just life in general when he said "Mom, I'm not a little boy anymore." "No son you're not." "I remember watching Peter Pan and wondering what they meant by never growing up and I thought they were crazy. I didn't want to be a kid forever. I wanted to get big, drive a car, have dates, get out of school, move out. But mom, now I wish I was a kid again. I now know what they meant in Neverland." It was all I could do to keep from bursting into tears. I have good days and I have bad days. Last week I didn't cry when I talked about it. Can't promise what this week will be like. I know what he is doing is the best thing ever. I KNOW THIS and I am so very, very proud of my son... but what is bothering me is my son is not that little boy any more and I'm going to have to cut the strings. Oh gee whiz now I've gone and done it. I've made my own self cry. SMOOCHES!

Life in MY Small Town USA To some, small town life could consist of a town of maybe around 3,000 or 4,000 people. But my small town is much, much smaller than that. As of today, the population of Milledgeville, TN is 306. Yes, you read it right..... 306. Growing up, I don't ever remember the population being over 400.....Everybody knows everybody.... and they know more about your business than you know about your own. You may call if Mayberry RFD ... but I believe our town is much smaller, or you may call us a village... what ever you call it... I call it GOD'S COUNTRY! A place where you can go out your back door, look up at the sky and see the stars...... Growing up in my town... there was a grocery store, which belonged to my family, a cotton gin and worm ranch, which belonged to my family, a road side cafe, which belonged to my best friend of 25 years family, a hardware store, 4 churches.... The Methodist, The Baptist, The Church ofChrist and The Pentescostal. We have a post office, a branch bank, and a 4 way stop with a flashing light... this only became in existence about 15 years ago... before was just a major crossroad. The house that I grew up in sat on the same lot as the cotton gin and the worm ranch was in the back yard. My Grandparents had lived in that house until I was about 2 years old, then they built a new one just right across town, we moved into the old house until I was about 12, when my parents built their house across the field from my Grandparents. After many renters and different things happening, I moved back into this house about 3 years ago. Yes, it's an old house, a house with character... my house... MY HOUSE that has been in MY family for decades! A house that my children will inherit and the rich blessings from it. Imagine a crisp fall morning....the smell of cotton being ginned. I can remember my Grandfather working from the crack of dawn to way past midnight. I can remember waking up, my Grandmother having a breakfast cooked... on the table would be fresh bacon, eggs, biscuits, gravy, orange juice and milk. I can remember my Daddy going to open the store, wait for the employees to come in and off to his factory job he would go. He was a Supervisor in a Shoe Factory for 2o year, and my Mom helping my Papaw during the fall season at the scale house. Oh the scale house.... the scale house was a place where the farmers would bring their full cotton wagons to be weighed before pulling them to the gin. I can remember the lot being sooooo full of cotton wagons, that they would be backed up 3, 4, 5 or 6 deep. I can remember going outside to play with my younger brother and the neighbors kids, us climbing up and over the full cotton wagons and playing on the freshly picked cotton. I can remember my Grandmother screaming at us to get out of the wagons before we were sucked up with the cotton to be ginned. We would climb out... find another wagon and proceed to play.... We would also climb into the empty wagons and play. We would play for what seemed like forever, only to take the time out, because Mamaw said so... to eat.... It's not because we wanted to eat... but she made us! I can remember that because of the dangers that my Grandfather would NOT let us kids in the gin. He would, however, let me on the back dock so as to when the cotton bail came out of being pressed, he would take this HUGE knife and cut a sample, tag it, hand it to me to take to my Mother at the scale house. What she did with it, I do not know... but I didn't care... I was the"Sample Girl"... Picture this... an old blue 1950 or 1960 something farm truck, I don't remember if it was a Chevy or Ford or what...... Papaw had parked it under the scale house facing West. To this day, I don't remember why it was there... but it was... just calling my name.... I had taken a sample of cotton to Mother for her to do whatever she did and "Old Blue" started calling my name... Lee Ann.... Lee Ann... Lee Ann.... so what did I do.... Yep, went over and got behind the wheel of "Old Blue".... I don't remember how I got it started, but I did... put the thing in gear and head West straight for the HUGE... and when I say HUGE... I mean HUGE Cherry Tree in the yard. I was laughing like I had just done something FUN... or so I thought... I remember Papaw running after me and the truck... yes me and Old Blue hit the Cherry Tree... not really hard... but enough that is really scared Papaw. He was so glad that I wasn't hurt...and Mother was too.... my butt, or maybe pride, that day was hurt much worse than the Cherry Tree. The tree still stands today and so do I. Oh the days of living in my small town.... Those were the days when you could go on a family vacation, leave the doors open and the windows up.... the only fear of leaving the windows up would be that it would rain and your house get wet. Those days are SO LONG GONE! Today, we have to deal with unnecessary and senseless things... schools shootings, child abductions, drug abuse, parents who leave there babies in garbage cans..... I could go on and on but you get the picture. Tomorrow... maybe more description of life in Small Town USA..... SMOOCHES!

I've been tagged! I've been tagged by that hilarious Sandee over at COMEDY PLUS . Yup, I've been tagged with the "Rocker Girl Blogger Award". It doesn't matter what kind of day I'm having if I go over there she brightens my day! Here is what she said about me ... Another of my favorites is Dixiechick over at Dixie's - Heart and Soul. Here's a single mom raising two kids (ones about ready to ship out to Parris Island, SC. I love her stories about her kids, especially Matt of late. She is very patriotic and I would bet her heart is as big as the state of Tennessee where she resides. She is truly a delight and gives the best smooches in cyberspace. In my best Elvis impersonation .... thank you... thank you very much! So now it's my turn to tag five rocker girls. So grab your award .... 1. Hoochie mama TURNBABY from over at As the World Turns. I met Turnbaby a year and a half ago during American Idol. We both have this passion for a particular soul man.... that soul man being Taylor Hicks. We've been through some good times together and some rough times together. She has always been there when I needed her. I believe that we were once sisters, in another life. She is my older sis ... She is sometimes profound, sometimes profane, very funny and always entertaining. Keep checking back because YOU JUST NEVER KNOW. 2. Hoochie mama ANNDI from Anndi's Luggage. I too met her at the same time I met Turnbaby. She is a single mother from Canada, raising a beautiful and incredibly smart chicklet, Alice. You never know what's going to come from her luggage. She has a tendency to pull things out of those big old huge bags of hers that only a "professional smartass" would do. So go over and give Anndi a visit because she has more luggage than anybody I know. Hold on it could be a bumpy ride. 3. Hoocie mama Kyra from THE 108 . She is the girl that your mother warned you about. Kyra is a mother of four beautiful children. Just recently giving birth to a angel baby, Emi. Her husband Dean proudly serves in the United States Army. I don't care that my mother warned me about girls like Kyra, she's the coolest chick you will ever get to know. She's funny and very straight to the point. She tells you like it is ... Give Kyra a visit but be warned she claims to have the power to get you nekkid. 4. Hoochie mama BUSY over at Ramblings and BUSY'S Meme. Busy is the original founder of the "Soul Patrol" , a true rocker and loves men with red hair. Busy is a single mother living in New York, raising two beautiful, smart children, who I too claim them as my niece and nephew. She loves to read, knit and is a true metal head. She has recently bought a violin and is beginning lessons soon. She has a true heart of gold. Stop by and visit Busy and tell her I sent ya. 5. Hoochie mama Toni from AIR FORCE WIFE. She is a Texas mom of 2 boys, wife to one fabulous husband... a maid, extraordinary chef, daughter, sister, friend, domestic goddess, sarcastic, full-of-it, total b.s.-er, goof ball, well you get the picture. Her husband just recently was deployed to go play in the big old sand box. You can also read about her over at Being An Air Force Wife . Give her a shout and hug and tell her Dixie sent you. So girls, you've been tagged, grab your Rockin' Girl badge, post it on your blog, cause you truly deserve it. Now it's your turn to list five women bloggers rockers. ROCK ON GIRLS... ROCK ON! Smooches!

WARNING: Some language may not be suitable for all readers. Not so Wordless Wednesday this week. I'm going to ramble on some things. The first one being.... ROSIE O'DONNEL ... COME ON DOWN ... YOU'RE THE NEXT HOST OF "THE PRICE IS RIGHT" Rosie O'Donnell is wanting to replace Bob Barker on The Price Is Right. Has Bob Barker lost his freakin mind? Has he been neutered?! Barker said O'Donnell is his pick. WHAT THE HELL???? I'm telling you right here and now, if that fat ass, unamerican bitch gets the spot I will NEVER and I mean NEVER watch The Price Is Right again! I'm sure that I'm not the only one either. This year alone, Rosie has accused Kelly Ripa of being a homophobic because of her statement to Clay Aiken when he put his hand over her mouth. Which is NOT what she meant, she has mocked Miss USA Tara Conner for bravely admitting that she had an addiction problem and was going to seek help for her addictions in rehab. She has had a very long and involved battle with Donald Trump. I'm not a fan of George Bush ... but O'Donnell also calling for the impeachment of George W. Bush 'just to send a message to the rest of the world' is insane! This woman is a freakin NUT JOB!!! Within a year Rosie O'Donnell would ruin the 'The Price is Right' and the show would be cancelled. Can you imagine going from "Spay and Neuter your pets" to "America knew about 9/11"? Secondly, our small county in Tennessee has made the news twice this year. First it was the Mary Winkler trial. She killed her preacher husband. But over the weekend another tragic event took place. The drag-racer whose car plowed into the crowd of spectators during the Cars for Kids Charity event Saturday was convicted of drunken driving in Virginia in 2000. His name is Troy Critchely and he pled guilty to DWI in April 2000. He lost his driver's license for a year and paid $381 in fines and court costs. WHY THE HELL IS HE DRIVING A DRAGSTER???!!!! He was only suppose to do a burnout... not rev the car to 100mph like he was at the drag strip. The burnout is a car spinning its wheels and sending up clouds of smoke. This was staged on a city street with no protective barriers between the dragster and hundreds of spectators lining both sides of the road. WHAT THE HELL WAS THE ORGANIZERS OF THIS EVENT THINKING???!!!! Six spectators, ages 15 to 22, were killed and at least 23 other people were injured, many seriously. Critchley's racing team is in Wylie, Texas. Now on the lighter side of life... this is a MUST watch. I almost wet my pants watching this one... SMOOCHES!

Real life tends to get in the way more than I would like for it too... sometimes... ;-) If I can just get through the next 4 1/2 weeks before Matt leaves for boot camp it will kinda be smooth sailing. Week before last, Matt calls me and here is the conversation... "Mom, I'm not gonna lie, but I got a ticket last night." "For what son?" "Ummmmm... I kinda had my music too loud, Officer Crowe pulled me over and gave me a ticket." "So, it was a noise violation ticket, right?" "Yes Ma'am." It was freakin 1:00 a.m. - he should have been at home. He got off work at 10:00 p.m. I have to go to court with him since he is 17 ... grrrrrrrrrr "When do you have to go to court?" "I don't know Mom, he told me to have you call this number and set a court date." "Ok, I'll call that number and I will call you back." So, I call the number and it's freakin Juvie... my son has NEVER been in any kind of trouble to warrant a call to the Juvenille Officer. "Good morning, this is Lee C., Matt C.'s mom. I was told you give y'all a call. Matt received a ticket last night from Officer Crowe for noise violation and I need to set a court date as quickly as possible." "Ms. C, our next court date for Officer Crowe is July 27 at 9:30 a.m." "Oh no, we must have this taken care of before then. He leaves for the Marine Corp. July 23." "Ms. C, let me see what I can do and I will call you back." I agree and within the hour she calls me back. "Ms. C, we can set his court date for June 15 at 9:30 a.m." "Wonderful, we will see you then." So Friday was court day for a freakin noise violation. Now I agree that the young people today tend to listen to what they call music a little too loud. But give them a warning ... So we go to court Friday morning. The judge calls us in his chambers. Thankfully didn't even have to go in the court room... We walk in and the judge smiles at us. Here is his comments... "Matt, I understand that you are leaving for the Marine Corp in a few weeks." "Yes Sir, that is correct." "Well Matt, first of all I want to thank you for making a very brave decision in joining the Marines. Secondly, I'm going to dismiss this ticket. I know that I won't be seeing you in my chambers again because when you come back from boot camp you will be a man." "Thank you sir, I really appreciate it" "Matt, good luck to you and again thank you for making this brave decision." Hopefully we can make it 4 1/2 more weeks without anymore court dates... ;-) I know that I am truly blessed to have a good son. The only MAJOR problem I have with him is keeping rubber on his tires. I know he doesn't do drugs ... he may drink but if he does I haven't caught him. I've NEVER caught him. He ALWAYS comes home by curfew. He never knows if I'm going to be up or not. But the nights that I have been up I haven't smelled any thing on him. He has always said that he knows better than to drink and drive. He hasn't drank and drove him... This is how my weekend started. Friday afternoon Tony and I decide that we are FINALLY going to put our pool back up. I have this huge above ground pool that has been in storage for 3 years. I SOOOOOOO ready for this pool to be up. So we started leveling ground Friday afternoon. Saturday still preparing the backyard for the pool. I can't do much since I have a bad back. Tony won't even let me look at a shovel for fear of me throwing my back out. Matt was NO help Saturday. He was in Selmer at the charity event that went oh so wrong. He was within 15 feet of the accident. He ran down to the site to help and what he described to me he saw was horrific. Let's remember to pray for the families that lost loved ones, families that have injured family members and the people who witnessed this tragic event. Sunday, church ... back home for a quick nap and back out in the yard to continue the work on the pool ... quick trip to Wally World for me, pick up supper at KFC... in at dark ... 2 loads of laundry washed, dried and put away. I'm tired .... going to bed now... weekend over... tomorrow... work day! SMOOCHES!!!

It's Monday - once again back in Pulaski. No time for a post this morning. Will do one tonight from the hotel. Have a great Monday everyone... will bring y'all up to date on life's happenings and what nots tonight. Will also catch up on my blog readings... I HATE IT WHEN REAL LIFE GETS IN THE WAY!!! SMOOCHES!

Thursday Thirteen and then some ... Edition #31 The 'Rules of the South' are as follows!!! 1. Pull your droopy pants up. You look like an idiot. 2. Turn your cap right, your head isn't crooked. 3. Let's get this straight; it's called a "gravel road." I drive a pickup truck because I want to. No matter how slow you drive, you're going to get dust on your Lexus. Drive it or get out of the way. 4. They are cattle. That's why they smell to you. They smell like money to us. Get over it. Don't like it? I-40 goes east and west, I-65 goes north and south. Pick one. 5. So you have a $60,000 car. We're impressed. We have $250,000 cotton strippers that are driven only 3 weeks a year. 6. So every person in the south waves. It's called being friendly. Try to understand the concept. 7. If that cell phone rings while a bunch of doves are coming in, we WILL shoot it out of your hand. You better hope you don't have it up to your ear at the time. 8. Yeah, we eat catfish & crawfish. You really want sushi & caviar? It's available at the corner bait shop. 9. The "Opener" refers to the first day of deer season. It's a religious holiday held the closest Saturday to the first of November. 10. We open doors for women. That is applied to all women, regardless of age. 11. No, there's no "vegetarian special" on the menu - order steak. Or you can order the Chef's Salad and pick off the 2 pounds of ham & turkey. 12. When we fill out a table, there are three main dishes: meats, vegetables, and breads. We use three spices: salt, pepper, and ketchup! Oh, yeah.... We don't care what you folks in Cincinnati call that stuff you eat... IT AIN’T REAL CHILI!! 13. You bring "coke" into my house, it better be brown, wet and served over ice. You bring "Mary Jane" into my house, she better be cute, know how to shoot, drive a truck, and have long hair. 14. College and High School Football is as important here as the Lakers and the Knicks, and a dang site more fun to watch. 15. Yeah, we have golf courses. But don't hit the water hazards -- it spooks the fish. 16. Colleges? We have them all over. We have State Universities , Universities, and Vo-techs. They come outta there with an education plus a love for God and country, and they still wave at everybody when they come home for the holidays. 17. We have more folks in the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines. So don't mess with us. If you do, you will get whipped by the best. 18. The south is the greatest!! If you are from the south you are part of the best people in the USA !!

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY Edition #30

I'm getting old. My eyesight is leaving me, my back aches, my feet hurt, Uncle Authur makes daily visits, I can't hear without say ... "what did ya say" or "huh" and I forget ALOT... My kids laugh and tell me they are going to buy me a walker, a hearing aide and have reserved my room in the Old Timers Ward of the nursing home. They have even made comments like ... "Mom, you know back in the day when y'all used chisel and stone?" "Mom, you remember when y'all had to walk up hill 10 miles just to get to school and 10 miles down hill just to get home?" "Mom, was electricity invented when you were a little girl?" "Mom, how many cows did you have to milk as a little girl just to get a glass of milk?" I can't wait until the kids get older, have children of their own and get asked the exact same questions. I'm going to laugh my butt off. And it will happen ... I know it will because I've already put the "Mother's Curse" on them... you know the one... "Your kids are going to be JUST LIKE YOU only five time worse!" Their response to me is... "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!" ;-) They know they are wrong... I received this e-mail the other day on George Carlin's Views on Aging and How to stay young. I believe that it relates to all of us. George Carlin's Views on Aging Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like to get old is when we're kids? If you're less than 10 years old, you're so excited about aging that you think in fractions. "How old are you?" "I'm four and a half!" You're never thirty-six and a half. You're four and a half, going on five! That's the key You get into your teens, now they can't hold you back. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead. "How old are you?" "I'm gonna be 16!" You could be 13, but hey, you're gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your life . . you become 21. Even the words sound like a ceremony . YOU BECOME 21. YESSSS!!! But then you turn 30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There's no fun now, you're Just a sour-dumpling. What's wrong? What's changed? You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you're PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it's all slipping away. Before you know it, you REACH 50 and your dreams are gone. But wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn't think you would! So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60. You've built up so much speed that you HIT 70! After that it's a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday! You get into your 80's and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30; you REACH bedtime. And it doesn't end there. Into the 90s, you start going backwards; "I Was JUST 92." Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. "I'm 100 and a half!" May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!! HOW TO STAY YOUNG 1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay "them." 2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down. 3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. "An idle mind is the devil's workshop." And the devil's name is Alzheimer's. 4. Enjoy the simple things. 5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath. 6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive. 7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge. 8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help. 9. Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is. 10.Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity. AND ALWAYS REMEMBER: Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

Back in Jackson this week. Not much time for posting. Will post when I can. Customer visit. At least I'm home for the week. Before the summer re-run I want to say this - Friends - are special people. Our friends can be as diverse and infinite as the adjectives we choose, Close friend, Best friend, Childhood friend, Intimate friend, Trusted friend, Beloved friend. Our friends, in a very real sense, reflect the choices we make in life. I know that I have made bad choices in friends over the years and then I have made good choices. The bad choices I, in a way, can't regret because if I had not made those choices then I would have never know what a true and trusted friend is. In our short lived life, we very seldom have "true" friends. The ones that we do have we should cherish with every waking moment. Now for the summer time re-run and I'm going back in my archives and pulling a few of them out. Hope you enjoy. Friends Last night as I was flipping through the channels to see what was on television, I came across a movie that I had not seen in years. A movie that shows the true meaning of friendship. That no matter what happens in your life, the trials and tribulations that friends go through, that we are always there for each other. The movie that I watched and cried to was "Beaches". As I sat and watched the movie, I thought of all my friends here in the blogshpere and in the SP and those that I have here at home. I thought that if I were in Hillary Whitney's shoes who would stand by me? Who would be C. C. Bloom? If one of my friends were in Hillary's shoes, would I be C. C. Bloom? Would I be able to just drop my life to be with a friend who was dying or who needed me for any other reason? As these questions ran through my mind, I can think of so many that I knew would be there if I were Hillary. I know that all I would have to do is make one phone call and they would be there. You know who you are. Those same friends that I could call know that if they truly needed me that all they would have to do was call and I would be there for them. Below is a song from the movie that I have always loved. I cry every time I hear it. I guess that yes, I am a softie... but I can't help it. THE WIND BENEATH MY WINGS (Bette Midler) It must have been cold there in my shadow, to never have sunlight on your face. You were content to let me shine, that's your way, you always walked a step behind. So I was the one with all the glory, while you were the one with all the strength. A beautiful face without a name -- for so long, a beautiful smile to hide the pain. CHORUS Did you ever know that you're my hero, and ev'rything I would like to be? I can fly higher than an eagle, 'cause you are the wind beneath my wings. It might have appeared to go unnoticed, but I've got it all here in my heart. I want you to know I know the truth, of course I know it, I would be nothing with out you. CHORUS Did you ever know that you're my hero, and ev'rything I would like to be? I can fly higher than an eagle, 'cause you are the wind beneath my wings. Fly, fly, fly away, you let me fly so high. Oh, fly, fly, so high against the sky, so high I almost touch the sky. Thank you, thank you, thank God for you, the wind beneath my wings. Thank God for each and every one of you... I love you all....

Photo Scavanger Hunt for Saturday is SHOES Now I have never particapted int his, but when I saw that it was "shoes" then I couldn't resist. There is a group of us that have this "thing" I guess you would call it going every work day. We started this e-mail group over a year ago and it sure makes our work day fly by. There have been days when each of us have had a day from hell and we have helped each other get through it... So for the two hotties... Vince and Trav ... and for the hoochies, Turn, Ann, Mary, Busy, and Pia ... THIS ONE'S FOR YOU! ENJOY!

Happy Friday all ... hope everyone has a great weekend. Here's a little funny to start it off... Who says that religion can't be funny... How to tell if a Catholic is driving to fast Jewish Olympic Swimmer MY FAVORITE Everything I need to know about life, I learned from Noah's Ark One : Don't miss the boat. Two : Remember that we are all in the same boat. Three : Plan ahead. It wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark. Four : Stay fit When you're 600 years old, someone may ask you to do something really big. Five : Don't listen to critics; just get on with the job that needs to be done. Six : Build your future on high ground. Seven : For safety's sake, travel in pairs. Eight : Speed isn't always an advantage. The snails were on board with the cheetahs. Nine : When you're stressed, float a while. Ten : Remember, the Ark was built by amateurs; the Titanic by professionals. Eleven : No matter the storm, when you are with God, there's always a rainbow waiting...

Hey... I won some money and a car... and here is the e-mail to prove it... The Lottery Department Toyota Car Promotions 25 Atlantic Avenue Erlanger United Kingdom CVR-nr. 34574565. This is to inform you that have been selected for a Cash prize of £600,000.00. (Six Hundred Thousand Great British Pounds)and a brand new toyota car Toyota Prius (http://www.toyota.com/prius) International programs held this May 2007 in London Uk. To begin the processing of your prize you are to contact your claims officer through our accredited Prize Transfer agents as stated below: Mr.McHENRY BROWN. Phone:+447031924164 +447031913252 Email: mchenrybrown11@yahoo.com.hk When contacting him, please provide him with your secret pin code TY7448500 and your reference number 799BV90.You are also advised to provide him with the under listed information as soon as possible: CLAIMS REQURIEMENTS: Your Full Names: Your full Contact Address: Your Country of Residence: Your Date and Place of Birth: Your Occupation: Your contact Telephone Numbers: Your contact Fax Number: Your secret pin code: Your Amount Won: Your e-mail Address: Accept my hearty congratulations once again! Regards MR ALFRED FIRLOED Lottery Manager. Now please tell me what kind of fool would believe this? Please tell me why people are so freakin ignorant to send this type of crap out? Please tell me why idiots that send this shit out can't get a real job and stop trying to scam honest hard working people out of their money? WHY? WHY? WHY? I have also won the lottery from Microsoft and AOL.... here's the e-mail to prove that too ... Microsoft Award Team Ref: BTD/968/06 Batch: 409978E Dear Lucky winner, WINNING NOTIFICATION The prestigious Microsoft and AOL has set out and successfully organised a Sweepstakes marking the anniversary we rolled outover 100,000.000.00 (One Hundred Million Great Britain Pounds) for our Anniversary Draws. Participants for the draws were randomly selected and drawn from a wide range of web hosts which we enjoy their patronage. The selection was made through a computer draw system attaching personalised email addresses to ticket numbers. Your email address as indicated was drawn and attached to ticket number 008795727498 with serial numbers BTD/9080648302/06 and drew the lucky numbers 14-21-25-39-40-47(20) which subsequently won you £700,000.00 (seven hundred thousand Great Britain Pounds) as one of the jackpot winners in this draw. You have therefore won the entire winning sum of £700,000.00 (seven hundred thousand Great Britain Pounds). To file for your claim Please Contact your fiduciary agent Mr. Scott Phillips Microsoft Promotion Award Team Head Winning Claims Dept. Email:microsoftfiduciaryclaimagent@yahoo.co.uk You are advised to contact your fiduciary agent with the following details to avoid unnecessary delays and complications. Your Full Names___________ Country___________________ Occupation________________ Your Age__________________ Sex_______________________ Company Name______________ Phone Number______________ Ticket Numbers____________ Batch Number______________ Lucky Numbers_____________ We wish you the best of luck Thank you for being part of our promotional award program and commemorative Anniversary Draws. Sincerely, Dr.Ann Hawkes Microsoft Promotion Team. So since I won all this money and a car ... I'm taking ALL my friends on a all expense paid trip to any agreeded upon destination. All expenses will be paid by Mr.McHENRY BROWN and Dr. Ann Hawkes. So ... where do y'all want to go????

DONA NOBIS PACEM flowerpower courtesy of http://freedesktops.bravehost.com/ All we are saying is give peace a chance. John Lennon (1940-1980) But peace does not rest in the charters and covenants alone. It lies in the hearts and minds of all people. So let us not rest all our hopes on parchment and on paper, let us strive to build peace, a desire for peace, a willingness to work for peace in the hearts and minds of all of our people. I believe that we can. I believe the problems of human destiny are not beyond the reach of human beings. John F. Kennedy (1917-1963) One day we must come to see that peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but that it is a means by which we arrive at that goal. We must pursue peaceful ends through peaceful means. Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968) To reach peace, teach peace. Pope John Paul II butterfly courtesy of http://freedesktops.bravehost.com/ If there is to be peace in the world, There must be peace in the nations. If there is to be peace in the nations, There must be peace in the cities. If there is to be peace in the cities, There must be peace between neighbors. If there is to be peace between neighbors, There must be peace in the home. If there is to be peace in the home, There must be peace in the heart. Lao Tzu (570-490 B.C.) courtesy ofhttp://freedesktops.bravehost.com/

I'm safe in the hotel.... I need to explain "My War Zone"... ;-) The plant that I work for in Jackson has a sister plant in Pulaski. I've been working here Monday through Thursday since the end of April. The person that was in the same position as me quit about 7 months ago. The did not replace her. They just divided her job up among other people.... wrong thing to do. So, I was asked to come and and help them get ready for a third party audit. I agreed... this is my WAR ZONE! Every Monday, I leave home around 7:00 am and start on my two hour journey. Today, I get to my desk and I can't see it. The only thing I can see is my phone, computer and printer. They loaded me up! Yes, that is a good thing... they are doing what I have asked them to do... ALL AT ONCE! I'll get through it. Sorry, I did not mean to alarm anyone. I don't care that you're nosey. Hey, I'm nosey too... sometimes... especially if something has caught my attention... Sorry, but I must talk a little baseball... my favorite sport although my St. Louis Cardinals ARE NOT doing so hot this year... Sitting here watching the news and literally laughing my butt off... I love this tantrum that the Mississippi Brave manager pitched this weekend. I absolutely LOVE IT!!!! I love how he crawls out to the pitcher's mound and throws the "grenade" at the ump. This is a classic!!! How in the world did he come up with something like that... I'm still laughing my butt off on this one! This one will go in the record books at the all time greatest!!! Let's combine this with the Lou Piniella tantrum and the Joe Torre run during the Sox/Yankees game on Friday and it was a very entertaining weekend. Boys will be boys!!!!!!!!!! Found this joke today and just had to share it.... A little boy came down for breakfast one morning and asked his grandma, "Where's mom and dad?" to which she replied, "They're up in bed." The little boy started to giggle, ate his breakfast and went out to play. Then he came back in for lunch and asked his grandma, "Where's mom and dad?" and she replied, "They're still up in bed." Again the little boy started to giggle, ate his lunch and went out to play. Then the little boy came in for dinner and once again he asked his grandma, "Where's mom and dad?" His grandmother replied, "They're still up in bed." The little boy started to laugh and his grandmother asked, "What gives? Every time I tell you they're still up in bed, you start to laugh! What is going on here?" The little boy replied, "Well last night daddy came into my bedroom and asked me for the Vaseline, and I gave him super glue." BOYS WILL BE BOYS!!! One more thing for today ... Life is short, Break the rules, Forgive quickly, Kiss slowly, Love truly, Laugh unncontrollably...Never regret anything that made you smile. SMOOCHES!

I'm in a freakin WAR ZONE here!!!! No time to post today. Will post tonight from the hotel. Hope everyone has a great Monday! SMOOCHES!

BLAST FROM THE PAST! The Funeral of I CAN'T RIP June 1, 2007 Do you ever get tired of hearing or saying "I Can't". Would would happen if everyone of us always thought "I Can't" to this or "I Can't" do that... what would happen. Below is an e-mail that I received several months ago and I think that is has a wonderful message. So today, we are having a funeral..... THE I CAN'T FUNERAL Donna's fourth-grade classroom looked like many others I had seen in the past. Students sat in five rows of six desks. The teacher's desk was in the front and faced the students. The bulletin board featured student work. In most respects it appeared to be a typically traditional elementary classroom. Yet, something seemed different that day I entered it for the first time. There seemed to be an undercurrent of excitement. Donna was a veteran small-town Michigan schoolteacher only two years away from retirement. In addition, she was a volunteer participant in a countywide development project I had organized and facilitated. The training focused on language arts ideas that would empower students to feel good about them and take charge of their lives. Donna's job was to attend training sessions and implement the concepts presented. My job was to make classroom visitations and encourage implementation. I took an empty seat in the back and watched. All the students were working on a task, filling a sheet of notebook paper with thoughts and ideas. The ten-year-old student closest to me was filling her page with "I Can'ts." "I can't kick the soccer ball pass second base." "I can't do long division with more than three numbers." "I can't get Debbie to like me." Her page was half full and she showed no signs of letting up. She worked on with determination and persistence. I walked down the row glancing at students' papers. Everyone was writing sentences, describing things they couldn't do. "I can't do ten pushups." "I can't hit over the left-field fence." "I can't eat only one cookie." By this time, the activity engaged my curiosity, so I decided to check with the teacher to see what was going on. As I approached her, I noticed that she too was busy writing. I felt it best not to interrupt. "I can't get John's mother to come in for a teacher conference." "I can't get my daughter to put gas in the car." "I can't get Alan to use words instead of fists." Thwarted in my efforts to determine why students and teacher were dwelling on the negative instead of the positive "I Can't" statements, I returned to my seat and continued my observations. Students wrote for ten minutes. Most filled their page. Some started another."Finish the one you're on and don't start a new one," were the instructions Donna used to signal the end of the activity. Students were then instructed to fold their papers in half and bring them to the front. When students reached the desk, they placed their "I Can't" statements into an empty shoe box. When all of the student papers were collected, Donna added hers. She put the lid on the box, tucked it under her arm and headed out the door and down the hall. Students followed the teacher. I followed the students.Halfway down the hall the procession stopped. Donna entered the custodian's room, rummaged around and came out with a shovel. Shovel in one hand, shoebox in the other, Donna marched the students out of the school to the farthest corner of the playground. There they began to dig.They were going to bury their "I Cant's!" The digging took over ten minutes because most of the fourth graders wanted a turn. When the hole approached three-foot deep, the digging ended. The box of "I Cant's" was placed at the bottom of the hole and quickly covered with dirt.Thirty-one 10- and 11- years -olds stood around the freshly dug gravesite. Each had at least one page full of "I Cant's" in the shoebox, three-feet under. So did their teacher. At this point Donna announced, "Boys and girls, please join hands and bow your heads." The students complied. They quickly formed a circle around the grave, creating a bond with their hands. They lowered their heads and waited. Donna delivered the eulogy."Friends, we gather today to honor the memory of "I Can't." While he was with us on earth, he touched the lives of everyone, some more than others. His names, unfortunately, has been spoken in every public building - schools, city halls, and state capitols and yes, even The White House. We have provided "I Can't" with a final resting place and headstone that contains his epitaph. He is survived by his brothers and sisters, "I can, 'I will' and "I'm going to Right Away.' They are not as well known as their famous relative and are certainly not as strong and powerful yet. Perhaps someday, with your help, they will make and even bigger mark on the world. May 'I Can't' rest in peace and may everyone present pick up their lives and move forward in his absence. Amen." As I listened to the eulogy I realized that these students would never forget this day. The activity was symbolic, a metaphor for life. It was a right-brain experience that would stick in the unconscious and conscious mind forever.Writing "I Cant's," burying them and hearing the eulogy. That was a major effort on the part of this teacher. And she wasn't done yet. At the conclusion of the eulogy she turned the students around, marched them back into the classroom and held a wake. They celebrated the passing of "I Can't" with cookies, popcorn and fruit juices. Donna cut out a tombstone from butcher paper. She wrote the words "I Can't" at the top and put RIP in the middle the date was added at the bottom, "3/28/80."The paper tombstone hung in Donna's classroom for the remainder of the year. On those rare occasions when a student forgot and said, "I Can't," Donna simply pointed to the RIP sign. The student then remembered that "I Can't" was dead and chose to rephrase the statement. I wasn't one of Donna's students. She was one of mine. Yet that day I learned an enduring lesson from her.Now, years later, whenever I hear the phrase, "I Can't," I see images of that fourth-grade funeral. Like the students, I remember that "I Can't" is dead. So today, I too am burying the phrase "I Can't"....