Wednesday, October 31, 2007

just got this in my e-mail.(yes i know it's not xmas yet but it is something to think about)

i like it.








A Great Idea!!!



When you are making out your Christmas card list this year, please include

The following:
A Recovering American soldier
c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center
6900 Georgia Avenue,NW
Washington,D.C. 20307-5001

If you approve of the idea, please pass it on to your e-mail list.
REALLY SCARY HALLOWEEN COSTUMES:





FROM PEOPLE FOR THE AMERICAN WAY.




http://www.pfaw.org/pfaw/general/default.aspx?oid=24857





i printed the quotes and suggestions. if you go to the site you
can download the masks. while you're there give them a treat and it will be a wonderful trick on the right wing ghouls.







Pat Robertson


"The feminist agenda is not about equal rights for women. It is about a socialist, anti-family political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism and become lesbians."

"[Homosexuals] want to come into churches and disrupt church services and throw blood all around and try to give people AIDS and spit in the face of ministers."

"The Antichrist is probably a Jew alive in Israel today."

Suggested Costume Accessories:
DARWIN LIED lapel pin; "Age-defying energy shake" (that will allow you, just like Robertson, to leg press 2,000 pounds!)



Ann Coulter


"It would be a much better country if women did not vote. That is simply a fact."

"My only regret with Timothy McVeigh is he did not go to the New York Times building."

"We need to execute people like John Walker in order to physically intimidate liberals, by making them realize that they can be killed, too. Otherwise, they will turn out to be outright traitors."


Suggested Costume Accessories:
Guide to homophobic slurs; guide to anti-Muslim slurs; guide to anti-Semitic slurs; etc.



James C. Dobson


"Homosexuals are not monogamous. They want to destroy the institution of marriage. It will destroy marriage. It will destroy the Earth."

"We ain't dead yet." (Addressing the 2007 Values Voter Summit, refuting reports on the declining status of the Religious Right)

Suggested Costume Accessories:
Strong hand, ready for child discipline; outsized sense of righteous indignation; love letters from Republican presidential candidates.



Rush Limbaugh


"If this Virginia Tech shooter had an ideology, what do you think it was? This guy had to be a liberal … So it's a liberal that committed this act. ... I do believe that it was liberalism that got a hold of this guy and made him hate things, professors and this sort of thing."

"Have you ever noticed how all composite pictures of wanted criminals resemble Jesse Jackson?"


Suggested Costume Accessories:
Utter lack of shame; collection of phony tin soldiers; Michael J. Fox punching bag.



Bill O'Reilly


"Secular progressives ... don't want Christmas ... they don't want any message of spirituality or Judeo-Christian tradition because that stands in the way of gay marriage, legalized drugs, euthanasia, all of the greatest hits on the secular progressive play card."

"If Al Qaeda comes in here and blows you up, we're not going to do anything about it. We're going to say, look, every other place in America is off limits to you, except San Francisco. You want to blow up the Coit Tower? Go ahead."


Suggested Costume Accessories:
Air horn to silence unruly guests; multiple (pre-signed!) copies of The O’Reilly Factor for Kids for anyone who will take them off your hands.
October




AY, thou art welcome, heaven's delicious breath! When woods begin to wear the crimson leaf,
And suns grow meek, and the meek suns grow brief
And the year smiles as it draws near its death. Wind of the sunny south! oh, still delay
In the gay woods and in the golden air,
Like to a good old age released from care,
Journeying, in long serenity, away.
In such a bright, late quiet, would that I
Might wear out life like thee, 'mid bowers and brooks
And dearer yet, the sunshine of kind looks,
And music of kind voices ever nigh;
And when my last sand twinkled in the glass,
Pass silently from men, as thou dost pass.



By:


William Cullen Bryant

happy halloween!
hey, check out the article on women blogging in the post gazette this morning.
THE PITTSBURGH WOMAN'S BLOGGING SOCIETY is in it.

good interview with ms. mon!

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

i've seen all of these and i own a few.
enjoy, BOO!
just a little something below because i'm tired of reading and hearing about people freaking out about Halloween.

geeezzz, i read of one school that has changed it to "black and orange day"

let the kids dress up and get some candy.

lighten up!

my two cents!


oh and my little sweetie is going to be "the little mermaid."














Samhain History



From Patti Wigington,

Your Guide to Pagan / Wiccan Religion.
about.com


What is Samhain?:


Samhain is known by most folks as Halloween, but for Wiccans and Pagans it's considered a Sabbat to honor the ancestors who came before us. It's a good time to contact the spirit world with a seance, because it's the time when the veil between this world and the next is at its thinnest.

Myths and Misconceptions:
Contrary to a popular Internet-based (and Chick Tract-encouraged) rumor, Samhain was not the name of some ancient Celtic god of death, or of anything else, for that matter. Religious scholars agree that the word Samhain (pronounced "sow-en") comes from the Gaelic “Samhuin,” but they’re divided on whether it means the end or beginning of summer. After all, when summer is ending here on earth, it’s just beginning in the Underworld. Samhain actually refers to the daylight portion of the holiday, on November 1st.

All Hallow Mass:
Around the eighth century or so, the Catholic Church decided to use November 1st as All Saints Day. This was actually a pretty smart move on their part – the local pagans were already celebrating that day anyway, so it made sense to use it as a church holiday. All Saints’ became the festival to honor any saint who didn’t already have a day of his or her own. The mass which was said on All Saints’ was called Allhallowmas – the mass of all those who are hallowed. The night before naturally became known as All Hallows Eve, and eventually morphed into what we call Halloween.






The Witch's New Year:
Sunset on Samhain is the beginning of the Celtic New Year. The old year has passed, the harvest has been gathered, cattle and sheep have been brought in from the fields, and the leaves have fallen from the trees. The earth slowly begins to die around us.

This is a good time for us to look at wrapping up the old and preparing for the new in our lives. Think about the things you did in the last twelve months. Have you left anything unresolved? If so, now is the time to wrap things up. Once you’ve gotten all that unfinished stuff cleared away, and out of your life, then you can begin looking towards the next year.



Honoring the Ancestors:
For some of us, Samhain is when we honor our ancestors who came before us. If you’ve ever done genealogy research, or if you’ve had a loved one die in the past year, this is the perfect night to celebrate their memory. If we’re fortunate, they will return to communicate with us from beyond the veil, and offer advice, protection and guidance for the upcoming year.

Monday, October 29, 2007

the soup turned out good.

well, i'm pretty sure that it did.
colds tend to dull taste buds and the sense of smell.

nothing much else to say.














making beef veggie soup. starve a cold my sweet---!

have to get something healthy in me. don't go there ; )


i tend to stop eating altogether once the creeping misery really takes hold so
beef veggie soup is simmering away on my stove.

there's cabbage in there and onions and garlic and whatever veggies i might feel like.
(haven't decided yet)

and maybe noodles or pastine or rice. i like pastine( those teeny little macaroni pearls)


i could stare into the soup pot and see if there's a poem swimming in there.


if i was less slug like today, i'd make irish soda bread to go with the soup.
sitting here in a bathrobe and my "demented chicken hair"
really sexy look i'll tell ya!

the cold germs are dancing conga lines all over my body
and a few are singing karaoke badly in my lungs and throat.

you should thank all that's holy that i
don't have a video set up.

i'm much scarier than any old halloween costume.


BOO!

Saturday, October 27, 2007

















http://www.nationalpriorities.org/Cost-of-War/Cost-of-War-3.html











Webcast on NF1 Wednesday November 7, 2007
12:00 Noon - 1:00 p.m.
"Neurofibromatosis: Complications in Child Development"

Listen at www.healthradio.net

Guests: Gary Bellus, M.D.
Clinical Director, NF Clinic
Children's Hospital of Colorado
Austin Broussard with NF1

"Patient Power" Radio Program
Host: Andrew Schorr

"Patient Power" serves to bring patients together in a radio and internet community to help navigate an often inhospitable healthcare system. It takes questions from callers and internet listeners. Replays may be available for downloading, streaming or podcasting at http://www.patientpower.info/. You can search by date, by topic and by guest.
rainy saturday. my little sweetie is coming today and spending the night.
we will have big fun.

Friday, October 26, 2007

ants, more than 1 joke because you never see just 1 ant now do you?










Where do ants go for their holidays?
Frants!

What do you call an ant who skips school?
A truant!

What do you get if you cross some ants with some tics?
All sorts of antics!

What do you call a greedy ant?
An anteater!

Why did the elephant put his trunk across the path?
To trip up the ants!

What is even bigger than an elephant?
A giant!

What do you call an ant in space?
Cosmonants & Astronants!

What do you call an ant from overseas?
Impartant!

What medicine would you give an ill ant?
Antibiotics!

What is smaller than an ant's dinner?
An ant's mouth!

Thursday, October 25, 2007

yes, i went aht.

i won't recount the entire evening but a large part of it was grown men rubbing their nipples thru their shirts waiting to take a turn playing pool!


and you 2 know who you are!

ah, friends, they are my friends!
goan aht for a bit. ; )








too freaking great!
i love this!! oh god, i do!









chilly and damp. i don't care.
i've got my new thermal jammies on (from VS)and my fluffy robe.


usually by now i'm showered and dressed but i'm being a slug.

little garden slug, that's me! ; )

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

this is the poem from the other day that i just wrote of.

it was well received.
what do you think?


honestly.
love poems


he told her he'd write her love poems
because he could
he said "i know all the words."

he didn't.


she wrote him beautiful poems of love
tho she couldn't, not
really.


her's were better.
got a poem in for c&c to my group.
strange that it came to me walking from the living room into here.
it works that way sometimes. not often, but sometimes it comes easy.

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

























Cat's Dream


How neatly a cat sleeps,
sleeps with its paws and its posture,
sleeps with its wicked claws,
and with its unfeeling blood,
sleeps with all the rings--
a series of burnt circles--
which have formed the odd geology
of its sand-colored tail.

I should like to sleep like a cat,
with all the fur of time,
with a tongue rough as flint,
with the dry sex of fire;
and after speaking to no one,
stretch myself over the world,
over roofs and landscapes,
with a passionate desire
to hunt the rats in my dreams.

I have seen how the cat asleep
would undulate, how the night
flowed through it like dark water;
and at times, it was going to fall
or possibly plunge into
the bare deserted snowdrifts.
Sometimes it grew so much in sleep
like a tiger's great-grandfather,
and would leap in the darkness over
rooftops, clouds and volcanoes.

Sleep, sleep cat of the night,
with episcopal ceremony
and your stone-carved moustache.
Take care of all our dreams;
control the obscurity
of our slumbering prowess
with your relentless heart
and the great ruff of your tail.


Translated by Alastair Reid:


Pablo Neruda
Happy Islamofascism Awareness Week! (no joke)



check out the post from spork.




http://sporkinthedrawer.typepad.com/blog/

rain.

Monday, October 22, 2007

a big "thank you" to the allegheny housing whatsis...

my mom is back in her apt. today after being at my place for a week because of the fire.

the people there were wonderful. very caring. they went into the apartments that had cats and left food and water and cleaned the litter boxes every day. as i wrote in an earlier post, felt awful thinking that my mother's cat had died there or gotten lost because the door to the apartment was left open because it had to be and that perhaps the fogger used to clean the air of smoke had killed the little beastie(and she IS a beastie, but my mom loves her).

the cat is o.k. pissed off at my mom for being gone and leaving her to the chaos that was this past week. she'll get over it tho and soon they will be best buddies once more.

Sunday, October 21, 2007










nighty- night, sleep tight.
don't let the trolls bite!
just killing time...
You Are a Centaur

In general, you are a very cautious and reserved person.
However, you are also warm hearted, and you enjoy helping others in practical ways.
You are a great teacher, and you are really good at helping people get their lives in order.
You are very intuitive, and you go with your gut. You make good decisions easily.
You Are Aphrodite!

A total shining star with a ton of admirers
And no wonder: you live life to the fullest!
When things get bad, you can easily take off to a happier place
But occasionally, you need to deal with problems head on
a beautiful sunday.
mom's watching football. baltimore ravens.
the steelers play tonight.

i hope she is able to go back to her apt. tomorrow afternoon. she will be
REALLY upset if she can't.

and it isn't an easy time.

Saturday, October 20, 2007








for the way

out a house of doors
and little rooms

and lounges

warm white sanctuary
to one or two

bewildered
faces

eyes

which look
without ever

lighting

on

the right
word

you can hear the tongues
revolving round

round

around
and around


as the earthworms must sound
when they come

to work at the flesh

through the wood
of the box









Philip Johnson @ moon a'la monde
http://www.philipjohnson.org.uk



if you are a regular here you know philip.
a wonderful and mysterious poet.
time for rant and not a small one like last year when i tried to be understanding
due to the fact they are kids!















the godforsaken ignorant and amazingly STUPID and tasteless

RAT DAY was back at my old alma mater FOX CHAPEL HIGH SCHOOL!

yes, i'm naming the name here. i'm embarrassed for my old school.
i am not surprised tho. well, let me rephrase that.


i AM surprised after the rat day coverage and supposed "sensitivity"
talk the offending students were supposedly given by the administration
that it was not stopped this year. i am PROUD of the students that walked out and happy that the media covered it. tho, it should have been more in depth.
THIS is bullying. rat day , well. i blame that parents even more than the students that should know better.

i went to the district so did my sister, my daughter and my nephew and my niece.
the education is outstanding but the ethics and even common sense still shown after all these years is just sad.

as i said, i am embarrassed. those children should be embarrassed and their parents should be ashamed.




and i have a little bit of a news flash for the kids that think rat day is a hoot.
i'm in my 50's. had a LOT of reunion type of things. i know how a lot of my fellow FCHS grads ended up.

don't think because your parents are well off and your grades are good and from a highly regarded district that you will continue to be a "fortunate son" quite often

it doesn't work out that way.

consider THAT fact when you make fun of those that were not born into the circumstances that you were.



having money it seems, does not buy class.


i can tell you honestly. someday, some of you that think rat day is fine, will look back at your part in it and flush with shame and hope that YOUR children never find out how shallow , how your lack of empathy and your sheep like behavior to continue to be a part of the "special" group affected other people, other kids, other families that hurt because of your nastiness.

sad, sad and hurtful.
i can only hope this attitude, this mindset stops this year.

let this be the last year for "rat day."



PEEK A BOO, yeah, it's me...



no poems. not a damn one, but they'll be back.
i'm sure cause i'm storing up some good stuff from the last bizzare week!

right now, my mom's in my living room reading a book my aunt betty gave me on ireland. we watched a jimmy stewart movie before lunch. "the man who knew too much"
he really was a very nuanced and seemingly effortless wonderful actor.

now, i've got sauce cooking on the stove and bread dough rising so i can make fried bread dough for her. she really wants to be back in her apt. i hope all goes well monday.

Friday, October 19, 2007






ALF
elevator blues.

seems the elevators took on water from the efforts to put out
the flames at my mom's highrise. so even tho everything else is fine at the building and only the 1 apt. where the fire started is bad, no one is allowed in until the elevators are fixed and inspected.

now, i can understand that as far as the elderly are concerned but tons of them have family members (like me and the rest of this "happy" little group)
that want to go and get clothes and meds etc. for their relatives.(and yes, they do know us there and we did get some things out the other day so they know who we all are)
well, they aren't allowing that anymore. hey, i can walk the 6 flights up. i'm not that old!
anyway, we had to go and get all new prescriptions filled AND the oxygen people had to deliver a new machine here cause her's is in her bedroom there. my sister had to go to the store and buy some clothes for mom cause she only had what she was wearing wed. when the fire happened.
and who knows how her cat is. THAT'S what's really upsetting her.
they said today that they are feeding the cats that are in the apartments(mom pays extra to have her cat)but cindy is old and weird and pretty much hates everyone but my mom so i don't even know if she made it thru or not cause she hides and a lot of the chemicals used to clean the smoke from the air are, i'm told, toxic.

so, that's what i've been doing. mom's mad cause they say they might not let the residents back til monday. she doesn't want to stay here any longer than she must cause she's very independent even at her age(soon to be 89)


cross your fingers for the cat. thanks, sherry

Thursday, October 18, 2007

The following are entries to a contest run by The Washington Post, in
which respondents had to write a two-line romantic poem...except that
the last line had to be as un-romantic as the first line was romantic.



1. My darling, my lover, my beautiful wife;

Marrying you screwed up my life.



2. I see your face when I am dreaming.

That's why I always wake up screaming.



3. Kind, intelligent, loving and hot;

This describes everything you are not.



4. Love may be beautiful, love may be bliss,

But I only slept with you because I was pissed.



5. I thought that I could love no other

That is, until I met your brother.



6. Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet, and so are you ~

But the roses are wilting, the violets are dead, the sugar bowl's

empty, and so is your head.



7. I want to feel your sweet embrace

But don't take that paper bag off your face.



8. I love your smile, your face, and your eyes

Damn, I'm good at telling lies!



9. My love, you take my breath away.

What have you stepped in to smell this way?



10. My feelings for you no words can tell,

Except for maybe "Go to hell."



11. What inspired this amorous rhyme?

Two parts vodka, one part lime.




MY MOTHER IS WATCHING CSI:MIAMI, SO HERE I AM WITH SILLY STUFF!

but it is poetry. enjoy.


by the way. rumor has it that the fire in my mom's apt building
was caused by a cigarette ashtray dumped into the trash.

gaaaawwwwddddd!










friday's funny today cause my mom's here til tomorrow at least:









Define "Old"



First, you tell your friend that you are having an affair.

Then your friend asks you, "Are you having it catered?"

That, my friend, is the definition of OLD!






(tho i've met a lot of the people at the highrise and some of them
still got it going on! )
been running around since yesterday like a chicken without her head!

(yes, i do know what that looks like)


the senior high rise had a fire and my mom's here with me.
still trying to find out when she can go back. her apt. is o.k. but they have to make sure the building is safe.

i feel bad for all the people living there. thankfully no one was hurt but they were terribly shook up.
i was on and off here yesterday, just looking for some sanity! (yeah, i know....)

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Brain Type Test
Are You Left-Brained or Right-Brained?


Although one side of the brain is generally dominant over the other, we should strive to utilize both halves. A balanced brain makes a balanced person - combining sequential thinking with a holistic approach, or linear thinking with intuition, enables us to fully comprehend issues and solve problems. Left-brainers can dramatically improve their problem solving abilities by learning to "follow their gut," while right-brainers can improve the execution of their creative efforts.

Realizing your dominant half is the first step in becoming balance-brained.



Your percentage score for the right brain is 51%.
Your percentage score for the left brain is 49%.




You are more right-brained than left-brained. The right side of your brain controls the left side of your body. In addition to being known as right-brained, you are also known as a creative thinker who uses feeling and intuition to gather information. You retain this information through the use of images and patterns. You are able to visualize the "whole" picture first, and then work backwards to put the pieces together to create the "whole" picture. Your thought process can appear quite illogical and meandering. The problem-solving techniques that you use involve free association, which is often very innovative and creative. The routes taken to arrive at your conclusions are completely opposite to what a left-brained person would be accustomed. You probably find it easy to express yourself using art, dance, or music. Some occupations usually held by a right-brained person are forest ranger, athlete, beautician, actor/actress, craftsman, and artist.

Your left brain/right brain percentage was calculated by combining the individual scores of each half's sub-categories. They are as follows:



Left Brain


Linear
Sequential
Symbolic
Logical
Verbal
Reality-based




Right Brain


Holistic
Random
Concrete
Intuitive
Nonverbal
Fantasy-oriented
this is an old one from '06.

figured i'd repost it. that way, if you read the next post and are unfamiliar with some of my poems(been in a bit of a dry spell, hell sahara desert dry)you might want to read more and think about whether you like my blog or not.











i can not go there


i can not imagine myself as a man
with a man's lines and angles
larger bones and rough hands
narrowed hips walking a man's stride
owning the ground

i can not go there that alien land of
bigger shadows and deeper voices
even in dreams of power and easy laughter

i can not look at a woman
the way you look at me
with a quickened pulse and heated strength
grown between muscled thighs

oh but i can fuck you like a man
not with hardness but with intensity
and fierce purpose, a dominant female
with warm mouth and opened legs

i can imagine myself a woman
with a woman's curves and hollows
small bones and soft hands
round hips walking a woman's stride
owning a man.




UTTERLY SHAMELESS SELF PROMOTION & UPDATE!

http://2007.weblogawards.org/news/nominations-closing.php

at least i'm honest about it!






hey, it's me. if you go here and scroll down and look under the post thing that says"who else but me?"
and click, you'll see my blog is nominated. unfortunately, the address isn't posted.

go figure.



anyway you can vote for me if you've a mind to. i'd be happy to get a few votes.
beg, yeah i could, please, please, please with whipped cream and sprinkles and a cherry on top? (yes, i'm being silly. why not?)


thanks big ole bunches. ; )


p.s. i'm not even sure how this works tho i've voted before in the political blog category and the best blog one. voting is easier than looking for votes.








http://2007.weblogawards.org/nominations/best-literature-blog.php
a little pumpkin blossom in a pumpkin patch!

yes, my little sweetie picking a halloween pumpkin.








my horoscope today! ho, ho, ho!




October 17, 2007
Mercury, planet of communication, is in harmony today with Mars, the forward thinking planet of taking charge. A seduction can occur tonight, as words with intentions are as effective as ever. Are you practicing your poetry?










Be A Bud


Be a bud sitting quietly on the hedge.

Be a smile, one part of wondrous existence.

Stand here. There is no need to depart.





Thich Nhat Hahn
up and dressed!

Tuesday, October 16, 2007




i did this before. i just sent one again.
send a "thank you" to our troops.




http://www.letssaythanks.com/Home1024.html
been a very busy day. got my hair cut, finally.
short, i like it short!
then went on a ride up north thru cook's Forest and clarion u.
brady's bend...

beautiful day but hardly any leaves were changed!
odd that. i figured the trees north of here would be past peak, but it's a strange fall. mostly green and yet dead leaves scattered on the ground.

the forest tho, is ALWAYS magnificent.
got a GREAT cd the other day:

bill wyman's

RUDE DUDES!

2 cd's of great old "rude" blues.

i highly recommend it. i'm just lov'n the hell out of it.

Monday, October 15, 2007

You Belong in 1969

You are a free spirit with a huge heart. Love, peace, and happiness rule - oh, and drugs too.





took this test from konagod's place.

yep, 1969. i was 17 and graduated high school that year.

right on.

IT'S BOB'S BIRTHDAY TODAY!!!!

HE'S A BIG 2 YEARS OLD!
shoe form??










i spend a few hours bagging and dragging garbage out of my mom's house yesterday morning.
did myself proud. the pile for the garbage truck was a good 4 and a half feet high and about 10 feet long.


anyway, this was hidden away in a corner of the basement. i think it's a iron shoe form as my great grandfather on my dad's side came here around around 1880? and he was a cobbler. it looks like a shoe form and it weighs a ton!

Saturday, October 13, 2007



these are bacon's buddies.
bacon thinks he's a dog, but smarter.







THIS is bacon.
bonnie and bob's piggy.

i was over for a party this afternoon.
bacon is a hoot!
a blast from the past.
my sister e-mailed this today.
she found it while going thru some of my parent's old photos.

just screams 50's doesn't it???





yeah, it's me.





there are THOSE times:
cold and sunny.
had a few thoughts and a few words in my head for a poem but lost them before i could write them down. i've often wondered just how many poems i've lost that way.

Friday, October 12, 2007

tah daaah!

i've shifted a few poems around in the ha, book folder!

god, i'm SUCH a slug.
got this from :

www.one.org. give a them a minute or 2 of your time. thanks.







Dear Sherry,


If you've ever fallen behind on your bills or watched a friend struggle to make the monthly payment on a credit card, you know how devastating debt can be. Now imagine entire countries in the developing world—countries already struggling to lift their people out of extreme poverty—facing mountains of debt they didn't ask for and can't afford to pay.

Across the developing world, from Haiti to Lesotho, countries that should be distributing AIDS drugs, building schools and fighting hunger are trapped by billions of dollars of debt—debt often racked up by corrupt rulers who used the money to enrich themselves and used the future of their terrorized people as collateral.

A bill in Congress would cancel that debt for countries that commit to using the savings for poverty reduction, giving dozens of nations and millions of people a real chance at a better future. That bill is the Jubilee Act, and there is man who is dying to get it passed.

Reverend David Duncombe is taking 40 days off from his day job to walk the halls of Congress, asking our elected officials to support debt cancellation and the Jubilee Act. For 40 days, he's stretching his body to the very limits of human survival to pressure Congress to cancel the debt. And we can help him.

His 40 day fast ends October 17th on the Global Day of Action Against Poverty. That gives us one week to back up his fast with our voices. Let's all take action and send 40,000 letters to the U.S. House of Representatives—1,000 letters for each day of the fast—asking for support for the Jubilee Act and an end to the debt trap.

Debt is the kind of crisis that can hold back an entire continent. Sub-Saharan Africa pays $13 billion in debt service to wealthy nations and financial institutions every year, almost enough to pay for life-saving drugs to reverse the AIDS crisis that claims 7,000 lives each day.

And in 2000, when Tanzania's debt was cancelled, that government was able to eliminate school fees, sending 1.5 million children to school almost overnight.

For 40 days, Reverend Duncombe is fasting and telling our elected officials about the promise debt relief holds for people who are as hungry as he is. We can add 40,000 voices to his by asking our Representatives to support the Jubilee Act and lead on debt cancellation.

On October 17th, as anti-poverty advocates, we're supposed to Stand Up! for the Global Day of Action Against Poverty. Rev. Duncombe may be too weak to physically take to his feet that day. But by sending 40,000 letters we can stand up for him and send the message that debt cancellation is a smart way to fight poverty and a clear example of America's leadership in the world.

ONE by ONE, thousand by thousand, we can give strength to Rev. Duncombe's fast for the Jubilee Act, even as his strength runs out. 40,000 of us can stand up and tell Congress to pass the Jubilee Act and end the cycle of debt and poverty in the developing world.

Thank you for your voice,

Josh Peck, ONE.org

P.S. Believe in what Reverend Duncombe is doing? Want to help us reach our goal of 40,000 letters in support of his 40 day fast? Take a minute to forward this email to four friends and ask them to support the Jubilee Act, too.
oh, hey. maria's on the radio right now filling in for lynn cullen on 1360.

hi maria. you're doing great. : )
oh and congrats to al gore!

nuff said!
hey boag, hope you and justin liked dylan.

no halvsies. gl won!
friday, joke day...


why did the martian get a ticket?


he forgot to pay the parking meteor!!!!

Thursday, October 11, 2007

cold and damp and the leaves are mostly, still green. odd fall so far.
scholarship meeting later. nothing much to say.
grey and chill, now THIS is pgh. weather. ; )

Wednesday, October 10, 2007










i'm tooting our collective horn here. i suppose then it's more like a brass band and well deserved. a big part of that is dr. jim bennett and all the fantastic poets that participate and call the poetry kit home. thanks.



Poetry Kit is the most read poetry Internet site on the web... Poetry Kit has over half a million real people visiting each month. jim
high today in the 60's i think.

sweater weather. i like that. not too cold/not too hot.

fall, finally!

Tuesday, October 09, 2007

i tried, i really, REALLY tried BUT

i simply could NOT finish watching the republican debates on the
economy.

geezz, send the tape and play it in a continuous loop
to people the government suspects are "evildoers"


and as they say,"may god have mercy on their souls!"

me, i'm going to go see what's on the discovery channel!

nighty nite.




haven't mentioned them in awhile so here's to my friend
charlie tee:






http://www.myspace.com/carpenterants

oh happy happy joy joy!

yes, my new jeans arrived!
now it sounds silly but in life, in my life
i look for the small bright spots to celebrate.
now, anyone that has known me, or read me knows by now that i do
MOST of my shopping at thrift stores. i love 'em BUT i buy my jeans at
victoria's secret. i used to buy levi's but since i found that vs jeans
fit me better(except for the "skinny" jeans that are made for ack, don't wanna think about it) i buy vs( from the sales or clearance catalogues mostly)


anyway, to make a long story even longer...

i had a very VERY favorite pair of light blue denim carpenter's jeans
that i absolutely had worn to pieces. the were frayed at the cuffs, had small holes by the back pockets and finally, finally the zipper fell apart from too many washings and so i whimpered a little as i pitched them into the garbage.

wasn't too too sad tho BECAUSE i had the foresight to order a new pair exactly the same( 1 size bigger due to my meds, but they are loose jeans anyway)

damned if this wasn't the ONLY time i had trouble from ordering from that catalogue!
BUT they were very sweet(and good business people) because they are sending me a gift certificate because i waited 6 freaking weeks for my order.

so i am very very pleased and i'm wearing my NEW old jeans.

now i know there are those of you(bless ya) that have issues about vs, but to paraphrase some gun owners(which i normally wouldn't )

you can have my victoria's secret credit card when you pry it from my cold dead hand!


and even THEN i might go all zombie on your ass! ; )
rain this afternoon. should be good for my new rhodie. i've been going out every morning and evening and talking to him. i hope he's listening.

no progress on the book yet. still kicking ideas around for themes etc. phooey.

Monday, October 08, 2007



i like this statue so here it is for Columbus day.

i like it because it shows 2 men, 2 equals.

Washington and Chief Guyasuta, there is another
statue of chief guyasuta that has been in sharpsburg forever it seems
and there are many things named for him but this shows the 2 leaders as equal
finally.







this was this morning's view from the window by my computer.
pretty, wasn't it?


My blog is worth $10,161.72.
How much is your blog worth?





i have to go back and check the archives to see if they said i went up or down from the last time i did this.

Sunday, October 07, 2007


well, my cement/ brick making tools have been put away in the shed til next spring.
the trough, my trowels and forms and molds and things, broken stained glass and stones. tho it is inseasonably hot right now, it is only a matter of a few days to a week before it will be too cold for me to be mucking around with wet cement and buckets of water and the garden hose.
the steelers joke is for my cousin stevie and my uncle gabe.
stevie flew in from california and my uncle from fla. and they are going to the
game today. first time in the new stadium. first time for a game in years. they are both steeler fans from the get go and i hope the team wins!
YOU GOTTA LOVE THE STEELER FANS



A Steelers fan liked to amuse himself by scaring every Browns fan he
saw strutting down a Pittsburgh street in an obnoxious orange and
brown shirt. He would swerve his van as if to hit them, then swerve
back just missing them.

One day, while driving along on the North Side, he saw a priest
walking along the street. He thought he would do a good deed, so he
pulled over and asked the priest, "Where are you going, Father?"

"I'm going to give Mass at St. Francis church, about two miles down
the road," replied the priest.

"Climb in, Father. I'll give you a lift!"

The priest climbed into the passenger seat, and they continued down
the road.

Suddenly, the driver saw a Browns fan walking down the road, and he
instinctively swerved as if to hit him. But, as usual, he swerved back
onto the road just in time. Even though he was certain that he had
missed the guy, he still heard a loud THUD.

Not knowing where the noise came from, he glanced in his mirrors but
still didn't see anything.

He then remembered the priest, and he tur ned to the priest and said,
"Sorry, Father, I almost hit that Browns fan!"

"That's OK," replied the priest, "I got him with the door."

Saturday, October 06, 2007






my new mums and rhodie. goodbye old yews.
beautiful morning, more like august than october.
going outside to give a greeting and pep talk to my new rhododendron.

had to have 3 yews pulled out yesterday. poor things finally gave up the ghost from the deer munching on them towards the end of each winter. i think they did survive for about 40 years so...

i'm not even sure what color the rhodie is but he looked really healthy and he was the one that wanted to come home here so here he is. i hope he makes it.

Friday, October 05, 2007





TURN UP THE SOUND AND THINK ABOUT IT


I SURE AM! ; )
down to 212 e-mails from the 400 or so!
a friday joke:


no, no kid jokes today.


A construction worker walks into a bar. He's a rather large, menacing guy. He orders a beer, chugs it back, and bellows, "All you guys on this side of the bar are a bunch of idiots!" A sudden silence descends.

After a moment he asks "Anyone got a problem with that?" The silence lengthens.

He then chugs back another beer and growls, "And all you guys on the other side of the bar are all scum!" Once again, the bar is silent.

He looks around belligerently and roars, "Anyone got a problem with that?" A lone man gets up from his stool unsteadily and starts to walk towards the man.

"You got a problem, buddy?"

"Oh no; I'm just on the wrong side of the bar."

Thursday, October 04, 2007

179 e-mails left!

it's been a very busy day.

some outstanding poems
and some outstanding people as well.

me, i'm going to bed.
i'll finish in the morning.
hey boag,

thanks for going halfsies.


remember...

"wax on. wax off." ; )
there are 93 e-mails in my mail right now.
we are right in the middle, tho some are moving toward the end of the npd u.k.
national poetry day, challenge.
all different time zones are involved because, tho it's really the u.k.
we all, even the american cousins, are participating.
Bald




Been thinking
and dreaming about
shaving my head
oh been about 2 years now and
then again
I might not.

I’ve thought about it a lot
and in my dreams
I already have

whiter than my face
and not nearly as wrinkled
but lumpy and cracked
like an egg with a tough shell.

Shaving my head , looking in the mirror
sneezing from the hair still drifting down
wondering if the eyebrows should go as well

been thinking about that
no eyebrows to raise
tonight maybe asleep
maybe I will.

Maybe I won’t know myself
yeah, maybe I wouldn’t give myself
the time of day.
thursday and a heat wave predicted.
it's been unseasonably warm the past week and now
tomorrow, humid and almost 90!

and me, i put away my summer clothes.

figures.

Wednesday, October 03, 2007

PITTSBURGH DARFUR EMERGENCY COALITION






http://www.pittsburghdarfur.org/






got this a blue gal's!


watch, if you have a daughter, granddaughter, niece, watch...
another damn rockslide on 28.
water main breaks ,rusted bridges, phooey.

so me, i went shopping at the goodwill.
i love shopping at "willy's" not as much as the salvation army that used to be by the ross park mall(boy i MISS that store!)

bargain's, bargains, bargains!


besides the prez said he wanted us to shop.

when do i get my medal???

Tuesday, October 02, 2007





my little sweetie with her light up piggy from the dragon boat festival.
i was at barnes and noble to get a gift certificate.
came home with a book for me as well. big shock, huh?
another bukowski. gasp, yeah like you couldn't figure that out.
they had quite a few but no, not one, neruda!






this is one of my poems.
the photo has to do with the upcoming u.k. poetry challenge and the sad reality
that some of us have gone on.

one of them, barbara ostrander,was a simply wonderful, wonderful poet and more importantly, a kind and bright and brave woman. the story is too long to go into and personal but during our e-mails and mailings back and forth, i sold her a poem for 1 dollar. she liked it and i liked her.

this hangs on my wall here.
i don't need anything to remind me of her. it's more of a tribute to her spirit.

there are so, so, too many wonderful people gone too soon from the list.
i miss them all.

colin's poem, well i posted that because it shines with him.

i hope you enjoy it.

i'll let you all know how the challenge goes.
i'm up for this. i need to shake off the cobwebs!
jim came up with a great idea for a challenge for the pk list
to have a go at because october is national poetry month in the u.k.
i'll be participating unless something screws up round here.
in the e-mail, jim mentioned the sad fact that so many of us are no longer alive.
so, i thought i'd share a few things that will stay with me forever.


this was written by jim.
it was the last time this particular challenge was done:








4th October 2001 was National Poetry Day in the UK.

Members of the PK List had decided to mark the occasion with spontaneous poetry which would reflect something of their part of their world at four points in the day, roughly morning, noon, evening, and night. The event turned out to be a great success with all those who were involved feeling for once a true sense of community. There were glimpses into other peoples lives, a sharing of their hopes and finally a feeling that we were all part of something far bigger than we could know.

When it was over, it wasn't quite over, because a few days later we received as a postscript a short poem from a New York poet, Colin Addiss who had been part of the list for several years. Colin was in hospital in New York after the terrorist attack on the World Trade Centre, at the time he was writing he could not move, and had just undergone several operations on his neck and back. His sister Grace would print off the list mail and read it to him. This is his response.



Colin Addiss - New York, USA
I hear all the poets
in my sisters voice
their accents Bostonian
but the words are not hers
in two hours
she tramps across the world
covers a dozen time-zones
and my Saturday
becomes their Thursday
and their lives
become my life

next year I will write
next year I will join them
claim back my life

next year is
a blank page
waiting to be
a poem

Colin died two years later as a result of his injuries.




these are the poems from 2001



http://www.poetrykit.org/pkp/1d/ONEDAY2.htm

Monday, October 01, 2007

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=704071



my friend mick moss. bet if you'll
go listen. you'll love it.

BEING ALIVE.
just wrote this on the spur of the moment, fiddled a bit, moving words, changed a few...
ivory snow

the scent
soft memories
a moment of innocence
lingers on warm curves
damp towel


a name traced in a fogged mirror
i can see myself in your
letters while condensation
runs down as tears.









i've been checking out the chapters on putting a manuscript together.
i found that i had, not one, but THREE books that deal with this.
as if having bought these books at one time would give me some sort of a
advantage. ha! what i need is what the cowardly lion wanted, courage


and a little bit of confidence in my own abilities.
still gorgeous outside. no rain til perhaps sunday and we have blue skies!
blue skies in pittsburgh, whoodah thunk it??!!






i have a treat for you this monday morning.




http://www.sallyjames.co.uk




sally just had this site put up and i think it's off to a great start.
give a look see as we say around here. thanks.