Happy New Year to You!!

Christmas is two days behind us now. We had a very good Christmas this year, but it has left all of us drained. We are all so-o-o-o-o tired. Tomorrow my husband, my daughter, and I are all going to go to Houston to visit my dad and brother. So, in spite of being very tired, I had to do the Wally World thing and wash clothes and pack.

Today, a friend called to ask for a ride to an appointment. So, I gave her a lift. Then, as a result of my kindness, I got drawn into her side of a conflict in her family. NOT where I wanted to be! Seems her hubby got his mother to come get him from the drug rehab facility where he has been, due to an altercation that he got into there. But the two of them neglected to tell my friend! She took it personally, of course. And to make matters worse, he started using again LESS THAN 24 HOURS AFTER LEAVING REHAB. What a dumbass. But, I love both of these people, my friend and her hubby (who was really a friend of mine before she was). I just hope he can get straight before I find myself attending his funeral....

As a result of our trip, I will not be able to post again until early January. So, HAPPY NEW YEAR! (Is it still politically correct to say that??? I lose track of what's okay from day to day.)

Stay safe. PLEASE, don't drink and drive. And DON'T DO DRUGS!! PLEASE!!!

Prohibition: Finally Coming to an End??

Yes, you read that right. Alcohol prohibition, for most of the nation, ended in 1933. (See the article located in the title link.) Where I live, however, prohibition came back in 1976 with a "local option election". The abundance of churches and their "bible thumpers" ensured that the alcohol sales would be prohibited in the parish.

I have always opposed any attempt to legislate morality. In other words, you might be able to prohibit the sale of alcohol, but you won't be able to stop legal adults from drinking. You will, however, be able to force them to drive a greater distance for liquor--and possibly while already having indulged--increasing their risk of causing or being involved in a fatal accident.

The era of prohibition in Beauregard Parish is ending, thanks in part to the Louisiana Attorney General whose interpretation of the law will move Beauregard Parish out of the past and into the present.

21st Century, here we come!!

So, Here We Are

Many days have gone by since my last post, and much has happened.

The most significant thing is that my incredible daughter has finished her finals, her first semester of college, and come home--sort of. She came home, but left the next morning to spend a few days with a (male) friend in Arkansas. (Am I crazy??? Yeah, maybe. But we have had that talk, more than once, and I believe she is aware that sex, even one time-unprotected, can ruin her life in more ways than one, NOT counting pregnancy. So, I'm more worried that she will have car trouble or be involved in an accident than of her coming home pregnant.) She's earned a few days away from school AND family. She'll be home a few days before Christmas, and stay until the next semester begins around the middle of January. She finished the semester with two A's and two B's.

The next most signigicant event: I AM FINISHED WORKING UNTIL JANUARY 3! Hooray! My office will be open three days the week after Christmas, but I asked both of my supervisors for those days and January 2 off, and they both agreed. So I will have more than 2 weeks off and use only four days of my annual leave. As the younger generations says, "SWEET!"

So, now I have to concentrate on finishing the Christmas shopping. Hope everyone out there has as wonderful a Christmas as I intend to have. I hope to have a little more to add tomorrow. Husband goes for sentencing on Friday of this week. We are optimistic that any jail time he would have to serve will be suspended since he has been doing so well on his drug screens (ALL clean) and attending the required 3 outside meetings a week in addition to the 4 weekly meetings of the drug court. Please keep us in your prayers....

Full Moon Frenzy

The full moon. Everything washed in beautiful, pale, silvery light. Luna.

Luna is also the root word for "lunacy".

I had a very bad day at work today. The cycles of the moon affect much more than just the earth's tides. Trust me on this.

When my husband was a bail agent, he always had many times the business during the full moon, people just got into more mischief. Ask any cop. I'll bet you will hear the same thing--during the days leading up to the full moon, many more arrests have to be made.

I can't even begin to tell you. So I'm not even going to try.

Ethics: Would You Read Your Child's Blog?

What would you do?

My 18-year-old daughter left her weblog minimized when she left the computer. If this had been your child, would you have closed it without reading it? Would you have read it? If you would have read it, would you have admitted reading it?

Here is what I did and why.

I read it. But, no, I didn't admit to reading it. I rationalized it this way. Yes, technically she is an adult. She's 18. But she isn't "out on her own" and independent; she is a freshman in college, and I still pay her bills and provide her with a vehicle. I have been given a rare opportunity to help protect her while she tries out her wings. I consider it a gift and I will not take it for granted! I made the conscious decision to keep my discovery of her weblog to myself, so that she can continue to become an independent young woman. I will not meddle in her everyday affairs. But, it's a brand-new world. There are dangers and pitfalls which simply did not exist when I was her age!! I want to be aware if she begins to get into deep trouble or if she does something which may endanger her life. I will reveal myself if I must, but not unless it is a dire emergency.

Example: This is finals week. I found out through her weblog that she had planned a trip to New Orleans this afternoon with some friends . To me, this represents a monumental lapse in good judgement, but not a danger. (Quite frankly, her timing sucks.) She could have spent the entire afternoon studying for her Chemistry final tomorrow. But, part of becoming an adult is making mistakes and accepting the consequences. So, if she does poorly, she will wish she had done the New Orleans trip another time! And the consequence may be that she will have to transfer to the college closer to home, if her grades fall and she loses her scholarships.

We shall see when final grades are posted.

She eventually told me she had gone once they had started back.

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change.
The courage to change the things I can.
And the wisdom to know the difference.

So, what would you have done?

Random Thoughts

The weekend is winding down. My daughter has gone back to Baton Rouge for final exams and I have one more week of work, before Christmas break. When she gets done in B. Rouge, she is going to go to Arkansas for a few days to see a friend there, and be home before Christmas. I don't know if I like the arrangement, but there's very little I can do about it.

We went to a mall yesterday in a city south of here. (The damage from Hurricane Rita was still painfully obvious in every area of the city.) What a mistake. You couldn't take a deep breath without bumping into another human body. I waited in line at one store for almost 40 minutes to check out. It's just not worth it. While I absolutely detest shopping at Wally World, I hated the mall experience even more. Ugh! It was NOT worth the two-hour round trip. Point in Wally World's favor? The local store had "Merry Christmas" painted on both of its entrances.

Bravo! Let's here it for guts. The managers at Wal-Mart are to be commended for NOT caving to popular political agendas that want to eliminate every reference to our dieties from daily life.

Governor Schwarzenegger still has not taken a definite stand on Tookie. I still think his sentence of death should be carried out.

I am so very tired. Merry Christmas to you.

DEEP THOUGHTS ON CATS

Tonight, it's all about cats. Cats--you either love 'em or you hate 'em. (Almost no one is indifferent to them!)

And I happen to love them. All of them. Male or female, long-haired or short-haired, exotic or commonplace. And I found this totally awesome website called "Cats in Sinks" (follow link in title). The whole purpose of this website is to display random pictures of cats...in sinks and/or basins. Everytime you refresh the page, you get a different cat. Isn't that great!!

Most of the people who say they hate cats really don't hate cats, they hate the aloofness and independence of cats. They feel that any animal which we invite into our lives should be appropriately meek, docile, and submissive in order to show its gratitude for our care and attention. People who love cats value the spirit of an animal which has learned to behave in a somewhat civilised fashion, but which refuses to relinquish all of its personality, instincts, and independence.

Okay, so here's a picture of my cat. "Cat" (yes, that's his name) is a 4 year old Balinese cat. He's not much into sinks, but he LOVES boxes--even if he's too big for them, as you can see. And he "nests" in Wal-Mart bags by scooping them all under him, when there are several on the floor, so he can lay down on them. He's a good cat. A little weird, but still a good cat.

Meiaow!

GEOCACHING

Today I went "geocaching", for the first time. (You need a handheld GPS unit. If you've never heard of the sport, follow the link in the title for answers to frequently asked questions.) It was so much fun! Husband had gone once previously and found the first of two "caches" hidden in the same area. He waited until I could go along to locate the second. Wasn't that sweet of him? Anyway, we found the cache--no easy feat, using only coordinates and the GPS unit--and brought the camera back for developing at the request of the person who created this particular cache.

This cache was in a heavily wooded area along a creek, near a small natural cave formation. Likely the ONLY cave in our area. We had visited the cave many years ago, and it was so heartening to see that it hasn't been desecrated or vandalized. It still looks EXACTLY the same as it always has.

And then the rain started. So, I'm glad we got out of the house early and went to the woods when we did.

Yesterday, I went to the Christmas parade and then to the "Miracle on Washington Street" festival downtown, where a did just a little Christmas shopping. Not a bad weekend!!

STANLEY "TOOKIE" WILLIAMS

Just the facts, ma'am.

Stanley "Tookie" Williams was convicted of four murders by a jury of his peers and sentenced to die. In addition, and this is not considered a crime, he founded a gang knowns as the Crips. The Crips gang then became one of the most notorious gangs ever, for its violence and other illegal activity. So, let's do some math. Tookie was convicted of murder--he took four lives. How many Crips members died in clashes with the Bloods? How many young men went down the path to self-destruction and never came back? These were his followers. But their lives were no less valuable than yours and mine--they just happened to choose the WRONG role model... a mistake for which they paid with their lives.

They were murdered just as surely as the four Tookie killed!

I firmly believe that Tookie must be held accountable for these lives lost, as well as the ones we KNOW he destroyed. Sure, he had a "change of heart" while on Death Row, and used his time there to speak out against what he had done and what the Crips are still doing today. He wrote books and became a "born-again" activist AGAINST gang activity. But the damage was done! And the jury has handed down a conviction and a sentence of death. While we may admire the fact that he now has the courage to speak out strongly against gang-related activity, we must not trivialize the jury's duty and decision by setting it aside. I believe the sentence being carried out as it was handed down will send a far more powerful message to young people contemplating joining the ranks of the criminally minded than sparing the life of a former comrade.

Talk is cheap. Let's have some action.

Rest in Peace, Tookie.