Scotts Company (Miracle Gro and such) has a policy of not employing smokers. It does drug tests and fires those who fail for a legal substance - nicotine. One such employee has taken them to court. Read more at
http://tobaccoanalysis.blogspot.com/2008/02/district-court-judge-smokers-lawsuit.html
As "The Rest of the Story" says:

A ruling in Scotts' favor would open the door to all kinds of intrusive medical testing of prospective employees that has no relationship to bona fide job qualifications. If saving health care costs is found to be a large enough countervailing interest to justify intrusive medical procedures that require testing of bodily fluids, then all kinds of other intrusive medical testing are justified, not only cotinine testing.

There has been a recent study that finds, over the life of a patient, non-smokers and normal-weight folks cost MORE overall than smokers or obese people in health costs, so even the economic contention is under fire. Please write the company and tell them how you feel.

Worst food price inflation in history - wheat and corn near historic highs, soybeans past that. Grain ethanol has only agravated the problem.

 "The World Bank reports that for each 1 percent rise in food prices, caloric intake among the poor drops 0.5 percent"

BUSH BREAKS LAW FOUR TIMES IN SIGNING NEW DEFENSE BILL

"PROGRESS REPORT - Earlier this week, President Bush signed the National Defense Authorization Act of 2008, which included a statute forbidding the Bush administration from spending taxpayer money "to establish any military installation or base for the purpose of providing for the permanent stationing of United States Armed Forces in Iraq." But Bush quietly attached a signing statement to the law, asserting a unilateral right to disregard the ban on permanent bases in addition to three other measures in the bill. "

JOHN EDWARDS' HIDDEN PROBLEM

The 28% of the American adult population with college degrees defines the country's values, its policies, its laws, what is stylish and how you get to the top, including the White House. And what it has defined has exacted no small price from the remaining 72%. For example, just in the past eight years, the following have gotten significantly worse:

Median income
Number of manufacturing jobs
Number of new private jobs
Percent of workers with company based health insurance
Poverty
Consumer credit debt
Number of housing foreclosures
Cost of heating oil & gas
Number without health insurance
Wages in manufacturing
Income gap between rich and poor
Wealth of the bottom 40% of Americans
Number of older families with pensions
Number of workers covered by defined benefit pensions
Hunger
Use of soup kitchens
Personal bankruptcies
Median rent

Yet when John Edwards tried to build a campaign around these issues he was subjected not only to the opposition of the establishment and its media but a notable tone of ridicule whose subtext was: why would anyone want to bother with such things? Especially a guy as rich as Edwards?"

OK, I wasn't going to write this, but it just gets funnier...
Bob the boyfriend just got around to giving Dearest Daughter (DD) her x-mas present. He called her repeatedly on a day that we were expecting snow, wanting me to drive her to his house. DD really didn't want to go. He called again; she said she had things to do (true) and didn't want to be snowbound at his house for a day or two. He called again while I was trying to nap; we decided not to answer. He called againt the half-hour and hour, so she finally answered (he's not usually THIS dense). In the end, she let him pick her up to go see this "amazing" gift.

When she came home, she had a projector.

I just stared, waiting for the punch line.

There wasn't one.

Why is this so funny? Well, the projector is designed to hook up to gaming systems primarily, although it can also hook up to computers and TVs for movies, etc. It came with a vertical stand so that it could be projected on the ceiling. After googling it, it's about $100, so the resolution isn't fabulous. Basically, it's an inexpensive method of playing a game on something other than a 2" screen, for which it seems great.

We are somewhat anti-TV; DD's never had one in her room, was generally not allowed to watch anything but the chosen shows and movies for years growing up, and was much more likely to be pitched outside than allowed to watch some stupid cartoon. As a result (or maybe it's just her personality), she still doesn't watch a lot of TV and doesn't spend a lot of time online in chats and such - at least not until she got WOW (but that's another story). We might own 10 DVDs that are hers, including a couple of anime series. She has a PSP that the boyfriend and I gave her a couple of years ago; she plays games on that sometimes, but mostly it's an MP3 player.  She also has a Dreamcast that Bob gave her, but it doesn't get played much anymore.

In our house, there's very few full walls, and those tend to have art or something on them.

DD tends to fall asleep when it's dark and she's not sitting up, a long-term and occasionally irritating trait for Bob, who believes that any movie worth watching is worth watching start-to-finish, including credits and special features, without interruption - no matter how long it is.

So we have a projector that connects to anything (except that the PSP doesn't have the correct plug; and she doesn't play the Dreamcast; and the TV and the computer both have much better displays than the projector would) and was designed to display on the ceiling in a darkened room (viewing a movie in a dark room on her back guarantees sleep faster than Bendryl). Did I mention she has little free time because she's prepping for college and has a lot of art projects?

So every time I see the projector, I giggle a little at how disconnected these two are - he thinks it's a fab gift, she's scratching her head. Bob came over tonight with a Godzilla movie by Mystery Science Theater, somehow downloaded onto his new PSP. They took it to her room (doors open) and lasted almost 45 minutes, primarily because the beginning was so funny. I think he even cranked the sound trying to waken DD. He finally got disgusted at the snores and turned it off. When they came downstairs, he was looking bewildered. I asked what happened, he said she fell asleep, and I said "Duh!". He just looked at me, kinda like a puppy who doesn't quite understand.

Now I don't giggle, I'm ROTFLMYO.

Here's the text of a House Resolution up for vote soon. Please contact your House rep and let them know what you think of revisionist Christina history being voted in! Go to Secular Coalition of America for more information and details. This text is from http://thomas.loc.gov/home/c110query.html

Whereas religious faith was not only important in official American life during the periods of discovery, exploration, colonization, and growth but has also been acknowledged and incorporated... (Introduced in House)
HRES 888 IH
110th CONGRESS 1st Session H. RES. 888
Affirming the rich spiritual and religious history of our Nation's founding and subsequent history and expressing support for designation of the first week in May as American Religious History Week' for the appreciation of and education on America's history of religious faith.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

December 18, 2007

Mr. FORBES (for himself, Mr. MCINTYRE, Mr. AKIN, Mr. BARRETT of South Carolina, Mr. CULBERSON, Mr. DOOLITTLE, Mr. FEENEY, Mr. GINGREY, Mr. GOHMERT, Mr. HAYES, Mr. HENSARLING, Mr. HERGER, Mr. JONES of North Carolina, Mr. MCHENRY, Mrs. MUSGRAVE, Mr. PEARCE, Mr. PENCE, Mr. PITTS, Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin, Mrs. SCHMIDT, Mr. WALBERG, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, Mr. WOLF, and Mr. YOUNG of Florida) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

---

RESOLUTION
Affirming the rich spiritual and religious history of our Nation's founding and subsequent history and expressing support for designation of the first week in May as American Religious History Week' for the appreciation of and education on America's history of religious faith.
Whereas religious faith was not only important in official American life during the periods of discovery, exploration, colonization, and growth but has also been acknowledged and incorporated into all 3 branches of American Federal government from their very beginning;

Whereas the Supreme Court of the United States affirmed this self-evident fact in a unanimous ruling declaring `This is a religious people ... From the discovery of this continent to the present hour, there is a single voice making this affirmation';

Whereas political scientists have documented that the most frequently-cited source in the political period known as The Founding Era was the Bible;

Whereas the first act of America's first Congress in 1774 was to ask a minister to open with prayer and to lead Congress in the reading of 4 chapters of the Bible;

Whereas Congress regularly attended church and Divine service together en masse;

Whereas throughout the American Founding, Congress frequently appropriated money for missionaries and for religious instruction, a practice that Congress repeated for decades after the passage of the Constitution and the First Amendment;

Whereas in 1776, Congress approved the Declaration of Independence with its 4 direct religious acknowledgments referring to God as the Creator (`All people are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness'), the Lawgiver (`the laws of nature and nature's God'), the Judge (`appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world'), and the Protector (`with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence');

Whereas upon approving the Declaration of Independence, John Adams declared that the Fourth of July `ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty';

Whereas 4 days after approving the Declaration, the Liberty Bell was rung;

Whereas the Liberty Bell was named for the Biblical inscription from Leviticus 25:10 emblazoned around it: `Proclaim liberty throughout the land, to all the inhabitants thereof';

Whereas in 1777, Congress, facing a National shortage of `Bibles for our schools, and families, and for the public worship of God in our churches,' announced that they `desired to have a Bible printed under their care & by their encouragement' and therefore ordered 20,000 copies of the Bible to be imported `into the different ports of the States of the Union';

Whereas in 1782, Congress pursued a plan to print a Bible that would be `a neat edition of the Holy Scriptures for the use of schools' and therefore approved the production of the first English language Bible printed in America that contained the congressional endorsement that `the United States in Congress assembled ... recommend this edition of the Bible to the inhabitants of the United States';

Whereas in 1782, Congress adopted (and has reaffirmed on numerous subsequent occasions) the National Seal with its Latin motto `Annuit Coeptis,' meaning `God has favored our undertakings,' along with the eye of Providence in a triangle over a pyramid, the eye and the motto `allude to the many signal interpositions of Providence in favor of the American cause';

Whereas the 1783 Treaty of Paris that officially endied the Revolution and established America as an independent begins with the appellation `In the name of the most holy and undivided Trinity';

Whereas in 1787 at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Benjamin Franklin declared, `God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid? ... Without His concurring aid, we shall succeed in this political building no better than the builders of Babel';

Whereas the delegates to the Constitutional Convention concluded their work by in effect placing a religious punctuation mark at the end of the Constitution in the Attestation Clause, noting not only that they had completed the work with `the unanimous consent of the States present' but they had done so `in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty seven';

Whereas James Madison declared that he saw the finished Constitution as a product of `the finger of that Almighty Hand which has been so frequently and signally extended to our relief in the critical stages of the Revolution,' and George Washington viewed it as `little short of a miracle,' and Benjamin Franklin believed that its writing had been `influenced, guided, and governed by that omnipotent, omnipresent, and beneficent Ruler, in Whom all inferior spirits live, and move, and have their being';

Whereas from 1787 to 1788, State conventions to ratify the United States Constitution not only began with prayer but even met in church buildings;

Whereas in 1795 during construction of the Capitol, a practice was instituted whereby `public worship is now regularly administered at the Capitol, every Sunday morning, at 11 o'clock';

Whereas in 1789, the first Federal Congress, the Congress that framed the Bill of Rights, including the First Amendment, appropriated Federal funds to pay chaplains to pray at the opening of all sessions, a practice that has continued to this day, with Congress not only funding its congressional chaplains but also the salaries and operations of more than 4,500 military chaplains;

Whereas in 1789, Congress, in the midst of framing the Bill of Rights and the First Amendment, passed the first Federal law touching education, declaring that `Religion, morality, and knowledge, being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall forever be encouraged';

Whereas in 1789, on the same day that Congress finished drafting the First Amendment, it requested President Washington to declare a National day of prayer and thanksgiving, resulting in the first Federal official Thanksgiving proclamation that declared `it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor';

Whereas in 1800, Congress enacted naval regulations requiring that Divine service be performed twice every day aboard `all ships and vessels in the navy,' with a sermon preached each Sunday;

Whereas in 1800, Congress approved the use of the just-completed Capitol structure as a church building, with Divine services to be held each Sunday in the Hall of the House, alternately administered by the House and Senate chaplains;

Whereas in 1853 Congress declared that congressional chaplains have a `duty ... to conduct religious services weekly in the Hall of the House of Representatives';

Whereas by 1867, the church at the Capitol was the largest church in Washington, DC, with up to 2,000 people a week attending Sunday service in the Hall of the House;

Whereas by 1815, over 2,000 official governmental calls to prayer had been issued at both the State and the Federal levels, with thousands more issued since 1815;

Whereas in 1853 the United States Senate declared that the Founding Fathers `had no fear or jealousy of religion itself, nor did they wish to see us an irreligious people ... they did not intend to spread over all the public authorities and the whole public action of the nation the dead and revolting spectacle of atheistical apathy';

Whereas in 1854 the United States House of Representatives declared `It [religion] must be considered as the foundation on which the whole structure rests ... Christianity; in its general principles, is the great conservative element on which we must rely for the purity and permanence of free institutions';

Whereas, in 1864, by law Congress added `In God We Trust' to American coinage;

Whereas in 1864, Congress passed an act authorizing each State to display statues of 2 of its heroes in the United States Capitol, resulting in numerous statues of noted Christian clergymen and leaders at the Capitol, including Gospel ministers such as the Revs. James A. Garfield, John Peter Muhlenberg, Jonathan Trumbull, Roger Williams, Jason Lee, Marcus Whitman, and Martin Luther King Jr.; Gospel theologians such as Roger Sherman; Catholic priests such as Father Damien, Jacques Marquette, Eusebio Kino, and Junipero Serra; Catholic nuns such as Mother Joseph; and numerous other religious leaders;

Whereas in 1870, the Federal government made Christmas (a recognition of the birth of Christ, an event described by the U.S. Supreme Court as `acknowledged in the Western World for 20 centuries, and in this country by the people, the Executive Branch, Congress, and the courts for 2 centuries') and Thanksgiving as official holidays;

Whereas beginning in 1904 and continuing for the next half-century, the Federal government printed and distributed The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth for the use of Members of Congress because of the important teachings it contained;

Whereas in 1931, Congress by law adopted the Star-Spangled Banner as the official National Anthem, with its phrases such as `may the Heav'n-rescued land Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation,' and `this be our motto, `In God is our trust!';

Whereas in 1954, Congress by law added the phrase `one nation under God' to the Pledge of Allegiance;

Whereas in 1954 a special Congressional Prayer Room was added to the Capitol with a kneeling bench, an altar, an open Bible, an inspiring stained-glass window with George Washington kneeling in prayer, the declaration of Psalm 16:1: `Preserve me, O God, for in Thee do I put my trust,' and the phrase `This Nation Under God' displayed above the kneeling, prayerful Washington;

Whereas in 1956, Congress by law made `In God We Trust' the National Motto, and added the phrase to American currency;

Whereas the constitutions of each of the 50 states, either in the preamble or body, explicitly recognize or express gratitude to God;

Whereas America's first Presidential Inauguration incorporated 7 specific religious activities, including--
(1) the use of the Bible to administer the oath;
(2) affirming the religious nature of the oath by the adding the prayer `So help me God!' to the oath;
(3) inaugural prayers offered by the President;
(4) religious content in the inaugural address;
(5) civil leaders calling the people to prayer or acknowledgement of God;
(6) inaugural worship services attended en masse by Congress as an official part of congressional activities; and
(7) clergy-led inaugural prayers, activities which have been replicated in whole or part by every subsequent President;

Whereas President George Washington declared `Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports';

Whereas President John Adams, one of only 2 signers of the Bill of Rights and First Amendment, declared `As the safety and prosperity of nations ultimately and essentially depend on the protection and the blessing of Almighty God, and the national acknowledgment of this truth is not only an indispensable duty which the people owe to Him';

Whereas President Jefferson not only attended Divine services at the Capitol throughout his presidency and had the Marine Band play at the services, but during his administration church services were also begun in the War Department and the Treasury Department, thus allowing worshippers on any given Sunday the choice to attend church at either the United States Capitol, the War Department, or the Treasury Department if they so desired;

Whereas Thomas Jefferson urged local governments to make land available specifically for Christian purposes, provided Federal funding for missionary work among Indian tribes, and declared that religious schools would receive `the patronage of the government';

Whereas President Andrew Jackson declared that the Bible `is the rock on which our Republic rests';

Whereas President Abraham Lincoln declared that the Bible `is the best gift God has given to men ... But for it, we could not know right from wrong'

Whereas President William McKinley declared that `Our faith teaches us that there is no safer reliance than upon the God of our fathers, Who has so singularly favored the American people in every national trial and Who will not forsake us so long as we obey His commandments and walk humbly in His footsteps';

Whereas President Teddy Roosevelt declared `The Decalogue and the Golden Rule must stand as the foundation of every successful effort to better either our social or our political life';

Whereas President Woodrow Wilson declared that `America was born to exemplify that devotion to the elements of righteousness which are derived from the revelations of Holy Scripture';

Whereas President Herbert Hoover declared that `American life is builded, and can alone survive, upon ... [the] fundamental philosophy announced by the Savior nineteen centuries ago';

Whereas President Franklin D. Roosevelt not only led the Nation in a 6 minute prayer during D-Day on June 6, 1944, but he also declared that `If we will not prepare to give all that we have and all that we are to preserve Christian civilization in our land, we shall go to destruction';

Whereas President Harry S. Truman declared that `The fundamental basis of this Nation's law was given to Moses on the Mount. The fundamental basis of our Bill of Rights comes from the teachings which we get from Exodus and St. Matthew, from Isaiah and St. Paul';

Whereas President Harry S. Truman told a group touring Washington, DC, that `You will see, as you make your rounds, that this Nation was established by men who believed in God. ... You will see the evidence of this deep religious faith on every hand';

Whereas President Dwight D. Eisenhower declared that `Without God there could be no American form of government, nor an American way of life. Recognition of the Supreme Being is the first,the most basic, expression of Americanism. Thus, the founding fathers of America saw it, and thus with God's help, it will continue to be' in a declaration later repeated with approval by President Gerald Ford;

Whereas President John F. Kennedy declared that `The rights of man come not from the generosity of the state but from the hand of God';

Whereas President Ronald Reagan, after noting `The Congress of the United States, in recognition of the unique contribution of the Bible in shaping the history and character of this Nation and so many of its citizens, has ... requested the President to designate the year 1983 as the `Year of the Bible',' officially declared 1983 as `The Year of the Bible';

Whereas every other President has similarly recognized the role of God and religious faith in the public life of America;

Whereas all sessions of the United States Supreme Court begin with the Court's Marshal announcing, `God save the United States and this honorable court';

Whereas a regular and integral part of official activities in the Federal courts, including the United States Supreme Court, was the inclusion of prayer by a minister of the Gospel;

Whereas the United States Supreme Court has declared throughout the course of our Nation's history that the United States is `a Christian country', `a Christian nation', `a Christian people', `a religious people whose institutions presuppose a Supreme Being', and that `we cannot read into the Bill of Rights a philosophy of hostility to religion';

Whereas Justice John Jay, an author of the Federalist Papers and original Justice of the United States Supreme Court, urged `The most effectual means of securing the continuance of our civil and religious liberties is always to remember with reverence and gratitude the Source from which they flow';

Whereas Justice James Wilson, a signer of the Constitution, declared that `Human law must rest its authority ultimately upon the authority of that law which is Divine ... Far from being rivals or enemies, religion and law are twin sisters, friends, and mutual assistants';

Whereas Justice William Paterson, a signer of the Constitution, declared that `Religion and morality ... [are] necessary to good government, good order, and good laws';

Whereas President George Washington, who passed into law the first legal acts organizing the Federal judiciary, asked, `where is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation desert the oaths in the courts of justice?';

Whereas some of the most important monuments, buildings, and landmarks in Washington, DC, include religious words, symbols, and imagery;

Whereas in the United States Capitol the declaration `In God We Trust' is prominently displayed in both the United States House and Senate Chambers;

Whereas around the top of the walls in the House Chamber appear images of 23 great lawgivers from across the centuries, but Moses (the lawgiver, who--according to the Bible--originally received the law from God,) is the only lawgiver honored with a full face view, looking down on the proceedings of the House;

Whereas religious artwork is found throughout the United States Capitol, including in the Rotunda where the prayer service of Christopher Columbus, the Baptism of Pocahontas, and the prayer and Bible study of the Pilgrims are all prominently displayed; in the Cox Corridor of the Capitol where the words `America! God shed His grace on thee' are inscribed; at the east Senate entrance with the words `Annuit Coeptis' which is Latin for `God has favored our undertakings'; and in numerous other locations;

Whereas images of the Ten Commandments are found in many Federal buildings across Washington, DC, including in bronze in the floor of the National Archives; in a bronze statue of Moses in the Main Reading Room of the Library of Congress; in numerous locations at the U.S. Supreme Court, including in the frieze above the Justices, the oak door at the rear of the Chamber, the gable apex, and in dozens of locations on the bronze latticework surrounding the Supreme Court Bar seating;

Whereas in the Washington Monument not only are numerous Bible verses and religious acknowledgements carved on memorial blocks in the walls, including the phrases: `Holiness to the Lord' (Exodus 28:26, 30:30, Isaiah 23:18, Zechariah 14:20), `Search the Scriptures' (John 5:39), `The memory of the just is blessed' (Proverbs 10:7), `May Heaven to this Union continue its beneficence', and `In God We Trust', but the Latin inscription Laus Deo meaning `Praise be to God' is engraved on the monument's capstone;

Whereas of the 5 areas inside the Jefferson Memorial into which Jefferson's words have been carved, 4 are God-centered, including Jefferson's declaration that `God who gave us life gave us liberty. Can the liberties of a nation be secure when we have removed a conviction that these liberties are the gift of God? Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, that His justice cannot sleep forever';

Whereas the Lincoln Memorial contains numerous acknowledgments of God and citations of Bible verses, including the declarations that `we here highly resolve that ... this nation under God ... shall not perish from the earth'; `The Almighty has His own purposes. `Woe unto the world because of offenses; for it must needs be that offenses come, but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh' (Matthew 18:7); `as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said `the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether' (Psalms 19:9); `one day every valley shall be exalted and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh see it together' (Dr. Martin Luther King's speech, based on Isaiah 40:4-5);

Whereas in the Library of Congress, The Giant Bible of Mainz, and The Gutenberg Bible are on prominent permanent display and etched on the walls are Bible verses, including: `The light shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehendeth it not' (John 1:5); `Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore, get wisdom and with all thy getting, get understanding' (Proverbs 4:7); `What doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God' (Micah 6:8); and `The heavens declare the Glory of God, and the firmament showeth His handiwork' (Psalm 19:1);

Whereas numerous other of the most important American government leaders, institutions, monuments, buildings, and landmarks both openly acknowledge and incorporate religious words, symbols, and imagery into official venues;

Whereas such acknowledgments are even more frequent at the State and local level than at the Federal level, where thousands of such acknowledgments exist; and

Whereas the first week in May each year would be an appropriate week to designate as American Religious History Week': Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the United States House of Representatives----

(1) affirms the rich spiritual and diverse religious history of our Nation's founding and subsequent history, including up to the current day;

(2) recognizes that the religious foundations of faith on which America was built are critical underpinnings of our Nation's most valuable institutions and form the inseparable foundation for America's representative processes, legal systems, and societal structures;

(3) rejects, in the strongest possible terms, any effort to remove, obscure, or purposely omit such history from our Nation's public buildings and educational resources; and

(4) expresses support for designation of a `American Religious History Week' every year for the appreciation of and education on America's history of religious faith.

The whole family gathered this year (except younger children; the "other parents" had custody this week of both sets).  We had a really good time, laughing and joking around. My kid was apparently making a documentary, taking photos of the turkey in microwave, the bagged gravy in the sink thawing, people wearing crazy hats, etc. She even staged Granny with her (air powered BB) gun aimed at her hubby! Unfortunately, she didn't have enough video time on the camera to record our religious sis-in-law telling us about their Shitzu, mimicing the sounds of pleasure he makes at night while licking himself, rubbing his ears on the floor, or while being groomed... Let's just say Melanie Griffith could take lessons. We laughed so hard we could barely breathe!

Worst gift: a coat for the kid made of raspy nylon. It comes with a self-fabric belt, which when slid back and forth makes a sound like tight corduroy pants on a fat chick (and yes, I'm a fat chick, so I can say that).

Revenge: Perhaps karma is working faster than usual; I had already bought these people a set of battery-operated drumsticks for their 5-year-old. He'll be opening these sometime this weekend... <BEG>

Best gift dodge: Aunt Ellie's fruit cake. She ships the 10-pound monster to one person, who is supposed to distribute to each household. Generally, half the cake will last a home 12 months. It had enough rum in it to peel paint! We managed to leave without reminding anyone that it hadn't been sliced yet.

Funniest gift: the bag of various rubber duckies for Aunt L., who has not attended any events since the summer, so they had been piling up. It included a flashing pink breast cancer duck and a waterproof ducky radio with thermometer for the spa.

Nicest gift: as usual, most of us know pretty jewelry when we see it, and everyone got some nice bling.

Overall, a great gathering was had by all, which is always the nicest gift. :)

The blog Undernews has a very interesting article by Sam Smith on this subject. He starts by saying:

For one thing, it's a lie: if you aren't religious, you don't get high office. For another thing, if you are religious, you spend a good deal of your campaign convincing some voters just how faithful you are while trying to fool the rest into thinking that it doesn't make any difference. In both cases, the unusual aspect of the test is that no one is meant to think it exists.

Some of the questions:

• Does the candidate belong to one of the more exotic sects such as Scientology or Mormonism? What does this suggest about the candidate's ability to deal rationally with real situations and the quality of that candidate's judgment?
• Does the candidate try to appear highly religious to one set of voters and highly broad minded to another?
• Would the candidate support the end of discrimination against secularists? For example, would the candidate support an atheist opening sessions of the Senate and would the candidate host idea breakfasts as well as prayer breakfasts at the White House?
• If, as Mitt Romney claims, "We are a nation under God, and we do place our trust in him," and if as Barack Obama says, "What role does [religion] play? I say it plays every role." then shouldn't there be a religious test of candidates so we can tell who God trusts the most?
•  Why does the media use the term "pro-family" to describe Republican policies when the divorce rate in heavily GOP states in the Mid West is higher than in God-forsaken Massachusetts?
•  If there is no religious test then why are issues like abortion and gay marriage so important, since about the only people worried about them are religious fundamentalists?

stupid.com has the perfect gift for she who gave me the resin cat - a superhero Flying Pig for All Seasons, with costumes for each holiday!!! BWHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!

I can see a new acronym - FPAS. How do you think it can be used?

The latests idea from the pointy-haired boss - another FPAS.
Presidential candidates who are ordained - FPAS. (Actually, any candidate this year could qualify as an FPAS)
Others?

<BEG>

I am amazed at how boldly the current frontrunners are spewing what they think the religious right in Iowa wants to hear! Check out this interview of Huckabee on his views of AIDS patients:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbL5Z-2ym4Y&eurl=http://thinkprogress.org/2007/12/09/huckabee-deny-quarantine/
(from Deep Thoughts blog, http://mojoey.blogspot.com/2007/12/more-huckabee-spin.html)

And then Romney tonight (CBS Evening News) telling Couric that a religious test is unconstitutional,
(http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/12/10/eveningnews/main3604153.shtml)
yet that's all he, Huckabee, and several others in both parties are doing - trotting out their attendance records and spinning their past to show they're good, church-going Christians, who understand "values voting", and how easy it is to use religion to sway so many gullible voters. It'll be interesting to see how that changes after Iowa...

From a friend...
Have you ever been guilty of looking at others your own age and thinking, "surely I can't look that old".  Well, read on.

 My name is Alice and I was sitting in the waiting room for my first
 appointment with a new dentist.  I noticed his DDS diploma which
 bore his full name.

 Suddenly, I remembered a tall, handsome, dark haired boy
 with the same name had been in my high school class years
 ago. Could he be the same guy that I had a secret crush on?
 Upon seeing him, however, I quickly discarded any such
 thought. This balding, gray haired man with the deeply
 lined face was way too old to have been my classmate.

 After he examined my teeth, I asked him if he had
 attended Morgan Park High School .

 "Yes, I did," he replied.

 "When did you graduate?" I asked.

 "In 1959.....why do you ask?"

 "You were in my class!" I exclaimed.

 He looked at me closely.  Then that ugly, old, bald, wrinkled
 fat, gray, decrepit son of a bitch asked.

 "What did you teach?"

OK, I walk in my front door, ready to settle in with my laptop for a bit more work, and an acrid smell greets me. The kid comes downstairs and says "What's that smell?" as if she hadn't been home for over an hour. Then the panic hits - it's electrical wires. First stop: that old fridge with the fan that started rattling last month. We're sniffing around it like coon dogs a day after the cat - seems stronger there, so it gets pulled out and unplugged. Turn off the ceiling fan and the heat pump to better zero in. It's in the hall - unplug everything! No change. Remove the understairs access to the water heater - ugh! Yep, it's coming from there! Can't see anything, house doors are open to let the smell out, there's a bit of water on the floor - it's the neighbor's house (I'm in a condo)!! Get the other neighbor to unlock neighbor 1's house, we go inside - nothing, not even a smell (or her dog, which is a bit odd...).

So, we do the next best thing - call the fire department. They show up in 5 minutes, all lights and sirens, bring the heat camera inside and start looking around. They've got their tanks and goggles and coats and everything; must be  slow night! Then we have to tear out a bunch of stuff from the storage room so the captain and all his stuff can squeeze into the back to check the circuit breaker. Bingo! Thrown switch on the water heater.

Then they find the smoking wires under my stairs, but no other heat sources. They tell me find a plumber and electrician, and then leave. Neighbors leave. Cats begin to appear from various hiding spots and shoot out the open doors (did I mention it's supposed to be 20 degrees tonight?). It takes an hour to air out the house, and I swear I'm still smelling it.

Good news is that I'll be getting a new water heater and still have a house to put it in. :) Bad news - the cats came back, and turned over a bucket of water. Who needs Satan when we keep getting suckered in to live with these demons?

The email I finally sent to the Miss whomever Beauty Pageant to stop sending me invitations:

Hello. You have been sending me information about your pageants for years. I had 
hoped the lack of response would work, but apparently you don't update your 
database very often. We really aren't suited to the pageant lifestyle; while my 
daughter is beautiful and talented, her idea of dressing up is a black lacy 
cocktail dress with platform military boots and a scarf to match her cobalt-blue 
hair. We would spend far more time being entertained by contestant shenanigans 
and parental meltdowns than would be polite. So I am writing to ask that you 
remove us from all email or snail-mail lists, and any other contact methods; 
please do not share our information with anyone else.

The address on the letter is:[clip]

A little background...
I have a beautiful daughter in high school. Now, even if she was cross-eyed and her nose was too close to her left ear, I could say that because I'm the MOM, but others have said the same. However, the only time she was in a beauty pageant was as a 3 YO in W. Virginia. She was wearing the lovely lavender satin-and-lace dress that Aunt Elly made for all the girls, but she had fallen the day before and busted her lip, so it was still hugely swollen and bruised. She also insisted on carrying the 3-ft rubber black snake she'd stolen from an older cousin. Needless to say, she lost to the perfectly groomed Hispanic girl in yards of lacy froth. Yet somehow, we started getting these invitations a few years ago. As part of my drive to reduce the amount of junk mail I get, I sent the above mail.

And the reply I got was as gracious as one would expect - probably more than I deserved for my bit of fun :).

I am beginning to hate birthdays. The ones ending in 0 never bother me, but for some reason those ending in 3... I guess I'm just a little slow. :) All the questions about 'what do you want to do? What do you want to get?' just drive me nuts. I don't want to say 'nothing', because it's not really true, but rarely is there some item in particular that I want. I can pay for most anything I need or want, within reason, and I'm not about to say ' a new car!' I just want someone to get me something I'd like - some interesting music, since I know nothing about the new artists. A cool piece of local or personal art already framed, and the giver helps me hang it. Actually, a good housecleaning would be such a nice gift! A weekend at the beach in someone's uncles' beach cottage. A funky tissue holder that looks like an Easter Island statue (I loved that one!). Cool homemade jewelry.  Really bad-for-you desserts. A small French press and a bag of good, thick coffee. Lunch at a new restaurant.
 Even a donation to a shared cause would mean you really thought about me.

Just PLEASE, no more grandma sweaters with quilting motifs (I haven't quilted for 10 years; it's a sad reminder); resin cats with a variety of outfits for each holiday (like the geese, but worse); melamine dishes with cartoon characters on them (I collect Fiestaware, thankyouverymuch); faux decadent desserts made from fat-free milk, margarine, egg whites and Splenda (she hasn't discovered carob yet, thank all the gods!); yet another family dinner at the Asian buffet (beware the 96 Buffet!!); or cute handmade fabric tubes for storing plastic grocery bags, a souvenir from the Amish country (I would have prefferred a T-shirt from Intercourse).

We are in so much trouble! I am SOOO opposed to the insistence of religion in this race - it's definitely become a test for candidates (read your Constitution if you don't get this). It seems that several have flip-flopped from previous statements. I like McCain and Paul most, although even they have said a few things that make me shudder.

Best joke? "Jesus knew better than to run for office" (paraphrase) by Romney

Best moment? When the retired veteran stood up to say they didn't answer his question of homosexuals in the military (BTW, he was gay...) - Hooray for that man!!

Well, a friend asked me to set up a LiveJournal account so we could chat. Recently, one of my organizations' prez went on a social-networking spaz, signing up group accounts on Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn. I reluctantly agreed to sign up for them in order to participate - my spam has jumped markedly. And yes, I did what I could to make everything private, for all the good it did. After the Beacon fiasco on Facebook (it automatically tells all your friends what you've bought lately), I deleted the account.

So, you may have determined that I really don't much care for these networks. Actually, I don't like to write personal musings at all; maybe it's my background in journalism, but once something is written, it can be misunderstood, and I tend to write what I think without all the tactful explanation around it. I may say or write something in jest, or with sarcasm, or just because it's funny - it doesn't necessarily mean I believe it. If you read what I write and have a question, please ask, but if you consistently flame up because you can't take a joke, then we have little to discuss.

On with the show!