Abuse Charges Filed In Sylar Newton Case

Earlier this year I wrote about a tragic case in which a missing two-year old turned up dead after going on a camping trip with Priem and her family near Rimrock in July.

If you remember, the child's birth mother had given the child to Priem because she felt her son would have a better life.

Authorities arrested Priem on Dec. 6 on felony counts of involving a minor in a drug offense. She is accused of giving her children and one of their friends drugs during a camping trip.

Now more charges have been filed against his custodial mother – and her mother.


The Sheriff’s Office is asking anyone with information on Collins to call Detective John McDormett at 928-771-3260, or Yavapai Silent Witness at 800-932-3232.

Do Not Attempt Playing Frogger At Home

My husband and I often have the conversation, "Do you really think that people are so stupid that they have to be told..."

Apparently such warnings must be repeated CONSTANTLY as illustrated by the following story.

A 23-year old man has been hospitalized after police in South Carolina say he was hit by an SUV while playing a real-life version of the video game Frogger.

Ah hello. You are neither a frog nor living in a virtual world.

It turns out that Einstien (or Froggy for short) had been discussing the game with his friends. The man yelled then yelled go and then darted into oncoming traffic in the four-lane highway.

No charges are expected against the driver.

It appears that the name of the man who was struck has not been released. Probably to protect him from his own stupidity. Good news though, he was in stable condition Monday night.

You know what that means don't you? Well he's only lost one virtual life and still has a few more to go.

Missing Child Alert

Jonathan Foster was last seen in the area of N. Shepherd & 43rd on December 24th 2010@ about 1:45 p.m.

Jonathan has a very visible over-bite. He was last known to be wearing a tan-colored T-shirt with musical notes and a guitar printed on it. He was also wearing blue jeans and black & white tennis shoes with a red stripe. If you have seen Jonathan, have information … or know of his whereabouts, please contact the Houston Police Department @ (713) 731-5223 - or Texas EquuSearch @ (281) 309-9500.

Jonathan Foster, 12, was last seen Friday afternoon at the north Houston apartment complex where he lives with his mother and stepfather.

Jonathan was last seen Friday night at his home on Oak Street near Garden Oaks. He had run home from a babysitter's house in the neighborhood. He was home playing video games when his stepfather says he stopped in, but Jonathan was gone just 25 minutes later when his mother came home from work.

It Never Snows In Northern Georgia, But Girl Don't They Warn Ya

Thursday the National Weather Service predicted that 1 to 3 inches of snow could fall across Metro Atlanta.

The last time there was measurable snow on Christmas Day was more than a century earlier, in 1882, when .3 inch accumulated.

Christmas morning was cloudy and snow free until about 10 AM and by the end of the day we had accumulated about two inches.

Atlas, was very frightened of the white stuff falling from the sky. When I took him outside he began pulling me towards the truck parked in our driveway to seek shelter from the snow.

I coaxed and pleaded for him to step out into the great white north but he stood his ground. He was not having any of this. I was eventually forced to crawl under the truck to retrieve him.

The storm is predicted to head North and bring blizzards dropping 15 to 20 inches in eastern Massachusetts. (Note to Yankees: Snow storms are one of the reasons I left the North.)

In the meantime many churches will be closed here tomorrow and we may well get even more snow tomorrow.

Despite the cold weather I did receive two phone calls that warmed the cockles of heart. The first call came from my youngest son who called to wish me a Merry Christmas and inform me that I had accidentally written the wrong name on one of the gifts.

It seems that I had put his name on a printer that I was giving his brother for Christmas. I apologized but my son told me, "That's OK Mom. We figured it out. I told Dan that you're old and you don't know any better." Thanks Mike.

Later in the evening I received a call from Dan, who usually identifies himself as "favorite son." (After the comment his brother made, perhaps he's right.)

Dan put the kids on the phone and I got to talk with them for a little while. It goes so fast and after all what kids really wants to talk on the phone with Grandma when you have a pile of new toys waiting to be played with. Can't say that I blame them.

Christmas always reminds me that our greatest blessings are FREE. Blessings are present in every aspect of your life. You may not be wealthy by the world's standards but if you live with an attitude of gratitude, you will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion.

Merry Christmas and may God bless you and keep you safe.

Unforgiven?

Sometimes a thought will just pop in my mind. At the time, I have no real clue what it means or why the thought came into my head until later. It's like pulling a couple of sentences out of a book without a clue where in the story those sentences belong.

I had such an experience just this weekend. I was in the bathroom and I remember asking myself, "Will you ever forgive her?"

The her was my ex-mother-in-law and the story behind the forgiveness denied goes back decades.

My relationship with her was at best tenuous. Before I had ever met her I had been told how she had neglected my husband when he was a child. The story was that his Dad had died and his mother began dating and her children became a millstone around her neck.

Her daughter wound up getting married at 16 and getting pregnant right away and her son was often at the bottom of her to do list.

At the time I was very young and very in love with her son. He seemed protective of his mom willing to drive hundred of miles to try to help her escape her new husband who was very cruel and abusive.

I wanted to like her. I wanted to reach out to her. All of this went out the window from our first meeting. After some idle chit chat she told me that she was happy that "things worked out" because when she first found out she was pregnant with him she had wanted to have an abortion. It was a sucker punch I was not prepared for and it colored my every encounter with her. I just couldn't imagine a mother sharing this information with someone she barely knew.

Within a year of being married my husband received a phone call from her and he wanted to have her move in with us. This didn't happen but the specter of having to uproot our lives to offer her a place to stay was always there.

Oh there were other snubs and subtle power plays. One of them is a perennial favorite tale that I tell every year when people talk about the WORST Christmas gift EVER.

While certainly not rich, my mother-in-law certainly wasn't so poor she was deciding between buying her meds or having to eat cat food. She shared Imelda Marco's passion for shoes and when she found a pair she liked she'd buy it in every color. She would wear them each less than 10 times and then according to her they just didn't feel right.

Every year she would give me large trash bags filled with shoes. This was fine because my salary seldom stretched far enough for me to buy more than one or two pairs a year. I certainly had no problem with receiving the shoes and I always thanked her for them.

No the insult the bad Christmas gift should have SHOUTED worst gift ever just by the way it was wrapped. It was a big black trash bag with a small red bow and my name on the label.

I eyed it suspiciously and when it came time to open the gift there it was....a vacuum. Oh not a vacuum in a box shiny and new. No. It was a vacuum that had been hers and when she bought herself a new one she gave me hers complete with a canister almost full of dirt. Let's just be honest. What girl wants a vacuum for any gift? I certainly didn't.

My husband on the other hand received a couple of books he'd wanted and a few new shirts and pants. Heck I'd have been happy with one of the books.

This however was not the reason for the rift. No for me the battle lines were drawn during the summer of my pregnancy. Even as I write about it I can't fully explain why or how I was able to hold on to my feelings of betrayal for all these many years. I will try to explain it to you.

My husband began cheating on me within a year. I was pregnant but that made little difference to him. He beat me up, abandoned me, and moved in with this other woman.

I wanted desperately for my husband to come back. I was willing to do anything, say anything, endure anything if he would just come back to me.

During the summer of my pregnancy my husband took his mistress with him down to meet his mother. She allowed them to stay at her house.

This was a woman who made us sleep in separate rooms when we visited and I was engaged but here was my husband, a married man, with a baby on his way and she allowed him to sleep with his mistress in her home.

I was hurt. When I learned about this I told her how upset I was and she told me, "I'm his mother, what else should I do?"

What else? I don't know, talk to him, say, I love you but until you are divorced this really isn't a good situation. Please don't drag me into this. Your child should be your priority.

During the divorce she wanted my husband's attorney to make sure she had access to our son. This despite the fact that our state and many other states were against rights for grandparents.

I did relent and did let our son spend the summers with her but I seldom spoke with her. My son would come back from visits telling me that "Grandma is really proud of you Mom." "Grandma says you are a good Mom" Big deal I thought. You can't make it up to me now. What you did was so wrong.

Sometimes he'd say "Grandma says you're her only daughter-in-law." I'd laugh, when he'd tell me that one. Of course I was her ONLY because my ex didn't marry the little tramp he'd been with while I was pregnant.

Slowly but surely the years rolled on by. She always had health problems and ever since I knew her she was certain that her days on this earth were numbered. I had gotten to the point that I didn't take it seriously anymore.

Instead when I heard she was back on death's door again, I'd mock her by grabbing my heart and saying in my best Fred Sanford voice, "Oh, this is the biggest one I ever had. You hear that Elizabeth? I'm coming to join you honey."

My son is grown now and he still visited her from time to time and I didn't begrudge him that. I didn't spend much time thinking about her but when I did the walls went up immediately.

I had no reason to think of her that day. The thought just came to me out of the blue.

The next day my son called me to tell me that she had died.

I feel a sense of loss. A loss for the fact that I set aside my pride to forgive her despite the fact that she never asked for forgiveness. All those years I wasted angry with her. How different would it have been if I had forgiven her? What lesson about love and forgiveness could I have taught my son. Instead, I kept bashing her because I was right and that meant so much more to me than anything else.

Atlas Becomes A Member Of The Family

Today we adopted Atlas.

Atlas is a miniature pincher with a sad history but a happy future.

We had taken our dogs to the groomers and I noticed a cage contained a very timid small dog.

There was a small note on his cage that said, "one day away from being put down."

My heart stopped. I asked the owner of the groomer, "What does that car mean?"

It turns out that the dog had originally come from a puppy mill that had been busted and for a short time he became a resident of the local shelter. I can still remember hearing about it on the news. Conditions had been so bad that one dog had died and other dogs were trying to eat it.

The shelter being at capacity began to schedule dogs that weren't adopted to be euthanized. Fortunately a rescue group saved our baby.

Originally named Toby, we renamed him Atlas. We were also given notes that informed us that he'd never been on a leash and was not used to living with a family.

We decided to bring him home and introduce him to the joys of a walk. Instead he immediately taught us the panic of the mad dash.

Atlas turns out to be a very able escape artist and he took off running. The more he ran, the more we ran, then he'd allow us to get a little close and then he'd take off again.

It didn't take us long to learn that he thought this was a game and the odds seemed stacked against us.

I was in a dead panic because it was dark and cold outside and neither condition worked to our favor. Fortunately, Darryl was able to sneak up on him and he placed him in my arms. He cuddled next acting as though the wild romp had been nothing but an afterthought.

Atlas is very jumpy. He is not used to the every day sounds of a house and everything causes him to run and cower in the corner or under the blanket.

At the end of the evening, a very tired miniature pincher fell sleep lying at my feet and even snored a little.

I think I'm in love. Now I just have to convince him that he is loved and always will be.

The Government Can- By Tim Hawkins

"The government can because they mix it up with lies and make it all taste good..."

Don't Drink And Drive This Holiday Season

Please think before you drink! Drunk driving is not joke and it can be deadly.

Warning. This video is pretty harsh but I think people arrested for drunk driving should be forced to watch it over and over.

Woman Who Inspired Chants of 'Run Bambi Run' Dies at 52

Lawrencia Bembenek, the former Playboy Club waitress turned police officer turned famed escaped-convict-on-the-loose, has died. She was 52.

"Bambi" Bembenek was a former Milwaukee police officer who had been fired and went on to sue the department, claiming that it engaged in sexual discrimination and other illegal activities.

Bambi became famous after she was charged with the 1981 murder of her cop-husband's ex-wife.   In 1982, Bembenek was convicted by a jury of first-degree intentional homicide in the death of Schultz and sentenced to life in prison.  Her case inspired two television movies Woman on the Run: The Lawrencia Bembenek Story," starring Tatum O'Neal on NBC; and "Calendar Girl, Cop Killer? The Bambi Bembenek Story," starring Lindsay Frost.

On December 9, 1992, Bembenek entered into a plea agreement wherein she agreed to plead no contest to the charge of second-degree murder of Christine Schultz in exchange for the vacating of her conviction of the first-degree murder of Schultz, a sentence recommendation by the State of twenty years, credit for all time served, and a waiver of any and all of her appeal rights or rights to collaterally attack any of the underlying evidence, including her right to assert any claim of innocence to the murder

In 2002, Bembenek went on "The Dr. Phil Show" to clear her name, but she wound up with an amputated leg and a lawsuit against Dr. Phil, Paramount, and 52 staffers on his syndicated show.

The suit accused Dr. Phil and his co-defendants of imprisoning her in a Marina Del Rey apartment, where she shattered her leg in the act of escaping out a window with bed sheets she had tied together. Her leg eventually had to be amputated below the knee.

On November 20, 2010, the 52-year-old died Saturday of liver failure at a hospice care center in Portland, Ore., said her longtime attorney, Mary Woehrer.

You're Right Mr. President TSA Pat-Downs Frustrating

Obama acknowledged that as president he does not have to go through pat-downs and other normal security procedures at airports, since he flies on Air Force One.

Many of us are deeply offended by the fact that in order to fly we have to be either inspected naked, groped or fined $11,000.

Wait I'm having a Roseanne Rosannadanna anna moment.

turns out that by the mere fact that I am concerned about the fact that small children are being searched as well as elderly gentlemen might have to fly covered in urine, I, myself might just find myself on the bad girl list. Read on to find out why:

For “any person, group or domestic alternative media source” that actively objects to, causes others to object to, supports and/or elicits support for anyone who engages in such travel “disruptions” at U.S. airports (as defined above) in response to the enhanced security procedures, the [applicable DHS administrative branch] is instructed to identify and collect information about the persons or entities, and submit such information in the manner outlined [within this directive].

Never mind.....



Why did I both to learn that silly Fourth Amendment? Really does this even apply anymore. After all the Constitution is a living breathing document and it is subject to change.


That first amendment, well that doesn't really apply either.

'The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.'

Let's just throw away that First Amendment why don't we

The First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law "respecting an establishment of religion", impeding the free exercise of religion, infringing on the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering with the right to peaceably assemble or prohibiting the petitioning for a governmental redress of grievances.

Let me get back to being a good sheeple. My whole reason for complaint was concern for radiation and invasive pat downs. Obviously something has to be done but does that something really have to be touching a child as she screams "stop touching me?"

We're The TSA & We Want To Touch Your Junk

Just wondering, should you tip?

Your Child's First Cavity Search

Once again the TSA has managed to squelch an obvious terrorist threat. Guess we're all Terrorists now.

In the meantime a retired special education teacher on his way to a wedding in Orlando, Fla., said he was left humiliated, crying and covered with his own urine after an enhanced pat-down by TSA officers recently at Detroit Metropolitan Airport .

There was also that teeny weeny little incident during which a flight attendant and cancer survivor was forced to show her prosthetic breast during a pat-down.

Musa Mayer has worn a breast prosthesis for 21 years since her mastectomy and is used to the alarms it sets off at airport security. But nothing prepared her for the "invasive and embarrassing" experience of being patted down, poked and examined recently while passing through airport security at Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C.

Can you imagine the level of humiliation when a woman was told that as an increased security risk she ahd to remove her prosthetic as well as her prosthetic liner in front of her frightened child.

Don't you worry though, hope and change are on the way from the TSA. Well not so much. The head of the Transportation Security Administration on Sunday acknowledged that new full-body scanners and thorough pat-downs can be invasive and uncomfortable, but he said that the need to stay a step ahead of terrorists rules out changes in airport screening procedures.

Wouldn't it be great if a leader, I don't know maybe the President of the United States, would allow his family to be patted down in the manner on live tv so that the unwashed masses could see there's nothing wrong with what's going on. Maybe he could let one of the TSA agents touch his junk so that everyone could see it's really no big deal. Then another TSA agent could slowly move his hands up one of his daughter's legs and then down the other maybe search under her clothes. If it's good enough for the goose it's certainly good enough for the gander.

Except of course that will NEVER happen. Hillary Clinton has already said she will be avoiding all this herself. Of course you will Hillary, you fly private jets and government planes. Not pat downs for you. Nope it's those darn three year olds that should be singled out. That will teach the dissenters.

How right Ben Franklin was when he said, "Those who sacrifice liberty for safety deserve neither liberty or safety."

President Hu Jintao & President Obama

Those two wild and crazy guys, President Hu Jintao & President Obama are back together again for a friendly talk about the little loan between friends.

Fly The Friendly Skies And Be Forced To Endure Invasion Of Your Personhood

Did you give you child the talk? You know the talk about not allowing anyone to touch you in your "special place." The talk in which you say to your sweet innocent child that no one, no one ever has the right to touch you when you don't want to be touched? Well you need to go back and modify that speech a bit.

Your new speech should include that the government and its agents always has a right to touch you even if the constitution happens to mention that whole silly little search and seizure blah blah blah thing.

Just by let your child know that the TSA can impose its will on your body against your will but if you are a good little girl these nice people will let them you can fly to Disney World, I'm certain that will just make things go so much better for your child than this video.

Oh and wasn't it a great idea for the TSA Agents to get the child to think that they are playing a game? Of course I think child molesters do that to. They touch you against your will and tell you that it's OK because it's just a special game you are playing. That certainly won't confuse a child.

Golly Gosh darn it Janet Napolitano what a great idea! Don't forget we face a determined enemy. Just curious Janet, that determined enemy, are they three year old girls?

Oh but the news gets better for the ladies both young and old. Screeners are now authorized to use the front of their hands and to touch areas around breasts and groins. Passengers being screened are supposed to be given privacy during these more invasive pat-downs and the searches are supposed to be done by screeners of the same sex.

Do you think they will buy me dinner first? Will there be that awkward moment afterwards where the screener says, "I'll call you"

Oh and by the way have we even been told the truth about the dangerous levels of radiation full-body scanners emit? I don't know about you but even at 51 years old, my dentist asks me if there is a chance I might be pregnant before giving me a full mouth X-ray.

Should pregnant women be concerned about exposure to this radiation?

Too many questions that are not being answered. Thanks for all that transparency we were promised.

The Cooks Source Dot Com Pile On

We all say we hate to see someone kicked when they're down but, really, really, really deep down inside, we take joy in the fact that some times someone needs a good A$$ Kicking and we want to be there to witness the whole thing.

Guards release the hungry lions....

I don't believe I have ever used or for that matter even knew of the existence of Cooks Source. Then recently I saw an active chat out there on the "internets" about how an article, “American as Apple Pie -- Isn’t,” was published in Cooks Source, without the approval of the writer, Monica Gaudio and I joined the ranks of observers of the train wreck that could have been avoided.

It appears that Monica was alerted by a friend that her article without her permission. Monica tried to contact the magazine’s editor Judith Griggs asking for three things: an apology on their Facebook page, an apology printed in their next issue and compensation for her work in the form of a $130 donation (about $0.10 per word) to the Columbia School of Journalism. In hindsight, this was probably a far cheaper and better way to handle this whole brouhaha.

Ms. Griggs attempted to school Ms. Monica with the following lecture: “the web is considered “public domain” and you should be happy we just didn’t “lift” your whole article and put someone else’s name on it!”

Ms. Griggs also let Monica know that “the article… was in very bad need of editing, and is much better now than was originally… For that reason, I have a bit of a difficult time with your requests for monetary gain… We put some time into rewrites, you should compensate me!”

Really Ms. Griggs? I am no lawyer but I will tell you that even after only a couple of Business Law classes in college, I would have to say I think you might not want to represent yourself in court using that as your defense. I don't that will play well in court. Especially since it appears you used material from Food Network, Disney, NPR and other sites. Might I suggest you bone-up on current guidelines for attributions at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/

Fool yourself once shame on you.... fool yourself a whold bunch of times.....er ah well however that whole thing goes it's still shame on you!!!!

Now it's one absolutely viral and it's been covered written on CNN, MSNBC, NPR and more. If you check out Cooks Source's Facebook account you will discover many great one liners about Cook's source catering at KFC or dropping boulders on the "fat kid from Lord of the Flies or even learning that cooks source's on the knoll may have actually been on the grassy knoll when JFK was assassinated.

This onslaught of hate mail seems to be another one I witnessed a year or so ago against a Mommy blogger who took photos of strangers at the airport and mocked them, including a young girl whom the mommy blogger mocked for being "too fat".

Since Cooks Source believes in the copy and paste philosophy of copyright infringement, I'm sure she will understand me copying and pasting, word for word exactly what appears on her home page.

We have cancelled our Facebook page on Thursday, November 4th, 2010 at 6:00PM. It has since been since been hacked by unknown parties and now someone else unknown to us has control of it. Their inclusion of Cooks Source issues and photos is used without our knowledge or consent. Please know that none of the statements made by either Cooks Source or Judith Griggs were made by either our staff or her.

We do not, and never have had a Twitter page, so what is attributed as our presence or our statements have nothing to do with Cooks Source or Judith Griggs.

We also cancelled our website on the above date, as our advertisers were listed therein, and with the harassment that has taken place on Facebook, we felt was unsafe for them.

Cooks Source will not be on Facebook again at any time in the future: hacking is too prevalent and apparently too easily performed by disreputable people. The email and Facebook abuse of our advertisers is the prime example: it is hurtful to people who are innocent of this issue, and can ill-afford the abuse -- either emotionally or financially. Small business owners are being bombarded with hate mail, and distasteful messages because someone downloaded their contact information on these bogus sites. These small business owners work very hard to keep their businesses going in a bad economy. We respectfully request this harassment be stopped immediately. If you or anyone knows of this abuse, you should go to the bogus Cooks Source (or other bogus pages) Facebook page, look to the left side of the page and press “Report Abuse,” or else go to How to Report Claims of Intellectual Property Infringement, http://www.facebook.com/legal/copyright.php The Facebook Corporate phone number are 650-543-4800, 650-853-1300 and 650-543-4811which hopefully will assist interested parties who feels these snipers who are perpetuating hate have gotten out of hand and want to report it. Interestingly, this phone number and any other contact info is not listed on the Facebook site, and has taken four people a number of days to track down.

Last month an article, “American as Apple Pie -- Isn’t,” was placed in error in Cooks Source, without the approval of the writer, Monica Gaudio. We sincerely wish to apologize to her for this error, it was an oversight of a small, overworked staff. We have made a donation at her request, to her chosen institution, the Columbia School of Journalism. In addition, a donation to the Western New England Food Bank, is being made in her name. It should be noted that Monica was given a clear credit for using her article within the publication, and has been paid in the way that she has requested to be paid.

This issue has made certain changes here at Cooks Source. Starting with this month, we will now list all sources. Also we now request that all the articles and informational pieces will have been made with written consent of the writers, the book publishers and/or their agents or distributors, chefs and business owners. All submission authors and chefs and cooks will have emailed, and/or signed a release form for this material to Cooks Source and as such will have approved its final inclusion. Email submissions are considered consent, with a verbal/written follow-up. Recipes created in the Cooks Source Kitchen are owned by Cooks Source and as such approval is given for chefs and cooks in our area to use them. Artwork used is created by our staff, or is royalty-free or purchased “clip-art.”

However: Cooks Source can not vouch for all the writers we have used in the past, and in the future can only check to a certain extent. Therefore, we will no longer accept unrequested articles, nor will we work with writers or illustrators unless they can prove they are reputable people, provide their sources, and who, in our estimation, we feel our readers and advertisers can trust and rely on for accuracy and originality. All sources will be listed with the articles, along with the permission, where necessary.

To say this has hurt our business is an understatement. But worse, it is harming the very people we are here to assist. Cooks Source’s is a small, free, local food newspaper-type magazine (called 'magazine' because it doesn't generally include what is known as 'news,') whose mission statement is to assist small businesses and farms in our area and help readers learn about sustainable food issues. We promote small businesses and farms in our area, offer recipes because our readers request them, and because we are offered cookbooks and excerpts from distributors, publicists, agents and authors, non-profits, ag organizations, chefs and home cooks so as to help them promote their works. Cooks Source is so named because it reports on food sources: the farms, the bakers, the chefs and the foodie producers and purveyors-- to the home and professional cooks and chefs in our area.

The misuse of Facebook discussed above also applies to Ms. Gaudio: she did what she felt was the right thing, and doesn’t deserve this kind of treatment, either. Regardless of what has been said, we liked her article very much.

Jennifer Petkov Back In The News Over Some Shit

Does the name Jennifer Petkove ring any bells for you? That's right she was the "lady" (I use this term extremely loosely based solely upon her sex and not her behavior) who decided that it was OK to taunt a young girl who was dying of Huntington’s disease. She was also charged with felonious assault and reckless driving for allegedly trying to run over Tana Bowling as she was crossing the street Oct. 13. Seems that Jennifer is the poster girl for psycho bitch.

Turns out our friend Jennifer is back in the news again. This time over some shit. Yes I said shit.

Police were called 2:40 p.m. Saturday when Bowling told police the Petkovs had been spraying dog feces mixed with water under the fence line and onto her property. yes that is the same Tana Bowling she tried to run down back in October.

Police found what appeared to be dog feces on Bowling’s property and spoke with the Petkovs. Both denied spraying the dog feces under the fence. Scott Petkov said his son had been cleaning up after the dog, which is chained to a fence near where the alleged dog feces was found, and that he would try to clean it up better.

Scott Petkov said Bowling has been warned not to step on their property, a “No Trespassing” sign is posted and he wanted Bowling and a man helping her rake leaves ticketed.

He told police he videotaped the incident. The officer reviewed the tape but could not tell if anyone was on the Petkovs’ driveway.

Bowling and her friend denied being on the property or driveway. Police said the Petkovs want to prosecute them for trespassing.

Jennifer, I realize I'm not a doctor. Heck I don't even play one on TV but it doesn't take Einstein to realize that you really desperately need some psychiatric help.

Surrounding yourself with so much hate and anger is only going to come back to hurt you and your family in the long run. Get help girl! Don't walk RUN. Call a doctor today.

Man's Best Friend

Spot shows us why a dog is a man's best friend.

Twenty Second Day Of Forty Days of Gratitude

Another cold morning but we now have the heat on upstairs. The last several days we've kept warm using an electric blanket because Darryl wants to save money on our electric bill. Today was our first full day of heat so it was a bit easier to get out of bed this morning.

Another reason it was easier to get out of bed this morning was because the clocks had been turned back an hour. This mean I actually slept in until 6:50 am. Trust me, if you knew me that's pretty late. Usually the dogs have me up by then.

Sundays are usually my date with deals and today was no different. We were able to get some really good deals at CVS, Walgreens, and Kroger. My favorite part was stocking up on Annie's Macaroni and Cheese. I love Macaroni and Cheese and I remember when I used to buy Kraft Mac and Cheese for two for a dollar. Today I was able to buy Annie's Organic Macaroni and Cheese for only 49 cents. Ah the good old days. I was also excited about buying Blue Diamond Almond Milk for only 99 cents a half a gallon. What a great deal.

Our trip to Kroger today gave me my moment of gratitude. We bought a $300 gift card to donate to a local pantry so they could purchase turkey. Right now turkey is only 69 cents a pound and they should be able to get a few more turkeys than they thought originally.

Things may not be as good for us as they were a few years ago but I still feel blessed that we both have a job. I feel that it's important for us to help others who are hurting.

I am also blessed because my son Dan called me. He called because he felt I was the "thrifty store expert". Imagine that. He has a friend who lives in Atlanta who was looking for a thrift store so Dan called me to see if I knew of any good ones. I really don't know much about Atlanta. Darryl really doesn't like going there much so there is still much of Atlanta that I haven't seen. I couldn't help him but he thanked me anyway and told me that he loved me very much. Now who wouldn't feel grateful to have such a wonderful son love her?

Day 21 Of Forty Days of Gratitude

It was one of those cold days that autumn will throw your way to remind you that winter is on it's way. The temperature this morning was only 40 degrees and I could see my breath as I called out to my dog as we took an early morning walk. I watched as my warm breath became became misty tendrils in the dark morning sky and then evaporated. I wanted to crawl back into bed beneath the warm electric blanket curled up next to my husband. Instead I warmed up some tea and had some cookies for breakfast.

I know. I know. Cookies for breakfast are not healthy and they will not help you lose weight but they truly were calling my name.

I turned on my computer and began working on my blog. I was a woman on a mission because companies were counting on me to do a product review and I still had to get my shopping guide ready. The house was quiet and the dogs were lying by my feet.

I let Darryl sleep in despite the fact that we had lots of errands to run. I loved the fact that I didn't have to rush anywhere. On the agenda for today was a stop at Lowes, Bath and Body, Rite Aid, Walgreens, and Walmart. Little did I realize that little pleasures awaited me at every turn today.

Our first stop was Lowes. It turns out that the appliances for my new kitchen were all on sale. We took advantage of that sale and after we paid for my new stove and dishwasher we had to run to get a couple of filters for our heater.

Then I heard my name and I turned around. There was a former student whom I had taken a special interest in years ago when he was in my class. He was living with his Grandmother because his father had abandoned the family years ago and his mother had died. I noticed that he was slacking off in class because he wanted to be a bit of a class clown.

At first he thought I was picking on him but after I spoke to his Grandmother she realized that I had his best interests at heart. By the end of that year he was enrolled in college and I felt his life was on track.

Today I found out that he wound up not finishing the classes he had been taking and was out of school for now. He was thinking about going back to school to be a teacher. He said he wanted to be a history teacher and I told him about a program that allows people to get an education degree and agree to work in struggling schools to work off their college loans. I suggested that he ask the financial aid officer about the program.

We spoke a little longer and then he mentioned that if he was going to be a teacher he wanted to teach like I did because he felt that students learn better when the book isn't being rammed down your throat. He said he liked how really excited I was about what I taught and he wants to teach history because he's excited about that. I would say that our conversation is one that many teachers hope to have and for me it was definitely a moment of gratitude.

After Lowes Darryl took me out to eat at Chili's. I know he really didn't want to go but I was in the mood for soup and I wanted to try their all your can eat soup and salad. I didn't realize that it came with salsa and chips. I ordered their Potato Soup and at the last minute Darryl decided to order the same item. Let's just say that happiness is Chilis potato soup on a cold day. Darryl must have told me four times that this was the best potato soup he has ever had.

After we finished lunch we headed over to Walgreens with a Register Reward for $6 that we had to spend or lose. That's when I noticed the candy was 75% off. We bought four pounds of candy for $6. All we paid was the tax. This was an unexpected little surprise.

One of the things I was excited about going to Bath and Body Works this weekend because of a sale they were having. You could buy three Bath and Body Works signature body washes and/or lotions and you would get three free. In addition to that I had a coupon for $10 off $30. I was able to bring the price down to $23.01. I had two gift cards that I had won earlier this year and each of them had a few dollars left on them. I used them to bring my total down to $3.43. How's that for a great deal? I was sooooo excited.

We had $8 to spend at Rite Aid from some Up Rewards that were going to expire. Darryl was able to purchase a couple of things he wanted.

From there we headed over to Walmart where we discovered that everything Halloween had been marked down 90%. I wound up getting some great Halloween stuff all for under $6. That certainly was a treat.

The last little surprise had arrived in the mail when we were gone. It was coupons for free hot dogs and free Oscar Meyer cold cuts from Kroger. I love free so I really was happy to see those coupons.

So as you can see despite today's chilly beginning there was so much to be grateful for today.

Shutterfly Helps Make The Season Merry

My husband and I just love sending and receiving personalized Christmas Cards. When we receive personalized cards that feature family photos become keepsakes that we treasure. Snapfish makes it as easy as one-two-three to send these cards to friends and family members.

Step one is probably the most difficult step. I only say that because with more than 3,600 new designs it’s hard to pick just one card. You can select your holiday like Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or even simply Happy Holidays. You can then narrow your search by religion, number of photos you want on your card, landscape or portrait orientation, color, or design preferences.

It was a tough decision but after a lot of thought we decided to order a set of 20 5×7 Oh Holy Night Christmas Cards which features our favorite family photo on a starry, holy night card. Your family's names will appear below your own personalized greeting. We were able to get a set of 20 for $1.75 per card which includes envelopes and you certainly can’t buy cards as special as these at any price. We decided to go with the matte photo paper but many cards allow you to choose glossy for the same price or for just a little more you can select writeable stationery card stock.

Step two is selecting the photo or photos you wish to use for your card. Snapfish makes it easy to upload photos. Once you decide what photos you want to use, just drag and drop. Now isn’t that easy?

Step Three, we personalized our card. We selected a font and typed our family name.
Now doesn’t that sound easy? I hate to say I told you so.



If your holidays include parties, you will really be impressed with Snapfish Christmas invitations. We plan to send our family and friends the By Golly Party Invitations which features a favorite photo, bold letters and whimsical icons. It’ easy to add the event details next to a fun, festive tree and sparkling snowflakes on a turquoise background.



It's better to give the receive isn't it. Send a little something extra this year with cheery Christmas Gift Tags from Snapfish. Corresponding thank you cards and address labels are also available. I am really keen on the Giving Gifts Tag.

Day 20 Of Forty Days Of Gratitude

Today I am grateful to know that I helped a young person make a positive change in his life.

I have a young man in my class who is dealing with incredibly difficult challenges. His parents are both dying. I don't want to get into the specifics in order to protect the young man's privacy.

He was going to another school last year and he was a basketball star there. If you googled his name you would see that he is a very talented young man. He moved here and for various reasons he is not eligible to play basketball. This is sad because I believe for him, basketball was his lifeline through trying times.

He's been spinning out of control with his behavior and associating with people who are going to drag him down.

In the beginning of the year he felt that I hated him because I gave him D-Hall for being late. I would also get on him when he wasn't' doing his work. He felt that Mrs. F hated him because she'd tell him not to run in the hall.

That has all changed now and he sees me as more of an ally who is trying to help him graduate. Today I showed him that he was passing but if he completed his test his grade would go up higher. He said he would and I hope he does.

I then told him how Mrs. F and I were in his corner cheering him on and that we were so proud of him but that in the end it's going to be all about him. He is going to be the second person in his family to graduate and I told him that life was a lot like basketball. It didn't matter who was cheering him on in the sidelines because in the end it's him and only him who can take a shot. His talent and skill will help him through but he's got to put forth the same kind of effort he would on the court.

He looked down and said, "You're right." I asked him about the people he chose for his team and he said, "I've gotten rid of some of those people who were pulling me down." I told him I was very proud of him and he asked if I would write his mom and note about that. I did.

VIDEO: Blue-Colored UFO in Centreville

VIDEO: Blue-Colored UFO in Centreville

Some people in Centreville are talking about a bright blue light spotted moving in the sky.

It was in the night sky just above Lee Highway when shoppers looked up and saw something weird in Centreville and it was all of it caught on camera.

So far, no one has an explanation for this event.

There was no unusual activity near Dulles airport Wednesday night. The Federal Aviation Administration has contacted local air traffic facilities for possible explanations.

I'll let you know if I find out anything more about this video

Oh Hail!

On October 25th there were hail storms in parts of Georgia. This is an amazing video of the event I found on the internet.

Day 18 Of Forty Days of Gratitude

You might be surprised when I express what I am grateful for today. You may just think, oh she's probably gloating about the election results. After all, this was the biggest shift in the legislature in 70 years. Imagine that. The Republicans retook the House and they barely missed taking over the Senate.

Ah but that's not really what I'm grateful for today. Today I got to see that my words can save a life. That is powerful and frightening.

I have one young lady who is often absent from class. She's at the point that if she missed two more days she will have failed for the semester. When she was out for three days recently I asked her why she was out and she said she had a migraine. I asked her if her doctor had diagnosed her as having migraines and what she takes for them.

I asked because I used to suffer migraines and before I was diagnosed I had to undergo some tests.

She told me that she had never seen a doctor and I asked her why. She shrugged her shoulders. I told her that she should see a doctor to make sure that she actually is having migraines and that it isn't something that could be potentially worse like blood clots or high blood pressure.

She was out from school again yesterday but today she came to class with a doctor's note. Turns out she has very high blood pressure and she had no clue. The doctor is starting her one treatment. I am so thankful that she took my suggestion and that she went to see a doctor.

I am also thankful that I could make a difference in the way a coworker was feeling. She was very upset about something someone said to her and when we talked she told me how much she appreciated me for hearing her out and letting her get it all off her chest.

I simply told her the truth, that she was an amazing woman and that she doesn't often recognize that in herself. I'm so glad we had the opportunity to speak.

On Election Night Don't Forget The Rent Is Too Damn High

I can't seem to get enough of this guy. Good luck to you tonight Jimmy McMillan!

Is Obama A Keynesian?:

Those crazy "tea-baggers". I mean they are so stupid that they don't even know the definitition of Keynesian.

I mean, who doesn't know that the definition of keyesian is and I quote: "Of or relating to the economic theories of John Maynard Keynes, especially those theories advocating government monetary and fiscal programs designed to increase employment and stimulate business activity."

Oh wait...those aren't "tea-baggers." Those are liberals. Aren't they supposed to be smarter than everyone else. Pay attention to how they put the reporter in his place letting him know that Obama was born in Hawaii. Gee do you think he can point to Kenesia on a map. Duh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Don't you like the woman who mispronounced the word? Hey wait...maybe they photo-shopped her response. What? You can't photo shop someone's oral response? Nevermind. "I'm not going to judge people." After all "What proof do you want? He gave you proof" (How true!) What proof do you want. Absolutely none because you're right, he's given us the proof.

The Media Manufactures Anti-Republican Stories

Who would have "thunk" it? Imagine journalists seeking to manufacture news. I mean isn't that what they constantly accuse Fox of doing?

This is the latest case in which someone thought their cell phone had disconnected.

The transcript sent out by Miller’s campaign team reads:

FEMALE REPORTER: That’s up to you because you're the expert, but that’s what I would do....I’d wait until you see who showed up because that indicates we already know
something...
[Laughter]
[INAUDIBLE]
FEMALE REPORTER: Child molesters...
MALE REPORTER: Oh yeah ... can you repeat Joe Miller’s ... uh ... list of people, campaign
workers, which one's the molester?
[INAUDIBLE]
FEMALE VOICE: We know that out of all the people that will show up tonight, at least one of
them will be a registered sex offender.
[Laughter]
MALE REPORTER: You have to find that one person...
[INAUDIBLE]
FEMALE REPORTER: And the one thing we can do is ... we won’t know ... we won’t know but
if there is any sort of chaos whatsoever we can put out a twitter/facebook alert: saying what
the... ‘Hey Joe Miller punched at rally.’
FEMALE REPORTER: Kinda like Rand Paul.... I like that.
[Laughter]
FEMALE REPORTER: That’s a good one.


Miller’s campaign sent out a transcript of a message accidentally left on a Miller aide’s cellphone Thursday that purportedly shows KTVA reporters talking about finding a child molester at a Miller rally and linking the candidate to them.

KTVA has confirmed the message is genuine but said in a statement that the message has been taken out of context. Sarah Palin, who has endorsed Miller, weighed in on the controversy, calling news station KTVA “corrupt bastards” on her Twitter feed.

In a measure of the controversy generated, CBS released a statement saying it does not own KTVA

As You Get Ready To Vote

Just a quick reminder what a great job Obama has done. Oh I'm sure you heard it's all George Bush's fault, however, last I checked Obama's been President for a couple of years now.

The choice is yours. Do you really want more of the same?

Happy Halloween

Have a safe and Happy Halloween.

Farmville Murder

Alexandra V. Tobias pleaded guilty to second-degree murder for the murder of her son.

Tobias told investigators that she shook the baby, smoked a cigarette to compose herself and then shook him again. She said the baby may have hit his head during the shaking.”

She will be sentenced in December. State guidelines call for 25 to 50 years, but a prosecutor said it could be shorter than that

Investigators say she was angered because her three month old son was crying while she was playing the game FarmVille. The baby died at the hospital from head trauma.

I mean I just don't get it. Really. I get requests for Farmville games and people giving me things from Farmville but I just ignore them and pretend I don't know what the heck it is.

When I think of things that signify "I have NO LIFE WHATSOEVER" I think of Farmville. FarmVille is a real-time farm simulation. That's right a FARM simulation. What's the matter Dancing With The Stars or Sixteen And Pregnant not on?

I'm shocked by this story but I suppose I shouldn't be. People become addicted to games as if they were heroin. We've created a society of digital dependence, and now we're reaping what we've sown.

Day 12 Of Forty Days Of Gratitude

Today was another long day. I had to stay after school for our semi-annual meeting with people from the business community. I like how the meetings run now that we began inviting kids from our classes to talk about what they have learned. I actually thought of that idea a couple of years ago and I think it really hits a chord with everyone who attends.

Today I received a box with new Hershey's Dots. I haven't tried them yet but they look like M&M's without the candy shell.

I heard an interesting challenge today. The challenge was to complete the sentence I AM ___________. What am I? Am I generous? I feel I am. I try to be generous with my possessions and my time. I often go out of my way for others.

I am a good wife. Darryl says I am and I try to be but is that true?

I need to concentrate more on what I am and not what I am not. I need to concentrate more on becoming a better person. I need to define what it is I want to be.

Today my moment of gratitude was some smiles from students. I made a special point today to pay more attention to kids I normally don't spend more time with. They seemed so flattered and each of them smiled. This is a lesson that I should put into practice more on a daily basis.

Angel Caught on Camera In Hospital

I believe in angels. I know that there are those who don't but I have been touched by my guardian angel several times.

Day 11 Of Forty Days Of Gratitude

The day began with a heavy downpour. Despite that my drive to work was uneventful.

I found if I ate my lunch very quickly I could just about run over to the gym to to my walk. I can then make four complete loops. I forgot to bring my pedometer but hopefully I will remember to do that real soon.

Today is our "favorite" day of the week because it's duty day. Every Wednesday we do morning duty and bus duty. Due to a faculty meeting after school, our afternoon bus duty was cut short.

Today we watched disk three of the Ruby Payne series, our boss decided that disk two was not necessary to watch. I try to look for one interesting story on the DVD and today's story was her story about taking a photo of a man in Haiti. The person in Haiti was handed a photo and he didn't seem to understand how his photo did not represent him in a 3D manner.

After school today I ran over to Walmart to buy my Halloween costume. It's a sort of witch costume with a big purple hat. Just as I was headed for the check-out I ran into a former student. I asked what he was doing and he told me that he was working and going to school. I was so very happy and grateful that I got to hear the my encouragement to further his education helped make a difference.

Day 10 Of Forty Days of Gratitude

This afternoon, just before my husband and I went for a walk a slight mist filled the air. I had stepped out with the dogs before we left and I looked up to see a rainbow. I stared at it for a moment and decided to dash inside for my camera.

In a matter of minutes I was back outside with my camera but the sun had moved ever so slightly and the rainbow had disappeared. In that moment I thought about how fleeting time can be and even the smallest shift in our paradigm can change everything. Then just as suddenly, just as unexpectedly, the rainbow once again graced the sky and I was able to take some photos. I was grateful for the beauty I was able to behold, if only for a few moments.

Darryl and I did go for a walk. I've been worried because my clothes seem to be fitting me different even though the scale is telling me that I weigh the same. For example I took out a pair of size five slacks that I have warn in the past but just as I got to my hips I had to give them a slight tug and a jiggle before I was able to get them on. I was able to zip them up and button them without sucking anything in but it just didn't feel right. Not too tight but not the way I liked for them to feel.

To be honest I used to walk about 10,000 steps per day and I have no earthly clue what I walk now but I'm certain it's not that much. I'm spending so much time on the computer trying to get caught up with all the stuff they want me to have accomplished with these new requirements.

I decided to try to do more walking but yesterday's rains prevent me from walking the school track. Instead I've been doing the inside gym walk. I wound up walking around the perimeter eight times today while at school and then I walked with Darryl on our usual walk. I think I should wear a pedometer to get a better idea of how far I'm really walking.

The Rent Is Still Too Damn High

Jimmy McMillan is now at Superstar status because as you can see he is being parodied on Saturday Night Live. Climb on by the Jimmy McMilliam Express. Hold on tight because it's going to be a wild ride because the rent is.....TOO DAMN HIGH!!!!!

Day Nine Of Forty Days Of Gratitude

Today began with a big bang.

I had just taken the dogs back in after they had done their "business" when I heard a loud crack. It took me by surprise but almost immediately afterwards it sounded as though the sky opened up and the rain began to pour. I can only assume that my dogs were glad to have gotten back in before the rain began to fall because they both hate getting wet.

Sadly the weather was a factor in two wrecks right outside the front of the school. One of the cars was being driven by one of our teachers. She is doing fine and that's certainly good news.

Thankfully today I finished the PowerPoint that Mrs. F had asked me to update. I'm glad that's off my plate.

I was able to take a walk around the gym today. One of the secretaries told me that walking around the gym twelve times equals a mile. I was able to walk around six times during lunch. When Darryl got home he and I took a walk. The evening was warm without that wonderful breeze but it was still great walking weather.

I am grateful for my two dogs who always greet me as though I'm walking through the door carrying steaks. We got them both from the shelter years ago and they have brought me much happiness. Even as I am writing this they are both lying by the couch as though they can't bear for us to be apart.

Who Decides What Actually Is Freedom Of Speech?

Find more videos like this on www.truveo.com.

Funny. While Juan needs a psychiatrist these NPR employees do not have such problems. It's fine to call people in the Tea Party the sexually derisive term, Tea baggers. Boy or boy you guys really know how to yuck it up. I mean gosh darn it, how stupid must one be not to realize that the public option and socialized medicine have nothing in common. Those tea party people are just so st..... hey wait a minute, isn't the public option a form of socialized medicine? Well heck I mean wouldn't that mean that they really are correct when they say it's socialist? Nah, can't be. I mean NPR and the elites told me that those "tea baggers" are all ignorant.



Of course Nina Totenberg chuckled while she hoped that Jessie Helms or one of his family members gets AIDs. Yes, chuckle, chuckle, that was a real belly laugh. Ha Ha that certain does rise the measure of hate speech that Juan's opinion did



While I do believe that NPR can absolutely decide who they want to have one their station, I also believe that it is one of the cuts we can make in our bloated government. After all they do get a small percentage of their funding from the Federal Government. What if Fox got a small amount of that same government funding? Wouldn't the left be storming the castle with torches in hand?

Does NPR slam Jessie Jackson for slamming Obama for "Acting Like He's White" ? (9/19/07) Did they say anything negative about the Reverend Jackson when he said "There is nothing more painful to me at this stage of my life than to walk down the street and hear footsteps and start thinking about robbery — then look around and see somebody white and feel relieved." when speaking at the PUSH convention in 1993.

No I believe that this has much more to do with Juan not holding the party line, oh and that little tiny weeny donation made by George Soros.

Oh you didn't know? I mean George only contributed $1.8 million to NPR so it can hire political reporters across the country.

The left-wing Open Society Foundations is donating the large sum to NPR for a project being called “Impact of Government.” The project is planning to add at least 100 reporters across the country to cover local state house politics to fill the holes left by the firing of so many local reporters due to the contraction in the field of journalism over the last decade.

So much for journalistic integrity and it's looking more and more like so long to freedom of speech.

Day Eight Of Forty Days Of Gratitude

I usually don't spend much time thinking about Darryl's Dad. He was very hateful and he lived in our home almost ten years almost the whole of our marriage. I don't know why I asked Darryl how he Dad was doing but I did ask him. He told me that he didn't know because his father never calls or reaches out to him. "I guess Dad's getting his mail now so he has no reason to call." Darryl said. I laughed and when he asked why I asked I shrugged and just wondered if he was going to be one of those old people that dies in their trailer and not found until months later.

Around 3:30 this afternoon we heard a loud bang at our door. Then we heard a knocking. "Who is that?" I asked. Low and behold it was his Dad. Out of the blue he blue telling Darryl that he had figured out how Darryl should organize his workplace. Weird. Darryl's doing so well there and has it working just fine. He stayed only a few moments and then left. It was all so very weird.

I asked his Dad how he was doing and he said that he was fine. I asked if he was happier and he told me that he was happy in our home but truthfully it never seemed that way.

Today I was watching the History International Channel and I got to watch a Haunted History about Edinburgh. We had gone on the Mary King's Close tour while we were there. I have lots of photos of our trip that I had won. It was our first and only trip to Europe.



I was able to buy another song I had wanted to buy in the past but being too cheap to do so I never did because I didn't absolutely adore it. Don't get me wrong I loved it but I actually had to adore something. I hadn't heard it in a long time but I did today so I took some of my gift card money and bought it. The song is called Under The Milky Way By: The Church. The movie came from the soundtrack of the movie Donnie Darko.

We won 60 more MyCokeRewards points from the McDonald's Monopoly game. I always love winning so I am grateful for that.

The thing I'm most grateful for is gentle tonight's gentle breeze. The temperature got up into the 80s today and that's pretty good for an October day. It wasn't hot or humid just warm. I went outside around 7 PM to throw something in the trash can because trash day is tomorrow. Just as I stepped out the door a warm breeze gently played through the air. It was the kind of breeze that I always associate with Merriweather Post Pavilion summer concerts.

I stopped and closed my eyes and allowed the breeze to caress my bare arms. I opened my eyes and stared up at the sky. It was dark save the bright North Star. I went back inside to get my husband to share the feeling. Even though he didn't seem to "get it" he put his arms around me and said, "I love you." For the breeze and his love I am grateful.

Jennifer Petkov Loses Custody Of Her Children

Lest you missed this story, Jennifer Petkov decided to post disturbing pictures on Facebook of a neighbor's seven year old granddaughter who is dying of Huntington’s Disease. The girl's mother had also died from the same disease.

Jennifer being the kind of girl she is decided to post photos of the young girl being held by the grim reaper clutching the young girl in an effort to punish the neighbor's Grandmother who has been raising the girl.

Kathleen is battling juvenile Huntington’s disease, a progressive, genetic disorder that destroys the brain and causes death. There is no way to stop or reverse the disease, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke website.

Jennifer seems to have been very busy this week as she was arrested this week. She allegedly attempted to hit a neighbor with her car. The woman pressing charges wasn’t related to Kathleen Edward, the little girl Jennifer was taunting, but she was on her way to visit the family.

Meanwhile there has been an outpouring of support, and this week Kathleen went on a $2000 shopping spree at Tree Town Toys in Ann Arbor, thanks to generous donations made by people who have learned of the story.

As for Jennifer, well she has lost custody of her own children recently as the the father of the children filed for emergency custody. Let's hope this is a better situation for these children. While the neighbor girl is the obvious victim in all this, the Petkov children are really the invisible victims in this entire sad affair.

Don't look for Jennifer to be canonized for Sainthood in this lifetime. Don't worry Jennifer, there may well be a special place in hell reserved just for someone of your caliber.

Cloudy With A Chance Of Erection

This is an instance where a picture is worth a thousand words.

Perhaps the one question I have is, "What happens if this erection last more than four hours?"

The Road To Serfdom In Five Minutes Or Less

Running a planned state from a central headquarters is clumsy, unfair and inefficient.



Planners never have delivered, never will be able to. It's all a tragic farce.



In a dictatorship there is no room for difference of opinion. Posters, radio, press, all tell you the same lies.

Day Seven of Forty Days of Gratitude

This morning I woke up around 2:00 feeling as though someone was pressing down on my chest. I am claustrophobic and in my dream I had been placed in a coffin and buried but I was alive and I Was trying desperately to get out. Just as I opened my eyes I wondered if I shouldn't have been cremated so my soul could be set free.

I glanced around the room that seemed to be bathed in moonlight. It was almost light enough to read by and I stared at the ceiling thankful that it had been just a dream. I turned to look over at my husband who was snoring almost in unison with our dog Blitz. I then curled up next to him and tried to go back to sleep.

Unfortunately for me, sleep just wouldn't come. Finally around 3:30 AM I decided to stop fighting it and go downstairs.

I began entering sweepstakes and writing blog posts for Thrifty Maven when I found this amazing story of a woman who had been pronounced brain dead. Amazingly before they began harvesting her organs they discovered that she was very much alive.

This story is so amazing I want to share it with you.



I didn't make the connection with my dream but when I told my husband about it he asked me if I had heard about this story the night before but I hadn't. I felt the coincidence was important enough to document it.

After receiving a $29 Amazon gift card I began spending it on some music downloads. I'm making a Halloween music CD so I bought the following songs for that: A Nightmare On My Street By: DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, They're Coming To Take Me Away Ha! Haa!! By: Napoleon's Ghost, Spooky by: Atlanta Rhythm Section,

I also bought some favorites from back in the 70's and early 80's like: So Into You by Atlanta Rhythm Section, Imaginary Lover By: Atlanta Rhythm Section, I'm Not Gonna Let It Bother Me Tonight By: Atlanta Rhythm Section , Whatcha Gonna Do? By: Pablo Cruise, and Don't Want To Live Without It By: Pablo Cruise

I love music and I am grateful for being able to finally be able to get these songs again.

We won 90 more MyCokerewards from the McDonald's Monopoly game and that's certainly something to be grateful for.

The thing I am most grateful for today is my health. Now that might seem odd considering I didn't get enough sleep and that made me very drowsy and sick early on in the day. I was finally able to take a nap after having some Mac & Cheese for lunch. I slept for about two hours and when I woke up I felt great. I realize that some people are dealing with real illness and they can't just nap off the effects like I was able to do. So for that I truly am grateful for my health.