Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Entries from November 1, 2008 - December 1, 2008

Entries from November 1, 2008 - December 1, 2008

Monday
Dec012008

Aging with Loss: The End of an Era: No More Delivered Newspaper

We canceled our newspaper subscription. This was a harder decision for us to make than you would think. For 25 years, the newspaper was daily in our home. Ours is a moderately liberal paper and we are a moderately conservative twosome. The paper challenged our thinking, exposed us to other ways of seeing the world. It made it easy to vote. I could take the list of recommended candidates to the polls and vote for the other gal.

It was a well-written paper with informative local and world news. The sports section was beloved by my son and husband. When he wouldn’t read anything else, my son would read the sports page.

The comic page was always read in our home. My kids aged as the kids in For Better or Worse did. I like having a daily crossword puzzle to puzzle over. One I could usually finish.

The paper arrived on or about our property through ice storms and hurricanes. If for some reason, our paper wasn’t to be found, one call to customer service caused one to be delivered later in the day.

Things changed: The sports section seems to be the only section unscathed by the changes. The comics went from one column to three; the crossword became way too easy. The religion section became a religion column; the food section began to shrink.

The pictures were becoming more appropriate to page 6 of the NYPOST than our family friendly southern newspaper.

The change that made us decide to cancel is the loss of world and in-depth local overage of the news. I can get news bites from CNN and Fox News online. Our paper is buying out or is laying off the local investigative reporters and commentators. The front page sometimes is more tabloid in content that hard news. There are more ads than reporting.

We can get our world news online, by radio or on TV free. We can’t get in-depth local coverage from our local newspaper anymore. I guess I will buy USA Today occasionally for their crossword puzzle.

I will miss the way things were. Good-bye old friend...you changed and I will miss you.

Friday
Nov282008

Blogs Worth a Click: Catch Up Addition

The orginial idea behind Blogs Worth a Click was to later recap blogs suggested by the commentors who are usually bloggers themselves. I was thinking at least monthly. Thinking and doing are two different actions.

There are so many interesting blogs and few ways for others to discover them. This would be perfect for a Mr Linky type plugin but my current blog platform doesn't offer any thing like that. Sad but true. It doesn't even offer something like Comment Luv. Very sad.

Diet and Exercise Addition

Gina suggested 101Cookbooks as worth a click.

Speaking Hope Addition

Ton suggested Modus Vivendi

Odd But Interesting Addition

SheSue Expirence suggested Unusual Hotels of the World which includes a ice hotel. How cool is that!

So in theory this is what I am planning to do. If you are a commentor with your own blog and you suggest a different blog you enjoy on the given topic, when I do the monthly recap, link love all around. Manually because of my blog platform. (I do believe this irks me more than I realized!)

Anyone blogging on the perfect platform?

Thursday
Nov272008

The First National Thanksgivng

General Thanksgiving

By the PRESIDENT of the United States Of America
A PROCLAMATION

WHEREAS 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 favour; and Whereas both Houfes of Congress have, by their joint committee, requefted me "to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLICK THANSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to eftablifh a form of government for their safety and happiness:"

NOW THEREFORE, I do recommend and affign THURSDAY, the TWENTY-SIXTH DAY of NOVEMBER next, to be devoted by the people of thefe States to the fervice of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our fincere and humble thanksfor His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the fignal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpofitions of His providence in the courfe and conclufion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have fince enjoyed;-- for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to eftablish Conftitutions of government for our fafety and happinefs, and particularly the national one now lately instituted;-- for the civil and religious liberty with which we are bleffed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffufing useful knowledge;-- and, in general, for all the great and various favours which He has been pleafed to confer upon us.

And also, that we may then unite in moft humbly offering our prayers and fupplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and befeech Him to pardon our national and other tranfgreffions;-- to enable us all, whether in publick or private ftations, to perform our feveral and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a bleffing to all the people by conftantly being a Government of wife, juft, and conftitutional laws, difcreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all fovereigns and nations (especially fuch as have shewn kindnefs unto us); and to blefs them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increafe of fcience among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind fuch a degree of temporal profperity as he alone knows to be beft.

GIVEN under my hand, at the city of New-York, the third day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand feven hundred and eighty-nine.

(signed) G. Washington

Referenced from Archiving Early America

Wednesday
Nov262008

Aging with Adventure: Sandwiches Ideas Anyone?

The day before Thanksgiving my mind naturally turns to food. The kids will be home from school this week and the Christmas break is coming. Sandwiches are a staple in our house. Bread is still relatively inexpensive. What the kids put between the slices can up the cost considerably. You would think we would have enough leftover turkey for a weeks worth of sandwiches but both my 17 year old son and my husband are home this weekend. The turkey will not last long.

I have a couple of filling, tasty sandwich ideas and am hoping you will share some more.

Believe it or not peanut butter, strawberry jelly and sliced jalapeno peppers make a great sandwich!

Peanut butter and sliced bananas is also good.

If you have a favorite please share. Weird is okay. I happen to love fried bologna with fried onions on an onion roll. It doesn't make me more attractive in my husband's eye and I suspect that particular sandwich is not very good from my heart either so I don't have it vey often. But once in a great while, yum!

Tuesday
Nov252008

Parenting Teens: The Modern Teen Connection

A friend mentioned that her family uses four cars to run their lives. I though that was a little excessive until I realized we have 3 cars and pay about a third of the insurance on a fourth.(Maybe even less than a third, that particular semi-adult is becoming more adult and less semi).

Between all of us, we have 5 cell phones, one land line and two extensions, 5 computers of one type or another, 2 TVs (small by modern standards or so we have been informed, either of them hang from the wall), Tivo on one of them, 2 games systems and a separate not hooked up to anything smallish TV for the game systems (we are sadly uncool in the game systems department), at least 3 MP3 players floating around, several CD players and at least one digital camera.

All the children have Facebook accounts, multiple personal e-mail accounts, and one has her own blog. Another is running out of computer space for her schoolwork because of all the songs she has stored. The term external hard drive had been mentioned in my presence. I asked if her computer had a delete function. I remain a sadly uncool parent. I have three active e-mail accounts myself!

Our children do not see us at the epitome of electronic/car blessedness but as a decidedly underpowered family. I am kinda stunned to see all the stuff we use just to communicate, travel or to entertain ourselves.

My parents reared a passel of kids with two cars (even though mom didn’t drive), one phone with two extensions…..that’s pretty much it.

Oh I forgot two TVs (with cable) and some tape recorders and later cassette players. I think there might have been a stereo or two also.

I have no idea how my parents managed.

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