PB's Weekend Starting Early

So, I won't be posting until Sunday or Monday... Unless I come across something really bizarre or entertaining before I leave tomorrow morning.

Am heading off to enjoy a several-day-long "Mohawk gathering" where, no doubt, I'll meet some very interesting people, and maybe even learn a thing or two.

Have a wonderful and safe weekend everyone.

Women in the Catholic Church

While catching up on my Corner reading, I came across a Sunday post by K-Lo that points to this piece by Pia de Solenni in the Washington Post. Here's just a little bit:

So where do I fit into the picture as a woman? Unfortunately, the discussion has centered on priesthood for so long that we've only recently begun to explore what is unique to women. For Catholics, the most perfect human being was a woman -- Mary, the mother of God. Scripture makes clear that she understood more than anyone and that she had an essential role in the redemption of humanity. It depended on her "Yes," her willingness and capacity to become Jesus's mother, a role that did not end with his birth.

Benedict XVI won't change the church's positions on women's ordination, birth control or abortion. He can't change what flows from the core teachings of the Catholic faith. But under his leadership we can expect to have an extensive continuation of the conversations necessary for understanding these teachings.

It is a lovely piece and, knowing my limitations, I will not attempt to comment on the article. However, I would absolutely LOVE to read what the Anchoress may have to say about it (if she is so inclined, of course) when she returns. She is so much more articulate than I, and this would be right up her alley.

Exploding WHAT?

I simply don't know what to say.....

From Fox News

Oh, Give Me a Home

From Fox News. But, what about the deer and the antelope?

May I Have Your Attention, Please...

All visitors are invited and encouraged to dash over to My Vast Right Wing Conspiracy, for some not-so-silly news - and a timely reminder for anyone who either IS a woman, or who KNOWS one.

Prayers are with you Laura...

Principal Equals Police? Who Knew?

This incredible idiocy is likely to make my head explode before I reach the end, but I will try to muscle though it.

The administrators (former administrators?) at the center of the Mifflin High School sexual assault case are taking great pains to.... pass the buck.

The 16-year-old special education student reported to the principal that she had been hit and forced to give oral sex to two boys. According to Suzie Retterer-Helfrich , one of the assistant principals, neither she nor the other two assistant principals called police because:

"Our investigation was very thorough," Retterer-Helfrich says. “Nobody mishandled the situation.”

"No one, absolutely no one that day believes there was personal injury or an assault situation,” is how Retterer-Helfrich says the school administration assessed the report.

...Administrators did gather evidence and start an investigation, she says. But according to her, they believed it was a "sexual misconduct" incident: in other words, consensual.

“Police are not called when there’s supposition of sexual misconduct. That's a disciplinary action," explained Retterer-Helfrich.

Okay - first of all, Ms. Retterer-Helfrech, it is not up to you to determine whether or not a crime has been committed. It is certainly not for you to decide that someone who reports she was hit and forced to give oral sex to two boys was actually engaging in consensual sex. I think, Ms. R-H, you must be confusing yourself with the POLICE! It is police who conduct investigations and gather evidence to determine whether or not a crime has been committed. And, it is during their investigation - or later, in court, with actual attorneys and everything, where it will be decided whether or not the incident was "consensual."

Oh - and SO sorry this has been hard for you,

"I hope that it hasn't ruined my career,” she adds. "This has been quite an ordeal. It's not over. It's not over."

I'm just sure the poor girl's troubles pale in comparison to the "ordeal" you are going through.

And then, there's Regina Crenshaw, the principal who was fired. She gave a news conference today. It's here, but you'll need to scroll down a couple of stories to get to the video (that's all there is at this point). She is extremely worried that her reputation may be at stake and desperately wants people to know she's a deeply committed religious woman.

You know, Ms. Crenshaw, I could care less whether you are Christian, Buddist, Halle Bop-ist, or whether you worship at the feet of Quatzecoatl, the great flying serpent. How in the world does that have any bearing on your deplorable, irresponsible, STUPID decision to not call the police - or even the girl's father?

I'm really hoping the other two assistant principals can just keep their mouths shut. You know. Show some appropriate humility for how badly they screwed up. Hopefully not be so damned concerned about appearances.

Ohhh, and perhaps, maybe they can be more concerned with the girl and what she went through, rather than whining and complaining about how horrible this has been for the administrators and their reputations.


My head is, surprisingly, still intact. Just in case anyone was wondering.

Senate Compromise Plan

David Broder over at the Washington Post has an interesting idea (reg. req.) about how to get beyond the wrangling over fillibustering and the very real possibility of the "nuclear option." I'm actually quite surprised to see this in WahPo, as it seems pretty sound. But, what do I know? I've already admitted I don't know much; I just like to blather. Maybe some brighter minds than mine can find problems with Mr. Broder's reasoning. I sure can't, but am willing to be educated by any who wish to set me straight.

World Gone Nuts

There is one story that I commented on a few days ago, about a special education student in Columbus, OH who was beaten and forced to perform oral sex on several boys while others watched and even videotaped it. I found out tonight that the boy who videotaped the incident is appealing his expulsion - because, well, he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, don't ya know, and didn't really intend to tape the poor girl being beaten and falling to her knees in terror and being threatened with more bodily harm if she cried out, and then having a penis forced into her mouth. Of COURSE! Why didn't I think of that? Isn't that brilliant? The poor, unfortunate boy shouldn't be expelled because, even though he was there, and totally did what he's accused of doing, it's not his fault because if he hadn't been at that place at that time, he wouldn't have done it.
I hope I cleared that up for all of you who may have been confused about this.

And here, yet another story about another school - this time in San Francisco. A 14-year-old girl, apparently distraught, reports to the principal that she has just been sexually assaulted, but does the school call the police? Of COURSE not. Why would the school do THAT? Don't be silly. They called her parents, and then told her to get on the bus and go home. But, instead, this remarkable girl actually WALKED herself to the nearby police station to make the report the school refused to. Has the world just gone friggin NUTS!?

I was just talking to the daughter about these incidents, and also relaying to her some of the interesting stories that have been on SC&A lately. I asked her if it was as common as is being portrayed..kids giving kids blowjobs in the bathrooms, etc. She graduated two years ago, but she said even then it was happening all the time. And, it was partly for that very reason that during her senior year the school instituted a policy requiring bathrooms be kept locked during classes and only unlocked during class changes...with a teacher posted outside OR INSIDE each bathroom. I had never known this. How could I have missed this?

UPDATE: Welcome SC&A and MaxedOutMama readers. Glad to have you visiting.

We Have a Pope!

So, after struggling through a horrible case of Springtime fever-chills-headache-and-general-ickiness while trying to patch up the chair, the new PC, and my relationship with my daughter, I'm hoping I'll be able to catch up on blogging - and the reading of blogs and news that I've missed for the last several days.

We have a pope! Yes - I KNOW it's rather late in the game to be making this announcement, but I just wanted to say "We have a pope!" on my blog because I didn't when it happened.

So there. I feel better.

Hurtful Words

Damn. Damn. Damn.

Earlier today, or I guess it would be yesterday now, I lost my temper and gave in to the urge to blurt some rather hurtful, biting comments to someone I love. Immediately regretted it, of course, but the damage was done and, as we all know, there is no way to unsay words once they are spoken.

My daughter was the unfortunate recipient of my totally unwarranted screed and she didn't deserve such an onslaught of unhelpful blather from me. Like I mentioned a while back, she's approaching the wise old age of 20, but today I treated her like she was 16. To her credit, and my shame, she responded to my verbal attack like the poised, well-grounded, sensible young woman that she is. But, she was hurt, deeply, none the less.

Obviously, this is not the first time in her life I've lost my temper and said things for which I had to apologise later - only the most recent. And it's weighing heavy on me tonight. Apologies have been offered and tentatively accepted, but the air between us tonight as she headed off to sleep was still thick with her hurt feelings and sense of betrayal.

Damn. Damn. Damn.

Nothing else to say.

The Chair From Hell

Know what I've been doing? Of course not - so I'll tell you.

The chair. Am working on the damn chair.

And setting up my new PC that arrived Friday - or was it Thursday? The days are running together now - after no sleep, too much caffiene, and God only knows how many cigarettes. I won't be posting until after the completed chair is delivered (it is looking quite beatiful, if I DO say so myself. And I do say so. But, it's still a pain in the hind end) and the new PC starts being cooperative.

A Little Safer This Week than Last

Yep - we are. For real, according to THIS from Newsday.com.

Wow. 10,000 bad guys nabbed in one week. Now - If they could only do something like this, say, about once a month.

Hats off to our US Marshalls Service for coordinating this whole operation, and to all the other 24 or 25 law enforcement agencies that helped out. You guys rock!

What Else Can We Expect?

I came across this story at Maxed Out Mama's place. She points to the discussion at the Democratic Underground, and SC&A have also picked it up.

Basically, a disabled girl known to have speech problems and who is developmentally delayed was sexually assaulted by a group of boys in her high school auditorium in Columbus, Ohio. One of the kids videotaped what happened, and lots of people not only watched but also were shown the video. When this dispicable act came to the attention of school administrators, a hush-hush cover-up was tried, so as not to draw negative attention to the school.

Have we gone totally insane? Mark my words, soon we'll have folks trying to figure out the "root cause" - what could "make" these kids do what they did? I imagine we will begin to hear about the boys' deep-seated anger brought on by their circumstances - was it poverty? was it being victims themselves of bullying behavior?

Call me simplistic and narrow minded, but I absolutely do not understand how anyone can be confused about how such an awful, evil thing could happen. Of COURSE things like this will happen when a society becomes afraid to point to certain behaviors and say, unequivocally, "what you are doing is WRONG!" and, "That is BAD!" for fear of hurting someone's self-esteem or of being seen as "judgemental" and "intolerant."

Of COURSE it's going to happen when mothers and fathers abdicate their authority by choosing to be pals rather than parents. Of COURSE it's going to happen when those same parents refuse to teach their kids, by word, example, reward and punishment, that there are truly such things as GOOD and RIGHT and such things as BAD and WRONG. When parents say they don't want to "impose" their own values and morality on their kids, and say instead that they want their children to be free to develop their own understanding of morality, how can we expect anything other than exactly what we are seeing?

And, for the love of God, can anyone tell me - at what point did we forget how to raise children?

Day Off Blathering

It was lovely having a day off in the middle of the week. I stayed up way late last night, downloading all sorts of new tools and gadgets to try on my PC - some of which are purported to help me blog, and others I just wanted because they seemed pretty interesting. And, oh yeah - and I bought a new (refurbished) PC from Dell. I won't tell you what model, because then you might feel compelled to tell me I probably got hosed in the deal. But, whatever - it's definitely better than this decrepit old thing I'm using right now. The daughter is going to get this one when the new one arrives, and the husband and I are going to get to fight over the new one. Or, we'll get to do that once it has a monitor to go with it, anyway.

So, I stayed up late doing all sorts of geeky stuff and then, because I had the day off, I slept in really late. When I finally got up, I puttered around, not doing much of anything. And, because I really don't know what to do with myself when I'm not at work (even though there are piles of laundry to fold and put away, and litter boxes to clean, and dishes to wash, and a quarter-of-the-way crocheted afghan I'll be working on till I'm 90), I spent a little bit of time checking voice mail from work, making a couple of calls, and checking and replying to my work e-mail. And, then, around about ohhh, 2:00 this afternoon, I finally got around to doing some work on a chair I'm reupholstering for a friend from work. A chair that was supposed to finished and delivered TODAY!

I suck. I've had this chair in my house for, I swear, 8 months. Now - in all fairness to Me, my friend didn't get the new fabric to me until after I'd had the chair in my house for almost 2 months. And then, the custom foam that I ordered for it was messed up and had to be re-ordered. But still - this chair is not the size of a house and it should have, and could have, been finished 5 months ago. I think I might have mentioned something in an earlier post about my weeeee little problem with procrastination. But, I don't feel like linking to it right now. Maybe later.

Anyway, I ran into my friend last week and told him his chair was nearly finished and that I would bring it to him today. I had every intention of getting it finished. Really I did. But, then the weekend was soooo busy. And then Monday happened. And Tuesday, too. And instead of finishing up the work on the chair, I played geek on the computer, slept in, and puttered. I still haven't called the guy whose chair is now being held hostage in my home. I might not be able to call him "friend" much longer. He's going to think I destroyed his chair and am, even now, frantically searching for a replica.

But, I have managed to buy myself some time. Because he won't be back in the office until Monday. Which, of course, is why I'm sitting here blogging. Instead of working on the frigging chair. Did I mention I have a problem with procrastination?

The Truth About....

Okay, I lied. I'm not heading off to bed just yet. I'm glad I decided to hang out a little bit because I just happened to wander over to the Blue-Eyed Infidel and came across her lively and hilarious comparison of the relative value of cats vs. dogs. Just the beginning here:

So let me get this straight: you let a furry animal take a shit in a box of sand, bury it with his paws, and then hop up onto furntiture, even your own bed, to lick the spare poo off of his butt? That is foul.

I used to have cats. Loved them. But I never really thought about what was going on re: their shit. How it might stick to their paws in the box and then be deposited on my pillow later.

Oh - but you have to go read it all, because whether you are a cat person like me (Rachel - you prolly ought not read this....I have 5 of them) or a hard-core cat-hating dog-person, you are bound to get at least one belly laugh from the read. Probably more than that.

Now go. Scram. And let me get some sleep.

Okay. NOW I'm going to bed. For real. Really. I swear.

Ignorant Bliss and Little Guy

It’s late. The family is all tucked in and I finally have a few minutes to catch up on what’s going on in the world after my whirlwind of a weekend…and yet I can’t bring myself to do that just now. I don’t know about you, but sometimes I feel a need to enjoy a tiny little pocket of time in which to be blissfully ignorant. I haven’t read a newspaper or watched television since Friday night. What little radio I’ve listened to has dealt mostly with garden planting tips and weather forecasts.

The husband and I went to our nephew’s baptism this weekend, and though it was a quick road-trip there – arriving just in time for the service - with very little time for visiting after the baptism before we had to head back home, I’m still reveling in the afterglow of spending even a little bit of time with our extended family. It’s actually my husband’s family, but since both my parents have passed away, my in-laws are now the only parents I have - and my siblings-in-law are as dear to me as my own sister is.

The baptism was lovely and everyone in the congregation joined in welcoming the little guy into the family of Christ. Little Guy seemed fascinated by all the goings on and took the entire strange proceeding in stride. Although, at the end, he did toss a questioning look at the priest as if to say, “Hey, whadja go and do THAT for?”

Little Guy is 8 months old and just as cute and sweet as they come. He came into the family when he was two weeks old through the amazing and wonderful blessing of adoption, and he couldn’t be more loved, wanted, cherished, and adored. Everyone in the entire family has photos of him on their cell phones, PCs, refrigerator doors, stuck on their car visors, and tucked lovingly in wallets. Even now, the thought that this baby’s biological mom seriously considered abortion sends shivers through me. We might NOT have had the opportunity to love him and watch him grow. He might never have lived…and it came pretty close to that. I just can’t even bear thinking about it. It’s too terrifying. And besides that, it DIDN’T happen, she DIDN’T do it, and he IS here now. And he is so loved. The adoption is not totally final and won’t be for another few months. I can only imagine the celebration that will take place that day.

And now, I will continue on my way to bed, still safely, blissfully ignorant of all the pressing problems of the world. I know they will, unfortunately, all still be here tomorrow. Plenty of time to catch up.

Grousing, Griping, Grumbling, Begging Blather

Alright, I am over-the-edge frustrated and am going to grouse and grumble and beg for advice. Blogging advice.

HOW do you folks do it? BLOG constantly, I mean? It freaking takes me forever to write a *&^%&$# post, and then, very often Blogger craps out and won’t let me publish what I just spent twenty minutes - or two hours - writing. Usually, I just sign off and shut the damn browser in a fit of rage. I guess I should point out that I live right smack dab in the middle of the place they named “Nowhere” after. The original NOWHERE. Yup. That’s where I am. There is no DSL or cable, and no plans to make either available in this area anytime soon, so we're stuck with a mind-numbingly slow dial-up connection. (Without the satellite dish, we’d only get one television channel – and that, only on a “good” day when the signals can bounce along the bottom of a solid mass of cloud cover.) Dumb DSL-less county.

I installed a reader. Big whoop. I’ve got tons of news feeds now, but can’t figure out how to get the feeds for my favorite bloggers. It would probably save considerable time, but there are no helpful hints for how to do that. Dumb damn reader.

It would be lovely to blog from work, but - color me paranoid if you will - I think it might be against some sort of silly policy and could actually be frowned upon. Unfortunately, blogging while at work would also mean staying at the office even longer because I have actual, you know…work…to do there. It would also mean divorcing the husband, saying goodbye to the daughter, moving a cot to the office and adopting a daily diet of microwave popcorn and Chinese take-out.
Dumb office. Good computer, though.

Is there anyone, anywhere in the world, able to hold down a job (outside the home), spend time with family, AND have a successful blog? If so, please share….just how in the holy hell do you do it without spending 6 hours a day numbing your butt in front of the computer? And, if you are able to do it even while using a dial-up connection, I absolutely MUST know your secret, else, very soon now, I think I'll lose my little mind...and dump the computer in the kitty litter.

Daily Life on the Border

I don't even know what to say about this, from the CSM:

The Garner family on Purdy Lane doesn't know exactly how many chickens, roosters, Guinea hens, or geese they own on their 5-acre farm in this dusty town on the US-Mexico border.
But they know the number is smaller than the number of illegal immigrants who can be seen daily in groups of three, 10, 40, 60, and more on their property. They are often huddled in centipede form (hands on the hips of the person in front), kneeling under windows, crouched behind trees, and sleeping in their egg house.

Go read it all.
Suggestions? Anyone?

Grammar School Blather

The Washington Post is sounding off about the supposed snub of Carter. This is the sort of sixth-grade crap everyone should have outgrown by now. Come on, Wah Po, grow UP!

Lessons for Today

First of all, one should never, but never, try to whip out a witty post when one is exhausted. Otherwise, it makes for pretty poor reading.

Second of all, today sucked. No need to go into all the details, but take my word for it.

Third of all, other people are a whole lot more interesting and entertaining that I am today. In other words, they actually have a life. Go check out SC&A…the boys are getting into some sex talk. Meanwhile, the Anchoress displays yet another of her many talents –she knows how to share all sorts of good stuff in an interesting way without being interest-ed in anything today. Except maybe ice cream. And then there’s Captain Ed who has this week shown all of us how it’s done…and we must not forget his loyal guard.

So – go on with you now. Scram. I’m tired. And, I’m still at work. So I’m grumpy.

Glorious Day Blathering

No links, mad props, or hat-tips tonight folks. Just more blather. About me. Because, it is, of course, ALL about me.

What an incredibly, wonderfully glorious day! Sunshine just dripping everywhere. Happy bird voices from every direction. And I missed it. Because I am a slave to my job. And I work in a dank, dark cell chained to a computer. I didn't even see the dawning of this beautiful day because I was already at work At friggin 4:00 a.m. It's an ungodly hour. And the chain was only loosed from about my waist for 20 minutes mid-day for a quick dash to the store for a pack of smokes. Yes, I smoke. I realize that will probably cost me the one and only reader I believe I have, but, there. It's out. And I feel better. I don't know why I felt the need to dash out for the damn things. The only one I had was the one I smoked on the quick drive back from the store. Maybe I just needed to get out for a moment and feel the sun and the breeze. And hear the birds competing with the sounds of traffic. The birds won hands down, by the way. I was rechained to the PC upon my return, and I didn't leave again until 7:00 this evening. Oh, yeah. I'm salaried, just in case by those hours, you didn't already guess. The sun was going down as I was driving blearily home. But, it was a glorious day. And somehow, just that knowledge made my short 20 minutes of afternoon spring weather stretch and bathe my exhaustion with joy.

Now the kid is glaring at me. Because we only have one computer. And, she's in college. And I'm interfering with something she thinks she needs to do. She's been dancing outside the door, being a generally delightful pest while I have blathered on. So, now. I turn the dinosaur of a PC over to her. I'm turning in. I think I'll fight the chains in my dank cell tomorrow. The weatherman (yes - it's really a "man" here) says there is an even more beautiful day on the way. I plan to enjoy it.

The World Mourns

After perusing several of my favorite sites this morning, I turned off the PC. Yes, on purpose. I knew if I didn't, nothing on my list would be accomplished today. We had some friends over for a Sweat Lodge but, because of heavy rain and soggy muddiness outside, we decided to hold a small, quiet prayer ceremony indoors instead. No radio. No TV. No computer. We said goodnight to our guests around 11:00 tonight, and it was only when I logged on at half-past midnight that I learned the Holy Father had passed earlier in the evening. I'm still unsure how I feel about missing the announcement of his passing. Maybe if I had heard at the time, it would feel more "real" to me. As it is, I missed not only the announcement, but all the reporting of the reactions around the world as well.

Alone. That's it. I feel alone. I'm the only one awake at my house right now. Neither the husband nor the daughter have heard the news. There is no one to share this with. No one to sit with. No one to pray with.

I remember when he was elected; the solemn rites of the College of Cardinals being conducted in utter secrecy for the second time in only a matter of weeks. I was 14 when Pope Paul VI died and Pope John Paul I was elected. I remember how strange it was to hear the name "Pope John Paul" during Mass, rather than "Pope Paul." I remember being shocked when he died so quickly afterward. I also remember feeling superstitious and apprehensive when I learned the new Pope was also to take the name John Paul. I was extremely nervous and saw it as a bad omen. How happy I am to have been so wrong.

Pope John Paul II. The only Pope my daughter has ever known. In a few weeks, the College of Cardinals will meet in secret Conclave. The world will wait expectantly - perhaps impatiently. But the process behind the doors cannot be rushed. It may be a short wait or it could take many days. Eventually there will be a new Pope. And, even though my daughter and I don't attend often, it will be strange to hear a new name during Mass.

President Bush has ordered flags to half-staff at federal and military sites. Very fitting. A great man, an inspired leader, a beloved servant of God is gone from us. And, the headlines read, "The World Mourns."

I guess I'm not really alone after all.

Foiled Plans

Briefly, for any who may be wondering about THIS, I was caught in the act by the Boss who, when she saw what I was up to, told me I was "evil. Just EVIL!" Since my plans were thoroughly foiled (groaner pun totally intended), I was forced to quickly come up with Plan B. After all, I've been waiting since September to do this, and come hell or high water, someone's office! was going to get wrapped . I decided to treat my co-worker. I still have my job. If I ever figure out a way to post the picture I took using my cell phone, I'll show you the final result.

Now, since there are things far more worthy of our attention today than the juvenile pranks I pull at work, I'm heading over to the Anchoress' site for a while.

It's April

I know, I know. I'm up way, way, WAY too late. And, it's unfortunate because I have to get up early (which for me is around 9:00) so that I can go prepare my boss' office for the first day of April. Luckily for me, my boss usually runs even later than I do, so I know I will have time to get it Juuuust Right.

Juvenile? Yes. Silly? Yes. Major Time Waster? Absolutely. Something no self-respecting 41-year-old professional would ever think of attempting? Of course.

But, I HAVE to do it!

I have been waiting patiently since September for this day to arrive.

So that I can surprise my boss with this gift .

Will let you know later on today if I still have a job.

Pope Shows Improvement

I'm up late, and just came across this encouraging news at the Pope Blog:

Good news out of Rome late tonight: According to the Vatican's official radio, the Pope is responding well to the antibiotics being used to treat the infection in his urinary tract and his condition "appears to have been stabilized." According to the Age:

"The pontiff seems to be reacting well to the antibiotics that he has been administered, and, at the very end of the evening, his condition appears to have stabilised," Vatican radio said in a report on its website.

There is more to read at the Age. It requires registration - but it's free.