Speaking Louder than Before

Forever Love

2010-07-21T19:46:00.004-04:00

Hi Blog,

Remember me? The one who promises herself she will start posting regularly every time she writes… and yet its been over a year since her last entry? The girl who once had all the time in the world and now can’t seem to find five minutes to sit down. The army wife who was living in Fort Benning with her husband, and is now living in California while her husband is in Iraq. The dog mom who used this blog to brag, rant, show off, etc her furry child? Oh yeah.. the dog mom who is not just a dog mom now… but a human mom. Really?

Really. To wrap up the last year, I decided in August that I would be staying in Georgia/Alabama while Drew was deployed for a year. We found an adorable house, signed a 12 month lease, then one week before he deployed… found out I was pregnant. Surprise! He left for Iraq in October, and in November my dad came to rescue me and moved me back to California [again], and I moved in with my parents where I am currently still living. We are all nice and cozy in this house: Dad, Mom, brother Chad, dogs Brody and Dakota, cat Belle, and oh yes… my cute little sidekick, Emersyn Marie, born May 29, 2010.

And suddenly the focus of this blog changes… from canine child to human child. Don’t tell Brody, but as much as I loved writing about him, my heart flutters a whole lot more for this adorable little bundle who currently is sleeping in her bouncer at my feet, swaddled in pink, bouncing away and content as can be.
We call her Emmy, or Em, or M&M, or Spider Monkey due to her long, skinny frame and long arms, fingers and toes. Most say she looks like Drew, but in my defense, she looks just like my baby pictures. She has a full head of long, dark hair, the most perfect little button nose, and if you push that button it triggers a big, gummy grin and a little dimple appears on her right cheek. Her lips are full and delicately shaped, “Supermodel lips” as an admiring stranger said. Her eyes are dark, sure to be brown, and her eyebrows are the root of thousands of expressions, from a demeaning scowl to inquiring gaze to elated smile.

Think you have her pictured?
I’ll help you

I saw a quote online that said, “A surprise is something you didn’t know you wanted until you got it.” I thought it was sweet, but now its truth makes me melt. It will never cease to amaze me how something I was so unprepared for can turn into my whole world. She has only been in my life for seven weeks, and yet I can’t, or rather, don’t want to, recall how it was before her.

To wrap up this uncharacteristically sappy blog entry, the past seven weeks have been the hardest, yet easiest of my life. The longest, yet shortest. I have dived head first into motherhood: a world of the unknown and downright scary, and yet it comes natural. Even though its cliché, everything about this new life is truly a God given miracle. This love for my daughter has brought even greater love for the One who made her. I will be forever thankful, forever in awe, forever in love. Thank you, Lord. Thank you.

"Whenever a woman is in labor she has pain, because her hour has come; but when she gives birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy that a child has been born into the world." John 16:21

Oops, Its Been Awhile

2009-06-24T10:13:00.001-04:00

Well, a lot has happened since my last personal post about washing the bugs out of my dog’s hair. We do not have any more creepy crawlers in the house. Woo hoo!

Last weekend I flew to Las Vegas for my cousin Shane’s wedding. I am so excited he and his wife, Kayleen, are finally married and she is an official part of the family. We took tons of pictures, and as soon as my cousin posts them on her Facebook I'’ll be sure to put them here.

The wedding was Saturday night, then Sunday morning my dad, brother, and I set off on a 3-day road trip back to Georgia. We made very good time and arrived last night (Tuesday) around 5 pm. We plan on staying here until June 28, then will be renting a U-Haul and towing the majority of my stuff back to California. Drew leaves for NTC on July 1st for the entire month, so I decided to go back home and spend that time with my friends and family.

Anyway, that’s all I can write about today. We are getting ready to go out and see the sights (or lack thereof) in Columbus. I got a brand new laptop yesterday and it has a Blog editing program that I was dying to try out. It works, obviously, and is SO cool!

Hope everyone is doing well. I’ll be sure to catch up on all your blogs asap =)

Katelyn

Outraged against Media Bias

2009-06-09T12:20:00.003-04:00

WHY has this not been more widely published??

Two soldiers, just back from basic training, were gunned down Monday morning in front of an Army/Navy recruiting station located at Rodney Parham and Reservoir Rd. in Little Rock.

Lance Luplow had just parked his car across the street when he heard the shots. "At least 6 or 7 good shots, loud bangs, big gun."

When he ran to the scene he found both soldiers on the ground in uniform and bleeding. One of them, Quinton Ezeagwula of Jacksonville, was still conscious and had been shot in the neck.

"The one guy was saying, 'I can't believe this is happening' and he crawled into the store," Luplow says. "And the other guy was sort of out of it. He just had a blank stare, just looking up at the sky. He wasn't moving or anything."

That soldier was 23-year-old William Long of Conway. He died an hour later.

Minutes after the shooting, Little Rock Police arrested Abdul Hakim Mujahid Muhammad, formerly known as Carlos Bledsoe. He faces a murder charge and 16 counts of terroristic acts.

Muhammad moved to Little Rock within the past few months. Police say he didn't know the victims. "I think he was targeting military personnel, and these military personnel were in uniform at the military facility and that's how they became targets," says Thomas.

Pvt. Long, 23, was from Conway. He joined the military in January and finished basic training in February.

Pvt. Ezeagwula, 18, is from Jacksonville. He is still in the hospital, but is expected to recover.

Answer:

Media Gatekeepers Decide what's News
By RICHARD BENEDETTO
Which is more newsworthy — the murder of an abortion doctor in Wichita, Kan., by an alleged anti-abortion activist or the murder of an Army recruiter and the wounding of another in Little Rock, Ark., by an alleged Muslim convert who is said to hate the U.S. military?

Most people not involved in news-placement decisions would probably say they were equally newsworthy. But those in the news media actually making those decisions had a different view.

According to the way the two stories were played last week in the American mainstream news media, the shooting of the abortion doctor was far more newsworthy than the shooting of the two young soldiers, even though the two incidents occurred within one day of each other and seemed to follow a similar pattern: Both men were killed by men allegedly acting out their political, religious and moral disagreements with their victims.

Here’s how the media played the two stories:
• Murder of abortion doctor on Sunday — front-page news in most major newspapers and a lead story on network TV news shows on Sunday and Monday
• Murder of one Army recruiter and wounding of another on Monday — buried inside the same papers and newscasts on Tuesday

Meanwhile, follow-up stories and columns on the abortion doctor still got bigger play in at least four major newspapers — The Washington Post, USA Today, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal — than the shooting of the soldiers got on its first day.

The Wall Street Journal had at least one story or column on each of the first four days following the abortion doctor’s shooting. It made no mention in its print edition and only two on its website of the Army recruiter’s murder in the first four days after it occurred.

One angry Washington Post reader wrote in a letter to the editor published on Saturday, “The doctor received front-page coverage June 1 and 2 and several opinion pieces, but the soldiers received five paragraphs in the June 2 Nation Digest (on Page A16).”

These obvious, big differences in media play of the two incidents raise questions about not only news judgment but also, and more important, media bias. Abortion rights have long been a signature issue for the liberal left. A strong military has largely been a bedrock issue of the conservative right.

One might conclude that news editors, the gatekeepers who choose how to play stories, are more attuned or more sympathetic to the views of the liberal left than the conservative right and make news placements accordingly.

Moreover, many news stories, editorials, columns and TV talk shows last week were devoted to trying to place blame for the abortion killing on Christian extremists and conservative commentators who condemned late-term abortions performed by the murdered doctor. There was little similar media finger-pointing at militant Muslims for the shooting of the Army recruiters.

Even President Barack Obama apparently was more appalled by the killing of the abortion doctor than the Army shootings. Within hours of the doctor’s murder, he issued an official statement: “I am shocked and outraged by the murder of Dr. George Tiller as he attended church services this morning.”

It took the commander in chief two days to issue a statement on the shooting of the soldiers. But rather than express “shock and outrage,” Obama was “deeply saddened.” And instead of sending the statement as an official news release to all media, as he did with the abortion doctor statement, it appears to have been released only to The Associated Press.

Perhaps the delay and softer language were intended to avoid appearing critical of Muslims on the eve of his June 4 speech in Cairo seeking a new start with the Muslim world.

Tom Rosenstiel, director of the nonpartisan Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism, which tracks news-story placement, said he was surprised by the media’s downplay of the shooting of the Army recruiters.

“The shooting of the Army recruiters is related to a larger threat to national security and the war on terror, while the intensity of the abortion issue has been fading,” he said.

Tell that to the gatekeepers.

Up until someone posted the latter article on the debate board, I had not heard about the soldier shootings. I have a total of four television channels which I barely watch and have heard more than a fair share about the abortion doctor. Not to mention the flashing headlines every time I logon to the internet. Nothing about the soldiers.

This is ridiculous. I am outraged by it, and can't believe the amount of disrespect towards our military that has been formed on our own homeland. Where is the pride, and the support? It amazes me how [a certain group of people] can direct the views and knowledge of the rest of the country, by controlling the media and overshadowing everything they don't agree with.

Two soldiers fresh out of basic can't even be safe on their own home front. They never even had a chance to deploy, to fight, to do what they signed up for. THAT, my friends, is news worthy. THAT is something the whole country should be up in arms about. But no, we will brush it off our shoulders and move on, and focus solely on the abortion doctor that was obviously contributing something much more important to our society. Bite me.

Gonna Wash Those Bugs Right Outta Your Hair!

2009-06-06T20:18:00.002-04:00

They're here. Drew's grandparents just pulled into Columbus, and are going to be at our house any minute, so I'm sitting here on the couch psyching myself out by thinking that the house isn't clean enough, or that I don't have anything to cook for tonight, or that my wimpy dog is going to bark the whole time they are here. Blog.. I must blog to ease my mind.

Brody is doing much better. Since we have been in Georgia, I have religiously applied Frontline Plus and given him Hartguard heartworm preventative at the beginning of each month, due to the overwhelming amount of creepy crawlers that can make his (and my) life miserable. I can't believe how bad fleas and ticks are around here. In California, a monthly dose of Frontline will do the job and you'll never see a flea or tick. Here, the Frontline kills "98%" of fleas and ticks -- nevermind the fact that the other 2% is an unbelievabe amount. Its almost impossible to keep animals completely pest-free.
Anyway, after my last post I notice a couple fleas on Brody and realized he must be having allergic reactions to the bites. Bulldogs are known to have skin allergies, and a single bite could send their immune system over the edge. And, of course, Brody is not the exception. Thursday night Brody and I went on a mission -- to exterminate all the fleas in existence on him and anywhere near him. He woke me up by scratching himself at 2:30 am, and I was so bothered by it that I could not go back to sleep. Then, to top it all off, his stomach started growling because he hadn't eaten much the day before. I got out of bed and cooked him a bland diet meal (chicken and rice, fabulous for an upset stomach), which he loved. I know he likes being sick because he always gets his special meal, sometimes I think he fakes it. After he ate and his stomach finally stopped growling, I put him in the bath tub and scrubbed him head to toe in Dawn Dishoap, which is the home remedy for fleas.
As I was sitting on the edge of the tub rinsing him off, I remembered a song my mom used to sing to me EVERY time she would bathe my brother and I when we were babies. "I'm gonna wash that man right outta your hair, gonna wash that man right outta your hair." Why there would be a man in my hair, I have no idea. You know those things your parents did as you were growing up that you swore you would NEVER do? That always tends to bite me in the butt, because every day I remind myself more of my mom. Within minutes of Brody's bath, I was singing "I'm gonna wash those bugs right outta your hair, gonna wash those bugs right outta your hair." My version is much more realistic, and better.
Anyway, after Brody's bath I found some flea & tick killer for carpet/upholstery, and we completely fumigated the whole house. Now, all the fleas are in the vacuum or down the drain, and Brody has a fresh application of Frontline. Take that bugs.

Hubby just called me and advised that he and the grandparents are enroute to the house. He met them at the RV Park to help park and hook everything up. I need to log off and mentally prepare my special needs dog so he can handle their visit.
I'm sure anyone who reads my blog thinks I have the worst dog in the whole wide world. Drew woud agree with you. I think he's the child only a Momma would love. Don't tell him though.

This has officially been the most scatterbrained blog on the face of the internet.
Tootles.

My Canine Child

2009-06-04T12:45:00.002-04:00

My dog is driving me craaaaazy. I think he is developing major skin allergies, and is CONSTANTLY itching and biting at himself. The sound of it is like nails on a chalkboard to me. I feel horrible for him, and I can't get him into the vet until our next paycheck. It is absolutely horrible knowing exactly what he needs (shot of Depo-Medrol & GentaVed Spray) and not being able to provide it for him. I yell at him to stop itching, and he looks at me like, "Mom, my whole body itches!!" and it makes me want to cry. He has a big sore on his ear from where he scratched himself to hard, and is starting to get bald spots aroud his hind end. Lord knows that Brody has been a saving grace for me since we've been here. He has literally kept me sane through the long days and sometimes weeks without Drew. But, sometimes I question my decision to get him in the first place. Is it really fair to keep him when I can't afford to care for him properly? If he were a human child I would probably have CPS all over me right now. Drew tells me I go to extremes when analyzing the situation, but in all reality, my thought process is accurate. When I worked as a veterinary technician, I used to HATE owners like me who didn't bring their animals in until they had chewed themselves raw. Granted, I do know how to care for him better than your average owner, but still...

Well this is just a quick blog to rant about something that is literally making me go insane. I need to go fill up Brody's Kong ball so he can chew on that instead of himself. Great, now my dog is going to be bald AND fat when all is said and done.

*sigh*

Criminal Justice and Air Assault

2009-06-02T12:51:00.005-04:00

As of today, I am officially a student of Kaplan University. I have access to my online classroom and school e-mail, and have been touring the "campus" all day to familiarize myself with it. I have to say, it is quite amazing. There is absolutely everything you could expect from a regular classroom. I can speak with my fellow classmates about assignments through discussion boards and chats, and I can chat directly with my professors. Every week, there is a class seminar that I must log in to and it has interactive white boards, polls, question, etc from the professor. Thank God for technology, or school would be a no go for me.

Last night I had to do a timed Academic Readiness Assessment. My Admissions Advisor called me today and told me that I killed the test and received a 26 (he had told me to try to get at least an 18) and I don't have to do an introductory classes. I'm going straight in to my Criminal Justice classes, instead of Math, Science, and Reading. Woo hoo!

My feelings towards the Army today are a bit misguided. First, I am very happy that the military easily provides $6000 to spouses who wish to go to school for career advancement. It is a brand new program, and I am extremely impressed with it. I applied last week and have already been approved and my files sent over to the school for tuition.

Although I am being taken care of, I have to complain about the way Drew is being treated. During my blogging absence, Drew had been approved for Air Assault School, which he was completely stoked about. He spent the last two weeks preparing for it, spending money we did not have to complete the packing list and frantically trying to get everything just perfect so nothing could go wrong. When he went in for the physical, he found out that his medical records had not been transferred from Sand Hill (where he went for basic training) to 3rd ID (his current unit). Without a physical and a complete medical packet, he would not be able to go to Air Assault, so he spent about two days attempting to locate them. Heaven forbid the army attempts to correct their wrong, right? Anyway, the records were found, his physical was complete, and school was on again.

Drew was constantly hearing about how physically demanding Air Assault School is, and spent last weekend resting, sleeping, and making sure his packing list was ready to go. Yesterday was just an orientation and sign-in day, much to his relief, so he did what was required then went golfing with a friend to get his mind off it.

Today, he woke up at the butt crack of dawn and left for Day 2. At noon, he called me, and his first words were, "I didn't even get a chance." When he had shown up, there were 350 guys and only 215 spots available. Drew passed the first 2 stages, then was waiting in line to do the 3rd, when they announced all the spots had been filled.

So now he is back to square one.

I absolutely hate to see him bummed out and upset. I'm going to have to make him something extra special for dinner tonight. Hmm...

Well I'm off to do a million errands today. Logging off.

Katelyn

To My Fellow Bloggers...

2009-06-01T14:37:00.002-04:00

OK, so I've been inspired. My blogging is back in action, and [hopefully] I will no longer neglect it. I think I've figure out the problem, though. Up until now my only followers have been family from back at home, and my blog was orientated towards letting them know what is happening here in Georgia. Its pretty disheartening, though, and hard to follow through with a blog that consistently receives no comments from fellow bloggers. So, after this, I am off to find Blogger friends to associate with. Don't get me wrong -- I love my family reading this and following along with me, but sometimes ya just need some blogging friends. Wow, I'm officially a nerd, yeah?

Last time I actually blogged (instead of just posting a horse racing article, which I'm sure has bored everyone except me), I mentioned that I had started a Fort Benning Army Wives meetup group. Well, two weeks later, I have 61 members and have had three official meetups, all of which have gone well. Last Friday, five of us met at Olive Garden for lunch and had an awesome time. The girls that showed up were exactly the kind of girls I have been wanting to meet. Fun, interesting, outgoing, and all with common interests. One of them mentioned that she found my blog a few weeks previously and was excited to find a fellow Benning wife. I had no idea you could do a search via blogger for people with common interests. Anyway, I think this is a wonderful way to advertise the meetup group and will do my best to get the word out about it. I think its something every wife needs to be a part of.

I was supposed to start the women's boot camp again today, but other financial obligations have forced me to not enroll. I'm very disappointed, but am determined to hold myself accountable (who knew it was possible?) to get back in shape. After I finished camp last time, I was down to a nine minute mile and running every day, but that state of mind disappeared during my trip back to California, where I ate anything and everything. No more of that. I will finish the carton of Ben & Jerry's that is currently in the fridge and then NO MORE.

ha.

The most exciting news lately has been my decision to enroll in college!! I will be starting classes at Kaplan Online University on June 10th, to get my Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice, with specialization in Crime Scene Investigation and Forensics. I am absolutely ecstatic about my decision and persistence thus far to follow through with the enrollment and Financial Aid process. Up until a week ago, I was still undecided about what I wanted to do with my life and future career. I've put a lot of thought and prayer into the decision, and have come to the conclusion that I have the most talent and interest in law enforcement. It was between that and Veterinary Science, but I realize I don't have the persistence, time, and/or money to start and complete at LEAST 8 years of veterinary school.

Drew is so proud of me for starting school, and has been so supportive of everything. Everything has been going perfectly for us, and I am so lucky to have him and have the opportunity to do whatever I want with my life.

Drew's grandparents are currently enroute to Georgia, and should be here by this weekend. They are driving their RV from California and stopping to visit relatives in Texas, then continuing cross country. Once they stop and visit us here, they will head down to Florida for another week or so then start back to wonderful Cali. Someday when Drew gets out of the army we will have to go on one of their RV adventures with them.

On that note, I am frantically cleaning the apartment to make it spotless for their arrival. I want to impress them with my wifely abilities, but am nervous due to the fact that I can't keep the house clean for the life of me. Ugh.

The dryer just buzzed, which means its time for me to sign off and go fold towels. I'm so very excited.

Until next time... (which will be tomorrow, I swear!!)

Katelyn

Hints of Ruffian, But Not Quite.

2009-05-31T12:42:00.000-04:00

Hints of Ruffian, but Rachel Is Different

By COURTNEY HARTNETT

As the dark, spindly silhouette that was Rachel Alexandra strode into the gate at Pimlico this May, racing fans in the grandstand and at home on living room sofas were reminded of the champion filly Ruffian of the late 1970s. The Medaglia d’Oro daughter’s streamlined face, dignified bend at the poll, and snappy, self-assured stride radiated success, potential greatness, even. The best horse that Calvin Borel had ever been on was looking to be the best horse in the field — a field that included the Derby winner Mine That Bird.

The racing world remembers all too well the outcome of Ruffian’s fateful match race against the 1976 Derby winner Foolish Pleasure. Still, Rachel’s run in the Preakness was eerily reminiscent of the drama surrounding the great match of July 6, 1976. Borel’s choice of the stakes-winning filly over the Derby gelding wasn’t unlike Jacinto Vasquez’s decision to ride Ruffian in a match race against the colt he’d piloted to victory at Churchill Downs.

And while the American public didn’t go so far as to distribute and wear buttons emblazoned with “HIM” or “HER” to publicly declare which horse they’d put money on, there was a measure, albeit a contained one, of Battle of the Sexes drama played out in the middle pages of the sports sections.

Like Ruffian, Rachel Alexandra has been good for the sport of horse racing. She hasn’t brought record numbers to the grandstand or made the Pimlico infield packed beyond capacity, but TV ratings for the 2009 Preakness were the highest they’ve been in almost a decade. Circumstances, then, brought to mind Ruffian, but the real measure of our 2009 Preakness filly against the 1976 champion would be in the actual running. Rachel Alexandra and Borel were always a force in the race, but Rachel didn’t seize immediate control as the hotheaded Ruffian so famously — and so often — did. Vasquez often had to restrain the filly, knowing she had the field beaten but fearing she’d injure herself. Rachel Alexandra took command in the stretch, fending off Mine That Bird by a decisive, yet narrow, margin. The general consensus was that, given more ground, the gelding could have overtaken her.

Still, though, Rachel Alexandra’s win of the Preakness is no small feat. As the first filly to win in 85 years, she’s proven herself more than the average Kentucky Oaks winner. Immediately after the victory, Calvin Borel again praised her as the best horse he’d ridden but acknowledged that she wasn’t quite in top form.

That being said, 12 furlongs in the Belmont would have been a stretch for the filly, whose victories have mainly fallen within the 8-9 furlong range, with the 9.5 furlong Preakness being the longest race she’s won. Her strength was noticeably waning in the final strides, indicating that 9.5 furlongs – let alone 12 – is a bit of a stretch. Her sire, Medaglia d’Oro, similarly excelled in the 8-9 furlong range; the greatest distance at which he’s won is 10 furlongs in the Travers Stakes. He ran the Belmont and placed second. Second place might have been doable for the filly. If she had run, she would have likely placed behind the almost-formulaic race-end kick of Mine That Bird, whose sire Birdstone so famously upset Smarty Jones’s surefire bid at the Crown. The filly has found the distance that works for her, and it was unwise to push her beyond her clearly defined limit.

So is Rachel Alexandra our new Ruffian? Not quite. Her dark, lean, impressive frame may give us a touch of déjà vu, as may her recent stakes victories, but she isn’t the gripping heroine that Ruffian proved to be. Granted, her 3-year-old season isn’t over, and any number of things can happen. At best, Rachel Alexandra is close to what Ruffian was. But for the fleet-footed filly who swiped the Triple Crown’s second jewel from a colt many thought had a likely shot at winning all three, close may well be just enough.

Alive...

2009-05-15T13:07:00.002-04:00

I'm the worst blogger in the world, who neglects her blog constantly. Sorry to all those in B-Town that actually follow this on a regular basis.

Drew has leave starting today. He will be off until May 25. A whole week! I never thought I would see the day. We are going to drive down to Panama City this weekend with two other couples, which is very exciting, considering I have officially made more friends. Woo hoo!

I have also started a Meetup group, specifically for Ft. Benning wives. I am quite proud of myself... little introverted, non-social Katelyn has finally got the guts to organize a group. I already have 34 members in my first three days, and we had our first lunch meeting yesterday. I have been working my butt off trying to advertise it. I swear I've been on every single military website there is to advertise it, and all over myspace, facebook, etc. I have also put up tear-off flyers on all the bulletin boards I find around town, and Drew has done his part by passing out cards to the guys at work (although I don't think any of them actually remembered to give it to their wives...). Typical.

You can see the site at http://www.meetup.com/columbusarmywives -- I'm pretty proud of it =)

Anywho, just a short blog to let y'all know I'm still alive. Its 1:13 and I'm still not packed for our trip.

Preakness is tomorrow!!! Be sure to watch it, whether you are a horse racing fan or not. Its going to be fabulous. Boys vs. GIRL =)

The Best Article So Far

2009-05-12T10:58:00.002-04:00

This is the best article I have been able to find on the decision to run Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness. I really, really think her previous owners had it right... To skip the Triple Crown races and run her in the Acorn. Has racing history taught them nothing?

It scares me. It reminds me way too much of Ruffian, Go For Wand, Eight Belles...

And yet, I'm still hopeful that she will be the exception and show all those boys who is boss. It definitely adds to the excitement and anticipation of the Preakness, which before this I was not so looking forward to.

Who Will Speak for Racing and Rachel Alexandra?

By JIM SQUIRES

Published: May 11, 2009

If the Preakness Stakes did not have enough trouble with its proprietor, Magna Entertainment, being bankrupt and Pimlico in disrepair, now there is the embarrassing squabble between the people who want Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness and the people who tried to keep her out.

Figuring out exactly how it all started in the first place is problematic because the credibility of almost everyone involved has yet to be established. And that is the least offensive of all that is wrong with this mess.

First, there are the people who want to take her there, primarily her new owner, Jess Jackson, who has signaled his intentions to ship her to Pimlico without declaring she will be entered. This in itself shows little regard for the owners of the Kentucky Derby winner Mine that Bird, the only horse with a chance to win the Triple Crown, and Rachel Alexandra’s regular jockey, Calvin Borel, who would be in the saddle of Mine that Bird if she is not among the 14 starters Saturday.

O.K., so that is part of the game. Keep Borel and everyone else off balance as long as possible.

Just let those new guys — Mine That Bird’s owners and trainer — sweat it out. They are only rubes from New Mexico. Welcome to thoroughbred racing.

But what about those rubes? They don’t want Rachel in because they lose the jockey without whom Mine That Bird, no matter how good a horse he is, would probably still be stuck in a traffic jam somewhere way back down the stretch at Churchill Downs. That is easy to understand. Nobody but Borel would have come down that rail lane that was so well packed, or scraped so clean, that his horse barely left footprints.

So the New Mexicans announced plans to enter another horse to try to take up a spot that might go to Rachel, who as a supplemental nominee gets last call to the entry box.

That sounded like such a good idea that the rich owner of Pioneerof the Nile, Ahmed Zayat, whose horse would probably be the favorite in Baltimore if Rachel does not enter and would probably have to run her down from behind if she does, said he might enter as many horses as necessary to keep her out. And he has enough. When that drew a negative reaction, Zayat changed his mind and left the impression he just got the idea from the New Mexicans.

The only show of class so far came from Marylou Whitney, who planned to run her horse Luv Gov but said she would not if it cost Rachel a spot among the starters. Salute Marylou.

You have to wonder what Rachel thinks about it all. There are basically three kinds of people in horse racing — those in it for the money, those in it for themselves and those in it for the horse. So far, we have heard from only the first two.

Somebody should speak up for Rachel and for the sport. Although she is obviously physically capable of running back in two short weeks and probably lapping this field of 3-year-old boys, the question of why she needs to do it ought to be asked.

She will not be any more valuable or any more famous if she does than she would be if she just wins four or five Grade I races and the Breeders’ Cup next fall. And she can win just as much money taking the Delaware Handicap in a few weeks. Besides, how much money and self-esteem does one long-striding, young female need? She is already big-headed enough.

Fact is, she may come out of racing a lot healthier of mind and body if she just runs away from other girls for the rest of her career.

Bypassing the certain efforts to box her up before she gets away or banged around by envious and rowdy colts on the narrow turns of Pimlico is not such a bad idea.

Her presence would undoubtedly increase fan interest and television ratings, and maybe the handle, too, although the opposite effect is possible as well. There we go talking about those in it for the money again, but while we are at it, imagine the outcry against racing if she was hurt running against the colts. The game is in bad enough shape already.

One thing is for sure — Rachel’s chances of bearing a regal offspring of Curlin’s down the road and improving the breed will not be affected one iota. And that was the reason Jackson gave for buying her anyway, wasn’t it?

Preakness Update -- To Run Her or Not?

2009-05-12T10:48:00.003-04:00

Jockeys might play musical saddles for the Preakness

If Mine That Bird jockey Calvin Borel switches horses, that could start a deluge of jockey changes.

Bill Dwyre

May 9, 2009

All of a sudden, heading into the second leg of horse racing's Triple Crown, the humans are stealing the show. It's enough to make a good thoroughbred rear up and whinny.

The story of the day Friday was that Jess Jackson, new owner of super filly Rachel Alexandra, got a commitment from jockey Calvin Borel to ride the horse in the May 16 Preakness.

Borel rode Rachel Alexandra to a 20 1/4 -length victory in last Friday's Kentucky Oaks, which is the female counterpart to the next day's Kentucky Derby. Then, in that Kentucky Derby, Borel stole the show again. Riding 50-1 shot Mine That Bird, who most observers felt would have been 100-1 had he not been on him, Borel weaved through traffic to the finish like Mario Andretti at Indy and left millions stunned. And with two questions:

Who was that and where did he come from?

There were other utterances, especially from the trainers of the 18 other horses, but none are printable.

For a day or so, the story was whether this Kentucky Derby winner from out of nowhere -- O.K., New Mexico, same thing -- would be the second, third, or even fourth betting choice in the Preakness.

It seemed certain that the only way Borel would get through on the rail this time against the likes of Garrett Gomez and Rafael Bejarano was with a snow plow.

But all that started to take a back seat when Jackson, the wealthy founder of Kendall-Jackson Winery and the owner of Curlin, fell in love with Rachel Alexandra and pulled out his checkbook.

Suddenly, a filly that hadn't even been nominated for the Triple Crown races by her previous owners, who could have done so for $600 before Feb. 8 or $6,000 before March 28, became a factor in the Preakness.

Friday, Jackson seemed likely to enter her, as long as his trainer, Steve Asmussen, liked what he saw in workouts this weekend. Since she wasn't nominated, it will take $100,000 for Jackson to supplement her into the Preakness pot, where he can then pay another $10,000 to enter her and yet another $10,000 to get her to the gate.

That's lots of Merlot, but worth it to Jackson.

Even with cash at the ready, however, he could be shut out by the rules if 14 other nominated entrants fill the starting gate first. That is an unlikely scenario, because there have been only two full fields in the Preakness since 1979. There have also been only four winning fillies, the last Nellie Morse in 1924.

Assuming Rachel Alexandra gets in, that means Borel will be the first jockey to get off a winning Derby horse and get on another to compete against that Derby champ.

So who gets the ride on the Derby champion, Mine That Bird?

"If the filly gets in, I'll ride him," Hall-of-Famer Mike Smith said Friday, en route to a normal work night at Hollywood Park.

Smith rode Jenny Craig's Chocolate Candy in the Derby and said that Chocolate Candy is likely to be back for the Belmont.

More jockey-musical-chairs ahead?

Evil Pig Attacked My Dog!

2009-05-04T14:46:00.003-04:00

Brody has made new friends. He gets along so well with Amanda and Rob's two dogs, Rollo and Bella.

Their pig, Daisy, on the other hand... Brody has yet to get her approval:

Derby 135 Recap

2009-05-03T14:31:00.006-04:00

OK, so obviously I failed miserably at my choices for the Kentucky Derby. I have to admit, Mine That Bird's victory was unbelievable, the second biggest Derby upset in history (last one was Donerail in 1913). He was second to last throughout the entire race, then suddenly he was in front and no one even knew who he was, not even the announcer. Although I am impressed by the run, I think it will be Mine That Bird's last show. I don't have high hopes for a Preakness win, and especially not the Belmont. The other more talented horses in the field should have better trips the next time out, and will blow past him.

This commentary and recap of the race says it best:

Scully's Derby Recap

posted by James Scully on May 03, 2009

Double Eagle Ranch and Bueno Suerte Equine's MINE THAT BIRD (Birdstone), a New Mexico-based gelding who lost his first two starts this year in the Borderland Derby and Sunland Derby, rallied from last to win the 135th running of the Kentucky Derby (G1). And it wasn't even close.

The top Kentucky Derby jockey this century, Calvin Borel, got to the rail after the break and stuck -- nobody saves ground better than the Cajun. Borel knew the inside was best and was in no hurry after being squeezed at the start, and Mine That Bird dropped out of it early on, trailing as much as six lengths behind the next-to-place runner. He entered the far turn with a lot of ground to make up, but the Kentucky-bred kicked it in like he was shot out of a rocket.

Mine That Bird was the only horse to finish strongly, registering a 113 BRIS Late Pace number, and it was really something to see Borel work his magic. He skillfully negotiated Mine That Bird around a rival approaching the top of the stretch and then quickly darted back to the rail, rapidly reeling the leaders in with every stride, but there didn't appear to be any place to go nearing the quarter-pole, with pacesetter JOIN IN THE DANCE (Sky Mesa) racing along the inside. Borel has no fear, though, and squeezed the diminutive Mine That Bird through tight quarters, skimming the rail in classic Borel style.

The race was over in the blink of an eye as Mine That Bird kicked clear, and the Canadian champion earned an outstanding 110 Speed figure for the 6 3/4-length decision. His final time of 2:02.66 is good.

Borel won his second Derby in the last three years, and he finished third in 2008. He captured Friday's Kentucky Oaks (G1) by 20 1/4 lengths with Rachel Alexandra (Medaglia d'Oro). The 42-year-old journeyman was one of the weekend's biggest stars.

There were troubled trips to go around. FRIESAN FIRE (A.P. Indy) grabbed a quarter and was bleeding after being hit hard out of the gate, essentially just galloping home under Gabriel Saez. DUNKIRK (Unbridled's Song) stumbled a couple of jumps after the break, but that wasn't as much of a factor as Edgar Prado's guidance -- he was rushing the gray colt forward like he was aboard a front runner and got his mount slammed around for no reason approaching the first turn. Prado could have taken a lesson from Borel.

Mine That Bird closed from far back, but the front runners still ran well. Second-placer PIONEEROF THE NILE (Empire Maker) enjoyed a terrific trip under Garrett Gomez, closely tracking Join in the Dance from the start, and looked like a winner approaching the stretch. Fourth-placer PAPA CLEM (Smart Strike) was forwardly placed, stalking in fourth most of the way with Rafael Bejarano, and just missed third by a head. Join in the Dance turned in a respectable effort, much better than expected from the maiden winner, and led the way into the stretch. He weakened only to seventh.

MUSKET MAN (Yonaguska) was farther back during the early stages following a bad start but still raced within striking range under Eibar Coa. They took the overland route to reach contention turning for home and wound up only a nose back of Pioneerof the Nile in third. Bred to be a six-furlong specialist, Musket Man is as hard-hitting as they come.

The defections of Quality Road (Elusive Quality) and I Want Revenge (Stephen Got Even) hurt the depth of the field, and the Derby was held over a sloppy track. Most people will label Mine That Bird's victory as a complete fluke, an impossible winner who will be up the track two weeks later in the Preakness S. (G1). But that's horse racing; 50-1 upsets happen. Mine That Bird was the best horse on Saturday, and I give credit to Chip Woolley for a great training performance -- he had the former $9,500 yearling ready for the race of his life.

If anyone questions the impact the jockey's ride has on a race, this would be the perfect thing to shut them up. Good ride vs. Bad ride.

This year, I'm much more excited about the Acorn Stakes. The Kentucky Oaks winner Rachel Alexandra (now known as "Alexandra the Great") is outstanding, and I am still in awe at her victory. She has a very big future ahead of her. She is the definition of elegance. Her victory was effortless. Watching this race is like watching Ruffian... and for me to say that is HUGE, because up until now I thought nothing compared to Ruffian.

To those that have not seen this:

Drew, Amanda, Rob, and I went to Victoryland casino to watch the race. I absolutely loved it, but I don't think the others were quite into the excitement. I taught them how to place bets, even though it ended up just costing us money with no return. Drew wanted to bet on a 50-1 horse, so the payoff would be huge if by chance it won. Unfortunately, he picked the WRONG 50-1 horse. He put $10 down on Flying Private, who finished dead last. If he had picked Mine That Bird, they payback would have been $1032.00. My pick, Friesan Fire, finished 19th... Thats by far the worst I have ever done. To his credit, though, he had a horrible trip and just finished the race at a gallop. He had already lost at the beginning of the race. The Preakness may be better for him, if he runs. Dunkirk also had a really bad trip, and I think he will do wonderfully in the Preakness with the shorter distance. General Quarters was my Place pick, and he finished 12th.

Overall, I've come to the conclusion that as soon as I bet on a horse it is doomed. Next year, I think I'll bet for the horses I don't like. Someday, I will find a strategy that works.

However interesting it was not, that is my derby recap. I'm going to post another blog in a bit with the experiences of the rest of our night.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Derby Day... and did better than me with betting!

Kentucky Derby 135

2009-05-02T12:43:00.002-04:00

Today is my absolute favorite day of the year, Kentucky Derby day. Unfortunately, due to our financial situation, we do not have cable, and therefore I am unable to watch any of the daily coverage. My usual routine on this day is to wake up at the crack of dawn, watch ESPN's coverage nonstop, then switch over to the main channel for the race. Instead, I'm doing all my research on the web and trying to decide who to pick from there. Its quite frustrating. On the other hand, though, it may be better in the long run, because my choice will not be inspired by a sob story or my weakness for the underdog. Today, my choice will be strictly strategic and knowledge based.

... Watch me lose. Eh, whatever.

Amanda, Rob, Drew, and I are going to Victoryland Casino in Shorter, AL for the race. If you can't watch it at home, might as well watch it from a live simulcast with live betting, right? Absolutely.

As of now, my picks are leaning towards:

Win: Fresian Fire -- won the Louisiana Derby convincingly over a sloppy track, with dirt in his face. The mud didn't bother him, and he won it running away from the pack. The Churchill Downs track today is very sloppy, and will definitely be a huge factor in the outcome of the race. Also, his trainer is Larry Jones, who trained Eight Belles and Hard Spun (the last two 2nd place Derby finishers), so I think he is due for a win.

Place: General Quarters -- OK, so maybe my weakness for the underdog is still influencing me. I love this horse. The derby tends to favor the overlooked horses, and I think General Quarters will be that one that was overlooked. He is hard to ignore. And to top it all off, his trainer's story will melt anyone's heart.

Still choosing my Show to finish out the Trifecta... I was really rooting towards I Want Revenge and/or Quality Road, but they are both out due to injury. Ugh. Dunkirk looks VERY good and I'm a sucker for grays, but I can't get over his lack of experience. A lot of people are talking about Pioneer of the Nile and Papa Clem, but neither of them are really catching my eye. Desert Party looks promising, but I only root for American horses in an American race.

Amanda just told me she is picking Chocolate Candy because she likes his name. I'm starting to think that is a very smart and much less stressful betting strategy.

Screw statistics. I'm rooting for the pretty horse. <3

21st Birthday

2009-04-30T13:22:00.005-04:00

My birthday was fabulous!!

Ahhhh California..

2009-04-24T15:34:00.002-04:00

I've obviously been horrible at blogging during my stay in California.

I was supposed to fly home last Sunday, April 19, and spend my birthday, April 28, with Drew in Georgia. Well, when Drew got home from Cali, he found out he would be sent out to the field on Monday for ten days, and would miss my birthday. We decided it would be best for me to stay in Cali with my family and friends for awhile longer, so I wouldn't have to celebrate my 21st at home, alone.
I am excited to be staying here longer, and am having a blast. But, I would give this up just to be with Drew for my birthday. Its really devastating, especially to him. He had some kind of surprise planned for me, but as the Army is quickly teaching us, we can never plan for anything.

I will be back in Georgia on Wednesday, April 29.

I'll update again later with pictures from my trip, so far.

Leaving on a Jet Plane

2009-04-11T09:06:00.003-04:00

The time has come!! I'm about to leave for Atlanta airport, and will be on the plane, headed home, in four hours.

I cannot wait to see you all in Bakersfield. I love and miss you so much!!

4 hours and counting....

Katelyn

2 more days to Cali!

2009-04-09T23:12:00.003-04:00

Well, Drew is currently on the plane, homeward bound to Bakersfield, CA. Unfortunately, when we found out that he would be getting a four day weekend this week and could go home, we couldn't change my tickets from Saturday to Thursday. So, now, I'm at home all alone, while my hubby flies to meet my family in Los Angeles. Its pretty bittersweet. I am so thrilled that he gets to go home for the weekend, but would have loved to spend more time with him there. I'll get there Saturday afternoon, and he will leave Monday.

Then there will be another week while I'm in Cali and he is back here in Georgia... That will be the ultimate bittersweet time.

I hate being away from him for a day... It only makes me think more about his future deployment. How will I ever survive a year without my other half?

I bought Eric Church's new album last week and have been listening to it nonstop. Eric is seriously the most overlooked country artist out there. He is unbelievable, but I never really hear much about him. Anyway, Drew heard this song and believes it was written about me. He loves it, and says he plays it over and over again because it always reminds him of me.

No if, and's, but's or maybe's

So you wanna be her baby

I can read your face like a book

Yeah it looks easy to love her but believe me brother

It's harder than it looks

She's as pretty as a picture

Every bit as funny as she is smart

Got a smile that'll hold you together

And a touch that'll tear you apart

When she's yours she brings the sunshine

When she's gone the world goes dark

Yeah she's heaven on the eyes

But boy she's hell on the heart

Yeah she's good when she's bad

She's cute when she's mad

And she does all the wrong things right

Yeah boy it's a fact when they're made like that

You ain't ever gonna sleep at night

She's as pretty as a picture

Every bit as funny as she is smart

Got a smile that'll hold you together

And a touch that'll tear you apart

When she's yours she brings the sunshine

When she's gone the world goes dark

Yeah she's heaven on the eyes

But boy she's hell on the heart

Once you feel her touch and you've felt that rush

It's gonna mess up your head

But here's the kicker son

Your old ticker's gonna beat you half to death

She's as pretty as a picture

Every bit as funny as she is smart

Got a smile that'll hold you together

And a touch that'll tear you apart

When she's yours she brings the sunshine

When she's gone the world goes dark

Yeah she's heaven on the eyes

But boy she's hell on the heart

Yeah she's hell on the heart

I have to admit, its pretty dang true. =)

Maintain A Healthy Level of Insanity

2009-04-09T11:06:00.003-04:00

To Maintain A Healthy Level Of Insanity

1. At Lunch Time, Sit In Your Parked Car With Sunglasses on and point a Hair

Dryer At Passing Cars. See If They Slow Down.

2. Page Yourself Over The Intercom. Don't Disguise Your Voice !

3. Every Time Someone Asks You To Do Something, ask If They Want Fries with that.

4. Put Decaf In The Coffee Maker For 3 Weeks . Once Everyone has Gotten Over

Their Caffeine Addictions, Switch to Espresso.

5. In the Memo Field Of All Your Checks, Write ' For Marijuana.

6. Skip down the hall Rather Than Walk and see how many looks you get.

7. Order a Diet Water whenever you go out to eat, with a serious face.

8. Specify That Your Drive-through Order Is 'To Go'..

9. Sing Along At The Opera.

10. Five Days In Advance, Tell Your Friends You Can't Attend Their Party Because You have a headache.

11. When The Money Comes Out The ATM, Scream 'I Won! I Won!'

12. When Leaving the Zoo, Start Running towards the Parking lot, Yelling 'Run

For Your Lives! They're Loose!'

13 . Tell Your Children Over Dinner, 'Due To The Economy, We Are Going To Have

To Let One Of You Go.'

14. PICK UP A BOX OF CONDOMS AT THE PHARMACY, GO TO THE COUNTER AND ASK WERE THE FITTING ROOM IS..

New Hair Pic

2009-04-06T17:41:00.001-04:00

My dark hair with new bangs =)

I love it.

Dead Broke, But Still Happy =)

2009-04-06T12:30:00.002-04:00

Columbus Bank & Trust is really, really making me mad. I'm not a confrontational person, but tomorrow when Drew gets home we are going to go talk to the manager and take our business elsewhere if need be.

I have yet to deposit a check without them putting a five day hold on it, which has caused HUGE inconveniences when we needed the money that day. Due to them, our rent check has been considerably late and we were threatened with eviction. This morning, they refused to deposit the large check we received for Drew's retirement plan from his previous job without putting a hold on it. Its an OFFICIAL check. I could understand them putting a hold on personal checks, but this is ridiculous. Also, I have never had a problem depositing checks made out to only Drew, as long as he signed them, but this morning that posed a problem as well. I won't be able to put the deposit in until tomorrow when Drew can go with me, which means the money won't be available until Sunday, and we NEED that money to fly home on.

Wal-Mart won't cash this check, either, because the amount exceeds their limit. I'm going to get my hair cut and colored today, and had to cash in my collection of change to have enough money for it. Why don't I ever learn not to depend on money that isn't tangible yet? I guess I had this coming, but I continue to believe that the next time will be the exception.

I woke up at eight this morning and went straight to the bank, and fought that for about an hour with no success. Maybe Drew will be able to negotiate better tomorrow. Afterward, I went to Wal Mart's CoinStar with a purse filled to the top with change, and got $125 out of it! I love collecting change, but now my empty change bottle is a very depressing site. Its screaming at me "YOU'RE OFFICIALLY DEAD BROKE!!!" I'm going to have to find a new, hidden, place for it.

Around ten this morning I went to the gym and ran a mile on the treadmill. I'm down to a 9 1/2 minute mile! Two weeks ago I couldn't run one lap without having to stop and walk. The weather is cold and ugly today, so I used the tanning beds, which is not nearly as wonderful as laying by the waterfall pool. I went home to do my ab workouts and free weights. The gym full of big, buff soldiers is pretty intimidating for me, and when I can never feel comfortable enough to really get a good work out. Besides, I like to be my own workout DJ with my own pump-up music.

Its almost time for my hair appointment... I'm dying it dark again and getting my bangs cut short. I'll post pics later!

I'm Alive!

2009-04-05T15:40:00.003-04:00

Yes, I AM still alive. Boot camp did not kill me. Thanks to all those that texted and messaged me just to make sure!

I officially am grateful and so, so happy that Drew convinced me to go to boot camp. I can't believe the change that has occurred in just two weeks. I have so much more energy, am in an overall better mood at [mostly] all times, extremely motivated, and TONED. After the first week, I was already noticing definition in my arms, abs, and legs, but I thought it was my eyes playing tricks on me. Last week, though, Drew actually mentioned how different I look and confirmed my thoughts. I have lost five pounds, which is surprising considering how much muscle I have gained. I've always had a very athletic build, but now its just intensified and I look like I never stopped being an athlete after high school. My tennis game has even improved, because of the strength in my arms. I absolutely kill Drew at tennis now... don't tell him I said that though.
I knew the last day of camp was going to be intense, and I was right. We went to a high school on the very top of a big hill, and it has steps leading all the way up to the entrance. We had to run up and down the four flights of steps ten times, then did five sets of lunges up the steps. I thought I wouldn't be able to do it, but I was the first one in the group that finished and was still able to jog back to the park afterwards. Its amazing how every day's activities intensify, but you go home feeling better and better.
And the biggest achievement... I dug out my bikini from two years ago from the bottom of the moving boxes (yes, we still have unpacked boxes..) and went to tan by the pool... and I felt confident the whole time. Last year I NEVER went out without a tank top over the bikini. Drew and I have been tanning by the pool every day this week, and we look very ready for California next week! Our apartment complex has six gorgeous pools with WiFi in the area. Drew brings the laptop out and I read a book. Its bliss.

This week I don't have camp, so Amanda and I are going to take fitness classes on post. They have step classes (which we did one class of last week), belly dancing, cardio dance, spin, water aerobics, and lots more for only $3 a class. Amanda and her husband are going to the Bahamas next week while Drew and I are back in Cali, so we both have the motivation for our last blast workouts.

Speaking of California... Only SIX more days until I'm there! And even better, Drew gets a four-day weekend so my mom bought him a last minute ticket for him to visit Friday - Monday. It couldn't have worked out more perfect, and I think he is even more excited than I am to visit. He is very, very homesick. He went out to the field again today and will be back Tuesday. Hopefully the excitement for Cali will keep him motivated this week. Only 4 more days, baby.

A ton has happened since I last wrote, but this is starting to become a novel. Drew and I have been hanging out with Amanda and her husband, Rob, a lot lately and it has been fabulous. We went to Atlanta last weekend and had a blast, although we do NOT understand the huge hype over Atlanta. Our consensus is that it is extremely overrated.

Thats all my personal blogging for today.

On to politics... Did anyone see that Obama bowed down to the Saudi Arabia king at the world leader convention?

President Obama greeted the king of Saudi Arabia with a full bow from the waist yesterday, a move one commentator described as a violation of protocol and not worthy of the office he holds.

"I am quite certain that this is not the protocol, and is most unbecoming a president of the United States," writes Clarice Feldman in an American Thinker commentary.

The situation developed as leaders of the world attending the G20 summit in London assembled for a photograph to mark the event.

In this first image, after the king extended his hand while Obama approached, Obama bends from the waist until his head is nearly at the monarch's waist:

The action appeared especially awkward since among the dozens of world leaders and their spouses, handshakes abounded, but there appeared to be no other bowing in the room.

The U.S. State Department's office of protocol did not respond to a WND request for the proper etiquette for two heads of state meeting, but the online Travel Etiquette website for Saudi Arabia said handshakes are common greetings between members of the same sex.

This article says it best:

President of the United States Bows to Foreign King

By Bob Ellis on April 2nd, 2009

Didn’t anyone tell President Obama that Americans don’t bow down to anyone? Didn’t anyone tell President Obama that the President of the United States especially doesn’t bow down to anyone?

Didn’t anyone tell President Obama that Americans fought a long and bloody war so we wouldn’t have to bow down to a king anymore?

To my knowledge, even the Queen of England (a nation with values similar to our own) didn’t get this kind of worshipful treatment.

Is it a Muslim thing? The Saudi king is, after all, a Muslim. Is it something Obama picked up while registered as a Muslim in school in Jakarta?

I don’t want to make a mountain out of a mole hill, but when one bows, one signifies the superiority of the one bowed to. It is a gesture of submission. The leader of the most free nation in the world should not be slobbering on the ring of some king!

It was embarrassing when President Obama ungratefully gave back the gift from the British of the bust of Winston Churchill (one of their greatest prime ministers and one of America’s greatest foreign friends). It was embarrassing when the British gave President Obama a gift made from historic wood and President Obama gave the British…some DVDs–that won’t even play in their DVD players!

It’s been embarrassing enough to see other foreign relations gaffes (e.g. the red button we gave to Russia), feeling as if the White House was being run by a 9th grade school social club, but now…

It has been bad enough to hear Obama attempt to curry favor with the despots, tyrants and socialists around the world–since even before he was elected. It has been bad enough to see the President of the United States worried about what a bunch of European snivelers think of the United States. It has been bad enough to see the President of the United States treat terrorists and sponsors of terrorism as anything other than the dregs of humanity.

But to now actually see the President of the United States rendering obeisance to the king of a foreign nation, one with a poor human rights record–from which 15 out of 19 hijackers on September 11 came…I’m feeling sick (and something else, too).

And then there was his American arrogance speech to Europe. Direct quote from Obama:

"In America, there is a failure to appreciate Europe's leading role in the world. Instead of celebrating your dynamic union and seeking to partner with you to meet common challenges, there have been times where America has shown arrogance and been dismissive, even derisive."

Has he not read the memo that America is the leading force and leading nation in the world? Its not an opinion, its a fact. And now we have elected a President that believes Americans wrongfully THINK their country is superior. We are clearly not equals to other nations. Well, up until now I thought that was pretty clear...

On the Huckabee show last night, they showed a new comic of Obama giving that speech and holding up one of those big foam fingers that said "We are only 1 of 20." Nothing special, just one of many. Thats all that really needs to be said.

Fitness Boot Camp, Day 2

2009-03-24T16:10:00.003-04:00

Well, boot camp has killed me. Ok, not quite KILLED me, but it has definitely kicked my butt. Yesterday, I was so tired that I went straight home afterwards and took a three hour nap. I literally can barely walk up the steps to our apartment, sit on the toilet, walk, bend over, or any other habitual daily activity. When I woke up this morning, I thought of every reason in the world to skip camp today. I couldn't even roll over in bed without needing to groan in pain. I made it out of bed, though, but didn't do my hair because I couldn't raise my arms up high enough. Camp was slightly better today, because I paced myself much better (instead of going all out the first half, then feeling nauseated the last half, like on Monday).
In just two days I have done countless push ups, crunches, jumping jacks, bicep curls, pull ups, lunges, sprints, and other painful activities I don't know the names of. The worst part about this, is that my lovely husband, who wanted me to do this in the first place, is out in the field. I'm sitting at home having to fend for myself. I'm seriously contemplating putting a plug in Brody's butt so he doesn't have to poop for the next few days. When he whines at the front door I cringe... To get to the grass I must go down a small flight of stairs, then walk across the parking lot. Doesn't he know??

Amanda and I were planning on watching Twilight together yesterday, but needless to say I was good for nothing after boot camp. I postponed it today, and fortunately I felt okay after camp today, and spent a couple hours at her house. We watched Twilight and ate pecan pie (don't judge me! I can have it, because I'm working my butt off in the mornings now). She introduced me to Winn Dixie's fresh baked ready-to-eat pies which are amazing. I refuse to get addicted though. I refuse, I refuse, I refuse.

I'm back at home now, and excruciatingly sore. I'll probably be on this couch the rest of the night, with small trips outside for potty breaks. Fortunately American Idol is on tonight, to pass time.

Thats all I can write for now. When I type, my forearms are unhappy. And I'm at my body's mercy at this point in time.

Thanks for the Memories

2009-03-22T20:50:00.002-04:00

A couple weeks ago on Facebook, I got this crazy idea to completely read through my old blog from high school, on a site called Xanga. I actually didn't think it would even exist anymore and/or would have deleted all my posts from way back when, but amazingly I was able to remember all my log in information, and voila -- I had access to the past.

It literally took me hours upon hours to read through three years of posts, but I never really noticed the lapse of time. Mostly, I laughed out loud at the memories of the "good ol' days", and sometimes I would cry, or roll my eyes at the way I was so in love with people who are no longer in my life. It amazes me how experiences can shape you and lead you on to the path of maturity, and when those experiences have done their job, we erase them from our mind either intentionally, or just because time fades them.

Blogging may be a fad now, but I truly believe its one of the better ideas that has come from modern technology. Keeping journals and diaries is part of every little girls' world, but now those experiences can come to life and can be shared by every big girl. Its a candid look into someone's life, and I find it fascinating. I admit, my life and writing ability isn't the most enthralling phenomena on the internet, but ten years from now I can look back on this and laugh, cry, and roll my eyes.

I guess I should start making these blogs more interesting, then. I'm starting to believe I will bore my future self.

Here are just a few of the memories that were worthy of posting on Facebook. They are worth sharing. My mom reads these blogs and I think she'll remember a lot of them.

I miss Anna everyday. I wish she could come to Georgia for a week or something.

Saturday, January 24 2004
"I just got back from the Verizon Wireless store, and found the cell phone I'm going to get next. One of those picture phones!"
[Dude, there was a time before picture phones? I can't remember it!]

Wednesday, February 25, 2004
"Anna and I went over to my friend Chad's house to try some cake he made, and I was cutting the cake with a spatula in his house, when Anna decides that I'm taking too long, so she grabs the spatula and presses down so hard on it that it completely broke in half!! OMG we started laughing so hard.. I couldn't believe it. Then Chad makes it worse and goes "That's my dad's favorite spatula!!" I felt sooooo bad. I think I should buy him a new one. Haha. So sad."

Thursday, February 26, 2004
"Anna bought Chad a new spatula and brought it to school today. It was sooo funny. Its a really nice spatula, too. Lifetime guarantee.. In other words, Anna Proof. We took pictures and got one of Anna and I with the spatula. That'll be good memories forever!"
Remember how his dad ended up hating the Lifetime guarantee spatula?? ha!

Friday, February 27, 2004
"We brought home Anna, Katie, Jordan, and Chad today. Katie, Chad, Anna, and I sat in the back (me on Anna's lap). Anyway, as we were pulling out of the school parking lot, Anna and I saw this freshman guy who is SOOOOOO cute, and we both started yelling "That's Him!" (we had been talking about him 7th period) so we started describing him to my mom. He was in front of our car, going to his car with a few of his friends, and we couldn't see his face. My mom kept waiting for him to turn around, but he never did. So Anna decides to roll down the window and yell "BLAAAAKE" really loud. Now.. keep in mind that this kid has NO CLUE who we are. A few minutes before, Chad had just told us what his name was! So he turns around as we all duck and try to hide behind the seats, cracking up laughing the whole time. He kept staring at our car, and my poor mom and Jordan were in the front and not able to hide behind anything. My mom just shook her head at him like she didn't know who called him. Ha ha. It was the funniest thing in the world. As we drove past him, he kept staring at our car, and we were all hiding behind the seats in the back."
[Anna.. I thought we yelled FIDO?? Where did that come from?]

Tuesday, March 02, 2004
"Yesterday when my mom and I were dropping Anna off at her house after school, my mom remembered that she had a bag of pads in the trunk, and she was starting to get really embarrassed because she thought she forgot to cover them up and thought they were visible when the trunk was opened. Since we take so many people home, we all put our backpacks and stuff in the trunk. So anyway, Anna was the last one to drop off yesterday and when she was getting her stuff, I whispered to her and asked if she could see the pads. So she starts DIGGING through the trunk, then a few moments later she holds the bag up and yells "Yep! They're right here!" ... Did I forget to mention there were two men in front of the house next door?"

Monday, March 08, 2004
"Today, my geometry teacher just out of the blue told me I blink a lot, lol. The whole period he kept looking over at me and start blinking really fast. Hahaha.

Anna came over to work on our P.E. project. We have to make up a game that can be played in P.E... Our game is called Peg-A-Leg. hahaha. Yeah, I'll leave that up to your imagination ;)"

Tuesday, March 09, 2004
HEY!

This is Anna because I am once again over at Katelyn's house so I thought I would be extra special and write Katelyn's daily xanga report. Don't tell her I told you though. Um, but she will figure it out sooner or later. Like in 1 min. Anyway, today I (I am speaking if I was Katelyn) had an extra special day with R i mean Schedule and we talked and such. Katie looked really cute with her crush sunglasses and PE was rather boring as usual. Okay, some random music just played and it scared me. Um, Also, I went to math and saw Anna...I liked her butt. No jk. (but seriously my mom did) Lunch was rather exciting, I got to talk to everyone and then debate with Anna on how to do our Peg-a-leg form. Anyway, Nice seeing everyone on here and Hi Ligaya! that was my shout out and anyone else?? Hmmm okay HI Blake, Katie, Johnathan, Kaitlin, Anna, and others Don't look katelyn! yes okay! bye bye!!,

ANNA------>hehe

Friday, March 26, 2004
"In Geometry today, the phone rang, and since I sit closes to it, Mr. Tucker asked me to answer it. As I was walking to the phone, he told me to say "Room 1104, Blinkie speaking", so I did. I think it was a parent or something on the other line, and she just asked for the teacher. Afterwards, Mr. Tucker gave me five extra credit points, because he thought I was too shy to say that, so he was proud of me, lol. It was cool."
[I MISS MR. TUCKER!!]

Thursday, July 01, 2004
"Yesterday was Katie's birthday part We all met at Katie's house and ate pizza, then we went bowling. Jordan, Katie, Blake, Jane, Jonathan, and I drove to the bowling alley in the same car. On the way there, we talked about termite eggs being laid in someone's mouth, then hatching and all the babies would start coming out of the mouth while the person was talking. APPARANTLY, according to Jordan, a lady ate meat from Taco Bell that had termite eggs in it and they got embedded in her gums.
On the way home our conversation consisted of how in Idaho (or some other state, can't remember which one) speed bumps are called 'Slow Humps' and Katie's mom thought that was really funny. Then Jordan started talking about how we should have a Humpday.... and I have NO IDEA where that came from. He just started jabbering away about that and I was just like....... okay Jordan"

Friday, November 12, 2004
"Ok so last night was the best thing ever. I had all my friends over (Katie, Blake, Anna, Jordan, Kim, Megan, Cody, and Garret and Shane came by for a bit too). We watched What Lies Beneath because Cody was set on a scary movie. ANYWAY it was a really good movie but watching movies like that with Anna freaks me out because she screams then I scream and then its just 1000 times scarier... if that made any sense. I know it made sense to Anna and I guess thats all that matters lol. The movie was pretty long, though, so we didn't get to play Catch Phrase which is just a TRADITION. This weekend people, ok? And we'll tape it so we can add to what we taped last night. ANNA GONE WILD!! hahahaha. Not really. Well not like that anyway. More like Anna Gone Spazzy. First she goes on an advertisement for a plastic cup, then she trips over Katie, then throws a pillow at me, then advertises a wine bottle, then tears up my moms decorative grapes, throws them at me, proposes to me, asks me to be her bodyguard.... I think thats it? Oh yeah I'm so putting that on video tape so we can watch it when we're like 80"
[hahaha I remember this night so well.. And I still have the video tape!]

Friday, November 19, 2004
"Today was awesome. After school, Anna came over and we goofed off for about an hour before Blake came over and we all ate dinner at my house. We had Frugatti's and they made fun of me because I took practically all the toppings out of my calzone. Then we ate a triple chocolate cheesecake which was SO rich but SO good.
Let see... after that we went to Megan's and jumped on her trampoline for forever and a year. It was so awesome. My sides hurt from laughing so hard (and getting thrown into the air a few times...)
P.S. Anna... DON'T CHILL THE CHILDREN!!!! Haha I told you I'd put that in my Xanga. Wasn't there another Xanga moment today? I can't remember..."
[Wasn't this the night we weren't supposed to be on the trampoline?? And Anna almost broke it?]

Friday, November 26, 2004
Lets see.... how 'bout some lovely pictures??

Anna and Me. Aww :)

Anna, Jordan, Blake, Katie, Jane. I love this pic.

Vanilla Pepsi: It does a body good.

Jane, Katie, and Me

Sunday, December 05, 2004
"...We watched Garret and Cody try to beat each other at who could go farthest on the unicycle. Then Cody showed us the dead ducks his brother had brought back from hunting, and Anna flipped out because she thought Cody was going to beat her with it. Afterwards we drank some more Chai out in the courtyard and Garret and Anna told jokes, which was really funny. Anna: A barn CAN'T JUMP!!. Cody's mom said she was going to take Garret home, so we were cleaning up and then I dropped one of the mugs and it completely broke. I felt sooo bad. But its kind of funny how accident-prone I am. I mean... go figure. And THEN when Anna and I are together... we are the most accident-prone people ever. Anna - does SPATULA ring a bell? geez aweez. ;)"

Tuesday, December 21, 2004
"... Anna and I went to go see The Notebook in the dollar theater. It was the 3rd time I'd seen it... and it was great as always :)
After the movie we went to Frugatti's and laughed so hard. I was imitating my hamster jumping when I scared him, and when I threw my hands up I let go of my fork and it hit me in the eye. I think we all peed our pants. My poor mom almost gave herself a hernia. I didn't think we were going to be able to get her out of the restaurant.
The past 2 days have been the best EVER. I spent like 30 hours straight with Anna. We laughed soooo much. I think we have like 10 new personal jokes. "
[Dude, I remember almost stabbing myself with that stupid fork. And I don't think I've ever seen my mom laugh that hard.]

Sunday, Janary 09, 2005
More pictures!!

Anna!!

My seductive look. Oh yes.

Kissy

I love that picture

Drunk on Shirley Temples...

Hiding out in the tree.

Tuesday, March 08, 2005
Jeremy Camp Concert Pictures!!
Concert Pictures!! OMG.. the most amazing night ever.

In the elevator! It had a mirror roof lol..

...And finally in the Convention Center... waiting for the concert to start. So we took goofy pics to pass the time.

First up were Monk & Neagle who were AWESOME.
..And we got a picture with Michael Neagle afterwards. He was so nice. Anna came up to him and was like... "What'ssss uppppppp NEAGLE?" and he goes "What's up GIRL?" Cute Cute.

Friday, March 11, 2005
"Cruisin' around Rosedale with Blake, Anna, Nick, and Macy is the most fun I've had in a really long time... Hahaha my cheeks hurt from laughing so much."

Friday, March 18, 2005
"Tonight I went to Olive Garden with Anna, her mom, and Blake. It was so fun. So many funny stories. And song time! Part of your woooooorld.... haha."
That's the night I became obsessed with Skye Sweetnam's version of Part of Your World

Monday, March 28, 2005
"Toilet papering a completely random house with Cody, Anna, and Chris is the craziest thing I have ever done, and I can't stop laughing."

Tuesday, April 19, 2005
"The lunch conversation today was SO funny, Anna...
"Did you say... Billy... I love you?"
"Say I'm a bird!"
"Everybody Come On!"
And the best....
"WOMAN'S FERTILIZER?"
hahahahaha.

Thanks chica for making the day so much better. *Muah*"

Sunday, May 15, 2005
Prom was amazingly awesome.

We always have to take goofy pics.

The girls: Me, Anna, and Katie

At dinner: Outback Steakhouse. Me, Anna, Blake

The dance floor!

Saturday, June 04, 2005
"Cody, Blake, Nick, Anna, and Me went to Boomers and rode the go-karts, then the bumper boats where these little 10 year old boys got me soaked because I had a white shirt on. Little perverts. They just kept chasing me yelling "White Shirt! White Shirt!!" Yes, and afterwards I was getting lots of weird looks. Walking through Boomers with a see-through shirt is quite embarrassing. Afterwards we went to Carl's Jr. where Cody ordered a cock-a-cola and 5 waters. OMG. And then we chucked ice out the window as we were driving and it made me laugh so hard that I spit water alllll over the place and Nick called me a retard.
Yes, yesterday will be yet another memory to write down in Anna's yearbook, which I haven't yet finished signing. Still many more memories to remember."

Wednesday, June 08, 2005
OMG today was hecka fun.
From seeing Anna in Centennial's parking lot and hanging out the windows to overly PDI (hahaha Anna...) in the theatre....
[OMG Anna do you remember this? PDI... Public Display of Intercourse! In reference to the kids behind us while we were trying to watch Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants!!]

Sunday, June 19, 2005
"I <3 Anna.
I <3 my curfew being at 12 instead of 11.
I <3 driving around with Chris driving.
I <3 Anna's laugh.
I <3 personal jokes.
I <3 Anna and I's tanning hearts (and playboy bunny)
I <3 hot fudge brownies..
I <3 my dogs
I <3 our turkey call
I <3 listening to rap music in a car with friends.
I <3 laughing.
I <3 watching home videos.
I <3 taking pictures with Anna.
I <3 crazy spur-of-the-moment ideas.
I <3 being able to talk openly to 2 people in my life. They are all I need.
I <3 songs with meaningful lyrics.
I <3 playing Catch Phrase with friends & family.
I <3 lunch with friends.
I <3 joy rides with friends.
I <3 everything with friends.
I <3 how Anna knows what I'm thinking and one look can set us off laughing.
I <3 getting new messages on MySpace..
I <3 random Starbucks trips.
I <3 being able to be myself around the people I love most.
I <3 feeling pretty.
I <3 thinking of all the things I <3."

.... And then I quit Xanga! This took me ALL DAY to do so I hope you guys laughed. hehe =)

Lyric Obsession

2009-03-22T13:36:00.003-04:00

So, I just heard a new Miranda Lambert song, and of course, love it. Anything she does is amazing, but this is even better, because its a song about the military/war/politics, etc. Anyway, I was looking up the lyrics to post on my Blog, and then realized that Miranda's version is a cover to Merle Haggard's original song. Whoops. I guess I'm not too knowledgeable about classic country.
I do know, though, that country music is the most patriotic. And no matter who sings it, it gets me pumped up.

Fightin' Side of Me

Miranda Lambert..... or Merle Haggard

I hear people talkin' bad,

About the way they have to live here in this country,

Harpin' on the wars we fight,

An' gripin' 'bout the way things oughta be.

I don't mind 'em switchin' sides,

An' standin' up for things that they believe in.

When they're runnin' down our country, man,

They're walkin' on the fightin' side of me.

Runnin' down the way of life,

Our fightin' men have fought and died to keep.

If you don't love it, leave it:

Let this song that I'm singin' be a warnin'.

When you're runnin' down our country, hoss,

You're walkin' on the fightin' side of me.

I read about some squirrely guy,

Who claims, that he just don't believe in fightin'.

An' I wonder just how long,

The rest of us can count on bein' free.

They love our milk an' honey,

But they preach about some other way of livin'.

When they're runnin' down our country, man,

They're walkin' on the fightin' side of me.

Runnin' down the way of life,

Our fightin' men have fought and died to keep.

If you don't love it, leave it:

Let this song that I'm singin' be a warnin'.

When you're runnin' down my country, man,

You're walkin' on the fightin' side of me.

Runnin' down a way of life,

Our fightin' men have fought and died to keep.

If you don't love it, leave it:

Let this song that I'm singin' be a warnin'.

When you're runnin' down my country, hoss,

You're walkin' on the fightin' side of me.

As I was cruisin' today, with the windows rolled down and Brody shotgun beside me, this song came on. And it was perfect, to say the least. When I sing at the top of my lungs and make up my own drivin' dance moves, Georgian drivers look at me weird. Its a Cali thing, I guess... or maybe just a Katelyn thing?

I got no money in my pockets

I got a hole in my jeans

I had a job and I lost it

But it won't get to me

'Cause I'm ridin' with my baby

And it's a brand new day

We're on the wings of an angel

Flyin' away

And the sun is shinin'

This road keeps windin'

Through the prettiest country

From Georgia to Tennessee

And I got the one I love beside me

My troubles behind me

I'm alive and I'm free

Who wouldn't wanna be me

I got no money in my pockets

I got a hole in my jeans

We're on the wings of an angel

And I'm free

Ahhh.. The fact of me being broke was quite alright at that point in time.

Drew is out in the field until Wednesday, so its just me and Brody (aka Bubba). I start boot camp tomorrow, so if I survive, I'll write about the experience tomorrow.

Brody Video!!!

2009-03-20T23:58:00.002-04:00

I'm so proud of myself for figuring this out. haha.

Picnic Pictures

2009-03-20T22:33:00.004-04:00

My boys and I had a wonderful time at Flat Rock Park today. I think Brody liked it the best, though. Here are a few pictures from our fabulous day.

I'm still trying to figure out how to upload the video of Brody chasing sticks in the creek. It is so, so cute. Hopefully I'll be able to get it on here later.

Teeny-Bop

2009-03-20T12:17:00.003-04:00

Up until last night, I thought the Twilight mania was stupid. A bunch of teeny-bopper girls swooning over a stupid vampire? Give me a break. Well, my curiosity finally got the best of me so Drew and I went to see it at the dollar theatre last night.

OK, count me in on the mania.

It was awesome. Normally I despise anything unrealistic, such as vampires, but this completely changed my mind. I'm going to buy the movie, and start reading the books... I've been looking for a new series to start anyway.

I really, really wish my Kindle worked so I could buy the book right now for cheap. But, of course, it broke right when I was becoming reliant on it. Just reading a regular book seems so yesterday. Good grief I really am turning into a teeny-bopper.

To add to that, I'm officially addicted to Twitter and texting Google. Did anyone know you can now text Google? You send any question to 466453 (GOOGLE) and it texts you back with the answers. Last night, I found out the weather for the next week in Columbus, movie times, directions from Bakersfield to Las Vegas, and how many teaspoons are in a tablespoon. I'm hooked. What was life like before we could text Google? That was just yesterday, and I can't even recall.

The last two nights I have made dinner and Drew has LOVED them. I'll post the recipes sometime later today, as they are definitely worth sharing. Buffalo-style pizza and homemade chicken flautas. Yum.

Well, thats about all the time I have right now. The weather is absolutely GORGEOUS today... Perfect for a road trip in the jeep to Flat Rock Park. We are going to pack lunch and have a picnic with Brody. I'll take pictures.

Love you all... And to you in Bakersfield... I love and miss you... 21 days until I'm there!!

Swoon

2009-03-19T15:55:00.001-04:00

Kris Allen is my boyfriend. And yes, mom, Drew is aware of that.

I Caved In...

2009-03-19T10:26:00.002-04:00

... and got a Twitter. You can see my updates automatically on my blog...

<------ Right there over on the left hand side.

Pretty neat, huh? Well, I think so. I, like, won't even have to blog anymore, because I can say everything that I'm doing AS I'm doing it, from my phone. Whaaaat.

I just had a cup of Dunkin' Donuts coffee, which has been rumored is the best coffee ever (even better than Starbucks -- blasphemy!!), and I must admit... It is quite yummy. Drew and I got a small bag of regular roast, with Cinnamon Coffee Mate. I may have just found my new [current] love. I am so hyper now. I can't even type in literate sentences.

Yesterday Amanda and I went to Olive Garden and Ben & Jerry's for our lunch date. She told me that Olive Garden has a lunch special for unlimited salad, breadsticks, and soup for only seven bucks. SEVEN bucks! So yummy. The lunch special didn't include my Black Tie Mousse Cake (I think I would have fainted from sheer excitement if it did), so I refrained from getting it, also because we had previously decided on Ben & Jerry's... fresh scooped at the Ben & Jerry's store, which is just 100 times better than the containers from the store, that all y'all in Cali only have. muahahaha.

Whew. There are only so many run-on sentences you can type without wearing yourself out.

Anywho... check back later today to see my Twitter Updates!! Cause I'll be doing something else! hahaha.

Don't Bill Our Heroes!

2009-03-18T17:08:00.003-04:00

I am infuriated at the following, and have been in an uproar about it for the past two days when it was brought up on my debate board.

If you want proof that Obama lied and made promises he never intended to keep during the election, eat your heart out:

Article during the election:

Obama says he needs to earn troops' respect
by Rick Maze - Jul. 7, 2008 12:20 PM
Army Times
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama knows that to win military votes, he has to prove himself.

"Precisely because I have not served in uniform, I am somebody who strongly believes I have to earn the trust of men and women in uniform," Obama said as he contrasted his lack of service with that of Republican presidential candidate John McCain, a former prisoner of war, Vietnam veteran and Navy retiree who has years of experience in Congress working on national security issues.

"I do not presume that from the day I am sworn in, every single service man or woman suddenly says, This guy knows what he is doing,' " said Obama, a freshman senator from Illinois, in his most extensive interview to date on a wide range of military issues.
The 46-year-old former community organizer and civil-rights lawyer will formally become the Democratic Party's presidential nominee at the party's August convention in Denver.

Obama said he hopes the military community will see him as "a guy looking out for us and not someone trying to score cheap political points."

Military members and their families deserve better pay and benefits, he said, and although money might be hard to find for a generous increase, he supports increasing basic pay to keep up with inflation and private-sector salaries, and he believes housing allowances need to be increased so young service members and their families can afford adequate places to live.

He also wants to spend more to improve veterans' health care and reduce the wait for a disability claim to be processed.

"I don't know a higher priority than making sure that the men and women who are putting themselves in harm's way, day in and day out, are getting decent pay and decent benefits," he said. "These are just basic requirements of a grateful nation."

And now that he's elected... guess what he is proposing?

Hypocrite.

http://ourvoice.legion.org/story/1448/legion-white-house-dont-bill-our-heroes

WASHINGTON, DC (March 16, 2009) – The leader of the nation’s largest veterans organization says he is “deeply disappointed and concerned” after a meeting with President Obama today to discuss a proposal to force private insurance companies to pay for the treatment of military veterans who have suffered service-connected disabilities and injuries. The Obama administration recently revealed a plan to require private insurance carriers to reimburse the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in such cases.

“It became apparent during our discussion today that the President intends to move forward with this unreasonable plan,” said Commander David K. Rehbein of The American Legion. “He says he is looking to generate $540-million by this method, but refused to hear arguments about the moral and government-avowed obligations that would be compromised by it.”

The Commander, clearly angered as he emerged from the session said, “This reimbursement plan would be inconsistent with the mandate ‘… to care for him who shall have borne the battle…’ given that the United States government sent members of the armed forces into harm’s way, and not private insurance companies. I say again that The American Legion does not and will not support any plan that seeks to bill a veteran for treatment of a service connected disability at the very agency that was created to treat the unique need of America’s veterans!”

Commander Rehbein was among a group of senior officials from veterans service organizations joining the President, White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki and Steven Kosiak, the overseer of defense spending at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The group’s early afternoon conversation at The White House was precipitated by a letter of protest presented to the President earlier this month. The letter, co-signed by Commander Rehbein and the heads of ten colleague organizations, read, in part, “ There is simply no logical explanation for billing a veteran’s personal insurance for care that the VA has a responsibility to provide. While we understand the fiscal difficulties this country faces right now, placing the burden of those fiscal problems on the men and women who have already sacrificed a great deal for this country is unconscionable.”

Commander Rehbein reiterated points made last week in testimony to both House and Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committees. It was stated then that The American Legion believes that the reimbursement plan would be inconsistent with the mandate that VA treat service-connected injuries and disabilities given that the United States government sends members of the armed forces into harm’s way, and not private insurance companies. The proposed requirement for these companies to reimburse the VA would not only be unfair, says the Legion, but would have an adverse impact on service-connected disabled veterans and their families. The Legion argues that, depending on the severity of the medical conditions involved, maximum insurance coverage limits could be reached through treatment of the veteran’s condition alone. That would leave the rest of the family without health care benefits. The Legion also points out that many health insurance companies require deductibles to be paid before any benefits are covered. Additionally, the Legion is concerned that private insurance premiums would be elevated to cover service-connected disabled veterans and their families, especially if the veterans are self-employed or employed in small businesses unable to negotiate more favorable across-the-board insurance policy pricing. The American Legion also believes that some employers, especially small businesses, would be reluctant to hire veterans with service-connected disabilities due to the negative impact their employment might have on obtaining and financing company health care benefits.

“I got the distinct impression that the only hope of this plan not being enacted,” said Commander Rehbein, “is for an alternative plan to be developed that would generate the desired $540-million in revenue. The American Legion has long advocated for Medicare reimbursement to VA for the treatment of veterans. This, we believe, would more easily meet the President’s financial goal. We will present that idea in an anticipated conference call with White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel in the near future.

“I only hope the administration will really listen to us then. This matter has far more serious ramifications than the President is imagining,” concluded the Commander.

Modern Math and Gun Control

2009-03-17T11:17:00.003-04:00

I just received these e-mails and think they are too good not to share.

Fifty two Years of Math 1957 - 2009

Last week I purchased a burger at Burger King for $1.58. The counter girl took my $2 and I was digging for my change when I pulled 8 cents from my pocket and gave it to her. She stood there, holding the nickel and 3 pennies, while looking at the screen on her register. I sensed her discomfort and tried to tell her to just give me two quarters, but she hailed the manager for help. Why do I tell you this?

Because of the evolution in teaching math since the 1950s:

1. Teaching Math In 1950s
A logger sells a truck load of lumber for $100. His cost of production is 4/5 of the price. What is his profit ?

2. Teaching Math In 1960s
A logger sells a truck load of lumber for $100. His cost of production is 4/5 of the price, or $80. What is his profit?

3. Teaching Math In 1970s
A logger sells a truck load of lumber for $100. His cost of production is $80. Did he make a profit?

4. Teaching Math In 1980s
A logger sells a truck load of lumber for $100. His cost of production is $80 and his profit is $20. Your assignment: Underline the number 20 .

5. Teaching Math In 1990s
A logger cuts down a beautiful forest because he is selfish and inconsiderate and cares nothing for the habitat of animals or the preservation of our woodlands. He does this so he can make a profit of $20. What do you think of this way of making a living? Topic for class participation after answering the question: How did the birds and squirrels feel as the logger cut down their homes? (There are no wrong answers, and if you feel like crying, it's ok.)

6. Teaching Math In 2000s
If you have special needs or just feel you need assistance because of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, childhood memories, criminal background, then don't answer and the correct answer will be provided for you. There are no wrong answers.

7. Teaching Math In 2008
Un hachero vende una carrtada de maderapara 100 pesos. El costo de la producciones es 80 pesos. Cuanto dinero ha hecho?

A LITTLE GUN HISTORY

In 1929, the Soviet Union established gun control.

From 1929 to 1953,

about 20 million dissidents, unable to defend themselves,