Love 'em or hate 'em, but these are just funny

Here are some gems from tonight's Late Show with David Letterman:

Tonight's Top Ten from Wasilla, Alaska -- "The Top Ten Things You Didn't Know About Sarah Palin":

• Once spent a week in the hospital after trying to put lipstick on a pit bull
• Recently expanded her foreign policy experience by eating at the International House of Pancakes
• Isn't afraid to go hunting with Dick Cheney

Hee hee hee.

Miranda has moved!

I'm experimenting with having a separate blog for Miranda and keeping this blog solely for other things. Let's see how it goes.

Anyway, you can visit Miranda's very own blog, Chronicles of Wunchie, by clicking on the sidebar on the right.

Are you sure that's really a compliment, Governor?

Much ado (over nothing) has been made of Obama's alleged insult to Sarah Palin, and whether he was actually referring to Palin when he said "You can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig." Never mind that each candidate has used this same expression dozens of times, always referring to issues and agendas. We'll leave that topic for another day.

What's got me more interested, and more concerned, is Palin's description of herself as a "pit bull with lipstick". Sounds rough and tough; sounds like just the thing to strike confidence in the hearts of American citizens, and strike fear in the hearts of foreign terrorists. The problem with this kick-ass analogy is that it fails to probe the exact nature of Governor Palin's proud self-reference.

Billy and I used to live in a neighborhood with at least a dozen pit bulls. Whenever one came down the street, even though most were on a leash, I always made sure I was holding Miranda in my arms.  I didn't want her even remotely within reach should the dog break free.

Pit bulls are, arguably, the most vicious breed of dog. Certainly this is affected by training and environment, but it arises from generations of breeding for aggression. Pit bulls will often attack for no reason and with no provocation, savaging anything within their reach. Children are often victims, with horrifying results. An uncontrolled pit bull doesn't use discretion when it attacks; it doesn't respond to redirection, or commands, or cries of pain, or even punishment. It just savages.

Governor Palin and the rest of the GOP might take pride in this analogy. Certainly, it struck a chord during the convention. But as a pastor and a mother, I'm certain I don't want my daughter (or anyone for whom I care) around any unrestrained pit bulls, canine or otherwise. And our country absolutely cannot afford a potential commander-in-chief who so clearly values aggression over insight.  Because I don't care how much lipstick is on that pit bull -- it won't be enough to hide all the blood on its lips.

Looks like I need a new apron, a nightgown, and membership in a Ladies' Auxillary

9 As a 1930s wife, I am Very Poor (Failure) Take the test!

Oh well, can't be all things to all people.

Atta Boy, Obama; Atta Boy, McCain

I haven't done a post yet about this year's presidential race; there's so much to process in this inevitably historic year. But in the midst of all the "politics as usual", there are some moments of true graciousness and statesmanship -- on both sides -- that bear highlighting and commendation. Here are two.

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Example #1: When Obama's acceptance of the Democratic nomination fell on the 45th anniversary of MLK's "I Have a Dream" speech, McCain aired a TV ad congratulating Obama on this historic moment. Watch it here.

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Example #2: When Gov. Palin announced that her 17 yr old daughter is expecting, Obama adamantly denounced the media's involving families in the campaign tactics, and wasn't afraid to name the similarities between the Palins' situation and his own childhood.

"We don't go after people's families. We don't get them involved in the politics. It's not appropriate and it's not relevant. Our people were not involved in any way in this and they will not be. And if I ever thought there was somebody in my campaign that was involved in something like that, they'd be fired," Obama said.

Obama also said: "This shouldn't be part of our politics. It has no relevance to Gov. Palin's performance as a governor or potential performance as a vice president. So I would strongly urge people to back off these kinds of stories."

"You know, my mother had me when she was 18. And how families deal with issues and teenage children - that shouldn't be the topic of our politics," Obama said.

Good on ya', both of you.

... and Mommy's heart melts

We were reading books tonight, assembling puzzles and generally relaxing before bed. As I stretched out on the floor, Miranda scrambled on top of me and laid her head against mine. "Oh, my Mommy..." she sighed, "...let's always be together."

July 30, 2005 -- Addendum

Ok, I realized that I needed to unpack the last post just a bit. In honor of Miranda's 3rd birthday, I wanted to do something that I haven't done since her birth, which was create a slideshow of the actual event.

It was a long labor, just under 24 hours (the first 21 hours were drug-free, then we had the epidural), and we were fortunate to have a professional photographer there for the last half of the event. The Lexington Herald-Leader was doing a story on our midwife and wanted to get coverage of a "natural" birth. So, they asked if they could be present, and we said yes. Sure, not everyone would have wanted to have them there, but we've always been grateful for the photos of that incredible day. I especially love how they show Billy's involvement in the whole process; he was definitely not sitting on the sidelines!

The pics really are not that graphic (although they are realistic), and are a beautiful way of commemorating what to me is a somewhat dreamlike few hours. Anyway, feel free to watch it or not, whatever you prefer!

July 30, 2005 (i.e. the long-awaited sequel to the last post)

Someone asked why I'd waited so long for the followup post about Miranda's birth. I told her, "I just wanted everyone to feel like it took as long to get through it as I did when it happened." ;-) No, it just took me a while to create a slideshow I actually liked.

So here it is -- a pictoral journey through the very first minutes of Miranda's life. Enjoy!

(PS -- Ok, I just ran through the show, and it tends to drag a bit. Try using the right arrow to advance the slide every few seconds. Wow -- a self-serve slide show!)

Make a Smilebox slideshow

July 29, 2005

The beautiful belly!

After 12 hours, I'm... only 4 centimeters???


Many an hour was spent in the tub.

18 hours and 7 centimeters later...

Relying on support from Billy and our doula, Anita

Our midwife Nancy, who's had 5 children, can see the lighter side of it all.

And, we await July 30th...

Summertime Pics, vol.3 -- Berry Pickin'

We spent the morning picking blueberries with Sherry, Isaac, Asher & Jodie at Reed Valley Orchard. They have pick-your-own prices, as well as pre-picked berries and all manner of yummy jams & spreads inside. (I'm dying to try the pumpkin butter.) We spent about an hour amidst the bushes, enjoying the sunshine and the peacefulness of being outside.

As relaxing as it sounds (and it was), I have a new respect for folks who grow and pick produce for a living. This hearty berry crop didn't just spring up overnight, like green beans or squash. These bushes took several years to reach full bearing potential, and must be covered with fine mesh to keep snacking birds away. (This grove of bushes was grown inside a huge mesh tent.) And after the bushes fruit, someone has to pick the gorgeous berries, and this takes a little longer than picking a squash.

I don't say this to complain; it just bring the price of food a bit more into perspective. I realized that when I go to Krogers, or even to the farmers' market, I tend to get a little judgmental and dissatisfied with the prices. "Why does a pint of blueberries cost so much?" After sweating in the sun for an hour picking berries, I began to wonder why they don't cost more. And it became more apparent at the register -- you save $2 a quart picking your own. No question, it was worth it.

We ended up with almost a gallon of blueberries (picked by us), a quart of blackberries (pre-picked), and a jar of pear preserves that Sherry highly recommended. Plans for the fruit include a batch of jam and at least one pie. Sherry was telling me how to freeze them, but I didn't pay much attention -- I'm fairly sure none will make it that far.

Miranda assesses the crop. At first, she didn't distinguish between green and blue berries, but after a while she would come up to me with a handful of gorgeous ripe berries. (I don't want to know how many she ate on the sly.)
Sherry displays her harvest.

Isaac and Miranda take a well-deserved rest in the shade. Ah, the life of the preschooler.

Praying, I guess.

Summertime Pics, vol 2. -- The First Tree Climb!

Summer outings with friends: Flushed Away

Miranda & I spent yesterday morning at the movies with her buddy, Isaac. (Here's a great post Billy did about their blossoming friendship.) We saw Flushed Away, a fun film about a posh pet rat from the royal London suburb of Kensington who gets swept down the toilet and into the hubbub of the rat city in the sewer. It was clever at several levels, a trend which I've seen growing in children's movies, I suppose in an attempt to also appeal to the parents who take their kids to those movies. Below are some awesome quotes from the film.

• (spoken by the large, albino rat) Yeah, curry affects me the same way, guv'nor. I've got a bum today like the Japanese Flag.

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• Whitey: [after spotting the ruby in Rita'a back pocket] The booty's in the booty!

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• Tadpole: Is it the Glorious Amphibian Dawn, Dad?


• Toad: Anything for you, my little man.


• Tadpole: Can I have a pony?


• Toad: No.


• Tadpole: A puppy?


• Toad: We'll talk about it.


• Tadpole: Can we talk about it now?


• Toad: No! [All the tadpoles start asking for puppies]


• Toad: No, you can't all have puppies! Please, daddy's working!

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• Toad: You find my pain amusing?


• Le Frog: I find everyone's pain amusing, except my own... I'm French!

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• Le Frog: We leave immediately!


• Henchfrog: What about dinner?


• Le Frog: We leave... in five hours.

Summertime pics, vol.1 -- Summertime BBQ

I shamelessly stole the idea of summertime pics from Caren (but she borrowed it from another friend, so I suppose it's ok). Instead of trying to completely chronicle every occurrence of the past few months, I'll bring in some pics and try to give some glimpses of the fun things we've done lately.

Speaking of stolen, pretty much this entire post came from the ashram. Our friends the Nystroms hosted a summer barbeque for an Iraqi family, newly arrived as refugees and sponsered by our community. Omar, Suhair, and Yousef are lovely and blended easily into the evening's program of burgers, swimming, forest exploration, cornhole, and catching fireflies. They will hopefully be coming to our place soon for hot dogs and swingset revelry.

Cornhole, anyone?

Graham, Isaac, Ya 'el, Yousef, and Miranda

That's a funny face, Asher!

Graham & Isaac proudly display their catch

random meme (love it!)

I've been tagged by Loco Lara. Thanks, hon!

Here are the rules:

1. Link to your tagger and post these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
4. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Seven Facts About Me:

1. I have a very small tattoo on my right hip. It's my sorority letters & symbol. I would really like to change it, but am not sure how to do so without serious pain or money.
2. I love to do electrical work, especially anything with the breaker box. Running wire is my least favorite.
3. I want to become a runner, ie someone who loves to run. I dreamed once that I was running through the country, and loving it. I'm afraid I'm too lazy to make this dream a reality.
4. I used to ride horses, hunter-jumper and horse trials. I would LOVE to ride competitively again someday, if I could find the time and the money.
5. I can't decide if I'm an introvert or an extrovert. (You're welcome to vote on this one.)
6. I like to go to movies by myself; no need to find someone who also wants to see that weird indie flick or that tasteless slasher. Also, no one tries to steal my popcorn or Jordan Almonds (THE candy of choice at the movies).
7. I love doing tequila shots, in moderation.

OK, here's who I've chosen: Mike, Joy, Melinda, Peter, Jodie, Janet, Diane, and Alana. I can't wait!

And now, the rest of the story

To all the sweet folks who have emailed or called -- John is fine, he's not dead. Sorry to get everyone concerned. Yesterday, it was all I could do to get the pictures up. Today, I've added some commentary and now, the fuller story. My hope in sharing it is not to impinge on anyone's dignity, but to share with the people who love our family -- all of it -- and seek their prayers and support.

Ever since our move, just one year ago, John has been slowly sliding downhill. We've struggled as a household over issues of rent, medication, family connectedness, and other things. By April, we all knew that a change was coming. It's been a difficult decision, and as a wise friend surmised, even more difficult thing to carry out. Yesterday was so depressing in so many ways, as we packed up the things which we'd accumulated during our 6 years of common life -- his NBA and UK posters, his pictures of JFK and Jesus, his Ghanaian shadowbox (which my family compiled for him), his clothes. I cried several times, especially when I came across his Christmas stocking, which I made for him for him in 2002, our first Christmas together.

John has many decisions to make now, some of which will be difficult. It's hard to know how to feel. Could we have been more faithful? How do we avoid vilifying ourselves, or him, in an attempt to ease the grief we feel? How do we trust God to care for us in this time?

Sigh.