Baby!

Happy, happy natal day to my little sis Martine. I can't imagine life without you to pick on, plot with, and play with. Love you so very much.

Ode to Friedrich Nietzsche

I'm not dead. So I must be stronger. At this point I'm fairly certain I could bench press a toothpick. What happened, you say? Once again I have discovered by trial of fire who my true friends are and which ones are best left by the side of the road. I'm still not certain what all the fallout from this tempest will be. A storm not of my own making but somehow I got caught up in the middle of things. Maybe this is simply the occasional price I must pay for living with an open, trusting, and accepting heart. I refuse to armor myself with cynicism and anger. I may land at times in a deep trough of sadness but I know how to climb out. I have learned that the heights where happiness, love, and contentment dwell more than balance out those depths of sorrow.  It seems weird to be grateful that I can experience this range of emotion, particularly when engulfed by dark, somber clouds. If you can't feel the bad stuff I think it's likely you won't feel the good stuff either. And, yessir, I am ready for some good stuff to roll around.

In Honor of Homer Simpson

It's National Donut Day. Celebrate responsibly. The first one of you who brings me a donut will earn my undying affection. Eclipsed only by my confection affection. And why does spellcheck dislike d-o-n-u-t? Maybe because the o isn't precisely in the middle of the word like the hole is in the donut. Dnout is impossible to pronounce as well as being just as unpopular with spellcheck. Go figure.
   

Nine Lives

Newton and Einstein are nine years old today. Look on their adorableness and feel your intelligence wane! They're still pretty darn adorable. Even the one who engages in extracurricular bathroom activities. Raise your can of tuna in celebration! 

Close That Window!

A couple of hours ago I got a call on the landline from a fellow who claimed to be a representative at Microsoft Windows. Hmm. I had never heard Microsoft referred to in quite that way but out of curiosity I stayed on the line. He said I had not responded to numerous messages so they found it necessary to call. He continued to talk a line of gibberish that contained the words safety and compromised and infected. I asked him how he obtained my phone number and he responded with "it is in our database". He then instructed me to do some very specific things, first of all to hold down the Windows key and press R which brought up a window labeled Run. He then told me to type in the letters cmd which brought up another window. I suspected he was trying to attain remote access and control of my computer so at that point I asked him if he would provide me with a phone number where I could call him back. He said he would but wanted me to enter a string of characters into the black box first. I asked him if he could hold on for a moment and texted my son Michael and described the situation. He texted back with that could have been very bad! I hung up. So, if a man who speaks broken but polite English calls and asks you pretty much to give him remote access to your computer don't do it! Please be suspicious and hang up. And if you have caller ID on your phone, report him! Beware of scams! 

Oh, the Hypocrisy!

For links to the facts, go here.

Hello, June