What a difference a year makes...

Well, it's now mid-September and so much has changed in a year... Monday was the one year anniversary of the day my dad passed away, and I can't believe it's been a year already. I wonder how I got through it without him, I miss him so much. And then I think about all the changes in this country in just a year and I'm astounded. We have a black president, and although I'm a conservative and a Republican so that apparently makes me racist, I think it's pretty cool that our country finally voted in a black man for President of the United States. But that's as far as it goes. Although I pray a lot that God will change his heart, I can find very little to agree on with our current president. And with each passing day, and another news story about something that's coming up, I have to say I'm more than a little worried about the way things are going. I'm dumbfounded that so many people can be up in arms about healthcare, and government spending, and what's being done about terrorism, and to our president and the Dems in Congress, it's NO BIG DEAL? I can't believe how it's just brushed aside, made to be the issues of the ignorant, the naive, and yeah, RACIST people. I'm not saying racism doesn't exist, but I can't believe that every little thing that is not in lock step with this administration is written off as being the opinions of stupid racist people. I can't believe people in the highest places in government in this country think they know better than those that hired them (although I have to say I'm really glad that my congressman and state senator are republicans...) All the problems with the CIA are troubling too. I'm not saying that they probably always did the right thing, but we haven't been hit in 8 years since 9-11 and I'll take a couple uncomfortable terrorists over that any day. I sat and watched a special on 9-11 Friday that had the footage from that day and I felt it all over again. The shock and horror as that plane crashed into the second tower, the disbelief over the towers falling... All the people killed. I'm still mad that it happened, but I would never think for one minute that the Bush Administration was ever responsible for it. Like Glenn Beck says, we need to remember how we all felt on 9-12. When all Americans rallied together to show terrorists that they may have hurt us, but we don't go down. We need to remember that, we need this administration to remember that, but it seems like they are more worried about what the terrorists think of us, what other countries think of us. Like we are in some global popularity contest that we have to win. What's the grand prize? Woo Hoo, Iran likes us now, but they'll still blow us off the face of the earth if they get the chance. Who cares if other countries like us? I just can't imagine it's smart to let the world know about our intelligence services, and that our house speaker wants to tear them apart to save face. Why must we tell all the CIA secrets, but can't be transparent when it comes to the legislation that is or may be passed by our Congress! I understand why we have elderly people and soccer moms that never spoke up about anything going on in the country, making themselves be heard because we are all be branded as giant idiots that can't take care of ourselves. I can't say I'm totally satisfied with where I am in life, but I cannot say that I'm not proud that I earned most of what I have. Yeah, it might be nice not to pay for something, but you always pay for it in the end. So I wonder a lot about what my dad would think if he had been around this last year. He was 70 when he died, fought the cancer that took him for 5 years and didn't stop fighting it until the very very end. He was a farmer and worked for Kennametal and was a proud man that wouldn't take a handout. When he retired we told him he was doing more work in retirement than when he had a full-time job! If something needed done, he did it. He was a good guy that had no enemies, everyone liked him. He was a man's man, loved to hunt, fish, raced cars... What would he think? Lehman Bros went down the day he died... Our lives seemed to crumble when he died, and the rest of the country started going downhill too. The stock market dived, people lost their retirement money, the car market tanked and then the government took it over. We passed a stimulus bill that didn't seem to do a darn thing. Unemployment keeps going up. What would he think? It's amazing how much can change in a year...

Well it's sure been awhile

Long time, no blog. Let's see... Frank won the Republican jury commissioner, woo hoo!!! Thank goodness, for once all the hard work paid off. Racing season is now in full swing and the rain is still is messing with us, but not as much as it did at the beginning of the season. And of course I still go to my regular full time job every day, so that makes my days full!

It's amazing all the things that are happening, it seems like time is going by so fast.. I'm astonished at how all these bills are flying through Congress, and no one has any clue as to what's in them or what they will do...just that this will fix "8 years of the Bush Administration". I'm wondering what's going to fix "8 months of the Obama Administration". Things are so crazy! Pennsylvania, the state I live in, has no budget and our lovely governor is saying we may need more taxes! Even democrat reps are saying we don't need more taxes, egads. I wish "Spendel" would realize that people, companies, and JOBS can't get out of this state quick enough. It's so sad. It took my sister almost a year to find a job. Kennametal, an international corporation that's headquarters are in Latrobe even said that this state is horrible when it comes to how it treats companies. Thank goodness they are still committed to staying in PA but that's definately not true about a lot of companies, and we sure can't get anyone to bring their companies and jobs to our state. It's sad. The car companies are in chaos. I work in the car biz, and our dealers are fighting over the same crappy cars! I'd love to know when this free fall is going to stop... I sure hope it's soon. This is a wonderful country and I'd like it to stay that way!

My very busy week

Well this was one week I am happy to see the end of! I had something pretty much going on every day this week, including the first issue of the weekly racing paper I work for, cooking 40lbs of rigatoni, preparing for a fundraiser, HAVING the fundraiser, opening night at Motordrome, and having to go into work for a few hours on Saturday to test out the new system. I'm ready to drop! But the paper went well, the rigatoni got cooked, the fundraiser was successful and the races were ran. Opening night is usually crazy, and Friday was no different. Lots of big wrecks and destroyed equipment. But congratulations to Bobby Henry in Late Models, Adam Kostelnik in Mods, Dink Colarusso in Street Stocks, Denny Keller in Chargers & Matt Sever in Super Compacts.

Well, that was my week.. Now time for my rant! (Thought you got out of it, huh?) I'd have to say the only thing that really got my goat this week was the total attack on the Tea Parties and the conservatives by the media and my good buddy Janet Napolitano. First the Tea Parties.

I understand that the media has NO CLUE how to handle a peaceful protest by quite a few unhappy people that do not agree with our President or the administration (this one and last), but my goodness, what was that? Between highly underestimating the amount of people that showed up for these things, there was that horrible woman on CNN that was just plain OBNOXIOUS to that man and his kid. I was shocked when I saw that replay! I hope she's ashamed of herself for that performance. Is that journalism? Sheesh. And there were so many others that were just having a field day making fun of the people that took the time to show their displeasure. I hope everyone took notes and boycotts the networks and journalists that were behind the attacks. Janeen Garafolo called us racist & rednecks (sorry chick, but Murtha already called me that). I'm not so concerned about her comments only because she's a waste of my time. Someday Hollywood lefters will learn that they really are not that important and no one cares about your hateful nature. And Nancy Pelosi, well... she's just plain clueless to think that the Tea Parties were a product of the rich that don't want to pay taxes. Sorry, didn't see Tim Geitner or Tom Daschle in any of the crowds, did you? I think it's time for the media and ALL members of Congress to wise up (thanks O'Reilly) and start paying attention to the citizens of this country. They are kicking the dog too many times, at some point it's going to bite.

Then Napolitano. That leaked memo about veterans being influenced by right-wing extremists was beyond the pale. That whole memo was awful, but now we attack veterans??? Did anyone else notice her "apology" on Fox only happened when they asked her? (And notice they were the only ones that interviewed her that even ASKED if she should apologize). I really don't feel that was much of an apology anyways, because she basically said it was worded incorrectly and in Washingtonese. LAME! And last time I checked, I didn't think I was a terrorist because I believe in the 2nd amendment and take issue to abortion. What the heck? So now I'm a right-winger.... So let me get this straight... I'm conservative and registered Republican, so that makes me a racist, redneck right-winger that is possibly a threat to my community and country? WHAAATTT!!!!! This administration totally frightens me in how easily they can all insult and write-off a huge chunk of the American population. I'm just astounded at these things. I'm still willing to give our President a chance because we cannot afford to have him fail, but it's time that everyone in DC wakes up and starts listening. There are more conservative "nutjobs" like I apparently am out here and if they continue to treat us like this, they are going to find in a couple of years that they are back home wondering where their cushy jobs went! There might not be official term limits, but we get to vote for them all every couple years. This time around might not be so easy on them.

My rant for this week...

Well, I waited until I really had something to say before I blogged again. I'm a little peeved about our President and some of the things he's been saying overseas. First off, I wish he would quit trashing Bush and the past administration. Mainly because it's unbecoming for a president to blame everyone else, and second, HE WAS PART OF IT. Last I checked, the Senate voted on stuff in the last few years, and he was a senator. PLUS the last 4 years have been democrat controlled, so he can't say it's us republicans that are the cause to everything.



And today the remark about us not being "at war with Islam." No matter what they want to say in this administration, we are fighting a war on TERROR. That's terrorists and terrorist attacks. I do not hate a lot of things, but I HATE these soft & fuzzy terms that they want to use. It's stupid and unneccessary. And now to act like Al Queda only in Afghanistan is an issue, and that there are no Islamic extremeists... What the heck?



I understand that it's helpful that other countries want to work with us, but to be honest, I truly could care less if they like us. This country and our president need to do absolutely everything possible to keep us safe, and if some other country doesn't like it, TOUGH! I'm worried that our president cares more about what other countries think of him and not what Americans think. And saying we are arrogant and apologizing for things... it really upsets me. I'm PROUD to be an American. I stand silently for the national anthem. I pray for our troops. I am so truly honored that my grandfather and many other relatives fought for this country. I would not be here today if my grandmothers first husband was not killed during the Battle of the Bulge, fighting for all of us in this great place. I get choked up everytime I hear "Taps". I try to remember that I am so lucky to be born in this country, and have the opportunities that I have, and the things I have. Times are tough, but they are so much worse in other places. So I get pretty upset when our leader is overseas and seems to be ashamed of us... Look, I'm not saying that mistakes have not been made, but come on! It's amazing to me that the Dixie Chicks made a comment about George Bush all those years ago and people were so upset that they were burning their CDs and protesting radio stations to not play their songs. This was a musical group. Now we have a president that is sort of doing the same thing, and were is the backlash?



And then we have the whole deal with North Korea. Why will no one, including the United States, not stand up to these guys? Can we not do ANYTHING? Seems to me that condemming their acts is not working, they do not care. It's like giving a disobedient child a time out for being bad, and then 5 minutes later letting them go back to being bad... The UN is obviously not going to do a darn thing. The whole thing stinks.



Well, I think I'm ending my rant with that... I think... Let me leave with this. PRAY for our President. God knows what needs to be done, he can change the president's heart.

AIG, Napolitano and a couple other things

Well I guess I'm not even remotely controversial by saying I'm upset about the AIG bonuses. That seems to be pretty much the only thing I've EVER agreed with Barney Frank about. Scary... And I can say I haven't been paying too much attention to how they are supposedly contracted bonuses, but all I know is, I get a bonus at work...if I earn it. Our bonus is based on units floored, low DQ... a whole bunch of stuff and if we don't hit the criteria, no bonus. Simple enough concept, if you do what you are supposed to, you get the bonus. It's a BONUS, not a guarantee. So how did these AIG people get a bonus? That company is a disaster area that would have gone bye-bye if it wasn't for that bailout, wait, bailouts. What's the criteria for their bonus? Breathing?? (note: I can't take credit for that, BF said that when I asked him earlier.) This is what I would like to see. I can't imagine they earned them. And if it's this deal to keep the best and brightest, who are those people? I do not have issues if there are regular everyday workers getting the bonuses, but the executives? NO WAY! Like those CEO's getting millions while they drove the business into the ground. That's insane.

Then we move on to Homeland Security chief Janet Napolitano. I think I practically had a stroke when I heard that she calls terrorism "man-caused disasters" because she wants to take the politics of fear out of it. WHAT THE???? I'm sorry, but where was this woman on 911. You don't have to make us scared to leave our houses, but geez live in reality. And then she didn't think Mexico is all that bad right now. Her home state of Arizona has the kidnapping capital in it, Phoenix, and she doesn't see an issue? You want me to live in fear, knowing this is our Homeland Security guru is a good start. This makes me so mad I could spit fire. I'm sure she can come up with a happy word for that too...

The last thing I want to bring up is all this mess with Meghan McCain and Bristol Palin. There has been a lot of negative things brought up about these two young women and I'm a little upset about it. First with Meghan McCain. I know she's been making the rounds on the cable networks and talk shows, and I have no beef with that. I think everyone is entitled to their opinions. But when people that are paid to give their opinions start making personal attacks I get a little upset. Especially when you say such stupid things as they are FAT! That's just uncalled for. I have to give Meghan a lot of credit for being proud of her body and not taking it personally, but that's wrong. Especially when it's not even true. If you disagree with her ideas/opinions/politics, speak up, but do you really need to bring up size? Not cool. And then we come to Bristol Palin, and the things that have been said about this girl are beyond wrong. First off, unlike Meghan, she's been minding her own business and trying to stay out of the limelight. She's not giving her opinion. Some of the things I have heard said about this woman are disgusting. She's young and might not have the ideal situation going on right now, but leave her alone. Leave the baby's daddy ALONE! She's doing an outstanding job of trying to make the best of what is going on in her life, she understands that having a baby at 17 was not the best (I'm not going to say mistake, because I would never call a baby a mistake). She said that she wishes it would have happened 10 years from now so she could be a little more settled in her life, but it didn't happen that way. It's time for everyone to shut up about what you think of Bristol Palin and Sarah Palin's ideas on family and babies. It's NOBODY'S BUSINESS! And for those that make awful accusations and say they get what they deserve, they should be ashamed of themselves.

Well, I said a couple other things, but offhand I think I've gotten things off my chest! I can go back to thinking about what to do with my extra $8 a week....

A lot has been happening around here

A lot has been happening around here. My boyfriend Frank filed today for the Jury Commissioner spot, after a couple weeks of petition signing. I really hate doing that! Most people really have no clue how you get on the ballot and you'd think you were asking for their first born and not a signature! Oh well. Now it's campaign time! Thank goodness this will be decided in the primary. After helping a statewide candidate last year, I need the summer off!

But I really will not have it off, because racing season is gearing up and I'm just not ready. Roaring Knob's awards banquet is Friday, Motordrome had a registration party and everyone's practices are coming up here in a few weeks. Some tracks are already racing. Pretty soon we'll be racing Friday and Saturday. Wow.

And it looks like that omnibus bill is going to pass. I'm totally amazed that we are 50 days into Obama's presidency and look at everything that's been done. I have no idea what anyone can do to stop this runaway train. I hate to even think about all the things that are happening because it scares me to death! I had this kid yell "Obama" at me the other day (my car still has it's McCain bumper sticker, it's part of my protest..) and I so badly wanted to yell back "yep, you get all excited about the guy that's making sure you have no money in the future because you'll be paying for this! Woo Hoo!" Horrible. And it's not just the economy, it's this healthcare stuff, and the stem cells, and even the stupid DVD's he gave Gordon Brown. He's really showing that he won, we lost, get used to it. The stock market finally went up today, I guess he didn't say anything about the economy today. But, we'll continue to blame it all on George W. Bush. I'm not saying I agreed with GWB the whole time, but I find it horribly unfair to paint him as the villan in all this. Seems to me that it's not a republican or a democrat issue, they ALL SCREWED UP! So, let's spend more money on more stupid things and see if that fixes it. In a few years our money will be worthless, oh well. China will own us, whoopee! It's not my fault, it was Bush. Insane. So the president usually only has 100 days to get everything done. What ELSE is this man going to do??? I'm not thinking about it...

This and that

Well, it's Saturday and I'm home and not getting too much accomplished other than some laundry and I ate food a couple times. I've spent most of the day on Twitter reading about this and that. I'm wondering if access to all this information is a good thing or a bad thing. The more I read about "porkulus" the more freaked out I am becoming. And I was freaked out before. Now I know to some of the Democrats out there, the moment they hear I'm Republican, that's the reason I'm against this bill. But that's not it. I just don't understand one darned thing about spending money on some of these projects and how it's going to "stimulate" the economy? I'm all for putting people to work, and it makes sense if you are fixing roads and bridges, building stuff, etc that you need people to work, but the much maligned salt marsh mouse in San Francisco? Frisbee parks? How does that put people to work? And how does "fixing" the welfare programs that were actually kinda fixed during Clinton (probably the one thing I actually agreed with him on..,) so that the states have MORE incentive to put people on welfare, how does that CREATE jobs? How does that put money into the economy? Why couldn't these projects be put in other bills? And I'm really REALLY annoyed that Arlen Specter voted yes on this. He should know better. Yes, we needed to do something, and some of the things in this bill are good and will help, but the bill SUCKS!!! It needed major fixing. And I've never been a fan of Obama and this could definitely help our side in 2012, but I really hate to think that we all have to suffer like this. I was hoping he'd succeed in some ways, such as fixing the economic mess, but maybe not with gun control or abortion. But geez, this is awful! Anyways... all the Twitter info gives me more looks into whats in this bill, and other things that are happening across the country, and I somehow wonder if I'm better off just sitting at home on Saturday and watching NCIS on my DVR!