Please don't limit the news -Wordbead 2

This week we experienced the passing of the Gloved Wonder, The King of Pop, the musician and performer extraordinaire, Michael Jackson. I am saddened by his death and extend my sincerest condolences to his family. I was very disappointed and dismayed with the conduct of the news media. The Wordbead words for the week is hyperlinked below.

For the entire week the TV press coverage and stories was Immoderate. They lost sight of all of the other issues and news that impact our world and our neighborhoods. For about 4 days it seems like every station I landed on, and I kept surfing, had an extensive report on the death of Michael Jackson and not much else. No doubt this is huge! Michael Jackson was such a power house; such influence, such a big part of our lives, our world for so many years. Perhaps for too few years, after all he was only fifty years old, taken away from us in his prime. I loved him so, and I miss him.

He was like family; irregardless of how you felt about him or his shenanigans, his music and entertainment value had touched us all and we appreciate that. We may not like his metamorphoses or the fact that he didn't seem to be always on the same planet with the rest of us, I think that was overlooked. We turned a blind eye to all those things when he stepped on stage. Unfortunately, I think this, his genius and his ability to rake in money, is also the reason he didn't get the support and 'care' he needed to deal with his physical and mental ailments. They were all obvious to anyone looking but maybe, leave well enough alone was the modus for his 'handlers' and his entourage.

I don't care how much money you have or how powerful you are, somewhere along the line one of your allies, advocates, someone in your inner circle need to step up, bite the bullet, stand the ground and say, hey dude we need to work on.... There is enough resources there, figure out how to do it, just do it for the love of the kid.

Any how, we always had to give him his props when we see his musical prowess. Michael Jackson; just the thought of his name brings on a warm fuzzy, Snug feeling of comfort and pleasure. There is always a strong emotional response to his music or a particular song that hold some important or sentimental value for you. His music and extraordinary performances and music videos mollify our disdain for those of his actions we found unacceptable, if even for a brief while.

Like astrology, we interpret a song and intertwine it with our personal issue, experience or affairs and it becomes our theme song, our favorite song or most intense song, the one that defines the relationship, the mood, the thriller!

So, finally it seems that the media has shifted the world back into focus like the moon's revolution around the earth and the sun is now on us again. We can see and hear reports about the fall-out over the election in Iran and the human suffering, the economy and unemployment, politicians behaving like kindergartners or forgetting their marital vows, the Obama financial bail out, insurance reform plans, the one who Madoff with the savings,etc., and we can put it all into perspective. For one thing we are here suffering through the troubles of life and have to carry on remembering that, as my grandma used to say, death is a part of life. We have to embrace it and keep it moving.

This is a big loss, for sure. It rocked our world and has left an eternal void. But while we sit in awe, sadness and pain, we have to keep our attention on the world we live in, the real life line and life stories and how to help each other find our way. We will put everything into perspective. Give us some credit we can do the sifting or editing or censoring with our remote and cash but allow us the option. You are not allowed to indulge in your own concern or need to keep up with ratings. What about your audience. Yeah we are inquiring minds we want to know, we want to know everything.

As I said before, death is a part of life and it hurts. It cuts like a knife; he/she's out of our lives. No matter who it is, death is big, it hurts. But when it happens again in this magnitude, let us live the life that is normal - a smorgasbord of stuff, like always, because we'd rather stay in the moment than try to catch up or start over. Let us keep everything into perspective.

I pray that every one will have their full life, what ever their God has ordained. I pray it is long, productive, peaceful, healthy and full of love. Don't short change us when the eventual happens. Try to find a happy medium with the hot news of the moment tempered - balanced- with the everyday, essential life stories. It's not about ratings because folks surf around anyway. It should be about meeting the needs of your viewers and providing the service you are in the business of; giving information, all the information, timely and completely.
Rest in Peace.

He is out of my life; Gone but never forgotten!

"He's Out Of My Life"

He's Out Of My Life he's Out Of My Life
And I Don't Know Whether To Laugh Or Cry
I Don't Know Whether To Live Or Die
And It Cuts Like A Knife
He's Out Of My Life

It's Out Of My Hands
It's Out Of My Hands
To Think For so few Years he Was Here
And I Took Him For Granted I Was So Cavalier
Now The Way That It Stands
He's Out Of My Hands

So I've Learned That Love's Not Possession
And I've Learned That Love Won't Wait
Now I've Learned That Love Needs Expression
But I Learned Too Late

He's Out Of My Life he's Out Of My Life
Damned Indecision And Cursed Pride
Kept My Love For Him Locked Deep Inside
And It Cuts Like A Knife
He's Out Of My Life
--Michael Jackson, 1979 Off the Wall album - "She's Out of my Life"

Thank you for the memories. Thank you for the love. Thank you ! Rest in peace!

My Wordbead Meme trial

As I continue my quest to learn about meme so that I can make it a regular feature here, I came across Wordbead on the daily meme blog. It was listed as an option for memes along with others. I chose to try this one from the list because I am a crafts person. I spent many hours and dollars on beads and beads projects with my kids, so naturally, I was smitten by the prospect.

I just collected the word list for this week, Junne 21, and will atempt to "string them together" to form some beautiful, hopefully, pieces. The five words are underlined and linked to the dictionary. Please tell me what you think. Better yet join me!

The huge oak tree sits ominously behind the shed of the old house at the end of the lane.

You could sit quiet there for hours enjoying the breeze and the comfort of nature and no one would know and disturb you. Sitting under this oak tree, you will drift way into thoughts of wonders and estacy, staying preoccupied with thoughts and ambigious feelings for hours unend. These are the thoughts you would keep private or only share with your closest confidant because it may be seen as obscene . Afterall, these thoughts could leads to actions that can be responsible for the creation of complex organisms. We are all born as a result of quiet preoccupation of thoughts and actions that seems obscene but can be the beginning of a beautiful life.

What do you think? am I on the right track? Please comment!

A Fathers Day Tribute to you

If the new American father feels bewildered and even defeated,
let him take comfort from the fact that whatever he does in any fathering situation

has a fifty percent chance of being right. - Bill Cosby

As I thought about a tribute for father’s day, I thought I would post a famous quote framed in a nice border, something pointed and simple. I searched the web for a quote, because I was lazy to try to remember one from my father or grandfather, or even one from my husband. As I scrolled through quotes I came upon this one by Bill Cosby and thought, this is it! As I read through, it brought to mind an experience we had which makes this quote real. I couldn’t just put this one in the frame and post it as I thought because I have a story.

Several years ago I had to work on a day that the kids were off from school and my husband was off from work. I decided not to take the day off but to leave the three of them home to take care of each other. They got along famously. They didn’t have anything planned so I went off without getting the kids dressed or combed their hair etc. I figured he could manage their daily upkeep until I got back home.

Around mid-day that day, my husband called me to say he had to go out on some business and he would bring the girls to me at the job. The girls were excited at the prospect of coming to see me but I was mortified. It was ok for the kids to come to me but I was worried about how he would do their hair. Getting them washed and dressed for the trip was no concern at all. It was the hair. He has never done their hair and they had long thick curly hair. They were way too young at the time, single digit ages, to be able to really help either. I composed my self and kept working waiting for them to arrive and prepared to accept some funny hair do.

My husband called again to say he will be leaving soon but he was not sure how to do their hair. I gasped, just leave it as is and bring me the hair stuff bag, or pull it back with the clips. He said not to worry he will do the best he could, so I accepted. When they arrived, they were very happy to see me and quite happy that daddy did their hair. I tool a look and said nice job! He looked at me and we both smiled. It wasn’t my hair combing or maybe a female’s standard but he did the best he could and you know what, it wasn’t half bad. So, yeah, it was half right. The part was crooked, the sections uneven, the twists undefined and shaggy but the clips were on in matching colors.
I am very grateful that my kids have such a devoted and caring father. He worships the ground they walk on and they love him.

Happy fathers day to all. Give it your best and it will be at least half right. We will take your best all of the time. And the kids, they will love you for it. Thanks Dr. Crosby, well said.

My First 5 Questions Post

I've been on a quest to understand and participate in memes for awhile now and still haven't ventured into it. I am still looking to get a regular fun item to add to the oh hum drum blog. As I did my blog visits yesterday, I read one of my faves at some day I'll get there. She had a post "5 More Questions." This caught my eyes so I checked it out. She was responding to 5 questions she picked up from Extranjera . She offered to pass along 5 questions to anyone who asked. I am seeing this as a sort of meme and figured I'd give it a shot. Guess what? I asked AND as promised, she promptly sent them to me. I will therefore give it a shot! Thanks guys! Feel free to play along!

1. Describe your perfect day.
A bright sunny day in the back yard with plenty to eat and drink, lots of plants and flowers in bloom. Nothing to do, no one waiting for me to pick them up, drop them off or get involved with them and their needs. Me and myself and nature.

2. What made you start a blog?
I like to write and have had this desire to write, causally for a long time. This desire has been getting stronger and stronger recently but I don't quite have the time or resources. I hope some day I'll get there. I am also always commenting on things and making complaints in letters to the editor etc. My kids have this thing about me writing, so they limit their issues or caution each other, be careful or don't say that, "she's gonna write a letter!" I think that the blog could be a vehicle or means to both ends for now.

3. Who in your family knows about your blog, if no one, why?
Everyone! My computer is in an area of the room so that we can see what is going on. When I am at the computer, especially late in the night, it's the standard retort of the gang as to why I am still up, - she is writing her blog! My kids are really cute.

4. If you could break the law for one full day without consequences, what would you do?
This is a tough one. I am one of those people who always say and try very hard to stay on the "straight and narrow" so even though its a 'free pass' for a day, I'd be looking around and behind me a lot and feeling weird. That being said, I would probably erase all of the parking tickets that exists and park any place I found without regard.

5. What is your biggest regret?
Some unfinished business that is no longer a priority for me. I came home from my European escapade prematurely. I buckled and ran home before I completed my junket.