From Where I Stand

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Location: West Coast, Florida, United States

A reader and a writer. A dreamer and a doer.

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Can't sleep tonight. It's been like this for days. Seems like my allergy symptoms go into overdrive when I am in my house. That is so weird, because I have high-tech, expensive, air cleaner units all over the place, I keep my place super clean, but still, the symptoms lessen when I leave home. I'm getting really worried that I'm allergic to my dog. Honestly, I've had this suspicion for a long time, but just don't want to face it. Guess I would rather suffer like this than not have my little buddy around.

Oh, dear, what do I do??????

I can't breath well enough to lay down on my bed, I am sneezing constantly and blowing my nose all the time. There are mounds of used tissues in every waste can in the house.

Helllllllp!

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Joy!!!!! I'm getting a new niece!!! Here are some pictures. Sorry, I am not very good at this stuff yet, so you will have to crank your head sideways to look at the pictures right-side-up. These snapshots were taken when she visited us last Thanksgiving. While she was here, we had a birthday party for her - 4 years old!!!







Helen has her mother's face.






For those of you who know the ongoing saga of Helen, you will be glad to hear that SHE IS COMING!!!!! For those of you who don't know, I'll fill you in on the details when I have more time.
Dave and Dawn just called me from NYC. They had just left the courthouse and were grabbing a quick bite before going to the airport.
Today, Helen's father conceded that he can't take care of his child, and that he doesn't object to Dave and Dawn being granted legal guardianship of her. They spent almost an hour talking with him privately, assuring him that they didn't intend to keep him out of her life, they just wanted the opportunity and authority to parent her and give her the home she needs. After a year of waffling, he seems to understand that they are sincere, and not interested in turning her against her daddy. They have a good track record at this, and he realizes that.
The judge was ready to have Helen's bags packed, ask Dave and Dawn to stay another night while he finalized all the necessary papers, and send her home with them tomorrow. But the father's lawyer wanted to wait, and the judge adjudicated that she will come to visit for one month, a month from now. At the end of that month's time, there will be final court hearing which will (hopefully - please God) give them guardianship. So, she may very well be coming here and STAYING!!!!!!! The "system" may, or may not, require, that Helen be present in NYC at the time of that hearing. If so, Dave and Dawn will travel there with her. If not, their attorney will represent them and they will go about their daily routines with Helen and their other child.
Helen's poor mother has been gone for over a year, now, and her father is still losing his battle against addiction and all that goes along with it. He is still in and out of homeless shelters, he doesn't often show up to visit his daughter, and he is not following through with his state-funded treatment programs. Today, the court adjudicated him guilty of child neglect.
We are truly, honestly sorry that this man is so lost, but there is nothing our family can do about that. What we can do is give Helen a home and an extended family that will give her a home with a stay-at-home mother, love her, support her and raise her with healthy self-esteem and healthy respect for all others.
She will have her grandmother's spiritual influence, Dawn's continual presence and care, and David's special brand of discipline - drowned in love and respect - just as he has given John all these years. And, of course, two aunts living close by to back up the family program and - last but not least - me, who can visit from time to time and spoil her without ruining her character! Yay!!!!! My part is the most fun!
I'm getting a new niece! Yay!!!!!!!!

Saturday, February 14, 2009

Yesterday and today gave us some wonderful weather. Yesterday evening, I drove to Naples early in the evening. The air was filled with a heavy mist. That's the best way to describe it. It wasn't thick enough to be fog, or energetic enough to be rain, but the atmosphere was so full of moisture and clouds that it felt like navigating through an introduction to one of the "Twilight Zone" series.

Standing outside in this air feels like standing in rain that is not moving. I can feel it on my face, the water is touching my skin, penetrating my face, and I'm just standing in it, soaking it in.

I haven't needed skin moisturizer or lip balm in a week. The air here is so wonderfully moist that I'm totally comfortable in my skin.

Visually, this reminds me of a late evening in the north, with thick snowflakes drifting slowly down, obliterating just enough of the landscape to make everything seem totally surreal. It looks, and feels, like a "fairyland" - a fantasy sort of place, where nothing is what it used to be, and anything is possible.

My sinuses are clean and clear. My face feels moist and fresh. My lungs are fully expanded. This is glorious!!!!! The moisture in the air has dampened all the nasty pollens, so all the allergens that usually float around in the air have been slammed down into the earth.

The air temperature is great - when I wake up in the morning, it's around 67 degrees Farenheit, that's around 19.44 degrees Celsius. During the day, it gets much warmer, and that is very comfortable.

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Barack Obama is coming to Fort Myers today for a PR speech. People were lined up overnight, two nights ago, to get tickets for the event. A friend of mine proudly waved her ticket yesterday - she got it because she is an elected official.

If I went, I would probably heckle the guy. He's trying to promote his stimulus package proposal. Yeah, right, I want to listen to him try explaining why borrowing more money from China and dumping it into our economy is going to make us stronger - NOT!

No Republicans have voted to approve his proposal. Funny, considering they supported Bush and his stupid spending policies.

No matter who is proposing it, it's still stupid.

I will be spending my day earning some honest cash, not borrowing any.

Wednesday, February 04, 2009

This morning I went to traffic court to fight a speeding ticket. I was mad about the ticket because I really didn't think the charge was right. I did my homework and went to court prepared.

The constable who gave me the ticket was there, with the same nasty attitude he had the day he charged me. He cut in on me while I was addressing the judge, and the judge didn't like that. He was trying to tell her that I had another speeding ticket 7 years ago. I guess he thought that had relevance to his case. The judge cut him off by saying she didn't care about my driving record in the past, and then she turned back to me. He was pissed off, and that made me feel good.

I asked for the papers he had in relation to the case, and took my time looking them over while everyone waited. I got him on a technicality - his radar gun had not been calibrated in the previous six months before he used it to "catch" me. The judge reprimanded him for using it without updated calibration and adjudicated me "not guilty" because "the state failed its burden of proof."

If that had not worked , I had another important argument ready, but after I saw the problem with the equipment, I knew I wouldn't need to bring up the other argument. Valid as it was, it wasn't needed for me to win my case.

As I was walking out of the courtroom, there were still other people waiting for their turn to be heard. The guy sitting on the outside of the first row gave me a "fist pump" sign and I grinned back at him. The guy sitting in the second row gave a smile and a "thumbs up" At that, I couldn't resist, I gave him a fist pump and did a little jump. I was feeling so triumphant!! The woman in the third row whispered "Way to go!"

I hope the constable noticed the exuberance on my part, and on the part of the others. I hope it made him miserable. He deserved it. I just hope the fat slug didn't go home tonight and take out his frustration on his wife or girlfriend by beating them up.

Monday, February 02, 2009


Today I hired a tech to come over and help me figure out how to upload pictures to this blog. Here goes:














This is Rocco, my little baby, taking his ease this morning. Rocco says hi, y'all!!