Tuesday, May 30, 2006

New Photos in my flickr

I've been busy with picture taking lately, including this pretty one from the backyard:


To see more, including our three cats and two dogs, please visit here.

^_^

Monday, May 29, 2006

Memorial Day weekend

So, not really knowing any of my relatives that have served in any military, I am not very familiar with Memorial Day, other than having the day off and knowing that it's a good day to work if they pay overtime. I happened to notice that there is an actual Memorial Day and an observed Memorial Day. Digging around on the 'net, I found that Memorial Day became a three-day weekend in 1971. I am not sure I have enough information to set my conviction about the matter, but I find it interesting that there is a movement out there to move the observation of Memorial Day back to May 30, and to consider it a national day of mourning and solemn respect, rather than a holiday.

Which of course, brings me to the idea of a holiday, or holy day, and how we observe these dates. This is similar to the debate about the "War on Christmas" or I suppose to a larger extent, the supposed death of our morals and values. I guess we could stage a fight by pittting crass commercialism ("President's Day Sales" make me giggle) against the idea that holidays are a chance to take time off to spend with family and friends. I don't know which argument would win or if anyone would even attend the fight. It certainly wouldn't be on pay-per-view.

As for Memorial Day, like I said it's hard to relate. I don't think anyone should be forced to serve, and yet I know some sort of call to serve the greater good should be something that we, as a nation, do togther. I admire those to decide to enlist and to challenge themselves mentally and physically. I hope that we as a nation are not taking them for granted or assuming that the right choices are being made on how to use the talents and stength of these brave men and women. I don't know if there is any true way to pay our respects, and I certainly don't know if once a year is even enough.

I think that if there wasn't a need for war or military force the price they have paid might barely (and just barely) be considered an even exchange.

Friday, May 12, 2006

Lookout, sidewalk, mom's clear for take off!

Hello all (and you know who you are!);

I am happy to report that mom is definitely on the mend. She was given the all clear to start driving again. It's always such a good thing to know that you can leave your house and go somewhere, even if it's just to the corner store or to the dollar show right near her house. It's definitely a good milestone and I am very proud of her. This is a very sweet Mother's Day for me because anything could have happened between my mom not having surgery at all, which would have probably led to either a stroke or heart attack, to any combination of other complications or additional issues. So, this Sunday I will be kicking back with my mom, having dinner, going to mass and being grateful that she's here.

Now, don't get me wrong, my relationship with my mom has not always been a mutual admiration society. I have certainly had my emotional baggage packed by things we have said or done to each other that would not have made for good family tv (unless you're talking a reality show, and even then...). There was a period of about 4 - 6 weeks where my mom wasn't talking to me (long story, not worth repeating here) and I had to make some decisions about how to handle myself. I decided not to beg for forgiveness of whatever she thought was the problem, but I didn't make her grovel either. It was definitely a sea change in how we regarded each other. When we finally cleared the air, I think we both realized that nothing says we have to have a relationship with each other unless we wanted to work at it. I would like to think she respects my ability to take care of myself, and I would say that I don't take her presence in my life for granted.

On a much lighter note, if you haven't seen LEGO Star Wars, I highly recommend seeking it out. There is going to be a sequel, based on the episodes IV, V and VI, and the poster is a riot! Check out the minisite at LucasArts

More later! ^_^

Wednesday, May 03, 2006

Home again, home again

Ok, so we've been home for almost a month, but hey, I have spiffy new photos!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kodmakitty

This is going to be a really short post, as I spent all of my time uploading photos last night, but I wanted to wish my hubby a Happy-Day-After-His-Birthday!

Geoff's birthday was fairly low-key, as we had run around like mad on Monday buying a new Subaru Forrester (pics to follow) and getting the dogs to the vet. He was able to sleep in just a little bit and then we needed to run errands. We ended the day with a great dinner at Steve's Back Room in St. Clair Shores.

Anyway, there are still more photos from Las Vegas that I will add to my flickr site and I will try to post more later.

^_^ Liza