My Weblog

It's New Release Day!

Designers get inspiration from the strangest places. I subscribe to a daily e-mail from a very pricey home and furniture site. (They're supposed to be "discount", so the big question is--"discount" from what starting point???) Anyway, I saw photos of a group of throw pillows that I thought were just scrumptious and that started me off on this kit.

In general, I am not a muted colors person. They scare me, LOL. But this was such a beautiful color palette and this kit happened with no struggle at all. I hope you like it!

The kit is available exclusively at A Cherry on Top and is 30% off on introductory special. The kit image is linked to my store. You can buy the full kit or you can buy the "separates".

The "separates" are also on special at 30% off. We also have some extras for you and they're gorgeous, y'all! (Don't let that "elements" preview scare you--This kit is packed with element goodness.)

The add-ons, these beautiful extras, are also on special. 30% off introductory special. You can find everything HERE.

There will be an extra little special something-something to go with this kit. Keep watching THIS SPACE!

Last week's kit was From My Heart to Yours, a kit oriented toward Valentine's day. I have a new addition to that kit. First let me remind you what the kit looked like and then I'll show you our new goodie!

Here's the kit:

And here's some gorgeous Word Art to coordinate with the kit:

I've left everything on this kit at 30% off to help you take advantage of the kit AND this beautiful word art. You can find it here.

Paroled til tomorrow......

I thought I was going to lose about 4 hours today. Jen needed a babysitter for 3 hours and, with commute, there goes 4 hours. But she called a little while ago and I'm not needed til tomorrow!

The computer is still working! No screaming! I love it. Thank you, Lord.

I have been working on the my-all-time-favorite colors kit. I did some ricrak, a border and filled out the color choices on some stylized leaves. I know I'm prejudiced--after all, these are MY favorite colors--but this kit looks goooooooooood. I have one preview made but not saved.

I have done some straightening in the kitchen. That's it. I can see where I need to allocate some time these next few hours--to the house!

I'm still doing back-ups. Unfortunately, that is still going very slowly. But not as bad as it was yesterday, thank Heaven. I'm wondering if some of the slowness might have to do with the new EHD????

Well, this was lunch break. I need to get back to work. By the way, there are some totally gorgeous layouts up in the gallery at A Cherry on Top with the new kit. I don't always brag on my team the way I should, but they really outdid themselves this week! It is fun seeing the kit used with so many different styles......... You should go take a look--you'll be amazed. 

Bye for now. Oodles and oodles to do........

Second Chance Day..........

Thank God, I get a do-over on yesterday. It's called "today". I can now try again to accomplish some/all of the things I had hoped to do yesterday.

In my life time, I have watched God heal a dwarf hamster, a teacup poodle, my daughter (of two very serious conditions), myself, my grandson, a tape deck, and a freezer's ice maker, as a result of my prayers. The dwarf hamster had a "huge" growth--huge by dwarf hamster standards. I laid a finger on it, prayed for it and, by the next day, the growth went away. It never returned and the hamster lived many months thereafter. The teacup poodle was bitten by another dog and her spinal cord was damaged. The vets forecast that she would be paralyzed for the rest of her life and recommended we put her down. We prayed for her. Over time, she learned to walk again and lived another 8 years. My daughter, during the first 20 years of her life was diagnosed with bilateral mirror image JRA and with another life threatening illness. We prayed and she was healed. My own back, with no more muscle spasms, is another testimony, one I'm proving every day. My grandson had two different tests confirming Celiacs Disease. I prayed, receiving the witness of the Holy Spirit that he was healed. Subsequent tests by a very hoity toity specialist in the field of Pediatric Gastroenterology confirm--no Celiacs. I used to listen to religious tapes during my long commute back and forth to work. I prayed over the tape player in my car after it ceased to work and it started up again and worked til I bought another car. Not long ago, the freezer stopped making ice cubes. It went several days without making a single ice cube. I prayed, it started up again and hasn't quit since. So, I prayed over this computer. I'm counting on it being "healed" too. In the last couple of months, I've had to buy a mouse and an EHD. I've taped my gel-filled mousepad together with strapping tape so it would stop oozing sticky stuff all over me. I've taped the keyboard together. I am NOT wildly enthusiastic about spending more money on this computer. So, I've prayed for God to fix it. I'm sure He knows how.......... And this morning, it is not screaming at me as it was the last two days....... I'm sure the computer guy would fix her up and do so at a very low price. But I now think it was the hard drive that was misbehaving and I know if that failed, I'd be stuck buying new versions of a lot of software. I can back up everything, but "installing" software on a new computer or on a new hard drive generally requires original software. That means buying a new edition of PSE, of Office, and lots more that I use continuously. And that would mean lots of cash I am not prepared to spend. I know that the money I have now may be what is used in December to buy food!

So, what about this gift of today? Well, I got new product uploaded for the CT late last night, but I had forgotten to do a preview for the glitters, so I have to do that early this morning. Then I need to get it uploaded for them. Then I can go back to finishing up those two kits I've got in the works.

Around here, pretty much everything that was on yesterday's to do list needs to be on today's to do list because I mostly just got all crazy in trying to get that CT update done and in watching this computer churn away on back ups. I did put in some time working on this desk, and it looks some better, but it needs a lot more done to it! Well, none of that today. I have "better" things to do! So, I'll just flip back to yesterday's morning post and start there!

Alright. I got new product uploaded late last night but I still need to write the new product update for this blog and I need to post a new product update in the A Cherry On Top forum and those things need to be done immediately. So, I can't linger here. You be blessed today!

Trouble at Tara

My computer is giving me the biggest headache. I started uploads hours ago, figuring my computer may be working slowly but it's working and I need to get these uploads done. It is a terminal process. But, who knows if it will be working in the morning??????

I am a total failure at working my plan on this house today. I carried one box to the van. Other than that, pretty much NOTHING.

It took forever to put together my CT update because my computer is moving so slowly. Actually it seems to be a little better tonight than it was this morning, but it's still slow. I ended up choosing next week's kit at the last minute and having to do a lot of detail work before I could get it uploaded. I hate that! It's stressful!

That's it. It's late and I need sleep, if only because I have a headache, again or yet, I don't know which. Anyway, I hope I sleep well and I wish the same for you!

Total Fail..........

I am very frustrated with the way the morning has gone. It's another one of those days when I am just sure God intended me to stay in bed all day.......or maybe even hide under it!

The computer is moving so slowly I hardly know how to explain it. Here, let me try this. I've been trying to back up I've been trying to back up 9.59 GB for hours. More than 4 hours to be exact. And it is still saying it needs 15 minutes to complete the task. This should have taken no more than an hour. And everything else, not just backups, is S-L-O-W. It has been taking a very long time to open files in Photoshop. This means it has taken forever to write my CT update because I need to resize and save files in a different format to show them what I'm working on. It has been downright awful. The one bright spot is that I've done some work on the desktop in the meantime. Of course, there were a multitude of other things I had in mind to accomplish that are just not going to happen today.

Please, God, don't let the computer guy be on vacation in some far away place........

So, here I am.........

just me and my headache. I just took my BP and it's fine, so it must be sinuses. Dear Lord, let me sneeze!

So, my research yesterday for word art stuff has paid off. Looks like it's gonna work. And I think I am going to order those running shoes I found. They're in my shopping cart, I just need to push the button. Of course, that's the hard part, turning loose of the money.......

Well, I have an e-mail out to my favorite computer repair guy. If I don't hear from him in the next couple of hours, I'll call him. I originally thought it might be the fan, but I'm thinking my very old hard drive may be failing. It'll be good to have someone who knows what he's doing come and take a look at it. I would much rather it be the fan......... much cheaper and a whole lot less work... I swear, computer systems always need new shoes. The care and feeding of a computer system gets pricey after a while......

Today is update the CT day. Thankfully, I've made a whole lot of progress on those kits so I will have something to show them to prove I haven't been sitting on my thumbs all week, LOL. Before I do that, I have to figure out what the heck we're going to sell in February, LOL. I have a bunch of completed kits, but I think it's important to mix things up a bit as to color and theme, etc.

So, what will I do with the gift of today? Well, update the CT. And push ahead on those two kits. Stylized leaves for one and it's done. Got to check the other and see what holes I need to plug there..... Then it's previews and alphas and alpha previews and details.......

I am torn as to what I should do around here. Part of me says with the computer tech hopefully headed my way today, I should spend the day or a big part of it working on desk stuff. Paying bills, filing, sorting, etc. Lord knows, tax season will kick off sometime next week. In fact I have 3 ladies who are usually first through the door, and I'm kinda surprised I haven't heard from them yet. It would be good to have a desk that is in order so it doesn't look like they're getting their tax return done by the Mad Hatter.

The other part of me says I need to keep all the rest of the house going and I won't be able to sit in this chair all day anyway because my tush will be screaming in pain if I do. I'll have to plan some way to integrate the two, I guess--some time on house, some time on desk.

I'm starting in this room today. I have made it to this side of the room where I hope to make some progress not just on dusting but on sorting and pitching. I have an open box of office supplies that is about 98% full and needs carried off to the spare room. We'll see what we can make happen over here.

In the living room, I will police up all the bits and pieces that are lying around. Things that need to be packed or put away. And, some dusting would be in order. I can see the dust on the coffee table........

Guest room, sort more clothes. "Junk"/spare room, iron. That room is a pit but I'm going to find that ironing board first and foremost and then work my way around the room, a bit at a time.

Hall bath? I can't think of a thing that needs cleaned in there right now. Isn't THAT remarkable?????

Hall--laundry to do, laundry dried and waiting to be folded, hanging clothes to put away if I get that far today.

Master Bedroom--it's back into the closet. Looking for things that need to go away. Looking for things I need to put in their proper place.

Master Bath--today doesn't feel like a shelf-moving day. That would be what's left to try to do in there. I could stand to organize the cupboards, but that's a might big project to start on the eve of tax season. I dunno.......

Kitchen--shelf number 2 in the fridge and more general clean up.

Dining room--I have two full boxes to carry to the van. And one almost full box to fill up and move to the spare room. I'm about ready to start another garbage bag for clothes too.

And, if I get that far, I'll have done the full circuit. I seriously doubt I'll make it that far since I also need to spend lots of time on this desk. But, we'll see.

I haven't gone to the bank yet to deposit these checks, but I think today is the day. I have to go out today anyway to buy milk.

I'm still doing backups from one EHD to the other. It will simplify my life immensely when that is done! I've finally made it half way through that biggest file. Still have about 175 gigs to go and there may be some small files hanging around that aren't backed up. I'll have to take a look.

Now, that's quite a list, and if I got through all of it, I truly wonder if the house would look appreciably better.  And, I am pretty sure that I'm not going to get through all of it. I am going to have to try to concentrate on how good it feels to have some of it done and have made an improvement. If I think about what is not done, I'll just plop down in the middle of the floor and give up, LOL.

Eye candy!  We need some! Karen posted a beautiful page with the Valentine's kit. Let me grab it.

Karen uses this collage style for layouts often and it works out well for her. Of course, Karen always recolors my kits and experiments. The plaid paper is NOT from the kit--she made that herself. I sometimes wonder why she's not the designer and I'm not the CT member. She has some mad Photoshop skills! This page records a recent visit from her college roommate. She recently got to spend 4-5 days with this lady after not seeing her for almost 30 years!

I'm out of here. I have places to go and things to do. You be blessed today.

 

Still too much to do........

Well, I've been working on design, but I don't feel as though I've accomplished enough. I had one frame that I wanted to put into the my-all-time-favorite-colors kit. I tried it; it looked awful. That idea is now in the recycle bin. But I discovered I did a very nice set of stylized leaves and have only created them in one color. I never do that. As much as possible I try to offer as many elements as I can in every color in the kit. That's why my kits so often have 2 or 3 elements files....... Some folks don't like that. But, I don't want my customers to have to rummage around for a green flower and then try to recolor it to the proper shade if green is one of the colors in the kit. I feel like it's my responsibility to provide a flower that coordinates with the kit in each color. I also don't feel it is right for me to "dictate" the colors in which any particular element should be offered. The customer who buys the kit may have very different ideas from mine! So, anyway, I have to do more stylized leaves and then I am calling it quits for design work on that kit.

On the spring-ish kit, I've done some lace yoyos and a frame and another owl. I still need more frames and to create that one flower I was working on earlier in more than one color. Then I'll step back and see what isn't there. For instance, I just realized I haven't done any kind of journaler for that kit yet. And I want to do some buttons for layering in the center of some of these flowers I've made. Ugh! I thought I was closer to being done than that..........

I straightened up the kitchen and loaded up the dishwasher and I've finished off both the keeper box and the donate box of CDs/books. Time to carry one to the van and the other to the spare room. Now I've started on another box of donate books. I went out to the garage to carry in more books. Remember, I told you there are 15 boxes still to go of stuff packed up in November, 2008? (And those are just the boxes in the garage.......) I think most of that is books. I had the most horrifying thought while I was in the garage--what if that batch of boxes that Joe brought from California and never unpacked has more books? Oh, I am already tired of carrying boxes of books and I am on my last smallish box. What a horrible thought.......

I found out what "mostly sunny" from this morning's forecast meant. Apparently it meant the morning would be bright and sunny and by 3PM the sky would be so overcast it would look like sunset. But, when sunset actually rolled around, it was glorious. We don't often see such colorful sunsets because we don't often have clouds...... The two go together but don't ask me to explain. They just do. It was so pretty, I went out to take a picture. And, oddly enough, the side door that only opens sometimes opened tonight to make the picture taking easier. Yay!

I spent part of the afternoon researching what could possibly be used for word art on the next kit. There's one gorgeous piece so far, but we usually sell them in packs of 4.......... I came up with a few ideas. Now it's time to see if they were workable ideas.

I also researched running shoes. The best price I have found on the shoe I am most familiar with is $85 with a $15 coupon. Amazon had them cheaper, but they no longer have my size. I think I am going to order a pair from Amazon that is on clearance. This particular model had a good write up in Runners World so they should give good support and good shock absorption. If these work out, and they probably will, I will have found a bargain. They are available for $48 with free shipping! I've been wearing New Balance running shoes for a long time, years, in fact, and I've never had a pair that disappointed. I stick with them partly for performance and partly because I know what size I wear and I'm confident they'll be made over the same last and will fit. Of course, I do some research before I buy and I don't go for the cheapest model out there either because I don't replace them in the time frame that is recommended. Anyway, I think these will do the job, even though I'm not familiar with them, and I won't have to worry about shoes for another year. Well, in theory, I should buy another pair in about 3 months, but that's not going to happen. I used to be able to do that, but now I wear them a year and thank God I have what I have.

I had another horrifying thought--soon, very soon, I am going to have to order more meds from Mexico. There goes another $80-$90.......... But, it's got to be done and I'm just grateful I have the money to do it. That ought to keep me in meds for about a year. Now, if the Lord would give me the money to drive to Mexico, see the doctor, and get some blood tests done, I'd be really happy. In the alternative, He can feel free to bring on the absence of symptoms any time He wants to!

All right. The housework part of my life has so far been a dismal failure. Not near enough done. So I am signing off and starting the next bit of dusting in this room.

 

Moving right along.......

Well, I have a reasonable showing for the morning. I worked in the Master Bedroom closet a bit. I need to do that on a day when I am willing to take my warm sweatshirt off and try on clothes. That would be a day when it's warm in the bedroom! I'm not sure when that will be........ Maybe I can carry the space heater in there and warm it up enough to be enthusiastic about trying on clothes? As it is, that moment between taking off the warm flannel nightgown and wrestling the sweatshirt over my head is no fun at all. I don't look forward to changing clothes in there!

I also did the Liquid Gold treatment on the wood in the Master Bath. By the time I got done bending to do that, I decided tomorrow might be a better day to see if I can move those shelves........

The top shelf of the fridge has been sorted through and is sparkly clean. I'd wanted to take it out and take it to the sink, but I couldn't get it out. So I spent a good while bent over, scrubbing at it with the sponge. Better than nothing, for sure.

On the design side, I've done well. I created the solids for the my-all-time-favorite-colors kit. I did strings for both the spring-ish kit and the other. I did two cute owls for the spring-ish kit. I created all the glitter for the spring-ish kit. And all the glitter for the other kit. Also inserted the solids for both kits into the working previews. Oh, and I made a series of flat ribbons for the spring-ish kit. Right now I'm working on re-creating a series of flowers. I created the original, and then lost it in a computer lock up. So now I'm trying to duplicate it....  FUN--not! Just requires patience and I'm in a hurry today, LOL. Guess I'll have to slow down and do it right--I don't want to create something sloppy and then ask people to pay for it!!!!!!!

Odd thing..........I got an e-mail from my stepdaughter asking for help with her college homework. I don't mind helping at all, but I think this is the first direct communication I've had from her since her father's death. Even when I've sent her e-mail or commented on things on FB there has been no response. Except once when she said something snide on FB that I'm pretty sure was aimed at me. Well, I guess I'm still good for something! She used to call and ask her Dad for help and, frequently, he'd end up asking me, all the while making fun of my "fancy education". I guess it is a good thing I had that "fancy education", otherwise I might not have been able to answer those questions........

Honestly, sometimes I think some teachers ought to be shot. Here's a kid that is taking her first semester classes at a junior college. She has no familiarity with college subjects unless they are a carryover from high school--like taking English in high school and then again in college. But, in the first week of classes, this dipsy instructor wants her to write an autobiography "from a sociological perspective". What college freshman, in the first week of classes, has a clue what "from a sociological perspective" means? Geez....... I will probably remember til I die the day Jennifer announced she had to write a paper about herself as if she were an onion or some such milarkey. Hey, folks, I'm Miss Literal. I have no clue how anyone would write about anyone as if they were an onion because it's never actually happened and it never will actually happen. What an exercise in nonsense! I was of no help whatsoever, as I remember it, on that assignment!

I considered this morning that rather than that Prime Rib dinner and more cleaning tools from Fly Lady, maybe I should work on getting some new running shoes. I am beginning to believe I am dreaming the impossible dream when it comes to not wanting to pay $65 for them. I have searched and searched shoe sites and Amazon, and that is about the best I can find, price wise. I looked at some really cute shoes, in my size and by two different manufacturers I really like, but that's not what I need. I need a pair of New Balance running shoes, WR760. I found a site that had 8 different styles of New Balance running shoes on sale. And the prices were good, BUT they were all wide widths. Yeah, like I could wear those! So now I have to decide if I want to fork out $65 for shoes or go with my original plan. I do NEED the shoes. I can tell because I've had some aches and pains in knees and hips that don't occur when the shoes are new and have good shock absorption.

 

Well, I'm going hunting in my kitchen for food. I need sustenance! Stay calm and carry on!

I must be a blogging success--

I got spammed again, but good. I've blocked the spammers and I will carry on!

I actually had a decent night's sleep last night. I don't know what I did right to cause that to happen, but whatever it was, I hope I do it again today! We are supposed to have a high of 68 degrees today and "mostly clear" skies. I'm not sure I can define "mostly clear" but it sounds good.

I arrived here in the office to find my computer had rebooted again overnight. I lost some color schemes, but I know where they came from so I can get 'em again. What was worrisome was that the computer was making a good bit of noise. Sounds to me like the computer fan is trying to go out again.......I won't have that, I tell you!

My last conscious act before going to bed last night was to order those new underwear items. Hooray! I have a few pairs that are becoming an embarrassment (washed til they're threadbare and worse) and those are headed for the trash! I would guess, having waited 4 years for new underwear, I should finally have some (and, believe me, it is time!) by next week at the latest.

I made a slightly bigger dent in the clean up process before I headed to bed.  Sorted through clothes in the guest room, ironed a beautiful blue shirt, applied Liquid Gold to the wood in the hall bath, and dried a load of clothes as well as spending just 3 minutes working on those hanging clothes.And, while I was sitting here, I opened mail and sorted accumulated paper on the desk.

So, today, I'll start in the Master bedroom. Back in the closet I go. I still have a few items on the floor to deal with and then I am going to see what I can do about putting that closet on a diet. I know there are some things in there I kept around just so I would have some variety in what I wore. They're really not things that are flattering and I think I can get rid of them now. They are oversized based on my having lost a good bit of weight.

Master Bath is looking good. I'll do some Liquid Gold on that cabinet today. And I'm going to make an attempt at moving that set of shelves that's in there. I'm thinking I may not be able to do it but I won't know til I try.

My plan yesterday for the kitchen was to start working on the inside of the fridge. I have some clean up to do in there too.

In the dining room, I've moved the closed up box to the van. I have several boxes open, needing to be filled up. CDs to keep and CDs to donate. There's room in both for books if they're the right (small) size. I guess I'll go dig in the garage for more books.........Maybe I'll even take a shot at cleaning that ceiling fan!

Since I finished everything I am going to do on the other credenza, I am moving on across this room. Wiping down filing cabinets and book shelves and hoping to make it to my credenza. One of the real problems with living out of boxes is that there is no place to put things. So, stuff just piles up. The whole objective of this clean up is to empty stuff out so that the floors can be done. Yes, I am thrilled to be getting rid of a mountain of stuff that needs to be gone, but it makes no sense to clean out the credenza and then turn around and store more stuff in it. It's a pain, let me tell you.

I am down now to dealing with little stuff that's loose in the living room. An empty plant pot. Some H&B stuff I fished out that needs to be moved to the bathroom, so, I guess that's what I will work on in there today.

Still sorting clothes in the guest room. Still sorting and ironing in the "junk" room. Nothing much left to do in the hall bath except a daylight application of that pumice stone to the throne to try to remove more of that limestone. I guess I'd better do this out of order because otherwise it will NOT be daylight when I get there!

And there is laundry to fold in the hall. The end.........unless I somehow have enough oomph to start over.

I should be finished with the design work on the my-all-time-favorite-colors kit this morning. Probably no alphas, but the kit will be done. That will still leave me some time to pull out that spring-ish kit and work on it some. Remember, I have to report to the CT tomorrow about what I accomplished this week......... They are hard taskmasters, LOL!

Speaking of the CT, I mentioned that Lori had done a bunch of pages with From My Heart to Yours. What I discovered yesterday is that she also did a card. I think this is a great kit with which to make Valentine's cards.

And, with that, I am off to get ready for the day! It's gonna be a full one! YOU be BLESSED today!

Out of balance........

I've done well on the design side. I only need a couple more elements for the my-all-time-favorite-colors kit. I think some string, some greenery, and one more "special" frame will do it. Then it's on to previews and alphas, and like that.....

I have done a lot of fetching and carrying, but I'm not so sure about the cleaning. I made two trips to the car carrying plastic in-boxes to be donated. And another trip with a box of books. I am going to have to go to the charity drop off center in the next day or so. If I don't, something in the back of the van is sure to break...... I brought in all the paper and started on dog food--1 bucket down, 20 or so to go, LOL.

I have sorted through the tapes. I am keeping just a few, including the ones that were mine in the first place. I have, I think 11 for Matthew. I guess that means I have to start another Matthew box. (I would have had to do this anyway, sooner or later. I'm sure there is stuff lurking in the desk and in the garage that should go to him.) Some tapes went in the trash. Anyway, I got that center part of the credenza finished--cleaned out, packed up, trashed, dusted, etc.--and even got the doors back on correctly, something Joe couldn't figure out how to do. It was a bit of a brain teaser, but I did it.

Finally, in the living room, I found the box that had my Vitamin C in it. I rescued that and the Vitamin E and some H&B products that would be better used or packed up elsewhere and relocated the box to the junk room. The box is not full by any means, so it's just sitting in there, but at least it's out of the living room. Another few days and the living room will look like a "normal" person lives here. Now if only I could say that the floors were done.........

So, some little odd jobs are done, but I haven't made much progress on my "circuit riding". I can't decide if I'm taking myself out to dinner tonight or some other night. I'm thinking it should be some other night, a night when I've made more progress and can afford the time. As it stands here, I should just keep on working, I think.........I have an hour to make up my mind--the special price on the Prime Rib dinner kicks in at 7PM.

 

I have no business stopping......

to post right now. I have very little on my list of things to do today accomplished. I finally decided those index dividers were trash. I was prepared to stand and sort them into packs, paper clip them, and then donate them. However, they are multiple vintages and types and the sorting got the better of me. I made a decision on the tapes as well. I will give the tapes of George's music to Matthew. I don't want to be guilty in my own eyes of holding onto anything that should possibly go to him. So, I am sorting tapes. Many of Joe's tapes are unlabeled. Some of my tapes are mixed in. It's another "Joe box". Just put things somewhere and worry about retrieving anything later...... Here's a fun fact: I have a little storage unit for audio tapes. Why did we need a box in the first place???????

I did not watch the State of the Union speech last night. I knew it would most likely sicken me. I found this quote this morning and almost puked on my keyboard: President Obama says "America is back," and anyone who tells you otherwise "doesn't know what they're talking about."

I was talking to my mother the other day. One of the things we discussed is that many of Obama's supporters are young and idealistic. It is those of us who have a few notches on our guns, who've been around the block, who live in the real world, who do not support him, by and large. We've lived through the pie in the sky dreams. We lived through President Johnson's War on Poverty. We lived through "what can you do for your country". We've lived through so many broken political promises and bankrupt programs and the exposure of so much graft and so many unethical practices in government. We know these programs don't work. They never have and they never will.

We know that average unemployment in the US for decades has been around 4%. How can you say "America is back" when current unemployment is 9% and that doesn't take into account all those who have used up their unemployment benefits or aren't eligible or have just given up? How can you say "America is back" when our credit has been devalued, we are still borrowing to fund useless or minimally useful programs, and we are borrowing at higher rates? Our Federal debt is now more than 100% of our Gross Domestic Product. How, Mr. Obama, are we going to pay it back?

If a typical US household has income of $50,000 a year (and I pulled that number from the air), that would translate to $750,000 in debt for that household. If these numbers were true at the family level, the bankruptcy courts could never handle the number of bankruptcies being filed. And, let's face it, that family has to eat, pay rent, cover the cost of commuting to work, buy shoes for growing children's feet, and so on. How much of its $50,000 a year could it possibly pay toward debt retirement? THIS is America right now, Mr. Obama. And, only twice in the history of this country have we ever owed more than the GDP--right after World War II and now. Back to what, Mr. Obama?

I have seen more political payoffs in the last 3 years that were open and totally visible to the casual observer than I can recall seeing in the previous 40 years. And I have never seen such open disregard for public opinion as is exhibited by this administration. And out and out lies: "Our borders are safer now than ever"....... 15.1% of America lives at or below the poverty level as of 2011, Mr. President. That is higher than at any year since 1933. Yeah, right, we're back. But, back to what?

Either Mr. Obama is a cock-eyed optimist, a lot dumber than I think he is, or an out and out liar. We can't live on optimism. We can't live on idealism. We have to live on reality and he is living somewhere else.

Pardon me for sounding off politically here on this blog. It IS my blog and I do pay for it and get to say what I think. I try to stay out of this crap to the extent I can, but sounding off to the dogs isn't very satisfying. Sometimes you just have to get things out.