We The People

"Loyalty to country ALWAYS.

 Loyal to government when it deserves it."

 

~Mark Twain

 

One can say a lot about Berkeley. It's beautiful. It's a college town. It's sits up in the hills, and gives one a beautiful look at the San Francisco Bay. It has a decent college football team... GO BEARS! It is also the land of free speech, but make no mistake, there is a difference between free speech and HATE speech, and generally speaking there is little stomach for hate. But that doesn't stop folks who don't even live there to come and cause trouble, whether a liberal or a conservative is speaking. I have seen it for myself, when George W. Bush was in office, too many times to count. For the most part, those who cause the most trouble are there for the sole purpose of causing folks to turn on each other.Break windows. tag walls. You name it, opportunists will see their chance, and act on it.

 

I am not going to get into a big deep diatribe here about what goes on in Berkeley, instead I want to talk about what's happening on a national level. Our president has decided, yet again, to insert himself into the debate of who, how, when, why, and where free speech should or could exist. Trump wants to have it both ways. He want's to tweet like he is a private citizen, yet use his power as president to try to limit the rights of the people he serves to peacefully assemble, protest, and use their voice. It goes against all that we, as Americans hold dear and it shouldn't be tolerated. As president he does not have the right to intimate those who choose to use their voices as Americans. Period.

 

But so far, there are too many in government willing to remind the president that he has crossed a line, particularly this last weekend with his ridiculous attack against the NFL and NBA who have chosen to bow on one knee, during the National Anthem. I didn't think I would write much about politics anymore, but this last weekend cut deep with me. The fact that Trump would question Americans loyalty to this country, as he literally protects Putin's regime even after overwhelming proof of their interference in the 2016 election. It's sick. It's wrong. And it's scary because there is a lot of noise about what a buffoon he is, but very little about any kind of real censure or sanction, for tying to limit free speech in such a blatant and overtly manner.

 

 It's just one more chip away at our democracy carried out by this man, and at this point, the GOP. And that's not the least of which he has done this weekend. He is continuing is pissing contest with Kim Jong Un of North Korea. Again, with very little blow back from our government! And, yesterday it was widely reported that Jared Kushner, and Ivanka Trump have been using private emails addresses to conduct government business. Anyone remember the HELL Hillary Clinton was subjected to? But where is Trey Gowdy? Or Jason Chaffetz? Well, Jason is off working for Fox News, and Trey Gowdy just walks around paler than usual, but silent.

There is so much happening, I can barely keep up. I walk around scared and my speech has been off, big time, because of the lack of sleep messing with my Fibromyalgia. I want to crawl into autumn and never comeback out. I want to just focus on the leaves, but I am afraid that each sunset along the Pacific Beach will be my last one, because Kim Jong Un will launch a nuclear missile at San Francisco. I think about whether I am safe in the Central Valley. If it did hit the bay, would the fallout reach this far? All because Trump can't seem to understand words have consequences. He literally doesn't know the meaning of free speech, and how yelling FIRE in a crowded theater is not one of the forms protected. Right now he is yelling NUCLEAR in a crowded theater of the Pacific, but whose going to stop him?

No one.

So, I can chose to retreat into a shell of depression.

 

Drown myself in abstract terror.

 

Become one of the lucky ones, who can live their lives completely oblivious of the danger, as a form of self-preservation and freedom  from responsibility.

 

So far, it's been a combination of all three on any given day, or sometimes on the same day!

It's all so surreal, that at times I wonder when I died, and why no one will tell me when it happened, and under what circumstances. Life is always a difficult balance, but this new stress is on a different level. I'm not sure I am weighing it all in proper proportions. Sometimes I don't want to get up, but then I see that autumn sunlight peeking through my window, and I want to go out into that sun and soak it up because autumn only comes around once a year. I remember thinking last November, that everything looked so vibrant and amazing, that it might just be the last autumn I would see on earth, because who knew what he would say or do to get us all killed. And here I am, a year later, still worried, only it is about every... single... day. With autumn leaves as my only respite. But, as respites go, at least it's all about vibrant beauty, and a reminder to live life to it's ultimate color. And I appreciate that.

Thank you for letting my mind wander in and out of the head noise.

I promise I won't make this a habit!

#5 Leaf Of The Day

September 26th 2017

Cull Canyon

Mood: Quiet

~Me

 

A Little Bit Of This, A Little Bit Of That

Leaf Of The Day

October 3rd, 2016 

 

"Autumn is the eternal corrective. It is ripeness and color and a time of maturity; but it is also breadth and depth and distance. 

What man can stand with autumn on a hilltop and fail to see the span of his world and the meaning of the rolling 

hills that reach to the for horizon?

~Hal Borland

The world was a little bit of this, and a little bit of that, this past weekend! Saturday Alan and I took a short ride to the East Bay, where I did a bit of leaf photography under one of my favorite trees in Cull Canyon, while Sunday was spent watching football on TV with my guy, while the outside showed the first real signs that the earth has finally, finally, turned from treacherous summer, to chilly days, with hints of soft rain! You know, all the things that just make my heart sing! I can't wait for the first baked sweet potato of the year, covered in butter and cinnamon! And in just a couple short weeks we will finally reach our vacation, and with a little luck, we will finally get back to Plumas! I like when life is a little of this, and a little of that!

Don't you?

:)

 "Come said the wind to the leaves one day;

Come o're the meadows and we will play,

Put on your dresses scarlet and gold,

For summer is gone

and the days grow old."

~Children's Song 1880

Mood: Quiet

Me :)

The End Zone

"The same boys who got detention in elementary school for 

beating the crap out of people are now rewarded for it. They call it football."

~Laurie Halse Anderson

Speak

"Football is all very well as a game for rough girls, but is hardly suitable for delicate boys."

~Oscar Wilde

"Football has nothing to do with fair play. It is bound up with

 hatred, jealousy, boastfulness, disregard of all the rules and

 sadistic pleasure in witnessing violence...

 in other words it is war minus the shooting."

~George Orwell

The Collected Essays, Journalism And Letters Of

George Orwell

"Everybody has a preference. Some guys like them round. Some guys like them think. Some guys like them thin. Some guys like them brand new. Some guys like old balls."

~Tom Brady, referring to BALL preferences

1/22/2015

"We're going to be fine. This isn't ISIS, no one's dying, we'll get through this."

~Tom Brady, referring to the "Deflategate" scandal.

1/22/2015

That last quote by Tom Brady guarantees him a brilliant future in politics. I am guessing he will be a congressman or senator one day. I am sure the republican party is waiting with open arms to embrace the quarterback and his slightly deflated balls. Until then, he will be busy in the near future playing the Super Bowl, because, after all, there is no penalty for cheating, so really, did he cheat if there is no consequence for it?

Tom Brady

And

The New England Patriots Cheated.

The End

Go Seattle!

Mood: Quiet

~Me

Go 49ers! Go Eagles! With A Side Of YUCKY-BLECHS!

"Problems are not stops signs, they're guidelines."

~Dr. Robert Schuller

I slept late yesterday... really late. I am not sure why. Well, I was up until about 2:00 A.M. working on some editing, but that isn't all that late for me. I am a night owl, always have been, so I don't think that was it. I went to bed, and I had been asleep for about 3 hours, when Alan's alarm went off. BUZZZZZZZ! LOL. I hear it nearly every morning, and we usually talk for a few minutes, then I go back to sleep, which I did yesterday as well... so, I don't think that was it. About an hour later, Joey began crying to be let out to play. I don't let him out to play until much later in the day, when I can supervise the hilarity. We are all still learning our way, so it's just better to keep an eye on things. I got up and held him and we cooed with each other for about 20 minutes, then put him back in his box in the kitchen, and went back to bed.

3 hours later the phone rang, it was the doctor's office cancelling an appointment. I didn't know that at the time, and they left no message, just the caller ID. So, I had to call them back to find out what the call was about, then call Alan to have him call them and reschedule his appointment. Sigh. I then decided to get up, but before I did I was going to just shut my eyes for a couple more moments. Maybe listen to CNN in the nice warm bed... 6 hours later, at 2:15 p.m. the phone rang! It was Alan who was now on his way home. "Sheesh, who the hell is calling now?" I thought to myself. Imagine my embarrassment at it being the afternoon, and had he not called, I would have still been sleeping!

Now this morning, at 3:07 AM EST I am still awake, but feeling a bit feverish. Could I be catching the first cold of the 2014? It's not that I mind a good cold once in a while. A nice fever is a euphoria like no other, but I am still a bit amazed about the 6 week coughing yucky-blechs from last spring! I have been uncomfortable, but a deep cough, that leaves you pretty much unable to breathe for 6 weeks is something I sincerely hope I never experience again! And I probably won't. If I am sick now, or about to be, it just feels like your average, run of the mill, yucky-blechs. Yeah... that's it... I have the YUCKY-BLECHS! If I do have something, I hope it doesn't last long, I have two big football games to get excited about this weekend! Go Eagles! Go 49ers! My two favorite teams! I love them both! But no matter who I cheer on it's going to feel a little like running a red light... it will just be wrong! Never let anyone ever tell you that you can only fall in love with one person... or ;) ... one football team. You can love them both for different reasons! LOL.

Decisions! Decisions! Love is a whole other kind of sick.

Darn YUCKY-BLECHS! ;)

Mood: Silly

~Me :)

Saturdays, Football, And Leaves

Fox Sports Robot "Cleatus"
Cal Berkeley Campus
Berkeley, California
September 14th, 2013

"In football everything is complicated by the presence of the opposite team."

~Jean-Paul Sartre

 

Yesterday, Saturday, was an absolutely beautiful day in Berkeley! The sky was perfectly blue. The air was crisp and clear, and it was football day! I know... every Saturday this time of year is football day, but there is something about the first home game at Cal that makes it all so much fun! Yeah, at certain times the traffic can be a challenging, but at the same time there is a certain energy and excitement that can't be missed, and that can be really contagious! God I love it here! GO BEARS! :)

It also doesn't hurt that Berkeley is getting a big jump on autumn. Sometimes when I am out driving, I will turn a corner, and suddenly I feel like I am in the middle of autumn, rather than just on the edge of summer. Streets lined in bright greens, will suddenly burst with crimson! I could be having the worst day, and just turning down the right street brings me around to a wonderful sort of calm. So much slow that my sleeping will even improve that night. Look Ma... No Valium! LOL.

 It's hard to explain.

 

Autumn will officially be here in less than a week. Isn't that wonderful?

The Final Score: Ohio State (52) Cal Bears (34)

Mood: Peaceful

~Me :)

Sunsets, Cell Phones And Food Poisoning Oh My

"You know, a cell phone's like a guy; if you don't plug him in every night, charge him good, you got nothing at all."

~Catherine Coulter, Tail Spin

 

Above you see the last of the early February sunset photos that I photographed from Grizzly Peak Boulevard. I think it's appropriate to post now, in that we have just seen the sun set on yet another football season. Oh my, and what a game Super Bowl XLVII was! There was winners (Ravens 34)  and losers (49ERS 31) Beyonce didn't lip sync, and no one would have noticed if she had. There was a blackout in one half of the stadium, courtesy of bad infrastructure, the hotness of Beyonce or perhaps it was... maybe... Al Gore producing the show? Nah. You know Al Gore wasn't producing the show, that was something I said off the cuff to Keith Olbermann that made him laugh. Yep, Keith Olbermann saw my tiny joke and laughed. My work on earth is done! LOL.

 

Life is funny that way sometimes.

As fun as it was to know that the awesome Keith Olbermann saw my who-ville Tweet, I actually also made contact with another awesome person, and hopefully brought a smile to her face. One of my favorite actresses from the now defunct, but about to rise like a Phoenix back to life, One Life To Live, Farah Fath, who played GiGi Morasco. It seems that she is experiencing a bout of food poisoning, and asked how long it could last. I responded that in my case it was 6 hours. Then I offered the advice of... Never eat Thanksgiving in June, or date a guy who has a serial poisoner for a mother. Honestly, a life experienced based on a true story. Well, she favorited that Tweet, and it made me feel good to think I may have brought her a grin. LOL. I like to make people smile. But just think, if I hadn't been poisoned by my boyfriend's mom, I couldn't have brought her that little grin!

 

Life is funny that way sometimes.

I have a big package coming to me later today. It's a brand new cell phone. My former cell phone is on it's last legs, after having served me well for 3 years. I loved my HTC Aria, but it was time. But I am not crying too much, as the Aria and I will remain close, as it will live on as a back-up camera and video device. I can't let go. I never could. I have found a new use for all my old cell phones. I just can't let go. Each phone has a memory attached to it. The last conversation with someone I loved dearly. A great email with a friend that I have stored in the memory. I am way too sentimental I suppose, but I come by it honestly! My birthday is June 29th, and that makes me a hopelessly romantic Cancer the Crab! What can I do, it's written in the stars!

Life is funny that way sometimes.

All Most The Cells Of My Life...
(Not including my slide phone and my basic 1998 model Nokia Archaic :)




Life is funny that way sometimes.

I like being one small tweet in the Universe. I don't need the whole world, just a camera, a really good sunset, and my sense of humor and my thumbs. That last part will make sense to anyone who was a fan of the Dick Van Dyke show. Humor... know it... use it!

Mood: Happy

~Me :)

The City Of Red And Gold... Good Luck San Francisco 49ERS!

"The reason women don't play football is because eleven of them would rather wear the same outfit in public."

~Phyllis Diller



Are we in the San Francisco Bay Area excited about the Super Bowl? YOU BET! Not only is San Francisco City Hall all dressed up in the red and gold, but so is the sky above us! It's been a long time since the 49ers have been in the Super Bowl, their last time was on January 29th 1995, when they beat the San Diego Chargers 49 - 26. That Sunday, all those years ago, is also the last time Alan and I have been able to watch the big game together! He usually works two shifts on Sunday's, so it is a real treat to be able to have him home for the game, and a little half time fun. I am a happy girl! Now, lets see if I have everything...

Chips? Check.
Dip Fixings? Check.
Cheese Tray? Check.
Hot Wings? Check.
7 Layer Dip? Check.

Yep, I have it all ready to go!

 

Go 49ers! I mean GO 49ERS!

Mood: Excited!
~Me :)

It's The Har-Bowl, Unless It's The Bro-Bowl Either Way, It's The Super Bowl

"I love seeing other channels counter program the Super Bowl. PBS: "DAMN RIGHT we're airing a new 'Masterpiece Classic'! Fuck off, sports!"

~Tara Ariano

 

Yep, San Francisco is definitely going to be RED and GOLD another two weeks! San Francisco 49ers will meet the Baltimore Ravens in New Orleans for Super Bowl XLVII. As you might have already guessed, I will be rooting for the 49ers, but even Las Vegas has them winning by 5, or 4.5 depending on who you ask.

I don't know, I have to admit the 49ers did have me a bit worried last Sunday when they played the Atlanta Falcons. The first quarter was unreal, as the team seemed to have no real defense, but by the time they came back from half-time, they had corrected whatever short circuit that was going on, and came back to win by 4 ending with a score of 28 - 24.

Oh well, stuff happens... right? We won't dwell on the mistakes of last Sunday, or the god awful record Akers has as a place kicker, or the nasty little accusation against Michael Crabtree. There's NO crying in football! On February 3rd, the only thing I will be thinking about is whether or not we have enough munchies for the game. I think I will do an special menu of football worthy nibbles.

We'll see.

Stay tuned!

But in the mean time, tell me, who do you like in this year's Super Bowl?

Is Las Vegas right with their projected point spread?

Buffalo Wings or BBQ Sliders?

Har-Bowl or Bro-Bowl?

Red & Gold or Purple & Gold

Jim or John?

Tell Me Everything!


~Happiness

~Me :)