OK, it's been two weeks now of getting a bird's eye view of Tony Soprano's ICU unit. There's a reason that only immediate family members are allowed in the ICU: No one else wants to see that! Having been in a few ICUs myself (as a visitor, not a patient, thank God), I can certainly speak from experience.
About 95% of the time, the patient is sleeping. During the other 5%, he or she is being attended to by hospital staffers to take care of such pleasantries as bodily functions and the changing of IV drips.
Don't get me wrong, I love The Sopranos and plan to watch every last episode, good, bad or indifferent. But enough of the ICU. I want to go home.
Which brings me to my next topic. Martta's World decrees that just as it is with the ICU--only immediate family members are allowed--the same should be true for Little League games. Yes, folks, only immediate family should EVER be allowed at these things. If you are NOT a member of said immediate family and you actually LIKE going to Little League games you are either 1. A pedophile or 2. A very, very sick individual who should not be allowed near living things. Really, you need help.
My boyfriend has two grandchildren, one of which is a lovely 10-year-old boy who plays Little League, among other things. He's actually a very cute, cool kid. He likes Weird NJ, he knows how to work an iPod, he likes scary movies. And yes, he plays catcher for his Little League team. Not that there's anything wrong with that. He's pretty decent, if I say so myself.
But the other kids? Oy vey, as they say! Hell on Earth is another phrase that comes to mind. Granted, there are a few bright bulbs on the tree, but for the most part, bad, boring and begrudgingly long.
Now I am all for kids playing sports, getting exercise, staying busy so they don't hold up the Local 7-11. But really, folks. Immediate family only.
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Sunday, March 19, 2006
Passing Heads
Upon his death, the Fore tribe
of Eastern New Guinea
gathers around a fire and passes
the deceased's skull around
chanting for mercy on his soul.
Ocher flames leap from the timbers
and light up the black sky,
as the bloody skull is finally consumed.
Only gray ash remains, to be buried
among the ashes of the dead
that have gone before him.
Tonight a fire is lit
in the living room of a new divorcee
who sits among a tribe of others
who have gone before her.
Each take turns, passing around
the skulls of their ex-husbands,
chanting curses. They ask for no mercy.
Sparks fly, as one by one,
their memories are hurled into the fire.
Tomorrow, only gray ash will remain,
to be collected in urns of memories
that line the cluttered shelves of their souls.
of Eastern New Guinea
gathers around a fire and passes
the deceased's skull around
chanting for mercy on his soul.
Ocher flames leap from the timbers
and light up the black sky,
as the bloody skull is finally consumed.
Only gray ash remains, to be buried
among the ashes of the dead
that have gone before him.
Tonight a fire is lit
in the living room of a new divorcee
who sits among a tribe of others
who have gone before her.
Each take turns, passing around
the skulls of their ex-husbands,
chanting curses. They ask for no mercy.
Sparks fly, as one by one,
their memories are hurled into the fire.
Tomorrow, only gray ash will remain,
to be collected in urns of memories
that line the cluttered shelves of their souls.
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Some Musings
My next race, a 10K, is on March 26 in Millburn. Can wait. I don't think I've raced a 10K since the fall. They've all been longer races, 10-milers, 15Ks, the 20K two weeks ago. I feel as ready as ever but nervous. My goal to to break 50 minutes in the 10K and 24 minutes in the 5K. Doable goals, I think.
As usual, I have some tough competition in my age group. Depending on who shows up at Millburn, I might not make it into the top 3 slots...we shall see.
************************************************************************************
A male co-worker, who I like very much, told me he thinks I'm getting too skinny. Besides the fact that it's not of his business, I'm not. I weigh exactly the same as I did 6 months ago. Maybe it's what I was wearing, who knows? Who cares? I feel great and I'd rather be thin than fat...so there!
The only thing is that my clothes from a year ago are all too big for me, when I was 10 lbs. heavier. I didn't think just 10 lbs. would make such a difference in clothing size. Lots of stuff just swims on me, like I'm wearing my big sister's hand-me-downs! I will give some of them away to Goodwill but some I really like (like one lavender suit) and I will need to have them taken in. Yes, it may prove costly but it's that or buy a whole new wardrobe. Don't get me wrong, I love to shop as much as the next woman but when do I have the time? Answer: I don't.
************************************************************************************
Through no fault of her own, just some plain old bad luck, a friend of mine from the running club got a DWI and lost her license for 7 months. And, since I am the only one she told about it, guess who will be driving her to all the races until October? It is a bit of an inconvenience but she IS a great friend and she's always been there for me. Poor thing. She's needs this now like the proverbial hole in the head. She just put her mom in a nursing home (Alzheimer's) and has some minor health issues of her own.
I AM a little pissed at her because she just told me this about 2 weeks ago. Had she told me sooner (when it happened), I could have gotten her a decent lawyer. More on that below:
She was driving home from the shore (Manasquan) one night last summer. She was not, I repeat NOT intoxicated. She had one frigging glass of wine at a friend's house.
Anyhoo, she was stopped by a cop because her lights were out. The reason they were out is that her car (an older model Honda from 1995) has a dashboard glitch. The dashboard lights come on even if the headlights are not on. She explained the glitch to the cop who stopped her. He asked her if she had been drinking and she told him the truth: She had one glass of wine.
Well, to make a long story short, he drags her ass down to the station and makes her take a breathalizer. She did not refuse the test. However, due to nerves, a panic attack, whatever, she could not get the damned thing to work. So, this asshole, records that she refused the test!!! After spending the night in jail, she was sent home and told she had to appear in court.
She calls her family *lawyer* (and I use that term lightly...he sounds more like a milquetoast to me) and he basically tells her that there's nothing she can do, the sitting judge is a real asshole, she'll probably get 7 months suspended, etc. Well, this prophecy came true. If she had gotten a real lawyer instead of a make-believe lawyer, I think she could have gotten a reduced suspension at least.
So, that's it in a nutshell. I feel really bad for her. I can't imagine not having access to my car, for 7 months yet. Sheesh!
As usual, I have some tough competition in my age group. Depending on who shows up at Millburn, I might not make it into the top 3 slots...we shall see.
************************************************************************************
A male co-worker, who I like very much, told me he thinks I'm getting too skinny. Besides the fact that it's not of his business, I'm not. I weigh exactly the same as I did 6 months ago. Maybe it's what I was wearing, who knows? Who cares? I feel great and I'd rather be thin than fat...so there!
The only thing is that my clothes from a year ago are all too big for me, when I was 10 lbs. heavier. I didn't think just 10 lbs. would make such a difference in clothing size. Lots of stuff just swims on me, like I'm wearing my big sister's hand-me-downs! I will give some of them away to Goodwill but some I really like (like one lavender suit) and I will need to have them taken in. Yes, it may prove costly but it's that or buy a whole new wardrobe. Don't get me wrong, I love to shop as much as the next woman but when do I have the time? Answer: I don't.
************************************************************************************
Through no fault of her own, just some plain old bad luck, a friend of mine from the running club got a DWI and lost her license for 7 months. And, since I am the only one she told about it, guess who will be driving her to all the races until October? It is a bit of an inconvenience but she IS a great friend and she's always been there for me. Poor thing. She's needs this now like the proverbial hole in the head. She just put her mom in a nursing home (Alzheimer's) and has some minor health issues of her own.
I AM a little pissed at her because she just told me this about 2 weeks ago. Had she told me sooner (when it happened), I could have gotten her a decent lawyer. More on that below:
She was driving home from the shore (Manasquan) one night last summer. She was not, I repeat NOT intoxicated. She had one frigging glass of wine at a friend's house.
Anyhoo, she was stopped by a cop because her lights were out. The reason they were out is that her car (an older model Honda from 1995) has a dashboard glitch. The dashboard lights come on even if the headlights are not on. She explained the glitch to the cop who stopped her. He asked her if she had been drinking and she told him the truth: She had one glass of wine.
Well, to make a long story short, he drags her ass down to the station and makes her take a breathalizer. She did not refuse the test. However, due to nerves, a panic attack, whatever, she could not get the damned thing to work. So, this asshole, records that she refused the test!!! After spending the night in jail, she was sent home and told she had to appear in court.
She calls her family *lawyer* (and I use that term lightly...he sounds more like a milquetoast to me) and he basically tells her that there's nothing she can do, the sitting judge is a real asshole, she'll probably get 7 months suspended, etc. Well, this prophecy came true. If she had gotten a real lawyer instead of a make-believe lawyer, I think she could have gotten a reduced suspension at least.
So, that's it in a nutshell. I feel really bad for her. I can't imagine not having access to my car, for 7 months yet. Sheesh!
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
Oh Yeah, This Is Our Future, Folks
My advice to my friends and colleagues? Stay healthy or die young. Yes, this is our future and I sure as hell don't want them watching over me. When I read stuff like this, I am EVER SO GRATEFUL that I never had loathsome brats of my own.
And these were college students from prosperous homes! They did it "as a joke." Gee, I was a real crack up as a college student but I never set houses of worship on fire. Nosireebob. Oh, how I've missed out. I know it's a bad pun, but I hope they fry. And I hope that a big guy named Bubba makes them his bitches.
*******************************************************************************
3 College Students Arrested in Alabama Church Fires
By RICK LYMAN
Published: March 8, 2006
Three college students from the prosperous suburbs south of Birmingham, two of them 19 and one 20, were arrested today in the burning of nine Baptist churches in rural Alabama last month that federal officials say was a prank that spun out of control.
Arrested a few hours later was Matthew Lee Cloyd, 20, a student at the nearby University of Alabama-Birmingham whose mother was the owner of the 2000 Toyota 4Runner that had left the tracks, federal agents said in an affidavit accompanying the criminal complaint against the three men.
The identities of the accused came as a surprise to investigators, who had speculated that the arsons were the work of people intimately familiar with the remote rural roads where the fires were set, not products of Birmingham's upper-middle class, one the son of a doctor and another of a county constable.
"This is just so hard to believe," said Alabama Fire Marshal Richard Montgomery. "My profile on these suspects is shot all to heck and back."
Gov. Bob Riley said he was happy to learn that the fires were "an isolated incident" and not an organized attack on religious beliefs or Baptists. Speaking at a news conference announcing the arrests, he said the last five weeks had been "a pretty tough time" for church-goers.
James Cavanaugh, an official of the federal Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agency said the arrests were the result of following forensic evidence, rather than being given information. "We did not have a tip," he said.
One thing investigators had believed from the beginning was that there was no racial motive behind the arsons, as there had been to a string of church fires throughout the Southeast in the mid-1990's. And that, they said, was borne out.
Four of the churches burned in the early hours of Feb. 3 in Bibb County, about an hour south of Birmingham, had predominantly white congregations, while one was black. All four of the churches burned the morning of Feb. 7 in an even more remote stretch more than 90 minutes southwest of Birmingham, had black congregations.
But officials said the second round of burnings had been an attempted diversion, to draw investigators farther away from Birmingham.
Mr. DeBusk and Mr. Moseley appeared briefly before United States Magistrate Robert R. Montgomery in the Hugo Black Federal Courthouse in downtown Birmingham this morning. Both were slender and pale, with dark, floppy hair. Mr. DeBusk wore blue jeans and an orange hooded sweatshirt over a white T-shirt, Mr. Moseley a blue polo shirt over jeans.
They were ordered to return to court on Friday when a lawyer would be appointed for them if they had not already hired one and the issue of bail would be discussed. In the meantime, they were ordered to remain in custody.
According to the affidavit signed by Walker Johnson, a special agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, analysis of the tire tracks had led agents on Monday to the home of Michael and Kimberly Cloyd on Birmingham's south side. The tire tracks matched a set special-ordered for Ms. Cloyd's 4Runner, but she told agents that her son, Matthew, was the vehicle's principal driver.
Ms. Cloyd told agents that her son had told her he had not set the fires, but knew who did. Dr. Cloyd said his son told him on Monday that he had been present at the arsons and knew who set them.
But a witness, unidentified in the affidavit, told agents that Matthew Cloyd said he and Mr. Moseley "had done something stupid," adding that it was something Mr. Moseley had done "as a joke and it got out of hand."
Agents later interviewed Mr. Moseley who, they said, confessed to setting the five fires in Bibb County with Mr. Cloyd and Mr. DeBusk. "Moseley stated that after they set fire to the first two churches, they saw fire trucks driving by," they said. "Moseley said that, after that, burning the other three churches became too spontaneous."
Agents said Mr. Moseley told them only that he and Mr. Cloyd had taken part in the second string of arsons, four days later. "These four churches were burned as a diversion, to throw investigators off," Mr. Johnson wrote in his affidavit. "Moseley said the diversion obviously did not work."
Mr. DeBusk, who was interviewed and arrested a short time later, also admitted behind present at the five arsons on Feb. 3, as well as kicking in the doors of two of the churches. He said the three had been out shooting deer in Mr. Cloyd's S.U.V. prior to the fires.
And these were college students from prosperous homes! They did it "as a joke." Gee, I was a real crack up as a college student but I never set houses of worship on fire. Nosireebob. Oh, how I've missed out. I know it's a bad pun, but I hope they fry. And I hope that a big guy named Bubba makes them his bitches.
*******************************************************************************
3 College Students Arrested in Alabama Church Fires
By RICK LYMAN
Published: March 8, 2006
Three college students from the prosperous suburbs south of Birmingham, two of them 19 and one 20, were arrested today in the burning of nine Baptist churches in rural Alabama last month that federal officials say was a prank that spun out of control.
Arrested a few hours later was Matthew Lee Cloyd, 20, a student at the nearby University of Alabama-Birmingham whose mother was the owner of the 2000 Toyota 4Runner that had left the tracks, federal agents said in an affidavit accompanying the criminal complaint against the three men.
The identities of the accused came as a surprise to investigators, who had speculated that the arsons were the work of people intimately familiar with the remote rural roads where the fires were set, not products of Birmingham's upper-middle class, one the son of a doctor and another of a county constable.
"This is just so hard to believe," said Alabama Fire Marshal Richard Montgomery. "My profile on these suspects is shot all to heck and back."
Gov. Bob Riley said he was happy to learn that the fires were "an isolated incident" and not an organized attack on religious beliefs or Baptists. Speaking at a news conference announcing the arrests, he said the last five weeks had been "a pretty tough time" for church-goers.
James Cavanaugh, an official of the federal Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agency said the arrests were the result of following forensic evidence, rather than being given information. "We did not have a tip," he said.
One thing investigators had believed from the beginning was that there was no racial motive behind the arsons, as there had been to a string of church fires throughout the Southeast in the mid-1990's. And that, they said, was borne out.
Four of the churches burned in the early hours of Feb. 3 in Bibb County, about an hour south of Birmingham, had predominantly white congregations, while one was black. All four of the churches burned the morning of Feb. 7 in an even more remote stretch more than 90 minutes southwest of Birmingham, had black congregations.
But officials said the second round of burnings had been an attempted diversion, to draw investigators farther away from Birmingham.
Mr. DeBusk and Mr. Moseley appeared briefly before United States Magistrate Robert R. Montgomery in the Hugo Black Federal Courthouse in downtown Birmingham this morning. Both were slender and pale, with dark, floppy hair. Mr. DeBusk wore blue jeans and an orange hooded sweatshirt over a white T-shirt, Mr. Moseley a blue polo shirt over jeans.
They were ordered to return to court on Friday when a lawyer would be appointed for them if they had not already hired one and the issue of bail would be discussed. In the meantime, they were ordered to remain in custody.
According to the affidavit signed by Walker Johnson, a special agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, analysis of the tire tracks had led agents on Monday to the home of Michael and Kimberly Cloyd on Birmingham's south side. The tire tracks matched a set special-ordered for Ms. Cloyd's 4Runner, but she told agents that her son, Matthew, was the vehicle's principal driver.
Ms. Cloyd told agents that her son had told her he had not set the fires, but knew who did. Dr. Cloyd said his son told him on Monday that he had been present at the arsons and knew who set them.
But a witness, unidentified in the affidavit, told agents that Matthew Cloyd said he and Mr. Moseley "had done something stupid," adding that it was something Mr. Moseley had done "as a joke and it got out of hand."
Agents later interviewed Mr. Moseley who, they said, confessed to setting the five fires in Bibb County with Mr. Cloyd and Mr. DeBusk. "Moseley stated that after they set fire to the first two churches, they saw fire trucks driving by," they said. "Moseley said that, after that, burning the other three churches became too spontaneous."
Agents said Mr. Moseley told them only that he and Mr. Cloyd had taken part in the second string of arsons, four days later. "These four churches were burned as a diversion, to throw investigators off," Mr. Johnson wrote in his affidavit. "Moseley said the diversion obviously did not work."
Mr. DeBusk, who was interviewed and arrested a short time later, also admitted behind present at the five arsons on Feb. 3, as well as kicking in the doors of two of the churches. He said the three had been out shooting deer in Mr. Cloyd's S.U.V. prior to the fires.
And So a New Running Season Begins....
I had my first race of the 2006 season this past Sunday, the Newark Distance Classic. You have your choice of a 5K (3.1 miles) or a 20K (12.4 miles) and being the masochist that I am, guess which one I chose? :-)
All in all, I am very happy with my time. I did 1:50:37, about 12 minutes off last year's time. I was shooting for a true 9-minute mile pace which would have put me around 1:52, so I actually did better than anticipated, with a 8:54 pace. I chalk it up to the 10-lb. weight loss plus good coaching last year from Coach Joel.
This is not an easy course to begin with (lots of hills and grades), plus the nasty headwinds we had in our faces for about 75% of the race didn't help.
But I felt pretty good afterwards, albeit a little soreness which is normal. Unfortunately, I did get one of those mysterious low-grade headaches which I've been told can come from not warming up properly (guilty!) or not taking in enough fluids before the race (probably guilty as well). Excedrin with caffeine seems to do the trick.
I beat my poor honey which was a first but it's not really fair since he's injured. He's been told he has a bone spur in his right heel which is very painful. He probably should not have run the 20K but he wanted to do it. I yelled at him that he's got to go see a foot doc and get x-rays done. He promised me he would. The sooner you find out what's wrong, the sooner you can begin treatment. I really don't know anything about bone spurs except that they are common in overweight people. Tom, however, is anything but, so it's got to be due to overuse.
So, my next race is at the end of this month, a 10K in Millburn, a walk in the park after this one.
************************************************************************************
In other news, my cousin continues to send me lame emails. About 1 in 10 has a funny joke, but most of them are the kind where you're asked to "send this email to 100 people in 5 minutes or a terrible fate will befall you and your loved ones" or annoying proverbs about men versus women and so forth. I'd rather read emails from crooked Nigerians. Most of the time, I just delete her stuff without opening it.
But yesterday was the last straw. She sent me something about a guy who creates babies out of marzipan. That is just too creepy for me. My brain will never be the same after seeing this:
All in all, I am very happy with my time. I did 1:50:37, about 12 minutes off last year's time. I was shooting for a true 9-minute mile pace which would have put me around 1:52, so I actually did better than anticipated, with a 8:54 pace. I chalk it up to the 10-lb. weight loss plus good coaching last year from Coach Joel.
This is not an easy course to begin with (lots of hills and grades), plus the nasty headwinds we had in our faces for about 75% of the race didn't help.
But I felt pretty good afterwards, albeit a little soreness which is normal. Unfortunately, I did get one of those mysterious low-grade headaches which I've been told can come from not warming up properly (guilty!) or not taking in enough fluids before the race (probably guilty as well). Excedrin with caffeine seems to do the trick.
I beat my poor honey which was a first but it's not really fair since he's injured. He's been told he has a bone spur in his right heel which is very painful. He probably should not have run the 20K but he wanted to do it. I yelled at him that he's got to go see a foot doc and get x-rays done. He promised me he would. The sooner you find out what's wrong, the sooner you can begin treatment. I really don't know anything about bone spurs except that they are common in overweight people. Tom, however, is anything but, so it's got to be due to overuse.
So, my next race is at the end of this month, a 10K in Millburn, a walk in the park after this one.
************************************************************************************
In other news, my cousin continues to send me lame emails. About 1 in 10 has a funny joke, but most of them are the kind where you're asked to "send this email to 100 people in 5 minutes or a terrible fate will befall you and your loved ones" or annoying proverbs about men versus women and so forth. I'd rather read emails from crooked Nigerians. Most of the time, I just delete her stuff without opening it.
But yesterday was the last straw. She sent me something about a guy who creates babies out of marzipan. That is just too creepy for me. My brain will never be the same after seeing this:
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