Sunday, September 29, 2013

Sunday Pictures

What in the world are the Republicans thinking? Do they really believe that Americans hate the idea of affordable health care so much that they're willing to have their government shut down in order to try (fruitlessly) to prevent it?
Do they not realize how insane and petty and ridiculous and dangerous they look?
Do they not realize how many lives they are impacting in such a negative way?

I've just about given up writing about anything political but this is ridiculous.

And scary. And if they think that this is going to win the hearts and minds of the people, I think they've completely lost it. 

Well, it's Sunday. The day I approach with caution and pancakes. Today's pancakes are oatbran, flax, peach, banana, pecan.


When I went to let the chickens out, a train sounded, coming from the East. Since that tree fell and they had to cut through the brush to get the equipment in to get it out, we have a new window to the tracks.


Will the trains still run if they shut down the government? I have no idea. 

The flowers will still bloom. They are immune to government intervention. I am grateful for that. 


The variegated ginger lily Kathleen gave me. It perfumes the air. 


The psychedelically fuschia four o'clock. It needs to check the accuracy of its timepiece. 


The prom queen of all the blossoms- the Confederate Rose. Each bloom is as big as a baby's head. 

There are more. But, if there can be death-fatigue, can there not be flower-fatigue? 
I don't know. It's Sunday. Mr. Moon replaced the bird seed in the feeder with a higher-line product and the cardinals and tit mouses (mice?) have returned. Elvis and the hens are scratching in my office yard. All of his beautiful butt-plumage has dropped off but he will be getting fresh and showy new tail feathers here shortly. 


I am going to clean out their nests today to see if that will help them to remember how to lay eggs because at this point, they are merely fertilizers, weeders and pets. Reason enough to keep them but I miss their pretty eggs. Perhaps they have been notified of the possible government shut-down. Perhaps the Koch Brothers are paying them not to lay. 
But I doubt it.

Did you know that Vergil ran his first marathon yesterday? 



He placed 19 in a field of over three hundred. That man. My goodness! We are all gob-smacked around here. We are all so proud of him. And Jessie rode over 24 miles on her bike, keeping track of him, up and down Asheville's hills. I love thinking of them there in the nestled-in-the-valley town of Asheville with its breweries, its charming downtown and old neighborhoods, its Flying Circus, its quirky dancing people.
But oh, how I miss them. It is becoming more and more a physical ache. Thankfully, they will be here in October. 

Well, Sundays. It is cool and beautiful. We have eaten our pancakes. The hens are making their sweet talk amongst each other as they rustle through the downed pecan leaves. This is an entire day to do with as we will. 

I believe we will keep it simple, I believe we shall keep it sweet. Let the Republicans froth at the mouth and wield their clumsy hammers and I will watch the birds and smell the sweet air and feed the chickens pancakes and hang the clothes on the line.




12 comments:

  1. Those pancakes look and sound especially delicious today. A wise way to approach a Sunday indeed.

    As a federal employee my perspective on budgets includes the added irritation of having to prepare for shutdowns every time they threaten. And then if it does occur, well isn't that just lovely? Putting aside the age-old arguments about the number of and pay of and quality of federal employees - I would just like a job to go to no Tuesday. Congress needs to get their shit together.

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  2. I am sick of the political grandstanding and the BS. It is truly BS. I have come to despise the shenanigans of the far right. No attempt at any agreement or willingness to see how the AFA works.

    Glad that Vergil ran the marathon that is quite an accomplishment to place so high too. Awesome.

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  3. I have trouble following the shit of my own government so I am not at all up to date what is happening south of the border. What the Republicans are doing reminds me of a child who does not get their own way; taking their toys and stomping off. It is a form of bullying.

    My firm belief is we all need to listen to each other so we can work together towards a solution. It There is something that I have asked over and over to be explained to me and to date nobody has in a way that makes sense. What I don't understand is this...

    If the Republicans are by majority "Christians" I do not understand why they would not support Universal Health Care. The BIBLE commands us to care for the sick, the infirm and the elderly. The BIBLE commands us to feed the poor and clothe them. It isn't a suggestion. We are to do this. Those who do not are risking eternal damnation. (Matthew 25: 31 - 46) Yes, I know scripture! So why are so many Republicans against the most basic of needs? I have tried to figure it out over and over and keep coming up empty. How can I try to understand whatever it is they are wanting if they won't explain it to me?

    The whole issue makes me sad. It is a basic human right.

    "Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control."


    Sorry for the ramble. I am tired. I just got off night shift caring for a patient with Parkinsons disease. Incidentally, she received that care free of charge.

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  4. The WORST part of the whole Republican debacle is that their followers support the propaganda. It's ridonkulous!

    Thank the ghost of John Lennon there is beauty in this world, flowers, chickens and pancakes. What more can a girl ask for?

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  5. The Republicans lost my support during the last election when they proposed a bill and then backed away from it when the Democrats liked it. I can't stand the petty childishness. The Affordable Care Act may not be better than sliced bread, but let's see what it is and fix what's not working. The only thing that bothered me was they didn't study other countries who already have universal healthcare to see what works well.

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  6. @Lisa, "They" did study other countries' healthcare systems quite exhaustively, and most industrialized countries do have universal coverage. Socialized healthcare is anathema to the conservative parties that be, and it was never going to fly here. Switzerland has an interesting system that was also studied. The plan we got was ironically the one created and proposed originally by Repubs and even actualized in Massachuetts by Mitt Romney.

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  7. Those pancakes! I think I need to take a gluten-free pancake lesson from you. (Guess I just did.)

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  8. Jill- It's infuriating for one group of right-wing dingshits to be able to hold the entire country hostage this way. I, too, hope you have a job on Tuesday.

    Syd- We agree. Oh yes. We agree.

    Birdie- Their religion is MONEY and money for the rich and that is all there is to it. Don't believe anything that comes from their mouths.

    heartinhand- I do concentrate on that which I can control but that which I cannot frustrates me to pieces.

    Lisa- What Elizabeth said.

    Elizabeth- I mean please! The fucking Heritage Foundation was where it began, right?

    A- Oh, there was a bit of self-rising flour in there too. Not glutin free but I suppose they could be made that way. The buttermilk is the trick.



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  9. Your pancakes look divine. Your flowers are magnificent - I want to smell that ginger lily, and the confederate rose is a prom queen.

    Virgil is amazing, how could he finish that high in the field on his first race? Amazing. I bet you miss them sorely. At least they aren't farther away and they live somewhere wonderful.

    Lovely beginning and ending my day today with your perspective on things and the news from Lloyd.

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  10. Mel- Virgil has been training for quite some time. But really- isn't it amazing?
    I'm glad you enjoy the news from Lloyd.

    Gradydoctor- I know! Seriously!

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  11. That ginger lily is amazing. I wish I could smell it. I sort of imagine that I can.

    Good job Vergil!

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