I am outraged!

"AIG spent US$440,000 on spa, resort after bailout, lawmakers say"
The Financial Post

"Need a Job? $17,000 an Hour. No Success Required."
NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF The New York Times

It's time I set up my soapbox again and let off some steam! Quite frankly I don't even know where to begin with all the news that continues to surface out of our economic situation. Let's face it, we ALL knew that corporate greed existed and it was excessive, but to this extent???

It really goes beyond anything that I can say or give my opinion on, I think most of us would agree, this is disgusting!

Care to read on ....

http://www.financialpost.com/most_popular/story.html?id=866284

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/18/opinion/18kristof.html?partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

I love Autumn!

Autumn is by far one of my favorite times of the year. I love all the sensory things that Autumn brings. The smells, the colors, the temperature ....

So, today I made a wreath for my front door. A little help from some assorted flowers from JoAnns, a fall garland, a wreath, glue gun and cutters, and voila!!!!

I LOVE IT!

God Bless You Grandma

I have been blessed to see life brought into this world, and I have now been blessed to see life leave this world. On Friday, August 22nd, my Grandmother passed away peacefully. Her wishes were to go be with God and Grandpa and we were with her as she left us to be with them. Her sense of humor and grace gave us all the strength to let her go, and continues to give us strength as we grieve the loss of Grandma in our lives. There are no words to describe the gift that she has given us; it is immeasurable. God Bless You Grandma.

Laughter

I was sitting here this morning and thinking that I haven't posted in awhile. And in doing so, I came to realize that I haven't been as inspired. I think I got caught up too much in my day to day; feeling hurried or rushed ... then tired or lazy ... pick any excuse. So, last night I had the kids have their baths earlier than usual, and we got comfy on the couch, and tuned into some tv. I know, I know, groan, groan ... but sometimes they really do need to just plug in and check out. So, we decided to watch that crazy Wipeout show. Now, I've heard the negative and positive about it ... but I must admit, we enjoyed it for the most part. Why??? Above all else, and at the expense of those poor contestant's shameless efforts ... we laughed, and we laughed and we laughed. God that felt good!!!! I found two quotes that struck me, one of which, of course, made me laugh.

What soap is to the body, laughter is to the soul. ~Yiddish Proverb

I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose. ~Woody Allen

Enjoy your day and laugh ..... please! :-)

My Creations Added

Time to share pics of one of my preferred past times. Card making! Something which I have not been doing of late, however I did find some old pics, and I mean old, that I could post. I will find more, and share these with you. My dear friend, Tracey aka "Fred" (check out her blog in my links) has been inspiring me to get more creative again. I hope to post more soon!

BFFL-You know who you are!

Among the many things in life I am thankful for is my friends. Those who I could count on implicitely to be there for me without judgement, hesitation, question, and because they want to. As a Canadian, who plopped herself in Minnesota 18 years ago, I still to this day, find my world somewhat small. And to be honest, I prefer it that way. I have been blessed to have made friends in life who will be my friends for life. My friend who, despite hundreds of miles that divide us and once a year visits; we remain BFFL. And though we can't help each other out in person, our internet connection allows us to be there for each other. Mwah to you girl! My friend, whom I have been sooooo blessed to have found here in my small MN world, who keeps me sane, quite literally. She's a mother to my kids when I'm not, she graciously gives up her day off so that we can get together (kids and all) to celebrate my birthday, she knows me for all my good and bad, and never judges. (BIG HUG) My friend, whom I have never met in person, who is my sounding board, my cheerleader, my health advisor, among other things (Hug). And my Mom, who was my first BFFL, who has done soooooo much for me, continues to do tooooo much for me, who means the world to me ...... and taught me how to be a good friend. ("Squeeze me with your eyes.") It is my wish that I can bless all of your lives as much as all of you do mine. xoxoxoxoxo

The Tipping Point

So this morning I went to http://www.youtube.com/ just for kicks, as I usually do. One of their latest top picks was this stare down video with Jessica Alba. Okay, so curiousity got the best of me, and I watch the video. It has a catchy tune, it has a good beat for my walks, and I end up trying to find it. I find it on you tube, and then start reading the comments (another thing I do for kicks), and see that many people were doing just as I was as a result of the stare down video. It brings me to this thought .... was her video on you tube, with over 3 MILLION views, the tipping point for the popularity of the song?

Malcolm Gladwell's explanation of his book, The Tipping Point: "I think the answer to all those questions is the same. It's that ideas and behavior and messages and products sometimes behave just like outbreaks of infectious disease. They are social epidemics. The Tipping Point is an examination of the social epidemics that surround us."

I'd like to see more positive tipping points. How's that for a challenge? What idea, behavior, or message could we spread in that infectious way? Think about that ...... I know I will.