News of the week...

An officer showed up at the door yesterday, delivering court papers. The plumber is suing us for the remainder of the bill. Rick is still unemployed and I work about 8 hours a week at $6 an hour. It’s not like we wouldn’t pay it if we had the money.

Life makes it really hard to stay positive sometimes, ya know?(Just trying to keep Romans 8:28 in mind, and keep pmy pride in check... too much pride runs on my family, like cancer, and I am constantly fighting it...My first reaction when recieving the papers was embarrasment, and then anger that Rick still doesn't have a job - that makes it all his fault, you know.... LOL..)

I haven’t really been in the mood to talk lately; I just don’t seem to have anything to write about. There is nothing going on here but the usual housework, laundry, dishes, Rick’s odd jobs, and the three of us going fishing every few days. Oh, the bird laid another egg… That makes 5 she is sitting on, but I think there is only one that is fertilized; the others were laid after I moved the male to another cage… I will wait 22 days after the last one was laid and then get rid of any of them that didn’t hatch.

We had tons of rain last night; wave after wave of thunderstorms went through the area. I haven’t heard how much we got. Chance of getting more this afternoon and evening, but I hope not, we want to go fishing again. Beats sitting at home every evening… Night before last I was really wishing we had a camera, the sunset across the lake (pond) was beautiful… with lightning to the south and north, we were in a partially cloudy area and the sun was turning the clouds pink and orange and purple as it went down… The colors were all reflected off the water, which was almost completely still, as the wind had died down for about half an hour before picking up again from another direction. It was beautiful.

The reason for the season...

John 15:13
Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.


One thing I have made sure to do is teach my children that Memorial Day Weekend is not just for the opening of the swimming pool, or the first big cookout of the season...
Any veteran that may be reading this, I and my family thank you.

Today...

On this date in 1977, the original "Star Wars" was released. Can it really have been that long ago??

I was so obsessed by that movie. I saw it 27 times in the theater. (Of course I was also really good friends with a guy who worked there, and got in free!!)

I have seen every Star Wars movie since then, but none of them have effected me the way that one did! Of course, it could have just been Harrison Ford.... But I was 10 years old, and he was my first serious crush. (Shawn Cassidy, Leif Garrett, and Scott Baio don't count... Harrison was a REAL man...LOL)

Speaking of real men, today is also the anniversary of the birth of John Wayne(1907). THey just don't make'em like that anymore...

Little things

Ever notice that when everything comes together and you start really liking your life little things come along to try to "steal your happiness"? Not necessarily big things, but lots of little things that add up... Not that I am going to let things get to me, but they are just annoying...

Yesterday the refrigerator/freezer went out. Caput. All our stuff in the freezer is thawed, so I am having to cook all the meat today, and hope to find a freezer to put it in... We are trying to find someone with a used refrigerator, the nearest one seems to be 100 miles away. *sigh*

Last night we went fishing. When we got home, the female cockatiel had laid an egg! I hurried up and fixed a nesting box for her, but the male wouldn't let her sit on the egg, he kept her away from the box, so I had to put him in a different cage this morning, but since they are "wild", and scared of humans, he bit the crap out of my hand when I caught him. Anyway, so that is my day so far, cooking pounds and pounds of meat and trying to keep the mother bird in her nest! LOL... And you thought your day was exciting...LOL

Sad Statistics

WASHINGTON - Prisons and jails added more than 1,000 inmates each week for a year, putting almost 2.2 million people, or one in every 136 U.S. residents, behind bars by last summer.

The total on June 30, 2005, was 56,428 more than at the same time in 2004, the government reported Sunday. That 2.6 percent increase from mid-2004 to mid-2005 translates into a weekly rise of 1,085 inmates.

“The jail population is increasingly unconvicted," Beck said. "Judges are perhaps more reluctant to release people pretrial."

The report by the Justice Department agency found that 62 percent of people in jails have not been convicted, meaning many of them are awaiting trial.

The states with the highest rates were Louisiana and Georgia, with more than 1 percent of their populations in prison or jail. Rounding out the top five were Texas, Mississippi and Oklahoma.

The states with the lowest rates were Maine, Minnesota, Rhode Island, Vermont and New Hampshire.

Men were 10 times to 11 times more likely than women to be in prison or jail, but the number of women behind bars was growing at a faster rate.

The racial makeup of inmates changed little in recent years, Beck said. In the 25-29 age group, an estimated 11.9 percent of black men were in prison or jails, compared with 3.9 percent of Hispanic males and 1.7 percent of white males.

Marc Mauer, executive director of The Sentencing Project, which supports alternatives to prison, said the incarceration rates for blacks were troubling.

"It's not a sign of a healthy community when we've come to use incarceration at such rates," he said.

Mauer also criticized sentencing guidelines, which he said remove judges' discretion, and said arrests for drug and parole violations swell prisons.

"If we want to see the prison population reduced, we need a much more comprehensive approach to sentencing and drug policy," he said.

(full article HERE)

How bad does it have to be before we stop treating the symptom, and start treating the causes? Incarceration just makes the majority of people worse… Let’s start putting more money into schools, good grade incentive programs, and scholarships, to prevent them from growing up and becoming a statistic!
“It’s better to build children than to repair men.”

More miscellaneous

I think I am losing it.
I bought a pair of denim Capri pants.
I can hardly believe it myself!! Can a minivan be far behind!?!

My new job is extremely hot. Shorts are not allowed. (I haven’t owned a pair of shorts in 22 years, anyway.) But jeans are so incredibly hot! All the girls wear Capri pants, and flip flops, which they promptly kick off first thing into the rooms, and clean barefoot.
I’m a redneck, what can I say? The thought of working barefoot is amazing to me!

So, I have found a new tattoo place in Dodge City, seen some of their work, and since I can’t get back to The City to have the original artist of my tattoo adjust it, I will see if someone at the Dodge place can copy the lettering. It currently says “Sir’s Love”, his name of course replacing the Word “Sir”. Since I am not that anymore, and still question whether I ever was, (although I will always love him) I want to add one word to the bottom: “Lessons”.
Anyway, I am thinking of getting a tattoo on my ankle, too. Don’t know what yet, ya’ll know me better than anyone, any suggestions? Rick suggested a cross, maybe a Celtic cross of some sort. I just don’t want it to look tribal, and for my ankle I don’t want it to be too big, either. I am not a flowery sort, or butterflies, and definitely not hearts!

Day one

Well. We stayed out late last night, fishing. I was the only one who caught anything, a striped bass about 8" long too small to keep. I also kept snagging clams, much to the amusement of both Rick and Isaiah.
This morning I got a phone call, about 9:30.
"Can you come in to work today? As soon as possible?"
I hadn't taken a shower or anything yet, so I rushed through things and got there about 45 minutes later.

What was a piece of cake 23 years ago the first time I worked there was hard work today!! LOL I really loved it, though. Two of Rhonda's sisters work there, and Sandy was working today, so I got to work with her. They were very impressed with my work, especially since the other girl working today has been there 2 weeks and still can't get done as fast as I did on my first day.
It was 100° again, and it was so hot! All the rooms open onto the parking lot, and most of the rooms had the AC shut off, at least until I got in there and turned them on, just before turning the TV to CMT...LOL
Can't wait ‘til I get used to working again...My back hurts, my feet hurt, and the skin on my hands definantly does not like the harsh chemicals I used all morning! LOL But it is great having a job...

The most amazing thing? This job started just 3 days after I recieved my last unemployment check!

Gone Fishin'

Well, my interview went great. She and her husband grew up in Hick County, so they knew my mom, which helps. She was impressed that I knew how to type; she said that most people who apply there don’t know how to type. She appreciated that I could work nights, no problem, because she likes to train everyone at the front desk, too. She also really liked the fact that my very first job was right there in that motel cleaning rooms, when I was 15.

I know it sounds selfish,(because we need the money) but I really wanted part-time, because I am enjoying staying home with Isaiah. I had decided not to take classes right now, and instead put that check into the bank, where it covers my truck payment, truck insurance, and Isaiah’s medicine until the end of August. The job available is part-time, but goes to full time at the end of August or early September when another girl is leaving! How perfect is that timing! I really feel that this is something that was meant for me, I really think I will get this job.

Rick and I are taking Isaiah fishing this evening. We may even take picnic food and eat at the lake. Figures, when the temperature is going to hit 100°,(it’s 95° right now) we finally have our fishing licenses and can go fishing! LOL

Rick has had several odd jobs this week, and has made some good money. We are doing very well right now, I am so thankful to see things just fall into place! I am also thankful for the decision we made to pare down our possessions, and our lives. It is so nice to be relaxed, and relatively debt-free, and spend so much time together as a family.

We have let Lauren move into the house we own, she and her boyfriend.(lets don’t even talk about the boyfriend…LOL) We are not charging any rent, as long as they keep it up and mow the lawn and stuff. They just have part time jobs right now, and his SSI check. They couldn’t afford a place if they had to pay rent.

Rick and I have been doing lots of stuff around mom’s house. She has said time and time again that she thinks we should just stay here because she likes having us here. One of her basement walls had a big hole collapse in the middle of it, and she can’t afford the $20,000 that was estimated to fix it, so Rick has been taking everything out of the basement that got ruined by water and mold, and the sheet rock, and has temporarily fixed the hole. Getting the mold cleaned up was the major thing.
I do all the housework for mom, all she does is her personal laundry, and I do all the rest. She is the county clerk, with a very busy, high-stress job, and she also has M.S., so she really appreciates the help. Besides, I think it is important for Isaiah to spend as much time as possible with her while he can. Rick also does all the work needed on her car, and we do most of the yard work. This big house is just a lot to take care of for her, by herself.

ANYWAY… I think I got that job, and things here are going very well, and we’re going fishin’!!

Hmmm....

BERLIN (Reuters) - A German woman left her friend as a deposit at a gas station because she did not have enough cash to pay for her petrol, police said Wednesday.

"She didn't have enough money to pay the bill, so her friend stayed behind as a human deposit while she went to withdraw cash," said a spokesman for police in the southern town of Muenchberg. "Unfortunately, the woman did not return."

Two hours after the 20-year-old driver left, the gas station called the police, who interrogated the stranded "deposit" before releasing her. Police are investigating the driver on suspicion of fraud.
(article HERE)

I wonder if the woman driving was in a stolen car, without a license, driving drunk, and planning on going the wrong way down the freeway???

If you're THAT drunk, then don't steal a car!

BERLIN (Reuters) - Officers were dumbfounded when they stopped a Polish woman drunk at the wheel of a stolen car, driving on the wrong side of a motorway and without a license, German police said Tuesday.

"I don't think I've ever encountered such an accumulation of traffic offences," said Helmuth Klinger, a police spokesman in the western city of Wiesbaden.

"The normal combination would be to drink and then drive against the traffic, but people who steal a car tend to be a bit more discreet as rule," he added.

The 28-year-old woman was four times over the legal alcohol limit when she was stopped on the highway between Frankfurt and Wiesbaden, having driven about five miles against the traffic.
(article HERE)

This makes world news in Germany - In America it wouldn't make the front page of the local newspaper...LOL

You are here...X

Hafiz, a fourteenth-century Persian mystic, once wrote:

"This place where you are right now
God circled on a map for you."

This statement will stop you in your tracks, no matter what your version of "God" is.
Going through life on autopilot, complaining about life's circumstances, zoning out in front of the television - they all seem such a waste, when this very moment was planned for us to learn from.

It makes me wonder, 'Where is the place I am at right now, and what is my lesson to be learned? What is my mindset?’

I am in a place right now to learn humility, to learn that I need to "lean not on your own understanding". To learn to live day to day, when I have always been a person that could not stand it if I didn't know what my plans were for the future.

I am learning that I have a need inside of me to simplify my life, getting rid of material things, thoughts, and "masks" that I really don't need. I have relearned how wonderful it is to give to others, to keep my own needs in check so that I have more to give to others.

The biggest thing that I am learning right now, in this place in my life, is that pride is not always a good thing. Pride can be a hurtful thing, not just to others, but also to myself. Pride keeps me from asking for help if I need it; pride keeps me from letting go, playing like a little kid, laughing out loud... Looking silly... pride had become a great wall between the world and me. It keeps me from reaching out to others in friendship, in fear of rejection. Pride kept me from dreaming, to avoid falling on my face and looking like a fool.
There was a time or two, as a child, when that wall would come down for a moment, (yes, it was put up early in my life) and I would laugh, and act like a part of the group... Until one of my "emotional abusers" would notice that I was having fun and cut me down so fast... I would slink off, embarrassed, ashamed that I was called out... Eventually, that wall became unmovable. I am trying to work through that, and destroy that wall forever.

Those are the things I am learning, and I am making progress, but I am a long way from getting to the place that I feel I can go on to the next circle on the map.

Wish me luck!

I may be jinxing it by talking about it already, but I applied for a job today (Monday). It is only cleaning rooms at a motel, but I like cleaning. I like the fact that it is not a job where I would deal much with people, I am not stuck behind a desk or standing in one place. This particular motel is the one where I had my first real job, cleaning rooms when I was 15. It also happens to be the motel that Sir and I spent our first weekend together. (I had my daughter babysitting Isaiah at my house!) That room will bring a few memories back… LOL
I know that a lot of people look down on those who do such menial jobs, but I really enjoy this type of work, and I think any honest job is a good one. There are those who think I must be stupid to “only” be doing jobs like this one, but the truth is that I have a very high IQ, and I could do a lot of jobs that are “more important” in other human’s eyes, but since they are not who gives me my sense of accomplishment, or self worth, I don’t care what they think.
My friends won’t think anything about it, and that is what matters.
This is the motel where Rhonda’s sister works, and she said I would probably get hired easily, so we will see!

History of the day...

Emily Dickinson died on this date, 1886.

I thought I would find one of her not-so-well-known poems to share.
I don't think I had read this one before, you may have. I really liked the final stanza.

I Died For Beauty

I died for beauty but was scarce
Adjusted in the tomb,
When one who died for truth was lain
In an adjoining room.

He questioned softly why I failed?
"For beauty," I replied.
"And I for truth,--the two are one;
We brethren are," he said.

And so, as kinsmen met a night,
We talked between the rooms,
Until the moss had reached our lips,
And covered up our names.

Um... yeah, sure...

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Beethoven composed many enduring symphonies, but now a Chicago company wants to make a Beethoven piece that lasts forever -- a diamond made out of strands of the 18th-century composer's hair.

LifeGem Memorials, a company that first gained attention in 2002 by making diamonds out of the carbon from cremated human remains, now says it can make diamonds out of human hair, allowing people to bury their loved ones but still have a memento they can carry with them.

To publicize this -- and to raise money for charity -- the company has teamed with John Reznikoff, who is in the Guinness Book of World Records for having the largest and most valuable collection of celebrity hair.


Reznikoff is giving six to 10 strands of Beethoven's hair to LifeGem, which will use it in a process to create three diamonds of between 0.5 and 1 carat in weight.
(article HERE)

A Mother's work.....

Mom and Dad were watching TV when Mom said, "I'm tired, and it's getting late. I think I'll go to bed."
She went to the kitchen to make sandwiches for the next day's lunches. Rinsed out the popcorn bowls, took meat out of the freezer for supper the following evening, checked the cereal box levels, filled the sugar container, put spoons and bowls on the table and started the coffee pot for brewing the next morning.
She then put some wet clothes in the dryer, put a load of clothes into the washer, ironed a shirt and secured a loose button.
She picked up the game pieces left on the table, put the phone back on the charger and put the telephone book into the drawer.
She watered the plants, emptied a wastebasket and hung up a towel to dry.
She yawned and stretched and headed for the bedroom. She stopped by the desk and wrote a note to the teacher, counted out some cash for the field trip, and pulled a textbook out from hiding under the chair.
She signed a birthday card for a friend, addressed and stamped the envelope and wrote a quick note for the grocery store. She put both near her purse.
Mom then washed her face with 3 in 1 cleanser, put on her Night solution & age fighting moisturizer, brushed and flossed her teeth and filed her nails.
Dad called out, "I thought you were going to bed."
"I'm on my way," she said.
She put some water into the dog's dish and put the cat outside, then made sure the doors were locked and the patio light was on.
She looked in on each of the kids and turned out their bedside lamps and TV's, hung up a shirt, threw some dirty socks into the hamper, and had a brief conversation with the one up still doing homework.
In her own room, she set the alarm; laid out clothing for the next day, straightened up the shoe rack. She added three things to her 6 most important things to do list She said her prayers, and visualized the accomplishment of her goals.
About that time, Dad turned off the TV and announced to no one in particular. "I'm going to bed."
And he did...without another thought.
Anything extraordinary here? Wonder why women live longer...? CAUSE WE ARE MADE FOR THE LONG HAUL. (And we can't die sooner; we still have things to do!!!!)
(Author Unknown)

Energy crisis?!

CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) - Taxi driver Jaime Tinoco works the streets of Caracas in a 1976 Chevy Nova that guzzles 19 gallons (72 liters) of gas a day. But he doesn't worry about fuel efficiency -- filling his tank costs just $2.30.
While U.S. consumers struggle with soaring energy prices, Venezuela's gas is now the world's cheapest at 12 cents a gallon and Washington's regional foe, President Hugo Chavez, vows to maintain subsidies that keep fuel dirt-cheap.
"Those gringos have everything -- so why does their gas cost so much?" asked Tinoco between chuckles as he navigated a midday traffic jam. "Don't they have oil reserves?"
(article HERE)

Unbelievable

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A 23-year-old with a foot fetish has admitted he tried to kiss, fondle and lick the legs and toes of more than 70 women on the New York subway over the last three years, prosecutors said on Wednesday.

In a handwritten confession to police released by the Manhattan district attorney's office, Joseph Weir said his aim was "to make them laugh and smile and open to talk to me."
(article HERE)

Ok, this would probably make women talk to him, but they wouldn't be saying anything nice!!
I think this guy needs alt.com!!!

"less feelings" miscellaneous...LOL

Hick County has a new county attorney. She receives a whopping salary of $35,000.00 a year. Probably explains why she will be keeping her 3 or 4 other jobs, LOL. Also explains why there were only two people that were even interested in the job.

I have taught my male cockatiel a new call... he can whistle that da-da-da-da-da-da-CHARGE! tune...LOL Those birds are noisy, but they are a lot of fun. I love having animals around me.

The county extension office passed out sunflower seeds to all the school kids, and in July they can cut down their biggest plants to take to the county fair, where there will be awards for biggest heads and tallest plants. Isaiah is excited about it.
I remember being in 4-H as a kid, and loving the county fair. I took all sorts of things, from geology and entomology to sewing, cooking, and crafts. By then we lived in town, and I didn’t have a place for cows or sheep, but I love 4-H anyway. I hated the project talks and demonstrations, though. Anything I had to do standing in front of the whole club was horrible… When you’re the one everyone makes fun of, you learn to make yourself invisible, and standing in front of the club giving a presentation was no way to be invisible! LOL I remember my first demonstration, I was about 7 or 8, it was in cooking, and I had to demonstrate all the steps of making chocolate pudding from a box. LOL

I am trying to find someone I know who has a digital camera, so that I can take some pictures of my favorite places in Hick County to show you…. There are some beautiful hidden places here. I drive around in the country, and I see wild turkeys or deer, or the way the light hits a small stream through a large grove of trees, or the shadows in a valley in the early evening, and I think how great it would be to put that picture on my blog! Oh well, someday.

Miscellaneous thoughts

Today is Isaiah’s 8th birthday. I spent the last couple of hours baking cupcakes with green frosting…LOL green is his favorite color. I think that we are going to have a family get together some time this weekend, depending on my sister and brother-in-law’s schedule. They are spending weekends looking for an affordable house for rent in the area where he works now. He stays M-F with his elderly cousin, and my sister stays here and works.

In case you didn’t read the comments on the last blog, I am thinking about selling home-party jewelry. I am not exactly the “ladies group” kind of gal, but it’s worth pretending, I guess. With this company, the dealer gets 50% of the sales. I thought about having a shop online too, couldn’t hurt!

Rick has been doing small jobs here and there… Has a few more lined up.

I didn’t write that last post to get sympathy, it is just what was on my mind, and my guard was down. Having a positive attitude, for me, is like wearing too-tight jeans – Eventually I just have to unbutton and take a deep breath! LOL

There is a job available, but I don’t know if I could do it. It is being an attendant care person at the local mental health Transitional Living Center, “Teaching and assisting consumers with daily living skills and medication management”. I have enough of a hard time “managing” supposedly sane people, I am not sure what to expect from that job…. I will be making a decision this weekend, and maybe applying on Monday. I know the woman who is the supervisor, we used to go to the same church, and so interviewing wouldn’t be too nerve-wracking LOL

Opinions?

I am having a hard time making a decision.
I have always wanted to go back to school. I have applied, and they have offered me a $425 pell grant for the summer semester. I am to receive a check soon from the closing of a small retirement account from my last job that should be big enough to cover the rest of the semester. BUT…
Rick and I neither one have found a job yet, and I received my last unemployment check this week. Hence the dilemma…
Do I go on with my school plans, or use the check to pay bills and buy groceries? If I don’t go back to school now, I may not ever. But if we don’t find jobs soon, we will have to apply for food stamps and borrow from my mother to pay the truck payment… Both of which I would rather cut off my right arm before doing…(bad enough we are living in her house already!)
My heart wants to go to school, but my mind is telling me that first things are first, and I should use it to pay bills.
Every week, we get the papers, and unless you are a nurse or a truck driver, there are absolutely no jobs. Rick has been looking in the town where he used to work, but I would have to take him over, then come home, and then go back and get him. At 30 miles one way, times 4, and my truck gets 20 miles to the gallon, and gas is $2.89/gal. That is approximately 6 gallons, 17.34 a day in gas, 6 days a week would be $104.04, not to mention wear and tear on my truck, which already has 115,000 miles on it… And the best jobs around only paying $12-15 an hour… Am I rambling?? LOL…
I just don’t know how we’re getting out of this one.
And no, before you say it, we have no saving and could not afford to move anywhere…

On the bright side, I am getting very creative at feeding my family cheaply…LOL

Speaking of trains...

In 1863 the Union Pacific RR began construction from Omaha, Nebr., while the Central Pacific broke ground at Sacramento, Calif. The two lines met at Promontory Summit, Utah, and on May 10, 1869, a golden spike joined the two railways, thus completing the first transcontinental railroad.

...on being mindful...

The man whispered, "God speak to me."
And a meadowlark sang, but the man did not hear.
So the man yelled, "God, speak to me."
And the thunder rolled across the sky,
but the man did not listen.
The man looked around and said,
"God let me see you." And a star shone brightly,
but the man didn't not notice.
And the man shouted,
"God, show me a miracle!"
And a new life was born,
but the man did not know.
So the man cried out in despair,
"Touch me, God, and let me know you are there."
Whereupon God reached down and touched the man,
But the man brushed the butterfly away
and walked on.



(photo from: http://www.krystalrose.com/angels/escene.php)

This holidays for you, Jas.....

On this day in 1886 - Atlanta pharmacist John Styth Pemberton invented the flavored syrup for Coca-Cola.
What would life be without ice-cold Coca-Cola (in glass, of course!)

Just one more picture... too cool...

Henry Krening, mechanical foreman with Union Pacific, checks the wheels of the steam locomotive Wednesday morning on the train's 30-minute break in Hutchinson.
(from the Hutchinson News)

U.P. 844

This morning dawned rainy and cold. Rick took Isaiah to school as usual, and I was getting around a bit slow, when he came home I was still in my PJs, watching television.
“Do me a favor,” he says when he comes flying through the front door.
“What?” Rick never moves that fast, so I knew something was up.
“Throw on some clothes, we gotta train to catch.” He went for my shoes.
“What?” I asked again, at the risk of sounding stupid.
“The second largest steam locomotive ever made is coming through town any minute.”
Now, those of you who have known me for a while know that I LOVE trains. Rick does too. The main reason I loved my railroad taxi job was working with the trains.
I got dressed, in about 1 minute, and we flew down to the tracks. It looked like ¼ of Hicksville showed up to see it, even in the pouring rain. There were people with small American flags, and umbrellas. There was an air of excitement that the cold rain couldn’t damper.
Suddenly, in the distance, we heard it. Now, if you have never heard the whistle of an old steam engine, you are missing out. There is nothing as beautiful, or lonesome, as the whistle of a steam train. We saw it coming fast down the rails. It was pitch black, and shiny in the rain. It was pulling the President’s Train, the fancy Union Pacific passenger train still in use for the President of Union Pacific. We all waved, and the people in the passenger cars waved, and it was a beautiful thing.
I knew that I would love to see it, but I didn’t know how it would make me feel. I can’t even describe how it feels - I am still psyched!
It is a beautiful train.

“Weighing in at 500 tons, almost 120 feet in length and nearly two stories high... The locomotive is the second largest operating steam engine in the world and is owned by Union Pacific. It was used for pulling passenger trains.
Union Pacific bought the engine new in 1944 from the American Locomotive Company in Schenectady, N.Y. as a coal fired engine then had it modified in 1946 to be oil fired. It was the last steam locomotive purchased by the Union Pacific and was produced at the end of the steam locomotive era.
""This is the real deal. It is the flag ship of the Union Pacific Railroad," said Reid Jackson, conductor for 844. "It's the state of the art for steam locomotives. It's a beautiful, awesome machine." The engine develops 5,000 horse power and on flat ground can easily pull 50 cars. It often traveled the speed limit of 90 mph and if it were behind schedule, 110 mph was not uncommon, Jackson said." (from the Pratt Tribune article by Gale Rose, HERE)
"No.844, also known as Union Pacific's "Living Legend," returned to service in 2005 after one of the most extensive steam locomotive overhauls in the United States since the 1950s. The work began in 2000 and affected its running gear, pumps, piping, valves and springs, along with replacement of its firebox and extensive boiler work. The cab interior was also refurbished. No. 844 was the last steam locomotive built for Union Pacific Railroad and was delivered in 1944. A high-speed passenger engine, it pulled such widely known trains as the Overland Limited, Los Angeles Limited, Portland Rose and Challenger.

When diesel-electric locomotives took over all passenger train duties, No. 844 was placed in freight service in Nebraska between 1957 and 1959. It was saved from being scrapped in 1960 and held for special service. No. 844 has run hundreds of thousands of miles for UP's Heritage program." (link)

I found a couple of good pictures of it, so I thought I would put a couple of them here. The last one shows UP844 pulling the President's train, you can see it larger HERE.

"I feel good..."

Looks like today is the day to be born a singer...

1903 - Bing Crosby (Harry Lillis Crosby), American singer, actor.
1919 - Pete Seeger, American folk singer, songwriter.
1928 - James Brown, American rock and roll singer.
1937 - Frankie Valli (Francis Castellucio), American singer.

Memories...

I was looking around my computer and found this picture of Isaiah when he was 5 (he's now 9 days from being 8). I was working at the paper then, and my friend, the editor, had baby chicks on his farm. Isaiah's favorite thing in the world is chickens, and he went crazy! Greg took his picture with the baby chick and put it on the front page of the paper. What a caption ...LOL

Sucker

Rhonda’s sister, C., refused to take care of her boyfriend’s cockatiels when he went to prison recently. I don’t know how long he is in for, but I do know that he won’t have any birds when he gets out. They are at my house now…LOL
Just what I needed, right?
I used to have cockatiels, and I really love birds. Rhonda figured I have more time to take care of them than anyone else she knew, and she knew I would never say no to “rescued” animals…LOL
SO, I now have lovely, and loud, background music to everything I do.
They haven’t been played with much, and try to bite me when I reach into the cage. Does anyone have cockatiels? Can I get them used to me? Will they eventually sit of my hand, or since they have not been messed with is it too late?
They are very pretty. I hate their names, though, so I may change them… They are currently Jack and Jill, which lead to another question…. How can I tell which is Jack and which is Jill?? One is almost completely gray, with paler orange spot on its cheek; the other is darker gray with a yellow head and bright orange spot.
Guess I will just have to look them up on the internet today.

Flying drivelines

I’m taking my daughter and her boyfriend to the nearest Wal-Mart town again today. At the beginning of every month, I take them so they can buy groceries, and other things.
I usually don’t mind too much, although with no income to speak of (yet) I never go in to the stores, and can’t buy anything, I usually take CDs, and a book or two, and a notebook, and spend some quality time reading, writing, people watching.
Last month, and this month, however, it makes me nervous to drive the 30 miles over and 30 miles back, because the U joint is going out in my pick up.
My husband told me this morning that if it flies apart, all I have to do is get under the truck, pull the drive line out of the transmission, put it in the back of the truck, put it into 4-wheel drive, and I can still make it home.
Now, we redneck women usually have no qualms about working on our own vehicles. I am sure this driveline surgery would be no problem for me. I do, however, seem to be a bit nervous about the u joint flying apart while going 65-70 mph down the highway. So, just like last month, I will be taking dirt roads all the way over and back. Yes, I do need to just replace the u joint, which is an easy fix, and the part is not too expensive, but when it comes to either buying food or truck parts, the truck parts just have to wait.
Last time, I hit a bump and the entire rear view mirror on the passenger side of my pick up fell off! I still haven’t got that put back on, seems the bolts holding it on broke, and I will have to take the door apart to replace them. Sigh.
So, in about and hour and a half I will be heading out… Any truck-staying-together thoughts sent my way will be appreciated…

What the...?

TORONTO (Reuters) - A distraught Canadian family is offering a reward for the return of their mother's head, hacked from her body in a funeral home a year ago by thieves who left cash, and her earrings behind.

Canadian newspapers reported Thursday someone broke into a funeral parlor in Longueuil, Quebec in July last year, where the body of Cecile Lemay was awaiting burial.

The thief or thieves made off with the 68-year-old's head, but left her earrings and a cash charity donation behind.

"Each morning, when we get up, we ask ourselves: 'Where is the head? Will it show up on our lawn one morning?'," the Globe and Mail newspaper quoted Lemay's sister Carmelle as saying.



The family is offering a reward of C$10,000 ($8,900) for information leading to the return of the stolen head or to the arrest of those responsible.

"We think about it each day. We can't find closure and we want to know who did it and why," another of Lemay's sisters, Ghyslaine, said.

(article)