Jon Gosselin is a Bag of Summer's Eve

I don't usually say this kind of thing, well that's not entirely true, I don't usually write out this kind of thing, but Jon Gosselin is a douchebag. There's really no other word for him, at least not one that accurately describes his level of dirt bag.

I was dumb and there really wasn't much else on tv so I decided to watch the Prime Time special with the interview of the Father of the Year. I feel guilty that I even gave up 30 minutes of my life for this craptastic display of ... I don't know the word... but he was just so mean. I don't care if Kate is witchy-b, she doesn't deserve to have the father of her 8, eight, children go on tv and proclaim to all the world that he despises her. Yes, he used that word- despise, which Webster defines as- to look down on with contempt or aversion, to regard as worthless.

Sorry for this rant, but my blood began to boil as I was watching this father completely and totally trash the mother of his kids. And I remembered back a few months ago when he said he was worried about his kids googling him one day and what they might read. Um, well I think when they watch this it's going to be a whole lot more damaging than a google search!

Okay, all done. Wait, not yet, he also said that he loved his new 22 year old "soul mate" more than he loved Kate. Yes, he actually used that word. I think I just threw up a little. Alright, now I'm finished!

The Tea Baggers

*UPDATE* Chuck Norris announces on the radio that he would like to be the President of Texas, should the secede from the Union. He said "I may run for president of Texas,” Norris wrote Monday in a column posted at WorldNetDaily. “That need may be a reality sooner than we think. If not me, someone someday may again be running for president of the Lone Star state, if the state of the union continues to turn into the enemy of the state.”

I try not to talk about politics too much on here, because for many people, it's a touchy subject- especially during this time of economic hardship. But today I'm not going to try to avoid stepping on toes. I just read about the most appalling words the Governor of Texas said yesterday while at a Tax Day Tea Party.

At one the parties, Governor Rick Perry said to the crowd, "I'm just not real sure you're a bunch of right-wing extremists. But if you are, we're with you." He said this as the crowd chanted "Secede" over and over again in the background.

I can't tell you how disgusted that makes me. I expect fringe groups to make claims of secession, but not from the Governor of Texas, who is conveniently up for reelection this year and also has his eye on the 2012 ticket. What makes it all the more troubling, is that he said this on the heel of of a report released by the Department of Homeland Security that contends right-wing extremist groups may be using the recession and the election of the nation's first African-American president to recruit members.

Defined, "Right Wing Extremists are typically those who believe in an ideology which is hostile to the constitution and mostly contemptuous of human life. They are often recognized by their hostility towards minorities and violence directed against minorities only because of their ethnic origin." So I'm a bit confused why Governor Perry would include himself, and his fellow Conservatives, in this group.

I certainly don't think that regular Conservative Republicans are RWE, and don't think RWE think regular Conservative Republicans are RWE. It's hard for me fathom that a popularly elected Governor of the second largest state in the Union would lump himself and many others, in a group who's heros include Adolf Hitler, Augusto Pinochet, Timothy McVeigh, and David Duke - just to name a few!

Later on in the day, when a reporter asked if Texas might actually consider seceding from the Union, he replied, "if Washington continues to thumb their nose at the American people, you know, who knows what might come out of that."

Now don't me get wrong, I do believe in States' Rights, it's part of the fundamental check and balance process that keeps our government from swinging too far in any direction. I don't think that States' Rights means Governors' Rights. In addition to Perry, the Governors of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alaska, and South Carolina have all rejected huge portions of the Federal Stimulus money meant to help struggling local economies and create more employment opportunities. I believe this is wrong; in my opinion that kind of decision needs to be made by the respective state legislatures- the voice of the citizens. If they decide not to accept it, that's fine, but at least it wasn't the decision of one person, who most likely has visions of being on the Republican Presidential ticket in 2012, i.e., Sarah Palin, Bobby Jindal, and Rick Perry.

One of the reasons I majored in Government was that I loved the idea of differing opinions and ideologies coming together to make decisions that would steadily improve quality of life, be that in homeland security, education, health care, or commerce. Even though you might disagree on every level of the political process, everyone shared the common goal of doing what was best for the nation. Yes, that sounds a but idealistic, but I really believe it. That's why this makes me so mad!! By giving any kind of proper acknowledgement to a group that's openly derisive towards everyone who's not "just like them," he's done nothing but give them political legitimacy. And the idea of a Texas secession is just crazy, it's never going to happen, and even entertaining the notion of it shows how he is willing to cut off his nose to spit his face (Texas).

Wow, I feel a lot better now that I've gotten that of my chest! Don't worry, this won't be a regular occurrence, my heart is pounding just thinking about clicking that Publish Post button. If you passionately disagree with this, I'd love to hear why. I like understanding every side of the coin and being able to understand and accept differing opinions is all part of the process of self-improvement.

And P.S.- why do yesterdays protesters and organizers keep referring to themselves, and the other attendees of the Tax Day Tea Party, as Tea-Baggers and that by attending a TDTP you were Teabagging? Do they not know what that means? They showed a picture on MNSBC of a little boy wearing a shirt that said "I'm Teabagging," and when I saw it, I almost spit my diet coke out of my mouth, I was laughing so hard. Well, if they don't know, someone might want to give them a little heads up on what Teabagging is.

I Don't Get It

Not to sound cocky or braggy, but I was blessed with smarts- book smarts that is, NOT street smarts. I'm always the last person to get the joke and I rarely know when people are kidding and that's why I don't like April Fools Day.

Granted, it's gotten a lot better since getting out of high school and college, but I'm still fooled by every joke and every "Gotchya!" Okay, so AFD rant over!

Yesterday we had Spencer's Easter pictures taken. Oh, they were SO cute and they did such a good job with her. Commonwealth Photography has taken her pictures since she was a wee little one and I just love them! Yesterday they had REAL bunnies for the pictures.

Of course Spencer was entertained by these two little scurrying creatures and they got some adorable pictures of the bunnies running away from her as she chased them. Then comes the dreaded part of having to narrow it down to just a few, I hate that part. I can't wait to show ya'll the pictures when we get them back. But just in case you can't wait- here's a few CP posted, check them out when you get a chance!

In other Katie news, I've been ridiculously tired these last few days. I don't know why, I haven't done anything too out of the ordinary. Last night I went to bed at 9pm and I was still exhausted when Spencer woke me up this morning. Maybe I need to take a vitamin or something? I usually avoid them because they do funky things to my stomach, but I'm thinking it's time.
Well I hope everyone is having a great week, especially those of you who are on Spring Break!

Sister Suffragette

The title of this post doesn't really have anything to do with my topic du jour- except that it's a tad political and I always thought if I'd been alive during the women's voting movement, I would have been, a fellow Sister Suffragette! Just say it to yourself "Sister Suffragette."


It just rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?

Before I start my mini-rant (don't ya'll just love how all my rants are "mini"?) I just want to clarify that it's not a partisan rant. Okay, so every morning as I'm watching the news, reading cnn.com, doing anything that involves listening to current events, I get more and more outraged at these bailouts.


Now don't get me wrong, I'm not anti-bailout, not at all. However, I am anti the bailouts that we (insert whoever chooses the bailoutees) have chosen to "save." In my opinion, the companies and industries that should be bailed out, are those that have the greatest chance of survival after this recession/depression is behind us.


Circuit City for example!


I realize that I'm partial to CC because I'm from Richmond and that's where they were founded, but they employ over 40,000 people across the country. I have no doubt that when the economy is back on it's feet that Circuit City would have had no problem in returning to making a profit. I think it's a shame that so many stores and companies are going under, while the government continues to bail out AIG, and the auto industry.

I don't want to say anything too inflammatory, because I don't really understand all the nuances to these economic questions and solutions. However, I really believe that the auto industry is going to have problems even when the economy has recovered. Their problems, yes- they've been exacerbated by this crisis, but they've been present ever since NAFTA was signed and they're going to be there after the recovery.

And I'm not saying we (insert whoever chooses the bailoutees) shouldn't have rescued the automotive companies, I'm just using it as an example to make my overall point: we (insert whoever chooses the bailoutees) need to be bailing out companies that have a viable chance of returning a profit once we're out of this recession. And I think that getting out of this financial fustercluck is going to be much more difficult with so many service providing companies and industries no longer there to provide, well, their "service."

I hope I didn't offend anyone, because that wasn't my point, I just wanted to vent a little and think of a world run by me! haha.

A Mini Rant- Ann Coulter on The View on Single Mothers

There was a time when I owned an Ann Coulter book, I'm sorry and slightly embarrassed to admit that, but I did. When I found out she was going to be on The View I was intrigued, I thought she would have to be insane to go on that show, but here she is, in all her vitriolic glory. Immediately, she was spouting off about single mothers, saying their children are a "farm team for future criminals and social outcasts."

I know I'm sensitive where this topic is concerned, as I'm a single mother, but I really felt she was just trying to say outrageous things just to get a rise of the hosts and the audience. She went on to say how they're maladjusted, sympathetic to their fathers, and that children of divorce are just future strippers.

I felt my vision getting a little blurry at this point, the rage was building up. First, at The View, for allowing such a horrible woman to pontificate about her hateful ideas, and second, at me, for watching. I couldn't help it, I sat there for the entire 8 minutes she was on. At least she got rail-roaded by them, but it really bothers me that she actually believes my daughter would be better off with her father, as men are more likely to marry than single mothers- giving her a two parent home. That's just INSANE.

Her whole argument is essentially that single women and their offspring are the cause of the majority of society's ills. I won't argue that it's difficult to be a single mother or that more challenges arise because of it, but I certainly don't blame any group for pandemic social problems. To me, the most important thing is how you are raised.

Just because I'm not married to her father doesn't mean I don't believe in marriage- quite the opposite in fact. And if and when I get married, Spencer will know it's for all the right reasons.

Express, Not Repress

I don't know if I have always been the way I am now, in terms of annoyance level. I'm pretty sure that as I've gotten older, or since I birthed a baby, it's easier for trivial things to get under my skin. It's not like I'm a ranting and raving lunatic, but in my head I'm always saying to myself, like,

"ugh, I hate that," or

"ahh, that is SOOOO annoying," or

"that is the stupidest thing I've ever heard!"

What's even more strange, is that since I had Spencer I've been put my vocabulary on strict censorship- which means no expletives, unless there is projectile vomit or explosive you-know-what, but also no words like "hate" "stupid" "fat" "dumb" or "ugly." But now, I'm saying it all in my head, with a vehemence that I didn't have before. Not being able to express how I'm feeling, when I'm feeling it, "ahh, that is SOOOO annoying!"

This is why I'm going to list all of my current pet peeves. I'm hoping that if I can get it all out there, they won't continue to irk me the way they do. Here's today's list. Oh, and a lot of them are T-R-I-V-I-A-L, and I know that.

1. Discovering there aren't any wipes in the middle of changing a poopy diaper.
2. Getting my yarn tangled and knotty, especially when it's with more than one ball.
3. Television shows running longer than their allotted time, so that my Faux Vo DVR doesn't tape the last one minute, and most critical part of the episode.
4. UPS and FedEx drivers who ring the doorbell in the middle of the day (during Spencer's nap), not because I need to sign something, just to let me know there's something on the porch.
5. This probably isn't a pet peeve, but it REALLY annoys me that I wasn't "worse," for lack of a better term, before I had Spencer. It just stinks that I get the reputation associated with having a baby out of wedlock, which to some (many) makes me "promiscuous," without ever getting to be promiscuous. Not that I want or wanted to be like that, but since that's what people tend to think about me, it really stinks that I have the reputation . Once again, not that promiscuity is a benefit, but I spent years agonizing about it when I could have spared myself a few worry wrinkles.
6. The instruction "salt to taste," or anything like it. I want a measurement- if I wanted to guess, I wouldn't be using a recipe.
   
7. Judgmental advice- Ex. "Do you really think that is the best for the baby? I think this would be better."
8. Political fear mongering
9. Washing machines that break down right before the spin cycle.
10. Packages that don't arrive on time, especially if it was a gift that's now going to be late to the giftee.
11. Slow internet connection
12. Volleyball

That's all that's pressing on me today, but I'd like to know what other moms use as an outlet for their frustration.

Billions and Billions and Billions of Diamonds

I think most people know by now that diamonds actually have very little value. De Beers has a monopoly on the diamond market and in order to keep the prices of diamonds inflated, they restrict the supply that's released for retail purposes. By increasing the demand and then intentionally limiting the supply, they are able to outrageously bloat the value and price of diamonds. If all the diamonds that De Beers had stored away were put on the market today, they would be worth almost nothing.


There are about a billion reasons this infuriates me, Africa being number one, but that is for another rant. Today I read here that De Beers is doubling their ad campaign expenditures in the United States. Their logic being that in an economic crisis people will want to buy something that is "forever," rather than wasting their money on the trends of the day. The LAST thing people need to do is go out and buy a diamond- sorry all you diamond lovers. Go put that that money in a savings account, college savings fund, buy property, gas, etc. and if you must buy precious gems, purchase a ruby, they are the most rare stone. Fun Fact, the phrase "A Diamond is Forever" is the most recognized ad slogan from the 20th century- De Beers coined the phrase in order to increase the public "oh la la" perception of diamonds. In 1939 they launched the first ever ad campaign that linked diamonds and engagements; prior to that, diamonds were not part of an engagement.