The Wish Factory!

NOBODY LISTENED!! HE TOLD US!

2012-01-20T19:35:00.000-08:00

Yes, Obama told us in advance what he planned to do. Few were listening.

The following is a narrative taken from a 2008 Sunday morning televised "Meet The Press."

From Sunday's 07 Sept. 2008, 11:48:04 EST, Televised "Meet the Press" THE THEN Senator Obama was asked about his stance on the American Flag.

General Bill Ginn, USAF (ret.), asked Obama to explain WHY he doesn't follow protocol when the National Anthem is played.

The General stated to Obama that according to the United States Code, Title 36, Chapter 10, Sec. 171...

During rendition of the national anthem, when the flag is displayed, all present (except those in uniform) are expected to stand at attention, facing the flag, with the right hand over the heart. Or, at the very least, "Stand and Face It".

NOW GET THIS !!

'Senator'Obama replied:

"As I've said about the flag pin, I don't want to be perceived as taking sides....." "There are a lot of people in the world to whom the American flag is a symbol of oppression...." "The anthem itself conveys a war-like message. You know, the bombs bursting in air, and all that sort of thing."

(ARE YOU READY FOR THIS???)

Obama continued:, "The National Anthem should be 'swapped' for something less parochial and less bellicose. I like the song 'I'd Like To Teach the World To Sing.' If that were our anthem, then I might salute it. In my opinion, we should consider reinventing our National Anthem as well as 'redesign' our Flag to better offer our enemies hope and love. It's my intention, if elected, to disarm America to the level of acceptance to our Middle East Brethren. If we, as a Nation of waring people, conduct ourselves like the nations of Islam, where peace prevails - - - perhaps a state or period of mutual accord could exist between our governments ......."

"When I become President, I will seek a pact of agreement to end hostilities between those who have been at war or in a state of enmity, and a freedom from disquieting oppressive thoughts . We as a Nation, have placed upon the nations of Islam, an unfair injustice, which is WHY my wife disrespects the Flag, and she and I have attended several flag burning ceremonies in the past."

"Of course now, I have found myself about to become the President of the United States and I have put my hatred aside. I will use my power to bring CHANGE to this Nation, and offer the people a new path. My wife and I look forward to becoming our Country's First black Family. Indeed, CHANGE is about to overwhelm the United States of America."

WHAAAAAAAT,is that???

Yes, you read it right.

I, for one, am speechless!!!

Dale Lindsborg , Washington Post

A Senior Speaking Out to Congressional Thieves

2012-01-01T13:46:00.000-08:00

I don’t know the authenticity of the author, but its message holds much truth. If the author really wrote this to her senator, more power to her.

This is GREAT!...

Alan Simpson,Republican Senator from Wyoming , Co-Chair of Obama's deficit commission, calls senior citizens the Greediest Generation as he compared "Social Security" to a Milk Cow with 310 million teats.

Here's a response in a letter from PATTY MYERS in Montana ...
I think she is a little ticked off! She also tells it like it is!

"Hey Alan, let's get a few things straight..
1. As a career politician, you have been on the public dole for
FIFTY YEARS.
2. I have been paying Social Security taxes for 48 YEARS
(since I was 15 years old. I am now 63).

3 My Social Security payments, and those of millions of other Americans, were safely tucked away in an interest bearing account
for decades until you political pukes decided to raid the account and give OUR money to a bunch of zero ambition losers in return for votes, thus bankrupting the system and turning Social Security into a
Ponzi scheme that would have made Bernie Madoff proud..

4. Recently, just like Lucy & Charlie Brown, you and your ilk pulled
the proverbial football away from millions of American seniors nearing retirement and moved the goalposts for full retirement from age 65
to age 67. NOW, you and your shill commission is proposing to move the goalposts YET AGAIN.

5. I, and millions of other Americans, have been paying into Medicare from Day One, and now you morons propose to change the rules of
the game. Why? Because you idiots mismanaged other parts of the economy to such an extent that you need to steal money from Medicare to pay the bills.

6. I, and millions of other Americans, have been paying income taxes our entire lives, and now you propose to increase our taxes yet again. Why? Because you incompetent bastards spent our money so profligately that you just kept on spending even after you ran out
of money. Now, you come to the American taxpayers and say you
need more to pay off YOUR debt.
To add insult to injury, you label us "greedy" for calling "bullshit"
on your incompetence. Well, Captain Bullshit, I have a few questions
for YOU.

1. How much money have you earned from the American
taxpayers during your pathetic 50-year political career?

2. At what age did you retire from your pathetic political career,
and how much are you receiving in annual retirement benefits
from the American taxpayers?

3. How much do you pay for YOUR government provided
health insurance?

4. What cuts in YOUR retirement and healthcare benefits are
you proposing in your disgusting deficit reduction proposal, or,
as usual, have you exempted yourself and your political cronies?

It is you, Captain Bullshit, and your political co-conspirators called Congress who are the "greedy" ones. It is you and your fellow
nutcases who have bankrupted America and stolen the American
dream from millions of loyal, patriotic taxpayers. And for what?
Votes. That's right, sir. You and yours have bankrupted America
for the sole purpose of advancing your pathetic political careers.
You know it, we know it, and you know that we know it.
And you can take that to the bank, you miserable son of a bitch.

Obama Using Dictatorial Powers

2011-12-09T11:35:00.000-08:00

Since taking office, President Obama has been wielding executive powers like free beer at an open bar. He has created a number of regulations without the consent of Congress. These regulations are costing taxpayers millions of dollars.

In an effort to curb in the president’s dictatorial use of executive power, Rep Geoff Davis, R(KY) first introduced the Regulations From the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act of 2010 of REINS Act 2010, but the measure failed. This year, Rep Davis re-introduced the REINS Act 2011 with the co-sponsorship of over 200 co-sponsors.

On Wednesday, the House passed the REINS Act 2011 by a 241 to 184 vote. The measure will now move to the Senate where the Democrats have vowed to defeat it. And if for some reason it does pass the Senate, President Obama has vowed to veto it since it will take away his dictatorial powers.

One of the main sponsors of the REINS Act was Rep Geoff Davis, R(KY) who sent out the following statement following the House passage of the measure.

Today, the House of Representatives passed Congressman Geoff Davis’ bill, H.R. 10, the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act, by a bipartisan vote of 241 to 184.

Congressman Davis said, “The point of the REINS Act is accountability. Each member of Congress must take a stand and be accountable for regulations that will have the greatest impact on our economy. Regulatory compliance costs small businesses an estimated $10,500 per employee annually. At a time of high unemployment, we must do something about this massive burden. No longer would Congress be able to avoid accountability by writing vague laws requiring the benefits up front and leaving the unpopular or costly elements up to the bureaucrats who will write those elements of the law at some later date.

“I want to thank all of the supporters of the REINS Act, especially Speaker Boehner, Chairman Smith, Senator Paul, and the over 200 co-sponsors for their tireless efforts to advance this commonsense legislation.”

Speaker of the House John Boehner said, “Passage of the REINS Act is a significant step towards fulfilling our obligations to the American people outlined in the Pledge to America. The REINS Act will make the regulatory process more open and accountable, and rein in unelected bureaucrats from strangling small businesses in red tape, which will give private sector job creators the confidence they need to grow our economy and hire.”

House Judiciary Chairman Lamar Smith said, “More than once this year, the President has talked about the dangers that excessive regulations pose to our economy. But unfortunately, his actions speak louder than his words. The Obama administration is preparing numerous regulations that each will cost the economy $1 billion or more per year.

“The American people want job creation, not more regulation. The REINS Act reins in out-of-control federal regulations that burden America’s businesses and job creators. It guarantees that Congress – not unelected agency officials – will be accountable for all new major regulatory

Read more: Obama Using Dictatorial Powers | Godfather Politics http://godfatherpolitics.com/2524/obama-using-dictatorial-powers/#ixzz1g4GN1Bpp

"It's not that liberals aren't smart...

2011-11-09T06:10:00.000-08:00

IT'S ABOUT TIME WE GET THE TRUTH OUT THERE! It is shocking that so many who walk among us are uninformed. It's OK to disagree but let's try to get our facts straight!!
Remember Jan 3, 2007

The day the democrats took over was not January 22nd 2009
it was actually January 3rd 2007 the day the Democrats took
over the House of Representatives and the Senate, the start
of the 110th Congress. The Democrat Party controlled a
majority in both chambers for the first time since the end
of the 103rd Congress in 1995. For those who are listening
to the liberals propagating the fallacy that everything is
"Bush's Fault", think about this:

January 3rd, 2007 was the day the Democrats took over the
Senate and the Congress:

At the time:

The DOW Jones closed at 12,621.77

The GDP for the previous quarter was 3.5%

The Unemployment rate was 4.6%

George Bush's Economic policies SET A RECORD of 52 STRAIGHT
MONTHS of JOB CREATION!

Remember the day...

January 3rd, 2007 was the day that Barney Frank took over
the House Financial Services Committee and Chris Dodd took
over the Senate Banking Committee.

The economic meltdown that happened 15 months later was in
what part of the economy? BANKING AND FINANCIAL SERVICES!

Thank Congress for taking us from 13,000 DOW, 3.5 GDP and
4.6% Unemployment to this CRISIS by dumping 5-6 TRILLION
Dollars of toxic loans on the economy from YOUR Fannie Mae
and Freddie Mac fiasco's! (BTW: Bush asked Congress 17
TIMES to stop Fannie & Freddie - starting in 2001, because
it was financially risky for the U.S. economy, but no one
was listening). (I personally recall Bush asking for Congressional oversight
because "Wall Street was getting too greedy!")

And who took the THIRD highest pay-off from Fannie Mae AND
Freddie Mac?

OBAMA.

And who fought against reform of Fannie and Freddie???

OBAMA and the Democratic Congress.

So when someone tries to blame Bush...

REMEMBER JANUARY 3rd, 2007.... THE DAY THE DEMOCRATS TOOK OVER!"
Bush may have been in the car, but the Democrats
were in charge of the gas pedal and steering wheel they
were driving. Set the record straight on Bush!

So, as you listen to all the commercials and media from the
Democrats who are now distancing themselves from their
voting record and their party, remember how they didn't
listen to you when you said you didn't want all the
bailouts, you didn't want the health care bill, you didn't
want cap and trade, you didn't want them to continue
spending money we don't have..

I'm not forgetting their complicity in getting us into this
mess, and I'll be marking my vote accordingly!

"It's not that liberals aren't smart, it's just that so
much of what they know isn't so" -Ronald Reagan

SNOPES IS NOT AN UNBIASED SOURCE FOR THE TRUTH:

2011-11-09T05:35:00.000-08:00

I'd heard years ago that Snopes was a left-wing operation but found it odd that there was absolutely nothing negative to be found about Obama when he was running for President.
Most of us have gone to Snopes for verify information that we were not sure about. Now, come to find out, Snopes is not the paragon of truth we thought it was. I just eliminated them as a source of honesty and integrity. Please read and pass on to your friends.
In our Search for the truth department, we find what I have suspected on many occasions. I went to Snopes to check this out and they said it was false and there were no such dockets so I Googled the Supreme Court, typed in Obama-Kagan, and guess what? Yep you got it. Snopes lied. Everyone of those dockets are there. So Here is what I wrote Snopes:
Referencing the article about Elena Kagan and Barak Obama dockets: The information you have posted stating that there were no such cases as claimed and the examples you gave are blatantly false. I went directly to the Supreme Courts website, typed in Obama Kagan and immediately came up with all of the dockets that the article made reference to.. I have long suspected that you really slant things but this revelation is really shocking. You exist behind a veil of half truths and distorted facts. Hoping you will be honest and forthcoming in the future is probably expecting too much.
*************
That being said, if you really didn't know THIS then your investigative reporting is a sham; Kagan was representing Obama in all the petitions to prove his citizenship. Now she may help rule on them. Folks, this is really ugly. Chicago Politics; and the beat goes on and on and on...
Once again the US Senate sold us out! Well, someone figured out why Obama nominated Elana Kagan for the Supreme Court.... Pull up the Supreme Courts website, go to the docket and search for Obama. Kagan was the Solicitor General for all the suits against him filed with the Supreme Court to show proof of natural born citizenship. He owed her big time. All of the requests were denied of course. They were never heard! It just keeps getting deeper and deeper, doesn't it? The American people mean nothing any longer. It all comes down to payback time for those who compromised themselves to elect someone that really has no true right to even be there.
Here are some websites of the Supreme Court Docket: When you look up some of these hearings and guess what?? Elana Kagan is the attorney representing Obama!!!
Check out these examples:
http://www.supremecourt.gov/Search.aspx?FileName=%2Fdocketfiles%2F09-8857.htm
http://www.supremecourt.gov/Search.aspx?FileName=%2Fdocketfiles%2F09-8857.htm
http://www.supremecourt.gov/Search.aspx?FileName=%2Fdocketfiles%2F09-6790.htm
http://www.supremecourt.gov/Search.aspx?FileName=%2Fdocketfiles%2F09-6790.htm
http://www.supremecourt.gov/Search.aspx?FileName=%2Fdocketfiles%2F09-724.htm
http://www.supremecourt.gov/Search.aspx?FileName=%2Fdocketfiles%2F09-724.htm

If you are not interested in justice or in truth don't bother checking.
However, if you hold sacred the freedoms granted to you by the U.S. Constitution
By all means, please PASS it ON! to those not connected to the internet. Thanks

You Won't See This on the MSM News!!

2011-10-31T08:26:00.001-07:00

George Washington statue is hidden at the MLK rally
in Columbia , SC.
The annual MLK observance at the state house in Columbia
SC had an interesting twist this year. The event is held on
the north side steps of the statehouse.
Prominent at that location is a large bronze statue of
George Washington.
This year, the NAACP constructed a "box" to conceal the
father of our country from view so that participants would
not be 'offended' by his presence.
I could hardly believe my eyes when I saw this picture of
the MLK Day rally in Columbia , South Carolina .
This rally was sponsored by the NAACP and they said that
they covered the statue because they "didn't want to
offend anyone". Really? George Washington is the father
of this nation. How is he offensive to anyone?
Can you imagine what would happen if we covered the
statue of Dr. Martin L. King on President's Day? or is only
the statue of a 'white guy' offensive ??
Of course, this display of anti-Americanism wasn't covered
at all by the national media (surprise, surprise !!), and the
local paper in Columbia only ran a short piece on it. It has
been covered a little by the blog-world but I think the word
needs to get out to the general public that this is what the
NAACP is all about...militant and (most definately) racist.

YOU MIGHT WANT TO PASS THIS ON -- AS IT SAYS AT
THE BEGINNING -- YOU WON'T BE SEEING ANYTHING
ABOUT THIS THROUGH THE NEWS MEDIA...

The Good The Bad & The Ugly- Learn From Them

2011-10-30T05:26:00.000-07:00

Every person with whom you interact is important in forming your soul growth and your character & experience in this life.

We look at the bad relationships we've had and don't appreciate the growth we've accomplished in that relationship. Sometimes we form bonds with others in our survival of certain relationships.

For instance, a lot of people are very disgusted with us having Obama for a President, but if you look at the good that's come out of it rather than just the bad, a lot of good has been accomplished. The nation was complacent. The citizenry relied totally on the mainstream media, to their detriment, believing everything we heard on the News and read in the paper. What they omitted to report was as important as what they misinformed us about and what they failed to do themselves. The mainstream media, in the past, always vetted people running for President. They didn't vet Obama. Plus the man lied about what he was going to do, what his purpose was, what his beliefs were. Now he's trying to appear to be inept, when its obvious to those paying close attention that he's right on target to accomplish what he let slip to "Joe the Plumber". His goal is to "fundamentally transform America" into a Socialist/Communist country where he can be the dictator.

What good did this do? It brought together a lot of Patriots who are working together without the mainstream media, asking, growing, learning, educating themselves. In the process we are learning personal responsibility for our own actions, and learning that we have God-given Freedoms that can never be taken from us.

In our personal lives we need to look at our "bumping against" all others as an opportunity for learning, growing, and becoming in our own soul growth and our own trip through this life experience. Whether good or bad, each experience is an opportunity for learning and growth. We need to examine each such experience and extricate the good that came to us from it and give thanks for the experience that contributed to our growth.

Armageddon was Yesterday; Now Survive

2011-10-27T04:32:00.000-07:00

Armageddon was yesterday. Today, we have a serious problem.

I received this note in an email from a friend. This first note is from a dentist who shared info about his doctor friend.
I do not know who wrote the story at the bottom.
However, a similar article in a magazine made the same comparison about what
is happening to our country.

Some friends of ours, a physician and his wife and their daughter just
recently returned from a seminar in Cuba. They said that Cuba was like a
country that was in a time warp,...nothing has been changed since the
takeover of Castro in the mid 1950s. Buildings are in disrepair,... not
painted or repaired. The cars are mostly American from the 50s and look like
clunkers. The roads are terrible. The entire infrastructure has
deteriorated. The Cuban government owns everything and every business, and
everyone works for the government. The doorman at the hotel makes more money
than a Cuban physician, because of tips from the few tourists that visit.
There is no incentive to work hard or get an education. So they have a
terrible shortage of medical help.... why spend the money and time to get
such an education, when you are worked beyond endurance and there is no
compensation? Their hospitals are ancient and don't have any up to date
equipment. This is what happens when the government takes over. Read
below.....
++++++++++
" A democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are
willing to work and give to those who would not."
~~ Thomas Jefferson
+++++++++++

IN GOD WE TRUST

What others see plainly, we often ignore.
I'm not saying this is true, just something to think about this is some
pretty good reading...

Here's something to think about. More truth than fiction.
I remember asking dad about Castro when I was about 9 years old. I asked,
"Is Castro a good guy or bad?"

Dad said he couldn't tell!! This was about 1955. We were living in Louisiana
at the time. Dad was in the army there.

Cuba was fairly close and in the news a lot. The Cubans were asking the same
question! Ike was president.

This past July, we had the pleasure of sharing a summer barbecue with a
refugee from Cuba . Our dinner conversation was starkly different than most.

This refugee came to the United States as a young boy in the early 1960s.
His family was more fortunate than most as they were able to bring a
suitcase and $100 when they fled Castro's newly formed revolutionary
paradise.

Our dinner consisted of all-American fare: hamburgers, potato salad,
watermelon and fresh ears of sweet corn. This is a menu shared with
Family and friends nationwide, while celebrating the birth of our beloved
American the Fourth of July.

We began with a simple discussion about our country and the direction it has
taken since Barack Obama came to power. We shared the usual
Complaints about the sour economy and liberal social engineering emanating
from the rulers in Washington..
But then he said it. The sentence came naturally. I assume it was unplanned.
But it carried the weight of a freight train. "You know
When Castro took power, none of us knew he was a Communist." We sat stunned.
He continued, "Yes, we all thought he was a patriot, a nationalist. Before
the revolution he didn't sound like a radical."
The comparison at this point was easy, and I interjected,
"You mean just like Barack Obama?"
He responded; "Yes, just like Barack Obama."
He continued, "We were all shocked as the government just continued to grab
more power. First they said the revolution is over, so please turn in your
guns. We all complied."
"I remember my uncle saying after it started; 'Castro will only nationalize
some of the big industries, he will never come and take our family hardware
store.' But that is exactly what happened; Castro started with the sugar
mills and the large industries, but they eventually came and knocked on the
door of our family hardware store. My family had run this store for
generations. They said we now own the hardware store, you work for us. And
that nice, large four-bedroom home you own, it is now our property also, and
you can move yourself and five children into two rooms of the house because
others are moving in with you." The lesson learned from this discussion is a
lesson most Americans refuse to hear.. Political leaders can lie about their
agenda and once in office they can take totally unexpected turns.
If you had asked us three years ago if we thought General Motors would be
nationalized, we would have never believed it. We could never contemplate a
country where the rule of law, the most fundamental building block of a
justice society would be evaporating just like it did in Castro's Cuba in
the early 1960s.
But the news of injustice keeps increasing. Black Panthers are not charged
with wrongdoing by the U.S. Department of Justice because their crimes are
against whites. The bondholders of GM are stripped of their assets without
due process by the government. Governmental leaders are bribed in full
daylight only to have all criminal investigations blocked by the Attorney
General. The U.S. borders are overrun with crime and illegal activity and
the leaders in D.C. move to protect the law breakers, while the innocent are
killed and overrun. When local communities attempt to enforce the law, they
are ridiculed and threatened as extremists, racists and bigots. Then, they
are sued by the very administration entrusted with enforcing the law.

Without the rule of law the U.S. Constitution is a sham.
Without the rule of law our beloved America is swiftly becoming a country
where only the well connected and politically powerful will be safe.

As Michelle Malkin has so eloquently explained in her recent book, a culture
of corruption has replaced honest government.

The only way this problem will be fixed is by massive citizen action. All
honest citizens that want to be treated equally must come together and
demand that the favoritism, the bribes, the uneven enforcement of law end
now. And yes, it can happen here.

And may God save the United States of America !

Personally, I believe it is happening here, and if you think so too the
least you can do is forward this site to your friends.

Six million plus Jews didn't believe it would happen in Germany either.

If you're in these United States of America you're next on the list. The
real problem here is the boy from Cuba did manage to make it to the U.S.. We
will not have any place to escape to except death.

Why Americans Want Secure Borders

2011-10-17T05:52:00.000-07:00

Well, there's the first worry, if nobody's watching terrorists could get in and foment unrest and civil disobedience, or even bomb us or otherwise terrorize us. And then there's the illegal alien problem. We can't afford it.

For Those Who Do Not Understand.....

'JOE vs. JOSE'

You have two families: "Joe Legal" and "Jose Illegal".
Both families have two parents, two children, and live in California ..

Joe Legal works in construction, has a Social Security Number and makes
$25.00 per hour with taxes deducted.

Jose Illegal also works in construction, has NO Social Security Number,
and gets paid $15.00 cash "under the table".

Ready? Now pay attention....

Joe Legal: $25.00 per hour x 40 hours = $1000.00 per week, or $52,000.00 per year.
Now take 30% away for state and federal tax; Joe Legal now has $31,231.00.

Jose Illegal: $15.00 per hour x 40 hours = $600.00 per week, or $31,200.0 0 per year. Jose Illegal pays no taxes. Jose Illegal now has $31,200.00.

Joe Legal pays medical and dental insurance with limited coverage for his family
at $600.00 per month, or $7,200.00 per year. Joe Legal now has $24,031.00.

Jose Illegal has full medical and dental coverage through the state and local clinics and emergency hospitals at a cost of $0.00 per year. Jose Illegal still has $31,200.00.

Joe Legal makes too much money and is not eligible for food stamps or welfare.
Joe Legal pays $500.00 per month for food, or $6,000.00 per year.
Joe Legal now has $18,031.00.

Jose Illegal has no documented income and is eligible for food stamps, WIC and welfare. Jose Illegal still has $31,200.00.

Joe Legal pays rent of $1,200.00 per month, or $14,400.00 per year.
Joe Legal now has 9,631 ..00.

Jose Illegal receives a $500.00 per month Federal Rent Subsidy.
Jose Illegal pays out that $500.00 per month, or $6,000.00 per year.
Jose Illegal still has $ 31,200.00.

Joe Legal pays $200.00 per month, or $2,400.00 for car insurance.
Some of that is uninsured motorist insurance.
Joe Legal now has $7,231.00.

Jose Illegal says, "We don't need no stinkin' insurance!" and still has $31,200.00.

Joe Legal has to make his $7,231.00 stretch to pay utilities, gasoline, etc..

Jose Illegal has to make his $31,200.00 stretch to pay utilities, gasoline, and
what he sends out of the country every month..

Joe Legal now works overtime on Saturdays or gets a part time job after work.

Jose Illegal has nights and weekends off to enjoy with his family.

Joe Legal's and Jose Illegal's children both attend the same elementary school.
Joe Legal pays for his children's lunches, while Jose Illegal's children get a
government sponsored lunch. Jose Illegal's children have an after school
ESL (English as Second Language) program. Joe Legal's children go home.

Now, when they reach college age, Joe Legal's kids may not get into a State
School and may not qualify for scholarships, grants or other tuition help,
even though Joe has been paying for State Schools through his taxes, while
Jose Illegal's kids "go to the head of the class" because they are a minority.

Joe Legal and Jose Illegal both enjoy the same police and fire services, but
Joe paid for them and Jose did not pay.

My solution to illegal aliens, and their "anchor babies"? I believe they should return to where they came from, mostly Mexico and Central America. Their anchor babies are "US Citizens". If they want to keep their babies they should renounce their citizenship and take them along. If they do not, the babies should be given up for adoption and the parents should go home without them.

Why are they coming anyway? Tons of American jobs have been moved to Mexico! Why don't they go there to work? We just can't afford to be compassionate.

It appears Obama's solution to illegal aliens is to turn America into a Third World Country without Freedom, so nobody will want to come here.

WASHINGTON DC & HOW IT WORKS

2011-10-17T05:11:00.000-07:00

Who Knew?? All makes sense in the end as you will clearly see !!

Railroad tracks.
The US standard railroad gauge (distance between the rails) is 4 feet, 8.5 inches. That's an exceedingly odd number.

Why was that gauge used? Because that's the way they built them in England, and English expatriates designed the US railroads.

Why did the English build them like that? Because the first rail lines were built by the same people who built the pre-railroad tramways, and that's the gauge they used.
Why did 'they' use that gauge then?

Because the people who built the tramways used the same jigs and tools that they had used for building wagons, which used that wheel spacing.

Why did the wagons have that particular odd wheel spacing? Well, if they tried to use any other spacing, the wagon wheels would break on some of the old, long distance roads in England, because that's the spacing of the wheel ruts.

So who built those old rutted roads?

Imperial Rome built the first long distance roads in Europe (including England ) for their legions. Those roads have been used ever since. And the ruts in the roads? Roman war chariots formed the initial ruts, which everyone else had to match for fear of destroying their wagon wheels.

Since the chariots were made for Imperial Rome, they were all alike in the matter of wheel spacing. Therefore, the United States standard railroad gauge of 4 feet, 8.5 inches is derived from the original specifications for an Imperial Roman war chariot. In other words, bureaucracies live forever.

So the next time you are handed a specification/procedure/process, and wonder, 'What horse's ass came up with this?' , you may be exactly right.

Imperial Roman army chariots were made just wide enough to accommodate the rear ends of two war horses.

Now, the twist to the story:

When you see a Space Shuttle sitting on its launch pad, you will notice that there are two big booster rockets attached to the sides of the main fuel tank. These are solid rocket boosters, or SRBs. The SRBs are made by Thiokol at their factory in Utah ....

The engineers who designed the SRBs would have preferred to make them a bit larger, but the SRBs had to be shipped by train from the factory to the launch site. The railroad line from the factory happens to run through a tunnel in the mountains, and the SRBs had to fit through that tunnel. The tunnel is slightly wider than the railroad track, and the railroad track, as you now know, is about as wide as two horses' behinds.

So, a major Space Shuttle design feature of what is arguably the world's most advanced transportation system was determined over two thousand years ago by the width of a horse's ass. And you thought being a horse's ass wasn't important?
So, Horse's Asses control almost everything...

Explains a whole lot of things --like what is wrong in Washington DC. doesn't it?

WHY I'M ENDORSING RICK PERRY FOR PRESIDENT

2011-10-16T14:00:00.000-07:00

Rick Perry wasn't first on my list. I only had one person on my list and that was Sarah Palin. She is going to be President some day. But both I, and a bunch of others who love her, were on the fence about her running for President. We didn't want her to be saddled with a multiplication of all of the hateful attacks she's had to deal with just being a former candidate for Vice President. It was a bitter sweet relief when she finally said she wasn't running. But then there was a fearful emptiness where there had been relief for someone who could restore America to her former glory, preserve our freedoms, restore respect to the oval office, and ensure the salvation of our nation and our Constitutional Republic.

Rick Perry seemed to be that person, and I was a little upset about the statement he made about giving instate tuition to illegal alien children. It is my belief that giving such perks to illegals will just encourage more illegals to cross the border to get superior schooling for their children.

I was also unclear at first about why he didn't want a fence on the border. Then I listened to the boots on the ground explanation and that did make more sense, although I think there should be a fence AND boots on the ground, lots of boots.

You must admit Governor Perry didn't do that well at the subsequent debates. I feel he was being a little too cautious and that he lost his fire because of the way his in-state tuition statement backfired. He should have jumped back into the saddle and tamed the beast. Instead he became too cautious. It made him look weak.

I listened then to Cain. It occurred to me he had one-liners that sounded good, and that rang a bell of caution in my head. Obama had one-liners and what he said sounded good, but it also did not have the ring of truth to it. I believe Cain is telling the truth, but all I'm hearing are one-liners, nothing of substance, no detailed explanation of answers to all of the issues. Cain seems a nice, honest, sincere man. But does he know how to save America and restore her?

As an aside, I got goose bumps early on listening to Obama in 08, they were goose bumps of fear. I recognized the smooth hypnotic speaking of a liar. The sonorous tones of a Hitler, hypnotizing people into believing him, but his eyes were cold and the way he stuck his nose up in the air put separation between him and the truth. I guess I've had too many relationships with pathological liars! I did not believe him for one minute. Obama's race had nothing to do with my feelings toward him. Americans are all races, and many of us are such a Heinz 57 conglomeration of races that we have no reason to use a person's race in determining his character. Then there's the added reason that I was right about my feelings about Obama.

Back to Herman Cain. I respect him for his success, for pulling himself up by his bootstraps and at first blush the 999 tax plan seemed interesting. It would be if that were the only tax, but in Indiana that would turn out to be a 16% sales tax! He never did explain anything but the 999, and then I kept hearing other things that pretty soon made the 999 look more like a 666. The plan became nearly as complicated as our present tax code! It was the only issue that Herman Cain had presented so far. He hasn't presented a plan for the many other issues that confront us. He has no record of serving the public. He has been a very successful executive in a business. But I began to think of other successful businessmen who were successful in business, but they wouldn't necessarily make a good public servant.

What about Romney, there's Romney. He's "the frontrunner"! He gives me the creeps. He appears to be an elite, above-it-all, "I'm better than you, and I know what's good for you" politician. We don't need another politician, especially one who declares that he will "replace Obamacare". We don't want Obamacare replaced! We want it repealed and forgotten!! We don't need government doing things for us. We want power returned to the states. We don't want money funneled to DC, and then doled out piece by piece back to the states. We want each state to acquire its operating capital from good business in the state, from modest taxes in the state. We want operations to occur in the state where waste and corruption can be better controlled. We want less rules and regulations! I hate rules! My favorite saying is "Don't Ask For Rules someone will make one up for you!" (It's also the title of one of my fiction novels by the way.)

Which all brought me back to Governor Perry. He did explain the in-state tuition thing, and it made some sense, though it still rankles somewhat, though I understand fairly that states that neighbor Texas on all sides also get the same reduced in-state tuition rate. He did explain that rather than a fence that could be readily scaled he wanted to have boots on the ground to stop the illegal aliens from entering the country. He also has an outstanding record of creating jobs, and he has plans for decreasing the size of government and comes closest to fulfilling the wants and needs of those of us who consider ourselves Independents & TeaPartiers. Now if he addresses the Crony Capitalism issue and resolves to make that go away as well, I'm sold.

Governor Perry should speak directly to the people. I'm sick of debates controlled by people with an Agenda. I want to see him speaking to the people Tea Party style.

OBAMACARE - WHAT WE COULDN'T FIND OUT UNTIL IT PASSED

2011-10-14T04:37:00.000-07:00

YOU ARE NOT GOING TO LIKE THIS...
>
> At age 76 when you most need it, you are not eligible for cancer treatment
> What Nancy Pelosi didn't want us to know until after the healthcare bill was passed. Remember she said, "pass it and then read it!!." Here it is!
> ______________________________
> Obama Care Highlighted by Page Number
>
> THE CARE BILL HB 3200
>
>
> JUDGE KITHIL IS THE 2ND OFFICIAL WHO HAS OUTLINED THESE PARTS OF THE CARE BILL.
> Judge Kithil of Marble Falls, TX - highlighted the most egregious pages of HB3200
>
> Please read this........ especially the reference to pages 58 & 59
>
>
> JUDGE KITHIL wrote:
>
> ** Page 50/section 152: The bill will provide insurance to all non-U.S. residents, even if they are here illegally.
>
> ** Page 58 and 59: The government will have real-time access to an individual's bank account and will have the authority to make electronic fund transfers from those accounts.
>
> ** Page 65/section 164: The plan will be subsidized (by the government) for all union members, union retirees and for community organizations (such as the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now - ACORN).
>
> ** Page 203/line 14-15: The tax imposed under this section will not be treated as a tax. (How could anybody in their right mind come up with that?)
>
> ** Page 241 and 253: Doctors will all be paid the same regardless of specialty, and the government will set all doctors' fees.
>
> ** Page 272. section 1145: Cancer hospital will ration care according to the patient's age.
>
> ** Page 317 and 321: The government will impose a prohibition on hospital expansion; however, communities may petition for an exception.
>
> ** Page 425, line 4-12: The government mandates advance-care planning consultations. Those on Social Security will be required to attend an "end-of-life planning" seminar every five years. (Death counseling..)
>
> ** Page 429, line 13-25: The government will specify which doctors can write an end-of-life order.
> HAD ENOUGH???? Judge Kithil then goes on to identify:
>
> "Finally, it is specifically stated that this bill will not apply to members of Congress. Members of Congress are already exempt from the Social Security system, and have a well-funded private plan that covers their retirement needs. If they were on our Social Security plan, I believe they would find a very quick 'fix' to make the plan financially sound for their future."
> - Honorable David Kithil of Marble Falls, Texas
> All of the above should give you the ammo you need to support your opposition to Obamacare. Please send this information on to all of your email contacts.

Lee Iaccoca is still speaking!!

2011-10-12T19:51:00.000-07:00

Would you believe that Lee Iacocca is 82 years old and is still kicking
butt? Check out his latest rant.

Just as true today as it was when his book first came out.

He was, and still is, a brilliant businessman!

Often we need to be reminded of Iacocca's words.

Remember Lee Iacocca, the man who rescued Chrysler Corporation from its
death throes? He's now 82 years old and has a new book, 'Where Have All The
Leaders Gone?'.

Lee Iacocca Says:

'Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's happening? Where
the hell is our outrage with this so called president? We should be
screaming bloody murder! We've got a gang of tax cheating clueless leftists
trying to steer our ship of state right over a cliff, we've got corporate
gangsters stealing us blind, and we can't even run a ridiculous
cash-for-clunkers program without losing $26 billion of the taxpayers'
money, much less build a hybrid car. But instead of getting mad, everyone
sits around and nods their heads when the politicians say, 'trust me, the
economy is getting better..'Better? You've got to be kidding. This is
America , not the damned 'Titanic'. I'll give you a sound bite: 'Throw all
the Democrats out, along with Obama!'

You might think I'm getting senile, that I've gone off my rocker, and maybe
I have. But someone has to speak up. I hardly recognize this country
anymore..

The most famous business leaders are not the innovators but the guys in
handcuffs.. While we're fiddling in Afghanistan, Iran is completing their
nuclear bombs and missiles and nobody seems to know what to do. And the
liberal press is waving 'pom-poms' instead of asking hard questions. That's
not the promise of the ' America ' my parents and yours traveled across the
ocean for. I've had enough. How about you?

I'll go a step further. You can't call yourself a patriot if you're not
outraged. This is a fight I'm ready and willing to have. The Biggest 'C' is
Crisis! (Iacocca elaborates on nine C's of leadership, with crisis being the
first.)

Leaders are made, not born. Leadership is forged in times of crisis. It's
easy to sit there with thumb up your butt and talk theory. Or send someone
else's kids off to war when you've never seen a battlefield yourself. It's
another thing to lead when your world comes tumbling down.

On September 11, 2001, we needed a strong leader more than any other time in
our history. We needed a steady hand to guide us out of the ashes. A hell of
a mess, so here's where we stand.

We're immersed in a bloody war now with no plan for winning and no plan for
leaving.. But our soldiers are dying daily.

We're running the biggest deficit in the history of the world, and it's
getting worse every day!

We've lost the manufacturing edge to Asia, while our once-great companies
are getting slaughtered by health care costs.

Gas prices are going to skyrocket again, and nobody in power has a lucid
plan to open drilling to solve the problem. This country has the largest oil
reserves in the WORLD, and we cannot drill for it because the politicians
have been bought by the flea-hugging environmentalists.

Our schools are in a complete disaster because of the teachers' union.

Our borders are like sieves and they want to give all illegal's amnesty and
free healthcare.

The middle class is being squeezed to death every day.

These are times that cry out for leadership.

But when you look around, you've got to ask: 'Where have all the leaders
gone?' Where are the curious, creative communicators? Where are the people
of character, courage, conviction, omnipotence, and common sense? I may be a
sucker for alliteration, but I think you get the point..

Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security than making us
take off our shoes in airports and throw away our shampoo?

We've spent billions of dollars building a huge new bureaucracy, and all we
know how to do is react to things that have already happened.

Everyone's hunkering down, fingers crossed, hoping the government will make
it better for them. Now, that's just crazy.. Deal with life.

Name me an industry leader who is thinking creatively about how we can
restore our competitive edge in manufacturing. Who would have believed that
there could ever be a time when 'The Big Three' referred to Japanese car
companies? How did this happen, and more important, look what Obama did
about it!

Name me a government leader who can articulate a plan for paying down the
debt, or solving the energy crisis, or managing the health care problem. The
silence is deafening. But these are the crises that are eating away at our
country and milking the middle class dry.

I have news for the Chicago gangsters in Congress. We didn't elect you to
turn this country into a losing European Socialist state. What is everybody
so afraid of? That some bonehead on NBC or CNN news will call them a name?
Give me a break. Why don't you guys show some spine for a change?

Had Enough? Hey, I'm not trying to be the voice of gloom and doom here. I'm
trying to light a fire. I'm speaking out because I have hope - I believe in
America .. In my lifetime, I've had the privilege of living through some of
America 's greatest moments. I've also experienced some of our worst crises:
The 'Great Depression,' 'World War II,' the 'Korean War,' the 'Kennedy
Assassination,' the 'Vietnam War,' the 1970's oil crisis, and the struggles
of recent years since 9/11.

Make your own contribution by sending this to everyone you know and care
about. It's our country, folks, and it's our future. Our future is at stake!

Happy and safe Fall to you all!

OBAMA'S COLLEGE CLASSMATE SPEAKS OUT

2011-10-05T07:45:00.000-07:00

By Wayne Allyn Root , June 6th, 2010
Barack Hussien Obama is no fool. He is not incompetent.
To the contrary, he is brilliant. He knows exactly what he's doing.
He is purposely overwhelming the U.S. economy to create systemic failure,
economic crisis and social chaos -- thereby destroying capitalism and
our country from within.
Barack Hussien Obama was my college classmate

( Columbia University , class of '83).
He is a devout Muslim do not be fooled.
Look at his Czars...anti-business..anti- american.
As Glenn Beck correctly predicted from day one, Barack Hussien Obama is
following the plan of Cloward & Piven, two professors at Columbi University ..
They outlined a plan to socialize America by overwhelming the system
with government spending and entitlement demands.
Add up the clues below. Taken individually they're alarming.
Taken as a whole, it is a brilliant, Machiavellian game plan to turn
the United States into a socialist/Marxist state with a permanent majority
that desperately needs government for survival ... and can be counted
on to always vote for bigger government.
Why not? They have no responsibility to pay for it.
Universal health care . The health care bill had very little to do with health
care.. It had everything to do with unionizing millions of hospital and
health care workers, as well as adding 15,000 to 20,000 new IRS agents (who will join government employee unions).
Obama doesn't care that giving free health care to 30 million Americans
will add trillions to the national debt.
What he does care about is that it cements the dependence of those 30 million voters to Democrats and big government .
Who but a socialist revolutionary would pass this reckless spending bill
in the middle of a depression?
Cap and trade. Like health care legislation having nothing to do with
health care, cap and trade has nothing to do with global warming.
It has everything to do with redistribution of income, government control
of the economy and a criminal payoff to Obama's biggest contributors.
Those powerful and wealthy unions and contributors (like GE, which owns
NBC, MSNBC and CNBC) can then be counted on to support everything Obama wants.
They will kick-back hundreds of millions of dollars in contributions to
Obama and the Democratic Party to keep them in power.
The bonus is that all the new taxes on Americans with bigger cars,
bigger homes and businesses helps Obama "spread the wealth around."
Make Puerto Rico a state. Why? Who's asking for a 51st state?
Who's asking for millions of new welfare recipients and government
entitlement addicts in the middle of a depression?
Certainly not American taxpayers.
But this has been Barack Hussien Obama's plan all along.
His goal is to add two new Democrat senators, five Democrat congressman and a million loyal Democratic voters who are dependent on big government.
Legalize 12 million illegal Mexican immigrants.
Just giving these 12 million potential new citizens free health care alone could overwhelm the system and bankrupt America .
But it adds 12 million reliable new Democrat voters who can be counted
on to support big government.
Add another few trillion dollars in welfare, aid to dependent children,
food stamps, free medical, education, tax credits for the poor, and
eventually Social Security .
Stimulus and bailouts. Where did all that money go?
It went to Democrat contributors, organizations (ACORN), and unions -- including billions of dollars to save or create jobs of government employees across the country.
It went to save GM and Chrysler so that their employees could
keep paying union dues.
It went to AIG so that Goldman Sachs could be bailed out
(after giving Obama almost $1 million in contributions).
A staggering $125 billion went to teachers (thereby protecting their union dues).
All those public employees will vote loyally Democrat to protect their
bloated salaries and pensions that are bankrupting America .
The country goes broke, future generations face a bleak future, but Obama, the Democrat Party, government, and the unions grow more powerful.
The ends justify the means.
Raise taxes on small business owners, high-income earners, and job
creators. Put the entire burden on only the top 20 percent of taxpayers,
redistribute the income, punish success, and reward those who did
nothing to deserve it (except vote for Obama).
Reagan wanted to dramatically cut taxes in order to starve the government. Barack Obama wants to dramatically raise taxes to starve his political opposition. With the acts outlined above, Barack Hussien Obama and his regime have created a vast and rapidly expanding constituency of voters dependent on big government; a vast privileged class of public employees who work for big government; and a government dedicated to destroying capitalism and installing themselves as socialist rulers by overwhelming the
system.
Add it up and you've got the perfect Marxist scheme -- all devised by
my Columbia University college classmate Barack Hussien Obama
using the Cloward and Piven Plan ..
"Correctly attributed" says snopes!
http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/overwhelm.asp

http://www.lvrj.com/opinion/obama-s-agenda--overwhelm-the-system-95716764.html

What we get for our money

2011-10-02T09:36:00.001-07:00

House Minority Leader Lawrence F. Cafero Jr., R-Norwalk, pictured standing, far right, speaks while colleagues Rep. Barbara Lambert, D-Milford and Rep. Jack F. Hennessy, D-Bridgeport, play solitaire Monday night as the House convened to vote on a new budget. (AP)
The guy sitting in the row in front of these two....he's on Facebook, and the guy behind Hennessy is checking out the baseball scores.
These are the folks that couldn't get the budget out by Oct. 1, and are about to control your health care, cap and trade, and the list goes on and on.
Should we buy them larger screen computers - or - a ticket home, permanently?

This is one of their 3-DAY WORK WEEKS that we all pay for (salary is about $179,000 per year). I am ready to start from the beginning by voting out all elected officials and not letting any of them stay in office for more than two terms. No more lifelong healthcare, retirement, voting in their own pay raises, taking perks on our taxes, etc.

DERIVATIVES

2011-10-01T11:10:00.000-07:00

This is an article I received in an email. It had no one to attribute it to, so here goes:

Heidi is the proprietor of a bar in Detroit. She realizes that virtually all of her customers are unemployed alcoholics and,as such, can no longer afford to patronize her bar.

To solve this problem, she comes up with a new marketing plan that allows her
customers to drink now, but pay later.

Heidi keeps track of the drinks consumed on a ledger (thereby granting the
customers loans).

Word gets around about Heidi's "drink now, pay later" marketing
strategy and, as a result, increasing numbers of customers flood into
Heidi's bar. Soon she has the largest sales volume for any bar in Detroit .
By providing her customers freedom from immediate payment demands, Heidi
gets no resistance when, at regular intervals, she substantially increases her
prices for wine and beer, the most consumed beverages.

Consequently, Heidi's gross sales volume increases massively.

A young and dynamic vice-president at the local bank recognizes that these
customer debts constitute valuable future assets and increases Heidi's
borrowing limit.

He sees no reason for any undue concern because he has the debts of the
unemployed alcoholics as collateral!

At the bank's corporate headquarters, expert traders figure a way to make
huge commissions, and transform these customer loans into DRINKBONDS.

These "securities" then are bundled and traded on international
securities markets.

Naive investors don't really understand that the securities being sold to
them "AAA Secured Bonds" really are debts of unemployed alcoholics.

Nevertheless, the bond prices continuously climb - and the securities soon
become the hottest-selling items for some of the nation's leading
brokerage houses.

One day, even though the bond prices still are climbing, a risk manager at
the original local bank decides that the time has come to demand payment on
the debts incurred by the drinkers at Heidi's bar. He so informs Heidi.

Heidi then demands payment from her alcoholic patrons. But, being
unemployed alcoholics -- they cannot pay back their drinking debts.

Since Heidi cannot fulfill her loan obligations she is forced into
bankruptcy.

The bar closes and Heidi's 11 employees lose their jobs.

Overnight, DRINKBOND prices drop by 90%.

The collapsed bond asset value destroys the bank's liquidity and prevents
it from issuing new loans, thus freezing credit and economic activity in the
community.

The suppliers of Heidi's bar had granted her generous payment extensions
and had invested their firms' pension funds in the BOND securities.

They find they are now faced with having to write off her bad debt and
with losing over 90% of the presumed value of the bonds.

Her wine supplier also claims bankruptcy, closing the doors on a family
business that had endured for three generations, her beer supplier is
taken over by a competitor, who immediately closes the local plant and lays off
150 workers.

Fortunately though, the bank, the brokerage houses and their respective
executives are saved and bailed out by a multibillion dollar no-strings
cash infusion from the government.

The funds required for this bailout are obtained by new taxes levied on
employed, middle-class, nondrinkers who have never been in Heidi's bar.

Now do you understand derivatives?

FORD vs WINDOWS

2011-09-12T09:37:00.001-07:00

Windows vs. Ford

For all of us who feel only the deepest love and affection for the way computers have enhanced our lives, read on.

At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated,

"If Ford had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25 cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon."

In response to Bill's comments, Ford issued a press release stating:

If Ford had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics (and I just love this part):

1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash.........twice a day.

2.. Every time they repainted the lines in the road, you would have to buy a new car.

3... Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would have to pull to the side of the road, close all of the windows, shut off the car, restart it, and reopen the windows before you could continue. For some reason you would simply accept this.

4.... Occasionally, executing a maneuver such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.

5..... Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as easy to drive - but would run on only five percent of the roads.

6...... The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single "This Car Has Performed An Illegal Operation" warning light.

I love the next one!!!

7....... The airbag system would ask, "Are you sure?" before deploying.

8........ Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.

9......... Every time a new car was introduced car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.

10.......... You'd have to press the "Start" button to turn the engine off.

PS - I'd like to add that when all else fails, you could call "customer service" in some foreign country and be instructed in some foreign language how to fix your car yourself!!!!

MEET ME IN THE STAIRWELL

2011-09-11T08:54:00.000-07:00

MEET ME IN THE STAIRWELL'

You say you will never forget where you were when
you heard the news On September 11, 2001.
Neither will I.

I was on the 110th floor in a smoke filled room
with a man who called his wife to say 'Good-Bye.' I
held his fingers steady as he dialed. I gave him the
peace to say, 'Honey, I am not going to make it, but it
is OK..I am ready to go.'

I was with his wife when he called as she fed
breakfast to their children. I held her up as she
tried to understand his words and as she realized
he wasn't coming home that night.

I was in the stairwell of the 23rd floor when a
woman cried out to Me for help. 'I have been
knocking on the door of your heart for 50 years!' I said.
'Of course I will show you the way home - only
believe in Me now.'

I was at the base of the building with the Priest
ministering to the injured and devastated souls.
I took him home to tend to his Flock in Heaven. He
heard my voice and answered.

I was on all four of those planes, in every seat,
with every prayer. I was with the crew as they were overtaken. I was in the very hearts of the
believers there, comforting and assuring them that their
faith has saved them.

I was in Texas , Virginia , California , Michigan , Afghanistan .
I was standing next to you when you heard the terrible news.
Did you sense Me?

I want you to know that I saw every face. I knew
every name - though not all know Me. Some met Me
for the first time on the 86th floor.

Some sought Me with their last breath.
Some couldn't hear Me calling to them through the
smoke and flames; 'Come to Me... this way... take
my hand.' Some chose, for the final time, to ignore Me.
But, I was there.

I did not place you in the Tower that day. You
may not know why, but I do.. However, if you were
there in that explosive moment in time, would you have
reached for Me?

Sept. 11, 2001, was not the end of the journey
for you . But someday your journey will end. And I
will be there for you as well. Seek Me now while I may
be found. Then, at any moment, you know you are
'ready to go.'

I will be in the stairwell of your final moments.

God
During the next 60 seconds, stop whatever you are
doing, and take this opportunity. (Literally it
is only 1 minute.) All you have to do is the
following:

Stop and think and appreciate God's power
in your life, for doing what you know is pleasing to
Him. If you are not ashamed to do this, follow the
instructions. Jesus said, 'If you are ashamed of Me, I will be
ashamed of you before My Father'

If you are not ashamed, copy and send this message...only
if you believe 'Yes, I love my God. He is my
fountain of Life and My Savior. He Keeps me going day and
night. Without Him, I am no one. But with Him, I can do
everything. Christ is my strength.'

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CONSERVATIVES & THOSE OTHER GUYS

2011-08-26T17:18:00.000-07:00

I notice patterns a lot. I notice there is a lot of fear from "those other guys", some of them are merely people who grew up to be Democrats, and have never given much thought to why they vote the way they do. But they are extremely fearful of those who appear to be thinking for themselves. They don't want to be told where they can find the truth about anything. They call those who do understand what they're saying degrading names, and they accuse them of vile acts they haven't committed! And they do so because someone "smarter than them" has done the same thing!

Other ones of those "other guys" are people who sincerely believe that the "intellectual elite" are somehow smarter than they are, and so the things they are saying must surely be so. They are the ones that we feel sorry for, because they are "drinking the Kool-Aid. They're the ones who say "I heard it on NPR so I know it just has to be true!" These are the ones we really feel sorry for because they are so ignorant as to believe such a thing! And the scariest thing of all, they are afraid to NOT drink the Kool-Aid!

Then there are the ones who have heard others of their sort saying such things as "it's on [insert here name of one of the mainstream media networks] so I know it just has to be true. They are afraid to investigate for themselves, so they go on believing what they have been told!

Then there are those who say "they wouldn't let that happen to us!" These are the truly naieve who trust that the people who used to tell us everything, who used to guard the country, who used to do investigative reporting to uncover fraud, deceit, and the like, those people would have told us if there were Communists in the government. They would have told us if we were being lied to about something. These are the people who are afraid to believe otherwise, afraid to think about what the consequences might be.

Then there are people who just don't like the United States of America and want to destroy the Constitution upon which this country was founded, and turn this country into a place where every action of every citizen is proscribed by a law or a regulation. They don't understand patriotism and they fear what they don't understand. We should feel sorry for these people as well.

They are all afraid! They fear knowledge. They are sheep who don't know enough to step out of the shallow three inch rivulet, but choose to lay themselves down with their noses in the water and die! Fear!

Okay in this bunch of patterns what else is there that makes them different than you and I? They are fearful. Right, I got that. Okay let's go into this backwards. Why aren't we afraid?

We aren't afraid because we have faith in God and faith in prayer. We have faith that this country will survive.

I noticed something else about people who have faith in God, true faith, not those who think they ought to have faith in God, but still quake with fear, believing God might choose to punish them for one reason or another. Those people who have true faith in God will never be heard wailing at funerals!

I noticed that pattern in people as well. Those people who were weak of faith carried on at funerals as if they were never ever going to see the deceased again! They are ignorant in that they don't realize their loved one is still alive and still very close to them. They don't even want to think about death or dying, and they certainly don't want to know about "heaven". Because they think "dead is dead".

Fear is nothing more than a lack of faith. And you know what? Because we all hang onto our faith, and pray for our country, our freedoms and our Constitution, we will win. The God guys always win. Keep on praying positive: Thank you God for preserving our Nation, our Freedoms and our Constitution.

AHEAD OF MY TIME? OR JUST LUCKY?

2011-08-21T07:17:00.001-07:00

I've always beens somewhat ahead of my time in my thinking about things. I don't know if I'm psychic (some say I am), or if I'm merely an observer of patterns. After you get to be my age you put the patterns together more rapidly than you did in the past.

For instance, way back in the 50's, I was all gungho on mini skirts ten years before they became the thing to wear. I kept trying to wear mini-skirts to school, and the teachers kept sending me home. Back then the skirts were being worn to about 8 inches from the floor! Yuck! I couldn't stand it. I loved wearing mini skirts & high heels.

I saw a pattern developing in the 90's with regard to the mortgage mess. I was working as a paralegal doing bankruptcies for people, doing divorces, and in the process they were getting appraisals on their houses, so they could remortgage them to split them up or for the bankruptcies. I noticed houses were being way over-valued for their location, and for the normal price of housing in our area. At the time I figured my house might be worth about $60,000 (Fort Wayne has traditionally had very reasonable housing costs) at the very most, but a house exactly like mine (built by the same builder with the same floor plan) was appraised at twice that! And I thought my estimate for my house was high! Time after time, I kept seeing all of this over-valuing going on. I saw people who only earned $20,000 or less a year getting mortgages that required payments per month that would require 50 to 75 percent of their take-home pay! I thought it was irresponsible for them to take out those mortgages, and at the same time I thought it was irresponsible of the banks to give those mortgages.

My father always taught me you shouldn't pay more for your housing per month than you take home in one week. I've always adhered to that policy.

I knew in 1993 that the housing and mortgage industries were going to go belly up. If I'd been a little more prudent with my health, I could be a multi-millionaire by now!

Nevertheless, I said in 1997 that the credit card companies were going to go under. They should have gone under by 2007, and perhaps they did and just didn't know it. At any rate, the credit card industry is going to go under very soon. I don't know of any way for anyone to profit off that, and darn it, I cut up all my cards in 1997.

In 1996 I also observed that whereas one used to be able to have health insurance for one's family for a minimal cost of perhaps 1% of your take home pay, I discovered that for me to buy health insurance would cost me more per month than my mortgage payment!

About 1998 a part of my job was doing due diligence for an attorney who represented a large insurance company that was buying up smaller insurance companies. I went through a lot of records, reading things, absorbing knowledge, and filing it away in my head for later. At some point in that year I came to the conclusion that a lot of things had happened since 1976 when I was on my ex-husband's employer provided insurance.

Back then companies provided health insurance for an employee and his family either for free, or for a nominal amount per week. I think we paid something like $6.00 per week toward the premium. It cost less than $600 for my nearly one week hospitalization when my son was born (I was in labor for 3 days & they wouldn't let me go home once my water broke, and they thought he was jaundiced so they kept us for 6 days.) The insurance paid for everything. I think my husband earned something around $20,000 a year in 1976.

I saw insurance premiums skyrocketing, medical costs skyrocketing, and I wondered why. When I was doing the due diligence investigation I started to have an inkling! The insurance executives were paying themselves outrageous yearly bonuses! Some of them were getting $20 million a year in bonuses!

I reasoned that the doctors and hospital and pharmaceutical companies began observing that the insurance companies were paying for everything and had deep pockets. So they all raised their rates, doctors charged more, hospitals charged more, and pharmaceutical companies said "we can tell them it's the research that costs so much, and we can charge more". Unmitigated GREED!

So when the insurance companies saw the medical providers charging more they saw their bonus checks dwindling in size, so they raised the premiums. More unmitigated greed.

I harkened back to my first job selling greeting cards. I had sat down and figured out I could buy a saddle for my pony if I were to sell 500 boxes of greeting cards. Problem was, there weren't 500 people who would buy the boxes of greeting cards. I had built a pyramid scheme of sorts in my head, and being an eternal optimist I had let my dream mushroom into gigantic proportions. I had also filed that lesson away in my head. I don't know if I ever thought of it before now, but the lesson I learned was that sometimes the mountain can get so high that it will topple over on you. Well, people, the mountain of debt is toppling.

If your mountain is toppling, it's not the end of the world. There's always hope. I have written a couple of books. One of them is Unconscionable Contract: What Credit Card Companies Don't Want You to Know, available at Amazon in paperback or on Kindle, and the other is Winning at Wishing, a primer for the beginning positive thinker, also available in paperback or on Kindle at Amazon. Buy one of each! Or buy more and pass them out to your friends. There is a way out. And it isn't going to come from the government.

Pray positive: Thank you God for getting us through whatever lies ahead, and thank you for preserving our freedoms and the Constitution of the United States of America.

A NEW ANIMIMATED MOVIE CONCEPT

2011-08-20T06:33:00.000-07:00

I wrote The Wish Factory: How to Make Wishes Come True some time ago. I then took the story in that book and turned it into a screenplay for an animated feature film. If anyone is interested in looking at that, they can get more information by going to www.thewishfactory.com/screenplay

IS OBAMA JUST STUPID? DON'T BE FOOLED

2011-08-20T04:08:00.000-07:00

Obama at first appeared to be incredibly stupid. He was playing on the idea that he had no experience in governing, so he could just pretend he was stupid. He could pretend he was inept. His plan was to bring down the government of the United States, to restructure the government of the United States, to redistribute the wealth of America. He said as much. He revealed his plans near the end of the campaign for 2008 when he told Joe Wurzelbacher that, and Joe countered "Isn't that Socialistic?" That's nearly the first time we saw him hemming and hawing because he had slipped up and didn't have an answer for it.

I'm the last person in the world who would adhere to a Conspiracy Theory. For a long time I would say "They" wouldn't let that happen! I'm as guilty as everyone else. We let complacency over rule common sense. We believed the mainstream media was going to protect us from anything bad. Unfortunately mainstream media appears to be just as Far Left Communist as the rest of them! It's our fault for relying on mainstream media and not keeping up with things. And it's in our power to make the changes necessary to change all that and make sure it doesn't happen again!

I notice patterns. I don't think there's anything such as coincidence, I think there is synchronicity. Way back when that Russian pounded his shoe on the table and demanded to be taken to visit Disneyland, he also said "We will bury you". (A twitter friend always writes it "we will Barry you"). That happened about 1962. "Coincidentally" the Manchurian Candidate was published in 1959. Barack Obama, or whoever the heck he is (whoever heard of a President with an alias!!??) was born in 1961. I think all of those things clicked together. Obama has said "I've wanted to be President since I was five years old". At five years of age he was a student in a Muslim school in Indonesia!!!!!!!!! Who put that idea in his head?!!

Obama's mentors were Communists. Obama's parents were Communists. Obama's grandparents were Communists. Need I say more? Okay, I'm going to say more.
Soros is a Communist. He wants to rule the world. He doesn't want to give his money to the pot to be distributed to everyone else, he wants to control the money of everybody else. I believe Soros wants to be the King of the world, but he wants Obama to be his puppet.

Why else would Obama have to have teleprompters for every speech he makes. Obama believes that he can talk us into anything. After all, at first he was compared to the Great Communicator. I actually compared him to Hitler. He had a hypnotizing voice. But I listen to people and what they say. I look for reason in what they say. I listened to him. He wasn't saying anything! He was talking in circles! When he answered people's questions he talked in circles. Nothing he had contained any substance. He was dropping words into the conversation that people grasped as meaningful, but they were not attached to any words of action!

Now he's becoming frustrated because his words are no longer working. The greatest portion of the population has seen that Obama lies about everything. He just drops words that make us think he means what he says. He has not only attempted to restructure the government, but he has tried to restructure the English language, changing the meanings of words, disguising his true intent behind boggled up phrases that hide his true intent.

Obama does have a plan, he just doesn't want us to know what it is. His plan is to destroy the economy, eliminate everyone's means of making a living. Put the country in chaos, so that he can come to the rescue and implement a Communist regime with him as the Dictator.

Well, Mr. Obama can take his built-in teleprompter ears that don't listen to a thing the country is saying and go back to Mr. Soros and they can bunk together somewhere else.

Here's the secret that will destroy Obama. God loves America. America is God's experiment in Freedom. Freedom is our God-given right, and the Founders knew that. They constructed the Constitution of the United States to protect that freedom. We are free to think what we want. We are free to pray to God. Our Faith in God, and our multiple prayers to God will restore America to her greatness. We must all pray positive: Thank you God for restoring and preserving America's greatness, America's prosperity and the prosperity of the American people. And thank you God for finding Mr. Obama a job for which he is better suited in a country he can love and be proud of (it doesn't have to be America apparently.) Remember when two or more of you pray together the same words, those prayers are always answered. May all your wishes come true.

Jana Lynn Shellman, Author & Publisher, President of The Wish Factory, Inc.
IN GOD WE TRUST
WINNING AT WISHING a life coach at your fingertips, a Wish Factory followup
available now on Amazon Kindle & paperback available at Amazon
The Wish Factory: How to Make Wishes Come True, award-winning inspirational book on Amazon Kindle and paperback available at www.thewishfactory.com
Look for my new book UNCONSCIONABLE CONTRACT What Credit Card Companies Don't Want You to Know on Kindle & in paperback.

DON'T ASK FOR RULES my new cozy mystery Poppy Hannah book, on Amazon Kindle
& paperback available at Amazon.
Next Poppy Hannah book DON'T ASK TWICE should be out next year its being written now.
The third Poppy Hannah book DON'T ASK AGAIN is cooking in my head.
My Blog
http://www.twitter.com/wishladya
Writing Instructor at Creating Characters

LANGUAGE MANIPULATION

2011-08-14T10:33:00.000-07:00

It is important for everyone to recognize that one of Obama's tools for fooling the American public is "language manipulation", i.e., he changes the structure of sentences, and the meaning of words, to disguise the true intent of his actions. His hope and change, and "restructuring" And he constantly twists words until they have lost their entire meaning.

We need to understand what his objective is. His objective is to manipulate his language so that you will not understand he means to destroy our economy, place the country into an economic crisis, so that he can institute Communism to "save" the country and to make himself our dictator.

You don't believe this? In 2007 Obama said that he regretted that the Supreme Court hadn't been more radical and he described the Court's refusal to take up the issues of redistribution of wealth as a tragedy, And he said that he also "regretted that the Supreme Court didn't break free from the essential constraints that were placed by the Founding Fathers there in the Constitution" In other words, he wants to destroy our Constitution and Our Bill of Rights, and Our Constitutional Amendments so that he can institute Communism. Don't say "they" wouldn't let that happen! We are "They" and unless we take steps to get this man and his Communist friends out of power, we WILL be letting this happen!

He talks incessantly, sometimes talking in circles, actually saying nothing! He makes up new expressions to say the same old things. Raising taxes becomes "tax expenditure cuts". By some manipulation of common sense and reason, he is trying to say that it's a tax hike that is half of what they really wanted to make it, so they are "cutting taxes"!!!!!

He manipulates the language so that he can continue to pull the wool over your eyes. Wake up and see what is happening!

Unlimited Possibilities

2011-08-14T09:40:00.000-07:00

Unlimited Possibilities

UNCONSCIONABLE CONTRACT OUT IN PAPERBACK

2011-07-23T13:06:00.000-07:00

MY BOOK Unconscionable Contract: What Credit Card Companies Don't Want You to Know is Out in Paperback now at Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Unconscionable-Contract-What-Credit-Companies/dp/1463532172/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1311451614&sr=8-6

DON'T ASK FOR RULES - Cozy Mystery

2011-07-05T13:11:00.000-07:00

Out in Paperback and on Kindle.

http://www.amazon.com/Dont-Rules-Jana-Lynn-Shellman/dp/0964477084/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1309896869&sr=1-1

DON'T ASK FOR RULES is set in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and a mythical small town nearby, Fairview. The town marshal of Fairview gained notoriety when he shot his wife, and claimed to have shot her in self-defense. Thereafter, the town marshal himself was found murdered, shot in the back of the head, at night while entering his residence. Our Heroine, POPPY HANNAH, is an amateur detective, with psychic abilities, persistence and resilience, as well as a sense of humor. She works as a paralegal in a law firm and uses her spare time and her working hours, as a sleuth to free those wrongly accused. Her employer, Attorney RALPH TAYLOR is a married man with three small children. His wife and children believe Poppy is perfect and the children are always saying, "Poppy knows everything." Ralph doesn't dare fire Poppy, his wife and kids would hate him. He strives to keep Poppy out of trouble. If anything happened to Poppy, his wife and kids would kill him. He recognizes Poppy's extraordinary talent, both as a paralegal and as an amateur detective. If he had his "druthers", he'd rather she stayed in the office and worked on the law. HAZEL WEAVER is Poppy's housekeeper. She takes care of Poppy and Poppy's house, and she is psychic. She gives Poppy guidance, and Poppy is never sure whether this is just practical advice, or whether Hazel's "guides" have given her the information. TOMMY SWIFT, Poppy's old boyfriend, is a detective with the Fort Wayne Police Department. He perseveres in his quiet pursuit of Poppy having already been shot down once when he tried to rush her into a romance. He comes to her rescue from time to time, and is always there to check the closets and under the beds to make certain she's safe.

Unconscionable Contract Up on Kindle

2011-07-04T15:47:00.000-07:00

http://www.amazon.com/UNCONSCIONABLE-CONTRACT-Credit-Companies-ebook/dp/B0059MQVIY/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1309816859&sr=8-3

INDEPENDENCE DAY

2011-07-04T05:59:00.001-07:00

I watched a story last night where a reporter interviewed people at the beach about "The Fourth of July" and asked them what they were celebrating. A lot of the younger people just said "The Fourth of July", as if they hadn't a clue what it was we were really celebrating. I think it would be a good idea to teach our children what it really means by always referring to the day as Independence Day. We need to teach our children what Independence means to America and to us as her citizens.

Only two out of a couple dozen people actually knew that we celebrate Independence from Great Britain on the Fourth of July. Inasmuch as Britain is one of our allies at this time, just telling them that probably lacks a lot of reason without filling them in about what people came to America to get away from.

Then when we explain that many came to America to have freedom of religion (NOT freedom FROM religion, by the way!) they need to learn that at the time America was a British Colony, and we were expected to have only the religion of the British Monarch at the time. Many of those who came to America did so to worship God the way they believed God should be worshipped, not the way that the British Crown dictated they should worship God. They believed that God had a purpose for America as an outpost of religious freedom, that here God could be worshipped in freedom. I have always believed that America will survive anything because America is God's experiment in freedom.

We declared, once we got here, that we also wanted to be free from taxation without representation! Isn't that a joke on us at the present time!?! How many feel that we have any representation for how we are taxed, and how the money that goes into taxes is spent? We see now that special interests get a great deal of our money, and the special interests are buying our interests from our representatives, i.e., if they put a lot of money into a politician's pocket for whatever reason, they are effectively buying that representative's choices that ought to be for our good, from our representative. Lobbying by special interests should be ceased. If there's special legislation that should be presented to a Federal Congressional Representative or Senator, that information should be presented by a State Representative for individuals only, not for organizations or businesses.

I believe we are going through a test right now with Christians being denied the right to speak of their religion in public. This is truly not what the Founders had in mind when they wrote the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. In celebrating Independence Day we need to teach our children what Independence means for America now as well as what it meant in the 15th century when America was "discovered". We need to understand America was already populated by a people who understood what Independence and Freedom meant, the Native Americans. We need to understand that well-meaning, but ignorant clergy from Europe came and tried to take away the independence of the Native Americans by denying them the right to practice their own religion, by demanding they learn to speak English, and demanding they become "European" in their dress and manners.

Perhaps we should define Independence in another way. To me independence means:

* allowing others to make their own choices about the way they want to live.
* It means teaching children that in America they can CHOOSE to be anything they want to be.
* That they have responsibility, through their choices, for the way their lives turn out.
* That they ARE, as each of us ARE, responsible for where we find ourselves.
* That Government is not responsible for our decisions.
* That Government should not be relied upon for anything.
* That we are not "entitled" to anything.
* That Social Security was not supposed to be an "entitlement" but that it was to be funded from the income of the employee, and supplemented with a payment from the employer, until Congress was allowed to borrow it to use it for something else, and then didn't have the money to repay the fund, thereby turning it into an "entitlement".
* That Medicare was not supposed to be an "entitlement" but that it is paid for by the insurance premiums of those retirees receiving Social Security, until Obama confiscated a goodly portion of that fund with his "Obamacare" insurance package, effectively stealing the money from the seniors who had paid into it.
* That the retirement age can be moved forward to seventy or seventy-two because it is better for older folks to keep working, that statistics show that those who "retire" with nothing to fill their lives are more likely to die early than those who keep on working.
* That Americans are "entitled" to their own freedoms of choice in every area of their lives, and that no one in government should do more than make suggestions but in no case should government make rules and regulations altering the choices Americans make.
* Independence means the right to decide how we spend our money.

MAKE YOUR OWN ECONOMY

2011-07-02T08:28:00.001-07:00

Things aren't going so hot with the economy right now. In some areas the true unemployment statistics are nearing 25% if they haven't gotten there already. We are in a depression that may be greater than the "Great" Depression of the 20's and 30's of last century. Housing industry has nearly collapsed. Most of us have houses that we couldn't sell for the amount of the mortgage now on them, or we might just break even if we've been frugal.

We can't count on the government to save us from this, as it just isn't going to happen. The only thing we can do is look to our own survival and the survival of our families. We must work on ways to invent our own jobs, find our own food, plant a garden, buy meat from local farmers and have it butchered at a local butcher. Pack our own freezers with food.

We must make do with what we've got. Buy quality older American made products refurbished or refurbish them ourselves. Stop sending money to other countries for things we can get along without.

Nothing's impossible. There are empty factories around that could be acquired and turned into money-making industries again. It may be time to consider thinking outside the box for such industries, perhaps beginning them with a cooperative of small investors who all have a stake in the business, with experienced older workers who can lead.

It's time for Americans to prove they are still hard-working, intelligent thinking people who can survive.

COMING SOON

2011-07-02T08:21:00.000-07:00

I'm putting the finishing touches on a new non-fiction book entitled UNCONSCIONABLE CONTRACT: What Credit Card Companies Don't Want You to Know, about how I found myself in trouble with my credit some 14 years ago or so, and couldn't meet my credit card obligations because of health problems. They sued me, and I sued them back. They said, "let's call us even." My premise was that credit card applications are not contracts. They have none of the elements of a contract, and a reasonable person would not agree to the terms if they knew how one-sided they were. One never actually contracts with the credit card companies and they were suing on breach of contract-type complaints. Also included in the book, are ways to protect your credit, how to file bankruptcy, and how to change your prosperity mindset. It should be up on Kindle on July 5, and out in paperback within 6 weeks of this date: 070211. Thanks.

Press Release

2011-07-02T08:11:00.000-07:00

A FUN SUMMER READ

DON'T ASK FOR RULES

A cozy mystery re: a slightly psychic paralegal who doesn't listen to her boss.

Just published on Kindle and as a paperback, available at Amazon.com and elsewhere!!

Panetta Ordered the Raid, Not Obama

2011-05-06T20:58:00.000-07:00

Subject: PANETTA ORDERED THE RAID?
George W (in some circles) is getting some credit, the below may get out as well
White House Insider: Obama Hesitated Panetta Issued Order to Kill Osama Bin Laden
by http://socyberty.com/author/Ulsterman-2/">;Ulsterman" target="_blank"Ulsterman in Issues, May 3, 2011"What Valerie Jarrett, and the president, did not know is that Leon Panetta had already initiated a program that reported to him and only him, involving a covert on the ground attack against the compound."
Q: You stated that President Obama was over ruled by military/intelligence officials regarding the decision to send in military specialists into the Osama Bin Laden compound. Was that accurate?
A: I was told in these exact terms, we overruled him. (Obama) I have since followed up and received further details on exactly what that meant, as well as the specifics of how Leon Panetta worked around the presidents persistent hesitation to act. There appears NOT to have been an outright overruling of any specific position by President Obama, simply because there was no specific position from the president to do so. President Obama was, in this case, as in all others, working as an absentee president.
(Notice that Panetta is NOT in the room) This update comes some 24 hours after our longtime Washington D.C. Insider first outlined shocking details of an Obama administration having been over ruled by senior military and intelligence officials leading up to the successful attack against terrorist Osama Bin Laden. What follows is further clarification of Insiders insights surrounding that event.
I was correct in stating there had been a push to invade the compound for several weeks if not months, primarily led by Leon Panetta, Hillary Clinton, Robert Gates, David Petraeus, and Jim Clapper. The primary opposition to this plan originated from Valerie Jarrett, and it was her opposition that was enough to create uncertainty within President Obama. Obama would meet with various components of the pro-invasion faction, almost always with Jarrett present, and then often fail to indicate his position. This situation continued for some time, though the division between Jarrett/Obama and the rest intensified more recently, most notably from Hillary Clinton. She was livid over the presidents failure to act, and her office began a campaign of anonymous leaks to the media indicating such. As for Jarrett, her concern rested on two primary fronts. One, that the military action could fail and harm the presidents already weakened standing with both the American public and the world. Second, that the attack would be viewed as an act of aggression against Muslims, and further destabilize conditions in the Middle East.
Q: What changed the presidents position and enabled the attack against Osama Bin Laden to proceed?
A: Nothing changed with the presidents opinion he continued to avoid having one. Every time military and intelligence officials appeared to make progress in forming a position, Jarrett would intervene and the stalling would begin again. Hillary started the ball really rolling as far as pressuring Obama began, but it was Panetta and Petraeus who ultimately pushed Obama to finally act sort of. Panetta was receiving significant reports from both his direct CIA sources, as well as Petraeus-originating Intel. Petraeus was threatening to act on his own via a bombing attack. Panetta reported back to the president that a bombing of the compound would result in successful killing of Osama Bin Laden, and little risk to American lives. Initially, as he had done before, the president indicated a willingness to act. But once again, Jarrett intervened, convincing the president that innocent Pakistani lives could be lost in such a bombing attack, and Obama would be left attempting to explain Panettaï¿½s failed policy. Again Obama hesitated this time openly delaying further meetings to discuss the issue with Panetta. A brief meeting was held at this time with other officials, including Secretary Gates and members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, but Gates, like Panetta, was unable to push the president to act. It was at this time that Gates indicated to certain Pentagon officials that he may resign earlier than originally indicated he was that frustrated. Both Panetta and Clinton convinced him to stay on and see the operation through.
What happened from there is what was described by me as a masterful manipulation by Leon Panetta. Panetta indicated to Obama that leaks regarding knowledge of Osama Bin Ladens location were certain to get out sooner rather than later, and action must be taken by the administration or the public backlash to the presidents inaction would be significant to the point of political debilitation. It was at that time that Obama stated an on-ground campaign would be far more acceptable to him than a bombing raid. This was intended as a stalling tactic, and it had originated from Jarrett. Such a campaign would take both time, and present a far greater risk of failure. The president had been instructed by Jarrett to inform Mr., Panetta that he would have sole discretion to act against the Osama Bin Laden compound. Jarrett believed this would further delay Panetta from acting, as the responsibility for failure would then fall almost entirely on him. What Valerie Jarrett, and the president, did not know is that Leon Panetta had already initiated a program that reported to him and only him, involving a covert on the ground attack against the compound. Basically, the whole damn operation was already ready to go including the specific team support Intel necessary to engage the enemy within hours of being given notice. Panetta then made plans to proceed with an on-ground assault. This information reached either Hillary Clinton or Robert Gates first (likely via military contacts directly associated with the impending mission) who then informed the other. Those two then met with Panetta, who informed each of them he had been given the authority by the president to proceed with a mission if the opportunity presented itself. Both Gates and Clinton warned Panetta of the implications of that authority namely he was possibly being made into a scapegoat. Panetta admitted that possibility, but felt the opportunity to get Bin Laden outweighed that risk. During that meeting, Hillary Clinton was first to pledge her full support for Panetta, indicating she would defend him if necessary. Similar support was then followed by Gates.. The following day, and with Panettas permission, Clinton met in private with Bill Daley and urged him to get the presidents full and open approval of the Panetta plan. Daley agreed such approval would be of great benefit to the action, and instructed Clinton to delay proceeding until he had secured that approval. Daley contacted Clinton within hours of their meeting indicating Jarrett refused to allow the president to give that approval. Daley then informed Clinton that he too would fully support Panetta in his actions, even if it meant disclosing the presidentï¿½s indecision to the American public should that action fail to produce a successful conclusion. Clinton took that message back to Panetta and the CIA director initiated the 48 hour engagement order. At this point, the President of the United States was not informed of the engagement order it did not originate from him, and for several hours after the order had been given and the special ops forces were preparing for action into Pakistan from their position in Afghanistan, Daley successfully kept Obama and Jarrett insulated from that order.
This insulation ended at some point with an abort order that I believe originated from Valerie Jarretts office, and was then followed up by President Obama. This abort order was later explained as a delay due to weather conditions, but the actual conditions at that time would have been acceptable for the mission. A storm system had been in the area earlier, but was no longer an issue. Check the data yourself to confirm. Jarrett, having been caught off guard, was now scrambling to determine who had initiated the plan. She was furious, repeating the acronym CoC and saying it was not being followed. This is where Bill Daley intervened. The particulars of that intervention are not clear to me beyond knowing he did meet with Jarrett in his office and following that meeting, Valerie Jarrett was not seen in the West Wing for some time, and apparently no longer offered up any resistance to the Osama Bin Laden mission. What did follow from there was one or more brief meetings between Bill Daley, Hillary Clinton, a representative from Robert Gates office, a representative from Leon Panettas office, and a representative from Jim Clappers office. I have to assume that these meetings were in essence, detailing the move to proceed with the operation against the Osama Bin Laden compound. I have been told by more than one source that Leon Panetta was directing the operation with both his own CIA operatives, as well as direct contacts with military both entities were reporting to Panetta only at this point, and not the President of the United States. There was not going to be another delay as had happened 24 hour earlier. The operation at this point, was in effect, unknown to President Barack Obama or Valerie Jarrett and it remained that way until AFTER it was already underway. President Obama was literally pulled from a golf outing and escorted back to the White House to be informed of the mission. Upon his arrival there was a briefing held which included Bill Daley, John Brennan, and a high ranking member of the military. When Obama emerged from the briefing, he was described as looking very confused and uncertain. The president was then placed in the situation room where several of the players in this event had already been watching the operation unfold. Another interesting tidbit regarding this is that the Vice President was already up to speed on the operation. A source indicated they believe Hillary Clinton had personally made certain the Vice President was made aware of that days events before the president was. The now famous photo released shows the particulars of that of that room and its occupants. What that photo does not communicate directly is that the military personnel present in that room during the operation unfolding, deferred to either Hillary Clinton or Robert Gates. The presidents role was minimal, including their acknowledging of his presence in the room.
At the conclusion of the mission, after it had been repeatedly confirmed a success, President Obama was once again briefed behind closed doors. The only ones who went in that room besides the president were Bill Daley. John Brennan, and a third individual whose identity remains unknown to me. When leaving this briefing, the president came out of it much more confident. Much more certain of himself. He was also carrying papers in his hand that quite possibly was the address to the nation given later that evening on the Bin Laden mission. The president did not have those papers with him prior to that briefing. The president then returned to the war room, where by this time, Leon Panetta had personally arrived and was receiving congratulations from all who were present.
In my initial communication to you of these events I described what unfolded as a temporary Coup initiated by high ranking intelligence and military officials. I stand by that term. These figures worked around the uncertainty of President Obama and the repeated resistance of Valerie Jarrett. If they had not been willing to do so, I am certain Osama Bin Laden would still be alive today. There will be no punishment to those who acted outside the authority of the presidents office. The president cannot afford to admit such a fact. What will be most interesting from here is to now see what becomes of Valerie Jarrett. One source indicated she is threatening resignation. I find that unlikely given my strong belief she needs the protection afforded her by the Oval Office and its immense powers to delay and eventually terminate investigations back in Chicago, but we shall see.HERE'S THE LINK:
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WHAT IS BIG GOVERNMENT; BIG CORPORATIONS?

2011-03-24T09:38:00.000-07:00

The Federal Government was never meant to grow as large as it has grown. The entitlement programs were not meant to happen. Some of the programs that have turned into entitlement programs were never meant to be that, i.e., Social Security and Medicare were meant to fund themselves, and they would have with the contributions of the employee and the employer going into the fund, and accruing interest, if the Federal Government had not "borrowed" the money and then not had the means to repay what they borrowed. As a result they must now "fund" Social Security and Medicare out of the General Fund. This was the fault of the legislators who allowed the "borrowing" (let's call it theft like it was) to happen.

We, the taxpayers have sat idly by for many years saying "They" wouldn't let that happen! Well, we are "they", and we did let that happen by not taking control of the legislators sooner.

Big government is a government that is ruled by greed. Legislators have let special interest groups convince them to put some lame "funding" into a bill, in return those special interest groups will give that particular legislator money to run again for a job he has turned out to be ill-suited to fill because he has caved in to the special interest groups! Did you follow that circular reasoning? Sorry, but that's what has happened.

There are certain government workers that are legitimate and should be funded by our tax money: For instance, the miliary and military support services, including the Veteran's Administration. Civilians who work for the military, and the like. But there should be oversight on all of that.

For instance, I once worked for Douglas Spacecenter in Huntington Beach, California. I earned more money than I'd earned up to that time! It was a made-up job to get more money from the government! It was also a union job, but California has always been a right-to-work state and one can opt out of paying union dues if one does not want to join the union. I made a lot of money, but I never had a desk. I never had a chair of my own. I never had a typewriter. I wrote one letter in the two months I was there! (I had to do it on my lunch hour when I could borrow from someone who had a desk, chair & typewriter.)

My job was padding for government costs. This was in the era when hammers cost $500. Toilet seats were as expensive. Screws for the space shuttle were billed to the government at $100 each. (I spent a lot of time there reading things since I didn't really have anything else to do.) I quit after two months because the job was not a real job.

How many other "government jobs" are there out there where people are sitting around doing nothing? Way too many! That's the "big government" I object to. People who don't earn their keep, and the American taxpayer is paying for them. In addition, government jobs used to be at a much lower pay rate. Now government jobs pay far more than the equivalent private sector job doing the same thing.

That's one of the reasons I am so anti-union as well. Back in the 60's I spoke to a union member who worked at International Harvester who bragged that he made $22 an hour leaning on a broom all day. At that time I earned about $4.75 per hour working very hard for 40 plus hours per week.

I don't think my Liberal friends like paying too much taxes, I don't think they like the idea of losing their freedoms, I don't think they like the idea of paying people not to do anything, I don't think they like the idea of our country turning into a Socialist/Communist country.

Now there's this "healthcare" nonsense. Here's what a healthcare bill should have done. It should have demanded more transparency from the suppliers of healthcare insurance, as well as to the suppliers of healthcare goods and services.

First you need to understand why healthcare is not within the reach of most people and corporations. In the 60's and 70's corporations offered healthcare insurance for their employees. It was fairly inexpensive and very often it was paid for entirely by the corporation, or the employee would pay a very small amount of money to insure himself and his whole family.

Then the medical industry, doctors, pharmaceuticals, hospitals, etc., saw all of the corporate insurance paying for everything, and they raised the cost of all of these products and services.

As a result of that, the corporations had to begin paying more to the insurance companies. The premiums paid by the worker went up quite a lot as well. (At one time I could have gotten insurance for myself that would have been more than I pay for my mortgage per month!!).

The insurance company executives saw all the money being raked in by the larger premiums being paid, and they began paying themselves outrageous yearly bonuses (I know about these because as a paralegal I once had a job doing due diligence on insurance companies, reading all of their files and writing reports on them...some insurance company executives in the late 90's were paying themselves bonuses of $20,000,000.00 per year!)

So the insurance went up and up, and the medical procedures and supplies went up and up. It was all fueled by greed. We, the taxpaying individuals have been the victims of this. We should stop behaving as victims and demand changes to all of these things.

Just as the government should not pay $1000 for a toilet seat, or $120 for a bolt, we should not be paying $120 for a pill. At the same time, do we want all of these things regulated? I don't know, but there should be some oversight on these things. There should be some reasoning that says, "hey, these things don't cost that much to make!"

Perhaps the health insurance companies should be transparent about their costs, and should be transparent about their executive bonuses? Perhaps government contractors should have more oversight over the things they provide to the government before they are paid for? Perhaps reason should prevail.

Greed has got to stop. If we don't do something about it now, it will automatically occur because it can only go so far before it collapses from it's own weight. If that's what we're waiting for we'd better be prepared to take care of ourselves, of our families. We should be prepared to live on the pennies we've been saving and hiding in the back of our closets. We should be prepared to grow our own food. We should be prepared to defend ourselves.

"FOX NEWS LIES" "FOX NEWS IS ONE-SIDED"

2011-03-22T07:13:00.000-07:00

I keep hearing that from the Lefties all the time "Fox News Lies". Okay. Let's get your qualifications for making that statement. How often do you watch Fox News? How many lies a day have you heard? Oh! You've never actually watched Fox News! Oh! You're just repeating what other Lefties have told you?! Okay. Let me tell you my experience:

Obama is on there every thirty seconds. Okay, I'm exaggerating, it only seems that way. But every time he speaks it is covered in its entirety by Fox News. I complain about that. More Fair than even I want to see! (I put it on mute when Obama goes on for more than three minutes). Maybe it's Obama's failure to face reality, problems with veracity, exaggerations that the Lefties are calling lies?

Maybe they're talking about Alan Coombs. He seems like a really nice guy, sort of a wimpy nerdy guy actually. But he's gung ho about Obama who can do no wrong. He's as Left as they get, and somewhat delusional about it all. Definitely still drinking the Kool-Aid. I really don't think he is lying, he's just closing his eyes to reality as well. Delusional. But he really does seem like a nice guy.

Maybe they're talking about Geraldo. Geraldo doesn't even know whether he's a Liberal or a Conservative. My theory is he's a Conservative on Fridays or whenever Fox News gives out their paychecks. He annoys the heck out of me.

Maybe they're talking about those "balanced panels" they have on Fox and Friends where the young Lefties try to scream over the young Conservatives who are trying to be heard over the screaming, but usually just sit their quietly until they stop screaming. Maybe the young Libs are a bit naive. They seem to be spouting the Left talking points.* You know those canned "talking points" that seem to turn out verbatim coming from every Liberal media outlet you listen to. Oh? You don't listen to all of them?

*Left Talking Points. I notice patterns. I remember everything I read. Sometimes I forget where I read something, but I can find my way back to where it was usually. I write to a lot of Congressmen, both on the Right and on the Left, stating my opinions. I get back a lot of "canned replies". I ask not to receive their "merge" letters with my name on it. It wasn't until I got the exact same letter from four different people on Obamacare that I figured it out. The DNC or someone like them, puts out "talking points", and most of the people who get them are too lazy to rewrite them and turn them into an "original" production of the same thoughts. Then I hear Libs on radio, in the printed media, and on television spouting exactly the same words in exactly the same order. They are parroting what they've been told to say!!!!! How creepy is that!!?

Maybe they're talking about Juan Williams (they're such racists too at Fox News you know...) who got fired from NPR for saying something in his spot on Fox News. Juan Williams has tempered his Left views since that happened. He hasn't become a Conservative, no way! But he has stopped spouting the Liberal talking points. He now reasons through things. He is still somewhat of an apologist for Obama. I'll forgive him that. Juan, is the reason, by the way, that NPR came to the attention of Congress for their biased reporting, and the fact they receive some of their funding from the government.

Fox News interviewed Nancy Pelosi far more than I thought necessary when she was Speaker of the House. Thank God that's over. It got a little tiring. She was definitely spouting the talking points constantly, and she is still delusional about the truth of things. She seems somewhat desperate these days. I don't think she was too happy about losing her big airplane that cost the taxpayers unbelievable amounts of money so she could fly home to her family every weekend (while new Conservative Congressmen are living in closets in their Congressional offices, unable to afford to go home to see their families by the way, those "rich" Republicans don't you know.)

Right now Fox News is running a MoveOn.org advertisement and graph. Then they have a Conservative arguing. Now they're talking about the opinion of the People of the United States. They are looking at, and debating the ads on the left and the ads on the right. These aren't lies, they are things that tell people how to make up their own minds about things.

RESPECTING ONE'S ELDERS

2011-03-21T12:02:00.000-07:00

I have a lot of trouble with a relative who denigrates Conservatives in General with not just harsh, but hateful words. I don’t understand where he’s coming from because when he is doing that he is being disrespectful to my parents, my grandparents, and to me; and it is in direct opposition to how he was raised. My parents were Conservative, and all but one of my grandparents were Conservative, even the one hold out, the Grandfather who voted as a Democrat, was not the Progressive Liberal Democrat we see these days. He would be appalled at the America hating unpatriotic people calling themselves Democrats today.
My only explanation is that this relative is stuck in a title. "I am a Democrat." Not because he understands or agrees with the issues, but because he feels some sort of a need to remain loyal to the title itself. And in remaining loyal to the title, he has adopted he has become blind to the consequences of his beliefs.

By remaining loyal, for instance to Labor Unions, who at one time represented the Under Dog, but who now comprise a very strong and powerful group that advocates violence and the breaking of laws, and a decidedly unpatriotic bent to maintain that power. Unions no longer represent the membership, but seem bent on preserving power and wealth for the leadership of the unions, to hell with what it might do to the country and inevitably their membership as well.

The Progressive Left is hell bent on destroying Capitalism upon which this country was built. They chant "down with capitalism" "down with corporate America", "down with big business", but yet they espouse the growth of the most destructive element to the prosperity of the citizenry, the growth of big government!

Why is the Progressive Left so hell bent on destroying our Freedom? I cannot comprehend how this is good for anyone. I know it doesn’t represent the true feelings of my aforesaid relative! He doesn’t want to lose his freedom to use his land the way he wishes for it to be used, yet if the Progressive Left were to get their way, he would be forced to "share" his land with everyone else!

After all, that’s what Obama’s "redistribution of wealth" is all about. It’s not just taking from the rich and giving to the poor, but it is throwing the material wealth of everyone, top to bottom, into a pot and then dividing it up between the population; provided, however, that there would be a lot of costs involved, such as paying for all of the people it would take to figure out all of this redistribution and then redistribute it, probably about 85% of the entire wealth, and then the remainder would be distributed to the population; i.e., everyone would be incredibly poor. All of the work anyone did would be for naught, because some of them worked and some of them didn’t. What an incredibly stupid idea.

For one thing, they tried that in all of the Communist countries. They abandoned it because it didn’t work. Now Russia is in chaos because they’ve got all the power-hungry ex-communists trying to figure out how to get back into the money. They noticed that the Russian mob has it figured out, and the mob is pretty much running the country now.

Now, after all that American Liberal Progressives (I’ll bet that they hate being called American!), are trying to rerun the old Communist Socialism programs here. Didn’t they get the message? It doesn’t work. The only way Socialistic Communistic programs will work is if you hold a gun to the head of everyone who won’t do what you want them to do.

Only problem is, it isn’t the Liberal Progressives who have the guns. First they have to get the guns out of the "cold dead hands" of the gun-owners of America! Not going to happen!!! First they’ll have to shoot all of the gun-owners, and I’d be willing to bet that the gun-owners are better shots!

If they do manage to get the guns away from the gun-owners (i.e., cold dead hands) everyone who works will be dead and gone, and then who is going to support the entitlement-top-heavy-government that is taking care of all of those Liberal Progressives? It’s not going to happen either.

Look at it this way. Obama and his attempts to turn America into a Communist country (use Socialist if you’re very politically correct, but I like to call it what it is), have energized the Right who had become complacent. We kept saying "they" wouldn’t let that happen. They did.

I think the problem with the old-timey Democrats (those who are still trying to be good Democrats by supporting the Progressive Liberals because they think that’s the new name for Democrat), will figure out, sooner or later, that "they" are letting that happen as well. It’s just taking them longer to figure it out. At some point freedom-loving Americans will stand up and shout, "give us back our country."

And that’s what the Tea Party is. It’s Conservatives, and Libertarians and Independents who believe in freedom, and see that the efforts of the Progressive Liberals to force "Hope and Change" on us, are not hopeful and not the change that we all want to see!!!

Those who advocate violence to force upon the majority a change in situations we used our vote to bring about are nothing but thugs. They are criminals. Those who abdicate their responsibilities and flee to another state to avoid making a decision are criminals. Those who flee to another country to avoid making decisions for which they were elected are coming very close to treason.

That’s how I see it. If you don’t agree with me, write your own blog, and know this. I make up my own mind. The one thing you will never have over me, is the ability to control my mind. I have the freedom to think my own thoughts. You’re welcome to yours. It’s none of my business what you think of me. It’s none of your business what I think of you.

THE WISH FACTORY: How to Make Wishes Come True

2011-03-07T15:52:00.000-08:00

I just published my award winning book, The Wish Factory: How to Make Wishes Come True on Amazon Kindle recently. It is available for $9.99.

It is also available in hard copy by going to my web site http://www.thewishfactory.com/ and ordering it. You can pay for it with a credit card or Paypal, and it will be sent to you within three days of receipt of the order. Usually sooner.

The Wish Factory: How to Make Wishes Come True by Jana L. Shellman. Special Value of $10.00 for $12.95 book, with free shipping and handling.

Mark Victor Hansen, Chicken Soup for the Soul said about The Wish Factory, "I love this book! It's brilliant, simple, straightforward, truthful, and instantly helps you think right and move into Right Action--Right Now!"

Mark Victor Hansen and Jack Canfield referenced The Wish Factory as a reference source for their book The Aladdin Factor.

The Wish Factory won first prize in inspirational books from Women's Press Club of Indiana in 1996.

The Wish Factory was endorsed by substance abuse organizations in Fort Wayne, Indiana as required reading for all of their participants in 1996.

Unity Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota recommended The Wish Factory to all of its members.

REVIEWS:

The Wish Factory moves one into right action right now!, August 27, 1999

Reviewer: A readerMy vision for The Wish Factory is an everlasting concept for anyones personal belief system. I read this book as a Christmas gift to my son. It was one of the few gifts exchanged; we were bankrupt on Wall street, living off broadway and I was given the last rough draft to read.

The Wish Factory gave us the gift of hope with a new belief system. After that, I was fortunate to become aquainted with the author.

Ms.Shellman is more creative than anyone I know on this planet! I would like to support the wish factory by saying that "everyone is missing out on their own opportunity in life, without knowing about this book"!

I see this book selling everywhere, and I see every word Ms. Shellman writes, selling globally.

All Blessings and Success to Ms. Shellman;

May all your wishes come true Jana!

Purely Positive Prose Sparkling With Possibilities,

November 8, 1997Reviewer: A reader

This little big book THE WISH FACTORY by Jana Lynn Shellman offers the reader a simple, honest approach to making and keeping our lives positive and filled with possibilties. The message she has is beaming with hope, and is delivered with enthusiasm and that "personal touch". The book has two parts. Ms. Shellman begins with a most delightful story about a child who learns what to do with thoughts called "hopes" and "wishes". This story carries a powerful lesson of faith, reinforced by the art of positive thinking. It is the kind of story that could be surprisingly enlightening for anyone of any age.

The second part is an instruction book that addresses lifes' personal issues such as "happiness" and "success". The author shares her insights and gives practical suggestions on how to manage these areas in a personal way. The Wish Factory could be enjoyed by and useful to anyone, regardless of affiliation, and especially invaluable to those unaware of our heavenly connection.

AlCOMMUNICATION PLUS, November 2, 1997

Reviewer: A readerThe Wish Factory is age free. This story/instruction book shows us that no matter how hopeless a situation looks, we must remember that we are not alone and if we keep communication going with our Creator [and don't forget to listen], we will be given the answer that's right for us. I applaud the author on this book and look forward to more of her work.This little book packs a lot of punch!,

October 27, 1997
Reviewer: A reader
The subject matter is at once intriguing...who would not want their wishes all to come true. The story is delightful and shows us how we defeat our wishes, hopes, dreams and prayers by "undoing" them almost immediately! The story tells us, without preaching, what we need to do to correct this problem in our own lives. I think this book would be good for anyone to read, and if they didn't come away with tips for living their own lives in a more positive fashion, then they have not learned to make the right choices! Once again, a delightful book, which ought to be on everyone's bookshelf alongside the classical positive thinkers, such as Dr. Norman Vincent Peale and Dr. Robert Schuller to name just a couple.A book of positive spiritual guidance told so a child enjoys,

August 20, 1997
Reviewer: A reader
I got this book today, and eagerly sat down with my 8 yr old to read it. I wasn't disappointed, because it has the type of positive spiritual messages and affirmations that I want to bring my child up to believe in, without negative influences like so many of us endured during our own childhoods. This story chronicles the journey of a little boy to The Wish Factory, a magical place with angels and elves who help him understand how to make a prayer or wish "stick," and how NOT to un-wish the wish/prayer with negative thoughts. A book for all ages; inspiring and upbeat. I sent my child to bed with visions of angels and wishes coming true...what more could a mom ask for from a book

LEARN ABOUT YOURSELF FIRST & WHAT YOU BELIEVE

2010-10-10T11:33:00.000-07:00

I don't want anyone else telling me what to believe. I don't want anyone lying to me. In order for me to believe what I do, I find I'm responsible for educating myself about the facts. One person says one thing, and someone else says something else. I find that I notice patterns. I find that I have an instinct when I am listening to a liar. I notice when someone is trying to pull the wool over my eyes.

I noticed, for instance, way back in the early 60's that 50% of the professors were very idealistic and very socialistic, and if you didn't believe as they did, then you were wrong. I didn't finish some courses because of that bias. I couldn't agree with their belief system and they couldn't agree with mine. I found little reason to believe anything else they were teaching. Many were teaching things contrary to what I'd been taught by my parents & grandparents about the history of the US, and what I'd learned early in my educational experience. I found this disturbing but decided "it wouldn't matter" so long as I knew what was true.

Then when my son was in high school he would come home and tell me what they were teaching him in high school. This was some 20 years after I'd been in high school. One of the most shocking things he told me was they'd taught him Angela Davis was a heroine. I hit the ceiling! Angela Davis was a criminal! From that moment on I began teaching him to question the things he was being taught in high school. I tried to teach him to do outside study and find out for himself, and I began doing the same. Explore all of the information available and then come to your own informed decision about the rightness of things. Never believe a thing to be true just because someone in authority said it was true.

To understand my position, I think I need to inform you that at one time I voted as a Democrat. I was an idealist. I thought, "wouldn't it be wonderful if we could all live together in peace and understanding" "wouldn't it be great if we could join a commune and live together, all working together for one goal" And then two things happened. I joined a food co-operative, and I got married (for the second time). I observed two things: In the food co-op everyone was supposed to be equal and do their job for the good of the whole. Early on, I observed this was the same pattern being attempted in the Soviet Union and it wasn't working there either. Unless someone holds a gun to your head, you aren't going to do a job if you don't want to do it. When one observes that everyone isn't holding up their end of the bargain incentive goes away. I was on the Board of Directors and I demanded the place be run like a business or it would fade away into nothing. That was back nearly 35 years ago. Since that time the Co-op has been run like a business. People get paid for their jobs and they do them. The Co-op now has owners who have invested their cash into the company. I still don't know the value of that. I put a great deal of effort into it in the beginning. Others put in more effort. In the end, only those who put cash into it are becoming the owners. That's business for you. But the business survived and its nearly 35 years old!

The second thing was marriage. If both parties don't have the same goals, or even if they do, its impossible for one person to control the thoughts and the opinions of the other. We can suppress that person by controlling their emotions and their physicalness, but can we really suppress their thoughts? No. It's impossible. We can never suppress their individual freedom to think and believe the way they want to believe.

I don't want to be responsible for the way you think, nor do I want to be responsible for the things you believe. At the same time, I don't want you to be duped by the lies being told by others. I very much want you to think about the things others are telling you. Make certain you are being told the truth. Make certain you know what you really want.

Do you really want a government that decides the kind of lightbulbs you buy? Do you really want a government that tells you what food you should eat? Do you really want a government that decides every aspect of your life for you? Or do you want to be free to make your own mistakes and live your life freely without having to stop to think about what you say or what you do?

We have already been duped into becoming socialistic. "Social Security" I hate that I am dependent upon the social security check. I am doing everything I can to free myself from the necessity of it. I hate that I am making a living applying for Medicaid for those people who haven't got enough money to take care of themselves in their old age. I am doing my best to make certain I don't have to do that, by making myself healthy and whole and independent.

Do you want someone else making your decisions for you? Or would you rather be responsible for yourself? Figure out who you are. If you want to give up your freedoms then keep on relying on the present form of government. If you want to be responsible for yourself and for your decisions, then begin educating yourself about what's really going on. Don't buy into everything the talking heads on either side are saying. Study it and see how it fits into your personal agenda for how you want your life to be. Then make informed decisions. Don't just rely on a title, GOP or Democrat or Republican or Liberal or Conservative, or Progressive. Make sure you know what you are, not what those titles mean now or what they meant 50 years ago. People are saying the words they think you want to hear. Make sure their actions are the actions you want taken on your behalf to preserve the life you want to lead.

AMERICANS FIRST - POLITICS LATER

2010-07-21T18:49:00.000-07:00

I've been doing a lot of thinking about the devisiveness of the political parties. Then I read of some polls with regard to the approval ratings of Congress and those of Obama. It was very enlightening. Fully 85 to 95 percent of the population is in agreement about almost every issue that's important to Americans. Yet the very small percent of those not in that 85-95 percent appear to be deciding how we're going to live our lives.

I think its time for all of us to band together to preserve and protect our nation. We may have to tear down the massive bureaucracy and replace it with something manageable.

A bunch of Marxists have gained power in the White House by lying to us about what they stood for. Americans were trusting and believed Obama when he spoke. He sounded like he knew what he was talking about. I was leery of him, recognizing the pathological liar who stares off into space as he fabricates one scenario after another, fully believing that he's telling the truth. I will not listen to his negativity any longer. The moment he appears on television we're back to viewing Michael Weston in Florida rather than staying to see if Obama will ever stop talking. I will not listen to anything he wants to say because he twists the truth and lies without allowing anyone to challenge his lies.

Revising history to conform to the way you want things to be is all right if you do it inside your own head, just don't try to sell it to anyone.

We are responsible for where we find ourselves.

2010-06-28T14:13:00.000-07:00

This nation finds itself in trouble. Although there were some of us who could see through the bluster of the candidate running for President there were many who believed every word he said. As a result the country is in great danger of being turned into a dictatorship. Some of you are still drinking the KoolAid and saying, "Nah, that will never happen". I might remind them I've predicted a number of things. I predicted the Fort Wayne International Harvester Plant would close due to the union demanding ever more money. It closed. I predicted businesses would go overseas because of the continuing demand for "minimum wage" raises. Everyone said "Nah it'll never happen." Okay. So are you still saying it's never going to happen?

I told people who said "He's going to do a stimulus". Stimulus doesn't mean free money. In the greedy eyes of everyone who voted for him "stimulus" meant a big check in the mail. Once. Is that worth losing our freedom? Then there were the others who said "he's going to take from the rich and give to the poor". Yeah, how long is that going to last? What happens when there aren't any more rich? Everyone will be destitute. No money anywhere for anyone. No welfare, no medicaid, no unemployment, no social security, no free money anywhere for anyone.

No one would listen. So I began collecting the equipment I'd need on my little patch of ground to fend for myself. I began collecting tools. I began collecting seeds, canning jars, and books on how to make do with what you've got. Because that's where we're going to be if we don't do something soon to rescue our country. I began planning how to pay off my mortgage more quickly and how to get along without social security. (We're all participating in socialistic practices, we need to wean ourselves from them.)

Greed fueled the mortgage crisis. Greed from the Seller of the home, every middle man in between to the Buyer. Greed fueled the healthcare crisis. Health insurance used to be inexpensive, but then the medical profession saw that with insurance paying for everything they could ask for more the procedures, the medications, the medical care, and insurance went up, and on the other side of the coin, the insurance company executives saw all that money rolling in and began paying themselves outrageous bonus checks every year...and prices continued to rise and rise and rise. Greed has gotten us where we are today. You can't change the greed in others, but you can change your attitude. Abundance is yours, but it doesn't have to come from the abundance of others. There's enough for everyone, but not so long as you believe one has to take from one person with abundance to supply another. God made enough for everyone.

Become peaceful within yourself and know you are responsible for where you find yourself. You have no power over the beliefs of others. You have no power over the actions of others. It is folly to believe you can "plan" how others will lead their lives. Ultimately those who believe they can control the masses will fail. If the masses don't fall for it and believe it possible the fall will come sooner than later.

Keep on praying positive. Thank you God for preserving the Constitution. Thank you for preserving our individual freedoms, thank you for preserving our economic freedom.

Words of Lee Iaccoca I second that

2010-06-22T15:27:00.001-07:00

This came in an email, but it's so appropriate I wanted to repeat it here.

Not a new statement, but how appropriate for our times. http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/iacocca.asp

Would you believe that Lee Iacocca is 82 years old and is still kickin' butt? Check out his latest rant.Just as true today as it was when his book firstcame out.
He was, and still is, a brilliant businessman! Often we need to be reminded of Iacocca's words.

Remember Lee Iacocca, the man who rescued Chrysler Corporation from its death throes? He's now 82 years old and has a new book, 'Where Have All The Leaders Gone?'.

Lee Iacocca Says:

'Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's happening? Where the hell is our outrage with this so called president? We should be screaming bloody murder! We've got a gang of tax cheating clueless leftists trying to steer our ship of state right over a cliff, we've got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and we can't even run a ridiculous cash-for-clunkers program without losing $26 billion of the taxpayers' money, much less build a hybrid car. But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads when the politicians say, 'trust me the economy is getting better..'

Better? You've got to be kidding. This is America , not the damned, 'Titanic'. I'll give you a sound bite: 'Throw all the Democrats out along with Obama!'

You might think I'm getting senile, that I've gone off my rocker, and maybe I have. But someone has to speak up. I hardly recognize this country anymore..

The most famous business leaders are not the innovators but the guys in handcuffs.. While we're fiddling in Afghanistan , Iran is completing their nuclear bombs and missiles and nobody seems to know what to do. And the liberal press is waving 'pom-poms' instead of asking hard questions. That's not the promise of the ' America ' my parents and yours traveled across the ocean for. I've had enough. How about you?

I'll go a step further. You can't call yourself a patriot if you're not outraged. This is a fight I'm ready and willing to have. The Biggest 'C' is Crisis! (Iacocca elaborates on nine C's of leadership, with crisis being the first.)

Leaders are made, not born. Leadership is forged in times of crisis. It's easy to sit on your butt and talk theory. Or send someone else's kids off to war when you've neverseen a battlefield yourself. It's another thing to lead when your world comes tumbling down.

On September 11, 2001, we needed a strong leader more than any other time in our history. We needed a steady hand to guide us out of the ashes. A hell of a mess, so here's where we stand.

We're immersed in a bloody war now with no plan for winning and no plan for leaving.. But our soldiers are dying daily.

We're running the biggest deficit in the history of the world, and it's getting worse every day!

We've lost the manufacturing edge to Asia , while our once-great companies are getting slaughtered by health care costs.

Gas prices are going to skyrocket again, and nobody in power has a lucid plan to open drilling to solve the problem. This country has the largest oil reserves in the WORLD, and we cannot drill for it because the politicians have been bought by the flea-hugging environmentalists.

Our schools are in a complete disaster because of the teachers union.

Our borders are like sieves and they want to give all illegal's amnesty and free healthcare.

The middle class is being squeezed to death every day.

These are times that cry out for leadership.

But when you look around, you've got to ask: 'Where have all the leaders gone?' Where are the curious, creative communicators? Where are the people of character, courage, conviction, omnipotence, and common sense? I may be a sucker for alliteration, but I think you get the point..

Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security than making us take off our shoes in airports and throw away our shampoo?

We've spent billions of dollars building a huge new bureaucracy, and all we know how to do is react to things that have already happened.

Everyone's hunkering down, fingers crossed, hoping the
government will make it better for them. Now, that's just crazy.. Deal with life.

Name me an industry leader who is thinking creatively about how we can restore our competitive edge in manufacturing. Who would have believed that there could ever be a time when 'The Big Three' referred to Japanese car companies? How did this happen, and more important, look what Obama did about it!

Name me a government leader who can articulate a plan for paying down the debit, or solving the energy crisis, or managing the health care problem. The
silence is deafening. But these are the crises that are eating away at our country and milking the middle class dry.

I have news for the Chicago gangsters in Congress. We didn't elect you to turn this country into a losing European Socialist state. What is everybody so afraid of? That some bonehead on NBC or CNN news will call them a name? Give me a break. Why don't you guys show some spine for a change?

Had Enough? Hey, I'm not trying to be the voice of gloom and doom here. I'm trying to light a fire. I'm speaking out because I have hope - I believe in America .. In my lifetime, I've had the privilege of living through some of America 's greatest moments. I've also experienced some of our worst crises: The 'Great Depression,' 'World War II,' the 'Korean War,' the 'Kennedy Assassination,' the 'Vietnam War,' the 1970's oil crisis, and the struggles of recent years since 9/11.
Make your own contribution by sending this to everyone you know and care about. It's our country, folks, and it's our future. Our future is at stake!.

CALL IT RACIST IF YOU CAN'T THINK OF A GOOD ARGUMENT

2010-06-14T15:45:00.000-07:00

It appears the Far Left and the Progressives cannot think of anything adult to argue the point of view of the Right, and so they make up things to say about the Conservatives. Tea Partys aren't anything more than a forum for Conservatives to vent in their silent majority sort of way about the things that disturb them. It is a quiet, gentile attack on concepts that don't agreed with them. It has nothing to do with racism (how do you account for the various conservative black people who are just as involved in the tea parties as the white, red, yellow & brown people?).

I was reading Bill O'Reilly's book this week (it got pushed to the bottom of the pile by all of the books Beck recommended we read...it was worthwhile to read them first.) Sometimes I can't stand O'Reilly, and sometimes I agree with everything he says. That's the way it ought to be. People who use their brains and discover their own understanding of situations can then format their own arguments about the good and bad that exists in the world. I think I have some of the same ideas about fairness that O'Reilly has, and we share a desire to do something about unfairness...to a point. If people don't want to have help with something, no amount of "justice" is going to help them feel better. Fairness is making sure everyone has a fair chance, not that they have equality of material things.

Whenever I state my opinion on other blogs I invariably have attacks from the left. Most times the attacks make me laugh, because they don't argue the issues, the begin calling me names! How childish! If this is what we're up against I don't think we have anything to worry about.

We have to make sure we stick to the issues, and don't resort to the left's name-calling to make our points.

The Administration is infested with people wanting to destroy our country. We've got to get them out of there. Positive Prayer and Faith as well as eternal vigilance to preserve our freedoms will see us through. God always supports the good guys. There are white souls, and there are dark souls. It has nothing to do with skin color, it has to do with the color of one's soul, and we have to support the light souls to survive.

WHEN IT ISN'T IT ANYMORE!

2010-06-07T17:15:00.000-07:00

The administration believes its all right to confuse us by changing the meaning of words, that way, in their twisted minds, they aren't really lying to us, they are just using words we understand under the "old" traditional definition, with their "new progressive" definitions. Is that as clear as mud to you? Yeah. Me too!

For instance, Unemployment has a new definition. Employed now means, hired by the government, no matter whether you are fired at the end of the day and rehired at the beginning of the next day. Let's see, that means Then when you're hired at the beginning of the next day, rather than just one job that week, the administration sees two jobs, and then if you get fired Tuesday night and hired Wednesday morning, then they've "created" three jobs that week Just for you! Creative bookkeeping otherwise known as criminally questionable activity.

KINDNESS & COMPASSION

2010-05-24T11:34:00.000-07:00

Do you think you are being kind & compassionate when you observe the living conditions of another, and then go about trying to improve that person's environment by your actions? Did you ask the other person if they wanted their life "improved"?

Why is it that so many people think they are being kind when they foist their opinions about the way life should be lived on another. Different people have different priorities. It doesn't make anyone wrong, it just makes them all different. Becoming concerned about the way another person lives and trying to change that is your inflicting your likes and dislikes, your opinions, on another person. Who gives you the right to do that?

This is exactly what the Liberals are doing to America. They think they know what is best for us and they go about supporting all of this nonsense about "improving" our lives by foisting changes on us that we don't want. Now, instead of just being saddled with the consequences of our own actions, and our own choices, we must be saddled with the consequences of the actions and the choices of those who think they know better than we do what is good for us!

Kindness is not doing for another, kindness is allowing others to live their lives the way they choose to live them. You do not have to approve, nor do you need the approval of anyone else to live the way you want to live.

IMMIGRATION LAWS & FAILURES

2010-05-16T05:54:00.000-07:00

Lots of people get arrested for criminal acts in our county (and elsewhere all over the country) because they have broken a law (other than being in the country illegally). When they are arrested you would think the most logical thing to do is (1) put them in jail until their time is served for their crime and (2) then deport them from the country because they are illegal aliens. I wondered why the Courts were failing to have these people deported. I learned it was because even though Immigration & Naturalization or whatever they're called these days is called to come and pick them up they fail to do anything to deport them. No one shows up to take them out of the country. There are no people available to do this apparently. The only time you can get illegal aliens to leave the country voluntarily it seems is if they have a warrant for their arrest and can't be found.

As a law office worker who has worked with felony & misdemeanor defense I've seen a lot of these people. They show up and they cannot speak English. This is your first clue they are not legally in the country.

This sudden urge for everyone to learn Spanish so we can accommodate all of the illegal aliens is just plain stupid! The natives of this country, the American Indian was FORCED to learn English by the white settlers, (actually the priests who came into the country to convert the "heathens" to Christianity--- they didn't need converting as they already had a very strong belief in One God).

My solution to the anchor babies is following: Deport the parents and give them a choice (1) Give up their anchor babies for adoption and leave the country or (2) renounce the "citizenship" of your "anchor babies" and take them with you when you leave the country.

I admire the people who have come to this country to better their lives. They have learned more than most of us will ever know about the Constitution and the history of the United States and they learn English. It doesn't matter that they speak it with an accent, they have made an attempt to assimilate and they are proud of being Americans. They fly the American flag and they have earned the right to do so.

There are many hispanics who have come to this country legally and they work hard at supporting themselves and their families, but they learn English. It won't hurt their feelings if the illegals are deported. And who cares if it hurts anybody's feelings?!! How about our feelings. It hurts my feelings that we are paying billions of dollars to support illegal aliens. It hurts my feelings that these people with "anchor babies" are receiving more for ONE of these babies than I receive for having worked and earned my social security benefits for the past 50 years.

KEEPING GOD IN AMERICA

2010-05-15T11:41:00.000-07:00

Keeping God in your life, and keeping God in America, teaching your kids and speaking up to your friends about the importance of God and religion, any religious belief in One God, no matter the denomination, is the best way to preserve our country and our freedoms. No matter what the present administration tries to do to change things in America, we don't want that kind of change, and 85% of Americans believe in God and don't want that change. It's time to pray positive, pray constantly every day "Thank you God for preserving our Nation as the founders envisioned it, and thank you God for preserving the Constitution as it was written."

The good guys wearing the white hats always win, because good always wins over evil. This country will persevere, and we will get past this bump in the road. Perhaps this sort of damage, being done by the present administration is the very thing we needed to pull the rug out from under us in our complacency. It is time for us all to again take an interest in our country. We need to understand there is evil, there is deception, there is fraud, there are criminal acts being perpetrated against us by people we elected. It is time to admit we've made mistakes in placing our trust in the wrong people. It's time to take back America.

Obama is Narcissist? An interesting article.

2010-05-03T07:38:00.000-07:00

The following article was posted a couple of years ago. I found it interesting. It rang true to me, having known my share of narcissists, and the psychology of their illness.

Most particularly I was first alarmed at Obama's appearance because of one statement he made. "I've wanted to be President since I was five years old." At the age of five he was a student in a muslim school in a muslim nation. My very first thought was "who put that thought in his head" and my second thought was, a conspiracy theory?! I don't DO conspiracy theories! I pooh-poohed the idea, but it still nagged at the back of my mind. Knowing the history of Islam and how they planned ahead some years for the attack of 9-11, and knowing they plan far ahead of even that, I began to wonder, was this a plan to infiltrate our government at the top? And then I pooh-poohed that thought. Then I read the following article, and again pooh-poohed my fears. I spoke with people in Washington prior to the election who were young people working for the McCain Palin campaign, and they were intensely worried about the massive voter fraud that was being perpetrated by ACORN. Again, I pooh-poohed their concerns and went on believing this wouldn't happen. I went to vote and there were more people there than I'd ever seen at the polls, and talking with them for three hours in line most of them were Conservatives voting to make sure that Obama wasn't elected. This occurred all over the country, yet Obama was elected and he had more votes in Indiana than liberals ever get in Indiana. Again I pooh-poohed the idea of corruption and fraud in the vote. I think I was wrong and now I say what I've been saying since the day of the election. PRAY POSITIVE: THANK YOU GOD FOR PROTECTING OUR COUNTRY FROM THIS MAN, AND PRESERVING OUR INDIVIDUAL FREEDOMS, OUR CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS, AND OUR COUNTRY.

Following is an article I thought worthy of preserving in a blog.

Dr. Sam Vaknin is an Israeli psychologist. Interesting view on our newpresident. Dr. Vaknin has written extensively about narcissism.Dr. Vaknin States "I must confess I was impressed by Obama from the firsttime I saw him. At first I was excited to see a black candidate. He lookedyouthful, spoke well, appeared to be confident -- a wholesome presidentialpackage. I was put off soon, not just because of his shallowness but alsobecause there was an air of haughtiness in his demeanor that was unsettling.His posture and his body language were louder than his empty words. Obama'sspeeches are unlike any political speech we have heard in American history.Never a politician in this land had such quasi "religious" impact on so manypeople.The fact that Obama is a total incognito with zero accomplishment, makesthis inexplicable infatuation alarming. Obama is not an ordinary man. He isnot a genius. In fact he is quite ignorant on most important subjects."Barack Obama is a narcissist.Dr. Sam Vaknin, the author of the Malignant Self Love believes "Barack Obamaappears to be a narcissist." Vaknin is a world authority on narcissism. Heunderstands narcissism and describes the inner mind of a narcissist like noother person. When he talks about narcissism everyone listens. Vaknin saysthat Obama's language, posture and demeanor, and the testimonies of hisclosest, dearest friends suggest that the man is either a narcissist or hemay have narcissistic personality disorder (NPD).Narcissists project a grandiose but false image of themselves. Jim Jones,the charismatic leader of People's Temple, the man who led over 900 of hisfollowers to cheerfully commit mass suicide and even murder their ownchildren was also a narcissist. David Koresh, Charles Manson, Joseph Koni,Shoko Asahara, Stalin, Saddam, Mao, Kim Jong Ill and Adolph Hitler are afew examples of narcissists of our time. All these men had a tremendousinfluence over their fanciers. They created a personality cult aroundthemselves and with their blazing speeches elevated their admirers, filledtheir hearts with enthusiasm and instilled in their minds a new zest forlife. They gave them hope! They promised them the moon, but alas,invariably they brought them to their doom.When you are a victim of a cult of personality, you don't know it until itis too late. One determining factor in the development of NPD is childhoodabuse."Obama's early life was decidedly chaotic and replete withtraumatic and mentally bruising dislocations,"says Vaknin. "Mixed-racemarriages were even less common then. His parents went through a divorcewhen he was an infant two years old. Obama saw his father only once again,before he died in a car accident. Then his mother re-married and Obama hadto relocate to Indonesia , a foreign land with a radically foreign culture,to be raised by a step-father. At the age of ten, he was whisked off to livewith his maternal (white) grandparents. He saw his mother onlyintermittently in the following few years and then she vanished from hislife in 1979. She died of cancer in 1995."One must never underestimate the manipulative genius of pathologicalnarcissists. They project such an imposing personality that it overwhelmsthose around them. Charmed by the charisma of the narcissist, people becomelike clay in his hands. They cheerfully do his bidding and delight to be athis service. The narcissist shapes the world around himself and reducesothers in his own inverted image. He creates a cult of personality. Hisadmirers become his co-dependents. Narcissists have no interest in thingsthat do not help them to reach their personal objective. They are focused onone thing alone and that is power. Allother issues are meaningless to them and they do not want to waste theirprecious time on trivialities. Anything that does not help them is beneaththem and does not deserve their attention.If an issue raised in the Senate does not help Obama in one way or another,he has no interest in it. The "present" vote is a safe vote. No one cancriticize him if things go wrong. Those issues are unworthy by their verynature because they are not about him.Obama's election as the first black president of the Harvard Law Review ledto a contract and advance to write a book about race relations. TheUniversity of Chicago Law School provided him a lot longer than expected andat the end it evolved into, guess what? His own autobiography! Instead ofwriting a scholarly paper focusing on race relations, for which he had beenpaid, Obama could not resist writing about his most sublime self. Heentitled the book Dreamsfrom My Father.Not surprisingly, Adolph Hitler also wrote his own autobiography when he wasstill a nobody. So did Stalin. For a narcissist no subject is as importantas his own self. Why would he waste his precious time and genius writingabout insignificant things when he can write about such an august being ashimself?Narcissists are often callous and even ruthless. As the norm, they lackconscience. This is evident from Obama's lack of interest in his own brotherwho lives on only one dollar per month. A man who lives in luxury, who takesa private jet tovacation in Hawaii , and who raised nearly half a billion dollars for hiscampaign (something unprecedented in history) has no interest in the plightof his own brother. Why? Because, his brother cannot be used for hisascent to power. A narcissist cares for no one but himself.This election is like no other in the history of America . The issues areinsignificant compared to what is at stake What can be more dangerous thanhaving a man bereft of conscience, a serial liar, and one who cannotdistinguish his fantasies from reality as the leader of the free world?I hate to sound alarmist, but one is a fool if one is not alarmed. Manypoliticians are narcissists. They pose nothreat to others. They are simply self serving and selfish.Obama evidences symptoms of pathological narcissism, which is differentfrom the run-of-the-mill narcissism of a Richard Nixon or a Bill Clinton forexample. To him reality and fantasy are intertwined.This is a mental health issue, not just a character flaw.Pathological narcissists are dangerous because they look normal and evenintelligent. It is this disguise that makes them treacherous. Today theDemocrats have placed all their hopes in Obama. But this man could put anend to their party. The great majority of blacks have also decided to votefor Obama. Only a fool does not know that their support for him is raciallydriven. This is racism, pure and simple.The downside of this is that if Obama turns out to be the disaster Ipredict, he will cause widespread resentment among the whites. The blacksare unlikely to give up their support of their man. Cultic mentality ispernicious and unrelenting. They will dig their heads deeper in the sand andblame Obama's detractors of racism. This will cause a backlash among thewhites. The white supremacists will take advantage of the discontent andthey will receive widespread support. I predict that in less than fouryears, racial tensions will increase to levels never seen since theturbulent 1960's.Obama will set the clock back decades. America is the bastion of freedom.The peace of the world depends on the strength of America , and its weaknesstranslates into the triumph of terrorism and victory of rogue nations. It isno wonder that Ahmadinejad, Hugo Chavez, the Castrists, the Hezbollah, theHamas, the lawyers of the Guantanamo terrorists and virtually all swornenemies of America are so thrilled by the prospect of their man in the WhiteHouse.America is on the verge of destruction. There is no insanitygreater than electing a pathological narcissist as president.

BE PREPARED TO TAKE CARE OF SELF & FAMILY

2010-04-30T09:49:00.000-07:00

Be prepared to take care of yourself and your family. Even if you have money in the bank and the banks are insured, with things going the way they are right now, it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to keep some cash in a cookie jar. In case of an emergency they'd shut down the banks so there wouldn't be a run on them.

Have food enough for at least a week if not longer. Plant a garden if you have the room to do so. Grow your own food. I remember my Grandparents telling me they knew there was a "depression" but that they didn't notice it much because they were poor already, they lived in the country and they grew their own food. They made do with what they had, and lived off the land.

Learn how to "put up" your own food, i.e., can it, freeze it, dry it. I live on a lot in the middle of town that is 33' wide and 152' deep. I've been able to have a sizeable garden in that space.

I once spent several frantic days of a very hot summer week before I had air-conditioning canning a "side" of beef. My father-in-law asked casually "would you like to have a side of beef", and of course, I said yes. In the past all sides of beef I got were neatly packaged and frozen and I'd bring them home and put them in the freezer. He hauled out a whole rib of beef (approximately 3' x 3' and put it in the trunk of my car! I was astounded. What am I going to do with that? I asked. "Can it." When I got home, I shifted the raw side of beef out of my trunk into my son's little red wagon and hauled it into the house where I somehow got it up on the kitchen table. Then I sterilized canning jars and heated up my pressure canner, and began carving chunks of meat off the ribs and plopping them into cans. When the cans were full, I'd put in a teaspoon of salt, put sterilized lids on top, pop them into the pressure canner, and when it was full, put the lid on it, and can the beef for a half hour or more, the whole time resuming the whole process once again, sterilizing more jars, filling more jars, until I had canned nearly 48 quarts of beef. I got all the jars filled and into the refrigerator, still canning in the pressure canner all night long.

I had already canned lots of tomatoes and peaches and green beans from our garden, but with the beef, we lived on vegetable soup a lot for a couple of years. I even ended up canning vegetable soup so we could have it spread out over the year instead of eating it all at once. Beef stew worked well too.

At the time we were also burning wood to supplement our gas furnace in the winter. We cut down trees (some of them I pushed down), and split them and put them in cords for burning. We'd then toss them down into the old coal bin at the house, and burn them in a wood stove that was attached to our furnace. We went through some pretty cold winters and saved a lot of money on natural gas by burning wood. The only downfall was forgetting to run down the basement and fill up the woodburner, and we'd awaken to a house that was 45 degrees (the gas furnace would kick on at 45 degrees when the wood fire went out).

I remember my Grandmother telling me about her mother's bank savings. For a number of years my Great-grandmother had saved her egg money at the bank, in preparation to buy herself a new woodstove for her kitchen. When the depression
came along it wiped out her savings account and she never did get a new woodstove.

The one thing I noticed through those years was that no matter how much money was coming in to the house, there was always enough. One way or another we always survived and we always had enough to meet our basic needs.

The one thing we need to remember is that "God is the Source of our Supply" and we should stop worrying about where it's coming from, just sigh a deep sigh of relief as say "Thank you God for taking care of us."

CULTURE & MORALITY

2010-04-19T09:44:00.000-07:00

Cultural moral principles and virtues learned in childhood from elders in one's family society color one's behavior and is a sort of built-in guide for one's adult moral character for life. It's a convenient thing to have learned because it takes away the necessity of "fretting" over every one of one's actions to determine whether they are right or wrong.

Early learning in church and school, particularly in the early 50's set children's minds as to the right and wrong of actions. Even unstated moral upbringing based upon hidden cultural attitudes color one's belief system.

For instance, my maternal grandmother was the grand-daughter of a Shawnee woman who married a Swiss farmer. We heard hints of our heritage from early days, but no one ever actually voiced the information we were Native American. We were always cautioned not to mention that we were "Indians". When my Grandmother was in her mid-90's she said "I suppose its all right to talk about it now." That's when she actually confirmed that her grandmother was a full-blooded Shawnee. She joked "where do you think I got this nose?" She said she thought her nose looked like that of the Indian on the buffalo nickel.

As a result of that information and the wonderful plethora of information available on the internet I began studying the Shawnee, and in particular the words of the wise Chief Tecumseh. I realized the upbringing I had, and the words of my Grandmother were very reflective of the ideas and ideals of Tecumseh. Aside from the great understanding of the morals of the Indian, and the wisdom with regard to Creator and the world, I realized the character of the Indian family is somewhat different from people from other cultures.

For instance, the Indian woman is well-respected and the younger men will go to the older Indian women for advice. Even the warriors would seek the wisdom of the women in their decisions. In a lot of cases it was the quiet, calm, assertive leadership of the women of the tribe that kept the family and the tribe stable. Perhaps that's why I tend to be somewhat bossy?

From the time I was small I was always and constantly chafing against restrictions put on "girls". I was told I couldn't do something because I was a girl. I never understood that, and I became very stubborn about proving girls could do anything they wanted to do.

As well, this could explain as well why I've never been able to take orders well from any man. I listen, and sometimes I do what they want, but not if there's a better, quicker, more efficient way to accomplish the same thing. One employer/friend used to ask me constantly "why won't you ever obey me?!" Well, mostly because his orders were ridiculous, and then there was my reply "When did I take THAT vow?" As I recall I left out the obey part when I got married too. I think in all relationships one must have respect for the other person. There's only been one man in my life that I ever "obeyed" unquestionably. I never could figure out why I did. Perhaps its explained by the fact that I dreamed he was my father in a previous life.

Understanding that the way a child is brought up is important to a child's character growth, and noticing the complete lack of the teaching of morality and virtuous princples in schools, I took my son out of public school in the 2nd grade and put him into a Catholic school. We are not Catholic, but after looking at various parochial schools, St. Pat's filled all of my requirements. They kept trying to get him to convert, and I told them when he was 13 he could make up his own mind about it. When he was 13 he decided he wanted to return to pubic school for high school.

I supplemented his school education, whether parochial or public, with some teaching of my own, pointing out things I learned in church and school and pointing out to him the history lessons from the past, and history as it was being made and what was happening. One Easter I went out of my way to explain to him Good Friday and Easter and what I had learned that it meant, and how it all fit in with my spiritual understandings. He was about seven at the time. He put his hands on his hips and said "Mom. I go to Catholic school! I know about Easter.

At any rate, the teachings he got in Sunday School at the Church of God, and the lessons he got at St. Pat's were good for him and helped him build character. Knowing my Catholic friends, however, I wonder if he also has that Catholic "guilt" trip.

I think its the duty of every individual to understand their own morality. Unfortunately the world is populated with dark souls who would corrupt us and the world around us if they can. Fortunately we need to keep on remembering we are ultimately ruled by the Natural Laws of God and that our beliefs in the Laws of the Universe, the Energy that is God, and adherence to our own understanding thereof will keep us in good stead with society.

ILLEGAL CONFISCATION OF PROPERTY BY GOVERNMENT

2010-04-19T07:57:00.000-07:00

It is unconstitutional for Congress or the President to confiscate private property under cover of regulation!

This is exactly what the founders of the Constitution were very careful to write into the Constitution to prevent its happening.

They also very carefully wrote in elements to prevent tyrannical take over under the guise of "democracy". However some time ago "people" began equating America with democracy. In order for the country to survive, we must teach the people this country is a Republic and not a democracy.

With all of the criminal acts being perpetrated under the guise of law by this administration and abetted by the Congress, I would be outright ashamed to even call myself a Democrat!

I've been praying since election day because I saw this coming. I even saw the mortgage crisis coming some 20 years ago when I was preparing bankruptcy papers for clients and saw the outrageous mortgage loans being written for worthless properties. One home that was lucky to have a worth of $5000 because of its location and condition was mortgaged for $120,000.00! Greed, pure greed on the part of everyone involved from Seller to Realtor to Appraiser to Mortgage Broker to Buyer all contributed to the problem.

Look first to yourself about everything that is wrong with socieity, and realize one can only fix oneself. In the meantime continue to pray Thank you God for preserving the Republic, and thank you God for preserving our natural freedoms, to life, liberty & property.

COMMITMENT & LIFE LIVED ACCIDENTALLY

2010-04-18T07:43:00.001-07:00

So long as I can remember I’ve had a problem with committing to relationships with others. It’s not that I don’t like other people, and don’t want to be with other people but perhaps it’s the idea that I’ve had a fear of.... well.... commitment. But once I get into a relationship, romantic or business, I tend to stick with it.

My father stated it well, “Jana has never known how to trap a man and hasn’t a clue why she should need to do so.” Perhaps that’s the clue. If someone wants to be with you shouldn’t it be their decision to make? And shouldn’t it be my decision whether I want to be with them or not?

Marriage proposals have been problematic for me. The ones I did accept didn’t turn out so well. And two I did accept were because I was "on the rebound" from another relationship. Luckily I didn't go through with them. I remember going steady in high school and wearing another person’s class ring, but I wouldn’t let anyone know who I was going steady with. It isn’t even that I can’t be faithful to someone. I never cheated on anyone I was married to, nor anyone I went steady with. Once I was in a relationship that worked for me I would be faithful.

Probably a part of it has to do with my never having planned anything up until I was 25 years old. Up until then I’d never thought about it. I didn’t know I could plan my life. I learned I could plan my life when I was about 21 or 22, but didn’t really actively plan anything about my life until a good ten years later. I sort of lived my life accidentally.

I didn’t choose to be a paralegal. I accidentally became a legal secretary as my second job right out of high school. I listed that job on my resume thereafter, and everytime an employment agency would see that, they would send me out to get a job as a legal secretary. Then I accidentally became a paralegal when I went to work in California. I did enroll in paralegal classes in California and did become certified as a paralegal there, but only to learn to be more effective in the job I already had. I didn’t actually plan on taking those courses. Life just sort of happened to me, and I ended up taking law courses because my boss was appointed to the bench, not because I planned to become a lawyer. I learned more than I ever wanted to know about torts and contracts. Then life happened and I ended up back in Indiana again working as a paralegal!

I have been accused of being “manipulative” by a couple of people in the past, and it always astonishes me, because I don’t even “manipulate” my own life. If something is supposed to happen in your life, it does.

When I made mistakes in the past I would educate myself so that I wouldn’t make the same mistakes again. But I never considered that a plan of action or a way to manipulate anyone else. I am a pragmatist, and I notice patterns in life. Perhaps subconsciously I use that knowledge of patterns, particularly in the behavior of others, to dictate how I communicate with others. Perhaps everyone does this.

I have observed there are people of evil intent who do actively scheme to hurt others. It has been my practice to refrain from doing anything that would harm another. My grandmother told me it was wrong to gossip about others. I will never “turn someone in” for anything I perceive to be a wrong action, unless that wrong action has harmed me or my family.

At any rate I’ve never planned on doing anything to force another person to do anything for my own well-being. I’ve always known it wasn’t right to do such a thing. It always hurts me when people accuse me of having done so, and always comes as a surprise. Living life accidentally may be considered by some as being impractical or silly or reckless, but it has never lead me astray. Life lived accidentally is an adventure.

ACLU - who do they think they are?

2010-04-17T06:48:00.001-07:00

American Civil Liberties Union . The title sounds encouraging until you discover they're people who want to undermine our civil liberties with stupid non-constitutional restrictions on our liberties! I've changed their name to America's Confused Lawyers (Useless).

Let's start with their convoluted atheistic attacks on our right to worship & express our faith.

It was the intent of the authors of the Constitution to provide schools for the children of our country, and the subjects that should be taught were: Reading, Writing, Arithmetic, & Religion. They provided that the country was NOT to have a national religion, i.e., we were not to be a Catholic Country or a Protestant Country or a Jewish Country or a Muslim Country. We were to be a country that was filled with people who were free to pursue their own religion, so long as it was a belief in One God. We were to teach this belief of One God in the schools. Universal Laws (natural laws of God ) were to be the laws of the country.

The country was established as a Republic and not a Democracy. Republics are ruled by the people, whereas Democracies are ruled by those given power by the people to rule and make decisions. Democracies fail because those people given power let the power go to their heads and they become tyrannical. A Republic will always survive on the faith of the people for its survival and their reliance on One God. We can save our country by adhering to the motto In God We Trust.

NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER UNCONSTITUTIONAL? NO WAY!

2010-04-16T09:31:00.000-07:00

Some liberal judge has decided the National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional! Obviously the judge in question hasn't read the constitution and has no idea of the intent of the authors of the constitution. I read case law for fun sometimes, and I like the appeals court judges who view every situation differently and understand that just because previous case law decided something one way doesn't necessarily mean that it was decided correctly and that it can't be understood in a different way. However, when judges can arbitrarily make case law biased against their political viewpoints, it is outright and completely wrong.

It's time for Americans to stand up and shout when wrongs persist. We were guranteed life, freedom & the ability to acquire property. We were not guaranteed property that we didn't earn. It is unconstitutional to redistribute wealth.

What part of the oath of office haven't these "leaders" listened to? They swore to uphold the Constitution. It appears to me that their intent to usurp the Constitution of the United States by redistributing the wealth is in itself, if not treasonous, it is impeachable.

TEA PARTY MEANS....

2010-04-14T10:04:00.000-07:00

I think some people in Washington still don't even know what "tea party" means. It means we're sick of being taxed to death on everything as a result of Washington over-spending. Even though I live in a State that's doing fairly well with regard to deficits and has been surviving on surplus and good business practices, eventually all of this is going to bleed over into the State coffers with Washington deciding what we should be doing and then sending orders to the States to pay for the things. It is supposed to be the other way around!!

Tea Party means we are having a civilized revolution to get rid of the people in Washington who just keep on doing all of the same old things over and over again. It's time to get rid of every one of them! It's time for Obama to take his toys and go home because we don't like him doing what he's doing, and we are never going to agree on what he's saying no matter how many times he says it!!

I look at the man and wonder "what the heck are those ears for?" they certainly aren't for hearing what the citizens of this country are saying. He is our elected PUBLIC SERVANT. He believes he's been appointed our MASTER! It's time someone sat him down and read him the truth. The only people he should be bowing to is us, the people of this country.

Furthermore, it's time everyone stopped using the words Democracy as they apply to the United States of America. That's where everyone has gone wrong. We are not a democracy, but we are a Republic. Remember the Pledge of Allegience to the flag? It's "we pledge allegience to the flag..... and to the REPUBLIC for which it stands."

As well, when and why did someone decide that Religion should be eliminated from our country? The founders of this country certainly never had that in mind. In fact, they believed the country should teach Religion in the schools! The only thing they didn't want was for the country to be a "Catholic country" or a "Quaker country" or a "Baptist country", i.e., there was to be NO NATIONAL RELIGION. All religions, and all denominations so long as they believed in the concept of ONE GOD were to be taught in the schools and in our churches. It was never to be eliminated!

If you want a really good understanding of the Constitution and the things our forefathers fought and bled over, then read ...for a start...The Five Thousand Year Leap. It tells what made America last so long.

And keep the faith, because prayer and adherence to the natural laws of God will restore America to what the forefathers wanted it to be. Just keep praying positive, "Thank you God for restoring our Constitutional Freedoms"...pray positive always. Remember if there's something you don't want, saying "no, no I don't want that" merely brings it to you. Say "thank you God, I'd rather have...(and then say the positive thing you want to replace the thing you do not want.)"

PRAYER WORKS

2010-03-19T12:49:00.000-07:00

I was wondering what I could do about the chaos occurring in Washington with regard to the voting on healthcare. Then I read the book The 5000 Year Leap, and it all became clear. I should do exactly what I've been doing about everything else. Praying. Thank you God for preserving our Constitution, and thank you for preserving our freedoms. And I took a deep breath and sighed with relief. In God we Trust. Why did I miss that? I'm putting it in God's hands and letting it go. Nothing is written in granite, except the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. (I've seen them carved into marble actually). I'm recommending on my Twitter page that everyone just let go and let God handle it. Healthcare is a personal choice, it certainly isn't a right. We don't need people in Washinton telling us what to do, after all, they've got it all backwards, we are the Masters, they are the servants.

FIX CONGRESS

2010-03-09T11:08:00.000-08:00

I think the residents of each individual state should make State Law that says that any representative, Senate or House, can represent their state, but only for a limit of two terms, and that the representatives so elected shall not make any law from which they as citizens of the United States are exempt. In other words, they must have the same health insurance as us, they must have the same retirement benefits as us, and they must obey all the same laws and rules as us. That may be 50 (not 57) individual laws for each of the fifty states, and then when all 50 states have adopted those laws, they shall be adopted and made into a Constitutional Amendment which the Congress of the United States and/or the President have no power to change without ratification by all of the States...not just a majority, but all of the states.

The State of the Earth-Environmental Action

2010-02-28T09:54:00.000-08:00

Do you suppose God is looking down and saying "Good Grief! Look what they're doing to the beautiful world I gave them!! They're going to ruin it!" Or do you suppose God in His Infinite Wisdom had a plan? After all, God is the One who sent us all of the ideas for inventions and progress and advancement in the world. Don't you suppose God Was aware of the consequences of these inventions? Don't you suppose there was an ultimate Plan to solve these supposed problems? I believe God sent us here to experience life so that He could experience life through us. I believe God knows the ultimate outcome of those experiences.

Don't sweat the small stuff. God doesn't. He knows where it's going, and it's all part of His Plan. Everythng will turn out all right. Changes if they happen, will happen. We ultimately will be all right! Stop worrying about what others are doing, and do things the way you feel they should be done, but stay out of other people's business, and don't be telling them how they should live their lives.

This all becomes very evident when the earth begins doing things we have no control over. Earthquakes, Tsunamis, hurricanes, tornadoes, lightning, thunder, rain, snow. All of those things are God through nature cleansing the earth and at the same time showing us we only have control over our own thoughts and how we react to all these things.

It's none of my business what you think of me, and it's none of your business what I think of you. We have our ultimate personal freedom to think the thoughts we want to think. Pushing against the beliefs of others does nothing but make you unhappy, it does not change the way the other persons think.

THINGS I'VE NOTICED

2010-01-30T11:26:00.000-08:00

I opted not to listen to or watch the State of the Union speech. I followed the results however. Did you know BHO (my shorthand for Barack Hussein Obama--hell froze over, how did a man with a Muslim name get to be President! People being too politically correct I think.)

It is time BHO and Congress realized that they are our public SERVANTS not our Masters! BHO should be bowing down to us, not to our enemies!!!!

I notice that BHO thinks that "cooperation" means he thinks we should all kowtow to him and agree with him on everything. If we don't we aren't cooperating.

BHO thinks that the average income of Americans is $85,000 a year.

BHO is out of touch? Nay, he's got a problem with the language! He keeps trying to change the meanings of all of our words for one thing. I think this is as a result of his failing his ESL classes (English as a second language).

I predicted on the day after the election in 2008 that BHO would leave his job in disgrace within eighteen months.

I am not burying my head in the sand by not listening to anything he says. I believe in the adage "Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice shame on me" I've heard all of his lies and I don't buy them anymore. I knew first time I heard him speak he speaks in "circle language" he goes around and around very oratorically saying nothing.

The only 'CHANGE" BHO has perpetrated is changing the meaning of all of our words, and trying to change this country from a Republic to a Socialist Country. They haven't given much credit to the tea parties. Neither did the British and look where it got them with the colonies. We are a very independent people. The mistake Progressive Democrats make is believing that we are too dumb to decide our own futures. They don't know that we are smart enough to change their futures.l

THE ECONOMY - PROTECT YOURSELF

2009-11-25T10:04:00.001-08:00

I think we have to face the fact that the government is running this country into the ground and we are about to face dire financial conditions for the country. This doesn't mean it has to effect you. I predict there will come a time when we will have to start over again on most everything. Government is bankrupting the country, and our only hope is to save ourselves. They will get kicked out and we will recover...then we have to start over.

First thing is we have to stop sending money to China and other countries, but particularly to China. If you shop for anything at Walmart or even Macy's this is hard to do. Everything is "made in China". Make do with what you've got. Only buy necessities you cannot live without if they are made in China! Even be so particular as to try to buy things made in any other country besides China! Make do with what you've got. Fix old equipment and keep on using it, particularly if it was made in the US. In the meantime, think about what sort of things we are going to be needing that presently comes from somewhere else. Think about a way to provide our own version of American made products. Find a niche and fill it. Make American jobs making American products.

Quantum Physics and God

2009-10-10T06:11:00.000-07:00

We are each elements in the structure of the atom that is the Universe. The atom is energy surrounded by more energy. Protons, neutrons and electrons. Every cell in our body is also composed of many atoms. All of the atoms in the Universe are held together by vibrational energy that forms matter. This concept is very spiritually meaningful to me. In that knowledge is the understanding of manifestation of one's desires. I haven't got it mastered yet but I'm working on it. Work on it with me!! I know you can. P.S. The vibrational energy that runs in and through everything is called God, The Almighty, Source, etc.

On top of that knowing your soul, spirit, non-physical part of yourself never dies and is always connected to All that is...i.e., every other atom in the Universe...a big gulp to take in...but understanding that is also necessary.

Getting into harmony with your non-physical self and your physical self, i.e., loving your non-physical self with your physical self and vice versa is how you get in harmony. Then understanding the emotions your physical self feels is like feeling a pain from a nerve that's been injured, telling you to fix something. i.e., to work your thought process from the feeling of fear, doubt, worry to a more positive place. The first time is hard, but it gets easier and easier, faster and faster. Keep working on it. Nothing is impossible and it's always too soon to give up.

Jana Lynn ShellmanIN GOD WE TRUSTAuthor of The Wish Factory: How to Make Wishes Come Truehttp://www.thewishfactory.com/ My Blog http://www.twitter.com/wishladyaInstructor at Creating CharactersVisit my Facebook Jana Shellman MySpace.com

Dreaming - Rose-colored Glasses

2009-08-16T08:07:00.000-07:00

I wonder if everybody dreams. Does living in daydreams hinder you or put you ahead of the game? Does believing in wishes and dreams come true make you more creative? Is there value in dreaming? I believe there is. But when two people are having the same dream and making the same wishes the possibility of the dream and the wish becoming manifest are incredible.

Sometimes we ask for signs and the signs have been in our lives forever. We just haven't opened our eyes to see. Sometimes the signs are right behind us following us throughout our lives and we are so busy moving forward we forget to look right behind us, they are standing in our shadow.

Dreams, wishes, prayers are all communication to God, communication to the Universe, and the mere act of dreaming, of wishing of praying is turning the vision over to the Universe and we merely have to say "Thank you for taking care of that for me."

50th High School Reunion

2009-08-09T09:44:00.000-07:00

About 30 years ago I realized we'd been out of school 20 years and never saw much of one another, so seeing as how I only had a ton of other things to do I set about finding my classmates (there were only 50 or s0) and sending out invitations for a reunion. I conned someone in our hometown into having the party at their house, and we got together. Some of them hadn't been back since. But every three years there's a Trienniel Alumni Reunion for South Whitley High School, so we have a class reunion then also. This year it was our 50th year since graduation in 1959. Hard to believe.

I made it easy on myself this time. I merely pointed at people and told them what to do. I'm executive material here. We planned a two day class reunion followed up with attendance of our class as the honor class at the Alumni Reunion. What a good time we had. We had a great turn out. People who hadn't been seen in 30 years and in one case 54 years turned up...and we all looked like we were 16. Perhaps its because I love them all so much!! If you'd like to see pictures of all these 68 year olds who look 16 go to my Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/inbox/?f=1#/profile.php?id=1574289110&ref=name

Age is Just a Number

2009-06-26T13:20:00.000-07:00

My little boy just turned 33! I remember some 35 years ago when I was driving a semi across country. It was suppertime and all of the families were sitting in their houses around their tables eating together. I could see them through their patio doors as I drove down the freeways behind their houses. I made a wish. I wish I could find someone to marry, have a child and retire from the road. Less than a year later the wish was beginning to come true. Probably because most of my wishes are made whimsically and then I forget about them. Lots of people make wishes and then hang onto them, change them around, remake them (not realizing every time they remake a wish they are really making a new wish and sabotaging the old one they already made), and basically not leave the wish alone long enough for it to come true.
I've been thinking a lot about the intensity one puts into wishes and wondering why some take so much longer, until I realize that I, in my great wisdom, wrote in The Wish Factory "sometimes everything in the world has to move over a fraction of an inch before your wish can come true". I've got one wish I made a very long time ago that still hasn't come true. Most of it has always been true, but the culmination of it may take a little longer to happen. At this point in my life, I am content knowing it will come true. Perhaps that's the entire secret to wishing. Perhaps its all in the "knowing" that a wish is going to come true that makes it so. Manifestation is difficult to predict, and if you ask your "spirit guides" they will say "soon", they will say "patience" "very soon"...but how relative is their idea of time and ours? Perhaps time in the spirit realm is not at all relative to our time here. Maybe that's why they don't understand our impatience. Here I am musing again. Check out the book Fountain of Youth by Peter Kelder. Amazon has it. I've been doing it for 20 plus years. It seems to be working pretty well. I'm still 68 going on 10.
love and kisses. Jana

What Mindset--Being Happy With Yourself

2009-06-22T06:28:00.000-07:00

Creating a "mindset" for losing weight takes many years of trial and error. What it all boils down to in the long run is learning to love yourself, just exactly where you're at. About 25 years ago I was listening to some self-esteem tapes (I'd been in a relationship where I'd found my self-esteem slowly being eaten away, and I began to wonder what had caused it. I don't normally let the opinions of others effect the way I feel about me.) I would listen to those tapes while I walked on the treadmill (I've been walking treadmills for daily exercise for nearly 25 years. You should see my muscles! My niece, a body builder, envies me my calf muscles.) One of the things on the tapes struck a chord. It told me to find a picture of myself as a child, and then talk to that person. I found a picture of my Mother and me sitting on a fountain at Belle Isle near Detroit when I was about 3. My mother has always been beautiful. As I looked at that picture of us, I realized I looked exactly like my mother! I'd never felt that way before. Instead I remembered when I was small, about five or so, hearing my mother telling a friend, "when J--- was born I cried, she looked just like her Grandfather B." Well, my Grandad B was a very sweet man, but he had red hair, a bulbous nose and he was very heavy. That's the mindset I got about myself at an early age. When I looked in the mirror the only thing I saw was the similarities to my Grandfather.No red hair, no bulbous nose, but a round face, skin tone, and other things I can't put my finger on. It didn't matter that I had a knock out figure and the boys were crazy about the way I looked! That was my mindset for years. After I saw that picture of my mom and me, however, I changed the way I looked at myself. My favorite song is Kellie Pickler's "Don't you Know You're Beautiful" I knew at that moment my marriage wasn't long for this world! I knew my life would change dramatically. By that time I'd already managed through hard work to lose about 40 pounds. I struggled to lose another 25 or so. Then I found Nutrisystem and managed to lose 18 pounds rather quickly. Then I got stuck. Despite walking an hour a day on the treadmill, daily yoga, and use of the Bowflex, I was stuck. My motto is, It's Always Too Soon to Give Up. I'm a winner. Nothing will stop me from achieving my goals, be they weight loss or anything else. And yeah. I'm beautiful. Listen to Kellie's song. I love it!

Poppy Hannah - Paralegal series

2009-06-04T12:13:00.000-07:00

To see excerpts from my Poppy Hannah go to the archives and look for January 23, 2007 post which is an excerpt from the first Poppy Hannah mystery.

More Cyber Stalking?

2009-05-19T09:29:00.000-07:00

I've been examining certain names on Facebook and other social networking sites, and I discovered all of the names I picked out for my children under one surname that's rather significant to me. All I can say at this point is Thank you. I'm honored someone would validate our memories in that way.

WHAT I'VE DISCOVERED

2009-05-10T12:02:00.000-07:00

They say "with age comes wisdom". There also comes a certain peace and knowledge of who you are and what you're here on Earth to do. There comes a time when you realize you don't have to regret any of the decisions you've made in the past, because no matter what, you're still exactly where you're supposed to be, doing exactly what you're supposed to be doing. That knowledge brings about a certain peace and contentment. Breathe. Smell the lilacs. Plant some more flowers so you can smell sweetness all summer long. Stop worrying about anything. Count your blessings.

Its Spring

2009-05-03T12:30:00.000-07:00

It's very beautiful out today. Sunshine, and not too warm yet, but all the leaves are out on my maple trees in the backyard. These trees leaf out early and they are the last leaves to fall. Finally figured out (I asked) the yellow bushy things on the other side of the alley are bamboo. Who would have thought!! I am going to have to go over there and see if I can get some roots to plant. The place is abandoned. The place next to it is abandoned and has gorgeous ferns growing there that I transplanted years ago to my backyard. I think I will put the bamboo on the west fence line. There once was a time there were no trees in the yard at all, just a very dry sunny yard with nothing but grass. Now I have trees 40 or more feet tall. There are also thousands of tiny little trees growing under them. Anybody need a baby tree?

PROMISES NOT YET KEPT

2009-05-02T10:02:00.000-07:00

The President promised to abolish daylight savings time. I'd like to see that happen soon enough that we only have to change our time one more time..........ever!! Whoever enacted Daylight Savings Time in the first place obviously had no humor and couldn't take a joke. What was that email I got from the Indians? How does cutting a foot off one end of a board and tacking it on the other end make it longer?

STOPPED HOLDING BREATH

2009-05-02T09:22:00.000-07:00

Okay, I've stopped holding my breath since the election. I've also stopped reading the newspapers, stopped watching any news whatsoever. Decided if I'm going to survive no matter what. I need to read my own blogs, practice what I preach, and revert to the Abraham Hicks teachings that I've been telling everyone else to read! We make our own economy by our beliefs. I'm doing great and expect to do much better. Nothing is impossible and the only roadblocks we stumble over are the ones we put in our own path.

Write your own story. Tell it like you want your life to be, not how it appears to be right now. Nothing is impossible and you can do and be anything you want to. If you worry, that's your spirit, your soul, telling you that you need to change your thoughts. Instead of focusing on your problems, focus on your blessings. Keep doing that until you are no longer worried and have put your self into a better-feeling-place. It is not nonsense. Give it a try. Harken back to your early days in Sunday School. Count your blessings! Then go from there.

I'm in the process of writing my own story the way I want things to be.

As a result I've agreed with myself (isn't that easy) to stop worrying about anything.

My favorite thing to do these days is watch the bull riders of PBR on the weekends, and watch Ty Murray on Dancing with the Stars on Mon and Tues. I am amazed he's survived so far, though I knew he was a success because of his persistence and hard work, I wasn't sure how his personality would survive the "unmanly" spray tans and the like. So far I think the PBR fans are keeping him going. I've learned there are many more of them than I'd imagined. I've been watching PBR for the past four years. I've got my PBR hunks calendar on the wall (with my favorite Paolo who was injured and isn't riding, and my very favorite "Hollywood" i.e., Guillherme Marchi who won last year.) I sit there in my rocker-recliner crocheting and watching the cowboys and the bulls. Sometimes I root for the bulls.

In the meantime, I'm working very hard on my intellectual properties. Trying to finish up the women's historical adventure novel, Kekionga, and at the same time trying to market my animated feature film screenplay The Wish Factory. Working right now on finding backers for it, and exploring the production of a short animated trailer to "sell" the project to backers.

Also working on our 50th Class Reunion. How did I get that job? Well, no one else was doing it. This year I think we're going to have a very good turn out. There aren't many of us, but most of us have been relatively close over the years.

My psychic said I have too much to do. Maybe he's right. In the meantime, I've got to get busy and go to the Taurus birthday party at my brother's.

Stay safe, breathe, keep doing that. Love and kisses. Jana

Stimulus Plan--What it Means

2009-02-10T06:34:00.000-08:00

To the unenlightened the words "stimulus" mean a check in the mail. The new stimulus package they are trying to jam through has things in it that will change the way we visit our doctors if we are on Medicare. It is trying to sneak through other things that have nothing to do with stimulating the economy. The greed for that stupid stimulus check is the unenlightened selling our freedom.

Flime ties....

2009-01-05T18:09:00.000-08:00

Two thousand what?!!!!! No! It couldn't be already. I remember the New Year of 1959 and how excited I was about what might be in store for me. And now...oh dear! There was quite a lot. Not all of it good, but most of it pretty exciting. I had a lot of adventures, and though not everything happened the way I thought it should happen, if it had, I wouldn't have been able to have nearly as many adventures. And there's still time for some of the things I wanted to have happen to occur. You never can tell just what might be in the wings waiting for us.

Remember if you hold a thought long enough, it becomes a thing. Do we really want a "thing"...well, it all depends....

I do know I still am waiting on certain hopes, dreams and wishes to materialize, and though someone once told me to take off my pink glasses, I never did...and nothing is impossible.

Things will happen just exactly the way they have always been supposed to happen, and exactly when they were supposed to happen.

Look for The Wish Factory movie to occur soon. Look for The Wish Factory theme park!! Well, nothing's impossible remember. Look for millions of Threadbare Fred Bears sitting on shelves in toy stores all over the world.

Thank you for taking care of that.....

Love and kisses, Jana

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2008-12-27T11:15:00.000-08:00

What a Christmas!! On the 19th the power went out and I really expected it to pop right back on. Late on the 19th the cat and I went to South Whitley to my mom's. Though SW was somewhat without power for a part of the day, by the time I got there at 10:30 that night all the power was back on except for a few houses. I stayed with my Mom for four days. Fritzie was there too. He was a riot. A scaredy cat for sure. I put his cat box down in a corner of the utility room and he stood up on his back legs in a corner of the box, in the corner of the room, with his nose in the corner. He looked like a naughty little boy on time out. When he finally quit standing in the corner, he hid under couches and beds. Sometime during the night he got out and walked around exploring, and he jumped up on mom's bed and looked at her for awhile. Then he wandered around some more. Whenever a train would go by on the train tracks he'd go hide again. During the next day he spent the entire day hiding under couches...but he came out again when the sun went down. It wasn't until the last day there that he managed to stay out longer in the daylight.

On Monday I drove Mon's car back to Fort Wayne to check on my house and do some Xmas shopping for her. Fritzie stayed behind. I had loaded up my car with all the stuff I was going to need for Xmas ... all the presents, my medicine, more clothes, more food for Fritzie, and I had it all packed in the car and ready to go. I came back in to my house (26 degrees in the living room) and was surveying the house looking for anything I should also take along when I heard the furnace ignition click on. Then the FIOS box came on and my tv started up. The Xmas lights on the porch were on. I went out on the front step and shouted Hallelujah!!! Course the neighborhood was deserted except for John down the street. I had already checked all the water and it was running all right, (thank God for leaky toilets) so I went back around and turned off all the faucets. Then I started unpacking the car and put everything back where it belonged. The house had warmed up to 40 by the time I vaccuumed the floor and dusted. Then I spent another couple hours completing Mom's Xmas shopping and I drove back to SW and Fritzie was glad to see me. I slept that night at Mom's and the next morning packed everything up and went back home. I was so glad to be back home and so was Fritzie. He was purring like crazy and then he laid down on the floor on his back to let me know how glad he was to be home. I got the "kitty I love you blinks" from him. Only trouble was, I had taken fancy feast along for convenience, and now he's addicted to it, and demands his fancy feast treat every morning. I'm weaning him down to a quarter can of it every morning.

The first Google I did on the computer was for natural gas emergency generators. I could have survived in the basement at 45 to 50 degrees if I'd had to, but I don't want to ever have to make the choice again. I didn't leave the house because I was afraid of the cold, however. I left because I felt threatened by the marauders I caught invading the neighborhood in the dark. A car pulled up and discharged half a dozen guys who ran in all directions looking for houses they could get into. They didn't come to my house because I had windows lit up with oil lamps,but all of the empty houses were their targets. I called the cops immediately and they were here in seconds. But I started packing up and then called a friend to come and guard me as I loaded the car and left for SW.

I should have been braver and known that my guardian angels are watching out for me all the time, but with the lack of communication ( my phone went out when my FIOS backup battery ran out...) And I couldn't find my car charger for my cell phone in the dark. (It was in my suitcase!...I found it when I unpacked at Mother's house).

I got back home in time to have my traditional Xmas eve party with Becky and her kids, and Whitney made the most delicious spaghetti sauce that we had over whole wheat spaghetti. We had apple salad as well. Then Xmas morning i got up early, baked some corn pudding and some scalloped potatoes packed the rest of the Xmas presents I'd got for Mom to give to people and repacked the car to go to my brother's for our family Xmas. Leigh and her husband and kids were there, and we won't be seeing them for three years as they are going to Italy, where he'll be stationed in Naples.

Zach still didn't make it home for Christmas, but he spent Xmas with his Dad again this year. He got to talk to all his cousins though and we visited on the phone. He's working taking care of an Alzheimer's patient part of every day, while he's waiting on his perfect job in the hospital.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Love and Kisses. Jana

I'M ONLY RESPONSIBLE FOR MY LIFE

2008-11-07T12:38:00.000-08:00

I've been in mourning for our country, because of the results of the election. I've gotten myself to a better place by not watching television, not reading the paper and dumping all the emails that look the tiniest bit political. I fear for the safety of our country.

In the meantime, the best and only thing I can do is look out for myself. The country may be in a poor financial condition, but I'm not. We may lose some of our freedoms, but I won't. We may all mourn life as it used to be. But my life is just fine and I'm doing great.

There's only a recession if you believe there is. You will only be poor if you believe you will be.

YOU ARE ONLY RESPONSIBLE FOR YOU

2008-11-07T12:25:00.000-08:00

I've been in mourning since the election. I believe our country is in great danger. There's nothing I can do about it. So I'll be not watching the news on television, and I will be deleting any political alerts, and I will be not reading the newspaper. I am only responsible for me. I'll get along fine. I figured out a long time ago that I am only responsible for me and I can only change the way I think. I am comfortable with who I am and how I think. I am comfortable in my faith.

I believe this country will be severely tested in the next couple of years with regard to our faith.

If you're interested in learning The Law of Attraction, goto this web site

Politics & Religion

2008-10-24T08:05:00.000-07:00

Celebrities touting their views on politics and religion turn me off. Do they really think they're so important that their views are going to change our views? Yes they do! Do they change our views? I think they do, but most of the time all they change is our views of them to a negative. Those celebrities who share their views on politics have been known to turn me against them for that very reason.

Let's take Barry Manilow. I love his songs. I'm not sure I think much of his political views, and I'd just as soon he kept them to himself, so I could keep on enjoying his songs.

Let's take Sally Field's views on religion. I used to just love Sally Field, but I lost complete respect for her when she voiced her opinions about God's place in her winning an award.

I don't understand the intense hatred that exudes from people expressing their political views for the "other party". Don't they understand their hatred only reflects on themselves? I do feel there is a plus for the side I encourage, inasmuch as the intense hatred spewed by those on the other side merely intensifies the happenings of that which they don't want. It's how the Universe works!!

Be for the ones you want to win. Bless those you don't want to win. Bless those who express the anger against "your side" for their Universal support, even though they don't really mean to be working for your side.

FROM THE MOUTHS OF BABES

2008-10-17T21:15:00.000-07:00

I was just watching John Edward Cross Country where they talked about explaining death to a child. I think my child did the best job of explaining death to everyone.

His great-grandfather Harv died when Zach was about three. We were at the funeral home, and he and his same-age cousin, Jeremiah were sitting on the floor in front of the casket playing with little cars. Whenever someone walked up to the casket to look at Grandpa, Zach would tell them, "that used to be Grampa, but he's not in there anymore...he went to heaven."

A little later that evening we were driving home and from the back seat Zach said, "Mom, we need to get a big long ladder so we can go visit Grampa in heaven." I told him there was no need because Heaven was just above us, and we could talk to him any time we wanted.

YOU CREATE YOUR SITUATION BY WHAT YOU THINK

2008-10-12T12:34:00.000-07:00

More stuff from The Law of Attraction by Esther & Jerry Hicks
You are much more than you see here in your physical body, for while you are, indeed, a wondrous physical creator, you exist simultaneously, in another dimension. There is a part of you, a Non-Physical part of you–we call it your Inner Being–that exists right now while you are here in this physical body.
Your emotions are your physical indication of your relationship with your Inner Being. In other words, as you are focused upon a subject and have your specific perspective and opinion about it, your Inner Being is also focused upon it and has a perspective and opinion about it. The emotions that you feel are your indication of the match or mismatch of those opinions. For example, something may have happened and your current opinion of yourself is that you should have done better or that you are not smart, or that you are unworthy. Since the current opinion of your Inner Being is that you are doing fine and that you are smart and eternally worthy, there is a definite mismatch in these opinions, and you would feel this mismatch in the form of negative emotions. On the other hand, when you feel proud of yourself or love yourself or someone else, your current opinion is a much closer match to what your Inner Being is feeling in the moment; and in that case you would feel the positive emotions of pride, love or appreciation.
Your Inner Being, or Source Energy, always offers a perspective that is to your greatest advantage, and when your perspective matches that, then positive attraction is occurring . In other words, the better you feel, the better your point of attraction, and the better things are turning out for you. The comparative vibrations of your perspective and that of your Inner Being are responsible for this magnificent Guidance that is always available to you.
More later.... But think about this stuff. It is cool.

Waking Up Happy and Joyful

2008-10-11T08:27:00.000-07:00

I have a book....The Amazing Power of Emotions....by Esther and Jerry Hicks you need to study that book when you are not doing anything else. I think it holds the key for your learning to move your thoughts in the right direction. Thoughts are things. I have another called Money and the Law of Attraction, by the same people and I wanted to give you this part:

"Most people believe, or want to believe, that everything in the universe responds to their words in the same way that other people around them can sometimes be trained to behave. When you tell someone, "Yes, come to me." you expect them to come. When you say "No, go away from me." you expect them to go. But you live in an attraction-based Universe (an inclusion-based Universe), which simply means there is no such thing as NO.

When you give your attention to something wanted and you say, "Yes, come to me." you include it in your vibration, and the Law of Attraction begins the process of bringing it. But when you look at something unwanted and you say "No. I do not want you--go away!" the Universe brings that, also. Your attention to it, and therefore your vibrational alignment with it, is what is causing the response--not your words.

And so, as you say, "Perfect health, I seek you...I want you--I bask in the idea of perfect health," you are attracting health. But as you say "Sickness, I do not want you" you are attracting sickness. As you say. No, no, no." It is coming closer, closer, closer, because the more you struggle against something you do not want, the more engulfed in it you become.

People often believe once they find their perfect mate, or achieve their perfect body weight, or accumulate enough money, then, once and for all, they will also find the happiness they seek...but nowhere is there a little corner of something where only positive aspects exist. The perfect balance of the Universe says that positive and negative (wanted and unwanted exists in all parts of the Universe. When you, as the creator, the chooser, the definer, the decider, look for the positive aspect, that becomes what you live--in all aspects of your life. You do not have to wait around for that perfect thing to show itself to you so you can then have a positive response to it. Instead, you positively train your thoughts and vibrations, and then you become the attractor of it, or the creator of it.

...encourage you to begin each day with the statement. Today---no matter where I go, no matter what I am doing, and no matter who I am doing it with--it is my dominant intent to look for what I am wanting to see.

Remember, when you awaken in the morning, you are reborn. While you have slumbered, all attraction has stopped. That sequestering away for a few hours of sleep--where your Consciousness is no longer attracting--gives you a refreshing new beginning. And so, unless you wake up in the morning and begin regurgitating what troubled you the day before, it will not trouble you in your new day, in your new birth, in your new beginning."

When my son was little, I used to wake him up in the morning singing, "When the Red Red Robin comes Bob, Bob, Bobbin' Along, Along. There'll be no more sobbing as he starts throbbing his old sweet song...Wake Up, Wake Up, you Sleepy Head, Get Up, Get Up, Get Out of Bed, The Red Red Robin is Bob, Bob Bobbin Along."

That's how I feel when I wake up. I feel joyful for a new day of wonder and adventure and excitement.

See if you can't begin your day that way. You may get some ugly looks if you begin your day singing, but just smile and go on.

Jana L. Shellman Author of The Wish Factory: How to Make Wishes Come True.Instructor of Creating Characters at http://www.writerscollege.com/ Visit my web site at http://www.thewishfactory.com/

The Sky is Falling - The Stock Market - How to Feel Rich

2008-10-10T07:46:00.000-07:00

The sky is falling, the stock market is falling, gas prices are falling, mortgage rates are falling, housing that has been priced too high is not selling at those too high prices!!! Maybe people who have average wages can now afford to buy a house in the price range they can afford! Maybe now we can afford to buy gas!

When things appear to be bad, work your thoughts to a happier place. Look for the silver lining. Expect good. Expect to be happy. Expect good things. If you expect good things you'll get them. If you expect bad, guess what? You'll get bad.

Let's look at mortgage payments. I think somewhere the formula my father taught me got lost. He always said "never pay more per month for rent or mortgage payments than you earn in a week." That's real simple isn't it!?? I've sort of wiggled the rules a tiny bit and said to myself at times that I can rent a place or buy a place for what I gross as opposed to what I net per week, but other than that, I stick pretty much with that formula. Now I include the cost of taxes and insurance in that formula when I think about mortgage payments. At present I'm obligated to pay $248.00 a month for those things, and it is actually a bit high for being on Social Security, but its comfortable.

The other formula my father taught me was Priority Paying. First you should pay for your shelter, then you should pay for your means of getting to work (i.e., your car and your insurance for your car), then you should pay for your food, utilities, and phone (communications, including cell phone and/or internet) should come last on that list. After that comes clothing and then you can buy things you want.

How to feel rich all the time: My formula for that is to take the first $100 I don't know what to do with and get a $100 bill. Put it in a secret place in your wallet. Then when you go shopping you can look at things you might want and think "I have the money to buy that if I want to".... I've been carrying that $100 bill for five years. I haven't done without anything, I really wanted or needed to buy but at the same time I've saved money and started 3 savings accounts and I feel richer all the time.

Now the bad news...I was forced to file bankruptcy in 2004. I had a triple bypass surgery and I didn't have insurance. Even if I had insurance it would have left me owing nearly $40,000 that I didn't have the money to pay. I didn't lose my house, or my car, or anything else. The only choice I had was to file bankruptcy or go on Medicaid, i.e., let the state pay the bill and then when I'm dead and gone they get my house. In the meantime, they would have had the right to annoy me interminably for the rest of my life. The bankruptcy wasn't hard, I'd quit using credit cards in 1996, so I didn't really have to worry about credit, except perhaps to buy a car. I hadn't had credit to buy a car since 1986, so that wasn't a big problem either. I reaffirmed my mortgage, so I kept my house.

PS the bankruptcy wasn't hard because as a paralegal I sometimes prepare bankruptcy paperwork for people. I always tell them to see an attorney about it before hand so they know what their rights are. Then if its a simple bankruptcy I can prepare the paperwork for them.

PPS See my previous posts about credit cards

My blog has moved!!!

2008-10-09T08:21:00.001-07:00

I have to go in now and change things on my email signature so people can find my blog at the new spot on the Blogspot. Have to have Margie change it for http://www.thewishfactory.com/ too. It was very easy to change it from the AOL site. AOL is getting chintzy in their old age, not supporting the bloggers on AOL anymore, but at least Google made it easy to change. Hope everyone enjoys reading my blogs, and I'll have to get better at it again, since I haven't done one since the end of July!

Look forward to hearing from people about my strange thoughts and ideas, and will put more in for my stories as well.

If you are looking for free books on positive thinking, check out Free Books at my website, http://www.thewishfactory.com/ and you can also order books from me and use PayPal for the ones that cost.

I've got the Shawnee Dictionary and the Wish Factory books for sale.

Cleaning Out the Closet

2008-07-28T11:41:00.000-07:00

I was cleaning out a closet and I found one of a set of prints that used to hang over my kitchen table when I lived in an apartment in Champaign, Illinois...on 6th Street. I took them down when I moved away from there and never put them back up. They held special meaning for me. Now, some 44 years later I found the one. I have no idea what happened to the other. The last time I paid any attention to them was about June of 1963. I noticed they were hanging upside down. I knew who turned them upside down and I thought for a moment he'd returned. Then I realized I'd been so distraught for so many months I hadn't noticed he'd turned them upside down the last time he was there which was in January of 1963. We were together briefly a couple years later, but there was so much to talk about and so many questions, I guess I didn't ask any or get any answers. Oh well, we'll always have Disneyland. I think I'll hang this print back up in my kitchen....maybe I'll hang it upside down. Love and kisses....

Tags: closets, movies, Mad Money, wishes

I GUESS I FIT THE TERRORIST PROFILE

2008-06-27T10:17:00.000-07:00

I TOOK MY 88 YEAR OLD MOTHER WITH ME ON A TRIP TO CALIFORNIA TO VISIT MY SON. I PUSHED HER IN A WHEELCHAIR THROUGH A LOT OF AIRPORTS. FIRST WE HAD TO GO THRU SECURITY AT FORT WAYNE AND IT WAS FAIRLY SIMPLE. WE STILL HAD TO TAKE OFF OUR SHOES ETC., BUT WE WERE THE ONLY PEOPLE THERE. WHEN WE GOT TO DETROIT I HAD TO PUSH HER IN A WHEELCHAIR A VERY LONG DISTANCE, AND WE DIDN'T HAVE TO DO SECURITY. THEN WE FLEW TO PHOENIX AZ...I DON'T EVER WANT TO GO TO PHOENIX AGAIN!!!!!!!! FIRST OF ALL, A GUY GRABBED MOTHER AND ANOTHER WOMAN IN A WHEELCHAIR AND TOOK OFF RUNNING WITH THEM AND I HAD TO RUN TO KEEP UP, CARRYING HER CARRYONS AND PURSE AND MY CARRYONS AND PURSE ETC... RUN!! HE HELD OUT HIS HAND FOR MONEY, AND MOTHER GAVE HIM $4. HE SAID "IS THAT ALL?" THEN HE DUMPED US OUTSIDE THE TERMINAL TO WAIT FOR A BUS!!!!!!! HE DIDN'T STAY TO HELP US GET THE WHEELCHAIR ON OR ANYTHING. IT WAS 119 DEGREES IN THE SUN. THEN WE HAD TO TAKE A BUS TO ANOTHER TERMINAL, AND GO THROUGH SECURITY AGAIN!!! THIS TIME MOTHER WAS DOUBLE SEARCHED AND MADE TO STAND UP OUT OF HER WHEELCHAIR AND THEY KEPT HER IN A GLASS ROOM AND WOULDN'T LET ME NEAR HER!!! THEY SEARCHED THROUGH ALL OF OUR LUGGAGE AND WERE VERY BRUTAL!! THEY WERE NOT NICE!!! THEN WHEN WE FINALLY GOT TO OUR GATE, WE HAD TO WAIT UNTIL THEY TALKED SOMEONE ELSE INTO TAKING ANOTHER FLIGHT BECAUSE THEY HAD OVERBOOKED OUR FLIGHT TO SACRAMENTO. WHEN WE FINALLY GOT ON THE PLANE, INSTEAD OF BEING BOARDED FIRST AND GETTING IN THE FIRST ROW, WE WERE LAST, AND HAD TO GO TO THE VERY BACK ROW. WE FINALLY MADE IT TO SACRAMENTO AND THINGS WENT SMOOTHLY AND WE HAD A LOVELY VISIT. WE WERE WELL ENTERTAINED FOR THE WEEKEND. ZACH TOOK US BACK TO THE AIRPORT ON MONDAY MORNING VERY EARLY, AFTER ONCE AGAIN BEING DOUBLE-SEARCHED WE FLEW BACK THROUGH SALT LAKE CITY. IT WAS NICE THERE, AND WE HAD TO SIT AROUND FOR 3 HOURS, BUT IT WAS PLEASANT. THEN WE FLEW STRAIGHT TO DETROIT AND HOME TO FORT WAYNE. IT WAS NICE. I LOST TWO POUNDS ON THAT TRIP!!! WE HAD A GREAT TIME. (I was severely tempted to curse in Arabic...I can do that....but I refrained from uttering the curse near TSA... And I can count to three in Arabic and speak baby-talk Arabic ...and I knew a lot of Arabs, muslim and non-muslim ones, in college 45 or more years ago...but why are we being targetted by computers? Perhaps its the eyeliner I buy from Pakistan?) Might I point out we are part Native American and have more right to be here than just about anyone?

Tags: AIRPORT SECURITY

Retiring, not retiring, and other non-related things

2008-05-16T10:42:00.000-07:00

I tried to retire a couple of years ago. It seemed practical since I could collect social security and be home and not worry about things. It got very boring, very fast. You can only do so many New York Times Crossword Puzzles with a pen before the challenge is gone. I found I had lots of time to write, but something was missing. Interaction with people where I get my ideas for characters was one of the things that was missing. The characters I write are a combination of many people I've met.

The cat was getting tired of me waking him up every three minutes. So he started waking me up throughout the night to tell me when a car drove by or a raccoon climbed a tree in the back yard. Or even when a mouse ventured out to steal his food. His method of awakening me was to run at the side of my bed and then violently bounce off the side of it continuously until I woke up. I finally went out and purchased a baby gate to keep him out of my bedroom. I hate to sleep with the bedroom door shut.

I volunteered to be the primary plaintiff in a bunch of class action suits I was eligible for, and that took up some time and gave me interesting research to read. But then I was really bored and wanting more information. I relate to that robot who was learning to think and kept demanding more "input".

Don't you just love the internet and all of the things you can learn? But sometimes, if you're retired it just gets silly. I'd watch Jeopardy and if there was something I didn't know I'd write it down, Google it, and then read up on it until I did. Then people who were playing Trivia with me made me count to ten before I was allowed to answer. Sometimes they'd look at me for the answer and I'd count to ten just to irritate them. I am not usually a mean person, so I decided I needed to be busier.

Then my last boss called me to do some more work, and I jumped at the chance. I do contract work as a paralegal doing research and document preparation, and I also do work for others organizing their bookkeeping and so forth. I love doing legal research. Sometimes I get side-tracked though and take off in directions I didn't mean to go. In other words, sometimes I learn more than anybody really wants to know about a subject and that can get boring for others. Sometimes I get very excited about it, and there's no one to tell!

I've been known to call up the class action lawyers in Chicago and tell them of new research I've discovered. I'd like to get them to do a Class Action suit against credit card companies for unconscionable contract. I no longer carry credit cards. I haven't used any kind of credit (except my house mortgage) since 1997, and I haven't bought a car on credit since the early 80's. My credit rating is probably the pits but what does it matter if I don't buy anything on credit?

Enough for now, I've got some work to do. Love and kisses. Jana

Tags: Credit cards, living without credit, retirement, working after retirement, class action suits against credit card companies.

The rules for loving

2008-05-04T20:04:00.000-07:00

You know that country song, the words 'if you can't be with the one you love, you love the one you're with'...I always hated that concept. Then I realized its pretty much how I lived the years from 1963 thru 1989. I have come to realize there's nothing wrong with loving two people at the same time. Then I decided I didn't need to waste my time any more and just went on loving the one I wasn't with. But I do understand at the same time, it is possible to love two people at the same time.

I'm not saying it's the same kind of love, but it is having respect for the feelings of another, trying to lead them in the direction of finding their own happiness, and appreciating the things they added to your life. You have to appreciate the things you shared and the value the other person added to your life. Even when you are no longer with the other person you have to acknowledge the value they added to your life, and the things you learned from that relationship.

All in all, I now believe things have worked out exactly the way they were supposed to work out. We were supposed to be with the people we were with at the time we were with them. We weren't supposed to be with them when we weren't. I believe our souls planned the whole thing, and even the souls of those we spent time with who didn't turn out to be the loves of our lives were planned to be in our lives at the times they were. We had things to accomplish and we had to do certain things on our own. I wouldn't be the person I am today without all of the people who touched my life in the past.

I don't resent the events that happened in my life, though I wish I'd remembered some things I've always known. I wish I'd remembered always I'm in charge of how I feel about things. I wish I'd remembered I'm not responsible for how anyone else feels about me, I'm only responsible about how I feel about them. I wish I'd acknowledged I was loved all those years I believed I was merely lost. I wish I'd understood the words that were said to me. I'm glad I remembered those words and have come to understand them now.

I wouldn't change a thing that's happened in the past. It was all a part of the growth of my soul. I'm excited about the future and what it will bring. No matter how things turn out, I will always know I'm loved, and whether I'm with the one I love on this side, or when we both arrive on the Other Side matters not. It would be cool to spend more time together on this side, but the one thing I understand is Forever is a wonderfully long time to be loved.

Tags: the wish factory: how to make wishes come true. Shellman.

DYING ISN'T REALLY THE END

2007-11-03T10:00:00.000-07:00

Just watching John Edwards new show. There was a cool thing one of the audience members said, "We shouldn't mourn someone's passing, we should celebrate the fact we were able to experience them in our lives." That's a special message. When he asked another woman how she dealt with the death of her small child she said "Always Blessings, Never Losses." Everyone in the audience was crying, and John Edwards couldn't talk. I've been noticing as I go to funerals these days, the differences in families and the way they deal with the passing of their family members. If you didn't know the families you might make a judgment that they were indifferent to the passing because they weren't weeping and carrying on. In some cases they are visiting with friends, and hugging and smiling and saying how glad they are to see their old friends they haven't seen for awhile. Our family behaves that way. And then I've been to those funerals where people are weeping and carrying on and just beside themselves with the passing of their family member or friend. I've figured out the difference between these two types of families. The families who are smiling and visiting have a deep faith and know they are celebrating the memories of their loved ones, while the families who are weeping, aside from feeling they have been deprived of being with their loved ones, feel they will never ever see them again.

I remember my Grandad Terman's funeral. It was all I could do to keep from laughing because I felt he was sitting on my shoulder whispering in my ear. He didn't like the fact there was a minister he didn't know officiating at his funeral. My Grandad believed in Creator. He just didn't think much of church. I think this is because he was at least one-half Miami Indian and he had his own beliefs. He was one with nature and knew that God was in and through everything.

I know those who've crossed over are around us, protecting us, observing us all the time. There's a certain reassurance in knowing this. Sylvia Browne says "the other side" is right here with us, i.e., it's another plane, but it is just above us and all around us...which is why our loved ones who've crossed over can be all around us. Sometimes I think they're over there on the other side studying and learning and observing things, and when we call them for assistance, they're probably thinking "hey, I'm busy, can't you figure this out yourself!" In otherwords, they're having a good and peaceful time and don't really want to be drawn back to the drama and trauma on this side. So perhaps the answer to this is to leave the drama and trauma out of our own lives, live peacefully and joyfully, loving your life here on earth, and looking forward to when you can cross over to the good and peaceful atmosphere on the other side.

Tags: John Edwards, dying, talking to the dead, funerals, Faith, Miami Indian, Sylvia Browne, God, Love, Happy

Waiting for Wishes to Come True

2007-10-26T08:35:00.000-07:00

Watching the California fires. A lot of them are happening in my old stomping grounds. When I heard the fire was just East of John Wayne airport, I went on Google Earth to look it up. I used to live half a mile from John Wayne Airport. Of course, then there were no buildings to speak of at the airport, just three hangars and a windsock. I could see straight there through my kitchen door. Now there are a million people (I'm exaggerating) living between that house and the airport. I couldn't believe what it looked like now some 40 years later. Who would have guessed that Hadley's alley would still be there, and not really change that much. You won't find Hadley's Alley on a map. It was really a number on SW Cypress Street in "Santa Ana Heights" which is now apparently a part of Newport Beach! Who knew! It was a tiny farm in the country then, and I would drive home and look out over Newport Back Bay and watch the mansions being built on the sides of the back bay. They were going up like mushrooms. I called them "Tract Mansions" because they were just like tract housing, except they were mansions. At the time I paid $85 a month for my little house that sat on a long narrow strip of land with horse pastures on either side. A house in front of my little house, a garage, a "wash shack" where the groundskeeper lived, and a tiny little travel trailer that was rented out to various people, and then the owner's big house at the back. When I went back to visit someone had planted hundreds of Saguaro cactus in the front yard, so close together you couldn't even walk through there! The yard where I kept my dog and garden had been turned into a horse paddock and there were now horses on the property. They didn't have hardly enough room to turn around! I wrote a short story about that property called Bone Garden because of my landlady's habit of burying bones in the yard. She cooked leg of lamb sometimes, and would bury the leg bone in her garden. She also named her vegetables...and flowers. So when my dog Rami unearthed a long bone my writer's imagination took off. Bone Garden was the result.

At any rate visit my web site at www.thewishfactory.com if you got here some other way.

I'll try to come up with more writing one of these days. Carole J. if you read this send me an email...I don't have your email address. Thanks.

Tags: California fires; imagination, mysteries, population explosion, mansions, Newport Back Bay, Newport Beach,

Vacations- and Wishes Coming True

2007-06-14T08:31:00.000-07:00

I haven't written on this blog since just after my birthday in February. Things have changed a lot since then. Mostly, I am working three half-days a week and getting out more. I was becoming a hermit of sorts before. I stayed in a lot. I got my car fixed and I still need to get some other things on it fixed. I figure its good for another 100,000 miles if I fix what needs to be fixed on it. In the meantime, I got my central air replaced, and paid for, and I had to buy a new furnace too, but that's fixed and almost paid for. I was worrying about getting to winter with a non-functioning heating system. Not a problem. Now I am working on getting the rest of the things on my car fixed before fall. Sure wish Zach was here because he could fix those things a lot cheaper but I can't be a tightwad forever and ever. Money is flowing in and making life much, much easier.

I am back working three afternoons a week for the same attorney as before. He's on vacation the rest of this week and next, so other than having to run to the Courthouse and the Recorder's Office tomorrow for a couple of hours, I am off until June 25, which is Zach's birthday.

I had hoped to fly out to see Zach for his birthday, but decided instead to buy him a ticket to fly home for Christmas. My mother sent me Christmas fly-home tickets when I was in California. I only ever missed one Christmas with my family. What a strange year that was!

I am going to the lake on Monday and staying thru Wednesday suppertime. Fritzie is going to hate me for abandoning him, but I will leave him with plenty of water and food. He'll hate me for about a minute, but he will be glad to see me back. Cats are like that. Fritzie is not nearly as frightened of things as he used to be. Today when my handyman Jack came he brought his weird little dog, and Fritzie didn't get too freaked out by her.

My next projects around the house are getting the kitchen fixed up, and then working on the bathroom and getting it reburbished.

In the meantime, I am still marketing my intellectual properties and writing. I keep very, very busy.

My handyman comes and helps me with the heavy stuff, and I really appreciate that. So far we got the garage cleaned out by half (it was awful...stuff in there I thought I threw away 20 years ago!!!) I finally sold my old motorcycle! I hated to see it go, but I haven't ridden it in 25 years! The guy who bought it was so pleased to get it. Meantime, I am selling off some of Zach's furniture he didn't take with him...some of my old stuff I don't want or need anymore, and mainly cleaning out and clearing out.

I bought myself a new pair of high heels for dress up, even though I never dress up much anymore...I am prepared! A couple of weeks ago I bought myself a new pair of runnng shoes because I've worn the old pair out on the treadmill.

Life goes on, life is good, missing old friends and lovers, but living on good memories always works....I've always got Disneyland! Love and Kisses. Jana

Tags: Working at home, writing, screenplays, historical novels, Happiness,

Work, Work Work

2007-05-01T09:15:00.000-07:00

I've been working very hard. None of it writing for myself. Mostly working as a paralegal for one endeavor or another. Began as three afternoons a week, and then it went on to more. In addition, I've suddenly begun picking up more writing students. It's all very interesting. Feast or famine. I prefer the feast.

I have been remiss

2007-03-28T18:29:00.000-07:00

I haven't made an entry for six weeks. Don't know what made me so lazy. Oh, yes. I've been busy with a lot of other things. Mostly I have finally begun working back in the office again. Not full time, but three afternoons a week.

Of course, this will keep me from being able to play. And it will also keep me from being able to finish my books and screenplays. But I will get back to them soon.

The weather is cold and wet. But I'm feeling fine, and still have time to do other work at home. Must get more organized. I've been lax in the past couple months, not having any lists of things to do, and just bouncing from one thing to another. Time to get organized and down to business and get more accomplished. Bouncing is fun for awhile, but even Tigger gets annoying sooner or later.

Life is good. Love and kisses. Jana

Birthdays and Wishes

2007-02-08T16:03:00.000-08:00

My birthday is coming up on Monday...me and Abe Lincoln, and my great-nephew, Nathaniel Bristow, and my friend Eleanor's daughter, Stephanie, all of us have a birthday next Monday, February 12.

My friend Becky's birthday was yesterday. It's too cold to run out and buy birthday presents for anyone, so I'm going to have to buy belated birthday cards.

I haven't been out to the store or anything since last Friday. It's just been too cold. My old car is a convertible, and it just never gets warm enough inside. Next car is going to be one I can start from inside the house and let it warm up!

When I blow out my candles (six ought to be enough, don't you think?), I am going to be making my wishes. I wish I could find someone who would help me to sell my intellectual properties. I've got lots of them. Money is a bit short these days. There's just barely enough and I have to hussle in order to make ends meet. I don't like that. If I could sell some of my books, or screenplays I wouldn't have to worry about money. Having residuals, getting advances, and getting paid for book sales forever is like having a perpetual Christmas party.

Mostly I'm a creative creature. I love to do the writing. I do have marketing skills, but I seem to be able to market other people's wares better than my own. It all goes back to bragging on oneself. It goes against my upbringing to do that I guess.

I've got work coming up with another attorney, but that isn't something that can be depended upon from week to week.

For Sale: Family Comedy Screenplay; Animated Feature Film Screenplay, Poppy Hannah Mystery Series, and Kekionga, a woman's adventure novel...among other things.

Tags: Screenplays for Sale, Women's Adventure Novel, Poppy Hannah Mystery Series novels.

Psychic Stalking--It's Legal!!

2007-01-28T08:53:00.000-08:00

I don't suppose you've ever heard of psychic stalking. It's just something that happens between people who are close to one another emotionally I believe. It doesn't work for everyone. Even as psychically connected as I can be to some people, I'm not psychically connected to my son. At least I don't have the ability to see where he is precisely in my head. Yes. I do have that ability with a couple of people. One I love being able to do it. The other one, I'd just as soon not, but when I tried to make the ability to follow the one person go away, the ability to "follow" or find the other also went away, so I got it back.

I first learned of this ability back in the early 60's when someone I loved very much went away. I still knew where to find him all the time. It was very simple. There was a "white line" that appeared in my mind that went from me, up into the air, and down to wherever he was. I've been psychically stalking this man for more than forty years.

The other was a man I worked for. I could find him anywhere. It was the same thing. When he disappeared I always knew where to find him. Sometimes I didn't want to know where to find him and found him anyway! I have reconciled to the fact this man is a friend. Only a friend.

The other is the love of my life. I haven't physically stalked him, unless you count the one time when I was in his area, and sat in the parking lot of his business for a few minutes on a Sunday afternoon about eighteen years ago.

Now I just think about him from time to time, locate him with my psychic GPS system, and only very occasionally look at the top of his house on Google Earth. I do that to my son too. I go on Google Earth and look at the top of his apartment building. It makes me feel closer to him somehow.

Together with my psychic GPS system, and my psychic caller ID, my life is very interesting! I've had these psychic systems for way longer than the general public has had the technological versions. Boy are the scientists slow!!

If you got here from my links, check out my web site: www.thewishfactory.com

Love and kisses, Jana.

Tags: psychic stalking, psychic gps system, psychic caller ID

The Wish Factory Screenplay - an Excerpt

2007-01-24T07:00:00.000-08:00

Registered with WGA, This is an excerpt from The Wish Factory, an animated feature film screenplay. It is the property of The Wish Factory, Inc., an Indiana corporation, and Jana L. Shellman

INT. JR'S BEDROOM

It is late afternoon, and the winter sun can be seen streaming through the window of a nine-year-old boy's bedroom. The floor is bare save for a braided rug on which lie toy soldiers. The wallpaper is shabby and needs cleaning, but the furniture is dust-free, and the floor is clean. The bed is made, and a closet door stands open. You can see the wardrobe of a nine-year-old hanging on hangers inside. Two pairs of shoes sit on the floor of the closet, and toys spill out of boxes inside the closet. There is a toy box sitting on the floor at the end of the bed. The lid of the toy box is open. There are toys on the floor at the foot of the bed, and there are some toy soldiers on the rug.

JR (OS)

I wish you were alive, so you could be my buddy!

JR walks into his room carrying a teddy bear his mother had made of old blue jeans. The bear has a red ribbon around his neck and a red velvet heart pinned to his chest. He has a scuff on his rump, which is where the knees had worn out of the blue jeans. JR sets Threadbare Fred Bear on the end of his dresser and turns his back on him. He sits on the rug. He plays with the several toy soldiers there, and then stands up, walks over to his toy box and rummages for more toy soldiers. He is humming a tune as he carries his soldiers, and a toy tank back to the rug. He arranges his toy soldiers in a row and begins to quietly play by himself. He hums as he plays. The humming is occasionally disrupted as he makes shooting noises for the soldiers, or motor noises for the tank.

He stops moving the soldiers around and stares at them for a while. Then he gets up and goes rummaging back in his toy box. He tosses toys to one side as he rummages deeper and deeper into the toy box. He SIGHS. He stands up, puts his hands on his hips and looks into the toy box for a short space of time.

Then he turns and slowly pans his room. He stops at the window, and then walks over to the window and looks out. He gets down on his knees and puts his chin in his hands, resting his elbows on the window sill. He SIGHS again.

I wish it was nice outside so I could play out there in my dirt pile. But it's going to be muddy and ugly before it gets really nice outside again.

THREADBARE FRED BEAR

If you're going to make a wish, stop unwishing it right away!

J.R. whirls around in surprise. He jumps up.He looks into the closet. Then he crosses the room and looks out into the hall. He comes back into the room and looks around. His eyes stop on the bear, and he SHAKES HIS HEAD. He walks over to the bed bends over from his waist and looks under it. Then he gets down on his hands and knees and half his body disappears under the bedspread as he looks more carefully under the bed. He crawls out from under the bed and stands up once again.

Then he walks over and picks up the bear. He turns him upside down and shakes him. Then he pokes at his back. He shakes the bear once more. He holds the bear up to his ear and shakes it again.

JR shakes his head, makes a circle around his ear, and places the bear back on the dresser. He goes back to the window and looks out. Then he goes back to the rug and sits down.

I wish I had a television set in my room. But we couldn't afford to have more than one television set in the house.

THREADBARE FRED BEAR

There you go again, making a wish and immediately unwishing it! Why don't you try making a wish and giving it time to happen!

J.R. whirls around, just in time to see Fred moving! He scrambles to his feet and races over to the bear. The bear's eyes snap shut, his mouth is closed, but his arms are still moving.

He grabs Fred and shakes him. Fred's eyes snap open and look straight into J.R.'s.

It was you! You are alive! But how could that happen. Toy Bears don't...

THREADBARE FRED BEAR

Stop! Don't say another word! You're going to wish the life right out of me in one more second! And stop shaking me!

J.R. stops talking as Fred burst out. He cocks his head and looks at him.

What do you mean? I like you this way. I wouldn't wish for you not to be alive!

THREADBARE FRED BEAR

Yes, but you almost unwished me by saying that toy bears don't speak. Didn't you?

I guess so. Boy, wait until I tell Mom!

JR heads for the hallway, dragging the bear on the floor as he goes. He bangs Fred Bear against the wall as he dashes around the corner. Fred Bear hangs onto the door, but is pulled around.

THREADBARE FRED BEAR (OS)

Wait! Stop! It won't do any good. She won't be able to hear me or see that I'm alive.

JR re-enters the room, once again bumping Fred Bear's head, as he holdshim by one arm.

THREADBARE FRED BEAR

Would you mind!? Watch where you're swinging me!

JR looks down at the bear, and carefully lifts him back under both arms. He places him back on top of the dresser. Fred Bear teeters and his eyes grow larger as he is about to fall onto the floor. JR grabs him and pats him carefully, and then pushes him back a little more so he won't fall off.

Oh, Sorry. Why not? Why won't she be able to hear or see you?

THREADBARE FRED BEAR

Because grownups don't always believe that stuffed bears can talk or be alive. So they can't hear or see anything that doesn't make sense to them.

JR picks and pokes at Fred Bear as he's talking to him. Fred Bear fidgets sideways, as one would if being tickled.

THREADBARE FRED BEAR

Do you mind? That tickles.

JR looks at his hands and then at the bear, and then he puts his hand in his jeans pocket, and then takes it out of the pocket and clasps it behind his back with the other hand. He SIGHS. He walks over to the window and looks out, and then looks in the closet again. He takes a peek at the bear.

Does that mean that when I'm grown up, I won't believe in you either?

Fred smiles and jumps down from the dresser. JR looks at him in surprise to see that he can walk. He has unclasped his hands, and suddenly puts his hands behind him again, and holds onto himself tightly afraid that he'll be poking and prodding at the bear again.

THREADBARE FRED BEAR

Well, sometimes children are lucky enough to grow up and remember the magical things. Most times they forget and don't believe in magic anymore at all. Lots of times they make wishes not really meaning to, and then can't understand why things have happened to them.

Other times their wishes never do come true because they haven't given them time to happen.

J.R. scratches his head and looks puzzled. He sits down on his toy chest and falls in. He pulls himself out, and then puts the lid down and sits on the toy chest once again. He shakes his head, and looks at Fred for a long time.

I don't understand.

THREADBARE FRED BEAR

Maybe a trip to the Wish Factory would help you to understand. Here. Take my paw, we're going on a trip.

JR stands up and walks toward Fred Bear. Fred extends his paw toward JR. JR hesitates, and then Fred takes JR's hand in his paw, and opens the closet door and they walk in. JR looks at his clothes on hangers behind him, and at his extra shoes on the floor, and then he looks at the bear once more, still puzzled. The door closes.

INT. DARK CLOSET

There's a rosy glow in the closet that seems to be emanating from the bear. JR blinks as his eyes grow used to the darker atmosphere. Then he looks once again at the bear. Threadbare Fred Bear winks at JR.

THREADBARE FRED BEAR

Now close your eyes and count to three, 'the Wish Factory is where I want to be.’

JR closes his eyes and repeats after the bear.

One, two, three The Wish Factory is where I want to be.

INT. MAGIC WISHING TUNNEL

Fred Bear and JR find themselves falling through a magical colorful tunnel-like structure. Toys whirl about inside the structure. Happy children wave at them as they fly by. Wonderful colors swirl about them. Angels and fairies fill the air around them. The colors are magical and mystical. There are stars ahead. Kittens and puppies and bunnies whirl past going in the other direction. Fluffy Teddy Bears in brown and pink are going the other direction. Diamond rings, bouquets of flowers, new cars whiz past going past Fred and JR, in the opposite direction. These are wishes that are being sent into the world. Fred and JR manage to hold onto one another and duck some of the things coming at them.

They tumble upside down as if in a free fall from a plane. Suddenly a fluffy kitten rushes into JR's hands. He is grinning as he looks at the kitten. His grin seems to be flying backward as well. His hair is flying back from his head. It looks as if he is in a tornado. He pats the kitten on the head and releases her to continue her upward trip.

Fred Bear dodges a new car as it heads rapidly towards him. He looks around for JR and grabs JR's hands once more and they dive through the upward rushing wishes and continue their free fall. They do somersault after somersault as they grow closer to the end of the tunnel. JR is laughing with glee. Below them at the end of the tunnel they see a huge brown teddy bear, wearing a blue ribbon. They fall closer and closer. They fall out of the tunnel and through the air.

EXT. GIANT TEDDY BEAR LAP IN FRONT OF WISH FACTORY

Fred Bear and JR land in the lap of a giant teddy bear. They slide off his lap onto the ground. They look up and see before them The Wish Factory.

Tags: Screenplay, Animated Feature Film, Excerpt

Poppy Hannah Mystery Excerpt

2007-01-23T07:54:00.000-08:00

Here's an excerpt from my first Poppy Hannah mystery. Poppy is a paralegal who likes to solve mysteries.

Copyright, Jana l. Shellman

PROLOGUE

I can't tell you how I know, I just know. It's the same thing as when the phone rings. If the person calling is someone I'm acquainted with, then I automatically know who's on the phone before I answer it. If it's a stranger, I have no idea who's calling. I don't know how that works either. I just know if a person is guilty, I know it. If a person is innocent, I know that too. It's a gift, or a curse, depending on whether you listen to me or my boss.

I'm a para-legal and I work for Ralph Taylor, attorney at law. My favorite television program is the old Perry Mason, my second favorite show is Law & Order. I was destined to work in the legal profession, I was born on Abraham Lincoln's birthday.

Then on top of that I've got this quirk. I can't stand an innocent person being in jail. My name is Poppy Hannah, how I got that name is another story. First I want to tell you about Henry Brown.

I'd driven my Mustang convertible to the office and just had time to dry my hair. It's red. My hair, not the convertible, that's white. Naturally curly, the hair. It's a fright when it gets wet. Both the hair and the car. It had been raining for days. Convertibles are for sunny days. They don't always keep you completely dry and then this morning it wouldn't start. I looked like Bozo the clown. I spent nearly half an hour drying my hair, and trying to comb it into some semblance of normalcy so as not to frighten anyone, but what I got were two very fuzzy red pony tails sticking straight out above my ears. It was the best I could do. I was minding the front desk until our receptionist, Kara got in. She was always late. That's when Henry Brown's mother came into the office.

"I need to find my boy a lawyer."

"What did he do, Mrs. uh..."

"Brown. He didn't do nuthin'!"

"Why do you require a lawyer?"

"My boy wouldn't 'a killed nobody." For emphasis the large black woman thumped her wet umbrella on top of the computer monitor. A waterfall cascaded down the flat screen, like too many tears. Mrs. Brown’s aura was lavender.

"I'm sure you're right, Mrs. Brown."I brushed the umbrella gently from my machine.

"He didn't have no call to be in that neighborhood." This time the desk top received the emphasis from the umbrella.

"I can understand why you believe in him Mrs. Brown." Pulling two tissues from the box in rapid succession I wiped the rainwater tears from the screen and the desk.

"I've just gotta get him out a jail right away. He's innocent." Three rapid blows of the umbrella resounded on the side of the wooden desk.

"Everything will be all right. I'm sure Mr. Taylor can help you." As I gave her these reassurances, Mrs. Brown relaxed visibly. Her stern face broke into a shy smile, and she looked down as if to apologize for being so pushy. The smile fled as Mr. Taylor came rushing down the hallway like water after a dam collapse.

"What's all that knocking? Who can I help? What's going on?" Mr. Taylor is six foot one, and about two hundred pounds. He can look scary, unless you know him. He's really a teddy bear.

"I was just telling Mrs. Brown that you'd be happy to represent her son at his arraignment this afternoon."

"I have a golf game this afternoon."

"It's raining. Besides, I'm rearranging our schedule. You'll still be able to tee off at 2:30, just like you planned." I indicated the calendar on the monitor. He leaned over my back and looked at it.

"That's fine. But when am I supposed to eat? And when am I going to have time to shop for my wife's birthday present?"

"I'll order a sandwich," I reached under Kara's desk for my tote bag and brought out a brightly wrapped package. "and here's the gift you're giving to your wife."

"What is it?"

"It's the bracelet she was admiring at Wolfe's the other day."

"How much did it cost me?"

"You don't really want to know."

Muttering to himself he disappeared back into his office.

"He doesn't sound too excited about defending my Henry."

"He's a low-key sort of guy. You've hired yourself the best lawyer in town." At the word "hired" she began to worry about money. I spent ten minutes reassuring her that it could all be arranged very comfortably.

She left and I had to figure out what to tell the boss. He didn't believe in my powers. He just knew I was always getting him clients he didn't want to defend.

Kara finally arrived, shaking her curly blond hair, and smoothing her tight dress over her perfect body. She described how helpless she'd felt when her car wouldn't start, and how five guys huddled around her engine until they solved the problem.

"Aren't men just wonderful? What would we do without them?" she gushed, as she fluttered her eyelashes. Her dark brown eyes belied her hair color, but I wasn't about to point it out to anyone. I figure you should know yourself. It doesn't matter what anyone else believes to be true about you, so long as you know the truth.

I'm really not a feminist. I just believe in being independent, and honest. I don't believe any woman can be as fragile and as dependent as Kara puts on. I have to admit that she takes the dumb blond jokes really well, and basically I like her. She's a sweet girl. And really not dumb. Just kind of ditzy sometimes. And I'd be the last person in the world to hold any eccentricities against her.

I called the prosecutor's office to get a run down on the charges against Henry Brown. Fort Wayne was once named All America City. Then a Detroit auto manufacturer opened a facility here. Since that time crime has escalated. Drug dealings and murder have mushroomed. The prosecutor's office is still struggling to catch up. They're doing a good job of it, but they're a growing family.

The phone rang. I knew it was my friend, Prudy, who works at the Prosecutor's Office. "What do you know about Henry Brown?"

"He's guilty Poppy. It's cut and dried. There was an eye witness."

"Somebody actually saw him commit murder?"

"No, but just as bad." said Prudy.

Prudy went on to fill me in. He'd been identified by an eye witness who said he'd been seen coming out of the alley minutes before the knifed body of a small-time drug dealer was found. Sounded cut and dried. But Henry's mom said Henry couldn't have done it, and I knew she was right. Don't ask me how. That's the hard part. I had to figure out how I knew it. I had to prove Henry was innocent.

We made a date to brown bag in my office. Prudy would bring a copy of the probable cause affidavit on her lunch hour.

"Poppy. Come into my office. I must speak to you. Immediately."

Oh boy. Here we go. "What can I do for you?" I asked.

"Poppy. You've just got to stop accepting these hopeless cases. At least allow me to determine whether or not I'll take one on."

"I was sure you'd want to defend Henry."

"I don't know anything about Henry. For all I know he could be an axe murderer."

"You won't disappoint his mother?" I whined, I'm ashamed to say.

"I should let you disappoint his mother. I should just put my foot down and refuse to defend him."

"That means you're going to defend him, doesn't it?"

"Lord help me. I suppose it does...but this is the last time young lady. Now listen to me. None of that giggling...I mean it. The last time..." The bright red spikes in his aura faded into his normal calm blue. I sighed with relief.

"Here are my notes. I talked to Prudy. She gave me a rundown."

"What time is the arraignment?"

****

The boss got Henry out on bail. Mrs. Brown had to put her house up. They came back from Court and they went into Mr. Taylor's office. I was trying to decide whether to listen at the door or try to turn the intercom on when the boss called me on the intercom and told me to bring my pad. I grabbed it and started for the door. It occurred to me that it would be better to get everything on tape, so I grabbed a mini-tape from the desk drawer and breezed into the boss's office. I put the tape in the dictation machine and turned it on. I'm not sure he noticed. He dictated a quick letter to the prosecutor's office, asking for their witness list, and then he dismissed me. I left the room, sneaking a look back at the blinking red light on the machine, indicating it was still recording. I prayed it wouldn't run out of tape and set off the beeper. My boss sometimes likes to keep things from me, but how can I help prove Henry's innocent if I don't know everything?

At 2:20 I buzzed him. He had to be at the club in ten minutes.

"Maybe I can help interview Mr. Brown."

"Yeah, sure. Anything you can do," he didn't know what he was saying. He was already at the tee, even though he was only dashing out the door, searching through his coat pockets for his keys. I retrieved them from the desk where he'd dropped them this morning and dashed toward the elevator with them. I glanced out the window on the way in and saw a rainbow off to the West. God was smiling on Mr. Taylor today.

I told Kara to hold my calls, and went back to Mr. Taylor's office and sat down across from Henry Brown. The thought that I was alone in an office with a suspected murderer flitted across my mind. More quickly than that I reminded myself that Henry's Mom said he was innocent. I relaxed.

Henry Brown was a very big man. He must have been all of six and a half feettall, and he probably weighed three hundred and fifty pounds. He didn't look like he had a lot of fat, either. He was mostly muscle. Henry Brown wouldn't have had to shoot anyone. He could have picked them up and squeezed them dead. For all of that he was very graceful when he walked, and he spoke in a soft and polite manner. Besides, his aura was nearly white it was so light blue. He had a spiritual soul.

"Okay Henry. Just have faith. Fill me in. Let's start from the beginning..."

"I wasn't near that alley, ma'am. I fell asleep in my truck over on the other side of town." While he talked I removed the tape and put in a new one. I dropped the old tape into my shirt pocket.

The phone rang. "That will be your mother, Henry."

I answered the phone. It was Mrs. Brown. I assured her we had Henry right there in the office. She asked me to keep him there until she could come and claim him. Henry was thirty-five years old. Big enough to find his own way home. But if I was a mother, I'd want to keep track of my son if he was in trouble, so I agreed to keep him there until she arrived.

Before Mrs. Brown arrived, we had time to go over a lot of the points. Henry hadn't been acquainted with the man who was killed, but he knew his name. He had heard rumors that the man was a small time crack cocaine pusher. He didn't think he was into anything more than that. He figured he was probably one of the little guys who dealt to the high school kids in his neighborhood, but Henry’d been busy working, trying to get himself and his mother out of that neighborhood. He didn't go to the bars, and he didn't drink. He claimed never to associate with those kind of people. He was very quiet, and very shy. He shook his head from time to time, as if he wondered why, after being so careful, he still found himself in this trouble.

He swore he'd never done drugs, "My mama woulda killed me, if I'd ever got into that."

After they left I packed up my tapes and headed out the door. The phone rang.

"That's my mother, take a message." I told Kara. I knew she was calling to tell me my Avon order was in. She's an Avon Lady. Well, since I knew who it was and why she was calling, I struggled into my raincoat and waved at Kara as she answered the phone. I patted my skirt pocket to check on the tapes. They were still there. When I'm onto something my scalp gets tight. It was getting tighter all the time. I wish I knew why.

****

It took me a little over eight minutes to get home during rush hour. One of the perks of being in the legal profession in Fort Wayne is that most law offices are clustered around the Courthouse downtown, just blocks from the older residential neighborhoods.

Tags: mystery novel in search of an agent, or publisher

Vegetarianism

2007-01-22T07:01:00.000-08:00

My brother sent me the following with a link to some website about vegetarianism. I tried to be a total vegetarian, and was, for about fifteen years. I quit, and now I just eat nearly vegetarian, but not totally. Here's what I told him:
Is it defeatist to stick to a diet of tofu and sprouts? Was the question he sent to me. I said:

I don't do tofu and sprouts...The only good place for tofu is in sweet and sour soup. I use meat as a flavoring, not as an entree. I use turkey and chicken and fish, but try to stay away from pork, and the only beef I eat is in the occasional taco. The only dairy I eat is yogurt and occasionally butter. The reason I do this has nothing to do with animal rights or anything stupid like that. I believe beef, milk, pork and the like have too many chemicals and antibiotics. I think the chemicals they feed the animals is what makes people fat. After all that's why they feed it to the animals. Once you gain the weight it's hell getting it off.

Moderation in all things seems to be the best answer. Stay away from margarine and other trans fats, i.e., the stuff in Crisco is awful too. It would be better to use lard or butter. Neither reduces the fat, but you probably need a small amount of fat in your diet anyway. I use olive oil for cooking, or canola oil (which has a bad rap lately, but what doesn't?)

I think a good diet for us would be to stay as close to the Native American diet as possible, i.e., occasional meat, nuts, berries, fruits, grains. Think about how hard it was for the Indian to get meat. When the Europeans first found the Indians they were strong and healthy. They were probably the image of the "buff body" everyone is trying to attain. They got it by walking and working hard, and by their diet. It's pretty much the sugar and the refined flour that gives Native Americans the diabetes and heart disease.

I believe further that a great number of Americans are part Native American Indian. Particularly if their families have been in the country for more than a hundred fifty years. In the Midwest this is particularly true. There are also lots of "mestiz" in the East. If you tell a person this, they will say, "nah, I'm Irish." I hate to tell you how many Irish Indians there are. The Irish men came over here and many of them married Indian women. My family is part French, part English, part Scotch, part Irish, part Swiss, part German, and a lot of Native Americans. Most of the connections with the Native Americans were made in the late 1700's and the early 1800's. My one great-great grandmother was Shawnee. I have a great-great grandfather who was at least part Cherokee. My paternal great-great great grandfather was a Creek half-breed, who's father was a Virginia plantation owner, and who's mother was a Creek slave woman.

Getting back to a simpler diet would appear to be good for us. Cut out the sugar, the refined flour, and all things in boxes and packages.

Tags: Vegetarianism, and Native American heritage

My Screenplay - Mad Money Just a Sample

2007-01-19T23:29:00.000-08:00

MAD MONEY

A Screenplay

Jana Lynn Shellman

EXT. GROCERY STORE PARKING LOT

It is near noon on a bright and sunny May day in the midwest. Carole Joseph, a housewife dressed in jeans and a man's white dress shirt pulls into the parking lot of a grocery store. She's driving a 10-year old battered van. It rattles and coughs as she slows. She finds a parking place near the entrance, and parks. She gets out of the van, and walks briskly toward the door. Suddenly she stumbles although there doesn't appear to be anything in her way. She looks down and sees a bright shiny penny. She picks it up.

CAROLE:

Lucky Penny, I found you. Make my every wish come true. I wish I had a million dollars.

Startled by the sound of tinkling bells, Carole whirls around. She sees nothing. She looks to see if anyone has seen her strange behavior. The bells tinkle again. Carole gathers up the tails of her shirt and ties them together in a knot at her waist, looks around again, pats her hair and walks smartly into the grocery store.

INT. GROCERY STORE.

Carole is at the check-out counter. The cashier has just rung up the last of her groceries and announces the total. Carole has her checkbook out, a pen poised over the check waiting.

CASHIER:

That'll be $15.96.

CAROLE:

Oh, give me a quick pick lottery ticket for the next month's drawings.

The cashier turns to the lottery computer, punches in the numbers and waits as the ticket shoots out. She hands it to Carole.

CASHIER:

That'll be $19.96.

Carole finishes filling out her check and hands it to the cashier.

EXT. TWO LANE COUNTRY ROAD - EARLY AFTERNOON

It is about 2:30 P.M. on the same May afternoon. The same van we've seen before being driven by Carole is travelling down a paved country road when suddenly a tire blows. A hub cap falls off and rattles into the weeds as the van slows to a halt in front of an old abandoned barn. The van is being driven by Carole and seems to overflow with little boys in blue uniforms.

The barn is an old bank barn. It is surrounded by a wheat field on three sides. In the middle of the field there are several hickory trees, Springtime bird sounds are heard. A crow caws nearby.

The weathered siding has fallen off the barn, the roof has large gaps where the shingles have blown away. The large sliding door leading to the top of the barn is hanging halfway off its track.

A lone tree grows right next to the barn bank. It leans out toward the sun.

CAROLE JOSEPH, dressed in blue jeans and a torn sweat shirt, her sons, BOBBY, age two wearing a play suit, ANDY, age 9, and JIMMIE age 8, as well as JAMIE BROWN, age 9, and five other CUB SCOUTS all dressed in blue Cub Scout uniforms with yellow "wolf" scarves and blue wolf caps, tumble out of the van and take off running across a small wooden bridge, up the hill and past the barn to explore.

Carole leans over and unbuckles Bobby, and pulls him out the driver's side with her. She walks back and picks up the hub cap, scoops up some pebbles from the side of the road and puts them in the hub cap and then takes Bobby across the small ditch alongside the road, sits him down with the hub cap and pebbles and shows him the lovely noise the stones make in the hub cap. Bobby begins making his own music.

Carole leaps back across the small ditch and goes to the rear of the van and removes the spare tire. It is completely bald, and low on air itself. She pulls the jack from the van and goes around to the rear of the vehicle.

Behind her one can see golden straw inside the top floor of the barn. The Cub Scouts, including Jimmie, Andy, and Jamie Brown take off in all directions YELLING and JABBERING.

CAROLE:

You guys stay in sight. Don't destroy anything or I'll hang you up by your toe nails for two weeks.

Carole looks back at the flat tire and sighs.

CAROLE:

I wish I had some money. It'd be nice to be prepared for this sort of thing.

Carole remembers the penny in her pocket and pulls it out. She looks up at the sky and sighs.

CAROLE:

Thank you God, but I meant a large-size financial miracle. Not just a penny. Oh, well.

She looks at the penny again, then puts it back in her pocket. She pats her pocket, closes her eyes and repeats her previous wish.

CAROLE:

Lucky Penny, I found you. Make my every wish come true.

As she makes her wish, O.S. can be heard TINKLING OF TINY BELLS, and a golden haze envelopes Carole. Bobby looks over at his mother and grins.

Carole is standing, her face to the sky, both eyes scrunched tightly shut, and a happy smile on her faceas she makes her wish.

CAROLE:

I wish I had a million dollars.

The golden haze fades and Carole opens her eyes and goes back to changing the tire.

Just as she places the jack under the rear bumper, a semi can be seen and heard approaching in the background. The truck pulls to a stop behind the van, and the driver jumps down and approaches. He waves at Bobby on the other side of the ditch.

TOM:

Hi, there. I'm Tom Evans. My friends call me Tommy or Rocky. Rockin' Chair is my handle. Can I help you with that tire?

CAROLE:

It never fails. Can't say as I mind, though. Every time I've ever gotten a flat, I'm sure I'll have to fix it myself and someone comes along to fix it for me.

TOM:

Makes us men feel needed.

CAROLE:

Still, I wonder if I could change it if I had to?

TOM:

Tell you what. You come on over here and help me. Then you can tell your husband you changed it yourself. I'll just give a little nudge if it doesn't come off first thing.

CAROLE:

I'm a widow now for the past two and a half years. But I'll bet Bill's smiling down from heaven to see I've got help again.

Tom places the jack under the bumper, stands behind Carole, standing over her. He places Carole's hand on the jack handle, with his hand over hers, and pumps the vehicle higher. She smiles as the van rises on the jack. Tom keeps his arms around Carole slightly longer than necessary. Carole doesn't make an effort to move either. Finally he steps away from her.

TOM:

It must be hard for you raisin' that little one, without his daddy.

Tom points over to Bobby who is still running the pebbles through his fingers and dropping them into the hub cap, but is eyeing the truck with interest. He scoots a little further down the embankment each time he drops the pebbles into the hub cap.

CAROLE:

Hard isn't exactly the word for it. Bobby is the youngest of eight children. My oldest, Marc is sixteen, then there's Sam, fourteen, Amanda, thirteen, Dolly, ten, Andy, nine, Jimmie, eight, Elizabeth, five, and then Bobby there who just turned two. His dad never saw him before he died.

TOM:

Eight kids? Whew! You do have your hands full.

CAROLE:

The older kids help me out a lot with the younger ones. Bobby was born after his dad's accident.

Just then the Cub Scouts, including Carole's kids come racing around the front of the barn, screaming and hollering.

Carole helps Tom put the spare tire on the wheel, stands up and brushes her hands on her jeans. She holds her hand out to shake Tom's hand, and thank him.

CAROLE:

I really appreciate your stopping to help me. I'm still not sure I could do it by myself, but I do feel a little more confident now than I did before.

Tom takes her hand, and shakes it, and holds it with both hands, a little longer than is usual in a friendly handshake. He looks into her eyes.

TOM:

It was a pleasure. I notice you've got a CB in your van. If you ever need help, just get on Channel 9 and ask for help. Tell them Rocky Rockin Chair is your buddy. You'll have help sooner than you can say "flat tire".

Reluctantly, Tom climbs back into the cab of his truck, stalls a little longer by waving at Bobby, then puts the truck in gear and takes off down the road.

Carole watches him as he disappears, and turns around just in time to see Bobby trying to follow the bigger boys. Carole tears after him, grabs him by the seat of his pants, and drags him up the barn bank. Bobby is wailing and kicking his legs. Carole hugs him and whispers in his ear.

CAROLE:

Our guardian angel sent that man to us, Bobby.

INT. OLD BARN

Carole continues dragging Bobby inside the barn where she plops him down on a soft fluffy pile of straw.

Dusty shafts of sunlight filter through the roof creating a magical atmosphere. The barn is filled with loose straw. There is a large stack piled to the back of the barn.

CAROLE:

Stay here Bobby. Don't move. I have to watch Andy and Jimmie and their friends explore. You're a good boy.

Carole turns her back on Bobby and goes to stand in the doorway trying to count heads.

EXT. BARNYARD

Carole runs down the bank as Cub Scout, Danny Wood and Cub Scout Gail Gregory run around the barn out of sight.

CAROLE:

Boys. Boys. Stay in sight of the barn. If you give me trouble I'll tell your parents you robbed a bank.

CUB SCOUT Jerry Walters is pulling up wheat and throwing it at CUB SCOUT Larry White, CUB SCOUT Phil Alison is rolling down the barn bank into Jamie Brown. Phil gives Jamie a kick.

Jamie begins to scream. Andy runs to take the part of Jamie who is thrashing his legs. Danny Wood, Gail Gregory, Jerry Walters, Phil Alison and Larry White run off screaming their innocence.

Jamie's cap falls off as he picks himself up off the ground with Andy's help. Jamie and Andy run off together, leaving the cap lying on the ground. Carole walks down the hill, picks it up and hangs it on the low branch of the tree growing next to the barn. She walks back up the bank to check on Bobby.

INT. OLD BARN.

CAROLE:

Bobby. (beat) Bobby. Where are you?

Carole whirls in panic. Bobby is nowhere in sight.

Carole SCREAMS

Bobby comes toddling out from behind the stack of straw, clutching a couple dozen twenty dollar bills in his hands. They are dropping onto the floor as he walks.

Carole grabs Bobby and hugs him. With panic in her voice, she questions him.

CAROLE:

Where did you get that?! Show me where you got that. Right now.

Bobby points toward the large pile of straw, and grins.

Sunlight filters down from the holes in the roof above. A glowing shaft of light sparkling with golden chaff dust leads directly to the spot where Bobby is pointing. Tiny bells tinkle O.S.

Carole runs to the spot, picking up bills as she goes.

CAROLE:

Show me where.

Bobby runs behind the stack of straw and starts throwing straw over his head. Carole follows and does the same.

They uncover black garbage bags stuffed full of money. One is open. Twenty dollar bills are tumbling out of it.

Bobby, straw sticking out of his hair, grins. He looks like a cherub with the shaft of sunlight illuminating his hair.

Carole carefully stuffs all of the bills back into the bag and ties it shut. She looks around and then meticulously covers the bags with the straw.

Taking Bobby by the hand Carole calmly walks to the open barn door. There are no Cub Scouts in sight.

Carole reaches into her pocket and pulls out the lucky penny. She looks at it, puts it back into her pocket and smiles. She and Bobby are enveloped in the golden haze and the tiny bells can be heard tinkling again. She picks up Bobby and hugs him and carries him out the door and down the barn bank. The golden haze around them fades away.

EXT. BARNYARD

CAROLE:

Andy, (beat) Jamie (beat) Everybody! Get your little behinds in this car at once.

Andy, Jimmie, Jamie Brown and the rest of the Cub Scouts come running from all directions.

ANDY:

Geez Mom. We were just starting to have fun. Why are you mad?

CAROLE:

Never mind. Just get in the car. We've got to get back to town.

Jimmy, Andy, Jamie Brown, and the Cub Scouts all Grumble and Complain Simultaneously.

INT. VAN

Carole fastens Bobby into his car seat. The rest of the boys reluctantly climb into their seats. Carole climbs in and fastens her seat belt.

She turns and looks back at the barn, puts the vehicle into gear and starts forward.

Suddenly she stops. She turns around in her seat and looks thoughtfully at the old barn. The barn is enveloped in a golden haze.

She puts the vehicle in gear and drives across a small bridge into the barnyard, looks at the barn again, shakes her head and starts to leave.

She pulls out toward the road again, then she stops, puts the gearshift in reverse and backs right up the hill of the bank barn, stopping just short of the door. She unfastens her seat belt, opens her door and jumps out.

EXT. BARNYARD

Carole disappears inside the door and returns moments later carrying a black plastic garbage bag. She throws it on the floor on the passenger side of the front seat. Tiny bells can be heard tinkling and the inside of the vehicle has taken on a golden haze. Bobby looks down at the bag and giggles.

ANDY:

What's in the bag Mom?

Carole replies in her best den mother voice.

CAROLE:

Always leave a place cleaner than when you found it.

INT. KITCHEN LATE AFTERNOON:

Carole's Kitchen. Breakfast clutter still sits on the table. Coffee cups are in the sink.

The cupboard doors are all standing open and boxes of cereal with the tops opened and the wax paper sticking up fill one countertop. Another counter has some cups and a couple of plates and is otherwise empty. On the windowsill above the sink sits a large beer stein, stuffed full of lottery tickets. A lone lottery ticket is tucked under the stein.

A giant opened jar of peanut butter sits on the cupboard, a butter knife has been left in it. A loaf of bread lies on the cupboard, open with slices spilling out of it. A large jar of jelly is lying on its side, open, with jelly running out onto the counter.

The dishwasher door stands open, the tray pulled out. A towel is draped over the door of the dishwasher.

Children's school books are on the kitchen table. The table is nearly against the wall. Eight chairs and a high chair are squeezed around the large table, which has two extensions in it. A Cub Scout cap lies on the floor under the table.

Eighteen large black garbage bags are stacked near the door. Carole still wearing jeans and a sweatshirt, and her friend Kathy, dressed in a cotton dress with a sweater tied around her shoulders, enter with two more bags.

Kathy pushes back her hair and straightens her sweater.

KATHY:

Where are we going to hide this stuff?

Carole looks at the clock over the refrigerator.

CAROLE:

Oh no! The boys will be home from football practice any minute.

Her oldest son, Marc, hurls himself against the kitchen door, sending it flying against the wall.

MARC:

God Mom. What's all this stuff on the floor?

Tags: Mad Money the Movie

Reading the Old Stuff

2007-01-19T17:51:00.000-08:00

If you get to the end of these entries and want to read more, you should click on "archives"...then to read even older ones, you click on "previous month" and you eventually can read them all if you like.

I'm going to ask for a prayer for me. You know my theory is that when everyone wishes for the same thing it almost always comes true. I'm wishing for (1) a sale of my books and or screenplays, and/or (2) a job for me, at least part-time. If all of my friends will please envision me as prosperous it would go a long way toward helping me out! Love and kisses. Jana

Time Flies

2007-01-18T07:57:00.000-08:00

It's an old saying that the older you get the faster time goes by. It also appears to be true that having children (and then grandchildren) brings that reality close to the surface!

At Christmas I sent cell phone pictures of our family Christmas party to my son, who was in California celebrating Christmas with his father who hadn't seen my side of the family for about eighteen years. Zach text messaged back to me "send more pics", because his father wanted to see all of the kids, who now have big kids of their own! It is sort of amazing to think about all that time that's flown by in the past eighteen years.

I was married to Zach's dad for 16 years, if you count the two years we were separated before the final decree came through. It's been 18 years since he moved away and quit participating in our family events.

Its sort of amazing how your perceptions change over the years. My perception of relationships is that one should always remain "friends" unless the other person in the relationship was just plain evil. I hold no animosity for Zach's father, nor for hardly any other person with whom I've been involved over the past. There are some people I'd really rather not have back in my life because they were utlimately losers. Others were people who lacked a spirit of optimism. But I have a universal sort of love for all people, and look upon nearly all others as friends. That is, except for a couple of people who were just evil incarnate, and I don't hate them, I just stay as far away as possible from them! I don't have any animosity for them, believing as I do they will ultimately cause their own downfall. I don't ever believe in "getting even" with anyone for anything. My mother taught me long ago that God arranges for the revenge, and He will ultimately allow you to witness the downfall of the evil ones.

An instance I recall particularly is the man who sold us our pony. She had been foundered, which for non-farmers means she had eaten too much grain and gotten sick. It caused her to have problems throughout her life, one of which was that her hooves grew out enormously and had to be trimmed quite often. It caused her to walk funny. Another of her problems was that she had a strange growth in her mane, and her neck was very heavy and her mane fell over funny. My dad had traded a couple of pigs for the pony. I asked my mom why we didn't "do something about the man's cheating us." She said "God will get him." And He did. It took quite a while for it to happen. When the man sold us the pony he was a very handsome young man. By the time God got him however, his appearance had changed drastically...he was old, bald and toothless. And in jail. He was arrested for mistreatment of animals. His farm had been raided and all of his animals confiscated. Among them were bunches of ponies that had been badly treated. It was on the front page of the newspaper. He was standing there with his pot-belly hanging out, hands behind him in cuffs, surrounded by ponies and cops....the sun shining off his bald head, and he had a toothless, sheepish grin on his face. God surely got him!

Some people call that Karma. I leave that to God to take care of. A lot of people have told lies about me. A lot of people have done things to me that were unfair. I've never taken revenge against them, because I know, ultimately, God will get them. It's a sure thing. I just go along living as gentile and quiet a life as I can manage, knowing the scales will ultimately be balanced. I am content with that.

Tags: karma, karma strikes faster these days

Which Came First the Chicken or the Mouse

2007-01-13T13:53:00.000-08:00

Well, if the mouse dies how do you install a new mouse? With the keyboard. But I don't know all of the keyboard tricks to get around. So I had to go buy a new mouse and I got an optical mouse that has special software that goes with it. But if you don't have a cursor that works how do you install it? I finally used the keyboard arrows and got it to install, but then it came up in Italian! If I'd had a mouse I could have simply scrolled up to English and clicked on it, but nothing I did would make it move. So I read the Italian, and figured out one said Next and one said Cancel. I clicked on the next using my arrow keys and the enter key. It began to install. I finally got it in, and then it automatically shut the computer down and started it back up again. And it still didn't work. So I disconnected it from the mouse port and took off the cheater and plugged it into the USB port and the computer recognized it! Then I figured out how to turn the computer off without the mouse again, and it restarted and Voila! The mouse works!

The moral to the story is: Number 1: When the mouse begins to stagger around the room as if he's dying, run out and buy a new mouse while the old mouse is still breathing so that you can at least get the old mouse to install the new mouse! Number 2: Throw away all of the old meese in your house! I must have tried three or four of them, and none of them would work. There's usually a reason the old mouse is lying around the house unattached to a computer! Throw things away when they don't work!

This new mouse doesn't have a roller ball. It's an optical mouse, and it has a little eye on the bottom that sees whatever its sitting on and determines which way it is going. You don't have to say Gee or Haw or Whoah or Giddyup or anything! It's sort of like a horse that knows the way home! Oh wow. Now I'm really dating myself!

Left Behind Christmas Things

2007-01-11T16:22:00.000-08:00

It happens every single year. You go around the house, making sure you've gotten all of the Christmas stuff and put it away, and after everything is packed up you find something that didn't make it! This year there was so much I'm going to have to make another trip to the attic! Usually it's some tiny thing that I just put into my curio cabinet until next year. This year it was all of the window lights and decorations. I had unplugged them on New Year's Day and completely forgotten to take them out of the window. So all of the candelabra and snowmen and angels that lit the windows are now assembled in a plastic bag waiting to go into the attic. As I was doing that I was assembling some more thoughts about Christmas presents. At some point in the last couple of weeks I've been mulling over the expression "it's the thought that counts", and I've decided if there's no thought given to the character and wishes of the person for whom you are giving a gift, you ought not to give them anything.

Even though there have been years when I was having "a case of the shorts" as an old high school friend used to call it, I've always managed to, at the very least, make something for everyone on my list. When I make those things for people, I think particularly about the person I'm making it for as I make it. I might not have spent tons of money on what I made, but I put a lot of love and heart into it. In many cases I've spent many, many hours making presents for people. I've decided it is the thought that counts, and I'm going to be thinking a lot harder about it from now on, no matter my economic condition at the time.

Merry Christmas...and that's the last time I say it for another 11 months and 15 days. Love and kisses. Jana

Instructions for Reading the Archives & Previous Months Entries

2007-01-10T14:14:00.000-08:00

All of the Christmas stuff is stored away in the attic for another year. Now I have to get busy with other things. Back to writing on the novel, Kekionga, and other things.

I think I'll bake some oatmeal cookies with walnuts and dates in them. Love and kisses. Jana