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Greetings, Quotaholics:
I am married to my starter husband. We were married on April 27 way back
in 1973. If my math is any good, that means this past spring, we made
it to year 36. This is nice since our kids are 34 and 30.
My son married the mother of his children last summer. They are soon coming
up on their first wedding anniversary. Their eldest child is six, the
middle kid is four, and the baby is turning three on Friday. They have
been together for a while.
My
other son and his girlfriend have a new baby who is a month old today.
She is sweet and precious and darling. They aren’t talking marriage.
My parents and
in-laws remained married "until death do them parted." My husband’s
sister and his brother are both married to their starter husbands. My
own sisters are both divorced; one remarried. In fact, my one sister remarried
her ex-husband and divorced him twice before finding a "keeper."
They have been married for over 25 years.
The
BBC reported
on a study done out of Chicago. According to this study with 8,652 subjects
aged 51 to 61, divorced people are doomed. Well, it wasn’t quite that
bad, but they have permanent health deficits which the authors of the
study say resulted by ending their marriages.
It
wasn’t just divorced people, but widows and widowers were also less healthy
than either married people or always single people. The people who have
survived divorce have a 20% greater chance of having a chronic illness
than those who have always been single.
If
you are lucky enough to remarry, you get a better rating and you are only
12% more likely to be unhealthy. The study looked at chronic illnesses
such as cancer or diabetes. Dr. Linda Waite, a sociologist at the University
of Chicago claimed divorce and widowhood cause deleterious health issue
because income drops and stress develops over myriad issues, paramount
is child care.
Remarriage
improves health because it usually improves the financial status of women
and improves healthy lifestyle choices for men. Depression from a death
or divorce is lessened when one remarries.
However,
since heart disease and diabetes develop slowly over time, a new marriage
doesn’t seem to have as much of a health impact for the chronic diseases.
I
don’t know if it is the reporting or the actual study, but I don’t see
any figures related to the length of the marriage that ended, whether
or not there are children involved, and if the "always single"
people were in long-standing relationships that resulted in children.
What is also not addressed is the length of turmoil prior to filing for
divorce.
The authors of the study seem to think learning better ways to cope with
an existing marriage will lead to healthier middle aged and older adults.
And if your marriage falls apart, learning the whys and wherefores will
help you pick a better spouse the second time.
The
people who stayed married were as healthy as those who never married.
Have
you ever been divorced or lost a spouse to death? Did your health suffer?
Have you since remarried and is your health improved? Does it matter if
it was one of the "starter marriages" that lasted only a couple
years and no children were born? Does the length of time you fight with
a spouse prior to divorce cause more problems than the actual divorce?
Does a spouse with a lingering and destructive illness cause more turmoil
than one who dies suddenly?
Do
you think remaining single would have made you happier, healthier, wiser?
Or if you married, if you had stayed married, would you be a better person
physically as well as emotionally?
Blissfully,
Comment
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“Habit is habit and not to be flung out of the window by any man, but
coaxed downstairs a step at a time.” - Mark Twain
“Reputation is what other people know about you. Honor is what you know
about yourself.” - Lois McMaster Bujold
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The Bribe
[Thanks
Bonnie]
Taking his seat
in his chambers, the judge faced the opposing lawyers.
“So,” he said, “I have been presented, by both of you, with a bribe.”
Both lawyers squirmed uncomfortably.
“You, attorney Leon, gave me $15,000. And you, attorney Campos, gave
me $10,000.”
The judge reached into his pocket and pulled out a check. He handed
it to Leon. “Now then, I’m returning $5,000 to you, and we’re going
to decide this case solely on its merits!”
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“But I always think that the best way to know God is to love many things.”
“Conscience is a man’s compass.”
“Happiness… it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative
effort.” - all from Vincent Van Gogh who died on this day in 1890
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Speak
right up!
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Moths
In addition to butterflies, moths seem quite plentiful around here.
I don’t know why, but moths seem to be better aviators than butterflies.
They look similar, but moths just seem to be able to use the air better
than butterflies.
We see all sorts and sizes of moths in the evenings when our exterior
lights are on. I have yet to figure out what it is about a light that
attracts them, and I’m not sure science has done so either, but it is
quite true. A bright light will attract quite a few different varieties
of moths. Some are quite small, and others are larger than the butterflies
that we get around here.
 
It isn’t only after dark that moths appear. Some of the larger species
will venture out in broad daylight.
Luna moths are an occasional visitor to our home. They aren’t as abundant
as they once were, but they do occasionally appear. Of course, the most
abundant are common varieties of moths. As small as the common housefly,
to approximately the size of your palm, all sorts of moths proliferate
in my area (Midwest USA). However, the most odd moth we have viewed
in our garden was a Hummingbird
Moth.
While out viewing our garden, I witnessed what I thought was a hummingbird
feeding on the flowers. It hovered over the flowers like a hummingbird.
It had a very fast wing beat like a hummingbird. It was able to flit
quickly from flower to flower like a hummingbird. I approached it and
it seemed unfazed by me being close. I was even able to reach out as
it was feeding and take it into my hand. I examined it closely as I
had never caught a hummingbird before. But something was different.
It was unrolling a tubular proboscis like a butterfly or moth. Of course
I wished it no harm & let it go. It wasn’t until later after a web
search that I learned what it was.
It simply amazes me the wide range of sizes, colors, and shapes one
genus may contain. It seems, if you can imagine it, there is already
one or more like it flitting around.
Here’s your quiz:
Do you see moths in daylight?
Do you keep a outside light on that seems to attract moths more than
others? What color is it?
What is the oddest looking moth you’ve seen?
Have you seen mothballs? If so….No, I won’t do that joke!
Moths - It’s Not Always A Flame That Attracts Them, Just Look At Your
Wool Sweater
Cliff (the High-Tech
Redneck who doesn’t rate a fancy ’signature pic’) 
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Email Kirsten
“Sometimes,
when I drive across the desert in the middle of the night, with no
other cars around, I start imagining: What if there were no civilization
out there? No cities, no factories, no people? And then I think: No
people or factories? Then who made this car? And this highway? And
I get so confused I have to stick my head out the window into the
driving rain—unless there’s lightning, because I could get struck
on the head by a bolt.”
~ Jack Handy ~
I woke up on Sunday morning with high hopes. I had a nine-mile run
scheduled, and I was very excited about it. I had mapped out a course,
and I was feeling strong after a particularly good run the previous
day. Now, I realize that running for an hour and a half is not the
kind of activity a lot of people typically look forward to, but I
had good reason to be optimistic. I am a distance runner at heart.
I find the long runs a lot more enjoyable than the short runs – they
give me time to settle into a rhythm and listen to good music on my
iPod while feeling at one with the world around me. More importantly,
a long run gives the endorphins time to really kick in and generate
the mother of all natural highs. And besides, I am aiming for a half-marathon
distance of 13 miles, and everyone knows that if you can run nine
miles, you can run thirteen.
The weather was perfect too. OK, not perfect if you wanted to put
on a bikini and head to the beach for the day. But perfect if you
wanted to go for a long run without wilting in the sweltering heat
like a lettuce leaf that has been left out on the kitchen counter
for too long. It was cool and cloudy on Sunday morning, with a few
spats of light drizzle here and there. So I put on my running togs,
mixed up my energy drink, hooked up my iPod and headed out into the
light rain. Now, running in the rain has never bothered me unduly.
It’s only water, after all, and in the midst of strenuous exercise
it can be very refreshing.
One mile on, I was feeling good. The rain was getting a little heavier,
but not alarmingly so. It was still great weather for running, and
I didn’t think I would have any problem with the remaining eight miles.
The second mile went well too, and I confidently started the long
undulating climb to the three-mile mark. About halfway up the first
hill, when I was just past the two-mile mark, I saw a flash of lightning
in the distance and heard the accompanying rumble of thunder. I didn’t
think too much of it – it seemed far enough away to not be a problem.
A couple of minutes later, though, the sky around me gently pulsed
with light and the thunder was a lot louder.
Something tells me it’s not safe to run in a highly treed area while
Mother Nature is putting on a pyrotechnics display all around you.
I stopped running and looked around. There was nowhere to take shelter.
I looked around again. There was still nowhere to take shelter. I
walked a few steps, spun around in a circle, and looked around again.
And yes, you guessed it, no form of shelter had magically sprung up
in the previous fifteen seconds. Resigning myself to the abandonment
of my run, I started trudging disconsolately up the hill, knowing
there was bound to be some shelter somewhere up ahead. Then I figured
that I could continue running until I got to shelter, since that would
get me there faster than walking. By now the lightning was starting
to freak me out, so I legged it up that hill as fast as my legs would
take me. It took me about two minutes to get to the next bus shelter,
and I hunkered down there for a few minutes, watching the storm. When
I thought the lightning had passed, I ventured out of the shelter
and continued on my way, only to yelp in fright when some lightning
cracked scarily close to where I was. At that moment, the heavens
opened, and well and truly drenched me.
I probably broke the land speed record getting to the gas station
about a hundred metres further on. I took out my cell phone, intending
to put in a rescue call to my husband, and cursed when I saw that
I had forgotten to charge the stupid thing again. So I went into the
building and asked the gentle-faced Indian man there if I could borrow
his phone. He looked at me very weirdly, and I could understand why.
There I was, in shorts and a running top that exposed my midriff,
with nothing but a dead cell phone, an iPod and some water, so drenched
that I may as well have been in a swimming pool, coming in from a
ferocious storm. I must have been a bizarre sight in the circumstances.
I called my husband, he came and got me, and we went back home.
On Monday, I decided to try again. Knowing that I wouldn’t have time
to run in the evening, I got up at five in the morning to run nine
miles before work. I was practically still sleeping while I put on
my running togs and headed out the door. Unfortunately, conditions
were not as good as they had been when I had set out the previous
day. It was not cool – it was muggy and humid following Sunday’s storm.
I was not feeling strong. I was feeling stiff from running up a steep
hill during a thunderstorm. I was feeling apprehensive about the time.
And at five in the morning, it was still dark. I could not believe
I was doing this. Then again, I am a runner, and dedicated runners
will go to all sorts of lengths to get their endorphin high.
So off I went. After the first mile, I didn’t feel too bad. After
the second mile, I knew I was in trouble. And after the third mile,
reality set in. Although I hadn’t got in my nine miles on Sunday,
I had done a fair amount of sprinting as I tried to run from the lightning,
and I had exhausted myself. Besides, running nine miles before work
when you also have to get home, take a shower and get dressed, and
rouse two sleepy kids and get them dressed and off to daycare isn’t
a viable prospect. So I cut my losses and turned around. I was OK
with that, really. I still got in a six-mile run. The elusive nine
miles will have to wait until the weekend.
I’m not too sure what I learned from all this, except that I should
probably check the weather before planning my runs in future. And
that if there is any chance of a lightning storm while I’m out running,
I should take my camera with me. The views of the lightning from the
bus shelter were pretty spectacular.
Maybe I should start a reality TV show about running in dangerous
conditions. And on the next episode: how to run ten miles when you
have a pack of angry pitbulls chasing you…
Kaleidoscopically yours,
Kirsten
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Are you green? I don’t mean the color green, I mean do you try to
conserve natural resources? Do you recycle paper, drive a car that
gets good gas mileage, use solar power, things like that? The reason
I ask is because the College is moving in that direction. We just
built a building that we’re trying to get classified as “green”, and
yesterday I learned that we were now part of some conservation group
and they were going to test how much electricity we use.
Well, actually, they wanted to see how much electricity we could
save by turning off unneeded lights for an hour. We were asked to
lower the speeds on our fans if it was still comfortable. If you don’t
use your calculator, turn it off. That kind of thing. We were still
supposed to work normally, but while using as little electricity as
possible. A noble cause, I would say, and things went pretty well.
Almost.
You see, the director of maintenance was in our building, not his.
He was checking our energy usage, not his. He saw some breakers in
the print shop and turned them off. He figured, “If someone needs
them, we’ll hear about it in about an hour.” It took me about 30 seconds
to get there. One of those breakers fed electricity to my computer.
The report I had been working on all morning was gone. The instructor
that we flew in at great expense to train some of our staff was looking
at a dark screen, and wasn’t particularly happy. Neither were the
women getting trained.
But wait, there’s more. My boss checked our server room. In our server
room there is a whole rack of network equipment. That equipment feeds
the building I work in. It also feeds our new building. It feeds our
student center building (including food service), it feeds the building
admissions is in, and it feeds our theater. It feeds the student apartments,
the nuns that started the school in the first place, and pretty much
anyone that was doing anything on a computer at that time. We do have
battery backup on that rack, so we had a few moments to convince this
idiot that he should turn them on before all electronic communication
on our paperless campus ceased.
The report I have to fill out will take reams of paper (I’ll make
sure of it.). Kinda defeats the purpose, doesn’t it?
Tim a’Musing
Having a Ball with Conservation
Comment
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Deep-Frying Tips
Use canola oil for frying. It is low in saturated fat, has a high
burning point, and does not detract from the flavor of the food you
are frying.
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We’ve got a new poet among us. Welcome Rebecca!
Just curious Bonnie, where do you hang out (no pun intended) for the
summer??
Next opening line…
Our poets are really first rate…
Hints:
Here’s a great new rhyming/composition tool. http://www.writerhymes.com/
There’s also a great rhyming dictionary at http://www.rhymezone.com/
Limerick rules. http://freespace.virgin.net/merrick.sheldon/limerickrules.htm
Submit
Opening Line
Submit
Limerick
This
summer has really been hot
But I wonder what else we had thought?
Every year it’s the same
We sweat and complain
And next year it’ll seem we forgot. - Rebecca in Arizona
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This
summer has really been hot
We stayed indoors more often than not
Not much can be played
When it’s 115 in the shade
We’ll give movies and board games a shot. -Rebecca in Arizona |
This summer
has really been hot—
a cool breeze I just haven’t got—
the a/c ain’t running
and I am not "funning",
I think I’ll like down on a cot. - Cassandra in New York |
This summer
has really been hot
Temperatures of 100 more often than not
So I took off my clothes
Then I started to pose
In the fountain, that’s a cool spot. - Bonnie |
This summer
has really been hot
So this cool ideal I’ve got
At the pond we should strip
And then we skinny dip
But be careful as not to get caught! - Anne Onimous |
This summer
has really been hot
But there sits the Queen in her ascot
How does she keep her cool
While I sweat like a mule?
A tall ice cold mint julep she bought. - Anne Onimous |
This summer
has really been hot
So we’ll hike into the wooded lot
Where under a tall tree
We sit - just you and me
And become a mosquito feedlot. - E. Cole Aye |
This summer
has really been hot
I hear people say that a lot
But each year at this time
The mercury does climb
And every winter it does not. - E. Cole Aye |
This summer
has really been hot
That’s what Al Gore says a lot.
But the fact is that fool
Can’t see this year’s been cool
Someone needs to silence that crackpot. - E. Cole Aye |
This summer
has really been hot
So to the sea I’ll go in my yacht
With several young honeys
Wearing small bikinis. . .
What I’ve described is reality - not! - E. Cole Aye |
This summer
has been really hot…….
But tanned I got….Not!!!!
Spent little time outdoors…..
Even mopped the floors……….
And watched TV a lot. - Skeeter |
This summer
has been really hot……..
For the guy on the corner selling pot..
He got caught, aren’t you glad….
He’s finally been had………
Now he’s in a very tight spot. - Skeeter |
This summer
has been really hot……
For the town drunk…..the sot……
His tail’s been draggin’………
Since he fell off the wagon…..
And started back drinking a lot. - Skeeter |
This summer
has been really hot…….
I look for a good shady spot…….
Where I like to be………
When I drink my iced tea…..
Though it makes me pee a lot. - Skeeter |
This summer
has been really hot………
Some folks like it not…….
They love winter, you see……..
But that’s not for me…….
You must stay indoors a lot. - Skeeter |
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Re: Patriotism
There should always be one body in motion during the national anthem
in the Land of the Free, just to honor individuality and choice.
Here’s
another very silly story. My friend Dan was more into rock music than
TV sports, so he was only familiar with "The Star Spangled Banner"
from the end of the Woodstock album, where Jimi Hendrix has so much
fun jamming for the sound effects to go with "the Rocket’s Red
Glare." A few years after the album came out, he happened to be
in Alaska, and his hosts took him to a baseball game there. When the
anthem came on, he inquired why they were playing Jimi Hendrix’s song.
. . Bob of the North
[That’s
too funny Bob. It reminds me of the old joke about Jose who came
from Mexico to see the World Series. There were no seats left,
but when they found out how far he had come they put a chair on top
of the flag pole. When he went home he told everyone how nice
Americans were. "Before every game they all stood and sang,
(ready for it?) Jose can you see?"
OK, OK. I never said it was a good old joke! I’ll go back
to my room now.]
I do not think it is right
to force our opinions on anyone. I mean, isn’t living in America supposed
to mean we’re free to believe any way we choose? If the man needed or
wanted to go to the bath room during God Bless America or any other
song, it should’ve been his choice. Sounds like to me, the cop wanted
to make a name for himself. That’s just it in a nut shell.- Signed,
The Tennessee Tazz
So who owns the Stadium? If the people who own it require certain behaviors
when you are in their building, does it matter that you aren’t exactly
a guest when you’ve paid them to be allowed in it? "God Bless America"
became a New York Symbol after 9/11. The guy should have been glad they
didn’t sing "America the Beautiful" - it’s a much longer song.
- Nancy L in Ohio
believe me i have respect
for God than i do for some material which when you get through is what
our flag is.When the right time comes all else will too. - dEE
Patriotism is not something that can be forced. Our founding
as a nation should be ample testimony of that. Also, patriotism is not
support of the government, (so it can’t be earned in that way), but
of the population and foundation of the country. If a government goes
awry from its stated purpose in law, it must not expect to have the
unwavering support of the people. I wouldn’t be upset about standing
for God Bless America (and I’ve never SEEN “Ugly Betty”), but
I come from a generation where you acted in such and such a way because
that’s the way you HAD to in order to behave properly.
That
said, this country is in severe deficit of decorum. If an announcer
were to say, “We will now have the singing of God Bless America,
so if you are a irreligious DICK feel free to take a crap or whiz, otherwise
SIT YOUR ASS DOWN AND BE REVERENT!” Nobody seems to be concerned about
manners anymore, it appears people aren’t taught poise and etiquette
in any degree. Be that as it may, this guy paid for his ticket and I
think it’s bad form to chuck him out in a country where we are afforded
rights that include NOT participating in some type of observance. Maybe
the stadium could have a disclaimer that anyone who behaves in a certain
manner will not be allowed entrance or be ejected. - Bruce in Colorado
Re: Cliff and Poison 2
If I had to learn foraging
without a coach, I’d watch the birds, and eat only a little bit of each
new food, to see if it stayed down, and I stayed up. Things are not
always as they seem. Stinging nettle can be quite unpleasant on the
skin, but cooked or as a tea, the leaves cured my hay fever. It takes
five days to start working, but after seven, I knew I’d never use another
antihistamine. - Bob of the North
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Disclaimer- All quotes printed in this publication are believed to be
accurately attributed, but no guarantees are made that some incorrectly
attributed, or even outright false quotes won’t get in here from time
to time. I assure readers that I will do my best to weed out incorrect
quotes, and will print a retraction as soon as I become aware of any errors.
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