07 July 2007

Fireworks kill. A lot.

My mom told me she had heard a horrible news story about a child who had lost most of her face in a fireworks accident, so I decided to google it. I never found that story, but what I did find left me feeling sick and dizzy.

I always read these cold statistics like "10,500 people were injured by fireworks in the U.S. this year" and it is easy for me not to really think about the human damage. But when I started reading the individual stories about toddlers and babies and children and moms and dads, my heart started to squeeze up in my chest.

I think the one that got me most was the mischevious 4-year-old boy with the firecrackers...those of you who have smart, active boys know how they can get into absolutely everything in the blink of an eye.

The results of my news search are collected over at Linkateria.

Please go over and take a look, especially if you or your family are planning on shooting off fireworks at home next year. It is really scary.

04 July 2007

Someone come get me, please

It is like a war zone in my neighborhood. The Normandy landing or something. Goodness gracious - my neighbors are firing off MAJOR fireworks right over my house. People on all sides are shooting them off and there are literally dozens of loud booms every minute.

I am with Jonniker on fireworks. Have never liked them; never will. The big professional ones are at best mildly amusing to me, fine if I am going out with family or something.

The small dangerous personal kinds being handled by people who have been drinking all day in the sun bring me to the verge of a nervous breakdown. And now that I have The World's Most Sensitive Dog to be angry on behalf of, well I am just the bitchy spinster who keeps looking out the door with a cranky expression on her nasty face.

Happy Independence Day

This video by Keith Olbermann on the state of the Presidency made me break down in sobs. I can't help it: I'm patriotic.



And if you don't understand the Scooter Libby story, I Am Bossy breaks it down for you in about 5 easy, hilarious paragraphs, along with photos (including one of Pamela Anderson's chestular area). Go, Bossy, go.

03 July 2007

Finally!

I mentioned a while back that Stephanie Wilder-Taylor of Baby on Bored and Sippy Cups are Not For Chardonnay was keeping a secret.

Today, she spilled. Twins!! Tee hee.

Congratulations to Stephanie and her husband.

(She claims to be 40 but do not let her lie to you like that. She is 27, tops. I have seen her in person.)

02 July 2007

Judgement and ridicule

I read a comment on a friend's blog a while back that irked the hell out of me, so I wrote a post about it. I didn't attack the commenter or mention her personally, other than to call her opinion "shit."

In return, she commented back:
"I should like to hope we are able to form our own opinions and be able to share them without ridicule or judgment."

(I have removed her comment so that no one can track her down, because this isn't personal.)

But I have major issues with someone who comments on my blog and then asks me not to judge them.

I think the idea that we shouldn't judge is one of the top mush-brained concepts of recent history, right up there with "unconditional love." We have these big, complex, capable brains for a reason, don't we?

Here is the deal: I'll try not to judge you for the way you look, where you are from, what you do for a living, your race, color or religion. But dang me, I will judge you for 2 things: your action and your opinions, because they are a result of free will and therefore define who you are.

If you have stupid opinions and dare to state them in public, expect to be challenged.

If you are going to express your opinions publicly, I expect the following:
That you will think before expressing them.
That you will be able to back up your opinions with facts.
That you can explain your reasoning in a clear and cogent way.
That you will expect to be questioned and will be willing to respond to queries in a civil fashion.
That you will admit when you might be wrong if you can't do the above.

There are any bloggers with whom I have had disagreements large and small. Mothergoosemouse is an atheist Republican, for goodness' sake (Still, Julie??) and yet we somehow manage to engage in meaningful discourse without any animosity.

Do I judge Mothergoosemouse? Yes. I judge her to be intelligent and thoughtful. We may disagree on certain points, but I can see how she arrives at her opinions, and I can't fault her thought process.

On the other hand, when I read ridiculous opinions that are based on nothing but some random thoughts and feelings floating through someone's head, I will judge and I will challenge. That's just the way it goes around here. Consider yourself forewarned.

01 July 2007

Houston, we have a problem

Can someone please 'splain to me what makes guys love fireworks so much? I am not trying to be sexist, but it does seem that the whole fuegos artificiales phenom is largely a male-based cult. Am I right?

Most women couldn't care less about blowing things up. Oh, sure, we will go see the fireworks display on the fourth of July or at Disneyland, but we don't go looking for M-80s to set off. That's a boy thing. Why?

My next question is: Can someone make them stop?

We are in the thick of it here. I don't mind so much, but it turns my 70-pound mutt into a pile of quivering dogflesh, and there is no comforting her. She leans against my leg, no matter where my leg may be (bed, bathroom, laundry room). She quivers. She pants.

And worse yet, she won't go outside. Not to chase cats, not to bark at the mailman, not even to pee.

She is a good dog. She won't pee in the house, either. Do you know how much it pains me to see my dog go without relieving herself for up to 10 hours? I don't know what to do, either. What are my options? Move somewhere there are no idjits with fireworks? Catheterize her? WHAT?

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