"White House Sends Chanukah Card With Christmas Tree On It"

Brett may not care, and I don't really "care" and think it is actually pretty funny but I care because it just shows a lack of attention to anything not Christmas. It was the fault of whoever put the art on the work order and did Laura Bush have final approval?

Why is the White House so decorated for Christmas and then we have the token Chanukah party and the little menorah behind the tree? Brett says well they didn't put a picture of baby Jesus. Actually I think baby Jesus has more to do with Christmas than a Christmas tree :-).

We go through this every year. This year, the UNC libraries decided to keep the Christmas Trees packed. I agree with this decision. I wish the REX Wellness Center in Raleigh would do the same. They don't even make an attempt to put out a token Menorah. I like that they collect toys for tots gifts but they could loose the tree.

Posted by Brett Singer

The Bush family really can't win these days.

Not only is the sitting President receiving blame for Republican losses on Election Day, but first lady Laura is getting flak for a farkakteh (pronounced "fuh-kahk-tuh") Chanukah card that had a picture of a Christmas tree on it.

While its fun to make fun of this kind of thing, I have to admit that I don't really care. It certainly is a mistake and shows certain cluelessness on the part of the First Lady's staff, or at least a lack of organizing skills (shouldn't someone have looked at the card first?). But this isn't exactly Hunter Gibson (Mel's dad) denying that the Holocaust actually happened. Also, the card didn't have a picture of the Baby Jesus on it. It was just a tree. (For the record, apologies were quickly offered. Faces, already covered with egg, were red. Feet were in mouths.)

So was it a bit dense for the White House to send a Chanukah card that didn't have a Chanukah image on it? Sure. But is it really that offensive? I don't think so. I'm Jewish, and I happen to like Christmas trees. That's a topic for another post, but for now, I'm not ready to add CardGate to the list of Bush Administration screw-ups.

Source: NY Post via HuffPo

White House apologizes for Hanukkah cards

WASHINGTON, Nov 27, 2008 (UPI via COMTEX) -- A Bush administration spokeswoman said the invitations to this year's White House Hanukkah reception bore images of Christmas trees due to a "staff mistake."

Press Secretary Sally McDonough said staff members erred in failing to print separate cards for invitations to the different holiday events at the White House, CNN reported Thursday.

The cards, which were sent to U.S. Jewish leaders, are emblazoned with an image of the White House Christmas tree being pulled by a horse-drawn cart with a Christmas wreath tacked on to the White House in the background.

"Mrs. Bush is apologetic, It is just something that fell through the cracks," McDonough said.

She said the intended Hanukkah invitations, which bear the image of a menorah given to the White House during the Harry Truman administration, would be sent out Thursday.

URL: www.upi.com

It is a new day! Let us hope that our new leaders will really lead us and find a way to do what is right. NC is looking Carolina Bluer today and so is New Hampshire. Kay Hagan defeated Dole by a landslide. Kay said that her son went to Duke and her daughter went to Carolina so she knows how to mediate across the aisles... she also said that is was nice that her husband could actually vote for her. Barack Obama has his hands full undoing the last 8 years.

Our health plan is changing - the premiums are going way down, but our out-of-pocket costs are going way up. So, when you have a chronic disease it doesn't save you money in the long run. They make it seem like I want to go to the Doctor and have MRIs and all kinds of tests just for the fun of it. What are the Doctors doing to defend themselves? Nothing as far as I can tell. They need better lobbyists LOL. They want us to shop around for the cheapest Doctors etc. I am not buying a car. People aren't going to take better care of themselves with these new plans. So, we will see what the new administration does for us.

James Taylor was in North Carolina this week doing free concerts for Barack Obama. I saw him yesterday in Raleigh at Moore Square. I got there late so found a spot in the back of the stage (and it was in the shade). There was a good crowd. Governor Hunt was there in support (didn't see our present Gov). Gov Hunt tried to unseat Jessie Helms awhile ago I guess. But he lost. Their message was to get 10 people to vote for Obama and so on. The polls are showing 47-47 %. But I am hoping that we can turn NC Blue! They say Wake County will determine if Obama wins. Makes sense cause that's where all the transplants live (well and out in the Mountains too).

I just wanted to try out adding this image from my flickr account... and was able to. I am using Flock as my browser now so I think I can blog on blogger, keep my images on Flickr and keep track of other stuff.

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Nancy Kirk writes these Monday Minutes. They are her blog, diary, journey through life. This one is about friendship:

http://www.kirkcollection.com/mondayminutetranscript.html

She is right on about how we find and keep friends and how they keep us!

I am visiting my college roomate right now in Massachusetts. We just had lunch with one of our friends from College who we hadn't seen in lots of years. We let too many years go by without being in touch. I guess I am getting older and seeing life rush by. So, take some time to smell the roses as they say.

Machu Picchu

I will never get to see this in person, so I am living vicariously through a lifetime of slides of a friend of mine. A lot of these slides were taken by her son and many by her ex-husband. I am taking a trip around the world by scanning in all of their slides. It has been a great project for me to do while my shoulder recovers.

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I finally got to have a hearing in front of a judge about my application for social security disability. I have a favorable outcome from that. This only took 3 years after applying to get. I was officially disabled in Oct. of 2002. But the Award letter says that my benefits will only start in June of 2004 because you have to be disabled for 5 full calendar months in a row to get benefits. So, I guess my math skills are worse than I thought. What happened to 2003?

I have been trying to call the local SS office on Old Wake Forest Road for over a week. The line is busy. Yes busy. You don't even get an annoying voice mail system. You don't get a message saying that it is just too hard to get to talk to someone so maybe you should come into the office. No, just a busy signal.

I called the 1-800 number. They have an annoying voice mail system. The kind that tries to be your friend. It asks you questions. I told it that I needed to speak to a customer service representative (hey I would even talk to someone in India). She - the voice mail robot - got annoyed and tried to make me use the automated system. I said I needed to talk to someone, she said okay but you may have a long wait. I got transferred, it rang and said that all customer service representatives were busy and that I couldn't talk to anyone and it hung up on me. We should be ashamed of our government and the people who are in there now who did this to us.

I am just so disgusted. My next call will be to my representative Brad Miller to see if he can help me. And I guess I have to go in person to the local office and take a number.

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Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Sir Walter Raleigh Stands guard today at the Raleigh Art on the Edge festival held in Lictin Plaza. Sir Walter used to stand guard at the end of Fayetteville Street before they opened it back up to traffic again. Downtown Raleigh is coming along with the new Convention Center and places to live and eat etc. Anyways, it was a great day to be outdoors.
Not humid, partly sunny, and not too hot. Not real August weather for sure. Sir Walter is in front of a giant walk-through series of connected pods. The pods are like the kids bouncy things without the bounce. Each pod is a different color. Very cool.
"A creation of England's Architects of Air, under the direction of Alan Parkinson, Levity III is a stimulating 10,000 square foot kaleidoscope of liquid light and color. Inspired by Gothic cathedrals and Islamic architecture, the luminarium is made up of labyrinthine tunnels and spacious domes which invite visitors to lose themselves in a complete sensory immersion. Installations by Architects of Air have received rave reviews throughout the world and have collectively drawn millions of awe-inspired visitors to experience these truly unique pieces of art."

Kevin was tired, so he laid down to take a nap. He looks a little blue don't you think. Probably cause he is having a birthday soon and he is almost turning 50 like Madonna and Prince and Michael Jackson.

We also got to see the Show by Strange Fruit. A group from Australia who climb 13 foot flexible poles and perform. There is no dialog, just music and great facial expressions and big gestures.

"Hailing from Melbourne, Australia, Strange Fruit will captivate the audience as four cast members bend and sway, presenting Swoon! while perched atop flexible poles four meters in the air. Their work is a fusion of theatre, dance and circus. Originally based on the image of a field of wheat swaying in the breeze, the poles' extreme strength and flexibility allow performers to bow to impossible angles, swaying back and forth in a hypnotising dance as the audience looks up in wonder. The company has achieved near-cult status in almost every continent across the globe, having performed in over 40 countries and at over 300 international festivals and events. Their sublime, hypnotic beauty is truly remarkable and must be experienced to appreciate its full effect."


So, if you didn't get to see them this time, maybe they will come back with a full show.

It is hot hot hot here this week. We went right into summer early. We will hit 100 again today. Not right. But our squash and eggplants are happy. We have squash blossoms already. The lima beans look a little scraggy. Never grew them before.

My Mother got her birthday greetings from the White House the other day. She turns 80 on June 17th. Too bad she was born in 1928 and has to get her first birthday greetings this year... but at least she is alive to get her greetings right!

Tore my right rotator cuff tendon a few weeks ago. Boy does that hurt. I shouldn't have lifted that heavy box. But I did and I heard it rip. What a weird sound. So, will be having surgery on that on July 3rd. No other treatment once you tear it. Another summer in PT.

I talk to my Mom a few times a week on the phone. She lives in Massachusetts in an assisted living place. She has dementia and has no short term memory but still knows what is going on. I just talk to her about things I am doing etc. Usually she comes up with a pearl of wisdom each time we talk and I thought I should write them down.

I called her today for Mother's Day. She said a lot of people were getting picked up (I told her I wished we could have been there).

Last week we had a big primary here in NC. Lots of women on the ballot - yahoo. So I was telling her that. She said to vote for the women cause the men have screwed up enough already. She watches TV and reads the paper and magazines, so she knows who is running (but forgets and forgets their names). So, that was last week and I did as I was told (I always do my Mother says LOL).

I told her that sometimes when you are sick not all your friends come around. She said that not everyone knows how to deal with sickness. They don't know what to say and so stay away. I guess this is true too when there is a death. I know that I do not handle that well, because it reminds me of when my Dad passed away. So, that was today's wisdom.

I sent my Mom one of the Hallmark cards that you can record a message on before the music. She said she didn't get it. I think she forgets to check her mail. So, she said she would go down and get her mail. Of course, she will forget when she hangs up the phone.

I started cutting out these t-shirts back when we lived in Omaha in 2000 or so. I finally finished it! It is made from a lot of my husband's t-shirts from the 1990s or so. When I met him we were working for DEC (Digital Equipment Corporation turned COMPAQ turned HP). He could wear t-shirts to work. Now he works for a bank here in Raleigh and has to wear business casual... no more t-shirts LOL.

So here is the front:

The top and bottom borders are photos of Kevin wearing the t-shirts.

Here is the back:

The back is flannel and a few t-shirts to fill in. It is soft and the last view nights have been chilly here so he actually got to use it!You can see the quilting in this close-up. A local long-armer Cathy Kirk in Cary NC quilted it for me. She did peace signs in the borders.

There were a group of Grateful Dead fans at DEC who were called decheads. They made t-shirts and here is one of them.

We had email at DEC before the world was using email and we used those cute :-) characters a lot too. Here is one t-shirt that used them:

Wow, it has been 30 years since the great blizzard of 1978! I stayed home from work the day it started to snow (a Monday) cause my glasses got broken. My Mother was a nurse at the time and they came to get her in some kind of Army truck. I was working in the ER at the time, which was closed anyways so I didn't have to go to work until Thursday of that week. By then the main roads were open. It was a lot of snow!

And now I am here in NC and it has been in the 70s this week. The Heliobore is in bloom. The fish get confused when it is hot cold hot cold. We are in a severe drought and will not be planting much in the garden this year. No watering outside unless with reclaimed inside water or rain barrel.

Here goes with my first blog post! It is 5 AM and I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep. Then I wonder why I need a nap around 4 in the afternoon!

I have been quilting since 1986. I started needlepointing a long time ago and like to try any craft that has been invented! You just have to look at my craft closet and you will see what I mean. Any hand work will do!

We are in the process of redoing the bonus room. It had gotten out of control! Plus we wanted to knock down the wall that the previous owners had put in.

Then we are taking out the carpet and going with a new bamboo floor! Can't wait to be able to roll around in my chair. So you can watch the progress here.

I have been blogging on the web site that the local paper has set up. They sometimes print posts in the paper and I have already had 3 posts posted. My pet peeve at the moment is the Social Security disability mess. Also, trash and just about anything. I like to write and was a Technical Writer in a past life. I was also a Medical Technologist for awhile. I don't work now and don't miss the corporate life. I just miss the corporate money (which isn't so hot right now anyways). So, I am selling stuff on half.com and ebay. I also have good luck with Craigslist.

Well, I will be thinking about what I want to talk about next. I will show you stuff that I am working on next.