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Check out some amphigories by my friend, Reggie Fox...a promising new writer, journalist & playwright...

Wilde Amphigories

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Pacifist

Like a camouflaged monarch
zipping shut death’s door.
I 'm a scrawny, eager kid still
too shy to kiss a girl.
The grim reaper of 58,000 jerking
my little piece of the American dream.


But,
don’t mind me,
I just used
to bag the dead.

Became everyday for me
to look upon the stale and fallen.
Stagnant expressions upon me
sealing wistful eyes
valiantly with my bare fingers.

Days of closeness
with the plastic fleece of finality
are over.
Been three decades
but my mind still sees the faces...

Every.
Single.
One.

I am still now...
oppressed with regrets
locked away, raving to myself,
for no one understands
the ramblings of savage dreams.

No pity please, someone had to,
lest the bodies would pile high and remind us
of how vulnerable we are to
our spiteful ignorance,

where no one really wins.

But
don’t mind me,
I just used to bag the dead.

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Imminent

You are there.
I can sense you on the tip of my tongue.
I am just unsure of your name,
the kindly shape of your lips,
and your scent

But

I know you are there ,
……….,
just not here with me,
yet.

Maybe

if I looked into
the faces of strangeness
as I lunge past …
I would see that you are here.

But

it is so much easier
to look down,
overstepping the cracks...
not wanting the distraction
that could cause me to fall -

Maybe

I will round a corner and you will be there,
breathing my name like
you need only
to know me.
Giving me no choice.

Till then

I will stumble,
downcast,
& tripping
towards someone
that
is
not
yet
here.

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Hope

Dirty tissue
paper petals
upon slick &
eager stalks
slump against
my windowsill
begging for
a return
to the earth
so they
can try
once again.

Sea Flowers by Richelle

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Salvation

The trees never go to church

yet they offer themselves to the sky everyday

They never surround themselves with the tint of stained glass

yet the glimmer of pure light touches them everyday

They never barter for their souls

yet they are born again --

Over and over.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Art by Natasha Wescoat

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This kind of news gets me so mad. And after you read it, ask yourself if you think perhaps, that this was intentional? More people exposed, means more people infected, which thereby ensures more people will need Baxter's "real" avian flu vaccine...Simple economics....Sad

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Gaza Death Toll

Palestinian People - 935 deaths

4,300 injured

Israelis - 13 deaths


The direct use of force is such a poor solution to any problem, it is generally employed only by small children and large nations. ~David Friedman

Sometimes I think it should be a rule of war that you have to see somebody up close and get to know him before you can shoot him. ~M*A*S*H, Colonel Potter

A great war leaves the country with three armies - an army of cripples, an army of mourners, and an army of thieves. ~German Proverb

What is wrong with this picture? See here for proof that Israel tells President Bush & Condoleeza Rice what to do. I am saddened by this.

Send an automated letter to the secretary of state & your local senators by clicking here.

If you want to help see here, here , here & here OR...

BOYCOTT ISRAEL (yes. I'm very serious!!) Don't just do it for a couple days. Do it for a good long while because a nation is dangerous when it thinks it can just disregard the world.

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Just a short break from my writing for some inspirational quotes:

"Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can see only as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way."
~E.L. Doctorow

"The task of a writer consists of being able to make something out of an idea."
~Thomas Mann

"If a book is not alive in the writer's mind, it is as dead as year-old horse-shit."
~Stephen King

And one final quote as I sit here and wonder if I have enough time to finish 5 chapters(skeleton chapters mind you) this weekend...

"Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein."
~H. Jackson Brown

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I'mmm baaaaacckk.
This current Gaza situation has me so pissed off, I just had to post. I've been so busy with school, work and finishing my WIP, The Sibylline Prophecies that I let my blog fall by the wayside. Hope everyone is doing well :)

Go here for news pertaining to the Gaza/Israel conflict that isn't tainted by Western media. In all sincerity, what we as a people are allowing to occur is a threat to our country. And I don't mean to insinuate that Hamas is the terrorist and will harm our country. Hamas is NOT the terrorist. Guess who is?! Israel has no right to justify the death of 500 + people, which they allege is a result of home grown rockets being fired into Southern Israel that has resulted in 0 fatalities. That's right ! ZERO!!


I wish I could urge some action on our part to support the people of Gaza but I do not know of such a group. What I can do is give you this information and ask that we as Americans begin to demand an unbiased view of international & national news events so that we can form our own opinions and not be led to our views like cattle to feed. Maybe then our apathy will blossom into awareness. And awareness will blossom into action. And so forth and so on. But first we must be given accurate information, which, without, we are quite literally clueless and helpless to even see the problem.

The Aljazeera website does an outstanding job of providing an unbiased overview of the crisis. Be smart and strong willed. Do not take truth for granted and do some searching on your own to assure it is free from biased and oppressive sources.

I am including the full text of the article here with highlighted sections to reinforce my point. I apologize for it's length.

Begin:

There are two completely different versions of what is currently happening in Gaza.

In the Israeli and North American press version, Hamas - 'Islamic terrorists' backed by Iran - have in an unprovoked attack fired deadly rockets on innocent Israel with the intent of destroying the Jewish state.

North American politicians and the media say Israel "has the right to defend itself".

True enough. No Israeli government can tolerate rockets hitting its towns, even though the casualty totals have been less than the car crash fatalities registered during a single holiday weekend on Israel's roads.

The firing of the feeble, home-made al-Qassam rockets by Palestinians is both useless and counter-productive.

It damages their image as an oppressed people and gives right-wing Israeli extremists a perfect reason to launch more attacks on the Arabs and refuse to discuss peace.

Israel's supporters insist it has the absolute right to drop hundreds of tonnes of bombs on 'Hamas targets' inside the 360sq km Gaza Strip to 'take out the terrorists'.

Civilians suffer, says Israel, because the cowardly Hamas hide among them.

Actually, it is more like shooting fish in a barrel.

Omitting facts

As usual, this cartoon-like version of events omits a great deal of nuance and background.

Seventy per cent of Palestinian children suffer from psychological trauma
While firing rockets at civilians is a crime so, too, is the Israeli blockade of Gaza, which is an egregious violation of international law and the Geneva Conventions.

According to the UN, most of Gaza's 1.5 million Palestinian refugees subsist near the edge of hunger. Seventy per cent of Palestinian children in Gaza suffer from severe malnutrition and psychological trauma.

Medical facilities are critically short of doctors, personnel, equipment, and drugs. Gaza has quite literally become a human garbage dump for all the Arabs that Israel does not want.

Gaza is one of the world's most-densely populated places, a vast outdoor prison camp filled with desperate people. In the past, they threw stones at their Israeli occupiers; now they launch home-made rockets.

Call it a prison riot, writ large.

Eyeing the elections

When the so-called truce between Tel Aviv and Hamas expired on December 19, Israeli politicians were in the throes of preparing for the February 10 national elections. Israeli politics are playing a key role in this crisis.

Ehud Barak, the defence minister and leader of the Labour party, and Tzipi Livni, the foreign minister and leader of the Kadima party, are trying to prove themselves tougher than Benjamin Netanyahu's hard-line Likud party - and one another.

Israel's elections are only six weeks away, and Likud was leading until the air raids on Gaza began. Kadima and Labour are now up in the polls.

The heavy attacks on Gaza are also designed to intimidate Israel's Arab neighbours, and make up for Israel's humiliating 2006 defeat in Lebanon, which still haunts the country's politicians and generals.

A fait accompli

When the air raids on Gaza began, Barak said: "We have totally changed the rules of the game."

He was right. By blitzing Hamas-run Gaza, Barak presented the incoming US administration with a fait accompli, and neatly checkmated the newest player in the Middle East Great Game - Barack Obama, the US president-elect - before he could even take a seat at the table.

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Watch our coverage of the war on Gaza
The Israeli offensive into Gaza now looks likely to short-circuit any plans Obama might have had to press Israel into withdrawing to its pre-1967 borders and sharing Jerusalem.

This has pleased Israel's supporters in North America who have been cheering the war in Gaza and have been backing away from their earlier tentative support for a land-for-peace deal.

Israel's successes in having Western media portray the Gaza offensive as an 'anti-terrorist operation' will also diminish hopes of peace talks any time soon.

Obama inherits this mess in a few weeks. During the elections, Obama bowed to the Israel lobby, offering a new US carte blanche to Israel and even accepting Israel's permanent monopoly of all of Jerusalem.

As he concludes forming his cabinet, his Middle East team looks like it may be top-heavy with friends of Israel's Labour party.

Obama keeps saying he must remain silent on policy issues until George Bush, the outgoing US president, leaves office, but his staff appear happy to avoid having to make statements about Gaza that would antagonise Israel's American supporters.

Obama will take office facing a Middle East up in arms over Gaza and the entire Muslim world blaming the US for the carnage in Gaza.

Unless he moves swiftly to distance himself from the policies of the Bush administration, he will soon find himself facing the same problems and anger as the Bush White House.

Arab deal killed

Israel's Gaza offensive is also likely to torpedo the current Saudi-sponsored peace plan, which had been backed by all members of the Arab League.

The plan, now likely defunct, had called for Israel to withdraw to its 1967 borders and share Jerusalem in exchange for full recognition and normalised relations with the Muslim world.

Arab governments will now be unable to sell the deal as they face a storm of criticism from their own people over their powerlessness to help the Palestinians of Gaza.

Egypt, in particular, is being widely accused of collaborating with Israel in further sealing off and isolating Gaza. It seems highly unlikely they will be able to advance a peace plan with Israel for now.

This is a bonus for right-wing Israelis, who have always been dead set against any withdrawal and strongly supported the attack on Gaza.

Other Israeli factions who were always lukewarm about the Saudi peace plan are now unlikely to reconsider it.

Israel's security establishment is committed to preventing the creation of a viable Palestinian state, and refuses to negotiate with Hamas. Unable to kill all of Hamas' men, Israel is slowly destroying Gaza's infrastructure around them, as it did to Yasser Arafat's PLO.

Israel's hardliners point to Gaza and claim that any Palestinian state on the West Bank would threaten their nation's security by firing rockets into Israel's heartland.

Mighty information machine

Israel is confident that its mighty information machine will allow it to weather the storm of worldwide outrage over its Biblical punishment of Gaza. Who remembers Israel's flattening of parts of the Palestinian city of Jenin, or the US destruction in Falluja, Iraq, or the Sabra and Shatilla massacres in Beirut?

The US media has focused on the rockets being fired on Israel from Gaza
Though the torment of Gaza is seen across the horrified Muslim world as a modern version of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising by Jews against the Nazis during World War Two, Western governments still appear bent on taking no action.

Though Israel's use of American weapons against Gaza violates the US Arms Export Control and Foreign Assistance Acts, the docile US Congress will remain mute.

Israel's assault on Gaza was clearly timed for America's interregnum between administrations and the year-end holidays, a well-used Israeli tactic.

Hamas refuses to recognise Israel as long as Israel refuses to recognise Hamas and the rights of millions of homeless Palestinian refugees.

It calls for a non-religious state to be created in Palestine, meaning an end to Zionism. Ironically, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, the founder and late leader of Hamas, had spoken of a compromise with Tel Aviv shortly before he was assassinated by Israel in 2004.

An inherited mess

Israel's hopes that it can bomb Gazans into rejecting Hamas are as ill-conceived as its failed attempt in 2006 to blast Lebanon into rejecting Hezbollah.

The Fatah regime on the West Bank installed by the US and Israel after Yasser Arafat's suspicious death will be further discredited, leaving the militants of Hamas as the sole authentic voice of Palestinian nationalism.

Hamas, the militant but still democratically elected government of Gaza, is even less likely to compromise.

The Muslim world is in a rage. But so what? Stalin liked to say "the dogs bark, and the caravan moves on," and as long as the US gives Israel carte blanche, it can do just about anything it wants.

The tragedy of Palestine will thus continue to poison US relations with the Muslim world.

Those Americans who still do not understand why their nation was attacked on 9/11 need only look to Gaza, for which the US is now being blamed as much as Israel.

Unless Israel can make 5 to 7 million Palestinians disappear, it must find some way to co-exist with them. Israeli leaders on the centre and right continue to avoid facing this fact.

The brutal collective punishment inflicted on Gaza will likely strengthen Hamas and reverse any hopes of a Middle East peace in the coming years.

Eric S. Margolis is an author, syndicated foreign affairs columnist, broadcaster, and veteran war correspondent. His latest book is American Raj: America and the Muslim world.

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Hey guys. OY! I keep waiting for some downtime so I can write a nice, informative post...however, that's not gonna happen anytime soon. So here's the best I've got for the moment.

I was wondering...do you guys have a favorite narrative non-fiction book? I just checked out Random Family by Adrian Nicole LeBlanc (Faulkner winner) about this family coming of age in the Bronx that she researched for ten years.

I'm also a big fan of Jonathan Kozol's books, Rachel & Her Children, Amazing Grace.

Here's some paintings from one of my favorite painters, Nancy Noel... Simply gorgeous

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My cool blogger buddy Angela tagged me...I'm happy to say this is my first tag.

I have finally arrived!

Here's The rules:

1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people and post a comment to Bish's blog once you've posted your three sentences.

One of the nearest books (I'm surrounded by piles):

THE BLUEST EYE by Toni Morrison

They'd cut off the light, and everything be black. Then the screen would light up, and I'd move right on in them pictures. White men taking such good care of they women, and they all dressed up in big clean houses with the bathtubs right in the same room with the toilet.

I tagged:
Courtney
Brenda
Linda
Danette
Chris

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Okay. So I think it's incredulous that Hillary is insinuating that Obama was calling us Pennsylvanians "bitter" in a derogatory way. I just think he miscommunicated an attempt to empathize with us and in no way does he feel like an elitist.

To avoid the media's presentation of just the bits and pieces of what he said, here's the actual quote--

"You go into some of these small towns in Pennsylvania, and like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and nothing's replaced them," Obama, an Illinois senator, said.

"And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations," he said.

NEWSFLASH----The majority of us hard working Americans here in Pennsylvania ARE "bitter" in various ways depending on how the Government's misuse of it's power has affected us. The ramifications of those feelings are way too hard to evaluate in 1 mere blog post so here's what I've noticed and I want to see if you guys have noticed it too.

Watch the difference between Hillary and Obama when they are speaking.

Obama rarely uses note cards or a written speech...hence, it comes from how he truly and sincerely feels.

Hillary on the other hand, frequently uses a written speech and note cards, stopping mid-sentence to look at what she is going to say next...hence, it appears she has been told what to say.

Just thought I would point it out..... I feel it's important that who I vote for as president should know without hesitation what the heck they stand for without note cards or speeches( written by someone else).
AND I do realize that some speakers rely heavily on notecards because they're nervous, forgetful or whatever BUT, if you have to stop halfway between each sentence because you have NO IDEA what you are trying to say...there's def something wrong with that!

One more point and I'll leave the politics to the professionals....During Obama's rally here in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, an IUP college student stood up and presented a very interesting point....

"If Hillary is elected president, it will mean that ONLY 2 families have lead America for the last 28 consecutive years..."

I, myself, do not think that a continuation of the same 2 families will bring about change for America.

Okie, dokie, I'm done. Thanks for baring with me :)

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A quote from Obama's latest speech given in Philadelphia...

"...they (our children) must always believe that they can write their own destiny."

Absolute.

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OKAY! I was researching Goddess names for one of my characters and stumbled upon this site.

Before I go on, let me say this,

I am proud to be a woman and I am open to new art forms but this has me quite speechless!

AND take note, you can buy one of these for only $600.00.

Let me repeat, ONLY $600.00

And in case one of these doesn't suit your fancy, there are plenty of styles to choose from.
In case you think I'm making this up. See here.

Remember, they are ONLY $600.00 a piece + $30.00 S/H

First let me show you the pic



AND I QUOTE---"Combining fine silks, rich velvets and precious gems, Vulva Puppets are infused with potpourri, signed and dated. Dorrie gives them names from Goddess lores, Fairy tales or Femmes of literature depending on who they inspire. Take her story with you, or create your own.

Oh my great googly moog!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What do you do with one of these?

Are they pillows?

Colorful accents for your boudoir or sette?

Unique Christmas presents? I am so tempted to give these as gifts for Christmas, just to see what my family of Fancy Nancys would make of this. My mom loves fine silk and potpourri.

Maybe I could donate them to my local library for when they present their puppet shows. I wonder what type of voice they will have? Do they even talk or just make expressions?? I am laughing so hard I cannot type.

AND just another pic with some thought provoking quotes for good measure...



Keep in mind, this one is only $500.00!

"In a way the puppet has been a life saver. Teaching the anatomy of the door of the goddess*snort* usually brings up a lot of emotions and men's faces tend to become pale. However with the the vulva puppet we can explore in a much more fun and relaxed way. This sets an emotional tone of lightness and confidence which is very important for beginners."

Raphael More, Oceanic Tantra Teacher, Director of the Kahua Hawaiian Institute

Just one more quote...(explaining the educational benefits from the VULVA PUPPETS--say it loud and proud people.)

"From a child’s first question of “Where do I come from?”, Vulva Puppets are an invaluable tool for learning. With a puppet in the family the opportunity to have “the talk” will naturally present itself allowing comfortable matter of fact conversations about the emotions and responsibility connected with sex."

Anyone want to guess what my kids would do if I showed them one of these and talked about the birds & bees?

I HAVE NOW SEEN IT ALL PEOPLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OKAY, I WAS GOING TO END THIS BLOG ENTRY BUT WHILE LOOKING FOR A NEW GLORIOUS PIC OF A VULVA PUPPET (LOUD & PROUD) TO USE, I STUMBLED UPON THIS VIDEO

AND THIS VIDEO TRUMPS THE VULVA PUPPETS BY A HUGE MARGIN........

IT ANSWERS THE QUESTION...

"WHAT DOES ONE DO WITH A VULVA PUPPET?"

I WARN YOU, GO USE THE RESTROOM BEFORE VIEWING THIS VIDEO BECAUSE YOU WILL, I REPEAT, WILL PEE YOUR PANTS!!!!!!!!!!

IT IS A QUICKTIME VIDEO, THEREFORE I CAN'T GET IT TO PASTE INTO MY ENTRY SO I BEG YOU

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE GO HERE AND SCROLL DOWN TO SEE THE VIDEO.

I HAVE NEVER IN MY LIFE....

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Have you ever seen such a cute little dog!?!

WARNING--He is a proverbial pantie snatcher & muncher with NO regard for common decency!

Nothing like walking into my house and finding a line of Grannie panties (what?, they're comfortable) and minuscule thongs (my daughters, def not mine) laid out everywhere.

On the sofa. "Please guest, have a seat. Oh! Don't mind the crotchless panties, that's just my dog's chew toy. Hee. Hee".

In the kitchen, in his food bowl. "He's just saving those for later. Hee. Hee."

Hanging from his mouth while he greets a guest. "Oh look, he's sharing!"

GROSS!!!!!

Technically, it's mine & my daughter's fault. I mean what are hampers for? But c'mon how can such a cute little dog be so disgusting? Lucky for him, he's cute and lucky for me, Granny panties are on sale this week
at the local Wal-Mart.

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Just found this new writer.
She's hilarious. See here.

She's smart. See here.

She's fresh. See here. And here.

She's one of those writers that I'm so glad I found. I hate knowing, I could have missed out on her written work, had I not picked up the latest Bookpage from my local library.

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Patsy Cline-WTF?
3$ for 4 songs that took 15 minutes to choose???
Pashmina versatility
mmmm..... A hover moment
Where's the bathroom?
AAArrrggghhhh!!
Rowdy Bunch
Jealous Bitches(you know who you are)
Guys, where's the bathroom?
Shaving when you want
Woo woo(said with way too much expression)
Hailing a bartender
AAArrrggghhhh!!!!!
Seriously guys, Where's the Bathroom?
The Great Walkout
Delayed Reactions
The one w/the pretty face
Nasty-ass shooters (that aren't even chilled WTF?)
Automatic towel dispensers that mess with your mind.(it happens)
Patron with lemon(nothing wrong with that combo Mr. know-it-all bartender)
Dammit, Where's the f-in bathroom?
AAArrrggghhhh!
Boob shots
Road rash & a dirty chin
AAARRRGGGHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!

Here's a toast to my great officemates....Next on our list-----Bingo!! Are we some wild chicks or what?!
Yeah Boy

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Why I love kids...

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Hi guys! I'm so sorry I 've been away for so long.

AND I've been a horrible no good blogger who hasn't visited any of my blogger buddies. I promise to change that here shortly.

Seems everybody wants a piece of me...school, work, family, clients, pets, friends, WIP's. I could sure use a lazy spring day on my front porch about now...









...but it looks like I'll have to wait.

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"The thing that is really hard, and really amazing, is giving up on being perfect and beginning the work of becoming yourself." - Anna Quindlen

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Here's a pic of Gladys Hardy in all her sweet glory. Ain't she cute!?
She also has a myspace page.
Boy, she's hip!

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