Letter to My Fellow 9/12 Watchdogs

Yesterday morning was one of those days! My post for today is a copy of my email to my cohorts in crime, the Central Illinois 9/12 Project Watchdogs:

Just so you know guys, I am at the visitor center due to the fact that we have no wi-fi in our expensive resort condo here, even though my brother paid $100 a week for it…..grrrrrr! Of all the mornings to have no internet connection! So I had to drag my lazy butt out to this remote location to see what happened last night. I crashed at 8:30 last night. Man, I couldn’t wait to read whatever a certain anon watchdog dug up while I was sleeping. I was not disappointed when I finally got to my email…thanks and WOW!

I must tell you though that it was no easy task to get to this email this am. Even on a good day here I can’t get a signal in my room. I have to go to my brother’s room which means I must get a key to his room before going to bed. So this morning key in hand I go in very very early. My brother and sis-in-law are still sleeping of course. I fire up the laptop and “no internet connection available” appears. I think this can’t be true so i go thru the usual routine of troubleshooting all to no avail. So I call the front desk, they say they will connect me to tech support. I am ready to give them a piece of my already too small mind when I hear a fax machine screaming in my ear. I hang up, call the front desk back. A different person answers of course. I explain, she puts me on hold, then comes back with an 800 # for me. Fine, now I can give them whatfor. I dial the 800 number, guess what? another fax machine! I am not happy. I call the front desk for the 3rd time….did I mention that I am extremely persistent? Yet another person answers (do they have a full room of phone answerers at 6 am?) She puts me on hold, comes back and says someone will have to reset the internet connection. But only a manager can do that and he won’t be in till 9…..oh my, I think steam came out of my head.  So then she tells me I can come to the visitor center and use the internet. I said great but that won’t do me any good b/c I can’t use my laptop there. She says yes you can. Just come to the front desk and ask for a wire.

So then all I have to do is GET DRESSED, wake my brother and wife up at 6 am to get the keys to the van, pack up all my medical needs and my computer and drive down to the visitor center. OK, so I do that. I am in such a hurry so I skip the shower and the all important CUP OF STARBUCKS. I drive down, go to the front desk where all the people I just talked to plus a few more are standing there watching me drag my extremely heavy bag up to the desk. I say in a not too nice voice “I need a wire”. So then we must go through the red tape of filling out the proper form of course. They give me a cable, then tell me I must go outside (where, by the way it is raining) then follow the sidewalk and go back in a door, get on an elevator and go to the second floor. That’s easy right.

They forgot to tell me that there is more than one door. Eeny, meeny, miny mo. Here comes a housekeeper, I ask her. She says I have to go around the corner to another door, then use my room key to open the door, take the elevator to second floor. I do that. Find the room with only one dirty old man in it on the computer. Did I say that out loud?

I unload the laptop, only to discover that I FORGOT MY MOUSE. Ugh. So then I try to rob a mouse from one of the other computers. The problem is the mouse is hardwired in to the keyboard. In my not too calm state of mind, I just unplug the entire keyboard from the other computer, then discover that my notebook does not have the correct port to plug it in to. So, put the other computer back together. Then start looking for the port to plug into the net. About this time a couple comes in, sees me in the floor with wires all around me and says “You can just plug in over here”.

from google images - not really me - I look a lot worse!

There is a port right on the wall! I feel like a total idiot but am so thankful that they rescued me. I was just about to have a mental melt-down with only a dirty old man to assist me! Ok, he might not have been a dirty old man but I was just in the mood to accuse anyone of anything at this point.

again, not really "my" dirty old man

I plug in and still don’t have a connection. Why am I not surprised? Then the nice couple told me I had plugged in to the only port that did not work. I am really batting 100 today. So I change ports and now here I am…on line at last. Oh what joy! So….

thats my story and I’m stickin with it and you guys were the lucky ones that I had to vent to today. I feel better now.
Well, now I can go back and brew that much-needed cup of Starbucks and maybe even take a shower (as I said, I couldn’t wait to get my fix). These poor people in this computer room have to deal with my lack of grooming.

It’s 9 now so maybe the manager has plugged in that loose connection by now….Will be in touch and it will be shorter next time, I promise.

Gonna’ Ramble Today

Vacation Village in Kissimmee, Florida

I am in one of my favorite places on the face of the earth – Orlando, Florida.

We (me, my brother, and my sister-in-law) have been here for about a week….it is Sunday morning. I would normally be getting ready for church back home in Illinois. But today I am lazing around drinking coffee, breathing in the warm Florida air, and thanking God for how wonderful the humid air makes me feel. I know that sounds weird to most people – that HUMID AIR makes me feel good. But I grew up very near the banks of the Mississippi River in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, so my sinuses are programmed for WET AIR. I am lovin’ it!

We made the trip by van from Illinois to Orlando, leaving on Jan 7th, arriving on the 9th. It was relatively cold (according to the locals) when we arrived here but for us it felt like a heat wave. We checked in to our condo and got settled in right away.

We then made a trip farther south on the Gulf side to visit friends in Bonita Springs. From there we headed to Sanibel Island & Captiva Island, where we ate at the Mucky Duck located on the beach. Fantastic beach atmosphere and good food were enjoyed there.

Here are some pics I found on Google Images of the area we visited (I forgot to bring my USB cable to upload my own pics) :

The Mucky Duck located on the beach at Captiva Island FL

swamp creatures along the way

sea oats along the beach

A Change in Tone for MY Blog

As most of you know, I am actively involved in the Central Illinois 912 Project. I am dedicated to the work I do for this important effort to bring our country back to the strong convictions of our founding fathers and to the principles of the US Constitution. The 912 Project is non-partisan and intends to stay that way. We will not, as a group, endorse any political candidate. We are not a teaparty group, nor are we fundamentally a protest group. The focus of the Central Illinois 912 Project is first & foremost on education. We avoid using personal attacks to get our message accross. We welcome any and all who agree with the 9 Principles & 12 Values as described on our website. I encourage you to visit The Central Illinois 912 Project.com often for current issues and updates.

That being said, sometimes I just want to haul off and spew my opinion without thinking about whether it is non-partisan or even appropriate, so I have decided to hijack this blog which originally I used for family news and quilting projects. Since I own this blog I can do that. If anyone is offended, it can be directed toward me, Darlajune.

I am first a Christian. I am also pro-life. I am against the decision made in 1973 by the US Supreme Court in Roe v. Wade making abortion legal in all states throughout the 9 months of pregnancy. (Pro-aborts will say it is only the first trimester but this is not true) My disagreement with the decision rests in the fact that it was and is unconstitutional for the Supreme Court to pass legislation without the agreement of the US Congress. Abortion had been regulated by the states up until 1973. There was no law introduced into the Congress to change regulation of abortion to the federal government. Therefore, I believe that it should still be controlled by each state as the people see fit. This is my “hot issue” and has been for the last 30+ yrs. I will probably post about this topic often. Pro-”choicers” beware.

I have 4 children and, so far, 1 grandchild. I love them all & hope for them to have a happy life of freedom as I have had. I am deeply disturbed by the actions of the Obama administration as it relates to “fundamentally transforming America”. It is my belief that America should not be transformed but instead should be brought back to the foundations upon which she was founded. In order to return to the original foundations, we must first know what the founders believed and why they believed it. The key to knowing this is to study their writings, and there are many. I have been amazed by the multitude of writings they left behind for us. I thank God that they had the forethought to preserve the processess they went through to arrive at concensus on the Constitution of the United States of America.

Oh, I memorized parts of the Constitution in order to get my diploma. But I never really thought it important enough to learn the reasons why it was written the way it was written. Since March 2009 I have been learning what made America great. We need to return to those basic principles if we are to have any chance of saving our God-given freedom.

I have been shocked to learn of the Marxists, Socialists, and Maoists appointed to the staff of the Obama administration. These people have the president’s ear! and I fear they also have his heart. He is the one who appointed them, he knows them and has known them for years. Their political leanings were no surprise to him because he shares their views on re-distributing the wealth, one world government through the Climate Change Treaty they are trying to sign (which will nullify our US Constitution!), the government take-over of business and healthcare. They are “overwhelming the system” because they want our capitalist economy to collapse so that they can then cinch the deal on a Socialist economy, when Americans are so desparate for help that they will agree with anyone who will give them food and protection. This may sound far-fetched to some of you but it is not out of the realm of possibility and, in fact, we are on that road right now. May God help us to avoid it if it is still possible.

At this point, I believe that our only hope is in God. Christians, get on your knees and beg for mercy on this country for our children and grandchildren’s sake, if not for your own.

Would You Crucify Him?

I first heard this song in the late 70’s. I still need to ask myself this question some 30 yrs later. Do you?

more about “Would You Crucify Him?“, posted with vodpod

Would You Crucify Him? by John Michael Talbot

Sometimes in the cool of the evening
the truth comes like a lover thru the wind.
Sometimes when my thoughts have gone misleading
she’ll ask that same old question once again.

Would you crucify Him?
Would you crucify Him?
My old friends

Now would you crucify Him?
Talkin ’bout the sweet Lord Jesus
if he walked right here among you once again?

She’s asking how many times have you looked down to the harlot,
looking thru her tears
pretending you don’t know?
But once you were just like her.
How can you be now so self-righteous
when in the name of the Lord u throw the first stone?

Would you crucify Him?
Would you crucify Him?
My religious friends?

Would you crucify Him?
Talkin ’bout the sweet Lord Jesus
if he walked right here among you once again?

So now I turn to you,
Thru your years of your robes and your stained glass windows,
Do you vainly echo your prayers,
say youre pleasing the lord?

Profess the marriage with your tongue
but your mind dreams like the harlot
but if the judge looks to your thoughts
can’t you guess your reward?

But yet how many times have you quoted from your Bible
to justify your eye for your eye
and your tooth for your tooth?
You say that he didn’t mean what he was plainly sayin’
but like the Pharisee, my friend, you’re an educated fool.

Somehow, I think you’d crucify Him,
I think you’d crucify Him
My religious friends.

But would you crucify Him
Talkin ’bout the sweet Lord Jesus
If He walked right here among you once again?

Now would you crucify Him
Talkin ’bout the sweet Lord Jesus
If He walked right here among you once again?

Paducah or Bust!!

I am getting ready to go to the quilt show in Paducah Kentucky. My sister-in-law and I leave tomorrow. The show starts Wednesday. I can’t wait to see all those beautiful quilts!

Beatrix Potter Baby Quilt (aka “The Royal Quilt”)

Last fall my buddy Jill asked me to make a baby quilt and some baby toys for her soon-to-be-born great nephew. It is finished and delivered to the parents. Jill sent me some pics of them receiving the gifts.

Here are some pics:

Steph and Dennis opening quilt

Dennis, Steph, and Aunt Jill

And here are some more pics with details: (click on the pics for a larger image)

And here are some pics of the fabric book and the baby blocks:

Steph and her Aunt Jill

baby blocks

I had a ball making this quilt and was so pleased with the finished product. It went with me from Illinois, through Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida and all the way back again. Jill lives in West Virginia so upon completion it was shipped to her. The baby will be living in South Carolina so this quilt has quite a travelling history so far. After they received the quilt I got an email from Jill that blessed my socks off! Here is an excerpt:

“what a stir the “Royal Quit” caused at the baby shower! She said everyone loved it and the toys. She said they finally had to put it away for everyone keep rubbing it and saying how soft and many wanted to just rub it on their face and she wasn’t letting any makeup get on it…LOL..So they passed it around one time and everyone loved the materisl and one older lady she teaches with is a quilter and actually got a measuring tape out of her purse and announced the amount of stitches per inch on average and said “This was done by a real quilter! She knew what she was doing!” So you were the talk of the shower. The older lady had also made material toys before but have never thought of putting bells in the blocks but said they would have them from now on!…So Joy finally took it back to her laundrry room behind her kitchen and when she went in to get coffee refills 2 of the ladies were back there looking at it again!…So I think you can rest assured you actually did make the Royal Quilt!…Joy is buying all the things for the nursey she is setting up in her house after she ges down there in the colors to match the quilt. She is going to be the official baby sitter when Steph goes back to work after her 6 weeks off so she is setting up a complete nursery in her house too and evrything is now going to be done in the quilt colors with a bunny theme!…So ya done good!..Way more than good!..Thank ye, Thank ye, Thank ye!!……Jill”

It was my pleasure, Jill. Can’t wait to see that baby!

Long Time No Post

I am trying to get back to normal. Well, I have kidney stones. And I  had to go to the ER over  the weekend for IV fluids due to a nasty stomach flu. Tomorrow I go to the urologist to find out what we will do about the kidney stones.

On a happier note, I shipped the royal quilt to West Virginia today. Can’t wait to hear what they think of it. After they see it I will post pictures of the finished quilt on here. I was so in love with that quilt, it was hard to part with it.

My son is going to make me a super-duper website to sell my purses. Of course I will post a link here when it is up and running.

Gotta go to bed. Night night.

Home – And Freezing!

I arrived home Sunday night to the deep freeze that is Lincoln, Illinois. Got unpacked – went straight to bed.

Monday – spent the day going grocery shopping since I had, of course, let all the food run out before I left. Also had a tall stack of mail to go through and bills to pay. Still not over this infection so I was not operating at my normal slow pace….I was carrying groceries in the freezing wind and grunting all the way. And driving with 2 layers of clothes, a heavy coat, giant scarf, ear muffs and gloves is a real trick for me since I have very little sensation anyway because of the MS. You know how when backing up your vehicle you must turn your head and look behind you? I have to turn my entire upper body because of the many layers around my neck….and did I mention that my neck hurts? In fact now that I am back to being partially frozen there aren’t very many parts of my body that don’t hurt. Woe is me!

Tuesday – travelled to Peoria IL (an hour away) to see my urologist since I have had this infection since the 3rd of January and been through 2 antibiotics so far. Seems I have a bacteria that is normally contracted in nursing homes or hospitals. I haven’t been in either lately. The only other possibility is kidney stones. So now I have to go back Wednesday for a CT scan of my kidneys. While at the doctor’s office, they gave me a shot of some super-duper antibiotic. YAY! Oh, forgot to mention that my refrigerator went on the fritz this am, with all my groceries for the month of February in it! But, Tom the maintenance man saved the day and fixed it while I was in Peoria. Bless that man.

Today, Wednesday – finally blogging but not for long. It is almost 10:00 and I have to leave for Peoria again to get that CT scan. Temp was 5 this morning. Brrrrrrrr!! It is supposed to get up to freezing tomorrow I think. It will feel like a heat wave

Will eventually post pictures of our trip – I didn’t take too many – mostly took pictures of the quilts my sister-in-law and I were working on.

Love you all,

Darlajune

On the Way Back Home

We packed up at 8:30 this morning and left Orlando. I am posting from a Country Inn at Manchester TN. We will spend the night here then travel to Charleston IL tomorrow. I will be going back to Lincoln on Sunday.

I am really tired so g’night.

For All of You Who Have Been Hasselling Me

OK

You know who you are…leaving me all those “shut up” comments :0

You can calm down now….we only have 2 more days of getting out in this glorious sun. Friday is check-out day. We will be travelling Friday and Saturday. Back to the bone-freezing mid-west. I will probably be back in Lincoln on Sunday sometime.

I am trying to figure out a way to stay here but all the ways I have thought of require money, which I have little of. So, I guess there’s no choice since I can’t be gainfully employed with my health issues.

Seriously, I do love it here, but I NEED to get back to my church. I miss everyone so much and I especially am in need of the eucharist….the medicine of immortality. And I ache to participate in the worship of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit with my brothers and sisters at Holy Resurrection Church in Lincoln, IL. (maybe I can talk all of them into moving South…..I doubt it )

The baby quilt I am working on is almost all quilted! It is so beautiful. I have probably told you that before maybe a few hundred times. It should be complete by the time I get back to Lincoln. I will have to sew on the binding after I get home since it is best to use the sewing machine for that. Which brings me to another thing I am looking forward to at home….my Featherweight sewing machine. Is it a sin to miss your sewing machine? If so, then I am guilty.

That brings to mind something else I miss—my OWN COMPUTER! It will be so nice to be able to sit down and blog or email or surf without having to drag the computer to a club house to get a signal, then wait about 10 minutes trying to bring up a browser. It causes one to hesitate to even bother. The troubles of the travelling blogger are many, including forgetting the cord to upload pictures of the paradise I am sitting in. But I will endure

Well, I need to get back to the condo, get into my swimming suit and get in that pool……EAT YOUR HEARTS OUT you nay sayers…..you know who you are! See you soon in the tundra!

Love you all,

Darlajune