L’Shanah Tovah!

”L'shanah tovah tikatevi v'taihatemi!” which translates to “May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year!”

Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown this evening. It’s the beginning of the Jewish New Year, the first of the High Holidays, beginning the Days of Awe and leading to Yom Kippur. There is a tradition of self examination, making amends, emptying yourself of the negative, starting afresh with the positive. The essence of the positive is following what is commonly known as The Golden Rule: Treat others as you wish to be treated; Love others as you love yourself. As Hillel is credited with saying: everything else is commentary...

During this busy political season, the tradition seems especially important - particularly difficult perhaps, but especially important!

Maybe the custom of dipping a crisp apple wedge in honey will help insure “a sweet new year”!

That’s Billion - With A “B”

O.K., it’s true. I took only two economics courses in college.

That said, here’s what I think about the current economic crisis.

When the U.S. House of Representatives failed to approve the 700 billion dollar bailout today, the U.S. stock market fell . The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 777.68; the NASDAQ by 199.61. That’s wicked freakin’ huge, but it is not (yet) catastrophic.

The fact that the U.S. House did not affirm the bailout today is likely a very good thing.
It may well give everyone a chance to breathe and caucus and simmer down a bit.
It may give Congress a chance to start over.

This whole bailout is being dealt with by the U.S. Government which is, by definition, a political animal. But with the Presidential election little more than one month away, the entire process has been supercharged - damn near to the point of electrocution - by political partisanship. That’s a bad thing - a really bad thing.

President George W. Bush and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson wrote up this 700 billion dollar bailout in a proposal which was less than three pages long. We passed more papers than that to purchase our home which cost less than $100,000!

Bush and Paulson repeatedly expressed the urgency of the situation. The President went on the airwaves last Wednesday, with a glassy demeanor, using words like “danger”, “collapse” and “panic”. He scared my 84 year old mother. That’s never a good thing. But it made me begin to wonder if we weren’t being rushed; having something onerous forced upon us by an administration with a lousy record of decision making and an exceptionally high level of deceit.

Congressman Barney Frank (D - MA) and Senator Chris Dodd (D - CT) did a pretty good job of expanding the three page proposal from Bush and Paulson. They tried to build in protections for citizens, taxpayers and homeowners with mortgages. They tried to limit excessive benefits to the top dogs of the financial institutions at the heart of this situation. Then the rank and file got in the mix. Then John McCain supposedly “suspended” his campaign. Then the President summoned the Congressional leadership, plus John McCain and Barack Obama to the White House. All of this was swirling in the increasing din of politics and partisanship.

It was ugly. And it may well have been completely wrong headed. The flaw may well have been that everyone was working on that original three page Bush-Paulson proposal. Perhaps they should have been looking at the financial crisis with fresh eyes; not trying to make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.

Enter Congressman Peter DeFazio, Democrat from Oregon. Two days ago, on September 27th, he wrote a letter to every Democratic member of Congress. In that letter he urged them to oppose the Bush-Paulson bailout. I encourage you to read his letter.

I don’t have a crystal ball. I don’t know what the stock market will do tomorrow. The investor in me wishes I had some spare cash to buy up a few bargain stocks. The saver in me is scared, because it’s our equity based retirement accounts which are effectively the “ox being gored” in this situation. But we’ve ridden out bad days and tough markets before. And if this is what it takes to get Congress to refocus its attention on the real problems and root causes of the financial crisis and away from the Bush-Paulson proposal, so be it.

Quick Tip

Most photographs from film used to be developed with a white border around the image. As photo processing evolved, you could request “borderless” which seemed so very modern. Now with digital cameras and home printing it’s all up to us.

When I create a scrapbook page digitally using Photoshop, sometimes it’s fun to scatter several photos onto the page. It makes for a casual look and more like a traditional paper scrapbook. When I wanted to add a border to a photo, I used to use the Rectangular Marquee Tool and the Paint Bucket Tool to create a small blank canvas behind the photo. After moving and adjusting, I would lock the two layers together. Then I discovered Edit > Stroke.

In either Photoshop CS3 or Photoshop Elements, make sure the photograph you want to add a border to is highlighted in the layers palette. Then choose Edit > Stroke. In the new menu which appears, I chose a width of 25 pixels, a barely beige-white for the color, the Inside location, blending Normal, Opacity 100%. Poof! Your photo has a border! Now just work with the rest of the photographs on their respective layers. Each time you choose Edit > Stroke, Photoshop remembers your last setting, so the rest of the photos breeze by. Then, using your move tool, position, resize and rotate until you achieve the desired effect. Add drop shadows and some text and/or journaling and you’re done!


Layout and photos by LMR/Pink Granite. Software: Apple iPhoto ‘08 & Adobe Photoshop CS3 for Mac. Font: CK Jacque (from Scrap N Fonts)

The Presidential Debate

Attempting to be as objective as possible, I think that both John McCain and Barack Obama “scored” similarly in tonight’s debate.

What’s more important and what is not yet clear, is if the candidates reached their target audience: the still undecided voter.

It’s difficult for me to understand the thinking of the self-reporting undecided voter. Simply because the differences between Barack Obama and John McCain are so dramatic; their stands on the issues are at opposite ends of the spectrum; their personalities and temperaments are such polar opposites and their visions for the future of The United States of America are so radically different.

I hope the undecided voters watched tonight’s debate with care. I hope they go to the McCain-Palin website and the Obama-Biden website. I hope they explore each candidate’s stand on the issues. The United States of America deserves no less.

A Clear Message

CascadingWaters left a comment on my Wednesday post about the challenges Papamoka has been facing with his kids’ safety and school buses. In response to her suggestion I created this sign. It’s 11” x 8.5” so it can be printed out on a standard size sheet of printer paper or card stock. If it would be useful to you in any way, feel free to drag and drop it onto your computer and then print out and use as you see fit.

Or, you can download a larger file from this location.

Layout by LMR/Pink Granite. Software: Adobe Photoshop CS3 for Mac. Font: Verdana

Aw Shucks!

Thank you Claudia! I {heart} you right back!
I love your upbeat attitude, your loyalty to Worcester and the way you celebrate your family!
I’m From Worcester is always an interesting read.

The Big E

Chuck and I went to the Big E on Wednesday. The Eastern States Exposition is a combined fair for all six New England states. It began more than nine decades ago back in 1917. Fairgoers from the early 20th Century attending the Bid E today would recognize the farming and animal breed competitions. They would also be familiar with agricultural companies displaying their newest wares. But the flashing neon lights, the brightly colored flags, the cacophony of music and excited screams from the midway and the tastes of food from around the world would likely leave them slack-jawed. Heck, it leaves us slack-jawed - or as I wrote last year, gobsmacked!

The day was sunny and mild; the fairgrounds crowded but not overwhelming. We actually visited all six New England states via their individual buildings which are owned, as well as the land beneath them, by each state. So a quick trip from Connecticut to Maine was made, without the expensive gasoline and mileage. All in all, a fun day and a good change of pace.

Level Headed Leadership

Barack Obama held a press conference today. I invite you to compare and contrast Senator Obama’s presence, gravitas, intelligence and his calm and deliberate manner to Senator McCain’s response to this economic situation, as well as to President George W. Bush’s speech to the nation this evening.

The differences are stark. The conclusion is clear. A McCain - Palin administration would not be four more years of Bush-Cheney-Rove; it would be much worse.

The Wheels On The Bus

Here in the U.S. we see a lot of bright yellow signs which state: “Motorcycles Are Everywhere - Look Twice, Save a Life”. That’s a good campaign. So where is the initiative which says: “School Buses Are Everywhere - STOP For Flashing Red Lights”?

Swing by Papamoka Straight Talk to read a headline no one ever wants to see in print.

Next!

As our roofers were finishing up on the kitchen roof this morning, the landscape fellow was hard at work filling in the ruts in our front lawn. Those ruts were left by the huge dump truck the roofers needed to use to haul away layers and layers of old roofing materials from five different surfaces. As the roofers drove away, the landscaper seeded the loamed areas. He left it to us to water it all in. No problem, even though we never, on principle, water the lawn. But Chuck added a second length of hose on to the one attached to the outside spigot. Some water sprayed out. Then the lights on the oldest circuit in the house began to flicker and the water dried up.

When we moved here fifteen years ago, we had some significant plumbing improvements taken care of before we even took occupancy. (That became quite eventful. One snafu involved a flood from the bathroom upstairs, pouring down onto the newly stripped and sanded living room floor!) One of the necessary changes was separating the two water source systems which were commingled. Commingling water from two wells is against code. Our internal potable water flows from a drilled artesian well. Our outside water flows from an old dug well. The best part of the dug well is that it acts as a “canary in the coal mine”. If the aquifer is beginning to fall due to drought conditions, the dug well gradually begins to pump up muddy water. Sufficient water that season leads to clear water, which rushes out with great force.

So what happened today? Our neighbor Dave, farmer extraordinaire, happened by and helped Chuck troubleshoot the problem. We think the truly antique pump which governs the dug well overfilled its equally ancient holding tank, which meant there was no air to assure the continuous free flow of water. Chuck has drained the tank - which took hours because it could only trickle out. Then, with the air cushion restored to the tank, Chuck restarted the pump for the previously waterlogged tank. We’re keeping our fingers crossed that tomorrow morning the water from the dug well will go coursing through the hose to water in the new grass seed. I really hope so, because we already had the pump guys here for the newer drilled well back in July after the lightning strike fried its switchbox!

For some reason, visions of “Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House” keeping flashing through my mind.
But that had a happy ending.

Didn’t it?



UPDATE: The pump worked! The water flowed! The grass seed is watered in!

Ruffling A Few Feathers

Chuck’s sister Carol forwarded an e-mail she had received. It described an interesting proposal: donate to Planned Parenthood - - - - in Governor Sarah Palin’s name! When you do, Planned Parenthood will send a card to Governor Palin letting her know a donation has been made in her honor.

Turns out it’s not a new concept. No matter, a good idea is a good idea.

Governor Palin opposes abortion even if the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest. And at the very top of the priority list for McCain-Palin is overturning Roe v. Wade. (My position on this issue can be found here.)

Ready to participate? Go to Planned Parenthood. (Or go directly to the Donate-In-Honor-Of page) Make a contribution (minimum donation is just $5.00). Be sure to check the “I would like to make this gift in honor of” circle.

Then fill out the section with Sarah Palin’s name. The e-mail advises using the McCain-Palin campaign headquarters for the mailing address:

Governor Sarah Palin
John McCain 2008
P.O. Box 16118
Arlington, VA 22215

I think it’s important for Governor Palin and Senator McCain to understand the real impact they are making.

Autumn Arrived

The cooler weather got me thinking about slow cooked dishes where the heat generated by the oven, stove or crockpot are welcome in the kitchen. That’s what led me to make this very autumnal soup. Here’s what I did: (Sorry, as usual, this was all by eye and to taste!)

Oven Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

One Big Butternut Squash (maybe 3 lbs?)
Onions - couple of large ones, diced fine
Garlic - crushed
Olive Oil
Butter
Sherry
Chicken stock and/or Vegetable stock
Black Pepper
Hot Sauce
Ground Nutmeg
Brown Sugar
Salt
(Light Cream - if desired, just before serving)

Quarter the Butternut Squash lengthwise and remove the seeds.
Place the four squash pieces face up in a large baking dish.
Drizzle on a little olive oil.
Pour enough water in the dish to get it about a 1/4 inch deep.
Roast in the oven, uncovered at about 400 degrees F for about an hour and a half - until fork tender and golden and it smells awesome. Check the water level about halfway through and add HOT water if needed.
Once cooked, let cool and then peel off the skin and discard.

In a large stockpot, saute a couple of Onions in some Olive Oil and Butter.
Add crushed Garlic.
Add some Sherry and cook until onions are soft and nearly translucent
Add Chicken and/or Vegetable stock.
Add the roasted Butternut Squash. Stir and simmer.
Use a potato masher to mash the squash into the soup. You can use a stick/immersion blender, but we prefer the less pureed, more rustic texture the masher achieves.
Now season to taste with the Pepper, Hot Sauce, Nutmeg, Brown Sugar and Salt.
The thick, slightly sweet, savory soup can be frozen at this point.

As with most soups and stews, this is even better the next day, after the flavors have had a chance to marry. But, by the time you’ve reached this point in the cooking, waiting is not easy to do. So just before service, when the soup is already hot, stir in a little light cream, if desired. (Isn’t it always desired?)

Enjoy!

Time For A Happy Dance

George Geder has bestowed the “I Heart Your Blog” award on Pink Granite! I am honored! George is a terrific photographer who has a specialty in restoration. He’s also an excellent genealogist, who often posts about his own family research, coupled with before and after historical photos which he has rescued and restored.

According “the rules”, I now may nominate seven other blogs. Oh my! I’m not great at following rules (or reading directions), but here goes:

Roo of Lala Ween World
Ronnie of Purple Ronnie
B2B of Barbie2Be
Susan of Susan’s Blog
Jeff of Wormtown Taxi
Morgan of DancingMorganMouse (her blog is temporarily private)
and last, but by no means least, George of George Geder!


Here are the rules associated with “I Heart Your Blog”:
1. The winner can put the logo on his/her blog;
2. Link to the person who gave you the award;
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs;
4. Put links to those blogs on yours;
5. Leave a message on the blogs that you’ve nominated.

Balance

Morgan, of DancingMorganMouse, who lives in Australia, left a question in the comments section about our political process. I answered it. It’s possible (O.K. - very likely) that she asked me a question equivalent to what time it was and I told her how to build a clock! Her “delicate” response was that it was now clear as mud! Self deprecation aside, she also wrote: “I suspect the US system is more democratic / participatory, but it would fair wear me out.” Spang on Morgan!

Chuck and I have been feeling the urgency of the presidential election building, while simultaneously feeling as if we are being worn down to mere nubbins by the intensity of it all. Based on the comments, we’re not alone. There are 45 days left until the election. That induces a coincident response of “Heaven help us! 45 freakin’ more days of all this! ” and “Yikes! Just 45 short days left to achieve our goals!”

So how do we pace ourselves? I think we have to work hard (see my Wednesday post “Thinking...”) and we have to play hard. Under playing hard there has to be lots and lots of laughter. A few months ago I wrote about things which make me happy: “Laughter is one of my top three responses in any situation. I’m not a Three Stooges/pratfall/whoopie cushion kind of gal, but if there is a way to inject a little socially appropriate levity into a stressful situation I’m there!” Don’t you think that will help keep us sane over the next 45 days?

I know if you are feeling like we are, you can’t help but work hard to elect Barack Obama and Joe Biden along with a functional Democratic majority in Congress. But we need to find the right balance of playfulness as well. Do whatever is necessary. Try “Pin The Tail on The Big Republican Machine” - you supply your own pictures! Think of a new rhyming or alliterative expletive every day. Most importantly, declare a Politics Free Zone or Time Out and let it all drift away. Watch a popcorn munching comedy (no not “ Dave” or “Primary Colors”!). Go for a walk. Fly a kite. Jump on a pogo stick.

Throughout it all, hang on to that attitude of gratitude.

Then come back here and remind me to do the same!

@issue

I love the way it’s possible to follow a trail of virtual breadcrumbs around the blogosphere and find something or someone nifty. Just look at my Blog Roll on the sidebar. Four continents are represented over there! From Barbie2Be who was one of my first links (thanks B2B!) to one of the newest; Kent from Georgia. His blog @issue is a mix of family, politics, current events (including a series of in depth posts on the oil crisis) and even digital-scrapbooking-by-marriage! (His wife is Renee of FertilePress.)

So swing by Kent’s blog, read up, say hi and learn what Kia Ora means...

Umm... Guys? Really?

You’re sure it’s going to look better in just a little while?
Really?

This is the view from our driveway, of the dooryard outside our kitchen.

Our wonderful roofers assure us, that while this looks much worse than during any other phase of this huge roofing job, it’s really going to be O.K.

What you see is the old kitchen roof which consisted of cedar shakes and a couple of layers of very old asphalt shingles. All of that is lying on a tarp, which is on top of our lawn, a back walkway, a bulkhead and our poor hosta, ivy and euonymus plants.

But it’s all going to be better in just a little while.
Really.

Then come the painters.
Oh my!

Happy Birthday Milton!

This afternoon, Chuck was able to sing happy birthday to his Dad on the occasion of Milton’s 94th birthday! Chuck’s sister Carol was visiting with Dad at the time of the call and reported Dad had a big smile on his face.

The photo of Chuck’s Dad and Mom in the layout above, was taken several years ago before they moved out to Washington State. (Sadly, Mom passed away back in 1999, from Alzheimer’s Disease.) I recently printed this layout onto a card which we sent to Dad.

Happy Birthday Pop!

Layout and photo by LMR/Pink Granite. Software: Apple iPhoto ‘08 & Adobe Photoshop CS3 for Mac. Paper: Autumn Bliss by Sarah Meyer/SarahB Designs (at Gotta Pixel) Fonts: Hypatia Sans Pro - Semi-Bold and Lucida Handwriting

As always, feel free to click on the image to get a better look.

Thinking...

I’ve been thinking a lot. I’ve been thinking about differences and common ground; thinking about Pink Granite and my friends in the Blogosphere; thinking about why I’m still registered as a lower case “i” independent voter; thinking about growing up in a time when there were good guys and bad guys on both sides of the aisle; thinking about money; thinking about power and of people working together for a common goal, for the common good.

: : I am so very grateful for all of you who read this blog. I’m particularly appreciative of folks who leave comments. You make this whole thing yeastier and that is a good thing!

: : I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating: through this blog, I have been delighted to find so many intelligent, warm, funny and well intentioned people from all around the world. You give me hope. You help me keep my sanity and my sense of humor.

: : I know I’ve been on a tear lately about politics and “The Big Republican Machine” relentlessly belching out its lies. Thanks for bearing with me if this particular election is not one you will be voting in. Many of you share my concern, as well as my hopes, but reading through the nitty-gritty details can’t be all that scintillating, unless it’s your ox being gored. Of course, when it comes to the U.S.A. the entire planet has a dog in this fight - to mix animal metaphors!

: : Growing up in Rhode Island (beginning a half century ago!) the politicians fell under a bell curve. There were good guys and bad guys and they were distributed between Democrats and Republicans. During my era, we had Senator John Pastore (D), Senator John Chafee (R) and Senator Claiborne Pell (D). We also seemed to alternate pretty regularly between Republicans and Democrats when it came to Governor. I mention this because as a kid it seemed to me that, generally speaking, the good guys got elected and reelected and you voted for the individual and his stand on the issues - not the D or the R after their name. I found the idea of “voting the ticket” a bit odd. That’s a big part of why I still haven’t relinquished my “unenrolled”/independent voting status.

: : It’s also why I’m working hard to parse folks who are registered Republicans or who vote for Republicans, from “The Big Republican Machine” as it exists today. The ruthless, win-at-any-cost BRM is an ugly thing which has evolved from eight years of Bush-Cheney-Rove, et al. I know that some of the voters who have been Republicans are dismayed, disheartened and disillusioned with the vicious, misguided, valueless, wrong-headed policies and Constitutional transgressions of the last eight years. Some of these Republicans are looking to the Obama-Biden campaign and seeing something good, thoughtful, responsible, egalitarian and honorable. That is resonating with them. They are not The BRM!

: : Which leads me to the need to get folks registered to vote. And, of equal importance, to get registered voters to the polls on November 4, 2008.
Here are some important links:
RockTheVote’s voter registration
Vote For Change voter registration
MoveOn.org’s voter registration Drive

: : Which in turn leads me to money. A few days ago I posted about sex and money. Money is a very private matter. Money is a very troubling topic these days as financial markets around the world are roiling. But it doesn’t cancel the need for us to contribute both time and money to the political process. Watch this video which Kate sent to me. It clearly spells out the scope of the challenge facing us in the next few weeks. And we mustn’t lose sight of the importance of electing a substantial Democratic majority to both the House and the Senate. As I mentioned in the comments, imagine how much more President Obama and Vice President Biden will be able to accomplish with a significant majority of Democrats in Congress!
Here are some links:
Barack Obama & Joe Biden
The Democratic Party
Democracy Bonds

: : Lastly, (You thought this post would never end didn’t you!) let me share a few images our friend Bruce sent us. These photos are from the “Alaska Women Reject Palin Rally” held on September 13, 2008 in Anchorage, Alaska. Over 1400 people came together last Saturday to say “NO” to McCain-Palin. I’ve also posted a video from the rally. If you think you’re alone, you’re not!

Lies and Language

Lately I have been feeling my anger build, as the outright lies coming from the Republican machine and their candidates for president and vice president have continued unabated. I don’t swear on this blog. I figure I have a sufficiently broad vocabulary that I don’t need to dip into my beloved George Carlin’s (God rest his soul) “seven dirty words”. I do, however, swear out loud in my home life. Some of that swearing is creative or crude or anatomically impossible or alliterative (i.e. holy Christmas crap on a crutch). Unfortunately, the expletive phrase in heaviest rotation around here is “Lying sack of @#%$” - or “Lying sacks of @#%$” in the collective. That’s what the incessesant lying of Republicans has reduced me to.

Enter Anne Lamott. Ms. Lamott is a beautifully engaging writer. Today, she combined her writing skills with her outrage and published “A Call To Arms” over on Salon. Never once did she use the phrase “Lying sacks of @#%$”. I came away from her writing renewed, revived and refreshed - still incredibly angry, but determined to make a difference.

P.S. Not that you need any further incentive, but, as a bonus, when you read Anne’s article, you can follow the link to the “Sarah Palin Baby Name Generator”. I kid you not.


psssst...Do Something!

Primary Day In Massachusetts

Please remember to vote in today’s Massachusetts primary!

Need to find your polling place? Click here.

Still need to register to vote? You won’t be able to vote in today’s primary, but, by registering, you will be able to vote in the vital national Presidential Election on November 4th! Learn more by clicking here.

By the way, I urge you to vote for Senator John Kerry on the Massachusetts Democratic ballot today.

Do you need to register to vote outside of Massachusetts? You can go to RockTheVote Voter Registration and fill out the form to receive a voter registration form via e-mail. Or you can go to Vote For Change and follow the steps to register in your home state.


Turn HOPE into reality. VOTE!