@bobbi...did u re-side and shingle your house too? LOL
-I did get a lot of planting done/laundry anyhow :)
-Just grilled some burgers and chicken breast on grill

Hahaha! No, just the roof and gutters! And Rocky the Wonder Dog dug up some more plants. He's cruisin' for a bruisin', that dang dog.

Look at this desk.

Maybe you could be more gracious than I.
https://www.houzz.com/discussions/looking-for-input-on-interior-designer-dsvw-vd~496522

Morning all, or should I say afternoon. The ping pong started at 9am this morning, this time with giggling, squarking friends so I've been at the other end of the house. I think I am getting a bear in my dotage........... winter starts Saturday, maybe I should consider hibernating like all good bears.

Jayme, I missed that female politician but she certainly would have been speaking for most of us. Many, many years ago a friend of mine said that you can mix nationalities and cultures but you can't mix religions. This is certainly becoming very true here as one lot in particular are really trying to take over. They want everything the country can offer but even children born here refuse to acknowledge they are Aussies. They just want everything and respect nothing and then they have the hide to call US racist!!!

Patty - great minds think alike, my first thought for Bobbi's baker's rack was a cocktail cabinet, but from what I know of Bobbi, craft storage would be perfect.

Bobbi - check out craft storage here too, there are a lot of great ideas for ways of storing things.

mp - nice to see you again, hope you had a pleasant long weekend.

I have a meeting to go to, I NEED a break from the house and these damned curtains.

Go to your meeting, Roo, and have fun away. Good night all!

For all you Canadians - had a great laugh this morning over the Miss Universe mix up .......... how on earth?????

Night Bobbi, sleep tight.

Hey all, super crazy day and early night. I actually walked the floor and met some of the old veterans on the floor today. Sad to see people suffer and then I remember why I try to live my life to the fullest. On another note. Check out my cat going with me on my walking the dog.

Angela...Our cat Louie..also will follow us on dog walks...he will go for blocks and blocks with us...it's so cute!!! Wish I lived my life to the fullest...trying anyway !! :)

It is the funniest thing watching her run with the dog. Jayme, I do not always and sometimes life sucks. I have had my share of ups and down but I try to take the good more than bad and the bad I have shed and set aside. I am the master of my own life. If I do not lead. Sheessh .

@Angela...your cat reminds me of our Romero..who we lost about 6 mos ago..he was a stray with 3 and a half legs, one and a half ears...He was the BEST cat..we had him about 6 years..he got sick and passed away unfortunately..his colors were the same as your cat....we don't know how he lost one half of his right leg and part of his left ear. He got around well and could run, etc...
Your kitty has a fluffy tail with a white end...like a fox!!

I got her from the pound when my other orange tabby died. She is something else. I have had her fir 4 years now.

Okay. House is clean. And I'm pooped.

Oh sweet Jesus, then I started washing windows. I'm done now.
ETA: Wrong. Not done. I still have to make my bed.

Mega-sigh.

After starting my night watching patients in the hospital, my ambulance wouldn't start. We're getting towed now.

Aww, bummer Robin!

Only 5 hours at the hospital followed by a tow truck trip back to station. 6 hours to go in the shift... I think I can...

Yikes! You can do it!

@bobbi - I found a sign on here (in my cool ideas ideabook) that says "Changing the toilet paper roll does not cause brain damage". I need it for my house. Lol!

my ginger and white kitty likes to come along when i walk my leashed dogs. i try to remember to put him in the house for his own safety from cars. his name is 'hey jude eastwood' and he's about as old as clint.

@Roo...It was Julia Gillard..the speech I was referring to had to do with Muslims in Australia....Some of her quotes are great, and evidently she has spunk!! I love that!

Roo – Isn’t it great how the UN wants countries to do things, but it’s the individual countries footing the bill, and will impact them when they generous allow “political refugees” in .. who then bomb the country, and protest any regulation meant to protect citizens!

Bobbi – That’s the problem with being too liberal; organizations like the ACLU are more focused on protecting the “rights” of prisoners & terrorists, than innocent citizens! They’d never allow the military to run all the prisons, as much sense as that makes.

STK – There’s a problem with term limits in some areas. Members of the House of Representatives have 2 year terms .. which is ridiculous these days .. every other year they have to distract from work to run for re-election. Their committee assignments & chairmanships are based on experience & therefore seniority, so that only comes with being in office at least 2 or 3 terms .. if not longer. And some representatives work their asses off, as long as they’re in office; like my Congressman Chris Smith .. in office about 30 years, although he’s only in his early 60s.

Gotta run .. finish later!

Jayme, that happens to be our VERY unpopular Prime Minister. I wish I had seen that, she will tell you black is white one day and pink the next. I just hope nothing happens in the next 4 months so we get rid of her, although at the moment the alternative doesn't actually turn me on. I have met him quite a few times, I often see him at the shops and he always stops for a chat. He is a highly educated and academically brilliant man and very good at getting things done, but he has a bad case of foot-in-mouth and just lacks that charisma I feel a good leader needs.

Angela, I love the pictures of your cat!!! sometimes they are so smart! I miss mine :(

Roo, can you explain about the PM? is she anti-Muslim? what is her stance on aboriginals?

Mouse - which day of the week???

I have friends who have family in Australia who are Muslim. that's why I ask.

I've not head her say anything really specific - good or bad. Unfortunately, we do seem to have two types here, extremely quiet, decent and respectful ones and the extremist ratbag loonies. A lot have brought old issues from their homeland out with them and won't let up and that really gets up everyone's nose. Unfortunately when the subject comes up they are all lumped collectively under "Muslim". The burka is the big issue, especially when there is nothing in the Koran relating to the wearing of it - it is not a religious thing at all but they claim it is.

People claim there are things in other holy books that aren't there either. It's not the religion at fault. There is something about modesty, however and perhaps it was interpreted that way for cultural adaptation of the burqa.
Catholics, for example, don't want to be judged by the Crusades or by pedophile priests or by the behavior of their pope during the Holocaust. But think about the brave nuns and priests who sacrificed their lives to save others, one of whom went to the gas chambers with his orphans. There are millions of Muslims who do not want to be judged by the behavior and actions of the few. Wearing a burqa is a personal choice for some regardless of what we think about it.
If we truly believe that we should have the right to believe what we want, then we need to extend that same right to others.

Mouse, unfortunately modern day life has changed attitudes, and the burka is a huge issue here at the moment. People do find it confronting dealing with someone when they can't see their face. We have rules here that motor cyclists have to remove their helmets when entering buildings, especially banks, so why should anyone else be allowed to keep their face covered. With the levels of dishonesty terrorists have resorted to no one can know just who is under those veils. They have shown here how driving in them severely limits vision which makes them a danger on the road and we recently had a case where one lady was stopped for traffic violations, refused to remove her burka for ID purposes - we do have photo licences for a good reason - and then tried to sue the Police Officer for assault claiming he tried to remove the burka. Then she managed to wriggle out of everything because no one could prove it was actually her driving the car. The minute anyone tries to set some standards and rules that make it fair on everyone they then scream religion when it is not in fact a religious practice.

Even worse is the fact that in their country, Westerners are required to observe their dress codes, Westerners have been severely dealt with for not doing so, so why shouldn't they respect our codes when they come here, especially when the main objections are on the grounds of public and personal safety.

Here is an old photo of Osama Bin Laden aged 14. He is second on the right. Not a veil in sight, not even a head covering. It may not come out too big unfortunately.

Scary in today's world!! It's always the few that ruin things for the majority it seems like. It really is a security concern nowadays in re: the need to see the person's face.

@roo...they all look pretty Americanized!!

you have to see it from her point of view. Maybe there were traffic violations, but that does not mean she should remove her burqa or that an officer has the right to touch her. That is a violation of her personal space and her modesty. I am told by good authority that vision is not impaired by a burqa for driving, although I find it hard to believe. Not every Muslim is a terrorist. Remember Oklahoma City? Not Muslims. It is religious practice as it is for nuns who wear a habit.

It is easy to be judgmental about cultures and people we do not understand or who are not "Westernized", but remember that much of our learning including science and religion came from the Middle East.

I just wish everyone could just get... along. Naive, I know. But I wish it.

I agree, but we're human :) humans have been fighting for thousands of years :)

Jayme, don't forget in many countries emulating Americans is status, maybe not as much now but 30 or 40 years ago it definitely was the case.

mouse - the whole incident was caught on camera and the officer did not touch her, didn't go near her. One of our news channels put a camera inside a burka and believe me the vision was very restricted. Sure not every Muslim is a terrorist but they aren't helping their cause when they use the burka to break the law and then play on it to get away with it. Common sense has to prevail or what is the point of us having laws at all. We really do have to learn to live together but that can only happen with everyone giving and taking. The burka is not part of the religion and a nun's habit does not hide her face.

Roo, I'm not trying to argue with you. You didn't provide enough information in your original post so I responded to what I knew. I did say that I found it hard to believe and I told my friend that too about the vision being impaired wearing a burqa. Not ever having worn one as she has only to be where she was, I accepted what she told me.
Please do not judge all Muslims on the actions of some that you disagree with or are annoyed at. I'm sure you do not want to be judged either.

how about this? :)

mouse - I can assure you I am a very open minded person and try to look for the good in everyone. Unfortunately after working for 20 years with the seamy characters in life sometimes it gets hard to find the "normal" people. Sadly here too, other races and groups form into enclaves and don't try to mix with society in general, so they are not giving people the opportunities to met them and get to know them. We are even having instances now where these groups are refusing to allow the general community into their area and even refuse service in shops.

Your country, my country. Someone wants in. Great. Become a citizen, speak the language, get a job, most importantly, invest in the country where you have chosen to live. I am speaking as a U S citizen. Put your hand over your heart, salute the Flag, acknowledge "in God we trust"…or go back home. No free rides for you because there are no free rides for me. I pay my way.

Nothing irritates me more than someone who CHOSE to come here and REFUSES to learn the language. I wouldn't dream of going to live in another country and not wanting to speak their language!!!

When my grandmother came to America, her older siblings were here already, and had a drygoods store in NYC .. where the younger siblings worked. She said that when her sister wanted to talk to her in Yiddish or Polish in the store, she would tell her, "We're Americans now, we have to speak English! You don't want customers to think we're greenhorns, do you?" At home, they spoke a mixture of languages, especially after they all had families, depending on whether they wanted the children to understand or not (LOL).

Bobbi - There's a discussion in my AARP singles group, about becoming an Ex-Pat to save money. I said I wouldn't want to live in a "compound" with Americans & other English-speakers, not feeling totally connected to everything going on around me.

Greenhorns! I haven't heard that word in a long time! What do you mean by Ex-Pat?

Bobbi - ex-patriot; someone who moves to/lives in a foreign country.

Oh! Ok, thanks.

I'm watching CNN and an enormous sinkhole has just opened up in Oklahoma. And they say California will fall off into the ocean! We may lose Oklahoma altogether!

Wonder if it is a sinkhole or a tornado sucked it out. There was a movie - can't remember the name now - about an earthquake, I think it ended up splitting the US in half but it came down the Californian fault line and half the State dropped off into the ocean.

Thanks, Roo, I feel so much safer now. hehehe