Day in Review - I Wonder What the Neighbors Think....

Cold and snowy day in Cleveland. I got about 6 inches of snow at my place. The poor dog is having a heck of a time going "potty" outside.  Luckily she has big ears, so I was able to see her when she fell in some sort of random divot today.  She is Ok, don't worry. She did have to have a sweater change though.

Walking dogs in the snow is tough.  I walked two today, in addition to my own, both big, furry and loving the snow on the ground. After I fell for the 2nd time, I said hell with it and came home. Now my ass hurts, but I am warm, comfortable and there is no snow in here. This is just a warning about karma....I laughed at my mom for falling yesterday, so of course, today, I fall twice.

Speaking of dogs...and attempting to not sound too insane, I was thinking today about how much I talk to my dog. I always say good morning to her when she wakes up, I ask her if she wants to go outside and if she wants to eat. She always comes into the bathroom with me and we have deep conversations about life (That's a joke...I don't spend that long in the bathroom)....

Just off the top of my head today I told her how harebrained I think Sarah Palin is, I told her it is was very snowy and cold out, I told her to stop licking the carpet (she has an obsessive-compulsive thing where she walks around the whole house licking rugs and the carpet on the floor), I told her she absolutely could not take her Platypus outside with her (She had her favorite toy, "Platty" in her mouth as we were walking out the door) and I had to take my calcium because it is good for my bones (She was begging, thinking it was a treat).

Now am I the only one who does this? Should I seek professional assistance?  This led me to wonder if my neighbors can hear the one-sided conversation that goes on in my apartment...do they hear random snippets as I am standing by the door?

"No! You can't take your platypus!"  - Possibly the first time this sentence has been said in the history of the world.

Platty the Platypus

"STOP LICKING THE CARPET!!"  - I don't even want to know what they are thinking on that one...

"ARRGHHHHH  What are you thinking, Sarah Palin?!?!?!?" - Obviously this sentence has been written many times in the history of the world.

"Wolf Blitzer is a cute guy!" - Sue me...I have some kind of old man crush on Wolf...

"HA HA HA HA HA HA" - Me TOTALLY laughing out loud with a huge guffaw at a movie the other night ("Sorority Boys"...it was hilarious....check it out if you have the chance).

So looking at these independent quotes, it does make me wonder what the neighbors think...luckily there is no one across the hall at the moment, but I dare say, at some point in the near future, I will have new neighbors.

Perhaps I should make some cookies for them so at least I have a good first impression...then it can all go to hell in a hand basket.

Day in Review - Speachless and Sickened....

Before I begin today's blog post, I have a few announcements to make.

1. I have finally figured out how to allow people to comment directly to the blog (Please use it!  I would love to see feedback)  You should be able to click the comment button directly below the post. You can remain nameless if you like. 

2. If you have a chance, I am still pimping this website - http://libetisocial.com/. Check it out, join the discussion.

3. Do you use Twitter?  Follow me there!  christamarie123 

Now on to our regularly scheduled blog post....


Though I am an avid CNN watcher, I have to admit I have been tuning in more the past few days. Though my mornings are generally spent with the Golden Girls and Saved By The Bell, my afternoons belong to Ali Velshi, Brooke Baldwin and Wolf Blitzer. Don't get the wrong idea...the TV is on in the background while I work, and I usually only listen to it, as opposed to watching it. If something airs I want to see, I will flip around in my chair and check it out.  Today, I did a huge turn around...as I heard Brooke Baldwin utter the words "Westboro Baptist Church".


Though I am sure most of you know who they are, this is the group that protests funerals of service members, other churches, funerals of those who have died from AIDS, funerals of gay people, football games, concerts, etc, etc.  They are, in my opinion, a group that stands for and promotes hate, negativity, hostility, poison and all that inspires odious acts. They recently showed up to protest the funeral of Elizabeth Edwards and now have plans to protest the funeral of 9-year old Christina Green, killed in the massacre in Tuscon, which is scheduled for tomorrow.The church said in a statement "God sent the shooter! "Praise God for ALL his works, and BE YE THANKFUL!."

I support Freedom of Speech...I believe it is an important part of our United States laws. HOWEVER, protesting the funeral ANYONE, including a 9-year old girl is sickening to me. The evil it must take to stand at any funeral and hold up signs that say "God Hates Fags" and "God Hates America" is beyond me, and luckily beyond 99% of the population. It is totally inappropriate, wrong and indecent. I could care less if they want to walk up and down the street promoting their grotesque and nonsensical messages, that is their right...but not at a funeral. Not for an innocent 9-year olds memorial service. Not for anyone.

Though I am usually not a fan of the state of Arizona nor Governor Jan Brewer, the actions the state made today concerning passing a law that bars protests within 300 feet of a funeral and within an hour from its beginning or end is commendable. Sending this message is the right thing to do.

I also want to commend the "angel action" that will be taking place tomorrow, shielding the mourners from the Church with large angel wings. Both Democrat and Republican lawmakers in Arizona also plan on asking the community to line the procession route to shield the mourning family and friends. Sending this message is the right thing to do.

I said this once and will say it again...to the members of the Westboro Baptist Church - God is watching you...and he is mad.

Weekend in Review - Arizona Shooting

I have not blogged about the weekend shooting and assassination attempt yet for two reasons: 1) I was angry and 2) I wanted to find out more information and see if any motive was established. As of today, 1/10/11, 1:25 EST, there has been none. Through I am still angry and confused about what happened, I am calm enough at this point not to point fingers and though I have my own ideas, theories, and beliefs on what prompted this heinous act, I am going to keep those ideas out of this posting. At this point in time, people are dead, some injured and some fighting for their lives. 20 people, in fact. 20 people shot in cold blood. Six are dead.

A 9-year old girl, Christina Taylor Green, interested in politics, newly elected to her schools student council.

A 30-year old man, Gabe Zimmerman, engaged to be married, community outreach coordinator for Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

A 63-year old man, John Roll, U.S. District Judge in Arizona, husband, father, grandfather.

A 76-year old man, Dorwin Stoddard, shielding his wife from the bullets.

A 76-year old woman, Dorothy Morris, homemaker from Reno, Arizona resident of 10 years, wife, mother and grandmother.

A 79-year old woman, Phyllis Schneck, a New Jersey native, wintered in Tuscon, wife, mother, grandmother, active in her church.



I think it is human nature to ask why....why would a 22-year old man attempt assassination on a member of Congress. Why were Gabe Zimmerman, Dorwin Stoddard, Dorothy Morris, Phyllis Schneck, Christina Taylor Green and John Roll killed? Why were 14 others injured? What was the shooters motivation? What was going through his head? All of us want to know. All of us have asked the questions. Many have pointed fingers...thinking they know. No one knows at this point. We may not know. As of today he has been uncooperative according to Pima County Sheriff, Clarence Dupnik.

Pointing fingers will not help the situation today, or tomorrow, nor did it help yesterday. I admit, I placed blame quickly...again, it is human nature to do that. Was I right to place blame without knowing the facts? No. I wasn't. I was wrong. I can admit that. My blame could be in the right place, or it could not. It doesn't matter today. What matters is the 20 people who were shot. Their friends, their families, this country as a whole...not Republicans, not Democrats, not those in the middle. People matter today no matter what their affiliation.

When you find yourself pointing a finger, stop for a second. Stop until the truth is out, we are absolutely sure of the motivation and judgment is beginning to be served, take a step back...remember those fighting for life...remember the 6 Americans who were shot...and take a moment to reflect on them.

Day in Review - Like Finding Lettuce in Your Coffee Cup

It was a weird day for me today. Chloe (My Toy Fox Terrier) was having behavioral problems and seems to have broken my computer mouse, I saw a man dressed up as an elf walking down the street, I thought I got frost bite as the wind was brutal while working today (Really need to locate my hat, I think), my smoke detector went off for no reason, I was told I look very smart in my glasses and they reminded the person of Sarah Palin's, (They do NOT look like hers at ALL and I am sure I don't need to tell you how offended I was by this statement) and I was drinking coffee this afternoon and found a limp piece of lettuce as I took my last sip. (leftover from my salad from lunch, I guess) It was gross, if you have never experienced this before.

Like limp lettuce in my coffee cup, I am feeling weak. I am sure you know the feeling...where you just can't be bothered and you can't really care about anything. For me, it surely is just "one of those days", but I don't like when I get this feeling. Generally I fight these feelings and haven't had this feeling in awhile. I am tired, didn't sleep well last night, getting over a cold and stayed up past my bed time last night finishing an article on Green Jobs in Cleveland. I am ready for bed and it's only 8pm.

I think it is normal to feel like this every once in awhile. I think we all have the right to feel this way sometimes too. No one can be all "Hearts and Butterflies" all the time. (Hee Hee..get it?) We all deserve a down day to sulk. Today is my day and I am going to take it. I am going to not care and the rest of the world will just have to accept it.

One of the greatest compliments I have gotten recently is from my college roommate, Pam. We were on the phone last week and we were talking about how the past year, 2010 in particular, was tough. It was really tough on me, I have to admit. I felt like 2010's bitch for the vast majority of the year. It seems like I was at the lowest I have been in my life. Not only was I down, I was beaten while down then salt poured in the wounds. At the time, I accepted it as it was for awhile. At least for the first 8 months of the year. I then made a decision that changed my path...or maybe it kept me on the same path and I was supposed to make that decision. I won't pretend to know how things like that work. The point is, I wasn't completely happy with the decision I made at the time, but knew it was right. Today, I am completely happy with it. I am happier today (metaphorically "today"...I am in a "mood" on this exact day) than I have been in months and possibly years. I have been smiling more, laughing more, getting back to my old "Christa-self".

Since I have babbled on about 2010, I need to get back to my conversation with Pam and the point of this whole post today. Pam gave me a compliment...she knows what I went through in 2010 and said this (Weird, but I wrote it down after I talked to her because it really hit me hard)

"I have to really commend you Christa. You are so strong. I haven't known anyone who could have gone through what you did, used your resources like you did and never gave up. You are so strong. I never, ever could have done it".

My response to her is "Well, I guess you never know your strengths until you are put in a situation where you have to use them. I don't know how I did it to this day and I probably won't know how. All I know is what doesn't kill you made you stronger. I got through this, and I will get through other stuff."

Profound, I know...

She said I was strong, and that was a compliment to me. I don't feel strong. I don't feel like I could go through things I know other people have gone through. I don't feel like I would have the strength or courage, for that matter to do acts that most people believe show strength and courage: battle cancer, live with a disability, fight in a war, land an airplane in distress...those are things that show strength and courage to me, but my dear friend said I showed strength in what I have been through.

The point is, strength can be found in all places and in all people. All of us have the strength to do all those things, I think. God forbid, I get a disease. I know damn well I would fight it with everything I had. If for some reason I had to fight in a war, I would fight for what I thought was right.

You...yes, you reading this...you have strength. If you haven't found it, look for it. Look for it before you need it, just so you know it's there. The good thing is, if you haven't found it and you need it, it will show up when you least expect it.

As Pam reminded me during our phone call, one of my favorite quotes has always been: "When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on" - Franklin D. Roosevelt

Day in Review - "Hearts and Butterflies"

A lot of things going on today in the country. Start of the 112th Congress, shooting at a school in Nebraska, hostages held in Arizona, factory explosion in Tennessee...more dead birds falling from the sky. Insanity....all of this can really bring you down, so when I start feeling down I try to focus on other things. Please note I am definitely not making light of any of these things or saying they don't matter. Anyone who knows me well, knows I am a huge news hound. I am always watching or checking the news, but sometimes it does get depressing. I just want to focus on the lighter side of life today...



Still no word on my parking ticket...I will definitely keep everyone posted!

I received another mystery scratch on my arm...I noticed it when I woke up and felt pain on forearm...I remember the dream...scary stuff. I will really need to figure this out. Anyone know any dream experts? This one is smaller than the one on my hand, but deeper it seems. It hurts more too! I surely could have done it myself this time, but I since it was in my dream, I am going with my ghost/psychosis/dreams coming to life theory.





I took the picture above...it always makes me happy. My mother pointed out she grew the flowers, so I want to give a shout out to her and her green thumb.



"Butterflies and Hearts"

Have you ever thought about toilet paper? Now come on...we all use it. There is not one person reading this that has never used toilet paper in one way or the other. Toilet paper actually got me into a lot of trouble in my high school days when I used it to decorate my friend Abby's house...I still may be banned from entering the property in fact. Though I have snuck in a few times, I can't say that the "TP Incident of 1997" was ever really out of all our minds.




This afternoon I was changing the roll of toilet paper in my bathroom and just happened to notice there were little hearts on the paper. Seriously toilet paper manufacturers? What is the point of hearts on toilet paper!?! Just purely decorative?












You can also see, in my new package of toilet paper, this one is printed with beautiful butterflies and swirls of happiness.



Seriously...when I think of toilet paper, the last thing I personally think about are hearts and butterflies moving around in swirls of happiness. How are hearts and butterflies related to toilet paper? Maybe a better question is how are hearts and butterflies related to going to the bathroom? I get the quilted toilet paper...soft, quilted areas that are supposed to bring comfort during your business. I do not understand hearts and butterflies. Do you have the answer? Please let me know!

UPDATE: We may have an answer on the toilet paper conundrum. An old and good friend of mine, Elisha has suggested this: "Well maybe toilet paper companies are owned by tea partiers. Think about it: hearts, butterflies, etc evoke images of everything good: love, nature, tranquility...And what do you do with it: wipe your a**."


I want to shamelessly plug a few things today too.

I need more Twitter followers! If you are on Twitter, give me a follow! Christamarie123. I am constantly tweeting witty remarks (or totally boring/stupid things depending on your opinion)

I also want to plug this great new website I am helping with. http://libetisocial.com/. You can join the discussion here: http://libetisocial.com/question.

Also a HUGE thank you to everyone who reads this blog. It has TRIPLED it's readership in the past month. I am very thankful for you all, for all the messages and tweets (even the ones who accuse me of being mean to the Republicans and Tea Party) and the support of everyone. If you want to hear my opinion on anything, let me know! I will write about it!

Also working on a new article that should be published to Yahoo! soon on Green Jobs in Cleveland...the question...are there Green jobs in the rust belt? Yes!

Day in Review - "Frenemies"

Hello out there! I really enjoy mellow days like today. Of course, with me, it was mellow until I started thinking...I think I may have some Frenemy...

This thought appeared after a few hours of waiting for a response to an e-mail I sent last night to a friend of mine. I finally heard back and the response was strange. We have always had an unspoken rivalry, but this time, it really got me thinking...perhaps she is not a friend...but a frenemy!

This just may not be my day for friends. I actually sent a few messages out today...heard back from 1/5. That is just not a good score in my book. If I think harder about this, I realize there are a few people out there who I have considered friends who have been acting very sketchy these days.

Hmmm. Let's be honest. If you don't like me any more, if I have offended you, if you don't think I am cool enough for you or I am just not worth your precious time, please be an adult and let me know. If you want to silently un-friend me on Facebook or block me on Twitter...please do it. I promise I won't cry. I promise I won't bash you in a public arena or announce any deep dark secrets of yours to the world. I will survive, I will go on living and I will be thankful for the times I spent with you, but I guarantee I will be able to raise my head tomorrow and live my life.

In a segue from friends to guys...which are my friends as well, but not as "girly", I have something to say to those few men who are consistently trying to text/e-mail me to go out with them...if I do not write back...I am NOT INTERESTED IN YOU!!!!! I realize one of them is my own fault since my friend Laurel (not a frenemy) was not watching me carefully enough on my birthday and I got a bit grabby with this guy, but if you send someone 10 texts and they never write back, take a hint...and before you call me out on not contacting him and being honest (see previous paragraph) , I have told him TWICE I am not interested.

Two other gentleman have been incessently messaging me on a certain dating site I happen to be subscribed to. Again...I have politely messaged them both and said "Thanks, but no Thanks". So what do they do? Keep sending me messages!!!! I don't want them! I don't want you! I think you are ugly! Seriously...I wish I could say that and not feel bad about it.

There IS however, a very cute guy I have been talking to...I may be into him, in fact...though I may be robbing the cradle because he is a bit younger than me...Ok...7 year younger...but it can't hurt to have a little fun, right?

On that note, I am out...could be an interesting few days in the political arena coming up. I will be watching...

Oh! One more thing! My ticket! I still haven't heard anything about my appeal, but I asked my dad over the weekend if he would help me fight it to the Supreme Court if I had to. He looked at me and said "I'd rather just give you the $25 to pay it"....Ahhh....the things my Dad says....


Adding some Breaking News! Apparantly Arnold Schwarzenegger was hit with a parking ticket in LA...we have something in common! I wonder if his was warranted or he got hit by a FALSE ACCUSATION like myself...

Day in Review - "Death Threats and Repeal...All in a Day's Work"

Welcome to 2011. Of course this is only the 3rd day of the year, but thus far, it has been wonderful! Hilarity is ensuing in both the entertainment world as well as in politics today, as you know, two of my favorite things. Let's get on with it, shall we?




"Death Threats Against Disney Star" - Now I would normally never take the time of day to even acknowledge that Justin Bieber exists, but today is a special day! Why? If you haven't heard, he is allegedly dating Disney star Selena Gomez. Now they have not confirmed this, but lets just say for the sake of this blog, they are dating.

Over New Year’s Eve weekend, the Biebs and Selena were photographed getting pretty cuddly in St. Lucia. As a normal adult, many will say “Awww” or “Puke”, but some members of the “Bieber Brigade” are furious at this news. Though the two stars fan bases do overlap, Selena Gomez has been getting some pretty hate filled responses to this latest developments in the story.

Some classic tweets about this are:

“"Omg I hate Selena Gomez She took my man!” (Newsflash to the author of this tweet…Justin was not your man, nor will he ever be your man. Get over it. Jordan Knight, as much as I wanted him to be, was never my boyfriend and I survived the trauma.)

“Selena Gomez is a bitch” (Simple, but effective)

“im still crying.... over Selena and Justin” (Poor girl...get a box of tissues and the number of a therapist STAT)

“I will KILL Selena Gomez!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” (Oh! You will? 25 to Life sounds good for all with "Bieber Fever" to me)

“You are going to die if you do not leave justin It is true XD” (Yikes! If I were Selena Gomez right now I would be afraid...*note sarcasm*)

Since I cannot bear to search for any more of these gems, I will trust you get the idea of what is going on in the 11-15 ish age group tonight.

"Congress Returns With A Repeal" - The 112th Congress has not officially even started yet but my favorite true life soap opera is already in full swing. The quick story on this is the GOP wants to repeal the well known Health Care bill which was signed, sealed and delivered in late 2010. Though it is true, they are sending a message here...it is kind of funny they think they can actually do this! I hope the GOP isn't doing this with a lot of seriousness. Though I love making fun of them, I would certainly hope they have more brains in their heads than to think they can repeal this. Have they heard of veto power?

In closing tonight, I want to send a shout out to my friend Eileen and wish her a Happy Birthday! I am sorry it had to fall on "The World Hates Selena Gomez Day".

I also want to invite anyone who likes to discuss and post information online to check out a website I am currently pimping - http://libetisocial.com/question It's cool, it's fun and needs to get off the ground!