Just A Random Rant

You know what drives me nuts?  Those darn blue colored headlights!  Are they LED?  I'm not even sure.  I feel like they mess with my vision at night, when they're coming toward me.  Not so much that it makes it hard to see or anything, thankfully.  I am all for brighter headlights, and being able to see well for night driving but those lights are just too much.  I've never driven a vehicle that has them, so maybe I'm really missing out on something, but I sure don't like them coming at me.

Controversy

One of the things that drives me crazy about myself, is that in an argument or disagreement, I get flustered and don't think of all the things I'd really like to say.  It's always when I've calmed down, that I think of things that might help prove my point or, at the very least, help someone else understand why I feel the way I do.  I am quick when it comes to being sarcastic, or having a smart ass response, but not at all when in debate.  Then, when I have thought about all of the things I should have said, it's too late to say them.  It makes you an asshole for bringing it all back up.  The other day, this happened, and now that I've had time to think rationally, I'm going to say what I need to say here.  Whether anyone reads it or not, I feel like I can't move on until I've gotten it out.  So here goes.

The other day, I posted a picture of Phil Robertson with the words "I Support Phil" and "Shame on A&E" on it, on Facebook.  I still stand by that.  I believe that people have a right to express their opinions, feelings and beliefs, and not be fired for it.  I didn't see what he said as a threat to anyone, just his beliefs, so I said that he should have the right to Free Speech and to say what he did.  While I love Duck Dynasty, and love how the family is strong in their values, I do not agree with his statements.  Personally, I think that people should be free to love and marry whomever they want.  I believe that everyone is entitled to the same love and commitment, that I have with my husband.  As far as the "Shame on A&E" goes,  yes, they do have the right to fire him if they feel that's what needs to be done.  I have the right to say I don't agree with that.  His comments were made in an interview, not on the show, so for me, I don't think he should have been fired.  I don't understand how someone can get fired for paraphrasing the Bible, a book they believe in and follow.  I'm not saying that what he said wasn't offensive.  Again, I can't stress enough, how much I DO NOT agree with what he said.  I just think he had the right to say it.  I know people think I'm ignorant and a bigot, for supporting this, and feeling the way I do, and I'm just going to have to live with that.  Some people say Phil Robertson is an "ignorant redneck."  Is that based on his graduating from Louisiana Tech?  His Bachelor's in Physical Education or his Masters in Education?  Or because he likes to hunt and has a strong belief in his religion?  How is name calling any better than him speaking out on what he believes in?  This is not my attempt to try to change anyone's mind, as I feel everyone is entitled to their opinion, this is my attempt to try to explain myself a little better.  I am sorry for offending anyone, as that is never my intention.

Why?

I just don't understand people.  Today while I was picking up a few things at the store, I heard a man saying awful things to the woman he was with.  I didn't hear everything but "what the hell is wrong with you?" and "you must be stupid" were among the things I did hear.  I felt awful for the woman.  She looked hurt and embarrassed.  I will never understand why people think it's ok to talk to other people that way.  Whether it's your spouse, your child, your friend or a stranger, words like those are never ok.  I cannot imagine Lloyd ever saying anything like that to me.  Ever.

A few aisles later, two teenaged boys walked by me and were dropping f-bombs very loudly.  I have never been crazy about hearing that, especially in public, but when I have my two small, impressionable children with me, I get upset about it.  All I can think is at that age, I wouldn't have dreamed about talking like that.

Not to sound all high and mighty, but seriously, I am on a mission to teach my kids to respect themselves and to respect others.  I know some people think it's hilarious to teach children bad words, and I'll admit, the couple of times Lauryn repeated inappropriate words she heard did make me want to laugh, but I didn't.  I kept a straight face and explained to her that those were bad words and that she was not to say them again.  I want my kids to know that words can hurt so we need to be careful what we say.

A Rant

There's something I've noticed people do, a lot, that really bugs me.  I see it on Facebook all the time and I just don't understand it.  It drives me crazy when I see someone go on and on about equal rights and standing up for the gay community, which, don't get me wrong, I agree whole heartedly that everyone should be able to love and marry who they want, but then those same people attack other people for their religious beliefs and political views.  Why is it you can stand up for one group of people, but go after another because they don't share the same views as you?  Isn't that just another form of bashing?  Another group to attack?  If you truly believe in equal rights, shouldn't you leave those people alone and let them believe what they want?  Why are they "wrong" or "uneducated" because their views are different from yours?  That is the very reason I choose not to get into conversations on those topics.  People are too close-minded to just accept that I have different beliefs than them and I don't want to explain or defend my choices.  I truly hate, when those conversations do come up, how instead of just respecting that someone has a different point of view, they feel it's their duty to try to explain why you're wrong or try to make you feel stupid for not seeing it their way.  In a perfect, much less hateful world, everyone would be able to love who they want to love, believe in whatever they feel is right, and no one would try to change anyone.  Wouldn't that be nice?

One of Those Days

Don't you just hate when you have a day where you feel you've done nothing right?  Today was one of those days.  Actually, I feel like I have those ALL of the time lately.  Good intentions turn out to hurt or upset someone, things that are out of my control leave me feeling awful...I don't know.  I just feel like for quite a while now, every decision I make is wrong.  I don't really know how to turn it around and it's really weighing on me.

What Is Wrong With People?

This afternoon, while driving back home from Grand Rapids, I saw an ambulance coming towards me.  All the people on the same side of the road as me immediately moved to the shoulder and stopped.  All of the people on the other side, the ones in front of the ambulance, didn't get out of the way AT ALL!  What the hell?  I was thinking two things at that moment.  One, people who don't get the hell out of the way when an ambulance is coming, should get their license taken away for be incredibly dumb and disrespectful.  Two, I wondered if those people who didn't get out of the way might have moved if they thought for one second that the ambulance was going to rescue someone they loved.  Honestly, out of all the things that driver's do on the road, that one pisses me off the most!

Happy!

I so love when things work out. Even little things :) A while back, I bought these fabric drawers at a dollar store but wasn't able to get the exact number of them I wanted. I tried another store and the had tons of them but not in the right color. Today, Lauryn and I went back to the first store and just when I was about to give up, I found one! Now the shelves in my craft room look great and are filled with different projects I'm working on :) Like I said, it's just a little thing but it makes me happy!

Another a completely different subject, one that acually irritates me, I am so tired of hearing about people receiving disability insurance, when they are perfectly capable of working. I just don't understand it. What really aggrivates me, is that there are people out there who do need it and they get denied for one reason or another. I don't understand how that even makes sense. Sorry to go off on a random rant but I had a conversation about this today and it really bugs me!

Watch Your Kids!!!

Yesterday, I decided to pack lunch for me and Lauryn and walk down to the park to play.  It started out really nice.  The weather was great, she was having a great time playing and I was having fun watching and helping her.  We took a break from playing and went down to sit on a bench by the river to eat our lunch.  Afterward, we went back up to play and there were two women with two kids there.  The one kid was probably around 5 and he was running around playing and the other kid looked just over a year to me.  I was pretty surprised that the two women weren't paying much attention at all to the little guy because there was a lot of things for him to get hurt on.  They were busy drinking their coffee's and talking about OxyElite Pro.  The little guy climbed his way through the playground and managed to get to the tallest slide.  He started going down it just as Lauryn and I were walking by.  I could see he was having a hard time and I ended up catching him near the bottom as he fell of the side!  The two women didn't seem to notice at all.  I made sure he was okay and then went back to playing with my own child.  A few minutes later, the little guy fell off a step right by and his poor little head bounced on the wood chips.  This time, the woman who I assumed was his mother laughed a little but did not make one move to check on him.  I was furious!  I helped him up, brushed him off and looked him over to make sure he wasn't hurt.  Why would you bother taking your kids to a park to play if you aren't even going to watch them and keep them safe?  I understand that playgrounds are meant for kids but that doesn't make them safe and when there's a child that young and I don't think  you should just trust that they'll be okay.  Maybe I'm a paranoid mother but when Lauryn's playing there, I'm not more than two feet away from her.  I want to be right there incase she does get hurt and I want to be there  to make sure she doesn't try to play on the parts that are meant for the bigger kids.  I just don't understand why those women weren't even watching!

Bowling

This is kind of random but I totally feel like bowling right now.  I don't know why, I never get urges to go bowling but right now, it's all I want to do :)  The funny thing is, I'm not even remotely good at it.  I like doing it but I've probably never even gotten anything close to 100!  There definitely aren't any sport trophies for bowling in my future!  Unfortunately, Lauryn's napping and I have a lot of cleaning to get to so no bowling today.

Tired and Pale

I feel like I cannot catch up on my sleep lately! No matter what time I go to bed, I wake up tired and feel that way for half of the day. Coffee is not helping one bit!

Also, I noticed how very pale my legs are these days. I miss the sun! I could try those indoor tanning lotions but they never seem to work right and I really don't want to be orange through the winter. It's just not my color :)

Commercials

Ever see those commercials for fat burning pills?  I see them all of the time and can't help but think what happens when you stop taking them?  Do you balloon back up?  Seems like they are all over t.v. these days and it also makes me think it's no wonder people have such negative self images.  You see these skinny people, running around in skimpy bathing suits, saying how happy they are because they aren't fat any more.  That's about the last message I want Lauryn to receive.  I want her to love her body no matter what it looks like.  Sorry for the random rant but there were a ton of those commercials on today and it just got me thinking.

Have I Mentioned...

...just how much I hate snow??  I think I have but I think it bears repeating....I HATE SNOW!  It's been coming down all day and we're expected to get quite a bit more through the night and into tomorrow afternoon.  While some say, "At least it's pretty"  all I can see right now is a bunch of white stuff that is keeping me and Lauryn stuck in the house!  Between not wanting to get her out in this weather and being afraid to take the truck anywhere too far (I love my truck but it's rear-wheel drive), we just end up staying in.  I hope if it's too bad tomorrow morning, Lloyd will consider working from home.  I hate him driving to Grand Rapids when the weather is this bad.  Hopefully he won't get any calls in the morning from people who want to see houses so he won't have any reason to go.  I cannot wait until spring!  I'm ready to see green grass, start my garden back up and get Lauryn out and into the fresh air!!!

Random Rant 2

I was just looking through a magazine and I saw an ad for jeans that are supposed to make you look thinner.  My problem with that is the model wearing the jeans is already thin.  If you want to sell me on those jeans, put a girl with some meat on her bones in them and then show me how good they look!  That is all :)

Random Rants

Why is it, that almost every time I take my daughter to the grocery store, someone comments on what a sweet little boy I have?  Now even though I think she couldn't possibly look more like a precious baby girl, I do understand that sometimes with babies it's hard to tell.  What I don't understand, is why they think that when she is always dressed in pinks or purples.  A lot of times, they will ask me "How old is he?" so I reply, "SHE is nine months" and then they still say something along the lines her being an adorable little boy.  I just don't get it.