Blogs List
 Cheryl Clarke |
Mistake of the UnionThu, January 28, 2010 @ 3:14PM I watched President Obama's "State of the Union" address Wednesday night.Here's what I was able to "hear between the lines" of his scripted speech. Obama is an eloquent speaker, but if you are looking for substance in what he said, better keep looking, as you are going to be disappointed. I thought it was mostly rhetoric. His speech was heavy with blaming and finger pointing, mostly at the Republican minority for Congress's inability to "get anything done." Why that was necessary I don't know, as he has the biggest majority of his own party in history seated in Congress (his words) and doesn't even need the Republicans to "get anything done." If you ask them, the Republican minority have been forthcoming with plenty of alternatives to the expensive health care reform bill he was obviously referring to, though he didn't even mention it till 40 minutes into his speec.
|
Newspaper Notions
 Sunny Day |
Indulgence Before DenialWed, January 27, 2010 @ 11:32AM Indulgence before Denial… Modern activities differ from town to town and state to state, but all of those who participate in this annual season of excess enjoy the mid winter passion of Mardi Gras! The earliest celebrations were in Mobile, Alabama; Biloxi, Mississippi & New Orleans, Louisiana which at one time or another in that order were the capital of Louisiana – simply because those three states made up the territory of Louisiane, under French jurisdiction. While the celebrations vary from state to state, the history and many traditions are shared by not just these three cities, but by any community wanting to herald in the season of Lent. In Mobile, the carnival and Mardi Gras celebrations are dominated by mystic societies which are private social organizations (they are similar to the krewes in New Orleans). The Order of Myths was founded in 1867 and is the oldest mystic society in Mobile.
|
Have Dog, Will Blog
 Amy Hanna |
Well now... Guess Who's On A Diet?...Mon, January 18, 2010 @ 8:57AM (Mazey says she hopes Jenny Craig doesn't resemble a Milkbone or she may have to plead the 5th...) I took Mazey to the vet this weekend for a senior check-up. The vet ended up putting ALL of us on a diet … I know Mazey (and I) have several extra pounds to lose. I also know that if I can get that extra weight off of her it will do her health a world of good. It will help ease the stress on her old arthritic joints making it easier for her to get up and down and simply walk around. It will also help avoid diseases such as diabetes and heart disease which is very common in overweight dogs (just like humans). Because Mazey is a rescue girl, I don’t have a lot of history on her, including her true age. We guess her to be somewhere around 12+.
|
Empty Nest/Full House
 LLee Janssen |
Hidden tax increase under ObamaFri, January 29, 2010 @ 3:14PM Did your take-home pay go down in January? At first I thought it had to do with changing healthcare rates and employee contributions, but a colleague recently pointed out that the federal government is taking more taxes from our paychecks this year than last. The federal government provides employers with its Tables for Percentage Method of Withholding, and for the 2010 tax year, those tables include a hidden tax increase. In 2009, a married worker who was paid biweekly was not taxed on the first $606 he made, but after that, an employer takes out an increasingly higher percentage in taxes: 10 percent on the next $606 to $940; 15 percent for $940 to $2,910, etc. But look at the numbers for 2010: No taxes on the first $529, but 10 percent on the next $529 to $942; 15 percent on $942 to $2,913, etc. Let's look at the base amounts for taxation of Single People: No taxes on the first $276; 10 percent on $276 to $400; 15 percent on $400 to $1,392, etc.
|
The Intersection
 Mike Maneval |
A hubcap gets my attentionThu, March 18, 2010 @ 5:22PM When I arrived at the office today, I had a package waiting for me. It was a box about the size of delivered pizza, from a private company in Florida which repairs asphalt and concrete and a public releations firm it has retained. Inside the box was a used hubcap. It is dirty and chipped and scratched. A letter with the damaged hubcap announces the launching of a campaign to bring attention to the need for more funding for road and highway infrastructure by mailing such hubcaps to "civic and business leaders." The letter describes mailing people damaged hubcaps as a "fun way to bring attention to a serious situation." The hubcap has certainly brought my attention to a situation. As I sit and look at this hubcap, my attention turns to thoughts on the labor and shipping costs of assembling a supply of damaged hubcaps and sending them, at the very least, up and down the Atlantic Coast if not across the country altogether.
|
Workdays with Bernie
 Bernard A. Oravec |
Happy New Year!Thu, December 31, 2009 @ 9:33AM Happy New Year! Let's hope it's a good one. A Capital One Bowl victory by Penn State over LSU on New Years Day would be a great start for Pennsylvania college football fans. My prediction; PSU 28 - LSU 17. Also keeping the faith for the Pittsburgh Steelers to win out vs Miami and to receive late holiday gifts from Cincinnati and New England. If the Steelers can just get into the playoffs, I expect them to win at least two game.
|
Family matters
 Adrienne Wertz |
A grilled cheese sandwichFri, May 1, 2009 @ 3:58PM Ahh, those wonderful first few weeks of newborn babyland. The sleeping ... the cuddling ... the feedings ... the absolute disregard of time and its constraints ... zzzz --- wait a minute, what happened? Was I dreaming? No, you have to sleep to dream. The lack of sleeping, the clinging, the constant feedings and the lack of schedule better describes the past long months of my motherhood. No matter what I've tried -- the warm milk, the lavendar baths, the same old boring routine each night and the crying it out -- my son still is not sleeping on his own. We even bought a sofa bed for the winter (our upstairs - the childrens' room - is unheated) so that the kids could be closer to us, but still separate, but when I found myself squished like cheese on a toasted cheese sandwich, between the bread I call my son and daughter, I said "something's got to change.
|
Cookin' with Wood
 Bob Woodley |
Cookin' with Wood by Bob WoodleyMon, March 1, 2010 @ 6:39PM Dijon Herb Pork Tenderloin Where I got the recipe: My fiance Tracey had it in a box Tools you'll need: Large baking dish, small saucepan, whisk, measuring cup, measuring spoon, cooking spray, small bowl, fork. Ingredients: 2 lbs. pork tenderloin 1/2 tsp salt 4 tsp dijon mustard 2 Tbsp honey 2 tsp dried sage 1/4 cup apple juice or white wine 2 Tbsp butter, melted 1 Tbsp butter, softened 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour When I made it: Sunday Tracey showed me this recipe a week or so ago, and we agreed to make it the next time we both had the same day off from work. Well, that didn't quite work out, so I made it Sunday, backtiming in an effort to have it finished when she got home from work. Since the tenderloin wasn't sliced, I got that done first. I cut one inch slices. Coat the baking dish with the cooking spray, and put the tenderloin slices in it so that they don't overlap. Sprinkle the cuts with salt. Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees .
|
