Mandabin's Stories

Forgot to mention...

2010-03-06T20:11:00.001-06:00

It has been a while...we're having a baby!

Aren't We Just the Cutest?

2009-06-18T12:04:00.002-05:00

On Monday, I will be interviewing to work in the same company as my husband! Honestly, could it get better than that? Carpooling to work, getting paid on the same day, always having the same days off...I'm so excited! I really think I'll get the job. I'm not too worried about it - God has worked everything else out perfectly. But seriously - how cute are we?

We're MOVING!!!

2009-06-10T16:15:00.002-05:00

It finally happened - they offered Husband the Job! I'm so relieved. Of course, this means a whole new slew of stressors...but I can handle this! These are happy things to be stressed about!

I interviewed for a job, and got the offer...I'm just not so sure. The hours are horrible (noon to 8:30, M-F with a few Saturdays thrown in every once in a while) and the pay is worse than what I make now. It would be a really awesome job (utilizing my education and job experience), but I would never see my husband and I wouldn't be able to be very involved with the church or community. I'm pretty sure I'm going to say 'thanks, but no thanks.'

We found a house! House...3 bedrooms, 1.5 baths, huge living room, newly remodelled bathroom, laundry room, garage, fenced yard (puppy will LOVE that!), large covered porch...I love it! It was practically built for us. Half of the flooring is hardwood. We're so incredibly excited about it.

We even found a church there - already!

If you have any large boxes...please send them my way!

Waiting

2009-06-05T11:54:00.001-05:00

Nevermind. They want a third interview on Monday. Seriously!?

2009-06-04T11:34:00.002-05:00

I am just about stressed to my limit. Paul is supposed to find out today or tomorrow if he gets a HUGE promotion.

Promotion = moving back to the place where we fell in love.
Promotion = mo money.
Promotion = husband finally having a job he can be proud of.
Promotion = babies sooner.

All of this depends on one phone call, and that could come any time between now and 5:00 PM tomorrow. Every time my phone rings, I have a mild heart attack. Paul says his second interview went ridiculously well. All of the things I was most worried about in the interview process went perfectly. The guy even said that not having a degree was a non-issue. In all honesty, every single thing has gone unimaginably well. I even have a tentative interview scheduled for Saturday...just in case Paul gets the job. We have already visited (and like!) the church we would most likely attend after the move. God's hand has been all over this process.

So why am I so stinking nervous?

Paul acted funny yesterday when he came to pick me up after work. He texted me to say he was going to stay in the car instead of coming inside after he got to my parking lot. He never does that. I was so stressed after that text that I got sick. Who does that? When we got home, I cried myself to sleep (he fell asleep, too, and we were 30 minutes late to worship practice because of it). I am going crazy over this stuff. I KNOW God is in control. As far as I can tell, only good things would come out of him getting the job. We feel like _______ is where we need to be. We would be more financially stable. We could pay off debt. We could start the rest of our family. I see no down-side.

I guess I feel like I want too much. Like God couldn't possibly want this for me. I know, that sounds ridiculous - but I can't shake it.

So I'll go back to praying.

God is in control.
even when I can't see where He is leading me.
or why.
His ways are not my ways.
so please help me be okay with that.
And when I am afraid, I will trust in Him.
not because I have no where else to turn,
but because He is the only Place to turn.
My God,
please help me with my unbelief.

God IS in Control

2009-05-27T15:06:00.005-05:00

My husband and I are going through a crazy-stressful time right now. I won't get in to the details (some people very close to us don't know about it, and I really don't think my blog is the best forum for telling them), but I hit my maximum-stress-level yesterday. On top of everything else, a grumpy old man came in to my office and exploded. He wanted me to do something, my computer system refused to do it unless he did X first, and he didn't want to do X. So he yelled at me and called me names and stormed out. He never treats my boss like that and I just knew that when I told her about it, she was going to wonder what I had done to provoke such a response from him. I called my dad on the way to pick up my husband after work and unloaded.

"I know God is in control. I know He can do whatever He wants. I'm just not convinced that what He wants is the same as what I want. What I want just sounds too good to be true."

We find out the answers to all of our questions next Friday. As I type that, I see how silly it seems - just 9 days? Anyone can handle 9 days, right? Not this girl. My whole life could change in 9 days. I can see God's hand in all of it - things are falling together entirely too smoothly to be coincidence. I am sure of it. But what if I am wrong? Does that mean I read too much in to everything? All of my church education tells me that if it doesn't work out, God has something better for us. But what on earth could be better than this?

This morning I read my daily list of blogs before I started working. Jon always has good stuff. Today, he pointed out Romans 8:26 - "We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express." No way do I know what to pray for! I have worked my way through all the scenarios (thanks, mom, for teaching me that one) ... and there is nothing left for me to do but wait. I am not good at waiting. I am, actually, quite horrible at waiting.

"Holy Spirit, please intervene on my behalf and say what I can't say. I'm at a loss for words, and you know how rarely that happens."

I would like to say that I feel a lot better about everything, but that would be a lie. The only real change is that now I feel like I can do something. I can groan. And why do I feel like it is working?

God gave me his promise in action today.

The grumpy old man came back. And apologized.

If He can make that old 'b-hole' (his words, clearly not mine) say he was sorry...He can do anything. Even ____ __ ____ _ ___. __ ___________.

Jon and the B-word (+8)

2009-05-26T14:20:00.003-05:00

I just read Kelly's blog and felt the need to word vomit on my own site.

Don't hold it against me, but I actually watched the Jon & Kate season premiere last night (I feel a little less adult for having said that).

Holy crap that woman is horrible at marriage. If you are going to spend your entire marriage talking down to your husband and making him feel like less of a man for not doing things exactly the way you want...don't act surprised when your marriage crumbles. Don't play the victim - it really is your fault. Of course everyone is responsible for their own actions. I don't care if Jon did or didn't have a real affair or just wished he was with someone else (but who can blame him). That isn't the point. The point is that you are a horrible wife.

Please don't talk about your church. No one wants to hear about another naggy Christian wife. And please don't mention how you only let your kids eat free range chicken or organic lolly-pops - if you can't teach your little girls and boys how to respect their daddy, I don't want to hear about it. Shouldn't you be focusing more of your time teaching them how to love? I don't really care that you can throw a great birthday party (oh wait, your assistants and PRs did most of the work) or that your new house is 'green.' If you can't show real respect to your husband, the rest is worthless as far as I'm concerned.

As a Christian wife, your marriage needs to be your number one priority. Not your kids. The whole, 'I'm here for the kids' thing: absolutely pathetic. On both of you. You have enough assistants, family, and friends to take care of the kids for a weekend or every Thursday night while you go to intense therapy with your pastor. And America doesn't need to hear you talk about it. Let your marriage do the talking. Because your money, your show, your book tour - those aren't the most important things to your kids. Mommy and Daddy being there for them is. Sure, you can 'get along.' You can make it work. But how much more emotionally healthy will your kids be if you can FIX it? Focus on that for a change. Cancel the show. Ignore the book tour. Fix your marriage if you really care about your kids.

p.s. - No one buys all the 'poor, pitiful me' crap. It somehow carries a WHOLE lot less weight when you cry about the paparazzi and tabloids...on your reality show.

Grace

2009-05-07T16:03:00.001-05:00

I'm sitting here, having a conversation (FB chat) with my aunt. She just drove a woman to the nursing home to see her husband. This woman can't drive herself because of eye problems. Just that much information made me sick to my stomach - I couldn't imagine not being able to see my husband every day. To not live with him? To know he was sick, in another place, and I couldn't care for him.

Then my aunt tells me that he is the woman's 5th husband.
Take that in. Makes you sick? You feel badly for her? Just wait.

Three of them died, one of them left her. The current husband was her pastor way back in the day (Wednesday? Nevermind...), and they recently re-met and married. 4 months after the wedding, he fell. He hasn't been the same since, and now he's in the nursing home. This woman has been left (one way or another) by men she loves at least 5 times in her 80 years. Five times. I don't know heart ache. I have never even tasted the heart ache this woman lives with on a daily basis.

And yet.
My aunt tells me this woman is 'that woman' in the church. The one who brightens the room when she walks in. When they were leaving the nursing home, a nurse stopped them because she 'needed a hug' from my aunt's friend. The nurse needed the hug!? How does that make sense? Has she buried 3 husbands? But that is who this woman is. She is the Jesus-figure in her community. I have had an enormously blessed life, and no one would say things anywhere near that great about me. I've been a bitter, jaded, gossipy woman most of my adult life. And for what? Because I've had a few tough-breaks? Puts things in perspective, doesn't it?

Marriage

2009-05-04T15:41:00.002-05:00

Another dear friend just told me her marriage is falling apart. Days like this I wonder why mine is the only marriage that seems solid.

We didn't do anything by the book (not The Book - I'm talking about the Oral Tradition passed down from one generation of know-it-all Christians to the next). We didn't date two years, stay engaged for one, or get married in the summer. We dated 2.5 months before he proposed and got married 7.5 months later in the middle of the winter. He wasn't a student at my private Christian school; in fact, he went to a *gasp* State School! Our parents were on different sides of a very heated denominational split. In short, the OT dictated that we should fail as soon as the honeymoon wore off.

Nope. Two-and-a-half years later, I still respect him as the best man I've ever met, and he finds fabulous ways to show his love for me every day. God has blessed our marriage, and I have never been more happy in my life!

So why is it that my friends who actually did play by the rules are having so many problems?! One is finalizing a divorce, one hasn't spoken to her husband in two weeks, and another is in marital counceling. It absolutely blows my mind. It's not that we haven't worked our butts off making our marriage what it is today (and are working it today, and will work on it tomorrow). I just have a hard time seeing why there isn't any honest advice out there.

Maybe the problem is that people aren't real. No one is willing to sit down with an engaged couple (better yet, a new couple who is beginning to think that marriage might be the end result of their relationship) and say, 'Listen. My wife and I have had a hard time. We had a big blow-up on the way to meet with you tonight. Marriage isn't easy. It won't solve any of your problems.' How many sermons have you heard where the pastor admitted to yelling at his wife during the week? How many couples in your church have asked you for prayer because they had a rough week with eachother? No one I know asks for help from their church until it is too late.

I don't really have any answers. I'm just hurt and confused for my friends. Marriage isn't easy. Why does everyone like to pretend like it is?

No More BC For Me!

2009-04-22T15:19:00.003-05:00

I am officially off of Birth Control. Which, I guess, makes me officially one of those crazy conspiracy theorists.

We quit chemical birth control and started using Naturally Family Planning (which my mom lovingly calls 'Being a Parent in 9 months flat') because I cannot convince myself that BC can't harm my pre-born children. If aspirin can hurt my baby, why couldn't an unnatural amount of hormones? I did a lot of research (at Biblically-based and NOT Biblically-based websites), and nothing I read convinced me that taking the Pill wouldn't hurt a fertilized egg...which is what I like to call 'a baby.'

A lot of research shows that BC won't stop the cell-division of a fertilized egg that has attached itself to the wall of the uterus. Okay, some research has shown that some BC isn't bad at that point. But I define life as a fertilized egg, regardless of where that human life is. I couldn't find much evidence for BC not affecting a not-yet attached (albeit tiny) baby. So, as a Christian someday-mother who loves her pre-born children and is physically sickened by the thought of any form of abortion, how could I take a pill that I cannot feel 100% convinced about?

I asked my doctor about this a few months ago. A woman at church had been talking about birth control not being good for babies, and it really upset me...since I took BC religiously at 9:00 PM. every. single. day. I sat my Dr. down and said, 'This is how I define life: a fertilized egg, regardless of where or how far along he/she is. Be brutally honest with me - is there any evidence that taking this pill could negatively affect that life?' She said 'no.' I repeated myself. She said 'no' again, and with a tone of voice that said, 'Oh gosh, one of those Pro Lifers again. They sure are annoying. Conspiracy Theorists are sooo crazy.' I figured, 'Hey, this woman has been in the medical profession since before I could tie my shoes. She probably knows more than me.' And I'm sure she does... but I will never again trust a word that comes out of her mouth, because she wasn't completely up-front with me. She didn't preface her statement with, 'Some people think...' She just conveyed that, by taking the medicine she was giving me, I could be completely relaxed in knowing that my future children would be the ONLY children God had ever created in me. Or at least that the Pill would have nothing to do with any miscarriages I had.

So here I am. I could be a mom right now and not even know it. I thought typing that would scare the crap out of me, but it didn't. We have completely put our trust in God. Well...and in Natural Family Planning. We aren't really in a position where trying for a baby would be a wise financial plan, but hey - my husband was created to be a daddy. Anyhow, I wanted to put this out there for anyone who still reads this thing. I'm not going to call you a horrible sinner for taking BC... all I want is for you to research it for yourself with an open mind and a prayerful heart.

Why I hate abortion.

2009-03-26T12:19:00.000-05:00

I have been holding off on this topic for a long time, but I think it is time to go full-force: My husband could have (and, by some standards, should have) been aborted.

Christine was 17 when she found out she was pregnant. She went to a very strict Catholic school, and he was the eldest of 5 brothers. He was already heavily dependent on alcohol and he was probably a drug user by that point, too. Three strikes, already: she was too young to deal with the consequences of parenthood, he was a role model for his younger brothers, and the baby might be deformed from his dad's drug and alcohol usage. Not to mention that in the early 80's, no one was standing outside of Planned Parenthood and preaching about God's love for the unborn - there wasn't enough publicity about abortion yet. My own mom took a friend to an abortion clinic in the late 70's because she had no clue what it really was (they left as soon as they understood). It makes me sick to think that this is the exact circumstance that pro-choice activists would promote as the ideal situation for a woman to 'take control of her own body' and have an abortion. What sick-o conservative would want this poor teenage woman to have to deal with the consequences of one night of fun?
Me. I would. Chris and Paul Sr. married and had two more children. It didn't end up all rosy - Paul Sr. was a great daddy, but he still had to battle his addictions; and when they divorced a few years later Chris had to support the children on her own. The consequences of that 'one night of fun' still impact the family today, every day. Paul passed away a few years ago from complications of a lifetime of alcohol abuse. Chris still deals with side-affects from the daily stress of her 20's.
Paul II is the best thing that ever happened to me. My mother-in-law and I don't have the best relationship in the world, but I am daily indebted to her for choosing life. If you are considering abortion as a way to end your problems, please - don't just think about your life. Think about your growing child's life. Think about all the thousands of people he or she will touch as he or she grows up. Think about your child's children, and how happy you will be to see them sitting on their daddy's knee in 30 years.

Think about the people like me, and how radically different my life would be if that scared 17 year old girl hadn't chosen life in the spring of '82.

Does 'Illegal' Mean Anything to You?

2009-02-10T08:41:00.002-06:00

http://washingtontimes.com/news/2009/feb/09/16-illegals-sue-arizona-rancher/

This guy has a ranch on the Mexico/Arizona border. Arizona has the Castle Doctrine. When he finds illegal (read that again: illegal) aliens on his property, he doesn't shoot them; he rounds them up and turns them in to the authorities. Over 12,000 since 1998. The illegal aliens he hasn't gotten to in time have destroyed his fences and equipment, killed his cattled, and broken in to his home. They have left trails of trash [human feces, plastic bottles (some of the cattle have died from ingesting the bottles), used diapers, drug paraphanalia] up to 10 inches deep.

Now he is being sued by 16 illegal aliens for violating their civil rights. Not for killing anyone or physically harming them. For defending his American property from people who had no legal (or other) right to be there. Oh yeah, and 'emotional distress.' All to the tune of $32 million.

Your thoughts?

Less thank two weeks. Thanks, American Majority.

2009-01-28T13:04:00.001-06:00

• President-elect Obama has said that his proposed stimulus legislation will create or save 3 million jobs. This means that this legislation will spend about $275,000 per job. The average household income in the U.S. is $42,000 a year.

• This bill provides enough spending to give every man, woman, and child in America $2,700.

• This bill will cost each and every household $6,700 in additional debt, paid for by our children and grandchildren.

Just some fun facts. Thank you, Glennbeck.com.

God, give me grace.

2009-01-22T09:44:00.003-06:00

I'm really not excited about these next four years. Honestly, I wish our president the best. For the good of our nation, I hope he doesn't fall into his old, polar-liberal ways. I hope awesome things are accomplished. I don't foresee that actually happening, but a girl can hope.
I'm tired of pretending I'm okay with liberalism. I have great friends who currently (proudly) consider themselves to be liberal. I say currently because I have a feeling they're going to grow up eventually and realize that being an adult means taking responsibility for your actions, not relying so heavily on the government to bail you out (I'm not talking about on a corporate level), and sometimes it even means assisting other people in not relying on DC to meet all their needs/wants. You can tell a parent really loves her son when she boots his butt out of the house and makes him look for a job. 'It's time to grow up,' she'll tell him. 'Go get a job. I'm not going to be your enabler anymore. I love you enough to be tough on you right now.' It's not cruel to make someone stop receiving welfare checks after 10 (50?) years. It's giving that person the push to get out there and do something when they clearly didn't have the initiative to do it on their own.
I look forward to the day when these liberal friends of mine wake up and go, 'CRAP! I've really screwed myself over. I'm 35, and I'm paying so many taxes that I can't move up anymore! I'll be stuck right here for the rest of my life.' Isn't the American dream to be better off (financially, emotionally, spiritually, etc) than the previous generation? How on EARTH will that happen now? I guess it's okay to give up on the American dream when, suddenly, everything 'American' is considered bad? I don't want my friends to feel pain and bitterness when they realize they've ruined their children's chance at happiness, but I'm looking forward to having them cross back over to conservativism - even if that means waiting for it all to fall apart. When it falls apart, that's when people will re-evaluate where we are. Go back to their roots. Remember that the Truth really does matter.
I don't want conservativism to be a dirty word anymore. I don't even like the term 'compassionate conservativism,' because that implies that I, as a conservative, am not generally compassionate. Isn't that the ground-work of being morally based? Love for others? Not in the conservativism we've seen for the past few years. There has been nothing 'conservative' about the last few candidates the Republican party has paraded in front of us. Maybe they vote conservatively, but I want someone who lives conservatively. Guiliani? I would have voted for him just to feel safe at night. I'm a little afraid Biden was being a bit prophetic. But the guy didn't exactly carry his conservative over to his personal/romantic life. McCain? He didn't seem to care too much about abortion, either way. I'm a huge fan of Palin, but I don't mind waiting a few years to get to know her better. Am I being too picky? Perhaps. Or maybe we've just given in, little by little, to this liberal way of thought that 'You stay out of my life, I'll stay out of yours - just give the government all your money, and we'll be fine. Also, hand over your morals, 'cause you won't be needing those anymore.'
I'm kind of glad we have 4 years to regroup. McCain just wasn't going to cut it. I don't know who decided he could run on the Republican ticket - they should be kicked out. Maybe 3 years from now, we'll learn that the Republican party has either disolved or gone back to being the voice of conservatism. If one of those two things fails to happen, I'll never again tell anyone I'm voting R-MO.

In your face, liberalism

2008-12-22T16:23:00.002-06:00

Today, I sent out an e-mail to all my clients inviting them to the office Christmas open house. Yes, I said Christmas. Not Holiday Event, not Winter Celebration, not even Kwanzaa/Hanukkah/christmas Get-together. The subject line was actually 'Christmas Open House,' and I said Christmas at least two times in the message. I figured that's what my office calendar said, and that's what I'm going to be celebrating.
Why do we shy away from what the majority has embraced? I wouldn't be offended if I lived in Israel and someone wished me a great Hanukkah. I wouldn't even reply with 'And a Merry Christmas to you, too!' THAT might be offensive. I'm pretty dang proud of my country, and I'm concerned with people being embarrassed by our heritage of Christianity. When I have my very own office, I plan on putting up some sort of baby-Jesus something-or-another at Christmastime. And some sort of resurrection something-or-another at Easter-time. Isn't that the purpose of the holiday? If you have a problem with the holiday, you should probably go to work that day. That isn't hate-mongering...that's logic. How can you justify being offended by the name of Jesus, and then take a day (or 5) off work in His Name? That makes no sense to me.
When did we get to the point when Christmas (er, Winter-time) Concerts couldn't mention Jesus, but spent 30 minutes on global warming?
I'm home schooling.

Plan B?

2008-11-23T13:34:00.003-06:00

Has anyone heard about this? It is called 'Plan B.' It sounds JUST like a morning-after pill, but it claims to be non-abortive...but then never backs up that claim with facts. Just, 'Trust us. We don't kill babies.' Maybe I just haven't researched enough. Maybe I'm a married woman who is very vocal about being anti-abortion, so maybe people just haven't talked about this around me. Is this new? Have you heard of this before? How can something 'prevent pregnancy' after sex without being abortive? I mean, I'm not an idiot - there is a certain amount of time between ejaculation and conception...but this website claims there are a few DAYS between sex and pregnancy.

Are they just defining pregnancy as something different? Refusing responsibility, like the whole 'That's above my pay grade' thing? 'Perhaps pregnancy begins a few days after conception - it isn't really a baby when the egg and sperm unite. At that point, it's just a cluster of cells, so our pill isn't abortive.'

Are the makers of this pill preying on women who are so terrified from making the decision to have unprotected sex, women who maybe have previously been against the idea abortion, that they're hoping by saying 'We don't kill babies...we just protect you from pregnancy up to a few days after unprotected sex!' that those women will turn off reason and blindly accept their pill (horrible run on sentence; I apologize)?

Maybe I'm just an old fuddy-duddy conservative who idiotically relies on old concepts to define her beliefs, but I'm pretty sure that ANY 'emergency contraceptive' is abortive. Am I missing something? Please tell me if I am. But please support your comment with facts (I always appreciate links to studies or reputable websites).

A bunch of stuff.

2008-11-05T13:25:00.004-06:00

I have had a really hard time defending John McCain. He is not, and has never been, a true conservative. I, however, am. It is easy to defend something you believe in. I really think that's why he didn't win. Liberals could honestly pin all of their trust on Barak Obama - he is, and always has been, a true liberal. That's fine - I can actually respect that. Being who you say you are. I was really not looking forward to four years of defending the decisions of someone with whom I don't completely agree. Sen. McCain is a centrist. He ran his campaign (what there was of a campaign) on 'reaching across party lines.' Okay, if that will get a more conservative bill passed...I guess I'm okay with that. But reaching across the aisle to pass something I never really supported in the first place? Nope. Can't go there.

I want someone who will speak for those who can't speak for themselves. Abortion is a HUGE issue for me. I've never pretended that it wasn't. Gov. Palin said she would work to convince Sen. McCain to be more vigilant about giving a voice to pre-born babies...But I want a president who already knows how disgusting abortion is. McCain has never represented my ideals.
Ideals. I've heard that my generation tends to be a bunch of idealist, and therefore they vote more liberally. They want the government to help people who can't/haven't helped themselves. You know what? I'm an idealist. Ideally, I want the government to do its job of defending the constitution. It's pretty black and white. Keep the ball rolling. Go by the book. The cases that slip through the cracks? That's where the church comes in. Ideally, again, the church will pick up the pieces that the government leaves behind. All those stories President Elect Obama brought up in his infomercial? If the church were doing her job, and the government doing its job...these things would be taken care of. Instead, we have a government stepping into the role of the church because really - who tythes anymore? If every church-goer (the real ones, not even the Christmas/Easter/MykidissickandI'mscared attenders) would give God His 10%, we wouldn't need communism to cover the ones who slip through the cracks. So yes, I'm an idealist. That's why I'm a conservative.

It has been said that President Elect Obama is going to rule as a centrist. If so, I'm there. I have always respected the office of the president. I hope to stay true to this and exibit how to show respect without always agreeing with the president. I am not excited about the next four years. I am excited about how these next four years will shape conservatives, but I'm not excited about cleaning up after it is over with. If Sen. Obama does what he said he would do (bring the country together by being more of a centrist), we shouldn't have any problems. The most lasting things this man can do are appoint ultra-liberal judges and make poor decisions in the face of terrorism. Both could make a devistating impact.

95% of Black Americans voted for Sen. Obama. That statistic does not mean that 95% of Black Americans are racist. To say that would mean that every White American who voted for Sen. McCain was racist. Some on each side voted purely because they agreed with their candidate's politics. But I heard more than one Black American say that they were voting for Sen. Obama purely because of the color of his skin - that, my friends, is the definition of racism.
rac·ism
Pronunciation:
\ˈrā-ˌsi-zəm also -ˌshi-\
Function:
noun
Date:
1933
1 : a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race.
By the way, Webster's Dictionary doesn't list reverse-racism. That is because there is no such word. You are either a racist or you are not. The definition says nothing about believing that white people are superior. It says that 'race is the primary determination of human traits.' A race. Any race. I find it pathetic that someone would vote based on the color of a candidate's skin, especially if they don't agree with anything that candidate stands for.

I don't hate Sen. Obama. I can't stand it when Christians say that. It's ridiculous - how can you hate someone you've never met? I hate what he stands for and what he refuses to stand for. I hate hypocricy and racism. I hate change for the sake of change. I think it is silly to elect someone who hasn't been around long enough to prove anything except that he is the farthest leaning anything (liberal OR conservative).

I've said enough. Maybe next time I'll explain why abortion is so important for me.

Right back at ya, partner.

2008-11-04T12:38:00.003-06:00

As soon as my boss' husband got back from voting, he strolled through the door, pointed a finger at me, and bellowed, 'My vote counteracted yours! Your vote doesn't count! HA!'

To which I calmly replied, 'Nope. I counteracted your vote. Sorry.'
He didn't like that.

I like being secure enough in my position to not stumble when faced with a differing opinion. I may not be Sen. McCain's biggest fan (far from it, actually), but when faced with the Obama option...? Not that hard of a decision.

Well, I guess we'll know who the next president is in...oh, a few months, at the latest.

Maybe I wasn't clear enough...

2008-10-30T09:29:00.002-05:00

I think my boss' husband thinks I'm voting for Obama. He always talks about voting for the 'right candidate' and how 'everyone knows who that is.' During the debates, he always made sure I was watching them. I know this guy is involved in the process - I can't blame him for being uninformed.
But today he acted genuinely surprised when I told him I didn't watch Sen. Obama's infomercial (though I chose not to use that word.). He even told his wife, 'She didn't watch the program!' She reminded him that he didn't, either, but that didn't seem to matter.
He has never said 'I am voting for Obama, and you should, too.' But his 'right candidate' comments plus making fun of a well-known conservative commentator make me pretty sure who his candidate is. My first day here, he asked me if I was an 'Obama girl or a Bush girl.' (He really said Bush instead of McCain - this was my first clue to his politcal leaning. Liberals tend to confuse the president with the republican candidate.) I responded, 'Well, I'm not exactly McCain's biggest fan, but I'm sure not voting for Obama.' And I have not said a word about McCain since then.
Here is my question: Should I be more obvious? I'm a conservative. I'm registered Republican, but I'm thinking of fixing that before the next round of elections. I vote conservatively, or at least the best choice (in some cases, the lesser of two evils). Liberals in this town tend to be very vocal. It isn't 'cool' to be a conservative. Not that I've ever been considered cool... But should I be as vocal as the other side? When they're vocal, it's considered the 'right thing to do.' When conservatives are vocal, we're loud-mouthed, hate mongering, Bible-thumping idiots. So what would you do if your boss' husband (and work associate) voiced loudly his opposing viewpoints on a daily basis? I don't mind him giving his opinion - but is it wrong to give mine?

Why I Should Listen to My Husband More Often

2008-10-24T20:25:00.001-05:00

I DID IT!!!
I passed my Insurance Licensing Exam! In about a week, I will be an official insurance producer for Shelter Insurance.
The test was brutal. 3 hours to complete 170 questions. But, of course, it couldn't be that simple.
First off, I'm sick today. I went to work, but only after downing about a billion Tums and praying that I wouldn't puke all over my 'test day' clothes (BTW, totally doesn't matter what you wear. The guy taking the official license picture will screw up the picture DMV-style no matter what). After about 2 hours of barely-functional work, my boss sent me home. Did I mention before that she is awesome? Well, she is. So I went home and slept from 10 to 11:30, when Paul got home. He made me split-pea and bacon soup, which completely looks like green puke, but was exactly what I wanted. I crawled out of bed, made myself look presentable, printed out a mapquest to the site, and left. Then I turned around and went back inside 'cause I definately left the print-out on the printer.
The address I was given was for a bank, so I freaked out and thought I was lost, which was especially great because I left my cell at home. Luckily, there was an awesome receptionist who informed me that yes, I was in the right place. When I got into the right reception area (which required walking back outside - In the almost-rain), I slipped my purse off my shoulder and popped a button off my coat. I was certain that this was a sign of things to come. I had to show two forms of ID and sign a long document saying I knew I couldn't look at notes, talk to other people, or chew gum during the test. The guy took my picture, put my stuff in a locker (about this time I inhailed my gum - good thing, 'cause if I had taken it into the testing room, they would have voided my test), and gave me a key to the locker, some earplugs, and a wet-erase-board (so they could see my notes after the test - a little paranoid, I think).
Anyhow, a lot of drama. But I passed! I'll never know how well I did, 'cause they only show you your score if you fail. I'm okay with that. I'd rather know, but I'll live.
And now, my husband is taking me to get some celebratory ice cream.

Scare Tactic Politics At Their Finest.

2008-09-30T10:15:00.004-05:00

I'm a little disappointed in myself for not hearing about this until today, but I'll give myself some leniency because it's not big enough for national coverage and (for the most part) local coverage around here is all *a little* biased (read - ridiculously left). I'll try and do better next time.

JEFFERSON CITY - Gov. Matt Blunt today issued the following statement on news reports that have exposed plans by U.S. Senator Barack Obama to use Missouri law enforcement to threaten and intimidate his critics.
“St. Louis County Circuit Attorney Bob McCulloch, St. Louis City Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce, Jefferson County Sheriff Glenn Boyer, and Obama and the leader of his Missouri campaign Senator Claire McCaskill have attached the stench of police state tactics to the Obama-Biden campaign.
“What Senator Obama and his helpers are doing is scandalous beyond words, the party that claims to be the party of Thomas Jefferson is abusing the justice system and offices of public trust to silence political criticism with threats of prosecution and criminal punishment.
“This abuse of the law for intimidation insults the most sacred principles and ideals of Jefferson. I can think of nothing more offensive to Jefferson’s thinking than using the power of the state to deprive Americans of their civil rights. The only conceivable purpose of Messrs. McCulloch, Obama and the others is to frighten people away from expressing themselves, to chill free and open debate, to suppress support and donations to conservative organizations targeted by this anti-civil rights, to strangle criticism of Mr. Obama, to suppress ads about his support of higher taxes, and to choke out criticism on television, radio, the Internet, blogs, e-mail and daily conversation about the election."

That sounded iffy to me (not enough facts, too much finger pointing), so I looked into it a little bit more.

Obama lawyer Robert Bauer sent 'cease and desist' letters the to TV and radio stations that were playing the NRA's commercials about Obama. You've seen them - they claim that Obama, if elected, would be the most anti-gun president in American history. That's a pretty big claim.

Unfortunately, it's a true claim.

Chris W. Cox, chairman of the NRA's Political Victory Fund: "Barack Obama would be the most anti-gun president in our nation's history. That's the truth. NRA-PVF has the facts on our side. No amount of running from or lying about his record and then intimidating news outlets in the hope of deceiving American gun owners and hunters is going to work. Those strong arm tactics may work in Chicago, but not in Pennsylvania and Ohio, and not as long as NRA-PVF has anything to say about it."

To further exemplify Sen. Obama's feelings toward free speech, check out this little snippet from Fredericksburg.com about the Obama campaign prohibiting signs and banners at a University of Mary Washington rally:

A UMW spokeswoman says that the Obama campaign required the sign-and-banner ban. That campaign tells us that the ban is for "security" reasons. But a spokesman for the U.S. Secret Service, responsible for protecting presidential candidates, says that the service has no objection to signs at rallies, provided that no "part of the sign could be used as a weapon"--e.g., a heavy metal pole or a sharpened stick. Finally, the McCain campaign tells us, "We encourage people to make signs at our events."

Awesome. In all seriousness - it doesn't matter who you are going to vote for. As an American, it is your duty to protect free speech. So do it - or next time you'll be the one hauling your 'Honk if you hate the soldiers!' poster back to your Prius.

Starting over, or just starting?

2008-09-29T11:25:00.000-05:00

I've given in.
Everyone else seems to think this is better than Xanga, so curiousity got the best of me.