SAD BUT PREDICTABLE

Aspen flew out with her brother to see their mom in her new living situation. She now resides with her new boyfriend. She has been out there since August more or less. I called the other night to say hi to Aspen. She had some exciting news... "Daddy guess what? I'm gonna have a baby sister!" It was news that everyone was dreading but completely expecting. This is her 4th pregnancy. All have been out of wedlock. She always claims to be on the pill but she always manages to get pregnant 'somehow'. If she and her boyfriend (the presumed father) get married it will be her 5th marriage. the only reason she didn't have a child with husband #4 was because he had had a vasectomy long ago. She had urged him to get it undone as recent as 10 months ago. Aspen of course is excited. She doesn't fully understand yet that her mother has permanently moved away. Ed does. And after this news has time to sink in on him he will be devastated. Their mother has said that she moved away for the kids benefit because she needs to get help with her mental issues and psychosis. While it's true that she should have moved away for those reasons, she really moved away because she found a new boyfriend who was willing to support her in the way she has grown accustomed. Ed was willing to buy into her reasoning to some degree. His mother was sick and supposedly getting treatment, medication, counseling in order to get her head together so she could be a better mother to her children. Well, now that argument for her leaving is straight out the window. Her priority is obviously to discard the children of her past and whatever steps she should be taking to improve her relationship with them and move on to starting a new family from scratch. This will soon be painfully clear to Ed. It will be clear to Aspen over time. Ed is who I am worried about at this time. Nobody is surprised by this news at all. Except perhaps her new boyfriend. He was absolutely convinced that she had changed the ways of her past. Would have loved to be a fly on the wall when she broke the news to him.

LETS LEARN SOMETHING NEW ABOUT TISH!

Last night Tish and I spent a quiet evening on the couch reading from 'The If Book'. If you're not familiar with this, it is a book that has simple thought provoking questions that everyone in the room is asked to answer honestly after a few moments of introspection. We did this for about an hour, and I'm sure Tish will soon post what it is she felt she learned about Brico but I am here to tell you what I learned about her from this little pow wow. One question was "What would you steal, other than money, if you knew you would not get caught?" Tish responded that she wouldn't steal period. It's wrong and immoral. Okay, fair enough, impressive, scruples are important, good answer. (My response if you're interested was 'diamonds') Next question was "If you could put a secret video camera to record in any room anywhere, what room would you put it in?" While my response was 'The Oval Office', Tish's answer was "I wouldn't want to spy on anyone. I wouldn't want anyone spying on me. It's underhanded and unfair." Okay, I see where you're coming from, consistent with your last answer, very upstanding. But then there was this question "If you could be invisible where would you go?" Again, my response had something to do with a bank vault, consistent right? Yep, that's me. Old reliable Brico. But Tish's answer confused me... "I would follow my boyfriend to see if he was screwing around on me!" ?!?!?!?! So... spying on someone with a video camera is immoral but following them around while covered in an invisible cloak is okay? Does anyone else follow this logic? Cause I'm lost... ...and afraid to go out now.

WHAT I LEARNED TODAY

If you gingerly pick up a piece of lint from the floor then suddenly waive it in Tish's face while saying in a panicked voice "Ooooh! What is this?!" She will cower in fear as she screams "Get it away from me!!" and hide her head safely under the covers... until you laugh uncontrollably. Then she will peak out cautiously and say "Your an ass!" It was a Merry Christmas afterall!

TISH QUOTE #5

So last night I was asleep when Tish got to my place. I had little shut eye the last 2 days trying to get a bunch of last minute stuff done before the big day. I was exhausted. She climbed into bed and proceeded to wake me up ever so nicely. A few hours later I woke her up to remind her that she hadn't taken her eye medicine or a shower as she had intended. She could tell I was barely awake and was drifting back to sleep as soon as the words left my mouth. Out of concern she considerately and quietly asks "Are you sure my taking a shower won't disturb your sleep?" "Mmmm hmmm" I manage to mutter through unopened lips. Then for some reason, half leaning over me, she begins... "Boy the drive down here? It rained the whole way. It wasn't until I got close to Charlotte that it quit. Some places, like near Asheville? It was really raining hard up there. There were some points where I could barely see. Then there were some areas where it was only drizzling. I didn't leave Knoxville until about 6:30. Remember when I called you? That was the time I left. It was warm though on the drive. I din't have to have the heat on at all. Isn't it strange that it can be raining in December and not be too cold?..." ?!?!?! Yes sweetheart, the shower will not disturb my sleep!

TEN HOLIDAY SONGS YOU WILL NEVER FIND IN MY IPOD

Yes, it is true. I am a lover of holiday music. I have over 100 tunes in my ipod that only get played between late November and late December. I already did a post a few weeks ago on my favorite x-mas selections. But just as important is a post recognizing those ho ho horrible x-mas songs that never ever ever should have been written or recorded. This is that post. Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time by Paul Mcartney Wow, it's funny how you can spend your entire life creating flawless music and be poised to go down in history as the epitome of song writers and then bang, one little slip. You pen a song like this and no producer has the balls to stand up to you and say 'Hell no Paul! You are not recording that song in my studio!" sad. very very sad. Next Christmas by WHAM With the exception of #10 below, there is no song on the face of the planet that I would rather have never been recorded. If you want proof that George Michael is a satanist... here it is. No self respecting Christian would have ever written this song. Do They Know It's Christmas Time at All? by every bad 80's alternative band and U2 It was kinda cool at the time but seeing that the majority of people living in Ethiopia aren't Christians by birth, I think the clear answer is 'no'. I am aware that was the point of the song. But there's your answer. Lets move on. We're having a Reggae Christmas by Bryan Adams Since when is this guy Reggae??? He's from Canada! His country doesn't even share an ocean with Jamaica. That's like Metallica doing a tribute to polka music already. He shoulda put down the guitar in the fall of '69. All I Want for Christmas is You by Mariah Carey I guess if Mary Magdalene can hang with Jesus then it's okay for Mariah to sing about him. But I still don't like it. Every Fricking Song by Trans-Siberian Orchestra I'll admit, theyre unique and creative and when you coordinate your Christmas lights to their music, it makes for a damn cool beer commercial! But heavy metal and the spirit of the lord? Yeah, not feeling it guys. It's Christmas Time in Hollis Queens by Run DMC Maybe this song/rap speaks to a certain geographical population but I've never lived in Queens so I don't get it. I saw Mommy Kissing Santa Clause by ? Actually, the reason I won't entertain this song is not because of an innate godawfulness but because my hearing this song at age 5 was the spark that ignited the fire of my realizing that Santa didn't exist. True story. The Christmas Shoes by ? Okay, to be honest, I've never heard this song. In fact, until doing some quick research for this post I had never heard of it. But I have read the lyrics and many critic reviews of it. Pathetic, sim.ply pathetic. This person needs to work on writing their epitaph rather than holiday songs! And this version of O Holy Night... please, please, please do not leave this page without clicking on the link and listening to this for as long as you possibly can. I ask for nothing more than this from you for Christmas. If you can listen to that entire song I'll give you kudos here on the The Nut. (Tracy, your cd is coming!)

THAT'S PRETTY F**KED UP, BLOGGER!!

Check out this shit! It was time for me to update the links to other blogs on The Nut's sidebar when I discovered a little surprise. There were 3 links that were no longer good; Jenny's, Heather's and Dale's. Well wouldn't you know it! Apparently Blogger notifies (undoubtedly for a good price) a certain company of the newly defunct blogspot addresses and allows it to use them to reroute you to their site. It wouldn't be any more than a minor inconvenience if that's all it was, a simple rerouting where upon you can hit the back button and leave their site. But that's not all that it is. Nope, the company that Blogger sells it's unused addies to is a phishing and hijacking company. Within 3 seconds of clicking on Heather's (of 212 Design) old link (too make sure it was really no longer any good), I was rerouted and pop ups started bypassing my blocker and appearing one after another informing me that I would be wise to buy their debugging softwear ASAP. I could not leave their site, I had to do an end program AND a system restore. If that wasn't bad enough, I thought it was just a fluke so only moments later I was dim enough to try Jenny's old link before deleting it. And guess what? You got it... BAM! The same thing happened again! That was another end program and system restore I had to undergo! Always wanting to offer a solution for every complaint I throw out, I suggest this: From here on out, if you change your blog addy, don't just delete the old one. Immediately go back and start a new blog on the old addy which can then serve nicely as a notification and/or link to your new site. This way your old addy isn't left open for Blogger to sell. This way I'm not stuck having to do sytem restore nonsense all because your sorry ass decided to change your site's name. Blogger: I hope you get coal in your stocking! Happy Holiday's everybody!

A BORING POST

Aspen and I finished up the holiday shopping yesterday. Tish's stocking is still empty. That's 'cause everything I got her is too big to fit in a hanging sock. I got rid of my computer desk which always took up a good sized corner in the living room. I brought in a new lounge chair and bookshelf to fill the space. A nice new sitting area in my pad now. Aspen spent the evening yesterday wrapping her gifts for her brother, David, mom, and grand parents. Then she spent hours playing in the giant box that the chair came in. Is that too cliche or what? She spends Friday night at David's then Saturday everyone (and that means me, Tish, Aspen, Ed, David, etc) go to Aspen's maternal grandparents place for a holiday party. Aspen's mom obviously won't be there. Sunday David has his whole family over to open gifts so Aspen will be over there till late. Monday morning of course is gift opening time at my place. Ed will stay over Sunday night for that. Then in the afternoon I take Ed and Aspen to the airport to fly to their mom's new place of residence. That will give me and Tish a whole week together since she apparently can take off as much time as she wants whenever she wants. By the end of that week one of us is going to be sore. I'm hoping it's her! She and I are going to concerts on the 30th and 31st. Should be fun. Particularly if I can get her to pose for some more of those HNT pics where she's wearing nothing but peeled off beer labels. Believe me, parts of her need lots of labels. That means a drunk Tish! Happy New Year to me!

TEN WAYS YOU CAN TELL TISH'S AND BRICO'S RELATIONSHIP HAS GROWN 'COMFORTABLE'

It's been nearly 7 months since I first got Tish drunk. Aparrently she was so diluted that she remembers having a pretty good time. I've been able to convince her that I've just been having rare off nights ever since. Anywho, here is what is different from a Tish visit today as opposed to back in May. Instead of greeting her at her car and helping her with her luggage when she arrives, I now yell from the bedroom window "Don't forget to bring in your toys!" Instead of her asking me what movie I want to watch then finding it and putting it in, she asks me what movie I want to watch then puts in the one she wanted to watch anyway. Instead of rolling over and saying "Sorry baby" when I wake her when she's snoring, she doesn't roll over and says "Deal with it!" Instead of saying "Let me brush my teeth first" before starting a smooch session, she says "Have you brushed your teeth even once since I was last here?" Instead of leaving a message on the fridge that says "Be naked and in my bed when I get home", I leave a message that says "Clean your hair out of my shower drain before I get home" Instead of catching the hint and cutting the conversation short when I turn the volume up on the TV, she simply increases the volume on her voice to match it. Instead of tearing off her clothes and tossing them haphazzardly around, I instruct her to fold them neatly on the chair 'cause I just cleaned up for Pete's sake!' Instead of saying "Hey sweety, let's hang out with Miguel tonight.", I say "Hey sweety, I'm hanging out with Miguel tonight." Instead of staying awake for 2 minutes afterward before falling asleep, I stay awake for 2 seconds afterward before falling asleep. Instead of being in love with her (-this much-), I'm in love with her (------ this much -----)

"YOU MUST FIRST PRESS '1' BEFORE DIALING THIS NUMBER"

A few of you have already noticed that little white box toward the top of my right sidebar. Move your gaze to the right about 2 inches. See it? Now right below that, as Webmiztris observed, is a phone number and (really long) extension. If you dial that then you can leave a message on The Nut for me. Or, hell, leave it for someone else, I don't particularly care. I just want to hear everyones voice (particularly if you got a voice like The Tart or Red... very niiiiice!). Tell me I suck, tell me you're in love with Tish, leave me a season greeting or even say something to Aspen if you want. If you're really too lazy to look over on the sidebar then here is the number... 1(641)985-7800 *2456432 Thanks! Look forward to hearing from you. ps. Dawn: it's Brico with an 'eee' sound not the long 'i' sound. duh! ;)

MARKETING DISASTERS 101

Has anyone seen this commercial? What the hell is this about??? Do you see this joker breath on his phone? I swear he inserts his tongue in the earphone jack! I mean the dude is making out and getting turned on by his mobile unit here! Does this make anyone want to get this service/product? Someone please explain what marketers were thinking with this one! I get a serious case of the heebie jeebies every time I watch this. And since when is 10 cents a minute a good deal??? If you watch a 30 minute program on that phone its gonna cost you like... $2.73 or something.

TEN MISTAKES I MADE IN COURT THAT ALMOST BLEW IT FOR ME

1- When asked to tell 'the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth' I slammed my fist shouting "The truth? You can't handle the truth Your Honor!" 2- Forgot to change into my suit from my 'pot leaf' t-shirt before entering the courtroom 3- Thought the judge would find my continual use of the Borat voice funny. 4- My main argument was "She looks like me so I should have custody, right?" 5- Judge didn't like my saying "She's going to be a model some day Your Honor. I'm gonna be rich!" 6- Apparently it's frowned upon to say "I feel we're not making a connection here judge. Can we do some Jaeger shots together here first before we go any further?" 7- Joking "The reason the defendant isn't present Your Honor is because she's in a trunk in a swamp 40 miles due south of here" is a real no no. 8- Yelling "I object!" when the judge says "You may be seated" doesn't fly with 'the man'. 9- Interrupted His Honor by saying "Can we speed this up? Happy hour at the Gentleman's Club ends in 30 minutes" 10- Shouldn't have said "I'm sorry I'm flustered Your Honor. I'm not used to being in a court room without shackles on."

"THANK YOU YOUR HONOR! CAN I BUY YOU A BEER?"

Where to begin??? If judges gave high-fives I woulda been all over that! Instead I reserved myself to handshakes outside the courtroom with the defendant's (that's Aspen's mom) parents, sister, ex-husband as well as my boss along with Miguel. All whom were there on my behalf. I acted pro-se (meaning I was my own lawyer) so it was important that everything be done right. Judges have little patience for those acting as their own layers. And my judge was no exception. That was evident from the very beginning. Which is a good place to start I guess... The defendant was a no-show. I don't know if the traveling judge I had knew this, didn't care, or had the power to override that statute. At any rate, the judge realized the defendant was not present yet but told me to proceed anyway. Whew! I was greatly relieved. That was one huge hurdle I just cleared. I gave my testimony as to why I should have full custody of Aspen. I was hoping to be able to read it but I was not. So I had to resort to memory. Fortunately, I did okay and didn't forget too many key facts. I then stepped down and called to the stand the defendant's ex husband (Aspen's stepdad). He went over some character testimony of the defendant but the judge seemed only interested in hearing what he had to say about the defendant's earning potential seeing that he also used to be her boss (cliche right?). I should have viewed the fact that he was focusing on money as a good sign. Instead I was a bit flustered that he wasn't wanting to hear any of my witnesses. You see, he had already decided in my favor while I was on the stand (perhaps before). All he wanted was to figure out how much was reasonable child support. To figure that, he needed to know her income potential. And that's where her ex (husband and boss) came in handy. When I motioned to have other witnesses speak on my behalf he shot me down saying that whatever they were going to attest to was not being contested so it was unnecessary. I finally said "Well Your Honor, since the defendant isn't here I suppose nothing is being contested. So I guess I have no more witnesses." He smiled "Excellent, then we can move on." He spent the next ten minutes with his calculator explaining (way too fast for me to understand) that the amount I was requesting for support was appropriate when considering her earning potential. Apparently I could have asked for a bit more but he was not allowed to grant more than what was requested. It's all a mute point really. You can't milk a stone. Two other sidenotes: 1. I had encouraged the defendant to show up. I told her what I considered 'reasonable visitation' might not be what the judge considered it to be. As I predicted, based on the defendant's no show, the judge stated that the definition of 'reasonable visitation' would be left up to me. If the defendant had a problem with how I interpreted it then she was free to file her own complaint whenever it suited her. I don't have to follow the visitation guidelines I had described to her now if I don't feel like it. mwah ha ha ha ha! Apparently the only thing his honor likes less than pro-se litigants are litigants who don't show up period. 2. The defendant is engaged as of this week. The man with whom she was unfaithful in her relationship to proposed the other day. She is 37 and this will be her 5th marriage. Yep (looking at watch), right on schedule! lol Bottom line: The important thing is that Aspen is going nowhere without me from here on out. Thanks to anyone who ever left a comment on this subject over the last year. The support was helpful! I think we're done with this topic now.

GOT IT!! FULL CUSTODY AND SUPPORT... MORE LATER.

REGARDING THAT LAST POST...

In all sincerity, it was not my intention to give anyone a stroke. Nor was it my goal to simply mess with my dear readers' heads for the fun of it. The reality is that when the minor incident of small cost and inconvenience occurred the other night I was bummed and stressed for a few hours over the impending cost and it's timing. However, those 'negative' emotions departed soon after. The nature of reality is something good to be pondered. The 'reality' in which you find yourself in any given moment is only 'good' or 'bad' when you compare it to a 'reality' that could be. Far too often everyone compares their reality to how it could be 'better'. The result being one's malcontent. The reason for the post was not to 'trick' anyone, rather to demonstrate how 'unpleasant' circumstances can look pretty darned 'okay' if we focus on a potential reality that is far less 'desirable' than the current situation. As I said at the top of the previous post... "You are about to learn something interesting about the way the brain of Brico works." And for Tracy and Tommy, if a disclaimer had been more prevelant than that, the post would not have been as effective in getting the intended point across. And if all that didn't suffice as an explanation... 'yes' Aspen is just fine. The custody hearing is on Monday. I will post again after the court renders it's decision.

BRICO'S EVENING... TAKE TWO

You are about to learn something interesting about the way the brain of Brico works. Last night my jeep broke down. The belt and waterpump busted. The cost will be several hundred dollars with labor. Not the best time of the year for that to happen right? As I'm shelling out mullah left and right to make sure Aspen's, Ed's and Tish's stockings are filled to the top and the the base of the tree can't be seen through all the wrapped gifts under it the last thing I need is to put presents under the mechanics tree too! So I could be pretty darned ticked off at the circumstance. "F**king A already! Like I needed THIS right now damnit hellfire! Cut the shit, god! And here I was planning on doing volunteer work too. Nice! Reeeeaaaaaal nice! Thanks alot!" But the thing is, that's only half the story. What really happened last night was the biggest travesty of my life. I had just picked up Aspen. We were heading home when the belt broke. I instantly lost power steering and ran the jeep off the road on a turn and rolled it several times. The final impact put Aspen (who was wearing her seatbelt!) into a deep coma. The catscans show pretty significant brain swelling. Last night as I paced back and forth for several hours in the waiting room I never for a moment thought about the damage to the jeep and what a new belt and water pump with installation labor would cost me. All that entered my mind was my comatose Aspen laying lifeless with hundreds of cold wires sticking out of her. All I wanted was to hold her again and make her laugh with some tickles and zerberts (sp?). But now, unexpectedly, my life had changed by inconceivable proportions. There were no words to describe how much in shock I was knowing my little girl was now fading away from me. An eternity went by that night with my heart knotted up tightly in my stomach. I could do nothing but vomit repeatedly. I cried a river bigger than the Nile. But then something miraculous happened. The Powers That Be decided that the circumstances that had been dished out in this scenario were a little over the top. Aspen nor I were deserving of this fate. With that, time was set back several hours. I was again in my jeep at the turn in the road. But I was on my way to pick up Aspen. The belt did break. I did lose power steering. I did run the jeep off the road... a bit... until she came to a smooth stop on the shoulder. I secured a second vehicle and picked Aspen up 30 minutes late. I tucked her in safe and sound last night. She awoke this morning in good spirits to my usual tickles and zerberts (sp?) as I got her ready for school. An hour later I got the jeep to a service station where upon the mechanic told me "I'm sorry man. I know this isn't what you want to hear right before Christmas and all. Your belt and pump are shot. It's gonna run you a few hundred bucks." "No problem at all." I say, (relieved I wasn't speaking to a doctor) with what to him must have seemed a very huge and odd grin under the circumstances.

HAPPY EIGHTH BIRTHDAY, ASPEN

Aspen. There is not a moment that goes by that I am not eternally grateful for the gift in my life that is you. You have changed me far more than any school or journey or life experience or teacher ever could have. You are all those things to me and I am blessed beyond words to be taking this journey with you by my side. You can't imagine how proud I am of all that you are, of all who you are becoming. You make being a daddy nothing but pure pleasure. There have been some enormous changes in our life together over this last year. Changes that you won't fully understand until you're grown. And while some of these changes have not been 'positive' ones, the result has been you and I only getting closer as we grow ever the stronger. My little girl, rest assured that your daddy is never going anywhere without you. Ever. Your daddy loves you! Happy 8th birthday. May your life always be filled with as much joy as it is here when you were only 6 months young.

HAPPY XMAS TO ALL

Powered by Castpost Sarah's version brings a tear to my eye. Please enjoy

MY TEN FAVORITE HOLIDAY SONGS

Talk about a hard list to do! I could have made this 'My Fifty Favorite Holiday Songs' and it still would be incomplete. But since this time of year is all about tradition I will stick with mine and keep it at ten. Santa Baby by Eartha Kitt Santa Claus is Coming to Town (live) by Bruce Springsteen Sleigh Ride by Ella Fitzgerald The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire) by Tony Bennett Mistletoe and Holly by Frank Sinatra Most Wonderful Time of The Year by Perry Como Winter Wonderland by Robert Goullete Let it Snow by Joe Williams Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas by Barbara Streisand Do You Hear What I hear? by Andy Williams I know I know! There's no Mahalia Jackson, Percy Faith, Lena Horn, Diana Ross, Harry Conick Jr., Judy Garland, Mel Torme, Julie Andrews, Nat King Cole, Jim Nabors, Johnny Mathis, Gene Autry, Jackie Wilson or Burl Ives. What do you want me to do? There's no Bing Crosby either for Savior's sake! It's the best I could do under such stringent guidelines! And so help me, if you're looking for Clay Aiken's version of Silver Bells or Jessica Simspon's rendition of Oh Holy Night... well, enjoy these tunes now because where you're going, songs about Jesus are strictly prohibited!!

SEVEN DAYS AND COUNTING

PLEASE...

"NOW HOW DO I EXPLAIN THIS TO HER IN A WAY THAT SHE DOESN'T TAKE OFFENSE?"

This is the way the conversation was concluded last night as Miguel and I had dinner for the first time in well over a month. What was the topic? The continuous presence of his love, his better half, his girl friend, his reason for not drinking quite as much, his smoochiekins as it were. A little background first... Miguel is not the greatest compromiser. He prefers to have his own place. He likes things his way. If you can get past this and accept it you'll find he is a great guy to hang with. 2 years ago Miguel moved in with an old friend, Drew, they shared a good sized place. Miguel never felt 100% comfortable with the situation because the place wasn't all his. There was compromise on cleaning and music volume and guest visits that he had to navigate through. But Miguel is a trooper and he pulled through respectfully. It was while living here that his love entered his life. Over the months she became a larger presence in his daily life. This included her coming over and staying over with ever increasing frequency. But now Miguel has moved back into his own place (Drew is getting married *start 'taps' song now*). And things are different. keep reading cause this is where it gets good! Miguel confides in me how the other night when his beloved was over he was watching a game on the tube while she was in her own world doing schoolwork on the laptop. Miguel began suffering an imposing feeling of claustrophobia. If she was going to be doing her own thing, why couldn't she do it at her own place? Why couldn't he have his space to himself to truly relax? It was driving him crazier by the minute. He did say something to her about her presence causing him undue anxiety but I believe the relationship is salvageable at this point. That's a post for another day. So at dinner Miguel asks me why he would suddenly be having these feelings? It was never an issue in the past? Why now? I knew Miguel, the way he works, the way he thinks, what makes him tick, etc. Therefore I knew the answer. And I stated it like this... "Miguel, you like your space. You want the things the way you want them. Plain and simple. The less you have to compromise the happier you are. When you were sharing a place with Drew, the place was 50% Miguel's. But when Ellen was there it somehow made the place 66% Miguel's. Are you following me?" "Go on" he nods in understanding. Math is one of his strong suits. "But now you have your own place. When you go home you go home to a place that is 100% Miguel's. You love that. But now when Ellen is over, your place suddenly becomes 50% Miguel's." "Yes!!" he lights up in a Satori moment. He seems relieved to have a clearer understanding of the nature of his ill. But then a look of concern and perplexity takes over. "Okay, so how do I tell her this in a way so she understands without taking offense?" "Miguel" I say, looking directly at him with all seriousness "You want to tell Ellen that she has gone from a +16 in your life to a -50 in a 'way so she understands'? Man, let it go!" His solem lowered eyes expression told me he knew the words I spoke were indeed wise. He then ordered a jack and tonic.

WHAT WOULD JESUS DISPLAY?

"Please God, let me be a fly on the wall when these folks arrive at the pearly gates and have to answer for this!" It seems that when the couple pictured here placed a peace wreath on the side of their house the day after Thanksgiving in part of their seasonal decor that it offended the three member board of the homeowners association. The couple received a letter stating that it was a devisive political sign that was offensive to neighbors who had family stationed in Iraq. Apparently 'offensive, divisive and signs of a political nature' were forbidden to be displayed according to the association rules. They were ordered to take the wreath down and would be charged $25/day that it remained on display. The story made national news. Yesterday, the association's three board members stepped down in disgrace and two of them disconnected their phone service. Apparently they were inundated with phone calls from across the nation by people wanting to know just what the hell they were thinking. I, not usually short on words, have no idea where to even begin with this one! Should I just let it alone? Is there anything that can be said that isn't so painfully obvious from the get go? I can't recall a news article that was so full of irony, so shamefully evident of ignorance, so tragically laughable and such a display of... I don't know what. The recent update to the story is here. Please tell me the anti-peace sentiment that these people hold is... is... I'm sorry, I am at a complete loss of words here. I'll just refer to a famous quote here. Perhaps they've heard of it "Peace on earth, goodwill toward men" ps. if you haven't already, please read the post below.