There are two stupid things that I want to point out about this incident of an Orthodox Jew that was removed from an airplane before it took off because he went to the back of the plane to say his prayers and wouldn’t stop when he was asked to even though his traveling companions told the attendants that it would only be 2 more minutes.

1) He should have just said his prayers in his seat or in the terminal before he boarded the plane. For what reason did he have to go to the back of the plane to say his prayers? That was a stupid move on his part.

However,

2) I’m pretty positive that it took longer to get security and remove him than it would have taken to just let him finish his prayers and sit down. So that was a stupid move on the flight attendants’ part.

Honestly. Just all around stupid.

• American Idol Jordin Sparks is going to sing the national anthem at the Super Bowl. I totally called that!

• A police officer friend of ours was involved in a shooting early yesterday morning. The suspect (who was the one who was shot) has minor injuries and our friend has a sore knee from where the idiot rammed him with his car. But other than that, he is fine. And we are thankful for that.

• We are going went to the salon today. Yay!

• We went to LG’s bank to deposit some money in her savings account. When we came out, she was told to hold Daddy’s hand before we walked into the parking lot. She refused. We gave her a chance to make a good choice. Then we did the countdown (5, 4, 3, 2, 1) and she still refused, so Mike picked her up and carried her over his shoulder with her screaming “I want to walk” all the way to the car. Oh. my. gawd. I just hope the people who witnessed that realized we weren’t kidnapping or beating her.

• We went to Target so I could get a couple of things for Christmas (one a gift I need for tomorrow and one a “toy flute” which LG wants from Santa). As I was looking at the toy instruments, I heard my name, looked up and who do I see but Rochelle and Navy Boy! So we finished up our shopping together (Mike and LG were waiting in the car). I had to find a graduation card for our drummer (who just graduated from college), but I didn’t think they would have any graduation cards at Target this time of year. Rochelle and Navy Boy suggested a Sympathy card - I’m so sorry you have to get a job now…lol! If you knew him, you’d know that it was a pretty funny idea, and so I went with it. I’d have never thought of that one on my own though.

• We’re going to eat take-out Mexican food and address Christmas cards and decorate the tree tonight, then get up early and head out to the in-laws for family Christmas togetherness. Oh, and Mike has to wrap the presents somewhere in there, too.

I’ll probably manage to post this weekend, but in case I don’t, have a lovely weekend out there in BlogLand!

So, Barry Bonds broke the home run record held by Hank Aaron for 33 years. And I’m not a bit happy about it.

It’s not because of the possibility of steroid use. Whatever whatever. I suspect Mark Maguire might have used steroids as well, but I enjoyed the race between he and Sammy Sosa to break the single-season home run record immensely. Steroids are not a good thing, but again, whatever.

I have another issue with Barry Bonds. And lest you think it’s just because he’s not a Diamondback or because he’s not on a team that I like, think again. Barry Bonds and I both went to Arizona State University. He played baseball for the Sun Devils and had a stellar career. (By the way, so did his godfather, Reggie Jackson.) In fact, Barry Bonds and I actually attended ASU at the same time. So maybe I passed him or had a class with him. Who knows? My point is that I don’t really have anything personal against him or any reason not to root for him.

Except. Except for the fact that I think he’s an egotistical jerk. Why do I think that? Well, have you ever watched him after he hits a home run? Most players (most good players anyway) hit the ball, put their heads down and run the bases. Barry Bonds, on the other hand, hits the ball, stands there and admires it, and then walks to first base. And that irritates the bejesus out of me. I think that is disrespectful, rude, condescending, arrogant, and several other adjectives. I cannot stand to watch him play baseball. Grrr.

I guess the good news is that now he’s broken the record, we won’t have to see every freaking home run he hits replayed ad nauseum on the news and we won’t have to hear about about it day in and day out. The record has been broken. The story is over. Stop showing his arrogant mug on the television for awhile.

Food tainted with botulism.

Toys contaminated with lead.

Counterfeit drugs.

All from China.

Perhaps we should stop importing things from China?

I’m just saying.

It wasn’t Friday the 13th, but it may as well have been…

Not only did the news helicopters crash into one another, but late last night a Phoenix police officer was fatally shot trying to apprehend a forgery suspect.

It was a very sad day in our city for law enforcement and the media and, well really for everyone, because these are things that affect us all in one way or another.

I think the thing that stood out the most to me yesterday was that during monsoon season in the Valley, news coverage tends to be all monsoon all the time and very little else, but yesterday even the monsoon got pushed aside as all the local television and radio stations covered a tragedy that involved four of their own. We are lucky here that, even though we live in a big city, there are a lot of slow news days. Unfortunately, yesterday was most definitely not one of them.

The day started out on a promising note: I made an appointment with a new PCP for next week so I don’t have to go through that whole “you have to get a referral - how do I get a referral without a PCP” issue again. I made a follow-up appointment with my cardiologist. Then LG and I went to the library to get her prizes for the summer reading program and check out some new books. And even though I drank only about a quarter of a half liter bottle of water, I think I got rid of about 2 liters this morning. The water weight is coming off quickly. In fact, I’m back down to my starting weight. However, if it wanted to keep coming off, I could definitely live with that.

But then…then I got a breaking news email in my inbox. And it said that two local news helicopters had crashed over the central part of the valley while covering a high speed police chase. Two news photographers and two pilots perished in the crash. So very tragic and so very sad. News reporters have to report tragedies all the time, but it must be incredibly painful and difficult to report the loss of their own colleagues in such a horrible way. My thoughts are with all of them.

A local supermarket was evacuated today because of reports of a bank robbery attempt and a bomb threat.

It all ended up just being a comedy of errors of sorts. First a man (some reports said he was blind) wearing a heavy jacket got in line at the bank branch in the supermarket, which aroused the suspicions of the teller. (I’m assuming it was the jacket that concerned her.) Police were called and responded with their guns drawn.

At the same time, a deliveryman left a bag of pizzas on top of a trashcan outside the store which led to the report of a bomb threat.

In the meantime, the heavy jacket man’s girlfriend, waiting for him in a car in the parking lot called him on his cell to ask if there was a bomb threat, which he repeated out loud and the teller reported that to police.

Police apparently took the girlfriend into custody, thinking she was a getaway driver.

They did get it all sorted out finally and determined it was all bogus. But really, anyone who wears a heavy jacket in Phoenix in the summertime is bound to cause people to do a doubletake. This all started at about 10:30 this morning when the temperature is closing in on 100 degrees.

So just for future reference, don’t wear a heavy jacket into a bank in the summertime unless you want to be mistaken for a bank robber.

For almost as long as I have known him, Mike has worked in smoky bars playing in bands. And if I had a dollar for every night he came home smelling like bar smoke, well, I would probably be able to have a really nice shopping spree.

I remember when we were still early in our marriage and he came home from a smoky bar and climbed into bed with me. I rolled over to cuddle up with my hubby, got a whiff of him, and told him to “Get out!” So from then on, he took a shower when he got home from work before he came to bed.

Of late, he’s been too tired to shower when he gets home, on top of not wanting to wake the little one, so the poor guy usually just sleeps on the couch.

But, those days are over. As of midnight last night, there is a ban on smoking in bars and restaurants in the state of Arizona. Yes, this will cause some business to be lost, but I think it will also attract people who didn’t want to deal with the smoke. And since the entire state is under the ban, it’s not like customers can go to another city or town to get around it.

So, hurray for no smoking! I wonder how long it will take for his equipment to lose the stench of stale cigarette smoke?

Things like what happened today at Virginia Tech make me sick to my stomach and make me never want to let Little Girl leave this house.

My thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims and all the students and staff of the university.

Edited to add some links to resources to talk with your children about the tragedy:

Common Sense Media
MSNBC
PBS Parents

For those of you who live in the weird parts of the country that observe Daylight Saving Time and all of that, don’t forget to set your clocks ahead tonight! It’s starting a few weeks early this year and will continue to do that every year from now on. You also might want to check your electronic devices as well, such as computers, dvrs, pdas, etc. etc.

Of course, all of us in Arizona? Don’t have to do that since we don’t observe DST. Because as my father always used to say, we do not need any extra daylight here. Amen.

Here are some interesting links about DST.

I was really too young to “know” President Gerald Ford when he was in office. But in the last few days since his death, I have come to know him much better and I have been mightily impressed with the man that he was. He may have been the so-called “accidental” president, but history is thus far remembering him as a good, maybe even great, president, and certainly what the country needed to heal in the wake of Watergate.

As I sit here watching the coverage of his funeral, just as I did Reagan’s only a couple of years ago, I find myself choked up at hearing “Hail to the Chief” and even moreso because it was played by the University of Michigan Marching Band, the place where his football jersey number was retired and where, if I remember my facts correctly, his is the only retired number. And then…then they played the fight song as they put his flag-draped casket in the limo. I think he would have like that.

Rest in peace Mr. President.

I had a feeling that the story would not have a happy ending for the father, but that does not make it any less poignant and sad. I hope he is at peace knowing his family is safe. And I hope that his family will be able to find peace in knowing that he loved them enough to give his life to try and save them.

On my 21st birthday (October 19, 1987), the stock market crashed and it was thereafter known as “Black Monday”. Nice huh? The only good thing about that is that I always know the exact date for trivia games.

But today? On my 40th birthday? The stock market closed above 12,000 for the first time in history.

So I guess things do even out sooner or later.

According to Beloit College’s Mindset List for the Class of 2010, the following things are true for the freshmen class (mostly born in 1988):

• The Soviet Union has never existed.

• There has always been only one Germany.

• They have never heard anyone actually “ring it up” on a cash register.

• Smoking has never been permitted on U.S. airlines.

• They grew up with and have outgrown faxing as a means of communication.

• “Google” has always been a verb.

• Text messaging is their email.

• Reality shows have always been on television.

• They have rarely mailed anything using a stamp.

• They have always been able to watch wars and revolutions live on television.

• Public school officials have always had the right to censor school newspapers.

• Small white holiday lights have always been in style.

• There have always been live organ donors.

• Disneyland has always been in Europe and Asia.

• Beach volleyball has always been a recognized sport.

• Television stations have never concluded the broadcast day with the national anthem.

• Professional athletes have always competed in the Olympics.

For more of the list, click here.

Like read this and then like totally fess up dude. What slang do you use in your speech on a regular basis? Or are you a like totally rad speaker and never talk like you’re on the beach waiting for a wave? Like totally.

I’m do pretty well now. I used to have three really bad habits but a friend called two of them to my attention and Mike had been griping about the other one for a long time and so I broke myself of them for the most part. Sometimes they come out, but certainly never in important situations. And really, they didn’t come out so much in important situations before, but you know after a certain age, I think it’s time to talk like an adult and not a teenager. At least most of the time.

Anyway, my worst habit was using the word “like” alllll the time. “It was, like, so cool!” “I was, like, so mad!” “I’m like, oh my god!” That sort of thing.

The other one which I believe to be totally genetic even though I don’t remember anyone else in my family ever doing it, is when I would get sort of embarrassed or caught redhanded saying or doing something I maybe wasn’t supposed to or trying to get away with something, I would stop, kind of giggle and say “Hi!” with a goofy smile on my face. I have totally broken myself of that one now. But the funny thing is, Little Girl does it every now and then. She didn’t pick it up from me, because I had broken myself of it before she was conceived. So therefore, it must be genetic. Or something.

The one that drove Mike crazy? Do I really have to say? Do I? Oh fine then. I used to break into the whole baby talk thing, especially when I was trying to get him to do something for me. Not so much goofy baby talk words like “widdle Mikey wikey” or silly stuff like that, but the actual baby sound to my voice. Little baby girly girly sounds. I can’t explain it better than that. But it drove Mike crazy. I got to where I didn’t do it very often with Mike except maybe when I was sick, but Mike said I would always lapse into it when my father was around. Of course then my father started acting like an idiot, so I guess I just outgrew the whole thing. I don’t feel like his “baby girl” anymore and so I don’t act like his baby girl anymore. And besides, one cute little girl who talks like a baby is plenty around here don’t you think? ;)

Now it’s your turn. ‘Fess up to your silly speech habits. You know you have them.