The wages of sin is death. But after they take out taxes, it's just a tired feeling, really. Paula Poundstone

31 March 2003, 5:36 peeyem

Okay, so I'm not going to put up pictures of the fire. At least not right now. I have run out of steam for it. Just suffice it to say that it was bad, bad, bad.

Saturday Leanne and I went to Milledgeville to Memory Hill, which is the cemetery where Beaufort's parents are buried. We sat ourselves down on somebody's ancestors and had some sammiches and then went exploring. In our meanderings, we ran up on the Friends of The Cemetery, one of whom, Mrs. Louise Horne, took us on a little impromptu tour. She showed us the memorable sites that everyone looks at, and then she showed us the graves of people she liked, whether they were notable or not.

There were so many graves, though, that were unidentified. It's sad, really, to think that no one knows who's in there, or that no one cared enough to mark them. A person ought to have a nice funeral and a good marker that will last.

Yesterday I journeyed down to Dublin for my nephew's 10th birthday. I will definitely put up pictures of that, because he's pretty cute. For now, I'm going to the grocery store.

28 March 2003, 3:45 peeyem

Susan Scarbrough, Girl Reporter

The apartment building across the parking lot from me is on fire. Big fire. I think it might be one of Atlanta's historic buildings, and it might also be condos instead of apartments.

I can see flames in the windows, and just a few minutes ago I saw a gigantic ball of fire shoot out the roof.

There are a lot of firetrucks, but the building drops off to a ravine and they can't get very close to it.

A good many people from my building are outside watching, and I can smell it here in my hermetically sealed office.

The smoke is white. I wonder if that means they've elected a new pope? (That was actually uncalled for and is just the sort of thing that will make my parents warning come true: one day that mouth is going to get you in trouble.)

And naturally traffic is backed up in both directions on Peachtree.

Photos to follow. Just give me a minute to photoshop them.

28 March 2003, 5:15 peeyem

You've heard them mentioned, now put faces with names. This is my aunt Patsy and my cousin Beverly. You can't tell they're pinching each other because I cropped it out. Everybody in my family has a pretty smile, and they smile a lot.

27 March 2003, 3:11 peeyem

Oy vey.

I took Susan's iBook to the Mac store yesterday to figure out if something was awry with the network card that would prevent successful DSL connection. No, there's nothing wrong with the computer. They managed to get on the 'net from there, and I took it to my house and used my DSL modem and it works fine there, too. So I think the jack is miswired.

It's a beautiful day in Atlanta, Georgia. The sun is shining, the sky is blue, things are blooming. Why, I wouldn't be surprised to step outside and find Mr. Bluebird on my shoulder, nosirree.

26 March 2003, 4:58 peeyem

From my friend Carol...

Even when I don't agree with the war I at least have the right to disagree. I can disagree and protest all day long without fear of being beaten or killed.

I can even lose the biggest game of soccer in this nation and not have my government strip me naked, beat me, and drag me down a public street.

It saddens me to think that innocent people could be suffering and dying because we are going in there. It also saddens me to think that innocent people will continue to suffer and die if we don't. There aren't any easy answers, war or no war. But you're right. It's done and we are there. I feel patriotic as well when I think of the young soldiers in the middle of hell doing what they feel is right, allowing me to sit here on my butt and agree or disagree.

What a mess. What courage. What fools. What heros. Flip a coin.

I grew up in the shadows of the Vietnam war and this has brought back such vivid memories. Torn between the utter disgust at war and the support of the young lives that are fighting. At least this time we are fighting to liberate a nation torn apart by a mad man's power. It makes more since than Vietnam did to me. But it is still war.

Pray for peace.

Carol

25 March 2003, 2:51 peeyem

How much worse will it get before it gets better?

I can no longer listen to the morning drive show on my favorite radio station because I cannot stand the whatever-you-call-it. What do you call it? Blind patriotism? War mongering?

No, my friends, the word for it is jingoism. Go look that up and get back to me.

Anyway, I can't listen to it anymore because it has ceased to be rational, so I was switching the stations around this morning and what to my wondering ears did sound but Phil Collins singing True Colors. Cyndi Lauper's True Colors. I was horrified. Mortified, even. What in the world was he thinking? I cannot imagine why Cyndi Lauper let this happen, either. It is so much worse than when he covered Groovy Kind of Love.

All that aside, I consider myself a good patriot, and to be clear, I do not support this war or the causes thereof. However, that toothpaste is already out of the tube and I want it to end quickly and well and for everyone to come (or go) home safe and intact.

What really mystifies me is all this surprise that they are fighting back. I'll be damned if I'd just stand there and take it, either.

Since I can't have what I really want, which is for this to have never happened, I just want it to be over.

May you live in interesting times, indeed.

24 March 2003, 3:40 peeyem

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public."
                                                                          Theodore Roosevelt

24 March 2003, 10:41 ayem

What I Did on My Spring Vacation

Well, for one thing, I watched a war start, in that real literal it's-right-on-the-television kinda way. I am somewhat horrified to finally understand what is meant by the term "immoral war," let alone to be living through one. Because I don't think this is about freeing the oppressed, really. If it were about freeing the oppressed, there are people who are far more oppressed than the Iraqis. And that's all I have to say about that.

The first few days I went to Destin to visit my friend Lori (who you would love). This involved rather a lot of 2-lane blacktop roads, but was nice. It was warm and dry and she is the perfect hostess.

We came back on the Saturday because I had a play to go to with Mickey and Selma and Greg. We had a meeting spot, and things were going fine until I got just below McDonough, at which point traffic completely stopped. I finally managed to ooch myself off the interstate and pick up 155 (more 2-lane blacktop) and come up the back way. I tore home and got myself together to meet them and rushed out of the house with curlers in my hair. In Avondale Estates, I pulled up alongside Leanne and her mother; Leanne very nearly cried laughing at my head. I am pleased to report that I had removed the curlers about a half mile prior to rear ending the very nice gentleman in the 1978 Buick Estate Wagon, yellow with wood panels. I finally got to the restaurant, only to find that I had given them poor directions. Greg wisely sat quietly in the backseat, I'm told. The play was horrific, but dinner was good and the company was excellent.

Mostly I slept. I was up for eight days in a row back in 1985 and I'm still not over it. I slept late and putzed around and took naps when I felt the least bit like I might could sleep. I have to say that a good time was had by all (and since I was all, I'm pretty sure it's unanimous). In fact, I could have a little liedown right now.

12 March 2003, 4:06 peeyem

Okay, everybody lissen up. I'm going to be out of the office for a bunch of days, so I may or may not be updating. Depends on if the notion strikes me or not. Mostly it depends on if I can find the CD with the software on it so I can upgrade at home to do it from there without having to undo something else.

Anyway.

Regarding the great eyeglasses extravaganza, everybody's doing it! Trace got great new glasses. Then I did. Then Leanne did. And Brenda just did. And Martin did, but they're my old frames. I don't know any other men who did, but I think men must get one pair and wear them for the rest of their lives. Anyway, here's Brenda. I should take pictures of everyone's eye area with their glasses.

I can't believe the weather we're having. It's just stunning. And it is a portent of the fact that in about a week, the world will be lemon zest yellow with its coat of pollen.

11 March 2003, 12:13 peeyem

Oh, the horror of it all...

The cleaning lady came yesterday.

I have nearly finished hunting down my belongings and putting them back where they were. She likes to rearrange them from room to room and put things out of sight. I saw this morning that one of my red gloves is in the top of the closet. I suspect she does this because she is Polish and has a far greater sense of order than I do.

I went to drop my laundry off, because I've become that kind of person, and Nicki couldn't get to it before closing. Of course, I can't leave ALL of my clothes at the laundromat overnight. But I was very understanding and said, "oh, it's okay, if you can't do it, you just can't. I should have come earlier." She said for me to bring it back today, but of course, if I'm going to do any of it, I'd just as well do it all while I'm right there.

In my defense, let me say that I don't have a washer and dryer at home, and if I do it myself at the laundromat, I end up spending about $10 anyway, and she does it all for $13.

I took it to another place where they said they could do it by the end of the day. For ONE DOLLAR per pound, as opposed to the .75 Nicki charges. But what the hell? I needed it done and certainly am not capable of dragging my happy ass to the laundromat with a fistful of sweaty quarters and doing it myself. When I went to get it, it had not been brought back yet, so I ended up traipsing over to Peachtree Hills to get it myself. You can bet I didn't much like that.

But I took myself out for crabcakes with Trace and I knew I'd be coming home to a world of clean.

As I was putting my clothes away, however, I found that THEY HAD FOLDED MY PANTIES WRONG.

Life has dealt me blow after blow.

6 March 2003, 1:12 peeyem

I think I have lost my damn mind.

Last night I had four butter cookies, the ones that are shaped kinda like flowers and have a hole in the middle so you can eat them off your fingers. Okay, maybe you don't eat them that way, but I like to. Anyway. I was standing in the kitchen with my cookies and the phone rang. Naturally it was not in the kitchen on its cradle where it belongs, so I ran to the bedroom (where it was sitting beside the phone-on-a-rope, because a person needs two phones right together) to answer. I very distinctly remember placing the cookies on the desk after figuring out who was calling and moving to the bed.

Now I cannot find the cookies. I didn't eat them, and I didn't put them back in the bag. I have no idea where they are, but this is not the first time this has happened to me, and it seems to run in the family, because I'm not the only one who has done it.

The other reason I think I have lost my mind is that when I went to Home Depot on Tuesday to buy yet another showerhead, I saw the teacher guy outside and asked him if he thinks I can tile my own bathroom. He assures me I can, and I have determined that I am going to do it. I am going to get up Saturday morning and go to the tile class and buy the book and I'm going to tile my bathroom.

That said, I nearly sliced my finger off on a (plastic) yogurt container last night. It was a fluke, and I think I can do the tile with little incident. And if I can't, I have both homeowners and health insurance.

In unrelated news, I got an email from my uncle Bobby this morning. It said: I HAVE CHANGED MY E-MAIL ADDRESS TO DSL. I responded that DSL would change his life. He then said, "DSL has already changed my life, three days to get it downloaded. Lost sleep, and hair turned gray. Bobby." I don't know why I find that so funny, but I laughed out loud.

The hot curler project is coming along, but I didn't hot curl today, as it's damp out and my hair's just destined to be big anyway, no matter what I do to it.

3 March 2003, 4:03 peeyem

Adventures in Curling...
So I got my hair cut Friday (by the lovely and talented Christine, who everyone needs to go see). It came to my attention on Saturday that in order to come even close to what Christine has wrought on my head, a lot of round brush action and waiting for it to set a second would be necessary. Then I had the brainstorm of getting hot curlers, which I figure sort of approximates using one of those round brushes with the metal core that holds heat. Yesterday I got my very first set of hot curlers. It went okay yesterday, but today I think I might have rolled in the wrong direction. My head is somewhat cube-shaped to start with (runs in the family), and now my hair is following suit. But it sure is taller than it usually is.

In other exciting news, I have been trying for two days now to save a word document as a .pdf file. I am sufficiently intelligent, but honestly, I'm just stumped. I don't really use word, I use Quark.

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