In Case you haven't heard, The Racist New York Post Cartoon

Friday Five Taking a Break

Songbird posted this FF:
Where we live, it's February School Vacation Week!

Yes, that's an odd thing, a vacation extending President's Day. But it's part of our lives here. Some people go South or go skiing, but we always stay home and find more humble amusements.

In that spirit, I offer this Taking a Break Friday Five. Tell us how you would spend:

1. a 15 minute break

Under our union contract we get 2 15 minute breaks per day, however I've never in memory taken them. When I have a minute I play a game of solitare on the computer...then someone appears at the door and I quickly have to minimize it!
2. an afternoon off

This is rare, but maybe a meeting will end early and I'll be done an hour or two early. If I'm in the city and near the Manhattan office  I may stop at Macys or Jacks (the Bloomingdales of 99c  stores!) Or I may go home and take a nap.
3. an unexpected free day

Hooray! This never happens, btw. Although I have every other Monday off, I have to work longer hours to get this, it's planned. I will probably go to the Strand, the best huge used bookstore and browse, and buy. Then I'll take myself to lunch at a favorite place like Doma-where you pick up your delicious Florentine Tomato Soup at the counter, then share a table with all the slackers with computers. I usually have the Times or a magazine or one of those books I just bought. Then maybe swimming?
4. a week's vacation

Now that you asked, we're about to leave for a week with the ladies of Olivia Travel. This is a lesbian travel company that specializes in cruises and we're going to the Caribbean. We've been once before, but this time we're going for a week. It will be on one of the Holland American ships and onboard will be Kate Clinton, Arianna Huffington,  Vickie Shaw and others that I haven't heard of.
5. a sabbatical-Wow, someone tell the NYSED that counselors need these, too! I'd live in Europe for a while. Maybe Italy or somewhere nice. I'd blog and tell you all about it!

Not So Cozy Soup and Burger

On my day off yesterday, one of my tasks was to get a hair cut at my favorite, Dominic at Astor Haircutters. I was running late so that when I missed my bus connection, I took a cab down Broadway. At about 9th street, Broadway was completely  blocked off with yellow police tape. It was about a two block walk so I got out and walked. The police let me through the empty streets. I thought,"Oh my God, Astor Place has burned down and I'll never find another Dominic!" But, no, Dom was there and there was business as usual. When I got in the chair I asked what had happened. It seems that the Cozy Soup and Burger-really excellent burgers-had a shooting at 5:00 am. No one dead, just critical, so far. It was an argument. I didn't go there for lunch as planned...

A Valentine from the Empire State Pride Agenda-Lovely

I think I'll buy this from the I Tunes, but the visual is so much a part of it!

Happy Valentines Day

Happy Valentines Day to all of my friends at RevGalBlogPals and all of my other readers and those who happen by. And especially to my Beloved!

Friday Five Pets

Sophia posted this Friday Five: "My son's tiny beloved lizard, Elf, is looking and acting strange this week. His skin/scales are quite dark, and he is lethargic. We are adding vitamin drops to his lettuce and spinach and hoping and praying that he is just getting ready to shed his skin--but it's too soon to tell. Others in the ring have also been worried about beloved pets this week. And, in the saddest news of all, Songbird has had to bid farewell to her precious Molly, the amazing dog who is well known to readers of her blog as a constant sacrament of God's unconditional love.

So in memory of Molly, and in honor of all the beloved animal companions who bless our lives: tell us about the five most memorable pets you have known."

1. I grew up on an orchard/truck farm like atmosphere so my earliest memories were of gathering eggs from the 'chicken coop.' I know they weren't pets, but they were to me at 3, 4 and 5.

2 At the same age we always seemed to have a dog and doghouse in the backyard. The dog was never loose, and never was really socialized. My cousin across the backyard had one too. I think they were like watchdogs, though they had names. Ours was a collie type, hers was more of a shepherd. As a matter of fact, I never knew that I was allergic to cats as all the cats I grew up around in Ohio in the 50's and 60's lived outside, so I was never in close proximity! I'm really allergic, too!

3.Ducks. On the way walking from school, my friend Trudy and I would stop at the Feed and Grain store (how's that for dating myself and showing myself as the hick I truly am.) And sometimes they would have flats of ducklings. We begged for some. We got two each.They were cute until they got big. Really made a mess of the backyard. I think Trudy's family ate theirs, sigh.

4. Tiny turtles. I had many of these, from the 5 and dime. They lived in little plastic bowls with palm trees. Eventually they got out. My mother stepped on one. She was traumatized. Both were, one fatally. Lately I've heard they carry Salmonella.

5. Way too late, I got a dachshund. My mother, who was newly retired proceeded to spoil him silly. Did I mention that she was a meat cutter/butcher and would cook him special food. Barney became her dog.

Bonus: Almost forgot, a white rat I had for awhile (left over from a cousins science experiment) and a white mouse named Radclyfe who was a gift from my best buds for my 17th birthday, What were they thinking??!

Good News and Rachel and Martha

Just heard on today's news that the elevator music people, Muzak, have gone bankrupt. No more tuneless humming to 80's favorites! Hooray! Excuse this burst of schadenfreude.

Watch Rachel and Martha cook for this mindless Thursday special.

RMonMartha
by gtsvideo

Feeling a little Anxious

Since I left work last Monday, I've been away from my office a week. I did go into another office for a meeting on Friday and yesterday was a planned day off.  You know that little frisson of anxiety that comes with anticipation of the stacks of mail, e-mail and other ephemera awaiting?

I have that... Although my cough is mostly gone ;-)

Bronchitis

Well, they called it Asthmatic Bronchitis. I felt a little wheeze on Saturday, then by Sunday it turned into a bullfrog. By Monday I dragged my sorry ass into the office with the gravelyiest voice I've even had and I'm not prone to laryngitis. Tuesday, I thought about going in to work, then called my doctor. She said "come right in." This is what it's like to have an MD that's "off the plan." Very little reimbursement, but she sees you when you're sick, gives you the shot herself and her assistant administers the nebulizer tx which I apparently needed. Plus antibiotics, prednisone by mouth :-O and an asthma inhaler. I'm not asthmatic. My godchild said, you were right when you said that when you get sick, the worst thing that can happen, does happen. Sixteen years ago a herniated disc turned into a spinal cord injury, last year a simple procedure for gall stones turned into Pancreatitis and when I was in my teens, allergy skin tests turned into anaphylactic shock! I'm feeling a little better, now. Still a little wheezy. I've never even heard of Asthmatic Bronchitis. I wonder what the implications are.

Ground Hog Day

Ground Hog Day was one of my favorite holidays ever since I was a child and I believed such things. The winters were cold and snowy in Ohio and by February I got really tired of them. So the promise of a shortened winter was all I needed. Punksatawney Pete (sp?) lived in the neighboring state of Pennsylvania and a big deal was made on local TV stations. So today I hope he doesn't see his shadow and here's to a shortened winter. BTW, speaking of woodland creatures, I'm sounding like a Bullfrog since Saturday.