I'm A Patsy - Gotta Problem With That?

Saturday, July 28, 2012


OLYMPICS - London 2012

I watched the whole thing last night and was really impressed. I loved the greenness of the scenery they filmed by helicopter at the beginning. It was gorgeous. I think Danny Boyle did a terrific job putting the program together. I don't know how he did it and how he got it all together for that one night. There were so many people singing, dancing and just being a part of it - there must have been thousands and they were all volunteers. They spent days and months preparing. That, to me, was very impressive. I liked some parts better than others . . . my mind wandered a bit during the agrarian segment, but my mind wanders when I'm not watching something like "Breaking Bad" or "Law&Order." I got a kick out of Daniel Craig and the Queen and her Corgis. The Queen was a very good sport and actor, and I think she may be the new Bond girl. Paul McCartney closed the ceremony when he sang "Hey Jude" which he wrote supposedly to comfort John Lennon's son, Julian, when his parents divorced. It was first "Hey Jules" to honor Julian. He sang on and on - I think I took a bathroom break about then, and when I came back he was still singing.

I just watched the last part of the men's bike race that just took place. As a matter of fact, I was pedaling my stationary bike while I watched. I didn't understand any of it - how they are placed and who helps whom. I just know they rode a long ways!  A guy from England was supposed to win to make it all worth while for England, but he didn't. A guy from Kazakhstan named Alexander Vinokourou won. He's 38 and had considered retiring but apparently didn't. What blew me away about the whole event was when one of the bikers fell against the metal fence and scraped his elbow pretty badly. He got right back on his bike, and a car appeared with a physician hanging out of it! The car drove right beside the biker, matching his speed, and the physician medicated the elbow as they moved along. And then away they all went! Do we have concierge doctors in this country who would do that for someone on a bike who sent a cell message to a doctor and he would appear - that way you wouldn't have to stop at all. Or for people who do marathons or trail runs - they could continue on and just be treated while they continued running or walking or whatever it is they were doing. Do you suppose that should be added to the new health bill? I like it. 

Wednesday, July 25, 2012


"Hooligans" - they are among us

An article in a recent "Oregonian" newspaper told of a trial in Russia being held concerning three feminist rockers who had been arrested  for performing a "punk prayer" against Putin from the pulpit of Russia's largest cathedral. This case has divided Russia - advocates of openness against the forces of order and the powerful Russian Orthodox Church. Two of the women have young children and face seven years of incarceration. And here's the kicker - they were charged with hooliganism!!
I haven't heard that term used . . . maybe never! Do we have hooligans running around here?

Speaking of hooligans which I rarely do, in fact, I never have spoken of them before today - last weekend we had an incident in the city where we were told to boil our water and not ingest ANY OF IT before boiling. I was notified by an automated phone call that said anyone at my address had to boil the water. At first I thought maybe they were singling me out and everyone else could drink and drink. I went into my Nancy Kerrigan mode and screamed, "Why me?" I immediately became extremely thirsty and started twirling around in circles as I do when distressed. I eventually got hold of myself and swallowed what spit I had left. I then put a big pan of water on the stove to boil. My neighbor went to the store and got bottled water for herself and me. I guess  other people were also called so there were others like me, twirling around someplace.  And then there were those who lived in an "upscale neighborhood" who cleaned out the stores of bottled water. These were the smart people who didn't take the time to twirl around or boil water. The article in the paper the next day said it was from animal or human feces! How could that be? The reservoirs are fenced so it would be hard for someone to go up to the water and poop. You know what I think? I think some hooligans shit in plastic bags and threw them over the fence and into the water. Then they probably built a little bonfire, had some S'mores, and laughed maniacally while they thought of what they'd done.

You know what I think? I think we should be on the lookout for hooligans now that we know they are alive and well here and not just in Russia. I live by a river with a path that goes right by my window and down to the river. Every day I see people go by walking their dogs, and when they go down the path they are carrying empty plastic bags. But . . . when they come back up the path, the bags are full of dog shit, or maybe theirs. How do we know they will put those bags in a garbage can. Could they be hooligans, heading up to the reservoir?  We must all be observant of our surroundings. We're told to be on the lookout for potential terrorists, but how about for hooligans? 

Wednesday, July 04, 2012


Cindy and April visited the compound

Cindy and April came down Sunday, spent the night and went home Monday since she had to work on Tuesday. It was so good to see Cindy . . . and also April. Wherever Cindy goes, April is right beside her. April has gotten used to me, but still doesn't run up to me unless I'm sitting or lying down. 

Cindy and I spent time discussing the ways of the world, what was happening in politics and that sort of thing . . . sort of a mini "Face the Nation" or "Dateline Investigation." We talked about many things . . . here is an example:

Patsy:   I'm glad Katie Holmes decided to kick Tom to the curb.
Cindy:   So am I. I think the Scientologists were about ready to send Suri to a kid's
  Scientology boot camp.
Patsy:   We never sent you to a boot camp. We just had you and Teri pick up the    dog poop in the back yard. Maybe that's what the Scientology boot camp 
  is about.

Then I offered her a snack:

Patsy: Would you like some wheat thins?
Cindy: No, I like triscuits better. I used to like wheat thins, but I changed.
Patsy: These are really good wheat thins.
Cindy: No, I used to like them, but now I like triscuits better.

Cindy did many helpful things for me including taking out my garbage to the little enclosure on the other side of our driveway. Each time I would tell her this: "The papers go in the first can on the right, recyclables in the second can on the right and the bottles in the third can on the right. The really garbage garbage would go in the big container on the left." After I had told her that each time she went out she finally said "Shut up!" I said "Whatever . . . " and that was that.
We went on like that all afternoon and had a great time. April enjoyed it too. In the evening, we watched movies and April paced around the room because she could hear some fireworks every so often, and she was scared. She finally came over to the couch where Cindy and I were sitting on each end of it. She put a foot up and I gave in. She crawled up and put her head in my lap and stayed there until we went to bed. I liked having her there because I love dogs, but we can't make a habit of that.  After the movies, Cindy and April went to bed in my room. They both slept in my bed, of course. I had taken everything off the bed and just left a blanket and sheets. So the next morning, we changed the bed and made it up the way it had been BEFORE APRIL! I vacuumed the whole house and sprayed good stuff all around, but it still smells like dog.

I did many loads of wash yesterday along with the vacuuming. It may sound like I'm complaining about the dog smell, but I'm not . . . oh, maybe just a little bit. I love when they come down, and if that includes dog smell, so be it.