Warped Gratitude Blog

** I know no method to secure the repeal of bad or obnoxious laws so effective as their stringent execution. - Ulysses S. Grant Today I am thankful that I have some measure of class. Oh my Lord and Lady..... I don't know what in the world to think. A politician I went after nine years ago wants to rip Donald Trump's family from their fortune.... take all their money away.... so that they can get him to play ball. NO!!  I thought we were the land of the free.  What part of that is free or fair? Ugh.... DO YOU KNOW HOW TO GET HIM TO PLAY BALL? Get better players in the game. Train your guys to stand up to Trump. Give your guys the tools.... Give your guys the support and the money.... to take a stand on your behalf. There is no reason to be uncivilized. I don't understand all the liberal hullabaloo over Donald trump. Trump is a loudmouth. They're giving the loudmouth their power. The way to win this... is to empower the

Today I am thankful for Comedy. Whether it is the comedy of Douglas Adams -or- the inadvertent comedy of Donald Trump,  It still makes me laugh. It's strange how much life imitates art, isn't it? Have you ever read Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy? If you have, you know that Zaphod Beeblebrox, the ultimate two headed party boy, got himself elected as President of the Universe.  There were claims of voter fraud because his opponent believed Zaphod won by tricking people into believing that they were voting for the worst dressed sentient being in the universe.  His first act as President involved stealing a state of the art spaceship called the Heart of Gold. I'm beginning to wonder if Trump is imitating Beeblebrox. Where is Humma Kavula when you need him?  That may be a fun archetype to play the next time I'm running a race against an ego maniacal ignoramus.  I play a good religious nut-job (see below). Wouldn't that be fun? For some reason

Today I am thankful that the police department finally offered to take a police report. Finally..... I am unsure if a report is appropriate. Part of my religious practice involves leaving food for the squirrels and birds.  I put it in the outer perimeter of the yard, what the witches call the crossroads. What isn't eaten becomes compost for the garden. It's part of the cycle of life. I haven't been doing that too much since I've been giving money to other causes close to my Deities. Today....I wanted to honor Dionysus (cut up grapes) and Isis (whole wheat bread crumbs). I set out in my back yard and lo' and behold.... The door to my shed was torn off and thown three feet. The contents were rifled through but nothing was missing. I froze in horror. It's not over, is it? ****** My children said they noticed it like this over a week ago. They didn't tell me about it because they didn't want to worry me. They also thought th

Today I am thankful for my positive attitude. On Tuesday, as I was leaving my day job for a hypnosis appointment, my car broke down. A colleague tried to come to my rescue and jump the battery. It didn't work. My client was kind enough to reschedule. I wasn't worried even though I had no idea how I was going to get home. I had no money as I'd given what I had to a homeless guy scrounging around a trash bin - or so I thought. After work, I walked to another office my employer owns.  I visited with my author friend.  He's on the public transportation board.  I wanted to know how much bus fare was. He told me.  He tried to give me money. I smiled and said no. He'd had a bad day and was overjoyed to see my face.  He had a medical emergency.  I'm thankful he was okay. I thought maybe that's why my car broke down.  Maybe I was supposed to visit with my friend. After visiting with him, I visited with someone else who was passed up for a p

Today I am thankful that I live in the rich part of town with spoiled people. I'm also thankful for YouTube. I was hit by an H2. It rear ended me as I pulled out of a local supermarket.  The driver followed me around a corner and begged me not to use his insurance. I pay for two policies.  I pay for my own.  I pay for my ex-husband's policy because he won't cancel it and the only bank account information the insurance company has is mine.  He's got until February to cancel that policy.  I told them not to renew his.  This driver.....based on what he told me.....tends to get in a lot of accidents. He doesn't want his policy dropped. The back lights of my car were shattered.  I didn't say anything.  His car had a scrape of paint on the corner.  To be honest, it seemed like an easy repair to make. I wanted to be sure before I said anything. I told him I'd get the parts and hire my neighbor to fix it. He told me he'd pay for a dealer

Today I am thankful that wishes come true. My Grandmother would talk about uncle Ulysses S.  Grant.  My grandmother's grandmother took care of him. She was his niece. Her daughter became a minister in Dayton, Ohio. I found a picture of my great-grandmother online. We wear the same kind of clothes, right down to the little cotton flower pin on the lapel.  Maybe I'll post it later. She spent her life trying to make up what we did to former slaves.  My great aunts (her daughters) would complain that they had nothing because everything they had went to other people in the community. If they had nice cotton cloth, they had to sew suits and dresses for the children of the former slaves. I think my great grandmother felt guilty.  Grant is not the hero we think he is.  He was a slave owner.  My family doesn't talk about that. There are days I wish they were lying about the relation.  When I find my distant cousins online, I hear the same stories. They're

Today I am thankful for peace and quiet. Although things have been fairly quiet, I still fear quite a few things. I fear answering the telephone in real time.  I stopped answering the phone when I realized Shannon and her relatives were calling to see if I were home. If I answered, they wouldn't break in.  If I didn't, that's when they were caught with a key to the house. I finally realized that if I did not answer the phone at all, they wouldn't know whether or not I was here. I fear posting a real-time appointment calendar for my hypnosis practice online.  That was probably how Doug and Shannon knew where to find me.  Those shenanigans stopped when I put a 72 hour block on my calendar.  The problem, though, is that people have to call me to get appointments.  I could make more money if they could schedule online and immediately visit with me. I fear going out on coffee dates with male friends.....still.  I've only had one offer from a man who I know isn&

Today I am thankful for musicians.   I spent the day flitting in and out of music stores. A twelve year old told me that she wants a four string guitar. I have one. No....it has to be acoustic. It has to be small. It dawned on me that she didn't want a bass, she wanted a ukulele. I have one.  It was given to me by my grandmother when I was six or so.  I broke the strings on it trying to play like Larry Grahamn. What did you expect in the seventies? I'm fairly sure a ukelele would bore the holy heck out of her.  We spent the day driving around to get a sense of what truly interested her.  It turns out she doesn't want me to spend money on her.  Ukeleles are cheap. I explained that a decent used student's guitar can be found for less than $200.  It's the lessons that cost money. They are well worth it. On our trip around town, she listened to numerous people play today.  She liked the sound of the Spanish guitar.  The guy just pull

Today I am thankful for assholes and TV shows. The other day I had a conversation with a former foster child.  He's recently become an adult. He wasn't just thrown out on the street when he hit the age of majority.  That's typically what happens to kids that age out of the foster care system. His foster parent is really trying to help him move forward in life.  His foster parent is middle class.  His biological parents are working class. The foster parent is trying to get him to go to college.  His parents are against it. So, I explained how different classes tend to see college. People seem to see time differently.  Middle class people see college as necessary. They see it as an investment in the future. A college education will go a long way to helping you find and keep a good job. Working class people respect people who are educated but often feel it is too expensive of a commitment.  They tend to be focused on survival in the now.  Why go to class tw

Today I am thankful that other people share their stories. Stories are the only gauge I have to prove I'm not crazy. I used to collect stories about the City of Aurora. I once had a running Craigslist Ad asking for stories.  Back then, I was part of a citizens action group.  We fought fight tax hikes. This happened because an Ass't City Attorney was defending a Tax Audit Supervisor who stole $500 bucks from my family.  She challenged me and dared me to do something about it. So...I did. I tended to do a lot of complaining trying to help people. I was asked to run for office and, as a result, I let the project slide. I still hear stories about victims being arrested and perpetrators being rewarded. Like a rape victim arrested for saying a word that means vagina because the cop was offended and beat her up. The cop didn't face charges. The rape victim did. The worst part, the victim was assaulted in police custody. The woman was charged with verbal

Today I am thankful for a reality check. So..... My ordeal seems to be over.  I'm still not sure if I should jump into the political fray.... If I do...do I want to use a different name? Everyone will know who I am.... but maybe it'll make it harder to get the attention of my ex's family.  Instead of Siegfred Smith. I could be S. Tiberius Smith. Yes, I once published a book with my first initial and middle name (which is a man's name, just not as cool as Tiberius). Everyone thought I was a guy. It was great!!! Maybe.....I could use my birth name. The other woman with that name is a frightening D.C. lawyer. Maybe I'll just be "She." A lot of people call me She.  I've had politicians call me She. It was born from a political rival nearly ten years ago.  Some Democratic candidate thought I was a man.  He argued with me on an internet forum claiming I was a man. There are stupid Democrats in the world. He was running for S