Old August Memories

I must have dreamed about my childhood last night, because I woke up today full of memories.

Garden  by rcw

We used to live for summer, getting out of school and playing (after our chores) 'til the sun went down.
June, July and August...three months of freedom before heading back to those hallowed halls of learning.

August was a hard month....we kids would be still trying to get the playing out of our systems while the parents were trying to get us to go to Tesslers on Long Lane for school uniforms or the shoe store for loafers or saddle oxfords.  We're talking the Catholic School days here....when uniforms were the law of the land. 

Girls wore the navy blue jumper with the white, bib collared shirts (long or short sleeve was okay), blue bow tie, beanie cap (optional), blue or tan knee socks, loafers or saddle oxfords, and of course the school's insignia sewn on our uniforms on the left side..meant to be over our hearts, but the location was a bit off.

I remember being fitted for my uniform; I was so small we had to hem not only the jumper but the shirt sleeves
too!  I had (still have) tiny feet but they were (still are) wide tiny feet so shoe fittings were a bit of a science project, too.

Somehow, Mom and Dad always managed to get their brood outfitted for school....now that I am older I am even more appreciative of the combination nail biting, praying and magic they must have performed to make it all work.  We were not rich....we were barely hanging in there as middle class, but we were hanging in there.

August was hot as hell, and the window fans in our bedrooms would be going non-stop. At night it's humming would lull me to sleep as nothing else ever could back then or since.

So for today, Fifty Five Is The New Old August Memories...of window fans, childhood and the last days of summer.

Rhetoric and Revelation

Glenn Beck

We've been watching Glenn Beck on FoxNews once in a while.  Some of our friends think we're crazy. They worry that we might be getting "taken in" by his rhetoric. They ask if we watch any other news stations so that we can get a balanced view point.

And heaven forbid we talk about anything that sounds "Tea Party-ish."  They think those folks are dangerous and racist.

Hmmmm...

I've done a bit of research, as I am apt to do when someone makes claims such as Mr. Beck has made with regards to our country's history and do you know what?  The bugger is right.  Now, I knew we weren't founded by a bunch of racist imperialists, but I didn't realize that we had African Americans so heartily involved in our own American Revolution.

No, I didn't just view what he had to say and nod like a trained dog, I looked things up and read from independent sources as well as those he quoted.

I asked my friends if they had ever heard Mr. Beck speak.  Of course not. They'd been told by newscasters they trust that Mr. Beck is a vile, racist, fear mongering, right-wing idiot.

I've watched his programs and frankly don't see what they are talking about. 

He's going to be holding a rally on the Washington D.C. mall, right at the Lincoln Memorial on 8/28, the anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Had A Dream" speech. Lots of people are up in arms about this, some saying he ought to be silenced because he's a dangerous, dangerous man.

I will be watching this rally on 8//28 closely on my t.v., and will report on any dangerous behavior. 
In the meantime, I will continue to check facts from all points of view. That's the only way to make an informed decision.

I grow concerned for my friends who seem to be taking their information from news blips and sound bytes rather than checking the facts.

So for today, Fifty five is the new Rhetoric and Revelation...sorting truth from so much static.