Rest In Peace Gene,,

I have spent most of this week organizing a funeral luncheon for a friend and neighbor.
Gene died suddenly last Thursday and since some of his family has to come from other states the funeral is on Saturday.

Getting the food together isn't the hard part, it is not knowing how many people will be there. You know you don't have RSVP's for a funeral. These are very active people so I expect a crowd, and I do enjoy a challenge.

Meanwhile Hubba has lost a buddy and my friend Rita has joined his widow network.
It is a group that Hubba helps out with their finances. It is growing way to fast.

Update April 4,2009..Saturday
Today we said goodbye to our friend Gene, we had planned for about 200 people at the luncheon and I had enough people bringing food to cover it.
Obviously Gene was looking down and grinning with his big smile!
There was well over 350 people at the service, we served about 320 of them.
People who hadn't been called were coming in with hot dishes and salads and platters of meat and cheese or we wouldn't have had enough.
It reminded me of the Loaves and the fishes, no one went hungry.

Can you spell HYPOCRITES ?

Adios to Michael !!

Wednesday night on American Idol the theme was Motown and guest Smokey Robinson coached the contestants.
Best performance of the night was Adam Lambert's soulful rendition of Smokey's, Track of Tears, it brought him and Barry Gordey to their feet.
Last week I was not thrilled with Adam's performance of Ring of Fire.
I really found it a little strange but then that could have something to do with my lack of enthusiasm for that type of rock music.
He proved Wednesday that he is on his way to the final two.
I am hoping the other contestant will be Danny Gokey, who has brought it every week with each song choice.

Besides these two guys Allison Iraheta was right on with her performance of Papa was a Rolling Stone.
It is hard to believe she is only 16 years old.
I expected Megan to be in the bottom three and maybe even go home after her poor performance, but I am guessing since she is only one of three females left on the show, it saved her.
Going home last night was Michael Sarver.
It will be getting harder very week, some really good talent this year.
Now let Adam WOW you !!

Bracket of Evil

Have you ever wondered who would win in a face-off between Karl Rove and Rush Limbaugh? Sarah Palin and FOX News? Newt Gingrich and Exxon?

Now, you can do more than wonder. You can help decide who wins - in a Bracket of Evil.

CREDO is trying to figure out who is the most evil person (or organization) in American politics. I just voted for my picks in categories like Media, Government, and Maverick, and you should too! Just head to:

Bracket of Evil

Hard to pick from a group like this . . . Good luck

Is Anybody Listening?

President Obama watched this video and tonight on 20/20 they showed his answer to it.
The pain this country is going through is carrying over to our children.
I wish the Republicans in this country would join in to find solutions instead
of just being obstructionists.
Give us their plan, not just their criticism.

Good by Alexis.

Hubba is not a happy camper today and neither is Flash.
American Idol's results show sent home their favorite last night.
Little Alexis Grace ( mini me Dolly Parton with out the extra chest accouterments)
and more of a blues singer.

I thought her rendition of Jolene was a little copy cat and may have been her downfall.
It shows the importance on this show of song choices.
Unfortunately the teeny boppers who are willing to redial over and over to vote for their
favorite's weren't dialing her number.
I wasn't surprised and told Hubba to be prepared to see either Alexis or Megan go home.
Personally I was hoping it would be Michael Sarver a country singer want a be
who I didn't think did all that great in comparison.
Hubba was convinced that Adam Lambert (the Broadway here I come, Rocker)
who had destroyed his idol Johnny Cash''s song Ring of Fire, was going to be on the chopping block.
I knew that wasn't gonna happen, he forgets who does the voting and anyway the judges would never let Adam leave this early.
Adam will be in the finals with Danny Gokey my soul man.

Adam was taught a wee lesson last night when Ryan made him stand with Alexis and sweat a little.
Maybe he will rethink his persona, remembering this is for a recording contract and not some Las Vegas
stage show.
The final ten will be going on tour and it will be one of the best groups they ever had.
I don't think Alexis is going to have to worry, with that powerful voice she has a career waiting for her, but I do wish the
Idol makers would add her to their tour.

This video shows a lot of what she is capable of, but no way how good she actually is.

Natasha Richardson

I have a very close friend whose son was in a serious pole vaulting accident when he was a sophomore in high school.
It put him in a coma for 3 weeks but
remarkably with much therapy
he did recover.
He does suffer from some brain damage and has to use seizure medication but is able to work and lead a productive life.
Years later another friend fell backwards down some steps, hit his head causing a bleed on the brain and spent 1 year in a nursing home
recovering.
He is now home and finally back to a somewhat normal life.
I also have a nephew who was in a car accident that caused a severe concussion and a blood clot on the brain
he almost died.
He also suffered some learning disability from the injury.
But all of them lived.

That is why I was shocked when I heard
the tragic news of Natasha Ricardson's death and found it so hard to believe.

A skiing accident on a beginners hill?
At the time it sounded so minor.
I think there had to be pre-existing condition of some kind,
to cause such damage, maybe a weakness in the blood vessels around the brain.

I guess we won't know until the autopsy is completed.

Another lesson showing us how fragile life is.

My sympathy goes out to her family.

Just a pretty face in an empty shell !

This is Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) on Fox Business railing against earmarks, she is just one of many Republicans who are speaking out on one side of their mouth while requesting their own Pork.
But Bachmann took her hypocrisy a step further, claiming that she has signed an anti-pork pledge.

In actuality:

"according to Legistorm, Bachmann has requested 7 earmarks in Fiscal Year 2008 costing tax payers a total of $3,767,600. Some examples:

- $94,000 for Sheriffs Youth Program of MN
- $335,000 for Equipment Acquisition for Northland Medical Center
- $803,000 for Replacement Small Buses, St. Cloud Metro Bus

As MSNBC’s David Shuster noted, Bachmann indeed signed the Club for Growth’s ‘No Earmark’ pledge back in 2008. While she clearly broke this pledge, Bachmann’s name is curiously absent from the list of lawmakers making the same pledge for 2009."

This woman has no shame and I wish that the media would start reporting
all of her lies.
Keith Olberman did a good job Friday night including her again as one of his "Worst Persons" in the world
Now watch this pretty little things as the lie oozes out of her mouth.

Thanks to thinkprogress.org and Keith Olberman for this information.

Hope we can believe in !

Maybe there is hope for this country.
I saw this on the DL Hugley show, I know many religious
people who feel this way and voted for Obama.
They are the real Christians, not the ones who claim to be born again and then
preach hate speech against the Gay Community.

I am so proud that today President Obama signed an executive order restoring funding for research on all lines of available stem cells.
Now the research can begin and maybe lives can be changed.

8 things about the Minnesota Senate recount

I am doing this "meme" for Riot Kitty,
only because I don't have to tag anyone.

Here are the rules.

1. You’ve got to post a link from the person who tagged you.
2. List 8 things that you know about on your chosen subject. You get to choose the subject.
3. You don’t have to tag anyone but you can if you want. If you do, let them know on their blog that they’ve been tagged.
4. List the rules.

I have chosen to update the Senate recount in Minnesota.
Currently we only have one Senator representing us and Amy Klobuchar is doing an excellent job, but I wonder when she sleeps.

Up the roller coaster everyone. then down.

1.On November 4th, 2008 Norm Coleman thought he won the Senate race by 215 votes, he said if he was behind he would have conceded.

2. Minnesota law said Nay, automatic recount followed.

3.Coleman challenged thousands of Franken ballots, the court ruled against him on most of them.

4.Jan. 5th the Election board certifies the recount results that show Franken leading by 225 votes..

5. Remember # 1?
Coleman did not step aside he filed a law suit instead.

6. Republican leaders urge Coleman to continue his fight and delay Franken's seating as long as he can. They make a commercial urging supporters to send money to help with Coleman's court case.

7. March 6th the Minnesota Supreme Court denies Al Frankens petition for a certificate of election. They said a certificate can't be issued until the legal case is over. Al Franken's case is now being presented to the court.

8. Norm Coleman has a press conference and suggests another election should be held and hints he may take case to US Supreme Court

Remember # 1

Final 13 !

I was disappointed last night, that the judges chose to balance out their final 12 by choosing Jasmine Murray over a couple superior male singers.
If they were going to add another female I think they should have gone with Jessie Langseth or
Tatiana who is a far superior singer compared to a couple female choices.
I think it was her quirky personality that
kept her out.
Jessie again made a poor song choice, I would have thought she had learned her lesson.
But her vocals are better then 16 year old Jasmine.
I wasn't surprised when they added Anoop at the end to make it a final 13.
He is a teeny boppers dream, and they vote.

Without seeing the 13 finalist's perform together, I am going out on a limb and predicting the final 6.

Scott MacIntire will be there, not because he is a better singer then the rest, but his cute factor and blindness is appealing to those that do the voting.
The same goes for Jorge Nunez and Anoop Desai

Topping my list and maybe in the final 3 are

Lil Rounds, the best female singer since Fantazia and Jennifer Hudson.
Adam Lambert, he has personality to go along with his Broadway voice.
I hope to hear him sing an Elvis song before this competition is over.
Last but not least, David Gokey who is so appealing and has the sound I would pay to hear.
Anyone of these 3 can win it all if they make the right song choices, and all 3 of them have a career no matter what.

Now I have to point out, last year a couple of my favorites were long gone in the early shows, they kept making bad song choices.

Then all of a sudden David Cook came out of no where.

Right now he is my favorite all time American Idol so anything can happen.

This was my favorite performance Tuesday night.