all I can say is WOW....

This is my reaction to the Federal Government wanting to make all the states change school standards to match a unified outline, provided of course, by your friendly Uncle Sam. Texas and Alaska have already refused to join, good for them!!! Our country is made up of 50 states, and such a differing assortment of accents, cultures, and ways of doing things. It just seems like we are accelerating toward the end times here, all this "oneness".For example,the towns and villages are combining their fire departments and merging their governments.

And: the government is preparing a warning about baby slings. Safety hazards, babies suffocating. Mostly the front pouch type where the baby is curled up chin-to-chest. I found this interesting because I recently was in Walmart and saw a lady with an infant in one of these softer carriers on her back, and the child seemed totally squished, with the edge of the carrier right in line with her neck....it didn't look comfortable or safe, but it probably was. I just hate that the government thinks we are all too stupid to figure anything out. And it has become their job to keep us safe from ourselves.

So it is obvious I have read the newspaper this morning. Does anyone really believe that the next canidate for mayor will REALLY solve corruption and cut taxes?

Only six kids went to school today. Margaret is still feeling lousy, and I let Suzanne stay home and work on her project. And Mali is in Norway. Emily texted me from the JFK in New York City last night and said Mali tried on all the perfume in the duty-free shop.

I have been going places every single day, and today I am staying home. I will get through some laundry, and take these guys for a walk, and prepare a nice dinner. I had to laugh my head off when Kim C. asked me for my scalloped potatoes recipe. I don't follow recipes. For those scalloped potatoes, I just make a basic white sauce. For mine, I melt a stick of butter, stir in some flour, then add milk and bring it to a gentle boil, stirring all the time. I added some cheddar cheese, too, and some pepper and onion powder. I put a 22 ounce bag of frozen hash brown potato cubes and a 16 ounce bag of frozen corn in in a 13"by9" pan (I made two), poured the white sauce over, mixed it up, and baked it for a while. Sometimes I peel and slice the potatoes, but I was in a hurry and had the hash brown potatoes in the freezer, I got them at the dollar store, so it was a cheap meal, too. Kim, I am sorry if this is so vague, it is just the way I cook. I only measure when I bake.

Well, since Margaret is watching an old old movie, I am distracted. It is a Western, with the Commanches and pretty ladies with parasols, and the handsome gentleman who called the frilly maiden a "trollop" for kissing a man before she was engaged. (and we know he himself is smitten with her) A big long and drawn out, but hilarious and actually quite virtuous.