Cowardly Mean Girls

...are the lowest of the low.

I am sure you all know the kind.  They would be Mean Girls if they had the cajones. But they don't, so they sit back, behind closed doors and computer monitors and say mean things about people they've decided not to like for whatever their reason de jour is.  Then they are just sweetness and light in public.

It's cowardly in two ways. 1) they still get to pretend to be nice girls to everyone else and 2) the target has no means of defending against anything they say.

Do they really think people don't figure them out eventually?

How unhappy does one have to be to allow themselves to become this kind of pathetic creature?

Dogs Deserve Better!

Okay, time for a rant.

Dogs are the most wonderful creatures on earth.  They give nothing but unconditional love and all they ask in return is that you love them and take care of them.

But make no mistake, dogs can be expensive.  And they are a huge responsibility.

They need to eat, for one thing.  That's not cheap just by its own self.  Especially if you have a Murphy like mine. They require monthly heart worm treatment, again, not cheap.  And flea and tick meds.  And shots.  And yearly check-ups. And that's all BEFORE they get sick or hurt, God forbid.  What about dog walking or dog sitting services or doggie day care if you're working 12 hours a day away from home?

Then you have toys and beds and leashes and collars and nail trimmings and if you picked a dog that needs to be professionally groomed, you might as well keep that checkbook handy.

And I haven't even mentioned the time and energy yet.  There's house breaking, training, and daily exercise.

Oh, and just because you have a huge, fenced yard, don't think they don't still need walks.  They DO!

Something else people don't always consider.  Dogs are smart.  If you take the time and energy required when you bring the dog home to TRAIN the dog, you end up with a dog that is a joy to have and not just one more thing that needs constant care and supervision.  If I can't trust my dog in my house by itself, I have not properly trained that dog.  So either put in the few months in the beginning or be prepared to have 10-15 years of trouble.

With all of that said, they are SO worth it.  Every penny.  Every drop of energy. It's nothing compared to what they give back.  Seriously, is there anything better than a sleeping dog on your lap?  Or that smile they give you when they're happy?  Which, by the way, is most of the time.  They really don't ask much in the grand scheme of things and in return you get unconditional love, loyalty, laughter, stress relief.  And they are very social creatures.  If you're just going to toss it out in the back yard and throw food at it once a day, forgedaboudit!  That's CRUEL.  As is tying one out, in my opinion.  What's the point?

And this isn't even factoring in the wonderful service dogs.  Think how much THEY do!

But nothing makes me angrier than someone who gets a dog just because "it's so cute!"  Without a clue one what the breed temperament is, what kind of health problems they're prone to, whether they are high energy or couch potatoes, are they suited for an apartment? Do they need professional grooming?  Are they a very social breed?  Do some RESEARCH!

Most importantly, can you AFFORD to take that cute little ball of fur home?  Are you fully prepared to make sure it gets ALL of the above?

If you can't afford to put in the time and money required to care for a dog properly, PLEASE DO NOT GET A DOG!  They deserve better.

WAY better.

Keeping it "Pointless."

I keep starting and then deleting blog entries about more "important" things.  I seemed to be torn as to whether I even wanted to get into anything of any substance in here.

And since this is not a post on "health care reform" I guess that means I've made my decision.  There are enough other places on-line I can get into a debate on such things.  And I do.  Sometimes I don't get into bed before 2 am because someone on the the internet is WRONG.

xkcd /Randall Munroe

But I decided that I created this blog to keep me sane in lieu of painting, since I've packed up all of my art supplies and put them in storage for an anticipated move.  A move that is taking FOREVER!

So that's what it will stay.  And I may keep it around to post some of my paintings once I get moved and unpacked.  Heck, I may even learn how to sell my paintings instead of giving them away!  I assume that would require a different kind of website though.

So much to learn about so many things and so little time!

Meanwhile, does anyone wanna buy a boat?

Thank Goodness for Quilted Toilet Paper

If you'd told me when I was young and poor and living in the trailer park wondering if the car would start that I would one day be SO thankful for the experience, I'd have kicked you in the shin.  I had the best mother in the world and she loved me unconditionally, but there were some serious hard times involving no heat, not enough food and creative toilet paper solutions, to say the least.  Thankful?  For that?

But I am just that.  Thankful.

I realized that probably in my 20s when I was having other struggles.  It made me strong.  And it made me appreciative of everything.  When I would see people who had nice things, who generally just had "more," I wasn't jealous, but instead I was hopeful.  Hopeful that one day, if I worked hard, I, too, could have nice things. It was like an inspirational poster that flashed at me in neon "This is America and You Can Have Anything You Dream!"

I will admit to some jealousy in school.  I suppose it was jealousy I felt when I saw all the other girls wearing Jordache and Gloria Vanderbilt jeans (yes, I'm that old,) but oddly, the girls who had those things and were NICE, I didn't seem to feel anything negative toward.  It was the snotty girls who judged me because I didn't have those things that got me.  So was that jealousy?  I was happy for the nice girls who had nice things.

What I didn't realize at the time and found out later was that we were just broke, while their families were hugely in debt.  Big difference.  They had nice houses that were mortgaged to the hilt and their clothes were purchased with credit cards. My family was just at zero all the time.  Never a negative number.

But as I sit in my own house watching Real Housewives, I am reminded of how truly blessed I am.  Now I am sure there are some exceptions in some of the RHof...but in general, I am finding that I pity these people.  I don't pity them because they have money.  I pity them because most of them seem to have no grasp on reality.

Now I've been around wealthy people.  Balanced wealthy people who at least have one foot in reality.  And I realize that they have a whole other set of problems that comes with having a lot of money.  But these people understand life.  Watching the Real Housewives shows are like watching a train wreck and I just can't seem to turn away.  They are so spoiled!

Again, it's not the fact that they're rich.  I can't tell you  how many times I've felt the need to "defend" the "evil rich" to ignorant people (like the rich needed ME to defend them or that the ignorant people would listen - Ha!) because of some ridiculous comment or another.  Heck, I hope to BE one of the wealthy people some day if the whole darned country doesn't turn completely socialist by then.  But these people I'm watching are just ridiculous!  I'm not going to expound on that here - there are enough other places to bash the Real Housewives.  But I am going to tell you that it reminded me, once again, how very thankful I am that I had the sort of childhood I did.

Because of that childhood, I am self-sufficient.  I am strong.  I am grounded.  I am appreciative of every nice thing I have - all the way down to the quilted toilet paper that I didn't, by the way, purchase with a credit card.