Farmer's Market 4/15/06

Trixie and I made our trip to the market. A lot of friends showed up this week. We spend more time talking than actually shopping.

I bought a variegated thyme this week. Trixie keeps saying hi to any dog she can.


Of course, she considers any one who pets her a friend.

This week they had a cooking demonstration using some of the vegtables that were being sold.

Tigger - The Sphinx

Do you realize that in a previous life I was the model for the Sphinx?




There! See, I look just like him!



You don't believe me, do you?

Busted! Faked Campaign Photo!

Via Boing Boing.

A New Orleans mayoral candidate used a photo of Disneyland's New Orleans Square in her campaign photo It would appear that she was standing on a street on the French Quarter. However, some one spotted a trash can that doesn't exist in the French Quarter. Busted!

I found that mayoral candidate Kimberly Williamson Butler is quite a character.

Erin Hamley

A Springdale grand jury has handed down an charge of negligent homicide against Officer Larry Norman. Larry was the State Trooper who shoot and kill a mentally challenged man, Erin Hamley, last month. Erin was mis-identified as a wanted Michigan escapee, Adam Leadford.

This is such a tragic story. At work opinions are quite diverse. Who is to blame? Is there anyone to blame? What were the officers thinking? Why couldn't they figure out that Erin was mentally challenged. Why was he shot when he was lying down? Some close to the Norman family say that Larry is taking this fairly hard and defend his actions. A lot of questions and no easy answers. Life sucks that way sometimes.

I think this is a situation where anything that could go wrong, did. I know Larry did not intentionally shoot Erin. Larry was under pressure and made a mistake. I think he realizes this and is willing to pay the consequences.

Arkansas Taxes

I found this from the Census Bureau : States Ranked by Total Taxes and Per Capita Amount: 2005
Looking at the table, Arkansas is 18th in total taxes per capita.
Then there is this table. Arkansas is 47th in Median Household Income.

There is something terribly wrong with a state that is near the bottom of the states in household income but we are near the top in paying taxes. Governor Huckabee and the Arkansas Legislature really has some explaining to do. How can they justify such a disparity? Hopefully one of the big issues for this election year will be our taxes. What I want to know, is Asa Hutchinson going to address this issue?

Library Tax Fails

Fayetteville voted down a proposed property tax increase to fund the library. It should have been no surprise to library. People are having a tough year financially and they are not going to vote for something as non-essential as a library. Arkansas taxes are already high enough and people are dealing with higher gas prices. We are just not in the mood for more taxes.

Interview with Governor Mike Huckabee

Right Wing News has up a pretty good interview with Governor Mike Huckabee.

Huckabee spoke on Iran and Iraq. He did a good job about Iraq, but I didn't like what he said about Iran. Basically he thought as long as Iran wasn't threatening our shores then we should leave them alone. He figured Europe is more in danger so they should take care of Iran. Gee Mike, some of those European nations are our allies. I'd like to think that we'd help them if they were in danger.

Huckabee's answer for immigration was just so wrong. It was amnesty for the illegals. It appeared that he wasn't for a fence or some sort of tighter border security. He thought it would cost too much. He also tried to dance around benefits for illegals.

Huckabee was asked about all the tax raises Arkansas has had. He tried to blame the legislature for that. You know, Mike, you could have come before the public and said that the legislature was trying to raise taxes and people would have responded. The fact is you really didn't oppose the taxes that much.

At the end of the interview Huckabee could pick 3 pieces of legislation he wanted to see pass. His answers give credence to the fact that Mike Huckabee is not a serious candidate for President.

Early Wildflowers of Devil's Den

I went hiking in Devil's Den today. What a beautiful day! The blue violets were everywhere. They were in just about every nook and cranny.


These yellow violets were mostly down by the creek.


The Trilliums were everywhere and just starting to bloom.


These Phlox were near the creek also.

Saturday Farmers Market

Saturday Morning! It's a bit cool and windy, but it's time to go to the Farmer's Market. There are lots of daffodils and tulips for sale. I believe Trixie thinks they're pretty.


This is a good time to greet fellow shoppers. We picked up some rosemary and a Japenese maple for the garden.

A Mother's Tribute

You have got to read this awesome story.

Karla Comfort received a lot of looks and even some salutes from people when she drove from Benton, Ark., to Camp Pendleton, Calif., in her newly-painted, custom Hummer H3 March 2. The vehicle is adorned with the likeness of her son, 20-year-old Lance Cpl. John M. Holmason, and nine other Marines with F Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division who where all killed by the same improvised explosive device blast in Fallujah, Iraq, in December

Be sure to check out the pictures of her Hummer. They are absolutely fantastic!

Drew Griffin Drops From Race

Drew Griffin announced that he is dropping out of the Republican race for state House District 93. He didn't met the constitutional residency requirements for the office. It's too bad that happened. Drew was very enthusiastic about running. I though he would have done a great job. However, he's young and there will be plenty of opportunities for him to try again.

Story

Bow's Exercise Routine

OK! Are you ready! Just Relax For A Minute!


Now Twist! Hold It! Hold It!


Now Relax! Breath Slow!


Alright! Twist Again! Hold It!



OK! Try To Twist Further! Arch That Back! Try To Touch Your Back Foot!

Immigration Poll

Power Line News has put up a poll on immigration. They said:

We've put up a poll on Power Line News. The question is, "What should be our highest priority in formulating policies on immigration?" There are eight possible responses. We tried to make the poll valuable by avoiding the usual pitfall: slanted questions and answers that turn the survey into a push-poll. We tried to phrase the question and all of the answers fairly, so that each answer is a plausible response. Our hope is to get a more meaningful and nuanced picture of conservative opinion on the subject of immigration than is currently available, for the benefit of Congressmen. Especially Republican Congressmen

.

So far "Strengthening control of our borders to prevent possible terrorists and criminals from entering illegally" 50% and "Erecting a wall and stricter border controls to stop non-English speaking immigrants who are not interested in assimilating" 28% are outstripping the rest of the options.

OK, Congressmen, you have been hearing from the American people you are suppose to represent. We don't want to give amnesty to the illegal aliens who've entered our country. We want that border controlled and those criminals stopped from entering the country. We want you to do what you said you were committed to, protecting our country. Once you have done that we'll start considering what to do with the illegal aliens residing in the country. It's time you stop screwing the overwhelming majority of the American people.

Springdale's Violent Crimes Rate

Springdale's Police Chief Kathy O'Kelley released a report projecting that violent crime will increase 13 percent in 2006. It was noted that Springdale's violent crime of 3.6 crimes per 1,000 people was below the national average of 4.7 crimes per 1,000 people. Roger's violent crimes rate is 2.1 and Fayetteville's is 4.2 .

O'Kelly thinks that the crime rate may be higher because a lot of crimes are underreported. She thinks that Springdale's Hispanic population are hesitant about reporting crimes to police because of fear.

I think she may be right. Even though Fayetteville's rate is higher I feel safer in Fayetteville than Springdale. There are area's in Springdale that just aren't safe at night. I won't even dare to shop at Wal-mart. If O'Kelly thinks that the crime rate is going to increase what is she planning to do about it. Is the city going to hire more police officers? Encourage more neighborhood watches? I'd be looking for ideas to decrease that crime rate.

Full Story

The Illegals Among Us

I'm not racist if I don't want a bunch of criminals to receive American citizenship with access to government benefits and the ability to vote. It was a bit of a shock to see demonstrators demanding American citizenship and carrying the Mexican flag. What is going on with that? Seems to me that they're really not all that interested in citizenship but it's all about the government benefits that they feel entitled to receive. "We don't want to be stinking Americans, but we want all the benefits of being a citizen." We shouldn't be offering them amnesty and making them an American citizen.
Don't these Congressman remember any of the previous legislation they passed?Michelle lists them.

There have been seven illegal alien amnesties passed into law since 1986:

·The 1986 Immigration and Reform Control Act blanket amnesty for an estimated 2.7 million illegal aliens

·1994: The "Section 245(i)" temporary rolling amnesty for 578,000 illegal aliens

·1997: Extension of the Section 245(i) amnesty

·1997: The Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act for nearly one million illegal aliens from Central America

·1998: The Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act amnesty for 125,000 illegal aliens from Haiti

·2000: Extension of amnesty for some 400,000 illegal aliens who claimed eligibility under the 1986 act

·2000: The Legal Immigration Family Equity Act, which included a restoration of the rolling Section 245(i) amnesty for 900,000 illegal aliens]

Since there are approximately 12 million illegals in the country and they're trying to pass another amnesty bill, it's pretty obvious that these bills haven't worked. Creating another one is just about the stupidest thing to do. It's time to stop being stupid and try something else. Like Enforcing the Border! Oh! How about enforcing current laws and deporting illegals back to their country! All that Congress is doing is undermining the rule of law in the country and promoting more illegals to cross the border. The President and Congress have deliberately cut themselves off from the American people and have embraced criminals.

Extension of Rupple Road

Construction of Rupple Road moves forward. It's great that the Fayetteville School Board agreed to pay about one-third of the bill to extend Rupple Road in front of a new combination elementary and middle school. The city of Fayetteville and Tom Terminella will be sharing the rest of the bill.
Story

Arkansas Legislature, Special Session

Bills that have passed and are waiting to be signed by Huckabee:

FUNERAL PROTESTS

This was to stop protesters at funerals. I have a feeling that this violates the First Amendment right of free speech. I have commented previously that there are other ways to handle this problem.

SMOKING BAN

This will restrict smoking in the workplace and other public places. I've not problem with this, however, I've seen some places take it a bit too far. If you go by Washington Regional Hospital and some of their clinics, you will see smokers out on the street sidewalks. WRMC has forbidden smoking on the entire property forcing smokers to smoke out on the street. It's too bad they couldn't be a bit more accommodating and designate a smoking area.

WAGES

An increase of the state's minimum wage from $5.15 to $6.25. Employers will be passing off the wage increase to the customer. However, with the worker shortage here in NW Arkansas, most people are already receiving more than the minimum wage. It probably will have little impact here.

Trent Lott Ham- Strung

Trent Lott is getting steamed up because of the work of Porkbusters. He's being blasted for using the must-pass Iraq and Katrina bill to advance a home-state project that's a bit ridiculous. Lott vigorously defended the bill and railed against Porkbusters.

"I'll just say this about the so-called porkbusters. I'm getting damn tired of hearing from them. They have been nothing but trouble ever since Katrina."

Awww, you poor thing! You really need to get over it and get use to some one looking over your shoulder. We are tired of Congress wasting our money and we are going to hold you accountable.

Couric

Katie Couric told viewers Wednesday she's leaving NBC to join CBS.

Who cares? I've never watched her and never will. I don't watch CBS(we make up news) and I never will.

Light Blogging

I haven't blogged for several days because I've just been too busy. The weekend was really nice so I worked in the garden and did some spring cleaning in the house. It was perfect weather to air out the house. I even managed to take the dogs for a walk. It was very warm and muggy and just going a few miles wiped them out.

The City of Fayetteville was giving away trees in honor of Arbor Day. I got a holly bush and a tulip magnolia. The Farmers' Market also started back up on Saturday. I've really missed going to the Market.

I saw my doctor yesterday. The first one since I've finished radiation. Everything is fine. My doctor informs me that for the next two years I'll be seeing her every 3 months and then I'll graduate to every 6 months. OH JOY! She gave a new medication to try for my hot flashes. It's actually a blood pressure medication, but she said it can help with the flashes. I got a taste this weekend of how hot flashes feel in warm weather. Not good! I'd have to be changing the bed sheets every day.

I'm thinking that as long as this really nice weather holds I won't be blogging much. I'll be spending time in the garden or out hiking. I need to try to keep my camera close by for any great pictures.