Teleprompter?  I'm not using a teleprompter.  There is no there here -- nothing to worry about.  What difference does it make!?!

If I (was/were?) on a deserted island and could only have one website to read  it would be Ricochet.  Thanks for this guys, I needed it today.

Call it The Clue

Did anybody else sense an eyeroll in there as well?  They were likely bombarded (assaulted?) by (feisty overzealous) gun owners and it just made them more sure that gun owners are crazy.

A helpful summation.  Thank you.

I come to Ricochet for both things -- it's like a great dinner party with wonderful serious discussions and intelligent banter.  I tend to be really earnest and sometimes I feel like I wear people out.  Coming here helps me to restore some balance and I am learning how to talk about things with a lighter touch so I can perhaps be more effective when I need to make a serious point. 

I was actually the 2nd one to comment on the aforementioned post -- which is funny since I rarely dare speak up around here.  And perhaps I sounded a bit flip in my comment there so I'll say it differently here --  I believe people will start to move to places where there are pockets of sanity and from what I hear on my local news, a really lot of people are moving to the "top of the mountains." (See Isaiah 2:2)

Interesting to think about.  Thank you.  There are only 2 states with no blue specks.  What's the economy like in Oklahoma? 

Come to Utah!  They just finished making the freeways better (and in some places the speed limit is 85.)  I'd love it if you were all my neighbors.  Cats are welcome.  As are children.  Lots and lots of children :)

Are you kidding me?  99 comments for a guy who joined 20 minutes ago?

Don't go thinking that's the way it works around here. . .

(Good on 'ya -- I can see BYU from my house.)

A Composite Inaugural Poem for a Composite President

Here, on the pulse of this new day

In ceremonies and silence we say the words,  

telling the stories, singing the old songs.

All about us is noise.

And this is no aristocratic joke

At the expense of negligible folk.

Some poor fool has been saying in his heart

Glory is out of date in life and art.

A golden age of poetry and power

Of which this noonday's the beginning hour.

Oh, and that photo of Biden is its own kind of awful -- did you give him a spray tan and whiten his teeth?

Ummmmm . . .  JKF?  There are still stories coming out about what went on with him and they actually nauseate me.  Most of the jerks that are getting votes here are at least known to be creeps.  Kennedy got away with most (all?) of his shenanigans and to me that is despicable.

I know, I know, "Great men aren't good" blah blah blah.  That's why we have so many of the problems we have nowadays -- hypocrisy. 

So there once was a Prez from . . .  oh wait. . .

Chose a Poet to fête us, (not straight.)

"But who cares?"  Question put.

"There'll be worse things afoot

Than a poet I'm 'fraid, on that date."

[Side note:  In checking proper capitalization for limericks I came across a delightful website and the winning limerick for November.  Here it is, followed by the website  in case you are interested.]

"I believe in one person, one vote,"
The democratist snarled, "but please note,
Though our system, it seems,
Beats all other regimes,
We, the sheep, just elected a goat."

By Stephen Gold

Click here for the link:

How come the paychecks are reacting already?  I thought it would have to at least wait until we've worked a few more days of 2013. . .

30 years and it just keeps getting better  -- that started happening at about the 25 year mark.  We feel so blessed to be together.  Those first 25 years?  Lots of hard work. Deep in the trenches of raising the kids, establishing careers, and serving in our church, meant that at times we simply had to have faith in the other person to come out the other side of whatever hard thing was happening at the time, intact and ready for more.  Our faith in each other kept us both living up to the ideals we have set for ourselves.  I hope that makes sense -- His faith in me kept me going and my faith in him did the same.

Oh, and prayer.  Lots of it.  Alone, together, and as a family.  Pray about everything.

And laughter.  And service.  And sacrifice/delayed gratification. And more laughter.  And kissing.

^ Brilliant!  (And sadly, probably true.)  I truly feel painted into a corner.  How DO we get out of this mess?

There is another video but it is laced with profanity and it is more specific about what Hollywood should do...