The Waste of It All

Rod Dreher has a good post up about the end of the Iraq War.
http://www.theamericanconservative.com/dreher/2011/10/28/iraq-the-waste-of-it-all/

"The waste of it all." sums it up for the Iraq war.
"The waste of it all." will sum it up when we end the war in Afghanistan, Somalia, Yemen, Uganda, and the others that we don't even know about yet.

Birding Galveston Island

It was a perfect day for birding!! Cool temperatures, clear skies, and two wonderful companions—JMM and Daisy!!  We left at dawn and drove to Galveston.  As usual great birding along the frontage road leading to the causeway and along East Galveston Beach.  Here’s the list for the day:

Kildeer

Mourning dove

Mockingbird

Crow

Red-Tailed Hawk

Pigeons

Sparrows

Turkey Vultures

Brown Pelicans (lots)

Belted Kingfisher

Great Egret

White Ibis

Cormorants

Tricolored Heron

Willets (always)

Great Blue Heron

Little Egret

Grackle

Starling

Reddish Egrets

Laughing Gulls (many)

Royal Terns

Ring-billed Gulls

Snowy Plover

Forster’s Tern

Herring Gull

Lesser/Greater Yellowlegs

Black-necked Stilt

Kestrel

Rusty Blackbird

White-tailed Kite

Pretty good for a morning's birding!!

Mosquitoes!!

All through this summer's horrid drought, we consoled each other by remembering two things.  The roses were outstanding this year because it was too dry for them to be blighted by the usual fungus infestations.  And secondly, this year we could rejoice being outside in the evenings because there were no mosquitoes to drive us mad.

Well, we had some rain last weekend and by Friday, we were unable to step outside without being covered with the little beasties!!  It seems that we are getting a whole year's worth of mosquitoes all in one week.  You can watch people as they are driving smashing their hands against the car window trying to rid themselves of the maddening creatures that they are confined with.  Last night I found myself with a blanket over my head while watching a Netflix DVD because there was this kamikaze mosquito determined to suck blood from my inner ear.

Mosquito by Deborah Frontiera

Familiar whine in my ear
You settle on my forearm
Prepare to pierce my skin with your proboscis
I raise my had to strike
Wait!
What if I let you complete the cycle?
You might feed the songbird
Who cheers my day.
You larvae might feed the minnow
Who feeds the fingerling
Who feeds the pike
Who feeds me.
You might be a meal
For the brown bat
Whose guano fertilizes
Tomatoes for my salad.
SMACK!
But not today.

One War Down, At Least One to Go

President Obama has declared victory in Iraq and the troops not attached to the U.S. Embassy will be leaving Iraq by the end of the year.  (My immediate thought was "End of which year??" but it appears that it is by the end of this year.)  Thank goodness, it's finally coming to an end.  I am still suspicious that they will be moved from Iraq to Somalia, Yemen, Uganda, etc. but then I am a suspicious person.

My suggestion is that he declare victory in Afghanistan and save us all a lot of trouble (and lives and limbs).  Whether we declare victory today, next year, or five years from now, the future of Afghanistan is up to the Afghans. 

I will continue my weekly letter writing campaign to the President about this matter.  (Hey, it can't hurt...)

SSDI or not??

I am disabled from a progressive neuromuscular disease;  I worked until I could not work any longer.  I have not applied for SSDI and don’t intend to.  Why not?  I suppose that I could spend the money but in all honesty, I don’t really need it.  I know people whose disability has caused them real hardship and they flat need the money but I don’t.  I do plan to draw my Social Security when I turn 66 because by then DH will be retired (maybe) and we will be drawing down our retirement savings.  My sister-in-law thinks I’m dumb not to take the SSDI and maybe I am…but then maybe I’m happy with enough.

The Sleep(less) Study

I had a sleep study done last night and what an ordeal that was!!  I checked in at 7:30 and the technician started getting me ready.  It took about 30 minutes to get all the monitoring electrodes in place: on my scalp, on my face, on my neck, chest, back, and two on each lower leg; a belt loosely around my chest and one around my waist;  and last but not least, a face mask over my nose and mouth with a tube attached to a CPAP machine.  Good night, sleep well…How on earth can anybody sleep with all that??—and don’t forget the camera staring down at you.  I turned the lights off at 10pm and lay there sleepless until about 1 am, dozed/slept until 5am.  I can’t imagine how that is reflective of a normal night but I suppose it is the best that can be done to get the information.  I should get the results in about a week.  The cost to me so far has been $45 co-pay to the sleep doc, $42 for the mask and tubing, and $289 for the sleep study itself (insurance paid 80% and I paid 20%).

The New Quilt

I finished this quilt last week.  I am calling it Jewels.  Reason number 97 that I am so glad that I retired--I can finish my quilts in less than a year!! LOL!!  I have the next quilt cut out--it is a Hearts applique made from leftover fabric from this quilt and another.  I'll post a picture when I have the top together.  And I also have fabric for a baby quilt--but I have until April to get that one done.