Asshat of the Week---Nancy Pelosi

This week's Asshat goes to Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi.

I'm not writing this as a political statement, because I'd be awarding it to anyone who was this arrogant in the blatant spending of my money.

Last year, Judicial Watch uncovered Ms. Pelosi's use of our Air Force as her own personal air taxi service for herself, her staff, her family and guests---sticking us with her bill of over 2 million dollars. This week, Judicial watch has obtained the documents under the FOIA from the Air Force detailing these expenditures and published them online.

Now I can understand the use of the Air Force on international flights where safety is an issue. As long as family members and non-essential to the mission guests pay their own market-value fare.

But on domestic flights? Bullpucky. Over 28k per flight to travel back and forth to her district? 31 trips that included her family?

Our domestic airline industry is facing troubles much like many businesses in these times. With the hundreds of flights that criss-cross our country daily, I don't see why Ms. Speaker can't book a flight on one of our own commercial airlines since they're going that way anyway.

Even if she rode first class, with say---a couple of her security personnel (does she get Secret Service protection?) and an assistant, with her staff riding coach like the rest of the great unwashed, it couldn't cost what amounts to a year's salary for many per flight. Her family can ride coach or first class, whatever they choose, because hey---it should be on their dime, not ours.

In addition, Amtrak and Greyhound need the business too. Don't think it would cost 28k to book an entire train car or charter a bus for her entourage either.

And over 100K for food and booze? WTF is up with that? If she's going to glom up military flights, let them eat MREs (Meals Ready to Eat) and bring their own bottles. My ex says those beef stew MREs are pretty tasty. He thinks there is a warehouse somewhere with a gazillion leftovers from the last war. Those things are like spam---they last forever. If they're good enough for our servicepeople, well...in my opinion, Ms. Pelosi and her staff are employed in OUR service. Pack your own lunch or take what we got.

Our country is in an economic crisis, Ms. Pelosi, and I'm not pointing fingers on who helped get us there (koff::bailouts::koff). Everyone has to pull in their belts a little, and as the Speaker of the House, you should be leading by example and not living the life of a rock star on our nickel.

As an end note, speaking of leading by example, I want to give some props to the First Lady.

In the last year I've seen media critics chide Mrs. Obama for not wearing couture all the time and for daring to wear the same outfit twice in public. I congratulate her for being what many of us aspire to be----fit, healthy and great-looking but unpretentious in her dress. She wears realistic clothes for every occasion, just like the rest of us. As a working mom, I want a First Lady I can relate to, and she fits the bill for me. Kudos, Mrs. O!

Thanks to The Right Side News, where I first caught sight of this article.

Recovering

Since Big Kid's crisis, we've been getting lot of rehabilitative experience up close and personal.

Shannon Wills, a physical therapist, offered to do a guest post for others facing recovery.

Rehabilitation After a Traumatic Illness – What You Need to Know

There are no guarantees in life, especially when it comes to your health. Most of us take good health for granted, and it is only when we lose it that we realize its value. Any serious illness or injury is traumatic for both the person who is affected and their families. And when they find that they’ve crossed the point of danger, they start to concentrate on the recovery period, which is again a harrowing and difficult time if they don’t know how to go about it the right way. Rehabilitation is a very important part of any recovery process, and if you or a loved one is going through this period, here’s what you need to know:

• You must be patient, yet persistent: There was a time two years ago when I had to undergo major knee surgery. The pain was unbearable, and worst of all, the only way I could walk was with the help of crutches. I despaired of ever getting back to my normal degree of activity and hated the enforced sedentary lifestyle. The only thing that kept me going was my physical therapy schedule and my doctor’s promise that I would be back to normal in six weeks if I followed the rehab program correctly. And so I learned to be patient and do only what I was allowed to do. Overworking my muscles and joints meant a setback, and more days using the crutches. The key to a full recovery is patience combined with persistence. You know the goal is in sight, but you mustn’t hurtle towards it with no control or you risk suffering a relapse. So be patient, and wait for a full recovery.

• Follow your doctor’s orders: If you are on a course of medication, don’t hesitate to take them regularly and on time. Do not add to or subtract from these medicines without consulting your doctor. And if you have to follow a physical therapy program, do your exercises diligently and without fail. The PT routine is what gets your body back to normal by ensuring that your muscles, joints and other parts of your body regain their lost functions and function as well as they did before your injury. It also helps you regain lost skills that help you take care of yourself and do all that you need to do to get through a regular day in your life.

• Don’t hesitate to seek help: You will definitely be too infirm and frail to take care of yourself during the rehabilitation period. So don’t hesitate to seek the help of family and friends, or if that is not possible, hire someone to help you out. There are various healthcare facilities that allow you to recuperate in their care and provide you with a topnotch team to monitor your progress and help you on your way to recovery.

• Know that every recovery program is different: Don’t worry if other people with the same illness or injury are recovering faster than you because every person is unique and has different physiological features. Your body will recover at the speed that is right for it, so concentrate on getting better without focusing on what other people are doing.

This article is written by Shannon Wills, who writes on the topic of Physical Therapist Assistant Schools . She welcomes your comments at her email id : shannonwills23@gmail.com .

Patrick's Dad, You're My Hero

I want to be you when I grow up.

This and That

Gah! When is this train going to stop? I'm ready to get off!

Big Kid continues to improve little by little. He was doing so well that the doc suggested that we go down to 14 hours a day on oxygen. Unfortunately, about 2 hours into it, his saturation level dropped down to 68. So he's back on 24 hours a day.

We got him and all his accoutrements moved down to Kitty's the day before yesterday. It was time. He was ready to go, and we were ready for him to go too. ;-) Dealing with his psychiatric issues on top of every thing else just wore me out.

We were hoping he'd be able to take a semester off from school to continue his recovery. No luck there. If he's not attending, he'll lose his health insurance. He's still having problems with his short term memory and fine motor skills. We went down and consulted with his professors, explained the situation, and thankfully they are being very accommodating. He's just going to do the best he can, and they'll give him a little extra time for reading, etc.

Two weeks ago, Hubby was away for a week to take some classes out of town. Two days into it, he woke up to excruciating pain in his legs.

For a long time, he's had lesions on his lower legs. At one point, he thought it was a recurrence of childhood excema (sp), and didn't do anything about it. A few years ago he went to a specialist and found out it was a circulatory/autoimmune problem. When it flares up, he has to take shots, and that usually calms it down. He hasn't had a flare-up in a couple of years. Stress is the main trigger, so I guess he was due.

Anyhoo, two days into this class he had a major flare up. Both legs swelled and the lesions were huge and inflamed. Of course, being him, he stayed the rest of the week for the class. By the time he got home, there were blood blisters on top of some of them.

His doc was worried that he might have some kind of staph infection (of the flesh-eating kind) and immediately started him on some heavy-duty antibiotics and goof ball pills. And they took a biopsy. Three days later, Hubby got a fever and was nauseous all the time. The day before yesterday, he broke out in a rash all over his body.

The good news is that he doesn't have flesh-eating bacteria. The bad news is that he has an allergy to whatever antibiotic they were giving him and that was making him so ill. He started prednisone last night, and hopefully he'll be feeling better.

Because as soon as he does, I'm running away from home. I mean it.

LOL

Hope you guys are happy and healthy and will check in with you soon.

xo

ATM

Happy Birthday

To The Happening Dude on your 18th birthday.

There are not enough words to express how grateful we are that you wanted to come live with us. There are not enough words to express how proud you make us and how much joy you've brought to our family since you've become a part of it.

Through most of your life, the adults who have been in charge of loving, cherishing and nourishing your unique and caring spirit have let you down, but you've flourished in spite of it. You have so many special gifts and so much potential.

Please know that we couldn't love you more if you had been born to us.

You're OUR guy.

Happy 18th, you precious boy.

xoxox