Why I'm Glad to be Home From Vermont

Brattleboro to vote on arresting Bush, Cheney

January 26, 2008

By Susan Smallheer Herald Staff

BRATTLEBORO — Brattleboro residents will vote at town meeting on whether President George Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney should be indicted and arrested for war crimes, perjury or obstruction of justice if they ever step foot in Vermont.

The Brattleboro Select Board voted 3-2 Friday to put the controversial item on the Town Meeting Day warning.

According to Town Clerk Annette Cappy, organizers of the Bush-Cheney issue gathered enough signatures, and it was up to the Select Board whether Brattleboro voters would consider the issue in March.

Cappy said residents will get to vote on the matter by paper balloting March 4.

Kurt Daims, 54, of Brattleboro, the organizer of the petition drive, said Friday the debate to get the issue on the ballot was a good one. Opposition to the vote focused on whether the town had any power to endorse the matter.

"It is an advisory thing," said Daims, a retired prototype machinist and stay-at-home dad of three daughters.

So far, Vermont is the only state Bush hasn't visited since he became president in 2001.

Daims said the most grievous crime committed by Bush and Cheney was perjury — lying to Congress and U.S. citizens about the basis of a war in Iraq.

He said the latest count showed a total of 600,000 people have died in the war.

Daims also said he believed Bush and Cheney were also guilty of espionage for spying on American people and obstruction of justice, for the politically generated firings of U.S. attorneys.

Voting to put the matter on the town ballot were Chairwoman Audrey Garfield and board members Richard Garrant and Dora Boubalis.

Voting against the idea were board members Richard DeGray and Stephen Steidle.

Daims said the names submitted to the town clerk's office were the second wave of signatures the petition drive had to collect, because he had to rewrite the wording of the petition.

He said he gathered nearly 500 signatures in about three weeks, and he said most people he encountered were eager to sign it. He started the petition drive about three months ago.

"Everybody I talked to wanted Bush to go," he said, noting that even members of the local police department supported the drive.

"This is exactly what the charter envisioned as a citizen initiative," Daims said. "People want to express themselves and they want to say how they feel."

He said the idea is spreading: Activists in Louisville, Ky., are spearheading a similar drive, and he said activists were also working in Montague, Mass., a Berkshires town.

The article asked the town attorney to "draft indictments against President Bush and Vice President Cheney for crimes against our Constitution and publish said indictments for consideration by other authorities."

The article goes on to say the indictments would be the "law of the town of Brattleboro that the Brattleboro police ... arrest and detain George Bush and Richard Cheney in Brattleboro, if they are not duly impeached ..."

Daims said people in Brattleboro were willing to "think outside the box" and consider the issue.

Daims had no compunction in comparing Bush and Cheney with one of the most notorious people in history.

"If Hitler were still alive and walked through Brattleboro, I think the local police would arrest him for war crimes," Daims said.

Greetings from Vermont!

For being in the Green Mountain State, there sure is a bunch of white! So far, my adventure has been fairly uneventful. I made it up here to B&C's around 7 PM last night. It felt great to finally be in. I forget that the further north you go, it starts getting dark earlier. I remember living in England and it would start to get dark around 3:30 in the afternoon. It's not quite that bad here, but it was definitely dark by 5. I got SO sleepy and hungry driving in the dark.

The last 100 miles or so was on a two lane highway, behind a semi, in the dark. I am anxious to get up, go out and explore -- really get to see exactly where I am at. B&C are both working, so I have the majority of the day to myself. I hope to find a couple of neat little shops and a coffee house, where I can park myself, read and people watch for awhile. I did bring my Glenn Beck, "An Inconvenient Book" to read. I'm sure people will flip here. While thumbing through the paper this morning, I noticed that the local church was having a celebration rally of the anniversary of Roe v. Wade as well as hosting a workshop on how to cut CO2 emissions. Yes, I am definitely in Vermont.

First things first though....I wonder if I remembered to pack the windshield scraper and brush......


My jeep from the upstairs window -- hence the window screen checkerboard. Hope to post more pictures soon!

RBoC

**New phone is not so hot. In fact, when I tried to link it to the laptop, I believe the computer caught a virus. Now I have to return the phone and get the laptop de-gunked.

**Was stood up by Seriously. Seriously -- what's with these guys? I did make the polite phone call to make sure he was OK...nothing. Whatever. I'm not losing any sleep.

**While I was out getting my new phone that crashed my computer last week, my fridge started acting funny -- as in it won't keep it's door closed anymore. I've been using a paint can to hold it shut, but it's a bit cumbersome. Mom and I picked up a new one at Menard's today. It's a bottom mounted freezer -- just like Auntie G! I must be moving up in the world.

**Had a date with the hand-me down. He's quite a bit older, so I'm not so sure...but he is one heck of a nice guy. In fact, his friend does contract painting on the side and is going to help me paint my bedroom. Cause let's face it, this oompa-loompa can't paint 12 foot ceilings on her own....even with an 8 foot ladder!

**Speaking of new room, I also ordered carpet. It's called "Basil" and it's a gray-green California Berber. Beautiful. The guy I ordered from is a friend from church....he's going to put down new pad and carpet and do a patch in the kitchen very cheaply.

**Leave Wednesday for Vermont to visit B. Dropping Aunt C off at the cousins house in Hershey along the way. I can't wait. They are expecting a couple of feet of snow while I'm there. I've been asked several times if I'm skiing, to which I always reply, Have you seen me walk? You really think I should attempt skiing? And they get a good chuckle. Also want to stop at Ikea in Pittsburgh on the way back and get a good look at the linens and lamps.

**Have had several good times with Cartman. There is alot of fun being had and I am enjoying myself immensely.

**Till I'm able to post again...take care! xoxo

**RBoC -- Random Bullets of Crap. If you are offended, get over it.

How Good are Your Eyes?"

This is an image of one of the new dollar presidential coins that are starting to pop up. Can you tell what's missing?

That's right. The new coins don't have one of our nations greatest credos imprinted on them: "In God We Trust."

"In God We Trust" has been read on our legal tender for quite a long time. If you want the details you can go read about it here.

Once, I heard a sermon that talked about a child who fell off the end of a dock into a murky lake. The boy was young, didn't know how to swim and had no life vest on. Immediately, he sank beneath the surface of the water and disappeared from view. Without hesitation, his mother plunged into the lake and rescued her child from the dark water where he certainly would have perished without her aid.

I think it's the best analogy I ever heard for salvation. How many times have you felt like you were drowning? How many times do you kick and struggle to find your way only to find yourself more turned around than before? And, if you do know Christ, how grateful have you been that your Father plunged into the murkiness of your life to lift you up and save you?

My perspective is this: to remove the words "In God We Trust" from our currency is like saying, "No thanks. I don't need help. I'd rather drown on my own than to acknowledge I need saving." This country was founded on the basis that God is our sovereign...and to remove the King will result in anarchy. We are not meant to be a godless society.

"We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion. Avarice, ambition, revenge, or gallantry, would break the strongest cords of our Constitution as a whale goes through a net. Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other."
John Adams, October 11, 1798

So...if you get a dollar coin...are you going to take it? Or do you ask for the paper version with "In God We Trust" printed on it?

Is there anything better than....

...holding a newborn?

There is nothing like a newborn baby to renew your spirit - and to buttress your resolve to make the world a better place.
--Virginia Kelley

Here's the first official portrait of me and baby Stone.

Welcome to the world little one!

More Froggy Updates

So, JJTMB has yet to call and explain his actions. Good riddance. I agree with Leigh Annsy...when someone shows you their character, believe them. If I can remember this, I think I'll save myself a lot of grief.

Last night on the way home from band rehearsal, I stopped by Cartman's. He wasn't feeling well because his daughter and he have been passing a flu bug back and forth. I got to demonstrate my fab bedside manner by getting ice and Mt. Dew. I should have been a nurse -- if it wasn't for the blood and the throw up and the 12 hour shifts. Maybe it's more accurate to say that I should have been an inn keeper.

Also had a nice long talk with Snake Charmer. Poor guy. I stopped in on Christmas night to make sure he was home. I had visions of him stumbling home from the bar and laying in a snow bank along the way. I had purchased a Christmas gift for him on a whim....just one of those things where it would be a crime not to buy it cause it fit so well. Anyways, he was so appreciative. The man just about cried. I think a part of him has given up hope that anyone will ever be nice to him, but at the same time he runs away from kindness because he's not used to it. Then his dog died the day after Christmas. Wonderful. I certainly hope 2008 is a better year for him.

Happy Birthday!

I should have posted earlier, but I was waiting on the news. Today, two of my favorite childhood friends, Missy and April, celebrated their birthday. Another friend and his wife, Josh and Joy, welcomed their first child into the world tonight -- a boy named Stone Cole. Mother and son are both doing well.

Birthday blessings all around!

Here's an opportunity you've been waiting for....

You can call me a fool. As suspected, JJTMB didn't show up, call confirm or cancel our date last night. I was all dressed up and nowhere to go. I called him. No return call...no email, no text, no IM, no smoke signal, no nothing. In the world of modern technology, this is just really, rather pathetic. It annoys me to no end.
Here's another list of things that annoy me:

1. People who waste my time.
2. Mary and Lily -- both of whom kept finding ways into my bed last night.
3. I was silly enough to buy pens and mechanical pencils that look alike. I'm FOREVER grabbing the wrong thing.
4. I accidentally dropped the toothpaste cap down the sink and now my toothpaste is just oozing out into a big, congealed pile of crust in the cabinet.
5. Socks. Yes, Grandpa Royal pontificated on their virtues, but one of the pair is always lost or holy. Of course, it does make me love my (mom's) Uggs even more.
6. Presidential election years. I will vote...but I really don't want another 11 months of polls, ads and surprise tactics.
7. Dry hands and hangnails.
8. Bagged lettuce. Why does it taste so funny? And why do I keep buying it?
9. Ants. I have'em. Nothing I try is working. Any ideas?
10. Cleaning out the litter box.

Have anything that you need to vent?

First Frog Blog of the New Year

So...it looks like more frog kissing will need to be done in 2008. It would be nice to settle down and just be with one, but I still seem to be coming across toads.

Here's some updates and introductions:

The Original Frog. I'm still keeping in contact with him. He's been busy with his kids lately, they've been in town over the holidays. We did have a date set up, but he hit a deer and totaled his truck on the way over, so it didn't work out. Maybe that's a sign....who knows?

Cartman. I really like this one. I can always count on having a good time and laughing a lot when I'm with him. We see eye to eye on most issues, but can still have spirited debates, which I usually let him win. However, he just came out of a LTR and isn't really sure what he wants in life, so we continue to have a mutually non-exclusive relationship. Partly because I don't want to be bored waiting, but mostly so that he can take some other women out and finally realize how wonderful I am. He also admires my modesty.

JJTMB. Even though he stood me up with a pathetic excuse of a broken ankle, I have consented to go out with him again. In fact we're supposed to go out tonight...and if he stands me up again, you can all delight in calling me a fool tomorrow.

Mr. Garvey. Went out with Mr. Garvey last night. I had high hopes for this one. We met online, and have "talked" since October. I was all wrapped up in the romantic notion that I was going to meet a sweet yet very masculine man like characters Merlin Olsen used to play. Instead, I got the reality show version of Mr. Garvey. This one thought it was OK to introduce himself with a full kiss on the lips, of which he slobbered more than kissed. I was so stunned by that gesture that he must have thought it was OK to repeat. Second time around, he literally burped during the kiss -- into my mouth. GROSS. Buh-bye Mr. Garvey.

Seriously. 30 years old. Owns his own company. Seriously. Owns his own house. Seriously. He's a bit more red-necky than I usually go for, but overall a very nice guy. We've been out for drinks. Other plans have been thwarted by work and holidays. Will need to go out with this one a few more times to see if there is something to pursue...or if I know someone who would be good for him.

Hand me down. A cast off from my friend Lawgirl. She went out with him, but they just never clicked. So, she's handing him down to me. We've just started talking, and he seems nice. It turns out we both used to work at the same law firm, both in the probate department. We missed each other by a year. At first I thought I scared him with a "putting the fun back in funeral" joke, but he thought it was funny. Which is good....cause who really wants to spend time with someone who won't laugh at a funeral joke?

So that's a wrap up of who's who's next and who's on deck. There are some more in the hopper, including more who want to know if I'm OK if they're bi....I don't know what's with some of these guys.

Keep on Hoppin!

Happy New Year!

For those of you who don't know Sara T. personally, I will let you in on something that most of the inner circle finds very disagreeable. I am a morning person. It is a rare gift that was given to me by my mother.

I remember one time, my mother shaking me awake to go to the grocery store with her. She promised breakfast as a post-shopping treat. So I got up, got dressed, got in the car and rode along. We walked around Meijer's, looking in all the departments. We pondered future meals and groceries and selected new books for breakfast (our favorite thing is to go out to eat and not talk, just read our books). Breakfast at Bob E's was leisurely...enough time for three cups of coffee. On the way home, I had a hard time keeping my eyes open. The sun was just coming up and was so bright. Yes, young grasshopper. We went shopping and had breakfast and still made it home in time to watch the sun come up.

Recently, the first conversation of the day I had was with Cartman. I greeted him with a grin and a Good Morning. I got a scowling response. He said that "Good Morning" was an oxymoron. Hmph.

I love the morning...and New Years...and the first day of school...meeting new friends for the first time. I love beginnings. They are exciting, full of promise and hope. For one brief second, I feel as though I am perfect -- just as I am. It's heavenly.

When we've been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We've no less days to sing God's praise,
Then when we've first begun.
Last verse to "Amazing Grace"

Maybe that is part of why Heaven is Heaven. We've no less days...then when we've first begun. In other words, every day we are there is like the first day -- the beginning of eternity. Full of promise, hope and excitement. And we will be perfect.

Like today...the beginning of a new year.

Happy New Year my perfect friend.