My Two Cents on the Favre Drama

I read this ESPN article by Gene Wojciechowski this morning following the announcement that the Packers have traded quarterback Brett Favre to the New York Jets.

And it made me angry.

Wojciechowski makes the whole blow-up seem like the Packers' mistake, and make Favre look like some type of well-paid martyr.

Didn't Favre make some type of teary emotional speech in March announcing his retirement from football? Didn't he want to "spend more time with his family?"

Yeah, I thought so.

I know many will try to say he was "pushed into retirement," and then later decided not to stand for it. That makes no sense to me! I know I'm no sports guru, but couldn't the Packers have gotten just as good of a deal out of a Favre trade earlier . . . without all of the drama?

Favre has already been honored by being on the Madden 09 game cover . . . in a PACKERS uniform. The cover was a tribute to his commitment and skill as a long-time NFL quarterback. Now, it's just a joke!

Boys. Are. Stupid.

So, I know it's been a while since the last post, but since I'm pretty sure that I'm the only one who reads this blog, I know that my readers are just as busy as the writer and totally emphasize and understand.

Now that I'm done with run-on sentences, here's a story I just have to share:

Last week, I was off at a youth camp as an adult leader. This job has several responsibilities, which include talking things over with a camper when he/she is having issues. Well, I had a little all-nighter session with one of the teens, a fourteen year-old with guy issues. Here's the basic rundown of events, told in between sobs:

1. She has a Boyfriend.

2. She has a (female) Friend.

3. Boyfriend is hanging out with Friend.

4. Previously, Boyfriend had almost left her for Friend, but didn't.

5. She comes to the automatic conclusion that Boyfriend is cheating with Friend.

Okay, so while I find the whole situation ridiculous, I know stuff like this is important to a perhaps overly-emotional teenager. So I talk, ask questions, make soothing sounds, etc. I end with the line "Guys are just jerks," which usually gets a head nod or an "amen!" from females of any age or background.

Noooooooooo.

She "loves" Boyfriend, and it's ALL Friend's fault. I try to tentatively ask, "Well honey, it takes two doesn't it?" Well, she started crying again, and I could see that I was going nowhere despite my best intentions. So I capitulate, and go back to soothing sounds and "You'd feel so much better if you got some sleep," suggestions.

Needless to say, I've never understood the logic of solely blaming the girl. I'll be the first to admit that certain guys aren't exactly in tune with how relationships should work, but it's totally not fair that he gets off the hook that easily.

In other news, I'm majorly sleep-deprived (from nights akin to the one above), and I just had a birthday!

Zucchini, Games, and Goats

Work has been extremely interesting today.

First, I unloaded 6 large and heavy boxes of t-shirts for camp next week (they were in my car, and I drive a two-door cavalier!).

Then, I rode with my boss to a community center, where she is teaching a youth cooking and nutrition class. Cooking with kids is a trial within itself. However, before we even got started cooking, we went outside to play a game and get the kids' heart rates going.

The game is Giants, Elves, and Wizards. It's like rock, paper, scissors -- except that you use your whole body to make either a giant (by putting your arms waaay up in the air), an elf (squatting down and giving yourself pointy ears), or a wizard (putting your arms in front of you and wiggling your fingers).

The game also involves a lot of running. Since we had an odd number of kids, I was volunteered to play as well. Now, dress at work is business casual. This basically just means that I'm running from a bunch of kids on wet grass in a pair of dress slacks and heels. It's a good thing I love children, because I twisted my ankle and it's all swollen at the moment.

We finally went back indoors and began to cook (vegetable medley and baked chicken nuggets).

Then, the distraction arrives. A couple from a local farm are setting up a small petting zoo right outside the building we're in for a different school group. The kids in our group went ballistic, and we eventually capitulated and I took them out to see the animals which included:

1. A pygmy goat and her baby (who was black and adorable!)
2. Two sheep, (the owner put his little daughter on one, and it bucked like a bronco)
3. A miniature horse (she was totally unconcerned with the kids and ate all the grass in her enclosure)
4. Rabbits (one of the little girls was holding one and squeezed it so tight that the poor thing's eyes were bulging)
5. Geese (mean little buggers, never mess with one, it'll chase you around for hours)
6. Ducks (they were much nicer, the kids got to hold them)

Eventually, I managed to coerce the kids (with promises of food) to come back to the kitchen, where we finally finished cooking everything.

As a special treat, the nutrition person I was working with had made them a chocolate cake. What she didn't tell them (until they had all gotten seconds) was that it had two cups of zucchini in it. Their reactions were great! One girl refused to eat her second piece once she knew it was in there. Silly kids . . .

But, it's been quite the day, and it's only half over!

Latest Newspaper Article!

So, here it is! It looks so official, with disclaimers and everything . . .

In The Yard
By: Lindsey Sutphin
Virginia Cooperative Extension \

-Above is a David Hughes watercolor of the

Monticello Gardens

(This week’s In The Yard column was written by Miss Lindsey Sutphin, a summer intern working in the Halifax County Cooperative Extension Office and a student at Virginia Tech. We hope you enjoy her article.)

Garden Fare in 1776

July 4, 1776 is the most celebrated day in American history. One of the most celebrated parts, and a traditional aspect of the date today, is the Independence Day barbecue. The fare at picnics across the country varies from burgers and corn-on-the-cob to grilled chicken and peach cobbler. However, have you ever wondered what our forefathers ate on that momentous occasion two hundred and thirty-two years ago? While no specific menu exists, and it can be assumed that the men were busy fighting the war, we can piece together what may have been served from studying what was grown in their gardens.
Monticello is a great source of information on the topic of gardens and food, considering that the kitchen gardens still operate on the estate. Thomas Jefferson was an avid and experimental gardener, recording even the most mundane facts in his “Garden Kalendar” (www.monticello.org). As with many of us, Jefferson’s appetite gave strength to his interest in edible fruits and vegetables. He was virtually a vegetarian, saying “I have lived temperately, eating little animal food, and that . . . as a condiment for the vegetables, which constitute my principal diet.” He had lettuce of different varieties planted every two weeks during the growing season to ensure salads on the table at every meal. His favorite veggie, English peas, grew in the gardens of Monticello along with asparagus, squash, broccoli, and twenty types of beans. In Jefferson’s orchard, or the “Fruitery” as it was called, apple and peach trees of different varieties grew alongside French apricots and Spanish almonds.
It is obvious that Thomas Jefferson was an accomplished gardener. However, one has to wonder how he cultivated hundreds of acres of vastly different crops. Pesticides and insecticides that we would not consider forgoing did not even exist during this time. So, how did he grow two-hundred and fifty types of vegetables successfully without the benefits of Miracle Grow? Well, the answer would be simple: manure – lots and lots of manure. In addition to being a fertilizer, manure was spread over the gardens during winter in the hopes that a richer soil would keep the insects off the plants. It is rumored that Jefferson himself would spend hours spreading the smelly stuff. Can you imagine any of the more recent presidents doing the same? Jefferson also relied on Bernard McMahon’s The American Gardener’s Calendar. The book provided directions for everything from the ubiquitous manuring to the best techniques for interplanting lettuce and radishes. A lot of the planting practices for newer vegetables such as cucumbers and tomatoes were experimental, furthering Jefferson’s reputation as a pioneer of American gardening.
As you slap a burger on the grill this Fourth-of-July weekend, think about adding some fresh vegetables or fruit. Even though twenty varieties of beans and fifteen varieties of peas are not necessary for a picnic, a few garden-fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, and squash can add a nice touch to your meal. Besides, what could be more patriotic than eating like the man who wrote the Declaration of Independence?
(Commercial products are named in this publication for informational purposes only. Virginia Cooperative Extension does not endorse these products and does not intend discrimination against other products which also may be suitable.)

And The Solution for All Security Problems is . . .

Badges!

That's right, the Pittsylvania County Board of Supervisors approved the cost for new badges for the sheriff-deputies.

According to Sheriff Taylor, (not to be confused with Mayberry's Sheriff Taylor) new badges are needed so "officers would have proper, federally required identification when assisting at major disaster sites" (Danville Register & Bee). Okay, the county has a population of less than 50,000. It's also the largest county in Virginia, and the people are spread all out, mostly on farms. While I realize it is possible, a major disaster would be rare in the county and surrounding areas (which are also very rural). I mean, the only disasters we ever face are droughts during tobacco growing season!

Also according to the Bee, "Each badge would have a serial number for the officer wearing it, and identification shows proper credentials, recognizes an officer’s rank and shows their attributes." When I initially heard the story on the radio this morning, Sheriff Taylor said this was important to Homeland Security and to prevent imitators . . . righto. People in the county KNOW who the cops are, there aren't that many of them! In fact, there are generally only 3 or 4 deputies on active duty at any given time. Are they really so cocky as to think that people out there are just dying to play pretend-small-town-cops?

Even if all of these additions are necessary, why do they have to be incorporated in the badges? Officers also wear patches on their uniforms, couldn't we etch some type of serial number (coded of course, for top security reasons) on the patches?

The best part of all this? Each badge costs $55, which means that county taxes will go toward buying $7,700 worth of the snazzy new badges. But that's okay, it's not like the county has economic issues or has one of the highest unemployment rates in the state or anything . . .

What I've Been Reading

Summer is such a great time to chill out and read. I've made a run-down of some of the books I've liked so far:


1.
Jodi Picoult's Salem Falls is one of my favorite books by her. A lot of her books teeter on the edge of a cheesy love and loss story and an intriguing plot. This one had a few twists that weren't exactly believable, but it was a good one overall. The courtroom scenes were very good!



Plot: Jack St. Bride has just been released from jail for raping a teenage student of his. He claims to not have committed the crime. He gets a job as a dishwasher at Addie Peabody's Do-or-Diner, and the two become romantically involved. The town of Salem Falls learns he is a registered sex offender and they want him kicked out of town. A group of girls in the town secretly practice Wicca, a form of nature-magic. The leader of the coven, Gillian Duncan becomes infatuated with Jack and tries to lure him to her. After some odd occurrences, Jack is accused of raping Gilly, and the rest of the book focuses on the trial and his relationship with Addie.









2. The one everyone is talking about: Twilight by Stephenie Meyer. This is a great book for young teen girls. I like the plot and characters, but so many of the scenes are just so melodramatic and lovey-dovey (which is why it's great for young teens). And the plot gets even more ridiculous with the sequels New Moon and Eclipse. But it's a fun book, and totally unrealistic. That being said, I can't wait to see the movie December 12.



Plot: Bella Swan moves from sunny Phoenix to small-town-overcast-Forks, Washington. Bella is an awkward person who finds herself being popular due to her status as a novelty in Forks. At school, she notices the Cullens, a group of pale but beautiful kids who are ostracized from the other kids. They're all adopted. Edward Cullen is her lab partner and they do not initially get along very well. However, Edward saves Bella from a car hitting her with some sort of inhuman strength that he later denies. Turns out, Edward and his family are vampires who have pledged not to taste human blood. Edward and Bella fall in love, and face another crazy vampire who wants to kill Bella.









3. Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey is the book that spawned my interest in fantasy and science fiction writing. It's an easy read with a few holes that are later explained in other parts of the series of Pern books.



Plot: Lessa, a 21 year old, is working as a drudge on rural planet Pern in the hold of Ruatha. However, before a violent invasion that made her a virtual slave, Lessa had been daughter to the Lord of Ruatha. F'lar, a dragonrider, is searching for female candidates to bond and ride the golden queen dragon that is soon to hatch. He is impressed with Lessa's skills and determination, and she Impresses the gold queen Ramoth. The purpose of dragons is to fight Thread, a substance that falls from the sky every few hundred years and kills every organic substance it touches. However, Thread has not fallen on Pern for 400 years, making the lords and some of the dragonriders disbelieve its existence. F'lar and Lessa do not believe Thread is gon, and plan for its return. When it does return, the dragonriders are constantly exhausted due to their low numbers. Lessa finds a way to have more dragons at a great personal risk . . .




Now, I do realize that all three of these are by female authors; that was not intentional. Also, while I'm not a feminist or anything, I really respect Anne McCaffrey as a female science-fiction writer. It's hard enough to get novels published and mass-produced, and she did it at a time when female sci-fi writers were pretty much unheard of.

Vacation Days III - IV: The Eastern Snore

It finally happened. The Internet was taken from me! We left Rehobeth and the WiFi behind and headed towards the Eastern Shore. First, however, I begged to do a little shopping. No sales tax in Delaware combined with already-reduced products in outlets is too hard even for me to resist.

So, a few books and a pair of black pumps (check em out!)later, we visited my aunt who lives in Millsboro, DE. Her stepson and his five-year-old daughter were visiting. And this girl is NOT shy, she talks and tells stories and all sorts of things without any encouragement; Her dad says she'll run up to a bunch of kids and say "You're my new best friend," without even knowing their names. So, I'm sitting on the couch beside this little girl, trying to carry on a conversation, and I ask her if she likes Hannah Montana. She says "she's okay," like she isn't really interested. Then, she sings all of Miley Cyrus' (aka Hannah Montana) "See You Again." This kid is a mess, it's even harder to deal with discipline issues when the kid is smart like this girl.

Next stop: Eastern Shore down to Chincoteague Island. Chincoteague is a nice quiet little island that looks like this picture. All marches, it's a nice estuary-like ecosystem going on around the area. Its neighboring island, Assateague, is a federal park . . . no one lives there except for rangers and ponies. Yes, ponies. Perhaps you've heard of Misty of Chincoteague? Well, she was actually from Assateague, but either way the ponies are the major attraction in the park even though you rarely see them on the Virginia side of the park. We spent about 4 hours in the park after dinner and all we saw was a lighthouse, a wedding, and a lot of seagulls.

The next day we finally get to come home!

But first I must face my nemesis, my worst fear . . .

Yes, it's the fearful Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel! I hate bridges (See Vacation Day One: Gephyrophobia) and tunnels just make the claustrophobia worse. At 20 miles long, it's the largest bridge-tunnel complex in the world. So, I turned my iPod up and stuffed a pillow over my face the whole way through (which didn't really help because I could tell when it got darker which meant we were in the tunnels). And, in keeping with the whole family driving me crazy ordeal, they stopped at the gift shop/restaurant on the bridge and made me eat lunch, knowing how much I hate the place.

Finally, we got home.

Vacation over, back to work.

Next year, I'm going to the mountains . . . family be damned.