Furlough Foolishness

This furlough this is making less and less sense to me. It appears to me that there is no true budgetary savings, and the loss of work time and the stress that it puts on our already burdened State services and human capital has yet to be included in the calculated "savings".

Here's what just doesn't comput. I have to take three days off without pay--a little less than 15% of my pay. With the time that I have worked, and with the special program I am in, I earn two days off a month that are vested and are mine until I either use them or retire and cash them out (in some form or other). I usually try to take the days off, just to stay even; but with the advent of the furlough, I am not taking my days off. So here's what's happening:

My pay is reduced which naturally reduces my taxable gross, therefore I pay less in State and Federal taxes (and I pay a lot of taxes) and social security. I am banking the leave days that I would normally take off, thereby increasing a State liability of difference between the one day of leave that I am not taking less the taxes that I am not paying.

On my days off, I use it for going to the doctor and using the other services that are provided as a part of my employment. Normally, I wouldn't use the services, but because I have the spare time now, I use the services--therefore increasing medical plan and other costs. I spend less because I have less money, therefore decreasing sales revenue. Let's face it, staying home and reading a book or working in the garden cheap.

What I am doing is universal throughout the State. So tell me, how is this saving?

Squirrely

This morning around 2:30, the resident squirrels (or rats—no problem, there is no difference) put up such a ruckus in our palm tree. Two were chattering loud enough to make even the noisy neighbors take notice, and it was easy to tell that it was definitely an animal discussion—squirrels aren’t nocturnal. Later in the morning, when we were both fully awake, we discussed what might have happened. My husband said that the male squirrel probably came home too late and the lady squirrel found an unidentifiable and strange grey hair.

I thought that the male woke up, and being a little frisky, wanted some midnight lovin’. I thought that the lady squirrel was probably saying, “What a squirrely thing to ask! Are you nuts? You’re an animal! Knock it off, or you are soooooo out of this tree.” My husband added that maybe the squirrel had lipstick on its tail. I told my husband not to get any bright ideas, and it probably wasn’t the squirrel’s birthday…..

Anyway, all was quiet at 6:00 a.m. I’ll keep and eye out for other foolishness, too.

Independence Day

This morning with the dawn of the 4th, I heard a thump on our large front windows. "I think they are leaving today", I said to my husband, knowing that this would probably be the day all along. I peeked out the upper window--only one baby and Mama peering back.

Now, one is stuck on the lower roof, probably thinking, "Oh, hell, what did I do now". From roof to brick ledge to grass and back again, testing, and trying. It may take the other one and hour or a day to get up courage, but it will go. So, again we are empty-nesters.

Having a Bang Up Good Time

In the last few weeks, I have seen more of my son's and grandson's that even I thought was possible. We have celebrated Father's day, my youngest son's birthday, and now tomorrow, the 4th. The one thing I have been able to see is that they have become wonderful men that bring me a great deal of joy and laughter. My older son is making his way quite nicely, working extremely hard, and showing the same signs of father and husbandness that makes for a life of satisfaction and joy.

My younger son has gone through a period of personal turmoil, and is in the process of re-discovering the person, with the same hopes, dreams, ambitions, and self-confidence, that he was in the past. He has worked so very hard to balance life, school, and work, in the last few years, that it is hard to believe that he is yet to really strike out on this adventure call, "life". I know with the direction that he chooses, whatever it is, he will do well, because a see a calmness that balance and resolution can bring.

The next year for all of us will be a challenge, but together, we can all pull through. Happy 4th!

Dog Gone, doggonit!

Last month, we lost our dear Tipper. On June 1st, at the age of 15 1/2 she went to puppy heaven to join our other dog, Tassie. If you had told me before it happened, that over a period of twenty-five years we would have had only two dogs, I would had thought you were silly. Farm dogs, after all, and larger breeds, (the only kind of dog I was familiar with), don't live longs lives. So, the fact that both these two girls managed to stick with us for 15+ years (each) is a mystery to me. When we told the neighbors about our loss, one of them commented that knowing how everyone in our house gets the royal treatment, he wouldn't have minded being our dog for 15 years!

Anyway, the dog is gone; and on various occasions, I actually slip and think that I hear her tags jingle, or glimpse a sight of doggie movement out of my side vision. Would you call that doglucination, or flat out canine separation complex? Why does it seem that everywhere we turn, someone has the cutest damn dog you ever saw? Is this the way that man, humans ended up with pets in the first place?

It will be a while before we go there again...opening our hearts up to a pet that can so utterly consume our love; but when we do, we probably won't see it coming!

I don't get it...........

Now you know I’m not a quitter
But it seems you’re all a twitter
Any you’ve morphed into a social butterfly.

Is a girl suppose to rue
When it seems that all you do
Is flaunt, and gush, and maybe make a sigh?

With your heart upon your sleeve
It appears to be a sieve
And your motives have been looking sort of thin.

As you stretch the one last link
I can see you just don’t think
That it matters any more to show you care.

Time to settle down and ponder
If tomorrow you will wonder
Of the things you might have done that now are past.

But for now, you’ll have to twitter
When it seems to me the quitter
Doesn’t understand the gift has all but gone.

Duhs Are Back

She's back this summer, only higher up under the eaves where the jays can fret her and the babies. Two broods so far. The last are ready to fledg. One more brood and we will need, "Bird Control" pills.