I know it has been a while since I posted, but things have been crazy here at the nest. I decided though that my weekend deserved a post.
For those of you who don't know I am a paranormal investigator/ghost buster in the Houston area. Yes, before you can ask there is a difference. An investigator investigates, and a ghost buster, well they are kind of like a paranormal Orkin man. They get rid of what causes the bump in the night that drives you crazy.
A house in the area came to my attention and it was BAAAAAAAAAD, so I did what any smart girl would do... that's right, I called for help. Enter Nightmare. Don't let her name fool you. This woman is one of the sweetest people to ever be put on this earth, at least if she likes you. (I'm pretty sure she liked me)
So phone calls were made and plans were set for Nightmare to fly to Houston, and for us to take care of the problem. I picked Nightmare up at the airport, which was an adventure in itself. IAH, is a maze of terminals that seem to stretch on for hundreds if not thousands of miles. The airline she was flying into said Concourse C... which is where I went. Her flight landed in E, leaving us in the same airport, but miles apart. One phone call, several prayers and one train ride later we were together and headed home to plan what was to be the biggest extermination of my ghost busting carreer.
We get home, after the worst dining experience at an IHOP in human history. I should have realized that all was not going to go according to plan at this point, but what can I say. I am like a golden retriever when it comes to this stuff. All over exhuberance, and very little brains. I saw the ball, and I was going to chase that ball until I caught it.
The weekend was going really well. It seems that Nightmare is the sister of my soul. We are two women living almost identical lives 1052.56 miles apart, if map quest is correct. Not only do we share the same gifts of empathy and the sight, we both have two children one boy one girl, and we both collect duckies, yes you read that right. Duckies. We spent the day developing a friendship that is sure to last for the rest of this life and beyond.
Everything went wonderfully, right up until bed time... Enter the cat. Our spare bedroom has an air mattress that company sleeps on. This was fine, until the cat put a claw right through it. So, at 10 pm we head off to Walmart leaving Better Half with the nestlings.
We purchased a new air mattress, and of course candy apples. Can't forget about those. (They were REALLY good) We come home and pull out the new mattress to find it had a patch kit. YAY! Now we can re inflate the good mattress right? Of course. But first we must find the hole. Now Nightmare had suggested I draw a circle around the hole before we deflated the bed, but I figured why bother. Now I know why.
So there we were, two normally very gifted, and some may even say intelligent human beings sitting on the floor searching for a hole in an air mattress. This may not sound difficult, but it was. You see a soft fuzzy top to an air mattress collects a lot of lint. So for well over an hour we sat on the floor trying to find the stupid hole. We decided at some point to put air in it and search for the leak that way.
YAY! We had a plan, but the stupid air pump wouldn't work. So there we were fighting with an air pump, laughing our asses off trying to find this hole. It took quite a bit of time, some prayer, and a hairdryer, but we found it! Ok, ok, WE didn't find it. Nightmare did when I went to go look for the hair dryer, but still the hole was found and we all went to bed, to sleep peacefully, until our next adventure.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
What happens when kids play with the camera
Fledgling is a very smart kid, and sometimes he does things that impress the hell out of me.. like figure out how to use the video option on our camera. THIS is the result...
Now if I could just get him to show ME how to work the stupid thing!
Now if I could just get him to show ME how to work the stupid thing!
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Gun Safety and the Law
I was reading the news, a pastime I keep telling myself to give up because it makes me so angry. I came across this article on Yahoo News. It states that a 4-year-old boy accidentally shot his two-year-old sister while their father was home. The article goes on to say that this happened a week after a child shot himself in the head with a gun that his dad left in the car.
I had to rant to Better Half for a good half an hour before I could calm down to post anything. Don't get me wrong; I have a varied stance on gun control. On one hand, I feel that gun control is using both hands. But, on the other hand, I feel that NO ONE needs an AK-47 in the closet. That being said, I am a big proponent of gun SAFETY. To me it is common sense, keep your guns locked and the ammo separate, also locked. Don't leave the key around. And, if it is a combination lock, don't make the combination easily available. See...common sense!
I think that more states need to use the common law felony murder statute. According to Professor Birdsong of Barry School of Law, the common law felony murder statute is as follows:
I had to rant to Better Half for a good half an hour before I could calm down to post anything. Don't get me wrong; I have a varied stance on gun control. On one hand, I feel that gun control is using both hands. But, on the other hand, I feel that NO ONE needs an AK-47 in the closet. That being said, I am a big proponent of gun SAFETY. To me it is common sense, keep your guns locked and the ammo separate, also locked. Don't leave the key around. And, if it is a combination lock, don't make the combination easily available. See...common sense!
I think that more states need to use the common law felony murder statute. According to Professor Birdsong of Barry School of Law, the common law felony murder statute is as follows:
The common law felony murder rule provides that if a person kills another in doing or attempting to do an act amounting to a felony, the killing is murder.1 it does not matter whether the death was intended or the product of a reckless disregard for the risk to human life or criminally negligent behavior. Even completely unintended or accidental death may trigger murder liability for felons. Prosecutors and law enforcement find the rule attractive for it provides a formal track of liability which permits a conviction regardless of the juror’s assessment of culpability.
Felony murder is akin to strict liability crimes in that no mental element or mens rea must be proven. The felony murder rule operates in direct opposition to the fundamental principle of criminal law that liability ought to reflect culpability. Although some courts have suggested that the felony murder rule dispenses with the requirement of malice, the more usual explanation is that the intent to commit the felony constitutes the implied malice required for common law murder. In its strictest form the rule holds felons liable for murder even if the death occurs during preparation before or flight after the felony.7 Felony murder is defined by statute in most states and is usually graded as first degree murder. In states with a death penalty felony murderers are eligible for the death penalty.
Read more of Professor Birdsong's discourse here.
I know that there are those out there who would call my thoughts on this matter harsh or reactionary, and I respectfully disagree. I think that there needs to be tougher laws in place for parents who so willfully place their children in danger. I realize that there are many sides to a hot-button issue such as this. Please feel free to leave a comment, and I'll be sure to respond.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Safety Saturday
Okay, so it's not really Saturday as I am posting this, but I have a ton of stuff to do tomorrow, and I didn't know if I'd have a chance to post on Saturday. First, I'll give a little background. Before I became a SAHM, I worked in the security industry, and personal safety issues have always interested me. Because of this interest, I have decided to start a regular weekly post on safety and security.
This week, I want to touch on shopping and parking lot safety. How many of you go shopping and park in the first available spot that you can without caring what is around you? I know that I am guilty of this on occasion. Safety experts recommend that, if you are going to be in the store past dark, that you park under a light. Another tip that I never really thought about before was: never park next to a van with no windows. It is insanely easy for a woman to be overpowered and pulled into a van like this with little to no fuss.
If this should happen, and if you are approached in a manner that makes you uncomfortable, scream "FIRE" at the top of your lungs. Studies have shown that most people will ignore a shout for help because they don't want to get involved. However, when you shout "fire", you are announcing a problem that could directly affect them, and they will react.
My next point is: how many of you walk to your cars with your bags in one hand and dig through your purse (or diaper bag) for your keys while walking? Or worse yet, how many of you talk on the phone while walking to your car? These two things show the world that you are distracted and may not be aware of what is happening around you. In other words, they mark you as a likely victim. If you are looking in your purse, you cannot see someone approach you. And, if you are talking on the phone, you are unlikely to hear someone coming at you from behind.
I recommend having your keys in your hand before leaving the store, and ending your phone conversation as well. Keys not only enable you to get into your vehicle easily and quickly, but they also can serve as a weapon to stave off an attacker until help comes. If you are walking anywhere at anytime and you hear someone coming up behind you, you should stop and turn around completely. Rather than just looking over your shoulder, completely turn around and take in the full scene. This will tell someone who is looking for an easy mark to keep on looking, because you are aware of what is happening around you.
Above all, listen to your instincts. If something doesn't feel right, don't hesitate to ask security to walk with you.
Next week, I'll start discussing some of the ways in which dishonest people get close to you to turn you into a victim.
All of my tips and more can be found in The Gift of Fear, written by Gavin DeBecker, one of the world's experts on violence and threat assessment. As I continue this series, I will be working on setting up a giveaway to give one of my readers a copy of this book, which I recommend to everyone in my life.
Please feel free to leave your comments, both good and bad. If you would like for me to cover anything in particular in this series, please leave your suggestions in the Comments section, and I will make sure that it gets added to the list of topics.
This week, I want to touch on shopping and parking lot safety. How many of you go shopping and park in the first available spot that you can without caring what is around you? I know that I am guilty of this on occasion. Safety experts recommend that, if you are going to be in the store past dark, that you park under a light. Another tip that I never really thought about before was: never park next to a van with no windows. It is insanely easy for a woman to be overpowered and pulled into a van like this with little to no fuss.
If this should happen, and if you are approached in a manner that makes you uncomfortable, scream "FIRE" at the top of your lungs. Studies have shown that most people will ignore a shout for help because they don't want to get involved. However, when you shout "fire", you are announcing a problem that could directly affect them, and they will react.
My next point is: how many of you walk to your cars with your bags in one hand and dig through your purse (or diaper bag) for your keys while walking? Or worse yet, how many of you talk on the phone while walking to your car? These two things show the world that you are distracted and may not be aware of what is happening around you. In other words, they mark you as a likely victim. If you are looking in your purse, you cannot see someone approach you. And, if you are talking on the phone, you are unlikely to hear someone coming at you from behind.
I recommend having your keys in your hand before leaving the store, and ending your phone conversation as well. Keys not only enable you to get into your vehicle easily and quickly, but they also can serve as a weapon to stave off an attacker until help comes. If you are walking anywhere at anytime and you hear someone coming up behind you, you should stop and turn around completely. Rather than just looking over your shoulder, completely turn around and take in the full scene. This will tell someone who is looking for an easy mark to keep on looking, because you are aware of what is happening around you.
Above all, listen to your instincts. If something doesn't feel right, don't hesitate to ask security to walk with you.
Next week, I'll start discussing some of the ways in which dishonest people get close to you to turn you into a victim.
All of my tips and more can be found in The Gift of Fear, written by Gavin DeBecker, one of the world's experts on violence and threat assessment. As I continue this series, I will be working on setting up a giveaway to give one of my readers a copy of this book, which I recommend to everyone in my life.
Please feel free to leave your comments, both good and bad. If you would like for me to cover anything in particular in this series, please leave your suggestions in the Comments section, and I will make sure that it gets added to the list of topics.
I love my friends.
Ok, I just had to put this up here. I was looking through some graphics I had saved from e-mails I have gotten through the years and I found this appropriate. So here's to all of us who have more friends in these lovely little boxes than we do outside of it.
How to clip a baby's nails
A few things I have learned from clipping Hatchlings' fingernails:
Wait until Daddy comes home, hand him the baby and the clippers, and go out with the girls for a well-deserved drink!
- Find a well-lit area
- Assemble items needed (i.e., nail clippers and baby)
- Get comfortable, grab the baby's hand in one of yours and the clippers in the other
- Realize the baby has made a fist that only Arnold Schwarzenegger could open easily
- Put down the clippers and, oh so gently, wrestle with the infant to open their fist
- Pick up the clippers and move towards the fingernail
- Remove curious cat who has gotten between the clippers and the baby
- Pick up the now-screaming baby, reopen fist, and grab clippers
- Have the clippers kicked from your hand by aforementioned screaming baby
- Put the baby down and go searching for the &^%^ clippers
- Come back to the baby, who is now sleeping so peacefully that you dare not breathe, and sigh softly before putting clippers away
- Call your Mom/MIL/SIL/Neighbor and offer to pay them to come clip the baby's nails for you
Wait until Daddy comes home, hand him the baby and the clippers, and go out with the girls for a well-deserved drink!
My first button!!
YAY!! I feel like a real blogger now. I am sporting my first button found at selfmademom.net click on the title of this post for link directly to the D-List.
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