Another day at the Funny Farm

It's another Monday at the Funny Farm, but things don't feel so funny today.

I'm at one of those writing crossroads, where I'm feeling like I've spent the past couple of years working hard but with nothing to show for it.

It always happens when I see writers that I've met at conferences or in writing groups, back when we were all starry eyed dreamers, and they're doing book signings and on faculty at conferences; I'm here with my brilliant book ideas and nothing to show for them except the notes Bandit just shredded.

Where did I go wrong? Have I zigged when I should have zagged? Taken jobs that were safe when I was supposed to venture out alone into the unknown? Spent too much time playing glow ball when I should have been pounding the keyboard? Or am I exactly where God wants me to be?

Who knows. Oh well, I'll just throw myself a little pity party, have a cup of tea, and get back to work. Bandit has some blogging to do.

Visit the Great Chicken Adventure blog and the It's A Dog's Life blog. Don't forget to follow me on Twitter!

Meeting Sarah Palin in Rochester

Over on the "It's A Dog's Life" blog, Bandit gave his recap of our adventure yesterday meeting Sarah Palin. But since he didn't get to actually meet her, I thought I'd share what happened when we went back.

To recap: Earlier this week, my stepsister (and friend) Rene asked if I wanted to go with her to see Sarah Palin. At first, I thought we were going to hear her speak or something, so I said, Sure. Then I realized it was a book signing; Rene said we'd have to get there early, like maybe 7 AM.

OK, those of you who know me know that 7 AM is pretty early for me. And waiting in line to meet anyone? I don't do that kind of thing. But I've been ready for some adventure in my life, so I agreed.

As the week went on, it became clear that 7 AM was going to be much too late to get a good spot in line. So got there at 3:30 AM, Bandit in tow.

You can read about that on the dog blog. Here's what happened during round #2:

We met up with the people we were next to in line all morning, and had ourselves a rip roaring fun time. There were a handful of protesters - and frankly, they were an insult to protesters. They got there late, and their ranks were few. Maybe 10. At one point, one of them said to a news reporter, "If you want to do a story come back in a little while. We'll have more people."

Seriously? We'd been there since 3:30 AM - and some people since 4:30 PM the day before! - and they couldn't muster up a dozen protesters by 6:00 PM? Let's face it; they were just college-aged punks looking for something to do before the bars opened.

Anyway, a lot of people in line had been talking about not just their love of Sarah Palin, but the fact that she's one of the few (read: only) people in politics at that level who represents their views. So as much as the crowd was there to support her, they were also there to send a message: there are a lot more of us like Sarah Palin than the media reports.

We only got to see her for a few seconds, but in that time she asked our names, looked us in the eyes and shook our hands. I didn't feel like she was there to just sign books, but to say, "Hey, I get it. We're in this together."

Like everyone else agreed, the moment was a bit of a blur.

When my turn came, I said it was an honor to meet her, and then just as I walked away, I turned back and said, "It's an honor to meet the future President of the United States." She smiled and said, "Bless YOU!"

But what wasn't a blur? The people who stood in line for hours, the shared camaraderie, the realization that no, we are not crazy and we're not alone. We Palin supporters are educated, reasoned, patient, giving and community-oriented.

If only the media took time to get to know us. Sigh.

Visit the Great Chicken Adventure blog and the It's A Dog's Life blog. Don't forget to follow me on Twitter!

H1N1 hits the Brokaw Funny Farm

Cassie came over yesterday after going to the dr: she has the flu, and likely the H1N1.

I had the flu a month ago, and despite a round of antibiotics afterwards for a terrible cough, I'm still hacking like a crazy woman. I haven't been back to the dr. I figured it'll just go away. But Cassie has been telling me I need to go make sure I don't have something else I'm passing around.

The cough has been worse the past few days; it's exhausting. I'm taking naps and my eyes hurt and my chest is sore from all of the coughing. Then I had a little fever yesterday afternoon. So I guess it's time to see the dr.

The problem: Scout and I are supposed to go see Timmy at school today for our weekly reading session. When I called to make my dr. appointment I mentioned that to the nurse and she said it was definitely not a good idea to go to the school until the doctor could see me. She said H1N1 is contagious - and Cassie had been here all day. We don't know if I have something causing the cough, and she also added that it would not be a great idea for me to pick something up while I was school and bring it home. Ooo, good thought.

Yeesh, I'd hate to be the one who brought swine flu to the elementary school.

Pam and her dog Noel will take over for us today. Poor Timmy. There wasn't any school last week on our day so we didn't see him. I hope he's not too disappointed! He'll probably be thrilled, since Noel is an experienced therapy dog and knows how to lie down while he reads! He'll probably be disappointed when we come back!

So, can you pass the flu virus by petting a dog? Scout seemed to understand to stay away while Cassie was sick. But Bandit was all over Cassie yesterday; can he then carry the virus on his fur and pass it to the next person who pets him?

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The dangers of letting Border Collies blog

Most of you know that I walk a fine line between sane and crazy, so it was probably not surprise to see that I've started to let Scout and Bandit "blog" on the Dogvotional blog.

For those faithful readers who have followed the dogvotionals over the years, you'll find that being able to get inside the dogs' heads allows me to let loose a little bit, and add an amusing (I hope) perspective on life and faith. The danger, of course, is that I'm never sure what they're going to say. So far they haven't let out any family secrets.

You can read the two latest dogvotional entries, one from Scout and one from Bandit:

Scout and Bandit's Guide to Life: Don't be a poopy mouth

Scout and Bandit's Guide To Life: You're so special

You can also follow along with Scout's adventures in pet therapy:

A message from Scout (before that day's reading session)

Scout shares about today's reading dog session (post session)

Bandit chimes in (about Scout's session)

And just to make things interesting, I let Bandit do the chicken update last week on the Chicken Adventure blog:

Bandit does the chicken update

I know. I need to get out more often.

Visit the Great Chicken Adventure blog and the It's A Dog's Life blog. Don't forget to follow me on Twitter!

Do you know how much work it took to bring dinner to your plate?

More and more I've become aware that the food I eat doesn't just magically appear on the shelves of my grocery store. Food is grown and harvested and processed and delivered, and it's done by people who occasionally risk their lives to do it.

WGN has been running repeats of season 1 of Discovery's The Deadliest Catch. In the two episodes I've watched, six men have died while the ships were out fishing for crab.

It's basically the real life story of The Perfect Storm. It's cold, wet, and dirty. It's hard work, and it's not only dangerous, it's deadly.

I wonder how often we think of the fishermen out to sea for weeks in freezing temperatures and battling deadly weather when we crack open those crab legs. I think if we all understood the process involved in bringing food to our tables, we'd have a much better appreciation for the people who do the dirty work so we can eat.

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Chicken and dog updates

Catch some chicken and dog updates:

http://www.chickenadventure.com/

http://www.dogvotional.com/


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