Desolation

I guess tonight was the night for a major meltdown. It was something so simple that triggered it. Fred brought in the first three roses...the ones that normally would've been for Momma. This time, they were for me. Apparently, in the back of my mind, they still belonged to Momma...always have and always will. For no apparent reason, I broke into tears..uncontrollable, hours later. They are on her lamp table, by her chair, now. I hope she is looking down and can enjoy their beauty. God in heaven...I miss my Mother and always will. This hurts all the way down to my very soul and there's no stopping it. How am I supposed to live now. Time...only time.

My Precious Mother is with Jesus now

I really dislike having to put this out there, but I lost my Mother on March 15, 2007. I will post her obit and photo just because. I have to do something and this feels right, for now.

Obituary for Inez Davis Watts

Inez Davis Watts was born October 13, 1914, in Dunn, North Carolina. She was the daughter of John Perion Davis of Baltimore, Maryland and Carrie Belle (Hoyle) Davis of Dunn, North Carolina. She resided in Norfolk, Virginia, from 1917 until she moved to El Cajon, California, in 1982. There, she lived with her daughter, Brinda Horn, formerly Brinda Marcelle Hall, and her son-in-law, Fred Horn, until May of 1984 when they moved to Garland, Texas. She resided in Texas until her death. She was the widow of Harry Allen Watts of Norfolk, Virginia. They were married for 23 years.

Inez Watts worked outside the home for 31 years as a bookkeeper for Swift and Co., Luhring Motors, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., and Kramer Tire Co. The last 10 years of her outside employment was for her husband’s company, Watts Brothers Painting & Decorating. A total of 41 years was spent working outside the home in addition to working inside the home and raising two daughters.

Inez Watts is survived by one daughter: Brinda Marcelle Horn of Garland, Texas, wife of Fredrick J. Horn. She is also survived by three grandchildren: Earl Landon Buck, Jr., Wayne Randolph Buck, both of Norfolk, and Carole Marcelle Whitson of Garland, Texas, as well as one great-grandchild, Tyler Morgan Whitson. Ms. Watts is survived by one sister: Virginia Eloise DiMino of Alden, Pennsylvania. She had ten nieces and nephews and numerous grand-nieces and nephews.

She was a Libra and loved beauty and peace and calm. She lived her life as a Christian and helped everyone that was in need. She was a loving and giving mother, daughter, and sister and will be sorely missed by her family and friends.

Stolen Cute Stuff!

This was taken shamelessly from Kami's blog.

HowManyOfMe.com

There is: 1 person with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

There are 3,000 people in the U.S. with the first name Brinda.
Statistically the 3176th most popular first name. (tied with 843 other first names)
More than 99.9 percent of people with the first name Brinda are female.


There are 59,994 people in the U.S. with the last name Horn.
Statistically the 572nd most popular last name. (tied with 35 other last names)



There is 1 person in the U.S. named Brinda Horn.

Disgusting & Outrageous!

I just don't get it... it's okay for the military to build mosques in order to recruit muslims, but it's not okay to mention Jesus' name.

Our freedom of religion is being openly violated. Does this not infuriate anyone else?



TESTING THE FAITH
Navy dismisses chaplain
who prayed 'in Jesus' name'
'We are homeless, jobless,
and we are in God's hands'



Posted: January 12, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern
By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Lt. Gordon James Klingenschmitt
A U.S. Navy chaplain who prayed "in Jesus' name" as his conscience dictated is being ejected from the military service "in retaliation" for his victorious battle to change Navy policy that required religious rites be "non-sectarian."
"This fight cost me everything. My career is over, my family is now homeless, we've lost a million dollar pension, but Congress agreed with me and rescinded the Navy policy, so chaplains are free again to pray in Jesus' name," Chaplain Gordon Klingenschmitt told WND. "My sacrifice purchased their freedom. My conscience is clear, the fight was worth it, and I'd do it all again."
Klingenschmitt, as WND has reported, has fought an extended battle with the Navy over its restrictions on religious expression by its chaplains. He appeared and delivered a public prayer "in Jesus' name" at a White House rally last winter and was court-martialed for that. The Navy convicted him of failing to follow a lawful order because his superior didn't want him praying "in Jesus' name."
He's also launched a legal battle that he said he hopes eventually will result in his reinstatement, alleging the Navy assembled a "civic religion" by ordering its chaplains to pray in a certain way.
(Story continues below)
"There's a Unitarian system of religion that's aimed at Christians," John Whitehead, founder of the The Rutherford Institute, told WND. "It boils down to that. We're seeing it all across the country, with council prayers, kids wanting to mention Jesus. What's going on here is it's generally a move in our government and military to set up a civic religion."
"I think the Supreme Court's going to have to look at the idea of can the government in any of its forms tell people how to pray, set up a basic religion and say you can only do it this way," he said.
Klingenschmitt told WND he'd been delivered a formal letter of reprimand for his appearance at a White House function in March 2006 at which he wore his uniform and prayed "in Jesus' name." For that he was convicted at a special court-martial of violating a lawful order from his commanding officer not to do that.
His appearance was with former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice and WND columnist Judge Roy Moore, who was removed from his office when he refused to follow a federal court order he considered unlawful: to remove a Ten Commandments monument from public property.
Klingenschmitt's $3,000 fine was suspended and because of the issues, Congress got involved and ordered the Navy to rescind that particular policy, and allow chaplains to pray as their "conscience dictates."
In a Congressional report on the situation, members of a conference committee noted, "The House bill contained a provision … to prescribe that military chaplains shall have the prerogative to pray according to the dictates of their conscience, except as must be limited by military necessity, with any such limitation being imposed in the least restrictive manner feasible." That position was adopted with orders that the "Secretary of the Navy rescind Secretary of the Navy Instruction 1730.7C dated February 21, 2006, titled 'Religious Ministry within the Department of the Navy'" and replace it with a policy allowing such freedoms.
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld also then promised Congress that no chaplain would be punished under the now-cancelled policy, but the Navy's plans to get rid of Klingenschmitt moved forward anyway.
A federal judge in Klingenschmitt's lawsuit also concluded that his termination from the service and the damage that would result would not be "irreparable," so he would not step in at this point, and Klingenschmitt was delivered a Navy letter this week ordering him to move out of his home in conjunction with his removal from the service.
"Access onto all military installations within Navy Region Mid-Atlantic for Lieutenant Gordon J. Klingenschmitt, CHC, USNR, will terminate on January 31, 2007," said the letter from S.W. Wong, who is with the Judge Advocate General's Corp.
While he's battling for reinstatement, Klingenschmitt said, he'll be accepting speaking invitations and can be contacted through his website, and working with supporters Alan Keyes and Rick Scarborough who have assembled an online petition that calls on new Secretary of Defense Robert Gates to honor Rumsfeld's promise that no chaplain would be punished under the old policy.
"U.S. Navy Chaplain Gordon James Klingenschmitt is being unjustly punished for praying in Jesus' name, for quoting Scripture passages in a military chapel, for voicing evangelical messages about Christ while in uniform," the petition says.
"Chaplain Klingenschmitt courageously stood for what is right, and his stand was completely vindicated by Congress. I am calling on you to immediately exonerate him and allow him to continue his outstanding service as a Navy chaplain. Mr. Secretary, you must act! And fast! Otherwise Chaplain Klingenschmitt will be kicked out of the service by Jan. 31, ending an award-winning 15.5-year career. He will lose his pension, health care benefits and be evicted from military housing – and our sailors will lose this faithful vicar of Christ."
"I think the Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates, should keep the promise of his predecessor," the chaplain told WND. "We are homeless, jobless and we are in God's hands."
"My separation is in direct retaliation for my victory on Capitol Hill. This is how the Navy treats whistleblowers," he added.
In the lawsuit filed by the Rutherford Institute, the authors noted that courts in the District of Columbia already have concluded: "What we have here is the government's attempt to override the Constitution and the laws of the land by a directive that clearly interferes with military chaplains' free exercise and free speech rights, as well as those of their congregants."
The case developed when "one Navy Captain decided that he did not like the content of the Chaplain's religious speech during an optionally attended sermon in the chapel," the lawsuit said. Then a Navy investigation showed Klingenschmitt had prayed "in Jesus' name" and had even prayed in public in uniform. For that, the court-martial was held, "ignoring Naval Uniform Regulations that permit chaplains to wear the uniform during public worship."
The lawsuit notes that the Navy is using the chaplain's resignation from one "ecclesiastical endorsement" and acceptance of another from a different church group as its reason for terminating him. However, the lawsuit notes that the Navy's own regulations state that a chaplain "shall" be recertified on request.
In apparent conflict, a letter from J.C. Harvey Jr., a vice-admiral, ordering Klingenschmitt's removal from the Navy, opined that "presentation of a new ecclesiastical endorsement from a qualified Religious Organization does not automatically mandate recertification."
The district court judge also found, in ruling against the chaplain, that in the military "public worship" is different from "worshipping in public," so that the Navy's punishment could move forward.
And my opinion is this:

Excuse me!!! W.T.F. was this nation founded upon if not God?!?! This kind of crap really torques my jaws! If it weren't for all the "other" people we so graciously accepted into OUR country, this wouldn't be an issue. Actually, it isn't an issue at all considering 86% of this country is STILL Christian! Who the Hell do THEY think they are to try and remake OUR country to suit all the OTHER countries that we've accepted???? Asshats! Our Pledge of Alliegence states it pretty damned clear:

I pledge alligiance to the flag
Of the United States of America,
And to the Republic for which it stands,
One nation, under God, indivisible,
With liberty and justice for all

Do you see the "UNDER GOD" in there??? I was in elementary school when that came into being. Yes! We recited this AND the Lord's Prayer each and every morning in school. ALL schools did this. Those people knew what they were doing! ARGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH! I am SO intensely furious about this crap that I can hardly see straight! I'm SO tired of bending over backwards to keep from hurting someone else's way of life. It's totally disgusting (you're right!) and I'm mad as Hell! Something or someone has got to put an end to all this and I mean RIGHT NOW before our nation and all that it was founded upon goes to Hell in a handbasket! I'm NOT kidding either!

In 1892, 1923, 1924 and 1954 the American people demonstrated enough concern about the actual words in the Pledge to make some necessary changes. Today there may be a tendency among many Americans to recite "by rote" with little thought for the words themselves. Before continuing with our tour, let's examine these 31 words a little more thoroughly.
I Pledge Allegiance I Promise to be faithful and true (Promise my loyalty)
to the flag to the emblem that stands for and represents
of the United States all 50 states, each of them individual, and individually represented on the flag
of America yet formed into a UNION of one Nation.
and to the Republic And I also pledge my loyalty to the Government that is itself a Republic, a form of government where the PEOPLE are sovereign,
for which it stands, this government also being represented by the Flag to which I promise loyalty.
one Nation under God, These 50 individual states are united as a single Republic under the Divine providence of God, "our most powerful resource" (according to the words of President Eisenhower)
Indivisible, and can not be separated. (This part of the original version of the pledge was written just 50 years after the beginning of the Civil War and demonstrates the unity sought in the years after that divisive period in our history)
with Liberty The people of this Nation being afforded the freedom to pursue "life, liberty, and happiness",
and Justice And each person entitled to be treated justly, fairly, and according to proper law and principle,
for All. And these principles afforded to EVERY AMERICAN, regardless of race, religion, color, creed, or any other criteria. Just as the flag represents 50 individual states that can not be divided or separated, this Nation represents millions of people who can not be separated or divided.

Thus it is that when you Pledge Allegiance to the United States Flag, You:
*Promise your loyalty to the Flag itself.
*Promise your loyalty to your own and the other 49 States.
*Promise your loyalty to the Government that unites us all,
Recognizing that we are ONE Nation under God,
That we can not or should not be divided or alone,
And understanding the right to Liberty and Justice belongs to ALL of us.


Now! What's the fucking problem with this???!?!?! THIS is the country those other people chose to come to BECAUSE they would be free. What have the powers that be done??? They've royally screwed it up for ALL OF US! Damn them! Damn our sympathy, and Damn our goodness and goodwill.

In MY opinion, they are ALL free to LEAVE and go back to wherever the Hell they came from and see how much better it is!
And they can kiss my ENTIRE ass while they're at it!

Some of the sweetest times..

..come when I am putting Tyler to bed on Friday or Saturday nights. This past weekend, Carole had bought some new books for Tyler. Usually, when I'm there, he will want 3 to 5 books read to him before going to bed. This time, he was already tired, so I started one of the new books. There was a lot of reading and Carole said just to tell him about the pictures of things versus reading every paragraph. There were things that he hadn't seen and also, some that I didn't know he had seen on TV shows. Every now and then, he'd say "I know Nana" when I'd point out some animal I thought he hadn't seen. I would say "Did you see this one on one of your shows?" and he'd say "Yes". Since it was a l o n g book, when I finally got through it, I thought he'd want another one. I ask him if he wanted another and he said sleepily "No Nana...". poor baby, he was just too tired. He headed for his bed with both bunnies. As usual, I said "I'll turn on your Moon and Star lights now." He said..."They're already on Nana" he was already drifting off to dreamland. I turned off the regular lamp and sure enough, the Moon and Star lights were already on! Bless his little heart, he's so astute! Since I'd already gotten my hugs, all he said before I left was "Kisses Nana". I was more than happy to give and get kisses from one so sweet. Tears came, sweetly, when I told Carole all about "our" Good Night

This picture is for two reasons...

First, because this is a good friend of mine, who I've never "met", but love nonetheless. She's going through some physical stuff right now and I'm hoping all will be well very soon. Second, because blogger won't allow my daughter to upload pictures and I want to see if it will let me do it! This _is_ a beautiful picture...of a beautiful person.

Tyler's Climber!

So, we got this climber so that Tyler would have something besides our covered swing to play on. Apparently, he loves it! Check out the video Carole took!