Question from boy:  "Does Obama have a bomb proof car?"

Answer from Mom:  "Yes, he does."

Question from boy:  "Does that mean that George Washington had a bomb proof horse and carriage?"

Thought from Mom:  "I guess the skill of natural deduction is working."

My friend went to China and all she got me was this . . . . . . .

TOILET PAPER!!!!!

Yes, some people have friends that bring them t-shirts or jewelry 

but my dear friend brings me Chinese toilet paper.

How is it that this lovely lady can go ALLLLL the way to China and bring this thing home?

Well, she was running late to catch the fastest train in the world but wanted to quickly find my children chop sticks.  So, the guide took them to WALMART!  Yes, Walmart in China.  Ironic especially because this lady NEVER shops at Walmart in America.  

General motherly instinct must have gotten the best of her while shopping and this is my present. 

First let me point out the dramatic size difference between Chinese and American toilet paper.

We all know China's one child policy and preference that the one child be male.

Why would they need giant quantities of anything?

As for the chopsticks, she found they were all packaged in sets of 5.  A strange number to us here in the United States but very logical in China.  At a meal there is normally one set of grandparents, the parents and this one child.

They have a serious problem over there now.  

It is called "Little Emperor Syndrome". 

4 adult doting on and doing everything for this one (normally male) child.

So I decided to see exactly what if anything there was about this. This article is from a tourist point of view.  At the end it very adequately points out that in the impoverished areas where the one child rule has been relaxed and children have to find or make their toys, they are significantly happier than the city dwelling "little emperors."

http://www.uncorneredmarket.com/2008/09/china-so-many-little-emperors/

This particular article raise some very good questions by a Chinese.  What will happen to the Chinese workforce and government when ALL of these coddled adults start working or running the country?  

http://goldsea.com/Text/index.php?id=9080

The Chinese youth and young adults certainly do not corner the market on a lack of manners and concern unfortunately.  I witnessed this insensitivity first hand on my grand trip.  At all of the national parks and "touristy" places, because of the time of year, there were mainly foreigners visiting these places.  They stood right in front of the camera while we tried to take pictures, never held doors open and didn't make friendly eye contact.  There was a sense of gross entitlement everywhere.  Sept. and Oct. is the time also when the Australian tourists are abound as well.  They, however, were completely opposite.  Smiling, offering to take pictures for us, holding doors, etc.

This syndrome is alive and well in America though for different reasons.

http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/102/culture-clash.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/11/business/yourmoney/11wcol.html?_r=

This mentality is rampant EVERYWHERE.

The "Little Emperor" syndrome and "Helicopter" parents are just two widely documented effects of a "ME" world and society.   

The welfare system, school system, overspending, etc has wrecked havoc on societies everywhere.  Under the guise of "social justice" and "the betterment of mankind", what makes us human beings has been lost. The image of God has been replaced with "man is god" mentality.  The "what else are you gonna do for me" attitude is a sad one. 

It is anti-God.  

When a world, society, family and person removes God from the center of their being and reasoning,

they loose their purpose. 

So, this is how I buy my toilet paper because that one little roll of "Happiness" wouldn't last too long around here.  

I am trying to raise many saints not one emperor.  

Hammin' it up while trying to bring home the bacon!

SOOOOO, the last event of the county fair is always the greased pig contest.

The object of this event is to catch the pig.

The main question is "Do you get to keep the pig?"

YES YOU DO!

Next question, "What are you going to do with it if you catch it?"

Well, this year we had a grand plan.

A bonfire pig roast.

Yes, my vegetarian sister would be horrified by such an event.

There are no words really to explain this fiasco.

So I leave you with some of the pictures and quotes about
MUD!!!!!  AND PIGS!!!!!

"They come because they are looking forward to beautiful, crystal-clear water.

But they're getting mud or, as someone called it, cocoa."

"How dirty do your feet have to get without suffocating yourself in the mud 

in order to get and inch of what you really want done?

"I am very proud to be called a pig.  It stands for PRIDE, INTEGRITY, and GUTS." 

"Litigation:  A machine you go into as a pig and come out of as sausage."

"These are bagpipes.  

I understand the inventor of the bagpipes was inspired when he saw a man carrying an indignant, asthmatic pig under his arm.  Unfortunately, the man-made sound never equaled the purity of the sound achieved by the pig."

"When you tell people about the mud pit, 

you separate yourself from anybody else who does any kind of athletic activity."

"Pigs prefer to wallow in clean mud."

"If you see a defense team with dirt and mud on their backs, they've had a bad day." 

"I remember my mother always finding mud somehow 

and putting it on the sting"

 "War has rules, mud wrestling has rules - politics has no rules."

"The world is mud-lucious and puddle-wonderful."

"He who slings mud generally looses ground."

"We sit in the mud and reach for the stars."

"Here I've been waiting for 20 years to dance with Fred Astaire, 

and what do I get?  Mud in my eye!"  

"That man over there says that women need to be helped into carriages,

 and lifted over ditches, and to have the best place everywhere.  

Nobody ever helps me into carriages, or over mud-puddles, or gives me any best place!"

"A girl is Innocence playing in the mud, Beauty standing on its head,

 and Motherhood dragging a doll by the foot."

"I like my women to be feminine, not sliding into tackles and covered in mud."

"Fame is like a shaved pig with a greased tail, and it is only after it has slipped through the hands of some thousands that some fellow, by mere chance, holds on to it!"

"The next day my daughter asked, 'Mom, are you sore?'

I answered, 'Yes dear, I am. I am not sure how it's possible but my whole body even both of my ears are very sore.' "

 -  Hootiecootie

What is the fare for the fair?

It was that time of year again.

The county fair was upon us.

We didn't have anything to enter this year.

We did have a 4-H stand to operate this year with only my family running it.

The fare for my attendance at the fair is hard work and sleep deprivation.

The fair was expanded by one day to accommodate an extreme truck and tractor event.

 *** SIGH ***

(Yes, there seems to be a whole lot of sighing going on here lately!) 

That is pretty much what it looks like.  It sounds like a herd of rabid chainsaws gone wild.

Pork burgers with their crispy edges are a staple around here!

Friday night was the regular truck pull.  

Decent crowd and another late night. 

And Bullet the fish (which was dead in the morning).

Saturday night . . . . . . . 

DEMOLITION DERBY

I secretly would LOVE to be able to take a lemon car or two that I have owned and enter it only to be able to smash it to smithereens!  I believe that desire how this event must have gotten started.

Along with this event and to witness it came some friends, more fair toys and more food.

 

EVERYONE NEEDS TO TRY A FRIED OREO!

Really.  You do.  THEY ARE GOOD!

One soggy Mr. Croissant out gunned by a smaller gun and gunner.

Good night fair lady!

You at least weren't crabby like me the next day!

Slower than a speeding lizard

I miss being little.

I would love to be little for a week in the summer time with my children.

I loved to find bugs, animals, cool rocks, and all sorts of strange treasures (much to my mother's dismay at times I am sure).

I would scour the ground looking for my next discovery.

God has a way of correcting this folly.  It is called height.  After slamming into several tree branches and various other objects, I decided that I should pay attention to things at my new eye level.

I miss it.

We all know that returning completely to "Toy Land" is impossible but through our children's adventures we can relive the excitement of childhood wonder and discovery.

A couple of weeks ago, I once again hear a frantic and ecstatic voice from a boy running my way.

MOM!  MOM!  MOM!  You have to come quick!!  I have just discovered a GIGANTIC lizard!

I must admit when I listen to this young boy many times I only key in on certain words like:  bleeding, fire, broken, flooding, shot, or dying.

Nope, none of those words so I answered:

Okay sweetie, when you catch that giant lizard I want to see it.

No, Mom!  You don't understand!  It looks like a kimono dragon but not quite that big but REAL big!  I need help.  He is super fast and probably poisonous, too!

Well, I am sorry to say that I was in the middle of 5 things and hunting a giant lizard was not on the list of things to do that day.  I also did not want my whole porch turned upside-down for this latest discovery.  I have seen my share of captured lizards and sadly several of them had given up their tails in vain.  I didn't want to be part of this again.

The only way to catch a super fast lizard is to sit real still and wait for it.  But you must sit very quietly and be very patient.

HA!!!!!  HAAAAA!!!!! HAAA!!  Most of you know my youngest hootiekin.  The thought of him sitting patiently for most things makes me laugh.  A mother can still try right.  I went about my job.

Less than 5 minutes later . . . . . . . . .

MOM!  MOM!  MOM!  You have to come quick!!  I have just captured the GIGANTIC lizard!

I sigh.  Poor lizard, but the excitement from my son was so cute.

YOU MUUUUUUUUUUUUST COME SEE THIS LIZARD!

Arms flaying as he explains . . . . . 

This is a lizard like no other!  Giant and poisonous!  YOU simply MUST see this lizard and NOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWW!

Okay.  I will check out this latest prisoner.

WOW WEE!  That is a find!

Collared Lizard (Crotaphytus collaris)

According to the Dept of Conservation, this species of lizard has not been seen in this county since 1931!  And yes, it was gigantic and the jumpiest, fastest lizard EVER!

How did you catch this guy?

Just like you told me.  I sat real still and waited AND THEN I GRABBED HIM!

AMAZING!!!!

There is hope.

I can't believe you sat that quietly but see patience is a virtue and God wants you to see that speed is not always the best.  Sometimes we all have to sit and wait patiently for what we want.

You can enjoy your new friend for a bit and then he has to go back to his own life.

*** SIGH ***

Good things come to those who wait!

He was right you do look a like a kimono dragon ready to spew deadly saliva . . . . . . in the eyes of a young and fearless explorer!


Good bye interesting lizard!