I wish I could find a Democrat ... a local one ... one who lives in Southern Lancaster County (PA) ... with some balls! I hate ... no ... I abhor uncontested races. No one is THAT good that the other party can not find someone comparable. In the House of Representatives, no one is running against the Republican candidate ... who btw just in case anyone forgot ... did NOT win the endorsement of his party. Now to be fair, his opponent back in May also was not endorsed. The Republican Party saw it best not to endorse the incumbent (Rep. Gibson Armstrong) or his opponent (young Mr. Bryan Cutler fresh out of school). ... maybe I just need to find a politician with balls. wow - there's a concept.

Speaking of ball-less men ... I almost ran over a maryland firefighter recently. I grew up down the road from where the Amish schoolhouse shootings were last month. I write locally there, covering yes that event. Horrific event. anyway - it's over there is nothing more to see. the school house is torn down. the field is cleaned up. the camera crews are gone. even the constables (who btw are NOT good at lieing as to who actually paid them to stand guard over the scenes) are gone ...coming home from church Sunday, I get behind this MD firefighter ...you would think of ALL people to understand that there is nothing to gawk at and that it is simply RUDE to gawk ... of all people you'd think a firefighter would get that ... no he decides he needs to stop and check out the scene. Hello it is a field now ... nothing there ... move along... tourists go home... I lay on the horn and I'm yellin out the window ... my poor family is trying to hide under their seats ... this guy gives me the finger ... like I'm the one being rude! well boy did my mouth start running over then .. thank goodness he stayed in his truck ... but the audacity of some people ...

I could go on but should probably go chill out for a bit ... must write up an election story on 36 people that NOONE has ever heard of before ... and we're supposed to vote for 11 of them! eeinie meenie minnie mo ....

wow - almost a year since I've been on here. Things have been quite hectic and confusing. Business does really good for a bit and then it's like I can't do anything right.

I had been so excited that maybe this year would be different. Last year my husband was in  a care accident in February then his adopted sister passed in M arch then his sister passed in April. In between there several other people passed away but none were that close. Close enough that we went to a lot of funerals though.

This year was supposed to be different. Well once again something happened to the husb and he was out of commission all June and July (surgery in June) August was starting to get a little better then last week he fell down a flight of stairs at a clients and broke his ankle. On top of that once again family members were in hospitals for various things and we had another dath as well.

we were supposed to get away for labor day. we were headed up to lock haven for the regatta. i need my river to de-stress. well first the storm ernesto threatened rain all weekend. then we had a funeral on saturday. then that's the week he fell and brokle his ankle. so ... we did not go.

i had applied for a job within our church (not parish but church) back in june and i still sit and wait a response. the priest wanted a committment from me to hurry up and drop everything and move if need be and ... i sit and wait while he fiddles.

would it be so very hard for something to go according to plan the first time around ... anyone have any de-stress ideas? the vodka is no longer working :( 

Called to the Principal's Office
We had a parent-teacher conference yesterday already with my 12 year olds teachers and school councelor. The principal actually wasn't there. I guess that's okay since it was academic and social reasons we were there. Fristrating really. I know the girl is intelligent but she is so lazy. No ambition. No inititive. No organization skills either. She's pulling D and F grades (we don't give Es here) ... mostly because she doesn't hand in homework. She comes up with these outrageous stories. No one believes her anymore because of them. There is always some tidbit of truth to them though. For example:

She had a wrap around her wrist one day. She didn't leave the house with it like that so we still haven't figured out where the wrap came from. But here's how the story progressed:
1st period: She fell into four mailboxes on the way to the school bus and hurt her wrist. (Mom's note: no one here has mail boxes. We all have the mailslots or the boxes on the house.)
2nd period: Some old man tripped her on the way to the school bus and she went flying into the four mailboxes.
4th period: Some grouchy old man tripped her on the way to the bus and she fell into four mailboxes.
5th period: Some grouchy old man tripped her laughed at her then sat on top her. She ran away and went fell into a bunch of mailbozes.

I am at a loss as to how to stop the lies without loosing those creative juices. As a writer myself I thinkthe imagination is great. As a parent - I'm exhausted.

ANTIOCHIAN ORTHODOX ARCHDIOCESE SUPPORTS IOCC HURRICANE RELIEF EFFORTS

      Baltimore (IOCC) – In a presentation made at one of three International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) emergency response centers in the Gulf Coast region, Fr. John Salem of St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church presented a $125,000 contribution to the IOCC hurricane relief efforts on behalf of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America on September 20, 2005.

     “It has been, and always will be the policy of this God-protected Archdiocese to help our brothers and sisters around the world who have suffered from natural disasters. In this case, the need is at home,” wrote His Eminence Metropolitan Philip in a pastoral letter sent to all parishes of the Antiochian Archdiocese shortly after Hurricane Katrina struck.

     The support for the IOCC hurricane relief efforts was the result of collections taken throughout the Archdiocese over two Sundays in September.

     Leonidas “Lee” Kapetanakis, an Emergency Response team member from Houston, Texas and IOCC Board Member accepted the contribution on behalf of IOCC.

     IOCC’s pan-Orthodox Emergency Response Network has established parish-based response centers in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Mobile, Alabama, and Houston, Texas.

     The funds contributed by the Antiochian Archdiocese will be used to assist in responding to the emergency needs as well as to support the long-term recovery efforts in the Gulf Coast region.

     Founded in 1992, IOCC is the official humanitarian aid agency of the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA). 

Texas -- Hats Off to Gov. Perry
So much to say and never quite sure how much to say when all the world could read it! I am so very grateful and thankful that Rita was not as horrible as predicted. I think that Governor Perry should get a great deal of credit though for having the forethought to evacuate potential cities and to take precautions. Texas pre-positioned search and rescue personnel and mass care strike teams to immediately enter the affected areas as soon as it was safe to do so. Gov. Perry also committed a strong law enforcement presence in the affected areas in the aftermath of the storm's impact to protect the reisdents' personal and business interests.

Speaking of Texas ...
Houston Orthodox Christian Community Responds To Hurricane Survivors. Orthodox Christians in Texas have worked tirelessly since Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast to deliver emergency supplies, welcome those displaced from neighboring states and partner with International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) to provide relief to the region.

“The devastating hurricane which has ravaged the Gulf Coast states of our country… is a reminder to all of us that tragedies in the world are dramatically increasing and that one’s life can be taken in the twinkling of an eye,” wrote Metropolitan Isaiah of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Denver in a letter to parishes encouraging them to respond through IOCC.

Orthodox parishes in the Metropolis of Denver and throughout the United States have collected funds for the effort and prepared health kits for the hundreds of thousands of people forced to flee the devastated region.

Just days after the hurricane, when people were retreating from New Orleans, Leon Vezos organized a shipment of emergency items and headed to Baton Rouge, La. After loading a truck with water and Gatorade over the Labor Day holiday weekend, Vezos personally drove the supplies which were distributed to rural communities in and around Alexandria, La.

Fr. Gabriel Karambis, Dean of the Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Annunciation, where Vezos is a member, has encouraged Orthodox Christians in the community to join in the effort and made available the resources of his parish. Orthodox Christians throughout the city have worked to prepare additional supplies for transfer to Baton Rouge, La. The effort resulted in truckload of urgently-needed diapers, water, Gatorade, clothes and health kits.

Houston, along with Baton Rouge, La. and Mobile, Ala., has become a center for IOCC operations where staff from its Emergency Response Network is coordinating aid to survivors of the disaster.

The IOCC Emergency Response Center in Houston is hosted by St. George Antiochian Church, which is providing office, storage space, and accommodations for the IOCC staff.

IOCC’s emergency response network, comprised of trained Orthodox clergy and their U.S. parish communities, provides emergency services to people struggling to recover from natural or man-made disasters.

Contributions to IOCC’s Hurricane Disaster Response Fund may be sent to IOCC, “Hurricane Relief,” P.O. Box 630225, Baltimore, MD 21263-0225. Donations may also be made online at www.iocc.org or by calling toll-free 1-877-803-IOCC (4622).

Founded in 1992, IOCC is the official humanitarian aid agency of the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA).