Most Commented Family Blogs (545)

I'm not a football fan (I was when my son played though) but I come from a strong football loving family. Mom, Dad and my baby sister have long held season tickets. Of course Mom and Dad had to give theirs up when old age started stripping life from them.

Tampa's team is the Buccaneers and Tampa is hosting the Super Bowl. Ironically the Buccaneers are playing in the Bowl. The Bucks color is orange. I will always have the memory of anytime I visited my folks they would always be dressed a like in supporting the Bucks on TV.

I don't know how long football has been going on but my folks were at the start . Last week when the Bucks played in the playoffs they watched it together, Mom watched from home with the phone and Dad with his phone in his hospital home. One with their mind, one with a wandering mind but both experienced some joy or happiness during that short span of time. I'm sure today will be special for them.

Today is Super Bowl - I only get excited about the commercials. I bet my family is going to have a specially fun day and if the Bucs win - not only my family but this whole town is going to be Mardi Gras HAPPY.

I just may throw myself a tailgate party while I watch a movie during the bowl.

The global meltdown of 2007 to 2011 (Part 4, my saga as a cancer survivor)

Just when you think you're on top of the world, you're life comes crushing down with so high a voltage you'd feel better off without surviving it.

That's exactly how I felt when right about 2007, January to be exact, we were trying to sell the house that we bought two years before and couldn't fetch a single offer considering how it's located in one of the best area in Sonoma County. Located on a street that's not busy and with a view of the city, it was a very surprising discovery. Unlike in 2005 when we sold our house that I had it built to my specs including the quality of the carpet and my walked in closet, people were actually waiting on the lawn to make a bid just to be the next owner. Surprisingly, we sold it way more than what we expected. Even though it's location is of prime value, very near St. Eugene's where we belong amongst other 6,000 parishioners and where my son attends, we had to sell it because we needed a bigger house for my growing lovely children. Time changed and the economic downturn of the US was deeply felt especially by me when we couldn't get any offer on this house in 2007.

To get the story short, my husband and I felt the first wave of this global downturn right off the bat. It didn't feel too grievous and we thought it'd be temporary. Our family situation was changed dramatically the year before as my husband and I decided that one of us must stop working in order to continue and maintain our children's much needed guidance. We both agreed that I'd be full time since I was making a bit more than him and my job didn't require us to relocate to the West Coast where he was working as an engineer at the well known and historical Granite Rock in Aromas.

For lack of hindsight, we never foresee that the world was in the brink of another economic fall out akin to that of 1939.

Compounded by my relentless desire to provide my children a very ideal school and growing environment, I failed to see that our family that was solid rock both professionally and economically will soon to collapse. It did. Although we lost almost 60 grand, we were able to sell it and moved on. It caused a lot of dent on my 401k but survived.

Through the invitation of my niece we moved to Bakersfield. We could buy a house in a gated community twice the size of that from the North Bay and half the mortgage. We were happy . Sold BMWs while my husband worked again and was offered a better position and quite paid better than his last job. Lo and behold, we'll soon find out our situation got worse because the house we just bought of 300 hundred grand became half of the value by 2009. Devastated and angry. Bitterly regretful and helpless, we got divorced. A most painful experience. The acceptance of what to be salvaged is far worse than to end it all. At least that's how I felt but it didn't dwell on me that long. I found inspiration on the fact that my children are so grown up and my only son seems out of the danger of being hauled into the road of drugs and other dangerous vices. I found solace in being single and committed to make my life better in spite of the adversaries the whole world was experiencing. I resorted into writing poems about my life from when I was young to the present. The internet played a great role on this new venture. I joined in the web and found solace on writing all my frustrations, disappointments and failures. I was beginning to see how my life was profoundly changing and I needed to be stronger than I ever was. Especially now that my cancer came back. That was in October of 2010.

To be continued. Thanks all for reading.

Note: my personal blog

I posted a Love is thread in the Forums, as the thread went on, I made a post that I feel all could benefit from...I have been here off and on since 2009, and have never one time posted a Blog, But I felt Inspired to make this one post over here in the Blogs...

So this post was copied and pasted from the Forums..

Love is avoiding anyone who brings you down, But not someone who uplifts your Spirit..

Right now as this Coronavirus has effects on the Whole World, I cannot think of a better time for us all to be showing Love, and Compassion towards our Fellow Brothers, and Sisters all over the World, Just because You/ We, live in another Country, or Continent, We are Still all Human, We are all Created Equally, we all need Love, and Compassion...whether red, yellow, black or white, we are all Human, We all have a heart and Soul....we all have to eat, drink and sleep....Just Because I live in America, Our Forefathers only moved here from Germany, Spain, Sweden, England and numerous other Countries....Because of a new discovery of America...and most moved to avoid Wars within those Countries...Some way or another, we are all related, we need to become one, NUMEROUS People are Stressed by Numerous Situations. All the fighting, bickering is not accomplishing anything but more stress.. That is NOT Love...Their are Numerous Songs that Describe this situation...

Change has to start somewhere People, It may as well be right here...If you have any Songs that describe Coming together, Please feel free to play them...any comments, or suggestions that bring Love, and Positivity, Please Post... teddybear

Many times when we hear a song, we even sing along, but do we actually ABSORB that song? The Deep Meaning of it, take those words to heart, and Grow from them? Afterall, they are sending a Message... but so few put them into action...bouquet

Please Watch and absorb this Video....(Over 37 Million Views)

Two weeks ago I was installing pendant lights and this past weekend I was designing a brick faced wall unit. My daughter decided she wanted a fireplace built-out wall unit. She found a local company who had photos on their site but needed my help for placement in the family room.
She an my son-in-law are busy decorating the house they recently moved to and now that the sectional furniture arrived a buffet unit was purchased. Unhappy with the TV being mounted to an empty wall the brick wall unit became an item of interest.
Someone used a design program for the sofa and placement of the wall unit was equally spaced on the back wall. However, it pushed the sofa so close to the side in interfered with the sliding door access.
Measuring tape and pieces of paper represented the locations of the item to be built. I strongly disagreed the unit should be centered. "No, it doesn't fit the room" said I.
The answer was 'yes' that all the sofa components were modular and re-configuring the layout was possible. So, we moved one piece and magically... the sofa fit and so did the wall unit in the location I suggested.
It was late and I packed my laptop. Everyone was delighted I found the design solution to her wall unit.
On the way home I got some Pollo Tropical Cuban style grilled chicken and had a mini-feast!

HOLLAND:
Jonathan Jacob Meijer, 41 a sperm donor who has fathered 550 children is being taken to court and sued over accusations his frequent donations are increasing the threat of accidental incest.
11:40 AM · Mar 28, 2023

A Dutch non-profit is suing a sperm donator, who has fathered 550 children, for increasing the risk of incest.

The Donorkind Foundation, a Dutch non-profit which reunites donor children with their birth parents, is bringing the suit against 41-year-old Jonathan Jacob Meijer, accusing him of lying about the number of children he has fathered, according to Yahoo News.

The suit asks the court to stop Meijer from donating sperm and destroy all his remaining semen samples, except for those reserved for women who have already had one of his children and want a genetic sibling, reported El Pais English. Dutch guidelines say donors should limit their contributions to a maximum of 25 children, or 12 women inseminated, according to Donorkind.

Donorkind is bringing the suit on behalf of the mother of one of Meijer’s children, identified only as Eva, who birthed the child in 2018. She said “If I had known he had already fathered more than 100 children I would never have chosen him. If I think about the consequences this could have for my child I am sick to my stomach,” Yahoo reports.

Meijer has been blacklisted from Dutch sperm banks since 2017, but still donates to multiple sperm banks worldwide including in places like Denmark and Ukraine, according to Yahoo. Yahoo also reports that Meijer, who now lives in Kenya, solicits prospective parents and sometimes uses the pseudonym ‘Rudd’ when making donations.

Meijer first came to light when Dutch gynecologists’ association NVOG alerted the public to his prolific donation rate in 2017, after it was revealed he had already fathered at least 102 children, according to MSN.

Its a new one on me
but its what I'm just after hearing on the radio.

The idea behind it is share and express your gratitude of them, how they are or once were ...
or so me thinks

Given both of my grand mothers were stern witches....
and both my grand fathers had the view " children were meant to be seen and not heard" at the moment I can't think of anything nice to say, so perhaps its best I leave the comments up to you...
that is, if any at all.

Anyways, to our grand parents
hopefully I'll make a better one, then the ones I had.

Munching down with Family. As usual, way too much food. The world has enough, just a matter of wastage and proper distribution, and conflict making it all harder that it needs to be. Aa.

Important for many, especially if they are grounded and fun. But many of us have few close family. You see all sorts of preferences for characteristics here in searching for a partner. But how about their having a large, loving, fun, grounded, supportive family,..... perhaps to share with some who have few or none? A form of adoption? It does happen. Aa.

My step-dad's adopted younger sister is deaf. She came to my mom's coffee shop to help out during Chinese New Year when we needed a lot of help to cope with the madness!

Her husband, who is deaf too, came along together with their teenage son who is of normal hearing. I initially communicated with her son of the things to do around so that he could pass on the information to his parents. When it got busy I had no time to tell the son anything and tried signing to the mom and dad myself!

I got so flustered that we all ended up giggling!!!


Here's a heartwarming video I'd love to share....




Lukeon

Daniela, I allow comments on my blog this time around

starting to lean threateningly toward the Ponderosa Mansion here. 40 or so meters tall. Took it down in pieces, with much regret, as I normally spend my time hugging the big girls. (Hugging big girls, now there's a thought) Like a sniper, have had this old girl in the crosshairs for some time. She served us well, as a location for various antennas, a tire swing when the twins were younger, for shade, and just for her beauty. Will also help this winter in the wood stove, after she's in little pieces and has a chance to dry out. But the writing was on the wall. Even though she still had a few large greening branches up top in the sky, and again this season was producing those wierd other worldly Gymnosperm "ersatz flowers", that become pine cones, most of the lower ones were drying and falling, also a threat to wires. (and to passers by). But how sad was the process. After taking down the top ten feet or so, she began to exude that wonderful smelling sticky pine sap, methinks in panic, as part of some ancient evolved protective strategy---traps for invaiding borring beetles, bandages after wind or lightning damage? Is it dumm to tear up not a little over all this? Aa.