A sad 24 hours...

By now everyone has heard the news of those that left us in the last 24 hours. We've listened to news, read many many peoples' facebook posts (mine included) and blogged about it. All that are old enough to remember them, at least feel that there is a sense of loss for three people that were pretty special in their day, and into today.

I heard about Farrah from my sister's FB comment. We all expected that to be sooner vs. later, as we at least knew she'd taken a turn for the worse, even after her documentary aired last month. She only stayed on Charlie's Angles for 1 season, but that was enough to get her into the hearts of millions... that and the poster that every boy over the age of 12 had in the 70s. However, as good as she was playing the part she was hired to play for that series, she was never better than in the movie The Burning Bed. I didn't think she'd ever have it in her for a part like that, but she played that brilliantly.

Ed McMahon will likely be the lesser known to a lot of people today, but with as funny as Johnny Carson was, I enjoyed the parts of his show that had Ed in them. The two of them were great together.

Michael Jackson is just a huge loss though. I know he got fairly strange later in life, but it is still amazing how great he was and how great of an impact he made in the music world from such a young age. I loved him singing when he was very little all the way up to when he stopped making music. The most unfortunate thing is that his behavior in the latter part of his life will overshadow that brilliance to many of the younger crowd that didn't know him before his unfortunate change. I only wish they would have had a chance to know more than just that side to realize what a loss it is for him to have died too. My nephew said it best on his FB update tonight when he commented the following...

"farrah fawsett and micheal jackson...same day! if you call yourself a man or a music lover,today is a sad day."

I couldn't have said it better Brian... thanks for the right words. Brian is way younger than I am, but he gets it.

It would be really nice to see these people honored for what they accomplished and maybe not picked apart so much now that they're no longer with us.

May they all rest in peace....

Happy Fathers Day Dad

I almost made it through my first Fathers Day in 9 years without tears. But then Tim mentioned my Dad to me, and well, so much for that. Now don't get me wrong, no tears certainly didn't mean he wasn't thought of. There's not a day that goes by that I don't think of him in one context or another. I said my Happy Father's Day to him last night when I got in bed, and again first thing this morning. But this year, I did that small task without the tears. Maybe that's a good sign, or maybe the every day thoughts have started removing just a small piece of sadness.

You see, the every day thoughts are no longer about the same types of things. They aren't always consumed with thoughts of wishing he were here to see the girls do this or that, or knowing how proud he'd be of them for everything they do, or worrying that my girls didn't get enough time with him so that they'd remember him the way I do, or wondering how he thought I was doing as a mother. They also aren't around worrying about his illness. I no longer linger on those things quite as much as I used to. I believe that he knows how well they've turned out and yes, how proud he'd be. That is never a question in my mind any more. I'm relieved that he no longer has pain in his life every day. So for those things, maybe I have been able to move on. It's not that I never think those thoughts at all, but I don't think of them as often as I used to.

Now, I think of Dad in the every day things like what's happening in the news and what he'd say about situations when we'd watch together. I think about him and reminisce every time I watched a Celtics game this year (although they could have used his help a bit more during the playoffs). Maybe he was too busy in heaven arguing with Aunt Betty and Uncle Bud about the Eagles vs. the Bills to remember it was Basketball season. I think of him when my kids tell stories because they tell them just like he did... with excruciating detail that we really didn't need to know (:-) But, when I think of those kinds of things now, it's with smiles and not tears. The memories of happy times vs. sad times have started to play out more. Maybe I'm slow, but nine years later, it's comforting to know that when he enters my thoughts, the tears are more happy than sad. He was the greatest... so once again Happy Fathers Day to the BEST DAD EVER!!!!!

Jon Stewart/Mike Huckabee interview

I watched the Daily Show last night and Mike Huckabee was the guest. For full disclosure, I like Mike. I would love to get a bite to eat with him and chat, but never believed he was a viable Presidential candidate... but that doesn't play into this. My point isn't even about him specifically. But the topic he chose to talk about last night which was Pro-Life, which immediately went to Abortion. And that is the point of this post. Why when people speak of pro-life, does it only apply to abortion? I know I've mentioned this before in my posts, but watching the interview on line to see all parts of it, brought it back into my mind yet again. For all three parts of the interview, go here

During the interview, I found myself wanting Jon to ask my question. There were many opportunities for it to be the "next question". Mike was explaining how every life no matter what is valuable... that no one can say one life is better than another, etc. And I completely agree with that. However, it's at that point in every one of these interviews with pro-life people, that I want the interviewer to ask what their views are about the death penalty. And yet... no one ever goes there. Why is that? In fact, my daughter was watching with me who is extremely Christian in her values and she doesn't get why no one asks either.

I want pro-life folks (and yes I mean the extreme pro-lifers that try to ruin otherwise intelligent conversations on the topic) to explain to me if they are so pro-life, why are the majority of them also so pro-death penalty. The more extreme they are on the pro-life agenda for abortion, the more extreme they seem to be on being pro-death penalty and that just doesn't add up to me. If every life is really that important and no one should be able to determine one has more value than another, how can they then do that very same thing when it comes to putting someone to death. It's a bit of a contradiction that they won't ever own up to.

Jon Stewart did an excellent job of explaining how difficult this topic is for people and that he believes that more people need to learn to come together to understand each side. That pro-choice people are NOT pro-abortion and don't even necessarily like the notion of abortion at all. It's more that they don't like the notion of a government taking away their rights to their own bodies. He is a father that happens to be for life, but a person that is for choice. I completely get that. I completely believe that no one will ever change someones mind on this subject at all. You can firmly stand on the choice or no-choice side, but that doesn't mean that you are pro-abortion. However I think if you claim to stand on the absolute side of pro-life, you MUST stand on it completely or be labeled a hypocrite if you are also pro-death penalty.

If you can't separate those two things, then stop touting the pro-life label and maybe change it to strictly pro-fetus.

Another disclaimer... I would never have an abortion myself... don't believe in it personally, but yes, I do feel that should be my decision, not the governments. I will answer to my decisions at a later point, and to someone much more important than anyone in my government.

This is the sweetest thing ever. Have to watch to the end...