WHAT A CHEESY CHRISTMAS!

Everyone else has a merry Christmas but ours this year was very cheesy, not that that’s a bad thing.  Actually it was wonderful. When our family gets together it always includes a variety of food products in which everyone indulges themselves, from the 80 year olds on down.

What made this year different was the box of gourmet cheeses sent for all of us to enjoy from granddaughter, Victoria and our favorite non-family member, Kevin. Everyone was here when it arrived. About six varieties were unwrapped, crackers and cheese knives were laid out and everyone started to eat.

Everyone was saying you have to try this one or that one. Even the grandchildren were exclaiming how good each kind was. Our sixteen year-old grandson asked me if I had tried the bleu cheese, which I had already decided it was the best I’d ever eaten.

The box arrived on Christmas Eve, on Christmas day, we all gathered again for brunch and a goodbye to the travelers. We sat on our daughter’s screened porch and once again devoured what cheese was left.

All this goes to show that while our family is not into gourmet food, we can certainly tell the difference and appreciate it when served.

Hope your Christmas was as merry as ours.

 

WHERE IS A RESPONSE FROM LAW ENFORCEMENT?

After the horrific murders of students and teachers, I’ve waited for a response from law enforcement about the number of guns owned by citizens who feel they need protection from bad people by buying assault weapons.

Years ago, police and sheriffs were quoted in newspapers and television about their concern with private citizens owning body piercing ammunition which had killed many officers, yet I’ve not seen one outcry from them in today’s media. Is the NRA so powerful that Police Chiefs or elected Sheriffs can no longer speak about gun control?

WHEN ARE THE CITIZENS OF FLORIDA GOING TO BECOME OUTRAGED?

At a recent meeting, a member of our local NRA bragged that by the end of this year there would be one million people registered to carry concealed weapons. Last week the NRA announced their goal was reached. This particular gun dealer also has been pushing for students at our local community college to be given the right to carry arms on their campus as well as in their classrooms.

Congratulations to the NRA, you succeeded once again in making our state first in another category along with the “stand your ground law”. Congratulations are also in order for our state legislature for their efforts to protect special interest groups, give raises to their favorite employees and deny raises for six years to public servants such as teachers.

BONDI BLASTS HEALTH LAW

The day Pam Bondi was sworn in as Florida’s Attorney General it was obvious she had another office in mind before she even started her elected duties. She started at that time to speak in ”HEADLINEese” and I couldn’t figure out exactly what she had in mind. Was she already planning on being our next Governor or Senator? Whatever it was, look for more headlines in boldface whenever her name is mentioned.

Just what Florida needs, another self-promoting polititian.

(This is a copy of the letter to the Tampa Bay Times as result of her latest headline "Bondi blasts health law". I almost wrote "Blondi" by mistake which you'll understand because she's extremely blond which can't hurt her chances with the NRA people who love having her at their rallys.) 

HAPPY TURKEY DAY

Our Thanksgiving Day was a very happy day for just five family members because so many were gone spending time with others, but they’ll be around for our Christmas get-together.

What made the day special was spending the time with our oldest grandson. His mother, aunt and we grandparents learned about his new job which started several weeks ago. We had no idea what it entailed and were astounded to find that is exactly what he has been striving for since his discharge from the Marine Corps. He happily said he expects to stay in this job for the next 30 years doing what he loves and it includes great benefits, too.  

I, unfortunately, couldn’t remember last year’s dinner which included just the four of us, but this year will stand out for me and my husband. Listening to our grandson cheerfully explain what he is doing while eating an outstanding meal makes for a really Happy Thanksgiving.

HOW POOR MEMORIES HELP THE ETHICALLY CHALLENGED

In Florida people tend to forget about ethical miss-steps by the state Republican politicians. We have a governor who cheated Medicare of millions when he was the head of a health organization. Although this came out in his campaign, the Republicans refused to take his cheating into consideration when they voted for him. We received a letter from a friend refuting all of that nonsense and informing us of how wonderful a man he was.

Floridians now have a front runner for the 2016 Presidential election who has an ethical problem himself. In case you never heard, Marco Rubio used his Republican credit card for personal matters, such as paying cleaning bills, getting new tires for his car along with other things. Of course it was all a misunderstanding and he asked that the Republican members of the ethics committee clear him of any misdoing. He refunded the money to the Party and now has a clean slate and is beloved by the losers of the past presidential election.

In case you haven’t noticed, we have a lot of state politicians about whom I’ve written before who are ethically challenged. I think the voters are now receiving that message and we’ll see what happens in the next few years.

ANOTHER MAN’S OPINION

While at a social function, I asked an Englishman a question about politics in his country. He rudely said that “my friend” Tony Blair was a crook who made millions while in office and is still stealing from the people. He ranted that all politicians are crooks!!!

I asked him how he votes at home. He said he never votes!!

This was basically our entire conversation.