I missed it.  The one year mark for this little blog came and went last month. Or so.  I may have lost some old posts when I moved from blogger to my current home.

Apparently, it started with a post about shoes.  Quite appropriate.  In fact, I’m wearing those fantastic orange boots today.  So I suppose I am celebrating by belated blogiversary in some way.  Apparently I was bitching about Obama and his Robin Hood schemes back then too.  I guess not much has changed.

That’s not so true.  Life really is better now than it was a year ago.  I started the blog for no reason other than to share the randomness that goes on inside my brain.  Due to events beyond my perception, it quickly became a place for me to dump some rather raw emotions.  And you people stayed.  You commented.  You prayed for me and my family.  I have to say that is really amazing.  I had no idea that a virtual support system could mean so much.

On Saturday, October 11th, Granddad will have been gone for a year.  I can’t believe it has been so long.  Thank you friends, in both the real and digital world, for seeing me through it.

I just feel so relieved that our government keepers bailed out Wall Street.  Suddenly confidence is restored and stocks are climbing again.

Oh wait.

That didn’t happen.  Instead the Dow plunged 800 points.  Gee thanks.  Great return on my investment.  Shocking that investors around the world feel less than confident investing in a market that has been artificially propped up with blood from already anemic taxpayers.

The government has no white horse to ride in on and save the day.  Banks will continue to fail and cash from the bailout will dissappear into the black hole they have created.  Thanks for that too.

I’m thinking that lead may be the safe investment for now.  At least it has some value.

Please go and visit my recent review of a JCPenney shopping trip

Shopping With Other People’s Money

Otherwise known as Things You Already Know If You’ve Perused My Archives

or One Way Not To Win Friends and Influence Oklahomans

or possibly The Post That Alienates People I Really Do Like

I hate football.  That’s not exactly right.  It’s fine, really.  I don’t mind that it exists.  As long as it exists in a realm separate from me. I don’t even mind other people think it’s great.  There are people that I love and respect deeply that for reasons beyond my comprehension love it.  But that glazed over look you get when you start talking about ‘the game’ is my coping technique that keeps me from gouging out my eyes with the nearest blunt object.

Some of my favorite blogs even contain sport-centric posts this time of year.  Don’t you people understand that I’m trying to read these things at work?!  The catatonic stare could get me caught you know.  People might even notice the drool.  It’s very difficult to manage people from my happy place.

And then I get an email invitation to a tailgate party.  Complete with the NASCAR RV.  It starts out “If you like colder weather, football, tailgating……”  Sure!  I’m so there.  Right after I strip naked and roll in the rose bushes.  We’ve all got priorities.

And these people that I love and care about are saying, “But Jen, you’re a conservative!  You’re from the heartland.  You went to a state college.  You like guns.  You’re from a town inhabited by more cows than people.  You participated in a pig calling competiton in elementary school for crying out loud!”

Yes, it’s all true.  And yet, I’ve never tuned into the appeal of large sweaty men chasing a ball and throwing themselves on top of one another.  I’ve tried.  I went to my high school’s home games.  I watched while the corn fed farm boys threw around the pansy kids from that other school.  I was the one that sang the national anthem to start the game.  It’s just not worth freezing my butt to an aluminum bench even if the band kids snuck in beer.

If you’re one of those fans and you’ve made it this far, I applaud you.  I do not have the capacity to focus this far into a game recap.  Really, the hat I don’t wear is off to you.  And if you did, you’re probably one of those people that I love and respect and maybe even have shopped with.  And now you’re going to flame me.   I look forward to it because I know you are far more eloquent and educated than my usual flamers and assume that you will not suggest I off myself.  It should be fun.

I could use something a little lighter.  You?

This is the weirdest thing I’ve seen in a while.

Chessboxing.  No, I did not make it up.  Here is how they describe it.

The basic idea in chessboxing is to combine the #1 thinking sport and the #1 fighting sport into a hybrid that demands the most of its competitors – both mentally and physically.

This definitely makes my list of things I never thought would happen.