Cappy's Corner

THE HOME-SCHOOLING DEBATE

How can we not be a part of our children's education? The public school system finds ways to involve us, by assigning children science projects before they can spell the word science. Guess who has to do the work. Hours and hours are spent on homework, what are the kids doing all those hours during the day. My grandchildren learned to read at home, thank goodness, who knows when they would have learned in public school.

I hear so many people say I don't have time, I don't have the ability. If they look at the work they do with their children after school that's enough time to school them. The teachers today have their hands tied. They are so busy teaching the kids to pass tests that are motivated by politics and budgets. The funny thing about these tests are if the kids fail they are not promoted, but if they pass the kids don't get a grade or credit for all their work. Does this sound right to you? Is this preparing our children for the future, I am getting old enough to know that the children are our future. What are we looking ahead towards, cuts in the salaries of the teachers who are responsible for making our new law makers, dentists, vets, judges and perhaps even a president. It's time to step up to the plate and be the Teacher of your children, look at it this way, your already doing it. Now you can teach them what is important without wasting their time, they will have more time to explore, create and invent.

4 comments | Posted in » Fun or Disfunction, Politics  

GETTING OLD

My sister June mailed this to me, I wish I knew the author, I would give credit where credit is due.

I am now, probably for the first time in my life, the person I have always wanted to be. Oh, not my body! I sometimes despair over my body, the wrinkles, the baggy eyes, and the sagging butt. And often I am taken aback by that old person that lives in my mirror (who looks like my mother!), but I don't agonize over those things for long.
I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly. As I've aged, I've become more kind to myself, and less critical of myself. I've become my own friend.
I don't chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn't need, but looks so avante garde on my patio. I am entitled to a treat, to be messy, to be extravagant.
I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging.
Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 AM and sleep until noon?
I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60&70's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love .. I will.
I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set . They, too, will get old.
I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten. And I eventually remember the important things.
Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when some body's beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.
I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turning gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face. So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn silver.
As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other people think. I don't question myself anymore. I've even earned the right to be wrong.
So, to answer your question, I like being old. It has set me free. I like the person I have become. I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat dessert every single day. (If I feel like it)

MAY OUR FRIENDSHIP NEVER COME APART ESPECIALLY WHEN IT'S STRAIGHT FROM THE HEART! MAY YOU ALWAYS HAVE A RAINBOW OF SMILES ON YOUR FACE AND IN YOUR HEART FOREVER AND EVER!

3 comments | Posted in » Fun or Disfunction  

THE BUCKET LIST

Now this is a must see movie The Bucket List. I watched this movie the other night and it was certainly an eye opener. How many people go through life without enjoying the things they wish for. The acting was superb and the story was something everyone can relate to. I am going to make my own bucket list, of course I have pretty much experienced most of my list already. I have done so much in my life time I am not sure what is left to add. I have gotten to the point in the movie, where I realize what is really important in life. I hope that everyone gets a chance to see this movie, without giving away the ending it is a life changing movie. If I was going to rate this movie it would get 4 stars, that's because no body gets 5.

2 comments | Posted in » Movie Review  

6 STATES, 9 DAYS

Day 2

So here is Jeff inside the cave behind me. All the metal behind him is stairs that we took to get to the bottom. I am not sure the exact number, but it was somewhere around 3000 steps to get all the way down. I have lots of pics of rocks, which I have been told are just "rocks", so I will not bore you with those.

We had lunch in the RV when the tour was over. Then we started en route to Daniel Boone National Forest. We arrived at the campground and had dinner. We stayed up for a while and then down for the night.

Stay tuned for Day 3, coming soon!!!

1 comments | Posted in » Adventures, Fun or Disfunction, Photos, Travel Tails  

6 STATES, 9 DAYS

Day 1


Well the main question here is can it be done?? I can honestly say "yes, it can". I didn't think at any point that it couldn't, but I did think how much we would actually see in that time. Well proven wrong I was. We left on a 9 day journey through 6 states with 8 people. Maybe I should play those numbers...



So our journey starts off at around 4:30 pm on Friday the 30th of May. In tow are 5 kids and 3 adults. Along with everything we need for camping. Everyone is nestled in to their own spots, and we take off.



To start the trip was Jeff, we figured since he drove fire trucks he could handle this 30' RV. Just as we expected, no problems. Along the way the kids colored and played games. Not too long after, they all made their beds and went to sleep. We crossed the border of Florida and Georgia at 12:34 am. We were on our way through Atlanta to Alabama.


Jeff drove most of the night, until he could no more. Jason was next. Not as comfortable as Jeff, but he did good nevertheless. I slowly dazed off trusting that the guys knew what they were doing to get us where we were planning. During my nap we crossed into Alabama at 6:21 am. We then arrived in the Talladega National Forest. I awoke to the sun shining in the RV. It was absolutely the most beautiful thing I had seen. We were at the top of a mountain looking down.






Magnificent!!!! We took a few more pics and headed down the mountain to find something to do. We drove up and down through different mountains for about 30 minutes, until we come across a sign that looked like something to check out.



Lake Cheaha Park. It was soo cool. The lake was at the bottom of the mountains. It was beautiful. Since at this point no one had really eaten. We decided to park here, eat and play for a while. It was a quiet little place at the foothills of the mountains. The restroom and changing area was an old building made of stone. In the middle of the lake was a floating dive platform. Definitely a place to hang out for the day.



The kids decided very quickly that they were going to swim out to the platform and jump off the two story structure. The water was cold and there was no way that I was going with them. So off they went, Sam was first, he is brave. Shortly behind was Shy. It was real neat to watch them swim out there and jump off the platform.

They did this for hours. During the course of the day, I was taking all kinds of pictures. A particular butterfly caught my eye and I figured that I would try some macro shots. Well to my surprise, just as I gave up and sat down, the butterfly landed on me. It was amazing. It stayed on me for about a 1/2 hour. I got some amazing pics!!!

It was a great day, but it was starting to get late. We had to find camp.

2 comments | Posted in » Adventures, Animal Antics, Fun or Disfunction, Photos, Travel Tails  

GRADUATION DAY

2 comments | Posted in » Fun or Disfunction, Photos  

FATHERS DAY TRIBUTE

1 comments | Posted in » Fun or Disfunction, Photos  

RESUMPTION OF TURMOIL

I knew all this peace would end. I had no idea it would jump up in the middle of my sleep, like a nightmare. I expected the RV'ers to be here in the evening, not 3am. My best friend in the whole world, Shelah had set some surprises up for my kids. Monica, my lovely daughter has this thing about any object being close to the edge of the furniture. We can't even take Monica to a restaurant without her moving peoples water glasses off the edge, it drives her that crazy, almost as bad as clothing tags sticking out. Shelah and I went into Monica's room with the intention of putting up a birthday banner, in addition we put anything we could find, lamps, staple gun, animal cages, picture frames, pillows, everything was hanging over the edge. I couldn't wait to see her face when she walked into her room. I waited and finally she went in the room, I followed and waited for her reaction. Her eyes opened wide and she hardly got inside the room before she started moving everything back in its original place, she moved everything even things we didn't touch, the whole time she was laughing, mumbling Shelah's name under her breath.

Now wide awake, Jason, my son told me that I had to look at every picture he had taken of the trip. There must have been over 500 pictures, I heard the stories and the events. You think he could have waited for morning, oooops it is morning.


Shelah, Jeff and myself have a little prank for Jason, I went off to work leaving Jason sleeping on the couch. Finishing work for the day I head home to find Jason's car gone. I was wondering how long it had been since he left when the phone rang, I answered in a casual voice "hello" When I heard my sons surprised voice, "I hoped to come home to a nice clean house like I left it!", he shouted. As we were talking on the phone I could hear bottles clinking then Jason saying "shit", he started to laugh as he was discovering more and more sneaky surprises. Condoms stuck on the mirrors, messages from Shelah written in lipstick on the mirrors, bathtub full of balloons, beer bottles all over the place, pictures of us doing things around his house, strategically placed, covering over the toilet, totem in his bed, with a smoke and a condom next to it, streamers, balloons and confetti everywhere. Jason couldn't help laughing since he is the King of pranks. I think everybody should have friends like Shelah, Jeff and especially a mom like me.

1 comments | Posted in » Fun or Disfunction  

FIRST TO PASS OUT AT A PARTY

What happened to me last night, after a couple of bottles of wine at my friends Shelah and Jeff, well we played in the pool, had a great time, I cant remember until I went to http://www.queeniesplace.com/ on my morning read and nearly had a heart-attach. I didn't think I got that drunk , but this is how I ended up click to see WARNING ADULT CONTENT

1 comments | Posted in » Fun or Disfunction  

IS SUMMER COMING?

In South Florida, we don't really have Summer and Winter, we have wet and dry. Which is perfect for my taste. I heard from a friend today who resides in Alaska, definitely my next vacation choice. Bruce sent me a photo of himself in the great outdoors and told me Winter is still holding... and I know for certain, this southerner is glad she lives here. My lawn mower would never get through that. Bruce how did you find your car to get to the store?

No Comment | Posted in » Fun or Disfunction, Photos  

BIRTHDAY'S TODAY

Who is on the birthday list for today, my group has a couple of birthdays. The first is my daughter, Monica. Who sometimes I think takes after me more and more. My gang is off RVing around the mountains, they plan on 5 states in 9 days. Good thing there are three drivers. I haven't heard from them except once, they must be busy. My son and daughter and the combined 5 kids, with of course my daughters special someone, this poor guy doesn't know what he's getting into. I am having a vacation myself, this house is just as quiet as a mouse, what am I thinking, with 9 cats running around and the dogs and all the others demanding my attention, who's kidding. Pets are just as bad as kids.
The other bird-day is my parrot Shela, she is 3 years old today, do I get her a cake, perhaps she would like some broccoli instead or maybe some figs.
Happy Birthday to all the other June 4th babies.
Tomorrow is another birthday, a little girl named Joan, she lives in Arusha, Tanzania in East Africa, she is 6 tomorrow. Joan is the daughter of our guide on Safari when I was visiting Africa a couple of years ago. I keep in touch with her dad and my good friend Gaddy, I call him the Town Maasi, that's another story.
I have so many stories to tell and adventures, as they come to my old brain and time permits I will forward them to you.

2 comments | Posted in » Fun or Disfunction, Photos  

WHAT I FOUND IN THE TRASH

Long ago when my daughter Monica was a very little girl, she asked a question that most kids ask "Where did I come from?" My mother was standing near and heard the question and she decided to give the answer to her first grandchild. My mother told her that she was found in a dumpster behind a Denny's, she told Monica we were going to get in the car that was parked behind the restaurant and heard crying. So we went over to where the sounds came from, a boost up and in the dumpster we looked. There she was a beautiful little baby girl. But there was something strange about her, she had a handle sticking out of her head. Well mom thought that is a great way to carry this little girl, we pulled the baby out of the dumpster by the handle. We named her Monica, cleaned and dressed her, grew her up as our own. As time went by the handle broke off. My mom said to Monica, feel the top of your head, there is a bump there where the handle broke off.

Monica was completely satisfied with the story, once in a while you would see her feeling the top of her head, remembering what my mom had told her. Time passed and she grew, we never told her that it wasn't true. When she got older she figured it out. It was fun while it lasted.

2 comments | Posted in » Fun or Disfunction, Question of the Month  

MONDAY MORNINGS

Seems like there will be a long week ahead. I am going to try to get my work done early today. I have quite a bit of work to do, I should get an early start but I am not a morning person. My animals are running all over the house and beginning the demands for food and attention. That will be the first thing on the agenda. I have two customers and then I may get a chance to eat before going to TaeKwonDo class, it will be my first time back in a couple of weeks, I am getting old and my knees seem to be the first thing to go.

3 comments | Posted in » Fun or Disfunction  

A DAY AT MY ZOO

I love animals, my problem is everyone knows it and thats how I have so many. Let me start with the dogs, I have 2 dogs, 9 cats, 2 ferrets, 3 parrots, my daughter has 2 rats and a bearded dragon.
Today was my day, to scrub and excersie the lot of them. The ferrets had their bath, the birds are easy, the cats, don't submit readily, but I always win. My Maltese (Bogart) is the worst, he doesn't know he is a fufu dog and gets into everything. What is in the yard always ends up in the livingroom by the end of each day. The fun part is all these animals play together. The ferrets and the parrots (except Cash the Cockatiel)are at the top of the chain. The Umbrella Cockatoo is my baby, I got her after a trip to Australia, her name is Shela, when I got her she hardly had feathers.
Can you imagine what I go through to leave town. I do have the best, I mean the best animal sitters in the world, that is besides me, it's my Queenie, my fabulous friend. My sister-law is always there when I need her too, Margo has been my best friend for over 35 years, I think I'll keep her.
I have to spend the whole afternoon at this chore. Every morning at my zoo it's feeding time. God forbid if I try to sleep in, my dogs both jump all over me until I let them out. The cats are meowing for food. The rest of the gang is calm. It takes me an hour and then off I go to work. I don't work weekends, unless it's on the boat. I can work on the water everyday without a problem. Before I go to bed at night the same ritual begins and in the middle of the day the caged animals have to come out to play. I can watch them for hours.
It is a great place for the kids to come and play, A local petting zoo.

1 comments | Posted in » Animal Antics, Fun or Disfunction  

Question of the Month

This months question is:

What is the best thing you ever found digging through the Trash?

Lets see what kind of trash you got. Go to the comments and see what we found and tell us what you found!

7 comments | Posted in » Question of the Month  

HOUSE SITTERS OR US

My son, daughter and all the children left Friday night to vacation via RV. I was asked by my son to go by and feed his kitties. Queenie and I first spent the afternoon at a Raw Food Lecture, which was so gripping I could hardly stay awake. After the lecture, which was really full of information, we headed to my sons house. Queenie brought her camera, since Jason (my son) is always the King of pranks, we thought we would take some photos of our little pranks. Defacing his counter tops and statues, invading his liquor cabinet, pantry and refrigerator. I can't wait until Queenie posts those pics. We should pick up a bunch of house sitting jobs. Jason will be gone for another week, I think we can come up with a whole bunch of good stuff. I would love to hear some suggestions. If you could comment them my way, Queenie and I will consider posting photos of your pranks.

2 comments | Posted in » Fun or Disfunction  

Public Schools are Failing

Even though it was a short week it seems so busy, same work to do but less time to do it in. This place is in turmoil, the family is heading out to vacation and the place is moving at a million miles an hour. It certainly seems like a lot work so everyone can relax. I am staying home to enjoy the peace and quiet. Let you know how friday works out, there is always some last minute drama to resolve.

I was talking to a friend today about what is happening to our Public Schools, the cuts of teachers pays and kids supplies and programs. It occured to me that the reason for the schools wasn't for the Superitendant to get a 45 thousand dollar bonus of have a giant staff of people that make six figures incomes. Correct me if I am wrong, but the purpose was to educate our children. Guess what, they are making the cuts at the wrong end of the spectrum. Start at the top, not the bottom. Our future is our children and the way it looks now, the kids today can hardly read. What is going on? Home School folks, you can do it in the time it takes you to do your part of the kids homework. They are wasting their time and our money.

1 comments | Posted in » Fun or Disfunction, Politics  

Memorial Day Weekend

What a great weekend with friends and family. My friend Shelah offered $5 to anyone of the kids playing in the pool who could answer the question "What Holiday are we Celebrating?" and "What is it about?" The first question all answered correctly our surprise came when not one of the dozen children playing could give us an answer. What it came down to was that the kids got a day off from school and not one of them actually knew why we were celebrating. It made me wonder what they are teaching them in school. I know that most of what my grandchildren learned was taught at home, the reason for all the homework they get is for us to teach them, because they are going to school for six hours a day and not coming home with nothing to began their future as our leaders. Let me say I can't blame teachers, they have far too many students and their hands are so tied with all the political testing that the ones lost are our children. Well Happy Memorial Day for those who know what it's all about. Embrace your freedom, for our children don't yet know what it is all about.

1 comments | Posted in » Fun or Disfunction  

DOING THE PEE PEE DANCE

No Comment | Posted in » Photos, Travel Tails  

CAT FISHING

This story is not what you think its about. A busy day around the house people coming and going things laying around. The day before we had been fishing and left one of the fishing rods that had got broken on the back patio, not thinking about anything, just getting it out of the way.

I continued to go through the patio playing with the new kittens and noticed that one of them didn't come over to me. I looked around the patio and there Simba was, his little body hanging from the fishing rod, only his back legs touching the ground. He was hooked, it wasn't horrible or anything like that, no blood or gore, it was a perfect lip hook. The hook went all the way through, there were kids everywhere that day, but none got to see. I yelled for my son to come here quickly and grab the wire snips. Jason stood looking at Simba with a hook through his lip, by then I was holding this tiny little guy in my hands. Jason cut the hook out and Simba went on to play with the others, no worse for wear. After that day Simba was renamed CatFish.

No Comment | Posted in » Animal Antics