People make me angry. Maybe I should say some people make me angry. VERY angry! But I’m not self-righteous enough to sit here thinking I am never guilty of the very same behavior which pisses me off in others — I know I do. Believe me, I chastise myself, too. My daughter and I have an agreement that when one or both of us is complaining about something utterly stupid, shallow, superficial and/or greedy and are being completely short-sighted, we say, “You know, some people don’t even HAVE ‘fill in the blank’“. We remind each other about how blessed we really are.

So what’s got my panties in such a bunch right now? Well, people like Linda Bollea, who has the nerve to announce to the press, as if it’s breaking news, that she wants her soon-to-be ex Hulk Hogan jailed because — now get this — he hasn’t paid his share into the purchase of a 4.2 million dollar condo in Vegas! WTF??? There are people DYING in this country and losing everything they own due to floods, tornadoes and heat waves, and she’s pissed because he hasn’t kicked in his 2.1 million bucks! Oh no, what a freaking tragedy! NOT! There are men and women being killed in Iraq and families living on the streets right here in the good ol’ USA, and SHE wants her condo! Well heaven forbid Linda shouldn’t get her condo in frickin’ Vegas! Stop the presses, people, this is BIG news! Hulk hasn’t shelled out his promised amount of money to his skanky wife who is now dating a NINETEEN YEAR OLD! I say good on’ya, Hulk!

Linda, get over yourself already. We don’t care!

Hulk Hogan, Terry Bollea, Linda Bollea

In Durango (here in Colorado), police are telling a liquor store owner to give shoplifters the boot, the shoe, and any other footwear he’s acquired from shoplifters.

You see, Gabe Fidanque was tired of losing $1,000 worth of merchandise every month, so he started telling shoplifters he caught in the act of stealing from him that they had two choices: Give him one of their shoes or he’d call the police.

Well, a handful of them gave up a shoe. But Durango police have told Fidanque to stop the practice, or he could find himself facing felony robbery charges.

Felony robbery charges???? Yep, felony charges for taking footwear from the people who were blatantly stealing from HIM! Shoplifting, in contrast, is a misdemeanor. Now what kind of twisted logic is that? A person stealing from a hard-working, honest person is charged with a misdemeanor, while said hard-working, honest person is charged with a felony for making them leave their shoe! Unbelievable.

Authorities ordered Fidanque to return the shoes to their owners - if he can find them. He says his method of keeping shoplifters out was working, because people were too humiliated to return and ask for their shoe back. Frankly, I don’t see the problem.

Durango, Colorado Law, Shoplifting

Did you see where Wesley Snipes was sentenced to 3 years in prison for three misdemeanor counts of failing to file tax returns? Yeah, that was the maximum requested by federal prosecutors.

Now, I have a problem with that. You know why? Because you can hurt a child in this country and walk away with probation or eighteen months in jail, but OMG, commit a crime which involves money and you’ll get the book thrown at you! I see it happen time and time again, and it really makes me sick! Am I the only one who thinks the priorities here are more than a little skewed?? God forbid we should commit a crime against the almighty dollar! But yeah, get charged with simple assault or drive drunk and you’ll be out in no time! Where’s the logic? Where’s the justice???

CNN, Wesley Snipes Sentenced, Justice

I read something extremely troubling in our local newspaper a couple of days ago, and decided it was definitely something I should share with all of you.

A young girl of only 13 years died very suddenly last week. She lived in Guam with her family, but had previously resided in Colorado, as well as Missouri, Texas, Virginia, Connecticut and Georgia. She has family who live here where I do, which is why her obituary appeared in our newspaper.

I am always deeply, deeply saddened when I read of a youngster’s death, as I’m sure you are, as well. As anyone would, I wondered why this tragedy occurred. I thought perhaps it had been a car accident or she had been ill, but then at the very bottom of the obituary I saw a link to a web site where one can make a donation in her memory. The site is called The DB Foundation. In case you’re wondering, the “DB” in the title stands for “Dangerous Behaviors”. It is a web site entirely dedicated to Dangerous Adolescent Behavior Education. The page to which the link I clicked in her obit took me was entitled “Choking Game ~ Pass Out Game ~ Fainting Game ~ Black Out”. You can immediately deduce from the title what this poor girl’s cause of death was. I continued reading the page and became really scared by what I was reading:

Unaware of the risks - Kids think The Choking Game is ’safe’ and have been heard saying “It’s just passing out! Noone ever dies from Passing out.”

Only 25% of parents know about The Choking Game - 75% of children DO

I had no idea. Not that the game existed, but that kids die from it. I was immediately taken back to my elementary school days when the newest “cool” thing to do was to make yourself pass out. And believe me, guys, that was a long time ago! Evidently this thing has been around for quite some time. Even back then it seemed like everyone was doing it. So, one day after school I went across the street to the park with some of my friends, and we watched as some other kids did this cool new “thing”. I’m not going to describe here the manner in which it was done, even though I know what they were doing was significantly different than how and why it’s done today, but it had the same dangerous result. I don’t want any other kid to be as stupid as we were. Yes, “we”. I was stupid enough to actually do it. I made myself pass out, and I hit the ground HARD. When I came to, I didn’t immediately realize what was going on or where I was, but when I regained my senses I realized very quickly that what I had done was enormously reckless and stupid. I never did it again. I had no idea until I visited the web site listed in that poor girl’s obituary that children die all the time from this activity. It sent chills down my spine.

I immediately felt compelled to blog about this activity and its dangers so that we, as parents, can open up a dialog with our kids about it and let them know how very dangerous it is. I know for a fact that when we were doing it all those many years ago, parents had NO idea it was going on. And keep in mind that we were doing it directly across the street from the school, right out in the open! Not ONE person said anything to us about it or even asked what we were doing! I feel very stupid for having done it, but also very lucky for not having had anything bad happen to me as a result of that stupidity. Mostly, though, I feel an urgency to get the word out there into the world — yes, it’s definitely a global thing, considering she died in Guam — so that no other innocent young people tragically die from an activity they think is fun and cool and simply the “new thing” to do.

Please, talk to your kids. Tell them to talk to their friends. Blog about it. Tell your friends and fellow parents and tell them to tell their friends. You could be saving someone’s life!

Choking Game, Pass Out Game, Fainting Game, Black Out Game, The DB Foundation

What do you think about women who have breast enlargement surgery done? Have you had it done? Would you have it done if you could? I’m not entirely sure how I feel about it. I can see both sides, so to speak. ;)

If I were a woman who was extremely flat-chested, I would definitely have breast augmentation done. It’s a self-esteem issue, right? Sort of. Some would ask why we women allow our breasts to define our sense of self-worth. To those people — mostly men — I’d ask why you let your penis define your sense of masculinity! There are, of course, women who ask that question, too, but more times than not they have no need for breast enlargement themselves. Everyone needs to walk a mile in those shoes before judging, you know?

I do think, however, if a woman is going to have it done simply because she doesn’t think she has anything else to offer, then she should probably seek counseling, not a cosmetic surgeon. And speaking of surgeons, I think we all know we should find a board-certified surgeon with excellent credentials and references, right? There’s a place in the U.K. called Make Yourself Amazing, which has some of the most experienced surgeons in the world performing Breast Enlargement surgery. Not that many of us can hop a plane for the U.K., but I have wondered about other countries and what they have to offer. It’s interesting, don’t you agree? And just think, all it entails is two small incisions and an overnight stay in the hospital. One week later your stitches are removed and you’re back at work!

Look, I believe we’re all born amazing, but the fact is that the world and society put so much emphasis on the human form and what they say it should look like, that many women are left feeling pretty cheated and rather embarrassed. There aren’t many of us who can truthfully say we aren’t the least bit vain, right? If it makes a person feel better about how they look in clothes — and out of them — then why not go for it?

What do you think?

Make Yourself Amazing, Breast Enlargement