WHACK WOMP WHACK

I've been burned before by people going door-to-door trying to scare up work.

Because of my husband's long-term involvement in law enforcement, I am painfully aware that it's one method of burglars use to check out a potential theft. And living in as remote an area as ours, it's been used around here before.

I had a friend of a friend of a friend who offered to build a horse shed for me; talked me into paying him half of the money in advance (to purchase supplies, in theory), and then disappeared with it. 

So when a couple of guys came around yesterday, offering to do whatever yard work or hauling stuff that I wanted done, I looked them over very carefully - skinny father-and-son pair, pronounced Southern accents, and both of them put together shorter and lighter than I am.

So I walked them around one acre or so around my house that is covered - no, saturated with weeds, Russian thistle, full-blown tumbleweeds, obscure Arizona grasses and various cacti - enough that it's waist-high and solid enough that you can't see the ground.

When they didn't run screaming away, and offered me a pretty reasonable price for clearing everything out from the house out about 10 meters, I had them come back.



And made VERY certain that I didn't pay them until the job was complete and done to my satisfaction.

It was nice to have all my suspicions NOT confirmed.

DID SOMEONE NOTICE?

A couple of things have really cheered me up.

The other evening I came across a Pinterest board concerning mental illnesses, and since I deal with depression a LOT (my husband seriously depressed, even when on meds - my second daughter depressed, even when on SERIOUS meds - my son depressed, and not taking ANY meds for it), I started my own board about depression, and began pinnning various things about it, suicide, assistance, NAMI, etc.

And my other daughter texted me right away - "I just looked at your Pinterest... are you doing okay?? I want to give you a huge hug!"

And yesterday at church, one of our sweet young women, passing me in the hall, said, "Wow, Sister Wiltfong, the color of that sweater is just perfect for you!"

Over the years, I have gotten pretty good at patting myself on the back for things I accomplish, because I don't normally get it from anyone else -- so it IS extra nice when someone DOES notice.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MY CANDIDACY

I am throwing my hat into the arena of the 2012 Presidency because of the following Huffington Post notice: "Fox News has suspended the contributor contracts of Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum, two high-profile Republicans widely believed to be running for president in 2012, for 60 days, the channel announced Wednesday."

Seriously, people, something must be done to detract voters from these two - something besides the additional terror of even considering Sarah Palin - or Huckabee (yuck!). Please, America, you cannot be serious about these clowns!

My platform can be stated in one concise sound bite:

"NAPS FOR ALL!"

I will run for the sole aim of increasing the average America citizen's sleep/REM time, with a direct corresponding decline in crime, martial difficulties, road rage and consumption of Hostess Twinkles at 3:04 a.m.

Can I count on your vote?