Liz, you deserve all these accolades. I’ve enjoyed your words for years and hope to for many more. You have always been a Fiesty Dame and I wish to achieve that status, too, so I continute to read your words so you might rub off on me. Cheer!

Thy are such well-behaved young children and oh, so pretty. I am enjoying the idea of children again in the White House. I think they are dressed so beautifully and appropriately for their ages and they seem as sweet and kind as they are pretty. Their parents have done quite a job and may I say, I am so pleased they have their grandmother with them to add to the continuity.

Oh, Carol J, you are so right on with this.

I have to agree with you, Elaine. Where are her parents? How did they not know the girl was pregnant? My mother kept an eye on us. I couldn’t have gotten away with eating cookies and reading in bed with a flashlight let alone be pregnant without my mother knowing! There was a calendar in her desk that had all of our periods marked so we could expect them and be prepared. We were informed about all the aspects of what sex could bring about. Also, in this state, WA, you can take a baby to a hospital, a fire station, no questions asked. It is in place just so these things don’t take place. To drown a live birth, there has to be some severe mental illness involved. I think by 16, someone should understand the concept of a live birth and the time it would take to drown that newborn, good Lord … My mind is boggled, too.

Is there any creature more devoted to us than dogs? No matter what, they love us the way we all wish we could be loved by people, warts and all. In my life, I have had many, many dogs, all so dear and I truly hope they wait for me at the end of the Rainbow Bridge. We are the rescue contact for our breed in our area. Someone died over New Year’s and the two dogs were taken to the shelter. Our shelters are loaded with the most beautiful animals but these were the first Tibetan Terriers they had seen. The rescue coordinator for our national club asked us to see what we could do. Unfortunately, one was a male and our boy Remy is not accepting of other males so we agreed to take the female. Of the two, she was the least likely to be adopted. Older, she prefers to be thought of as mature, Babe Doohan is quite a gal. Her teeth were terrible but in another life, I must have been a dental technician because I am the Tooth Fairy around here. I got to work on that right away. She is on a diet because the person with whom she previously resided had dementia and forgot about having fed Babe. She, of course, did not raise her paw and indicate, “Oh, no thank you, I’ve had enough.” Subsequently, she has an incredible amount of weight to take off, and this has made her almost unable to move around. I have to say, Babe has a strong will to her and she is as determined to get going. She moves better every day, minds beautifully, asks to go outside and sleeps through the night without a sound. Her tail wags furiously when she sees us and she is politely curious about the cats but never infringes upon their personal space. Such a heart she has and I couldn’t let that good old gal die in the shelter just because she wasn’t a puppy. Babe Doohan will live with us till the end of her days and I will be with her at the end, feeling deeply fortunate for having known her. I am impressed with how quickly she stepped up to the plate and adjusted to her knew life with us. I should only hope to be as adaptable. Never rule out the dignity or an older dog if you are rescuing a companion. No, they won’t be with you as long as a puppy but they will enrich your life like fine wine.

One wonders if they are capable of working out a duet in a concert as a bittersweet farewell, why are they not capable of working out their differences in real life? Sometimes I think we regular folk have more exciting lives. We stare global warming, mortgages, lost finances and uncertain futures in the eye and continue on, working out our troubles.

You know, she was the eptiome of healthy; she just glowed, especially in the beach and water pics. Nowdays, they’d tell her to lose 30 pounds. And, I love the fact she was 27 up to 34 when being photographed which is considered “over the hill” for a model nowdays. Bettie Page was a grown woman with a woman’s body and she did it without plastic surgery, implants or Photoshopping. She had a glorious physique but her sweetness and that fantastic smile and sparkly eyes made her unique and she had that up into her 80s.

Bettie had the sweetest face of anyone photographed, even in her naughtiest poses. And what a figure! Nobody did it better than Bettie.

The thing about Bettie was she was obviously very attractive and sexy, but she had the sweetest face and smile. Even in her very “naughty” pics, she had that adorable face. I’ve always thought the pre-Twiggy models had the loveliest figures and Bettie had the best. Very feminine, curvy in the right places and what a waist. Still, that little girl face and smile were quite the trademark. I saw a pic of her five years ago and she still had that fantastic smile and the cute bangs. Rest in peace, Bettie, you were great!

It is always sad when a relationship doesn’t work out. That said, I am not surprised Ms. Jolie and Mr. Pitt gravitated towards each other and I don’t think it has much to do with who looks better naked. He and Ms. Jolie are both globally minded and share a similar point of view about life. That is a very powerful attraction that can bind a couple for the long run. I think they will be together the way Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward were for life. Ms. Aniston needs to let go of this matter, quit making statements on the topic and find out what the future holds for her. I’m quite sure she works very hard on looking attractive and that’s all well and good but perhaps she should invest as much time developing the other aspects of herself.

Mr. Marks, you have said: “Is it because Palin and Coulter are good looking?” asking us if that is why we women don’t like those particular women. I will be among the first to say I think Sarah Palin is a very attractive woman; obviously blessed with great genes. She is telegenic and missed her calling as I think she would be great on camera as a spokesperson or a sit com actress. Sarah’s Adventrues on the Frozen Tundra. Heck, I’d even write a year’s worth of scripts for her to be in her own sit com if she’d get out of politics. But when you say Ms. Coulter is good looking, I have to completely and totally disagree with you. She is not good looking enough for me to have a case of envy over. No, that particular woman manages to alienate me with her venemous prose and sentences alone. THAT is not an attractive woman in the least.

“I was very violent with her for two days with my hand; my hand began to hurt … She didn’t mind at all. She thought of it in terms of my passion for her. Her face was bad. She couldn’t appear in public. My hand was swollen. I was utterly helpless.” :: His hand hurt?!? He describes their romance that way; his hand hurt. Wow. Poor Baby, his hand hurt. And we’re supposed to feel good about it because she didn’t mind? I am speechless. And disgusted by him.

Carmel said: As Senator Hagel (R) said in an excellent recent talk….all around the globe new and exciting leaders will be heading countries in the new year. I think this can be another era of great global leaders……and if recent speeches/interviews by PM Brown of England and the Finance Minister of France (a woman) are any indication…they are solidly together on the economy and on reasonable reregulations. :: I have to agree with you. The French Finance Minister is quite impressive. This could be a time for great growth world wide and I find it hopeful and exciting.

Belinda, I totally get what you are saying. I have a health issue that has required I make major changes in my diet. I am a woman who loves to cook, share my cooking and not least of all, eat my cooking. When I took a look at the list of things that were required to leave my life, I mourned them like lost friends. Really, I’m not kidding. So I will be thinking of you as you resist your lemon merigne pie. It is a tough battle but with your brains, the world would be a lesser place without you so resist you must. LOL

Each day waking up is like Christmas as I eagerly anticipate Mr. Obama’s next pick. He has displayed great intelligence as he chooses from a pool of very diverse and talented people. Never in my life have I seen a president elect work so hard at creating a transition so strong and seamless. He isn’t surrounding himself with buddies and pals who will do nothing but agree with him. He wants as many opinions as possible to provide him with the greatest amount of information so he can make the best decisions. Belinda, good luck to you managing your diabetes. It is a challenge but from all your posts, I can tell you are a woman who is up to the task. Be well and live long.