Good morning, all. We had snow overnight. Not a lot. Just enough to cover the grass and my garden containers. The paved areas were, mostly, too warm for it to stay. The daytime temps are supposed to go back into the 50s and 60s early in the week so I guess it is time to clear out the remaining plants, as I said yesterday.

Robert Reich's post this morning sums up my own thoughts this week as I watched the stock markets' celebration of the election results and Ben Bernanke's announcement of continued quantitative easing (QE in economics speak). There are indeed two economies and the one I inhabit is still bouncing along toward a bottom that hasn't yet been reached. I thought his remark on the 'unexpectedly' good employment numbers was pretty good also. However, another writer on another blog (sorry I can't link and I can't remember her name now--should have written it down) had some very good remarks that answered some of my questions about those so-good numbers. Not that many were full-time, permanent positions. (A point Reich also makes.) Further, these numbers are likely to be revised downwards as were the numbers for September because of the overstated jobs from the birth/death model the Labor Department uses. No one has yet said how many of those jobs were temporary and will be gone by early January. Call me a 'Gloomy Gus' but I simply don't trust the numbers anymore.

Russ's Filtered News has a nice compilation of electioneering falsehoods that drove the 'discussion' in the election. That is when the 'discussion' wasn't limited to character assassination.

TGIF to all of you. We have rain with a slight possibility of snow. It may be clearing soon as the Chicago station we watch in the morning reported clearing skies there. But this seems to be coming straight down the Lake. A little ways north and east (in southwestern Michigan) they had snow. This, at least, is somewhat normal. I am flabbergasted by the 96 some areas of Southern California posted yesterday. It is early November, after all!! But I haven't seen a really normal year in a very long time. I noticed my marigolds were looking a little worse for wear yesterday. I think I will have to pull them when things dry out. Sorry to see them go because that leaves only the mums which haven't bloomed much since the initial burst of blossoms. I don't know if I will try to keep them over the winter. Or get new ones next fall. I think all of my remaining herb cuttings will survive. I found new growth on the one surviving stevia and on the lavender plants. The sage and basil are thriving. I may have to repot some soon and give each of the little plants their own pot. It is almost time to get serious about planning next year's gardens. But not quite yet.

I am becoming something of a scavenger. After one of our wind storms earlier in the late summer, I went looking for some drip saucers that I feared had gone flying over the fence and found a very nice, very large, and heavy pot in the street. I don't know whose it was but it is mine now and is resting in my shed waiting for next year. Yesterday, we made one of our rare extra trips to the grocery store and we saw a pot rolling on the street. Another good sized pot--about a 1 gallon size--waiting for next year. It is one of those light plastic things that garden center or greenhouse plants come home in but I will use it until it is no longer useable. Earlier this spring I found a nice rolling cart--wire frame with a wood top. It now extends our counter space in the kitchen. Oh, I found those drip saucers--behind my garden containers.

Quite a number of the bloggers I read daily (or as often as they post) are in the same post-election hangover I am. A couple have decided to give political/social/economic blogging a break for a bit. I hope they will be back soon--they usually write a lot of good, old-fashioned common sense. Unfortunately, their common sense isn't much shared by the political powers-that-be.

I have been in crochet mode for the last little while. I just finished another doily that is now drying on the stretching board. But I now feel the need to shift back to something else. Today I finished the last little boy figure for Mom's jacket and tomorrow will do a large part, if not all, of the last little girl. That should be it. I don't see anyone else in the family procreating any time soon. Then I have to clean up the craft section of our computer/craft/catch-all room. I spent a bit of frustrating time trying to find the boy and girl embroidery figures because I just didn't remember where I had put them. Yesterday, Mom picked up a basket that the cat had upended trying to crawl into the space behind it. There, under the rag rug I have half crocheted were the two pieces I had lost. Mom changed her tune quickly--going from scolding the totally unrepentant kitty to praising him.

Glad you liked yesterday's post, Lois, and you can use any part of it anytime.

Good Morning, everyone. I haven't had much to say lately and I have been in a real grumpy mood--one that goes way beyond 'contrary.' I didn't realize that until yesterday when the mood started to lift. Reading a post by Tom Englehardt on his tomdispatch site I realized why. Like Englehardt I found the latest election dispiriting--I would even say enervating and depressing. The ads were everywhere. Towards the end they even invaded previously serene spaces like the History Channel. I really need to decompress after that assault. I have refused to read a lot of the political drivel that is out there dissecting the results but I do have a couple of general thoughts on the results. First, the message each side says they have received from the voters is the message each side wanted to hear not necessarily the message the voters really sent. So the Republicans hear a repudiation of the major Democratic initiatives over the last couple of years and the Democrats hear a confusion of messages. That is what I got from President Obama's press conference yesterday. What messages, you ask? That the Democrats were so focused on getting things done they forgot to reform the process by which they got those things done--and people were not happy about that. (Read earmarks, back room deals, and other such maneuvers). That the financially well-heeled and politically well-connected were taken care of while everyone else sank into the mire. That the voters wanted bi-partisan answers to the country's problems not partisan business-as-usual wrangling.

My thoughts on this--both sides are as clueless as usual. The results I saw were neither a clear repudiation of the policies of the last two years nor a clear mandate for the Republicans to sweep all of those polices away. Yes the Republicans won a lot of House seats, some 19 state legislatures, and several Senate seats. But most of the races were won by a very slim margin. The touted Illinois Senate Seat (so inaccurately described as 'Obama's Senate Seat'--no Senator owns the seat s/he occupies--it belongs to the people of the state) went to the Republican by a whole, astonishing 2% of the vote. If the next two years are as contentious as the last two and the economy remains in the doldrums (as a good many economists expect it will) that those slender margins may swing the other way. The Republicans have re-acquired ownership of this economic mess. And both sides are focused on reviving the economy that was not figuring out what the economy will look like in the future. The economy of the last thirty-plus years was based on debt and the consumer. Middle class jobs have provided stagnant or declining wages over that time and the only way the middle class consumer was able to continue to consume in a middle class style was to go over their heads into debt. Many of the 'optimistic' projections for job growth I have seen don't predict a pick up in job creating for the next two years (the more pessimistic say say five or more) and those jobs won't provide the wages of the jobs that have been lost. As for the debt situation--that won't come back any time soon either. The providers of debt (bans or whoever) have been badly burned.

Both Republicans and Democrats acknowledge that Americans are angry but I don't think either side recognizes the depth of that anger. It goes beyond a lost job or a lost house. And its origins go back well beyond this 'recession.' I remember the Enron collapse and the interviews with workers who were out both of a job and the majority of their retirement savings much of which was in company stock. While the bosses were able to unload their soon-to-be-worthless holdings before the crash the workers were first advised by those bosses to hold on to the stock and then prevented from selling at all. Those workers who were near retirement saw the work of thirty years disappear with the value of the stock--all many had left was Social Security. Where am I going with this, you ask? We are told in this culture that if you work hard you can achieve your dreams. What the last thirty years have proven to many of us is that is a lie. All too many people have worked hard, have saved, have done everything right by the rules of this culture--and find everything they worked for either swept away or threatened. And they are angry. The problem is where to focus that anger. Those who have lost jobs focus it on China, on the companies who moved the jobs to China, on the immigrants the politicians tell us are taking our jobs, on the politicians who argue against extended unemployment benefits because it makes the jobless lazy and unwilling to take a new job. Those who have jobs are afraid that their job will be the next eliminated and they focus on China, the company that might move the job to China unless the workers take a big hit on wages and benefits, et. cetera. Those who have lost homes blame predatory and fraudulent lenders while many of the banks blame deadbeat buyers who knew they couldn't afford the loan and simply gamed the system. There is a lot of blame to go around and the search for scapegoats is in full swing. But the bottom line is--The American Dream is broken and no one knows how to fix it. John Boehner has achieved his but he is among the lucky few.

Good Morning, again, everyone. My cat is very unhappy and has been for the last few days. We haven't let him out first thing in the morning because the temps have been below 50 degrees. This morning we only hit 38. He may have a fur coat but we don't. Sometimes the seasonal changes are unsettling--although he would probably say something stronger. Did anyone else see the little blurb on the news citing a new 'scientific' study which concludes that we should do away with our 'daylight savings' regime? This study found, contrary to popular propaganda, it doesn't save energy and it is very hard on the body. I have said that for years but didn't have numbers to back it up.

I have felt dissatisfied for a number of years by the Holiday creep, Lois. The commercialization only adds to my disgruntlement. Before the economic crash began Visa had a commercial which showed a humming store coming to a crashing halt when some benighted soul tried to use cash or a check. The message was that the 'speed' of commerce (and daily life with it) required the speed of Visa. The speed of commerce also requires consumers who are willing (if not actually able) to spend freely. But over the last several years (well before the 'Great Recession) spending has been less and less rewarding (whether spending on myself or others.) But I still like my holidays 'in season' and this nonsense of a 6 month Christmas 'season' or manufactured 'holidays' like Sweetness Day simply annoy me. I really don't even like to make gifts anymore. In a commercial world I am not at all sure a made gift is really appreciated. Has anyone had the feeling that the recipient of a hand-made baby afghan or quilt would have been just as happy, and perhaps happier, with a commercially produced item they could put a dollar figure on? Maybe I am getting cynical but, over the last several years, I have had that feeling often.

I have had a reasonably productive morning. Actually, a productive couple of days. I am irritated because some of that productivity was spent correcting a problem with something I had done before and the problem was not with what I did but what I used to do it. I recently bought some new wicks from Michaels and used them when I poured a few candles. A couple of weeks ago we tried to light one of the candles and the wick barely caught. A second candle also sputtered and almost went out. I checked over the wicks and found that each had a metal piece and not much else left. Then I checked package. Each of the remaining wicks has a shiny metal core and were supposed to be 'coated'; with what over what I have no idea. So, after a bit of research on line, I braided several wicks out of some spare bedspread weight crochet thread, soaked them in wax, and used them for six votive candles. The one we lit this morning burned nicely and I used the others as the cores for some new candles. I had to completely melt out the wax for the older candles which did not make me happy. From now on--I make my own wicks.

Good morning to you all. We woke to calm winds but cloudy skies. We still expect strong gusts but nothing like what we had earlier this week. Of course, with the winds we get the leaves from the surrounding trees. Since I have the compost tub this year I am sweeping them up and putting them to good use. At least as long as I have room in the tub. We are expecting some low temps overnight over the next week. We'll see how much longer the marigolds and mums last. I took some of the marigold seeds to save for next year. I don't know how they will do since they are a hybrid variety. I hope it will be interesting. The overnight lows are getting down far enough that I turned off the water and drained most of the water out of the hose. All these little seasonal chores that remind you winter isn't far off.

The evening news Wednesday night had a brief segment that reflected a trend we have noticed for sometime--all the sneaky ways manufacturers have of raising prices without seeming to have done so. The biggest way is one I have commented on often here--reducing the amount in a package without changing the package noticeably. It is interesting that the news media picked up on this. I figure we can expect even more in the future since commodity prices have gone up spectacularly over the last year.

Did you hear that some of the nations retailers plan to start their 'Black Friday' specials this last Friday of October? That was also on our local news lately. Last year they tried to drum up business by making all Fridays after Thanksgiving 'Black Fridays.' The holiday creep has accellerated. I wonder when they will start the 2011 holiday sales season--January 2?? That way they can eliminate the after-Christmass sales.

Good morning, Everyone. Our weather made the national news. The winds are here along with the wind. They say that the low pressures will be the strongest in some 70 years. We also have, in addition to the high wind warnings, tornado warnings. I quickly go some light weight items into the storage shed this morning. I know I won't do anything outside today and doubt I will tomorrow as the winds are supposed to continue through Wednesday.

I have a link today that should make anyone who reads it angry. I don't think I need to comment.

Weather update: just spent the last half hour downstairs because of the tornado warning that just expired. The sirens went off for, maybe, the 6th or 7th time (barring monthly tests) since we moved in here. But the worst, for now has moved east.

I have written before about our misguided notions about higher education. Here is a link to an Alternet article which very nicely expresses many of my own thoughts on the subject. And, of course, the grand strategy for renewed economic vigor is--more higher education. But where are the jobs for our so supremely educated people? I don't see them now or in the future. Also, think about this little fact--while students here graduate with worthless degrees and a crippling pile of debt employers who could hire them are moving their operations overseas to where other highly educated people are willing and able to work for considerably less. Talk about sending good money down a rat hole.

Good Monday morning to you all. We have had some warmer than normal weather and the near forecast has totally eliminated the possibility of a hard freeze for the next week. We also got some nice, though insufficient rain, over night for the last couple of nights. I managed to wash down half of my patio and rearrange the containers on that side yesterday. That half looks so much neater. Fall (and early spring, as Mom reminded me) is such an untidy season. I also spread the compost on two of the containers before trying to put the lids on them for the winter. I say try because the long sides of the containers have bowed out drawing the short sides in so the lids do not fit at all anymore. I keep them on with bungie cords. Now all I have to do is clean out the other side and turn off the water for the season. I guess everyone had a bad season for tomatoes this year. Talking to the siblings at Mom's birthday party over the weekend I get the impression that nothing much did well for them. My patch of tomatoes and peppers probably did the best. Too hot and dry for much too long.

Several days ago, Rain at Rainy Day Things made some good observations and asked some good questions about the intersection of religion and politics in this country. One of her key questions was 'should a candidate's religious beliefs influence whether you would vote for him/her?' That has been rattling around in my mind for several days now leading me into some very strange paths of thought. Rain makes the astute observation that Republican candidates, especially in the South, have a very hard time getting nominated, much less elected, if they don't hew closely to what Rain calls 'christianist' (as opposed to Christian) positions. This article from the New York Times indicates that demands for orthodoxy doesn't just affect Protestants. I remember the storied 1960 election when John Kennedy had to repeatedly make it clear that he, a Catholic, would not be controlled by the Pope. We have come a very long way backwards over the last several decades. Over the last ten years we have seen Catholic bishops threaten Catholic politicians with excommunication if they voted in any way that could be construed as favorable to abortion rights, reproductive rights, or gay rights. John Kennedy insisted on being an American Catholic. The purists in the Church now insist that their communicants be Catholic American. Unfortunately, we have seen the same hardening of lines among some of the Protestant denominations.

Once upon a time, not so very long ago, I would have told Rain that I never would have considered a candidate's religion when making my choice in the voting booth. Now, I can't say that. Once upon a time, I would have respected the candidate's religious beliefs and been fairly sure that he would have respected mine and would have known where to draw the line. Now, I can't be at all sure of that. I realized that two years ago when Mike Huckabee, former governor of Arkansas, was pursuing the Republican nomination. Stories came out about two parole cases that came before him that made me question this matter. Two men, each convicted of heinous crimes, requested parole claiming that during their incarceration they had experienced a religious conversion and reformation. One man's request was refused and he was executed. The other was granted and he was freed with the condition that he leave the state on release. The one that was refused had converted to Buddhism. The one Huckabee granted converted to fundamentalist Protestant Christianity. The one who was freed went on to rape and murder three, I think, women in another state. Mike Huckabee, a born-again-fundamentalist-Protestant-Christian, accepted the 'conversion' of the Christian and freed him while not accepting the conversion of the Buddhist allowing him to be executed. This incident made me doubt that Mike Huckabee could be trusted to administer justice impartially. That means I can no longer trust that candidates respect the religious choices and values of those who don't share those choices and values. In fact I see a contest to demonize anyone outside their own group.

My suspicion of religiously motivated candidates goes even deeper, however. Over the last couple of decades the notions of 'capitalism,' and 'free markets' have acquired a quasi-religious aura. One would almost think that god had delivered them along with the Ten Commandments or that Jesus incorporated them into the Sermon on the Mount. Christian orthodoxy now seems to require an Economic Orthodoxy that seems, to me at least, very much at odds with the origins of Christianity. Now the believer and unbeliever alike are left to their own devices and the mercy of god. Early Christians had a supportive community to care for the sick, the old, the needy. Today's Christianists label that 'communist.' Economic heresy has become synonymous with religious heresy.

To answer Rain's question--once I would not have asked anything about a candidate's religious belief. Now, unfortunately, I have to consider whether that candidate can accord me the respect I deserve as a citizen and voter. I have to ask if a candidate can respect my right to hold different beliefs and whether s/he can respect my beliefs and my right to act on my beliefs. And I have to ask the same questions concerning the quasi-religious beliefs that have flooded our political scene over the last few years. Already my rights to hold a job in some companies has been wiped out because they have a zero tolerance policy on smoking. Though I don't smoke I would always test positive for tobacco contaminants because someone else in my household smokes. Some companies have such a zero tolerance policy with respect to weight? Those companies wouldn't hire me because some insurance companies think I would be a poor health risk even though statistical surveys have shown that weight alone is not a good indicator of how much I would use health services. I feel assaulted on all sides from the High Priests of Capitalism, the High Priests of Health, the High Priests of the Green Church, and the High Priests of the Christianist Churches (Catholic and Protestant). All are intent on forcing their beliefs on me. I don't like it much but I have to consider their 'religious' views when I vote.