Our Flag...

I was thinking today, about all the times I have seen the United States Flag used in ways that I thought inappropriate. So today, I thought we all need to be reminded about proper Flag etiquette. So here it is...

The United States Flag Code
'Flag Etiquette'

STANDARDS of RESPECT

The Flag Code, which formalizes and unifies the traditional ways in which we give respect to the flag, also contains specific instructions on how the flag is not to be used.

They are:

The flag should never be dipped to any person or thing. It is flown upside down only as a distress signal.

The flag should not be used as a drapery, or for covering a speakers desk, draping a platform, or for any decoration in general. Bunting of blue, white and red stripes is available for these purposes. The blue stripe of the bunting should be on the top.

The flag should never be used for any advertising purpose. It should not be embroidered, printed or otherwise impressed on such articles as cushions, handkerchiefs, napkins, boxes, or anything intended to be discarded after temporary use. Advertising signs should not be attached to the staff or halyard.

The flag should not be used as part of a costume or athletic uniform, except that a flag patch may be used on the uniform of military personnel, fireman, policeman and members of patriotic organizations.

The flag should never have placed on it, or attached to it, any mark, insignia, letter, word, number, figure, or drawing of any kind.

The flag should never be used as a receptacle for receiving, holding, carrying, or delivering anything.

When the flag is lowered, no part of it should touch the ground or any other object; it should be received by waiting hands and arms. To store the flag it should be folded neatly and ceremoniously.

The flag should be cleaned and mended when necessary.

When a flag is so worn it is no longer fit to serve as a symbol of our country, it should be destroyed by burning in a dignified manner.

(Note: Most American Legion Posts regularly conduct a dignified flag burning ceremony, often on Flag Day, June 14th. Contact your local American Legion Hall and inquire about the availability of this service.)

Displaying the Flag Outdoors:

When the flag is displayed from a staff projecting from a window, balcony, or a building, the union should be at the peak of the staff unless the flag is at half staff.

When it is displayed from the same flagpole with another flag - of a state, community, society or Scout unit - the flag of the United States must always be at the top except that the church pennant may be flown above the flag during church services for Navy personnel when conducted by a Naval chaplain on a ship at sea.

When the flag is displayed over a street, it should be hung vertically, with the union to the north or east. If the flag is suspended over a sidewalk, the flag's union should be farthest from the building.

When flown with flags of states, communities, or societies on separate flag poles which are of the same height and in a straight line, the flag of the United States is always placed in the position of honor - to its own right.

..The other flags may be smaller but none may be larger.

..No other flag ever should be placed above it.

..The flag of the United States is always the first flag raised and the last to be lowered.

When flown with the national banner of other countries, each flag must be displayed from a separate pole of the same height. Each flag should be the same size. They should be raised and lowered simultaneously.

The flag of one nation may not be displayed above that of another nation.

Raising and Lowering the Flag:

The flag should be raised briskly and lowered slowly and ceremoniously.

Ordinarily it should be displayed only between sunrise and sunset.

It should be illuminated if displayed at night.

The flag of the United States of America is saluted as it is hoisted and lowered. The salute is held until the flag is unsnapped from the halyard or through the last note of music, whichever is the longest.

Displaying the Flag Indoors:

When on display, the flag is accorded the place of honor, always positioned to its own right. Place it to the right of the speaker or staging area or sanctuary. Other flags should be to the left.

The flag of the United States of America should be at the center and at the highest point of the group when a number of flags of states, localities, or societies are grouped for display.

When one flag is used with the flag of the United States of America and the staffs are crossed, the flag of the United States is placed on its own right with its staff in front of the other flag.

When displaying the flag against a wall, vertically or horizontally, the flag's union (stars) should be at the top, to the flag's own right, and to the observer's left.

Parading and Saluting the Flag:

When carried in a procession, the flag should be to the right of the marchers.

When other flags are carried, the flag of the United States may be centered in front of the others or carried to their right.

When the flag passes in a procession, or when it is hoisted or lowered, all should face the flag and salute.

The Salute To salute; all persons come to attention.

Those in uniform give the appropriate formal salute.

Citizens not in uniform salute by placing their right hand over the heart and men with head cover should remove it and hold it to left shoulder, hand over the heart.

Members of organizations in formation salute upon command of the person in charge.

The Pledge of Allegiance and National Anthem:

The pledge of allegiance should be rendered by standing at attention, facing the flag, and saluting.

When the national anthem is played or sung, citizens should stand at attention and salute at the first note and hold the salute through the last note. The salute is directed to the flag, if displayed, otherwise to the music.

The Flag in Mourning:

To place the flag at half staff, hoist it to the peak for an instant and lower it to a position half way between the top and bottom of the staff. The flag is to be raised again to the peak for a moment before it is lowered.

On Memorial Day the flag is displayed at half staff until noon and at full staff from noon to sunset.

The flag is to be flown at half staff in mourning for designated, principal government leaders and upon presidential or gubernatorial order.

When used to cover a casket, the flag should be placed with the union at the head and over the left shoulder. It should not be lowered into the grave.

So now you know. You no longer have the option of saying "But no one ever told me." That's all.

The true meaning of the Fourth Of July...

I was planning on saying something tonight, about the TRUE MEANING OF THE FOURTH OF JULY. That was the plan. I decided to start doing a bit of research first, as I like to be accurate, if nothing else. I came across a piece that was written by John and Glenda Akins. I do not know them, I do not know how to get in touch with them to get permission to copy their work. I think they would want this message to reach as many eyes as possible, so risking possible copyright infringements, I am going to just go ahead and paste it here anyway. Like I said, I was going to write something, but I do not think I could do better with the topic than they already have. Here it is...


The True Meaning of the Fourth of July


Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died.

Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.

Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured.

Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War. They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.

What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.

Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated.

But they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death, if they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson Jr, noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished. A few weeks later he died from exhaustion and a broken heart.

Norris and Livingston suffered similar fates.

Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution.

These were not wild-eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians. They were soft-spoken men of means and education.

They had security, but they valued liberty more.

Standing tall, straight, and unwavering, they pledged: "For the support of this declaration, with firm reliance on the protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor."

They gave you and me a free and independent America.

The history books never told you a lot about what happened in the Revolutionary War.
We didn't fight just the British.
We were British subjects at that time and we fought our own government!
Some of us take these liberties so much for granted, but we shouldn't.

So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots.

It's not much to ask for the price they paid.

Remember: freedom is never free.

The only thing I can add to this is that there are still men and women willing to give everything, including their lives, to defend this great nation of ours. They leave their families, their homes, their jobs, their friends so that you and I can live each day able to speak our minds freely, able to openly condemn our own government if we choose to, free to practice any religion we wish (or to abstain from practicing religion ,if we so choose), free to do practically anything we want (as long as doing so does not interfere with the freedoms of others. We can even burn our flag and hold demonstrations at the funerals of the soldiers (and Marines, and Airmen, and Naval Personnel) who died to protect our rights, if that is what we wish to do. (Of course I personally do not agree with that kind of behaviour, but I will go to my grave defending your right to do it if you want to. But if that is something you wish to do, keep in mind, I have the right to tell you EXACTLY what I think of you, loudly and crudely and without restraint.) So when you silently Thank the men who signed the Declaration, remember to also Thank all the men and women who defend you still.

A NOTE FROM ME TO ALL THE MEN AND WOMEN WHO HAVE EVER, ARE NOW, AND WILL EVER SERVE IN OUR ARMED FORCES...

Thank You!

That's all. Goodnight.

I am a geek...

Okay, I have a secret to confess. I am a closet geek. How do I know this? Well, here is the deal. I LOVE the Harry Potter books and movies. Yes, I am aware that they were originally intended to be children's books. I do not care. I have read them all, and am anxiously awaiting the arrival of the next (and last) in the series. I have even gone so far as to read quite a few of the posts on the vast number of Harry Potter dedicated sites. (And since we are all friends here, I will even admit to actually posting on one or two.) Now like all true Harry fans, I have my own theories about the last book. For example, I think Snape is one of the good guys. I think he made an unbreakable vow of loyalty to Dumbledore, and that is why Dumbledore has never questioned his loyalty. I think Voldemort inadvertently made Harry the seventh Horcrux. I think that R.A.B. is Regulus Black, and that he was not killed, but has been in hiding. I think Sirius will return from beyond the veil. I think that Harry will die in the final battle, and with his death, Voldemort will once again be mortal. I hope that Neville is the one who finally kills Voldemort, after all that would be poetic justice. The new movie (The Order of the Phoenix) comes out a week from tomorrow. I will see it as soon as I get off work. The book comes out later this month. I will be at the midnight release party at Barnes and Noble. ( I pre-ordered months ago.) See, I am a geek. And, if you understood half of what I said, so are you. That's all, Bye!

I am losing my mind...

I am losing my mind. I do not mean that I am going crazy. I literally am losing my mind. As in losing IQ points. At an alarmingly rapid pace. I know this because, having nothing better to do to fill the void between working, sleeping, and cleaning, I decided to retest my IQ and compare my scores to the last time I took these tests. Now since no one but me ever reads this silly little blog of mine, I feel I can be honest. (No I will not post my actual scores, just on the off chance that someone does take the time to read my page when they surf in by accident.) I took these tests for the first time about three and a half years ago. Back then, I scored in the low (very low) genius range. Now, just for the record, I do not consider myself a "genius" as most people define it, but that is where my scores fell. I will admit that it was somewhat pleasant to find out that I am a little bit smarter than the average wife, but trust me, it did not in any way change my life. Back then I was offered membership into "The International High IQ Society." Not being one who toots her own horn, I declined. Besides, I would much rather sit around with normal people drinking a cold beer than sit in a room with a bunch high IQ having boring braggarts. But over the years I have secretly held fast to that number (my score) in my head, whenever I had to deal with morons. I would tell myself that maybe they are not morons, maybe I am just being a snooty bitch. That was how I could control my temper when the idiots around me were driving me insane. But apparently, I will soon be one of those morons, so I need to start practicing my WWE watching skills, and learn to read things like The National Enquirer and Us magazine. You see, I really am losing my mind. In a short three and a half years, I have lost in the neighborhood of seven IQ points. I am only thirty five for God's sake. Can you imagine what I will be like when I hit seventy? I think I had better start stocking up on the drool pads and Depends now. It seems as though I am going to need them. Now I am not exactly an idiot quite yet, I still score in the high "Gifted" range, but if this keeps up I will be senile before long. Let's see, seven points every three years for the next thirty five years. Oh hell, see the math is giving me a headache. Where's a pen when you need one? I used to be able to do shit like that in my head, now I need a pen and paper, and maybe a calculator and a slide rule. Okay, I did the math, and it goes something like this... you take the estimated thirty five years that I will continue to live, and divide it by the three year span between tests. You get eleven point sixty seven (okay actually it came out to be 11.6666 on into infinity, so I cheated and rounded up.) So now you take that eleven point sixty seven, and multiply it by the seven points I am losing during each of those time spans, right? So the answer I came up with is that by the time I hit seventy, I will have lost a sum total of eighty one point sixty nine IQ points. (And if I did the math wrong I do NOT want you to fucking tell me!) See, drooling on myself at that point will be the least of my worries. I won't be smart enough to remember to eat. I will be a house plant with legs. Damn, I should have joined the High IQ Society when I had a chance. That way at least when I am sitting there enjoying shitting in my pants, someone could have read the certificate to me to remind me that I was once a pretty smart gal, but hell, I wouldn't be able to understand it anyway. That's all, Goodnight.

Not as much fun as bingo....

Okay, so all my plans for this weekend fell through. And that, my friends, really pisses me off. I had planned to go to the bar Friday night with Brad from work. That was until all the guys at work heard us talking about where to go and invited themselves along. Okay, I could work with that. Yeah, it may have become a little uncomfortable me the only woman with seven guys out for the night. But hell, I can hang. And I can probably drink most of them under the table. No fou-fou drinks for this girl. Give me a Jack and Coke, and I will thank you with a smile. I was planning on getting "nicely drunk". You know nicely drunk.. it is the stage just before I get ten foot tall and bullet proof. You know, when I am happy go lucky and singing off key to every song on the jukebox. The stage when I come home and want to "chaca-chaca" all night. (Chaca-chaca is the newest term in my Spanish vocabulary. I learned it Thursday, and although I may not have spelled it correctly, I think we all get the drift.) So now we were to be a party of eight. Cool right? The more the merrier. That was until they decided that where we needed to go was The Bottoms Up, a local titty bar. Now I have nothing against breasts. (Hell, mine are better than ninety percent of the dancers around here, and mine are real.) And I could care less if some half naked girl wants to gyrate on a stage for a few bucks worth of tips, but I refuse, absolutely, to pay eight dollars a drink, for what would cost me four bucks somewhere else. If they were willing to buy my drinks all night, then fine. But since they all know damned well that I am faithfully wed, and not one of them has a chance of getting lucky no matter how much they spend on me, well, we all know how that turned out. So, I spent Friday night playing text twist until my brain refused to turn the letters into words, and I finally gave up and went to bed. I was okay with it. I had bingo to look forward to. Except now, that is a bust too. Todd's girlfriend has developed a jealous streak a mile wide. Why? Who the hell knows. I wouldn't have sex with Todd if he was the last man on earth. I wouldn't do him with your private parts, let alone my own. But apparently, she thinks that we are going to wipe all the bingo cards off the table, and have sex in front of all the little old ladies and housewives with their rows of lucky troll dolls and pictures of their dead husbands. Ugh. Some people just really fucking annoy me. So now, I get to sit here all night and watch you tube till my eyes explode, or I fall into a coma from listening to too many bad singers attempt to sing Christina Aguilar's (spelling?) latest hit. I think I would rather lay naked covered in honey on a fire ant hill. Or maybe I could watch all those new movies I have bought and never had the time or the desire to watch. Or I could play some other useless online games. Or I could take a long hot bath, actually shave my legs, and see how long I can hold my breath underwater before my lungs explode. I could mow the lawn that is tall enough to lose my youngest child in. I could wash the dirty dishes that have sat so long that it would be better if I just threw them away and bought new ones. I could give myself a manicure and a pedicure. I could go for a walk. (No, I do not jog and I never run unless I am being chased by a chainsaw wielding maniac.) I could trim the dogs' toenails. I could bake a pan of brownies, and then eat them all while they are still warm and gooey with a half a gallon of milk. Or I can sit here like I am doing and bitch about how nothing ever seems to work out the way you plan it. None of them seem like as much fun as bingo though. Damn it. That's all, Bye.

Now that is living....

I think I may not be home as much as usual this weekend. It is about time, to be honest. I need to get out more. Too many hours of Text Twist and/or any game I play with Corey is just not good for the brain. Last Friday, Brad (from work) asked me to go out to the bar with him. I reminded him that being an old married woman means I should at least give the hubby some notice before going to the bar. I figured he would forget all about it, but yesterday he asked if we were on for this Friday night. I think I will go. A few Jack and Cokes will do me some good. Then, Todd (also from work, also Toni's son) asked me if I want to go to bingo with him this Saturday. It seems his girlfriend doesn't much care for bingo, and has refused to go. Again, I think I will go. Bingo is not just for the gray hairs anymore. Hell, I may even win some money. It certainly is much cheaper than spending my money playing the slots in the casino. Speaking of casinos, when I was at Ameristar last week cashing my check. (It is much closer than my bank, and is open when I get off work.) I decided to drop ten bucks in the slots on my way out the doors. (I did not win.) On my way to my favorite quarter machine, (I like the dollar slots better, but I am not a rich girl.) I passed the craps table. That looks like so much fun. One of these days I will get brave and attempt to play craps. In fact, I have added "spending a hundred dollars on one roll of the dice" to my list of things I will do before dying. I even went so far as to ask about how the game is played, and stayed to watch for about fifteen minutes. The staff at Ameristar is very helpful. Some guy in a suit just showed up, out of nowhere, and handed me a brochure with all the rules of craps. (You can't get much more helpful than that.) But back to that list of things to do. The list is not very long right now. I guess that is because I am still just young enough that I still believe I just may live forever. (Okay, I really do not believe that, but it would be a comforting thought.) So my list is not very long. It includes such things as skydiving (just once, because really why jump out of a perfectly good airplane.), swimming in the Pacific again (my father called and told me about how he had just come back from Venice Beach, the asshole), swimming in the Atlantic (I have never even seen the Atlantic ocean except on television, and really how sad is that.) , driving a car at over one hundred miles per hour (For many of you that is nothing new, but I am a good girl and always obey the speed limits. Well, almost always.), swimming with dolphins, and making love to a certain someone who is not my husband. (Now, before you get all freaked out, I will wait until either 1.) The hubby divorces me 2.) The hubby dies or 3.) The hubby and I have a life altering experience that somehow changes our entire set of morals and we suddenly become swingers and/or decide that what we really need to spice up our lives is for me to be able to have two hubby's.) I don't think that last one will ever happen, but let a girl fantasize, damn you. See not an overly long list. I think I will get to experience five out of the six at some point. I do not think I am asking for too much out of life. Just a few small pleasures. But I do think that the older I get the less likely I am to do any of these, so maybe I should just start planning them now. I am thinking I could maybe even combine some of them to get them done and over with. Perhaps, I could skydive into the Atlantic near a group of dolphins off the coast of North Carolina, where I could pick up the man who is not my hubby and drive very fast to Venice Beach stopping in Vegas to shoot some craps on the way. Wow, now that would be living. That's all, Goodbye.

The child is scarred for life...

Okay, so it finally happened. One of my children walked in on the hubby and I in the act of....um.. well you know. Well, he didn't walk in exactly. He walked to the bathroom, (which is right next to our bedroom door) and we had not closed the door. It was five o'clock in the morning. Honestly, the thought that we had to close the door just never entered my mind. Children should not be awake at five in the morning. Not even to use the restroom. I will give him this though, he was mature enough to go straight back to bed without saying a word. Of course, knowing that he had seen us killed the mood. Quickly. Now the mood has been killed by the kids before. Just never quite so thoroughly. I have had them wake in the middle of the night and cry when they were babies. Back then, I changed them, rocked them back to sleep, and returned to the hubby who was glad to pick up where we left off. But this. Well, I think I am scarred for life too. I think this weekend I will be installing a deadbolt on the bedroom door. I am just grateful that it was the hubby that he questioned about it this afternoon. I know he is almost fourteen, and we have had the sex talk a few times already. He knows that people in love have sex, and thanks to the mainstream media, he knows that people who are not in love often have sex. But I still am in no way prepared to deal with the fact that he witnessed sex between the hubby and I. The kids get grossed out by the hubby and myself kissing, holding hands, cuddling, and especially the hubby's favorite thing to do.... public groping. (Come on now, you know you have all done it sometime, anyway it is always very PG in public.) Can you imagine how disgusted he is with what he saw last night? I know you are sitting there laughing right now, but seriously, how do I discuss this with him? Or do I just ignore it unless he comes to me? I am stumped. Kids should really come with owners manuals like cars do. (They are far more complex than a six cylinder engine bolted to a frame.) I hope he isn't really "scarred for life", and I hope that the outcome of this little misadventure will be that he grows up with a healthy attitude towards physical signs of affection, and I hope that next time I think about closing the door. That's all, Goodnight.