Best Weekends: Jan. 14th, 15th, 20th, 21st & 22nd!!!

Today is January 24th, while I cannot believe it is already the 24th-I can say that the last two weekends of my life have been some of the best weekends of my life!

Here's the rundown:

Saturday, Jan. 14th-my mom and I went and had our pedicures-I think I wrote about that in this blog-check the archives, I don't remember! LOL! We went to dinner at Yummi Sushi Grill (not so tasty to me, but hey, whatever) and then on Sunday the 15th-we went to Wal-Mart and somewhere else. Anyhow, it was a lovely day with just mom and I!!!

Sunday, Jan 15th-I went to lunch with my good friend, JoJo (Chili's-so yummy!) and then went to another friend's house and had really great conversation and watched my Sunday Night Show (Desperate Housewive's & Grey's Anatomy)! Now, granted, I usually watch those with my mom-but it was great to watch them in someone else's living room and laugh with my friend! Very FUN & relaxing!!!

This weekend:

Friday Evening, Jan. 20th-JoJo & I went to see Memoirs of A Geisha and while I didn't quite understand the whole thing (never read the book-although I hear it's great) it was a very moving and touching movie. We both cried...before the movie, JJ and I went to our favorite restraunt Macaroni Grill-we share a passion for Italian Food and basically all things Italian-except Italian men, they're very sexy and all and I hear they're great in bed, but they're also lazier than hell and I can't have that-sorry guys! LOL! Anyway, after that I came home and meditated for about an hour and a half which was just awesome! Really, that's MY high, and MY drug of choice!

Saturday, Jan 21st-I got to sleep in until 11am-I cannot remember the last time I slept that late-it was glorious! I went downstairs to get the mail and had a lovely chat with Kelly, my apartment complex manager-she's such a lovely lady-I live in a really nice place! Then I watched mom mop the kitchen and bathrooms (I had cleaned the house for her on Thurs. the 19th-yay me) and so all she had to do was mop-pretty cool hunh! Anyway, then I meditated while mom ran some errands and then GRANMDA ELIZABETH & HENRY came into town. They are traveling with their brand new and very nice R.V. and we met them for dinner! It was great to see them and although they were very tired-they came over after dinner and we all had a wonderful time! They both loved our apartment and said it looked very nice and homey and comfy-that's very cool b/c their house is just as great! Then they went home and mom and I rented some movies-none of which we've watched yet, but the point is-we got 'em!

Sunday, Jan. 22nd-I got to sleep in AGAIN this time until about 10am and then showered (I looked SO pretty that day), meditated (again, love that) and grandma and Henry came back over. I had a good friend of mine bring over her new baby so that my grandma could meet them-then the baby, grandma and I went to Target (Tar-ge') while my mom and Henry stayed here and watched Football (by the way, the Broncos lost-they're my mom's favorite team and when it comes to football, she's worse than a guy-lol-seriously!) and chatted. Grandma came home with me (she bought me some blush and a new dark purple t-shirt even though I TRIED to give her money for them-gotta love those grama's-no matter how old we get, they'll always spoil us grandkids rotten-thanks grama!) and the baby left. Then mom and I went to Trader Joe's, made a junk food run and went back over to Grandma & Henry's RV for dinner. Okay, grama kinda messed up on that b/c I AM a vegetarian, which she kind of forgot (i.e. no dressing for the salad-about a 1/2c. of green beans for 4 people), but hey, the company couldn't have been better! Henry & mom played cribbage while grandma and I talked about spiritual stuff and planned our finances for Italy next year! It was absolutely wonderful-so great to see them-always is. Those two, along with my mom, make my life so rich and full and worth living-I just adore my family! Okay, okay, we're dysfunctional too, but hey, at least we know it-can admit it and don't run from it! LOL! Anyhow, after that, my mom and I made the LONG drive across town back home and watched Sunday Night TV-very funny and entertaining! After that, I crashed into bed fully satisfied with an incredible blessed weekend! Praise the Lord and thank you for the beautiful family and even better memories! :)

All in all, they were some of the best times of my life and weekends I'll always remember and treasure! Thanks to mom, grandma & Henry for making them happen, and thank you to God for keeping my family here, for me, around me and near me-safe, sound, healthy & happy!!!

Gram & Henry are in Texas tonight visiting one his daughter's-I hope they all have even half as much fun as I did this weekend-I love you guys! :)

Many Blessings to Everyone!

In Light & Love,
-Sarah Liz :)

P.S. On a sidenote I started college again yesterday, I'm taking English 102 and English 261 which is a Poetry class which is so incredibly cool and exciting I can't even tell y'all! Yay, it feels weird, nervewracking and wonderful to be back in school-I do better anyway-push through it Sarah, you'll make it! To all those out there who just started college again-congratulations and best of luck-we can do it!!!!

God Bless America-We Really Are Free!

I know that I may complain a lot about America-well, maybe not in this blog, but in general, I can be pretty disatisfied with the condition of America.

There ARE many things wrong with this country:

Lack of healthcare, which has instead become a "wealthcare" system.

Lack of quality education; my suggestion: pay teachers at every level of education A LOT more than they already make).

Rampid homelessness.

6 million (yes, that's correct) children going to bed hungry each night.

The increasing gap between the rich & the poor.

The severly low minimum wage which does not even begin to cover what it really costs to live!

The lack of American pride and "God" slowly disapearing from places of governmental business.
(This country was FOUNDED on Christianity, and while I'm ALL for "religious freedom," I say-if you sincerely do not like God-you have free will-so use it, live ELSEWHERE-or at the very least, do not try and take OUR God and the foundation of OUR country away from U.S.!)

The President apparently being allowed to "screen," or "listen in on," our phone calls, emails and yes, even this blog.
(Quite scary, like George Orwell's 1984 scary, it's supposed to be against the law, but I guess Mr. Bush is doing it anyway-not a big suprise now is it!)

The plight of the disabled being severely undercomensated (i.e.: me) and forced to live on less than average rent-and choose between heat, eat, car gasoline or shelter!

The lack of awareness among local politics and its civilians, etc, etc, etc.....

However, even with all of that being said (and they're all very REAL problems) we still have it pretty darn good here in the United States of America.

For all the problems and crap there is today; we still have the following:

Freedom: of speech, religion, clothing, traveling.

The Right to: petition, VOTE, stand up for our opinions, and question our Government without fear of persecution.

The freedom to travel all around the country, and to other countries, wear what we want, go where we want, when/how we want, mostly with whom we want!

As an American woman I have ACCESS to driving, clothing, education, childcare and property rights-too many women around the world cannot say that!

Yes, we are still free and still fighting to keep that freedom-things may not be perfect here in the U.S.-but they're not that horrible either!

I was reading Parade Magazine this past Sunday and came across the following article; it's frightening, truthful and disheartening. It made me stop and think and count ALL of the many ways I am so blessed to be born and raised, AN AMERICAN!

Please, take a moment and read this eye-opening article-and then thank God you're here, in the U.S. (if you are) and especially if you're an American Woman-although I'm a feminist, and proudly remain one; ladies-we American Women have it better than any other women in the world-read on:


A “dictator” is a head of state who exercises arbitrary authority over the lives of his citizens and who cannot be removed from power through legal means. The worst commit terrible human-rights abuses. This present list draws in part on reports by global human-rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch, Freedom House, Reporters Without Borders and Amnesty International. While the three worst from 2005 have retained their places, two on last year’s list (Muammar al-Qaddafi of Libya and Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan) have slipped out of the Top 10—not because their conduct has improved but because other dictators have gotten worse.

1) Omar al-Bashir, Sudan. Age 62. In power since 1989. Last year’s rank: 1

Since February 2003, Bashir’s campaign of ethnic and religious persecution has killed at least 180,000 civilians in Darfur in western Sudan and driven 2 million people from their homes. The good news is that Bashir’s army and the Janjaweed militia that he supports have all but stopped burning down villages in Darfur. The bad news is why they’ve stopped: There are few villages left to burn. The attacks now are aimed at refugee camps. While the media have called these actions “a humanitarian tragedy,” Bashir himself has escaped major condemnation. In 2005, Bashir signed a peace agreement with the largest rebel group in non-Islamic southern Sudan and allowed its leader, John Garang, to become the nation’s vice president. But Garang died in July in a helicopter crash, and Bashir’s troops still occupy the south.


2) Kim Jong-il, North Korea. Age 63. In power since 1994. Last year’s rank: 2

While the outside world focuses on Kim Jong-il’s nuclear weapons program, domestically he runs the world’s most tightly controlled society. North Korea continues to rank last in the index of press freedom compiled by Reporters Without Borders, and for the 34th straight year it earned the worst possible score on political rights and civil liberties from Freedom House. An estimated 250,000 people are confined in “reeducation camps.” Malnourishment is widespread: According to the United Nations World Food Program, the average 7-year-old boy in North Korea is almost 8 inches shorter than a South Korean boy the same age and more than 20 pounds lighter.


3) Than Shwe, Burma (Myanmar). Age 72. In power since 1992. Last year’s rank: 3

In November 2005, without warning, Than Shwe moved his entire government from Rangoon (Yangon), the capital for the last 120 years, to Pyinmana, a remote area 245 miles away. Civil servants were given two days’ notice and are forbidden from resigning. Burma leads the world in the use of children as soldiers, and the regime is notorious for using forced labor on construction projects and as porters for the army in war zones. The long-standing house arrest of Aung San Suu Kyi, winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize and Than Shwe’s most feared opponent, recently was extended for six months. Just to drive near her heavily guarded home is to risk arrest.


4) Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe. Age 81. In power since 1980. Last year’s rank: 9

Life in Zimbabwe has gone from bad to worse: It has the world’s highest inflation rate, 80% unemployment and an HIV/AIDS rate of more than 20%. Life expectancy has declined since 1988 from 62 to 38 years. Farming has collapsed since 2000, when Mugabe began seizing white-owned farms, giving most of them to political allies with no background in agriculture. In 2005, Mugabe launched Operation Murambatsvina (Clean the Filth), the forcible eviction of some 700,000 people from their homes or businesses—“to restore order and sanity,” says the government. But locals say the reason was to forestall demonstrations as the economy deteriorates.


5) Islam Karimov, Uzbekistan. Age 67. In power since 1990. Last year’s rank: 15

Until 2005, the worst excesses of Karimov’s regime had taken place in the torture rooms of his prisons. But on May 13, he ordered a mass killing that could not be concealed. In the city of Andijan, 23 businessmen, held in prison and awaiting a verdict, were freed by their supporters, who then held an open meeting in the town square. An estimated 10,000 people gathered, expecting government officials to come and listen to their grievances. Instead, Karimov sent the army, which massacred hundreds of men, women and children. A 2003 law made Karimov and all members of his family immune from prosecution forever.


6) Hu Jintao, China. Age 63. In power since 2002. Last year’s rank: 4

Although some Chinese have taken advantage of economic liberalization to become rich, up to 150 million Chinese live on $1 a day or less in this nation with no minimum wage. Between 250,000 and 300,000 political dissidents are held in “reeducation-through-labor” camps without trial. Less than 5% of criminal trials include witnesses, and the conviction rate is 99.7%. There are no privately owned TV or radio stations. The government opens and censors mail and monitors phone calls, faxes, e-mails and text messages. In preparation for the 2008 Olympics, at least 400,000 residents of Beijing have been forcibly evicted from their homes.


7) King Abdullah, Saudi Arabia. Age 82. In power since 1995. Last year’s rank: 5

Although Abdullah did not become king until 2005, he has ruled Saudi Arabia since his half-brother, Fahd, suffered a stroke 10 years earlier. In Saudi Arabia, phone calls are recorded and mobile phones with cameras are banned. It is illegal for public employees “to engage in dialogue with local and foreign media.” By law, all Saudi citizens must be Muslims. According to Amnesty International, police in Saudi Arabia routinely use torture to extract “confessions.” Saudi women may not appear in public with a man who isn’t a relative, must cover their bodies and faces in public and may not drive. The strict suppression of women is not voluntary, and Saudi women who would like to live a freer life are not allowed to do so.


8) Saparmurat Niyazov, Turkmenistan. Age 65. In power since 1990. Last year’s rank: 8

Niyazov has created the world’s most pervasive personality cult, and criticism of any of his policies is considered treason. The latest examples of his government-by-whim include bans on car radios, lip-synching and playing recorded music on TV or at weddings. Niyazov also has closed all national parks and shut down rural libraries. He launched an attack on his nation’s health-care system, firing 15,000 health-care workers and replacing most of them with untrained military conscripts. He announced the closing of all hospitals outside the capital and ordered Turkmenistan’s physicians to give up the Hippocratic Oath and to swear allegiance to him instead.


9) Seyed Ali Khamane’i, Iran. Age 66. In power since 1989. Last year’s rank: 18

Over the past four years, the rulers of Iran have undone the reforms that were emerging in the nation. The hardliners completed this reversal by winning the parliamentary elections in 2004 —after disqualifying 44% of the candidates—and with the presidential election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in June 2005. Ultimately, however, the country is run by the 12-man Guardian Council, overseen by the Ayatollah Khamane’i, which has the right to veto any law that the elected government passes. Khamane’i has shut down the free press, tortured journalists and ordered the execution of homosexual males.


10) Teodoro Obiang Nguema, Equatorial Guinea. Age 63. In power since 1979. Last year’s rank: 10

Obiang took power in this tiny West African nation by overthrowing his uncle more than 25 years ago. According to a United Nations inspector, torture “is the normal means of investigation” in Equatorial Guinea. There is no freedom of speech, and there are no bookstores or newsstands. The one private radio station is owned by Obiang’s son. Since major oil reserves were discovered in Equatorial Guinea in 1995, Obiang has deposited more than $700 million into special accounts in U.S. banks. Meanwhile, most of his people live on less than $1 a day.

Contributing Editor David Wallechinsky has reported on world figures for PARADE, including an interview with Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. For more on the worst dictators, visit parade.com on the Web.

Like I said, I'm truly blessed to have been born and raised in the good ole U S of A, and although I may complain (a little too much) I thank God everyday for the RIGHT & FREEDOM to complain!

God Bless America!

In Light & Love,
-Sarah Liz