I love the New Moon soundtrack and I can't wait for the movie to come out!
Four years... All buttoned up
14 years ago
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Reading Blogs
Sometimes I just get more irritated with people when I read their blogs which is why I haven't been writing my own blog. I am writing today though and who knows, maybe you will end up irritated with me? I don't think anyone hardly reads this so I will probably be ok. People make grand sweeping statements that God is calling them to do something one month and then months later they blog about how God is calling them to do the complete opposite. They do this over and over. Or sometimes they blog that they hate Obama and his socialist programs and profess a belief in the importance of small government; then they talk about how they are on unemployment or there kid is getting support from some government program. They liken Obama to Hitler and then profess Christ in their next sentence. They talk poorly about the former church they attended or worked at(which everyone knows is CCV) yet stayed working at for months, even years, before finally leaving. What does it say about your character if you and your family profited from a church that you so disagreed with their values? Or some people say negative things about megachurches. i have always gone to a big church and I love it. I feel close to Christ and enjoy community and fellowship with a lot of people. Sometimes people say terrible things about California or living in California. What is so bad about California? Just because you can't afford to live here doesn't make it a bad place. Some people blog that they are poor yet have a maid. What the heck?
That's all. Next time I will blog something positive.
That's all. Next time I will blog something positive.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Michael Jackson
I am so over people being negative about Michael Jackson's funeral. So the city spent a bunch of money on it, so what? For a brief amount of time millions of people across the world were joined in celebrating an amazing artist. Our state/city wastes so much money on other stuff that I really care nothing about so might as well spend money on something important. I just read that it was $49,000 to pay for policeman lunches. Hey policemen, I don't get free food at my job, how come you do? I loved how many of the people complaining on Facebook were:
1. State workers that I know spend a ton of wasted time or use time to gouge the government for money.
2. I was going to say something mean here but won't because it may be too obvious who it is about.
3. People who are pastor's of churches that spend thousands of dollars on lighting, videos, etc. Talk about waste.
4. People that are mad that Michael Jackson is more popular than Jesus. I have an idea, rather than spewing hatred on Facebook, how about showing a positive message of love. I think Jesus would be trying to use this situation to show His love and as a time to discuss Eternity with people.
Sorry I am just sick of this. I feel like so many of my "Christian" friends on Facebook are embarassing to me. I feel like they send the wrong message about who we are.
1. State workers that I know spend a ton of wasted time or use time to gouge the government for money.
2. I was going to say something mean here but won't because it may be too obvious who it is about.
3. People who are pastor's of churches that spend thousands of dollars on lighting, videos, etc. Talk about waste.
4. People that are mad that Michael Jackson is more popular than Jesus. I have an idea, rather than spewing hatred on Facebook, how about showing a positive message of love. I think Jesus would be trying to use this situation to show His love and as a time to discuss Eternity with people.
Sorry I am just sick of this. I feel like so many of my "Christian" friends on Facebook are embarassing to me. I feel like they send the wrong message about who we are.
Monday, July 6, 2009
I Don't Care!!!!!!!!1
Have you ever noticed how people think they are so cool just because they like some random, unheard of band? I have and it irritates the crap out of me. Who cares if you worship Shitake Mushroom Sauce* or have been to every show that Chinese Firedrill* has ever done??? NOBODY! These same people also get irritated when their band goes mainstream. Why? Shouldn't they be happy that the band is getting their music out to more people? This also normally means that they will also be able to sustain their music-making even longer. Uggghhh. It just bugs me. I like bands like Incubus and singers like Justin Timberlake and I will like them regardless if one or one billion people like them!
*Band names have been changed to ones I made up.
*Band names have been changed to ones I made up.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Let's get out of Iraq! These poor guys!
The below story made me so sad, not only for the 5 shot but also for the one doing the shooting.
BAGHDAD – An American soldier opened fire at a counseling center on a military base Monday, killing five fellow soldiers before being taken into custody, the U.S. command and Pentagon officials said.
Although it was unclear what prompted the shooting, the incident draws attention to the issue of combat stress and morale after six years of war as the mission of the 130,000-strong force transforms to one of training and mentoring the Iraqis.
Attacks on fellow soldiers, known as fraggings, were not uncommon during the Vietnam war but are believed to be rare in Iraq and Afghanistan.
President Barack Obama said in a statement that he was "shocked and deeply saddened" by the report, adding that "my heart goes out to the families and friends" of all those involved "in this horrible tragedy."
After a meeting with Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Obama said he would make sure "that we fully understand what led to this tragedy" and will do everything possible "to ensure that our men and women in uniform are protected as they serve our country so capably and courageously in harm's way."
A brief U.S. military statement said the assailant was taken into custody following the 2 p.m. shooting at Camp Liberty, a sprawling U.S. base on the western edge of Baghdad near the city's international airport. Obama visited an adjacent base last month.
The statement said nobody else was hurt, but a senior defense official in Washington said three people were wounded. The names of the victims and shooter were not released.
Pentagon officials said the shooting happened at a stress clinic, where troops can go for help with the stresses of combat or personal issues. It was unclear whether the gunman and his victims were workers at the clinic or were there for counseling. Soldiers routinely carry weapons on Camp Liberty and other bases, but they are supposed to be unloaded.
At the Pentagon, Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the shooting occurred "in a place where individuals were seeking help."
"It does speak to me about the need for us to redouble our efforts in terms of dealing with the stress," Mullen said.
The U.S. military is coping with a growing number of stress cases among soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan — many of whom are on their third or fourth combat tours. Some studies suggest that about 15 percent of soldiers returning from Iraq suffer from some sort of emotional problems.
With violence declining, many soldiers face new challenges trying to shift from fighting a war to supporting the Iraqis — tasks that often require skills in which they have not been trained.
Adding to the stress, there have been several incidents recently when men dressed as Iraqi soldiers have opened fire on American troops, including an attack in the northern city of Mosul on May 2 when two soldiers and the gunman were killed.
Rep. Harry Mitchell, a member of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, said the Camp Liberty shooting underscores the "critical need" to reach out to soldiers suffering from "the effects of combat stress and post-traumatic stress disorder."
"Many troops are under great psychological strain and are not receiving the treatment they need," said Paul Rieckhoff, founder and head of Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans of America. "Much more must be done to address troops' psychological injuries before they reach a crisis point."
The death toll from the shooting at the counseling center was the highest for U.S. personnel in a single attack since April 10, when a suicide truck driver killed five American soldiers with a blast near a police headquarters in Mosul.
"Any time we lose one of our own, it affects us all," U.S. spokesman Col. John Robinson said. "Our hearts go out to the families and friends of all the service members involved in this terrible tragedy."
There have been several previous fragging incidents in the Iraq war.
• Last September, Sgt. Joseph Bozicevich, 39, of Minneapolis was detained after allegedly killing two members of his unit south of Baghdad. The case remains under investigation.
• In April 2005, Army Sgt. Hasan Akbar was sentenced to death for killing two officers in Kuwait just before the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.
• In June 2005, an Army captain and lieutenant were killed when an anti-personnel mine detonated in the window of their room at the U.S. base in Tikrit. National Guard Staff Sgt. Alberto Martinez was acquitted in the blast.
• Spc. Chris Rolan, an Army medic, was sentenced to 33 years in prison in 2007 for killing a fellow soldier after a night of heavy drinking in Iraq.
• In 2008, Army Cpl. Timothy Ayers was sentenced to two years and four months in prison after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter in the fatal 2007 shooting of his platoon sergeant in Iraq.
In other violence, the military announced Monday that a U.S. soldier was killed a day earlier when a roadside bomb exploded near his vehicle in Basra province of southern Baghdad.
In the northern city of Kirkuk, a car bombing killed two people Monday, including a 10-year-old boy, and wounded 10 others, police Brig. Gen. Sarhat Qadir said.
In Baghdad, a senior Iraqi traffic officer was assassinated on his way to work. It was the second attack on a high-ranking traffic police officer in the capital in as many days.
___
Associated Press Writers Pauline Jelinek in Washington and Ross Bynum in Savannah, Ga., contributed to this report.
BAGHDAD – An American soldier opened fire at a counseling center on a military base Monday, killing five fellow soldiers before being taken into custody, the U.S. command and Pentagon officials said.
Although it was unclear what prompted the shooting, the incident draws attention to the issue of combat stress and morale after six years of war as the mission of the 130,000-strong force transforms to one of training and mentoring the Iraqis.
Attacks on fellow soldiers, known as fraggings, were not uncommon during the Vietnam war but are believed to be rare in Iraq and Afghanistan.
President Barack Obama said in a statement that he was "shocked and deeply saddened" by the report, adding that "my heart goes out to the families and friends" of all those involved "in this horrible tragedy."
After a meeting with Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Obama said he would make sure "that we fully understand what led to this tragedy" and will do everything possible "to ensure that our men and women in uniform are protected as they serve our country so capably and courageously in harm's way."
A brief U.S. military statement said the assailant was taken into custody following the 2 p.m. shooting at Camp Liberty, a sprawling U.S. base on the western edge of Baghdad near the city's international airport. Obama visited an adjacent base last month.
The statement said nobody else was hurt, but a senior defense official in Washington said three people were wounded. The names of the victims and shooter were not released.
Pentagon officials said the shooting happened at a stress clinic, where troops can go for help with the stresses of combat or personal issues. It was unclear whether the gunman and his victims were workers at the clinic or were there for counseling. Soldiers routinely carry weapons on Camp Liberty and other bases, but they are supposed to be unloaded.
At the Pentagon, Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the shooting occurred "in a place where individuals were seeking help."
"It does speak to me about the need for us to redouble our efforts in terms of dealing with the stress," Mullen said.
The U.S. military is coping with a growing number of stress cases among soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan — many of whom are on their third or fourth combat tours. Some studies suggest that about 15 percent of soldiers returning from Iraq suffer from some sort of emotional problems.
With violence declining, many soldiers face new challenges trying to shift from fighting a war to supporting the Iraqis — tasks that often require skills in which they have not been trained.
Adding to the stress, there have been several incidents recently when men dressed as Iraqi soldiers have opened fire on American troops, including an attack in the northern city of Mosul on May 2 when two soldiers and the gunman were killed.
Rep. Harry Mitchell, a member of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, said the Camp Liberty shooting underscores the "critical need" to reach out to soldiers suffering from "the effects of combat stress and post-traumatic stress disorder."
"Many troops are under great psychological strain and are not receiving the treatment they need," said Paul Rieckhoff, founder and head of Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans of America. "Much more must be done to address troops' psychological injuries before they reach a crisis point."
The death toll from the shooting at the counseling center was the highest for U.S. personnel in a single attack since April 10, when a suicide truck driver killed five American soldiers with a blast near a police headquarters in Mosul.
"Any time we lose one of our own, it affects us all," U.S. spokesman Col. John Robinson said. "Our hearts go out to the families and friends of all the service members involved in this terrible tragedy."
There have been several previous fragging incidents in the Iraq war.
• Last September, Sgt. Joseph Bozicevich, 39, of Minneapolis was detained after allegedly killing two members of his unit south of Baghdad. The case remains under investigation.
• In April 2005, Army Sgt. Hasan Akbar was sentenced to death for killing two officers in Kuwait just before the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.
• In June 2005, an Army captain and lieutenant were killed when an anti-personnel mine detonated in the window of their room at the U.S. base in Tikrit. National Guard Staff Sgt. Alberto Martinez was acquitted in the blast.
• Spc. Chris Rolan, an Army medic, was sentenced to 33 years in prison in 2007 for killing a fellow soldier after a night of heavy drinking in Iraq.
• In 2008, Army Cpl. Timothy Ayers was sentenced to two years and four months in prison after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter in the fatal 2007 shooting of his platoon sergeant in Iraq.
In other violence, the military announced Monday that a U.S. soldier was killed a day earlier when a roadside bomb exploded near his vehicle in Basra province of southern Baghdad.
In the northern city of Kirkuk, a car bombing killed two people Monday, including a 10-year-old boy, and wounded 10 others, police Brig. Gen. Sarhat Qadir said.
In Baghdad, a senior Iraqi traffic officer was assassinated on his way to work. It was the second attack on a high-ranking traffic police officer in the capital in as many days.
___
Associated Press Writers Pauline Jelinek in Washington and Ross Bynum in Savannah, Ga., contributed to this report.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Economy
I know that I haven't posted in a while and this will be short.
I am so over this economy. My dad will find out this week if he even has a job. It seems like people everywhere are losing their jobs and the overall prognosis for our country is very bleak. I AM OVER IT! When will it stop? I seriously felt like screaming or ovmiting today I was just so over it!
I am so over this economy. My dad will find out this week if he even has a job. It seems like people everywhere are losing their jobs and the overall prognosis for our country is very bleak. I AM OVER IT! When will it stop? I seriously felt like screaming or ovmiting today I was just so over it!
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
25 Random Things About Me
Here it is, the famous list, I will post on Facebook later!
- I had a wonderful childhood, I lived in a quintessential suburban neighborhood where all the kids played together and the families all knew each other. I got to do so many wonderful things. I also have wonderful parents and this certainly helped. This all continued right into adulthood!
- I once had a homeless man sleeping in my car. I had purposely left it open because I hated driving it. A week later, I got my own car.
- I really love playing sports and wish I had more opportunities as an adult.
- I love reading and I normally am reading at least 3 books at any given time.
- My name is Melissa Howard and I am a theme-park addict. I absolutely love Disneyland and I am not afraid to admit it! I also love Walt Disney World and would be happy returning there every year. Some people I know are doing a Disney-Round-the-World trip in 2010 and I really want to go. It will be 3-4 weeks and go to Disneyland, Disney World, Disneyland Paris, Hong Kong Disney and Tokyo Disneyland!
- I have been to Calcutta, India and Caracas, Venezuela; both on mission trips. I really hope to return to India some day but I would rather go to Antarctica than Venezuela ever again.
- I am pretty active on message boards and forums. I love meeting new and different types of people from all around the world.
- I am optimistic and always know that deep down God is in control.
- I like being a leader and being the one in charge.
- I love planning things – vacations, parties, dinners, you name it!
- I am deathly afraid of snakes, sometimes I can’t even watch them on TV.
- I am a firm believer in western medicine and taking pills.
- I get bored easily, luckily I have a pretty good imagination to keep my company.
- I very much look forward to being a wife and mother.
- I feel so lucky to have a pretty wide circle of friends. I can honestly say there is more than one person I can count as a best friend.
- I always smell my socks when I take them off. My dad does this too.
- One of my favorite foods is pickle, weenie and cheese. It is raw Farmer John wieners, cheddar cheese and sweet pickles all cut up and mixed together. YUM!
- When I was younger I was obsessed with creating haunted houses and carnivals.
- I have always respected the various women I have worked for.
- It irritates me when people with far less responsibilities than me complain about how busy they are.
- I love musicals and singing along with them!
- I deeply love my church.
- I have set it up where I should be able to retire when I am in my late 50s.
- I used to be very conservative, then I got real liberal and now I am heading back to conservative again!
- I cry with love for America every time I vote.
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