Dumbledore alive, Snape not evil

Okay. We have been "discussing" this issue with some of our friends since vacation this summer.

It's long, but read www.dumbledoreisnotdead.com. It is several pages long, but worth the read for hard-core fans.

Make sure you click on the "clues" pages at the bottoms.

Love it. Love the pics.

My Husband

I want to clarify something about my last post. My husband (Coralius) is not wonderful because he is taking on himself a domestic burden of mine. He is trying to take care of me, to help me take care of myself. He is wonderful because he loves me. Because I love him. Because no one else will ever understand me the way he does (albeit he says HE doesn't understand me sometimes). Because we share a mutual respect. Because of a million different things that I could never completely list or explain. Because of a thousand things I'm not sure I understand myself.

(Yes, yes I am an English teacher, and I have written mostly in sentence fragments. It is a writing style. Stream of consciousness - look it up.)

His post, I Don’t Have the Words, talks about me, him, us, and emotion itself. It is exactly how I feel about him as well. I don't think I could have ever said it better. Yes, I know I can be frustrating, although it bothers me that I am. And, yes, he can be a jerk sometimes, although he hates it too. But, to me that just makes our relationship that much better, stronger. One may ask, "Huh?"

A. It means we are honest with each other. When people are truly honest with one another, not all things that are said are full of sunshine and butterflies.

B. It means that we love one another enough to lash out at each other, even when it is unfair. I know that when Coralius gripes at me either 1 - I have done something that I need to fix, or at least work on not doing again, or 2 - he is frustrated with work, tired, sick, or something of that nature and he knows I love him enough to let it go. Face it, we only really ever lash out unfairly at the people we love. They will always forgive us. I do the same thing to him.

C. It means we respect each other. We respect one another enough to be honest about our opinions even when they differ. (This is different than the honesty listed above. You see, one can always be honest with others and not have respect for them or from them. Respect, in my book any way, requires a certain level of honesty.) We listen to one another, even when we disagree. We are not only husband and wife, we are the best of friends.

Couples who never fight or disagree bother me. (And, they do exist.) Do they lack respect for one another? Why aren't they more honest with each other, even if they can't be honest with other people? If that is the case, what is their relationship based on? How long can it last? Are they so alike that they don't disagree on anything? Would that not be so totally boring? Coralius and I do agree on most important topics, but we do disagree occassionally. Of all the adjectives I could use to describe our relationship, boring would not be one of them. When I was a teen, somewhere the idea was planted in my head that compatible people didn't fight. I hope that whoever gave me that idea has learned better since then for his/her own sake.

Me? Stressed?

My wonderful husband told me this morning that he wants me to stop doing house work for a little while. Hmmm.... Most wives would jump up and down for joy. My first reaction? I felt like I was being punished, like I wasn't doing a good enough job, like he was fed up with me. That isn't it; at least I'm pretty sure it isn't.

The truth is that I have not been doing well dealing with the twists and turns of the emotional rollercoaster I have been on as of late. I am extremely stressed, overly stressed one might say. I can't seem to focus on much at all. I can do one, maybe two things at a time; but multi-tasking? Not right now. And, my energy is just zapped. By 6pm during the week I can barely function. I have been trying to suppress all this ... stuff so that I can deal with those things that can't wait. I am a teacher; and, no matter how I feel, the students will come and so will the tests. The problem with suppression is that the stress or issue really doesn't go anywhere. You still have to take time to deal with it. I have been trying to ignore it, and it's not working well.

Coralius is trying to lessen my stress levels so that I can deal with this and move on. I love him so much. But, I didn't realize that I was doing such a poor job dealing. In looking back over the past few weeks, I remember him asking me repeatedly, "What's wrong?" and, "Why aren't you smiling anymore?" And, I answered, truthfully I thought, "Nothing." and, "I am." Thank goodness he looks out for me.

Underworld: Evolution -- a review

Wow. We just walked in from watching Underworld: Evolution, and it was great. Fangs, claws, sex, fur, blood, gore, revenge, deceit, and family ties -- what more could you want?

The movie starts with a flashback that allows true fans an "Aha" moment but poses more questions based on what we "know" from the first movie. The origins of the Corvinus brothers and the ensuing vampire and werewolf races are revealed. Although he isn't seen in many of the previews, Michael Corvin is in the movie, and we learn about his new "condition." Questions that were posed at the end of the last movie are answered, and we are left with questions about what is to come. Will there be a third movie? My guess is that anyone who liked the first movie will really enjoy this one. I could talk about this movie all day, but I would reveal things that I wouldn't want to know prior to watching it. Don't take my word for its worth, however. Go see it and decide for yourself.

By the way, parents, be sure that you want your children to watch this before you purchase the tickets for them. It is rated R for violence and gore, nudity, sexual content, and some language. There is quite a bit more gore this time, and I jumped 10 times more during this one. But, you're watching a movie about a war between vampires and werewolves. What do you expect? In the one real sex scene none of the naughty bits are revealed, but those are the only bits not revealed. This is the closest cut movie sex I have seen in a while. I saw several parents cover children's eyes during this short clip. There are a few breasts revealed later, but very briefly and not in a really "titillating" context.

Being Thankful

Okay - I started this blog and then took a break. I had some personal issues to deal with, but I am back.

If anyone keeps up with Coralius' blog, you know that back at the beginning of January my cousin was one of the men who died in the Sago Mine in WV. When I was a child and teenager I was very close to him. He and one of my uncles were like brothers. I have always been very close to that uncle too. I live far away from them now, but I still love them. This was a difficult thing to deal with, and I wasn't sure how to write about or share it.

In watching all the media coverage of that tragedy, I wonder how many people paid attention to the climate of that area. And, I don't mean the weather. Journalists repeated many times that to make a decent living in WV you either have to have a college degree or work in the mines. That area of WV, my home, survives mostly on the mining and timber industrues. (The mines make more money though because of the risk factor.)

My father worked in the timber industry, which can be described as seasonal depending upon which part of the lumber production industry you work in. However, we raised and butchered our own livestock, we raised a garden, we harvested fruit, etc. I learned to can and freeze food as a child.

My parents were determined that we all (my siblings and I) receive a college education. They worked hard to give us that opportunity, one that was not afforded to them when they were young. Our children will, hopefully, never have to know how to butcher an animal or preserve fruit in order to survive.

My life wasn't nearly as easy as those of some of my friends, but we always had what we needed; and we always had each other. We always had love. And, for so much, I am thankful.

I am so thankful. (Not to any deity in particular or at all)

I am thankful that I DID have to work when I was growing up. This taught me to take pride in a hard days work and the rewards that come with it. It taught me to appreciate things that I have.
I am thankful that I had to work to put myself through college. I can truly say that I did it on my own. I earned scholarships and worked various part-time jobs. Other than the occassional gas money to come pick me up, my college education was not placed on my parents' shoulders.

I am thankful that my parents instilled in me the value of an education and encouraged my desire to read and learn. I learned that the imagination is a wonderful place to visit and has so much to offer. I learned the beauty and power of words.

I am thankful that my parents taught me the values of people and family and history and heritage. Without knowing where you come from, you truly cannot know where you need to go. Without respecting what and who brought you forth, you cannot appreciate what it took to get you here and what you, yourself, are capable of.

I am thankful that I have a husband who respects me as a person, trusts my judgement, believes in my intelligence and capabilities, and values my opinions. Without him I would have never learned that it is important to take care of myself first -- that if I don't take care of me I cannot care for others.

I am thankful that I have a brother and sister that I love and love me. I can depend on and trust them. We grew up not only as siblings but as friends. I am thankful for my brother's wife and son who have brought happiness and love into all our lives. I am thankful for my sister's fiance who was my friend before he was hers.

I am thankful for the in-laws that love me as though I were their own and have accepted me lovingly into their family.

I am thankful that I have friends with whom I can be honest, even when we don't agree, and they will always love and respect me.

I am thankful for the education I received. This will help me on my journey to be more than what I am. This will help me give more to our children.

Without these factors in my life I would be a different person. And, contrary to a decade ago, I like who I am. I am not perfect, and I have bad days. But, I do the best I can; and that is pretty darn good.

I am thankful that my father's doctors are confident that his cancer can be "cured" with radiation and chemotherapy. It won't be pretty, but it is better than it could have been.

There are still things that I (we) want: a bigger house, less(no) debt, more education, more time with loved ones, and, most of all, a family. These are life goals that we have yet to achieve, but for all that we already have --I am truly thankful.

My nerd score