A Few of FR's Finest...Every Day...01-27-03...A Gem of a Freeper...And Colorful, Too

Billie and daisyscarlett

[daisyscarlett]

A Few of FR's Finest.....
......Every Day

FR is a Treasure Trove of talented, compassionate, patriotic, wonderful people who gather every day to discuss the latest news and issues; salute and support our military and our leaders;  tell a few jokes;  learn a new word;  write poetry;  pray for those in need;  and congratulate those who are deserving. Thank you, Jim Robinson, for giving us the vehicle in which we can express ourselves.

Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   I can remember lurking when there were only a few regulars who posted, and now there are over 60,000 who have registered for posting privileges. The forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world.

A Few of FR's Finest November 11, 2001

So many people have written me since my original Veteran's Day Tribute, asking how they, or a loved one, could be included in that tribute. Since I can no longer add the photos to the body of the thread, I've been including them in additional posts as I received enough to make another collage.

Still that doesn't seem to be enough. I think there's never been a better nor more appropriate time to keep the faces of our own Veterans and Active Military in front of FReepers--every day! That's why I wanted to do yet another Daily Thread .....ABOUT FReepers .....and FOR FReepers. But not only about our Military FReepers; for all FReepers! Wouldn't it be nice to get to know a few of the other FReepers as well? That's why, in addition to seeing FR's Finest Military Personnel every day, I thought it might be fun to feature a different FReeper (or FReepers) each day. If you would like to be pictured, or know someone who would, please FReepmail me and we'll turn the spotlight - on YOU - for the day!

And do let me know if you'd like your picture added to the groups of Veterans/Active Military below. I will keep this page updated, and continue to add them to the comment section of the original Veteran's Day thread as well.

TOP: Logos, SwedeGirl's hubby, Neil E Wright, FallGuy, 1John, Sneakypete
MIDDLE:  T'wit, COB1, LadyX, Dick Bachert, 68-69TonkinGulfYatchClub
BOTTOM:  YankeeinSC, Delta21, JoeSixPack1

TOP:  Bosniajmc, AFVetGal, Archy, A Navy Vet
MIDDLE:  4TheFlag, Aeronaut, 68Grunt, Xinga
BOTTOM:  Codger, AAABest, Clinton's A Liar, Duke809, dcwusmc

TOP:  mc5cents, Norb2569, LBGA's son, VanJenerette
MIDDLE:  Jim Robinson, KJenerette, davidosborne, KG9Kid
BOTTOM:  gwmoore, Equality7-2521, SAMWolf

TOP:  porgygirl, Phil V., MudPuppy, NorCoGOP
MIDDLE:  RaceBannon, OneidaM, rdb3, jwTexian
BOTTOM:  USMC Vet, TheMayor, Vineyard, rhododogma

We now have eleven groups of veterans/active military; we will post each group of three or four twice a week, with thumbnail/links of the remaining seven or eight groups on each thread. Click on any of the thumbnails below to see the group full-size.

         

GROUP 5A: TOP:  spectr17, RightOnline, SERE_Doc, Tet68. MIDDLE:  FutureSnakeEater, RightOnline's wife, CIApilot, Clamper1797. BOTTOM:  usmcobra, onedoug, DiverDave, Joe6-pack.

GROUP 6A: TOP:  g'nad, AgThorn's son Justin, SLB, AgThorn's son Brett. MIDDLE:  fish70, razorback-bert, CheneyChick, Leroy S Mort, Mark17. BOTTOM:  Terry's Take, Taxman, DinkyDau.

GROUP 7A: TOP:  ValerieUSA's son Grant, SK1Thurman, kd5cts, RangerVetNam, dansangel and .45man's son-in-law Tony.BOTTOM:  rangerX, Old China Hand, Trish, Howlin's dad, Mustang.

GROUP 8A: TOP: ohioWfan's son, MamaBear's father-in-law, MamaBear's dad, ladtx. MIDDLE:  The Mayor's niece, M.Kehoe, Beach_Babe's son-in-law. BOTTOM:  deadhead's dad, HiJinx, Severa's hubby, viligantcitizen's granddad.

      

GROUP 9A: TOP: Q6-God, Scan59, Mama Bear and JKPhoto's son, ofMagog. MIDDLE:  Big'ol_freeper, JustAmy's great uncle, Prodigal Son. BOTTOM:  JustAmy's husband, JustAmy's brother-in-law, JustAmy's brother.

GROUP 10A: TOP: dakine's wife, MeeknMing's dad, Auntbee's nephew, MilitiaMan7, AlasBabylon. BOTTOM:  Joe Brower, Temple Owl, Temple Owl's wife, dutchess' dad, Aomagrat.

GROUP 11A: TOP: ladtx #2 son; DiverDave's twin Don; petuniasevan and husband poorman; Mustard; ladtx #1 son. BOTTOM: AlamoGirl's brother Floyd; AG's dad; AG's brother Jim (inset); WVNan's husband; ladtx' Aunt Eva.

                     

In Our Spotlight Today ...

Aquamarine ...

If you are ever lucky enough to find yourself in the mountains of Northern Georgia and you happen to see a pretty lady barrelling down the road in an SUV, taking those curves perhaps a bit over the speed limit, and she has a beagle-mix dog in the car who answers to the name of Daisy Mae, and if there is music blasting from her car, then take another look. It could very well be Aquamarine.

One of FR's Finest

Aquamarine signed up on Free Republic on 6-19-01 using her favorite color as her screen name. She lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains with her husband, a Fire Fighter, and the aforementioned Daisy Mae.

When Daisy Mae came into her life, she shared that story on the USO Canteen thread. Here, she shares it with us again:

"A year ago Christmas I was out shopping in a local country store when the owner asked me to sit down and rock this sweet dog that they had rescued from being run over by a truck in front of their store that morning. I had just told my husband before I left the house that morning that after years of being without a dog^* that I was ready for one."

"She was half starved and dirty but after rocking her for just a few minutes I knew that I would take her home with me. She was lucky to survive and we were lucky to find her."

^* Below is a photograph of Aqua with her beloved Beagle, Beauregard.
Bet he was smiling when he saw that Daisy Mae looks a lot like him. :)

"My husband gave Beauregard to
me for Christmas when we were
engaged. He was a special dog
and lived for 5 years before
getting run over by a car. That's
why Daisy Mae now wears a shock
collar that keeps her within a
90 ft. radius of the house."

Freeping ...

Aquamarine was freeping before she was a Freeper! She attended three protests "during the attempted election theft by Gore."

At the second protest she attended, in Lenox Square GA, she took several pictures. She had learned about the protests through LoudCitizen.com. The protest generated a huge response from the motorists, and a lot of fun was had interacting with waves, shouts and big "thumbs up"! Of course, a few dems harrassed Aquamarine and the other protesters with their usual vulgarities.

The next Saturday Gore still hadn't conceded, so Aquamarine went back to Lenox Square....and this time she met some FReepers ...... "They were a lively, friendly bunch of people and told me how to sign up at Freerepublic.com." The rest, as they say, is history!

Later that day, a small group from the morning protest met down in front of The Third Curcuit Court in Atlanta and had the opportunity to do a Live Protest in front of the CNN camera.

After the election fiasco, Aquamarine became even more active in contacting politicians and other organizations.She said she regrets that she had not done more conservative activism in the past.

"I was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and my family moved to Georgia when I was 11. I'm one of those Christian Right Wing Extremists... but what else would you expect from someone right out of the heart of the Bible Belt? I've always been fortunate enough to have conservatives around me. My father was a strong conservative that could shatter any liberal's delusions in no time, and my husband is even more conservative than I am.

I think that George Washington was the best President that this nation has ever had; followed by a close second would be Ronald Reagan.

I vote ProLife - won't even consider voting for any politician that is Pro Choice. I am an ardent supporter of the Constitution, our Military, the Boy Scouts of America and protecting our religious freedom. Can't even express how disguted I am with the major News Network Outlets after having put unconditional trust in them for the biggest part of my life."

Music, Music, Music:

Aquamarine has always had a love of all kinds of music. She credits Fiddlstix for giving her the idea to post music on FR and Billie for teaching her HTML to accomplish this. In addition, she has a good eye for art and shares that with us as lead-ins to the music she posts. She posted music at the Canteen for many months, both on daily threads and special threads. She, along with Mr. Magoo and Sam Wolf, provided the music for the hugely successful USO Canteen Freeper Style..USO Dance.

Aquamarine has been a presence and contributor on the Finest thread since its inception in June of 2002. In addition to posting and sharing music and art on a regular basis, she recently did the A Celebration of Christmas Music thread, which was well received. She was also a contributor to the Christmas is...Freeper Memories thread on the Finest.

Aquamarine's Testament:

"I believe it is our ultimate purpose in this life to serve and glorify God so please let me take this opportunity to share with you that one day this life will be over, and those who know Christ as their personal Savior will spend eternity with Him."

WEEKEND THREAD: 01-25,26-03 Week In Review

Opinions by our own 'King of Ping' The guy's good, folks!

Thanks, Mixer!

1) Click on the graphic to open the Calendar.
2) Once there you can click on any month and even click to the right to go into next year. Once you are in the month that you joined FR you will need

to click on the number in the calendar and then an add item screen will come up.
3) In the next box enter your name in the "Calendar Text" field and then click on submit.
4) If any of the screens fail to load simply click on refresh in your browser and that will usually fix it.
5) If all else fails or simply if you want me to do this for you send me an FReepmail and I will gladly do it for you. ~Mixer

[Aquamarine]

The way I see is if those "peaceniks" have the right to go through our cities protesting the war and burning our flag we should reserve the right to drive anything we please. Alot of men have fought and died to give us these rights!

[FreeTheHostages]

I agree. But of course, the liberal yuppies lawyers that have SUVs just in order to intimade other drivers and pedestrians are not the sort that support Republicans or veterans or anything of the sort.

But, LOL, don't worry, I'm not anti-SUV. I grew in Vermont and lived on a big hill -- 4-wheel drive vehicles were pretty much required.

[Aquamarine]

Cherokee NC

Click on the pic

[daisyscarlett]

Ta da...another picture of your sweetie....this time relaxing....And everyone should know that he loves and enjoys Daisy Mae as much as you do...You must tell the story of how he did not want to take you on a get away in Dec because he did not want "to put his precious Daisy Mae" in the kennel....Turns out he was right cauz Daisy Mae did have an unsettling experience there...I'll let you tell the rest of the story, since it is your day and all...hee hee

[SAMWolf]

Congrats, Aquamarine.

[Aquamarine]

Goodness! You guys are being so generous with these wonderful gifs today (that will wind up on my profile page)....Skinny even gave me some balloons and confetti!

That is just gorgeous Mama Bear and I love Iris's, can't wait until they start coming out of the ground around here. :)

[daisyscarlett]

Alas, a coke would be perfect...maybe I should make that a diet Coke, hee hee

[Billie]

Good morning, M - your words are as beautiful as the lilacs! They always are. You make us feel very special with the way you compliment each and every one of us - the best incentives we have for this thread are the many FReepers like you who appreciate 'getting to know' others!

[daisyscarlett]

A great big ole hug back to you Mama_Bear. Was waiting for you to get here-knew you would bring a lovely graphic for Aqua, and you did not disappoint...

[Billie]

I especially enjoyed seeing Billie's Hillary as a Pear graphic on the back cover...

It's that lovely shape of hers. :)

[Aquamarine]

Thank you for this beautiful aqua angel! I'm going to have the best profile page ever when I get through posting all of these gifs.

[Billie]

What a glorious sight! It looks like a beautiful painting with a 'light' above the painting, the way you posted it with that pretty bar above!

[daisyscarlett]

March: Aquamarine

Aquamarine, the lovely blue-green member of the beryl family, has been used in jewelry since the third century B.C. and is one of the most fashionable gemstones today. For hundreds of years it was called "The Sailor's Stone," due to its sea-like colors, ranging from a pale sky blue to a deep blue-green, and was thought to protect sailors and people traveling over water.

The earliest aquamarine probably came from India, where it was highly regarded by Hindu mystics as an aid to promoting mental clarity and to improving one's public speaking.

Medieval alchemists believed aquamarine would prevent excess water retention in the body and enhance the digestive and eliminative functions. In the medieval alchemical charts of gem properties, aquamarine is shown as ruling the kidneys, bladder and urethra. 19th Century Chinese carvers produced snuff bottles and delicate figurines out of larger pieces of aquamarine, because it is easy to carve and polishes beautifully.

Even today, many people who believe in the spiritual properties of gemstones wear aquamarine to give them religious and mental inspiration, provide inner calm and enhance both verbal and written communication. Aquamarine's popularity helped make it a March birthstone earlier this century.

Queen Elizabeth II owns a matched set of aquamarine necklace, bracelet and earrings given to her by the Brazilian people shortly after her coronation in 1953. The Queen has added a matching tiara and sometimes wears the entire aquamarine ensemble for state occasions or diplomatic receptions.

Aquamarine has always been available in small sizes from one-half carat up to 10-carat stones. However, finds in Brazil and Africa have made aquamarine of much larger sizes more accessible for use in jewelry.

Aquamarine is tough, durable and takes an excellent polish. Aquas can be worn in rings and bracelets with minimal risk if the settings are designed to protect the gems. Avoid steam cleaning or excess heat. Clear stones, called eye-clean, are free of inclusions to the naked eye and can be worn under most conditions.

Recently designers have begun combining aquamarines with golden citrines, emeralds or tsavorite garnets, sapphires and pink tourmalines to provide fresh fashion color palettes.

You don't have to be a sailor or a March-born baby to enjoy the beauty and sparkle of aquamarine. It's a year-round treasure of a gem.

[Billie]

:)

Hope you're enjoying your day, Aqua! Daisy and I thought it would be a beautiful way to start the week, and we're following with a great lineup!

[Aquamarine]

I know we're in agreement. Some of us Americans need the room that those SUV's afford, I'm not exactly Chinese American. hehe!

[daisyscarlett]

Are you available to help with tea today or is your mind on other things...

Grand Master Gary Kasparov begins his first game against the world champion computer chess program Deep Junior in New York, January 26, 2003. In his latest man-vs-machine contest, Kasparov will play six games over the next two weeks in this fourth attempt to beat the computer. REUTERS/Chip East

[Billie]

Good morning, jw, and thank you! Daisy was right - we have to go all the way to the bottom of the post to see if it's you or LadyX! You both have such a great way with words and a knack for making us smile.

[Billie]

NOW we see that gorgeous painting! We should have consulted Diver when we were gathering graphics!

[Billie]

Hi, Sistah Dutchess! What a sweet post! No one would ever know you're a dog lover, oh, no. ;) That Rainbow Bridge gets to me every time.

Thanks for the kudos - 'preciate it! :)

[Aquamarine]

We went away overnight in December and had to leave Daisy Mae in the kennel overnight. As luck would have it right across from her stall was a BIG black poodle. When he stood up against the chicken wire he was taller than me. The next morning when we picked DM up she was traumatized...panting and running a fever. It took her half the day to get calmed down....we're never going to get to go anywhere now! :)