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Hi FRiends ~ Sorry this update is a bit late. I have been unable to get online since Friday afternoon. After a lot of trouble shooting, my husband finally discover that the router cable to my computer had been chewed through......one of our cute neighborhood squirrels, most likely. Anyway, hubby replaced the cable this afternoon so I thought I'd come out and give you an update on what is now going with me.

Dear FRiends ~ First of all I want to thank all of you for your prayers and support! It means the world to both my husband and my self. Next, I want apologize for not posting this update sooner, but yesterday was a very long day and as pooped as I have been, frankly, getting online was not high on my priorities last night and this morning. After a lot of rest and TLC from husband, I'm feeling stronger this afternoon, though, so here is the latest that we know ... My consolation with the doctors yesterday proved to be...

As some of my FRiends know I have been grappling with some very serious medical issues for a number of weeks now. For those who may not know, I will give you a brief background, for those who do - a quick update and for all who are able or are so inclined I ask that you please remember me and my husband in your prayers.

With thanks for prayers offered and prayers answered and with deep respect and gratitude for our troops I offer the following special Saint Patrick's Day Blessing for our troops. (Graphic intense and be sure to click to link provided to play the audio portion of this offering)

I received the follow interesting comparison in an email and thought it worth sharing ....

How about a head start on watching a really cool commerical ~ in this amazing "Colour Like No Other" ad, 250,000 'superballs' come flying, in slow motion, over the brow of a typical street in San Francisco, raining down on anything that gets in their way. And it was done without computer graphics. In an age when CGI is commonplace, this commercial is all the more extraordinary. Every single frame was shot over two days - with the main sequence involving a 23-man camera crew and only one chance to get it right. An entire block was closed off and...

From personal experience I know how, when a person has recently lost a loved one, the prospect of celebrating Christmas can be daunting. The joyfulness of the Christmas observance diminished, at best, and, in some instances, overwhelmed completely with a renewed sense of loss. The following was sent to me at a time I really needed it ~ I post it here in the hope it will also help to bring a special comfort to any here who may be grieving this Christmas.

(I received the following in an email and thought some here might enjoy reading this timely little story) "There was once a man who didn't believe in God, and he didn't hesitate to let others know how he felt about religion and religious holidays. His wife, however, did believe, and she raised their children to also have faith in God and Jesus, despite his disparaging comments.....

Like most everyone here I loath the biased and negative manner in which the MSM reports the news from Iraq. I recently rediscovered an editorial Zell Miller had written back in October of 2004 describing what it would be like if TODAYS media had covered the battle of Iwo Jima in 1945. I don't see that this essay was ever posted to FR so what follows is Mr. Miller's insightful speculation ~ only now it is illustrated with actual images of this horrendous battle to win a foothold in the Pacific.

The Magic Practical Joker Guy who gets made up to look like he's old, and pranks the h*ll out of everyone is too good to miss. Although it is in Japanese, there is no need to understand the words to appreciate this clip.

"A U.S. Federal Grand Jury in New York on Nov. 5 issued an indictment against Usama Bin Laden alleging that he and others engaged in a long-term conspiracy to attack U.S. facilities overseas and to kill American citizens ... Additionally, the indictment states that Al Qaeda reached an agreement with Iraq not to work against the regime of Saddam Hussein and that they would work cooperatively with Iraq, particularly in weapons development."

In spite of current articles and editorials to the contrary, in March of this year, 36 major news organizations and professional reporters' groups (including CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, Reuters, The Associated Press, The Tribune Company, The Washington Post, The New York Press Club and The White House Corespondents) argued that NO CRIME had been committed in the Plame Leak case because, among other things, Valerie Plame's identity had previously been disclosed to both the Russians and the Cubans! On March 23, 2005 these 36 "esteemed" news organizations and professional reporters' groups filed this linked legal motion which includes the following...

While looking through some large files of photos taken at the Anti-war protest in DC last weekend I happened across the photo I've posted below. This photo gave me pause because it appears to show a Marine in dress blues protesting the war along with the decidedly anti-American crowd who gathered to participate in the wholesale condemnation of our military and their Commander In Chief. Now I realize that, as with skerry's anti-war mob in the '70's, there is no shortage of "pretend soldiers" in the current rabble protesting the war and, to my eye, the person in this photo...

As much as communications and time will allow i will try to keep this updated with our animal rescue trip to louisiana. We havent even gotten down there and most of us havent slept in 24 hours. People from all over are calling to help them, shelters need us....we have alot of work to do. -snip- None of these pictures have been edited at all....nothing. We took them on the run while driving or working and to get them down i left them as was. I hope yall still feel the effect of them. I dont think i have ever...

Three days ago when Best Friends rescue workers were on the Interstate heading back to the Best Friends/St. Francis Animal Sanctuary, they noticed a small boat on the side of the expressway. But that isn’t what caught their eye. It was the red spray-painted writing on the side of the vessel, which read, “DOG IN BOAT.”

Seems to be a slow news evening - so how about a little creative "caption this picture" fun....

BATON ROUGE, La.-- State and federal agencies, along with numerous non-profit organizations, are united in an ongoing effort to save the pets and animals left helpless by Hurricane Katrina. "This is the largest animal rescue in the history of the United States ... absolutely unprecedented in scope," said Larry Hawkins, spokesperson for the Unified Incident Command for Animal Rescue in Louisiana . "We have a huge number of people working on this and it's a big success." Rescuers wade or boat through the flooded city in a house to house search for stranded animals. This joint effort includes the Louisiana...

A conversation with Louisiana Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu about his state's ongoing recovery efforts following Hurricane Katrina. RAY SUAREZ: Lieutenant Governor, welcome to the program. LT. GOV. MITCH LANDRIEU: Thank you very much for having me. I appreciate your coverage.

Here is a follow-up report from Colonel H. L Bodenhamer, USAF, Retired, but first the preliminary scene as he reported it to us September 6: ". . . I have been activated as a Texas emergency management reservist and am presently in San Antonio helping manage about 5,000 people from New Orleans who are here. There may be more, but I know of these at this area of the old Kelly AFB. The ones I am helping are housed in a huge old warehouse of about 20 feet clear height which was air conditioned almost overnight for this purpose. There...

"During the past 40 years the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers has spent hundreds of millions of dollars constructing a barrier around the low lying city of New Orleans to protect it from hurricanes. But is the system of levees high enough? And can any defense ultimately protect a city that is perpetually sinking - in some areas at a rate of half an inch per year?"