I have created a new page on the blog called ‘Gallery’ (see the top menu), where I will – again – share the results of my photography hobby. I finally got around to searching out the new(er) plugins that allow bloggers to have integrated gallery pages, and/or mini galleries in a post or on the sidebar. I decided to try NextGEN Gallery, and so far I like it although I haven’t viewed my blog from a browser other than Firefox 3.6 yet.

As my long time readers know, at different times I’ve had a photoblog, photography portfolio, and my Facebook photos linked to this blog. In the case of Facebook, they were pulled from there and displayed in photo albums on here. Those options worked when those were all the really reliable options available, but in the last couple of years there have been some WordPress plugins coming out that allow galleries to be integrated directly into blogs. Take it from me that this is a LOT less work, LOL.

Enjoy the pics!

I’m using the WordPress for Android app to write this post on my new Motorola Cliq XT. This is very cool! This app can be downloaded from the Android Market app that comes preinstalled on Android phones.

It’s been a long, long time coming, but I know… oh, I know a change is gonna come. Yes, it is.

Well folks, that change HAS come, and it’s a done deal. Now, to be sure, the Republicans are going to fight tooth and nail to make sure people like me (permanently disabled with serious chronic diseases) don’t get the affordable health care we need so we can die off. You know, they very much seem to embrace the concept of natural selection (aka survival of the fittest). Well, if they believed in evolution, that is. *side eye* ;)

Anyhoo, this short paragraph from the CNN.com article about the new law caught my attention:

Senior Republicans in Congress warned that voters will judge Democrats harshly in November’s midterm elections, with Sen. John McCain of Arizona saying the Democratic-passed bill killed any chance of bipartisan support on legislation for the rest of the year.

I’m trying to figure out how in tarnation the Republicans figure that American voters will judge the Democrats harshly in the November mid-term elections. You know why? Because this health care reform was a TOP PRIORITY, and cornerstone, of Mr. Obama’s presidential campaign. He was very clear about his position and plan for “universal healthcare”… and American voters OVERWHELMINGLY voted for him.

We didn’t vote for him despite his promise to give us universal healthcare. We voted for him, in part, because of his promise to give us universal healthcare! So, how exactly are the American people going to “harshly judge” the president for doing exactly what he told us he was going to do BEFORE we elected him? Am I the only person this makes no sense to? The Republicans have a serious case of selective amnesia.

Now, to the second issue in the above quoted paragraph. Senator John McCain (who I actually liked, and who was my front runner until he lost his balls and let his campaign get away from him and end in a disgraceful train wreck) said the Dem-only passed bill killed any chance of bipartisan support on legislation for the rest of the year. McCain must have been hiding under a rock for the last year! There has been NO bipartisan support of anything Mr. Obama has tried to do since he took the Oath of Office!

My first thought on McCain’s comment was “No shit, Sherlock!”. I mean, really… who is surprised that the Republicans are now going to switch into sabotage mode and do every evil, dastardly thing they can think of to put – at least – a damper on this reform? Is anyone surprised that the Republicans are not going to cooperate with the Obama Administration on anything? I would say this is not a surprise, because they haven’t been cooperating all this time, so why in the hell would they start now?

Republican non-cooperation is a non issue. Why? Because, again, they’ve never tried to work with the Obama Administration. What the Republicans call bipartisan participation, the rest of America calls strong arming. They always want to take the lead and have the most influence on anything they have worked on in conjunction with the Democrats. They have never been content to let the Dems take the lead on anything. With Republicans, it’s their way or the highway. Right now, they’re pissed as hell because they have, YET AGAIN, been reminded that things can get done without them.

The Republicans better watch it. They cannot resort to their usual bag of nasty tricks and rhetoric to derail this new law, because the majority of Americans WANT this health care reform. They are in the minority, and they can’t afford to piss off the rest of us. They got some shine when Brown was elected in Massachusetts, but that was purely a local thing, in my non-expert and could care less estimation. On the national stage, if they go too far with their retaliation tactics – and believe me there will be retaliation – they will only end up hurting themselves.

But, they probably can’t help themselves. After all, they’ve bred themselves for certain traits for so long that it’s now probably just in their nature. :|

I’m really late talking about this, but better late than never…

Well y’all, I called it! When I wrote my review of the season four finale of Lincoln Heights back in November 2009, I predicted that ABC Family would be pulling the plug, even though the network swore they were not planning to kill the show. How did I know for sure? As I said then, anyone who is a Lincoln Heights fan knows that there is always a killer cliffhanger at the end of each season’s finale, and the season four finale was wrapped up, and tied in a pretty little bow, as if to make sure the show ended on a good note. This was no doubt done to ward off the same type of firestorm that the network was engulfed in when they abruptly pulled the plug on Kyle XY. The first reliable confirmation I got about LH being canceled was from Rhyon Brown (“Lizzie”), who posted a video on YouTube saying the show was canceled. Other cast members took to Twitter to confirm the cancellation.

Now, does anyone besides me find it suspicious that Lincoln Heights was cancelled right when it was beginning to become recognized and lauded in the black American community? The show won several NAACP Image Awards, and the three “Sutton women” appeared in TV interviews and on black-oriented talk shows like the Mo’Nique Show. So, their buzz was finally building in the black community and suddenly… BAM!, the show is no more. You’re damned skippy I’m suspicious about how this went down. And, I’m further ticked off that ABC Family would have the cast out doing press if they knew they were pulling the plug. There is no way in two hells that ABC Family can convince me that this show’s cancellation was an unexpected, last minute decision.

I hope and pray that another network picks up and continues Lincoln Heights. This was an EXCELLENT show that showed a strong black family, headed by two strong and loving parents who had a great marriage. As much as I loathe what BET has become, if they picked up Lincoln Heights I’d watch. However, I’d much rather that TV One or the forthcoming OWN (the Oprah Winfrey Network), or another much less ghetto fabulous network picked up the show. TV One is showing the reruns of season four. Let’s hope they’re planning on buying the show from ABC Family and reviving it. With so few quality black television shows on the air now, we (especially our youth) need this show.

Hey y’all! I know I’ve been MIA, AWOL, and in dereliction of duty. But, some exciting things have been going on with me, and keeping me busy. The thing I want to write about the most, is the one thing I can’t say anything about yet. :( But, please bear with me. When I’m able to share, I will… and I’ll probably “overshare”, LOL. I’ll try to update at least once a week, but don’t give up on me if I don’t. I’m going to be very busy for about the next month. But, when I do come back, I’ll have plenty of pics and stories to tell. Guaranteed!

Well, I made it past UNUM’s 24 month medical review. For the first 2 years on long term disability (LTD), a claimant is accessed to see if they can work a job doing the same type/kind of work they were doing when they became disabled. Once a claimant has been on LTD for 24 months, their medical status is re-evaluated to determine if they can do any kind of gainful employment.

UNUM’s vocational rehabilitation department determined that the only jobs that qualified as gainful employment, in my area, were full-time positions. The reviewing doctor’s job was to determine if my health problems, and limitations, would prevent me from being able to work full-time. I’m relieved to say that UNUM’s doctor determined that I cannot work full-time. So, I will continue to receive my LTD benefits and they will stop breathing down my neck like they have for the last 2 years (apparently they let up once a claimant enters “extended benefits” status). Sure, they were always VERY NICE about being nosy as all hell, but still… LOL. ;)