Mar 8, 2011

AND.....WE'RE BACK

Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for putting up with me and my rants. I'm not sure when it happened exactly, but my threshold for bulls*** seems to be getting lower and lower as I get older and older. I finally came up with what really bothered me so much about The Small Airplane Incident of 2011:

All this time I've been flailing about, griping over the lack of common courtesy we seem to be experiencing in these here parts. It's not just the fact that our political and social rhetoric gets so nasty...it's that everybody seem to be living in these tiny little bubbles that extend just as far as the screen on their tiny little smart phones.

I kept telling Aunt Chrissy that the problem we're having getting along with everybody is that people are so glued to what technology is directly in front of their eyeballs, that they seem to forget that there is a real live breathing human being standing four feet beyond the stupid technology they're glued to.

But that's not it.

I mean, come on. How can somebody who lives her life on a blog have any integrity at all whilst bitching about the Internet?

I think what's got me in sixes and sevens is the fact that it seems like (more and more), people are making decisions for me that dramatically impact MY life, yet there is no regard for the fact that it might ultimately do so.

I'm not just talking about the idiot in the plane. I'm talking about the idiot on his cell phone, with ciggie butt in hand, wife in the passenger seat on HER cell phone, weaving down Main Street yesterday as Aunt Chrissy and I nervously followed behind. Why is it that HIS life and HIS conversation were more important than MY life or that of MY little sister? Shouldn't I get to make that decision for myself? Shouldn't I get to decide when I want to take risks or act dangerously or push the limits of what the human person can achieve?

Why is HIS conversation and total lack of attention OK? When I drive my car, I do so with the knowledge that there is an implicit agreement that I won't try to kill anybody in the process and that I'll pay attention, keep it on the road, and not endanger me, my passengers, innocent pedestrians, or anybody else that happens to be doing the very same thing at the moment. Can't I get that same commitment from my fellow drivers....at least?

That guy in the plane made a decision that his fun was more important than the lives of the people below him. And that's not OK with me anymore. If all of the people had climbed on board the plane with him and said "Let's go, dude!", then so be it. But we didn't. We just stood there in our driveways wondering how the hell you control and/or avoid something larger than a Volkswagen careening around up in the sky.

To summarize....I think it sucks that we've gone beyond forgetting please and thank you and that we're now stuck with "I'm going to do whatever I damn well please and there's not one thing you or your little dog can do about it."

(End of pondering.)

One of the things I love about Aunt Chrissy is that she continually surprises me with fabulous gifts. I mean, come on. Who wouldn't love a little sister who calls you up and giggles that she "did something bad today" but that "once it gets here you're going to love it"? Here's the latest little surprise that she gave me (and she says that it's "just because"):
I've loved all things Liberty Hill from the moment I laid eyes on them, so this will be a lovely addition to my little collection. Isn't it swell?

Despite all evidence to the contrary, I have done a little stitching (while catching up on what's happening in Charlie World):

Spring Quakers
Rosewood Manor


Rainforest Crunch
Needle Delights Originals
(my own colorway)
And finally, Stewey wanted you to know that all of this navel gazing, hard thinking, and general lunatic ranting has left him exhausted. Here he is working on his tan for his upcoming Spring Break. (He's asked to go to Monte Carlo this year, but methinks he's more likely to go to the backyard instead.)

That'll do it for a Tuesday. I hope that you are off to a fabulous start to the week and that you find a really special way to celebrate "International Women's Day". (I just saw that on my little Peanuts calender and realized that I forgot to get my cards in the mail. Drat.



18 comments:

  1. Your Spring Quaker is really pretty Coni! Just love it!

    What a sweet sister you have...

    Kisses to Stewey!

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  2. Your WIP's look great!!!! I wish I had ME an Aunt Chrissy! Great gift. And as for Stewey, well, we all must have our dreams, eh? I imagine he will be in a lounge chair with hat and sunglasses and drink in hand, right in your backyard. Be careful! You might wake up one morning to find Spring Break in your backyard!!!

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  3. Ohhh your WIPS are coming along beautifully .... love your goodies from Aunt Chrissie ... and Stewey in the sun .... love it :) ... I agree with you though about the lack of thinking about other folks and the manners that were in stilled in us seem to be sadly lacking in this day and age.. I blame it on the can't play out safely bit, they don't get to interact properly with other human beings like we used to ..... just my pennyworth ..lol

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  4. Preach it, Sister, Preach it! I totally agree with you... I dislike that stupid bumper sticker that says, "Practice Random Acts of Kindness." Ummmm, should not we all be executing Deliberate Acts of Kindness and Courtesy every day??? grrrrrrr....
    Stitchy stitchy looks FAB!
    Stewey - you look mah-va-lous!

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  5. Unfortunately the way of the world these days is just as you have summed it up. And people wonder why there is road rage and where it comes from. It stems from the guy on the cell with a ciggie butt in his hand and his significant other on her cell - neither one has a care in the world for anyone but themselves. They decide who gets where when because who ever is behind them is at their mercy. Gee, sounds like they should run for office huh? Same thing. Otay...I'm off my soapbox. lol.

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  6. Love you AND your comments, but particularly love (and have a soft spot for)Master Stewey his very self. Thanks for the pic of him working on his tan. The Rosewood Manor piece is very pretty and your Rainforest Crunch is turning out beautifully. TFS!!! :) Cathryn

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  7. Oh, my goodness, I missed yesterday's news. How scary. I get nervous enough when I hear a regular plane get a little too loud every once in a while. It must have felt awful to not know what was going to happen, which way he might turn, etc. I hope they catch him soon.

    I am sick sick sick of people who think they are better than anyone else. Bullies.

    And there is no such thing as decent news reporting anymore. I can't stand it.

    I also agree that patience withers away with age....so look out odious, uncouth, irksome people!

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  8. Oops, sorry, I got all riled up but now that my rant is over, I want to say that Aunt Chrissy ROCKS and your Quaker is GORGEOUS!!!

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  9. I don't have a little sister (only a "little" brother who joined the Medicare generation yesterday) Can I borrow your little sister? Can I? Pretty please, with cream and a cherry on top? Can I?
    But seriously...your stitching is looking fabulous!

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  10. I agree with you completely! That's one of the reasons I just hate commuting to work. Granted it's only a 20-25 minute drive, but still! Wisconsin winters are not always the easiest to drive in and there are ALWAYS the idiot drivers who have no regard for their own life let alone others on the road! Sheesh!

    Both of your projects are coming along nicely and I've been dreaming about getting the Spring Quakers for a while now. I want to do them with Vikki Clayton HDF.

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  11. First, your Spring Quakers and Rainforest Crunch are both absolutely beautiful...I love the colors!

    I think you need to take Stewey with you when you go out and when you run into someone with the "me first and the hell with the rest of you attitude", just let him pee on them. That'll get their attention.

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  12. Ha, Coni! My husband and I call that the "Why, yes, I AM the only person on the planet!" syndrome. Pretty rampant these days.

    I want to be that sweet puppy, stretching out in the sun....

    Mary in MN

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  13. Odd, my particular soapbox for the last few years has been the lack of respect people show for other people, property and themselves. I really believe that this is one of the big reasons we are all so screwed up.

    Your Spring Quaker is lovely, I have seen this on a couple of other boards, and it is such a lovely grouping of colors. I am not a linen stitcher, so it isn't for me to do,just for me to be impressed by the art of others.

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  14. Rosewood Manor is awesome! I don't have anything like this, and now (thanks very much) I am jonesing for it.

    I always wanted a sister, you are so fortunate!

    Stewey is so cute sleeping in the sun. I have an image in my mind of him and a thousand of his friends in your backyard filming "Dogs gone Wild" the Spring Break extravaganza!

    I often share your feelings about the way the world is...devolving....in terms of manners and consideration. The cure for my 'blahs' is to volunteer at my teenage daughter's school, specifically with the band kids, who really renew my faith in humanity. There is hope for the future.... I hope.

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  15. Beautiful work. Lovely gifts from your sister too!

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  16. Love the colors you are using for the Spring Quaker - I have been coveting that Winter Dreams LH box set - What a wonderful surprise gift from your sissy.YGG on the rant! Oh and Rainforest Crunch is awesome - Melody

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  18. Have to agree with everything you said. Can't understand why people feel they have to be an their cell phones all the time. My hubbie came out of the restroom the other day and said that there was a guy on his cell while 'doing what the restroom was intended for' - ewww! Gross.

    Love the stitching. And aren't you a lucky big sister!!

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