Winning the Powerball … Chances are slim. (-_-)

Happy Monday everyone ! Hope you all have a wonderful weekend celebrating Mother’s Day. I know I did. Anyways today’s Psycho Babble is about the Power Ball Lottery. Power Ball just recently came to California and it’s current jackpot is at a whopping $350 million !! What person wouldn’t wanna win that $350 million ? (T_T) Sadly, I’m sure even millionaires who already have millions are wishing to win that $350 mill to add to their already wealthy lifestyles. We all can dream of what we’d spend that $350 million on and most of us probably dream of splurging like buying a Lamborghini, Ferrari, that Dream home in a secluded island all to yourself, etc.

For me I think I’d buy my Dream home, build my Gaming Lounge, and a Crafting studio first. My splurge wouldn’t be as fancy as you’d expect it to be. Rather than a Lamborghini or Ferrari I’d just buy a Top of the Line KIA Soul with all the options and accessories. But if I were to splurge on a expensive car maybe the Tesla Roadster. ;P But to be honest with you I don’t really play the Lottery bcuz I think it’s a bunch of kahooey ! When I was a kid I watched an episode of Bill Nye the Science Guy on Probability and that episode alone opened my eyes to things like the lottery. The episode makes complete sense in your chances of winning the lottery.

For those of you who don’t know Bill Nye the Science Guy or missed that episode … Here’s a link to it from YouTube

http://youtu.be/3Nn_Wf3v-Ag

The part that resonates with me the most is when Bill Nye the Science Guy fills an entire swimming pool with ping pong balls and one red ping pong ball. He then grabs a handful out of the ping pong ball pool and estimates that in his hand is about a $5 lotto ticket and then continues to scoop out handfuls of ping pong balls and all of them being white ping pong balls. It wasn’t til his last scoop that he got that one red ping pong ball. He estimated that he had spent over several millions of dollars just to win that 1 million jackpot. So your chances of winning would end up you spending billions of dollars each week trying to win that couple millions. It seems probable as the Power Ball ticket is $2 and with the jackpot being at $350 million I am well sure people are spending $100 on tickets or even more hoping to win it.

(=_=) To me that $100 that could of been spent on other things like a nice dinner with the family, some new clothes, a small road trip to a city you’ve never been to, etc. But it’s your money and if you wanna give it away with most likely zer0 chances of it coming back that’s your decision. To me the Power Ball or any Lottery for that matter is empty promises of financial freedom. You’ll be in more debt trying to win the lottery than you would if you just worked hard to pay your debts off with hard earned money. Watch the Bill Nye the Science Guy episode and it might change your mind on Lottery plays as well. But either way … Good Luck to you !!

Oh and don’t pray to God that you win the lotto. God does not endorse gambling and is against it so praying to him will just make him shake his head at you and delete your prayer from his inbox.

Welcoming Rains !

Hello, everyone ! Hope you all had a wonderful weekend. I celebrated my Birthday yesterday and I’m glad it did not rain on my Birthday BBQ. It started to lightly drizzle right after the party was over. Thank you Mother Nature for not raining on my BBQ. But today is a completely different story ! Heavy rain started a few hours ago and it’s been a steady down pour since. Weather reports it’ll linger on til tomorrow.

But to me rain is a welcoming thing. If you live in California you’re well aware of the early Fire season blazes like the Spring fire and other fires. The worst having burnt over 6,000 acres !! The top two(2) fires weren’t even 100% contained but I am sure due to these heavy down pours they are now fully contained … thanks to Mother Nature.

In my opinion these fires are just God’s way of gardening. What’s burnt down to ashes will fertilize the soil bringing nutrients that it probably was lacking of. And whenever there’s a fire the smoke plumes bellowing up into the atmosphere will bring on rain clouds which the rain will water the newly fertilized soil waking up dormant seeds and evoking new growth and life. Once the rain clears and the sunshine returns in the Spring the once charred burn areas will once again be thriving with young sprouts and be lush green once more.

Many were in fear of these fires and felt helpless for the people in the line of the fire and thankful for the firefighters who were out there to save their homes or loved ones homes not to mention lives. But to me it’s just another part of the circle of life happening. What’s old is burnt down to make way for the new. Kinda like how everyday someone dies but at the same time someone is born into the world and usually the number of new life is higher than the number of those who’s moved on to the other world/life. It’s an endless circle to renew and revitalize life whether human or plant life.

Organic Snacks/Healthier Snacking

So the food world is starting to change as people start making better choices for their health and eating better. So the are many still struggle with is snacks. Sure, we all enjoy a bowl of baby carrots, celery, and cucumbers with greek yogurt dip but there’s days where you just can’t help but crave for a chocolately cupcake or bag of your favorite chips. I know I crave snacks bad as I near my *TMI Alert* menstrual period. But there are times that I just want a snack just bcuz.

Well, like the rest of you I try to look for healthier snacking options but tasty and satisfying ones. Nothing that limits me to apple wedges, veggies sticks, or oatmeal. But what I have found is making your own snacks in your own kitchen which is a healthier option than running to the store for a bag of lay’s potato chips. When you make your own snacks at home you know what goes into it and how much. If you noticed most potato chips are high in Sodium and sweet snacks have High Fructose Corn Syrup or high amounts of Sugar.

From back in my High School Nutrition class I remember that any ingredient with the three(3) letters O-S-E at the end of it is a form of sugar. (i.e Fructose, Sucrose, Lactose, Glucose, etc.) Another ingredient that I tend to avoid is MSG *Monosodium Glutamate*. It triggers migraine like headaches in me and that isn’t very pleasant. So I try to buy healthier snack options or just make my own bcuz that way I know what’s in them.

One of my favorites is Popcorn. You can buy a bag of popcorn kernels which usually don’t cost more than $2 a bag and you can cook them over the stove using a small amount of healthy oil like Coconut, Peanut, or Olive oil but if you wanna avoid the oils you can go down the air-popped route but that tends to make the popcorn taste a little like styrofoam. Even salt doesn’t seem to help flavor that mess and it doesn’t last long. The next day air popped popcorn becomes stale and worse than it was freshly popped. It’s not gonna hurt too much to just use a tablespoon of oil to your pot to pop the popcorn. Try buying an organic bag of popcorn kernels. Now flavoring wise is all up to you. I tend to enjoy using either just plain salt, combo of salt and a bit of sugar, garlic parsley salt, lemon pepper, chili limon *Chili Lemon* powder I use a brand called Tajin, or just use Mrs. Dash to season your popcorn.

Another favorite at home snack I like to make is my own chips either Tortilla chips or Potato. With Potato chips you’ll need a mandoline to make those very thin potato chip slices and for Tortilla chips just buy organic tortillas I like corn as they’re great to use with homemade salsas. But I’ve made organic wheat flour tortilla chips before as well. With a corn tortilla since they’re normally a smaller circle than a flour tortilla just cut them up like you would a pizza into small triangles. But with a flour tortilla since they’re larger circles I cut them into rectangular strips. But I don’t really like using flour tortilla for making chips as they tend to curl up a little. I just fry them up in about a inch of oil in a frying pan.

If you use a healthy oil such as olive oil or maybe Coconut it’s still a tiny bit a guilty pleasure but at least alot better than a opening up a bag of Lay’s or Doritos. Plus you know what’s in it so you’ll feel alot better consciously. My Favorite seasonings for homemade chips are either just Sea Salt and Pepper via grinders or again Tajin *Chili Limon* seasoning. If I’m in the bit of a sweet mood then good old Cinnamon and Sugar sprinkle is great.

As for sweets I still haven’t found any healthy alternatives that can satisfy like a chocolate cupcake or a donut. But I do find fruit to be a easy alternative but if you’re not so good at picking fruit then it may not be such a positive switch as eating a bowl of sour melons or oranges isn’t so great. But if you’ve got the energy and patience to make the extra effort buy a bunch of different fruits, peel, seed, core, and cut them into a bowl and satisfy that sweet craving with a delicious fruit bowl. (n_n) I enjoy a bit of a tropical taste by cutting cubes of Papaya, cracking and shelling the flesh out of a coconut, mangos, and such. Don’t forget you can always mix in dried with the fresh cut fruits. Sprinkling of raisins if grapes aren’t in season and certain dried fruits have a different flavor than fresh ones. For example … Dried Mangos or Prunes.

Now I’m always curious and love trying new things. I saw a fruit called a Mamey in my local mexican grocery store the other day and I might give that a try. Also saw Dragonfruit in my local filipino market that I might wanna try too. There’s many different fruits from around the world that are worth trying. Even some that you might need to pinch your nose to eat like the Durian AKA Jackfruit with it’s very stinky aroma. But If you’re like me and not very lucky at picking sweet fruits a little drizzle of Agave syrup, Brown Rice syrup, or organic honey is the way to sweeten up sour fruits. Another hint to add to fruits is greek yogurt or some cheese like a feta or cottage cheese mixed into your fruits.

Remember to always go with Organic when you’re going to make a at home snacks. I think making snacks at home is the best option than store bought bcuz you know what went into them.  I like that I know how much sodium or sugar went into my snack and that the ingredients aren’t artificial or something I’ve never heard of or can’t even pronounce. You’ll notice you start wanting to think outside snacks and make healthier swaps/alternatives for other foods as well not just snacks. It’s one step closer to healthier lifestyle !

Oh and PS for chocolate lovers who just can’t shy away from a chocolate bar. Try picking up Dark Chocolate over Milk Chocolate. The Dark Chocolate is healthier and the higher the percentage of cocoa the better.

The Fight for Equality …

Hello, everyone ! I’ve been very active here on my PsychoBabblesBlog. What is this my 3rd or 4th post in a row now ? Anyways today’s babble is about Equality. If you live in the US you’ll know that we’re currently fighting for the equality of the LGBT community. It’s a tug-a-war topic as there are those who oppose it and those who support it. But since we’re on the topic of equality what about equality for others besides just the LGBT community ? What about the equality of disabled people ? I myself am physically disabled and have been all my Life. I can tell you there are many inequalities that I have experienced through my 30 *soon to be 31* years of existence.

One of the inequalities that I share with the LGBT community is also marriage. Before marriage I was receiving SSI *Supplemental Security Income* it was my only source of income and after I got married it was taken away. Revoke on the count that my Husband can now support me so I don’t need SSI or Social Security’s financial assistance. I begged, pleaded, and appealed several times to keep my SSI as it was my only source of income and I had personal debts that were obtained previous to marriage that my Husband had nothing to do with nor responsible for. But they didn’t care !

On top of getting my SSI revoked they said they’ve overpaid me for the past few months and that I have to pay back that over payment. The amount totaled close to $6,000 !! How do they expect me to pay back almost $6,000 when they took away my only source of income ? I truly feel that this is another case of inequality towards the disabled people. I think that it is unfair that a disabled person should have their disability incomes revoked bcuz they got married. Disability income should be based on a person’s disability not marital status.

My husband has personal debts of his own that he obtained prior to marriage that he’s trying to pay off and unable to pay for my debts on top of his own. So my debts are piling up being left unpaid bcuz I have no money to pay them with !! I have pleaded with Social Security to please return my SSI income even ½ of what I was previously getting but they shut the door and kicked me to the curb like I was a homeless person asking for food in a McDonald’s.

I’m a supporter for this whole equality race of the LGBT community but I feel left out bcuz what about my equality as a disabled person ? Sure, the LGBT community might get a break if Prop 8 is thrown out and they’re given the rights to marry. But I’ve struggled with inequality as a disabled person all my Life. There’s no break for me ! I’ve struggled and continue to struggle every day of my Life til I take my last breath.

Inequality “Unfair treatment” and Discrimination are two of the things I’ve been constantly dealt with but I know that not only I as a disabled person but many people non-disabled as well have felt the pain of Inequality and discrimination bcuz of their race, religion, color of their skin, etc. Equality shouldn’t just be for the LGBT people but for everybody ! Everyone deserves equality but sadly for some like myself it’s just not gonna happen.

I was born with a disability and since I was 16 have been trying to get a job but again inequality has once again smacked me across the face as every employer I have submitted applications to and had interviews with denied/refused to hire me. One what basis or reason for not hiring me ? Not a single legitimate reason. I was always given an excuse ! Whether it was … Oh we’re current not hiring *Even though they have an ad saying they are*, currently we don’t have anything available for you but we’ll call to let you know if something opens up *yet, there’s a line of applicants sitting outside waiting for their interview*, etc. I have heard every excuse in the Employers book of excuses. No one seems to see passed my disability and give me a chance.

Another story for my book of inequality as a disabled person. Everyone lives a hard life and I hate when people say to me … Life isn’t fair ! You do not know what unfair is unless you’ve lived in my shoes nor do you know what a hard life is until you lived my Life. If it were possible to live in another persons shoes you would be in a mental hospital or dead from suicide if you lived in my shoes. I admit I have attempted suicide twice ! That’s one time too many bcuz the inequalities of Life have become too great to bear anymore.

Not being able to get a job bcuz I’m disabled … struggling through Life everyday just makes you feel worthless, useless, and a failure. Like you fail at everything you do in Life ! Having attempted suicide twice kinda tells you I even failed at that bcuz I’m still alive ain’t I ? But I try to change my views and try to avoid thinking about suicide ever again but sometimes you just wanna give up when you’re trying to live in a world where being different alienates you from the rest of the world.

We live in such a shallow minded world that even the slightest difference in a person can prevent them from making any friends or from fitting in and feeling accepted by others. Even though we’re both human beings, we both have a beating heart, we both breathe the same oxygen, and look no different just a slight flaw and we instantly become outcasts. I can tell you from experience that my disability has made social interactions a unknown realm to me and still is til this very day.

Thanxs to the internet I was able to make some friends. Some closer than others but these are all still invisible friends to me. I don’t really consider these online friends … friends. I’ll never meet them in person and only interact with them through a computer screen. So technically I still consider myself a loner with no friends. Sadly I can’t even consider my husband my friend. I guess you can say being disabled and mistreated all my Life has created this wall of isolation so to speak where I block out the outer world that hurts me to prevent me from continually further getting hurt from the world that even my own husband is block out.

When will I ever experience the equality, acceptance, respect, and treatment that would let me tear down these isolating walls and feel confident that I will not get hurt ever again. To feel true Love from human kind and know that I am human and not this alien from outer space or someone of a totally different species than that of the homo sapiens AKA human beings. Am I not human ? What makes you feel that I am not ? That I still do not understand.

When I look in a mirror I don’t see an inhuman monster or creature from another planet. I see what you see if you were to look into a mirror. A face with two eyes, a nose, a mouth, two ears, lips that grin and smile but in my mirror my lips rare if ever grin and smile. In my mirror I see the facial expression of Eeyore … very melancholy, blue, sad, and permanently frowning. My facial expression both inside and outside are what they are bcuz the world’s inequality and being alienated for so many years. I will only smile and truly feel free from the isolation walls that I surround myself in when I leave this world to enter another. The other world called Heaven that many hope to go when they leave this world.

But all I can say is equality shouldn’t just be a battle for the LGBT people but for all people ! ALL OF HUMANITY DESERVE EQUALITY !! And when you see a disabled person don’t ignore them. Offer them help if they need it. Open the door for a person in a wheelchair or offer them help. Don’t just stare at them or act like they do not exist. All my Life I’ve gotten stares before and after I started using a wheelchair. And Parents please raise your children to know that there are people in the world who might be different than them and that even if they are different they do not deserve to be mistreated, bullied, teased, or tormented. They should be respected equally ! Teach your children the golden rule … DO ONTO OTHERS AS YOU WANT DONE TO YOU.

I can’t tell you how many times in my Life that children have followed me around a store making fun of the way I walk, teased me, stared at me like I’m a zoo animal on display while parents nearby never say a word to correct their behaviors or teach them that I am also human like them. These are the children who grow up to become the adults who alienate me and treat me like I am not human. So as you fight in support or opposition of the LGBT equality … Please, fight and support the equality of all people !! If we can achieve equality for all people then and then only can we become a humane world and learn to coexist in peace.

+ Signs of the Rapture ? +

This post is purely Psycho Babble and if you don’t like it then don’t read it. It’s my Blog and it’s titled Psycho Babble’s blog so I can psychotically babble all I want. So for those of you who don’t know what Psycho Babble means here’s the definition of it …

psy•cho•bab•ble (ˈsaɪ koʊˌbæb əl)

n.

writing or talk using jargon from psychiatry or psychotherapy without particular accuracy or relevance.

Anyways today’s blog topic is about the signs that the rapture is upon us. Many Christians will tell you that God has said he will return to Earth and the Rapture/Judgement shall begin. Well, if you’ve followed the weather reports you will know about the mid-US states being buried by endless snow when it should be 70 degree Spring weather there. Other states are being hit by hurricane force winds and rain. While countries are being hit by Earthquakes such as the recent Guatemala/Puerto Rico quakes. Some believe Mother Nature/Mother Earth is just getting old.

I believe that it’s signs of a rapture/judgement day is getting close. With the Bible series unveiled on the History channel I believe that the Bible series is an attempt by God to change all the non-believers and to have us all repent our sins before it’s too late. He is bringing suffering to his people with economic downfall causing inflation in everything making it difficult to have money in our pockets as it’s costing us more to go by everyday life than prior years. Gas is so expensive and prices are rising in grocery stores. Times are changing and I believe change is coming. These relentless snow storms, earthquakes, and such are all tests to see who will drop to their knees and pray. How many of you will drop to your knees and pray ? How many of you will fight with your fellow man over the last rations available in the corner market ?

It was interesting watching the news reports about these snow battered states and how many of the adults complain about the snow and where the F is Spring ? Where’s the 70 degree tempts ? We had plans to go camping but not in this snow ? It’s too F*en cold. I want this snow to go away. Blah blah blah … and yet, children are happily playing in the snow, taking their sleds out for a ride, having snowball fights, making ice sculptures, etc. Not a complaint in the world ! They’re at peace with the weather and seem so happy. Whilst the adults are all miserable and grumpy over the weather.

There needs to be change ! Change in our attitudes, Change in the way we think, Change in the way we look at things, Change in the way we treat others, just change in the ways of the Human beings. There’s been so many reports about animals learning to coexist with each other in a peaceful manner. The other day I saw a video of a cat walking a dog, a dog nursing a bunch of stray kittens, a tiger mothering a litter of piglets, a Mouse who’s best friend is a cat, a Lion friends with a dog, etc. These are generally animals you don’t see together. But they are now coexisting in peace. God has taken care of the animal world and taught them to love and live in peace.

God is now working on us humans but he’s gonna have to roll up his sleeves and brew up a large pot of heavenly coffee bcuz humans aren’t going to change so easily. Today we’re currently working on the change for equality and I believe it is coming along. People are starting to change their ways of thinking and hopefully God work will remain and we like the animal can learn to Love and coexist in peace. But I believe that the unexplained weather in the mid-US, Earthquakes, and other unexplained global phenomena are signs of a rapture/judgement is soon to come. The Bible series on the History channel is a attempt to wake up people to change their lives and repent from their sins so that they may enter the holy kingdom come the judgement day.

Let us take these unexplained weather and global phenomena as a sign … sign of change and awareness ! Mother Earth may not be able to sustain life forever and nobody knows when she’ll start failing and crumble apart. So we must do whatever we can to keep our home planet alive and well. But first we have to start from within and clear our eyes so that we can look at the world more clearly and from a different view than before. We must vanish all negativity and learn to live in Love, coexist in Peace, and change what needs to be.

Rewards cards are not very rewarding !! (T_T)

Happy Friday, Everyone !! It’s been awhile since I last posted something on my blah blah Blog or when on a Psycho Babble. So today I wanted to babble about rewards cards. We all got them in our wallets and there’s a rewards card from practically every retail store out there. It’s great that they offer to reward you for being a loyal customer and that you’re able to redeem these points towards a reward like a gift card to their store or 20% off your next purchase or whatever. But my #1 gripe with rewards cards is … YOUR REWARDS POINTS EXPIRE !! Yes, you read correctly your rewards points of which you earned and spent your hard earned dollars to get EXPIRE.

I noticed this when I was looking over an old SEARS receipt and it says I had accumulated 8.500 something in rewards points but 3,000 of it was set to expire in a few days. I honestly felt cheated bcuz I earned those points … I should be entitled to keep my points without them expiring. So the trick with these rewards cards is you have to keep coming back to keep your points and if you don’t visit this store like every single day or once or twice a week … YOU LOSE YOUR POINTS !

Some stores tell you that your points reset after such and such date. Wait ! Reset ? You mean the 15,000 something points I earned which is like 20,000 points away from your 1st rewards prize resets back to zer0 ? I honestly think your rewards points earned should never expire ! I have a Yogurtland card where I completed their points card for free yogurt but totally forgot about the card. I took it to a Yogurtland thinking it’s still valid but was told … Oh ! I’m Sorry but this card expired. You have to redeem the card within like a month. But why ? Why must it have a expiration date ? I worked hard to earn this so I should be able to redeem it any time !

But sadly we waste so many hard earned rewards points each day bcuz we don’t visit alot of these stores on an everyday basis. So my tip to you is unless you do go to that store everyday then don’t bother applying for a rewards card. Your earned points will just be wasted. I also heard rumors that rewards cards are just retail stores way of seeing what people buy the most and usually the rewards are centered around that product that is purchased the most. I kinda find some truth to that as if I go to RiteAid or CVS I tend to find coupons for cold medications, deodorant, makeup, and household items attached to my receipts.

Ending of Marital Vows … (-_-,) The Ow in Vow !

Happy Monday everyone ! Well, I don’t know how happy you’re gonna feel after reading this blog post but it’s just something that is very sad to me. As the picture shows my blog entry today is about … Divorce. It’s sad to hear and see dear friends marriage struggle and end in divorce. Even sadder when there’s children involved and the innocent hearts of children have to learn to adjust with Mommy or Daddy no longer being a part of their daily lives. How their minds struggle to understand why Mom and Dad are living in separate houses and why Daddy is going away. I can’t exactly say I have a perfect marriage as I’m still technically a newly wed only having been married for a year. But I am very well experienced relationship wise as my husband and I prior to marriage were together for over 13+ yrs.

I have to tell you that the top Three(3) things that keeps a relationship strong is COMMUNICATION, PATIENCE, and FORGIVENESS or UNDERSTANDING. A relationship/marriage often falls apart because there’s no communication between each other and no forgiveness. People often hold onto grudges and don’t forgive easily. But mostly you need a high level of understanding. If your wife/husband didn’t wash the dishes don’t immediately burst into flames and call him/her a lazy bastard or lash out at them for not doing the dishes. Maybe they weren’t feeling well, maybe they had a hard day at work or going through something emotionally …. Don’t ruin your relationship/marriage over small trivial things like the dishes never being washed, clothes not being put into the hamper, living room always a mess, etc.

Instead of bottling up your emotions and venting out to friends about how your Lazy wife/husband didn’t do the dishes, laundry, or left the living room a mess. Communicate ! Tell them how it’s bother you and work together even. My husband and I we wash the dishes together. I wash, he rinses, and while we’re washing and rinsing we talk about stuff like our opinions regarding a topic on the news, a interesting story we read online, or just randomly reminiscing about past memories. Things like that helps build and strengthen the bond between two people. Things never have to be done alone. Laundry can be done together as well. We do our laundry at a laundrymat and we always have fun. He sorts the clothes and places them into the washing machines while I pop in the detergent and layout the coins ready to be popped into the machine. Folding is the most fun because we’d have sock wars where we toss warm socks back and forth as we’re folding clothes. Sometimes we’d both grab the same item of clothing from the basket and do a tug-a-war thing.

You need a cheerful/playful spirit to make your relationship/marriage always fun and never dull and boring. You also need to remember that you are human. You make mistakes and you aren’t perfect ! There will be moments that he pushes your buttons … There will be times where she pushes you to your limits but when those times arise you spend a few moments away from each other to cool down. Then when you’re cooled off you should sit down and talk about it. You’ll sometimes find how silly you both were or how stupid it was to be fighting over such small thing. It’s all how your attitude is about everything. I know that sometimes even with a positive attitude, communication, etc. things just can’t work out but before you jump into divorce court think thoroughly and if there’s children think about them most. If you can tolerate each other try to just live together and not divorce til your children are older like 18 and not going to be so dramatically affected by divorcing parents.

Marriage and Marital vows are so sacred and it’s hard to see them fall apart and often times they do for the stupidest reasons. I sometimes wish I could give a piece of my heart to everyone in the world. So they can see the world through my heart and eyes. If it were possible to live in another person’s shoes you’d understand why I have such high tolerance, patience, and a different range of understanding towards others.

Language Exchange ?

Hello and Happy Friday everyone !! I know I haven’t been active much on my Blah Blah Blog but I’m still here and alive. So today I thought I’d talk about language exchange. The world isn’t so vibrant without the many different ethnic backgrounds, cultures, and languages. I have so many friends all over the globe and sometimes it’s fun to learn their native language as some may not speak English so it can be difficult to have a conversation with them unless either they learn English or you learn their language. But sometimes learning a *NEW* language just for fun is well … FUN too !

My parents are both from Japan and so I can fluently speak Japanese. My husband is from the Philippines so I have learned a little bit of Tagalog to speak to some of his family members who don’t speak English very well. I would like to learn more Tagalog so if and when I ever visit my extended family in the Philippines I can speak to them fluently. Which is another reason why I decided to blog about this topic. I thought it would be fun if we did a language exchange. Do you speak a language and wanting to learn English or Japanese ? I can teach you and in return you can teach me your native language. =) I am up to learn any language bcuz learning a new language is fun and expands your knowledge of other cultures and ethnic backgrounds.

So if you’d like to learn Japanese comment below and we can do a language exchange. Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend ! Stay safe and if you’re in California stay Dry as it’s suppose to be a rainy weekend. =(

Gun Ban .vs. Gun Control

Let me first say that everyone is entitled to their own opinions and what is written herein is just my opinion about the subject. Do not comment with negativity, derogatory remarks, or show disrespect on my Blog. This is just my opinion and if you don’t like it then don’t read my blog.

So with that being said let me chime in my thoughts regarding this whole gun control issue that’s been a hot topic lately. I have nothing against the ownership or right to bear arms as the Amendment allows. I wouldn’t go as far as to ban guns but I believe that there needs to be a review/renewal of the Gun Control laws and possibly make them a little stricter. I believe that guns should not just be available to anyone who’s got the cash for it but I believe that gun sales should come with a Background Check, Criminal Background check, and a Stress/Mental Stability test. Guns should only be in the hands of responsible gun owners who are mentally stable and never going to point it at any living being unless it’s truly in self-defense.

I give credit to those gun shops that do background checks and don’t just sell to the man with the wad of cash. Bcuz you never know if the person who purchase the gun isn’t just gonna snap one day and shoot a innocent person for cutting them off on the highway or as often times shoot their ex-boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse bcuz the relationship had ended. Many of the tragic incidents that recently occurred like Sandy Hook, the Movie Theater massacre, etc. were by what I believe were mentally unstable people. People who were most likely victims of bullying, neglect, abuse of one or multiple degrees, and they just had enough that they mentally just blew a fuse.

Banning guns isn’t going to solve the problem as many people state it’s not the gun that kills people but the person behind the trigger that does. I believe that if the sales of guns were more stricter only those willing to take the extra steps to obtaining that gun, know they have a clean background, and pass the Stress/Mental Stability test should be issued a gun. Now I know that maybe the day they took the Stress/Mental Stability test they were cool as a cucumber and Life get’s to a brink of insanity if the buttons are pushed right but if the Stress/Mental Stability test was created to simulate ALL scenarios that might push you to the brink then both the gun owner and the gun seller would know in who’s best interest it is to sell the gun to.

But to me I think Guns are never the answer and even if you purchasing one to protect your family I still feel guns are unnecessary. There are other ways to protect your family than the use of a gun. God is one example but I won’t go preaching to the choir about God for those who don’t believe in him and those who are of a different religion. Guns should be the last resort tool in defense.

Christmas 2012 (T ^ T)

Well, the final months of 2012 have been very painful for me and things continue to get more and more painful each day. Who knew that losing your only source of income would hurt so much. I struggle each month to get my debts paid and my husband having debts of his own doesn’t really have much money to spare in my direction either. I’m sure you’re wondering what happened ? Did I lose my job ? Was I laid-off ? Did the employer shut down ? No, my main source of income was SSI *Supplemental Security Income* or as some call it Disability income. I was receiving a pretty nice amount that gave me plenty to pay my debts and still enough left for personal necessities.

But after getting married the Social Security revoked my SSI income stating my husband makes over the income limit and our resources also go over the limit. What angers me is his income is actually below their limit and our resources are being miscounted. I understand that the Government is also in a deficit so any chance they can get to save a few bucks they’ll take. But is ruining ones Life worth that ? Things is just so difficult right now financially for me. I’m too ashamed to ask for financial help from my family and besides I know they have their own financial struggles to deal with as well.

I just hope that the 2013 year will be better and I’m hanging on to the hopes that there is a silver lining to this financial cloud. It may not happen in an instant but I sure hope that things will perk up and I will see a better view in the horizon. Even though my heart is aching and my soul is darkened by my financial troubles I still try to keep a positive attitude. I try not to let this ruin my Christmas or my upcoming holidays.

But Father I pray … please, help me and tell me what to do to make things right. I need you more than ever ! *sigh* (-__-,) I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and try not to focus on the material things of Christmas and focus on the people you’ll be surrounded by and the blessings that was bestowed upon you in the 2012 year. Here’s wishing you a 2013 New Year that is joyous, healthy, prosperous, and that God continues to bless you throughout the 2013 year and always. From our family to yours … Merry Christmas and Happy New Year !!