I totally want to live on Dork Street. How friggin' cool is that?

So my lawn. I tackled it yesterday. Bought gas to put in the mower. Managed to get it started on the first (well, second) try. (What I recently learned was, I'd try it once, not get it, press the button a few more times, and ultimately flood it. So we are trying not to flood it. My biggest problem was that it had rained a bit, so the grass was wet, and then the bag filled up much more quickly than usual (I have gone my entire front yard and then changed the bag - this time I had to change the bag three times with the front yard.) So a few times, the grass would literally spit up at me because the bag was full (how am I supposed to know that to stop the regurgitation?) But here's what I decided. No more barefeet. First, I got a few splinters - the backyard is full of tree branches, which wasn't a problem last summer. Second, I got lots of thorn prickers in my feet and those HURT. Evidentally, my evergreen sheds them?? Who knew? Third, and most disturbingly, my feet seem to be permanently stained green. Didn't come out yesterday or today. Should I use soap other than Zest? ('Cause you're not fully clean unless you're Zest fully clean.) This is quite disturbing...I'm taking on a Yoda-ish hue.

OH! And the lawn nazi, who paid people to cut his grass last year, appears to be cutting the grass on his own this year. He bought a lawn mower (the same one that I bought, actually) and was cutting his grass on Sunday. I wonder what's up with that??? As I was cutting my grass, he walked over and said, "yeah, I thought, "we really need to get our lawns in order." Umm...I just want to cut my lawn. If there is more order to that, I don't care about that. I'm a simple girl.


I've been listening to the radio - which I almost never do - since 8:00 am this morning. It's 11:48 right now (not sure when I'll get around to publishing, but right now it is) and it's the second time I've heard Since You've Been Gone by the American Idol Kelly girl. Umm...irritation. THIS is why I never listen to the radio.

And looks like the Republicans play to go ahead with the filibuster fight. Again, 10 total blocked judges, compared to 64 under Clinton. (Don't worry - I'm not going to go into all that again.) And to argue that "judicial filibusters are being used "against people of faith," I'd only remind the Republicans that the government is actually supposed to be separate from faith. (That's kinda personal. Faith, I mean.) So to say that religious judges who plan to impose their religion in their decisions have a right to serve as a federal judge ignores the First Amendment. But what do I know - I forget that the Second Amendment is somehow more important than the First Amendment. (Maybe it's the First (When Convenient) Idea, and the Second (No Exception) Untimatum?)

So with them Cardinals voting on a Pope, it occurred to me. One of the leading candidates was black. (Cardinal Francis Arinze, 72). I just wonder whether the world is all ready for a black Pope. Has there ever been a black pope before? (Other leading candidates are Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger of Germany (he's 78, how long could his tenture be?), Cardnal Jorge Bergoglio, 68; Cardinal Godfroed Dammeels, 71; Cardinal Ivan Sias, 68 (who is Indian); Cardinal Claudio Hummes, 70; Cardinal Walter Kasper, 71; Cardinal Noberto Carrera, 62 (Mexican); Cardinan Camillo Ruini, 73; Cardinal Christoph Schonborn, 60; and Cardinal Dionigo Tettamanzi, 70.) On an offnote, they say that Cardinal Schonborn has almost no chance b/c he's only 60...but if PJPII was '84 when he died, and if he's been Pope since '78, well, he was younger, no (my math is bad.) If not, it's close.

And trivia: what was Pope John Paul II's name before he became Pope? Cardinal Karol Wojtyla. See, don't you feel better for having known that?

I think there should be Vegas betting: Who will become Pope? What name will he choose? (John Paul III is too easy, no? Gotta pick something else.)