As a proud grandmother, I was thrilled when my son Matthew asked if I wished to see my youngest grandson, Travis, play in a South Texas PGA Junior Tour tournament that was held recently in Lakeway, Texas. He is 13-years old, and has been playing tournament golf for four years now. This past year he's been taking golf lessons once a week from a golf pro at a local Country Club. He plays mostly against 14- and 15-year-olds, who are larger than he is. However, he has placed in more than one tournament.. I believe he will eventually win a big one, as he keeps improving. I only saw the last 9 holes of his tournament. Even though his dad said he was a little off his game, I enjoyed every minute of watching him. He was so professional and serious about it, it was hard to remember him as the babe in arms I held once upon a time.
Here is a short video of Travis playing in the last tournament held in March at Berry Creek Country Club in Georgetown, Texas. His Uncle Craig said, "I wish I had his swing!"
Here is a short video of Travis playing in the last tournament held in March at Berry Creek Country Club in Georgetown, Texas. His Uncle Craig said, "I wish I had his swing!"
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| Audrey & Rob |
Granddaughter Audrey recently interviewed for what her mother called "her dream job" in Lake Tahoe. It is with an environmental firm, and if she gets the job, she will spend her first year in Lake Tahoe. Next she will be sent to Denver. Audrey's enthusiastic about it, so it must mean she will be doing a lot of field work -- which she really enjoys. The mountains will be big adventures as well! Here's hoping this works out for her. If she accepts it, she will be moving in May. I will miss having her close, but she's one of the millennials who is making a difference in our world. You go, girl!
Since moving to Austin, Audrey has played with the Central Texas Medical Orchestra, First Chair, Second Violin. Her mother came to hear her play in concert in February, and said it was magnificent. The proceeds from the concert went to the charity Wonders & Worries, which provides professional support for children through a parent's illness.
Audrey is to bring Rob for a visit next weekend. I have heard great things about him from her family.
Since moving to Austin, Audrey has played with the Central Texas Medical Orchestra, First Chair, Second Violin. Her mother came to hear her play in concert in February, and said it was magnificent. The proceeds from the concert went to the charity Wonders & Worries, which provides professional support for children through a parent's illness.
Audrey is to bring Rob for a visit next weekend. I have heard great things about him from her family.
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| Allison & Cameron |
Grandson Cameron and "best friend" Allison performed a musical revue together at the Songbird Live theater in Cleburne, Texas this past Saturday night. They sang Broadway tunes for about an hour and a half. Allison, besides being beautiful, has a doctorate in music, teaches music in high school, and is planning to teach at the university level. She has sung professionally in operatic productions. What a perfect couple they make. I'm looking forward to Cameron bringing her to meet this Grandmama. In the meantime, Cameron continues to serve the Fort Worth Unitarian youth with exuberance. I know they are having a great time with the classes and outings he plans for them.
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Some of my readers might have noticed that I haven't posted anything on this blog in quite some time. I have been so upset over the campaign for the Presidency that every time I tried to write, something else disturbing would happen. I'm talking about the GOP campaign. Of course, I'm not the only one in the country who feels this way. Donald Trump is an embarrassment to our great nation. I don't feel he could ever win the Presidency, however, the fact that so many people are supporting him says something almost as disturbing. What kind of people would believe all the nasty, bigoted, downright stupid opinions he raves on about? Do they really believe as he says -- that he will build a wall to keep the Mexican immigrants out and make Mexico pay for it? How do they feel about repealing the Affordable Care Act? Many of these same voters were uninsured until its passage. On foreign policy, he says he "will totally dismantle Iran's global terror network".. He wants to bring back waterboarding and other means of torture.. He wants to ban all Muslims from entering the United States.. I could go on, but if you have a television you cannot have missed any of his narcissistic ravings.
(Getty Images)
But then, there is Ted Cruz. Senator Lindsey Graham hit the nail on the head when he said having to choose between Trump or Cruz was like choosing between "being shot or taking poison". Cruz and his followers are much more dangerous than Trump. His father Rafael, an evangelical Christian pastor who believes in a form of Christianity known as Dominionism, believes that "anointed Christians are destined to take over the government and create in practice, if not in official terms, a theocracy. Rafael Cruz also endorsed the evangelical belief known as the 'end-time transfer of wealth' - that is, as a prelude to the second coming of Christ, God will seize the wealth of the wicked and redistribute it to believers." "In 2013, several prominent Dominionist pastors at a ceremony in Iowa blessed and anointed Ted Cruz, rendering him, in their view, a 'king' who would help usher in the kingdom of Christ." Mother Jones King Ted Cruz?
I'm sorry, but I have a hard time not thinking that the above two candidates for the most important job in the world are both a little nutty. And what does that make the many folks who vote for them?
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| Bring on Bernie or Hillary!! (Nat'l. Progressive)
Peace,
Marilyn
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To get a better understanding of where America is today and just how we have arrived here, read DARK MONEY by Jane Mayer. This book has been on the New York Times best seller list for quite some time. The essence of the book is how billionaires, Charles and David Koch, and their ultra wealthy friends have infused hundreds of millions of dollars into influencing politicians, federal judgeships, and university academia through the American Enterprise Institute, and Citizens United which they essentially created. They have done much to destroy the middle class in America and the working poor. The book is factually researched and is authored by a renowned political journalist.
ReplyDeleteI am very familiar with Mayer's book, and have read excerpts from it. Also, with the billionaires in our country who are influencing every aspect of our society. Researching the Koch brothers, I even ran across one article hinting they were descended from "Nazi" Kochs. I could believe that, whether or not it is true, as their attempts at using education to manipulate our future generations to their points of view sound pretty Nazi-like to me. At one point a year or so ago, someone circulated a list of consumer products their companies produced. We all decided to boycott them and forwarded the list. I recently saw a TV commercial that advertised coupons for Northern Toilet Tissue. I don't know how long those have been available, but I liked to think that their sales are down and they decided to offer incentives! I found it interesting that Charles Koch said he would consider backing Hillary Clinton over the current crop of GOP candidates! Suppose he thinks he can buy influence with her? (Hopefully, she will get to appoint the next SCOTUS Justice - a liberal one. With the GOP losses predicted in Congress, perhaps we can finally get Citizens United turned over.)
ReplyDeleteAt least the Koch brothers are open about their efforts. What is more insidious to me are the giant media corporations such as Gannett, Belo, Sinclair, et al. They are slowly but surely buying up as many TV and radio stations, as well as newspapers across the country as the FCC will allow. If they are stopped from creating monopolies, they just create a "satellite" corporation to purchase them. By controlling what is published or broadcast on their entities, they are subliminally and not so subliminally planting their ultra-conservative messages into millions of unsuspecting Americans' minds. They recently aired a blatantly conservative 30-minute political show on our local CBS station at a time when a popular pastor of a mega church usually gives his sermon. After hearing the first few minutes, I thought somehow I had tuned in to a FOX station (not even available to me). I quickly turned it off and read about the woman hosting it. Then I researched the owners of the station and discovered they had been bought by the Sinclair group. Mr. Sinclair has been known in the past to black out a Nightline segment because he thought it was "unpatriotic".
I urge my readers to research, research, research who the "players" are in today's politics. Or - Read the book!