All is good . . .

I know I haven't posted for a couple of days. Stormy, Skye and Elias (9, 4 and 1) spent the night on Friday. Poor Alvin had to have dialysis two days in a row so we had lots of fun, but not as much fun as the girls might have expected.

I did give them manicures and pedicures. We did watch Madagascar and fill up on chips, baby carrots, chocolate cupcakes and animal crackers. I was going to make popcorn too, but they were so happy with the above that I decided not to.

That is one very funny movie. It's been awhile since I laughed out loud, from the gut, but I did, a lot. It could have been the sheer exhaustion contributing to the humor factor, but either way I enjoyed it. The girls and I watched it the next day too and it was still that funny.

We had a little scare on Saturday. Alvin called from dialysis and told me that his doctor wanted him to go straight to the ER. The baby was screaming (I wouldn't let him play with the phone, the remote or the porcelain Christus he wanted so badly) so I couldn't really hear what Alvin was telling me. All I heard was emergency room. I called my sister and she came and picked up the kids. Alvin showed up at home, determined to take a shower before heading to the ER. So we both got ready, got some drinks, picked up some food on the way and headed over to the hospital. Turns out my husband's resting heart rate was staying anywhere from 128 to 137 (normal is 80 to 100.) Suddenly I understood why he was feeling lightheaded and dizzy all the time.

We settled in for a long stay. When we walked into the ER it was jam packed! And not with illegal aliens this time (that's what happened when I had to be taken in there last August - so many illegal immigrants we waited for hours before we finally just gave up, left and went to an all night pharmacy and pharmacist for help to get me through until morning so I could go to my doctor.) Anyway, we checked in, looked at the copious amounts of people in the waiting room and then went outside to sit in the sun and eat our lunch. While we were eating, our dear friend, Debb, showed up for moral support, so the three of us went inside (some chairs had freed up by that point) and we sat and waited . . . only five to ten minutes. We were shocked . . . apparently the tachycardia was something they took serious. Hey, I know kidney problems. I know heart problems, in relation to the one I had, not much else.

Anyway, they checked him out and we found out that if you have to have a problem, sinus tachycardia is the one you want to have because it's so fixable. I was so relieved! Alvin goes in this coming Wednesday to have all the tests done for his kidney transplant. He and I were so afraid this would delay or halt the process, but all is good. Because this happened yesterday, and the problem has been fixed, we can move forward without fear. Whew! What a huge blessing, and yes, I realize the course of the events which took place were carefully orchestrated. There is no question in my mind. Had Alvin's heart been racing when we showed up for the transplant tests, we were told they would have stopped, sent him home and told him to go to his doctor and get it fixed. We would have had to start the process over. Ugh!

So we are happy and feeling very blessed!

Politics: So Florida's governor endorsed John McCain. Guess we know he's a liberal! The New York Times has also endorsed John McCain. To have such a screamingly liberal paper, with editor and reporters who hate a democratic America endorse John McCain should give every supporter of John McCain pause for thought.

Barack Obama won South Carolina. Big surprise. The more I watch this man on t.v. the more the veneer of sophistication and polish he wears grows thin. There is an arrogance and sense of entitlement which emanates from that man that is astonishing. It wasn't always evident to me, but the more heated and contested the race becomes the more I see it. Whew, glad I'm not a Democrat, what a stinky choice I'd have to make.

Newsweek did an article on Mitt Romney this week, the entirety of which I am including here:

Behind Mitt Romney's bland smile, there is a steely drive and a hint of bitterness. Talking to NEWSWEEK's Howard Fineman in Florida last week, Romney complained that his GOP rivals were fighting dirty—even as he launched waves of "comparative" attack ads against John McCain. Dogged and disciplined, Romney has worked his way to the front of the pack. Now he seems to have settled on his pitch: he'll bring an investor's cold-eyed discipline to a beleaguered American economy and the "broken" city of Washington. Excerpts:

Fineman: What do you say to people who think you will say anything or be anything to get elected?

Romney: Well, first of all, let me tell you where that comes from. It comes from one of the opposition campaigns, before we even got going. They did a terrific job of salting the water with that perspective. I prefer not to mention which one, but you can probably figure it out. [It was Sen. Sam Brownback, an ardent pro-life conservative who has since endorsed McCain.] … One place of significance I did change—and I'll acknowledge that—was with regard to abortion. I was effectively pro-choice.

What can you do about that image?

I'm not a political consultant. I can't describe how you rectify the perception that people have obtained other than by letting them do what I tell people to do who ask the question: look at my record … If you want to know where I stand on gay marriage, guns and abortion, on taxation, on balancing budgets, you can look at my record as governor.

But much of your sales pitch is based on your decades in the private sector. So you are asking people to judge you on your whole adult life.

If people are looking for a candidate who, over 15 years of experience, never makes any mistakes, then I'm not that person … I would far rather have a guy who acknowledges his mistakes, and says he was wrong, than someone who consistently stands by something that was wrong and remains wrong.

And who would that be?

I'm not going to be talking, at this stage, about other folks, but there are some folks who tend to be known as being so stubborn that they won't admit when they are wrong.

John McCain said that running against you is like wrestling with a pig. You both get dirty but the pig still likes it. Why do the other candidates dislike you so much?

What Peter says to Paul tells you more about Peter than it does about Paul. I'm not going to Washington to try and make friends with politicians.

Are your relations with these people irreparable?

Not on my part. I'm not sure how they feel. I have been very careful to focus on Senator McCain and Governor Huckabee and their records. In fact, in the Senator McCain ads, I would begin by saying, Senator McCain is a man of honor, he is a national hero, but I disagree with him on these issues and describe accurately his positions and what my positions are.

Have they gotten personal in a way that you haven't?

There's no question that what has come back has been very personal.

They would probably argue that they are just cataloging your changes in positions.

That may be what they would argue, but when they don't catalog those accurately and distort what they are and try and make jokes or light of a person's character, it's very different and personal.

Where do you get whatever sense you have of how average people live their lives?

It comes from various parts of my life. One way was serving as a missionary for my church for two and a half years in France, living not just among the middle class but the poor. It gave me a great deal of perspective on people who were living close to the poverty line. And then in my community service as a lay minister of my faith and as an adviser and participant in charitable organizations, I was able to work with people who had real challenges and problems. And as a result of those experiences, most of my life I have been very close to people of a wide range of economic circumstances. The proof of the pudding is the effort I went through to get everybody health insurance.

Do you think George W. Bush has been a good economic steward?

Yes, I think George Bush has faced some extraordinary challenges that have tested his mettle. The first was a declining economy when he came in, which shortly thereafter got hit by 9/11 and the Internet bubble burst. And he was able to take swift action to get the economy to turn around … I likewise think that in the current situation, with us having been hit by the subprime-mortgage crisis spreading throughout our economy, that he has moved quickly to reach agreement with Congress to put in place a stimulus plan … Now, are there some things I would have done differently? Absolutely.

Such as?

I think we overspent. I think Republicans acted like Democrats and America lost … I also think the decision to add a multitrillion-dollar Medicare Part D entitlement was not the right course.

How about looking the other way when the mortgage industry went nuts giving subprime mortgages to people who probably shouldn't have had them?
There are many places where I would have expected the whistle to be blown first. The rating agencies.

If elected, what would be your first priority?

Get the economy on track.

© 2008 Newsweek, Inc.

Did anyone else notice the tone of the questions asked by Fineman? Let me explain. He asked Mitt Romney about his "sales pitch?" In defining Mitt Romney's candidacy for the President of the United States of America and his heartfelt stance and approach to fixing the problems in this nation in a manner befitting the founding fathers of America as a sales pitch, he immediately attempted to cheapen the message. Interesting technique. It stood right out. Does Mitt Romney threaten the liberal press so much?

To be honest, I think he does. John McCain is a Republican but in his policies and decision making, he is a liberal. Yes, he is an honest to goodness American hero because of his military service and time spent as a P.O.W. ... what he is not is a conservative Republican willing to uphold the federalist position of small government and efficient spending. Do you know what the job of the federal government is supposed to be according to the Constitution?

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

The job of the federal government is to establish a system of justice (the judicial branch of government,) insure tranquility (I'm not feeling very tranquil,) defend this nation, promote general welfare (keep your greedy sticky fingers out of the lives of private citizens,) and secure the blessings of liberty for Americans at home an abroad. That's it! That's all they are supposed to do. Everything else is supposed to be left up to the individual states. Shocking how far we've come from that, don't you think?

John McCain is a part of that "big government" movement.

"Yes, here's my gun. You'll keep me safe, right?"

"Yes, please tell me how to raise my children, I abdicate that responsibility."

"Yes, please tell me I can murder my unborn baby and you won't punish me? Oh, great."

"Yes, please come into my state and scoop up all the prosperous lands and declare them federal property, thereby robbing my fellow citizens and me of our prosperity."

"Yes, please come into my state and tell me how to provide my children with an education equivalent to that the Roman "slave education. You're right, I don't know what's best for my children."

"Yes, please take the profits of one of the most successful private industries and give it back to the people." (Hillary Clinton has stated several times over the course of her campaign that she would take the profits of Exxon Mobile and disperse it as she saw fit. COMMUNISM!)

I could go on and on, but I need to get ready for church right now. So I ask each of you to please consider the candidates and where they want to go. Here's my judging criteria:

What is his/her experience in the private sector?

What is his/her experience in the public sector?

What are his/her core values and moral guidelines? Do they even have any?

What is his/her foreign policy?

What is his/her policy on the federal government?

What is his/her policy on the sinking economy?

What is his/her policy on the military?

What is his/her policy on the War on Terror?

What is his/her policy on American dependency on foreign energy?

Are his/her mental faculties complete?

Most importantly - what is his/her plan to fix these problems? I like Mitt Romney's plan. It is precisely what I would do if I were in his shoes, which thank goodness I am not.