Y’all know I’m a relative newbie here, and I’m still trying to find my niche, although I’m getting closer. I’ve started reading further afield, and one of the things that has been popping up lately is the subject of trolls. I was visiting Wazzup, -e’s- site, and came across this definition for trolls:
troll /v.,n./ [From the Usenet group alt.folklore.urban] To utter a posting on Usenet designed to attract predictable responses or flames. Derives from the phrase “trolling for newbies” which in turn comes from mainstream “trolling”, a style of fishing in which one trails bait through a likely spot hoping for a bite. The well-constructed troll is a post that induces lots of newbies and flamers to make themselves look even more clueless than they already do, while subtly conveying to the more savvy and experienced that it is in fact a deliberate troll. If you don’t fall for the joke, you get to be in on it.
Is there a book out called “Blogging for Idiots”??? It’s really embarrassing to put your foot in it, and not even know that you’ve done it. Maybe there’s a Miss Manners of the Blog world who can advise me, and keep me out of trouble.
Actually……for those of you in the same boat, read the comments posted to Eric’s blog on July 17, titled “Free Speech, trolls, and sissies.” It’s nice to know that there are other bloggers out there who have more experience and are just as clueless about trolls.
I’m really relieved that I’ve missed out on the entire Usenet scene. Flaming is not a way of life that excites me. Perhaps I will simply go and read, and withhold comment until I have sharpened my logic and language skills.
Until then, you can expect posts on food, family life, friends, life questions, books, music, theater and occasionally, sex.

I was reading Dr. D’s and Desiree’s comments on the post about AIDS statistics, and had a little more to say.
I started what has turned out to be a long term relationship just about the time AIDS was rearing it’s ugly head. Each time AIDS has come up for discussion over the past 20 years I’ve shuddered at the thought of being thrown back into the dating pool. It’s difficult enough to be swimming there at my age; it’s even worse to have to contemplate dating in the age of AIDS.
I can just see meeting a really cool guy; deciding that THIS is one I’d be willing to allow to see me nekkid…..and then having to ask him for a note from his doctor, saying that he’s virus free.
Can you imagine that conversation??
HA…..I was just sitting here thinking about asking that question of some of the male bloggers I read, and the range of responses they’d have. Think about the different let-downs I’d get from T-bone, e-the merciless, Acidman, Sgt. Hook, Mad Bull or Dr. D.
T-bone would give me a witty disertation on how he loves the Petite Filet, -e- would have to check his social schedule to see if he could fit me in between the latest blog brawls, Acidman……well….I’m not going there….he’d speak his mind, and it wouldn’t be pretty, the Sgt. (who also loves his wife) would feel it was inappropriate for an officer representing the US, and Natty wouldn’t let Mad Bull do it (he ALSO loves his wife). Dr. D wouldn’t need a note from his doc, I guess.
Back to the subject. I understand just why AIDS is spreading. There’s not a person out there who would put themselves through that embarrassment. You’d have to be willing to accept a LOT of rejection. On the other hand, maybe it’s not such a bad thing. It would weed out the guys looking for a one night stand. You might actually find keepers that way.
Hm……Yahoo personals: WSF, virus free, seeing WSM, virus free. Interested in music, movies, theater, and hot monkey sex. Those without doctor certification need not apply.

I was browsing blogs this afternoon, and came across Acidman’s comments about love. There were a couple of his statements I was thinking about challenging, but my mind went off on a tangent before I got there. Go see what he had to say, and don’t nag him about being mushy.
In 1970, the movie “Love Story” was released. It was a HUGE hit. Everyone I knew saw it multiple times, and there were posters and t-shirts everywhere. The famous line that comes from the movie is “Love is never having to say you’re sorry.” Horse hockey! (Seems to be the trend for the week….piled deeper and higher.)
I didn’t understand that line at the time, and I still don’t understand it. It seems to me that if you have done something less than noble in your relationship, you NEED to be saying that you are sorry. When you make a committment to another person, whether it’s pledging your troth, or simply saying “I love you,” you are proclaiming that how they feel matters to you.
There are going to be times when you screw up, and you can’t just kick the mess under the rug and go on. You have to face up to your errors, admit them, and say “I’m sorry.” “I’m sorry, and I’ll never do that again” would be even better.
We are not static in our lives. There is never a point we reach where we stop evolving or maturing. Each year adds a perspective that didn’t exist the prior year, and sometimes those changes are going to bring us into conflict with those we love. And sometimes we do things that hurt them. It takes a big person to say they are sorry, especially when they are sincere.
I worry about growing apart, and I’ve been told that I worry too much. It’s natural for the people in a relationship to diverge some as they mature, but my concern has to do with how much diversion a relationship can bear. Can love continue when common ground has evaporated?
One of the things Acidman said that resonated with me was “You can love someone without doting on them. Sometimes you have to love from a distance.” Perhaps that’s the nature of some relationships…..the “if you love them, let them go” theory. I wonder if the secret to a 70 year marriage is that each of the partners has their own interests, or is it common ground that keeps them together?
As you can see, I don’t have the answers. I know what I hope they are, but you’ll have to check back in a few decades to see if I ever figured it out.
One thing I can tell you is the the movie “Love Story” sucks pond water! I avoid all things Ryan O’Neil, now.

Do you believe in predestination? I don’t want to, but I keep coming back to the subject and mulling it over.
I was getting a haircut today, and Kristin was talking about this. She believes that you are put on earth for a purpose, that we have something to learn from the situations we find ourselves in. It rather reminded me of the “Quantum Leap” series on TV.
I asked her if she believed that we had any control over the direction of our lives, and she said yes. She felt that it was possible for us to take the easy path and learn our lesson pleasantly, or we could fight it, and learn the lesson the hard way.
I don’t know if I agree with her that we are here to learn something, but I do believe that we choose the direction of our lives. Our environments have a huge affect on our choices, but we can still choose the paths we take. If you are in an abusive relationship, you can walk away. If you have been raised in a ghetto, you can choose to study and find a better way of life. It’s harder to walk away from those you love, but if the situation is harmful to you, you can walk away.
Most of us tend to fear the devil we don’t know, more than the devil we do know. We’re slow to make changes because we could make things even worse. “Out of the fat, and into the fire.” How many of us worry that we will make a bad choice? Sometimes those choices remind us of the story about “The Lady or the Tiger.”
DH seems to make the right choice at the right time. We built a home, and it’s been threatened again and again with disastrous situations. The farm across the street was zoned for light industry, and they could have built an asphalt plant there. The Illinois Dept. of Transportation wanted to put a freeway through here just after we built. Then, the people who owned the land 500 yards away wanted to build a drug and alcohol rehab unit.
The truth is….the farm across the street was purchased by the forest preserve, the freeway idea was dropped due to the cost of purchasing the land, and the rehab center was dropped when the entire neighborhood came together to protest. Each time, I worried myself sick….and each time he told me not to worry.
DH began as a construction laborer, and now he owns his own business. On the surface, it looks as though his childhood didn’t contribute anything to this success, but perhaps it gave him the resiliancy and self-reliance to accomplish all this. Or, perhaps he was intended to be successful, despite his surroundings.
Despite his success, I know he’d rather be sailing the seven seas.
Are you on the path of your choice? If not, what’s keeping you from it?

This was posted to a Yahoo Group I belong to. It’s a pictoral history lesson based on Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire.”
Go see…..it’s worth a look.
http://www.its.caltech.edu/~yel/Fire.html

No, not the kids out on the lawn, although I appreciate the suggestions on what to do about them! *G* One of my stepsons lives with us, and he has a long distance girlfriend. She is on a trip, and since she was going to pass through this area, she made arrangements to stay with us. At first, we expected her late on Tuesday night, and then it was going to be Wednesday morning. So, I decided to go to bed and do the dishes in the morning before she arrived.
Well, you got it. She came in at 2:00 in the morning. It just doesn’t pay to let the dishes go. We have one of those houses where the kitchen, and the great room, and a breakfast room are all part of an open plan, so it always feels that if the kitchen is a mess, so are the other rooms. I spent some time cleaning up this morning, so that when she wakes up, it will look a lot better.
Dear Husband teases me about cleaning the house before the cleaning lady comes. I don’t think I will ever be sufficiently blas

You know from past entries that I firmly believe that those who choose to live in the United States should speak and read English. Well, to that end, I think I am going to contact the local chapter of Literacy Volunteers of America. Since I have teaching degrees, it shouldn’t be too difficult for me to get the training I need to participate in this program. Ideally, I’d like to teach adults to read, but there is probably more call for English as a Second Language in this area. It seems like a great project for the coming year.