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Sunday, January 11, 2009 

Ann's Politically Incorrect Kitchen Cleaning Project

That last one was the 666th post.

A couple days ago I started to make vegetable enchiladas, which required me to chop up some vegetables. After realizing that we had 3 food processors but not enough parts to any ONE of them that I could actually use it, I got pissed and decided to clean out the cabinets. That was convenient, since I had pulled everything out of them while searching for gadget parts. I did not like what I found.

There's a whole row of cabinets that have become the catch-all area of the kitchen. When there's a storage container with no lid, or a lid with no container, or a mixing bowl that's so huge it can't fit in the cabinet where I keep the other mixing bowls, or a giant basket that is used to lower foods into the giant turkey fryer, those things get shoved under the catch-all cabinet. It's a huge amount of space that's basically being wasted.

I'm about to start a very politically incorrect house cleaning project. If you don't fit in, you're being thrown away. If you need a mate and don't have a mate, you're not welcome here. If you have a flaw of any type, you're trash to me. If you look funny, smell funny, or are otherwise unusual, there will be no equal rights for you, my queer friend. If you can't stay where I put you and insist on sliding out of the cabinet every time I open the door, you're landfill bound. If I don't like the way you LOOK, you're history!

I'm cleaning house, people. I'm tired of having so much crap that I can't find the crap I need when I need it. I'm tired of "cleaning" really meaning "moving one pile of crap to another place temporarily." Tim thinks he's going to stop me from throwing things away, but I'm not asking his opinion on how I take care of the kitchen anymore. If it's my job, it's my job. We have more stuff than we could ever possibly use-- especially if none of the tupperware has lids, one food chopper has no blade and the other two have no lids, and the other 90% of the "stuff" consists of random parts to gadgets I didn't know we had because we didn't need them in the first place. There's so much stuff in there that I could throw 75% of it away and he'd never notice.

So that's what I'm doing today, and that, my friends, is why I don't have time to write a post about the fact that Mississippi passed Texas for the highest teen pregnancy rate, even though I have some thoughts on it. (The main thought being that it's embarrassing and it sucks for us and that some people need to start parenting their teenagers a little better.) Actually, I think I just said everything I wanted to say on that topic.

Was it Brittany or her little sister that finally put us over????

I think I've probably said this at least 2 or 3 times before, but I'll tell it again anyway. When I was in the Delta, my kids got to ask me one personal question as a reward for doing all their work. They asked how old I was. I told them I was 26, and SEVERAL of them said, "That's how old my mom is!"

They were 13 and 14 years old. Their mothers had them when they were 13.

If you ask me, we should start asking some very hard questions when 13 year olds get pregnant. Who got her pregnant? How old is HE? And most importantly, why in the F*CKING HELL was a 13 year old girl left alone with a sexually mature male long enough to get pregnant??

I would not be opposed to bringing child neglect charges against the parents in situations where girls that young are pregnant. I don't think it's 13 year old boys getting them pregnant.

I'm not saying this problem is limited to one region of the state or one group or race, but I bet the problem is worse in parts of the state where people are really poor. It was absolutely EXPECTED for the girls in the Delta to get pregnant asap. I mean, it was not even considered to be a bad thing. I guess they figure they have nothing else to look forward to in life.

We have a couple of apartment complexes that are low income. I've probably said this before, too, but the UPS guy told me that when he delivers packages to the complex in the latter part of the month, there are NO men around anywhere. However, when he delivers packages around the first of the month, the places are crawling with men. They show up at the beginning of the month, because that's when they know the women get their checks. When the money is gone, so are they.

As long as the government is paying per child, as little as the amount may be, you're going to have women (and young girls) who know no other way of life than to have babies and wait for their checks. Not only do they get checks, they get food stamps, rent assistance and help paying their utility bills. Why keep your legs together and bust your butt at a minimum wage job when you're just about as well off not working? I know GENERATIONS of women who live this way.

Nothing is going to change until the mindset changes. And that's not going to happen until these kids coming up are taught there's a better way. They grow up with kids for parents and not much hope for anything better.

Good teachers and education are the only hope these kids have.

I missed some things.... Charlie is going to be taller than you in a couple months! Ha ha

You will be so happy when you are done cleaning out. I got rid of all that stuff before I moved and it felt so good I wondered why I hadn't gotten off my butt and done it sooner.

My husbands step mom is from Tenn. and she had all three of her kids by the time she was 17. His mom had him at 18 and his sister followed right alone... sad becasue they don't get anywhere in life and a lot of their children don't. I am always amazed at what my husband has accomplished in his life.... if he can do it so can other people!

I have thought about this welfare issue.... I think they ought to make people work - have a babysitter for their kids in one location and then have them go out in the community and pick up trash or other volunteer work for their benefits.

well. nothing much has changed then. where are we on infant mortality rates for babies born to unwed teenage mothers? we always seem to top out the "worst" lists.
i want to see more pictures of charlie!

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