New Years Eve Traditions

I bet you didn't know that the celebration of the new year is the oldest of all holidays being observed for the first time in ancient Babylon about 4000years ago and lasting for eleven days. Each day had its own mode of celebration. The Babylonian New Year (around 2000 BC) began with the first new moon after the Vernal Equinox, which would be the first day of spring. This seemed to be the logical time to start the new year with the planting of new crops and blossoming of trees, shrubs and flowers.

Through many years the calendar changed to our new year of today which is January 1. But through the years the many traditions celebrated today have been brought forward from other lands. As Christianity spread thoughout the world these so called pagan traditions turned to more of Christian traditions. At one time the use of the baby to symbolize rebirth in the new year celebration was considered pagan and was denounced. But through the years the church finally allowed its use as the symbol of the birth of baby Jesus.

It was once thought (and maybe it is still today) that one could alter his luck and fortune for the new year by what he ate and did on the first day of the new year. So it has become common for folks to celebrate the first few hours of the new year surrounded by relatives and friends.

Then on New Years Day came the tradition of eating foods thought to bring good luck. And in many cultures anything that takes shape of a ring is good luck. While I like the tradition that the Dutch use because they believe the donut is good luck, in America it seems to be the black eyed pea. Well, good luck eating those! Usually accompanied with ham and turnip greens, my grandmother always had them on New Years Day. As a family we'd pile in the car and drive over there just for the "dose" of black eyed peas. I never saw any benefit in that but it made my mother and grandmother happy and that's all I cared about.

I find it amazing that so many traditions have a history that goes back for many years. And many families even today have their own New Years Eve and New Years Day traditions. And, yes, there are those of you that doze in the recliner until the ball drops, Auld Lang Syne is sung then stumble to your beds. That's your tradition.

Our family has always been big on celebrations. My father carried the tradition of our family having steamed shrimp on New Years Eve and bbq'd chicken on New Years Day! He kept that tradition for years and all of us would be there. And no, no black eyed peas.

So in your travels to the grocery store don't forget to buy some to cook for the family. They may bring you good luck and/or good fortune in the New Year. And don't look for me to taking a spoon full, I'm eating donuts.

Happy New Year Everyone! I hope 2010 is your best year yet.

Blue moon to shine on New Year's Eve

It happens only once in a blue moon -- and scientists say a blue moon is exactly what we'll see in the skies this New Year's Eve.

Don't expect an azure glow over our lunar satellite, however. The term "blue moon" simply refers to the second full moon in a calendar month, something that hasn't happened on a New Year's Eve for nearly 20 years, NASA says.

"December 1990 ended with a blue moon, and many New Year's Eve parties were themed by the event," said Professor Philip Hiscock of the department of folklore at Memorial University of Newfoundland, in Canada. "It was a lot of fun."

Most months have just one full moon, because the 29.5-day cycle of the moon matches up pretty well with the length of calendar months. Occasionally, there will be two full moons in a month, something that happens about every 2½ years, NASA says.

But a blue moon on December 31 is rare.

Elvis Presley crooned about it when he sang the old Rodgers and Hart song "Blue Moon," in which he stood alone without a dream in his heart or a love of his own.

He struck a more hopeful tone in another tune, singing about his love returning to his arms "When My Blue Moon Turns to Gold Again." He also covered Bill Monroe's bluegrass classic, "Blue Moon of Kentucky."

It is possible for the moon to have a cerulean hue, NASA says, but that's sometimes caused by fine dirt circulating in the Earth's atmosphere or the dark blue tone of the sky.

A blue moon hasn't always meant the second full moon in a month. Hundreds of years ago, it simply meant "never" or "absurd," Hiscock said.

"The phrase 'blue moon' has been around a long time, well over 400 years, but during that time its meaning has shifted," he said. "I have counted six different meanings which have been carried by the term, and at least four of them are still current today. That makes discussion of the term a little complicated."

When the Indonesian volcano Krakatoa erupted in 1883, it put so much dust in the atmosphere that the moon actually appeared blue -- an event so unusual that the term "once in a blue moon" was coined, according to NASA's National Space Science Data Center. The effect lasted for almost two years, Hiscock said.

Full moons used to have 12 names, one for each month, such as "harvest moon," NASA said. The term "blue moon" referred to the 13th full moon in a year.

The term acquired its current meaning in the 1940s, after the Farmer's Almanac of Maine offered an astronomical definition of a blue moon "so convoluted that even professional astronomers struggled to understand it," NASA wrote on its Web site.

A writer at Sky and Telescope magazine in the late 1940s tried to explain the almanac's definition by saying it referred to the second full moon in a month.

"That was not correct, but at least it could be understood," NASA wrote. "And thus the modern blue moon was born."

VIA

Dave Barry's year in review: 2009

It was a year of Hope -- at first in the sense of ``I feel hopeful!'' and later in the sense of ``I hope this year ends soon!''

It was also a year of Change, especially in Washington, where the tired old hacks of yesteryear finally yielded the reins of power to a group of fresh, young, idealistic, new-idea outsiders such as Nancy Pelosi. As a result Washington, rejecting ``business as usual,'' finally stopped trying to solve every problem by throwing billions of taxpayer dollars at it and instead started trying to solve every problem by throwing trillions of taxpayer dollars at it.

To be sure, it was a year that saw plenty of bad news. But in almost every instance, there was offsetting good news:

BAD NEWS: The economy remained critically weak, with rising unemployment, a severely depressed real-estate market, the near-collapse of the domestic automobile industry and the steep decline of the dollar.

GOOD NEWS: Windows 7 sucked less than Vista.

BAD NEWS: The downward spiral of the newspaper industry continued, resulting in the firings of thousands of experienced reporters and an apparently permanent deterioration in the quality of American journalism.

GOOD NEWS: A lot more people were tweeting.

BAD NEWS: Ominous problems loomed abroad as -- among other difficulties -- the Afghanistan war went sour, and Iran threatened to plunge the Middle East and beyond into nuclear war.

GOOD NEWS: They finally got Roman Polanski.

In short, it was a year that we will be happy to put behind us. But before we do, let's swallow our anti-nausea medication and take one last look back, starting with. . . .

JANUARY

. . . during which history is made in Washington, D.C., where a crowd estimated by the Congressional Estimating Office at 217 billion people gathers to watch Barack Obama be inaugurated as the first American president ever to come after George W. Bush. There is a minor glitch in the ceremony when Chief Justice John Roberts, attempting to administer the oath of office, becomes confused and instead reads the side-effect warnings for his decongestant pills, causing the new president to swear that he will consult his physician if he experiences a sudden loss of sensation in his feet. President Obama then delivers an upbeat inaugural address, ushering in a new era of cooperation, civility and bipartisanship in a galaxy far, far away. Here on Earth everything stays much the same.

The No. 1 item on the agenda is fixing the economy, so the new administration immediately sets about the daunting task of trying to nominate somebody -- anybody -- to a high-level government post who actually remembered to pay his or her taxes. Among those who forgot this pesky chore is Obama's nominee for Treasury secretary, Timothy Geithner, who sheepishly admits that he failed to pay $35,000 in federal self-employment taxes. He says that the error was a result of his using TurboTax, which he also blames for his involvement in an eight-state spree of bank robberies. He is confirmed after the Obama administration explains that it inherited the U.S. Tax Code from the Bush administration.

Elsewhere in politics, a team of specially trained wildlife agents equipped with nets and tranquilizer darts manages, after a six-hour struggle, to remove Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich from office. He is transported to an undisclosed swamp, where he is released into the wild and quickly bonds with the native ferret population.

FULL STORY HERE

SignMan Still Painting

Sign of the week:

Body Found Is Identified

The body found washed ashore on a private each near the mouth of Westerhouse Creek in Northampton County has been identified as Robin Lamb. Lamb, 56 of Deep Creek, was found by local residents on the afternoon of December 22nd along with a helms chair from her boat. Police have also found a car registered to Lamb in Colonial Beach, Va.

Lamb is believed to have departed from Deep Creek Marina, where she kept her boat, a 31 foot Chris-Craft, on the morning of December 17. Although reports are conflicting, authorities say Lamb may have been accompanied by another missing person, Daria Finn. Wind gusts were as high as 30 MPH on December 17.

Any information pertaining to this case or the whereabouts of Daria Finn are asked to contact the sheriffs office at 757-678-0458 or marine police at 800-541-4646.


http://shoredailynews

We The People

This is awesome!!




HAT TIP: Art

Something To Be Ashamed Of !!!

Here's something that really bugs the heck out of me and is something that NEVER needs to happen.

Christmas Eve my husband was in Pocomoke doing some last minute errands and called me from his cell phone to tell me about the horrible shape an American flag was in as it flew outside of one of the newer shopping areas.

Later in the day as we drove to dinner at a relatives home we rode by so I could take some pictures. Here is where it is and what I found......................

Now, I don't know who owns this small strip of stores and I don't really care. I do not know who works in any of these businesses. But what I DO know is that all of you are a bunch of creeps and uncaring citizens of the United States of America to allow the flag of this country to become this raveled and torn. Not to mention the fact that you don't appreciate where you live to even look at it to see if it is there or to care about it's condition! Shame on everyone of you. I have never shopped or stopped into either of those businesses and don't care to now at all.

If anyone knows who owns this area please let me know so that I may contact them to have it removed! As far as I am concerned if you don't care about the shape of your flag you can't possibly care about too much of anything.

Fatality on Virginia's Eastern Shore

Early Sunday morning approximately 1:50 a.m., the Virginia State Police worked a deadly three vehicle accident on Route 13 just north of Route 648 in Accomac.

According to Sargeant Cotton of the Virginia State Police, the three cars were involved were a Ford Taurus, a Ford Mustang and a Tractor Trailer.
Wanda Sue Taylor was operating the Taurus, traveling northbound in the southbound lanes of Route 13. Taylor was pronounced dead at the scene.

Jerrone Sloan of New Castle Delaware, was traveling in his Mustang on the southbound lanes, when he veered to avoid a head-on collision with Taylor. Coincidentally, Sloan's Mustang sideswiped a tractor trailer.

The sideswipe cause the tractor trailer to veer and hit Taurus carrying Ms. Taylor head-on. Taylor was not wearing a seat belt.

Sloan was transported to Riverside Memorial Hospital with major, life-threatening head injuries. The tractor trailer driver of Clementon, New Jersey did not suffer any injuries.

No cause has yet been determined as to why Taylor was traveling north in the southbound lanes.

This was the second fatality on the Shore over the Christmas weekend. Early Friday morning Leonardo Lopez of Onley died in a crash on Rt. 13 north of the Parksley Royal Farms.

http://shoredailynews

Follow Up on Story

Here is a follow up on a story from 12/24


Autopsy Ordered on Woman's Body

Authorities have ordered an autopsy to be conducted on a womans body found on a beach here on the Eastern Shore.

The body of an unidentified white female was located on a private beach near the mouth of Westerhouse Creek on the Chesapeake Bay around 4 p.m. Tuesday, according to Major David Doughty of the Northampton County Sheriffs Department. The creek is near the Vaucluse neighborhood. The woman appeared to be over the age of 40 and has pierced ears.

According to authorities no one in Northampton or Accomack counties has been reported missing in recent days.

The medical examiner is conducting an autopsy and the Northampton County Sheriff's department is checking missing-person reports for other municipalities around the region.

A fish-fighting chair a heavy seat usually mounted on the back of offshore fishing boats was also found in the water in the area where the body was located. Major Doughty stated that it is impossible to tell whether the chair and body are related,

Anyone who may be able to help the identity of the woman is asked to contact the Northampton Sheriffs Department at 757-678-0458.


http://shoredailynews/

Let me tell y'all about T. J. Leggs

What I know about T. J. Leggs;

For a number of years I was a bouncer at a local night club, I was working there about 3-4 years when T. J. was hired. It wasn't long before we all knew his past. Needless to say those of us that are naturally protective of others were very concerned and myself not being the forgiving type, I questioned T. J. with small questions here and there.

T. J. is/was a likable guy, throughout my interrogation he never showed any amount anger in the fact that I wanted to know what he did to be a registered SO. He had his story down though, he left me believing that what he did was got caught with a young girl by her mother in a situation that many young men deal with and that was, that he was just over age and his girlfriend was just under age.

T. J. did love the night life and he was at home in the bar even at such a young age, just old enough to work there. T. J. was a normal everyday guy, he did his job and did it well. He got along with his coworkers and never caused any problems.

T. J. would sit with me every night at the bar, even on his nights off, he would come in just to sit at my table. To me T. J. seamed like just a guy. BUT....

From the first time T. J. and us 'crew' met, everytime T. J. left our presents, my wife would say "I like T. J. but somethings not right about him, it's his eyes"

It was not only my wife that saw this either, a lot of the women that knew us and that knew T. J. would say the exact same thing, they could see something in his eyes. Now I'm one that trust in 'intuition' so I kept a solid eye on him but he never did anything out of the way, not in my presents anyway.

Now I am in no means taking up for T. J. If T. J. is the person that murdered little Sarah I hope to God he reaps what he sowed 10 fold.

I'm just telling this and keeping it very short in hopes that others will look into who they subject their children too. If you have a "feeling" walk away and never look back, you may just save a life, use that "intuition" and use the resources available to look people up. What can it hurt? It may save a life.

(Update) Burial Fund Being Set Up For Sarah Foxwell

Update: An anonymous donation was made to cover Sara's burial expenses.

FETCHED: SBYNews.com

Twas the Night Before Christmas and not a Creature was Stirring Except Blink the Rat…

And the plot thickens….

• LinkedIn Profile of Shannon Stoy
• Orlando Sentinel: Florida Bar: Casey Anthony attorney Jose Baez did not violate bar rules

So Blink may really be Shannon Stoy who creates her own storyline to further her own financial interests, which is none other than her own Public Relations and Communications company.

She is basically a modern day P.T. Barnum “who was remembered for promoting celebrated hoaxes.”

Well at least now we know why she outed Todd Black – he was a direct competitor to her and she was probably jealous he had inserted himself directly into her dream case.

It would really be interesting to know what her financial arrangement is with Internet News Network, LLC the owner of ScaredMonkeys.com (psyche – no PR Google backlinks for that site).

But back to Internet News Network and the entity who so gratuitously set up Blink’s solo site after apparently luring her away from WebSleuths.com.

• Scared Monkeys Welcomes Blink34 & True Crime Blog … Blink on Crime to Family

So basically, Ms. Stoy is just another Merchant in Misery who profits off of other people’s misfortune; a real life Crime Profiteer if you will.

But to profit, she must create stories where there are none; so as to hype her site, which I assume Internet News Network pays her to maintain. I mean, it costs me a total of $100 a year to maintain both my sites ad free (my hosting company is Arvixe – a really great web hosting company by the way).

So this explains the obnoxious advertisements everywhere on all those affiliated sites and the stat checkers at the bottom of all their hideously designed sites. (I mean crikey, haven’t you mentally challenged people over at Internet News Network heard of Google Analytics?)

So basically, ScaredMonkeys, Blink, and Co. are nothing more than ad based Merchants in Misery. The more visitors they draw the more ad revenue they get I presume. And Blink with her over-hyped and sensational stories must have been the main reason Internet News Network lured her over to ScaredMonkeys from WebSleuths in the first place – to drum up business. (WebSleuths is a much better forum, more well intentioned, and much better off without her I must say.)

UPDATE: I was informed by credible sources that Blink actually got the Boot from WebSleuths because of her sensational and inflammatory postings. Blink, Blink, got flushed down the sink… LOL!

But I must go now, and dig up some more dirt; and I will have more…

For now though, this post will just be a work in progress where I will think out loud about Blink, very loud.

I’m coming Ms. Stoy, I am coming…

But first Baez…

SOURCE: HERE

Read Richard Hornsby Blog HERE

Shannon Moser (Poser) Stoy AKA (Blink) The "B" is at it again

Yes people, we are continually receiving "free rent" in the mind of the Blinkster and her minions that she drags along on a 3/8" chain with a choker.

I have not graced the pages of the plagiarizing blog of Blink since she un-hooked a few of her heavily chained minions and sicked them on us but the recent extremely high number of hits to PPE sparked my curiosity. Of course I found the normal ho-hum stolen articles and pictures posted as her own.

Then leading me through links I come across this piece written by the 8th wonder of the world. She is referencing the article I put up about the Mothers warning.

Quote from: Blink34 on Today at 09:04:00 AM

That letter is heartbreaking, but I have to point out that blog is part of the problem.

We uncovered a registered sex offender in an officers position who would have access to children at some of their events; that blog went on a smear campaign of me, blinkoncrime.com, and Scared Monkeys as a result of us disclosing that information.

Most recently, the incident I mention above, regarding Scott Mitchell's failure to arrest a child rapist, was also defended by this blog.

How is it the author thinks he can have it both ways? Complete hypocracy, imo

I do not want to make Sarah's thread about issues involving other cases, I just want to point out their is a responsibility on behalf of blogs/forums to take a stand against crimes against children whomever they are perpetrated by.

What were the conditions of this guys bond and were they being enforced?

Why would someone that boast about being so concerned inject her own hate into the death/murder of a sweet innocent child?

Not only does she reach down real low but she lied about PPE also.

Blink;

1) Did not "uncover a registered sex offender in an officers position" what she did was use that to accuse the PVFD of a conspiracy.

2) PPE never "smeared" the SM forum, they banned me because I am friends with one of their enemies. PERIOD!

3) I never defended "Scott Mitchell" I questioned his guilt, still no charges have been brought against Scott Mitchell, I am not the judge or jury. We have a legal system in place. Who is Blink to define the guilt of another?

4) The all mighty "B" does not believe serving a child murderer the death penalty is justice, this liberal stance does explain a lot. I reckon she wants then to be supported in the comfort of modern prisons for the remainder of their miserable lives while enjoying rec-rooms, color TV, heat and air-conditioning 24/7, 3 nutritious meals while we pay for their worthless ass with tax dollars.

1. Comment by FairWitness — December 26, 2009 @ 12:01 pm

   Here’s a solution to the problem of pedophilia; make it a FEDERAL CRIME like kidnapping. Upon conviction of sexual assault against a child (not teenagers engaged in statutory rape), the convicted shall be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. If they murder the child during the sexual assault, the death penalty shall be mandatory. This should apply to the 1ST CONVICTION. No 3 strikes allowed, not even 2. What do you think, Blink?

   I love it accept for the mandatory death penalty.
   B

5) Blink is a proven plagiarizing, fraud, a liar that has abandon her own children to fend for themselves, or were they taken?

6) I left you alone "B"... you want it? you got it.

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I can and will fill in the blanks +

Passenger Tries to Blow Up Jet Arriving in Detroit

A Northwest Airlines passenger from Nigeria, who said he was acting on al-Qaida's instructions, tried to blow up the plane Friday as it was landing in Detroit, law enforcement and national security officials said.



Passengers subdued the man and may have prevented him from detonating the explosives, the officials said.

"We believe this was an attempted act of terrorism," a White House official said.

Federal officials imposed stricter screening measures after the incident.

Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., ranking GOP member of the House Homeland Security Committee, identified the suspect as Abdul Mudallad, a Nigerian. King said the flight began in Nigeria and went through Amsterdam en route to Detroit. There were 278 passengers aboard the Airbus 330.

There was nothing out of the ordinary until the flight was on final approach to Detroit, said Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Elizabeth Isham Cory. That is when the pilot declared an emergency and landed without incident shortly thereafter, Cory said in an e-mail message. The plane landed at 11:51 a.m. EST.

One of the U.S. intelligence officials said the explosive device was a mix of powder and liquid. It failed when the passenger tried to detonate it.

The passenger was being questioned Friday evening. An intelligence source said the Nigerian passenger was being held and treated in an Ann Arbor, Mich., hospital.

All the sources spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation was continuing.

One law enforcement source said the man claimed to have been instructed by al-Qaida to detonate the plane over U.S. soil.

The official said an official determination of a terrorist act would have to come from the attorney general.

The official added that additional security measures are being taken without raising the airline threat level.

The official declined to describe what additional measures law enforcement was taking.

The White House was coordinating briefings for the president through the Homeland Security Department, the Transportation Security Administration and the FBI.

A law enforcement source said the explosives may have been strapped to the man's body but investigators weren't immediately certain, partly because of the struggle with other passengers.

One passenger from the flight was taken to the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor, hospital spokeswoman Tracy Justice said. She didn't know the person's condition, or whether the person was a man or woman. She referred all inquiries to the FBI.

Passenger Syed Jafri, a U.S. citizen who had flown from the United Arab Emirates, said the incident occurred during the plane's descent. Jafri said he was seated three rows behind the passenger and said he saw a glow, and noticed a smoke smell. Then, he said, "a young man behind me jumped on him."

"Next thing you know, there was a lot of panic," he said.

Rich Griffith, a passenger from Pontiac, said he was seated too far in the back to see what had happened. But he said he didn't mind being detained on the plane for several hours. "It's frustrating if you don't want to keep your country safe," he said. "We can't have what's going on everywhere else happening here."

President Barack Obama was notified of the incident and discussed it with security officials, the White House said. It said he is monitoring the situation and receiving regular updates from his vacation spot in Hawaii.

J.P. Karas, 55, of Wyandotte, Mich., said he was driving down a road near the airport and saw a Delta jet at the end of the runway, surrounded by police cars, an ambulance, a bus and some TV trucks.

"I don't ever recall seeing a plane on that runway ever before and I pass by there frequently," he said.

Karas said it was difficult to tell what was going on, but it looked like the front wheel was off the runway.

"We encourage those with future travel plans to stay in touch with their airline and to visit www.tsa.gov for updates," Homeland Security Department said in a statement.

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has been briefed on the incident and is closely monitoring the situation.

The department encouraged travelers to be observant and aware of their surroundings and report any suspicious behavior to law enforcement officials.

VIA

Little Sarah's Gift

As the story of missing Sarah Foxwell unfolded and three cold days into her disappearance most of us knew her fate but held hopes that she would be found, maybe cold, hungry, and scared but found alive.

We desperately prayed that 11 year old Sarah be found and safely returned home to enjoy her Christmas where she so much belonged. That didn't happen, Sarah didn't sit under the tree to open her gifts on this fateful Christmas day but instead she gave a gift, a special gift that only she could give, one of her life.

As families around the globe enjoyed their families in the warmth of their homes little Sarah was missing and a community hoped, prayed and wondered but never gave up hope.

The local Law Enforcement searched around the clock tirelessly covering ground inch by inch, by land, sky, and water in search of missing Sarah Foxwell.

On December 24th Christmas eve 2009 LE called out to the people of the Eastern Shore for assistance on putting more feet on the ground. The community obliged in an overwhelming response.

Literally thousands of people put a hold on their Christmas day, people from all over the local and regional area and people from far away came to help find missing Sarah Foxwell early Christmas morning. This is Sarah's gift to us, she has shown us that we can and will stand together, it didn't matter what anyone's religion, race, sex, political affiliation, we didn't care.

What I witnessed today was heart, compassionate caring people coming together and working together to accomplish one goal, finding Sarah. These people didn't know Sarah or her family but by God they were there, thousands of them.

If there ever was a Christmas of real giving today was the day, I will never forget Sarah Foxwell and the thousands of faces that put Christmas day of 2009 on hold to come together for one joint agenda, to find Sarah Foxwell. This IS the Eastern Shore that I know and love.

A special thanks to LE, volunteers, and people that made donations in the search for Sarah.

Today God has a new Angel named Sarah Foxwell, please say a prayer for Sarah's family and loved ones and remember the gift that Sarah gave.... I will. Every year there will be a special ribbon on my tree that represents little Sarah and the story of her gift.

God Bless

Sleep peaceful little one

Salisbury: Missing Sarah Foxwell - Up-date (found)

Word has it the missing Sarah Foxwell has been found and our worst thoughts confirmed. I sure hope this is a rumor but it's unlikely at this point. Sarah's body was reported to be recovered on Melson Rd.

A news conference from Perdue stadium will air at 6:00 pm

May God be with little Sarah and her loved ones.

WARNING: "A Mother's Worst Fear" sadly comes true

A article sent in by a reader and concerned mother submitted and posted on the SBYNews blog has tragically turned to reality and the fate of an 11 year old has more than likely became victim of "A Mothers Worst Fear".


As I read this story from a concerned Mother in her own words it seams as though she is telling a story of her own experience with T. J. Leggs but as the search and investigation into little Sarah Foxwell deepens this mothers story turns into a warning, a warning that has sadly transpired one short year after this warning was written.


Read and think, those with small children should make sure you know who you have acquainted yourselves and your children with.


Don't let this mothers words be unheard, don't let another child be harmed when you have the power to help keep them safe, pass this word of warning to everyone you know.


Below is the story sent in to SBYNews blog "A Mothers Worst Fear" it was posted 12/02/08




"My story is hard to tell but needs to be heard..... i moved back to the eastern shore in October of 2001 from Annapolis. Things had changed, people had changed and i didn't know a lot of people here anymore so i went to work for my mom and started my life over... My sister turned 21 in July of 2003 and i took her out on the town being the older sister and we wound up at a local nightclub where i met my soon to be ex husband. Everybody there loved him. They all told me they had only known him a short time but truly seems genuine. After dating a few weeks he told me that he had to take these state mandated classes they were "no big deal" of course i asked what they were for he told me that when he was 18 he met a girl at a haunted park and they made out and her parents found out and pressed charges she was 15 at the time. Which was a similar story he told everyone at the bar... well to me kids will be kids that wasn't anything to hang over someones head for the rest of their life....boy was i wrong....

I got pregnant while on birth control and i figured i am a mature 25 year old adult i will do the right thing so we got married and my daughter was born on June 2 2004 and the nightmares began. A few days after my daughter was born, my soon to be ex husband was arrested for sexually assaulting the girl across the street... he swore it was a set up someone targeting him just for having his picture on the sex registry. I believed him... i fought for him and he was found not guilty after being retained in Jessup for my daughters first 10 months of her life... then when he came home he was never here.. always out with guys, shooting pool, working extra shifts in a bar, you name it he did everything except be a father or a husband.

On March 28 2006, we were shooting pool together on a league at a local bar and when i came out of the bathroom i saw my soon to be ex husband with his hands down another woman's pants playing the mega touch machine.... My mouth dropped i was in shock if he did this when i am in the same building what was he doing when i wasn't with him.... i kicked him out that night. However i am still being to nice at this point in time because we drew up a guideline of visitation, child support everything including the fact that he didn't want my daughter left with his own parents or have her stay at there house for more than an hour... From April till June i let him visit my daughter twice a week as agreed upon. In the beginning he didn't even visit with her he chased me around the house making threats starting fights i had to call the police to get him to stop cursing me and threatening me. He got so violent and irate with me it was bad for her so i would leave the house for a hour so they could spend quality time together only my idea of quality and his idea of quality defiantly have two different definitions.. that was my biggest mistake ever. i left my daughter with a monster.... during one of his episodes he punches holes in the hallway of my house because my daughter wouldn't stop crying.. my daughter acted out his behaviors at 2 years old.. a couple weeks go by and i was giving my daughter a bath and i was on the phone with a friend and when i went back into the bathroom after getting a towel out of the hallway my daughter was inserting a baby nemo toy into her vagina and i gasped and said" what are you doing?" she replied with " nemo is giving me kisses" i was in shock to say the least and my girlfriend told me i had to calm down and take her to er for exam. Social services was called and an exam was done that said her Hyman was intact but there were cuts and bruises that could be self inflicted but the behavior is learned... the hospital and social services told me that excessive petting and touching is almost impossible to prove and that without rock solid evidence or a confession don't expect anything to come of this. He was asked by social services to take a lie detector test and he declined and the the case was closed. I immediately put my daughter into counseling where she has been ever since and still continues to go. She had to relearn what was appropriate touching, who is and isn't aloud to touch there, etc...My soon to be ex husband also became very violent with me. There were many times he would throw objects at me threaten to kill me if i kept her from him you know the rest; same story different girl i had to get a protective order to protect myself and my little girl...The order expired in July of 2007 i was worried i was going to have to battle for divorce yet nothing so my lawyer and i decided to give him a year to make a move...NOTHING... he only ever made four child support payments,so he is behind a little over $14000.00, he lives six houses away from me and no note, no knock on the door nothing done by him to show he cared or wanted to be a part of her life

In September of 2008, i amended my divorce papers to read i want sole custody; no visitation for the father and the father is to have no obligation to the child; no child support no visits, surrender your rights to her and i will leave you alone forever.... he now is fighting me for joint custody and visitation. i just cannot do it.... i failed my daughter once by leaving her alone with the worst monster any mother fears....I am now being told that he is probably going to get supervised visitation and i am not OK with that why, because our state gives fathers the right to their children no matter what their criminal background is. I didn't have enough evidence to convict him of assaulting his own child, her testimony and acting out what daddy did wasn't enough .... put yourself in my four year old daughter shoes... she has to sit a a table with a man she doesn't know that sexually assaulted her when she was too little to know better... and what is she going to think of me for letting this happen when she gets old enough to understand everything.

I still to this day do not know the truth about what happened with why he is on the sex registry for Maryland other than he sexually assaulted little girls between the ages of 10 to 14 and in Delaware he raped a 16 year old girl all of which I found out after I threw him out of my house. This man has committed countless other uncharged sexual acts in our community but i cannot say what they are but i am asking for help... if he has assaulted you or someone you know help them take the steps forward to take action so this man can rot in jail for the rest of his life and so my daughter can have the normal life i have created for her... what is the old saying" you have to break the cycle for the abuse to stop" please help me break the cycle he can NEVER see her again.....

http://www.dpscs.state.md.us/sorSearch/search.do?searchType=detail&anchor=false&id=3763588

http://sexoffender.dsp.delaware.gov/cgi-bin/sexoff.cgi/d?opt=00002430

The first link is Maryland showing he has been convicted of sexually assaulting a child the second link is Delaware showing he was convicted of raping a girl between ages of 16 and 17...."


Read the SBYNews EDITORS NOTE HERE

Amazing Christmas Lights

A Ribbon for Sarah

Another local blogger (Champs) from Progressive delmarva has sent us a Ribbon for the missing Sarah Foxwell in hopes that she will be found unharmed. Please pray that little Sarah will be united with her family for the Holiday.
Thanks Champs.

I hope your shopping is done, It's dangerous out there

I just got back from wal*mart, I had to go pick-up those things we always forget.

A word of advise; STAY HOME if you do not have to go out. People are simply crazy, I think they must leave their commonsense and common courtesy home during last minuet shopping.

First I had to get to the store safe, it's all of 3/4 of a mile from my house to the store yet I could have been to Salisbury in the time I made the trip to the local retail giant. Vehicles lined up waiting and pushing their way through leaving that "common courtesy" home, do they not realize that vehicles will bend when hit?



Finally making it safely to the store finding a place to park is another problem, those same nuts that were on the road are also in the parking lots trying to weed each other out of a parking spot while holding up those of us willing to walk all of 200 feet to the store. I can park and walk in and have 1/2 my shopping done before they find a spot by the door.



Once inside the store it's easy to see these nuts don't only drive crazy they shop the same way, twice I was almost run down by handicap scooters, of course those on the scooters don't really need them, in fact it might do most of'em some good to get the hell up and walk. This is a normal thing to me with the scooters but once I was almost run over by one of those new 'limo carts' you know those new carts that are 20 feet long with extra seats?



Why do people leave their cart on one side of an isle and then block the path that is left with their body? PEOPLE! please keep your cart and body on one side of the isle, other people want to shop too ya know.

Then comes the social isles, you know the isles where people hold family reunions? LOOK, it's a damn store, you do not own nor have you rented space in the isle to hold a family reunion, class reunion, long time friend talk session, or an orgy, OTHER PEOPLE WANT TO GET BY, we are not standing there looking at you like you're stupid because we want to join the party, move the hell out of the way.

Salisbury kidnapping: Police search for Wicomico 11-year-old Sarah Foxwell

I know this is late and now "old news" but I never jump the gun especially on such a topic that hits us all deep in the heart. I'm very saddened to read this tragic story and this close to our most humbling Holiday emotions fly.

I pray that Sarah is found safe and untouched, an unlikely thing at this point.



The other troubling part of this story is that I know T. J. Leggs, I worked with him, I knew his past and the allegations about him being slung around on other blogs are just not true. Yes he was a registered sex offender, He did a stupid thing as a young man, we never know what another human will do or what they are capable of. I hope T. J. didn't do this, if he did I hope he gets repay of 10 fold. But mostly I hope that little Sarah is found unharmed.





Authorities and volunteers prepared to search through the night with hopes of finding 11-year-old Sarah Haley Foxwell -- safe.

Authorities also intended to charge Thomas James Leggs, a 30-year-old registered sex offender residing with his parents off Bennett Road in eastern Wicomico County, in connection with the girl's kidnapping, Wicomico County Sheriff Mike Lewis said late Wednesday.

The case of brown-haired Sarah, last seen in Christmas-themed pajamas inside her Old Ocean City Road residence about 9:30 p.m. the day before, by Wednesday evening had been re-classified from a "missing person" investigation to a "non-family abduction," said Lt. Babe Wilson of the Wicomico County Sheriff's Office.

Several dozen police officers were joined by volunteers from as far as the western shore and northern Delaware who searched in freezing nighttime temperatures Wednesday as authorities questioned Leggs at the Sheriff's Office.

The suspect is known to the girl's family, according to a police official.

Earlier Wednesday, the search focused on a radius about three miles in either direction of Sarah's residence, Wilson said.

A police command center was established about noon Wednesday at a church on Zion Road at Zion Church Road, a location that is central to the residences of both the girl and the suspect, Lewis had said.

Details about the suspect's conviction for a sex crime were not immediately available, Lewis said.

A national Amber Alert about the 4-foot 8-inch tall Sarah also was issued.

By early evening, scores of both law enforcement personnel, local Samaritans and professional volunteers from outside the area had either joined the search or were on standby to help. Police helicopters from both Maryland and Delaware state police agencies joined, as did the Maryland Natural Resources Police Search and Rescue, Salisbury Police Department, Worcester Sheriff's Office and Delmarva and East Coast k-9 search and rescue units.

"Everybody is offering," Wilson said outside the command center. "(Police) officers from Fruitland, Delmar, Ocean City have contacted us."

If necessary, searchers would continue the search through the night, Wilson also said.

"The search has been going on since around 10 a.m.; there's a number of people searching, about 30 or 40," Wilson said. "We will continue; we're staying. This is a search and rescue -- we're optimistic."

Police ask anyone with information about Sarah's disappearance to contact the Sheriff's Office at 410-548-4891.

dgates@dmg.gannett.com

Keep updated on the story @ Delmarvanow.com

Female Corpse Found At Beach in Northampton County

On Tuesday, December 22nd the body of an unidentified white female was located on a beach of the Chesapeake Bay on the Eastern Shore. The body was discovered around 4:00 PM on a private each near the mouth of Westerhouse Creek in Northampton County. The female appears to be over the age of 40 and has pierced ears. A fish fighting chair was located in the water near where the body was located. Anyone that may be able to help with the identity of the female is asked to contact Northampton County Sheriffs Office at (757) 678-0458.


From WESR Shore Daily News

Man holds 5 hostage in Virginia post office

An armed disabled man was holding five people hostage nearly four hours after his takeover of a Virginia post office on Wednesday, the town's mayor said.

The man entered the Wytheville, Virginia, post office about 2:30 p.m. and fired a shot, Mayor Trent Crewe said. No one has been hurt, but three postal workers and two customers are being held hostage, he said.

There also are reports that the man has a "device" and it appears the man's car, parked outside the office, is equipped with some type of device, Crewe said. He did not elaborate on what the device could be.

The surrounding area of downtown Wytheville has been evacuated, Crewe said.

Agents with the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are also on scene, said Crewe.

"Hopefully it'll be shortly resolved in a peaceful manner," he said.

Wytheville is a small town in southwestern Virginia at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. It has a population of just over 8,000.

VIA

A Quarter of Remembrance

By Mike Cope

I actually got to meet Dr. Channing Barrett, though I don't remember the meeting because I was too young. But that doesn't change my picture of him as a young man walking a marathon of miles every weekend. In my mind, I see him returning home to Blissfield, Michigan around the turn of the century.

Channing Barrett was one of eight boys and was the first ever in the Barrett family to go to college. From his medical school, he walked twenty-five miles home each weekend, always returning a couple days later with clean clothes, a food packet, and a dollar. That dollar might have been a bill, but in my mind it was four quarters.

Dr. Barrett became one of the first ob-gyn's in Chicago, practicing at Cook County Hospital. He was known widely both for his innovative surgical techniques and for his ambidextrous skills that allowed him to change hands during long procedures. There was no patient whom he wouldn't accept. He delivered many "tenement babies" for fifty cents and many babies for the wives of Mafia dons for a good bit more!

With a growing, respected medical practice, a wonderful wife, and three children, this young physician seemed to be living the idyllic life. He enjoyed riding horses and lifting weights, and was an early member of the Polar Bear Society-that "unique" group that takes to the chilly waters of Lake Michigan in January each year to prove -- well, who knows what they're trying to prove?

And then World War I interrupted this Norman Rockwell life. Dr. Barrett left Chicago to run a field hospital in France, followed shortly by his 17-year-old son, who fought in the trenches.

As long as he could, Barrett sent money back to his wife and daughters. But by the last year of the war, his funds were nearly exhausted. He had no more to mail home. Mrs. Barrett sold most of what they owned, trying desperately to keep her daughters fed and clothed without having to lose their house.

By the time Christmas rolled around in 1918, there were no presents to place under the tree. They were lucky to have a place to live.

But Mrs. Barrett had managed, despite all the financial scrimping, to save two quarters. So on Christmas morning, when the girls emptied their stockings, under the paper dolls their mother had cut out for them and under a couple pieces of candy, they each found a coin.

Previous Christmas mornings had been more lavish, filled with frilly dresses and expensive toys. And there would be more such mornings in the future. But this was the Christmas the family would always remember.

In the future, even during the years of plenty, when the girls emptied their stockings, they always found -- under the apples, oranges, nuts, and candy -- a quarter.

It was a reminder -- a reminder that some years are good while others aren't too good. Some years deliver new babies, promotions, raises, and great promises. Other years offer sickness, failure, death, and deep disappointment.

The quarter reminded them about both possibilities. It warned them not to write off all the pain of the past as if it didn't exist. It taught them that the sorrows and wounds of their lives had shaped their characters as much as their joys and accomplishments.

Anyone who takes seriously the Christmas stories of Scripture knows that the first Christmas had more than angels, shepherds, wise men, and a mother nursing her baby. There was also the anguish of childbirth. There were the pungent, impolite odors of an animal pen. There was an old man who held the baby and told his mother, "A sword will pierce your own soul too." There were the voices of many mothers screaming for their baby boys being slaughtered by a demented ruler named Herod. There was a breathless escape to Egypt.

The entrance of God's Son into the world meant peace -- but it didn't assure that people would get along. It meant great joy -- but it didn't mean we'd always get to grin. And it meant unconditional love – though it never implied that everyone would act lovingly.

And so one family, year after year, continued dropping a quarter of remembrance into the bottom of each child's stocking.

At least one of Channing Barrett's children picked up that tradition. Every year through the '30s, '40s, and '50s, her five children, Dr. Barrett's grandchildren, pulled their stockings off the chimney on Christmas morning to find quarters buried under fruit, nuts, and candy.

It's the message of Christmas!

The quarter has mysteriously tied this family together -- binding even generations who never met. Together they have remembered that bad year in 1918 and other bad years since.

* One year brought the safe birth of a new nephew; another brought
the self-inflicted death of a relative who couldn't keep fighting
the demons of his life.

* One year brought the thrilling news from the gynecologist that a
baby was on the way; another brought the news from the pediatrician
that the baby wasn't developing right.

* Some years brought joy; others brought deep, deep pain.

The quarter is a remembrance that the meaning of Christmas is deeper than our triumphs and sorrows. It is a joy that can't fully be expressed, a peace that passes understanding.

For years my children have followed this tradition started by their Great, Great Grandmother Barrett. Together, we've experienced the love of God, woven through the fabric of good days and dark days.

But by God's grace we will survive. We're still together, we still love, we still hope, we still believe in that one who was born in Bethlehem. That's the message of our quarter.

And even more, it's the message of Christmas!

Truer words have never been spoken...

HOW SAD BUT TRUE

Friends & Associates,

Please meet Dr Starner Jones from Jackson, Mississippi. [see photo below]. His short 2-paragraph letter to the White House accurately puts the blame on a "Culture Crisis" instead of a "Health Care Crisis". Its worth a quick read:



Starner Jones, MD
I am a seventh generation Mississippian and wanted to come back here after going somewhere else for college and medical school.. My extracurricular interests are golf, hunting, fishing and college football.



Dear Sirs:


"During my last night's shift in the ER, I had the pleasure of evaluating a patient with an expensive shiny gold tooth, multiple elaborate expensive tattoos, a very expensive brand of tennis shoes and a new cellular telephone equipped with her favorite R&B tune for a ringtone.. Glancing over the chart, one could not help noticing her payer status: Medicaid. She smokes more than one costly pack of cigarettes every day and, somehow, still has money to buy beer.


And our Congress expects me to pay for this woman's health care? Our nation's health care crisis is not a shortage of quality hospitals, doctors or nurses. It is a crisis of culture, a culture in which it is perfectly acceptable to spend money on vices while refusing to take care of one's self or, heaven forbid, purchase health insurance. A culture that thinks "I can do whatever I want to because someone else will always take care of me". Life is really not that hard. Most of us reap what we sow. Don't you agree?

STARNER JONES, MD
Jackson , MS



I feel for the people who need the help because of circumstances they cannot avoid, but for those Americans who are just plain lazy – I have no pity!


HAT TIP: Kack

A comment worthy of a post.

A comment received on the Yes Virginia post that a lot of us grown-ups could learn from.

We asked our students, at The Studio School, NYC, to consider both Virginia O’Hanlon’s letter to The New York Sun and Francis Church’s response, and write their own answers to Virginia’s question.
Here are some of their essays.

Dear Virginia,

In this day and age it is very difficult to know what to believe in. If everyone is
telling you that there is no Santa Claus, you may feel pressured to agree with them.
Virginia, don’t go along with everyone else. Have your own opinions and beliefs! I
believe that there is a Santa Claus, not because someone has told me to, but because
I am a believer in things unseen. I believe in Santa Claus and mythical creatures and
I am not ashamed of that. If you only believe what you see, then you are missing a
whole world out there full of wonderful mystical mysteries. Believing is seeing and
using your imagination. Whether it is looking up at the sky and seeing a new shape
in the clouds or taking an empty space in your mind and seeing a close friend, even
Santa Claus.
Never stop believing in Santa Claus, Virginia, because if you do you will stop seeing
the magic in this world. Grown-ups have become skeptical and are missing all of the
wonderful unseen things in this world. Virginia, there is a Santa Claus - I see him in my
mind and believe in him in my heart.
Much love from your BIG friend,
Leila, age 13

Francis Church is saying that belief is something we all have, but that some of us
may not use it. In the part that he says, “You might get your papa to hire men to
watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did
not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove?” he is saying that some
children need to see, feel, or hear something to believe it’s there. I don’t. Mr. Church
means that Santa is not flesh, bones and blood, or the guy in a red suit. He is joy,
giving, love, peace and happiness.
To me, joy is feeling wind in my face; to me, giving is when I am given respect by an
other person or giving respect to someone else; to me love is being heard and cared
for; to me peace is being free to move and breathe; and to me happiness is being
close to someone and being able to love them. I hope Santa and Christmas live on
forever in the hearts of many people.
I think this editorial is important to people of all ages because it speaks of love,
poetry and hope as being stronger than any man alive.
Lucia, age 9


Dear Virginia,
I too believe in Santa Claus. Although I am at an age where most adolescents
start to become skeptical, I have avoided this as much as I can, and to me Santa
Claus is real.
What makes me believe in Santa Claus are the feelings of confidence and faith
that he gives me. I have confidence in my future, and faith in my abilities. Through
my laughter, joy, and belief in the unseen, he is real to me. That is what Mr. Church
is trying to convey, not only to you but to everyone of all ages. What would we all
do if there were no Santa Claus? He is a beacon that guides us to our bliss and
laughter at Christmas time.
Believe in things you can’t see. It’s great! It puts our imaginations to work,
it leads to discoveries, and most importantly, it may lead to jubilant thoughts!
The editorial response you received from Mr. Church is important because he
wants us all to know that belief plays a big role in our lives and that by believing
we all can be united as one.
So remember, Virginia, seeing isn’t always believing, but as long as your
feelings are passionate, your beliefs are real.
Neyanel, age 12

Yes, Virginia

Christmas Eve is almost here and this morning while trying to get things all prepared for the big holiday I came across this letter written by young Virginia O'Hanlon many years ago. It always amazes me that it's sentiment still holds true and I can remember hearing my father reading it to me for the very first time when I was a child. Ever since that first reading this letter gets read aloud every year on Christmas Eve.

May all of you have a wonderful Christmas that is filled with love and warm hearts and lots of smiles and hugs!

Please remember to say a prayer for our brave men and women in the military at home and abroad that will not be able to be with their families this Christmas.



MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Jigsaw Christmas Card

Let me be one of the first to wish you

a very merry Christmas

by sending you this do it yourself

jigsaw Christmas card




Click Here

HAT TIP: Kack

Are you Proud of your Christmas Tree or Decorations? (updated)

If you have worked hard on decorating your house or you're proud of your tree send us some pictures.

I'll post every picture you send and bring the post back to the top with each new picture.

NOTE: New post may fall below this post.

"taken at a Senior Center near Sparrow's Point, Md. and sent in by one of our readers."


Amanda and Russ



Carl & Lynn

Lisa

Debbie's Tree

Glen

Gail

Let's see your tree

Teacher Fired for Offering to Pray for Sick Pupil

Yet another indication of how bad it has gotten for the canary in the coalmine of moonbattery, Britain:

A Christian teacher fears she may never work again after she was sacked for offering to pray for a sick pupil.

Olive Jones, 54, said she had been made to feel like a criminal, and claimed that Christians were being persecuted due to 'political correctness'.

Mrs Jones, who taught children not well enough to attend school, said that after she raised the topic of prayer during a visit to a 12-year-old's house, the girl's mother lodged a complaint.

Just hours later, said Mrs Jones, her boss told her she would no longer be working for Oak Hill Short Stay School and Tuition Service, in Nailsea, Somerset.

She said managers had ruled her comments could be perceived as 'bullying'.

Liberals, accusing the Christians they oppress of bullying. At least they have a sense of humor — unless they are wall-bangingly insane enough to be on the level.

Closer to home, here's the story of a teacher who knows how to keep her job:

A third grader was told by a teacher at her New Jersey elementary school that the Bible was not appropriate reading material for quiet time, MyFoxNY.com reported.

The teacher at Madison Park Elementary School in Old Bridge, N.J., ordered the girl, Mariah, to put away her Bible.

Michelle Jordat, Mariah's mother, said her daughter was upset and confused by the incident, MyFoxNY.com reported.

No need to be confused, it's simple. The State will allow no gods before moonbattery.

Fetched