About 6:30 this morning I could smell someone making breakfast. At my house, that was unusual. I figured Katie must be cooking, although that was far too early for her.

About 7:20 there was a knock on our bedroom door that it was time for us to get up. We opened the door to be greeted by Sydney and Marissa and a big breakfast waiting on the table! Pancakes, muffins, toast, eggs, bacon (real and veggie), and lemonaide. It was all quite delicious and the girls were just brimming with excitement over our reactions.

"What's your favorite part?", Marissa asked a couple of times. And of course we were regaled with the tale of it's preparation and how they set their alarm for 4:45 to start the planning process. Those crazy girls!

By 10:30 they were both soundly asleep in the family room, of course, for a well-deserved rest!

Sigh...what thoughtful girls I have.

I've been saying for years that government bailout of airlines makes no sense. Either the free market works or it doesn't - if an entire industry can't figure out what they have to charge for their services in order to at least break even, they simply should not be in business.

The full realization of this wholly misguided philosophy of government bailout of allegedly private corporations is now at hand with the problems in the mortgage and financial instutions. The audacity of these big corporations to seek - well, pay for really with large contributions to politcal campaigns - deregulation for their own industries only to come begging for handouts when they get caught in their own malfeasance made possible by that very deregulation.

Robert Scheer points this out in a recent Huffington Post editorial as well. The interconnectedness and corruption of "private" corporate America and government is nothing short of brazen. The fact that the average American doesn't care is truly saddening if not downright pathetic, but there it is.

"But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably
the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute
Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such
Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security" - the Declaration of Independence

Revolution, people, revolution...

My brother's family recently went to the awesome Henry Doorly Zoo, and took Marissa along. And of course, there are lots of photos!