From the East Wing, Sophia’s Apologies, Gule of August, Garlic & WD40

Greetings to all, and welcome new friends to the East Wing.

A most amazing transformation has taken place at the East Wing. It defies logic, it’s beyond description. It goes against all that has been said and done in the East Wing. Such things have to be seen to be believed. It’s proof that miracles do still exist. Sophia has seen the fallacy of her political thinking and will spend the rest of her days trying to atone for the error of her ways.

Early last Monday morning, out of nowhere Sophia came to me said she’s rethinking her involvement with the CCCCC (California Calico Conservative Cat Conformance), NCCOA (National Conservative Calico Cats Of America) as well as the NRCCA (National Republican Calico Cats of America) , and the NTCA (National Tea Cat Association). She tells me that she'll take some time to reflect on her thoughts and actions of the past several years and come to some kinda conclusion by the end of the week as to how best go forward into her future.

All day Monday Sophia was down in the dumps. So down in the dumps, she even refused homemade mouse and gravy for supper, and ya gotta keep in mind, I make really good mouse & gravy, my secret is in the mouse. The cat was low, really, really low. Never saw a cat so down in the dumps.

Sophia didn’t smile. Nothing I could do or say could brighten up her day. It was as if a dark rain cloud floated overhead wherever she went. Sophia was having a dark and gloomy day, and it showed in her eyes. Those beautiful green cat eyes were now eyes of a different color. Blue eyes crying in the rain.

That evening, as I was getting ready to tuck her in for the night, inside the Cat House, ( yes I still tuck Sophia in every night in the Cat House, so don't laugh this is serous stuff) she asked for one favor. With Sophia having such a down and dreary day, I said anything I could do, I would. Sophia told me how embarrassed she was to think of all the bad things she had said about the President, and all his men. How her venomous words had pierced the very heart and sole of so many good people for whom she could apologize never enough. Sophia hung her head in shame. I had never seen a cat cry.

Sophia expressed regret that she could never look the Sunday Evening visitors to the East Wing in the eye again knowing how bad she had sinned. Sophia said it hurt too much to speak of such things, but she had to get her message out to one and all, so that the world could see the change in her life. The cat asked me to help with that mission. Sophia wanted my assurances that I would send her printed apologies from the East Wing. And so I agreed.

As I tucked Sophia in bed that Monday Night, I assured her whatever she put to paper would be sent from the East Wing. As I stopped at the door of the Cat House to turn out the lamp setting on the corner of her dresser, right next to her autographed picture of Hubert Hoover, I looked back as Sophia, and for the first time that day I saw that beautiful Sophia smile, and, just as the light went out, I’d swear I saw a twinkle from those green cat eyes.

All day Tuesday and Wednesday and most of Thursday, Sophia sat in front of her computer, composing or her word processor. The cat was putting her heart and soul into the chosen words. Early Friday Morning, just as I was leaving for work, Sophia brought the following message. The message I’d given my word to pass on to you. And so I present to you Sophia’s apologies.

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It has taken all this time for me to realize that my views on certain aspects of my political beliefs in general and more specifically on the current administration have been in error. For that I want to set the record straight. This will serve as a one time document to clear any misconceptions about my loyalty to our President Barack Obama.

Our President is to be congratulated for his many accomplishments. His ability to set records is unsurpassed. He has set more first time records than any other President in the history of this nation. Those records include, but are not limited to the most broken promises ever, the largest deficit ever, the most use of teleprompters ever, the largest number of self serving speeches by a President, and the fastest decline in popularity. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in the fastest time of any President, for nothing accomplished , but something he might do in the future. Our President has accomplished all this in less than 2 years. Truly and amazing accomplishment for such a shy, unassuming person, who never makes any effort to call attention to himself or impose this political will on anyone. He is a true consensus builder in the mold of Thomas Jefferson, or was that George Jefferson, I think it was George Jefferson.

I want this record to show that I, Sophia, also agree with President Obama 100% when it comes to saying that it’s all George Bush’s fault.

It was George Bush’s fault that kept our (yours and my) President from keeping his promise of putting all congressional bills on the White House Web site for 5 days before signing them into law.

George Bush insisted the President break his promise that the health care debate be broadcast on C-SPAN. It’s George Bush’s fault that a new area of bipartisan cooperation has not been instilled in Washington D.C. and in all areas of the Federal Government.

George Bush is to be blamed for all the closed door meetings where secret deals were worked out and never seen the light of day, buried deep into 2000 page laws, that no body ever read before voting. None of these type political practices were ever condoned by the President. Such secret meetings and secret deals are being forced upon this poor President by non there than George Bush.

It certainty’s George Bush’s fault that our President can’t keep his promise to publish the names of all those in attendance at all closed door meeting at the White House. George Bush is vey insistent that these names never be seen in public.

All the problems in Arizona are defiantly George Bush’s fault. Just as George Bush has kept our President from closing Guantanamo, and bringing all the bad guys right here to the USA, George Bush has also kept our President from making peace with the nations that want to see the United States destroyed, and bringing in a new era of global cooperation.

It was George Bush who insisted that the Attorney General hold terrorists’ trials in New York City, not the President. It’s George Bush who will not allow the President to put an end of hiring former lobbyists into high profile jobs in the White House.

It’s George Bush who’s insisting that “Chicago Style” politics be used in all White House activity. It’s George Bush’s fault for appointing all those to high government positions that had not paid their income tax before hand.

George Bush alone made the decision to fire Shirley Scherrod. The President didn’t even know about it, until after George Bush had already fired her, so the President called her up and offered her job back and told her not to listen to George Bush anymore and if he calls her again, she’s to call the President right away.

The Senate seat in Massachusetts vacated by Ted Kennedy was won by a republican for the first time in 50 years simply because the voters in that state hated George Bush so much, they wanted to send a republican to the Senate to illustrate their discuss with George Bush. And so they did.

That new Governor in New Jersey is much the same situation, those New Jersey voters hate George Bush so much as the people in Massachusetts. They just wanted to make sure the whole country knows how much they hate George Bush, so they elected a Republican Governor for the first time in many, many years. The voters in New Jersey now consider their new governor an “in your face slap” to George Bush.

George Bush has even kept our President from choosing a home church in Washington like he promised. It’s so disgusting that George Bush is keeping the President from going to church in Washington DC.

George Bush has kept the President from ending the no-compete contracts the federal government like he promised. As well as keeping the President from creating the most open and transparent administration ever, as he promised.

It seems the President can’t do anything to shut George Bush up. Every time the President starts to do something or has a good idea, up pops George Bush, and all hell breaks loose. Just look what he done in the Gulf of Mexico. If ya stop and look at it, BP and GB are pretty close together, no wonder the Presidents having so much trouble out of those two.

It’s with these thoughts and words that I’ve truly seen the light when it comes to our President. My only concern now is how bad will George Bush’s gona mess up the November elections for us democrats. With these few words in print I’ve cleared my mind of any wrongdoing and I’m now able to face the future knowing that I’ve set the record straight with my views of our President.

I’m now sure that he did come to my establishment when I operated that Cat House on the South Side of Chicago. I remember now, I hosted an open house when the Community Organizers’ Convention was held in Chicago. They all came to the Cat House, those community organizers. They liked that stuff, those community organizers.

With the above statements of fact being put to paper, I can now get on with my life.
Sophia
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Damn Republican Cat !!

August sure showed up fast, seems like yesterday was July 4th, I just blinked and August came knocking at the door. I’m not sure if Julius Cesar named August after his cousin Augustus or not, but I do know those Cesar boys liked to keep stuff in the family. Sounds like hillbillies, we like to keep stuff in the family too.

Did ya know that August 1st is Lammas Day? And someone said there were no holidays in August. Were they ever wrong. We start out on the very first day of August with Lammas Day. Now for many that's not a major holiday. Guess what, Lammas Day pre dates Labor Day, 4th of July, Thanksgiving, Memorial Day, and Presidents Day, all combined. I think I may have told ya ‘bout Lammas Day last year, but that’s ok, ‘cause all to few celebrate such an important holiday. Now if it was the first Monday in August, watch ‘em flock to it.

Lammas Day marks the beginning of the harvest. In old England, loaves of bread were baked from the first-ripened grain, consecrated in churches, and eaten. Derived from the Old English hlaf, “loaf,” and maesse, “mass” or “feast,” Lammas is very old indeed.

An ancient English Festival called the Gule of August, which marked the beginning of the harvest, started on August 1st . Now this Gule of August was kinda like the original 4-H Fair, just not quite as well organized.

Actually the Gule of August and its evaluation into Lammas Day is much like Easter and the Easter Bunny in the since that the very early Christian church took pagan festivals and adapted them into them into the church calendar in the hope of attracting more people to the church. That strategy may account for the large numbers of pagans in the church today. An old, old proverb says “After Lammas Day, corn ripens as much by night as by day”.

I’ve a friend that grows gardens and brings me stuff. The other day he brought garlic. I’m not a big fan as many of you know, but for the Italians in my life, WOW ! Almost like Manna for Heaven.

Did ya ever hear the term “the stinking rose”? It’s an old Greek thing from way, way back, even farther back than the Gule of August. Another term was the “poor man’s antibiotic. ” Garlic was used in Europe as far back as the Middle Ages and in China possibly as far back as the Neolithic period.

Not only do folks eat the stuff, they say it’s good for just ‘bout everything ya can think of. Keeps bugs away from plants. Rub raw garlic on insect bites. Rub crushed garlic on you skin to keep ticks, mosquitoes and hillbillies away. Eat lots of garlic to speed recovery of a cold. Chewing garlic is supposed to increase stamina and courage (at least the ole Greeks and Romans thought so). I wonder ‘bout that stamina part, I’ll have to ask some old Romans I know. These Italian people I know think garlic is as good as WD40 for what ills ya, and maybe it is.

The pleasure of your company at the East Wing is forever growing in our hearts.

Stay safe in Afghanistan.

From the East Wing, Sophia’s Apologies, Gule of August, Garlic & WD40

I wish you well,
BobbyRay