14 April 2006

This story REALLY struck me today. It's about a 5-year-old girl who testified today against a man who shot her --three years ago-- as she played on a third story porch with her sister. The gunman apparently had a beef with a family on the first floor of the house. The punk was a lousy shot. The bullet intended for someone on that first floor actually hit Kai Leigh Harriot in the spine, shattering her vertabrae, leaving her paralyzed from the chest down. Kai Leigh faced her accuser today in court. Talk about guts. She apparently broke down on the stand, but when she retained her composure, she told the jury she forgave the man. FIVE years old. She'll NEVER walk again. She'll never play hopscotch. Or play tag. Or dance at her junior prom or dance with her dad on her wedding day. Damn. (The judge, FYI, sentenced the gunman to 18 years.) The story is HERE.

14 April 2006

Key West's famous chickens -- who USED to roam free all over the place -- will now be rounded up, on orders from the Mayor. The reason: bird flu fears. Check out the story HERE. I can still remember the chickens wandering around our table at my favorite Key West restaurant, Blue Heaven, and trying to avoid hitting them as I rode my rented bike on the streets of the island. One of my favorite, quirky stores there-- The Chicken Store -- is organizing a petition drive against the move. Check it out HERE.

13 April 2006

Just found out a colleague is home with a broken foot--after falling down the steps of Air Force One. She says the White House doctor looked at her foot immediately after the fall and said it was just a slight sprain, nothing to worry about. But then my friend was in so much pain later on that she went to her own doctor--who said that it was broken. In several spots. At least Bush sent her a get well card.

12 April 2006

National Journal pointed out today that Facts of Life SUPERSTAR Lisa Welchel (aka "Blair" was in DC recently -- and wrote about her experiences in her very own blog: "It was so good to hear about the Christians sprinkled throughout the government." You can read her blog HERE. Scary.

9 April 2006

Spent most of the day shopping -- joy, joy! Target, Smith & Hawken, Home Depot (Restoration Hardware LAST night). Now that the lawn and landscaping finally looks nice, we've been wanting to spruce up other stuff for the outside of the house. Specifically, a new mailbox, house numbers, and lights for our walkway. We've been meaning to do it, but we just hadn't gotten around to it. Until today. Check it out.








There's PLENTY to do, that's for sure -- (next up: getting the deck re-stained and getting the shutters painted) -- but I feel really good about the progress we've made so far.