Is Power To The People A Reality? Or Simply Myth?

I signed a petition this week.

I'm not an overly political person. I don't jump on fanatical band wagons supporting multiple causes.

When I really believe in something, however, I'll voice my opinion. Usually, loudly.

I like to think that we, the vocal human race that we are, have the power to influence and induce change.

Sometimes I think we succeed. In fact, I have SEEN the 'Power to the People' in action.

Sometimes, we fail miserably.


This week, I found out that two characters from my all-time favourite show, Criminal Minds, are being tampered with.

Apparently, AJ Cook (good Canadian girl, WOOT WOOT!), is being cut from the cast, and Paget Brewster is facing a reduced role, due to 'creative (financial) reasons'.

The fans are calling BULLSHIT!

And this is one of those times I'm going to voice my opinion ... LOUDLY!!!


CBS, this is WRONG!!!!

On SO many levels!

And based on the over 30,000 signatures in the Online Petition to 'Save AJ and Paget', I'm not the only one who thinks so!


Not only are these characters portrayed as intelligent, strong, capable women in a mans world, they bring together the entire cast.

As a family.

The chemistry between ALL these cast members is what draws the viewers to the show.

Not the grisly murder, not the chaos, not the 'OMIGOD' factor it provides on a weekly basis.

It's the PEOPLE!

It's the CAST that makes us tune in every week; their interactions with one another.


We can turn on any 'cop show' and find murder and mayhem.

Criminal Minds hasn't cornered the market on that. Some may argue that CSI did it first, and better.

What they HAVE found, is what makes a good ensemble cast, what makes a show WORTH watching.


And now, they're messing with perfection.

And I have to ask ... 'WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU PEOPLE THINKING?!?!?!'


Now don't get me wrong, I absolutely LOVE the character of Garcia. She's 'my girl'! In fact, Adam compares me to her all the time LOL. Not in appearance, but she's what he refers to as a 'computer geek' and his mama's a computer geek ... hence the comparison.

In fact, he thinks I should have Garcia's job! :-)

And the men? Now don't even get me started on THEM!

Yes, I absolutely tune in to see broody Hodge, sexy Morgan, and the oh so sweet Spencer Reid, (still getting used to Rossy, after losing Gideon) but ... we all know, behind every good man, is a great woman.

Or in this case, behind the BAU Boys, we have Garcia, Prentiss, and JJ.


Now, we know Garcia will have Morgan's back ... but who will watch over Hodge and Reid without Prentiss and JJ?

A new character to replace JJ?

PLEASE!!!

Whoever this poor person is that they put in to replace JJ, will be facing a hostile viewing audience before ever setting foot on screen.

She's being set up to be disliked by fans, before she even makes an appearance, simply because they know she's replacing a beloved character.

Not exactly starting off with great fan support.


With today's post, I'm hoping to show that Power to the People is a reality, and not simply a myth.

The People want JJ and Emily to stay.

We've voiced our opinion in an online petition.

If you want to voice your opinion on this, please go and sign the petition.

You can find it HERE Keep AJ Cook & Paget Brewster on Criminal Minds!


Is Power to the People a reality? Or simply a myth?

If you think that a simple petition will accomplish nothing, then don't waste your time.

If, however, you think that as viewers we MIGHT be able to make a difference, then GO, SIGN!

Possibly MAKE the difference.


Will CBS ever read it?

Who knows.

Will they action on our wishes?

I'd like to think so, but I'm not going to get my hopes up.


I DO know that AJ Cook and Paget Brewster have read it, and DO appreciate the fan support.

Other cast members are tweeting their support of AJ and Paget as well.

Please do the same.

Help keep these beautiful, wonderful, talented women on the show.

GO. SIGN. BE HEARD.

Let's make Power to the People a REALITY!


Love you AJ and Paget! ***SMOOCHES!***

Hate you CBS if you actually pull this bonehead move!

K.

P.S. Part of my comment from the petition (on come on ... you KNOW I'd leave a comment!) 'Remember that scene in Pretty Woman, where Julia Roberts walks back into the boutique and tells the salesgirl that when she wouldn't help her she 'Made a BIG mistake ... HUGE!' Yeah. Same sentiment can be applied here'

'Mama, How Can I Make Some Money?'

'Mama, how can I make some money?'

This is usually the reply, when Adam gets it in his head that he wants me to buy something, and for whatever reason, I've said no.

I try to give him a few options to that question.

Sell some of his old toys (yes, we give others away too), see if the neighbours need any yard work done.

Heck ... do the yard work at our own house and I'd up his allowance!


On a couple of occasions, he's come to me with the idea of selling *insert item here* door to door.

I nixed those proposals. I don't like the idea of pushing trinkets on neighbours.

If it's the occasional raffle for school, that's one thing, but not simply to make a bit of pocket change.


Around the same time he was having the stomach issues last month, he told me of his latest idea.

He was going to make bracelets (the braided yarn type) and sell them for $0.25-50 each (or something small like that), to friends, family and neighbours.

Once again, I told him I wasn't crazy about the idea, as bracelets fell under that whole 'trinket' umbrella.

I did, however, give him an alternative, and said 'I'll tell you what. If you want to make the bracelets, and your friends want to buy them - no bugging people though - you can then give the money you make to charity?'

He thought about it for a minute.

To be honest, I was sure he was going to immediately shoot down the idea.

I was sure in his mind, the whole point was to make some cash for his own pocket; not work for it, then give it away.

So I was very proud when instead he said, 'How about Johnny* and I make and sell them, and we can give the money to the IWK?'

Well now. I thought that was a GREAT idea!


Over the past month, took his little baggie of change he'd collected to school, along with the colourful bracelets and extra string.

And each night, he brought it home again with a bit more money inside.

We didn't count it daily, but every now and then, I'd ask him, 'How are you doing with your bracelet sales?'

He'd always reply, 'Good. It was a good day.' And that was it. No more.

On one hand, I still wasn't crazy about the idea of him 'selling stuff' to people.

I had visions of him at school, during recess, going up to his classmates, the schoolyard pusher ... in a Lefty & Ernie kind of way.

On the other hand, I knew that whatever money he raised would go to charity, so I wasn't as uneasy with him him showing a bit of entrepreneurial / fundraising spirit.



Today, Adam had an appointment at the IWK Health Centre, with the pediatric specialist who was following up on the recurring stomach issues.

Since the IWK Telethon starts tomorrow, we decided yesterday would be the last day for bracelet sales, so we could bring his donation with us today.

Last night, we counted it all out.

$46.60

WOOHOO!

Awesome!

Unfortunately, what I didn't realize, was that they didn't accept donations at the actual hospital. We had to go down to the bank instead.

So once we were finished with his appointment, off we went.

And after Mama topped it up, he made a final donation, in the name of Adam and Friends, of $51.00 to the IWK Telethon for Children.

This annual telethon raises money for the Childrens Miracle Network.

"an international non-profit organization that raises funds for more than 170 children’s hospitals, 14 of which are in Canada.

Donations to organizations that support Childrens Miracle Network create miracles by funding medical care, research and education that saves and improves the lives of more than 2.6 million Canadian children each year.'

... taken from the IWK Health Centre Foundation - Childrens Miracle Network website

I know the end result wasn't his original intention, when he first asked me over a month ago, 'Mama, how can I make some money?'

But ya know what?

I think he was proud of himself today.

And I really hope he knows how proud I was of him today, too!

You ROCK, Adam!

And thanks much to all the kids, friends and family who donated their money to a great cause also!

K.

Awwwww Mama. Comin' To My Rescue Again.

So, before I interrupted myself to tell you about my Mother's Day Moment, I was worried about what I was going to do for a vehicle, since mine had decided it would no longer move.

See, these are the curve balls I've mentioned before.

Those unexpected 'You GOTTA be kidding me!' moments that knock you flat on your ass.

And vehicle malfunctions? Yeah. THOSE are at the VERY TOP of my list of Pet Freakin' Peeves!


And now, I had the biggest malfunction of all.

Either pay somewhere between $3-5000 to get the engine working again.

Then add on whatever else was wrong with it aside from the leak in the radiator, that started the whole damn mess in the first place.

Or say forget it, and see what I could find to replace it.



Now, I know many of your are thinking, 'You work, go out and lease/buy another car.'

Yes, very easy for you to think/say when you don't make my salary, pay my bills, or raise my kids now isn't it?

Add to that I STILL want to sell this house, and don't want to do anything to my credit or rating that would jeopardize getting the new mortgage.

The house.

It always comes back to the damn house.

Yes, a car is important, but so is getting us into a new house.

Seven years is a long time to be in a house you hate.

When I say it's important, let me clarify that. It's IMPORTANT!!!


So, just running out and getting another car, is not so simple.

Neither is trying to buy a reliable one, when you have less than (at least) $5000 to put on something selling on Kijiji.

Thankfully, I have a friend.

That friend has a friend who is a GM at a large car dealership.

That friend was willing to give me a phenomenal deal on a new vehicle.

Mama really, really REALLY wanted a new CRV.


Mama really really REALLY wants a new house, too.


I didn't need something new. Just functional.

On the hope that he could help me out with functional, I went to see the Car Dude.

When I walked out of there, I could have chosen something far more than functional, for 'omygodi'mrobbingyoublind' cheap!

But ... it meant going back to some form of a car payment.

A CHEAP car payment, but a payment nonetheless.


I told Car Dude I'd think about it.

Yes, I needed a car, but I knew I had my (god love 'im) mechanic's for another day, and I wasn't about to just buy something ... spur of the moment like that, without at least checking with my Bank Dude to see if would affect my chances of getting the house I want.

So I left the car dealership, still car-less.

Or was I?


I got to my borrowed car, and checked the cell for messages before leaving.

There was one from my mom.

I distractedly went through the motions of calling the message box, and slid the phone up to my ear, expecting to hear my mom leaving me a gentle reminder NOT to buy anything 'on the spot' if I went car shopping today.

Cause that's exactly the message my mom would leave.

Which is why I was wasn't surprised in the least when I heard her say, 'Hi, it's me, just wanted to tell you NOT to buy anything if you go car shopping today ...

But then, she followed it up with ... 'because I'm at a dealership right now, and I just bought a new car, so you can have mine if you want it.'

HUH?

WHAT?

Did my mother just say she JUST bought a new car and she was giving me hers?

1 Where's that #1 button to replay that message!

I hit replay and sure enough, it wasn't simply the whole not having a vehicle stress that was messing with my brain ... my mother DID just tell me she was giving me her car!

Awwwww Mama. Comin' to my rescue again.

I've said so many times that I don't know what I'd do without that woman.

My one woman support system :-)


Apparently I now had a decision to make.

A new CRV for a cheap monthly payment, or a free, not new, Toyota Camry that was in mint condition.

That night, I mentioned my options to my ex. He said ... 'What's there to think about, it's a FREE car!'

Well, yes, it's a free car, but it would also be nice to have a new car ... and it would also be nice to not have my mom rescue my ass.

Unfortunately, or fortunately in my case, that's my mom, and she wouldn't have it any other way, if I'd let her.


Yes, I DID have a decision to make.

However, taking on the loan and getting a car meant potentially losing the future new house.

That was the deciding factor. Period.


So, with that in mind ... all my Korner Dwellers, check out Mama's new ride! (thanks to mama's Mama!)

Thanks Friend, for putting me in touch with Car Dude.

Thanks Car Dude, for offering me an awesome deal on a new car.

But Mom, thanks for always being there, and for once again, saving my sorry ass.

Love you! Hope you know it! *Smooches!*

Your favourite daughter,


K.

P.S. For those of you who don't know me well, and are chomping at the bit to call foul at my public announcement claiming to be my mother's favourite daughter ... I'm an only child, People! It's a family joke.

Now, go back to admiring my new car!