and i get fan mail

i quote:

I came upon your site while searching for a roasted pumpkin seeds recipe a few weeks ago.
I enjoy your site :) I am also looking forward to scrolling through the carnival of recipes when I have time. I am a stay at home Mom, married for 12 years, who enjoys creating stained glass art as my most passionate hobby.
Like you, my husband works in the Nuclear industry (in NC). He also served in the Navy on an aircraft carrier for 6 years.
I get so tired of the stereo type that men who own firearms are a bunch of red neck, beer drinkin, wife beating, mobile home residing, bbq junkies. It is refreshing to come to this site where people can see that there are men out there who are responsible and loving husbands and fathers who pass on their tradition and love of hunting and to their children and grandchildren. They are not all a bunch of uneducated hicks with an 8th grade education ;) In fact, I had my first experience skeet shooting with my husband a few weeks ago. Don't ask how it went....my whole body ached for days! LOL
Also refreshing to me is not having to weed through a bunch of political correctness. I have two children in elementary school and I volunteer much of my time being involved in their education. It astonishes me how political correctness has gotten out of hand. Especially when myself and my husband who are trying to raise two boys to grow up to be strong and moral men who say "sir" and Maam" and (gasp) open doors for ladies. Please allow me to give you an example:
Last year in my son's 2nd grade class I noticed after several weeks that one little girl would not face the flag during the pledge of allegiance. I wasn't really sure if she was just day dreaming or doing it on purpose. I asked the teacher (who had been teaching for 42 years) about it. Basically, because of this child's religious beliefs, she is not allowed to pledge allegiance to the American Flag. The teacher also had a valid point when she told me that there are many parents who will not allow their children to participate in one of our most basic freedoms and will not stand with the very country that supports them through programs like welfare, affirmative action and many others that my husbands hard earned money supports. I am all for religious freedom, but it bothers me that the very country that ALLOWS them religious freedom is not good enough in their eyes to warrant respect. We have children in our schools who are violent, verbally and physically abusive to the staff and teachers and have parents who do nothing but perpetuate these actions by their being poor role models and just plain indifferent. Yet, the government ties the schools' hands in dealing with it. These children disrupt the class room daily and there isn't a damn thing schools can do about it except put up with it. Don't get me wrong, I understand that these children are caught in the middle and most are crying out desperately for help but it seems that there must be some solution out there somewhere that can remove the child from disrupting classrooms, yet a place for them to be educated in a setting where people who are educated in dealing with kids such as these can help them. Having children who are teachers, I am certain you hear from them often about these things.
Ok, I am done on my soapbox. Sorry, I tend to babble. I am not a very political person but I just wanted you to know that finding your site was to me, a breath of fresh air. After the last several months of listening to all of the crap being dished out from people who want to give health care and driver's licenses to illegal immigrants, spend more tax payers' dollars to support people who refuse to get up off their ass and get a JOB because they are too busy popping out illegitimate children I really needed an outlet. Obviously, emailing you was it.
Thanks :)

Fed up Mom in North Carolina

and penny, i suggest you have enough to say to the world that you should start a blog. they are simple, and who cares if anyone else reads them? it's just an outlet that may introduce you to folks that are either like minded, or have something to say that may change your whole opinion of the world.

and thanks for the kind words