 The Shaffer Journal
Volume 10 † Issue 1 † January 2004
[Internet Stuff] [Hockey Puck] [The Mountains of Ao]
[Poetry Corner] [The Dull Stuff] [Guest Articles] [In The Keys]
Kitty Talk
These journals are dedicated to Kitty GreyCat's spirit. She is at RainBow Bridge now along with her human friend, Leo. We all loved you, Kitty! Click the cat graphic to visit her Memorial page. Kitty born June 6, 1982. Died July 9, 1997. Please fill out our email form below to tell us how we are doing or make suggestions. >^..^<  Ebony: We cats have done decided that we like our human bean's brother and family. That kid bean likes us cats too. I even get outside more, and that is really good for me. >^..^<
Abby: I get more attention and loving. Brother bean likes my pretty ears. The other beans pet me and think I am the bestest cat in the whole world. That be better than Ebony. >^..^<
Ebony: I is going to ignore that. Us cats get to sleep with brother and wife bean. Even sleeping with that kid human bean is fun. There are all sorts of possibilities now. >^..^<
Abby: I like that too. I can sleep more relaxed with our Christmas present. That catnip humidor is very special. Ebony boyfriend sent that special gift to us. Eb gets really affectionate and loving with catnip. I get very relaxed. Then I meow and meow for stuff no one knows about. I even wanted outside more than Ebony. Crazy, ya? >^..^<
Ebony: Well, we always meowing about the same fings, but I don't care none. And, Ab, the next day things were back to normal. I wanted out and you went back being affectionate and loving but mean to me. Grrrrrrrrr. >^..^<
Abby: Meow, I use my paw for attention and shake hands and stuffers. Ebony is bad cat for sleeping in brother bean's leather chair. I like to claw the leather chair too, but I get sprayed for doing that with water. I even got my claws clipped. I don't like that none neither. And Ebony gets to get Ren a Christmas gift, and I didn't. >^..^<
Ebony: I fink I twist your ears! Ab, you just stay away from me, as far away as possible, you runt cat. I am tired of all this human bean fun and jokes. I just want human beans to leaf me alone. I just want out to hunt and catnap later after I catch juicy lizard and bat it around till the wiggly tail comes off. I like to plane escapes too. >^..^<
Abby: Ice fink you is one uppitty putty tat. You make beans crazy with all your escaping just for the fun of the chase. I nose what you is up to, and it is no good at all. I nose stuffers you not nose. I is one smart cat. >^..^<
Ebony: Use funnier than me. Funny in the cat brain pan, you is. You like crazy stuffers like boxes and bags. You like all the Christmas stuff like trees and bright shiny stuff. You is full of dog drool and very icky, you is. >^..^<
Abby: Yes, I like to smell every thing to smell. I is curious about all sorts of fings, I is. Use just boring. >^..^<
Ebony: I am not boring! I nose all sorts of interesting fings. I nose more than you, use pea brained cat. >^..^<
Abby: I fink use wrong! All on your mind is outside, catnaps, and outside, catnaps, and more outside. Well, meow already alrighty, that be all of our meows for this mighty fine month of the new year. See ya all later. >^..^<
Internet Stuff
The DVD films from http://www.NetFlix.com are packed with extras and full of good entertainment. Bruce Almighty is a very funny film starring Jim Carey. Communion is a movie about a family dealing with alien abduction. It Runs in the Family stars a bevy of Douglases featuring a story about the struggles of a family. The Hulk was a surprisingly good movie based on a comic strip character. Seabiscuit was an excellent film that was visually stunning with an appealing storyline based on a true story. The score was also outstanding. Several websites were useful this month. I finally got my laptop computer fully operational after a bad motherboard. I had to completely start over. I reinstalled all the software and went online to register or activate all of it, as well as download all the updates. This was a very painful process that I would not want to repeat. I am contemplating a folding wall unit from http://orientalhome.com. Toni Lee, my niece, is learning a great simulation called SimCity. There were some cheats gleaned online that she tried, but for the most part she is doing quite well. http://DirecTV.com helped me move my service to a new address. http://TracFone.com was a great website, especially since I obtained 300 more minutes for my prepaid cell phone. Isn't the Internet wonderful? In The Keys
Vote Larry Shaffer for Marathon City Council
The struggle to preserve and protect workforce housing goes on. Among the many things that one can do is to support Larry Shaffer in his run for Marathon City Council. We need volunteers and contributions. The campaign takes only checks made out to the "Campaign Account of Larry Shaffer." Any amount over $100 up to $500 will require listing your occupation to satisfy state law. We are not accepting checks from developers, redevelopers, contractors, or real estate agencies involved in displacing people from their homes. Send your checks to Larry Shaffer City Council Campaign, PO Box 501833, Marathon, FL, 33050-1833. Call 305-743-9648 for details.
Paid Political Advertisement Paid For In-Kind By
Shaffer Novels/Poetry Company, Approved by Larry Shaffer The stress level this month was higher than normal. I finally was forced to move out of my community by the nefarious Sandler at Greater Marathon Bay. The move to the new place included the transfer of utilities like electric, water, and telephone. I might not get my Digital Sail, because of the Australian Pines by where I am moving to. I think that DirecTV will be installed though. All this stress has me down to 154 pounds. Poor me. My niece, Toni Lee, expressed an interest in writing. I showed her how to setup and use a diary on the computer. Maintaining a diary is an excellent way to learn how to write. Many famous writers keep diaries. There were moments when the stress was much less. The Boot Key Christmas Boat Parade was one such moment. While the Gulfstream pressure cooker continued unabated, the new crock pot that I bought came in handy. My mother's wake was successful. My Aunt Lee and Uncle Roy along with my brother and his family celebrated my mother's life. We also had many friends show up as well. Karen, Hilda, Bobbi, Cliff, Bob, Bill, and Norma all showed up. We thank them for their participation. Another way to keep the stress from killing you is to to go to the American Legion. I missed a city council meeting recently, the first all year. I'm ready for the new year. Miscellany: Did you know that California's state bird is the California Quail? The flower is the California Poppy. The tree is the California Redwood. The capital is Sacramento. Statehood was granted September 9, 1850. Lastly, the John David Hawver Gallery features kinetic abstractions. This Islamorada store is open daily from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. They are located at The Rain Barrel, 86700 Overseas Highway. Their telephone number is 305-852-9958 and fax 852-2638. Their email address is bluesbrush@aol.com. Call for details. That's it this month! Poetry Corner
“One Last Time” 12.18.03
by L. E. Shaffer © 2004 L. E. Shaffer One last time
Comes the morn
Fog dissipating
Sun rising
The chill in the air
Warming and
Life one last time
Out onto the veranda
Bigger than life
Noon approaching
The journey strong
One last time
We never give thought
Worry, anticipate
That the world can
Be that one last time
Upon green hills
Alive with sound
Full of nature
Colors spilling everywhere
We cannot know
Because simply
We do not want
To know
The night comes
Chill creeping in
Dew forming
One last time. © 2004 L. E. Shaffer Hockey Puck
The NHL Florida Panthers win a game, tie a couple, and lose a game. O, well. Tiger Woods struggled at the PGA's Target World Challenge. The NFL Miami Dolphins and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers both missed the playoffs. I can't get excited about the NBA Miami Heat, but the Los Angeles Lakers are doing well. I can't wait for the Daytona NASCAR race in February. I wish I could go. I haven't heard anything from the WTA lately. Lance Armstrong is gearing up for an unprecedented sixth Tour De France. The MLB waits for the spring. Guest Articles
We have various guests this journal. As always everything is copyright of the author. Erin Elwell
Marathon High School
Mrs. Loggie’s American Gov’t Class
What the city can do for the school and the school can do for the city. If kids got involved in government at an early age, it could help bring the students ideas into focus. Starting at 9th grade, there should be a representative from each grade that attends every city council meeting and actually speaks out to get the students ideas out and in to action. This not only shows what the students can do for the city but what the city can do for students. Students have a lot to say about how the city is run but they don’t know how to change the things they don’t like. If they had someone they could approach in their class who could take their ideas to the city, it could bring the city closer to making it a more youth-friendly place. A lot of students don’t understand how the city’s government is run so it would take a while to get the representative ready to make their ideas effective but with the proper teaching from the city council it could become a reality. The city councilmen might have a kid still in school but this doesn’t make them anymore in touch with what the teens think. If the city was more in involved with the schools together they could make better decisions on what to build on land they buy and even what they can help do for community service. The community helps a lot in schools with raising money and supporting our athletics. We need to see how we can help them in return. Students can be chosen by a mini election. They can run and the city council can choose the best representative from each grade. The students can learn a lot from this experience, it gets them prepared for a future job in government if they choose to. The city makes a lot of decisions that the youth is not left out in the dark on but that they don’t know happens. If the city and the students can come together they can make a much better city. © 2004 Erin Elwell [city marathon.doc] Joshua Luddeni
Marathon High School
Mrs. Loggie’s American Gov’t Class
What the students can do for the city. There are always things that the city can do or does for the student body, but rarely is there anything that the student body or any one student will give back to the city. That is something that should always happen no matter what. Personally I think that the students should be doing things for the city before the city gives back to the students. There are many things that the city has done; they always support all of the athletics that our school has. They support all of the events that go on here. The city supports our clubs, especially our Future Business Leaders of America club, which I am a member of. Last year, we worked on a project with the city. It was called the Marathon Master Plan, it was an amazing project to work on with the city and we experienced a lot. I think that that is one of the ways that the students gave back to the city and the city gave back to the students both t the same time. There are other ways that the school could do things for the city, whether or not its community service, like cleaning up a road, or work over at city hall, just donating time. I think that a real good way to help support our city and do things for them is to go to city council meetings and to display your input into things that might be brought up. The main thing that I think could be done, is that students should show an interest in the city, and not just expect what is done, should be taken for granted. A way that I think would be good for the city and great for the students to work on, would be to help raise money for the city, the city of Marathon does a lot of hard work for our school, and it would be nice to do a city wide fundraiser for the city. The funds could go towards the land that they purchased on 98th and 99th street, for them to build a new city hall, with enough space for an empty room in the back that could be used as a permanent home for our school’s and the community’s functions. One way that I think that we all could help would be to have a fundraiser, we could sell items from catalogues or we could do a car wash, even though it really isn’t that big of a thing it would show that we care, we could also make plaques that show the city that we care. Another thing that we could do would be to organize a welcome party once we get the new city hall with a large room, and all the students could set up a house warming party. I think that these ideas are could benefit the city for doing such a great job with helping the school, and making sure that we can get the best education with our cities money, We could get the students to participate in these things by offering community service hours, that way we have an incentive. Also we could have school clubs that would help out. I think that they would help and they should continue what they are doing for future generations, and not just when the best seniors In the world graduate. That’s all that I have to say about what I think the students should do for the city. © 2004 Joshua Luddeni [city_council_project.doc] Digital Sail wireless Internet services The options in the city of Marathon for broadband Internet service are quite limited. Digital Sail provides wireless Internet services at a decent price. The speed is good, especially the upload speeds. The service is second to none. The people who run and operate Digital Sail are the best. Please see their ad at the bottom.© 2004 Digital Sail The Mountains of Ao
Book One Tears from Ao and three poetry collections, Pages of Life, Visions of Life, and Moments of Life are available electronically at http://RunesofAo.com/aobp/. The Runes of Ao project, Book Two The Mountains of Ao novel currently in final edit, Book Three Twins of the Dark Star novel in early stages, and The Book of Kalian Mysticism poetry collection are works in progress. Also a collaboration with K. Young on a novella called Dragon Embers is now published on the fan site known as Runes of Ao.com. The Dull Stuff
All opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of this magazine, company, or its advertisers. Inputs, email, suggestions, and letters to this journal are subject to approval by Ebony and Abby. Submittals may be edited for content and length and become the creative property for the one-time nonexclusive publication of: Shaffer Novels/Poetry Company
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PO Box 501833
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(305) 743-9648 voice/data/fax Internet URLs: www.RunesofAo.com
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www.RunesofAo.com/abby/ Publication date: December 28, 2003
Author: L. E. Shaffer
Company: Shaffer Novels/Poetry Company &
Shaffer Internet Publishing Company
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