Merry Christmas Milk

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Merry Christmas 

This tree was inspired by the tradition here in Saipan where they put up wishing trees at the Paseo de Marianas and kids add their wishes.  When I first came to Saipan, there was a special on the radio where they asked school kids their wish for Christmas. I was shocked to hear that most of the kids here at that time didn't ask or wish for gifts like dolls and trucks and stuff, but wished for things like daddy to stop drinking and their older brother to get out of jail and for chicken for dinner.  This year the wishes again were similar, with kids wanting peace and safety and family unity. 

My tree wishes remember the two little girls who have now been missing for more than a year and a half--Faloma and Maleina Luhk.  Justice for Emi refers to the unsolved murder of Emi Romero who was murdered in February after going home from work at Godfather's Bar.  The last ribbon hopes for comfort for the now orphaned six-year old boy whose parents were found murdered in their home in San Vicente.

2012 Christmas Tree

Very breezy and cool. Pomellos and bananas.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! My Christmas tree this year is beautiful. The photos hardly capture it.

Christmas tree from Joeten--Noble fir, 6 feet

Met Museum Pharaoh, crocheted angel, red ball, cranberry beads

Anna Rose's girl in origami kimono with ribbon obi, St. Joseph glass ornament

Mary and baby Jesus glass ornament, sheep, crocheted angel, red sequin ball, Anna's yellow kimono angel

As above, with straw angel decorated by my sister Judy, a needlepoint & bead flower, a Victorian boot, candy cane, green bell

The north wall --button stocking by Judy, others by me, Xmas pillows, Xmas tree

Milk-The Wizard of Oz

Overcast but perfect temperature!

This cartoon was inspired by the attempts to shore up the Governor's waning political power.  Ken Mahmood and ? Osborne are in the CNMI promoting their "done deal" for a $190 million dollar power plant. As part of that, they continue to insist that everything is just hunky dory.  Last week, they were saying how impeachment would be bad for the CNMI because it would send a message to investors that the CNMI is unstable.

HAHA!  No, impeachment would send a message to investors that we oppose corruption and it is safe to invest here.

This week they are screaming that they are not corrupt; that they are honest; that there is no evidence of anything amiss in their contract with Fitial for the power plant purchase.

Well, that's for another cartoon.  Seriously, so many things are wrong with the deal. Mahmood and Osborne's opinions are nothing but their wish to get rich off the backs of our children, grand-children and great grandchildren.  They are scum. That's my opinion.



Marianas Milk-the Shopaholic

December offers perfect weather--a hint of coolness in sunny, bright days.

This political cartoon relates to the report last week that the CNMI had engaged in negotiations with people in Alaska about the purchase of an $80 million ice cutter named the Susitna.  Apparently Ambrose Bennett was looking for a paid gig and thought the federal transportation money might provide an avenue for him.  The Alaska owners were trying to get rid of the Susitna because they couldn't afford its maintenance. It was commissioned and specifically built for them, to carry automobiles as a ferry between villages in the north, with ice-cutting capabilities due to the area in which is was set to operate.  Although they had the Susitna built with federal money and also got a new ferry terminal, the villages failed to get the necessary docking and ramps built for loading the cars on and off. They are now paying huge storage bills.

And so they are trying to sell the Susitna.  Enter the CNMI...also without any docking and ramp facilities to load and unload cars onto such a ferry; minus the terminal; and certainly without purchase money...and obviously without ice in the ocean so that all of the heavy equipment for cutting through ice is completely unnecessary (and probably would add to the operational costs and fuel costs).

Fortunately, the news is that the CNMI is not going to go through with purchase.  But that we would have sent serious investigations into this particular ferry, and continue to pursue it after initial information came out that makes it so clearly inappropriate for us...

Well, it just seemed like a shopaholic moment...

The little guys--one comments on one of the basic types of shopaholic thinking. The other brings us back to the reality here. It's time to impeach the governor.