A Great Tragedy in our Country

Today I want to tell my readers a story that could either be inspirational or disturbing. If you think you've heard this story somewhere else, you probably haven't and should shut your big mouth.
This is the story of two young girls, Mary-Ann and Wanda. They were best friend in high school and were both members of the 4-H club and active in the FFA. After graduation, Mary-Ann decided to move on with her life and move to Atlanta, presumably to get away from the small town they grew up in. Wanda was more of a homebody and found a husband in their hometown. His name was Earl, and he wasn't exactly a catch.
They had only been married for less than two weeks, when Earl first began to strike and abuse Wanda. She had to wear dark sunglasses, long-sleeved shirts and make-up to cover up all the bruises that Earl had given her.
Finally, Wanda decided she'd had enough and filed for divorce, presenting Earl with a restraining order as well. However, this angered Earl deeply, and he walked right through that restraining order and put Wanda in intensive care.
When Mary-Ann heard the news, she immediately flew in from Atlanta on red-eye midnight flight. She arrived at Wanda's house and held her hand for comfort. Together, they hatched a plan to finally rid themselves of Earl and protect Wanda. That's when they decided - and it didn't take long to come to this decision - that Earl had to die.
They served Earl a nice dinner of black-eyed peas. Little did he know, the legumes were poisoned. He commented that they tasted a bit strange, but Mary-Ann and Wanda insisted that they tasted all right to them.
Earl's strength began to decay rapidly. He started to feel weak, and Mary-Ann and Wanda encouraged him to lay down and take a rest. They then proceeded to wrap the now dead Earl in a black tarp. From there it is a bit unclear what they did with Earl, but I presume they decided to stuff him in the trunk of Wanda's car, drive to lake for a picnic, and perhaps threw Earl in the lake.
Not long after, the police came to search Wanda's house for Earl and arrest him, I assume for walking right through his restraining order. They searched the house, but couldn't find Earl. They instructed the ladies to alert him if they ever found Earl.
A year went by, and Earl still hadn't been found. Now, Mary-Ann and Wanda own some land and a roadside stand on Highway 109, where they sell Tennessee ham and strawberry jam. To this day, they don't seem to lose any sleep over Earl's death, which I guess is for the best.
Yes, Earl wasn't a very good man. But did he deserve to die, and who gets to decide this? 

My prayers go out to the families of all individuals involved in this story.
Sparkles

The Worst

So, this is an embarrassing thing to admit, but last week I was watching an old Family Feud rerun at my good friend Jani's house. One of the surveys' top answer to "Age I Wish I Was" or something of the like, was 18. Well, Family Feud respondents, I'd like to let you know that 18 was not an age I'd ever like to relive. Being 18 in the 2000s sucked. It's the age where you're expected to do all the things that grown ups do, minus all the fun or good things. When I was 18, I was kicked out of my parents' house and cut off financially for reasons that I'll probably explain some other time. I basically lived on my rich friends' couches, until I had no rich friends left. That's when I found a job another state, moved away from everything and everyone with the little money I had saved up through the years, and met my friend Bill, who has provided moral support for me despite him homelessness and affinity for cocaine. Anyway, my point is, 18 is not an age anyone would want to repeat. If you think otherwise, please let me know why, because I really couldn't think of one reason.

Now, 23 is another story. 23 was pretty good.

Sparkles