Brigita's Blog: February 2009

Yesterday I received a call from my son and he was very upset.  He had just learned that a girl he had dated in HS had been killed over a year ago.  She died from a bullet between the eyes.

You may ask, who would do that?  Was it a robbery?  No.  Or just a freak accident?  No.  It was her husband.

It turns out that she was in an abusive marriage.  The odd part of it is that she had contacted my son about a week before she was murdered. 

My son had kept in touch with her from time to time after graduating HS.  After finding out about the abusive marriage, my son strongly suggested she get out of there and even offered her a place to stay at his home.  Unfortunately, she did not heed his suggestion and now it is too late.

The reason he found out about her death a year later was because he had not heard from her in a long time and decided to contact her to see if she was OK.  In doing research, he found her obituary.  Looking into it even further, he found a blog from her mother asking for any information about her daughter and her relationship with her husband.  Fortunately, my son kept the e-mails from her and contacted the mother.   

My son offered her help because he knew about spousal abuse first hand and saw what it did.  It was between my ex and me.  Fortunately, I had the strength to leave, but not until my son and daughter were in college.  I endured it for many years. 

After leaving my marriage, I noticed that many others (women in particular) are in abusive relationships and are refusing to leave for one reason or another.  I know exactly how they feel.  I went that route myself.  I stayed in my relationship for 28 years before I had the strength to leave and say enough.  Part of it was because of fear.  I didn't know what my husband would do if I left and didn't want to take a chance of him getting custody of my children.  (He was a smooth talker.)  Another part of it was my concern over what would he do to my animals.  (I had my farm at that time with horses, cats and dogs.) 

Fortunately, my out over the years was my horses and my children.  Since I partook in many of their activities, I was not at home as much.  I dreaded the moments I had to be home, especially if the children were not there.  Now don't get me wrong, I enjoyed what I did and loved doing things with my children.  The best things that came out of this marriage were my children and the strength that I needed to endure life's challenges.  I am just sorry my children had to live through all of this hearing everything from their rooms.  I am thankful that I had true friends that I was able to turn to in my hour of need. 

So, why am I writing about this?  Because abuse affects not only those that are in the relationship, but also those close to you, including your children.  If you are in such a relationship, I urge you to leave before it is too late.  You may not be so lucky and end up as my son's old girlfriend did. 

I personally will never have anyone control my life anymore.  We are all human and deserve respect and to be treated equally.  Like my son, I, too, am willing to help anyone.

I thank God daily for protecting me over the years.

The Economic Stimulus Act has recently been signed into law. 

So, what does this mean for home buyers?

Changes have been made to the Internal Revenue code modifying the previous home buyer credit enacted in October of 2008.  The following are the changes that have been made:

-  Credit amount has been increased.  Originally the credit amount was $7,500 or 10% of the home's purchase price.  The amount has now been upped to $8,000 or 10% of the home's purchase price.

-  Credit is no longer required to be paid back.  The major criticism of the 2008 credit was that it was required to be repaid within 15 years.  This has been addressed in the new law so that repayment is now only required when the home is sold within the first 3 years.

-  Credit is now allowable for buyers using "revenue bond" funded mortgages.  Many state and local entities offer first-time homebuyer mortgage programs that sometimes offer terms more favorable than government or conventional mortgages.  Previously those buyers had been prohibited from accepting the credit, however they may now claim it.

-  Time to purchase has been extended.  The original credit was due to expire on June 30th, 2009.  The revision is now extended to November 30th, 2009.

-  Credit is refundable.  This means that a home buyer who would otherwise owe no tax may still claim this credit and receive it as part of a tax refund.

-  Credit is for first-time home buyers only.  Unfortunately, it does not cover move up buyers.  The good part of it is that it should help to sell the home quicker, if it is priced right, because more first-time home buyers will be out looking. 

-  Credit is income limited.  The legislature did not see fit to modify the terms of this program to allow all homebuyers to benefit.  Only those who haven't owned in the past 3 years will benefit.

Finally, there is one area that is still unclear:

-  Credit may be retroactively claimed.  The prior credit offered the option to claim as if the purchase took place December 31st, 2008 even if it closed in the early parts of 2009.  The final bill's language seems to replace this paragraph with something unrelated, which may mean buyers will need to wait until 2010 to claim the credit.

Attention!  Attention all future authors in the Nazareth Area School District!

Here is an opportunity for all Nazareth Area School District youth from Kindergarten through 12th grade to show their book writing skills.

The Memorial Library of Nazareth & Vicinity is holding it's 6th annual "Write and Illustrate Your Own Book" contest. 

The contest runs from now until March 14th. 

Any youth wishing to partake in the contest may contact the Library for more information.

I can just see the creativity and the imaginations flowing from the minds of the area youth.  Can't wait to hear some of these stories.  I'm sure the judges will have difficult decisions to make.

Are you a wine lover?  Well, here's an event for you in Nazareth, PA. 

On Monday, March 2nd, an informative wine tasting event will be held at the Moravian Hall Square.  The topic of this event is "The Therapy of Wine" and will be held from 2PM - 5PM.

Food will be offered with the wine tasting to cleanse your palate, along with the opportunity to otder your favorite wine from Cherry Valley Vineyards.  Cherry Valley Vineyards is a locally owned and operated.

The program is open to the public as part of the Wellness and Vitality Program.  There is a small fee and registration is required.

All you bird watchers out there!  (Or even if you're not and want to be outdoors.) Jacobsburg State Park in Bushkill Township, just a few miles outside of Nazareth, has something just for you. 

On Saturday, February 28th, 2009, starting at 8AM, the Jacobsburg Environmental Education Center in Bushkill Township is holding its first Bushkill Watershed Winter Bird Count.  Anyone interested can volunteer their time to help get a snapshot of birds wintering in the watershed. 

Afterwards, all will gather for food, tally the birds and discuss future projects, plus meet fellow volunteers.

This event will kick off the "Friends of Jacobsburg" volunteer program and will also spotlight the Two Rivers Birding and Natural History Trail.

All volunteering should come dressed for the weather, bring lunch, warm beverages and binoculars.

This event is sponsored by the State Department of Conservation and Natural Resources/Lehigh Valley Greenways and Jacobsburg Environmental Education Center.

You may register with Rick Wiltraut if interested at rwiltraut@state.pa.us  Registration is required.

Sounds like it will be fun if you enjoy nature.

PLEASE DO THIS 'FREE' GOOD DEED - Animal Rescue

This is pretty simple...

The Animal Rescue Site is having trouble getting enough people to click on it daily to meet their quota
of getting free food donated every day to abused and neglected animals.

It takes less than a minute (how about 20 seconds) to go to their site and click on the purple box 'fund food for animals' for free.

This doesn't cost you a thing. Their corporate sponsors/advertisers use the number of daily visits to donate food to abandoned/neglected animals in exchange for advertising.

Here's the web site! Pass it along to all the people you know.

Save save the website in your favorites so you can click the box daily.  You can only click the box once a day.

http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/

Let's all do a good deed.  Thank you to all that are willing to help.

It's been a while since I posted a joke so I thought I'd liven up the day for everyone.  Here's a blonde joke (coming from a blonde).

A few days ago I was having some work done at my local garage.  A blonde came in and asked for a seven-hundred-ten. 

We all looked at each other and another customer asked, "What is a seven-hundred-ten?"

She replied, "You know, the little piece in the middle of the engine.  I have lost it and need a new one." 

She replied that she did not know exactly what it was, but this piece had always been there. 

The mechanic gave her a piece of paper and a pen and asked her to draw what the piece looked like. 

She drew a circle and in the middle of it wrote 710. He then took her over to another car which had its hood up and asked "Is there a 710 on this car?"

She pointed and said, "Of course!   It's right there!"

If you're not sure what a 710 is, Click Here

A tree seedling sale is being offered by the Northampton County 4H Program.  The sale benefits all Northampton County 4H clubs.

Orders are being taken now through March 10th, 2009 and are to be picked up on April 25th, between the hours of 9AM to 11AM, at one of 6 pick-up centers in Northampton county.  The pick-up location is to be specified at the time of the order.

A variety of seedlings are being offered.  They are:

Scotch Pine, Eastern White Pine, Colorado Blue Spruce, Norway Spruce, Douglas Fir, Sugar Maple, Red Oak, European Mountain Ash, American Arborvitae and Callery Pear.

The seedlings are packaged in bundles of 10.

Order forms are located at vendors throughout the county or you may contact the Northampton County 4H offices directly.

This is a great and inexpensive way to spruce up your yard and landscaping.  Plus, it benefits the local 4H youth. 

This is not a joke.  It is a true story and it is happening around the world. 

A couple of weeks ago, the tail of a horse outside of the Allentown area was cut, leaving just a stub of a tail.  This horse belongs to one of my friends.  It happened overnight in a quiet area and she was very upset.  This horse had a very nice long tail, too.  Who could have done something like this?

It turns out that this is not an isolated incident.  In Colorado, 15 horses and ponies on a farm had missing tails.  Similar cases have occurred in recent years in Iowa, Wisconsin, and Florida as well as Australia and Canada. 

Who would do something like this and why??  Could the motive be for financial gain or for use by a cult?  Or could this just be a prank?

Horse hair is used in making belts, hat bands, tail extensions, violin bows and other products, but manufacturers typically purchase it in bulk from suppliers in China, which obtain the hair from slaughterhouses or live horses.

Most would not buy a couple of pounds of unprocessed horse hair from an individual.  The thief would not earn much from an illicit sale.  A pound of raw hair might be worth $37 to $80, depending on the color and length.

The horses will suffer in the warmer months when they are unable to use their tails to swat flies.  The tails grow at a rate of 3 - 4 inches per year.

A suspect will face charges of animal cruelty and trespassing, but investigators have no leads.

Neighbors of my friend's are raising money to buy a tail extension for her horse so that at least he will be comfortable for the summer months until his tail grows in fully. 

This mystery is baffling many and owners are angry about it.