*Thank you to our Menagerie for her assistance in writing much of the following.
Today we celebrate the birthday of one of our founding Treepers, Stellap.  Were it not for her steadfast and resourceful efforts to rally and unite our initial group, we would very likely not be the site you see today.  Since that time, her contributions have been truly invaluable…not the least of which is her ability to dissect and dismember the occasional visitor seeking only to press their agenda.
Stellap is also a wonderful example and ambassador for her home state of Michigan, helping us understand some of the behind-the-scenes issues regarding the auto industry.  She knows her cars…especially GM cars.
When she’s not sitting behind a keyboard, you’ll most likely find her tending a garden full of flowers. Her writings and pictures have helped us make it through some of the worst of the cold weather and leap into spring with joy. A day in the yard working with her flowers pays big dividends for us as she paints a wonderful picture with her love for the beauty of the outdoors.
Just out of nowhere, you already have doors but they just don’t work right? Doors that don’t close or latch properly or that fit an opening poorly can be frustrating. Over the past ten years, the bifold doors have become very popular door options. The traditional conservatory door or patio door has always served as the alternative for French door – single door system. I mean, there are countless advantages of bifold doors.
But a day overseeing the shenanigans going on in the Tree, enjoying the beauty of her native Michigan, or working with her flowers is not complete until it’s topped off with a good book and a glass of wine.  Today we raise a toast to Stellap…a fine friend and a founding Treeper.

May you live all the days of your life.

~Jonathan Swift

*For added protection while reading, click here.

The Last Refuge – officially, The Conservative Treehouse – celebrated its first anniversary on February 1, 2012.  Now it’s time for another celebration (and we love celebrations) as we welcome our 2,000,000th visitor today!  At 6:10 PM EST!

Ohayo Minna!  Today the Treehouse celebrates the birthday of another admin…“zmalfoy”, or Zophiel as she is known to her friends amongst the branches.  Her gravatar lists an impressive array of talents:  vocal performance, bellydance, alchemy, theology, and survival skills.  If she had more room, she could have also included interests in geology, physics, the skills of a Starbuck’s Barista par excellence, and the uncanny ability to always get an “A”.  Yep, she’s even smarter than Sarah Palin’s favorite red shoes!

One of the most interesting aspects of Zophie is her knowledge of all things relating to Japanese Anime (the abbreviated pronunciation of animation).  It’s a style of animation originating in Japan, characterized by colorful graphics and often featuring themes intended for an adult audience.   Zophie’s gravatar is the young “meister” or craftsman named Maka Albarn, who’s one of the lead characters in the Japanese manga (cartoon) called “Soul Eater”.  The story revolves around three teams consisting of a weapon meister and (at least one) human weapon. Trying to make the latter a “death scythe” and thus fit for use by the academy’s headmaster Shinigami, the personification of death, they must collect the souls of 99 evil humans and one witch, in that order; otherwise, they will have to start all over again. (more…)

The last few weeks have seen an exciting increase in those who choose to climb up and grab a branch here in the Tree. We would like to take this opportunity to welcome you all, to thank you for enriching the conversations, discussions, and the culture we have here on our site. Sometimes when you choose to join in and meet new cyber friends, things can be a little confusing because you feel like you just missed a part of the conversation, or that there is an unknown language you just can’t quite pick up. Perhaps you are wondering if there may be some unwritten rules you don’t know about, or some vague protocol that you should observe. You may have found hints about our history in some of the comments. We would like to try to help you with all that, as much as is possible in a single post written by a menopausal admin with early onset Alzheimers.    (more…)

A favorite Treeper – celebrating another year filled with promise!

Today is the anniversary of the birth of our smallest and cutest administrator, Ad Rem, otherwise known as Puddy….

Happy birthday Gatina! Buon compleanno al capo di tutti gatti! Enjoy some cake with your coffee. We have plenty! (more…)

Treeper tnwahm celebrates another glorious year!

Let’s all wish her a great big Best Wishes for the day!
NOTE TO ALL:  I neglected to tell you all that it was our dear WeeWeed who baked the cake for tnwahm today!  Thanks WW!  My excuse is that it was before coffee when I posted this.  Sorry!

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Texas Independence Day

March 2, 1836

By Elvis Chupacabra
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When I was a mere lad, Texas Independence Day was celebrated in schools with patriotic songs, readings of the Declaration by schoolkids and grave lectures on our role as Texans by our teachers. Even the Mexican kids participated, because anyone who’d read the  hallowed rolls of the Alamo and Goliad dead knew that there were plenty of martyrs with Spanish surnames. We also knew of Lorenzo de Zavala and Juan Seguin, both Texian heroes of the Revolution.

It was understood by the youngest of us that Texas went from being just the mostly empty northern part of the Mexican state of Cohuila-Texas to the independent Republic of Texas with the signing of this document. Like the beloved United States, from whence the spirit -and some would say impetus – of revolution had come, we won our right to be free through the force of arms, wielded by brave and bold men. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, the despot which our Texas Forefathers overthrew was ever bit as evil and prone to predations as Britain’s George III. His one saving grace, that he invented that most American of oral fixations, chewing gum, was more than off-set by his cruelty and duplicitous nature. The self-proclaimed Napoleon of the North, he boasted an army well-officered and well-equipped that had spent the past couple of years putting down rebellions in Mexico. It wasn’t just the Texians who longed for the return to a government who respected the liberal Constitution of 1824.  (more…)

Dear Friends,
Last year, I wrote a small piece about what it means to me to be a Texan. My friends know it means about damned near everything. Anyway, this fella asked me to reprint what I’d wrote and I didn’t have it. So I set out to think about rewriting something. I considered writing about all the great things I love about Texas. There are way too many things to list. I can’t even begin to do it justice. Lemme let you in on my short list.  (more…)