I can't help but ask myself - does nicotine contain a 'happy' pill.
Does it prevent me from drop-kicking people for being stupid?
Does it raise my tolerance level?
Rather than take lives, I believe that nicotine SAVES lives. My tolerance level has dramatically decreased and my realization that some people - with whom I have regular contact - I should not have ANY contact with....for their safety of course.
What am I rambling about? I have rambling about the complete lack of common sense that I realize is constantly filtering into my life; the ignorance that I encounter on a daily basis seems to have increased TEN-FOLD; my ability to stay silent is decreasing with quickness.
Have I been blind for the past few years or is my withdrawal from cigarettes merely being projected in other directions? I would like to think that I am dealing with my smoking issues in a healthy and completely tolerance way - and my current irritation is merely a temporary glitch.
You be the judge....
Things that make me say, WHAT the HELL?
1. Military Girlfriends
Okay, okay. Maybe not ALL military girlfriends......but the ones in my current scope of vision are about to feel my wrath.
Say it one more time.....just. one. more. time.
"People don't understand how HARD it is to be a military spouse".
"I have to live every day like he deploys tomorrow"
"Military wife is my other job"
Oh. MY. GOD! Sit down and shut the FUCK up! Seriously, its your OTHER JOB! Are you serious???
My thoughts on this?
Get a life - because saying you are a military wife/girlfriend means NOTHING. It's not a job skill, its not a superpower, its not your meal ticket babe.
Get a job - and remember that HIS RANK has NOTHING to do with your ability to have a life, a career, and interests that are completely unrelated to the military.
Play the... "I have it worse card" ONE MORE TIME. Shut up. I have been through more deployments and TDY's before you left fucking high school than you will in his whole damn career. AND YET, I will be supportive and helpful....because no one likes the " well, I have it worse because" wife. If you decide to continue down that path.....beware.....you have been warned.
My God ladies.....have a little self-respect.
2. If you swim like a duck and quack like a duck.....
If you post pictures of yourself dressed like a stripper and post updates with the vocabulary of a 5th grade dropout and enjoy showing the FB world your bare ass.....well, *QUACK*
Honestly, why would you question why people are deleting you and why guys only ask you out because they think they are going to get lucky.....when you dress like a....hooker. Seriously.
You look and act like an ignorant hood rat. And you wonder why you are 34 years old and working at Hooters.
Smells like Daddy's disappointment and broken dreams.....
3. If you don't like it....why do you continue to involve yourself in it?
Complain about a situation, a job, a school, the welfare system. BUT if you complain and put down the very job, school or welfare system you are still affiliated with.....you are a hypocrite. And I can't respect you anymore.
4. I need smarter friends
I have noticed that my choice in friends in the past year or so, has been less than stellar. I seem to have been blind to the ignorance I have surrounded myself with. Time for a cleanse. Because I feel my IQ falling with every dumb comment they come out with.
Maybe I should start smoking again.
Or maybe this is Karma saying, "HEY!! There's still time.....time to drop the dead weight!
Friday
Tuesday
Cheese STRIKES AGAIN!
Processed Cheese, oh how I hate thee.
OK, here's the thing, I indulged in a little something that I have no done in many years and with good reason - I ate processed cheese. And here's the story of why that is NEVER a good idea. Ever.
Many years ago I had a bout of food poisoning. Oh, who am I kidding.....I had one of the worse experiences of my life! I lost 10lbs in 72 hours. The girl on the Exorcist was a delightful toddler, playing with her food compared to the pyrotechnics that my body produced. I couldn't walk, stand or move without something in my body becoming HIGHLY distressed.
I prayed that death would take me.....
And as I laid there on the cool bathroom floor, wondering if I would see the outside of a bathroom EVER again, a thought popped into my nauseated brain.....what the HELL DID I EAT????
The answer would come quickly....Processed CHEESE.
Rewind 24 hours.....
I was flying home on a Southwest flight - it was a cross-country flight and therefore had those cute, little 'lunch boxes' filled with 'lunchable' style crackers, hard salami, chips, fruit and CHEESE. Of course it was highly processed, preservative laden, fake cheese....but at least it wasn't in a can.
My mistakes:
1. Trusting ANYTHING pretending to be a dairy product that doesn't have to be refrigerated.
2. If you can smear it without a knife.....it AIN'T CHEESE.
3. It shouldn't taste like plastic mold. PUT.IT.DOWN.
Instead I chose to ignore all my spider senses that were going off like fireworks as I opened and preceded to eat said cheese-like substance. Awesome. Stellar choice-making abilities once again.
The flight was uneventful.
The ride home was unevetful.
The evening at home was uneventful.
At the stroke of midnight I began what I can only describe as a spiraling decent to the bowels of hell. Literally....the BOWELS OF HELL. With every gut-wrenching heave of nausea, I cursed that damn little packet of cheese masquerading as a little pocket of EVIL.
Present day.......
I ate some Hickory Farms processed cheese last night. Anyone care to guess how I'm feeling this morning?
That GODDAMN CHEESE!!!!
If I didn't know any better I would say that it is out to get me.....because I wasn't the only to eat it and I was the only to suffer from it.
Really....and no cigarettes either. AWESOME.
Fuck this shit.
OK, here's the thing, I indulged in a little something that I have no done in many years and with good reason - I ate processed cheese. And here's the story of why that is NEVER a good idea. Ever.
Many years ago I had a bout of food poisoning. Oh, who am I kidding.....I had one of the worse experiences of my life! I lost 10lbs in 72 hours. The girl on the Exorcist was a delightful toddler, playing with her food compared to the pyrotechnics that my body produced. I couldn't walk, stand or move without something in my body becoming HIGHLY distressed.
I prayed that death would take me.....
And as I laid there on the cool bathroom floor, wondering if I would see the outside of a bathroom EVER again, a thought popped into my nauseated brain.....what the HELL DID I EAT????
The answer would come quickly....Processed CHEESE.
Rewind 24 hours.....
I was flying home on a Southwest flight - it was a cross-country flight and therefore had those cute, little 'lunch boxes' filled with 'lunchable' style crackers, hard salami, chips, fruit and CHEESE. Of course it was highly processed, preservative laden, fake cheese....but at least it wasn't in a can.
My mistakes:
1. Trusting ANYTHING pretending to be a dairy product that doesn't have to be refrigerated.
2. If you can smear it without a knife.....it AIN'T CHEESE.
3. It shouldn't taste like plastic mold. PUT.IT.DOWN.
Instead I chose to ignore all my spider senses that were going off like fireworks as I opened and preceded to eat said cheese-like substance. Awesome. Stellar choice-making abilities once again.
The flight was uneventful.
The ride home was unevetful.
The evening at home was uneventful.
At the stroke of midnight I began what I can only describe as a spiraling decent to the bowels of hell. Literally....the BOWELS OF HELL. With every gut-wrenching heave of nausea, I cursed that damn little packet of cheese masquerading as a little pocket of EVIL.
Present day.......
I ate some Hickory Farms processed cheese last night. Anyone care to guess how I'm feeling this morning?
That GODDAMN CHEESE!!!!
If I didn't know any better I would say that it is out to get me.....because I wasn't the only to eat it and I was the only to suffer from it.
Really....and no cigarettes either. AWESOME.
Fuck this shit.
Friday
Oh snap!
As some of you might remember - from other blogs and Facebook updates - I was not amused by the subject matter or the attitude of my Chemistry class or Prof. In week one I could have sworn on my mother's life that this guy was the real life Sheldon, ( If you don't get the reference...we can no longer communicate); he came across as a cocky, arrogant ass who took pleasure in pointing out your stupidity, in terms of chemistry knowledge, or lack of.
However, Mr. "Steve" has become one of my more memorable Prof's and one I will actually miss a little.
Today's little commentary provided by "Steve" is quite possibly one fo the most amusing retorts I have yet to see from a Prof. and it is about time student's were called out for lazy, stupid responses to questions that really aren't that freaking hard!
*I can't write out the real question but I will give you the basic idea of it*
Question : Antacids and why they work.....
*Again can't REALLY say what she said verbatim....but it goes something like this....I SWEAR*
Student : They work on heartburn....(reiterates the question) and neutralize acid.
Prof's response: "Thank you for that high level view. Try another"
Oh.
My.
God.
Most amazing Prof EVER.
That made my freaking day!
No one was hurt in the telling of this story. Any resemblance to actual events is purely coincidental.
However, Mr. "Steve" has become one of my more memorable Prof's and one I will actually miss a little.
Today's little commentary provided by "Steve" is quite possibly one fo the most amusing retorts I have yet to see from a Prof. and it is about time student's were called out for lazy, stupid responses to questions that really aren't that freaking hard!
*I can't write out the real question but I will give you the basic idea of it*
Question : Antacids and why they work.....
*Again can't REALLY say what she said verbatim....but it goes something like this....I SWEAR*
Student : They work on heartburn....(reiterates the question) and neutralize acid.
Prof's response: "Thank you for that high level view. Try another"
Oh.
My.
God.
Most amazing Prof EVER.
That made my freaking day!
No one was hurt in the telling of this story. Any resemblance to actual events is purely coincidental.
Thursday
All shapes and sizes.
I'm the girl that sits at her computer on a rainy day and scans through all those soppy homecoming videos - I have yet to watch one that doesn't make me cry, nor have I ever posted one or admitted to watching one.
I watch a lot of silly, sad, amazing and funny videos; there is something slightly addictive to watching the reactions and actions of others. How would you react if you were at work and suddenly your loved one, who has been gone for months, shows up unexpectedly? Or what would your reaction be to your loved one shoved talc in your hairdresser and unknowingly you turn it on first thing in the morning.....yeah. I'm pretty sure ALL sharp implements should be removed from my reach at that point....
Curiosity and my strange imagination gets the best of me and I indulge in watching stupid videos online. However, I have recently started watching new clips, soundbites and other random news-related stuffs from sites like Reditt and BuzzFeed. Always good for a laugh or a "WHOA" moment. I have also noticed an increase in video clips on Facebook - posted by various friends and family.....and this is where is gets interesting.
You can always tell a lot about a person who is willing and able to be confrontational and argumentative online but not so much when face to face with someone. For some reason we feel protected and oh-so self-righteous when all we have looking at us is a computer screen. The quick-witted rebuttals seem effortless when we don't actually have to make eye contact with the person who has a different opinion from us. The nasty, snarky and appallingly rude comments and opinions, covering everything from politics, to sexual orientation, to life choices, are fodder for every small-minded and secretly bigoted 'friend' you have on ANY social network.
But is it the computer screen that gives them the ability to be so damn detached? Or are societal norms changing? Or have they ever changed?
A family member posted a video this morning that caught my eye: (Hopefully you can follow the link)
What happened to this gay couple?
The premise of the video (done by one of the those 'What would you do - 20/20 specials) is actors play the roles of gay couple with kids trying to have breakfast in a small restaurant in a small Texas town. The waitress, also an actress, makes it difficult for them to do so and eventually calls them out for being gay and asks them to leave.
The interesting part is the reaction of the bystanders.
Out of the 55 bystanders - 25 of then stand up and defend the gay couple. One even tells the waitress SHE is the one who should leave NOT the couple and their children.
GO TEXAS! BUT.....why only 25?? Why are we so focused on - ' not my problem, I should stay out of it' - that no one else stood up and said enough? Because I'm pretty sure that the same discrimination was occurring on your friends Facebook page or Twitter account, you would be all...MY CAPS ON, BITCH!!....
Have I miss judged the situation?
I cannot say, with any degree of certainty, that I would have stood up and made a scene - but I hope for all my blogging and social commentary on the subject; I would have stood up and called bullshit. Gay couples, like everyone else, just want to be treated the same. No special treatment....just treated with the same level of respect and disregard as we treat other strangers...lol.
When will we grow up and stop hiding? This issue isn't going to go away. Every day it gains more and more acceptance. Even the military is on board - offering benefits to gay AD and their dependents! About damn time! (but that is another blog post)
As much as I loved watching this video and seeing the conservative Southerners stand up for what is right - I was slightly disappointed that fewer people defend male gay couples and that New Yorkers are less likely to be as brave......
New Yorkers seem to talk the talk....but can't seem to walk the walk.....
It takes all shapes and sizes to make this world a more beautiful and interesting place to live. Unfortunately I can name a few 'shapes and sizes' that should be thrown far from the pool.....if you know what I mean.....*sulks back behind computer screen*
I watch a lot of silly, sad, amazing and funny videos; there is something slightly addictive to watching the reactions and actions of others. How would you react if you were at work and suddenly your loved one, who has been gone for months, shows up unexpectedly? Or what would your reaction be to your loved one shoved talc in your hairdresser and unknowingly you turn it on first thing in the morning.....yeah. I'm pretty sure ALL sharp implements should be removed from my reach at that point....
Curiosity and my strange imagination gets the best of me and I indulge in watching stupid videos online. However, I have recently started watching new clips, soundbites and other random news-related stuffs from sites like Reditt and BuzzFeed. Always good for a laugh or a "WHOA" moment. I have also noticed an increase in video clips on Facebook - posted by various friends and family.....and this is where is gets interesting.
You can always tell a lot about a person who is willing and able to be confrontational and argumentative online but not so much when face to face with someone. For some reason we feel protected and oh-so self-righteous when all we have looking at us is a computer screen. The quick-witted rebuttals seem effortless when we don't actually have to make eye contact with the person who has a different opinion from us. The nasty, snarky and appallingly rude comments and opinions, covering everything from politics, to sexual orientation, to life choices, are fodder for every small-minded and secretly bigoted 'friend' you have on ANY social network.
But is it the computer screen that gives them the ability to be so damn detached? Or are societal norms changing? Or have they ever changed?
A family member posted a video this morning that caught my eye: (Hopefully you can follow the link)
What happened to this gay couple?
The premise of the video (done by one of the those 'What would you do - 20/20 specials) is actors play the roles of gay couple with kids trying to have breakfast in a small restaurant in a small Texas town. The waitress, also an actress, makes it difficult for them to do so and eventually calls them out for being gay and asks them to leave.
The interesting part is the reaction of the bystanders.
Out of the 55 bystanders - 25 of then stand up and defend the gay couple. One even tells the waitress SHE is the one who should leave NOT the couple and their children.
GO TEXAS! BUT.....why only 25?? Why are we so focused on - ' not my problem, I should stay out of it' - that no one else stood up and said enough? Because I'm pretty sure that the same discrimination was occurring on your friends Facebook page or Twitter account, you would be all...MY CAPS ON, BITCH!!....
Have I miss judged the situation?
I cannot say, with any degree of certainty, that I would have stood up and made a scene - but I hope for all my blogging and social commentary on the subject; I would have stood up and called bullshit. Gay couples, like everyone else, just want to be treated the same. No special treatment....just treated with the same level of respect and disregard as we treat other strangers...lol.
When will we grow up and stop hiding? This issue isn't going to go away. Every day it gains more and more acceptance. Even the military is on board - offering benefits to gay AD and their dependents! About damn time! (but that is another blog post)
As much as I loved watching this video and seeing the conservative Southerners stand up for what is right - I was slightly disappointed that fewer people defend male gay couples and that New Yorkers are less likely to be as brave......
New Yorkers seem to talk the talk....but can't seem to walk the walk.....
It takes all shapes and sizes to make this world a more beautiful and interesting place to live. Unfortunately I can name a few 'shapes and sizes' that should be thrown far from the pool.....if you know what I mean.....*sulks back behind computer screen*
Wednesday
My humor will see my through....
I'm going to stay positive and I am going to succeed. I have found in the past that this can be accomplished better when one develops a sense of humor. Additionally, this can be greatly helped if you spend time finding things that amuse you and/or develop friendships that encourage your spastic type humor......or at least friendships that tolerate your childish, toilet-orientated, fart-joke-type, foul-mouthed attempts at humor.
Thank GOD I have a group of equally unhinged and childish friends. Bless you.
With that said, I have to bring to the attention of my viewers and various friend types my take on stop smoking tools and effective strategies offered up by those of the American Lung Association, the Langley AFB Health & Wellness Center and other associated programs.
*AHEM*
1) "Lower your caffeine intake" - it is believed that coffee (caffeine) consumption increases your want/desire/habit of smoking. I am sure this has been scientifically tested and proven. And rather than debate this little factoid, I would rather point out my take on the matter.....
FUCK YOU. Your argument is invalid.
2) "Knit a scarf" - Because apparently when you stop smoking you turn into Martha Fucking Stewart. If I pick up a pair of knitting needles, my next activity will not be knitting it will tracking down the dumb ass when thought of this and...well.....I need a smoke.
3) "It is important to remember that there is no magic pill that will make you NOT want a cigarette" - Well, now that we have a firm grasp of the obvious we can move on. We are people attempting to give up something as addictive as heroin - we are NOT stupid. Seriously, continue to talk to me as if I were 3 and I'm going to drop kick someone.
4) "Hang on dearly to a caramel apple sucker" - I'm not even sure how I feel about this one. I mean....hang on 'dearly' to a....huh? Apparently, we need to molest candy in order to beat a cigarette carving......*creepy*
5)"Walk in an old graveyard with the man you love" - Again WHAT? Is this supposed to be some messed up metaphor? Is this to remind us that the urges will stop when we eventually die. Seriously people take a damn anti-depressant.
I'm a slowly backing away from the list and the other helpful hints provided by the programs that are supposed to be helping me....because they are seriously starting to creep me out and damage my calm.
Thank GOD I have a group of equally unhinged and childish friends. Bless you.
With that said, I have to bring to the attention of my viewers and various friend types my take on stop smoking tools and effective strategies offered up by those of the American Lung Association, the Langley AFB Health & Wellness Center and other associated programs.
*AHEM*
1) "Lower your caffeine intake" - it is believed that coffee (caffeine) consumption increases your want/desire/habit of smoking. I am sure this has been scientifically tested and proven. And rather than debate this little factoid, I would rather point out my take on the matter.....
FUCK YOU. Your argument is invalid.
2) "Knit a scarf" - Because apparently when you stop smoking you turn into Martha Fucking Stewart. If I pick up a pair of knitting needles, my next activity will not be knitting it will tracking down the dumb ass when thought of this and...well.....I need a smoke.
3) "It is important to remember that there is no magic pill that will make you NOT want a cigarette" - Well, now that we have a firm grasp of the obvious we can move on. We are people attempting to give up something as addictive as heroin - we are NOT stupid. Seriously, continue to talk to me as if I were 3 and I'm going to drop kick someone.
4) "Hang on dearly to a caramel apple sucker" - I'm not even sure how I feel about this one. I mean....hang on 'dearly' to a....huh? Apparently, we need to molest candy in order to beat a cigarette carving......*creepy*
5)"Walk in an old graveyard with the man you love" - Again WHAT? Is this supposed to be some messed up metaphor? Is this to remind us that the urges will stop when we eventually die. Seriously people take a damn anti-depressant.
I'm a slowly backing away from the list and the other helpful hints provided by the programs that are supposed to be helping me....because they are seriously starting to creep me out and damage my calm.
Tuesday
"The time has come, the walrus said, to talk of many things"
"The time has come, the walrus said, to talk of many things"
I'm not sure why this quote struck me as appropriate for this post; I want to talk about one thing. Just one. I want to talk about something personal and maybe a little taboo. I want to share an experience and journey that many have made before me, but one that I have chosen to take for myself, by myself.
Today marks the Day.
I am going to stop smoking today.
Today I am going to take a step forward.
I am sitting here this morning, staring at a little piece of cardboard. This little piece of two-toned cardboard is currently home to a series of little white pills. These foil-enclosed pills hold the promise of something new; they hold a promise I have made to myself and to my family that I will be strong and I will not give in.
The pills I hold in my hand remind me of the promise I made to my father far too many years ago; a promise I failed to keep. Sorry Dad, I wasn't ready then as I wasn't ready to lose you. I felt as if I didn't keep my promise, that maybe, just maybe, I wasn't admitting that I was losing you. Crazy, huh? Your time had come and I have come to terms with that --- this is the final farewell.
A little dramatic?
Maybe....but each person has their reasons for quitting or not. I believe that deep down everyone has an emotional connection to everything they do -- smoking is no exception. If it were, we could more easily part with it.
So here it is, folks. My story.....well, at least some of it. I felt that today I should mark this day with something.
Smoking.
I started smoking as a teenager. He (of course there is a 'he'....I was a teen!!!) was gorgeous! He was older than me and I wanted him to recognize me. Only problem was, HE spent most of his time out of class, hanging around with other assorted 'cool, older kids' and I needed a way into that world.
It was called the "smoke pit" -- he and his friends would hang out there and, well...smoke! So, I decided to give it a try. And I did. And I didn't like it. But he saw me.
Needless to say, I was seen, throwing up my lunch after my first smoke and that was probably the most mortifying experience of my life. Well, my teenage life.
That was the first taste.....
I didn't really start buying my own cigarettes and smoking more than one or two a week until my first job in a restaurant. The stereotype of stressed out, over-worked, underpaid, aimless young twenty-something as a waitress was pretty accurate. As such, I started smoking on my breaks, smoking at the bar and generally smoking anywhere I wanted.
The habit was born!
Over the years I have stopped....briefly......and always found an excuse to start again. Nothing is more difficult than a spouse who is also a smoker. But those days are behind me.
Why did I pick up the habit again? Stress. Boredom. Anxiety. And after my Dad passed away, I needed something. Something to fill the void. Something to help me deal with the stress. And then it just kinda snowballed; gaining speed and momentum until I can't figure out how to stop it, without slamming myself into a a brick wall.
My brick wall seems to come in a form of a little white pill. Better living through pharmaceuticals!!
So here we are folks. Day one.
I'm aiming low here and just looking to make it to day two.
And then maybe day three.....
I may punch someone by Day seven.....but I will hopefully do it tobacco free!
FYI: I may be doing this in honor of my Father; but there are so many people in my life that I look up to for support, encouragement and as a role model. So I hope to continue to write this portion of my blog to help document my journey and to put the spotlight on those whom I look up to as I travel down this road.
I'm not sure why this quote struck me as appropriate for this post; I want to talk about one thing. Just one. I want to talk about something personal and maybe a little taboo. I want to share an experience and journey that many have made before me, but one that I have chosen to take for myself, by myself.
Today marks the Day.
I am going to stop smoking today.
Today I am going to take a step forward.
I am sitting here this morning, staring at a little piece of cardboard. This little piece of two-toned cardboard is currently home to a series of little white pills. These foil-enclosed pills hold the promise of something new; they hold a promise I have made to myself and to my family that I will be strong and I will not give in.
The pills I hold in my hand remind me of the promise I made to my father far too many years ago; a promise I failed to keep. Sorry Dad, I wasn't ready then as I wasn't ready to lose you. I felt as if I didn't keep my promise, that maybe, just maybe, I wasn't admitting that I was losing you. Crazy, huh? Your time had come and I have come to terms with that --- this is the final farewell.
A little dramatic?
Maybe....but each person has their reasons for quitting or not. I believe that deep down everyone has an emotional connection to everything they do -- smoking is no exception. If it were, we could more easily part with it.
So here it is, folks. My story.....well, at least some of it. I felt that today I should mark this day with something.
Smoking.
I started smoking as a teenager. He (of course there is a 'he'....I was a teen!!!) was gorgeous! He was older than me and I wanted him to recognize me. Only problem was, HE spent most of his time out of class, hanging around with other assorted 'cool, older kids' and I needed a way into that world.
It was called the "smoke pit" -- he and his friends would hang out there and, well...smoke! So, I decided to give it a try. And I did. And I didn't like it. But he saw me.
Needless to say, I was seen, throwing up my lunch after my first smoke and that was probably the most mortifying experience of my life. Well, my teenage life.
That was the first taste.....
I didn't really start buying my own cigarettes and smoking more than one or two a week until my first job in a restaurant. The stereotype of stressed out, over-worked, underpaid, aimless young twenty-something as a waitress was pretty accurate. As such, I started smoking on my breaks, smoking at the bar and generally smoking anywhere I wanted.
The habit was born!
Over the years I have stopped....briefly......and always found an excuse to start again. Nothing is more difficult than a spouse who is also a smoker. But those days are behind me.
Why did I pick up the habit again? Stress. Boredom. Anxiety. And after my Dad passed away, I needed something. Something to fill the void. Something to help me deal with the stress. And then it just kinda snowballed; gaining speed and momentum until I can't figure out how to stop it, without slamming myself into a a brick wall.
My brick wall seems to come in a form of a little white pill. Better living through pharmaceuticals!!
So here we are folks. Day one.
I'm aiming low here and just looking to make it to day two.
And then maybe day three.....
I may punch someone by Day seven.....but I will hopefully do it tobacco free!
FYI: I may be doing this in honor of my Father; but there are so many people in my life that I look up to for support, encouragement and as a role model. So I hope to continue to write this portion of my blog to help document my journey and to put the spotlight on those whom I look up to as I travel down this road.
Sign of the Times
Inauguration 2013 -
The first term for President was indeed a momentous occasion - first black President...
Nearly 150 since the Emancipation Proclamation and almost 50 years since the Freedom March; we, the people, of the United States of America have not only voted into office a Black President but we have chosen to vote him into a second term.
I cannot help but wonder how many people actually sat down to watch the inauguration of the 44th President of the United States? And of those people who did watch this historical event; how many realized the history that was being made?
I couldn't help but get a tear in my eye when I watched the event unfold and listen to his inaugural speech. Not only was I moved to see our nation join together to see President Obama take office for a second time, but I was excited to hear the mention of equality for all - to include our gay community and women's equality in the work place.
We the people.
I can only imagine the emotions felt by those in the crowd, and indeed around the country, who lived through the turbulent times of segregation; for those who have lived a lifetime of prejudice for being gay; for those marginalized by society.
Our 44th President spoke of equality and acceptance.
He spoke of change and unity.
He called for social change and for moving forward.
We the people.
Richard Blanco - First Latino, openly gay poet to read at an inaugural ceremony
Myrlie Evers-Williams - Civil rights icon giving the invocation
This is a sign of the times.
The first term for President was indeed a momentous occasion - first black President...
Nearly 150 since the Emancipation Proclamation and almost 50 years since the Freedom March; we, the people, of the United States of America have not only voted into office a Black President but we have chosen to vote him into a second term.
I cannot help but wonder how many people actually sat down to watch the inauguration of the 44th President of the United States? And of those people who did watch this historical event; how many realized the history that was being made?
I couldn't help but get a tear in my eye when I watched the event unfold and listen to his inaugural speech. Not only was I moved to see our nation join together to see President Obama take office for a second time, but I was excited to hear the mention of equality for all - to include our gay community and women's equality in the work place.
We the people.
I can only imagine the emotions felt by those in the crowd, and indeed around the country, who lived through the turbulent times of segregation; for those who have lived a lifetime of prejudice for being gay; for those marginalized by society.
Our 44th President spoke of equality and acceptance.
He spoke of change and unity.
He called for social change and for moving forward.
We the people.
Richard Blanco - First Latino, openly gay poet to read at an inaugural ceremony
Myrlie Evers-Williams - Civil rights icon giving the invocation
This is a sign of the times.
Friday
Needy....LOOK AT ME!!!
I'm needy and I'm looking for validation!
Not really....I can't back that up.
Honestly, I am just looking to expand my blogging base.
I am working on a blog post that basically lays out my resolutions, fears, goals and dreams for this year and the following year.
One of my resolutions/goals for the next two years is to finally commit some real time to my blog and to writing. I have several blogs (some of which are for personal use; some for writing my epic book of useless stories of my life...and well....some are for bitching about my life)
-- I am not brave enough to share all of it with my current readers, but that needs to change.
So here it is blogging friends and world wide web of fellow humanoids....
Add me, share me, talk about me.....whatever.
I want to take the plunge.
I am ready to come out of the blogging closet and share my madness with the world.
So if you visit and like what you read - TAG ME, ADD ME or otherwise make nice with me.
If you don't like me.....well, you're missing out!
Not really....I can't back that up.
Honestly, I am just looking to expand my blogging base.
I am working on a blog post that basically lays out my resolutions, fears, goals and dreams for this year and the following year.
One of my resolutions/goals for the next two years is to finally commit some real time to my blog and to writing. I have several blogs (some of which are for personal use; some for writing my epic book of useless stories of my life...and well....some are for bitching about my life)
-- I am not brave enough to share all of it with my current readers, but that needs to change.
So here it is blogging friends and world wide web of fellow humanoids....
Add me, share me, talk about me.....whatever.
I want to take the plunge.
I am ready to come out of the blogging closet and share my madness with the world.
So if you visit and like what you read - TAG ME, ADD ME or otherwise make nice with me.
If you don't like me.....well, you're missing out!
Wednesday
I'm sorry...but I'm not that kinda girl!
At the risk of offending, well....everyone, I wanted to say something; put it out there.....
"Gun control, isn't my bag, baby" (Austin Powers reference anyone?)
Should it be? Should I being raving like a rabies-infected, gun-toting, NRA card holding madwoman, screaming about my 'Merican right to bear arms? Should I be writing my elected officials, demanding that they oppose the President and his possible decision to use executive action on gun control???
Should I be worried that I may not be able to hunt for food and defend my property against the native population???
My GOD! What is this world coming to??
Seriously.....
Come on people, get a grip and dial it down.
While it might be obvious to those who read my blog on a semi-regular basis, that I am about as liberal and obnoxious as you can find in your everyday, run-of-the-mill Dem., not only surprised by the reactions of American public, but in some ways I'm confused.....
Things I have read thus far about the gun control issues.
1. Oregon Sheriff will refuse to enforce law banning assault rifles & any new laws pertaining to gun control.
My opinion: A sheriffs position is an elected one. If you don't want to follow the law nor do you wish to serve the public with their safety in mind; then resign. If you want to continue in your elected position; if you want to continue to enjoy the support of the majority of our voting base.....dial it in, Deputy Doolittle.
2. Texas. Congressman threatens impeachment if President Obama use executive action in gun control.
T.E.X.A.S. - do I need further explanation? This is coming from the same *level -headed* state that wanted succession from the Union after the most recent elections. The same *I'm not bitter* state that wants to allow an OPEN TO ALL gun law so anyone can buy, sell and shoot ANY TYPE of weapon.
Personally, I say let 'em. Put up a big bullet poof plexiglass wall around the state and allow anyone and everyone to buy a gun.....and then watch as Darwin's Theory of evolution is proven.....only the strongest aka. smartest will survive and then move.
3. I'm not going to pretend I'm not a Facebook junkie. But I swear to God if one more 'friend' posts a link or a 'cause' that I need to support or 'like' I'm going to scream.
What about me makes you think I'm going to accept an invitation to sign a petition entitled, " My right to bear arms'?
I'm sorry, did I miss something? Do I live on the Great American Frontier, where this is no lawman for 100 miles and the native folks gonna pillage my homestead???
Holster your pistol there Skippy and wake up to the 21st century. You spend way too much time in an office, on a computer, playing with your phone and driving & texting....that I'm more scared of YOU holding a GUN than a criminal.....at least they know how to use a weapon.
4. If we need the ability to buy any gun we want, at any time, for any reason......why do we have law enforcement??
5. I would be interested to poll all people who are going crazy over the laws the President would like to impose and see how many people actually own, know how to shoot, have been to a range in teh last 6 months, taken a class and have a right to carry permit?
Yep. That's what I thought.
End rant.
I continue to shake my head and wonder why I would like to bring a child into a world, into a society such as this.
My final thought. Forget Gun Control......I think BIRTH control is a more pressing matter.
"Gun control, isn't my bag, baby" (Austin Powers reference anyone?)
Should it be? Should I being raving like a rabies-infected, gun-toting, NRA card holding madwoman, screaming about my 'Merican right to bear arms? Should I be writing my elected officials, demanding that they oppose the President and his possible decision to use executive action on gun control???
Should I be worried that I may not be able to hunt for food and defend my property against the native population???
My GOD! What is this world coming to??
Seriously.....
Come on people, get a grip and dial it down.
While it might be obvious to those who read my blog on a semi-regular basis, that I am about as liberal and obnoxious as you can find in your everyday, run-of-the-mill Dem., not only surprised by the reactions of American public, but in some ways I'm confused.....
Things I have read thus far about the gun control issues.
1. Oregon Sheriff will refuse to enforce law banning assault rifles & any new laws pertaining to gun control.
My opinion: A sheriffs position is an elected one. If you don't want to follow the law nor do you wish to serve the public with their safety in mind; then resign. If you want to continue in your elected position; if you want to continue to enjoy the support of the majority of our voting base.....dial it in, Deputy Doolittle.
2. Texas. Congressman threatens impeachment if President Obama use executive action in gun control.
T.E.X.A.S. - do I need further explanation? This is coming from the same *level -headed* state that wanted succession from the Union after the most recent elections. The same *I'm not bitter* state that wants to allow an OPEN TO ALL gun law so anyone can buy, sell and shoot ANY TYPE of weapon.
Personally, I say let 'em. Put up a big bullet poof plexiglass wall around the state and allow anyone and everyone to buy a gun.....and then watch as Darwin's Theory of evolution is proven.....only the strongest aka. smartest will survive and then move.
3. I'm not going to pretend I'm not a Facebook junkie. But I swear to God if one more 'friend' posts a link or a 'cause' that I need to support or 'like' I'm going to scream.
What about me makes you think I'm going to accept an invitation to sign a petition entitled, " My right to bear arms'?
I'm sorry, did I miss something? Do I live on the Great American Frontier, where this is no lawman for 100 miles and the native folks gonna pillage my homestead???
Holster your pistol there Skippy and wake up to the 21st century. You spend way too much time in an office, on a computer, playing with your phone and driving & texting....that I'm more scared of YOU holding a GUN than a criminal.....at least they know how to use a weapon.
4. If we need the ability to buy any gun we want, at any time, for any reason......why do we have law enforcement??
5. I would be interested to poll all people who are going crazy over the laws the President would like to impose and see how many people actually own, know how to shoot, have been to a range in teh last 6 months, taken a class and have a right to carry permit?
Yep. That's what I thought.
End rant.
I continue to shake my head and wonder why I would like to bring a child into a world, into a society such as this.
My final thought. Forget Gun Control......I think BIRTH control is a more pressing matter.
Tuesday
The Art of Giving Thanks.....
Cooking, cooking and more, well....cooking.
Thanksgiving has always interested me, its a strange holiday....
(And before anyone goes all red, white and blue, and screams some nonsense about this post becoming, "un-american" - don't.)
A holiday that sprang from a plentiful harvest and attempt to make nice with the locals; to regional declarations of 'when Thanksgiving' would be held; to one woman's campaign to make it a national holiday (that's right folks, it hasn't always been on the third Thursday of the month...lol) and finally to a President who changed the date.
And after all that, what do we have? Food comas, shopping frenzies, balloons marching down Fifth Ave., and Football. Take that pilgrims!
The Turkey - Where did the idea come from that we would take a large bird, mix some starchy, over-seasoned concoction and proceed to stuff the birds ass with it? Don't get me wrong....I love me some stuffing but it's an interesting and slightly disturbing method.
The Fixings - The First Thanksgiving Party-Goers probably 'feasted' on local fruits, grains, fish and boiled vegetables. So where in the world 'Mac n Cheese', 'Deviled Eggs' and I shutter to say it, ' Green bean Casserole' came from, makes me wonder? Nothing smells or tastes like Thanksgiving like an eggy fart. Yum.
Parades - I don't like em. I don't watch em. And I see no value in em. It's really just the commentators I cannot stand to watch or listen too. The fake smiling, interest and excitement is disconcerting and they 'squeal'. No.
Pretty sure the colonists weren't blowing up animal bladders and dragging them around the colony.
Football - Oh I can get on board with that. (Yes, it's not exactly traditional....BUT you never know....the original settlers might have played a game or two after the meal?....I can justify anything)
Family and friends sitting around, chewing on a leg of turkey and yelling pointlessly at a TV screen....Ahhhh, yes.
Shopping Frenzy, of you I have never forgotten......
SERIOUSLY? Although it might have some history of its own, which pains me to admit.
FDR was convinced to push back the Thanksgiving holiday after World War I, to encourage consumers to buy more and buy early. The idea was that if Thanksgiving fell on November 30, then it shortened the period of time people had to shop for Christmas. The country was still struggling after the war and retailers hoped that people spending money would bolster the weakened economy.
Encouraged by this extra week and a righteous campaign ad asking Americans to, " Do your part and shop early for Christmas!" a national Thanksgiving pastime was born.
Despite this historical precedent, it has now morphed into a national rampage of crazed consumers, camping outside retailers for days on end, roughing their way into stores for a 'bargain'..."Look Ma, 3 pairs of socks for a $1....BUY ALL THE SOCKS!!!!"
Buying a captain chair, tent, thermos, and Ipad = $600
Waiting outside WalMart for a day to save $100 = PRICELESS
Thanksgiving. A National holiday.
How I see it.
Food, family and spending time away from the stresses of the world.
Hunkered down in a home filled with cooking smells.
Cuddling on the couch watching a game of football.
Flailing around a 25 pound turkey he HAD to have and laughing when we aren't sure how to 'safely' remove it from the oven because we chose to use a flimsy aluminum tray.
Bringing food to our friends and to those who couldn't cook for themselves.
Sharing our feast with those we love and those we want to know better.
Stacking the plates in the sink and forgetting about them to the next day...because there are board games to play!!
People often say, remember the true meaning of Christmas.
Why not take a moment to remember the true meaning of Thanksgiving.
Giving Thanks.
Remembering those who cannot be home for the holidays.
Giving Thanks for their sacrifice and their service.
Thanksgiving has always interested me, its a strange holiday....
(And before anyone goes all red, white and blue, and screams some nonsense about this post becoming, "un-american" - don't.)
A holiday that sprang from a plentiful harvest and attempt to make nice with the locals; to regional declarations of 'when Thanksgiving' would be held; to one woman's campaign to make it a national holiday (that's right folks, it hasn't always been on the third Thursday of the month...lol) and finally to a President who changed the date.
And after all that, what do we have? Food comas, shopping frenzies, balloons marching down Fifth Ave., and Football. Take that pilgrims!
The Turkey - Where did the idea come from that we would take a large bird, mix some starchy, over-seasoned concoction and proceed to stuff the birds ass with it? Don't get me wrong....I love me some stuffing but it's an interesting and slightly disturbing method.
The Fixings - The First Thanksgiving Party-Goers probably 'feasted' on local fruits, grains, fish and boiled vegetables. So where in the world 'Mac n Cheese', 'Deviled Eggs' and I shutter to say it, ' Green bean Casserole' came from, makes me wonder? Nothing smells or tastes like Thanksgiving like an eggy fart. Yum.
Parades - I don't like em. I don't watch em. And I see no value in em. It's really just the commentators I cannot stand to watch or listen too. The fake smiling, interest and excitement is disconcerting and they 'squeal'. No.
Pretty sure the colonists weren't blowing up animal bladders and dragging them around the colony.
Football - Oh I can get on board with that. (Yes, it's not exactly traditional....BUT you never know....the original settlers might have played a game or two after the meal?....I can justify anything)
Family and friends sitting around, chewing on a leg of turkey and yelling pointlessly at a TV screen....Ahhhh, yes.
Shopping Frenzy, of you I have never forgotten......
SERIOUSLY? Although it might have some history of its own, which pains me to admit.
FDR was convinced to push back the Thanksgiving holiday after World War I, to encourage consumers to buy more and buy early. The idea was that if Thanksgiving fell on November 30, then it shortened the period of time people had to shop for Christmas. The country was still struggling after the war and retailers hoped that people spending money would bolster the weakened economy.
Encouraged by this extra week and a righteous campaign ad asking Americans to, " Do your part and shop early for Christmas!" a national Thanksgiving pastime was born.
Despite this historical precedent, it has now morphed into a national rampage of crazed consumers, camping outside retailers for days on end, roughing their way into stores for a 'bargain'..."Look Ma, 3 pairs of socks for a $1....BUY ALL THE SOCKS!!!!"
Buying a captain chair, tent, thermos, and Ipad = $600
Waiting outside WalMart for a day to save $100 = PRICELESS
Thanksgiving. A National holiday.
How I see it.
Food, family and spending time away from the stresses of the world.
Hunkered down in a home filled with cooking smells.
Cuddling on the couch watching a game of football.
Flailing around a 25 pound turkey he HAD to have and laughing when we aren't sure how to 'safely' remove it from the oven because we chose to use a flimsy aluminum tray.
Bringing food to our friends and to those who couldn't cook for themselves.
Sharing our feast with those we love and those we want to know better.
Stacking the plates in the sink and forgetting about them to the next day...because there are board games to play!!
People often say, remember the true meaning of Christmas.
Why not take a moment to remember the true meaning of Thanksgiving.
Giving Thanks.
Remembering those who cannot be home for the holidays.
Giving Thanks for their sacrifice and their service.
OSMW for the win!
Overly sensitive or not?
Here's your question folks.....
Military housing is being offered to single military members - is that a terrible, community shattering, unfair idea?
*facepalm*
The idea that offering military housing to single active service members is causing a 'stir' among military families, i.e. the OSMW. The argument, as far as I can tell, is that it is unfair to have single people living in a military community because (and I quote)......
"there would be more partying, more irresponsibility and they don't recognize there are small children around"
OK, I'll take this little trip with you....so what you are saying is, single service members are irresponsible and because they are ALL this way, none of them deserve or have earned the right to live in military housing.
The very housing that was built for the use of military members is going to....wait for it....MILITARY members. The very people who fight for you, the very people who have actually EARNED the right to live in these houses and the very people who should welcome into your community because, and I hate to break this to you, are the REASON you have military housing....cuz you know.....they ARE THE MILITARY.
Good job stereotyping every sigle military member as a drunken frat boy who has no common sense or situational awareness enough to understand the children that are living near by. Moreover, you are basically saying that its ok for a single service member to live in a civilian family neighborhood and run over their children and partying like its 1999, but GOD FORBID, they should be living anywhere near you.
Dumb asses.
Do you not understand that the wonderful benefits you, as a military dependent, receive is not through your service to your country, but that of your spouses? DO you understand that if ANYONE deserves the right to live in military housing it is military themselves?
Dumb asses.
"they would break our community"
Are you fucking serious? THEY ARE YOUR COMMUNITY!
The very fact that someone has to actually point that out to you makes me want to PUNCH you.
Military moving into military housing! Oh the HORROR.
What next, military members who want to us the library? DURING STORY TIME??? NOOOOO.
Get over yourselves OSMW.
I, for one, am a military wife that would happily walk next door (if I actually lived on base) and welcome the new neighbor.....single or not. Why? Because that service member has made sacrifices, has chosen to be more than themselves and protect their country; they stand among the 1% of men and women who forgo seeing their loved ones for months on end and without the comforts of home. Yes, they certainly sound irresponsible and not a positive role model for YOU and your spawn.
On last thing.....
On Veteran's Day I thanked several veterans AND their families for their service, sacrifice and commitment, because yes, I believe that families play a role in the mental health of our troops through support and willingness to stay committed to the role their active duty counterparts play in times of war. HOWEVER, these women tarnish the name of military spouse and their role in the community by being selfish and bitter.
I am disgusted by the reaction of these women. I am ashamed by their actions and words. I am worried for the military men and women who will have to live next door to these entitlement spouses - they will ensure that everything 'bad' that happens in military housing will be the fault of the ALL single servicemen and women living nearby.
OSMW for the win. *sarcasm for those of you who don't get it*
Here's your question folks.....
Military housing is being offered to single military members - is that a terrible, community shattering, unfair idea?
*facepalm*
The idea that offering military housing to single active service members is causing a 'stir' among military families, i.e. the OSMW. The argument, as far as I can tell, is that it is unfair to have single people living in a military community because (and I quote)......
"there would be more partying, more irresponsibility and they don't recognize there are small children around"
OK, I'll take this little trip with you....so what you are saying is, single service members are irresponsible and because they are ALL this way, none of them deserve or have earned the right to live in military housing.
The very housing that was built for the use of military members is going to....wait for it....MILITARY members. The very people who fight for you, the very people who have actually EARNED the right to live in these houses and the very people who should welcome into your community because, and I hate to break this to you, are the REASON you have military housing....cuz you know.....they ARE THE MILITARY.
Good job stereotyping every sigle military member as a drunken frat boy who has no common sense or situational awareness enough to understand the children that are living near by. Moreover, you are basically saying that its ok for a single service member to live in a civilian family neighborhood and run over their children and partying like its 1999, but GOD FORBID, they should be living anywhere near you.
Dumb asses.
Do you not understand that the wonderful benefits you, as a military dependent, receive is not through your service to your country, but that of your spouses? DO you understand that if ANYONE deserves the right to live in military housing it is military themselves?
Dumb asses.
"they would break our community"
Are you fucking serious? THEY ARE YOUR COMMUNITY!
The very fact that someone has to actually point that out to you makes me want to PUNCH you.
Military moving into military housing! Oh the HORROR.
What next, military members who want to us the library? DURING STORY TIME??? NOOOOO.
Get over yourselves OSMW.
I, for one, am a military wife that would happily walk next door (if I actually lived on base) and welcome the new neighbor.....single or not. Why? Because that service member has made sacrifices, has chosen to be more than themselves and protect their country; they stand among the 1% of men and women who forgo seeing their loved ones for months on end and without the comforts of home. Yes, they certainly sound irresponsible and not a positive role model for YOU and your spawn.
On last thing.....
On Veteran's Day I thanked several veterans AND their families for their service, sacrifice and commitment, because yes, I believe that families play a role in the mental health of our troops through support and willingness to stay committed to the role their active duty counterparts play in times of war. HOWEVER, these women tarnish the name of military spouse and their role in the community by being selfish and bitter.
I am disgusted by the reaction of these women. I am ashamed by their actions and words. I am worried for the military men and women who will have to live next door to these entitlement spouses - they will ensure that everything 'bad' that happens in military housing will be the fault of the ALL single servicemen and women living nearby.
OSMW for the win. *sarcasm for those of you who don't get it*
Monday
Is it safe to post?
Offline. It just seemed safer that way.
What am I talking about?
The Election and the madness that ensued.
I still feel a little strange talking about my reactions to the Election in an open, online format; that is read by friends (both actual and online). Am I coward? Am I silly for valuing my friend's opinions so much so, that I would rather stay quiet and hide than comment on the Election.
Doesn't sounds like me, does it?
Time to step out of the shadows boys and girls.....
This election was one of several 'firsts' for me.
One - I voted in person! I usually (due in part to my military way of life) vote using an absentee ballot. But this year, I registered in the great state of Virginia and waited patiently to walk into my very first polling station and VOTE! It's the small things that make me happy. I got a sticker.
Two - I voted across party lines. How can we expect our politicians to see across party lines, if we as voters, are guilty of the same thing? I voted for the candidates that represented the ability, policies and understanding that both state and federal offices needed. That's right.....I voted for.....NO! It's a personal choice that I feel should remain so.
Three - I didn't tell anyone who I voted for. Yep. That's a first. Well, I told Parker....and he smiled. But I told no one else. I am a Democrat.....but that doesn't mean I feel that they are always the party with the best candidate. Nuff said.
So with all of this said....
I sat down and watched the political debates. I read the propaganda. I did my homework. And then I voted. And then I watched the election. And here's what I realized......
You can't please everyone all the time.
I was struck by the anger and malice that spewed across every social network. I was confused by the bitterness that affected people that I had know for some time. I was struck by the immediate 'de-friending' phenomenon that sweep across Facebook. People posting malicious comments on friend's pages; calling them out for voting the 'wrong' way and being a bleeding heart liberal; for being the reason the US will 'go to hell' and people will die because of their choice of candidate. YES, I am deadly serious....I actually read this stuff!
Be angry. But be constructive. Be part of the solution and not part of the problem. Degrading people and threatening people is not the answer. It's just sad.
I lost a few people on Election night. Funny thing is, I respect their opinion. But they apparently, respect mine.
What am I talking about?
The Election and the madness that ensued.
I still feel a little strange talking about my reactions to the Election in an open, online format; that is read by friends (both actual and online). Am I coward? Am I silly for valuing my friend's opinions so much so, that I would rather stay quiet and hide than comment on the Election.
Doesn't sounds like me, does it?
Time to step out of the shadows boys and girls.....
This election was one of several 'firsts' for me.
One - I voted in person! I usually (due in part to my military way of life) vote using an absentee ballot. But this year, I registered in the great state of Virginia and waited patiently to walk into my very first polling station and VOTE! It's the small things that make me happy. I got a sticker.
Two - I voted across party lines. How can we expect our politicians to see across party lines, if we as voters, are guilty of the same thing? I voted for the candidates that represented the ability, policies and understanding that both state and federal offices needed. That's right.....I voted for.....NO! It's a personal choice that I feel should remain so.
Three - I didn't tell anyone who I voted for. Yep. That's a first. Well, I told Parker....and he smiled. But I told no one else. I am a Democrat.....but that doesn't mean I feel that they are always the party with the best candidate. Nuff said.
So with all of this said....
I sat down and watched the political debates. I read the propaganda. I did my homework. And then I voted. And then I watched the election. And here's what I realized......
You can't please everyone all the time.
I was struck by the anger and malice that spewed across every social network. I was confused by the bitterness that affected people that I had know for some time. I was struck by the immediate 'de-friending' phenomenon that sweep across Facebook. People posting malicious comments on friend's pages; calling them out for voting the 'wrong' way and being a bleeding heart liberal; for being the reason the US will 'go to hell' and people will die because of their choice of candidate. YES, I am deadly serious....I actually read this stuff!
Be angry. But be constructive. Be part of the solution and not part of the problem. Degrading people and threatening people is not the answer. It's just sad.
I lost a few people on Election night. Funny thing is, I respect their opinion. But they apparently, respect mine.
Tuesday
Hurricane Sandy - Part Deux
So as I sit here, staring into the backyard and wondering how I'm going to clean up all the random debris that have covered my yard; I think about the hurricane and what I learned.......
Take my following observations and randomness as you will - but remember that I mean no disrespect. I am viewing this situation through the eyes of someone who tries to find the humor in all things; sometimes the glass is half full.
Hurricanes
What a force to be reckoned with. I am a West Coast girl. I am familiar with earthquakes, snow storms and wild fires. My hometown has had it share of mother nature's wrath as well as Earth's unsettling (pardon the pun) movement. My hometown is no stranger to the raging fires that blanket the ground with ash and clog the sky with smoke.
But Hurricanes are a relatively new phenomenon....FOR ME.
You can see a fire. You can see the ground move in an earthquake. But an hurricane is a visual conundrum - the trees sway and move to an unseen force; the ground is saturated by rain you can't see soaking in because of the leaves and debris blanketing the ground; the power goes out and you are in the dark....listening to creaking, cracking and moaning from an unseen force. It's just creepy.
You know what's happening. You know it's 'hurricane-force' wind and rain. But you don't really SEE it coming. The trees start to move.....but you don't SEE the wind. Creepy, stealthy bastard.
East Coast....you can keep your hurricanes, tropical storms and random super storms.
(Yes, yes.....I know the Pacific can see cyclones and tropical storms too....but not in my part of Cali)
Dane, dogs and Storms
I know that it isn't just my dog that reacts in this way.....but Danes have a particularly STRONG aversion to wet, windy weather. I understand that pushing a 115lb dog (or any dog), out into a storm is not a great idea, nor does the dog appreciate being blown away in a hurricane while trying to pee....but it is necessary. There just isn't a puppy pad big enough.
Shadow - The Great Blue, Great Dane (International Man of Mystery) - HATES, I mean H.A.T.E.S, rain. He would stare at us, with the those big brown eyes as if to say....' Fuck you. YOU pee outside and see how you like it?!' I hear ya buddy.....but you gotta. They don't make Dane-sized kitty litter trays or puppy training pads big enough to hold your.....business.
I am convinced that dogs have a sense that tells them, " It's coming...a storm is a'comin, and I ain't going out there. You, hoomans, are crazy. Go inside and stay there until I decide its safe to pee out there then you can come outside too." Maybe I give him too much credit......but seriously, he thought we were NUTS for sending him out there. Poor guy.
Cabin Fever
Trapped in a house for a few days can be very, very boring after awhile. Maybe boring is the wrong word......frustrating, yes, that's the word for it. My husband and I aren't big T.V. watchers....we prefer the freedom of going for walks, hikes or watching the occasional movie, or reading a book. BUT, it seems that once you realize you can't go outside - you stay in our pajamas and its a downward slide from there.......
LAZY. You sit in front of the TV, staring mindlessly at the continuous (media-induced panic frenzy) updates of the hurricane and never leave the couch. It isn't something we are particularly proud of.....but it happens. However, this will only last so long before you begin to get a little ' on edge' and begin to contemplate leaving.....out in the storm. Never a great idea.
We did that yesterday. After we stopped watching the news....and were unaware of the SECOND storm wave.....we ventured out. Yeahhhhhh......that's what happens when you watch too much TV....your decision-making skills deteriorate.
Stay inside! Read a book. Play a game. SOMETHING. But don't go out. Seriously. EMS are already overburdened and don't need your dumb ass caught in a storm drain because you couldn't handle another episode of Family Feud.
Other mindless stupid
1. Stock up. It might be nothing. But it might be something. Don't forget the Coffee Mate.
2. Rain boots. They serve a purpose. And a rain slicker. This isn't a fashion show, people!
3. Charge your shit. No power = BOREDOM. Catch up on your reading list. iBooks saved me.
4. BBQ in your garage in a hurricane is kinda fun. Be silly but not stupid.
5. Call your loved ones before the storm. Remind them that cell phones lose battery....don't expect long calls and conversations. Don't forget to give a parent a crash course in texting. Honestly, mom!
6. Parents on FB is sometimes a good thing. Unless, you, as a the child, are in a hurricane zone. MOM! lol.
7. Keep a flashlight, or lantern or some kind of light source that is NOT reliant on electricity in the BATHROOM. No storm cares you are taking a bath....or.....using the loo. I'm just sayin'.
Stay safe friends in the North! We are thinking of you and wish you all the best as Sandy heads your way. Stay warm and read a book. <3
Take my following observations and randomness as you will - but remember that I mean no disrespect. I am viewing this situation through the eyes of someone who tries to find the humor in all things; sometimes the glass is half full.
Hurricanes
What a force to be reckoned with. I am a West Coast girl. I am familiar with earthquakes, snow storms and wild fires. My hometown has had it share of mother nature's wrath as well as Earth's unsettling (pardon the pun) movement. My hometown is no stranger to the raging fires that blanket the ground with ash and clog the sky with smoke.
But Hurricanes are a relatively new phenomenon....FOR ME.
You can see a fire. You can see the ground move in an earthquake. But an hurricane is a visual conundrum - the trees sway and move to an unseen force; the ground is saturated by rain you can't see soaking in because of the leaves and debris blanketing the ground; the power goes out and you are in the dark....listening to creaking, cracking and moaning from an unseen force. It's just creepy.
You know what's happening. You know it's 'hurricane-force' wind and rain. But you don't really SEE it coming. The trees start to move.....but you don't SEE the wind. Creepy, stealthy bastard.
East Coast....you can keep your hurricanes, tropical storms and random super storms.
(Yes, yes.....I know the Pacific can see cyclones and tropical storms too....but not in my part of Cali)
Dane, dogs and Storms
I know that it isn't just my dog that reacts in this way.....but Danes have a particularly STRONG aversion to wet, windy weather. I understand that pushing a 115lb dog (or any dog), out into a storm is not a great idea, nor does the dog appreciate being blown away in a hurricane while trying to pee....but it is necessary. There just isn't a puppy pad big enough.
Shadow - The Great Blue, Great Dane (International Man of Mystery) - HATES, I mean H.A.T.E.S, rain. He would stare at us, with the those big brown eyes as if to say....' Fuck you. YOU pee outside and see how you like it?!' I hear ya buddy.....but you gotta. They don't make Dane-sized kitty litter trays or puppy training pads big enough to hold your.....business.
I am convinced that dogs have a sense that tells them, " It's coming...a storm is a'comin, and I ain't going out there. You, hoomans, are crazy. Go inside and stay there until I decide its safe to pee out there then you can come outside too." Maybe I give him too much credit......but seriously, he thought we were NUTS for sending him out there. Poor guy.
Cabin Fever
Trapped in a house for a few days can be very, very boring after awhile. Maybe boring is the wrong word......frustrating, yes, that's the word for it. My husband and I aren't big T.V. watchers....we prefer the freedom of going for walks, hikes or watching the occasional movie, or reading a book. BUT, it seems that once you realize you can't go outside - you stay in our pajamas and its a downward slide from there.......
LAZY. You sit in front of the TV, staring mindlessly at the continuous (media-induced panic frenzy) updates of the hurricane and never leave the couch. It isn't something we are particularly proud of.....but it happens. However, this will only last so long before you begin to get a little ' on edge' and begin to contemplate leaving.....out in the storm. Never a great idea.
We did that yesterday. After we stopped watching the news....and were unaware of the SECOND storm wave.....we ventured out. Yeahhhhhh......that's what happens when you watch too much TV....your decision-making skills deteriorate.
Stay inside! Read a book. Play a game. SOMETHING. But don't go out. Seriously. EMS are already overburdened and don't need your dumb ass caught in a storm drain because you couldn't handle another episode of Family Feud.
Other mindless stupid
1. Stock up. It might be nothing. But it might be something. Don't forget the Coffee Mate.
2. Rain boots. They serve a purpose. And a rain slicker. This isn't a fashion show, people!
3. Charge your shit. No power = BOREDOM. Catch up on your reading list. iBooks saved me.
4. BBQ in your garage in a hurricane is kinda fun. Be silly but not stupid.
5. Call your loved ones before the storm. Remind them that cell phones lose battery....don't expect long calls and conversations. Don't forget to give a parent a crash course in texting. Honestly, mom!
6. Parents on FB is sometimes a good thing. Unless, you, as a the child, are in a hurricane zone. MOM! lol.
7. Keep a flashlight, or lantern or some kind of light source that is NOT reliant on electricity in the BATHROOM. No storm cares you are taking a bath....or.....using the loo. I'm just sayin'.
Stay safe friends in the North! We are thinking of you and wish you all the best as Sandy heads your way. Stay warm and read a book. <3
Monday
Frankenstorm and the rest......
Frankenstorm. Really news media? THAT'S what you decided to name Hurricane Sandy?
Or is she a Tropical Storm?
Or is she the storm of the century?
So here we sit. Riding out the storm of the century and I have already had enough of the panic; more to the point I fed up with the obscene, media-induced panic that they have generated. We get it. Hurricanes and storm fronts, can and do, cause widespread damage, deaths and days of disruption. But do you really have to make all of that worse by freaking out the general public?
As a clse friend posted this morning....
*Local new station*
" FLOODING. WIND. RAIN. DESTRUCTION......Warning do not go out. Stay at home. HIGH TIDE. SAVE YOURSELF. " (that's the condensed version)
YES. There is flooding and high winds, however, much of that is localized and limited to flood zones and shorelines.
YES. There are high winds and some damaged caused in, yes you guessed it, SHORELINES and unprotected coastal settings, i.e. the beach.
YES. It's probably not a great idea to head to the beach, or go cruising. But you can certainly head to the store for supplies, or to a friend's house to make sure they are ok.
Hurricanes are by no means a laughing matter and be deadly and very scary. However, media outlets seem to take special pleasure in working up a panic when there is no need for one......in your area.
I live on the Hampton Peninsula - wedged between the Chesapeake and open Atlantic (kinda), we were in the path of both Irene and Sandy. I am forever grateful for the limited damage caused by both - and this was something that should come as no surprise to the media. Despite our relation to the path, we knew that it would be uncomfortable but it was going to be no " Storm of DEVASTATING PORTIONS"
Kill a motor Local and National News!
People need common sense information and how to be prepared.
NOT.....ARMAGEDDON!
We have weathered the storm well. We only have one small downed tree, some minor debris in around the house and limited flooding issues. We were lucky.
I will, however, take a moment and say one thing - I am lucky and would have OH SO upset if we had lost power. Why? Because I have spent FIVE weeks pouring my heart and soul and untold amounts of pain and agony into my current class. It might sound petty and thoughtless - but it means everything to me to take my final and accomplish something that I have not been able to do in my whole college career - PASS A MATH CLASS.
Therefore, if we had lost power on the day of my final.....I might have lost it. Seriously. Tears. Hair-pulling. Raging fits.
As it is......we got lucky. We had power. And.....I passed. Finally. I passed. The relief that I feel is like no other. If you have the type of learning disability as I do.....you will appreciate my joy and relief in making MATH MY BITCH.
In summary - This was a huge storm that is yet to show her full power. My thoughts are with the those who have suffered at her hands and those who are still to deal with her rage. I hope that my family and friends in the North are prepared and stay safe!
Carry on and stay calm.
Or is she a Tropical Storm?
Or is she the storm of the century?
So here we sit. Riding out the storm of the century and I have already had enough of the panic; more to the point I fed up with the obscene, media-induced panic that they have generated. We get it. Hurricanes and storm fronts, can and do, cause widespread damage, deaths and days of disruption. But do you really have to make all of that worse by freaking out the general public?
As a clse friend posted this morning....
*Local new station*
" FLOODING. WIND. RAIN. DESTRUCTION......Warning do not go out. Stay at home. HIGH TIDE. SAVE YOURSELF. " (that's the condensed version)
YES. There is flooding and high winds, however, much of that is localized and limited to flood zones and shorelines.
YES. There are high winds and some damaged caused in, yes you guessed it, SHORELINES and unprotected coastal settings, i.e. the beach.
YES. It's probably not a great idea to head to the beach, or go cruising. But you can certainly head to the store for supplies, or to a friend's house to make sure they are ok.
Hurricanes are by no means a laughing matter and be deadly and very scary. However, media outlets seem to take special pleasure in working up a panic when there is no need for one......in your area.
I live on the Hampton Peninsula - wedged between the Chesapeake and open Atlantic (kinda), we were in the path of both Irene and Sandy. I am forever grateful for the limited damage caused by both - and this was something that should come as no surprise to the media. Despite our relation to the path, we knew that it would be uncomfortable but it was going to be no " Storm of DEVASTATING PORTIONS"
Kill a motor Local and National News!
People need common sense information and how to be prepared.
NOT.....ARMAGEDDON!
We have weathered the storm well. We only have one small downed tree, some minor debris in around the house and limited flooding issues. We were lucky.
I will, however, take a moment and say one thing - I am lucky and would have OH SO upset if we had lost power. Why? Because I have spent FIVE weeks pouring my heart and soul and untold amounts of pain and agony into my current class. It might sound petty and thoughtless - but it means everything to me to take my final and accomplish something that I have not been able to do in my whole college career - PASS A MATH CLASS.
Therefore, if we had lost power on the day of my final.....I might have lost it. Seriously. Tears. Hair-pulling. Raging fits.
As it is......we got lucky. We had power. And.....I passed. Finally. I passed. The relief that I feel is like no other. If you have the type of learning disability as I do.....you will appreciate my joy and relief in making MATH MY BITCH.
In summary - This was a huge storm that is yet to show her full power. My thoughts are with the those who have suffered at her hands and those who are still to deal with her rage. I hope that my family and friends in the North are prepared and stay safe!
Carry on and stay calm.
Tuesday
Just a thought....but....
Ok, people.
This is a difficult one.
I, too, am guilty of posting the occasional rant about the election.
I, too, am slightly biased.
But.....
It's Facebook.
Here's my thought.
Over the past few months I have seen an explosion of inflammatory posts by people on Facebook. The type of posts that border on fanaticism rather than sincere debate. Instead of seeing well-thought out posts about their beliefs and opinions; you are bombarded with hateful attacks, poorly worded 'opinions' and propaganda.
I'm all for healthy debate. I'm all for people coming together during an election year and talking about the issues and making an educated choice for President. And yet, I'm disappointed by the unhelpful personal attacks people feel justified in making because a 'friend' made an innocent comment about the candidate they prefer.
One of the great things about America is our freedoms. Now, I'm not all 'red, white and blue' and will be the first person to stand up and say that there is a lot wrong with our country.....however, I'm a woman. I'm an ethic minority. And I'm able to vote. I'm able to voice my opinion openly and freely, without fear. I, as a woman, am able to live a life of MY choosing.
There are certain rights and freedoms, we as Americans, have and enjoy. Freedom of Speech is one of them. So with that said, why do some people feel the need to harass and bully those who have an opinion, one that might not coincide with their own?
This isn't just about a little harmless 'ribbing' or good-natured debate. This is about the following:
1. If you post your opinion on Facebook or other social forum - you should expect a little heated debate; however, when that crosses the line to.....comments of a personal nature - (about parents, partners and other familial types) - your 'friend' needs to step back and desist. And YOU need to reply in a mature and firm manner, ensuring your 'friend' understands that is not debate.....that is high school bullying.
2. Don't take this so personally. I have plenty of friends that support Romney and Ryan. Ok. And....they are free citizens. They have the right to support and campaign for the candidate they feel reflects the platforms and beliefs they agree with. MOVE ON.
3. If you are going to go on a political tirade, at least take a moment to make a readable, well-informed argument that doesn't contain words like, 'suck it' or 'lame' or 'dumb ass'. I am more than happy to read through and even respond to a well-worded opinion or question. But, if you base our post on..." *insert candidate here* is an stupid head. Why would you vote for someone who is an idiot', you are probably going to get laughed at, flamed or just plain ignored.
4. The people that barely involve themselves on any social forum for four years and then BAM!! every ten minutes there is an inflammatory comment about the current President and the poor decision-making skills of said individual. Moreover, you seem intent on winning the vote for the opposition.....single-handily. By all means make your point.....but kill a motor on the hateful, bitter and angry attacks you make on everyone else on your friends list - you are now the stereotype and not helping your party's cause.
All of this makes me sad because,
We, as a nation and as a global society, need healthy and open discussion about the state of the world and where, we as a people, are headed.
We need a healthy exchange of ideas to enable change.
We need a global community to take interest in the events that are shaping individual countries - these individual countries and cultures have an impact on the international community.
We need to encourage civic duty and individual responsibility.
And yet....
We attack each other because one idea threatens the belief system of another.
We struggle to see the other point of view because we are too comfortable with our own.
Fear has replaced rational thought.
Just a thought people....just a thought.....
This is a difficult one.
I, too, am guilty of posting the occasional rant about the election.
I, too, am slightly biased.
But.....
It's Facebook.
Here's my thought.
Over the past few months I have seen an explosion of inflammatory posts by people on Facebook. The type of posts that border on fanaticism rather than sincere debate. Instead of seeing well-thought out posts about their beliefs and opinions; you are bombarded with hateful attacks, poorly worded 'opinions' and propaganda.
I'm all for healthy debate. I'm all for people coming together during an election year and talking about the issues and making an educated choice for President. And yet, I'm disappointed by the unhelpful personal attacks people feel justified in making because a 'friend' made an innocent comment about the candidate they prefer.
One of the great things about America is our freedoms. Now, I'm not all 'red, white and blue' and will be the first person to stand up and say that there is a lot wrong with our country.....however, I'm a woman. I'm an ethic minority. And I'm able to vote. I'm able to voice my opinion openly and freely, without fear. I, as a woman, am able to live a life of MY choosing.
There are certain rights and freedoms, we as Americans, have and enjoy. Freedom of Speech is one of them. So with that said, why do some people feel the need to harass and bully those who have an opinion, one that might not coincide with their own?
This isn't just about a little harmless 'ribbing' or good-natured debate. This is about the following:
1. If you post your opinion on Facebook or other social forum - you should expect a little heated debate; however, when that crosses the line to.....comments of a personal nature - (about parents, partners and other familial types) - your 'friend' needs to step back and desist. And YOU need to reply in a mature and firm manner, ensuring your 'friend' understands that is not debate.....that is high school bullying.
2. Don't take this so personally. I have plenty of friends that support Romney and Ryan. Ok. And....they are free citizens. They have the right to support and campaign for the candidate they feel reflects the platforms and beliefs they agree with. MOVE ON.
3. If you are going to go on a political tirade, at least take a moment to make a readable, well-informed argument that doesn't contain words like, 'suck it' or 'lame' or 'dumb ass'. I am more than happy to read through and even respond to a well-worded opinion or question. But, if you base our post on..." *insert candidate here* is an stupid head. Why would you vote for someone who is an idiot', you are probably going to get laughed at, flamed or just plain ignored.
4. The people that barely involve themselves on any social forum for four years and then BAM!! every ten minutes there is an inflammatory comment about the current President and the poor decision-making skills of said individual. Moreover, you seem intent on winning the vote for the opposition.....single-handily. By all means make your point.....but kill a motor on the hateful, bitter and angry attacks you make on everyone else on your friends list - you are now the stereotype and not helping your party's cause.
All of this makes me sad because,
We, as a nation and as a global society, need healthy and open discussion about the state of the world and where, we as a people, are headed.
We need a healthy exchange of ideas to enable change.
We need a global community to take interest in the events that are shaping individual countries - these individual countries and cultures have an impact on the international community.
We need to encourage civic duty and individual responsibility.
And yet....
We attack each other because one idea threatens the belief system of another.
We struggle to see the other point of view because we are too comfortable with our own.
Fear has replaced rational thought.
Just a thought people....just a thought.....
Friday
A Week in Review
A Week in Review -
This week, as so many others, have been filled with nonsense, random stupid and more tasks/errands/must-do's than I have time or patience for.
I am a uniquely lazy person by nature - well, maybe not lazy, but definitely a person that has the unique ability to 'put-off' or otherwise neglect certain responsibilities and important tasks until it gets to the point of sheer panic and flailing arms and wailing voices. It's a talent, really.
On top of all of that there is always some crisis or crazy situation that one or more of my friends or family have called me about - *cue Mama San* - and then my day is blown by advice, counseling or general abandonment of anything other than the crisis at hand....(in all fairness that is my choice, rather than anything my friends have done....my family....different matter altogether)
So, on days like this when faced with an overwhelming stack of classwork, Thank You cards, To-Do lists and necessary phone calls and weekend trip packing.....I'm here.
On my blog.
Listening to streaming radio.
Ready to lay down some truth on my homies.
Ready?
A Week in Review
I won't even go into the task of removing contact lens with these claws. Jezsus.
Ok....ok.....so none of that happened.....but seriously? Because Romney said everything with that smarmy, used car salesman smile and laughed inappropriately during his disjointed answers to economic growth and international policy that he makes a better argument??? Um. Really. Wow. This isn't a joke, people. These are serious concerns and serious platforms that I want delivered in a competent and precise format......I give up.
I BLAME AMERICAN IDOL and GLEE.
I hate, hate, hate...standard deviations, factoring polynomials, quadratic equations and integers. The words alone make me feel stupid. Factor this and find that......no one cares. Seriously, if I ever go into a store and the sales sign says, " ONLY TODAY - our valued customers will be able to save 50% of 2x (sales price -$3) plus an extra 2.35% if you can tell what the fuck that means!" I will happily change my opinion of Math and figure it out. But until that day people.....POTATO. The answer is potato and I don't care.
Ok.
End crazy fat girl ranting against the world she sees as stupid. Sometimes.
Carry On & Get busy.
This week, as so many others, have been filled with nonsense, random stupid and more tasks/errands/must-do's than I have time or patience for.
I am a uniquely lazy person by nature - well, maybe not lazy, but definitely a person that has the unique ability to 'put-off' or otherwise neglect certain responsibilities and important tasks until it gets to the point of sheer panic and flailing arms and wailing voices. It's a talent, really.
On top of all of that there is always some crisis or crazy situation that one or more of my friends or family have called me about - *cue Mama San* - and then my day is blown by advice, counseling or general abandonment of anything other than the crisis at hand....(in all fairness that is my choice, rather than anything my friends have done....my family....different matter altogether)
So, on days like this when faced with an overwhelming stack of classwork, Thank You cards, To-Do lists and necessary phone calls and weekend trip packing.....I'm here.
On my blog.
Listening to streaming radio.
Ready to lay down some truth on my homies.
Ready?
A Week in Review
- If you call a HOME number no less than 5 times and leave 2 messages AFTER hearing my recorded voice say, " You have reached Kris and Parker Hamilton, message and we will call ya back....eventually".....and you STILL LEAVE A FUCKING message for a doctor you need to cancel with.....
- Acrylic nails are the devil's play things. They serve so little purpose that I am shocked and slightly disappointed in my decision-making abilities when choosing to have these....these....claws glued to my hands.
I won't even go into the task of removing contact lens with these claws. Jezsus.
- The Debate.
Ok....ok.....so none of that happened.....but seriously? Because Romney said everything with that smarmy, used car salesman smile and laughed inappropriately during his disjointed answers to economic growth and international policy that he makes a better argument??? Um. Really. Wow. This isn't a joke, people. These are serious concerns and serious platforms that I want delivered in a competent and precise format......I give up.
I BLAME AMERICAN IDOL and GLEE.
- Math. Oh, algebra you are a bastard.
I hate, hate, hate...standard deviations, factoring polynomials, quadratic equations and integers. The words alone make me feel stupid. Factor this and find that......no one cares. Seriously, if I ever go into a store and the sales sign says, " ONLY TODAY - our valued customers will be able to save 50% of 2x (sales price -$3) plus an extra 2.35% if you can tell what the fuck that means!" I will happily change my opinion of Math and figure it out. But until that day people.....POTATO. The answer is potato and I don't care.
Ok.
End crazy fat girl ranting against the world she sees as stupid. Sometimes.
Carry On & Get busy.
Tuesday
And another thing....
** I apologize for my overly political posts of late. **
As always I will say that I am not the brightest light in the sky, the sharpest tool in the box....etc....but do have to shake my head and ask a few questions and pose a few thoughts to an audience. Take it as you will and ponder.
Latinos. Latinas. Hispanics. Latin Americans.
Whatever you like to label them or yourselves. As you know I 'label' myself as Latina.
Apparently, we are a wanted quantity when is comes to an election year. Where is this popularity during the rest of the four years? All of a sudden we are courted and cajoled into the voting frenzy that is the American election system. Why? Because we are a growing ethnic group? Because we have a strong hand in the economic recovery of this country? Because we carry political weight in the government body?
It's a mystery folks.
Not really.
We are growing in number. Our culture is slowing inching its way into the fabric of American society. We take the jobs no one wants and we carry the service industry. We have large families and as such as have a large voting population.....technically. Of course being 'legal' voters might be a problem....
I am more than slightly offended by the degree to which the Romney campaign is flirting with the Hispanic community. Suggesting that because his father was born in Mexico (to American parents) that he somehow has a 'connection' to the Hispanic world and can 'relate' to struggles faced by Hispanic families and immigration....really???
I seem to remember an unpopular push to crackdown on immigration a year ago.....and Mr. Romney lead the charge. A convenient change of heart, don't you think?
Considering that there is 10% of unemployment among the Hispanic community (higher than that of other ethnic groups), that would mean we are the part of the 47% that 'live off of welfare' and 'look for handouts' - which, if my memory serves me correctly, is the very people who you condemn and hope to 'change' when in office. A glowing political endorsement....I think not.
So again, I ask you, why would the Hispanic community vote for a man that is 'of Hispanic heritage' only when it suits him to be? I was born to a Hispanic father and a 'American' mother - I don't wear my culture on my sleeve. I do not vote according to the candidate that thinks they are clever by putting their spanish speaking son on a commerical.
I VOTE according to the candidate that will make the tough decisions that will affect the majority and not cater to the minority.
I VOTE according to the policies and promises that a candidate makes that will affect me as an AMERICAN not as a Latina. My culture is Hispanic.....but I am an American. Do not celebrate my culture because it is convenient; that is offensive.
I VOTE with an educated choice. Not because you learned how to say Hello and Welcome in Spanish. Would anyone have known your son speaks fluent Spanish if the vote depended on the African American vote.....I think not.
I am offended that you so easily flirt with the Hispanic community because NOW it suits you.
Time and time again you show your true opinion of those to whom you would so easily label as the 'poor 47% who want handouts and can't be bothered to become legal residents of your great nation'.
no somos estúpidos
As always I will say that I am not the brightest light in the sky, the sharpest tool in the box....etc....but do have to shake my head and ask a few questions and pose a few thoughts to an audience. Take it as you will and ponder.
Latinos. Latinas. Hispanics. Latin Americans.
Whatever you like to label them or yourselves. As you know I 'label' myself as Latina.
Apparently, we are a wanted quantity when is comes to an election year. Where is this popularity during the rest of the four years? All of a sudden we are courted and cajoled into the voting frenzy that is the American election system. Why? Because we are a growing ethnic group? Because we have a strong hand in the economic recovery of this country? Because we carry political weight in the government body?
It's a mystery folks.
Not really.
We are growing in number. Our culture is slowing inching its way into the fabric of American society. We take the jobs no one wants and we carry the service industry. We have large families and as such as have a large voting population.....technically. Of course being 'legal' voters might be a problem....
I am more than slightly offended by the degree to which the Romney campaign is flirting with the Hispanic community. Suggesting that because his father was born in Mexico (to American parents) that he somehow has a 'connection' to the Hispanic world and can 'relate' to struggles faced by Hispanic families and immigration....really???
I seem to remember an unpopular push to crackdown on immigration a year ago.....and Mr. Romney lead the charge. A convenient change of heart, don't you think?
Considering that there is 10% of unemployment among the Hispanic community (higher than that of other ethnic groups), that would mean we are the part of the 47% that 'live off of welfare' and 'look for handouts' - which, if my memory serves me correctly, is the very people who you condemn and hope to 'change' when in office. A glowing political endorsement....I think not.
So again, I ask you, why would the Hispanic community vote for a man that is 'of Hispanic heritage' only when it suits him to be? I was born to a Hispanic father and a 'American' mother - I don't wear my culture on my sleeve. I do not vote according to the candidate that thinks they are clever by putting their spanish speaking son on a commerical.
I VOTE according to the candidate that will make the tough decisions that will affect the majority and not cater to the minority.
I VOTE according to the policies and promises that a candidate makes that will affect me as an AMERICAN not as a Latina. My culture is Hispanic.....but I am an American. Do not celebrate my culture because it is convenient; that is offensive.
I VOTE with an educated choice. Not because you learned how to say Hello and Welcome in Spanish. Would anyone have known your son speaks fluent Spanish if the vote depended on the African American vote.....I think not.
I am offended that you so easily flirt with the Hispanic community because NOW it suits you.
Time and time again you show your true opinion of those to whom you would so easily label as the 'poor 47% who want handouts and can't be bothered to become legal residents of your great nation'.
no somos estúpidos
Bullshit Mountain......
But then again......
I can't help but see more common sense and practical reasoning coming from the comedy talking heads....then I do from some of the political candidates who are ACTUALLY running for office.
It is a little more than sad, when you spend more time agreeing with talking heads on Comedy Central than you do when listening to NPR or political debates. Surely there is something wrong with that?
Or maybe it's just me.
Maybe it's because I'm part of the 47%.....
As such I am too uneducated to understand the detailed intricacies of Romney and Boy Wonder's fiscal plan for our nation's economic woes?
I am uneducated because I chose to be.....I prefer handouts.
And I don't pay taxes because I'm too uneducated and unskilled to have a job......I prefer handouts.
Or maybe I don't understand where the Romney campaign is coming from because I'm Hispanic?
Or he isn't Hispanic enough?
Or he wants to be.....but isn't?
I get confused.
No....wait.....
Is it because I'm not a big business?
Or because he was and isn't now, but thinks we all should be and if we are we should send our job force to China but act as if they are actually here and we 'could' get tax breaks if they are, but only if they are in certain politically strategic states......that sounds pretty clear to me.
Wait.....wait.....
I cannot understand the Romney Plan of Economic Recovery/International Relations/American Job Growth/Medical Crisis Action.....etc.....
Because I am smarter than Romney and his pet puppy.....I can see than underneath all the bluster and big money he throwing at his campaign that he doesn't have the slightest clue what the hell he is doing. It freaking Bush, Jr. all over again.....but more frightening because he is actually responsible for the stupid shit that comes out of his mouth! There is no puppet master with a hand up his ass telling him what to say......this one comes pre-loaded with crazy and he ain't afraid to spew it.
I'm not an Obama supporter just because of my political affiliations....
I'm an Obama supporter because :
I want my President to know where Israel is and understand the issues the Middle East is and has faced.....
I want my President to have an opinion that isn't on a teleprompter.....
I want my President to make the tough decision and not the popular one.....
I want people to vote with educated choices and not with biases and commerical propaganda.
But there is always Bullshit Mountain and it's kingdom of Fox News......*sigh*
Thursday
Strange moments of Life...& other randomness
You ever had a moment where you feel that you have done something to annoy/anger/frustrate/otherwise 'peeve' someone?
I like it to - deja'vu...already seen. It isn't anything tangible - a specific situation or comment made by someone to me.....but rather a feeling. A sense that you have in some way or another, upset someone or something. The balance has shifted and you are waiting for it to fall.
No?
Meh....
Maybe it's just me.....
But nevertheless, I have this feeling. It's an awkward feeling. The kind of feeling you get when you know you have an important meeting the next day, or you are nervous about that doctors appt....a nervous and unbalanced feeling that is out of your control.
I know that someone out there is annoyed with me. And in an even stranger way, I think I know who and it comes as no surprise. Family can be the most cherished and most painful part of one's life. You can love them unconditionally and in the same breath they can cause you the most pain.
I may be the most laid back of all my family but in some ways I am the most sensitive and take everything to heart - whether it is of my own making or theirs. Maybe that is why I am always the punching bag.....
*sigh*
On to other things.....
Lists.....I love them. Most of the time they serve no other purpose other than a way for me to waste time and daydream about all the things I want to accomplish.....whether today of five years from now. I have completed few lists - since they always grow out of control and become overwhelming. However, I continue to use them, create them and find a strange sense of determination and peace when writing them.....
So I think I create a page dedicated to my list rambling.....
Who ever wishes to join me or create something that you wish to share with my viewers....message me. As you all know I rarely openly post comments left by others.....but in this case I will make the exception.
*stand by*
and
Carry on. :)
I like it to - deja'vu...already seen. It isn't anything tangible - a specific situation or comment made by someone to me.....but rather a feeling. A sense that you have in some way or another, upset someone or something. The balance has shifted and you are waiting for it to fall.
No?
Meh....
Maybe it's just me.....
But nevertheless, I have this feeling. It's an awkward feeling. The kind of feeling you get when you know you have an important meeting the next day, or you are nervous about that doctors appt....a nervous and unbalanced feeling that is out of your control.
I know that someone out there is annoyed with me. And in an even stranger way, I think I know who and it comes as no surprise. Family can be the most cherished and most painful part of one's life. You can love them unconditionally and in the same breath they can cause you the most pain.
I may be the most laid back of all my family but in some ways I am the most sensitive and take everything to heart - whether it is of my own making or theirs. Maybe that is why I am always the punching bag.....
*sigh*
On to other things.....
Lists.....I love them. Most of the time they serve no other purpose other than a way for me to waste time and daydream about all the things I want to accomplish.....whether today of five years from now. I have completed few lists - since they always grow out of control and become overwhelming. However, I continue to use them, create them and find a strange sense of determination and peace when writing them.....
So I think I create a page dedicated to my list rambling.....
Who ever wishes to join me or create something that you wish to share with my viewers....message me. As you all know I rarely openly post comments left by others.....but in this case I will make the exception.
*stand by*
and
Carry on. :)
Monday
Bridal Bliss.
Ok.....I felt that this post should be the conclusion to my Anti-Bride series.
And apparently so did Blogger......because the WHOLE page has disappeared.
Well played Blogger, well played.
So here it is.
A bride is now a wife.....again....
15 Sept. 2012
Parker and I share our first dance as husband and wife.
The irony is we got married a year before.....
So technically, this is our first anniversary dance...
Should be a fun and wonderful timeline to explain to our kids.....
A beautiful & magical night I had planned so hard for.....it was everything I knew it would be.
I married my best friend.
I married a family of wonderful people, whom I adore and respect.
I have two new sisters and a set of parents who I love as much as my own.
I feel complete and content.
I am humbled by the kindness and love shown to us during our wedding and the days that surrounded it.
I am home.
I am ready to hold his hand and walk towards my future.
I am married. And I have never been happier.
Capt. & Mrs. Awesome.
Est. 2012
And apparently so did Blogger......because the WHOLE page has disappeared.
Well played Blogger, well played.
So here it is.
A bride is now a wife.....again....
Parker and I share our first dance as husband and wife.
The irony is we got married a year before.....
So technically, this is our first anniversary dance...
Should be a fun and wonderful timeline to explain to our kids.....
A beautiful & magical night I had planned so hard for.....it was everything I knew it would be.
I married my best friend.
I married a family of wonderful people, whom I adore and respect.
I have two new sisters and a set of parents who I love as much as my own.
I feel complete and content.
I am humbled by the kindness and love shown to us during our wedding and the days that surrounded it.
I am home.
I am ready to hold his hand and walk towards my future.
I am married. And I have never been happier.
Capt. & Mrs. Awesome.
Est. 2012
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