Moving ain't easy...

Moving is one of THE most stressful things in life, behind only death, divorce, and the new healthcare plan.  We are moving soon (if all the million seperate pieces of two deals continue to fit together just right), and my hands are raw from cleaning, my mind is weak and tired from making decisions, and my cholesterol is sky-rocketing from all the take-out we are eating - so that we don't mess the spotless kitchen up.

When you are moving, you need to make the house look as if no one actually resides there.  When you eat something, you must immediately wash your dish, or throw it away.  When you are undressing at night, you must not only toss your clothes in the hamper...they must also land there.  Halfway isn't good enough anymore.

You have to always worry about curb appeal, so no junk left on the porch anymore; I have seriously flipped out over a forgotten water bottle innocently left on our porch.  "Someone might see this!" I shrieked, to a bunch of surprised eleven year olds who were playing basketball (and dirtying up the street with their scuffmarks, no doubt).  My husband heard a half-hour lecture on the woes of my world when he lost his mind and put his briefcase by the door instead of jamming it in a closet the way I showed him to do.

And, the less tangible things  Soon, the walls will be bare, the windows without drapes, and just hooks and nails will remain; along with all the memories you have made here.

Change is good; right?  Right?

How?

Nancy Pelosi is being fawned over by mainstream media - I am thinking specifically of Diane Sawyer interview.  Is this how low we've sunk in our search for inspiring Americans?  The "walk through the peasants" by Pelosi was a bit much on bill passage day; it's big, and a game-changer for sure, but civil rights it ain't.

How has this happened?  President Obama was prepared to drop healthcare after the Scott Brown victory, until Pelosi urged him on.  A bill no one has read fully, rammed through for people who don't want it, spear-headed by a woman whose approval rating is now just slightly higher than unemployment.

Come on sweet November - the people will have their say.  I hope people never skip a trip to the polls again - this is what we get when we stay home; a country we don't recognize.  As VP Joe Biden would say to Americans:  "It's F---in' nuts!"

Back with a Healthcare Grudge

Hello!!

After launching my fledgling blog, I took som time off following the death of my beloved grandmother.  I spoke at her memorial, laughed and cried with family and friends, and reflected about this whole crazy life, as a death makes you do.  And I didn't want to communicate, but instead felt like it was a time to pull back.  Sometimes a good blogger works not on quantity of posts, I believe, but quality of posts, and makes sure that they do indeed have something relevant or interesting to say.

That said...what the heck s going on with healthcare?  This country will never truly be the same if this bill is rammed through.  Why is the President willing to be just a one-term President in order to see this through?  What is in this bill?

Justifying healthcare by saying that the "Cornhusker Kickback" and other shady deals ae no longer in the bill shows you just want a bad/dangerous bill this is.  The insurance industry may never come back if this happens.  And how many people does this industry employ?

Call, call, call your representatives, or drop an email.  At this point I think that all of them are crazy - at least the ones who support this bill.  Dennis Kuchinich - what are you doing?  The President used the office (as many have done) to bamboozle you and your wife, who is now going to try to make the world vegan in a pwer-teaming with Michelle Obama.  Lordy.

Rahm May Know Best

Interesting reports about friction between Rahm Emanuel and the Prez - apparently, Rahm is growing frustrated with Obama's resistance to move more to the right (at least a little) on certain issues, and also his insistence on the healthcare passage here in the infancy (is it toddlerhood, yet?) of his first term.

This has gained enough traction n some major press outlets (Washington Post, for example) that it is starting to be a distraction for the White House.  I have to give Emanuel kudos for trying to get through to the Prez - he sees the disaster in the making if Obama does not right his ship and listen to the will of the people and focus on jobs.  Also a tireless worker, he apparently has the gifts of foresight and is looking out for the President, altough the President probably doesn't see it as such.

You have to keep the peace at home, even - and especially - if home is the White House.  Listen to Rahm, Mr. President - or are you that far gone inside the hubris-filled healthcare bubble that you have created?  I hope not.

Idol Back, Healthcare Still an Issue

Ahhh, it's like a comfy bed - watching American Idol! I've missed every episode so far.  Hmmm, is Ellen a good judge?  I liked the idea of adding her, and a wondering what Simon thinks; I have read that they don't get along. Oh, what's that?  This is a politics blog?  Oh, okay...

Well, a little politics, then.  The President is going to offer a scaled back version (how many drafts is this, now?) of his health plan, and is supposedly going to add some Republican ideas.  I am still wondering, at the root of it all - why?  Why is he still pressing forward with any type of plan?  He really doesn't care if he is a one-term president, so it seems to be either 1) an obsession, or 2) such pride that it (the pride) is unmanageable now.  If he would just pass one thing - make sure people are covered regardless of existing illness - he would steal our hearts.  Really, he would.  That would be huge.

Also, he needs to give up the ciggys and the desserts so he can stay healthy and learn how to lead us.

MMDB may be coming...

Okay, I may seriously trade categories and turn this into a marine mammals defense blog (I'll call it MMDB) ...what the heck is going on with this poor KILLER whale that killed his trainer? (See what I'm driving at with the bold type?)

Because this whale has been in captivity for 20+ years, humans have destroyed a lot of his natural instincts, so they may have to destroy him.

Sounds like there's a parallel in D.C.  The President is going to push this healthcare through (put us in a man-made tank) if the Republicans don't play ball (do un-natural tricks) and work on this nationalized healthcare (feed us fish that looks fresh but is in fact, old.)  Maybe we should all go live in the ocean; become mer-people.  And if whales eat us; then so be it.

P.S. on this: I do feel terrible that this trainer was killed, and in such a brutal fashion.  But I have the feeling that she, of all people, would be sad at the thought of this mammal's possible euthanasia.  I'm sure she was aware of the risks every day, and it was worth it because she loved these mammals.  We need to show our love differently - by letting them go.

Free All the Willies, Everywhere

Okay, so one day you are minding your business, going to get something to eat, or watching your kids play, when a huge sea mammal comes out of the water and grabs you and two or three friends, and drags you into the ocean.

You are without your family, coffee is just a dream now, and it turns out that you are living here - forever.  The huge water creatures teach you tricks, feed you when you perform, and name you Goober or Popcorn.  At night you can hear the free humans, above the surface and back on land, calling your name. They sound sad, and distant, but you can hear them.  Always.

One day, you decide that you have had it. One of the huge sea creatures wants you to stand on your head and rub your belly, and he is laughing.  You are never getting out of here, you see that now, and your nature is to fight back. You didn't ask for this. So, without even realizing it, you charge the sea mammal, and you hurt him; bad.  He might even be dead.

You were kidnapped, put in a small cage to live, and your loved ones and your natural habitat are tantalizingly close.  But because you did what humans do...you might be killed.  Shame on you for getting caught.

WHALES BELONG IN THE OCEAN AND PEOPLE BELONG ON THE LAND!!  IF GOD HAD WANTED WHALES TO BE PETS, HE WOULD HAVE MADE THEM SMALLER, TAMER, AND ABLE TO WEAR DESIGNER CLOTHES AND FIT INTO A PURSE.  WHAT ARE WE DOING TO THE ANIMALS?

Okay, all done with that. :-) In other news, I may read a column I wrote about Grammy years ago at her memorial, and I just hope I can get through it.  Sh will help me out, I know.  She would have sided with the whale, by the way...all the way.

A Cowgirl in our Midst - The Conclusion

Mary Helen passed away peacefuly at 6:19 am today, with her son, my dad, and her daughter-in-law, my mom, at her side.  Swift crossing, Mary Helen, and enjoy the awaiting jubilee - I know you are.

In my sadness and respect, I picture MH alone, atop a horse, at the foot of a mountain that is part of the Tennessee mountains. There is a valley of purple wildflowers below, and they catch her roving, alert eyes as she scans the woods around her and the mountains above her.  She is not 90 anymore, but 19 or so, and in my daydream has not yet married or had children - those are to come.  She gazes out over the valley, and shifts her shotgun slightly on her lap as she urges her horse to start walking forward, away from the steep mountain before her. The sun is filtering through the trees, and she is wondering how she will capture the scene - and the feeling that it gives her - later, on canvas.  She has a sense that the Lord is quite close here in the woods leading out to the purple valley, but has had this feeling so often here that it is like greeting her dearest friend in the place they are accustomed to meeting.  She decides to just take off, and with a quick kick to her willing mountain horse, off they plunge into the valley.  They ride as fast as they can, for the pure joy of doing it, yet with a feeling of purpose neither the horse nor Mary Helen quite yet understands.  They disappear; only Mary Helen's happy shout of discovery and joy echoes through the valley as the purple flowers part to mark her passing.

To God we entrust this dear soul; as He is the One who truly understands it.

Monday Blend

With a RealClear Politics poll revealing that Obama's approval rating is at 47.1%,and Congress' approval rating at a paltry 20.4%, still we slog on through the healthcare "crisis" that is stalling progress in other areas and testing the patience of Americans who thought that they had already been loud and clear on this.  As most Amercans continue to worry about losing their job or have already lost their job, the economy continues to suffer.  Every day.  Vacations are put on hold (sorry, tourism), homes remain on the market and renovations put on hold (sorry, real estate market), goods and services are scaled back (sorry, retailers and all sorts of service-oriented entities). Unemployment did see a modest improvement statistically speaking, from 10.0% to 9.7% in January.  But there's this from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for January:

"The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks and over)
continued to trend up in January, reaching 6.3 million. Since the start of
the recession in December 2007, the number of long-term unemployed has risen
by 5.0 million. (See table A-12.)

In January, the civilian labor force participation rate was little changed at
64.7 percent. The employment-population ratio rose from 58.2 to 58.4 percent.
(See table A-1.)

The number of persons who worked part time for economic reasons (sometimes
referred to as involuntary part-time workers) fell from 9.2 to 8.3 million
in January. These individuals were working part time because their hours had
been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job."
 
And we have idiotic, potentially illegal shenanigans going on like the Nebraska deal?  Why is the President pushing forward on this, and why wouldn't Harry Reid move forward the more modest-gains healthcare proposal that some Republicans were actually on board with?  Think of it this way: if we passed one bill that established that it is illegal to deny coverage to persons with an existing health problem, that would be HUGE for healthcare in 2010.  Can't we look at this one piece at a time, and turn our public focus (what leaders talk about on TV, C-SPAN) to jobs?  That would sure make people sitting around unemployed feel better, to see that on tv.  (That and the Americans beating the Canadians again at hockey in the Olympics.) Please drop the hubris and concentrate on jobs, Mr. President.

Good Saturday Reading, etc.

I usually don't agree with Yahoo's political bias (because it's not my own :-), and have frequently thought of changing my mail and homepage because they lean left - unabashedly - with their homegrown analysis/commentary, and the commentary they choose to post from other sources.  But a pretty good article today from AP seems fair, and hits on the important point that the public is "numb" as the author puts it, and is tired of the political one-uppmanship between the parties.  Also, I love articles that us non-policy wonks can read without our brains hurting. 

I disagree with the author's tax cut assertion, however; tax credits are not tax cuts, so the claim by Romney re: Dems and taxes is valid.  But check it out; great article.

What's the deal with airplanes lately, in an unrelated brain sneeze from me, your faithful correspondent: Kevin Smith gets booted off a flight for being too fat, and Romney gets in a fight with one-row-forward dude on a flight?  You need to be in shape to fly; a lot is going on up there.  Keep your wits about you when flying the "friendly" skies!

Today I am doing homework for two courses I am taking, and cleaning out a closet.  Ahhh, suburbia.  I just watched a documentary on Shaun White travelling the globe snowboarding, and wanted to reach through the screen and say, "Don't slow down and don't ease up."  What a life!  I bet he doesn't have organized closets, though.  :-)

Politicizing Tragedy - I Chose the Wrong Party

In an earlier post about the Texas plane crash into an IRS building, I warned that this event should not be politicized.  I was actually afraid that perhaps some conservatives might blame big government for this man's feelings of alienation.  But no - it is, in fact, the liberals that take a mis-guided whiff of a swing - saying that this man's alienation is similar to the feelings of the extreme members of the Tea Party Movement.  Huh????

Both a Washington Post editorial writer and a New York magazine blogger asserted this in different ways.

Umm-umm; too bad, and worthy of some professional reflection and self-reflection on the part of these writers.  Two people died, Americans were sadly reminded of 9/11...and it's equated to the Tea Party folk.