Hope and Good Feelings

I have to say with some of the sad, tragic things coming up in the news lately, it's nice when every once in a while, something inspiring happens. I was happy to hear about this. I think most of us are aware of the "church" that pickets funerals in the name of God. This is not the first time I've heard of people talking about trying to counteract the picketers. But this is the first time I have seen a news story reflecting such an overwhelming and compassionate response. What I love about this story is that the  gathering was not about telling the "church" what big jerks they are, although I do believe they are big jerks. It was about showing love and support to the family of the fallen soldier. These are people with hearts who identified that this family should not have to suffer heckling or hatred as they grieve the sudden loss of their loved one, and deal with the pain I would imagine comes with that situation. The idea was to honor the man, who haled from their alma mater, by forming a maroon wall. They were to face away from the place the protesters might stand. They were to remain silent.

Of course, the protesters didn't show. I'm sure they heard about the event being organized online. I like to think that this show of support lifted the family up a little bit that day though. And it is so heartening and inspiring to me to see strangers unite for such an amazing act of compassion.

Important Issues on the News.

I like to ponder the deep things in life. Like this:



Really, I've been thinking hard on this. My thoughts include:

1. What *exactly* is in that video. Her description is odd. What are the girls doing? What was the context? They make it sound like NC-17 stuff.
2. The Police? Really? People are demanding criminal charges? I mean, yeah, the teacher is stupid. Don't show videos you have not reviewed yet, dork. Don't let students YouTube things in class. Duh. But should he be jailed for dumb?
3. Why, when I googled this to see if there was more information out there, was the other thing I found on this high school that some brilliant policeman maced some Tongans for doing a Haka at the end of a High School football game? (warning: watching this video might possibly cause puking or just seizures. Don't watch too hard. But you'll get the idea.)



Way to be culturally competent dude. Six dudes doing a Haka does not equal a riot. Simmer down. Okay, this article says it was fifteen men and boys(seriously wondering based on the video if they suck at counting...) but really, this is silly. The police should take some responsibility and admit they might have used a better method for crowd control in this instance, right? The issue, supposedly, was that they were blocking the exit. So the police department could say, hey, we're gonna do some trainings on this, right?  Ummm, not so much. They said "hey, these folks coulda been starting a riot. We didn't know! We never seen a Haka" Are you kidding me? They took a look at a group of Polynesian men moving in unison and chanting in their native tongue, and it looked like a riot? They got some smarts out there in Roosevelt, UT! But, you know, they waited 17 seconds after ordering the men to "make a hole" to allow people out of the stadium. I am STUNNED that the judge thought the officer was justified in thinking he was in "immediate threat to danger."

Moving on from tangent...

4. (remember, I was making a list up there ^^) The mascot for Union High School is the Cougar. (I discovered this in the article about the Haka "riot."). Really, good people of Roosevelt, shouldn't you also be protesting this, along with the obscene Tosh.o clip? Because, as you know, Cougars are just not appropriate. 

Politicalness

I don't usually talk about politics. I know I kind of dance on the line sometimes what with my little rants about social issues and whatnot. Some of those opinions probably correlate with party platforms or something. So maybe this is not a shock to you. And it probably would not be a shock to my dad. But still, don't tell him.

I think I might be a little bit liberal.

I know, right?

How do I know this? Because I have Friends on MyFace who, although they are lovely people, post somewhat moronic things, like how Obama should "give people my work ethic, not my money." Now, I'm not saying there are some lazy people out there. There are totally lazy people. But, um, there are a LOT of people out there who are unemployed. People with little ones and problems you cannot imagine. I hear about these things because of parts of my job. And these people are working their butts off to keep their kids housed and fed. Christmas was sparse for these people this year. And that might be how Christmas regularly is. And it's not because they are lazy and "milking the system." They are doing their best to survive. And, from what I have seen, this describes the majority of people receiving assistance. If you want to see steam come out of my ears, explain to me why I am wrong, given what you saw on the news that one time for a second before the story about that star who went to rehab. People who are far away from the issue can very easily pass judgement. Also, many lazy people are employed. I can attest to this. Let's start by firing them and giving their jobs to someone who does not want to make our days crappy.

Another keeper on MyFace Statuses:

This coming year, both Groundhog Day and the State of the Union address occur on the same day. It’s an ironic juxtaposition of events; one event involves a meaningless ritual in which we look to a creature of limited intelligence for prognostication...while the other involves a groundhog.

You know what I think is dumb and reflects poorly on oneself? Truly disrespectful putdowns that mock a public figure in a way that makes it clear that you are willing to distort reality in order to justify your beliefs. Because, um, really? REALLY??? You, Mr/Ms. Republican, would like to mock our current president on his oratory skills? Reeeeally? Hmm. Interesting choice.

Let me just say that it annoyed me just a little bit when people ridiculed Bush's clear and true lack of oratory skills. Really, there was no arguing that public speaking was not his strong point. But at least it was a true fault. But i don't think that the corner on mocking is held by either of the two major parties. Can't we just all get along kids? I like the idea of thoughtful and insightful debate about actual issues, and not just statements about character (creature of limited intelligence...). What I'm saying here is, read the freaking paper, or watch some news, or SOMETHING before spouting off on MyFace about that issue someone at work told you about. ACTUAL FACTS, people. Base your opinions on those. I beg you.

And, seriously. Don't tell my dad.

Saving the World One Viral Video at a Time

Maybe one of your Friends posted the video that's gone viral of the homeless man with the golden radio voice on MyFace.

I just have to ask this, after seeing the buzz. Since when should second chances in life be predicated on whether you are nice, or good? We have to deserve the chance to find a better way to live our life? Really?? Well, shoot, I’m doomed. I don’t like being nice.

I understand the appeal of this video. It's nice to see someone in a tough spot with a good attitude and the chance and determination to rise above the low point they have reached. It’s a feel-good extravaganza. But here's the thing. The fact that he has a good attitude does not mean that he deserves a life that is kinder to him more than the sad looking bum ranting and raving in what you can only assume is an alcohol and/or drug induced stupor on the sidewalk downtown. You have no idea what either of them has been through. No idea what brought them to this low point. There is no way for you to see what is in their hearts. Especially not in a brief encounter on the side of the road, let alone a YouTube video. And don’t think that just because you have judged a man “good” who has been brought so low that it’s okay that you judged. Because in order to be so impressed with a homeless man that seems to have heart, you most likely expect that most homeless wouldn’t show that same amazing spirit. Apparently he’s special.

What could look like the effects of drug use could be the effects of a mental illness that causes severe, frightening, never-ending hallucinations of people you and I can't see hurting them and abusing them over and over, day in and day out. Or you could be right. It could be drug use. They could be self-medicating to escape those hallucinations. Or self-medicating to escape the awful memories of traumatic experiences and horrible present circumstances. Or they could just be an addict. One stupid, adolescent moment where they tried to fit in or escape might have lead them down the path to an addiction that grips them so hard it has enveloped their life and caused them to lose people they love and live in a way no one would intentionally choose.

I was once in an eating establishment near my office downtown having a sandwich for lunch with a friend, where some weary hellfire and damnation missionaries were breaking from handing out their leaflets of bad news, and having a little chat about the homeless people they had observed on the streets that day. The woman loudly voiced the opinion that these durn homeless people simply needed to get a job, and support themselves, instead of living off the charity of others. Because, in her mind, what was keeping these people homeless was laziness. Imagine, if you will, Holliberry watching in horror intermingled with pride as said friend confronted this hypocritical woman and told her she had no right to judge, and that she exhibited a stupendous amount of ignorance in her loudly shared opinions. Also there were other things said. I was quite proud as I edged my way out the door because confrontation is scary.

I'm not saying this isn't a compelling video. For people who may not have contact with homeless people in any real or meaningful way, it could help open their mind at least a little to the idea that homeless people are human beings with talents and personalities and opinions and childhood memories and aspirations just like we all are. Where the “viral” status gets silly is where people think that they "advocate" for homeless people by sharing this video, or commenting on it. At least, it's silly if that's the one and only effort they make for the year before turning their thoughts to whether to play with their new phone app or watch Survivor Season 50 on demand. (And yes, I’m bitter I have neither option.) Try acknowledging someone who is clearly homeless, instead of whispering behind their back, ignoring them when they try to talk to you, insulting them, or staring at them like they're the latest exhibit at your local zoo, or the most repulsive sight you’ve ever seen. Give them that piece of dignity. They’ll appreciate that even more than the bars of soap you donated to the shelter that one time.

That Clears it All Up...

I'm confused. Anyone else confused by this? Ummm... so, the whole prostitution thing, still bad, right? But said prostitutes don't have to worry about immorally wearing condoms? Because they were worried?

I Need a New News Source.

So you know in the past I've been a big fan of the CNN. Of course, since my husband Anderson works there, I'm kind of fond of it. But seriously, their website is starting to suck. Or beyond starting. They have so many stupid teaser headlines, and too much of their "news" seems to have to do with celebrities and gossip about people. Blech. I am trying to de-gossip my life. I have freed myself of certain celebrity gossip sites. I realized a year or two ago that more often than not the person doing the gossiping was more just enraging me for the way they would say mean and hurtful things and dehumanize celebrities, and that was called entertainment. Um, not really very entertaining to me. These are people. With really screwed up lives. That kind of makes me sad. We should not encourage or mock. They need help. And possibly medication. At least the ones they were mocking most.

So where might one go for news online now? I need me some good, solid news. And not all left leaning or right leaning. Just some nice meaty journalism and stuff that makes me think and want to say things and do stuff! Is there such a thing? Am I delusional?

Let's All Take a Step Back and Think Before Clicking Here.

Many of you may have heard about the controversial video taken of a Seattle police officer who punched a teenage girl. If not, here ya go. It was taken on a cell phone so try not to puke from all the moving around...



I've been a little bit surprised by some reactions to the video. Many people I've been hearing talk about it agree that the girl who got clocked shouldn't have interfered (that part wasn't the surpising part). Also, if you notice, they jaywalked directly under an overpass built over the street to keep people from getting hit on what is a crazy busy street in Seattle. So that shows they're kind of dumb. But I'm a little disturbed to see people "liking" the officer's actions on MyFace. Um, really, he sucks so much at restraining a teenage girl that he has to punch her in the face? They need to teach those officers some basic restraint techniques. I'm not saying he should be fired or anything, but really, I don't like seeing women get punched in the face. Call me old-fashioned.

What is This World Coming To?

Have you heard? The Boy Scouts saw a need to introduce a gaming merit badge. You know, because gaming is a big part of character building, which is what they are all about. I can imagine them, sitting around the table, scratching their heads, and saying, gorsh, what can we do to encourage boys to be better men? Hmm... Scratch, scratch. Then, ah ha! The light bulb came on. What boys need is more gaming. Because they are lacking that time in front of the TV nowadays. Those young hoodlums are spending way too much time gallavanting outdoors, building fires and learning how to give CPR. We need to bring more balance to their lives. But HOW can we convince them to spend more time on the X Box? You know, when we were kids, you didn't have to convince kids that gaming was important. They did it because it was the RIGHT thing to do, and you didn't have to bribe them. That's because our parents taught us what was most important. Kids just don't get that nowadays. That's it, fellas, we're going to make it a merit badge!

Phew. I'm so glad that the BSA has it's priorities straight. Our youth will be raised up right, and the next generation will have... really twitchy thumbs and no social skills.

Haiti

I can't stop thinking about Haiti. Did you catch the Hope for Haiti benefit Friday night? I thought they did it real classy-like. They didn't really even announce the stars, or credit them on-screen. They totally kept the focus on Haiti. And I hope the millions of dollars they raised helped. My heart goes out to that poor family. I hope if there are people buried alive they are found soon. Such a nightmare. Let's pray for them all.

Here's a few of my favorites:

And More Happy Thoughts.

I'm been following with horror the case of the 15 year old who was gang raped at her Homecoming Dance. I hesitated to post anything about it, just because it's so discouraging, and I try to avoid the "this world is rotten and the apocalypse must be approaching" kind of statements that sometimes consume us with stories like this. It was hard to think of it from a different angle, though. How could all those kids just stand there? How could this be the buzz that was passing around and no one called 911? What is wrong with teenagers?!? These are the questions that I kept asking myself, and it's hard not to when you read a story like this. But I am opposed to teenager hating. Hate on adults all you want, but don't hate on the kids! At least not as a big clump. Hate them in little clumps.

Anyways, I read this article today, and I had a revelatory moment. The writer was responding to a question that is often asked when something horrific happens in our schools: "what is wrong with our children?" He pointed out that often in situations like this, the youth may "not (be) educated on how to stop it." When I read that, I thought, how silly. Ya pick up the friggin' phone and dial 911. Duh. How dumb are these kids? But then he went on to talk about it, and there is some merit to what he says. These kids may not know who to call. They may doubt that anyone will take them seriously, given their age. In an area like the one where the crime was committed, I'm sure 911 gets a lot of hits. Also, who knows if the security guards would have listened to a kid, or if there was any trust established between the kids and the guards/officers on duty. And how do they know they wouldn't be publicly outed as the "narc." While the situation continues to infuriate me, and I 100% think there were kids who heard rumors or saw things that were not so dumb they couldn't have called 911, and kept calling until someone came, I have to think there are other layers and nuances to the situation.

And really, where were the adults? They had to have known the dark spots are good places to check on dance night. All sorts of illegal and inappropriate activities can be gotten up to at a high school dance when given a nice secluded, dark corner. At no point should the adults and security all just park themselves for a nice chitchat.

What this really comes down to, for me, is that we need to continually have a dialogue with the youth in our lives about right and wrong, and what their responsibilities are to the community around them. This sounds like an obvious idea. One girl understood her responsibility, and called 911. But not all kids are getting this basic education. There are some crazy parents out there. I've met them. Some of them need to be educated before they can educate their kids. So get on that, won't you?

POP Goes the Kiddo!

Maybe you have all heard about the case of the kid in a box on the top of a moving minivan.

Since mom's mistake number one is pretty well established, I'd like to focus on her SECOND mistake. Allowing your child to take responsibility for your actions. ON TELEVISION. 'Scuse me, crazy mom. I'm talking to you. I know that your understanding of child developmental stages is, um, lacking... but I'll just let you in on a little secret. Thirteen year-olds do not have fully developed brains. That's why they don't drive. That's why there's someone older there, to ensure that they don't get bright ideas about how to transport their homelessness box. And that is also why you have control over who interviews your daughter. And also responsibility for stupid things the two of you do together. Because you're the mom. And you could have said no, and, I don't know, not driven the car with your child on top of it? And having not said no, you could have made the right choice the SECOND time a decision was placed before you, the parent, and not let your child take the fall on television. What lesson exactly were you driving home there for her?

Poor Mona

I feel that my education was surely lacking in the art history arena, since it was not until today that I learned that people like to vandalize the Mona Lisa. Did you know that:

1. It was stolen in 1911 from the Louvre, and the true thief, an Italian who believed it should be displayed in Italy, was not discovered until two years later when he tried to sell it? Also, the first suspect, who did not turn out to be involved, had threatened to burn down the Louvre in the past.
2. In 1956, it was damaged when someone threw acid on it?
3. Later in 1956 someone threw a rock at it?
4. On August 2, 2009, a deranged woman threw a mug at it, and was taken to a psychiatric institution, where it was determined that she was mad at France for not taking her as a citizen. The good news is, the museum finally wised up and installed bulletproof glass in front of the painting.

It's all true. The Internet told me so.

Freakin' Awesome!

This article is linked to on the cnn website with the headline "Seattle Bakes in Freak Heat Wave." Wooh! We're officially freaks! Freaks who generally don't have air conditioning in their house. But I'll leave the whining for the MyFace status.

Drinky, drinky, you're a finky.

With such a catchy and meaningless title, how can you resist reading?

People say random things sometimes upon discovering I am Mormon, and/or that I went to BYU. My favorite, and the oddest reaction in my opinion, tends to be somewhat like the following:

"I hate Utah! They make you become members of the bars! And they won't sell you alcohol on Sunday." To which I respond somewhere along the lines of, "Mmm." 'Cause I kind of don't care if they can't get ahold of alcohol as easily as they would like. They could go hiking or something instead. There are lots of mountains, trails, and just dirt in general there.

Apparently recently that has (mostly) changed. Those who wish to imbibe no longer need to join a club to get a beer. It was interesting to me that at least one local who frequented a specific bar didn't like the change. He thought it might bring in strangers, thus increasing the chance of someone causing a ruckus. I'm not entirely sure why there was a law in place to require that people join a bar in order to patronize it. I'm sure it had something to do with the large percentage of Mormons in the state, since members of my religion do not drink alcohol, along with coffee and tea. I find it slightly amusing that MSNBC claims that the law was in place to "sheild Mormons from alcohol." If all they had to do was join the club (put their name in a registery and pay a small one-time--or possibly annual, I don't know--fee) I don't think that would have "shielded" anyone. I'm sure that the heavy taxes were put into place to try to convince people not to drink, so maybe that's the shield. Having spent four years in Utah Valley (where BYU is), which we affectionately called the BYU Bubble, I didn't meet many people who belonged to bars while I lived in Utah. I actually never heard about the law until I had left Utah. I don't think there were may bars near where I lived.

I know many people believe that it's only Mormons in Utah, but actually they only make up about 60% of the population. Yes, that is much higher than other states. But Washington, Idaho, Nevada, and California have quite a few members as well. Washington, for instance, has 257,710 as of the latest count (they report numbers yearly). Compared to Utah's 1,857,667 that is not very many, but it's not a teeny number. But I digress. If you want to see more statistics on Mormons, who number over 13.5 million worldwide, go here.

My first thought upon hearing this news is that it's funny how long out-moded laws stay in place. But then I noticed in the article that the law was only in place for 40 years. That means it was put in place in the late 60's, for those of you who don't want to think that hard. From what I can glean from the ever-reliable internet, prohibition prevented people from getting a drink at the beginning of last century. I'm assuming somewhere in the middle there were bars that didn't require membership, and they had to clamp down. But I could totally be making up history. The bottom line is, in the eyes of your average beer drinker, Utah became a little less wacky this month.

P.S. I have non-Mormon friends who read this blog, so watch your judginess in the comment section if it looks like it's trying to slip the leash.

It's Letter Week!

Dear Pentagon,

I see here that you are contemplating banning smoking for all soldiers in uniform, and the sales of tobacco products on military bases. This is a very interesting proposal. I get the part where healthy soldiers are important. Also, the smelliness and phlegminess which are common characteristics of smokers are not hot, so really you are doing them a favor.

Just one little thing. I don't know if you have ever been around someone who just gave up smoking. I am hear to tell you, it makes them very crabby. Put them in a stressful situation and they REALLY get crabby when you won't let them smoke. So someone who is, say, in a combat situation, with a gun, having "nic fits" might be a little trigger happy. I'm just saying. And before you say you will happily supply them the meds to quit, vivid freaky dreams+combat zone+gun= also pretty scary.

I imagine that some would argue that smoking is banned in many workplaces, and it's all part of being professional. Totally agree. That whole All the President's Men, smoking in the newsroom era has passed, and we should respect each other's air space and try not to intentionally give each other cancer. But people have breaks at those jobs, see? They get to go outside and smoke. Only your soldiers still have their uniforms on during those breaks. See, crabby.

Knowing me like you do, Pentagon, you might be surprised that I would take the side of the smoker. But there's this thing called free will. I believe in it. I think sometimes we let people use it in this country. It's not so much that I don't agree with you that the whole military should stop smoking. That would be awesome. They would not only be healthier, they could spend their discretionary money on things that are really important. Like the equipment, music, and wardrobe to shoot a quality music video. My issue is that if you make them do it against their will, it's like you've become the military of some other country. And the soldiers might wonder what exactly they are fighting for in this new country that is so foreign to them. And then you might have to send them all to prison, where they can smoke in peace and choreograph a little jail yard boogie.

Feel Better about your Crazies

I've been trying, but failing, to avoid all the annoying "news" coverage of a certain reality show couple with a plethora of children. I've been torn about blogging about it, just because saying something means I am participating in the gossipy annoyingness (technical term). I just cannot believe what is going on, though, so I am giving in and just saying my piece.

I don't care about their marital problems. I don't care if he's cheating, and I don't care if she's a control freak. I don't care if they are getting counseling. Okay, not totally true, I hope they are, because I hate seeing a marriage fail, but it's not my business.

I know that the argument is that they made it our business when they pretty much sold their lives to a television station for fame and money, and cool vacations and experiences. But to me, that argument only partly works. No one would have bought it, or continued to pay them for it, if there weren't so many voyeurs in the world wanting to get a view of their homelife. I'm not saying people are awful for wanting to watch. A family with sextuplets, plus a pair of twins is fascinating, and having an adorable three-year-old nephew, I cannot imagine multiplying his energy by six and putting them in one room. So there's the curiosity factor there. But I don't think that the afore mentioned couple was thinking about their relationship being dissected when they signed on. The focus of the show, from what little I have heard/seen is the children, and how their parents survive each day, basically.

I also don't think that the fact that they signed a contract to be put on television gives us license to renact our worst moments of adolescence. It does not automatically mean that we as a society can behave like the Mean Girls at your local junior high school. Chasing them around, taking pictures, passing them around, discussing it every day... sounds kind of like our good old teenage angsty days, doesn't it? Minus the internet component, of course, for most of us. And the pictures, because we didn't waste film like that back in the pre-digital days. But I can tell you it sounds like some of the bullying that goes on nowadays in your local junior high and high schools. So... gossiping and spreading nasty rumors is bad in Junior High School, but as adults, we should not only support it, but pay for it? Mmmkay. Way to teach the children, guys.

And another thing. What is up with their extended family? Of the little that I have watched on tv (and I've really tried hard not to get sucked in), so far the dad's brother and sister-in-law have done a full interview with some "news" show, and the brother of the alleged "other woman" (she swore they were just friends) have come out and talked to the media. Why would you do that to your family? Both of them were making things look worse with their interviews, so it wasn't the protective factor. They were basically "confirming" that the hubby is a cheating you-know-what, and that they are terrible parents, and that the kids are scarred forever. I'm sure they are saying "thanks bro" to both those charmers, and to the sister-in-law (who only did the interview "for the children." I'm sure the children will grow up feeling loved, knowing that aunty trash talked mommy and daddy on national tv).

The argument of the brother of the mom (or really his wife), is that they are tormenting these poor children by having their every tantrum and pouty face memorialized and televized. Only from what I have read, the film crew is only there a few days a week, for two hours at a time. They've had the same crew the whole time in an effort to make it a little less weird for the kids. I'm not saying I would let someone film my life like that, because I wouldn't. I already know I'm crazy sometimes. I don't need America to know that. But the way the news is spinning it, you would think they are there 24 hours a day. And really, if you have to spin it, at some point it doesn't become news, it becomes starting a rumor.

After watching the whole media hoopla fueled by family members of the primary people involved, I have something to say. Aren't you glad your family hasn't humiliated you on national tv? Count your blessings, people! Your crazies only have a local audience!

Stupid Pita heads.

A certain extremist organization for animals, or Pita, as I like to call them, has just become more stupid in my eyes. I would have thought their use of pornography in their ads to draw attention to their feelings about animal issues would have been the dumbest they could get. Nope. They can get dumber.

If you know Seattle at all, you have heard of Pike Place Market. You know, the farmer's market down near the waterfront in downtown Seattle. The most familiar image associated with this attraction would be the Public Market sign mounted near the south side of the main market area. If you watch Grey's, you might recognize this as the place they sometimes pretend is located right next to the hospital, along with the Space Needle. I like to laugh at those episodes. Just ask JennaL, only crazy people walk from one landmark to the other unless they have really good walking shoes on and are prepared to walk uphill for what might seem like a very long time. She knows because she walked there with me. That was at least 5 or 6 years ago. She might possibly forgive me soon. Maybe? Right, Jenna? But I digress.

One of the most famous attractions at Pike Place Market, besides the booths with local artists and craftsmen, and fresh produce and flowers, is the fresh fish market, where fish are thrown from man to man (not being sexist here, just have never seen a woman working there, not that it might not happen) when someone places an order for fish. Tourists (and okay, we'll admit it, locals sometimes) can be seen gathering around this area, waiting to see the fish thrown. It's really fun to watch 50 people or so gather, and the guy at the counter reminding them that someone needs to buy something before anything will get tossed. Great marketing ploy, if you ask me. Considering how slippery and heavy a fish can be, it's amazing to me that I've never seen one dropped. It's quite a fun way to entertain yourself for free (assuming someone else pays to buy the fish so they will toss it). I also think it's cool that they have it set up so tourists can have fish packed and shipped to them, or packed to take on the plane. Fancy.

So now, party pooper Pita is complaining because the fish are dead. Okay, fine, they would complain if live ones were tossed too. I personally would not want to see that either. But fish are tasty and meant to be eaten, especially fresh.* (And I have my own personal fisherman, who brings me fresh Salmon occasionally, which is THE BEST, so I know.) A bunch of Veterinarians are getting together for a conference, and they wanted to have a demo from the Pike Place fish fellas. Poopy Pita caught wind, and they sent a letter complaining about dead fish being treated "as toys." Um, no. Not toys. Flying food. And who doesn't dream about their food flying from time to time. And apparently the Vets backed out and are no longer having the demo. But you can bet if the conference is in Seattle, they'll all be going to the market to see them fly on their own time anyways. So neener, neener Pita.

* Don't get me wrong, I don't think animals should be mistreated or abused. They should be treated with respect, down to the way they are killed and used afterwards. But I believe in eating meat. It is good for you, and it's here for us. I read that on the Internet. Just kidding. I read it in the Bible. I am not saying that we should kill and eat it all, or that it should be all that we eat, either. Balanced diets are good. And part of a balanced diet includes a little bit o' meat from time to time, at least in my world. My vegetarian friends find ways around that, and that's cool. But I will never love tofu or beans or the like that much.

Be Prepared. It's Not Just for the Boy Scouts.

Today I need to talk to you about a serious event that is looming in the not-so-distant horizon. As my family and friends, I want you all to be prepared for this undeniable eventuality. Specifically, the world is going to end in three years.

It's true. I googled it. Not only is there an informative movie, but there is this book, this book (which is more about how our global consciousness will change as we change out our calendars, so no death in that one, possibly--sounds pretty far-fetched to me), and this Newsweek article. And clearly, Newsweek is saying we are all going to die. I'm frankly surprised the media is being so irresponsible and not reporting this with the urgency that they should. I would think at least my boyfriend Anderson would.

What do I do, you ask? Why, join the lottery, of course. Space is filling up, as you can see from the handy little graph on the left. There appears to be quite a bit left in North America, but obviously those spaces will go like hotcakes after the informative movie comes out. I know I want to secure my place in the subterranean city in Antartica.*

Also, keep up on your reading. It's good to be informed.


*This site is created by Sony for their movie. Don't get too excited.

Just Say No to Tobacco

See how that rhymes? It totally does. Today's hot topic from CNN is smoking. Apparently the American Medical Association Alliance has had enough. They are calling for all movies that depict characters smoking to be rated R. The reasoning is that apparently there is a study that shows that seeing these images inspires teenagers to start smoking. The actual article is much more clear if you prefer facts over vagueness. As much as I will acknowledge that smoking is yucky, and that I wish my friends would not do it (and yes I know it's hard to quit and I'm not getting all Judgey McJudgerson here, I just worry about you), I'm not sure this is the right approach. In conversations I've had with friends about why they starting smoking, usually the answer has something to do with the fact that all their other friends were doing it and it sounded good at the time. Of course, there may be deeper psychological factors that they can't fully pinpoint. Maybe they DO just want to be Sandy so they can hook their Danny.

Think of the movies and shows we loved back in the day that totally promoted smoking:

1. Alice in Wonderland

2. Newsies

3. Footloose (because Bad Boys smoke)

4. Pretty in Pink (because Bad Boys smoke in the hallways of high school)

5. The Odd Couple

6. The Flinstones

7. I Love Lucy (to keep your man happy).

8. The Muppets

9. The A-Team

And, by the way, guess what you are all getting for Christmas.

Not to discount the value in not portraying smoking in a positive light on screen, because I'm sure there is value there, but I think possibly it has a wee bit less to do with what we see on screen, and more with the messages we get at home. K and I were talking about how we watched a lot of the above shows, but we also got the message that smoking is yucky, and that we don't do that. I think parents really do have a lot of power to shape the opinions of their wee ones. I had no idea when I was little that people turn to cigarettes when they are stressed, because of something the nicotine does when you are addicted, er whatever. I just knew it smelled yucky and was bad for you. Also that Mom frowned on pulling the butts one might find in the street apart, and that inside the butts, there was a weird cotton substance. What is that, anyways?

On the other hand, I know kids/adults whose parents smoke who will NEVER smoke having watched their parents go through the struggle of trying to quit over and over, and the health issues, and I know people whose parents abhor smoking who are chain smokers. So there you have it. I guess my point is, kids, don't smoke. Apparently my neighbor missed that memo because I smell smoke wafting through my window right now. So much for that "non-smoking" building.

Seriously?

There are no words.