Getting Better...

This'll make me sound like a cranky-old-fart, but yesterday's malaise was apparently a bout with blood pressure. About 4:30 or so, we took it, and it was about 110/96 - which is not my normal... I'm normally in the 110-range, but the 96-range is high-ish for me and that's why I felt "off" all day.

So today I'm back at work. And tonight is my last night subbing another teacher's yoga class. It's been a horribly busy week for me, and I still have some issues hanging out, which is bothersome to me. I want things cleared up; and in one case, I can't take the bull by the horns, because I need to wait on someone else. Not my strong  suit, particularly when the other person is beyond-busy and appears to not be in the same hurry that I'm in. 

Yoga...

Had a bit of a dilemma; I'm managing my friend's yoga studio while she's away, and subbing like crazy. 

And the person who was subbing the 4 p.m. class called me at 1:50 and asked if I could take THAT class as well.

Dang. While I'll try to move heaven and earth for people, I also have a day job. And so I said that I couldn't, and would you please try to procure a sub other than me? No go. 

So, sadly, I had to cancel the class. The teacher is out of town. The sub is sick. And the other sub (me) has a day job. 

Some days, you just have to know when you can't do something. It had to happen sooner or later. I do feel bad; I hate turning away students, but I can't be in 2 places at once. I know my friend will understand, but the frustration is still there. 

Is that a complex? I'm only one person, after all. Or is that last statement a lame justification??

Knitting...

So I brought Kid's Afghan today. And have done NOT ONE STITCH. It won't happen till I'm home from the 6 p.m. yoga class - I wish I could've made it happen, but since I was out sick yesterday, I had a list-long amount of "stuff" to do to get caught up. 

I wish I could say that I'm making progress. But maybe just knowing I'll put in a row or two later on is enough for right now.

I admit one thing: socks are NOT "instant gratification" projects! Yes, they work up quickly, but think about it. Size 2 needles. Thin yarn. There's about 425 yards-worth of yarn in an average pair of socks. That's what? Probably 100,000 stitches? Per sock... so even if I knitted faster, "instant" is hardly the term I'd give these.

Are they quicker than a sweater? Yep. At least a grown person's sweater. Baby sweaters are actually the quickest. But at any rate, the Teal Sock grew by about 12 rows last night. Man - 5" of leg is taking forever. I wonder if they'd take forever if I chucked The Schedule and just knitted on them? No - sticking to The Schedule. I hate to be rigid, but in this case, it's the only way to get on top of my endless pile of WIPs.

The Birth Control Question...

Well, statement. FACT: The most popular forms of birth control DO NOT cause an abortion. These forms (IUD, Birth Control Pills, etc.) change the consistency of the uterine wall or otherwise make the uterus inhospitable for a sperm cell. Or they stop the egg from dropping. Or, in the case of a condom, they prevent the sperm from even getting there. 

Egg + sperm = baby. If you're missing part of that equation, you got nutthin' -- no baby, no fetus, no conception. 

Definition: Contraception -- The deliberate use of artificial methods or other techniques to PREVENT pregnancy as a consequence of sexual intercourse. 

Did you see the "prevent" part??? It's not an abortion. I don't care how you want to argue that. Plain, factual SCIENCE says it's not. If A + B don't mix, there's no baby. Plain. Simple. Science.

Yet the Hobby Lobby folks are trying to argue (and it looks as if they have Justice Kennedy convinced) that birth control is equal to abortion. 

Lucky for the rest of us sane people, Kagan, Sotomayor, and Ginsberg are asking pointed and fact-based questions. 

I hope it's enough. 

Birth control, for women, can be used for many things. And this is a tired, tired argument. Tired only because we've shouted it from the rooftops for ages, and still the Christian conservatives can't hear it. 

I used birth control during my more fertile years because I had bad periods. Seriously, I would have a 3-week long period. I was anemic. I was fainting at work. I was bleeding so badly (sorry - now will be TMI) that I had to not only double-up on protection, but when I'd sit in a meeting, when I had to get up, I had to do so carefully - I had more than one occasion where I had to leave work because, in spite of protection strong enough to withstand a Noah-like flood, it still happened that I had to leave and change clothes. 

One day, Hubby and I were visiting my granny, before she sold her house. I was standing, because I had back cramps really bad and I needed to stretch. All of a sudden, I felt it. And my granny looked down at her floor. Which was now in need of a scrubbing because everything let loose. She was pretty cool about it. Handed me a wad of paper towels, handed Hubby a large garbage bag and said, "I guess you'll have to go home." I was about 44 at the time, and honestly, it looked as if I had a miscarriage. 

Sorry for the graphic visuals. My point is this: that decision FOR birth control, was one that I made with my doctor. I also had an endometrial ablation. My doctor and I discussed a hysterectomy, but he felt that that procedure was drastic. 

My point about THAT is these were discussions between my doctor, Hubby and me. My employer didn't have any say in it. 

As it should be.

Hobby Lobby would like to not pay for birth control. Fine. Don't. Hobby Lobby would like to deconstruct and disassemble the Affordable Care Act. No, you can't do that. It's helping so many people, and it's no where near "socialized medicine" - that being something that wingnuts seem to froth about. Even though they don't understand that ACA is basic medical insurance reform. And even then - it's not all that great for some folks. 

Either way. You don't get to talk to my doctor unless we're married. The employer/employee relationship has its limits, and for me, that's when my health is under discussion. 

OK, the only reason that might be different? If I had an ailment or disability whereby my employer would be asked to make reasonable accommodations for me. 

Birth control is none of my employer's business. Hobby Lobby needs to keep it that way for their (mostly female) workforce. Funny - here's a great solution: Just stop offering benefits. 

As I remember from an article I read - you didn't offer them at one point. Problem solved.