 |
| Deer's Dinner... |
... Yup. A week ago, these were in full glory. These were the lovely coral bells. They still ARE the lovely coral bells, but significantly trimmed by our "deer" friends at work. Taken through the window as we're having hail, fire, flood and frogs today in the weather forecast.
At least the blossoms are still there (click and enlarge) so the butterflies and bees will be happy.
I planted these last year, and they did "ok." This year, they took off, and came through our incredibly nasty winter just fine. And they were nice and bushed out.
Oh well. Deer gotta live, too...
Knitting...
 |
| Jordana Paige bag |
Talk about a random act of kindness! When I finally got to meet my knitting friends, we were ready to go to Le Mouton Rouge Knittery, because they wanted some Fluromania yarn. As we were leaving, J comes out with this Jordana Paige bag. "I don't like it. Do you want it?" I said, "Sure; what do you want for it?" She handed it to me and said, "Take it." This is about $80 - 90 worth of knitting bag. She says it's too heavy and that I could probably use it since I still travel for work. Well, not a lot, but I can certainly use it. It goes in the closet (well, I'm using it now) with the other JP and Namaste bags. I'm gradually weeding out my purses till about all I have are the combo knitting/purse bags.
As to the Fluro sock. Well, I almost had a conniption. J said I was nuts to cast on 72 stitches and it was "huge." I thought, crap - gotta frog. But I tried it on yesterday. Now, it may EVENTUALLY be too big, since my feet and legs swell due to the heart Rx.
But surprisingly, this one fit. Nicely. And remember, I've got "biker calves" so I wanted more room there. I can't quite figure out how to decrease down without being unable to get the sock over my ankle, if I need more room at the calf.
Hubby, who has apparently (a) learned from his Great Sock Mistake; and (b) been married to a knitter for a while, says, "Can't you felt it??" Well, probably not, since it's 75% wool and 25% nylon, but I'm sure it'll be ok.
I'm debating the toe. Should I try Star toe? I'm reading where the round toe may be a little flimsy. I usually do Kitchener Stitch. There appears to be no good spot to find out which toe is more durable.
I really might try Star toe. I've wanted to, and I have some decent directions. It's only a sock.
Next sock will probably be along the line of the FrankenSock with a spiral rib pattern on the cuff and perhaps Strong heel. I've gotta branch out as long as I'm on a sock kick.
The Kid & The House...
Well. Disappointing news. But good lesson. The house failed the home inspection. I mean FAILED the inspection. In a huge, big, very bad way. The inspector went over the house from roof to basement, and there are seven really nasty things that have caused The Kid to walk away.
Thing one: Roof damage where we couldn't see it. Hail damage, and with the mansard roof, bad flashing and crickets (the part that makes the roof connect with the other sections of roof) - enough so that there's raccoon poop in one of the gullies, and it shouldn't have a gully there.
Thing two: Rotted wood throughout, some on the garage roof, some on the front pillars and door frames, and on just about every window frame. Paint covers a lot.
Thing three: Asbestos. I knew that it was there!! I pointed to it with the Realtor, and she assured me that it wasn't what I thought I was looking at. It's friable (breaking off) asbestos on many of the pipes in the basement. Many of the pipes which should have been removed when they updated the plumbing.
Of course, there's also
Thing four: The plantings right up to the foundation, which perhaps have caused leaking of water into the basement; and
Thing five: The deck supports (under the new deck) are rotted.
Thing six: The "updated" wiring -- isn't ALL updated. There's still some of the old porcelain connectors with corroded wires. Yes, there IS an updated fusebox. But too many of the old connectors are still live and not wired into the new box.
Thing seven: No attic ventilation (which I also noticed).
Good thing: No mold anywhere.
All in all, if you wanted to rehab a house, this would be your house. If, on the other hand, you're a first-time home buyer, perhaps ONE of these things would be fixable (I mean, of 1, 2 and 3 -- and 5). But to have rotted wood, a bad roof, AND asbestos? Walk away.
So The Kid talked to me about "how do I do this?" and then called the Realtor. We truly believe it's not a case of deliberate "sell this pig to a dummy." I know that some of the damage had been there for a while. I believe that the homeowners put paint on it and figured, "We'll get to this." And then they had 4 kids and you know how that went.
He's going to rent for a year or so (less, if he can get a 6-month lease) and then purchase. At least this way, too, we can take time. It was cutting close for his start date and this way he can look around.
The Realtor mentioned that he could "ask" for the sellers to fix things, but he did say, "You know, asbestos is a deal-breaker." All in all, it cost him a couple hundred bucks, but he learned a LOT about what to look for.
Even if Hubby and I were inclined to buy a property like this - it's a lot to tackle unless you really are a contractor yourself.
So he'll be making appointments to see some rentals next week. I've offered to go with him on Tuesday, which will give me a break from
The Great Freak-Out...
I am totally NOT happy with my cardiologist's nurse. Not my sister, who works in that office. She, as a matter of fact, wants to strangle the woman.
See, I'm scheduled to have a CT scan of my heart next week. But I'm allergic to the IVP dye. Not the "I want to barf" variety of allergic. The "I can't breathe" variety.
And yes, I know - it was almost 30+ years ago that I had the reaction. And things have changed. BUT - research (Mayo Clinic) says that you STILL have a good chance of reaction to the new stuff if you did to the old.
She's messing me around, saying, "Oh, Doc wants you to have the test" and talking to me like a 12-year-old. Which is Annoyance the First.
Annoyance the Second is that she's obviously not communicating to the doctor what my concerns actually are. So she says "Doc wants you to go see an allergist." We went 10 rounds with me explaining that I already have an allergist and that the test for IVP is a blood draw. She said, "I've never heard of that." I said, "It's because you don't work for an allergist."
I was losing my temper. So I'm going to call my allergist to get the exact name of the test. SHE has to ask the doc which dye he's using. And between the 2 of us, get a test scheduled before the 16th...
WHY they waited??? I've been a patient there for over 2 years, and it's all over my medical records. I will be complaining to the office manager. I already expressed my dismay to the nurse, but you could feel the breeze blowing as it went in one ear and out the other.
I'm not REFUSING to have the test. I'm asking for an ALTERNATIVE, so that I can survive it.
Raisa and The Collar of Shame...
 |
| The Collar of Shame |
We tried the "pillow collar" for her, after her spay. She slipped out of that quicker than spit. Well, she's got a lot of hair, and looks bigger than she actually is.
We didn't want to use the cone, and this was recommended for her.
She is not happy. This morning, she finally ate and drank some water. She perked up and did sing the Happy Toast Song. We're keeping her home from obedience tomorrow. She'll likely be physically able to go, but as you can see, no bandage. And it's too soon, I think. She can wait a week. Let her relax and heal a bit.
Butterflies are Free...
 |
| What kind of butterfly? |
And on the cone flowers. I'm not sure which variety this is. But it's cute and prolific. The bees have been back, too. But I haven't been able to get a good shot of them. I may have to pull out the Canon.
The verbena (hot pink) and butterfly bush are finally blooming. But we need a lot more sun. The butterfly bush would be twice its size if it was out from under the big maple.
Many of the day lilies are blooming and we are overrun with marigolds. But it's all bright and lovely, so I can't complain too much.
We may rip out the remaining two rosebushes, which are now all stem-and-thorn and nary a bud on them.
Yes, I'm still on my quest to make fully half the front yard into a garden.
The dill has collapsed somewhat. It's in pots, and probably would do better wild, but then it does take over. Anyway, it's all due to the wet. I need to harvest some of that and keep it set aside since the cucumbers are taking their time.
The Eating Plan...
I know I shouldn't look at the scale. It's a roller coaster for a while and I'm over the "I want to eat EVERYTHING" phase. But today, I've done 2 rounds of Almased shakes. I'm really not horribly hungry, and I need a bit of a kick-start, if only for my own mental health.
Almased tastes good, especially with non-sweetened chocolate almond milk! And I don't usually use the flax seed, though I do have it. I should probably add it.
It's not cheap. But it's the only one I've managed to use that doesn't make me feel all bloaty and annoyed.
I didn't lose the weight I wanted to, before the Florida trip. And I really wanted to lose the weight before the heart procedure. But at any rate, a week of this should be good. It'll give me an incentive, even if I use it twice a day and eat a salad with protein at the end of the day.
Really, Tennessee??
So this happened... Tennessee, which state TURNED DOWN Medicaid expansion, has a governor who's a blithering idiot. Check out THIS STORY where, in his infinite wisdom, he's decided to have women arrested if they're using drugs while pregnant.
OK, I kind of get that. You're carrying another human being; you need to be careful with drugs, alcohol and tobacco. But hey - here's an idea... Since TN has a large population of under-served women in regard to basic health, women's issues and the like? How about ALLOWING the expanded Medicaid?
Then, maybe, women can learn what most of us who have "real" medical care know: that this is something pretty basic.
But nooooooooooooo - this macho man would rather jail them. No matter that these women will be jailed under his own direction. No matter that this disproportionately nails the poor in his state.
You gotta be loyal to the party. At any expense.
Just read the story, please. And thankfully, the ACLU is seeking plaintiffs to challenge this law.
Again - someone without ovaries making a sweeping decision about those of us who have them. Which brings us to...
Random Picture...
Ok, Random GRAPHIC. And, appropriately, by a woman. This quote by Jane Goodall means a lot to me.
Read it and tell me what you think. Someone said that perhaps women, being more likely the "nurturers," would have more influence.
I'm not sure about that. But what I am sure about is that we, as a society, have to take into account our actions.
We're no longer isolated. We're interconnected to a degree that boggles the mind. What we do has an impact on people. Whether deliberate (like our friend the governor of TN) or not, our actions mean something to someone.
Whether a family member, a co-worker, the person who bags your groceries, or even the person who cuts you off in traffic.
I'm just as guilty of being frustrated and angry. But I'm trying to just take a breath. Realizing that maybe that person is having a crappy day. Trying to put myself in his or her shoes, so that I can maybe acknowledge what's going on.
And many times, I fail. I shake my head. I make a judgment, and sometimes that turns into an action. Whether a deliberate action on my part that affects someone -- or an action that affects a complete other person. Because of a judgment I made about someone else.
It's a difficult task to work on. But it's worth it in the long run.
We all talk about "paying it forward." At least I hope we do. And we all like to think we're doing our bit to make our society a better place.
At least I hope we do.
But here's a guy who's put his wallet where his mouth is: he paid up some kids' lunches in a local school after hearing about that school in Utah that tossed lunches for kids who had outstanding lunch ticket debt.
I love the comment he made: "These kids need to worry about the grade they get in spelling."
I wonder how many of us will take his lead and do something like this? It doesn't have to be a forever thing. It doesn't have to be EVERY kid... When we help one person, we create a ripple effect. So help one kid and pass this on to a friend.
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2014/02/06/houston-man-pays-school-lunch-debts/
I don't normally post entire links, but I found the headline compelling, as I hope you do. If you are fortunate, you should feel easy enough to share your good with others.
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE pass this link on. The good that man did is really beyond compare. No, it's not finding the cure for cancer.
But maybe he helped a kid get lunch and THAT KID might be the one who finds that cure.
I think I'm going to call our local grade school... we have a school that's pretty poor, and my kids went there - and got an excellent education, by the way! So maybe I can help another kid out...
Knitting...
 |
| Cup Cozy |
Was going to go with the super-easy-instant-gratification cup cozy today at lunch, but it's been a busy day at work. Suffice to say that I've got about 1" more on it. And about 40 more rows on the Nephew Afghan. I'll be working on that one tonight.
Sad news at Le Mouton Rouge Knittery... She was robbed! The good news is that they did catch the young man. The bad news is that it happened at all. I hope that the young man wakes up -- he's headed down a very wrong path.
The afghan pic is my "super-lovely yarn bowl." Also known as one of my steel mixing bowls. You can get cutesy, but when you're working with what's essentially "bulky" yarn, you go with efficiency, right? This is the last 2 hanks and honestly, all kidding aside: I want this thing DONE. Where are the Yarn Fairies when you need them???
It's now too big to haul to my knitting group. I think I'll have to suss out one of the Second Socks to finish instead of taking this beast out. I believe I can lay my hands on them. Will look tonight.
 |
| Free Yarn Bowl! |
I have set aside the February Lady Sweater. I could bring that to knitting. It would probably help because I believe I'm at the juncture where I might need some expert help. But for right now, maybe a mindless sock is just about all I need.
Angel...
I will often tell people, "I'll light a candle for you" when they need prayer or good thoughts. In the church we now attend, I can't figure out whether they actually USE the candle section!! And anyway, it's a small spot just inside the door, which to my mind isn't ideal. Heaven knows I don't want to burn the place down! I have never seen it lit, so I don't want to commit a churchy faux pas.
So I have this angel. I usually will light this up. It's a lovely bit of stained glass I purchased - oh gosh - about 25 years ago?? Maybe more?? I can't remember. But she sits on my bookshelf. I don't use her as a night light. But I do use her as my "prayer light."
It's a little hard to see from this angle, but she has a pearly white body, her wings are all rainbow-y when she's lit or in the light, and her head is a faceted crystal.
So if you ever need prayers, let me know - and I'll turn on the angel for you.
Honestly, some folks feel all quibby about "prayers" - because perhaps they are private about their own beliefs; they have no specific church; they're atheists - no matter what. It's just a thing.
Myself, I've found lately that "you have my prayers" makes me uncomfortable. I feel better telling someone that I'm holding them in my thoughts.
This little angel is a good way to hold someone in those thoughts. Every time I see her in my home office, I pause and think about someone.
I have a Himalayan salt candle in my work office. Not only is it good for the air (removing impurities) but it also takes a little tea light, which takes about 4 hours to burn through - I don't have to worry about inadvertently leaving a candle burning when I leave. I light that every day I'm in the office. It serves as a reminder to stop and think of people or even stop and breathe.
Whatever works - that's the way I feel about it. What are your devices to remember people and acknowledge them? I would be interested to hear about them.
Weather...
 |
| Baby, it's COLD outside! |
Yes, it's cold. Yes, this is a cheesy dash-temp shot at 8:44 a.m. today. And yes, we're in for more on Saturday. And of course I work. I worked LAST Saturday and the instructor called the class off. After I got there. But it was actually a good thing I was there, because one of the HVAC units on the roof had fizzled and the back of the campus was about 50*. Great for August. Not so great when it's 1* outside!!
So this weekend, Saturday will again be the big snow. Well, "will be ANOTHER BIG SNOW" is probably the better way to put it.
This time, I will check my work e-mail -- last week, I was thinking that our school would cancel classes. Silly me... I also gave the instructor my cell phone number. Hopefully, (a) the class won't be cancelled; or (b) I'll know about it before I drive out there!
I am waiting for the temps to be a tad more... well, temperate! I loaned my cross-country skis to my friend G - she wants to get back into it and I can't ski for crap. I love to snow shoe, and if it gets a little less chilly - i.e. you can breathe without freezing your lungs - perhaps Hubby and I can get out onto one of the easier trails.
I would do it, by the way, WITHOUT the dogs. I'm still building back my endurance, which may seem strange to you what with all that yoga training. But these heart meds - they're making it harder for me to get my heart rate up (a good thing for arrhythmia but a bad thing when you get chilled outside; it's harder to warm up) and they've sucked my endurance out the window. At least this way, we won't have the Three Beasts dragging us in search of deer.
In point of exercise, by the way, I have pulled the weighted hula hoop from behind my door. I can only do the thing for about 2 or 3 minutes. But it's also got knobs on the inside, so my ribs feel a bit "pummeled" when I get done. I'm trying to move more and perhaps this will help in the long run.
And speaking of that, I've renewed my commitment to a "cleaner" diet way of eating. If I use better language, it helps me stay on track!! The reason this is appropriate here is because the "clean-up" involves lots of salads! And it's cold outside.
I'm craving mac & cheese and butternut squash soup. Not kale salad. But - I went into a comfort-food tailspin this summer and I need to drag myself, kicking and screaming, out of it.
The worst part is the first part because it's just dumping the sugar. You don't realize how much sugar you really eat! But I'm hanging in there and I know it'll pay off in more energy, better "numbers" during my check-ups and frankly, yeah: I'll weigh a lot less. When I weigh less, I hurt less. Believe me, it's only partly vanity. The other part is just being fed up with hurting. Arthritis - at least at this stage - is a "hidden" ailment. I just hurt. A lot. And it's no fun.
I mean, I know people have it a lot worse than I do. I can still shovel snow. I can still do a lot of yoga. I can still knit, play guitar, walk without assistance - crikey, I'm VERY lucky. I have all of my original joints. But I want to be better. I want to get back to being able to do stuff with Hubby without him worrying that I'm going to keel over.
And I'd like to take a Level 2 yoga class - of course I still can't invert, but a nice flow yoga sequence would be good.
Autherine Lucy...
 |
| Autherine Lucy |
I found this as part of a FB page I manage. I try to put something up there every day or so on Women's History and today we have a two-fer - Ms. Lucy was the first black student admitted to the University of Alabama. She was expelled because she accused administrators of conspiring in riots. Hers was a court-ordered admittance. She did not go back right away, but later did earn a Master's Degree.
The point of this is that there are "rights" and these rights should not be viewed through the lens of race, the lens of gender, or the lens of anything else you can see.
Women's rights are essentially HUMAN rights. The recent "anniversary" and sturm-und-drang about Roe v. Wade is OLD NEWS, folks. As Kid #2 asked, "Didn't you fight that fight?" - and he can't see why there's such a determination to overturn a lawful decision of SCOTUS. To be honest, no, I didn't fight that fight. I was in high school. A Catholic high school, to boot. But I have taught the boys to use their brains and to see that really, each person should be able to make his or her own health decisions. When you're part of a couple, it's reasonable to expect that you would certainly discuss this with your partner.
But really - I don't want anyone else in my uterus.
My personal feeling? (I know y'all are waiting for it...) If you want to overturn a decision of SCOTUS, how'z about that Citizens United ruling? Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm??? We get all that Koch Kash out of our elections???
There's a thought.
Random Picture...
This is a card that I bought for a fundraiser for John Nelsen Moosedog Rescue Fund. It's made by Mandy Smithers - Google her, she makes fantastic cards!!
Anway, this is what I plan to do tonight. In between rows of the Nephew Afghan!
I bought a couple of these and used one for a thank-you note for a gift Tippi got from one of our therapy partners.
Mandy's cards are suitable for any occasion and they're works of art in and of themselves. I'm going to frame the extra one I bought. Pink is Tippi's color. Each dog has her color. Quinn's is red and Raisa's is purple.
The cards are blank inside for your own sentiment. Help out a woman-owned enterprise if you're interested in some special cards!
Just in case anyone had any confusion about where I stand, let me explain this clearly.
Women are human, sentient beings. They are not incubators. Test tubes. Hatcheries. Fertilization pods.
We are actually quite capable of making our own decisions. And I get so tired of Republican agendas being all about the uterus. Especially when those drawing up that agenda are white males... Why would any woman be Republican in 2014??
Brain dead...
Dr. Cory Franklin wrote a very compelling opinion piece in today's Chicago Tribune. It's called "When are you officially dead?" and it discusses the very tragic case of 13 year old Jahi McMath, who went into relatively routine surgery and something went horribly, horribly, horribly wrong. She's brain dead. No hope for recovery.
According to Dr. Franklin, the accepted standard of "death" is "brain dead." In other words, you have no functioning brain activity. Oh, you can be kept "alive" on a machine, but you have, for all intents and purposes, flat-lined. Jahi has no brain activity. No electrical activity in the brain. No blood flow to the brain. She's unable to breathe on her own.
Yet her parents sued (and won) to keep her on a ventilator and moved to a facility "...that accepts responsibility for a patient declared dead."
OK. It's horrible to lose a child. She's been declared dead by three neurologists, and the coroner of Alameda County, CA. Yet her parents saw something. I don't know what. And now, the LA Times says her body is "deteriorating." The family maintains that as long as her heart is beating, she's alive. However, a professor of law and ethics says that "once cessation of all brain activity is confirmed, there is no recovery."
For God's sake. Is there a compassionate physician or nurse or clergy who can explain that the only reason this poor child's heart continues to beat is because of the machinery?
Speaking of which...
In North Texas, there's a woman who is brain dead but being kept alive against her family's wishes. Because there's this quirk in Texas law (when isn't there a quirk, especially if it screws women?) that says you can't disconnect a pregnant woman from life support.
The usual pregnancy, all things going well, is 32 weeks. The baby is "technically" viable, though still in extreme danger, at 24 weeks at the soonest. This woman was 14 weeks pregnant when she had what they assume was a pulmonary embolism. That's TEN WEEKS on life support. And that's a big freakin' deal. Because if she's in a brain-dead state, there's no activity. There's no life. She's an incubator, and frankly - not a very good one, because the body will start to deteriorate. And technically, if she's brain-dead, she has no "condition" medically speaking. Dead is dead.
The family wants her disconnected. The hospital interprets Texas law to say they can't do that. However, medical ethics experts say they can - they just lose immunity for a lawsuit. Seems to me, Texas is once again in the uterus. Where it has no business being.
Knitting...
What would a knitter do? I need a hat. So instead of trucking to my local Target, I cruised around and found a pattern. Found some lovely Kauri yarn in my stash, and I'm knitting a hat. So far, it's going well, and I should have a hat by Sunday.
Here's the scoop: The yarn is a yummy Kauri, from Zealana, and it's worsted weight. It's a blend of New Zealand merino, possum and silk. This teal color is lovely, and it's a nice warm beanie. The link goes to Jimmy Beans, but I got this at a lovely shop in Indianapolis, IN. The shop is called Knit Stop and if you click on their name, you can see what they're about. It was a charming shop and was a nice side trip during our visit to the Knit and Crochet Guild event this past summer.
The pattern is Strawberry Fields Hat, which is looking to be a "mock cable" kind of thing. I'm doing it on DPNs and my only wish was that I had longer DPNs because of the bulk of the yarn. I don't have a 16" size 7 circular...
It's about a 2" band, then about 6" of body and then you start the decreases. I'm really liking this yarn, but I have to say that in the worsted weight, I'd only do hat, mittens, scarf or mitts. Anything else seems like it would be super-duper warm. Way to warm for me with hot flashes!!
The pattern description says "easy lace" -- which is true: the pattern is quite easy and quickly memorized. With the right beginning knitter, I could teach them this pattern. But lace? I'm not sure yet. I mean, yeah, there are holes, deliberately placed, but the yarn overs and psso technique kind of leaves me feeling "cable" rather than "lace."
What do you think?
Random Picture...
The snow people from my office. Well, actually, they lived in my basement for years. They were a gift from a friend who somehow thought we had (a) a larger house; and (b) a fireplace... We don't. Either of them.
So for a while, we put them in the house, but with the dogs, and just feeling "cramped," they lived in the basement for a long time, and then when I got to the place I work now, I was able to put them out.
First, they lived in the vestibule. But then I thought that the little niche in the front of the reception desk was cool. And they fit! They'll stay there through February. Yes, there's a teensy bit of holly in their hats, but when outside looks arctic, snowmen are cool.
See? A pun.
Weak, but a pun.
...as in "truckin through the mush."
Big news: It's snowing again. Now, I don't mean I'm all "Henny Penny" about it. Just saying that our current weather is 19*F with "feels like" at 10* and snow showers.
Tomorrow, it turns to rain. Saturday it turns to sleet. Welcome, January. We went from -45* at the beginning of the week to Sunday's upcoming high of 40* - ABOVE zero, mind you. Darn nearly spring weather...
So now that 2014 is here, let's get back to the interesting stuff. Not that food, reading and knitting are NOT interesting, but I did take a slight holiday break from "The Insanity." Let's have some discussion, though. It's time.
Women...
From a study done by a Harvard economist which indicated that flexible hours would lessen the gender pay gap to those good ol' boy Republicans who want to legislate women back into servitude. We're head-slappingly going back to fight fights we oughtn't have to fight in this century.
In the Chicago Tribune the other day, Professor Claudia Goldin (gasp! a WOMAN!) states that gender salary differentials "would be considerably reduced and might vanish altogether if firms did not have an incentive to disproportionately reward individuals who labord long hours and worked particular hours."
Translation: How come women 25 - 69 years of age, working full time, still make 77% of what men earn? She says that the pay gap in industries with more flexible work schedules (science, technology, health) is smaller than that of other industries with more rigid workdays (those professions include financial and legal professions).
"Quite simply, the gap exists because hours of work in many occupations are worth more when given at particular moments and when the hours are more continuous," says her study. Here's her solution to closing that gender pay gap: workers must get more autonomy in determining their schedules. Read the entire article here.
I'm 55. I have worked in office settings where I had to be at a certain place at a certain time. I actually had to pay my kid's Catholic school a fee every month because I was unable to do my monthly "lunch monitor" work. Well, because I had to WORK to pay the tuition. Plus, of course, the fee for not being able to volunteer because I had to work.
Can you see where this argument goes? Now, I have my MA and my MBA and I work a more flexible schedule. But there are still so many women stuck in "pink collar" jobs - and whether they're stuck by training or inclination, they're still stuck. And I'm not saying that we don't need those kinds of jobs. We do.
Crap - ANY jobs now are good ones!
That being said, why must it only be the women who've been able to break the mold of traditional office jobs who can take advantage of that lesser pay gap? Frankly, it's the ones stuck in the cube farm or in other work where the day is fairly regimented who really need the smaller pay gap.
But of course, we're talking about women. Who, even though they are in large part major contributors to their family's incomes, are still considered "less than" by employers. Men still get more than women, for doing the same job.
It is 2014, right?
Of course, with jobs at a premium here in the US anyway, I suppose I shouldn't carp on it, but it bugs me that the fights that were fought in the 70s and 80s are now either being re-fought or aren't won yet. How long will this take?
Sooooooooooo... The Republicans are trying again to legislate birth control and abortion, battles we thought we'd already dealt with. Because, you know, nothing else is going on.
But there's good news on the ACA front: Breast cancer prevention drugs must be covered. See this link and rejoice! Now, if we can get more research money toward lung cancer, pancreatic cancer and ovarian cancer, we'd be golden.
Yesterday on Make it Plain, I heard Dahlia Lithwick talk about Supreme Court Justice Sonya Sotomayor and her rather interesting decision regarding the Little Sisters of the Poor, a religious order with one of many ACA "I don't want your birth control mandate" lawsuits. The issue appears to be a release form.
Here's how it goes. You object to the ACA mandate. Okey-dokey. Do you fit into one of the categories that qualify? Yes. Okey-dokey. Please sign this form.
Whoaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa, says Little Sisters. If WE sign this form then it means SOMEONE ELSE has to give our employees birth control. And we object to THAT. Their ability to give our employees birth control violates OUR religious views. Here's the story.
Now just hang on a pea-picking moment here, good Sisters. My take on this is thus: It's none of your business what I do. If you object to providing birth control, peachy. Object. Sign the form. Move on.
But no. You have to force YOUR religion down ANYONE else's throat. That makes no sense. Well, maybe a warped manner of sense.
So if I object to the war (Doesn't matter which one. Pick one.) and I register that objection, then that's the end of the argument. I don't get to object to anyone else's stand in the issue. Because that slope is more slippery than an Illinois freeway right now.
That would cause whole segments of commerce and society to collapse.
Oh, and it would likely cause the ACA to collapse. Regardless of the good the ACA does (see the cancer drug mentioned above), regardless of the countless people it'll help. "Ye Gods and Little Fishes, we WILL NOT HAVE BIRTH CONTROL." (stomp your foot here)
Just because the Little Sisters (or insert your favorite religion here) have that belief does not entitle them to push that on anyone else. Because that, my children, is then called a theocracy.
And let me remind you of the 1796 Treaty of Tripoli. See the first sentence? This treaty was written under the presidency of George Washington and signed under the presidency of John Adams.
"As the government of the United States of America is not in any sense founded on the Christian religion..."
While every one of the Founding Fathers were "religious" - they were most often "deist" - they believed in a God, but nowhere is that God mentioned in the CONSTITUTION, which is our governing document. The Declaration of Independence, a lovely document, is not a governing document. Big difference.
Fewer Republicans...
I liken this to slavery or indentured servitude. A small percentage of the people decide that they know what religion is best. And the rest of us are forced to go along with it. Remember the old movies? What the master of the house believed, everyone had to conform with. When he prayed, the servants prayed. When the plantation owner prayed, his slaves prayed. What he believed, they believed.
Because that's what will happen if we keep to the current trend of legislating freedoms.
 |
| Sr. Joan Speaks |
How come it's "legislating freedoms" when they do it to those of us with ovaries and a uterus, but when it comes to guns it's all "restricting my rights"?
How come y'all are "all about the fetus" but, making Sr. Joan Chittister's point, you all could give a lamb's left leg about the baby AFTER it gets here. In fact, not only that, but you slut-shame the mothers of said children as if the fathers had no earthly responsibility toward the child now living in this world surrounded by your condescending hatred of its very existence. Because it's a CHILD now, not a fetus. As if one has more value than the other.
According to a recent Gallup poll, "record numbers" are registering as Independents. Not Republicans. Actually, the number of registered Republicans seems to be declining. Hey, when you have to have sensitivity training to deal with over 50% of the population (and that's only the gender split, not counting racial lines), then you have problems, kids.
Now, if the Democrats could get as good of a message-making machine, we'd be golden. As an example, we have the redoubtable Chris Christie...Bridge-gate. But on Fox, nary a whisper. What Christie scandal?
We Democrats/Progressives should have such a news network. Though we're not really into suspending belief in the face of evidence...that could be a problem.
Polar Vortex...
Speaking of flying in the face of evidence, there's the "isn't he dead yet?" Pat Robertson claiming that global warming must be a hoax because there are no SUVs on Jupiter.
Ok. And pickles have feathers.
Because that sentence makes as much sense as Robertson's statement. And for good measure, Hannity, Limpblow, Trump, and the rest of FakesNews chimed right in.
"There IS NO GLOBAL WARMING because it's cold."
Ok, guys, here's the thing. GLOBAL. That means the ENTIRE world, not just the silly little bubble you seem to inhabit. See, Australia (Remember, that's on the OTHER side of the Earth) is having summer now. That's how it works. The seasons rotate and while WE have winter here in this hemisphere (follow along, it's not hard), the OTHER hemispheres have other seasons, so Australia, in its hemisphere - the SOUTHERN hemisphere - is having SUMMER.
And they're baking. Record high temps. Heat wave. Massive problems with heat, including wildfires, bats dropping out of the trees and destruction of homes and property. That's why it's called GLOBAL warming. Because the temperatures all across the GLOBE are changing, too rapidly, and because of us stupid humans.
So while I'm sitting here watching the snow fall in Illinois, Queensland is having a raging fire. Because of the heat wave.
Because of global warming.
If you're interested, here's a story on the polar vortex.
Religion...
As if we weren't already bashing enough, right? Well, look at this video and just let the chills go up and down your arms. Scientology. Religion for profit. Urgh.
Again, hearkening back to the news lately, it seems like we're on a crusade. Or I should say a Crusade.
Now I'm the first one to say that, since the dawn of "reality TV" (an oxymoron of massive proportions) society and civility have been going down the flusher. But I don't think a massive swing back to "Puritania" will cure this.
Common sense will. But as the sage said, "Common sense... isn't."
Knitting...
No pictures. Just a note that my mom likes the Nephew Afghan. I saw the bridal registry. Sorry, but I'm sticking to my own gifts: the afghan, and then I got them a convertible punch bowl/cake topper/dip thingie + a "First Christmas" ornament. Done and done.
I'm cool with gift registries. But I'm a renegade. I'm the weird aunt who buys the kids books. Obscure books. Reading is cool.
Oh, and I find I need to knit myself a hat. I've got a cloche pattern for a "fancy church hat" (just for fun, and I have the wool) and a really cute beanie style. I have hats; I just don't have the "right" hat and I have a ton of the grey/black/cream yarn left from the Charity Afghan. I may as well use it.
I don't particularly care what my hats look like, because like I told Roberta from choir, I have very few (read: NONE) "cute" hats. They're all functional.
So I've just searched something like 16 pages of "free knitting hat patterns" and I came up with several. Now to just get the time to knit one before spring...
Raisa...
 |
| Raisa, f/k/a "Dolly" |
We had the home visit. It went fine, for the most part. There were a few stumbles. Like when the volunteer brings Raisa up the front porch and Quinn goes ballistic. Dude... it's HER territory. We should have met down the street.
Or when, as the dogs were licking faces (and I'm talking Raisa licking the faces of Tippi and Quinn, just like a puppy does) and the volunteer kept sticking his hand between them. Great way to lose a finger or encourage a bite.
Ok, there's "puppy licking" and the "stare and flick." The "stare and flick" you really want to avoid, because that's the precursor to trouble. With a capital "T" - which we didn't want. But Puppy Licking is submissive behavior. I learned a lot because after we were done, I contacted a friend in England with masses of years of dog experience, and a friend in TN who not only fostered, but bred, and also had years/decades of experience in huskies, elkies, wolf hybrids, you name it. And I talked with our trainer. To a person, each said, "Pfffffffth - he didn't really know what he was talking about." However, our trainer did say that perhaps he had a placement go really wrong, so he was overreacting to what was going on in our house.
So Tippi responded quite well to Raisa. Then she became oblivious, which is a good sign. Quinn took a while, and it would've been easier if the volunteer hadn't gone all "Cesar" on us and talked about being "the alpha in the room."
Really? It's MY house. Thanks. Aside from the fact that Kid #2 was there, and Hubby, let's face it; I'm really the alpha female in this household. Either way, the kids grew up with northern breeds and this isn't exactly Hubby's first rodeo either.
Nonetheless, we are approved!! Raisa comes on the 18th of January. Puppy all over again. As you can see, she not only found the couch, but found the grunting hedgehog. We have the crate ordered; along with a pad for it. I have spare toys, Kong bones and dishes. We're all set except for the first few sleepless nights.
And realistically, she's our last puppy. I'm in my mid-50s and perhaps at some point, I'll retire. We will have 3 dogs. And when Kid #2 moves out, we more or less lose our in-home dog-watching service. Though he's already said that he's kidnapping -- errrrr - DOGnaping Raisa. "After all, you have THREE and you're only supposed to have TWO." Um, dear child - we will count paws when you leave.
Anyway, you have to add up the vet costs; the fact that you have to train each of them; the fact that you can't exactly up and take off for a trip. Of course, after everyone's housebroken and trained, we can take them with us, or leave them home longer. But you still have to think about things. Particularly since neither Huskies nor Elkhounds are small dogs.
Random Picture...
 |
| Eskimo Snow |
I used to do a lot of counted cross stitch. A lot. Masses. Of course, I still have a cache of WIPs in that media as well. You guessed that, though, didn't you?? Anyway, here's one of the pics in the hallway. I love it. I used a glossy floss on the snowman and I only outlined him. I mean, the fabric is white, so why stitch it over? I don't remember its exact title. But the frame is a lovely denim-dark-blue and it's on the Wall of Fame. One of these days, I have to get a long shot of that. When we repainted, I had hubby gather up all the stuff I'd done and put it all up there. May as well display it, right?
I should put up my Curtis Boehringer snowman for January. I also have one for February, but March is sitting in the cross stitch frame waiting on me. We won't go into the WIPs for counted cross stitch right now.
It would make me want to retire. Well, a lot of things make me want to retire...
